четверг, 15 марта 2012 г.

Videotape expected to play role in R. Kelly child pornography trial

If prosecutors can prove a videotape features R. Kelly and an underage girl, the rhythm and blues superstar's child pornography trial could end with him receiving a lengthy prison sentence.

But prosecutors will run into defense challenges at every turn. Kelly, 41, denies he's the man on the tape. The 23-year-old woman prosecutors say was a minor at the time of the taping denies she's the girl on the tape. Defense attorneys may also contend the girl, whoever she was, wasn't a minor at all.

How prosecutors intend to eliminate a reasonable doubt about those challenges may become clearer Tuesday as opening statements begin in a trial that has been delayed …

[ TECHVENUE ]

A weekly heads-up from TechVenue.com about upcoming business-technology events. Programs are rated on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10being tops, for value (take-away knowledge), style (venue,presentation) and networking (will the right people be there?). Forlisting information, contact David Flint at Info@TechVenue.com

Association for Information & Image Management

When: Tuesday, 11:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Internet: http://www.aiim.org/chicago

Location: IBM, 2 Lincoln Center (ComEd Bldg.), Oakbrook Terrace,1st Floor Conference Room H.

Cost: $25 for AIIM members; $35 for non-members.

Event: "Deliver" -- fourth in a series on enterprise …

Rental housing support bill goes to committee

A Rental Housing Support bill (HB 4100), sponsored by State Representative Julie Hamos (D-18th) to create a state-funded rental assistance program, is headed for committee hearings Monday, according to Chicago Department of Housing Commissioner John G. Markowski.

In a Chicago Defender editorial board meeting, Markowski said he hopes passage of the bill comes to fruition and emphasized his department is committed to making affordable housing a reality in Chicago.

"We are committed to pursuing policies that lead to affordable housing," Markowski said. "We have a commitment. At the state level, our number one priority is a state fund for affordable housing."

Markowski …

Myanmar courts imprison more democracy activists

Courts in military-ruled Myanmar sentenced at least seven democracy activists to prison Monday, continuing a crackdown that saw about 70 people jailed last week.

Four student activists, two members of the opposition National League for Democracy party and a former party member who has become a prominent independent activist received jail terms of 6 1/2 to 12 1/2 years at closed-door trials inside Yangon's Insein Prison, league spokesman Nyan Win said.

Authorities last week sentenced about 70 opposition activists, writers, musicians and Buddhist monks to jail terms ranging from 2 1/2 years to 65 years, with many of them transferred to prisons in remote areas …

среда, 14 марта 2012 г.

Ex-athletic director at Robeson High

GEORGE PRUITT

1936-2007

George Pruitt was the spirit of sports for generations ofstudents at Robeson High School and its predecessor, Parker High, onthe South Side.

The former small-college All-American and professional basketballplayer was more than just the athletic director, basketball coachand No. 1 fan.

"He was a father figure for many of the students he coached,"said James Braeshears, a former Robeson principal. "He constantlygave so much of himself to the students."

Mr. Pruitt, 71, died Sunday at the University of ChicagoHospitals. The cause of his death was not known, but he had doubleheart bypass surgery last week, said his son, …

Diversity is gaining in `white' suburbs

The days when "west and northwest suburbs" were code words for"white" are passing.

A decade ago, nine out of 10 people in Naperville, Itasca,Palatine and Wheaton were white. Today, while the communities arestill mostly white, increasing numbers of minorities-especiallyLatinos and Asians-are calling those places home.

Census 2000 confirmed what many suspected after noticing who elsewas shopping at their neighborhood grocery and standing in lines atthe cineplex.

But the new diversity on soccer fields and in classrooms doesn'tnecessarily mean people of different races are always living nextdoor to one another. They often share a village but not the …

Romania clinches last spot at 2011 Rugby World Cup

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania has clinched the 20th and final spot at the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, beating Uruguay 39-12 in the second leg of the playoff at Arcul de Triumf stadium on Saturday.

The Romanians ensured they have qualified for all six World Cups since the inception of the tournament in 1987 after scoring tries through Csaba Gal, Alexandru Manta, Catalin Fercu, Madalin Lemnaru plus a penalty try.

Romania will join Argentina, England, Scotland and Georgia in Pool B.

Martin Crosa and Ivo Dugonjic crossed for tries for Uruguay, which was trying to reach its third World Cup after having previously played at the 1999 and 2003 editions.

The …

Frontier cancels flights because of hail damage

DENVER (AP) — Frontier Airlines has canceled more than 50 flights through Saturday because of a hailstorm in Denver that knocked nearly a third of its large planes out of service.

The airline says 18 of its 59 Airbus planes and two turbo-props were damaged in the storm that hit Denver International Airport on Wednesday. Five planes could be returned to …

Iran Offers to Resolve Issues With IAEA

Iran has invited International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) officials to visit Tehran in order to "develop an action plan for resolving outstanding issues" related to the country's past nuclear activities, agency spokesperson Melissa Fleming announced June 25. "The IAEA intends to send a team as early as practicable," she added. Iran's invitation came as permanent members of the UN Security Council began work on a new resolution that would impose sanctions on Iran.

Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council and Tehran's lead nuclear negotiator, issued the invitation the previous evening during a meeting with IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei. Larijani …

Strauss, Pietersen make 50s in England warmup match

Andrew Strauss and Kevin Pietersen made half centuries as England gained a narrow lead over a New Zealand Invitational XI in a three-day warmup cricket match at Dunedin on Friday.

Strauss made an unbeaten 55 and Pietersen 53 as England reached 155 for three by stumps in its second innings on a second day shortened by rain and bad light.

Earlier, the New Zealand selection …

'Maryam' a timely portrait of life

MARYAM

***1/2

Maryk Armin Mariam Parris

Ali Armin David Ackert

Darius Armin Shaun Toub

Homa Armin Shohreh Aghdashloo

Reza Maziyar Jobrani

Jamie Victor Jory

Streetlight Films presents a film written and directed by RaminSerry. Running time: 90 minutes. No MPAA rating (suitable for teens).Opening today at the Music Box.

Girls just want to have fun, says Cyndi Lauper, and Maryam, a highschool senior, is one of them. Yes, she's an honor student andanchors the news on the in-school TV program, but she also likes tohang out at the roller rink with her slacker boyfriend, and pot andbooze are not unknown to her. In …

Unfortunately they won't stop

One of the most interesting phenomena to watch as a political observer in this country is the vacillating narratives that occur when any tragic and unforeseen event happens.

After the initial shocking event, you have the main facts that come oui. then the right or the left attempts to define the event in terms that are most beneficial to their causes. This happens with movies, (everyone was trying to explain 300 and Avatar as statements about the war in Iraq), sporting events (New Orleans Saints win Superbowl and thus the Gulf is now fine) and yes, tragedies like the shooting of Congresswoman Gi fiords in Arizona last weekend.

As more facts come out, sometimes the politics …

4Q credit card data shows use returning to normal

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. consumers used more plastic during the holiday season without ballooning their balances, and the delinquency rate for credit-card accounts fell to its lowest point in 15 years. That's a positive combination reflected in the latest quarterly analysis from the credit reporting agency TransUnion.

