Arthritic knees, but not hips, have robust repair response

Public release date: 10-Feb-2012
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Contact: Mary Jane Gore
mary.gore@duke.edu
919-660-1309
Duke University Medical Center

DURHAM, NC -- Researchers at Duke University Medical Center used new tools they developed to analyze knees and hips and discovered that osteoarthritic knee joints are in a constant state of repair, while hip joints are not.

"This suggests the knee has capacity for repair we didn't know about and the main treatment strategy probably would need to focus on turning off the breakdown of knee tissue," said Virginia Kraus, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Rheumatology and Immunology at Duke. "I was hugely surprised to find this."

This suggests that knee and hip osteoarthritis may need different treatment approaches, Kraus said.

Perhaps the natural repair response would be sufficient to lead to a reversal or halting of the disease process in the knee if the joint breakdown could be halted, Kraus said.

"At least with the knee you've got an ongoing repair response that we didn't appreciate until now," Kraus said. "If you could capitalize on that and turn off the degradative (breakdown) processing you might have some good effects."

The findings, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry on Friday, Feb. 10, suggest that for hips, however, turning off the degenerative process might not be enough. The hips would need a treatment to both turn off of the degenerative process as well as stimulate factors that could help to begin repair.

The knee is very accessible for injections, so it would make sense to inject the knee with agents that could turn off the degradative processes, and these could be delivered periodically with close monitoring, Kraus said. "That seems like a very viable strategy."

A number of treatment strategies are being tested in clinical trials to turn off the joint breakdown processes, and Kraus is hopeful that this approach will lead to treatment breakthroughs for osteoarthritis.

A cocktail of drugs might be needed for the hip, however, both to turn off the degradation and to stimulate the right type of reparative elements.

"I am speculating that a single agent would work for the knee," Kraus said.

The findings about the knee were shocking to her, because the literature for years had compared the knee and ankle. Scientists knew the ankle was resistant to osteoarthritis, but the knee was very susceptible.

The thinking was that the ankle joint bones fit together well, like a ball in a socket, so the joint cartilage is less likely to degrade, while the knee joint bones fit less well together and require tissue, like the meniscus, to create a better fit so knee cartilage is more likely to degrade.

"What we found is startling, because the hip joint also has a ball-in-socket structure yet it degrades and fails to mount a strong repair response," Kraus said. "We think this means that joint congruency alone cannot explain the difference in the repair response of joints, so there is more to learn."

Kraus and her team discovered a biomarker that is a measure of an altered (deaminated) protein, called D-COMP. In the circulation it signals hip degeneration and in cartilage it provides insight into the repair response of joint tissues. Kraus said this is the first biomarker specific to a particular joint site, and may be developed into a monitoring tool for hip-joint breakdown.

The next step is to understand the reasons for the difference between knees and hips and also to use the new tools to analyze the ankle for its level of repair response.

"Why is the ankle less susceptible than the knee to osteoarthritis?" Kraus asked. "Can we develop other tools to be specific indicators of joint health for other joints in the body?"

###

Other authors include Duke University Medical Center researchers Jonathan B. Catterall, Ming F. Hsueh, Thomas V. Stabler, Christopher R. McCudden, Michael Bolognesi, Robert Zura, and Sheng Feng. Joanne M. Jordan and Jordan B. Renner are from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, and by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Association of Schools of Public Health.

---

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

Public release date: 10-Feb-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Mary Jane Gore
mary.gore@duke.edu
919-660-1309
Duke University Medical Center

DURHAM, NC -- Researchers at Duke University Medical Center used new tools they developed to analyze knees and hips and discovered that osteoarthritic knee joints are in a constant state of repair, while hip joints are not.

"This suggests the knee has capacity for repair we didn't know about and the main treatment strategy probably would need to focus on turning off the breakdown of knee tissue," said Virginia Kraus, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Rheumatology and Immunology at Duke. "I was hugely surprised to find this."

This suggests that knee and hip osteoarthritis may need different treatment approaches, Kraus said.

Perhaps the natural repair response would be sufficient to lead to a reversal or halting of the disease process in the knee if the joint breakdown could be halted, Kraus said.

"At least with the knee you've got an ongoing repair response that we didn't appreciate until now," Kraus said. "If you could capitalize on that and turn off the degradative (breakdown) processing you might have some good effects."

The findings, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry on Friday, Feb. 10, suggest that for hips, however, turning off the degenerative process might not be enough. The hips would need a treatment to both turn off of the degenerative process as well as stimulate factors that could help to begin repair.

The knee is very accessible for injections, so it would make sense to inject the knee with agents that could turn off the degradative processes, and these could be delivered periodically with close monitoring, Kraus said. "That seems like a very viable strategy."

A number of treatment strategies are being tested in clinical trials to turn off the joint breakdown processes, and Kraus is hopeful that this approach will lead to treatment breakthroughs for osteoarthritis.

A cocktail of drugs might be needed for the hip, however, both to turn off the degradation and to stimulate the right type of reparative elements.

"I am speculating that a single agent would work for the knee," Kraus said.

