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Nektar Announces Preliminary Topline Results from Phase 2 Efficacy Study for NKTR-181 in Chronic Pain Patients with Osteoarthritis of the Knee
Company to Host Conference Call on Thursday, September 26th at 1:30 PM Pacific Time/4:30 PM Eastern Time to Discuss Results
Sep 26, 2013, 04:10 ET
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Nektar Therapeutics (Nasdaq: NKTR) announced the preliminary topline results from a Phase 2 study of NKTR-181 for the treatment of moderate-to-severe chronic pain in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. The Phase 2 study utilized a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized withdrawal study design to assess the efficacy, safety and tolerability of NKTR-181. Of the 295 patients that entered the study, only 9 (3%) patients were unable to achieve meaningful pain relief with NKTR-181. 53 (18%) patients discontinued treatment during the titration period because of adverse events, most of which are those commonly associated with opioids. A total of 213 patients achieved an average 40% reduction in pain and entered the randomized phase of the study.
Following the titration period, patients were randomized 1:1 to either continue to receive their analgesic dose of NKTR-181 or to receive placebo for 21 days. NKTR-181 performed as expected as an opioid analgesic throughout the study with patients continuing to show a reduction in pain scores throughout the randomized phase of the study as well. However, patients who were randomized to placebo did not show the expected increase in pain scores observed in similar enriched enrollment, randomized withdrawal studies. This unusual lack of a placebo rebound caused the Phase 2 study to miss the primary endpoint in the study, which was based upon the average change in a patient's pain score from pre-randomization baseline to the end of the double-blind, randomized treatment period of the study.
"We are experiencing a major public health problem with prescription opioids in this country, and need to find new ways to address this problem," said Dr. Lynn Webster, Chief Medical Officer of CRI Lifetree. "I have worked with NKTR-181 since this new molecule entered the clinic, and I believe that NKTR-181 could be an important advance in analgesia, maybe even a breakthrough. Although this Phase 2 study did not achieve its primary endpoint, this is not uncommon in opioid development. What is important is that the large majority of patients in this trial were able to achieve meaningful and long-lasting pain relief from NKTR-181. Providing analgesia without the pronounced CNS effects and euphoria of standard opioids is the future of analgesic development."
NKTR-181 was also well-tolerated over the entire treatment period. The most common adverse events observed for patients taking NKTR-181 were constipation (22.4%) and nausea (10.3%). Discontinuation for adverse events was 18% during the titration period with the most common adverse events cited for discontinuation of constipation (8.8%), nausea (4%) and somnolence (3%).
"The results from this Phase 2 trial provide a great deal of additional insight into the analgesic profile of NKTR-181 and will be invaluable as we continue the development of this molecule," said Howard W. Robin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nektar Therapeutics. "We were very pleased that this drug clearly performs as an effective analgesic with only 3% of the patients who received NKTR-181 unable to titrate to meaningful pain relief. We are carefully evaluating the lack of post-randomization rebound in the placebo arm in order to design the optimal pivotal trials for this drug. Based upon the data from this trial, it is clear that NKTR-181 provides pain relief on par with existing opioids while achieving a very favorable safety profile that differentiates it from standard opioids. We are committed to bringing NKTR-181 to patients suffering from chronic pain."
NKTR-181 is a novel mu-opioid agonist molecule designed to have a slow rate of entry into the brain to reduce the attractiveness of the molecule as a target of abuse and to reduce other CNS-mediated side effects, such as sedation and respiratory depression.
Analyst Call to be Held 1:30 PM Pacific Time/4:30 PM Eastern Time on Thursday, September 26, 2013
The company will be hosting a call to discuss these data with analysts and investors at 1:30 PM Pacific time/4:30 PM Eastern time today. Hosting the call will be Howard Robin, President and CEO of Nektar, and Robert Medve, MD, Chief Medical Officer. Joining company management will be Jeffrey Gudin, MD, Director of Pain Management and Palliative Care, Englewood Hospital & Medical Center and Clinical Instructor of Anesthesiology at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine.
A live audio-only Webcast of the conference call can be accessed through a link that is posted on the home page and Investor Relations section of the Nektar website: http://www.nektar.com. To access the conference call live, follow these instructions:
Dial: (877) 881-2183 (U.S.); (970) 315-0453 (international)
Passcode: 71977583 (Nektar Therapeutics is the host)
The webcast replay of the conference call will be available through October 7, 2013, 2013.
About Opioids and Pain Management
Pain is one of the most common reasons people seek medical treatment.1 The American Pain Society estimates that 36 percent of the U.S. population, or 105 million people, suffer from chronic pain in the United States. Chronic pain conditions, such as osteoarthritis, back pain and cancer pain, affect at least 126 million adults in the U.S. annually and contribute to over $100 billion a year in direct healthcare expenditures and lost work time.2 Opioids are considered the most effective therapeutic option for pain, with sales exceeding over $10 billion a year in the U.S. alone.3,4 However, opioids can cause serious side effects such as respiratory depression and sedation and have the potential for addiction, abuse and misuse. In 2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that emergency room visits for non-medical use of opioid analgesics increased 111 percent over a five-year period.5
About Nektar
Nektar Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics based on its PEGylation and advanced polymer conjugation technology platforms. Nektar has a robust R&D pipeline of potentially high-value therapeutics in oncology, pain and other therapeutic areas. In the area of pain, Nektar has an exclusive worldwide license agreement with AstraZeneca for naloxegol (NKTR-118), an investigational drug candidate, which has completed Phase 3 development as a once- daily, oral tablet for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation. For naloxegol, a Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) in the EU and a New Drug Application (NDA) in the US have been submitted for filing. The agreement with AstraZeneca also includes NKTR-119, an earlier stage development program that is a co-formulation of naloxegol and an opioid. NKTR-181, a novel mu-opioid analgesic candidate for chronic pain conditions, is in Phase 2 development in osteoarthritis patients with chronic knee pain. NKTR-192, a novel mu-opioid analgesic in development to treat acute pain is in Phase 1 clinical development. In oncology, etirinotecan pegol (NKTR-102) is being evaluated in a Phase 3 clinical study (the BEACON study) for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer and is also in Phase 2 studies for the treatment of ovarian and colorectal cancers. In anti-infectives, Amikacin Inhale is in Phase 3 studies conducted by Bayer Healthcare as an adjunctive treatment for intubated and mechanically ventilated patients with Gram-negative pneumonia.
Nektar's technology has enabled eight approved products in the U.S. or Europe through partnerships with leading biopharmaceutical companies, including UCB's Cimzia® for Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis, Roche's PEGASYS® for hepatitis C and Amgen's Neulasta® for neutropenia. Additional development-stage products that leverage Nektar's proprietary technology platform include Baxter's BAX 855, a long-acting PEGylated rFVIII program, which is in Phase 3 clinical development.
Nektar is headquartered in San Francisco, California, with additional operations in Huntsville, Alabama and Hyderabad, India. Further information about the company and its drug development programs and capabilities may be found online at http://www.nektar.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as: "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "expect," "believe," "should," "may," "will" and similar references to future periods. Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others, statements we make regarding the potential for NKTR-181 as a potentially new analgesic opioid therapy for the treatment of chronic pain based on observations and findings from Phase 2 clinical data, potential future clinical develop plans for NKTR-181, and the value and potential of our technology and other drug candidates in our research and development pipeline. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others: (i) NKTR-181 is in the clinical development stage and could fail at any time due to numerous unpredictable and significant risks related to safety, efficacy and other important findings that can negatively impact clinical development prior to approval of a drug candidate; (ii) future develop plans for NKTR-181 are preliminary only and subject to change based on, among other factors, our continued review of the clinical study results and interactions with health authorities; (iii) the preliminary topline results reported in this press release are subject to change based on final audit and verification procedures; (iv) although we have conducted various experiments using laboratory and home-based chemistry techniques that have so far been unable to convert NKTR-181 into a rapid-acting, more abusable opioid, it is possible that an alternative chemistry technique or process may be discovered in the future that would enable the conversion of NKTR-181 into a more abusable opioid; (v) the statements regarding the therapeutic potential of NKTR-181 as an opioid analgesic are based on our findings and observations from preclinical and clinical data and results from future clinical studies for NKTR-181 may fail to confirm these earlier findings and observations; (vi) scientific discovery of new medical breakthroughs is an inherently uncertain process and the future success of the application of Nektar's technology platform to potential new drug candidates such as NKTR-181 is very uncertain and unpredictable and these potential new drug candidates could unexpectedly fail at any time; (vii) patents may not issue from our patent applications for NKTR-181, patents that have issued may not be enforceable, or additional intellectual property licenses from third parties may be required; and (viii) certain other important risks and uncertainties set forth in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 9, 2013. Any forward-looking statement made by us in this press release is based only on information currently available to us and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.
