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Lilac Time
Regular Shadowplayer and NATAN collaborator Phoebe "La Faustin" Green enters the fray now with the final film of a screen siren little known and indeed quite new to me. I am thrilled to make her acquaintance ~
"Oh la la, qu'elle a du chien," one of my screening companions growled appreciatively as Marcelle Romée made her first appearance in COEUR DE LILAS (Anatole Litvak, 1932).
Indeed, Marcelle Romée demonstrates that untranslatable quality, the French version of "it" – a careless magnetism, a deep, racy energy under a coolly imperturbable surface. Her face tapers from a high, pearly forehead and wide-set dark eyes to a nose of arrowy delicacy, with perpetually flared nostrils, and a tense, fine-cut cupid's bow mouth. Less than a year after shooting that scene — appearing in her kimono on the landing of a dive hotel to demand that her sheets be changed, then pivoting back with a sullen, "This dump …" — she would be dead.
In the 1920s and 1930s, even before the rise of the Reich sent German and German-based filmmakers fleeing westward, Paris was both location and subject for foreign directors: Kirsanoff, Litvak, Ophuls, Ozep, Pabst, Siodmak, Wilder… They revelled, with what might be thought of as the sensitivity of a fresh eye or the prurience of a slumming tourist, in gleaming cobblestones, misty quais, slinking apaches, fatalistic streetwalkers, hoarse-voiced urchins tearing through the littered no-man's land of the fortifs…
Their presence was condemned, in a 1938 letter to the French Ministry of Internal Affairs by the board of the National Technical Federation of Cinematographic Production, as "causing grave wrong to their French colleagues … They are competing, here and abroad, with our own directors, in their own language. And yet they infuse their films … with a spirit and a character that are not ours. They risk losing for French film on the world market its advantages of elegance, lightness, cleverness, and charm …"
These attractions – the "Frenchness" that was conjured up by Lubitsch or Mamoulian on a Hollywood soundstage – are not to be found in COEUR DE LILAS. And yet it is very, very French:
- The romance of squalor, pugnacious flair, wistful hope – articles de Paris since … Bruant? Rétif de la Bretonne? Villon?
- Location shots that thrill us with the 1932 everydaynesss of La Chapelle's hilly wasteland by the tracks and Les Halles' bustling abundance – contrasted with a burst of freshness on the Marne
- Pathé-Natan studio shots that give us the quintessential tarts' hotel, escaliers de la butte, and honking bal musette of our sordid dreams
- A scenario based on a play by Tristan Bernard (a luminary in his own right and father of Pathé-Natan's key director Raymond Bernard)
- Three beautifully staged songs by Maurice Yvain (composer of "Mon Homme") that variously illustrate, motivate, and counterpoint their scenes
- Marcelle Romée, Jean Gabin, Fréhel, Fernandel …
COEUR DE LILAS opens on the scrubby hills on the northeastern outskirts of Paris, with trains from the gare de l'Est hooting by and a wrong way round glimpse of Sacre Coeur. A gang of little boys apes the soldiers drilling nearby, then, when one of them says he wants "no more war", breaks off to play cops and robbers – though no one wants to be a cop. One of them discovers a man's corpse on the hillside. Gapers and policemen gather promptly.
A quick montage of newspapers brings us up to speed – the victim is an industrialist — a glove found near his body belongs to a tart known as Lilas (Lilac) – an American sailor alibis her for the night in question – suspicion falls on the industrialist's clerk. In the examining magistrate's chambers, the poor cipher is peppered with sardonic questions – didn't he have money troubles? Didn't he know his boss had a large amount of cash on his person? Didn't he pay off an outstanding debt the day after the crime? The victim's widow is received with obsequious attentions and leading questions – the accused's frantic wife with a pointed fingering of her little fur neckpiece. Over her sobs, the camera moves toward the statue of justice in the courthouse waiting room.
So far, so schematic – but André, the young police detective (André Luguet*) who found the glove at the scene of the crime, is convinced of the clerk's innocence. He asks for time off to investigate the original suspect, Lilas, on his own.
Now, twenty minutes in, the film really begins. A barrel organ plays and, punningly synchronised with its whining, the metal shutters of a café are cranked up. This is our Paris.
The young detective checks into Lilas' hotel, a greasy den whose bar is frequented by a tangy assortment of riffraff, led by Jean Gabin's Martousse.
Gabin is a Cagneyesque plug of energy, so springy that he has to counterbalance himself every few minutes by readjusting the slant of his hat. But he moons over Lilas, when she appears on the stairs, as though she were Juliet on her balcony.
André clashes immediately with Martousse, defending Lilas from the latter's apache-style attentions. That evening she comes to his room and stonily begins undressing as a return for services. It's the réaliste version of the pre-Code lingerie scene, and leaves an appropriately nasty taste in the mouth. André, however, insists on going out together instead, and they go to the bal musette across the street. Marousse, embittered by the turn things are obviously taking, sings along with "La Môme Caoutchouc" – "My girl, Rubber Doll – you won't believe what she can do – you think she's under you, she's on top – "
Look at Gabin's hands at the bar. Am I the only one reminded of the opening of Footlight Parade's "Shanghai Lil" number?
A police raid sends André and Lilas running – they take shelter on an all-night bus, riding from one end of the line to the other until morning. Lilas confides her hatred and terror of the police – "They get you and they work you over. Some of them pretend to be pimps, and then it turns out they're stool pigeons and they turn you in." André cradles her and she sleeps.
Bright morning and another Paris location: Les Halles. Fresh flowers, oranges … the pair picnic on the steps of the Fontaine des Innocents. "You can't even handle a knife," André says with tenderness and relief. He buys Lilas a floaty crepe dress and a wide-brimmed hat – you can feel what it must be like for her to peel off her hard-used sweater and skirt.
The two escape to a riverside hotel. Their idyll is set off by a wedding party arriving for a blowout, with Fernandel leading the singing of "Ne te plains pas …" – "Don't complain if the bride's too beautiful, if she's got these and those … if you'd chosen a dog, you'd have her all to yourself … you've got it made, you cuckold!"
But Martousse has told Lilas what her lover is. She is shocked into a gasping confession – she did kill the industrialist. As the wedding party bursts gleefully into the room and dances around the couple, she flees. She is haunted in double exposure by a farandole of increasingly grotesque wedding guests, and by the superimposition of implacable uniformed police and her lover's face. Appointment in Samarra: she runs headlong into the cop on the beat.
André finds her in a local police station. He identifies himself and pleads that Lilas' confession not be taken seriously – she's not in her right mind. Of course not, the desk sergeant replies – the guilty man is already in jail in Paris. André is brought back to earth, and, inevitably, picks up the phone … Headlines confirm the result.
Back on the La Chapelle hillside, one urchin is consoling another, who's fallen. "What are you doing, petting a robber?" he's asked. "A cop can't go soft!"
Marcelle Romée was hospitalised for depression that year. She ran away from the clinic during the night of December 3rd, 1932, and drowned herself in the Seine.
*Luguet had a busy 1932, with seven films shot in Paris and, for Warner Brothers, in Hollywood. Let's hope that Love is a Racket and Jewel Robbery cheered him up after this one.
8 Responses to "Lilac Time"
Grand Old Movies — yes! positively the same mouth!
The MR movie I'd most love to see is her first, the French-language version of Paramount's THE LETTER, where she plays the Jeanne Eagels role.
Just a preview of coming Natan-centric attractions, n'est-ce pas, David?
[…] dedicated to films made at career's end. Some interesting subjects this time out, with Phoebe Green praising Marcelle Romée's work in Litvak's Coeur de lilas; Stacia of She Blogged by Night paying such close attention to […]
She looks like the actress who was dating George in a Seinfeld episode – the one in which George pushed her grandmother out of the way when a fire started at her son's birthday party (IIRC).
Yes, that's her! I kept thinking of that late show Fridays that she was on but couldn't remember her name. I wondered if Colleen Moore's Lilac Time was a remake of this French film. I saw Moore's film many years ago but don't remember the story.