The company also noted that the number of new credit cards issued during the last three months of 2010 increased by 19 percent over the same period in 2009. It was just the second straight quarter when more cards were issued. That hasn't happened since late 2007.

The data is drawn from 27 million anonymous TransUnion credit reports, which represents about 10 percent of the company's database. Here are some of the highlights:

Balances

The average combined balance consumers had on their bank-issued credit cards — including MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Discover cards — fell to $4,965. That's down 8.6 percent from the fourth quarter of 2009.

That drop reflects both a clear effort to pay down debt and the impact of unpaid balances written off by banks, said Ezra Becker, vice president of research and consulting in TransUnion's financial services unit.

Even so, the average balance remained essentially flat from the third quarter, up just $1. It was just the second time since the summer 2009 that the average balance didn't drop on a sequential basis.

That means plastic was used more during the holiday season. An increase in credit card use during the fourth quarter was typical before the recession changed consumer habits and led more people to focus on paying down their debt, Becker said.

Delinquency rate

Meanwhile, the number of accounts with payments behind by three months or more fell to its lowest level in 15 years, to just 0.82 percent, from 1.21 percent in the 2009 fourth quarter. It was slightly lower than the 0.83 percent seen during the third quarter.

In the past, late payments would normally rise during the holiday period.

All told, the figures reflect that card users have better control of their credit use despite persistent high unemployment, said Becker. Higher spending also is a sign of their increasing consumer confidence.

вторник, 13 марта 2012 г.

Nymex Shares Debut at $120

NEW YORK - New York Mercantile Exchange shares debuted at $120 - more than double their initial offering price - and continued climbing Friday as the commodity futures exchange ended its 134-year run as a private company.

Nymex Holdings Inc. sold 6.5 million shares at $59 a piece on Thursday after the market closed, ahead of its previously projected range of $54 to $57. The shares then opened on the New York Stock Exchange at $120, soared past $150 and then came down to about $140 in late morning trading.

The company, whose market is famous for its raucous, open-outcry trading of oil and gold futures, raised $293.1 million after underwriting discounts and commissions, but before expenses. Selling stockholders made about $65.5 million on the IPO.

At $140 a share, it would have a market capitalization of about $12.18 billion.

The stock lists under the ticker symbol NMX on the NYSE.

The debut of Nymex shares had been much-anticipated by investors who have witnessed the stellar IPOs of rival exchanges in recent years.

Shares of IntercontinentalExchange Inc. closed up 51 percent from the $26 IPO price on Nov. 16. Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. shares jumped 23 percent on the first day of trading in December 2002, while Chicago Board of Trade Holdings Inc. saw its shares surge 49 percent after their debut in October 2005.

David Easthope, an analyst with Boston-based Securities and Investments Group, said Nymex shares likely popped "on frothy expectations, takeover possibilities and just hype right now."

"Retail speculation tends to be high when there's been a pattern of successful IPOs in a sector," he said. "The word gets out that exchanges have been popping on the first day."

Broken Wings go home early Detroit players deal with first-round ouster

DETROIT The Detroit Red Wings will play golf, not hockey, in Aprilfor the first time since 1994.

Detroit's season of much hope came to a dramatic end early Tuesdaymorning with a 3-2 overtime loss at Los Angeles.

The Kings won the best-of-seven first-round series 4-2, afterlosing the first two games.

"This is our summer now, and it's the middle of April," Detroit'sKris Draper said. "This is uncharted waters for this hockey club, andit's something that I can't explain. Obviously, it's going to sink inand we're going to be shaking our heads for the next couple of weeks,just wondering, `What if?' "

Two weeks ago, the Red Wings were the hottest team in the NHL andwere expected to at least face Dallas in the second round and perhapsColorado in the Western Conference finals.

They seemingly couldn't lose at home and were tough to beat on theroad after the All-Star break.

Aging veterans such as Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan werescoring goals and setting up others. Role players such as MartinLapointe were doing the same.

But Yzerman played only the first six minutes of the first gameagainst the Kings because of an injured left ankle.

Shanahan missed the third, fourth and sixth games because of abroken foot, after playing spectacularly in Game 2.

Darren McCarty and Chris Chelios were limited by injuries thatpestered them toward the end of the season.

"I don't think we've ever had a team as banged-up as this one,especially going into a series," Detroit coach Scotty Bowman said."We're certainly not the team we were during the regular season."

The beginning of the end came in Game 4 when the Red Wings blew a3-0 lead with less than seven minutes left in the game. The Kings won4-3 in overtime and snatched the momentum of the series for good.

A familiar face, in a new uniform, helped end the Red Wings'season for a third straight year. Former Colorado standout AdamDeadmarsh scored the tying and winning goals in Game 6, to continuehis dominating ways against Detroit.

Deadmarsh, who has 26 points in 29 games against the Red Wings,helped Colorado eliminate Detroit in the second round of the playoffsin each of the last two seasons.

The Red Wings haven't made it past the second round since they wonthe Stanley Cup in 1997 and '98.

They thought this season's team could help recapture the gloryyears, despite being the oldest team in the NHL.

Detroit decided against shaking up the roster with trades duringthe season because of the success they were having.

It didn't work out.

"It really stinks," Detroit's Pat Verbeek said. "Looking back onthe season, the team we had, I felt that we had a real shot atwinning the whole thing. I think it's going to sting more in about aweek when you're sitting there finished and not playing hockeyanymore."

Italian treat for children

THOUSANDS of pupils will experience a taste of Italy as they sitdown for their school lunch next week.

Carmarthenshire Council's catering service is preparing to treatschool children with a special themed lunch to celebrate NationalSchool Meals Week, which runs from Monday to Friday.

On Tuesday all primary and secondary schools will hold Italian-themed events to mark Go Travelling day, which aims to teachchildren more about foods from around the world.

Rolling both events in to one, a lunch of spaghetti bolognaisewill be served with vegetables and garlic bread, followed by Frank'sice cream.

Catering services manager Sandra Weigel said: "National SchoolMeals Week is an ideal time to introduce children to new tastes andfoods and to encourage parents who usually give their childrenpacked lunched to try a school meal."

Kansas climbs to No. 1 in poll

Bill Self didn't have to wait long to be No. 1 at Kansas.

The Jayhawks took advantage of losses by the top four teams lastweek to jump from No. 6 to No. 1 in the Associated Press' collegebasketball poll Monday.

Kansas' move to the top was the biggest in almost 40 years andmatched the second-biggest in the history of the poll, which startedin the 1948-49 season.

"I don't believe we're deserving of it, but I don't know if anyoneis right now," Self said. "There are probably 10 to 12 teams outthere who could be No. 1 the way things played out last week."

Kansas beat then-No. 3 Michigan State 81-74 in its only game lastweek. Combined with losses by Connecticut, Duke and Arizona, whichwere ranked No. 1, No. 2 and No. 4 last week, and an unimpressivevictory by then-No. 5 Missouri, it meant another trip to No. 1 forthe Jayhawks.

