Paired CT scans catch chemo-killing of liver tumors in real time

Dec. 31, 2012 ? Using two successive pairs of specialized CT scans, a team of Johns Hopkins and Dutch radiologists has produced real-time images of liver tumors dying from direct injection of anticancer drugs into the tumors and their surrounding blood vessels. Within a minute, the images showed whether the targeted chemotherapy did or did not choke off the tumors' blood supply and saved patients a month of worry about whether the treatment, known as chemoembolization, was working or not, and whether repeat or more powerful treatments were needed.

The Johns Hopkins team's report about this novel use of dual-phase cone-bean computed tomography, or DPCBCT, an imaging technique developed at Johns Hopkins, is set to appear in the January 2013 edition of the journal Radiology. The diagnostic scans were performed on 27 men and women with inoperable liver cancer.

"This new scanning method is giving us almost instant feedback about the value of injecting antitumor drugs directly into large liver tumors and their surrounding blood vessels in an effort to quickly kill them, and to prevent the cancer from spreading," says senior study investigator and interventional radiologist Jean-Francois Geschwind, M.D.

Geschwind says if further testing proves equally successful, the paired use of cone-beam CT scans, which are already approved for single-scan use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, could supplant the current practice of MRI scanning a month after chemoembolization to check its effects.

"Patients should not have to endure the uncertainty of waiting weeks or more to find out if their chemoembolization was successful in fighting their liver cancer," says Geschwind, a professor in the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and its Kimmel Cancer Center.

"Dual-phase cone-beam CT avoids such delays, which also could allow the cancer to grow and spread and, ultimately, compromise chances of remission," he says.

Avoiding delays is particularly important, he says, for people with moderate to advanced stages of the disease, when liver tumors are too large or too numerous to surgically remove, and for whom chemoembolization is the main treatment option. Half of such liver cancer patients succumb within nine months, and liver transplantation is only an option for a quarter of those whose tumors have not spread outside the liver.

The newer DPCBCT scans, in which X-rays are detected by a device the size of a large laptop that can be placed directly below or above the operating room table, have the added advantage of being performed in the same room, or interventional radiology suite, as patients getting chemoembolization.

In their new study, Geschwind and his colleagues found that the initial shrinkage seen with DPCBCT scans taken before and after chemoembolization matched up almost perfectly with MRI scans taken a month later. Tumor death was 95 percent, the same as that seen by MRI. A total of 47 tumors were closely monitored in the study to assess how well DPCBCT tracked tumor death after chemoembolization.
All study participants were treated at The Johns Hopkins Hospital between March and December 2009.

In DPCBCT scanning, a chemical contrast dye is injected into the artery that supplies blood flow to the liver and tumor right before the chemotherapy drug is injected, to enhance the X-ray image. The first set of scans highlights key blood vessels feeding the tumor, as dye flows in and out of the tumor. The second set of scans is performed immediately after chemoembolization, to gauge tumor and key blood vessel death. Computer software is used to sharpen and analyze differences between the images.

The entire DPCBCT scanning time, researchers say, is between 20 seconds and 30 seconds, and the total amount of radiation exposure from the dual scanning averages 3.08 milliseiverts, which is less than half the amount of radiation involved in a modern abdominal 64-CT scan. Cone-beam CT scanners also emit an X-ray, but unlike other CT scanners, the cone-beam type of X-ray is projected onto one large, rectangular detector, roughly a foot and a half long -- and produces a telltale conical shape. The size of the cone-beam CT detector allows for single scans that can capture images the size of most people's entire liver. More powerful 64-CT and 320-CT scanners involve multiple detector rows.

Chemoembolization entails the use of tiny beads containing the chemotherapy drug doxorubicin injected directly into liver tumors.

Ultrathin catheters, about the width of a human hair, are threaded through blood vessels to deliver the drugs, which seep from the beads for several weeks.

Geschwind is leading clinical trials under way at Johns Hopkins and other centers to assess whether the combination drug treatment works for liver cancer patients. Early results have shown promise, with patients with advanced disease living 10 months to 15 months longer.

Geschwind says they plan improvements in image quality in DPCBCT scans, hoping further refinements will encourage physicians to adopt the technique. They also plan updates to the navigational software that, like GPS, can track blood vessels feeding each tumor, and provide more precise and greater numbers of targets.