Nektar Investor and Media Inquiries:
Jennifer Ruddock/Nektar Therapeutics (415) 482-5585
Susan Noonan/SA Noonan Communications, LLC (212) 966-3650
(1) Hyman, Steven E., Harvard Review of Psychiatry. 2(1):43-46, May/June 1994.
(2) 2011 National Academy of Sciences. Relieving Pain in America: A Blueprint for Transforming Prevention, Care, Education and Research, 2010 Decision Resources, and Harstall, C. How prevalent is chronic pain? Pain Clinical Updates X, 1—4 (2003).
(3) IMS, NSP, NPA and Defined Health 2010 Estimates.
(4) Melnikova, I, Pain Market, Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, Volume 9, 589-90 (August 2010).
(5) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), Emergency Department Visits Involving Nonmedical Use of Selected Prescription Drugs --- United States, 2004—2008, 59(23);705-709 (June 2010).
SOURCE Nektar Therapeutics


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Luxury Wooden Hangers for Men
Luxury Wooden Hangers for Men from The Hanger Project were created specifically to help the well-dressed take the best care of their wardrobes. We are not a manufacturer that resells cheap wooden retail hangers for twice the price. All of our wooden hangers were designed in collaboration with bespoke tailors to both protect and extend the life of fine clothing by providing them with proper support. Our hangers are purpose-built and specifically designed to provide maximum support.
The Hanger Project has the most comprehensive collection of luxury wooden hangers. From our Luxury Suit Hanger to our exclusive Clamping Trouser Hangers, Felted Trouser Bar Hangers, and Luxury Sweater Hangers, you will find the perfect profile to meet your needs and that are totally unique and exclusive to us.

subset: commoncrawl


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Flerken Kitty | Button Up Shirt
Shipping calculated at checkout.
Fitted Collared Shirt
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Lightweight, no stretch.
They are made to order and may take 4-5 weeks to arrive.
For sizing please refer to the measurements chart!
Returns are accepted within 2 weeks of delivery date. Buyer is responsible for return shipping cost.
*Pattern sizing and color may vary slightly*
Model is shown wearing the L


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At just 175 grams (size 42.5), the Empire™ SLX sets a new standard for light weight cycling footwear. Yet it doesn't compromise the structure or stiffness needed to put full power to the pedals thanks to a combination of exceptional fit, a new Evofiber™ SL one-piece upper, and the Easton® EC90™ SLX2 high-modulus outsole. And with replaceable heel pads, full titanium hardware and our adjustable SuperNatural Fit Kit, these are full-featured shoes built to win, and built to last.
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- Footbed: Ultralight SuperNatural Fit Kit with Adjustable Arch Support Ultralight Footbed with Adjustable Arch Support X-Static ® Antimicrobial Fiber Travel Bag Included
- Weight: 175 grams (size 42.5)
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A superb fit, with adjustable arch support to help optimize comfort and enhance pedaling efficiency.
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Click here for Giro size chart.
This product was added to our catalog on August 26, 2014


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Every time Michelle Beadle has ever seen me, she's called me "f—face." There are some variations. "Hey, f—face!" "How's it going, f—face?" "Long time no see, f—face." But I always get called a f—face.
I shouldn't be too flattered; from what I understand, it's a go-to term of endearment for Beadle. And it is endearing. (And certainly has its one-of-the-fellas merits when dealing with the primarily male-driven sports media.) When Beadle was briefly at NBC before returning to ESPN last March, I was the occasional fill-in co-host/second-in-command on her show The Crossover. When her wooden, charmless initial co-host Dave Briggs was booted after just a couple of months, they had me and other fellow C-listers from the sports media world like SB Nation's Matt Ufford and Dan Rubenstein and The Dan Patrick Show's Paul Pabst pop in from time to time. I'm not the most riveting television presence, but I loved working with Beadle.
She's a terrific talent: She's instantly likable and relatable on television in a way that few are, possessing that natural, ineffable ability that the greats of the medium have. Beadle has that Matt Lauer thing, that Bob Costas thing, that Diane Sawyer thing, the sense that she just happens to be hanging out on your television screen being herself. Television is about giving the illusion of casual intimacy to millions of people at a time, and Beadle is brilliant at it. When I was on The Crossover, I took delight in basically just playing Ed McMahon to Beadle's Carson, laughing at the right times, nodding along as she conducted an interview, trying to find the least obtrusive moment to interject with a joke. (Plus, you know, Tom Green.) She's the real deal, and when she left NBC and returned to ESPN, she was welcomed back with open arms and no hard feelings. She's so skilled that she temporarily made even Colin Cowherd look likable. People know how good she is.
Beadle has done this in an unconventional way, too: She has remained defiantly herself, whether it's (unnecessarily) feuding with Erin Andrews or amusingly calling out some of her more idiotic Twitter followers. Some of my favorite subplots of this year's NBA Finals involved occasionally glancing courtside during San Antonio home games and seeing Beadle losing her damned mind. The San Antonio native has been a Spurs fan a lot longer than she has been on television, and even though she had done some hosting on the ESPN pregame show during the playoffs, she got to spend the Finals cheering like she always had. This is a newer thing, you know; outside of Bill Simmons, and maybe Michael Wilbon's Northwestern honking, openly rooting for specific teams is still considered a bit gauche among old-timers in sports journalism. You can't imagine a mid-tier SportsCenter anchor getting away with it. This makes Beadle more likable and relatable too. There are so many bland hosts, and there she is, screaming like the rest of us.
So, it's clear that I'm in the tank for Beadle here, yes? So let's say this then: What she did on Friday afternoon was the most important thing she'll ever do in journalism. It is legitimately one of the most courageous things I've ever seen someone in sports journalism do.
* * *
In the off-chance that you haven't heard, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith went on his happy-fart-time-hour-jamboree show First Take on Friday morning and said this about the NFL's two-game suspension of Ray Rice, who knocked his then-fiancée unconscious in a casino elevator earlier this year:
But what I've tried to employ the female members of my family, some of who you all met and talked to and what have you, is that again, and this what, I've done this all my life, let's make sure we don't do anything to provoke wrong actions … we got to also make sure that you can do your part to do whatever you can do to make, to try to make sure it doesn't happen.
Deadspin noticed this and put up a post around 11:30 a.m. ET, which got a few hits and got a few people talking. But it was all relatively muted, just those First Take boys doing what they do, until 12:39 p.m. ET, when Beadle chimed up on Twitter.
So I was just forced to watch this morning's First Take. A) I'll never feel clean again B) I'm now aware that I can provoke my own beating.
– Michelle Beadle (@MichelleDBeadle) July 25, 2014
I'm thinking about wearing a miniskirt this weekend…I'd hate to think what I'd be asking for by doing so @stephenasmith. #dontprovoke
– Michelle Beadle (@MichelleDBeadle) July 25, 2014
I was in an abusive relationship once. I'm aware that men & women can both be the abuser. To spread a message that we not 'provoke' is wrong
– Michelle Beadle (@MichelleDBeadle) July 25, 2014
Violence isn't the victim's issue. It's the abuser's. To insinuate otherwise is irresponsible and disgusting. Walk. Away.