Florida beat Arizona 78-77 to move up from No. 8 to No. 2. GeorgiaTech defeated Connecticut and Purdue beat Duke, moving those teamsinto the rankings for the first time this season. The Yellow Jacketsare 13th and the Boilermakers 20th.

Kansas was ranked No. 1 for four weeks in the 2001-02 season, itsfirst stint at the top since getting there five consecutive seasonsfrom 1992-93 through 1996-97.

Nine teams received first-place votes this week, backing up Self'spoint of not being deserving of the top spot.

"Although it's very early, we'll enjoy the time we have it andcertainly hope to maintain it," said Self, who left Illinois for theJayhawks' job after Roy Williams departed Kansas to become the coachat North Carolina.

The Jayhawks (3-0) defeated Texas Christian 85-66 late Monday inFort Worth in their first game since starting guard Michael Lee brokehis right collarbone in practice last week. He is expected to be outup to two months.

Keith Langford scored 24 points on 9-for-10 shooting, and JeffHawkins added 19 points for Kansas. Corey Santee led the Horned Frogs(1-2) with 19 points.

Kansas' jump from No. 6 to No. 1 matched Duke's rise in 1965, andthose were second only to West Virginia's move from No. 8 to No. 1 in1957. The Jayhawks received 52 first-place votes and 1,750 pointsfrom the 72-member national media panel. Florida received eight first-place votes and 1,604 points.

Connecticut, which was a runaway No. 1 in the preseason poll andfor the first two weeks of the regular season, dropped to third afterits 77-61 loss to Georgia Tech in the semifinals of the PreseasonNIT. The Huskies received one first-place vote.

Missouri, the only member of the top five last week that didn'tlose, moved up one place to No. 4 after beating Oakland, Mich., 90-85 in its season opener. The Tigers got three first-place votes.

Michigan State dropped from No. 3 to No. 5 after its loss toKansas and Duke from No. 2 to No. 6 after its 78-68 loss to Purdue inthe title game of the Great Alaska Shootout. Arizona, Texas, Kentuckyand North Carolina rounded out the top 10. All but Michigan State andArizona received at least one first-place vote.

Georgia Tech was the ninth school to get at least one first-placevote. The Yellow Jackets were No. 1 on three ballots.

"This might be a surprise to some people," coach Paul Hewitt saidof his team, which was picked to finish seventh in an Atlantic CoastConference preseason poll. "But if you had been at practice everyday, it would not be a surprise. We realized early in practice thatwe had a chance to be a very good basketball team."

Among other area teams, Illinois is 11th, Wisconsin 15th, NotreDame 23rd and Marquette 24th.

NO. 3 CONNECTICUT 75, LEHIGH 55: Ben Gordon led four players indouble figures with 19 points and added five steals to pace theHuskies (5-1) past the Mountain Hawks (1-3) in Hartford, Conn.

Connecticut closed the first half with a 13-2 burst to break a 24-24 tie, then shot 55 percent in the second half to pull away. TheHuskies led by 26 points before emptying their bench with fiveminutes left.

NO. 9 KENTUCKY 89, MARSHALL 76: Gerald Fitch scored 24 points andKelenna Azubuike 16 to pace the Wildcats (3-0) past the ThunderingHerd (1-2) in their annual visit to Cincinnati.

Ronny Dawn led Marshall with 23 points, including a 7-for-9 effortfrom three-point range. The Thundering Herd stayed close untilKentucky used a 13-4 spurt to seal the victory.

AP

Darfur runner wins Sudan's first Olympic medal

Sudanese rejoiced on Sunday when a Darfur native brought home the country's first-ever Olympic medal, putting a rare positive light on the wartorn region.

After nearly 50 years of Sudanese participation in the Olympics, Ismail Ahmed Ismail took the country's first medal, winning silver in the men's 800 meter run.

Ismail was hailed as a national hero and his picture _ wrapped in a Sudanese flag _ was emblazoned across the front pages of the country's normally staid press.

"An unprecedented achievement," trumpeted the headline of the daily al-Sahafa. For once, Sudan's antagonistic papers, backing the rival northern and southern halves of the country, were in complete agreement.

Ismail cross the finish line in 1 minute, 44.70 seconds, just 0.05 seconds after winner Wilfred Bungei of Kenya. He beat reigning world champion Alfred Yego of Kenya, who had to settle for bronze.

"This man deserves to be honored. He has made us happy," said Salah al-Mubarak, a sports columnist with the southern-aligned Ajras al-Hurriyeh newspaper.

"It shows you this region has another face and has things to celebrate," Mahmoud Medani, a former football player and a businessmen from Darfur, told The Associated Press. "It is a source of pride for us, not for us alone but for all Sudanese people."

Ismail's medal came at a time Sudan is facing an unprecedented internal debate on the Darfur conflict.

The country's longtime President Omar al-Bashir is facing charges of genocide from the International Criminal Court for the situation in Darfur where up to 300,000 people have been killed and more than 2.5 million displaced since 2003.

Since the charges were filed on July 14, the local media has begun discussing the once-taboo issue, debating what would happen if al-Bashir is arrested and how to bring peace to the troubled region.

Ismail's family is from western Darfur, but like many others, they migrated from the impoverished region to Khartoum before he was born.

"I can't find words to express my joy. This is an achievement for my country first and then for me," Ismail was quoted as saying by the Sudan Media Center, which has close links to the government. "I was able to achieve this honor because of a lot of hard training."

Ismail's family couldn't be immediately reached for comment. But the 23-year-old runner has not had it easy.

Hanadi Ismail, a reporter and family friend, said he and his five brothers and sisters grew up in the poor Khartoum neighborhood of Hajj Youssef.

Ismail's wife gave birth to their son just 42 days ago, but has yet to name him because they cannot afford the naming ceremony.

Sudan sent just nine athletes to Beijing, all but one of them in track and field events.

"This is what I can call an honor for the Sudan," said Babiker Mekki, 32, a Khartoum resident, when asked about Ismail's medal.

Kinetics and thermodynamics of protein adsorption: A generalized molecular theoretical approach

ABSTRACT The thermodynamics and kinetics of protein adsorption are studied using a molecular theoretical approach. The cases studied include competitive adsorption from mixtures and the effect of conformational changes upon adsorption. The kinetic theory is based on a generalized diffusion equation in which the driving force for motion is the gradient of chemical potentials of the proteins. The time-dependent chemical potentials, as well as the equilibrium behavior of the system, are obtained using a molecular mean-field theory. The theory provides, within the same theoretical formulation, the diffusion and the kinetic (activated) controlled regimes. By separation of ideal and nonideal contributions to the chemical potential, the equation of motion shows a purely diffusive part and the motion of the particles in the potential of mean force resulting from the intermolecular interactions. The theory enables the calculation of the time-dependent surface coverage of proteins, the dynamic surface tension, and the structure of the adsorbed layer in contact with the approaching proteins. For the case of competitive adsorption from a solution containing a mixture of large and small proteins, a variety of different adsorption patterns are observed depending upon the bulk composition, the strength of the interaction between the particles, and the surface and size of the proteins. It is found that the experimentally observed Vroman sequence is predicted in the case that the bulk solution is at a composition with an excess of the small protein, and that the interaction between the large protein and the surface is much larger than that of the smaller protein. The effect of surface conformational changes of the adsorbed proteins in the time-dependent adsorption is studied in detail. The theory predicts regimes of constant density and dynamic surface tension that are long lived but are only intermediates before the final approach to equilibrium. The implications of the findings to the interpretation of experimental observations is discussed.