Liver cancer kills nearly 20,000 Americans each year, and is much more prevalent outside the United States, where it is among the top three causes of cancer death in the world. Experts cite the rising numbers of hepatitis C infections, which cause chronic liver inflammation and are a leading risk factor for liver cancer.

Funding support for this study was provided by the French Society of Radiology and Philips Research North America in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. Philips, whose parent company is based in the Netherlands, manufactures the CBCT device used in the study. Additional funding support was provided by the U.S. National Cancer Institute, a member of the National Institutes of Health. The corresponding grant numbers are NCI R01-CA160771 and UL1 RR-025005.

The study lead investigators were Romaric Loffroy, M.D., a radiology fellow at Johns Hopkins, and MingDe Lin, Ph.D., a Philips biomedical engineer based at Johns Hopkins who has been collaborating with Geschwind for the past five years to perfect the DPCBCT technique.

In addition to Geschwind, Loffroy and Lin, other Johns Hopkins researchers involved in this research were Gayane Yenokyan, Ph.D., at the university's Bloomberg School of Public Health; and Pramod Rao, M.D.; Nikhil Bhagat, M.D.; and Eleni Liapi, M.D., all at the School of Medicine. Philips investigators involved were Niels Noordhoek, Ph.D.; Alessandro Radaelli, Ph.D.; and Jarl Blijd, M.Sc.

The chemoembolization research study was funded by Bayer HealthCare and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, manufacturer of sorafenib, and Biocompatibles, makers of the microbeads. Geschwind is a consultant to Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, and to Biocompatibles. The terms of these arrangements are being managed by The Johns Hopkins University in accordance with its conflict-of-interest policies.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Johns Hopkins Medicine, via Newswise.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. R. Loffroy, M. Lin, G. Yenokyan, P. P. Rao, N. Bhagat, N. Noordhoek, A. Radaelli, J. Blijd, E. Liapi, J.-F. Geschwind. Intraprocedural C-Arm Dual-Phase Cone-Beam CT: Can It Be Used to Predict Short-term Response to TACE with Drug-eluting Beads in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma? Radiology, 2012; DOI: 10.1148/radiol.12112316

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/BxsY8Gnb_98/121231110516.htm

homeland snl WWE peter frampton smokey robinson smokey robinson green bay packers

Business Resolutions for 2013 | Geoff Livingston's Blog

A new year is upon us, and like many others I have a few resolutions for my business and online life.

In addition to discussing the environment more frequently, here are some of my goals:

Less Travel

Last year was my worst travel year since 2009, doubling my normal road time. This travel was in large part to support Marketing in the Round (co-author Gini Dietrich also travelled extensively). By my calculations, I traveled at least one day a week 60% of the year, and from March until December it was more than 80%.

The impact on my family and personal exhaustion was significant.

There is no new book to promote in 2013. While I?m always game to travel for business reasons, the marketing and social media speaking circuits will see less of me next year? Unless people are willing to pay a significant fee.

It?s not about making money, rather creating a significant barrier so that I am on the road less. I want to be present for my daughter.

Business Only

It seems like I?ve had a serious pet project for each of the last three years. Whether it was fighting for the Gulf, writing and promoting books, or starting a company, there was an extra project at hand in addition to normal consulting.

In 2013, I intend to work hard in my business (including here on this blog), and turn off the lights. It?s a year to recharge the batteries, focus on what matters most, and run and bike outside.

My extra project for 2013 is being a Dad and a husband. That?s enough.

Take a Photography Class

I receive a lot of compliments about my photography, which as a self taught amateur pleases me to no end. But I?d like to improve on my hobby a little.

Plus photography helps me relax, providing an easy creative outlet that doesn?t involve the rigmarole of developing, writing, publishing and marketing a book.

So next year, I will invest some time and take a photography class. Here is to learning new insights!

Meditate

When a human doing stops to become a human being, it?s inevitable that you start to think. A lot.

That?s OK. Meditation bears creative fruit, always. That?s my experience.

So what?s next after some serious rest? Who knows? I certainly have a couple ideas now, but after meditation they could be completely invalid.

Until it?s the path is clear, living in the present for a little while seems appropriate.

I?m sure just working hard, taking great pics, and meditating during off hours will produce a vision.

What are your business resolutions for 2013?