– Michelle Beadle (@MichelleDBeadle) July 25, 2014
Now, three days later, it is obvious that Stephen A. Smith is in serious career hot water for his "provoke" comment, particularly after he went on Twitter and, as people like Stephen A. Smith tend to do, made it about 100 times worse. For its part, ESPN issued the following response on Sunday:
There has been a lot of discussion and reflection on the topic since Friday and it will continue. Stephen A. Smith plans to address the situation on Monday's First Take and we will have more to say on Monday as well.
That sounds about right: Smith and his network are promoting the appearance like wrestling hype, with this issue and Smith's "take" on it just more grist for "debate."
But there was little reason to think this would turn into much of a tempest before Beadle's tweet. Smith is generally untouchable at ESPN, his show a ratings machine that's perpetually in danger of eating everything of quality that ESPN does. (He had even said something similarly repulsive in the past, to zero reaction.) First Take had reached the point that either Smith or Skip Bayless could have cooked a rabbit on live television and there would have been little backlash; the free reign for those two to be awful is basically unprecedented.
Then Beadle — who had been bashing the NFL the day before for its weak "punishment" of Rice, also in defiance of the rest of her network — spoke up. Suddenly, people weren't just talking about Smith's revolting comments, but also the general place of women in sports and the practice of victim-blaming in domestic violence cases. Beadle didn't just call out Smith; she started a conversation that we desperately needed to have. She called attention to Smith, and the scores of others like him. We're all still talking about Stephen A. Smith and domestic violence and Ray Rice because of Michelle Beadle. It is also of note that Smith didn't feel the need to explain himself on Twitter until Beadle had spoken up, and he was so upset by her reaction that he specifically referenced her in tweeting his "defense."
Do not think that Beadle, who declined to comment for this piece, did all this without considerable risk. First off, this is ESPN, where keeping criticism in-house is a matter of public policy. (Bill Simmons was suspended from Twitter for three days last year — as much as being told to stop providing free content to a third-party platform for 72 hours counts as a "suspension" — for criticizing First Take.) Whenever ESPN is involved in some sort of controversy, it's sort of amazing how many ESPN employees — who ordinarily can't stop chattering on Twitter all day about anything — immediately go mum for their own professional well-being. Even after Beadle spoke up, most ESPN writers didn't let out a peep, at least about Smith. (Jane McManus of espnW had written a despairing piece about the NFL's domestic violence problem.) That Beadle would call out a colleague took guts, and legitimate outrage.
But the wrath of suits is nothing compared to what Beadle exposed herself to online. She has always enjoyed mocking people on Twitter (particularly for their poor grammar), but the bile that regularly comes her way as a woman working in sports media is real, and unceasing. It's par for the course for female sports journalists, as any of them can tell you: If you're on air, you can count on people telling you you're ugly or fat or stupid, or you slept your way to your job, or nice-report-on-Johnny-Manziel-now-show-us-your-boobs, and you can count on this every time you do anything. Beadle, an avid Twitterer, knew this as well as anyone, which meant she knew responses like this, and this, and this, and dozens more like them, were coming. It's one thing to know that you're in the right, and that those who are attacking you are scared, angry little cretins. It's quite another to actually have to read all those people saying horrific things to you. Even when you're on the side of the just, every one of them has to take a little piece out of you.
This is not an academic issue either, specifically for Beadle, who has dealt with an actual stalking case. And it's not just an online one either, or one that doesn't involve any female sports reporter's daily life. Beadle and Erin Andrews might not get along personally, but certainly any woman in sports can relate to the disgust, and the sad familiarity, when a radio personality says about Andrews that "if [she] weighed 15 pounds more she would be a waitress at Perkins.'" (And this was in the guy's apology.) Beadle and other women are walking around daily in a hostile environment. To take that heat, to take more heat, for the sake of standing up for women everywhere, for what is right, knowing full well what's coming… that's truly impressive. That took more courage than it might appear.
Listen, Stephen A. Smith probably isn't going to get fired (his move to SiriusXM radio from ESPN Radio is oddly timed, but likely unrelated), and First Take isn't going to go away. Standing up on Twitter isn't going to save the world. But the next time some guy in sports media has the same thought that Smith did — and it's a sentiment that's far too common — he's going to stop for a second. As it is, a lot more people, men and women, are talking about sports' inextricable connection to domestic violence today than were on Friday morning because of Beadle. She did something important, and brave, and it grew into something larger, something good. It was difficult not to be proud of the ole' f—face.
* * *
Email me at [email protected]; follow me @williamfleitch; or just shout out your window real loud, I'll hear you. Point is, let's talk.


text: ______ __ _ __ / ___/ __ _____ / / / | / / / / ___\ \ / ___// /____ ____ / |/ / / / / __ // / / __ // __ \ / / / /___/ /_/ // / / /_/ // /_/ // /| / \_____/\____//_/ /_'____/ \____//_/ |_/ Need For Speed: Carbon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAQ/Walkthrough PlayStation 2 Version Version 0.9 Created by razie92 (Razie) ========================= Table Of Contents ========================= 1 - Introduction 1.1 About the Author 1.1.1 Contact Information 1.1.2 Copyright Information 1.2 About Need For Speed: Carbon 2 - Game Information 2.1 Controls 2.2 Storyline 2.3 Car List 2.3.1 Car Classes 2.4 Game Modes 2.5 Race Types 3 - Career Mode 3.1 Start Of Career 3.2 Territory 3.2.1 Rival Crews 3.3 Your Crew 4 - Frequently Asked Questions 5 - Version History 6 - Credits ===================== 1 - Introduction ===================== ---------------------- 1.1 About the Author ---------------------- Hi, I'm a 16 year old gamer and a fan of the NFS series. I have all the NFS titles except Hot Pursuit 2 on the PS2. I bought NFS Carbon in mid November and completed the game under my first alias with almost everything unlocked except for a few (hard) reward cards and stuff. And then I've decided to write this FAQ; this is my first FAQ ever. So forgive me if there are too many flaws in this guide. -------------------------- 1.1.1 Contact Information -------------------------- Nick : razie92 (Razie) Email : razie92 [at] gmail [dot] com Please send me a proper email. Email me if you have any questions about the game or any errors in this FAQ or if you want to send in tips and tricks. I will credit you for it :) UPDATE : I may not reply to your emails immediately because I have other commitments at this time. ---------------------------- 1.1.2 Copyright Information ---------------------------- Copyright� razie92 2008. This guide may not be reproduced or redistributed in any ways without prior permission from me. If you would like to post this guide on your site, you can email me for permission. The following sites have my permission to post this FAQ on their site: - www.neoseeker.com - www.cheatcc.com - www.supercheats.com All trademarks and copyrights in the game and this guide are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. --------------------------------- 1.2 About Need For Speed Carbon --------------------------------- Note: This guide covers the standard version of Need For Speed Carbon. Need For Speed Carbon is another installment in the great NFS series. It is the sequel to Most Wanted, where the player continues the story after the ending of Most Wanted. Carbon is set in Palmont City, where crews fight for territory. The car customization is also tweaked out; it features the Autosculpt, where you can change your car's body parts just the way you want and some other new additions like changing your ride height. The newest addition to the NFS series is the introduction of crews similar to Juiced but better on my opinion. You can read further about this crew thing in the Career Mode section. ======================== 2 - Game Information ======================== -------------- 2.1 Controls -------------- Race Controls """"""""""""" X button : Accelerate (pressure sensitive) O button : Look back Square button : Brake (Reverse when stopped) Triangle button : No use R1 button : Handbrake R2 button : Shift up L1 button : NOS L2 button : Shift down Right analog stick : (UP) Accelerate (DOWN) Brake (Reverse when stopped) Left analog stick : Controls the car Directional pad : Controls the car Career (UP; enter safehouse, car lot, races) (LEFT; world map) (Right; view SMS) R3 button : SpeedBreaker L3 button : No use Menu Controls """"""""""""" X button : Accept Triangle button : Back Directional pad : Highlight mode R2 button : Showcase car Career Controls """"""""""""""" Square button : Sell car L1 button : Reduce Heat R1 button : Increase Impound