INTRODUCTION

Protein adsorption plays a major role in a variety of important technological and biological processes (Clerc and Lukosz, 1997; Denizli et al., 2000; Ghose and Chase, 2000; Hlady and Buijs, 1996; Montdargent and Letourneur, 2000; Shi and Ratner, 2000; Slomkowski, 1998; Topoglidis et al., 1998). For example, blood proteins tend to adsorb into surfaces of foreign materials. This is the first step on surface-induced thrombosis (Andrade and Hlady, 1986; Horbett, 1993; E. F. and S. 1993; Tanaka et al. 2000). A large number of biotechnological devices include surface-bound proteins, e.g., biosensors (Nyquist et al., 2000; Slomkowski et al., 1996; Sukhishvili and Granick, 1999; Zhou et al., 2000). Separation of proteins by chromatography involves the competitive adsorption of the particles (Wang 1993). The understanding of the fundamental factors that determine protein adsorption are imperative to improve our ability to design biocompatible materials and biotechnological devices. Moreover, protein adsorption is a very important fundamental problem that involves large competing energy scales and conformational statistics that may result in reversible and irreversible processes.

The adsorption of proteins on surfaces is a complex process. The adsorbing particles are large, and, thus, the surface-protein interactions are usually long range and the strength is many times the thermal energy. Further, due to the large size and the shape of the particles, the interactions between the adsorbed particles on the surface are nontrivial and can be strongly influentiated by the fact that the particles may undergo conformational changes upon adsorption (Billsten et al., 1995; Ishihara et al., 1998; Kondo and Fukuda, 1998; Nasir and McGuire, 1998; Norde and Giacomelli, 1999, 2000; Tan and Martic, 1990; Van Tassel et al., 1998; Gidalevitz et al., 1999). Actually, the kinetics and thermodynamics of protein conformational changes on the surface is a very complex subject and their understanding is at its early stages. The idea behind the work presented here is an attempt to formulate a molecular theoretical approach that can be applied to study both the equilibrium and the kinetic behavior of protein adsorption.

On experimental studies (Green et al., 1999; Malmsten, 1997), it has been observed that, when two or more kinds of proteins are present in solution, such as in blood plasma, the adsorption is the result of the competition between the time scale to reach the surface and the strength of the surface-- protein interaction. For example, in blood plasma solutions of albumin, immunoglobulin-G (IgG) and fibrinogen (Fgn) in contact with a polystyrene surface, the initial adsorption is dominated by the smaller protein (albumin), which are also at larger concentrations in the bulk, to be later replaced by the larger proteins like IgG and Fgn. This sequential adsorption is called the Vroman sequence. In other experiments (Lassen and Malmsten, 1997), different adsorption patterns are observed when the surfaces are changed. On the hydrophobic PP-HMDSO (hexamethyldisiloxane), surface albumin and IgG dominate the adsorption. However, on hydrophilic PP-DACH (1,2-diaminocyclohexane) and PP-AA (acrylic acid) surfaces, Fgn is almost exclusively found on the surface. These experimental observations demonstrate that the incorporation of the solution conditions and the protein-surface interactions have to be considered for the proper understanding and description of the adsorption process.

One of the most important contributions to the understanding of the kinetics of protein adsorption is the random sequential adsorption (RSA) model (Feder and Giaever, 1980; Schaaf and Talbot, 1989). In this approach, the proteins are assumed to be rigid particles that interact only through excluded volume interactions. The particles are assumed to irreversibly adsorb to the surface, and, thus, they do not have translational degrees of freedom or desorption on the surface. This model has been very useful in understanding why the kinetics of protein adsorption do not follow the Langmuir predictions. Furthermore, the model has been extended to consider conformational changes, desorption, and the treatment of mixtures (Van Tassel et al., 1994, 1996, 1998). The main limitation of this model is that it is hard to include detailed molecular information of the proteins and the formulation is based on a kinetic approach.

Some other studies have assumed that the adsorption kinetics is determined by the diffusion of the proteins to the surface (Iordanskii et al., 1996), whereas others assume that the dominant regime is the one controlled by a kinetic (activated) process (Chatelier and Minton, 1996; Minton, 1999). In a recent study, Cho et al. (1997) formulated a model in which both the diffusion and kinetic processes were included. Olson and Talbot (2000) studied the equilibrium and kinetics of adsorption of a polydisperse mixture. Each of these models has provided important insights toward the understanding of the adsorption process. However, none of them can describe both the equilibrium and kinetics of the adsorption process within the same molecular approach that can be applied for a large variety of experimental systems.

The theory that we use in this paper is based on the formulation of the free energy of the system. The minimization of the free energy provides the equilibrium state of the system, and, thus, we can study the protein adsorption isotherms. Furthermore, the free energy formulation enables the study of possible conformational changes of the protein on the surface. The equilibrium version of the theory for protein adsorption was originally formulated to study the ability of grafted polymer layers to prevent, or reduce, protein adsorption (Szleifer, 1997b). The predictions of the theory were shown to be in excellent quantitative agreement with experimental observations for the equilibrium adsorption isotherms of lysozyme on surfaces with grafted polyethylene oxide layers (McPherson et al., 1998; Satulovsky et al., 2000). The theory was later generalized to study the kinetics of the adsorption process in the same systems (Satulovsky et al., 2000). The basic idea in the dynamic version of the theory is to start with an equilibrium bulk system that, at time zero, is put in contact with a surface. The presence of the surface induces a distance dependent chemical potential of the proteins. The free energy of the new system is formulated, but instead of minimizing to obtain the new equilibrium state in the presence of the surface, the time evolution of the density of proteins is evolved with a diffusion-like equation, with the driving force being the gradient of chemical potentials arising from the sudden presence of the surface. These chemical potentials are obtained as derivatives of the time-dependent free energy with respect to the local density of proteins. Similar approaches were used for the adsorption of surfactants (Diamant and Andelman, 1996) and polymers (Fraaije, 1993; Hasegawa and Doi, 1997). Recently, it has been shown that this kind of dynamic equations can be derived for the time dependence of the density from density functional theory (Marconi and Tarazona, 1999).

In this paper, we are interested in using the same theoretical approach but to the study of protein adsorption on bare surfaces. The idea is to understand what are the parameters that determine the different dynamic regimes. Further, we are interested in studying in detail the effect of conformational changes on the kinetics of adsorption and also the adsorption of proteins mixtures.

The paper is organized as follows: the next section contains a description of the theoretical methodology, including a detailed presentation of the way the equations are solved. The following section present a variety of representative results. Finally, the last section includes our conclusions.