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Many contaminants are easy for the public to spot, like emissions from the tailpipe of a car or the sludge from a massive oil spill washing up on the ocean's shores.
But Phil Brown, who joined Northeastern's faculty this fall, says many others are far less easy to identify — including those found in beauty products like deodorant and cologne or in flame retardants, which he has studied extensively.
"It's the things we don't think about being toxic that are in our everyday lives," said Brown, University Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences with joint appointments in the College of Social Sciences and Humanities and the Bouvé College of Health Sciences.
For Brown, a renowned scholar whose interdisciplinary research combines social science and environmental health, issues like these are constantly in his crosshairs. Over the last 13 years at Brown University, he led a research group on environmental health science that was supported by a range of grants from several federal agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and the Environmental Protection Agency.
His research included focusing on biomonitoring, which measures the level of contaminants in the human body, and on household exposure monitoring, which measures toxicants found in the air and dust inside our homes and the air in our driveways.
Now at Northeastern, Brown is the director of the new Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute. The institute's mission is to bring together an interdisciplinary team of researchers to conduct socialscience research, teaching, community engagement and policy work in the field.
Brown said environmental health researchers should be nimble and attuned to the world's emerging environmental health issues. Brown, for his part, navigated to the field of environmental health science in the 1980s while working in mental health policy. At the time, a colleague was serving as an expert witness in a high-profile groundwater-contamination case in Woburn, Mass., in which civil suits were brought against two companies following community concerns over rising levels of childhood leukemia and other illnesses.
The Woburn case captured Brown's attention immediately, compelling him to investigate.
"I spent a lot of time with the families who had been affected, whose children died or became sick, and that really changed my life," said Brown, who wrote a book on the topic called "No Safe Place: Toxic Waste, Leukemia, and Community Action."
Brown soon realized that many other communities grapple with similar environmental health issues, which led him to engage in the larger debate about environmental causes of illnesses. Over the years, he has also examined health-focused social movements in America dating back to the beginning of Medicare and Medicaid.
"You never know where the work will take you next," said Brown, who earned his Ph.D. in sociology from Brandeis University. "I'm always looking for interesting new things that are important, that concern people and that have an effect on many people's lives."
Many environmental health issues are local by nature, but Brown said they also serve as catalysts for worldwide environmental change. He praised innovators before him who paved the way for this type of thinking — including Barry Commoner, one of the founders of modern ecology, who passed away last week, and Rachel Carson, whose 1962 book "Silent Spring" exposed the dangers of the pesticide DDT. Both thought leaders, he said, brought environmental dangers to the public eye and helped spark the global environmental movement.
"We need to have those big visions and not be afraid to say, 'This is how the world can be better many years down the road,'" Brown said.
The Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute will hold an official launch event on Oct. 29 in the Alumni Center from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.. The event is also being held in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the publication of Rachel Carson's book "Silent Spring."
– by Greg St. Martin

subset: commoncrawl


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July 7, 2014: ACLU: Woman settles suit with UMC over cavity search
This story originally ran in the El Paso Times on July 7, 2014.
A woman has settled a lawsuit for $1.1 million against an El Paso hospital and two doctors after she was allegedly forced to undergo a body cavity exam during a failed search for drugs after being stopped at the border by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The New Mexico woman settled her lawsuit against University Medical Center of El Paso and two Texas Tech University physicians for $1.1 million, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas said Monday. The 54-year-old woman identified in the lawsuit as "Jane Doe" and in the settlement as A. Moreno will receive $500,000 from Texas Tech University, $475,000 from the UMC's insurance company and $125,000 from the hospital, the settlement agreement shows.
UMC spokesman Jethro Armijo said the $125,000 will be paid from the hospital's cash reserves. In December, the American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuit against the El Paso County hospital and emergency room physicians Drs. Michael Parsa and Christopher Cabanillas on behalf of the woman.
The woman is also suing two unknown supervising U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and two other CBP officers identified only by their last names, Portillo and Herrera. The claims against CBP personnel remain pending in federal court, the ACLU said.
The lawsuit states the woman of Loving, N.M , was returning from Juárez through one of the international bridges in El Paso when she was taken by CBP to the hospital and subjected to an intrusive body search for drugs on Dec. 8, 2012.
The suit claims the hospital "violated her" and then gave her a $5,000 bill. No drugs were found.
"Despite the trauma and humiliation endured by our client, she had the courage to step forward," Rebecca L. Robertson, legal and policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, said in a press release.
"Because of her, the hospital has changed its policy to prevent this from happening to others. Now we hope that CBP will also take responsibility and stop subjecting innocent people to unconstitutional and abusive searches," Robertson said.
The settlement comes three months after UMC officials announced major changes in the hospital's policies and procedures as a result of the lawsuit.
Changes included emphasizing patients' rights, improving communication with law enforcement, continuing medical staff training to educate patients about their rights, and improvements in the hospital's Electronic Medical Record system.
"UMC's settlement of this case was not intended to 'make it go away.' It was meant to bring closure for the plaintiff and to the issues that she alleged and to ensure our stakeholders that we have taken steps to tighten our policies and reinforce them with staff," Jim Valenti, UMC CEO and president, said in a statement.
"We also intend to make sure that area law enforcement agencies understand that UMC's only concern when patients are brought to us in their custody is patient care," Valenti said. "We do not see those patients as prisoners. We are here solely to tend to their needs and to do our best to ensure that they have a good outcome."


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Rockford library main branch faces uncertain future
Board president pledges commitment to downtown
ROCKFORD — The Rockford Public Library Main Branch, a downtown institution of more than 100 years, could move to a new location as soon as spring 2015.
The move, whether temporary or permanent, will mark one of the biggest changes to the city's library system since it first opened its doors along the Rock River in 1903.
In the span of one year, library officials have gone from signing a deal to house Rock Valley College's downtown campus in the main branch to trying to figure out how they'll keep the library running once an environmental cleanup project breaks ground.
After preliminary discussions with ComEd, which is responsible for cleaning up contaminated soil beneath the building, library leaders now believe there is little hope of keeping the main branch open during the remediation and that a temporary or permanent move of the facility is inevitable.
"There are many considerations at this point. It's really hard to give the public a clear idea of how we're going to deal with this," said Rockford Library Board President Paul Logli.
"We are facing a considerable challenge. ... Decisions will need to be made in the next six to 12 months."
The debate begins
Library officials knew ComEd would need access to portions of the building to complete its environmental work.
What they did not know until recent months was the extent of that access and the impact it would have on safe entry and exit, without which the library cannot operate.
Debate already is stirring over a possible move.
Board Member Margie Veitch voiced strong opposition to a permanent relocation at recent board meeting. She said she would support a temporary move, if necessary, but not a permanent one.
"The library building serves a significant purpose downtown," she said. People identify with the building, she added, and value its prime riverfront location.
Board members need to start weighing their options and scouting new locations, Logli said.
Once the library has a plan, it can start talking to ComEd about reimbursement and how much ComEd will pay the library to get out of the way of its cleanup.
Rather than spend that money on rent at one or two locations for a year and a half to two years, library officials could choose to invest it in a new home. It would save the library from having to move twice.
"I would be committed to relocating downtown," Logli said. "I would be very much against moving away."
Important to downtown
The library's 82,000-square-foot main building is located on Wyman Street in the city's third ward.
As long as there's "a 100 percent commitment downtown," Ald. Tom McNamara said he's open to the idea of a permanent relocation.
"I think it's very important to have the library's headquarters downtown," McNamara said. "I think it's important to the users, and important to downtown. The library plays a role in keeping downtown a cultural hub."
"There are some very exciting things happening downtown, and I don't think we should do anything that would take away from that."
Neither Logli nor McNamara are concerned about abandoning the building's historical significance.
Like thousands of libraries across the country built by steel magnate Andrew Carnegie, Rockford's main building once featured majestic columns and a domed roof.
Over the years, additions to the building changed its appearance.
"It was a beautiful structure. It never should have been remodeled," Logli said. "There's no historic value left."
Focus on patrons
Library staff is trying to stay focused on patrons, said librarian Amanda Meyers.
It's difficult at times, she said, because of the uncertainty.
"There's still a long way to go." Meyers said. "I think we'll be fine as long as we stay focused on serving the public as best as we can no matter where we are.
"Until a decision is made, there's nothing we can do. We just hope that they're exploring every option and choose what's best for the public."
Meyers, who is president of the library's union, said she also supports maintaining a downtown presence.
"We have patrons that we serve here," she said. "We have a lot of kids who walk down here. It's a place for them to come."
Corina Curry: 815-987-1371; firstname.lastname@example.com; @corinacurry
How we got here
The Rockford Public Library and Rock Valley College started talking last year about a partnership that would put the college's downtown Learning and Opportunity Center inside the library's main branch.
The library's Board of Trustees formalized the library's intent to lease space to RVC in March with a tentative move-in date of summer 2014.
In July, ComEd, which inherited environmental cleanup responsibilities of the library site, conducts a final round of soil testing to determine how much work it needs to complete in the coming years.
By September, library and college officials learn the environmental cleanup likely will take much longer and be much more intrusive than they originally thought.
Plans to move RVC's downtown satellite site to the library are nixed, and library officials start exploring plans to vacate the 82,000-square-foot building.


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Ohio woman sues after STD diagnosis posted on Facebook
Hospital employee leaked patient's medical history on Facebook
An Ohio woman whose medical record was posted to Facebook - revealing her name and a syphilis diagnosis - has sued the hospital where she was treated and the worker accused of accessing her file.
The 20-year-old Cincinnati woman filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Hamilton County court.
She says she refused to tell her ex-boyfriend why she was being treated at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. She says he then contacted another woman he was romantically involved with who worked at the hospital.
The lawsuit says the worker accessed the woman's medical record and gave it to her ex. It was then posted to a Facebook page about allegedly promiscuous women.
The hospital says the employee was fired and that they've notified federal authorities about the case.