Strike O button : Career controls Customization """"""""""""" Square button is used to add layer of vinyl to your car. Right analog stick is used to rotate view when showcasing car. Left analog stick is used to update vinyls (move/scale/rotate/skew) --------------- 2.2 Storyline --------------- The story starts before the beginning of Most Wanted. You were a street racer in Palmont City. One clear night you were racing with three other racers in a suped-up Supra belonging to a friend of yours. You were clearly going to be winning the race when the police ambushed the run and shot EMPs but barely misses your car. Street racers and other people scramble to get away. You broke off and ran to Rockport. After the events in Most Wanted, you are going back to Palmont City in your BMW M3. While strolling down the canyon you are suddenly being chased by Sgt. Cross, who had lost his job after failing to arrest you. The chase ends with you recking your car. Sgt. Cross breaks off after Darius showed up. With your car totaled, and Palmont City a battleground now, you have to get a new ride. That's when Nikki gives you a hand. You have to pick between tuners, muscles, and exotics. After that you will essemble a crew to conquer Palmont City and get to the bottom of what happened six months ago. --------------- 2.3 Car List --------------- (Note: This is the standard version, not the Collectors Edition) --------------- Tuners --------------- Tier 1 * 2004 Lexus IS300 (bonus car) * 2007 Mazda 3 MPS * 2003 Mazda RX-8 Tier 2 * 1999 Mazda RX-7 * 1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX (bonus car) * 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT * 2005 Renault Clio V6 * 1986 Toyota Corolla GT-S (AE86) (bonus car) * 1992 Toyota MR2 (bonus car) * 2006 Volkswagen Golf R32 Tier 3 * 2004 Infiniti G35 * 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX MR * 2006 Nissan 350Z * 1999 Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R * 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX STI * 1999 Toyota Supra ----------------- Muscles ----------------- Tier 1 * 1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS * 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS (bonus car) * 2005 Chrysler 300C SRT-8 Tier 2 * 1969 Dodge Charger R/T * 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8 * 2006 Ford Mustang GT * 1969 Plymouth Road Runner (bonus car) * 2006 Pontiac GTO (bonus car, police car) * 2005 Vauxhall Monaro VXR Tier 3 * 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 * 2008 Dodge Challenger * 2006 Dodge Viper SRT-10 * 1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 * 2007 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 (bonus car) * 1970 Plymouth Barracuda --------------- Exotics --------------- Tier 1 * 2006 Alfa Romeo Brera * 2005 Mercedes-Benz CLK500 Tier 2 * 2004 Aston Martin DB9 * 2004 Lotus Elise 111R * 2006 Lotus Europa S (bonus car) * 2005 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG * 2006 Porsche Cayman S Tier 3 * 2007 Audi R8/LeMans Quattro (bonus car) * 2003 BMW M3 GTR (bonus car) * 2005 Ford GT * 2006 Lamborghini Gallardo * 2004 Lamborghini Murci�lago * 2006 Lamborghini Murci�lago LP640 (bonus car) * 2004 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren * 2006 Porsche 911 GT3 RS (bonus car) * 2006 Porsche 911 Turbo S * 2004 Porsche Carrera GT Note: Some bonus cars can only be driven in certain modes. Example: Porsche 911 GT3 RS can only be driven in a Challenge series event. -------------------- 2.3.1 Car Classes -------------------- In Need For Speed Carbon, cars are separated into three (3) different car classes and each car class has three (3) tiers of cars. Tier 3 cars has the best stats in a car class. Each car class handles and runs differently. - Tuner Cars - Muscle Cars - Exotic Cars Tuner Cars ---------- Tuner cars has the best handling of all. Tuners don't go very fast, but with these cars you can out-smart and out-manuever the Muscle cars. However, you will probably get a hard time racing against Tier 3 Exotics with Tier 3 Tuners; they'll smoke you. Nevertheless, Tuners are good for some races, like Drift and Canyon races. Muscle Cars ----------- The greatest fact about these gorgeous cars is their unrivaled acceleration. They can go up to 200 mph in just mere seconds. The weak point is, Muscles handle like a brick. You pretty much struggle in corners but with practise and determination, you can conquer the corners. Exotic Cars ----------- Exotics are preferably the best cars in the game and with top-notch top speed. Exotics can outpace the other car classes because they have similar handling and acceleration as Tuners and Muscles. The only let-down is, it'll cost you a fortune to get your hands on one. Other than that, Exotics are definitely the best choice. ----------------- 2.4 Game Modes ----------------- Career Mode - To play the game you must have an alias. In career mode, this is where you do most of the unlocking and play the storymode. My Cars - This is where you customize your car for racing in Quick Races without paying anything. Challenge Series - A series of challenges that you can engage in. Consists of 12 challenges with each challenge having three (3) races to gain medals. Winning Bronze races will unlock Silver races. Silver races will unlock Gold races to get the final reward such as cool spoilers. Quick Races - Basically races you can enter using tracks you unlocked in career mode and using cars that you customized, customs, stock cars, bonus or career cars. Reward Cards - Each Reward Card will unlock a new body part, vinyls, or a brand new car by completing them. Each Reward Card needs four (4) tasks to be done in order to unlock the reward. There are 25 Reward Cards and 100 tasks. Statistics - This is where you can view all your accomplishments in the game. Options - You can change your gaming preferences here as well as the EA Trax. Also where you can view credits and trailers. (Additional note: If you're wondering what the Tracking Mode in Quick Race does, don't look at me, because I don't have any idea what it does too. It's not even in the manual) ------------------ 2.5 Race Types ------------------ Basic race types that was in the last three NFS games are here to stay except the Drag race. There are new race types as well a race type that makes a comeback. :: Circuit Race :: Sprint Race :: Checkpoint Race :: Drift Race : Canyon Drift :: Speedtrap Race :: Canyon Races: : Canyon Duel : Canyon Race : Canyon Checkpoint Race Type Information: :: Circuit Race - The most basic race in any NFS game. - You must reach the finish line in first place to win. - Consists of two (2) laps. Most of the time you will race against two rival crew racers with the help of a crew member. In other occassions you will be racing against a rival crew boss, alone. - Circuit tracks all have shortcuts but I don't recommend using some of them, because they actually might not help at all and even slow you down. - Crew members will be useful as you advance through the game. Blockers can buy you some time, Drafters can give you a boost of speed, and Scouts can find shortcuts and even win the race for you. - Crashes are inevitable in Circuit Races, so be careful but not too careful. - Don't face corners at 100 mph because you will probably crash into a wall. Brake before the corner, turn slowly, and hit the gas as soon as you passed the apex of the corner. This is called the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique. I got it from Rachel in NFSU2. :: Sprint Race - These are simple Point A to Point B races. - You must reach the finish line in first place to win. - You will race against two rival crew members with the help of a crew member. You can pick Blockers, Drafters or Scouts to be your racemate. Scouts usually help a lot. - Rivals will usually get ahead of you early in the race so try to get ahead of them. You can use shortcuts but mind you, some might not be shortcuts at all. - Remember the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique. :: Checkpoint Race - Similar to Most Wanted's tollbooth, but with checkpoints instead of tollbooths. The point is to get from one checkpoint to the other before the timer runs out. - You race alone in these races. - Be sure to keep your NOS meter up. NOS is useless if you use it bit by bit. Its far more effective to use a full shot. :: Drift Race - This race type makes a comeback after being removed from Most Wanted. - In this game, a totally new mechanism is used. Different from Underground. So you better get used to it. You can practise on Tuners for starters. - Drift Races are set in circuit tracks with 2 laps. - You must have the most points in the end to win. You will be drifting against three (3) AI racers although you can't see them on the track. - If you can connect a drift from one corner to another, and keep this up, you get drift multipliers. These really help a lot as they multiply your drift score to the respective number. - You don't just tap the analog stick to the direction of the drift, you have to hold on to your car throughout the drift. One good way to drift is to get your speed up to full, turn slightly to drift, keep pressing on the gas, maintain control, and if you think you're about to hit that wall and lose it all, well, read this tip down here. - If you are drifting and are about to hit the wall, release the gas and move your car out of the way with ease. If you think that pressing on the gas will save you, think again. : Canyon Drift - Same as Drift Races but on cramped canyons