The findings about the knee were shocking to her, because the literature for years had compared the knee and ankle. Scientists knew the ankle was resistant to osteoarthritis, but the knee was very susceptible.

The thinking was that the ankle joint bones fit together well, like a ball in a socket, so the joint cartilage is less likely to degrade, while the knee joint bones fit less well together and require tissue, like the meniscus, to create a better fit so knee cartilage is more likely to degrade.

"What we found is startling, because the hip joint also has a ball-in-socket structure yet it degrades and fails to mount a strong repair response," Kraus said. "We think this means that joint congruency alone cannot explain the difference in the repair response of joints, so there is more to learn."

Kraus and her team discovered a biomarker that is a measure of an altered (deaminated) protein, called D-COMP. In the circulation it signals hip degeneration and in cartilage it provides insight into the repair response of joint tissues. Kraus said this is the first biomarker specific to a particular joint site, and may be developed into a monitoring tool for hip-joint breakdown.

The next step is to understand the reasons for the difference between knees and hips and also to use the new tools to analyze the ankle for its level of repair response.

"Why is the ankle less susceptible than the knee to osteoarthritis?" Kraus asked. "Can we develop other tools to be specific indicators of joint health for other joints in the body?"

###

Other authors include Duke University Medical Center researchers Jonathan B. Catterall, Ming F. Hsueh, Thomas V. Stabler, Christopher R. McCudden, Michael Bolognesi, Robert Zura, and Sheng Feng. Joanne M. Jordan and Jordan B. Renner are from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, and by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Association of Schools of Public Health.

---

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

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-02/dumc-akb021012.php

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Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/46293963#46293963

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Censors MIA on M.I.A.'s finger flip (AP)

NEW YORK ? Less than a second stood between British singer M.I.A. giving the finger to 114 million people watching the Super Bowl halftime show and no one noticing at all.

That's how close NBC censors came to preventing the gesture from being seen Sunday night, but the Super Bowl instead wound up with another entertainment oops moment. The gesture swept across social media, showing up in screen grabs and video, reminding everyone of Janet Jackson's infamous wardrobe malfunction in 2004 when a nipple was exposed ever so briefly to a Super Bowl audience.

Both NBC and the NFL, which puts on the halftime show, apologized.

M.I.A.'s record label said Monday it had no comment and her Twitter account was silent since noting she was in Lucas Oil Stadium with Madonna. And the Material Girl, who invited M.I.A. to appear during her performance of "Give Me All Your Luvin'," had no immediate comment.

The Nielsen Co. said that 114 million people watched Madonna's halftime show, even more than the average of 111.3 million who watched the game. It was the most-watched halftime entertainment show ever.

The gesture was "so shocking that I had no idea she even did it until NBC issued an apology for it," wrote Time magazine TV critic James Poniewozik on his blog.

The digital video recorder maker Tivo said there were no appreciable bumps in playbacks at the time of M.I.A.'s gesture, meaning many people either didn't see it or shrugged it off. Tivo has some 2 million customers in the U.S., said Tara Maitra, the company's senior vice president.

"I never even noticed," said Joan Kistner, a marketer from Chicago who watched the game. "It wasn't until this morning when I heard the news" and so many people were talking about it that she knew it happened.

"I don't know why they glorify bad behavior," Kistner said. "Some things should just be left alone. I really think she owes Madonna, who obviously wanted her to be part of the show, an apology."

The NFL and NBC should take steps to hold people accountable for their actions, said Tim Winter, president of the Parents Television Council.

"Most families would agree that the middle finger aimed directly at them is not appropriate, especially during the most-watched television event of the year," Winter said.

Back in M.I.A.'s native Britain, the London Times noted that while all eyes may have been on Madonna at halftime, "it was the extended middle finger of the British hip-hop star M.I.A. that caused the most controversy."

The Guardian wondered whether anyone would really be outraged.

"You'd be forgiven for not having a coronary over the fact M.I.A. gave Super Bowl viewers the finger during her halftime guest spot with Madonna," the newspaper wrote in its music blog. "For most fans, it was probably more shocking to see M.I.A. performing a rehearsed dance routine than flipping the bird."

Indeed, M.I.A. is provocative and an artist taking advantage of all those TV viewers might not be all that surprising. Still, host Gretchen Carlson on Fox News Channel's "Fox & Friends" urged M.I.A. to "get a life" and culture vulture Perez Hilton tweeted: "Think she'll ever be invited on live TV again?"

Jackson's incident raised a storm of controversy and put CBS in hot water with the Federal Communications Commission amid questions about the responsibility of TV networks to police their airwaves. The network and FCC are still fighting over whether CBS should pay a $550,000 fine.

One person who didn't miss M.I.A.'s message was Marlee Matlin. The actress, who is deaf, tweeted: "When we expected some beautiful sign language during the (hash)SuperBowl National Anthem, we got instead a "sign" during M.I.A.'s rap. Ahem."

___

Associated Press Writer Mesfin Fekadu contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120206/ap_en_mu/us_super_bowl_music

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Signs Of Depression Symptoms In Women | Dating Advice Singles

Listed below are the main points about depression symptoms in women. In the U.S. roughly 15 million men and women suffer from depression annually. A large majority of them are women. The fact is, nearly two-thirds are not getting the support they must have

.