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3 serious dog attacks, but no animal control response in Bridgewater
Victims' families unhappy about situation
The town has been without an Animal Control officer since mid-February when Health Agent Eric Badger, who also served part-time as animal control, resigned from the post.
Since then, there have been three dog attacks in town -- including one against a 6-year-old girl -- and police say they are without backup when it comes to such calls, the Brockton Enterprise reported.
"Right now, there's nowhere to turn," said police Lt. Tom Schlatz.
Without an Animal Control officer in town, "there's a certain follow up that's not being done," he added.
Police have responded to dog attacks on three separate occasions in the past six weeks.
On April 9, one woman was attacked as she and another woman walked their dog while also pushing a baby carriage. A man also walking his dog stepped into the street to let the women pass, when his dog -- a 4-year-old Boxer named "Choppa" -- "lunged at the other dog and bit the victim in the lower right calf causing a puncture wound," police logs show.
One week later, on April 16, an 11-year-old girl, of North Street, was bitten by a dog at a Worcester Street home and taken to the hospital with dog bites to both arms, according to police logs.
And on May 12, a Shaw Road resident called police to report that his 6-year-old daughter was bitten by what police described as a large, American bulldog, while she played with two friends at a neighboring home.
In all three instances, police said they left messages with Badger, who said he did not respond to any of the instances because he no longer works as Animal Control.
Where the Animal Control officer would step in, said Badger, would be to quarantine the dogs if any had not been vaccinated. In all three instances, police say the dogs involved had been vaccinated, and so remain at their homes.
Families of the victims are not too happy about the situation, police say.
"When people call you and you tell them there's not much you can do, you can sense the frustration, and rightly so," said Schlatz.
Town Manager Michael Dutton said not a whole lot has changed though since Badger worked part-time as the Animal Control officer.
For a $100 stipend each week, Badger donned the hat of Animal Control officer and would respond to calls for dog bites or animal-related calls.
But he didn't have a crate or a vehicle due to such a slim budget, so often, Badger would call on area Animal Control departments to assist.
For instance, when a family pit bull attacked a Bridgewater grandmother in 2011, Badger called on the Whitman Animal Control officer to help crate and quarantine the animal.
The town's Highway Department also responded, and does so still, for road kill calls.
Even without Animal Control, Dutton said in cases where there is a written complaint filed, the town has the option to hold what is known as a vicious dog hearing, which he described is a public hearing where facts of the case are presented by both victim and dog owner.
The family involved in the May 12 incident has filed a complaint with the town, and Dutton said, as of Friday, he is mulling the idea of holding such a hearing.
For a town the size of Bridgewater, the job of Animal Control has become a necessity, say police, who according to police logs, respond to approximately 100 animal-related calls each year.
Calls range from noise complaints for barking dogs to deer struck in the road to a rare call in 2012 for a steer running loose through town, for which there wasn't much animal control could have done, police said.
Police Chief Christopher Delmonte said that what once was the job for a local farmer, has become "a basic core government function."
"(The job)," he added, "seems to have fallen to us. But we don't have the tools or resources to do anything about it."
In addition to the dog bites, police say there is also an ongoing investigation into animal cruelty, which an animal control officer -- who police say has greater authority than they do when it comes to entering homes where animals are suspected of being in danger -- would be a helpful addition to the investigation.
Regardless of what the job consisted of in past months, Dutton said he agrees with police that the town needs to invest in the position moving forward.
"Quite honestly, it's one of those things that we really need to do," he said, adding that the position was "woefully underfunded" in previous years.
"Unfortunately we didn't have a very good solution in the first place, and we know that we have to do far better," he said.
"But we've also got issues to take care of between then and now."
The $25,000 line item in next year's budget shows a dramatic increase over this year's $5,200 budget, but it's still not enough to cover a full-time person.
The increased budget is also not available until July 1. Meanwhile, Dutton said he is in the process of negotiating for some part-time help with area towns.
Calls for Animal Control, in cases of emergency, should still go through police, added Dutton.


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For more information on our recent data notice, please click here
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered that hard-to-reach, drug-resistant leukemia stem cells (LSCs) that overexpress multiple pro-survival protein forms are sensitive – and thus vulnerable – to a novel cancer stem cell-targeting drug currently under development.
The findings, published in the January 17 online issue of Cell Stem Cell, open the possibility that diseases like chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and some solid tumor cancers might – in combination with other therapies – be more effectively treated with this drug, and with a lower chance of relapse.
Chronic myeloid leukemia leads to production of many abnormal white blood cells, which do not fight infection as well as normal white blood cells. As these abnormal cells accumulate in blood and bone marrow, they crowd out healthy white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets, impairing normal functions.
An emerging class of drugs called tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) – such as imitinib (Gleevec), gifitinib (Iressa) and sunitinib (Sutent) – has become a popular anti-cancer treatment. However, current TKIs are not 100 percent effective. In cases of CML, for example, some LSCs tucked protectively within bone marrow elude destruction, develop resistance to therapy, self-renew and eventually cause the leukemia to dramatically return.
Jamieson and colleagues found that alternative splicing of BCL2 genes, which code for proteins involved in apoptosis or programmed cell death, specifically promoted malignant transformation of dormant white blood cell precursors into "blast crisis" LSCs. The blast crisis is the final phase of CML when overabundant, abnormal white blood cells crowd out healthy cells, causing serious dysfunction.
Of clinical importance, they noted that sabutoclax, which suppresses all BCL2 anti-apoptotic proteins, renders these marrow-dwelling blast crisis LSCs sensitive – and more susceptible – to TKI-based therapeutics at doses that do not harm normal progenitor cells.
"Our findings show that pan-BCL2 inhibition will be critical for the eradication of cancer stem cells in CML and that there is an essential link between cancer stem cell dormancy, pro-survival BCL2 isoform expression and therapeutic resistance," Jamieson said. "By using a novel pan-BCL2 inhibitor, we may be able to prevent therapeutic resistance by sensitizing malignant stem cell clones to TKIs."
The findings may have implications for treating solid tumor cancers, such as colon, prostate, breast, and brain cancers, noted Daniel J. Goff, the study's first author.
"With many of these tumor types being shown to harbor cancer stem cells, it raises the question of whether BCL2 family expression as well as isoform-switching may be crucial for the maintenance of cancer stem cells in these diseases as well," he said. "If so, they may also be candidates for treatment with a BCL2 inhibitor like sabutoclax."
Co-authors are Angela Court Recart, Anil Sadarangani, Heather Leu, Janine Low-Marchelli, Wenxue Ma, Alice Y. Shih, Ifat Geron, Minya Pu, Lei Bao, Ryan Chuang, Larisa Balaian, Peggy Wentworth, Kristen M. Smith, Christina A.M. Jamieson, Sheldon R. Rorris and Karen Messer, UCSD Department of Medicine and UCSD Moores Cancer Center; Hye-Jung Chun and Marco Marra, Michael Smith Genome Sciences Center, Vancouver, BC, Canada; Christian L. Barrett and Kelly A. Frazer, UCSD Department of Pediatrics; Maryla Krajewska, Jun Wei, Dayong Zhai, Maurizio Pellecchia and John C. Reed, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute; Jason Gotlib, Stanford Medical Center; Mark Minden, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, Canada; Giovanni Martinelli, Institute of Hematology and Medical Oncology, University of Bologna, Italy; Jessica Rusert and Lawrence S.B. Goldstein, UCSD Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Kim-Hien Dao, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland; Kamran Shazand and Thomas J. Hudson, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, Canada.
Funding for this research was provided by a California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) early Translational II grant (TR2-1789), a CIRM HALT leukemia disease team grant (DR1-01430), the UCSD CIRM Training Grant (TG2-01154), the Ratner Family Foundation, the National Cancer Institute (CA-55164), the National Institutes of Health (CA-149668), the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Genome Canada, Ontario Genomics Institute and the Canadian Institute of Health Research.
# # #
Media Contact: Scott LaFee, 619-543-6163, email@example.com
Leukemia and Lymphoma Unit


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Poison Ivy Treatment and Rash Prevention
Common Myths and Truths About Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, and Poison Sumac
Myth #7: Once the eruption occurs,
there are a variety of treatments that easily suppress the reaction and can be
performed without visiting your physician. They vary from applying human urine
to the site of the eruption to drenching the skin in gasoline.
Truth: For mild local reactions, it is generally necessary to apply potent topical steroids to the site for two to three weeks.


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Evaluating AAC Non-Conference Schedules: The Bad and the Ugly…Posted by CD Bradley on October 30th, 2013
We looked at the best of the AAC non-conference schedules in Part I, after explaining a bit of what makes for a good non-conference schedule. This season, there's quite a bit more bad than good, which could drag down the collective RPIs of AAC members and ultimately lead to lower NCAA Tournament seeds come March.
The Bad
- Cincinnati: The Bearcats return the favor of a visit last season from MW favorite New Mexico with a road trip of their own to The Pit. They also will play former Big East rival and mid-level ACC squad Pitt at Madison Square Garden. Then… well, there's the rivalry game with Xavier, which seems poised to finish in the bottom half of a newly constituted (read: relatively weaker) Big East; N.C. State, clearly headed toward the bottom of the ACC, and Conference USA also-ran MTSU. That trio might end up in the RPI top 100; it's highly unlikely any other team on the schedule will come close.
- Louisville: If the defending champs can escape Rupp Arena with a win, all will be forgiven by both their fans and the committee, as a road win against Kentucky is perhaps the highest quality victory available in college basketball this year. Southern Miss, which finished with an RPI of #30 last season, is favored to win Conference USA. They face a potential Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off final against North Carolina at the Mohegan Sun. They need the Tar Heels to be there, because the rest of their foes are middling teams in weak leagues, with Charleston the most likely to crack the top 100, and several – we're looking at you, Hofstra and UMKC – seeming likely to end up north of #300.