instead of tracks. - You must have the most points in the end to win. You will be racing against three (3) AI racers although you can't see them. - Keep the Drift Multiplier up by connecting drifts. You'll get massive drift points in the end. - I don't recommend going too fast because you'll never know when things might go wrong. Just go moderately fast and be careful. - You can fall of the canyon by crashing into the yellow barrier. So be careful and keep an eye out for these parts of the canyon. - Always remember: if you are about to hit that wall, release the gas. It works. - Don't go too fast into a corner as if to crash into the wall intentionally. :: Speedtrap Race - These are Point A to Point B races. - There are 5 to 6 Speedtrap icons located throughout the race. These will record your speed when you pass them. Be sure to get your top speed up before reaching these icons. - Using NOS before you hit a Speedtrap will obviously give you some needed extra miles. - You can deploy a Blocker to help you slow down your enemies or a Drafter to really give you a boost of speed. But be careful with Drafters, because as you stay in his/her slipstream to turn corners, you also might be going into the corner too fast and crash into the facing wall. - I don't remember using the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique, I just go silly around the corners. Speedbreaker helps a lot. :: Canyon Races: (Races set in the canyons) : Canyon Duel - This is probably the hardest race type in the game. - Canyon Duels are Boss races and the last stage needed to accomplish to take over their territory. - Canyon Duels are point based races. There are two (2) stages. - During the first stage of the race, you will be tailing the Boss. The closer you are to his/her car, the faster your points will increase. If you can't keep up with the Boss, your points will increase slowly or don't increase at all. If you stray to far from him/her, a ten-second timer will appear and if you don't get close enough to the Boss before the timer runs out, you will lose the race. The points you collected after you've reached the finish line will determine how much points you will have for the second stage. - During the second stage of the race, the Boss will be tailing you. The closer he/she gets to you, the more points you will lose. You will win the race if you have some points left when you reach the finish line. - There are other ways to win the race: You can try to get ahead of the Boss and stay ahead for ten seconds. Or you can push the Boss of the cliff. - Remember the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique. : Canyon Race - Similar to Sprint Races except there's no crew member to back you up. - Read Sprint Race for more details. - NOS and Speedbraker are available, so those should help a lot. - Remember the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique. : Canyon Checkpoint - Similar to City Checkpoints, only you race on canyons. - Read Checkpoint Race for more details. - Again, remember the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique. =================== 3 - Career Mode =================== --------------------- 3.1 Start Of Career --------------------- There are a few things you must do before you advance in your career. After you've watched the video, you will have to choose a car class that will determine how your career progresses and things you'll unlock. Picking Your Car """""""""""""""" If you choose: RX-8 (Tuner class) : You will start in Downtown Palmont City. Alfa Romeo Brera (Exotic class) : You will start in Fortuna. Chevrolet Camaro SS (Muscle class) : You will start in Kempton. Note: Read [2.3.1 Car Classes] for more information on your choice. You can choose a car class based on your driving preferences. For starters, you can choose between the Tuner and the Exotic, but I highly recommend not choosing the Muscle, because the car will just run uncontrollably. Test drive to see how your choice performs. (Additional note: There's absolutely no way to start in Silverton) Crew Tutorial """"""""""""" After you've chosen your starting car, you'll be taken to a tutorial on how to use crew members and what exactly a crew type will do to help you in a race. To activate a crew member press the Triangle button. Crew member activation is not always available just like NOS. A quick list of crew member types and descriptions: Blockers: Obviously they do what their name suggests. They will block your rivals with their cars and buy you some time. Drafters: They may be called speed demons because they're fast and they will give you an extra boost of NOS. But their real purpose is to let you drive in their slipstream, and by pressing Triangle again will result in you shooting out with more speed. Scouts : Scouts find the shortest ways around the track. They also have amazing acceleration; they will shoot out of the pack at the starting line. Also, each crew member has a second specialty: Fabricators: They mainly enable the Autosculpt feature. Fixers : They can reduce your heat level and buy off truckers. Mechanics : They can get you discounted cars and parts. (Additional note: You are playing the tutorial in the San Juan district. This place is inaccessible in career mode and can only be played in Quick Race mode) Your First Pursuit """""""""""""""""" Nikki runs off after you've completed the tutorial and leaves you with Neville. You guys take a stroll on the highway when a cop car spots you. You get in a pursuit and gets separated from Neville. You get chased by three (3) cop cars. You can drive off to the nearest Pursuit Breaker and try to lose them there. Or you can just finish them all by ramming their cars to walls as soon as you take control of your car. You will be given the coordinates of a safehouse when you lose the cops. (Additional note: Pursuit Breakers are objects or obstacles that immobilize police vehicles. You activate them by driving into them.) Career Races """""""""""" Alright, its time to race. You'll start in different areas depending on your car class. Whenever you want to race, just open up your map, and scroll through the star icons. Winning two out of three races in an area will have you conquering that area. Sometimes people forget about the last race and just go to other areas so they can conquer that big territory. They will leave out some unlockables without knowing about it. I recommend that you complete all races in order to get the most out of the game. It can get pretty repetitive and boring sometimes, but you'll get cool unlockables in the end. Note: Read [2.5 Race Types] for more information on Race Types. Free Roam Challenges """""""""""""""""""" Sometimes, or often, when you are driving in Free Roam looking for races or shops or just cruising around, you'll encounter a rival racer from a rival crew (similar to NFSU2 but without the crew) and challenge you to a race. Pressing UP on the D-Pad will accept the challenge and open up the map with finish lines scattered around. You have to choose a finish line and reach it first. You'll get a $1000 reward if you have successfully done so. Tips: - Before accepting the challenge, make sure that your car is not facing any wall or obstacles because if your car is in that position, the rival racer will have a head start on the race. - Take a look at the rival's car before thinking of accepting a challenge. If you're driving a Mazda RX-8 while the other guy drives a Dodge Challenger Concept, think carefully. ----------------- 3.2 Territory ----------------- Palmont City is a battleground for racers and crews. They battle for control over territories. Four rivalling crews control the major territories as well as well as some small, minor crews. You will take over territories to advance in the career mode. Taking over territories will benefit you in some ways. Benefits from conquering territory: - Less cops patrolling the area. - You get discounts at shops. - You get the rival crew's safehouse. - You won't find rival crew members as often. - And other benefits. Main areas in Palmont City (4): 1 - Downtown 2 - Kempton 3 - Fortuna 4 - Silverton There's also the San Juan disctrict and the canyon areas. There are four canyons namely the East Canyon, West Canyon, Carbon Canyon and one unnamed canyon located on the south east. -------------------- 3.2.1 Rival Crews -------------------- There are four (4) major crews that controls most of the territories: Kenji's Bushido """"""""""""""" Control: Downtown Boss: Kenji Cars: Mazda RX-7 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX Car Class: Tuners Wolf's TFK """""""""" Control: Fortuna Boss: Wolf Cars: Aston Martin DB9 Lamborghini Murcielago Car Class: Exotics Angie's 21st Street """"""""""""""""""" Control: Kempton Boss: Angie Cars: 1969 Dodge Charger R/T 2006 Dodge Challenger Concept Car Class: Muscles Darius' Stacked Deck """""""""""""""""""" Control: Silverton Boss: Darius Car: Audi Le Mans Quattro Car Class: Mixed (Additional note: Winning Boss races will give you the chance to use two markers out of six. One of the first four may be the pink slip to the Boss' car) There are also small, minor crews that holds small territories: Inferno """"""" Car Class: Muscles Control: Small parts of Kempton in the beginning. Los Calibras """""""""""" Car Class: Exotics Control: Small parts of Fortuna in the beginning. Scorpios """""""" Car Class: Tuners Control: Found throughout the city in the beginning. Kings """"" Car Class: Exotics Control: Found in Downtown in the beginning. Rotor4 """""" Car Class: Tuners Control: Found throughout the city in the beginning. Black Hearts """""""""""" Car Class: Muscles Control: - ------------------ 3.3 Your Crew ------------------ You have essembled a crew. So you just need crew members. You can hire them as the game progresses: - Neville (Blocker, Fixer) Car(s): Same car class as you. The first person to join your crew. Obviously a loser. - Sal (Scout, Fabricator) Car(s): Same car class as you. Your second crew member. He was particularly interested by your reputation. - Yumi (Scout, Mechanic) Car(s): Mazda RX-8 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT Subaru Impreza WRX STi She'll be joining your crew after you've defeated Kenji. - Colin (Drafter, Fabricator) Car(s): Alfa Romeo Brera Porsche Cayman S Porsche Carrera GT He joins your crew after you've defeated Wolf. - Samson (Blocker, Fixer) Car(s): Chevrolet Camaro SS Dodge Charger R/T 1970 Plymouth Hemi Cuda Joins your crew after you have defeated Angie. - Nikki (Drafter, Mechanic) Car(s): Ford GT Joins your crew after you have access to Silverton. (Additional note: You can customize your crew members' cars. You can paint your crew logo on each car if you want to) =================================== 4 - Frequently Asked Questions =================================== Before you start sending me emails and questions about the game, take a look at the list of Qs and As below. They might answer your questions. 