Source: http://geofflivingston.com/2012/12/31/business-resolutions/

palm sunday toure patti smith lottery winners lottery winners april fools day pranks ohio state vs kansas

Beyond Structured Settlements: Structured Settlements in 2012 - 4

Executive Life of New York

At one time or another, each of us may have become acquainted with individuals who have overcome personal injuries and successfully transformed their disabilities and special needs into special lifetime accomplishments. Kyle Walsh, profiled in a 2012 S2KM blog post, is one such individual. The late Randy Snow, featured in a 2008 S2KM blog series, was another.

Structured settlements are supposed to provide economic security for people with serious injuries and disabilities - to help them rebuild their lives and, in many cases, to achieve special lifetime accomplishments. Instead of an all-cash personal injury settlement, structured settlement recipients accept a promise of future periodic payments.

What happens, if and when, that promise is broken? What happens when a structured settlement funding company, and the regulators and guaranty system responsible for protecting the structured settlement recipients, fail to make and/or insure full payment?

These questions are highlighted by the Executive Life of New York (ELNY) liquidation - the dominant structured settlement story of 2012 and one of the most important developments in the history of the United States structured settlement industry.

The story of ELNY, as well as its affiliate Executive Life of California (ELIC), and their parent company, First Capital Corporation (FEC), is long and complex. For background of events prior to ELNY's 1991 receivership, S2KM recommends Gary Schulte's 1992 book "The Fall of First Executive".

Significantly, neither the 1991 ELNY Rehabilitation Order nor the 1992 Order approving the ELNY Rehabilitation Plan declared ELNY to be insolvent. When then New York's Insurance Commissioner Salvatore Curiale seized control of ELNY on April 16, 1991 and placed it in receivership, he stated: "The company is currently neither in an insolvent or impaired condition. . . . I have not petitioned the Court to make a finding of insolvency. ELNY is a company well able to meet its current obligations."

Exactly twenty-one years later, on April 16, 2012, following 11 days of hearings at the Nassau County New York Supreme Court, presiding Judge John M. Galasso approved an Order of Liquidation and a Restructuring Agreement for ELNY as proposed by the Superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services (Superintendent), as ELNY's Receiver, and the National Organization of Life and Health Guaranty Funds (NOLHGA).

The result of the ELNY Liquidation Order and Restructuring Plan, even following contributions from state guaranty funds and voluntary life insurance company contributions, is a $900 million shortfall allocated entirely (and arguably inequitably) to more than 1400 ELNY payees out of a total of approximately 9700 current ELNY payees. The remaining ELNY payees expect to receive 100 percent of their promised future payments. The average individual shortfall is estimated to exceed $600,000 present value. Although an ELNY Hardship Fund has been created, it has not yet been funded.

An appeal was filed May 30, 2012, on behalf of 18 ELNY structured settlement shortfall payees, challenging the ELNY liquidation order and restructuring agreement on the basis of due process. The appeal also alleges that immunities and injunctions granted under the liquidation order are improper. Oral arguments occurred on November 15, 2012 in Brooklyn before the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Second Department. No decision has been announced.

Another legal challenge to the ELNY liquidation order occurred June 14, 2012 when attorneys for several liability insurers filed a Motion asking Judge John Gallasso to "clarify and/or correct" his April 16, 2012 ELNY Memorandum Decision. The motion indirectly raises the issue of whether qualified assignments extinguish the liability of defendants and/or liability insurers for shortfall payments resulting from the ELNY liquidation? Judge Galasso denied the Motion without further explanation.?

In a subsequent development, somewhat related to the liability insurers' motion, the ELNY website announced an ELNY Facilitation Plan to assist owners of ELNY structured settlement annuities (SSAs) make supplemental payments to ELNY SSA payees and to coordinate those payments with the ELNY benefit payments scheduled to be made by the Guaranty Association Benefits Company (GABC) under the ELNY Restructuring Plan approved by Judge Galasso on April 16, 2012 as part of the ELNY liquidation order.

The same attorneys who filed the ELNY appeal, Edward Stone and representatives of the Christensen & Jensen law firm, filed a class action lawsuit November 8, 2012, on behalf of ELNY shortfall victims, against Benjamin M. Lawsky, Superintendent of Financial Services of the State of New York, and his predecessor ELNY Rehabilitators, as well as MetLife and Credit Suisse. The class action allegations provide a critical litany of mismanagment and non-disclosure during the 21 years ELNY's estate was being supervised by these defendants.