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CHICAGO—Put down the salt shakers. Eating too much salt and too little potassium can increase the risk of death, U.S. government researchers said on Monday.
The findings from a team at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a counterpoint to a fiercely-debated study released last week that found no evidence that making small cuts in salt intake lowers the risk of heart disease and premature death.
"Salt is still bad for you," said Dr. Thomas Farley, Health Commissioner for New York City, which is leading a campaign to reduce salt in restaurant and packaged foods by 25 percent over five years.
Most health experts agree with Farley that consuming too much salt is not good for you and that cutting salt intake can reduce high blood pressure, which raises the risk of heart attack and stroke. Salt intake has been rising since the 1970s, with Americans consuming about twice the recommended daily limit.
The CDC study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, specifically focused on growing research that shows a diet high in salt and low in potassium is especially risky.
Farley, who wrote an editorial on the CDC study, said it is one of the best yet looking at the long-term effects of eating too much salt.
"It is entirely consistent with what we've said all along about sodium intake," Farley said in a telephone interview.
For the study, researchers looked at the long-term effects of sodium and potassium intake as part of a 15-year study of more than 12,000 people.
By the end of the study period, 2,270 of the study participants had died; 825 of these deaths were from heart disease and 433 were from blood clots and strokes.
They found that people who had a high salt intake and a low potassium intake were most at risk.
"People who ate a diet high in sodium and low in potassium had a 50 percent increased risk of death from any cause, and about twice the risk of death – or a 200 percent increase – from a heart attack," said Dr. Elena Kuklina of the CDC who helped lead the study.
She said consumers need to increase the levels of potassium in their diet by adding more servings of fresh fruits and vegetables, such as spinach, grapes, carrots, sweet potatoes, and low fat milk and yogurt.
The Salt Institute, an industry group, challenged the findings, pointing out that the CDC study found that the link between salt intake and heart disease was statistically insignificant.
"This is a highly flawed publication that reveals more about the anti-salt agenda being pursued by the CDC than about any relationship between salt and health," said Mort Satin, the Salt Institute's Director of Science and Research.
"The only significance is between low potassium and mortality," Satin said in a statement.
Dr. Robert Briss, director of the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the CDC, said the findings support the general weight of evidence and suggests that higher doses of sodium are linked with poor health consequences.
And it suggests "that higher potassium may be better for you," Briss said in a telephone interview.
"About 90 percent of Americans consume more sodium than is recommended. This impacts their blood pressure," Briss said.
"Most of that sodium is not related to the salt shaker but it is in foods and especially processed and restaurant foods that we buy and order from restaurants. Consumers, even motivated ones, don't have as much choice as they could," he said.
Kuklina said potassium often counteracts the effects of salt in the diet. This equilibrium is affected when people eat highly processed foods, which tend to increase sodium levels and decrease potassium content.
"If sodium increases your high blood pressure, potassium decreases it. If sodium retains water, potassium helps you get rid of it," she said.
Instead of focusing only on salt, Kuklina said researchers should focus on the balance between potassium and salt.
"We need to strive to do both – decrease your sodium intake and increase your potassium intake," she said.


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Intel CEO backs SoftBank's bid for Sprint over Dish's offer
Intel Corp Chief Executive Paul Otellini said in a letter to the Federal Communications Commission that he supports SoftBank's bid for Sprint Nextel Corp, rather than Dish Network's counter offer.
Sprint, the No. 3 U.S. wireless service provider, is considering a $25.5 billion bid from Dish but has also said it is on track to close its $20.1 billion pact with SoftBank by July 1.
In his letter addressed to the FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski that was made available to Reuters, Otellini said he is travelling in Asia, has met with SoftBank Chief Masayoshi Son and that Son's vision to build a high-speed competitive third national network "is very compelling".
"We need this competition in the wireless space as the ATT /Verizon model is not giving that to consumers at this time," Otellini said.
Otellini did not elaborate further as to why he favors SoftBank's bid for Sprint.
"SoftBank is a business partner which is why there was an Otellini visit. His email to the FCC reflects our view that the addition of a third competitor to the market will be beneficial to consumers and SoftBank has a reputation as being a market disrupter which can provide benefits as well," an Intel spokesman told Reuters.
Sprint said on Monday that SoftBank has waived some terms of their agreement so that Sprint can seek more information from Dish.
Sprint has set June 12 as the tentative date for a special meeting for shareholders to vote on its proposed deal with SoftBank.


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- Share
Solar tornadoes help solve coronal mystery
Hot twister Scientists say magnetic super tornadoes, thousands of times bigger than anything on Earth, may explain why the Sun's outer atmosphere is millions of degrees hotter than its visible surface.
The Sun has a surface temperature of about 5500°C, however it's outer atmosphere or corona, reaches temperatures of two million degrees.
For almost a century astronomers have been trying to understand why temperatures in the Sun's atmosphere get hotter rather than colder, the further away you are from its surface.
Now scientists including Dr Sven Wedemeyer-Bohm from the University of Oslo have linked magnetic super tornadoes to this coronal heating.
Wedemeyer-Bohm and colleagues were studying magnetic ring like structures on the Sun known as chromospheric swirls, which resemble giant tornadoes.
These super tornadoes have foot prints about 100 kilometres wide on the Sun's surface or photosphere, which can funnel out to diameters of more than 5500 kilometres, sometimes with cyclone like spiral arms.
Hot clue
Using NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft, they detected very hot plasma in the corona at the same location as the swirls.
Writing in the journal Nature, Wedemeyer-Bohm and colleagues report seeing these super tornadoes linking the solar surface or photosphere with the corona, thousands of kilometres higher up.
They then used computer models to determine that energy was flowing from the photosphere to the corona.
"We observed plasma (ionized gas) moving at speeds of over 10,000 kilometres per hour in these super tornadoes," says Wedemeyer-Bohm.
"Our computer models suggest that the speeds could be even higher than what we are able to observe so far."
Magnetic energy
The tornadoes which last an average of 12 minutes, are formed by the convective motion of super heated plasma near the photosphere.
"As cooler plasma sinks into the Sun's interior, it creates a swirling effect like water draining out of a bathtub," says Wedemeyer-Bohm.
"As it plunges down, it drags magnetic field lines with it, causing them to rotate and generate Alfven waves, which can be understood as a magnetic analogue of sound waves."
"These Alfven waves travel upwards along the magnetic field in the tornado and are transformed into heat in the corona," says Wedemeyer-Bohm.
There are an estimated eleven thousand of these super tornadoes on the Sun's surface at any one time.
Wedemeyer-Bohm and colleagues conclude, that's probably enough to transfer the energy needed to heat the corona to temperatures of several million degrees.
"We have many ideas what to do next," says Wedemeyer-Bohm.
"An obvious first step is to gather more observations, which are needed for better statistics and finally a reliable determination of the exact heating contribution due to magnetic super tornadoes."


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Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or any later version published as by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license can be found in Appendix A.
This document is a volunteer effort. Feel free to improve and make changes. If you catch any mistakes, please correct them.