Depression symptoms in women are quite common. The fact is that, women are doubly apt to experience clinical depression as men. Roughly a quarter of women is probably going to suffer an incident of serious depression sooner or later in life.

Just what is depression?

Depression is a serious and pervasive mood disorder. It causes feelings of sadness, hopelessness, helplessness, and worthlessness. Depression can be mild to moderate with symptoms of apathy, little appetite, difficulty sleeping, low self-esteem, and low-grade fatigue. Or it can be more severe.

Depression symptoms in women

Symptoms of depression in women include:

? persistent unhappy, nervous, or ?vacant? mood, stress

? loss of appeal or satisfaction in events, including sexual activity

? restlessness, frustration, or abnormal crying

? feelings of remorse, worthlessness, being helpless, hopelessness, cynicism

? sleeping a lot or inadequately, early-morning arising

? appetite and/or weight-loss or overindulging and excess weight

? decreased vigor, weariness

? thoughts of death or suicide, or suicide attempts

? difficulty focusing, remembering, or making choices

? persistent physical symptoms that do not respond to treatment, such as headaches, digestive disorders, and chronic pain.

Why are depression symptoms in women more common than men?

Before adolescence, the rates of depression is about the same in girls and boys. However, with the onset of puberty, a girl?s risk of developing depression increases dramatically to twice that of boys.

Authorities think the higher probability of depression symptoms in women could be linked to a change in hormone levels that take place in the course of a woman?s life. These kinds of changes are noticeable during puberty, becoming pregnant, and menopause and also after the birth of a child or having a miscarriage. Furthermore, the hormone variations that take place with each month?s menstrual cycle almost certainly are a factor in premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, and also premenstrual dysphoric disorder, or PMDD ? a critical disorder marked specifically by depression, nervousness, and swift changes in moods that takes place the week before menstruation and inhibits ordinary functioning of day to day life.

What elevates the odds of depression in women?

As reported by the National Institutes of Health, elements that raise the likelihood of depression in women consist of reproductive, hereditary, and other biological variables; social factors; and particular mental and character qualities. Additionally, women juggling job along with raising children and women who?re single parents experience more stress that could cause signs of depression. Additional factors that may maximize risk include:

? family history of mood disorders

? history of mood issues at the begining of reproductive years

? loss of a father or mother earlier than age 10

? loss of social support system or the threat of such a loss

? ongoing mental and communal strain, including lack of a job, friendship stress, separation or divorce

? physical or sexual exploitation as a kid

? use of certain medications

Women may also get postpartum depression following the birth of a child. A number of people experience seasonal affective disorder in winter.

If you think that you, or perhaps a family member, could be struggling with depression please visit your doctor as quickly as you can. As severe a predicament as depression could be, it will react nicely to treatment methods. Do not be part of the over fifty percent that do not look for help. There isn?t any reason you cannot feel much better soon.

Read more about depression symptoms in women as well as in men. Pay a visit to Control Stress and look though our numerous articles on stress reduction, depression and anxiety, and sleep issues.

Source: http://datingadvicesingles.com/love/?p=45466

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Guide to Public Speaking and Presentations

To make your audience more attentive and make them develop interest in you subject, you need to understand the basic principles of enhancing public speaking and making good presentations.

They include:

Relevant Topics

Audience will give attention to something they consider relevance to their own lives. Always research you topics well, and make sure the information you give will be of benefit to the audience.

Highlighting

Audience will not clearly see the relevance of the subject, without the main implications of the subject being highlighted. Explain the significance of the information you are giving, probably you can use examples.

Change

People are usually bored listening to anything or anyone that does not change. Avoid repetition, and trying changing tone of your voice.

Trying using gestures in your demonstrations. Avoid Distracters Audience will be distracted by small unusual things. For example jiggling keys. Dress comfortably and smartly before presentation.

Tips on Enhancing Presentation

Having gone through the above principles on enhancing public speaking, I have tips you can employ when preparing to make a presentation.

I. Within the very first minutes of your presentation, try as much as possible to see your subject from audience perspective. This will aid the audience to establish the relevance of you presentation and thus trigger their interest to know more on what you have to say.

II. Put more emphasis on your key points. Most likely the period of doing presentation is very short, even when you are supposed to cover wide topics.

This implies that the audience is highly likely to retain a portion of intended information. Make them retain the most important information, but putting heavy emphasis on major points. This can be achieved through use of illustrations, verbal emphasis, gestures among others.

III. Avoid creating monotonous mood at all cost. A good public speaker will use elements of change to maintain the audience attention. Make yourself a changing focal point to draw more and more attention. There are many elements of change you can use depending on the kind of presentation and the type of audience. They may include: use of audio-visual materials, varying speed of speech, gestures among others.

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Source: http://www.1directory.net/writing-speaking/guide-to-public-speaking-and-presentations-2112.html

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Professional Movers: The Best Option To Consider During House ...