In response, attorneys representing Benjamin M. Lawsky, in his capacity as ELNY's Receiver, filed a Notice of a Motion with the Nassau County New York State Supreme Court requesting oral argument on January 4, 2013 at 9:30 a.m. or as soon thereafter as the parties may be heard:

• to enjoin three ELNY structured settlement shortfall payees and their legal counsel from proceeding with a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court Southern District of New York;
• to hold in contempt of court the shortfall payees' legal counsel; and
• to require their payment of the related costs and attorney's fees incurred by the Superintendent.

Although the ELNY liquidation has so far received limited coverage in the mainstream media, specialty insurance experts and analysts have not been silent. Examples:

• Peter Bickford - In his article titled "The Elephant in the Court Room" (summarized here by S2KM), Bickford argues New York?s receivership system has failed ELNY, its policyholders and beneficiaries, as well as the insurance industry and its customers due to a lack of basic accountability standards. Although the ELNY restructuring plan may solve the immediate ELNY problem (at the expense of the remaining ELNY shortfall victims), Bickford maintains it does not address the broader, underlying systemic defects inherent in the New York life insurance receivership system. Without an act of the New York legislature, according to Bickford, "there will be no life insurance guaranty fund coverage in New York" following ELNY. Bickford's article also provides succinct summaries of objections raised by ELNY shortfall victims and ELNY legal issues which he states "could linger in the courts for years"
• LifeHealthPro - In an article titled "The Complete ELNY Saga: 21 Years of Mismanagement, Corruption, Broken Promises and Shattered Lives", (summarized here by S2KM), the authors assign primary blame for ELNY insolvency to the NYLB which they describe as "a rogue agency known for its codes of secrecy and characterized by many who spoke for this story as ineffective and mismanaged at best, and a snake pit of corruption at worst". In a companion article (reviewed here by S2KM), writer Warren Hersch asks: "is the structured settlement process in need of reform"?? In a follow-up oped article titled "Governor Cuomo I'm Calling You Out", (summarized here by S2KM), Bill Coffin, LifeHealthPro's Group Editor, charges New York Governor Andrew Cuomo with personal responsibility to clean up the "ELNY debacle".

The final results of the ELNY liquidation will depend upon the outcome of the continuing litigation highlighted in this article. It also remains to be seen what reforms, if any, will result from the failed ELNY receivership process.

In conclusion, it should also be noted that ELIC-related litigation continued in 2012 (Garamendi v. Altus Finance S.A.) when a federal jury in Los Angeles rejected a claim by California's Insurance Commissioner that, but for a conspiracy by French investor group Artemis S.A.:

• ELIC's original conservator (then California insurance commissioner John Garamendi) would have accepted an alternative bid in 1991 by state insurance guaranty associations; and
• The alternative bid would have retained profits from ELIC's junk bond portfolio for the benefit of policyholders including ELIC structured settlement recipients.

For S2KM's complete and continuing reporting about the ELNY liquidation, see the structured settlement wiki.

This blog post completes S2KM's series "Structured Settlements in 2012":

• Part 1 - Primary market
• Part 2 - Settlement planning
• Part 3 - Secondary market
• Part 4 - Executive Life of New York

Source: http://s2kmblog.typepad.com/rethinking_structured_set/2012/12/structured-settlements-in-2012-4.html

john edwards conocophillips octomom dan savage new world trade center kellen moore ryan braun

Naturally Nails: Butter London Trout Pout Swatch

Hey Hey,

Hope everyone's been surviving their respective examinations. HALLELUJAH! It is finally december, the marking of yet another end of the year. I've been seen friends post status about advent calender?! Took me a while to recell, can you guess recall where this particular word came from?! Can't recall? Keep reading to find out!

As you all know, Black Friday was somewhen last week. Singapore doesn't exactly have black friday, physcially at least. Come to think of it, there probably isn't a 24 hour mall in Singapore at all. Wouldn't it be cool if we had one, or maybe if shops in Orchard opened 24/7 on saturday nights. I won't have to worry about food places, hesistate to go out of the house at 8pm in the night and all that jazz. Anyway, thankfully though online stores give us the liberty of enjoying it. I got myself something I've been eyeing for the longest time. Just 1 small item. A really modest haul xD

Here it is!