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Tasting Bordeaux
It was old friend's day at yesterday's Bordeaux tasting, sponsored by Maisons Marques & Domaines. Not only was the wonderful Xavier Barlier there to greet me, but I ran into Fred Swan and Wilfred Wong, so there was also some nostalgic recollecting. But not too much—we were there for the wines.
I didn't taste everything, but here are my abbreviated notes. [All retail prices are my own estimations, based on wholesale price.] As you can see, you can take the wine critic out of the game—but you can't take the game out of the wine critic!
Chateau d'Armailhac 2010 [$120]: Great Pauillac structure on this 5th growth; firm, dur. Glorious stuffing, all black currants. Very complex and mouth-filing, a very good wine. Drink 2022 and beyond. Score: 95.
Chateau d'Armailhac 2000 ($175). A little lacking in depth, but with plenty of charm. Very pure and refined. Drinking beautifully now with, say, a fine grilled entrecote. Score: 91.
Chateau Clerc Milon 2010 ($200). Great depth, a real beauty, but so tannic. Heaps of blackberries and cherries. Fabulous acidity. Will make a great bottle after, say, 2022. Score: 93.
Chateau Clerc Milon 2006 ($170). Not a big wine, in fact a little thin. But it's delicate and refined. Drink up. Score: 88 points.
Chateau Palmer 2006 Alter Ego de Palmer ($175). Fleshy, meaty, with blackberry and black currant flavors as well as a bacon fat, truffly richness. But very tannic. Seems best opened in the next few years. Score: 88.
Chateau Palmer 2004 ($320). A dramatic wine, in the midst of an evolution and not showing well right now. Neither hard nor soft, but the tannins are strong and there's plenty of elegance. With lots of fruit, it should develop after 2020. Score: 90.
Chateau Palmer 1999 ($475). A gorgeous wine and a great success for the vintage. Surely approaching its peak now. So supple and rich in sweet cherry pie filling, with wonderful acidity and tannins. Silky and absolutely delicious, a standout in this tasting. Score: 96.
La Parde de Haut-Bailly 2008 ($39). Solid, masculine, still with hard tannins. The vintage was not great but the wine has good fruit and will drink well in, say, 5-6 more years. Score: 88.
La Parde de Haut-Bailly 2010 ($50). Solid, a litte gutsy. Very dry and tannic, some rusticity. Not an ager, but a clean, well-made wine. Score: 88.
Chateau Haut-Bailly 2010 ($180). A huge wine, with dusty tannins and good acidity. Lots of fruit, with a pleasant, Graves minerality. Needs many years. Drink 2022 and beyond. Score: 94.
Chateau Haut-Bailly 2003 ($110). The wine is showing considerable evolution, with the fruit revealing secondary notes. Still some tannins to shed. A good wine that should open further by 2018. Score: 90.
Chateau de Sales 2010 ($37). A lovely wine, round and feminine. Oodles of black currants and cassis, so sweet and tender. Significant tannins, but it's soft enough to drink now and through 2022. A great value in a Pomerol. Score: 92.
Chateau Certan de May 2008 ($115). A hard wine, with big, tough tannins, but some lovely fruit. Tons of black currants and minerals. Needs time. Give it another ten years to come around. Score: 93.
Chateau Certan de May 2010 ($190). Far greater depth and complexity than the 2008, in fact twice the wine. Such opulence and craftsmanship. Very fine, balanced and elegant, but young. Wait until 2025, for starters. Score: 95.
Chateau Hosanna 2010 ($275). For me, a bizarre wine. Too oaky. Incredibly strong, spicy, black currants, chocolate nibs, anise. California style, fat, opulent. It is said this wine needs a great amount of time to come around, but I would not take the gamble, especially at this price. Score: 87.
Chateau Hosanna 2004 ($NA). Same style as the 2010, a big, oaky, New World-y wine. Beginning to show its stuff, but still nowhere near ready. I scored it 91 points based on potential.
Chateau Lafleur-Gazin 2007 ($45). A rustic wine, hard around the edges, but good fruit. Ready to drink now-2015. Score: 86.
Chateau Magdelaine 2008 ($105). Soft, fleshy, what you want a Saint-Emilion to be. Mainly Merlot, with lots of red cherries and red currants and a lovely mouthfeel. Needs time. Drink after 2020. Score: 93.
Chateau Puy-Blanquet 2011 ($27). A nice wine, with some lovely fruit, but for me, too sharp in acidity. I said this to Christian and he remarked, "Well, the vintage…".
Le Petit Mouton de Mouton Rothschild 2007 ($300). This junior Mouton is delicious in black currants and cassis, although it lacks the power of the Grand Seigneur. Drink 2019 and beyond. Score: 91.
Chateau Mouton Rothschild 2005 ($950). Possibly it was just me, but this wine wasn't showing well despite the vintage's reputation. Primary fruits starting to evolve, but it's a bit raw. But you have to give it the benefit of the doubt, especially considering the stellar reviews the wine has received from top critics. Undoubtedly it is going through an awkward phase. I did not rate this wine and would like to taste it again from another bottle.
Chateau Mouton Rothschild 2010 ($1500). An awesome wine, huge, magnificent, clearly a Great Growth. Masses of black currants, perfect oak, gorgeous acids and tannins. Will improve for decades. This was so stunning I swallowed rather than spit. Potentially a perfect wine. Score: 99.
I was really hoping for good notes after yesterday's teaser. Thanks for the write-up. My interest in Bordeaux has been growing rather than shrinking lately, I'm just waiting for the prices to come back in check.
"in fact twice the wine" — shouldn't it have gotten 186 points then??


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- Understanding Azure SQL Database and SQL Server in Azure VMs
- Azure SQL Database
- SQL Server in Azure Virtual Machines
- New or existing application/service: Migrating existing applications ("lift and shift") typically requires a higher need to emulate on-premises application behavior than new applications which typically don't have that need.
- Application/Service requirements: This decision point checks for any compatibility, networking or security requirements which might require SQL Server in a VM. See SQL Server in Windows Azure Virtual Machine vs. SQL Database for more details, and for a full list of feature compatibility differences between SQL DB and SQL/VM refer to the MSDN article Guidelines and Limitations (Windows Azure SQL Database).
- Database size: There are size limits by SQL Database editions, and the current maximum size of a single Azure SQL DB is 150 GB. For SQL/VM, the current maximum VM size is ExtraLarge (8 CPU cores, 14 GB RAM and up to 16 TB of disk space). See the MSDN article How to Configure Virtual Machine Sizes for more details on VM sizes.
- Willingness to (Re)architect/partition for economies of scale: This decision point checks for elasticity and scale-out requirements which can be met using SQL DB scale-out technologies such as Federations in Windows Azure SQL Database. Typically to fully take advantage of the economies of scale and elasticity features offered by SQL DB, a degree of re-architecture is required (see design considerations for scale out in SQL DB here).
Additional considerationsAs you progress beyond these high-level decision points you may have lower-level design criteria and sizing expectations which can impact the choice of database solution, for example a new application might have a specific feature requirement that is not available in SQL DB. The purpose of this decision tree is to provide an easy to use framework to quickly evaluate your application needs. An important consideration is the SLA provided by an IaaS vs. a PaaS database solution. For example in IaaS, Windows Azure has an SLA which covers all VM storage. When Windows Azure VM becomes generally available there will be a Windows Azure VM-level SLA of 99.95% availability for two or more instances in an availability set. In SQL DB there is a database level availability SLA. For more details refer to https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/support/legal/sla/. Any operations not covered by an SLA become the customer's responsibility. An application/service does not have to choose exclusively between IaaS or PaaS. Mixed mode application patterns which include both PaaS and IaaS services (for example, SQL DB and SQL/VM in Azure) represent a real and practical possibility for application development and deployment that allows applications to run components in VMs which require compatibility and control such as BI or applications migrated from on-premises, and also use databases in SQL DB to minimize DBA and database costs. Conclusion Both Windows Azure SQL DB and SQL Server running on Windows Azure virtual machines are valid approaches for satisfying distinct database application needs. In summary choose SQL/VM if:
- You require full compatibility with SQL Server on-premises.
- You want to make minimal changes to an existing application.
- You require infrastructure level Isolation.
- Your application/service is designed for "planned database scale" (AKA scale up).
- You are building a net new cloud based application.
- You want to reduce the cost of database management and focus on the application layer.
- You need database level isolation.
- Your app/service is designed for "unplanned & unbounded database scale" (elasticity via scale out).
Gregory Leake's blog post on SQL Server in Windows Azure Virtual Machine vs. SQL Database: Guidelines and Limitations (Windows Azure SQL Database) SQL Server Virtualization support statement covering virtualized environments beyond Hyper-V: https://support.microsoft.com/kb/956893


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I almost didn't make it to Spike TV.
I was training in South Florida waiting on a contract for a fight that was constantly delayed, and my phone rang. Ed Soares was on the other line asking me if I wanted to be the wrestling coach for Team Junior Dos Santos on "The Ultimate Fighter 13."
I'm just 29 years old, so initially, I felt that I was too young to be coaching, and that I had my own fight career that needed attention. I figured I would talk to my manager and those close to me about the opportunity and see what they thought collectively, but I was pretty sure I was going to take a pass.
My manager, Jason Genet, and the owner of The Armory, Joe Mullings, were all for it. They said that it would be guaranteed exposure, and this was likely one of the best "TUF" seasons ever. My striking coach, Muhammad Ouali, was against it. Due to lack of control I would have, my career would again be pushed to the side, and he felt egos would tend to negate whatever work I would put in.
The positives that my manger went on to list were that the wrestling coach should play a pivotal role since Team Brock Lesnar was almost guaranteed to go for the wrestlers. Nevertheless, I told him I was likely going to have to pass. After all, I am a fighter, and I wanted to concentrate on fighting. Jason sent me a text that said, "More people will know you by doing 'TUF' then taking five fights in smaller shows." Plus, it was guaranteed money instead of waiting on a fight contract that might be paid late.
He was right about the exposure, and I would have to do the show and take the risk if I wanted to see if he could get me additional money from sponsors. The fact was that I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. I hired my management company because they are marketing gurus, and I needed to trust what they were saying (even if they are a bunch of white guys).
A big responsibility
I have spent the better part of my life wrestling, and lately I have been teaching some great MMA fighters how to become better wrestlers. From wrestling for the University of Pennsylvania at Bloomsburg and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke to teaching wrestling at Alliance MMA, I felt like I could add value and make an impact for Team JDS, so I finally decided I was going to accept the opportunity.
My teammates and training partners all felt like this was the a great opportunity, so I called Ed and accepted the spot. Within a few days, I was on a plane to Las Vegas and checking into what we knew could potentially be the biggest season of "TUF."
I was nervous and excited all at the same time. The fighters were here for the opportunity of a lifetime. Us coaches were responsible to help to make that happen. This was a very big deal to these young men, and it could change their lives forever. I wanted to make sure I gave them 100 percent of what they needed from me to get them to where they want to go.
On the first day, the fighters were told that they did not have to fight to get int he house. I was not surprised by the change. I can understand that they did not want people getting injured before they step foot in the house. The guys all understood they were here to fight and they were all going to fight at some point. However, it was a little surprising to see them being excited about not having to fight to secure their spots.
During the evaluations, we put them through practical tests that would give a glimpse as to what these young men were good at and who wanted to be with us. Since Junior did not really speak English that well, he was relying upon me pretty heavily. He essentially had me running the drills and was coming to me for my insights. We picked the majority of the guys that I suggested. I was happy to help Junior in any way that he needed.
The "TUF" gym was set up with everything you could need to he an aspiring mixed martial artist. The floors and walls were covered with Dollamur's Flexi-Roll mats (the best mats in the world), giving the athletes the ability to go hard and be safe at the same time. We had treadmills, air bikes, bags, a ring and cage. I can think of a lot of gyms that are not set up as well as the "TUF" gym is. To top all of that off, both coaches brought an amazing staff of assistant coaches to help find the next "TUF" champion.
I have put my dream on hold to help these guys achieve the same goal I have. They were a lot closer to the prize then I am, and I felt honored to be able to help them. As you could see with our initial win, I think our team has all the makings of a championship squad.
I want to thank my sponsors DollamurMartialArts.com and PerformanceMMA.com for supporting me through this journey. I will see you here every week. Please follow me on Twitter (@LewPolley) and my website/fan community LewPolley.ning.com.