THEORETICAL APPROACH

In this section, we present our theoretical approach to study the equilibrium and kinetic properties of the adsorption of proteins to planar surfaces. We will present a general theoretical framework for the determination of equilibrium adsorption isotherms in the case of protein mixtures. The treatment explicitly includes the possibility that the proteins have many different configurations. The second part of this section presents the dynamic theory that we use to study the kinetics of protein adsorption.

After the presentation of the general thermodynamic and kinetic approaches, we will show the specific cases for which we present explicit calculations below. Namely, the adsorption of proteins that are assumed to have a single configuration in the bulk but that can undergo conformational changes upon contact with the surface and those assumed to be a mixture of proteins of different sizes for a variety of different bulk conditions and surfaces. Following the model, we present details on the numerical methodology used in solving the equilibrium and kinetic equations.

Equilibrium free energy

CONCLUSIONS

We have presented a general theoretical approach to study the thermodynamic and kinetic behavior of adsorbing proteins on solid surfaces. We have derived the theory in its most general form for both the equilibrium and kinetic studies. The theory was then applied to simple cases to study the effect of size, composition, surface-protein interactions, and protein conformational changes to the adsorption isotherms and the kinetics of protein adsorption.

The formulation of the theory does not require the specific introduction of the kinetic pathways that may happen through the adsorption process, but it predicts them. For example, adsorption and desorption will be predicted if the local thermodynamic environment is optimal for that process. Further, the kinetic version of the theory is formulated such that the system will eventually reach thermodynamic equilibrium. However, the theory is capable of predicting some kind of irreversible adsorption for cases of very slow dynamic processes. The theory describes the adsorption process from the bulk solution to the surface, including a detailed description of the region in the vicinity of the surface. Further, although the theory was presented here assuming that the only inhomogeneous direction is that perpendicular to the surface, it can be easily extended to treat inhomogeneous three-dimensional systems (Seok et al. 2000). The theory enables the study of the changes of the structure of the adsorbed layer, with molecular detail, as a function of time. This molecular description allows the understanding of the factors that determine the different kinetic regimes.

The theory requires, as input, the intermolecular and surface-protein interactions, and the possible conformations of the proteins. The intrinsic rate of transformation from one conformation to another also needs to be given. These are very difficult quantities to obtain, and, therefore, we applied the theory to simple systems to study the main factors determining the adsorption behavior. Although the application of the theory was done for simple geometries for the proteins, the real configuration of the protein could be included if they are known. As more microscopic understanding of the structure and conformational properties of proteins are learned, they can be incorporated into the theoretical framework. Actually, the lack of knowledge of the conformational properties of proteins may be one of the most important limitations in the application of the theory.

The complete understanding of the adsorption process should optimally permit description of the dynamic changes from the nanosecond time scale, which is the time scale for local conformational changes, to hours, which is the time scale of the whole adsorption process. Clearly, this is an impossible computational task with current methodologies and hardware. Note that atomistic simulations can be run for a single solvated small protein for nanoseconds. The theory presented here is aimed at bridging the gap between microseconds and hours. We hope, in the future, to be able to introduce the input necessary for the theory from molecular dynamic simulations of single proteins and, thus, bridge the gap between the atomistic time scale to the macroscopic one. It is important to emphasize that, to describe the very large range of time scales that the theory can treat, one needs to compromise in atomistic detail. Thus, the description of the solvent and basic elements forming the proteins are coarse grained. The level of coarse graining depends upon the level of detail that is of interest and the time scale of the overall process.

It is important also to emphasize the limitations of the approach presented here. First, although the theory has shown the ability to quantitatively predict the adsorption isotherms of lysozyme and fibrinogen on hydrophobic surfaces with grafted PEO (McPherson. et al., 1998; Satulovsky et al., 2000), it is still a mean-field theory with all its limitations, in particular with respect to the lateral interactions. The applicability of the theory can be improved by considering inhomogeneous densities in all three dimensions, (see, e.g., Seok et al., 2000). However, even though some correlations will be accounted for, the theory will remain, in essence, a mean-field approach. Second, for the kinetic behavior, we have assumed that the diffusion in the plane of the surface is much faster than the motion perpendicular to it. Although Brownian Dynamics simulations (Ravichandran and Talbot, 2000) show that this is a valid approximation for layers that are not very dense, we cannot predict a priori whether this is going to be the case generally. Again, this limitation may partially be overcome by considering the motion in all three directions. However, this will require an extremely large computational effort. Third, the theory requires, as input, the information on the molecular details of the proteins. This information has to be coarse grained to be able to integrate the equations of motion. Therefore, some of the detailed structural information is lost. Fourth, the theory assumes that there is a separation of time scales between the diffusion of the proteins (slow motion) and the rearrangement of the solvent molecules (fast motion). Although this is generally a reasonable approximation, it may have important consequences, in particular regarding solvent rearrangements upon conformational changes of the protein. Atomistic studies of single proteins in solvents may shed light on the cases in which this approximation breaks down. Fifth, we have assumed that the diffusion constant of the protein does not change with composition. Further, the approach assumes that there are no flow effects.

The advantages of the theory, such as the ability to study kinetic processes over many orders of magnitude in time, the ability to follow the adsorption with a large degree of molecular detail, and the wide range of applicability of the approach, should be balanced against its limitations to apply this approach in the appropriate cases where the theory is valid. The conclusions presented here are kept within that context, and we believe that the generic behaviors that we have found are applicable in a large range of systems in which adsorption of proteins takes place.

We have found that the competitive adsorption of proteins from solution can show a variety of different behaviors depending upon the protein-surface interactions, the composition of the bulk solution, and the ratio of sizes between the proteins. We found, in agreement with experimental observations, that the Vroman sequence is obtained when the large proteins have a much stronger attractive interaction with the surface than the smaller ones and the bulk solution is rich in the small proteins. Changing the composition of the bulk solutions puts the large proteins at a larger concentration on the surface at all times. The results presented here show the different conditions under which one can temporarily and thermodynamically control the adsorption of proteins on surfaces. Thus, they can serve as one of the building blocks in the design of optimal surfaces for protein separations. Our findings on the plateau of the dynamic surface tension suggest that changing the bulk composition of the protein mixture may be a good indicator of whether the system has achieved thermodynamic equilibrium. The equilibrium value of the surface tension will depend upon bulk composition, whereas the dynamic plateau will not.

The ability of the protein molecules to change their conformation upon adsorption has dramatic effects on the kinetics of protein adsorption. Depending upon the intrinsic rate of conformational change compared to protein diffusion, one can observe different adsorption patterns that are determined also by the intermolecular interactions. These interactions, in turn, depend on the population of different conformers on the surface. Our findings suggest that measurements of dynamic surface tension versus time may give an indication of possible conformational changes upon adsorption. Slow conformational changes seem to be associated with changes in the slope of the dynamic surface tension versus time. Further, the intermolecular interactions play a key role in the rate of conformational transformation once a certain density threshold of proteins is found on the surface. These results may lead to ways of surface modification that can be used to selectively adsorb proteins in a given configuration.