Butter London Trout Pout

OMG it is finally in my hands, if you follow me on Instagram@Plainlypicturesque?you would have seen my little glamed up picture of my most recent haul. WHOOOO. Can't tell you how excited I was when I placed the order for this. It was going for a good 30% of the normal price on Luxola.com. More on that later

Trout pout is a stunning coral shade that has the perfect mix of pink and orange in it. It has this almost neon quality to it that makes my tummy do loop de loops. It is what I envisioned Essie's Haute as hello to be and MORE.
This colour has been raved a bazillion times in the beauty community already so I shan't go on rambling about it. Just that I love it, and it is the perfect colour. Very flattering on olive skin tones.

Sadly to say though I have issues with the application. I read reviews on trout pout and a handful of them complained about trout pout being too thick awfully streaky, while I don't agree, I can't disagree either. Like that makes any sense.... I wouldn't say it's streaky because it really isn't, besides the fact that it goes on quite smoothly despite it being a really bright almost neon colour is already pretty spectacular. Trout pout is?more patchy IMO. . 1 coat doesn't get you perfect coverage and leaves you with random bald spots that absolutely gets on my nerves! The part about the polish being thick is valid I guess but I feel that it's more of the brush's fault. The brush picks up a little too much product for my liking so you really have to clean off the excess product off to prevent a hot globby mess later on. The 2nd coat though seals the deal and assures you that:" yes, this is why so many people love this colour."?
Still I have to say that for its steep price, this is not quality that I would settle with because again, OPI makes wonderful polish for half the price. They aren't all perfect but they are generally awesome. Then again, loads of other butter london colours I've heard are off the charts as well. They'd better BE for the price.?

While this coral baby is finally MINE to own. My first EVER butter London polish. I have to just make a comment on the process of acquiring it. I bought this off luxola.com for a steal of $17.50. Thank you black friday. That's the price that you'll get it in the US, or at least from what I calculated. (Warning, I am born bad at math.) According to their website, you'll have to have someone BE home on the day that they are delievering the product to you if not you'll INCUR A SURCHARGE OF $10 FOR REDELIVERY (if your product is <SGD$50) alternatively, you can collect it yourself. YUP very scary.?
So.. on the supposed day of the delivery, I was home for the entire day (10am to 6pm as specified by luxola) and no one came to ring the doorbell... Strange but I thought perhaps they'd swing by the next day. Then, I received a call at 5pm saying that an attempt was made to deliver but I wasn't home. I was completely MINDBLOWN like how in the world could I have missed my door bell. (PS I was wide awake), even if I were taking a number 2, I would have heard it. Besides, there were others at home too, surely they would have gotten the door. I relayed this to the caller and he said ok, there will be a redelivery tmr. TheEND. At this time, I wasn't aware of the surcharge policy so I was like ok. It wasn't till like 10pm in the night when I scrutinised the fine print. Ugh. it really gave me a heart attack. No way in hell am I paying $10, MORE THAN DOUBLE the price of my product to get it delivered.. Being the super crazy anxious person that I am, I speedily wrote an email to them which they read early in the morning. Nonetheless there was only so much they could do cause the delivery guy already set off.
So the door bell rang the next morning at 9am. OMG SO EARLY. And I got my lovely product. THANKFULLY there was no surcharge given and I lived happily ever after since then. OMG can you imagine my horror if I were to be charged $10 buck. What's the point of the black friday discount then. -_-"
But yeah, that's the lame story of my so called "ordeal"

Ok, so I was clearing up my polish the other day and I chanced across Essie Haute as hello and I was like NO NO NO NO NO they look crazyily similar! I just had to swatch them side by side. To my relief they are WORLDS APART. In colour and in quality. For those complaining of the streakiness of Trout pout, do try out Haute as hello, you'll be pleasantly horrified. Haute as hello is what I call STREAKY. Not to mention, totally UNsmooth. See my previous post on it for more details. As you can see, haute as hello is exuberate a more orange outlook as compared to the strong warm pink tones from trout pout. Both top coatless. I think you can tell the winner from this picture.

Alright, for those of you guys wondering about the advent calander thing who haven't already googled it, it's from NEOPETS. The childhood game of my generation. Hahah it's great to reminisce. My favourite game was trouble at the neopian bank!?

Some random updates, I've been super into this acappella group called pentatonix. Go check them out if you haven't. They are GOOD. ESP carol of the bells and AHA. Awesome stuff. Can't wait for the exams to be over FOR I CAN GO FOR RETAIL THERAPY AND SEE MY BF AGAIN! Spoken like a true bimbo.?