Are you planning to move out or to relocate to a new state or area? Business relocation occurs when companies decide to expand to a bigger space or they want to downsize their organization in response to recession. Moreover, homeowners relocate and move out due to numerous reasons like career development, change of environment and lifestyle. Apart from looking for the right homes for sale and real estate properties to relocate, another option that you should not forget is to hire professional movers.

If you want to have a stress free house and business relocation, then consider getting the services of professional movers. They are the best option to consider in the move you are planning. Some individuals hire professional movers because they want to do away with the stress and complexity of packing, planning and organizing things.

Before, homeowners asked assistance from their friends and relatives to help with the packing, lifting and scheduling of transportation. These processes are not only tedious, stressful and time consuming, but they are also costly as well. Most often, you end up stressed out and tired at the end of the day. To know more about the advantages of hiring professional movers, read the article below.

By hiring professional movers, you do not need to worry about the numerous processes involved in moving out or relocation such as packing of things, securing equipment and appliance to minimize scratching and denting. They can organize and can pack your things according to your instructions. They can move it out according to your preferred schedule without delay and without risking security and safety while on travel.

They are the best people to hire because they know what to do to get the job done on time. Most often, they evaluate and assess the property and items you have before they start packing. By hiring them, your items are safe and secure during transit and you need not worry when damage and loss occurs because they provide insurance to your properties.

Before hiring one, be sure to inquire from friends and relatives who experienced house relocation. They are the best people who can attest to the quality of services that professional movers give. You can also ask estimates or quotations before signing in any contract with them to know if it fits in your budget. Be sure to inquire about the property insurance, licenses and permits to ensure that you hire the best and accredited people.

By having professional movers to help in your relocation, you have enough time to plan things accordingly and to arrange your properties in your new real estate property.

Source: http://www.writers4net.com/miscellaneous/other-misc/professional-movers-the-best-option-to-consider-during-house-and-office-relocation/

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Gold And Silver Investing and Investing In Gold Silver in Garland ...

This is the time to be gold investing, since the dollars which are put into gold now will be restored triple fold. Physical gold, coins and gold bullion, will be the security blanket that will keep you warm when things get cold available. Buying gold stocks allows you to leverage your hard earned money and choose the moon shot when the dollar really takes a dive!
Gold and silver coins investments happen to be noted to keep constant or to even rise in value over trades and exchanges. When most currencies have fallen during the economic turmoil of history several years, gold, silver, along with other gold and silver didn?t depreciate in value. In reality, they appear to be even increasing in value. If solutions which it would decrease, it really is hardly ever noticeable. Besides, its value is dependant on the good and the bad from the economy and also the stock trading game. The actual worth of gold is oftentimes not stated.
This boost in the gold investment was because of the economic crises which had hit the markets in regards to a year ago. Then the investors looked to more solid and safer assets like gold. Ignot is the most suitable in giving hedge in lots of unpredictable socio-economic conditions.

Once you invest, you lay out bricks at the moment to create yourself a castle for future years. An enormous structure just isn?t even necessary. What is important is the fact that there?s something for you to anticipate in the foreseeable future no matter its value in size or number. If you have something you are able to rely on.
Most of the investment experts and consultants nowadays recommend gold investment because of the price of gold. Unlike other currencies and materials of economic interest gold never loses it worth and will bring plenty of revenue. The need for gold just isn?t impacted by inflation or devaluation of cash because of it rare or unique existence. Thus, gold investment is an extremely good option since it may help in securing a secure plus a prosperous future.
Investing in gold and silver including gold and silver coins can be achieved by buying things that are made from them. Some of which include jewelry, coins, bars or bullions. These may be found in legitimate stores as well as over the internet. Dealers, traders, jewelers, and mints have them using some pieces or perhaps in bulk.

You can find associated risks helping to make many people spend the things they is only able to in today?s. The most known risk involves possible losses. The prospect of the aforementioned items depreciating in value is still relevant whether slim or not. However, there are a few which have marginal potential loss mounted on them like real estate properties, silver or gold investment will be the only items without loss recorded whatsoever.

Gold is not only precious but additionally an uncommon resource. It?s been used as an purchase of kinds of jewelry, gold bars, gold biscuits, gold coins, gold idols of God and Goddess, gold accessories and it has proved itself being defiant to global economic disaster. When the world markets crashed, gold was able to retain its value and so didn?t crash along with the markets. It is because with this stability that investors since centuries yearn to own it physically.
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Mayors' Super Bowl Bets: How Small Businesses Could Have Helped

The annual tradition of opposing mayors making a Super Bowl bet is taking place once again. This year, Mayors Mike Bloomberg of New York City and Thomas Menino of Boston made it a little more interesting, as the gamblers say, by putting together prize packages for one lucky family in the opposing team's respective hometown. If the Patriots win, four people get to live it up in New York City, and vice versa if the Giants are victorious.

The problem is that the prizes -- how should we put this -- suck. They suck as bad as the Super Bowl games used to in the 1980s. A Duck Tour ride? Four tickets to the Phantom of the Opera? As the old joke goes, what's second prize? Eight tickets? These gifts are the kind that appeal only to the fanny-pack brigade and characters looking for that one last shot at love in whatever holiday rom-com Gary Marshall belches up this year.