1) Q. What car did you use to beat Darius? A. I used the Lamborghini Murcielago because one of the best cars to drive is the Murcielago, if tuned right. 2) Q. How do I unlock the remaining Reward Cards after I completed career mode? A. Depending on the tasks the reward cards need you to accomplish, you can go back to your completed career mode and start winning free roam challenges or evading pursuits. 3) Q. Where do you find the Audi Le Mans Quattro? A. The Audi can only be used in Quick Race mode in the custom cars section. It can't be modified and it's not available for purchase in career mode. 4) Q. How the hell do I get 6 infractions in a pursuit? I tried everything but I still get only 5 infractions! A. There are 8 infractions in Most Wanted so here are some you can try: 1. Hit and run - Hit a traffic car. 2. Cost to state - Wreck stuff up! 3. Resisting arrest - Go into cooldown mode. 4. Driving off roadway - Self-explanatory. 5. Ramming a cop car - You know what to do. 6. Speeding - Reach speeds of 120-150 mph. 7. Excessive Speeding - Reach speeds of 160-190 mph. 8. Reckless driving - Reach speeds of 200+ mph. 5) Q. How do you win 50 defensive races after you've completed career mode? A. As far as I know you have to re-do every race and every 3 or 4 races re-won will trigger a defensive race. But somebody told me that this doesn't work. I will let you know as soon as find it out. Alternate answer from DBrady: You can't, you need to restart career mode to do this and only do the necessary races i.e. 2 out of 3 races in a mini territory. Then do some races that you have already done, or do a defensive race to another crew (Scorpio) and win it, then Scorpio might want to race you again to win it back. You can also decline every defensive race so you can get some more cash. 6) Q. How do I buy a car in career mode? A. To buy a car in career mode, you need to go to free roam and open up the World Map and scroll to the Car Lot icon. 7) Q. How do I sell a car in career mode? A. Go to your safe house, scroll to Select Cars and choose it, then scroll to the car you want to sell and press Square. ======================= 5 - Version History ======================= Version 0.7 finished [28.12.06] Version 0.75 finished [04.01.07] - Added new stuff. - Corrected errors. Version 0.8 finished [06.01.07] - Added some stuff. - Updated car list. - Added FAQ section. Version 0.85 finished [12.08.07] - Corrected grammar mistakes. - Changed email address. - Changed car class info. - Added info on minor crews. Version 0.9 finished [11.01.08] - Edited About the author. - Updated contact information. - Updated FAQ section. ================ 6 - Credits ================ I'd like to thank the following: DBrady for info on the FAQ section (questions 4 & 5). www.nfsunlimited.net for the car list. Wikipedia for the minor crews list. SuperSubaru for helping me remember the "Fast In, Fast Out" technique. Dave for pointing out a mistake. Zach H. for additional info. EA for another great Need For Speed video game! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ "There's always someone faster than you, and sooner or later they're going to catch up." +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ---------------------------- Copyright� razie92 2008. ----------------------------


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Black NFL players arrested nearly 10 times as often as whites
A police officer in Cincinnati watched a large black man get into his car and turn on the engine after being told it was illegally parked.
The officer thought the man was trying to avoid a parking ticket and told him to stop. So the man — Matthias Askew, at the time an NFL player — stopped his Cadillac Escalade, got out and was arrested in a scuffle with several officers. Police used a stun gun on Askew four times, alleging he resisted arrest.
A judge rejected the police account and cleared Askew of all charges.
"They tased him simply because he was a big black man, not because he did anything to make them fear for their safety," Askew's former attorney, Ken Lawson, told USA TODAY Sports about the 2006 incident.
For many black players in the NFL, it's a familiar scene. Of 687 NFL player arrests since January 2000, Askew's was one of 294 that came in a traffic stop, according to a USA TODAY Sports investigation. In a league in which 66% of the players are black and 31% are white, black players were arrested nearly 10 times as often as white players (260 to 28), accounting for 88% of those NFL traffic-stop arrests.
That percentage is consistent with the overall NFL arrest numbers: Of the 687 total player arrests in the USA TODAY Sports database that spans 14 seasons, 607 involved black players — 88%, a disproportionate rate sociologists attribute to several social factors in the black population at large, including a disproportionate rate of poverty and single-parent backgrounds. Those factors also include profiling, civil rights experts and NFL players say.
"We get looked at a lot more than the average Joe Blow because of what kind of car we drive or how we look," said Washington Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss, who was not one of the arrestees. "You see a young, black kid in a nice ride, and chances are he's an athlete. Sometimes you get labeled."
It's not just an NFL issue. The national debate erupted anew this year with the Trayvon Martin case in Florida and the stop-and-frisk police policy in New York City.
The overall numbers on traffic stops continue to show differences along racial lines: A study released this year by the Justice Department showed a higher percentage of black drivers (13%) than white drivers (10%) reported their most recent contact with police came from being pulled over in a traffic stop. In a similar survey released in 2011, a greater percentage of black drivers (4.7%) than white drivers (2.4%) were arrested during a traffic stop.
The challenge with racial profiling is that whites and blacks generally perceive the issue much differently because white people have not experienced it, said Cyrus Mehri, a Washington, D.C., attorney who has studied racial stereotypes and worked on big race and gender cases.
"It's very, very painful to the African-American community, and the white community is not fully sensitized to how big of an issue this is," Mehri said. "The best thing we can do as a country is to talk about it and deal with it than to sweep it under the rug."
Police advocates argue that profiling is not the reason players get stopped and arrested. Rich Roberts, a spokesman for the International Union of Police Associations, says when police decide to pull over a motorist they often can't see the skin color of the vehicle's occupants. He also says the decision to make a stop comes down to a simple question that does not involve race: Did the driver violate traffic laws or give police a reasonable suspicion to stop the car?
"Racial profiling is bad police work," Roberts said. "Situational profiling is good police work."
The American Civil Liberties Union defines racial profiling as "law enforcement and private security practices that disproportionately target people of color for investigation and enforcement."
"It's safe to say that goes on," Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt said. "Because people are human, and it is not just policemen. You can't just say it's cops. But they make their own judgments, and some of them use their power. ... It definitely makes you leery about where you go and who is watching for you. "
Britt has been arrested or faced charges in four traffic stops since 2010 — two for license issues, one drunken-driving case and one case of eluding police. He paid fines in two of those cases, was acquitted of the DUI charge and saw one license case get dismissed. Two of those incidents were in his home state of New Jersey, where the state police were embroiled in a scandal in the 1990s that resulted in authorities agreeing to a consent decree that expressly barred racial profiling in traffic stops. The decree was dissolved in 2009.
"I don't bring ... my (expensive) cars to New Jersey anymore," Britt said.