END~
Thank you for reading!?
Do subscribe for more posts. Just a click over at the left hand column =)

Source: http://x3asweetaffair.onsugar.com/NOTW-Butter-London-Trout-Pout-Swatch-26153987

spice girls justin theroux Bumbo recall USA Basketball taio cruz taio cruz Winter Olympics 2014

Ask Engadget: best barebones workstation chassis?

We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, then here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is from Charles, who's capping off the year with a fine question about DIY PC chassis. If you're looking to ask one of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

"I work in motion graphics and it's upgrade time. I'm a DIY and Windows nut, so I'm looking to build my own tower, but the cases are all so horrible! I don't need a plastic window, or something that looks like it was designed by aliens -- just something that's sharp, solid, good looking and has a respectable airflow. Is that too much to ask?"

Well, we trawled our brains (as well as a fair chunk of the internet) looking for some classy chassis, and this is what we found:

• Corsair's Obsidian 550D may have a plastic window, but otherwise it's a monolithic piece of imposing black metal that won't ugly up your office.
• Coolermaster's Silencio 650 is hewn from diamond-cut aluminum and drops the plastic window, and given the company's heritage, should have excellent airflow.
• Finally, there's the Lian-Li PC-A71F, which can only be described as terrifyingly sleek.

But what about you all? Let's cap the year off with some stylish PC cases, peace and goodwill to everyone and a very happy New Year to you, the Engadgeteers.

Filed under: Desktops

Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/bu81h6u1Srk/

Pepco tour de france Magic Mike Anderson Cooper Gay adele NBA draft 2012 alicia sacramone

Samsung Galaxy S4 Specs to include S-Pen and (ugh!) 9.1mm of thickness

Sammobile: According to Enuri Samsung is planning to introduce the Galaxy S IV with built-in S-PEN. The device has been planned for an April launch like we reported earlier? Samsung wants to bring their next generation of Galaxy S in the same line as the Note series. If we can believe Enuri, Galaxy S IV will use a 5.0? AMOLED display 441PPI with Full HD 1080?1920 resolution a EXYNOS 5440 quad-core processor a 13 megapixel camera and the device will be 9.1mm thick . (Phones, samsung galaxy s4)

Source: http://techspy.com/news/1146604/samsung-galaxy-s4-specs-to-include-s-pen-and-ugh-9-1mm-of-thickness

beyonce troy polamalu james harrison james harrison falcons giants game norman borlaug

Bumper Pack Of Goal Setting/ Self Improvement Plr ? Video ...

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

Source: http://shumonahmed147.blogspot.com/2012/12/bumper-pack-of-goal-setting-self.html

Honey Boo Boo Child marilyn monroe Nathan Adrian London 2012 Synchronized Swimming London 2012 hurdles Taylor Kinney Beach Volleyball Olympics 2012

Woman in custody in death of man pushed onto NY City subway tracks

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A homeless woman was in critical condition in a Los Angeles hospital after a man doused her with liquid accelerant and set her on fire as she slept on a bus bench, police said on Thursday. Officers arrested Dennis Petillo, 24, in connection with the early morning attack, and he has been booked in jail on suspicion of attempted murder, police said. The woman, whose name has not been released, was being treated at a local hospital with burns all over her body, said Los Angeles police Lieutenant Damian Gutierrez. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/woman-custody-death-man-pushed-onto-ny-city-181622949.html

solar flare joseph kony 2012 arian foster dennis kucinich apple ipad kony kony 2012

Landlords Exit Strategy - Readers CGT Question

?Hello Mark, very impressed with your site, I have a question for you:

My wife and I have a small portfolio of property which has been built up over the years by keeping on our residences rather than selling to finance the new ones. None were purchased on Buy to let mortgages.

We own them jointly which I see from you articles may not be the best option but aside from this we are considering selling the properties that we let to clear the?loan on our principle home. The let properties have remnants of the original mortgages left to pay. Our principle property has been financed by a business loan.

As the money raised from the let properties is to be used to pay off the loan on the principle property will this money be first subject to CGT or can it be classed as transfer of equity for example within a business or such like.

Best regards Chris?

---

About Readers Questions
If you have a questions relating to being a landlord or property investment/development (e.g. finance, tax, legal etc) that you would like us to consider posting onto the property118 website please email?editor@property118.com

View all Readers's Articles

Read More Property News by Category Advice, Latest Articles, Tax & Accountancy, Tax and Accountancy by Readers Questions
1 Comment ?