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2022 Rewind: Watch: 'Look Like a Bear, Move Like a Wolf.' How Trainer Turned Alexander Skarsgård into 'The Northman'
EDGE is looking back at 2022 and we're resharing some of our favorite stories of the year.
Alexander Skarsgård had seriously worked out for one movie before — "The Legend of Tarzan" — in 2016; but when he collaborated with Robert Eggers on the Viking epic "The Northman," he knew it would require another training regimen. He also decided to return to the trainer that helped him get buff for "Tarzan," Swedish trainer and nutritionist Magnus Lygdbäck. For Lygdbäck, "Tarzan" was also his first Hollywood project.
For the role, The Insider reports, Skarsgård put on 20 pounds of muscle through training with both heavy and light weights and a slight calorie surplus diet with no foods off-limits, Lygdbäck explained.
Their goal was somewhat different than "Tarzan." For the Viking hero Prince Amleth, Lygdbäck said: "We wanted Alex to have a little thicker look, a little more viking," Lygdbäck said. "We needed him to look like a bear but move like a wolf."
Complicating matters was that prior to shooting in March 2020, the movie was put on hold due to the pandemic. At that point, the pair had trained for three months. Skarsgård went without a gym for a few months, but he returned to train during the summer, which made him even in better shape than when they had hoped.
One factor that Lygdbäck considered was Skarsgård's age. Keeping him injury-free at 45 was important, so they did lots of mobility work. Skarsgård trained five times a week, with a potential sixth session of active recovery or mobility, Lygdbäck told the Insider.
Lygdbäck broke down the three phases of Skarsgård's fitness program to Collider: the bulk-up phase, the cutting phase, and then the maintenance phase. Here's how he put it:
"You've got the build-up, the bulk-up phase, which is the phase where you want to gain as much muscle mass as possible. You want to build a strong foundation making sure that you don't get injured later when filming. That's also the phase where you get to eat a lot of food, which is the best, best phase if you ask Alex. Alex loves to eat so ask him and he'll tell you, that's his favorite cycle. Then we have a cutting cycle is where you want to try to keep all that muscle mass on and shred some fat. For 'The Northman,' we had about three weeks when we did that. Normally, I do eight to ten weeks, but we didn't want Alex to be too shredded. He's shredded enough, right? And we wanted him to look a little thicker. The maintenance cycle, which is what I'm gonna take you through today, I'm gonna show you what a normal day before working on a set would look like. That's when you want to keep all that muscle mass on, you want to make sure that you prepare every single day so you don't get injured while swinging an ax for 12 hours straight."
He also explained his somewhat unorthodox approach to workouts and nutrition. For instance, he told the Hollywood Reporter that someone should not work for an hour a day.
"What doesn't happen in the first hour, doesn't happen in the second hour, I always say," he told THR. "No one can really handle more than an hour in the gym. If you do, that means you're not doing the right things. When you hear about an actor prepping for a role, you hear them talking about working out for four or five hours a day. What they really mean is all the stunt work, all the technical stuff, but actual physical training, you cannot do more than an hour a day."
Lygdbäck has created an app for daily fitness and inspiration. (For more information, follow this link. In a promotional YouTube video for the app, he writes: "I have trained many of the world's top actors, actresses, and artists to help them become the superstars you see today. In my app, I share the exact training programs and nutrition plans I used to help them achieve their results!"
Also in Health_fitness


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The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) had a press release last February about their new high-school curriculum about stem cells, which just made it to the San Francisco Chronicle today. The curriculum consists of 4 modules, each 4–7 days long, which would take up a substantial chunk of a biology class:
- Embryonic stem cells, in-vitro fertilization, and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis
- Adult stem cells, homeostasis, and regenerative medicine
- The microenvironment, its role in cell fate decisions, and cancer
- The immune system and the hematopoietic stem cell lineage tree
The first two units are supposedly suitable for regular biology classes, while the last two are more suited for advanced (AP or IB) biology classes.
I've not reviewed the material (stem cells not being one of my areas of expertise), but the group at UC Berkeley who put it together should know their material.


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Snapchat, Pinterest among startups pursuing big valuations with few disclosures
A growing group of social and mobile Web services are poised to become the next Facebook Inc. Just ask them.
Online startups with eye-popping statistics that purport to show their popularity have captivated the attention of the media and investors. Companies boast of everything from skyrocketing Web page views to user sign-ups to shared digital photos as measures of their success.
But unlike the financial numbers used to evaluate more mature companies, the so-called "vanity metrics" now in vogue are largely self-reported and often vague enough to defy definition. With valuations for highflying startups hitting nosebleed levels, some hear echoes of the obsession with "eyeballs," or raw numbers of website visitors, that defined the dot-com boom of the late 1990s but quickly proved to be an illusory measure of value.
Evaluating 'vanity metrics'
"I wouldn't buy a pizzeria just because the phone is ringing off the hook," David Cowan, a partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, said in a telephone interview. "First, I have to understand who is calling, why, from where and can we really sell them pizza.
"People have to be careful about the extent to which they use these metrics as indicators of value," he said.
The issue came into focus last week when Snapchat, the hot mobile photo and video messaging startup, announced that its users send 400 million "snaps" every day just as reports surfaced that it had turned down a $3 billion acquisition offer from Facebook.
The $3 billion offer shocked many given that the company, which lets smartphone users send vanishing pictures to each other, does not have any revenue. Some also wondered what the 400 million snaps actually referred to, and how they compared to the amount of photos shared on Facebook.
Just how do you count clicks
If a Snapchat user sends the same photo to 10 people, does Snapchat count it as 10 snaps or one snap, a widely discussed article asked last week in online publication BuzzFeed.
A Snapchat representative told Reuters by email that the 400 million snaps includes both photos and videos that users received but did not provider further clarification. The company said in a tweet last week that 88 percent of snaps are sent to one recipient.
Many of the self-reported user metrics are "black boxes," said Joe Beninato, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur who has founded and sold several Internet companies.
Of course, 400 million of anything is a big number and a sign that the company has achieved some level of success, he said. But he said a single metric alone might not tell the whole story and could even mask problems, such as a high user churn rate.
Pinterest, a social media scrapbook service whose last round of funding valued it at $3.8 billion, is only beginning to experiment with monetization. The company does not disclose its total number of users, but recently said that the service has 1.5 million travel-related "Pins" per day.
No public 'Pin' numbers
The company, which declined to comment, does not publicly provide any data about its total number of users or their activity, though it ranks among the 50 most-visited websites in the United States, according to online measurement firm comScore.
Among the most the questionable metrics that are now commonplace are a company's number of registered users, which doesn't account for duplicate and dormant accounts; a messaging service's volume of messages, which could have been sent by either a very small, or a very large, number of users; and installations of mobile apps, which includes installations by customers who did not like a service and quit using it.
Even long-standing Web traffic metrics such as page views and unique visitors remain surprisingly open to interpretation, owing to divergent measurement techniques and standards.
The number of "active" users, defined as people who access a Web service at least once a month, could include automated software that looks like real users, driving up website page views and disseminating paid advertising links on social networks.
"Sometimes these companies don't take out the 'bots,' and if you take out the bots, then suddenly 40 percent of their traffic goes away," said Hans Swildens, the founding partner at Industry Ventures.
Mom, pop and bots
For Web and mobile startup companies, proving robust growth in users and time spent with the product is critical to attracting media coverage, recruiting engineering talent and securing funding.
"I've been in plenty of meetings where people are discussing what information to release to the press to get the maximum impact, something that sounds good but doesn't give away too much information to competitors," Eric Ries, who is the author of the book "The Lean Startup" and has worked at several online companies, said by phone.
Choosing the right metric to release is a key decision within Web startups these days, said one public relations executive who advises Internet companies and asked that his name not be used.
"There's a lot of pressure to talk about these type of figures," he said. "Many companies are scrambling to help people understand the scope of their business."
A good metric is one that a company has confidence will grow reliably and remain the most relevant snapshot of the product's popularity going forward. But he noted that in some cases the practice has "devolved into this exercise of trying to appear big when you're not really big. It's almost this masquerade these days."
Venture capitalists, who typically evaluate hundreds of startups every year, say they know how to cut through the superficial metrics to find out how a company is really doing.
VCs look at the ratios of daily users to weekly users and monthly users to get a feel for how many repeat users a company has. They strip out growth that comes from unsustainable practices, such as online services that tap into a user's list of contacts to send "spam" messages, and they try to determine how "viral" a service is by measuring how many of a user's friends join.
Crowdfunding caution
But with the recent lifting of a long-standing ban on private company investment solicitation and a proposed "crowdfunding" rule that would allow mom-and-pop investors to bet on startup companies, consumer advocates fear less sophisticated investors could easily be misled.
"It's a very selective and dressed-up version of the facts," Barbara Roper, the director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America, an association of nonprofit groups based in Washington, referring to the user metrics that companies provide, said by phone. "There's no standard of measurement. There's no comparability."
Even experienced investors can make mistakes. Viddy, a social video app, raised $30 million in funding in 2012 as investors jostled to get a piece of the company that was at one point adding more than 1 million new users a day.
"Their user-growth chart didn't go to a hockey stick, it went straight up a wall," an investor in Viddy, who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to discuss the situation, said in a phone interview.
What many people didn't realize at the time, he said, was that Viddy's hypergrowth was mainly due to being one of the first video apps to take advantage of new distribution features on Facebook, rather than anything unique about the product itself. When Facebook suddenly tightened that distribution channel, Viddy's momentum came to a screeching halt.
Formspring, a social network which at one point was reported to have "2 billion answers to questions" posted on its website, shut down in March and was relaunched as Spring.me under a new management team.
Flud, a mobile news reader, was adding one user every four seconds shortly after its launch in 2010 - but closed shop in August.
The smell test
Bessemer's Cowan notes that some metrics really do have value, pointing to his firm's decision to invest in professional social network LinkedIn Corp six years ago.
The fact that many LinkedIn users were inviting their friends to join the service, and that LinkedIn user profiles were appearing high up in search results on Google Inc's search engine suggested that the service was spreading in a meaningful way, he said.
The company was in its early days of generating revenue in 2007 - but the real growth potential was reflected in some of its nonfinancial metrics, Cowan said.