To summarize, the work presented here is one more step toward the systematic understanding of the molecular factors that determine the adsorption of proteins on surfaces. The complexity in the dynamic and equilibrium behavior calculated even for our simple protein models are comparable to those observed experimentally. Further, it demonstrates that explicit incorporation of the size, shape, composition, and strength of the intermolecular and surface interactions are necessary for the proper description of these complex systems. For example, the complex and timedependent shape of the potentials of mean force demonstrate that the kinetics of adsorption is a process associated with multiple relaxation times that are strongly dependent upon the size and shape of the molecules.

We are currently working on simple detailed models of proteins that will enable us to include more molecular and conformational detail as input to the theory. In parallel, we plan to compare the predictions of the theory with available experimental data to build up a database of useful models of proteins with which the theory can predict the behavior of real systems.

We thank Drs. M. A. Carignano and J. Satulovsky for very enlightening discussions. The work presented here is supported by the National Science Foundation. LS. is a Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar.

[Reference]

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[Author Affiliation]

Fang Fang and Igal Szleifer

Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907 USA

[Author Affiliation]

Address reprint requests to Igal Szleifer, Purdue University, Dept. of Chemistry, Brown Building 1393, West Lafayette, IN 47907-1393. Tel.: 765-494-5255; Fax: 765-494-0239; E-mail: igal@purdue.edu.

Report: Ex-world champion Dajka found dead

Ex-world champion cyclist Jobie Dajka has been found dead at his home, Australia's Nine TV network reported late Tuesday.

Nine reported in a late news bulletin that the 27-year-old Dajka was dead but did not give details.

The South Australia state police media unit and Cycling Australia did not immediately respond to calls.

In 2002, Dajka won a Commonwealth Games gold medal in the team sprint and won the keirin at the world championships.

His career was derailed in 2004 when he was excluded from Australia's team for the Athens Olympics for lying to an inquiry into doping allegations at the Australian Institute of Sport.

He was among five former world champions under investigation after track squad member Mark French received a two-year ban from all competition and a lifetime ban from the Olympics for doping offenses.

In 2005, Dajka was found guilty of assaulting Australia's head track cycling coach Martin Barras and given a suspended three-month jail term.

He was subsequently barred from professional cycling for three years but successfully applied to be readmitted to competition after 12 months.

Dajka spent time in hospital with stress-related problems following his altercation with Barras and told local media he had suffered "mental trauma" after being cut from the Olympic team.

SAfrica: Bodies of 15 more illegal miners found

A South African mining company official says the bodies of 15 more illegal gold miners have been found, bringing to 76 the number of deaths following an underground fire in an abandoned shaft.

Tom Smith, chief of operations for Harmony Gold's southern region, said the bodies were found by miners starting work Thursday at the mine's Eland shaft in central South Africa.

They had been left by other illegal miners at an underground station.

Over the weekend, 36 prospectors died, and on Tuesday another 25 bodies were brought to the surface.

Illegal miners are hired through organized crime rackets that produce about $250 million in gold a year. The miners, often unqualified, sneak in and make their way through a warren of interconnecting tunnels to the ore.

понедельник, 12 марта 2012 г.

Lawmakers criticize US aid to creditor China

WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawmakers say it's an insult to the American people: The United States is borrowing money from China only to give some of it right back as foreign aid. And that, they say, is bolstering Chinese businesses that compete with American companies in hard economic times.

A House hearing Tuesday provided a venue for Republicans to pounce on the Obama administration when wasteful spending, questionable foreign aid and US-China relations are all hot issues ahead of next year's elections.

But an administration official told lawmakers there was no money going to the Chinese government or Chinese companies. In fact, it helped American companies trying to do business in China. And the idea for the aid? That actually came from Congress when it was under Republican control.

Aid to China — $275 million worth over 10 years — has been approved while control of both Congress and the White House has shifted between the parties.

But with America scrambling to reel in its $14.8 trillion national debt, the foreign aid budget has become a first casualty. Republicans are calling for steeper cuts to the $21 billion budget of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Assistance to China makes up only a tiny fraction of the foreign aid total. This year's aid will be just $12 million, half that of 2010, but it's a prime target. China is the world's second largest economy, America's main foreign creditor, and blamed by both Democrats and Republicans for many of America's economic woes.

Tuesday's hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Asia subcommittee on the aid program offered plenty of red meat to China critics.

All six lawmakers to speak — five Republicans and one Democrat — expressed incredulity that the United States was still providing aid to China, which they accused of persecuting its people and stealing intellectual property from U.S. companies.

Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., said U.S. foreign policymakers were out of touch with taxpayers. He said it was "an insult to the American people" and that aid should only go to democracy organizations in the communist-controlled country.

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., used even blunter terms. He called it "pouring U.S. taxpayer dollars down the toilet."

Republican presidential contenders also have entered the fray. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has said that, if elected, he would seek to sanction China as a currency manipulator on Day One of his presidency. And Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota has suggested that the U.S. is effectively helping to subsidize China's army with interest payments to China on the debt, which stood at $1.14 trillion, according to an October Treasury Department report.

Last month, there was bipartisan support for a bill to punish China for undervaluing its currency, which is viewed as hurting U.S. exports at a time when its manufacturing sector is struggling and unemployment is more than 9 percent. Lawmakers also have joined to condemn Beijing for human rights abuses, intellectual property theft and counterfeiting components that end up in U.S. military hardware.

The $12 million in funds requested by the Obama administration this year will be spent largely on fighting HIV/Aids and to help Tibet, whose exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, is widely respected in Washington.

But the panel was focused on $4 million of proposed funding for promoting clean energy, the rule of law, and to fight wildlife trafficking in China. The committee has put that aid, approved last year, on hold as it demands explanations from the USAID how the funds would be used.

The panel's Republican chairman, Illinois Rep. Donald Manzullo, claimed the clean energy program would boost the competitiveness of Chinese manufacturers at the expense of U.S. manufacturers and jobs, and in a sector where the U.S. has protested to the World Trade Organization over Chinese state subsidies.

He also derided USAID for supporting a multimedia campaign aimed at stopping the illegal trade in wildlife. The campaign is titled "Sex, Drugs, Rock and Roll — and Wildlife."

"Can't you see why Congress is worried by the way you are spending the money," Manzullo told a USAID official. "What's sex got to do with it?"

Nisha Biswal, USAID assistant administrator, conceded that the title was perhaps "ill-advised" but said it was intended to convey the links between trafficking in wildlife and trafficking in narcotics and humans.

She defended the disputed aid to China as supporting U.S. values and interests, including for environmental protection. Almost one-third of California's particulate pollution can be traced to China, and 30 percent of mercury found in North American lakes comes from emissions originating from Chinese coal-fired power plants, Biswal said.

She said since 2006 — during the administration of George W. Bush, and when Congress was under Republican control — Congress had required USAID to maintain programs on rule of law and the environment in China.

"We have complied," Biswal said, adding that none of the programs directly funded the Chinese government or involved the transfer of technology.