Of the black players arrested during a traffic stop, about 70% were convicted or agreed to a punishment with prosecutors. Yet about 30% saw the arrest charges get dropped or were cleared when they fought the case. And the statistics do not include the number of NFL players who were stopped and not arrested; such data were not available.
Roberts said the conviction rate couldn't be ignored. "The bottom line is did he do it?" he said. "That's a yes-or-no question."
Reason for stop
To civil rights activists, another question should be asked first: Did the officer have reasonable suspicion to make the stop? If he didn't, they point out, there should be no questioning of the motorist and no search of the car without probable cause.
Mehri, the attorney, says racial profiling and guilt are not mutually exclusive — both can happen in the same incident and in the same pool of arrests.
Mehri says he thinks two factors are affecting the traffic-stop arrest rate for black NFL players. First, he says, an officer might see a situation he thinks is out of place — a young black man in an expensive car. Secondly, Mehri says some white officers might harbor prejudice against young black athletes. "There's no doubt in my mind these NFL players are being subjected to some level of discrimination," he said.
The USA TODAY Sports investigation found other differences in how authorities handled black players vs. white players during traffic stops:
About 6% of traffic-stop arrests for black players resulted only from charges related to their driver's license, such as driving with a suspended license. The records showed no white players arrested on such license charges.
Black players were pulled over at least 13 times for playing music too loud or having window tint that was too dark. By contrast, USA TODAY Sports found no examples of white players stopped for those offenses during the period studied.
Critics rejected the law enforcement claim that window tint prevents officers from knowing the race of a car's occupants.
"To heck with the window tint, all they (officers) have to do is put a license plate in a computer and they know exactly who it is," said Harry Edwards, a sociologist and consultant to the San Francisco 49ers.
Rarely were white players arrested on charges that resulted from a search of the vehicle. Twenty-three of their 28 traffic-stop arrests, 82%, were because of suspected intoxicated driving. For black players, 56% of traffic-stop arrests were because of suspected drunken or reckless driving. Another 26% were arrested or cited mainly because of alleged gun or drug possession, often discovered in a car search.
The data only include cases that resulted in an arrest. They do not include traffic stops that resulted only in a traffic ticket or no citation, although some black players who experienced such stops thought racial profiling was a factor.
In June 2011, Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Darnell Dockett was driving a black Cadillac Escalade when he was pulled over in Maryland. The officers said he was speeding and wanted to search his car. But Dockett refused unless police obtained a search warrant, and he started to film the incident — while famously going on Twitter to publicize the stop as it was happening. He said one of the officers even asked him if he played sports. Dockett thinks he was racially profiled.
"Black car with rims, a big African-American guy, an in-shape guy," he said. "Of course, no question."
Dockett said he was released without a ticket after insisting that police get the warrant or arrest him.
In January 2002, then-San Diego Chargers wide receiver Jeff Graham was talking on his phone while sitting in his truck as it was running in his driveway near Dayton, Ohio. A sheriff's deputy approached, pulled Graham from the truck and found a gun registered to Graham's father. No traffic offense was cited, but the deputy said the vehicle might have been stolen, according to court records.
Graham was released after six hours and not charged. But Graham sued the sheriff, alleging racial profiling and a violation of his civil rights. The sheriff denied it, and Graham dropped the case in 2006.
Players get training
All arrests involve situational analysis by police — what the suspect is doing, where and when, for example. But police have discretion in deciding whether to stop a car.
Edwards, who is black, says he has been living in the same house and married to the same wife for 47 years but has been pulled over there.
"The first question is, 'Do you live around here?'" Edwards said.
Even when the face of a driver can't be clearly seen by police, other types of profiling can disproportionately affect black motorists — where and what they're driving and areas where patrols are more prevalent.
"Nobody is going to be profiling (white former quarterback) Steve Young after the game when he goes to a Mormon retreat to talk to Mormon kids," Edwards said. "They (officers) are going to profile somebody partying at the club after the game. When you profile all those factors in, where police are likely to be looking for suspicious behavior, that's going to eliminate a number of white guys right off the shoot because they're not going to be going to those areas in those neighborhoods, looking at those kinds of activities."
Since 2000, black players have been arrested in traffic stops at least 10 times in Miami Beach, where the club scene is popular with players.
"On Miami Beach, those police officers know who's an athlete and who's not," the Redskins' Moss said.
In 2009, police arrested then-Philadelphia Eagles player Juqua Parker in a traffic stop after midnight in Bethlehem, Pa. The driver, teammate Todd Herremans, who is white, was pulled over for driving without headlights and making an illegal left turn. Parker, who is black, was arrested for marijuana possession; the officer wrote in his report that he saw marijuana in plain sight under the seat.
The district attorney said that wasn't possible and dismissed the charge against Parker. "You can't just go and search a car," Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli said at the time.
Knowing their rights can help players if they are stopped. Edwards says the league helps counsel players on how to interact with police during traffic stops, advising them to cooperate and avoid aggravating the situation.
"We try to let them know it's not like they're Joe Sixpack driving around at 3 o'clock in the morning," Edwards said. "It's not that simple."
Contributing: Jarrett Bell, Jorge L. Ortiz, Jim Wyatt, Kent Somers
Follow Brent Schrotenboer on Twitter @Schrotenboer. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com


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The Student Ranking per Batch report ranks students of a batch according to their GPA. At the top of your dashboard, click the module access icon > Academics > Examination > Reports center > Student Ranking per Batch.
Select a batch, and then click the View button.
In the top right, click the PDF report button to generate a PDF report, or click the CSV report button to generate a CSV report.


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This series of posts feels like a whole saga for something which should have a quick an easy way to demonstrate the obvious superiority of functional programming over a simple loop. In the first post. Then the second post was about defining proper
scalaz-stream combinators to do the same thing, and particularly how to "chunk" the processing in order to get good performances.
However as I was writing unit tests for my requirements I realized that the problem was harder than I thought. In particular, the files I'm processing can have several sections made of
HEADERs and
TRAILERs. When you create chunks of lines to process this results in a number of combinations that need to be analysed. A chunk can:
- start with a
HEADERbut not finish with a
TRAILERwhich is in another chunk
- contain lines only
- contains lines + a
TRAILER+ a new
- and so on...
For each of these cases it is necessary to use the current state and the contents of the lines to determine if the file is malformed or not. This is a lot less easy that previously.
All the combinations
This is what I came up with:
def process(path: String, targetName: String, chunkSize: Int = 10000): String \/ File = {
val targetPath = path.replace(".DAT", "")+targetName
val read =
linesRChunk(path, chunkSize) |>
validateLines.map(lines => lines.mkString("\n"))
val task =
((read |> process1.intersperse("\n") |>
process1.utf8Encode) to io.fileChunkW(targetPath)).run
task.attemptRun.leftMap(_.getMessage).map(_ => new File(targetPath))
* validate that the lines have the right sequence of HEADER/column names/lines/TRAILER
* and the right number of lines
def validateLines: Process1[Vector[String], Vector[String]] = {
// feed lines into the lines parser with a given state
// when it's done, follow by parsing with a new state
def parse(lines: Vector[String], state: LineState, newState: LineState) =
emit(lines) |> linesParser(state) fby linesParser(newState)
// parse chunks of lines
def linesParser(state: LineState): Process1[Vector[String], Vector[String]] = {
receive1[Vector[String], Vector[String]] { case lines =>
lines match {
case first +: rest if isHeader(first) =>
if (state.openedSection) fail("A trailer is missing")
LineState(lines.count(isHeader) > lines.count(isTrailer),
case first +: rest if isTrailer(first) =>
val expected = "\\d+".r.findFirstIn(first).map(_.toInt).getOrElse(0)
if (!state.openedSection)
fail("A header is missing")
else if (state.lineCount != expected)
fail(s"expected $expected lines, got ${state.lineCount}")
else {
val dropped = lines.drop(1)
LineState(dropped.count(isHeader) > dropped.count(isTrailer),
case first +: rest =>
if (!state.openedSection) fail("A header is missing")
else {
val (first, rest) = lines.span(line => !isTrailer(line))
emit(first) fby
parse(rest, state.addLines(first.size), state.addLines(lines.size))
case Vector() => halt
// initialise the parsing expecting a HEADER
private def fail(message: String) = Halt(new Exception(message))
private def isHeader(line: String) = line.startsWith("HEADER|")
private def isTrailer(line: String) = line.startsWith("TRAILER|")
The bulk of the code is the
validateLines process which verifies the file structure:
if the first line of this chunk is a
HEADERthe next line needs to be skipped, we know we opened a new section, and we feed the rest to the lines parser again. However we
failthe process if we were not expecting a
if the first line of this chunk is a
TRAILERwe do something similar but we also check the expected number of lines
otherwise we try to emit as many lines as possible until the next
TRAILERand we recurse
This is a bit complex because we need to analyse the first element of the chunk, then emit the rest and calculate the new state we will have when this whole chunk is emitted. On the other hand the processor is easy to test because I don't have to read or write files to check it. This would be a bit more difficult to do with the loop version.