Source: http://www.property118.com/index.php/landlords-exit-strategy-readers-cgt-question/34949/

celiac disease san francisco giants Medal of Honor Warfighter Richard Mourdock d t p

Debt limit will be hit just as other fiscal problems reach deadline (Star Tribune)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/273294383?client_source=feed&format=rss

us soccer bobby brown arrested the happening black panthers mauritania obama open mic jefferson county colorado

Early cognitive problems documented among those who eventually get Alzheimer's

Dec. 28, 2012 ? People who study or treat Alzheimer's disease and its earliest clinical stage, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), have focused attention on the obvious short-term memory problems. But a new study suggests that people on the road to Alzheimer's may actually have problems early on in processing semantic or knowledge-based information, which could have much broader implications for how patients function in their lives.

Terry Goldberg, PhD, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine and director of neurocognition at the Litwin Zucker Center for Research in Alzheimer's Disease and Memory Disorders at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research in Manhasset, NY, said that clinicians have observed other types of cognitive problems in MCI patients but no one had ever studied it in a systematic way. Many experts had noted individuals who seemed perplexed by even the simplest task. In this latest study, published in this month's issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, investigators used a clever series of tests to measure a person's ability to process semantic information.

Do people with MCI have trouble accessing different types of knowledge? Are there obvious semantic impairments that have not been picked up before? The answer was "yes."

In setting out to test the semantic processing system, Dr. Goldberg and his colleagues needed a task that did not involve a verbal response. That would only confuse things and make it harder to interpret the results. They decided to use size to test a person's ability to use semantic information to make judgments between two competing sets of facts. "If you ask someone what is bigger, a key or an ant, they would be slower in their response than if you asked them what is bigger, a key or a house," explained Dr. Goldberg. The greater the difference in size between two objects, the faster a person -- normal or otherwise -- can recognize the difference and react to the question.

Investigators brought in 25 patients with MCI, 27 patients with Alzheimer's and 70 cognitively fit people for testing. They found large differences between the healthy controls and the MCI and Alzheimer's patients. "This finding suggested that semantic processing was corrupted," said Dr. Goldberg. "MCI and AD (Alzheimer's disease) patients are really affected when they are asked to respond to a task with small size differences."

They then tweaked the task by showing pictures of a small ant and a big house or a big ant and a small house. This time, the MCI and AD patients did not have a problem with the first part of the test -- they were able to choose the house over the ant when asked what was bigger. But if the images were incongruent -- the big ant seemed just as big as the small house -- they were confused, they answered incorrectly or took longer to arrive at a response.

Patients with MCI were functioning somewhere between the healthy people and those with AD. "When the decision was harder, their reaction time was slower," he said.

Would this damaged semantic system have an effect on everyday functions? To answer this question, investigators turned to the UCSD Skills Performance Assessment scale, a tool that they have been using in MCI and AD patients that is generally used to identify functional deficits in patients with schizophrenia. The test taps a person's ability to write a complex check or organize a trip to the zoo on a cold day.

This is actually a good test for figure out whether someone has problems with semantic knowledge. Semantic processing has its seat in the left temporal lobe. "The semantic system is organized in networks that reflect different types of relatedness or association," the investigators wrote in their study. "Semantic items and knowledge have been acquired remotely, often over many repetitions, and do not reflect recent learning."

Dr. Goldberg said the finding is critically important because it may be possible to strengthen these semantic processing connections through training. "It tells us that something is slowing down the patient and it is not episodic memory but semantic memory," he said. They will continue to study these patients over time to see if these semantic problems get worse as the disease advances.

In an accompanying editorial, David P. Salmon, PhD, of the Department of Neurosciences at the University of California in San Diego, said that the "semantic memory deficit demonstrated by this study adds confidence to the growing perception that subtle decline in this cognitive domain occurs in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment. Because the task places minimal demands on the effortful retrieval process, overt word retrieval, or language production, it also suggests that this deficit reflects an early and gradual loss of integrity of semantic knowledge."

He added that a "second important aspect of this study is the demonstration that semantic memory decrements in patients with mild cognitive impairment may contribute to a decline in the ability to perform usual activities of daily living."

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. Brady C. Kirchberg et al. Semantic Distance Abnormalities in Mild Cognitive Impairment: Their Nature and Relationship to Function. American Journal of Psychiatry, 2012; 169 (12): 1275 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2012.12030383

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/GW1H2xj2IOk/121228130701.htm

Lisa Robin Kelly Nexus 4 Girl Meets World Jason Babin Nolan Daniels angus t. jones monday night football

Half of Americans leave landline behind

15 hrs.