Yes, there are appealing things in each package, but the whole thing feels like it was put together by the "Corporate Committee to Show You Things You Probably Already Know About." The selections don't capture the unique entrepreneurial places and experiences that make Boston and New York City great -- or boost the small businesses that are the core of these cities' character.

We've decided to rectify the situation by letting our imagination run wild and proposing our ideal revamp of the bets. And while we didn't throw in anything as glamorous as a photo op with the mayor (what's second prize? Two photos?), we think the winners of our theoretical Super Bowl bet -- and local entrepreneurs -- would have a whole lot more fun if Bloomberg and Menino took these suggestions to heart.

If the Giants win:

• Congratulations, Giants lovers! We're putting our winners up in a suite at the Clarendon Square Inn, an 1860s home turned six-story bed and breakfast. Located in the South End, but not "Southie," the Clarendon offers you a plush bed, a soaking tub for two, a marble fireplace, a tranquil back deck, and rooftop hot tub with city views.
• A tour of Harpoon Brewery where the company motto is "Love Beer. Love Life." You'll get to love both while sampling the beermaker's great UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen and specialty 100 Barrel Series.
• You can walk the Freedom Trail on your own. To get a totally unique perspective on The Hub, we're setting you up with a Venetian gondola ride on the Charles River, via Boston Gondola Tours. Take in a sunset on one of the authentic private gondolas and we'll throw in roses, strawberries and an accordion accompaniment.
• After you make it back to land, drinks and appetizers will be feted at the Island Creek Oyster Bar. Owners Jeremy Sewall and Skip Bennett ensure fresh seafood, caught by local fisherman, lands right on your table.
• Dueling dinners are served at Sibling Rivalry, where chef brothers David and Bob Kinkead offer different takes on a common ingredient like the "Fowl" entrees: David's Crispy Pressed Half Duck and Bob's Spit-Roasted Half Chicken. Fraternal friction never tasted so good.
• Anyone can take in the world's great works of art, but few asthetes take time out to ponder the crappy stuff. That's why you'll be perusing the walls at MOBA, the Museum of Bad Art. Aficionados can soak in terrible wonders like "Sunday on the Pot With George," "Sad Baby," and Da-Vinci-wouldn't-approve "Mana Lisa." Afterward, walk down the block to discuss what you've seen -- or try and forget -- over wine and crispy fried lobster legs at Isabella.
• Nothing says you're a Patriot, the original kind, quite like a Tricorne hat. You can outfit the entire family at Salmagundi, a one-of-a-kind store that stocks some 7,000 lids. If your tastes run a little less Tea Party-ish, husband and wife owners Andria Rapagnola and Jessen Fitzpatrick will find something in their incredible collection to ensure you're behatted in style.
• Boston and the Irish go together like fish and chips, but the less said about the "authentic" downtown spots the better. We'll pick up your bar tab as you get your pint on at Plough & Stars, a 42-year-old Cambridge institution with live music, Irish breakfast, a fine selection of whiskey from the Cooley Distillery, and Craic-heads of all walks of life. This is the place to go where you want everyone to know your name.
• For reasons we can't fathom, Bostonians are loyal to Dunkin' Donuts. To satiate your pastry craving, we'll fill your belly with delicacies from Joanne Chang's Flour and even throw in a sticky buns class to impress the New York foodies back home.
• No better way to wrap up a sporting weekend than with a little exercise. And by little, we mean the beloved New England sport of candlepin bowling. For the uninitiated, the pins are cylindrical (like a candle, get it?) and the balls have a top weight of 2 lb. 7 oz. So bowl a few games on us at the erstwhile Sacco's Bowl Haven, which opened in 1939 and still has the blue-collar vibe of its bowling heyday. However, today's pinheads demand better grub, so Flatbread Company took over, overhauled the menu with its gourmet pizza, but smartly left the lanes alone. Pizza and candlepin? What better way to celebrate the fact that the Giants beat the Patriots yet again, and the even more astonishing fact that Eli has more Super Bowl rings than Peyton?

If the Patriots win:

• Congratulations, Pats fans! You've just won a stay at the Canal Park Inn, a cozy bed and breakfast in the heart of bustling downtown Manhattan. Located in Tribeca, Canal Park is surrounded by top-flight eateries, and just a stone's throw from the sunsets-over-the-Statue-of-Liberty at the Hudson River Park. The inn is in a landmarked 1826 canal house where each room is named for a family that lived there in 1850. You'll be bunking down in the Batby Suite, which includes a private deck, offering an oasis of calm in the sea of action.
• In New York, sweatpants don't count as clothes you wear in public, so we're going to outfit your entire family. Since 1938, Paul Stuart has been keeping the men of Gotham well-dressed in clothing only available in its stores. Women can get all trendy in the "Ultimate Closet" at Scoop NYC, and the little ones can do the same at Bundle. As for the teens ... we wouldn't even try. We'll hand you a wad of cash so you can go shopping alone.
• In recent years, New York City has had an explosion in craft breweries and we're going to take you on a tri-borough suds tasting extravaganza. You'll make your way from brewery-to-brewery in a classic 1970s taxi piloted by the Checker Guy. First up, the Pale Ale at the Bronx Brewery, which just opened last August and is already available at some 30-plus watering holes. Next, you'll hit the Harlem Brewing Company for a Sugar Hill Ale from Jazz Age-loving brewer Celeste Beatty. Final stop, Brooklyn's Sixpoint Craft Ales, where owner Shane Welch recently introduced the "Spice of Life" series featuring a unique hop strain for every month of the year.
• A visit to New York wouldn't be complete without a night at the theater, but leave the singing superheroes for the tourist hordes. You'll be sitting front row for "Magic Bird," the story of the great basketball rivals premiering in March at the Longacre Theater. Produced by Kirmser Ponturo Group, the same folks behind the recent hit "Lombardi," "Magic Bird" finally gives Boston sports fans the chance to see the Great White Hope on the Great White Way.
• There is no better way to see the lights of the city than an evening stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge. The 1.1-mile walk from Brooklyn to Manhattan will build up an appetite, which we'll take care of at the Bridge Cafe. It's housed in a 1794 wood frame building that's been a brothel, a speakeasy, a pirate bar, and the rough saloon where Ms. Gallus Mag, a 6-ft. Irish bouncer, would bite the ears off of rapscallions and pickle them for posterity. They aren't on the menu, but the city's best soft-shell crabs are.
• New Yorkers will fight to the death over who makes the best pizza, so why not sample the top contenders and decide for yourself? Your guide on this crusty crawl will be Famous Fat Dave, proprietor of the Five Borough Eating Tour.
• Everyone loves cartoons, but few make the connection between Batman and fine art. POW! At the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art, you'll learn why cartoons are to be respected and laugh out loud while doing so. You might even run into New York native son Stan Lee. Afterward, get to doodling on napkins over beers at nearby Fanelli's Cafe, which goes back to the days when SoHo was actually filled with artists.
• No matter how much money flows through New York, it will always be a draw for the weird and eccentric. That's why we're offering a gift certificate to The Evolution Store. Pick up a little something for the mantle back home like a head puzzle, a pigeon skeleton, or the ever-popular freeze dried bat.
• Grandmaster Flash, Run-DMC, Beastie Boys, Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z ... New York City is the hip-hop capital of the world and what better way to experience the dope beats and fresh rhymes the city made famous than on a personally curated Hush Tour? Founded in 2000, by hip-hop guru Deborah Harris, the Hush Tours take you to the street corners, housing projects, stoops, 'hoods and music clubs from which rap evolved. As a bonus, stories are often told by old-school stars of the game like DJ Red Alert, members of the Cold Crush Bros. and Kurtis Blow. You feelin' it?
• Yankees games are overpriced and Mets games involve the Mets, so we'll wrap up your sporting weekend with a trip to Coney Island to take in a Brooklyn Cyclones game. Even if you don't love baseball, it's hard not to be swept away looking out past the neon center field lights to the Atlantic Ocean. After the last out, head to Luna Park to ride the actual Cyclone, the 85-foot wooden roller coaster that reaches 60 mph, and then dig into the fried clams at Ruby's, the oldest bar and grill on the Boardwalk. We highly recommend riding the Cyclone first.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/04/mayors-super-bowl-bet_n_1253178.html

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How To Use An Online Home Improvement Loan Calculator | Loans ...

Most large home repair projects, whether you are hiring a company or doing it yourself will need some sort of home improvement loan. You can use a free home remodeling loan calculator to estimate loan costs for a home repair project. Finding out out how much cash a home upgrade project is going to cost is just the first step in figuring out whether or not you?ll be able to pay for the project. The home improvement industry has become a big money-maker for lending institutions because many of the most popular home improvement projects are too expensive to pay for all at one time.

You can use a online home improvement loan calculator before you begin talking to a lending institution. An online home improvement loan calculator will help you decide on what type of loan you really want by presenting you different options. Before starting a project you should consider doing a little homework to make sure you?re really getting a fair rate on the cash you need to borrow.

You may need a few pieces of simple information before you begin using a no obligation home loan program. You may want to know your credit rating, approximate costs for the projects and your home?s estimated equity value. It could be useful to have paycheck statements handy. If you have an architect chosen already then you will probably want to have their contact information available. Do not fret if you don?t have all the specifics when you?re working with a free home improvement loan calculator.

These free calculators will choose the best loan rates with the most helpful loan vendor for your particular home improvement project. Once you have entered all your home information the online calculator will work through what you entered. After working with an online home improvement loan calculator you will almost always be presented with several home loan options.

Free online home calculators may sometimes help you work out a better loan rate than you would have otherwise been able to. After receiving your final numbers you will be able to make an intelligent decision about a home improvement loan. Sometimes you will want to use an online home loan vendor and sometimes you?ll want to use a local loan company. You should always thoroughly read and understand your finalized loan paperwork before agreeing to anything.

Want to learn more about borrowing money for home improvements? You may qualify for an FHA home loan that you can use to remodel your house.