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Bloggers love the final post of any year, because it is time for "The Best Blog Posts of the Year." Although it might seem as if bloggers are back patting themselves, there is a higher purpose for these posts: milking just a few more reads without having to write new content. I've reviewed the posts from the third year of The Summa, and have selected my favorites. The posts at the start of the year are dominated by accounting standard setting issues, convergence and IFRS.
- Economic Consequences and the Political Nature of Accounting Standard Setting January 6, 2010. It is fitting that the first significant post of the year is one of the defining posts of The Summa. It had made it onto the reading list in a number of classes.
- The Economic and Regulatory Shadow January 10, 2010. This post is as relevant today as it was a year ago. That is, group think rules in Washington. It is especially frustrating that the shadow has adopted the sophistry that is IFRS adoption and global accounting standard convergence.
- They Still Don't Get It January 22, 2010. And perhaps, the largest international audit firms never will. Their purpose in life is not to partner with corporations, but they still think so. This is why many of us are now arguing that the audit model is broken and the audit industry should be nationalized.
- Where Are the Investors? January 29, 2010. In this post, I get to touch on the work of Miller and Bahnson. And, this is the great Achilles heel of accounting standard setting and the audit model–no one is looking out for investors.
- The "Professional Judgment" Problem February 11, 2010.
- Wanted: A Good Reason February 12, 2010. It is frustrating that accounting standards will be converged to IFRS, without a single defensible reason for doing so.
- The SEC and Some Sort of Ostrich Syndrome February 19, 2010
- The Holy Grail of Accounting Is a Fool's Errand February 22, 2010
- Questioning The Audit Model April 21, 2010. This post initiated my thinking for the latter part of the year, although I haven't written much about it. The audit market is broken and I believe it should be nationalized.
- Repo 105 Explained With Numbers and Detail April 24, 2010. This must have been a really good post. Fraud Girl copied it without attribution.
- Is Prof Albrecht An Accounting Nerd? April 25, 2010. One of my personal favorites. I love writing humor pieces.
- Deloitte's Inspection Report: Good or Bad News? May 10, 2010. I wrote this post to correct erroneous statements than many reporters and bloggers were making about the purpose of PCAOB's inspection reports.
- Sen. Sherrod Brown Prods SEC/FASB to Fix Accounting Standards May 11, 2010. Many bloggers were poking fun at Senator Brown for proposing accounting-related amendments to the Dodd Act. Actually, Brown did a good job.
- When A Boomer Accountant Has a Birthday June 3, 2010. I loved writing this post, because it's humorous.
- SEC Self-Funding Is A Mistake! June 22, 2010. SEC chair Schapiro was arguing for self-funding. I wrote this piece, and self-funding was removed from the Dodd Act. Coincidence?
- The Latest Cheating Scandal November 15, 2010. In the future, I will have more to say about cheating.
- How College Students Should Use Linkedin December 5, 2010. A really solid piece of advice. Every accounting and finance major should sign up for LinkeIn and use it!
Debit and credit


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Versace I Love Baroque Tea Pot
Versace I Love Baroque Tea Pot
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Versace I Love Baroque Tea Pot
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ETSU registers eight collegiate bests among its top-10 finishers
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (May 3, 2014) – In its final meet before the Atlantic Sun Outdoor Championships in two weeks, the ETSU track & field program turned in solid performances -- including event wins by a trio of student-athletes as well as multiple collegiate highs and school records -- on Saturday at the Tennessee Challenge at Tom Black Track at LaPorte Stadium.
Using Saturday at the University of Tennessee as a preparatory tool for the upcoming conference meet, the Buccaneers got in some productive work. In total, ETSU recorded 10 top-five finishes including victories in three different events.
Freshman Simeon Roberts (Greeneville, Tenn.) took the top spot in the men's 3000 meter run with a time of 8:27.94, while fellow frosh Mike Williams (Mt. Laurel, N.J.) finished first in the men's 400 meter hurdles with a collegiate-best 52.65 time. Senior Tyler Stepp (Dandridge, Tenn.) distanced himself from the competition in the men's long jump with a first-place leap of 7.42 meters; nearly a full .2 meters ahead of second place which recorded a 7.24 mark. In addition, Roberts placed fourth in the 800 meter run with a collegiate-best time of 1:52.60, while Williams placed in the top three again in the 110 meter hurdles with another collegiate-high 14.96 third-place time.
On the women's side, the Blue & Gold found successes in both distance and sprints events. Sophomore Katie Hirko (Oley, Pa.) raced to a third-place finish in the 1500 meter run with a collegiate-high time of 4:33.49, before following with an eighth-place standing in the 800 meter run with another collegiate-best time of 2:14.64. On the track in hurdle events, the Bucs registered a pair of top-three performances. In the 100 meter hurdles, Dede Edgecombe (Spartanburg, S.C.) placed third with an ETSU record-breaking 13.48 time, while in the 400 meter hurdles, Nicole Alexander (Rock Hill, S.C.), too, rounded out the top three with a time of 1:03.24. Edgecombe has broken her own ETSU record in the event multiple times over the past year.
Additionally, Ashley Kessler (Knoxville, Tenn.) broke her own school record in the pole vault with a mark of 3.95 meters, while Lexie Burley (Johnson City, Tenn.) posted a collegiate-high mark of 12.49 meters in the triple jump.
The Bucs will have a week off from competition next week before heading to Jacksonville, Fla. to compete in the 2014 Atlantic Sun Outdoor Championships, May 17 – 18.
ETSU fans wanting to receive Buccaneer news, score updates, in-game promotions and much more sent to their mobile device can do so by signing up for "Buc Updates." Click here to sign up today!


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To engage in this recreation, hunters spend millions of dollars on license fees, and nearly every penny goes solely to the salaries of state employees.
Those employees in turn provide animals for hunters to kill. Their mandate for such wildlife management comes directly from a Council that is controlled and dominated by hunters.
That is the vicious cycle of wildlife management.
Though this is the story of New Jersey, you will find that no matter what state you live in, the following statements hold true:
Hunting is a business and state biologists practice economics, not science.
This site is dedicated to explaining the realities of wildlife management, and the damage that it has done to our state. All of the information used for this comes directly from the New Jersey Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife, The New Jersey Fish and Game Council, The New Jersey Federation of Sportsmen, and others who profit and take pleasure from hunting.
Here, in their own words, those who tell you publicly that you need hunting will tell you the truth: you do not.