She said the aid is designed to improve China's environmental law and regulatory system, and with support from U.S. companies offers training to Chinese factories on international environmental and health standards.

Biswal said the program also offers an opening to Chinese markets for U.S. businesses.

Participating companies include General Electric, Honeywell, Wal-Mart, Alcoa and Pfizer.

Int'l court prosecutor seeks Darfur rebels' arrest

After accusing Sudan's president of genocide, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court sought arrest warrants Thursday for three anti-government rebel leaders accused of a deadly attack on African Union peacekeepers in northern Darfur.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo alleged the rebel commanders planned and led an attack in September 2007 by about 1,000 heavily armed rebels on the Haskanita camp in Sudan's Darfur region that left 12 peacekeepers dead and eight wounded.

He has accused the rebels of committing war crimes, including murder, pillaging and deliberately attacking peacekeepers.

Rights groups welcomed the announcement as a sign that the international community will not tolerate attacks on peacekeepers.

"Civilians rely on peacekeepers for protection, and any hope for restoring security for civilians in Darfur depends on peacekeepers being able to do their job," Richard Dicker, director of the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

The suspects' names were not released.

"They know who they are," Moreno-Ocampo told The Associated Press in an interview.

African Union peacekeepers told the AP at the time of the attack that they suspected a splinter group from the Sudan Liberation Army called SLA-Unity.

"There are rumors, but now we have strong evidence and we know exactly (who was responsible)," Moreno-Ocampo said.

SLA-Unity chiefs denied involvement. They initially blamed the attack on another rebel group _ the Justice and Equality Movement _ and now insist government forces were to blame.

Suleiman Jamous, a leading member of SLA-Unity, said his group is innocent and if named would go to court to prove its innocence.

"If we are asking (Sudanese President Omar) al-Bashir to hand himself in, then there is no reason we should stand in the face of justice when it is our turn," he said from Slovenia.

"We have evidence to prove that the government did it," Jamous said.

The rebels ransacked and looted the camp, according to a four-page summary of the case released publicly.

A more detailed package of evidence has been sent to judges who will study it and decide whether to issue arrest warrants.

Jerry Fowler, president of the Save Darfur coalition of nongovernment groups, applauded Moreno-Ocampo's move.

"All actors in Sudan must recognize this fundamental truth: those who obstruct peace, security and lasting stability and who target civilians must be held to account," Fowler said.

The rebel attack came amid a government offensive that had been raging for two weeks in the same region.

Jamous said his fighters were clashing with government forces about 20 miles (30 kilometers) from Haskanita at the time of the attack.

Sudanese government troops are now based in Haskanita.

In July, Moreno-Ocampo asked judges to issue an arrest warrant for al-Bashir on genocide charges, accusing him of orchestrating atrocities including rape and murder of civilians in refugee camps.

The court last year issued arrest warrants for a Sudanese government minister and for a commander in the government-backed janjaweed militia, which has been blamed for most of the atrocities in Darfur.

Khartoum does not recognize the court and has refused to turn over any suspects to face international justice.

About 300,000 people have died and 2.5 million have been forced from their homes in five years of fighting in Darfur.

Moreno-Ocampo's latest case is the first to target rebels in the Darfur conflict and also the court's first to accuse suspects of attacking peacekeepers.

"It is very important," he said. "Attacking peacekeepers is another way to affect the civilians ... it is an indirect way of attacking civilians."

____

Associated Press Writer Sarah El Deeb in Khartoum, Sudan, contributed to this report.

ECB official: Governments could get bond profits

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — A top European Central Bank official says the bank could pay any profits on the Greek bonds it holds to member governments who could then use it to help bail out the struggling country.

Benoit Coeure is saying that "if there is a profit...it will be distributed to governments. "

He says they "could use it to contribute to the sustainability of Greek debt."

The ECB bought Greek bonds at well below face value in 2010 in an effort to lower interest rates. The question of what to do with any profits has come up as officials try to find additional funding for Greece's second bailout.

The bank has ruled out taking losses by joining private investors in a proposed agreement to reduce the face value of Greek bonds by 50 percent.

Inter playmaker Sneijder to miss about 20 days

MILAN (AP) — Inter Milan playmaker Wesley Sneijder has been diagnosed with a strained muscle in his right leg, ruling him out for about 20 days.

The Netherlands standout was injured during the pre-match warmup for Inter's 2-1 win over Cagliari in Serie A on Saturday.

Sneijder will miss Inter's Champions League match at Trabzonspor on Tuesday and could also sit out against CSKA Moscow two weeks later. Inter needs just one point from its remaining two matches to reach the next round.

Defenders Lucio and Yuto Nagatomo, meanwhile, have recovered from injuries and were included in the squad for the trip to Turkey.

Toddler whose hands glued to wall out of hospital

DALLAS (AP) — A Texas toddler has been released from the hospital a week after her mother allegedly glued her hands to a wall.

The 2-year-old was in a coma for two days after the Sept. 7 incident.

Dallas police say her mother was mad about the youngster's potty training problems. The child was also kicked repeatedly in the stomach.

Elizabeth Escalona remains jailed on a charge of felony injury to a child.

At a court hearing Wednesday, a Dallas County judge ordered that the toddler and her three siblings would stay in foster care.

Some of the 22-year-old mother's friends told WFAA-TV that she snapped under the pressure.

KDFW-TV reports that in 2007, Escalona was ordered to take parenting classes and undergo counseling. But Child Protective Services didn't remove her kids.

___

Information from: KDFW-TV, http://www.myfoxdfw.com

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Trebas Talk

The latest issue of Canadian Musician looks great, with many extremely useful articles. Thank you for the coverage of Trebas' 30"' anniversary with the article and photo. It's great coverage!

Cheers,

David R Leonard

Trebas Institute

Ed. Thanks for the note, David, and again, congratulations on the 30 years!

I just wanted to congratulate you on the July/August 2009 issue of CM\ [Your team has] done an excellent job and created a high- quality magazine with excellent content!

You may recall that I previously commented about background colours obscuring the text. I'm happy to report that this issue has solved this - the black-on-white of the columns was very readable, and looked very clean and professional!

Greg Holmes

GH Services

Ed. I really appreciate your previous feedback, Greg. It was certainly valued, and I'm glad you noticed some of the tweaks we've made. Don't hesitate to be in touch down the road.

FACTOR Online

The Business column on applying for FACTOR funding online was a good reminder to not wait until the last minute to submit! Back to finishing up and submitting my application...

Dale Boyle

Ed. Best of luck with the application, Dale. Be sure to check out Lonny's "Where The Money Is" feature in this issue for more tips on funding - and how to successfully submit for it.

среда, 7 марта 2012 г.

Australia tops Pool B after 2-1 win over Pakistan

Desmond Abbott scored two goals to lead Australia past Pakistan by a score of 2-1 Monday and to top spot in Pool B of the men's field hockey World Cup.

Australia, losing finalist in the last two World Cups in 2002 and 2006, topped the pool standings on goal difference after finishing level with England on 12 points from five matches.