Tags: equity, financing, home improvement, home improvement calculator, home improvement loan, loan rates, loan terms, loans, online, online calculators

Posted in Loans

Source: http://www.loansticker.com/2012/02/03/how-to-use-an-online-home-improvement-loan-calculator/

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Starting The Internet Business From Their Own Home ... - My Blog

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Auto car dealerships are the items you can think about when you are planning to discover a motorcar. Prior to you are carrying out any other product, you want to exactly how quite a bit you can find yourself in a position to invest a new acquisition. If you decide to don?t can pay for to purchase innovative new cars, your future option is to purchase , used auto together with in queue with that you?ve still got to check precisely how much you can spend. Do you realize exactly why the most impressive complementary often purchase applied cars or trucks? Your own just because second hand car car dealers is sure to offer you the an opportunity to acquire the used car at an considerably adjusted price. Guaranteeing agencies used cars in st. louis create doing this offer a way that you can acquire the motor car that you simply was looking for without requiring taking pictures for your stars from purchase prices. Therefore, there you go whilst your concern is gonna be solved quite as with ease. Efficiently, the main reason just how regard transitioning to help you car stores rather searching brand new car is because of wealth true and easy.

Source: http://www.scb-law.com/2012/02/02/starting-the-internet-business-from-their-own-home-outsiders-pick-out-chinese-industry-academic-institutions-to-remain-professionals-visiting-intended-for-business-is-comfortable-with-private-plane/

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hydra ashley: - Recreation & Sports - Swimming - The Pool Solution

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Description. We are a family owned and operated business with over 20 years of experience! Our knowledgeable staff is fully licensed and insured, specializing in Spa and Pool Leak Detection, pool stain removal, Diamond ...

Source: http://www.businesslinedirectory.com/directory/recreation-and-sports/swimming/the-pool-solution.html

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Source: http://hydra-ashley.blogspot.com/2012/02/recreation-sports-swimming-pool.html

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Video: Gingrich refuses to concede

Silva: Breaking down Super Bowl XLVI

Silva: Super Bowl XLVI isn't an exact rematch of Super Bowl XLII when the New York Giants shocked the New England Patriots. But that may be a good thing. What this one lacks in historical significance (no perfect season at stake) it makes up for in offensive firepower and sheer entertainment value, not to intriguing storylines on defense and special teams. So we broke it all down.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46227471#46227471

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Inside Social Games starts scoring game reviews

Inside Social Games is changing its reviews policy today to include a three-point ratings scale organized by three simple words: Play, Skip and Wait.

What It Looks Like

The scale is based on time. The most important piece of information ISG can provide is whether or not a game is worth a reader?s time. It takes time to get into a new social game ? setting up the permissions, going through the tutorial, adding friends, etc. Even the simplest games with the cleanest interfaces and shortest tutorials take a good five minutes from first click to actual gameplay ? and with so many social games launching on Facebook and Google+, that might be time our readers don?t have.

A Play rating means it?s worth the reader?s time to play the game.

A Skip rating means that a game isn?t worth the reader?s time.

A Wait rating indicates that the game might not be worth the reader?s time right now, but it has the potential to grow into a game that earns a Play rating.

Our reviews will still provide gameplay analysis, screenshots, currently monthly and daily active user totals as tracked by our AppData traffic monitoring service and any context the developer can provide if we?re able to reach them. As almost all games now monetize in the same ways and leverage the same social features, we won?t make mention of these components unless a game does something new or interesting with them. We will share a bit of opinion on a game based on our personal response to it ? but our reviews are intended as interpretive analysis rather than stand-up comedy.

How It Works

How we pick a rating for a game is based on our approach to social games overall. In contrast to consumer-facing video game publications like Games.com or Gamezebo, we?re analysts that cater to an audience of developers, investors and other industry insiders that need information to make informed decisions ? not just about what they?ll play for fun, but what they?ll do with their own companies.

From this perspective, we judge social games based on one question: ?Will this work?? That can mean several things for a game: It monetizes, it finds traction on its platform, or the developer is supporting a game so thoroughly that we can expect to see it everywhere for the next year. Notice that we don?t bother to say that a game is ?good;? that term is too subjective to have any meaning to our readers. We?ve seen plenty of ?good? games on Facebook fail to monetize, fail to attract an audience or go offline after barely six months. Being ?good? isn?t a guarantee that a game will work.

The flip side of that is that we won?t tell you a game is ?bad? based on the fact that we don?t like it. Plenty of games do things we don?t like such as spamming us, hitting us with pay walls right after the tutorial, playing repetitive sounds, cloning a different game we?ve already spent months playing, etc. Games may also just fail to appeal to us because of art style or genre. None of these things would necessarily stop a game from working, however, unless something is bad enough to be distracting or damaging to the core gameplay experience.

We will tell you when a game isn?t ready. Many times in 2010, our reviewers would encounter games in the early beta stage where graphics are missing, social features aren?t optimized and sometimes monetization isn?t even implemented yet. In 2011, Zynga started providing hands-off press demos of new games just days before launch, sometimes with content that we couldn?t expect to see when the game went live because the developer would decide to cut it based on early user feedback. We could wait these games out and return to them when we think they might be ready ? like when a developer ?officially? launches the game or once it hits a certain number of monthly active users. But so many games get lost in the shuffle as new titles launch that this approach is sloppy. It?s better we see the game in the conditions we found it (via social discovery, word-of-mouth or sudden spike in AppData activity) and report back to the readers in a timely fashion.