But unfortunately not all the tests are green. One is still not passing. What if there is no ending
TRAILER in the file? How can I raise an exception? There's no process to run, because there are no more lines to process! My test is pending for now, and I'll post the solution once I have it (maybe there's a smarter way to rewrite all of this?).
Is it worth it?
This was definitely worth it for me in terms of learning the
scalaz-stream library. However in terms of pure programmer "productivity", for this kind of requirements, it feels like an overkill. The imperative solution is very easy to come up with and there is no problems with performances. This should change once streaming parsing is available (see the roadmap). Probably this use case will just be expressed as a one-liner. In the light of this post I'm just curious how the implementation will deal with chunking.


text:
Beware of Hartford, place of pestilence. Flu has moved through my campus like a gasoline fire, with over 100 students out of class. At the same time, a weird and malevolent norovirus is moving through the Hartford public school system, cleaning out classrooms while janitors run screaming. If this wasn't enough, my son's daycare was almost empty yesterday because he, along with half of his classmates, came down with conjunctivitis (the rest were out with stomach flu). I call myself lucky. Feverish, brain stuffed with cotton, I've made it through with a maniacal head-cold.
No heavy thoughts today, then, just some places to visit:
Interdisciplinarity is a term that gets approving nods from most academics. We should all work together! But it usually ends here. On the table of academic bounty, interdisciplinarity is the curly parsley: lovely to look at, but no one ever eats it.
Yet Andrew Stuhl's interesting post on interdisciplinarity lays out some of the efforts being made across the disciplines. Maybe there is reason to hope.
The Arctic Blue Books Online represents a massive trove of British reports on Arctic expeditions in the 19th century. Cataloged with care and prodigious effort by Andrew Taylor, the 6000+ pages of the Blue Books are now available online along with Taylor's helpful indexes and finding aids. Where else can one find index references to "Cannibalism" and "Calves Foot Jelly" in the same place?
Finally, Peter Etnoyer of Deep Sea News tells us that the narrative and scientific reports of Challenger Expedition (1872-76), a stunningly ambitious attempt to sound, trawl, fish, and net a new science of the sea, are currently online (along with lovely image scans) here.
This week we remember British explorer Charles Darwin who turns 200 on Thursday. For those living close by, I'll be giving a lecture tonight at U Conn-Avery Point on Darwin in the Age of Exploration (Branford House). Good pictures and free coffee to those who attend.


text:
A few years ago I lived off Southgate Road in North East London, it was the first flat me and two friends from law school paid for with our first hard-earned money. We used to call Southgate Road "noman's land" because it is so far away from the next tube station with the only three bus routes going down Southgate Road taking you into the City but not anywhere else (great for work but otherwise pretty inconvenient).
The benefits of living off Southgate Road were the proximity to an incredible gastropub, the Northgate, and the proximity to a number of North and East London parks as well as the Regent's Canal. Within a few minutes I could be running laps in Clissold Park while watching the deer in their enclosure, running up to Highbury Fields (great for strolling home post-run with an iced coffee in hand, some fresh bagels for breakfast from Emporium Bakery and some goodies from the Italian deli just off Upper Street) or running down the Regent's Canal, all the way to Lime End in the later stages of half marathon training.
One day as I was running down Southgate Road I noticed that something that looked like a mix between an art gallery and an interior design store had newly opened. Through the window I also spied a coffee maker and a little sign about cafe opening times.
A few days later (and in much more appropriate attire than sweaty running clothes) my friend Millen and I decided to explore this little gallery/coffee store, not sure what to expect. My first impression was right, this space was both a gallery as well as an intererior design store, at the same time they had started hiring out their back room for events and had just added a tiny cafe to the front of the gallery, selling coffee, tea and a few cakes baked by the owner's wife.
As always happens with Millen (who is the most natural networker I have ever come across) before long we got talking to the owner who urged us to try the beetroot cake his wife had made, telling us it was one of the best cakes he had on offer. Well, it was cake, it was chocolatey, and it had an unusual ingredient – without hesitation Millen and I ordered a slice to share. And what can I say, while very different from a classical chocolate cake, this was divine, yes, earthy from the beet root, but somehow a perfect pairing to the dark chocolate, while incredibly moist from the beetroot, similar to a carrot cake.
It's been 3 or 4 years that I ate this cake, I no longer live close to Southgate Road (heck I don't even know whether this gallery/shop/entertainment space/cafe still exists), but this slice of cake I shared with my friend keeps on coming back to me and is why I keep on thinking about baking a beetroot cake.
While I keep a list of things I would like to bake and possible blog posts both in a little moleskine notebook and on my phone, this list is pretty vague and reads along the lines of "truffles lemon pepper?" or, in this case, "beetroot cake like carrot cake?" … I often jot down single ingredients or techniques like "infusion" when an idea comes to me, without yet knowing what the final result will be. As with this beetroot cake, I kept on going back and forth between adapting a carrot cake recipe but using molasses and a mix of spices to emphasise the earthiness of the beetroot or making a chocolate and beetroot cake. In the end, I wanted a cake that would really allow the beetroot to shine (and, admittedly, I did not want to bake a chocolate beetroot cake only to be told by Alessandro that he prefers plain chocolate cake!).
Beetroot Muffins
Recipe adapted from Le Cordon Bleu's 'Muffins', makes 6 medium muffins
180g wholemeal flour
1.5 tsp baking powder
1 pinch of salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp gingerbread spice mix or a mix of ground ginger, clove and piment
40g muscovado sugar
250g cooked beetroot, grated
20g molasse
1 egg
60ml milk
60ml olive oil
1 tbsp oats
1. Preheat the oven to 210 degrees celsius.
2. Whisk together the flour with the baking powder, salt, spices and sugar. Add the grated beetroot to the same bowl.
3. In a separate bowl whisk together the milk, oil, egg and molasse.
4. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and quickly stir everything together with a fork. Don't worry if there are still some lumps, these will all even out in the oven.
5. Distribute the batter between the 6 muffin tins, scatter the oats on top of the batter and place the tins in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted into the middle of the muffins comes out without any crumbs stuck to it. Cool on a wire rack.
While I had some cooked beetroot on hand already I realise it is not practial to cook a small amount of beetroot given it is quite messy to clean and peel them. So I would suggest you cook quite a bit – any beetroot left over after making this recipe are the perfect starting point for making pasta with Beetroot Pesto, one of my favourite quick weekday dinner recipes. Otherwise, another firm favourite is to make beetroot and goat's cheese quesadillas.


text:
ALBANY — New York's long-term energy plan focuses on increased use of renewable energy and clean technology, while reducing consumer utility bills.
The plan, released Tuesday for a 60-day public comment period, calls for expanding use of natural gas instead of oil to reduce harmful air emissions. But it doesn't include expanding in-state gas production through hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale.
The 2009 version touted the economic and energy policy benefits of tapping New York's shale gas resources. But the 2014 plan takes no position for or against fracking, noting that state officials are reviewing health and environmental concerns. New York has had a moratorium on fracking since an environmental review was launched in 2008.
Six public hearings will be held on the plan.