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By Sophie Amelia Mendes from the IACC team, and Stella Borzilo, from the Americas department, at Transparency International.
For a few days every year since 2001, dozens of people marching through the towns and villages of the arid Brazilian North East. These are the people who are speaking out against corruption in Brazil, taking part in the March against Corruption organised by the "Popular Force-Task" (in Portuguese: Força-Tarefa Popular), a group who coordinate society to take action against corruption. More than a hundred people take part in the walk, which can be up to 350km in distance and the size and length of the March demonstrates how passionate the anti-corruption movement in Brazil is.
The marches, organised "against corruption and for life", take various routes with various participants each year, picking up followers along the way and receiving donations of food and shelter from local people. In 2005, the crowd made their way down to the Conference against Corruption organized by the Brazilian government in Brasilia to voice their concerns.
Now there are more reasons and more opportunities than ever for the public in Brazil to come together and speak out against corruption in their country. Preparation for the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016 presents many corruption challenges for the country.
Last month, for example, the government coalition deputies in Brazil approved a bill that would keep the preparation for these events, including massive infrastructure budgets, secret, and therefore away from the public scrutiny that would identify dodgy deals. They had until 1 July to come back on this much criticised move. In the end, the deputies took a "diplomatic" decision because of critics made by the opposition in the Congress.
They changed the text and, now, the budget will be public, but just after the public tender process. So, everybody will know how much will cost the stadiums' reforms, for example — but just after the works start. The positive point in that the control agencies in Brazil (like the Office of the Comptroller General) will monitor the costs since the beginning.
The decision, however, is still being discussed on the political mainstream: the Senate said that could reject it and, in the Federal Supreme Court (STF), some ministries have commented that this is bill does not comply with the Brazilian constitution.
Josmar Verillo, President of Brazilian section of TI, AMARRIBO, recently warned in an interview about the corruption temptations that these events will create: "The amount of money being deployed and the need for quick decisions on contracting has generated a lot of concern about corruption".
That is why the UN Global Compact, AMARRIBO and the Ethos Institute have launched the "Clean Games Initiative". Read more about it here.
Brazilian society, not only those who have participated in the March Against Corruption can use this opportunity to ensure corruption prevention is high on the agenda, not only in terms of 'clean games' (Jogos Limpos) but in Brazilian business and politics in general.
There are obstacles to effective anti-corruption in Brazil, as in many countries. According to Verillo, anti-corruption efforts are an "educational issue… Brazilian society must understand that corruption is bad". He also comments on the problems of engaging companies in corruption prevention as "they do not want to be exposed". There are signs, however that views towards corruption in Brazil are shifting.
In November 2012 the Brazilian Government, Transparency International, AMARRIBO and the Ethos Institute will host the 15th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC), giving public and private sector, civil society, academics, journalists and anyone interested in the prevention of corruption the chance to discuss issues around corruption and forge solutions. With the resignation of Brazil's Cabinet Chief following an ethics scandal, it is certainly an interesting time to be discussing corruption in Brazil.


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Fed Watch: Japan Follow-Up
Tim Duy:
Japan Follow-Up, by Tim Duy: Some follow up to last week's piece on Japanese monetary policy:
First, I think there are some obvious implications for US policymakers: The Federal Reserve has all but given fiscal policymakers the green light to accelerate debt issuance to support stimulus efforts. Matthew O'Brien at the Atlantic points out that while the Fed is willing to tolerate inflation slightly as high as 2.5%, the Fed's forecast remains at 2.0% or below through 2015. So the Fed is willing to tolerate higher inflation, but not willing - or able - to generate higher inflation. The ball is thus passed to fiscal policymakers to do the job. Fiscal policymakers, however, have fumbled the ball. Badly. Even while the Treasury can borrow for 10 years at well below 2%, Washington is prepared to drop an austerity bomb on the economy. Austerity looks to be a done deal; it is only the level of austerity that is at issue.
Second, a thread is making the rounds claiming that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is all bark, no bite. Joshua Wojnilower argues that Abe is a closet austerian, thus ultimately the actual stimulus enacted will be of the short-term, low-power variety. Noah Smith is less diplomatic, pointing out that Abe's first time at the helm was something of a disaster because Abe fundamentally has a narrow focus:
I of course don't mean to imply that Abe's cultural conservatism makes him unlikely to experiment with monetary policy (unlike in America, in Japan "hard money" is less of a conservative sacred cow). Instead, what I mean is that Abe really just does not care very much at all about the economy. I mean, of course he wants Japan to be strong, and of course he doesn't want his party kicked out of power. But his overwhelming priority is erasing the legacy of World War 2, with the economy a distant, distant second.
This is why Abe allows himself to be surrounded by corrupt and incompetent people. He is entirely focused on his cultural conservative quest. The other day Abe called Obama "Bush". He just deeply, truly, does not care about stuff that does not involve boosting Japanese nationalism.
Smith has a theory:
So why is Abe making all this noise about revoking central bank independence, setting hard inflation targets, etc.? I have a hypothesis: He is talking down the yen.
There is a long history of Japanese policymakers talking down the Yen; who could ever forget former Finance Minister Eisuke Sakakibara, AKA Mr. Yen? That said, if Abe wants a sustained depreciation, is is going to take something more than just talk. After all, look at what has been accomplished over the past ten years:
If the goal of all the talk was a weak Yen, policymakers have failed miserably. And If Abe can't follow through with a real policy change, talking alone will continue to fail, and the recent decline in the Yen will prove ephemeral.
This leads me to my third thought, that the level of intervention required to change the economic outcome is much, much higher than most anticipate. You can't just dabble in monetization; you need to commit to it. Case in point: Switzerland. Floyd Norris, the author of the original NYT piece that prompted my initial post, seems to argue that raising inflation is not all that hard:
"At this point, moving to a 2 percent target would not be such a giant step," said Kenneth Rogoff, a Harvard economist who has suggested inflation targeting in the United States as well as in Japan. "They have to pursue it vigorously until we have inflation expectations firmly higher. No one knows how much they would have to do to accomplish that."
The Bank of Japan has in the past been hesitant to really try to establish that credibility...
To establish the credibility, the central bank would have to show a readiness to create credit at a rapid rate. It would probably also need to take steps to hold down the value of the yen, a move that would no doubt cause concern in the United States.
It is, however, very doable, as Switzerland has shown. When the euro zone debt crisis was at its worst, Switzerland became a safe haven for European investors worried that the euro might blow up. That drove up the value of the Swiss franc versus the euro and damaged Switzerland's ability to compete. The Swiss government responded by announcing that the euro would not be allowed to fall below 1.2 Swiss francs. If necessary, the government would simply sell francs to meet any demand.
That has been necessary, and the Swiss have accumulated a huge portfolio of foreign currency. So, too, could the Japanese if they chose to announce that the dollar would henceforth be worth at least 100 yen, a level not seen since 2009.
Rogoff is correct; no one really knows what is necessary. I don't think that 100 yen is a meaningful target; aside from a couple of energy-price induced spikes, Japan has not had meaningful inflation since the early 1990's. The Yen has fluctuated between 80 and 160 during that time. Shoot for 160 and it might be interesting. And how does this relate to Switzerland? Although Norris holds it out as an example, look at inflation in that economy:
And nominal GDP:
The Swiss National Bank appears to be struggling to stave off deflation and stabilize the path of nominal GDP. So how exactly is this a lesson in establishing inflation target credibility? Despite all the efforts of the Swiss National Bank, their work still fall short.
Norris is certainly right on the political implications. I think the extent of direct currency depreciation necessary to by itself meet a 2% inflation target in Japan would be unacceptable to Japan's trade partners. Monetary policy to support domestic demand - monetization of deficit spending - would be much more tolerable, perhaps even welcome.
Bottom Line: Economic policy in Japan is never boring.
Posted by Mark Thoma on Monday, December 31, 2012 at 12:15 AM in Economics, Fed Watch, Monetary Policy |
Comments (27)


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the Fifth Week of Lent
Bible Commentaries Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers Ellicott's Commentary
Old Testament
New Testament
Charles John Ellicott
Charles John Ellicott, compiler of and contributor to this renowned Bible Commentary, was one of the most outstanding conservative scholars of the 19th century. He was born at Whitwell near Stamford, England, on April 25, 1819. He graduated from St. John's College, Cambridge, where other famous expositors like Charles Simeon and Handley Moule studied. As a Fellow of St. John's, he constantly lectured there. In 1847, Charles Ellicott was ordained a Priest in the Church of England. From 1841 to 1848, he served as Rector of Pilton, Rutlandshire. He became Hulsean Professor of Divinity, Cambridge, in 1860. The next three years, 1861 to 1863, he ministered as Dean of Exeter, and later in 1863 became the Lord Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol.
Conspicuous as a Bible Expositor, he is still well known for his Critical and Grammatical Commentaries on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians and Philemon. Other printed works include Modern Unbelief, The Being of God, The History and Obligation of the Sabbath.
This unique Bible Commentary is to be highly recommended for its worth to Pastors and Students. Its expositions are simple and satisfying, as well as scholarly. Among its most commendable features, mention should be made of the following: It contains profitable suggestions concerning the significance of names used in Scripture.