Why We?re Doing It

We?ve gone back and forth over the concept of scoring games since the blog launched in 2008. At first, we used a 10-point scale derived from scores in sub-categories like ?graphics? or ?sound? that resembles the old methods used by traditional video games press. Sometime in 2009, the then-lead writer scrapped scores after deciding that the practice didn?t make much sense because most of the leading games came from the same pool of developers and each had relatively similar themes and standards of quality. We brought it back briefly at the end of 2011 in the short-lived ?What we?re playing? articles; but these pieces lacked context and focus.

We?re trying it again because we feel social games deserve recognition beyond what they can earn for themselves in terms of traffic. The quality bar is higher now for social games than it was just 18 months ago and barriers to entry are rising on Facebook and Google+. While most of the leading game developers still hold top spots in traffic, some developers are taking risks in game design instead of just following whatever trend is hot right now (today, it?s casino games ? this time last year it was citybuilders). There are also games that will never break the top 25 in MAU or DAU but can still be counted as successes because they find their audiences and monetize them well. Even without investor funding or hope of a successful exit, a game might still be ?worth it? to our readers and a score the easiest way for us to help readers find those games.

The decision to avoid numbered scores reflects an overall attitude in video games journalism ? numbers stopped having meaning when journalists stopped using all points on the scale. Score aggregators like Metacritic further obfuscate the actual quality of a game as it relates to the score. Also, as we?ve said before, social games change rapidly and a numbered score can?t possibly keep pace.

Scored reviews will start appearing on ISG today. There are currently no plans to apply the scoring system to mobile games on our sister site, Inside Mobile Apps. As always, we invite reader feedback in the comments or via email at mail (at) insidesocialgames (dot) com.

Source: http://www.insidesocialgames.com/2012/02/01/inside-social-games-starts-scoring-game-reviews/

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It's "Ex-Factor" for Abdul, Scherzinger, Jones (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? Simon Cowell gave his talent show "The X Factor" a major shake-up, showing the door to host Steve Jones, judge Nicole Scherzinger, and even his old friend Paula Abdul after a lackluster first season on U.S. television.

Cowell and broadcaster Fox confirmed on Tuesday that British host Jones, and former Pussycat Dolls singer Scherzinger would not be returning for the second season of the show in September.

Abdul -- Cowell's old "American Idol" sparring partner -- was also voted off in what some industry watchers called a bloodbath for the TV show that failed to measure up to its hype last year and struggled to achieve the top-level viewership promised by Cowell.

"Yes, it's true; I won't be returning to The X Factor next season," Abdul said in a statement on Tuesday. "I've learned through my longevity in this industry that business decisions often times override personal considerations. Simon (Cowell) and I, along with Fox and Fremantle, have been communicating about this for a while now, and I have absolute understanding of the situation."

Abdul said that Cowell "will remain a dear friend of mine."

Cowell gave "a massive thank you to Paula, Nicole and Steve for being part of 'The X Factor' last year."

"Now is the time to thank them all for everything they did last year," he added in a statement

Fox reality programming chief Mike Darnell called Abdul "a remarkable talent" and said the network appreciated her contributions.

ABDUL EXIT SHOCKS

The shake-up leaves only Cowell, the "X Factor" creator and acerbic judge, and record producer Antonio "L.A." Reid left on the panel of the singing contest.

The ouster of Jones, seen as wooden and flustered in the live shows, was expected. He broke the news on Twitter, saying on Monday, "I won't be hosting next seasons 'X Factor' which is a shame but I can't complain as I've had a great time."

Scherzinger had also drawn criticism from audiences and some of her critiques were openly ridiculed by Cowell. But the exit of Abdul -- whom Cowell had courted assiduously for the show -- took industry watchers by surprise.

"Shocked to see Simon has fired Paula Abdul, Nicole and Steve from the X-Factor," tweeted Nigel Lythgoe, executive producer of "American Idol".

"X Factor Shake-Up continues! Paul Abdul ALSO out!" wrote TVLine.com. Industry website TheWrap.com called the firings an "X-Factor implosion".

There was no word on Tuesday on who would replace the three but speculation swiftly fell on singer Mariah Carey. Cowell said last year that she had been his top choice but she was sidelined because she was pregnant. Carey gave birth to twins in April.

Cowell launched "The X Factor" in the United States boasting that it would beat "American Idol" as the nation's most-watched TV show. But it drew less than 13 million viewers -- about half those who tune into "Idol" -- and many TV critics found it over-produced and too similar to "Idol".

Cowell admitted in December that he had been "a little too cocky" when he told brought the show over to the United States after years of success in Britain.

But he also told reporters that it would improve in its second season and Fox executives said in January that Cowell was planning "tweaks" for the new episodes ahead.

(Reporting By Jill Serjeant; editing by Patricia Reaney and Bob Tourtellotte)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120131/en_nm/us_xfactor

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