Abbott scored in the 38th and 67th minutes to ensure Australia's victory. It finished with a goal difference of plus-17, while England's dropped to plus-5 after it lost its last pool match 2-0 to Spain.

England qualified for the World Cup semifinals for the first time in 24 years.

Pakistan opened the scoring Monday against Australia in the 24th minute on a penalty corner conversion by Sohail Abbas.

"We tried out reserve players, because an opportunity was there to test them before the semifinals," said Australia captain Jamie Dwyer.

"It's nice to finish on top of the pool, and now the semifinal will be a different competition," he said.

Australia and England will discover their semifinal opponents after the last round of matches in Pool A, where four teams _ two-time defending champion Germany, the Netherlands, South Korea and New Zealand are all in the running for semifinal berths.

Spain finished third in Pool B with nine points.

Host India was held to a 3-3 draw by South Africa and both teams finished on four points in the pool, but India finished in fourth spot ahead of its opponent thanks to a better goal difference.

India's goals came through Sarwanjit Singh, Diwakar Ram and Shivendra Singh, while South Africa's scorers were Lloyd Norris-Jones, Justin Reid-Ross and Austin Smith.

Pakistan finished bottom of the pool with three points.

Spain's goals against England came through Pau Quemada's penalty corner conversion in the 35th minute and Eduard Tubau's open-play strike in the 64th minute.

"We were tactically and mentally better than England and scored first, which was an advantage," said Spanish coach Dani Martin.

"We didn't play to our potential in this tournament. The defeat against Pakistan spoiled our chances," he added.

Despite advancing to the semifinals, England captain Barry Middleton was disappointed with the loss to Spain.

"We let our standards slip," Middleton said. "We let ourselves down and didn't play to our energy levels."

England coach Jason Lee said Spain was technically superior.

"Spain are a good side and today they were better in terms of technical play," said Lee. "It would have been nice to win all matches, but we hope that it was one off. We're disappointed, but are ready for any team in the semifinals."

Superstitions very much part of us

Shareem Amry
New Straits Times
12-19-2004
Superstitions very much part of us
Byline: Shareem Amry
Edition: 2*
Column: Aside

CHOOSING the right gift for someone is never easy, regardless of what the occasion is. But you can expect the task to become even more complicated if that person also happens to be superstitious.

This being Malaysia, where people practise feng shui, have a pantang or taboo for every situation, and where mourners often claim to have predicted a death in the family by dreaming about a white shroud the night before, superstitions are still very much a part of everyday life.
A friend has been attempting to shop for a wedding present for her colleague for the last week, but still hasn't found anything. The problem isn't the bride, but her mother, whose superstitious nature has turned her into a champion at reading hidden messages into everything.

She has banned white flowers from the ceremony, for example, because the colour is associated with death, and the wedding guests are carefully vetting their choice of presents for fear of transgressing some dearly- held superstition.

This friend has already had to forgo an elegant pair of silver photo frames as her gift of choice, after she was warned that it might make the bride's mother think of the silver worn by the departed as they are readied for their burial.

There are many other no-no's: Knives are a big one because they are said to sever the ties between you and the person you bought them for. Shoes are also never to be given, as they symbolise the recipient walking away from you in farewell.

Then there are handkerchiefs, because they recall the hankies that used to be given out at some funerals to weeping mourners. Clocks are another huge pantang, because they supposedly mark down the time you have left.

However, there are clever escape clauses. Some gift-givers will ask for a nominal payment for their present - even if it's just RM1 - because then the item in question is not technically a gift anymore. That, in turn, supposedly renders the danger (of death, a sudden farewell, a relationship breakdown, etc) harmless.

Many of us live by these superstitions even if we've forgotten over time what purpose they're supposed to serve. The last time I attended a funeral, for example, family members handed out mothballs to all the mourners with the instruction that they had to pocket them for the journey to the gravesite, and then throw them away as they exited the cemetery.

The first three people I asked couldn't tell me what the mothballs were supposed to do. It was only later that someone was able to explain that the mothballs were used to distract the graveyard spirits - as you left the cemetery and threw away the little balls, you effectively threw the spirits off your scent, and thus prevented them from following you home.

Does it really work?

Does it really matter?

(Copyright 2004)
Superstitions very much part of usShareem Amry
New Straits Times
12-19-2004
Superstitions very much part of us
Byline: Shareem Amry
Edition: 2*
Column: Aside

CHOOSING the right gift for someone is never easy, regardless of what the occasion is. But you can expect the task to become even more complicated if that person also happens to be superstitious.

This being Malaysia, where people practise feng shui, have a pantang or taboo for every situation, and where mourners often claim to have predicted a death in the family by dreaming about a white shroud the night before, superstitions are still very much a part of everyday life.
A friend has been attempting to shop for a wedding present for her colleague for the last week, but still hasn't found anything. The problem isn't the bride, but her mother, whose superstitious nature has turned her into a champion at reading hidden messages into everything.

She has banned white flowers from the ceremony, for example, because the colour is associated with death, and the wedding guests are carefully vetting their choice of presents for fear of transgressing some dearly- held superstition.

This friend has already had to forgo an elegant pair of silver photo frames as her gift of choice, after she was warned that it might make the bride's mother think of the silver worn by the departed as they are readied for their burial.

There are many other no-no's: Knives are a big one because they are said to sever the ties between you and the person you bought them for. Shoes are also never to be given, as they symbolise the recipient walking away from you in farewell.

Then there are handkerchiefs, because they recall the hankies that used to be given out at some funerals to weeping mourners. Clocks are another huge pantang, because they supposedly mark down the time you have left.

However, there are clever escape clauses. Some gift-givers will ask for a nominal payment for their present - even if it's just RM1 - because then the item in question is not technically a gift anymore. That, in turn, supposedly renders the danger (of death, a sudden farewell, a relationship breakdown, etc) harmless.

Many of us live by these superstitions even if we've forgotten over time what purpose they're supposed to serve. The last time I attended a funeral, for example, family members handed out mothballs to all the mourners with the instruction that they had to pocket them for the journey to the gravesite, and then throw them away as they exited the cemetery.

The first three people I asked couldn't tell me what the mothballs were supposed to do. It was only later that someone was able to explain that the mothballs were used to distract the graveyard spirits - as you left the cemetery and threw away the little balls, you effectively threw the spirits off your scent, and thus prevented them from following you home.

Does it really work?

Does it really matter?

(Copyright 2004)

понедельник, 5 марта 2012 г.

Janice Hart in court, mum on cleric protest

The usually loquacious Janice Hart was untalkative yesterday asshe appeared in court on a charge of disorderly conduct.

Hart, the Democratic nominee for Illinois secretary of state,and a follower of Lyndon H. LaRouche Jr., was arrested last May 7when she presented a piece of raw liver to the Roman Catholicarchbishop of Milwaukee.

Circuit Judge Morris Topol continued the case to May 27 afterpermitting Hart's attorney to withdraw from the case.

Hart ignored reporters' questions as she left the Skokie branchof the court. Instead reporters were handed a statement in whichHart attacked Archbishop Rembert Weakland as a supporter of theInternational Monetary …