Devin Coldewey , NBC News

A new study indicates that fully half of Americans are living in a household that uses only or mostly mobile phones ? but the remainder is slow to convert.

The Centers for Disease Control's?National Health Interview Study conducts in-person interviews throughout the year, asking about everything from health and insurance status to household telephones. They've put together some of the data from the first half of 2012 and the results, while not shocking, are significant.

Of the more than 20,000 households interviewed, just over half used wireless (i.e. cellular) phones for all or nearly all phone?calls ? 35.9 percent were wireless-only, and 15.9 percent had a landline but rarely used it. That adds up to 51.8 percent of all households, which is less than 2?percent more than for?the same period last year.

Why such a small increase? While younger people are adopting wireless phones as their only phone in record numbers, older folks are hanging onto their landlines. The percentage of people going wireless only steadily decreases as age increases: Only a quarter of those aged 45-64 were totally wireless, and just a tenth of those above age 64. That said, every age segment saw their wireless-only population increase by between 1 and 5 percent.

The highest percentage of wireless-only users appears to be among adults living with unrelated adult roommates ? 75.9 percent, almost three times the proportion of people living only with spouses or other adult family (but down slightly from last year's numbers).

So young people in population-dense areas, especially renters and people with low income, are happy to leave behind the expense and inconvenience of a landline. But for people who have had a landline for years, relatively few choose to abandon it.

The rest of the study, including methods and many more statistics, can be found at the CDC's website.

Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBCNews Digital. His personal website is?coldewey.cc.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/half-americans-leave-landline-behind-1C7753028

notre dame football cyber monday deals small business saturday small business saturday best cyber monday deals best cyber monday deals macaulay culkin

How the Internet IPOs of 2012 Fared

Seth Fiegerman

2012-12-27 20:49:25 UTC

This was a mixed year for tech IPOs, but overall, the Internet companies who went public in 2012 fared better than those who did in 2011.

Some 59% of the Internet companies who went public this year were trading above their IPO price as of midday Wednesday and 47% were trading above the price of their first actual trade, according to data compiled for Mashable by Kevin Pleines, an analyst with Birinyi Associates. By comparison, 42% of the Internet companies who went public last year were trading above their IPO price by the end of 2011 and just 14% were trading above the price of their first trade.

That may come as somewhat a surprise considering all the negative press surrounding the Facebook IPO, but as Pleines explains, Facebook's troubles arguably overshadowed the success of many other tech companies this year. "Facebook received the bulk of the press in the first half of the year, first on their valuation then the subsequent poor performance," Pleines said. "Many of the other internet companies flew under the radar."

What's more, Pleines says that Facebook's disastrous IPO may have caused other tech companies to rethink the timing and valuation of their own IPOs, which may have prevented similar Internet IPO disasters. In fact, 10 Internet companies went public before Facebook did in May, but only six went public afterwards.

All in all, there were two fewer Internet IPOs this year than last year. The total value of Internet IPOs this year was more than double that of 2011, but the vast majority of that was Facebook. If you take Facebook out of the equation, the total value of the Internet IPOs this year was actually 63% lower than last year, suggesting that this was a less eventful year for tech IPOs than 2011.

Thumbnail image courtesy of Flickr, Andrew Feinberg.

Topics: Business, Facebook, gallery, stocks

Source: http://mashable.com/2012/12/27/tech-ipos-2012/

e cards smash kate upton sports illustrated outback chaka khan taylor swift safe and sound delilah

The US Housing Market in Review: What to Watch for in 2013 ? Gay ...

The US housing market has experienced a dramatic impact over the past three years. Recent economic collapses have changed the market forever. For planners and developers, the reality is just now sinking in. From the buyer?s perspective, a home generally represents a family?s biggest expenditure, but for homeowners it also represents a significant source of wealth. The lack of available credit to home buyers and the lack of a national database for property appraisal are the biggest concerns in the sometimes volatile U.S. housing market.

In the meantime, home prices are rising. U.S. home prices jumped 5 percent, the largest increase since 2006. The cost of single-family homes increased as the real estate market extends the recovery period from the housing crash. The National Association of Realtors stated in a recent report that over 100 US Metropolitan areas showed significant gain. Home values are up after a 6 decline as buyers compete for a dwindling supply of homes listed for sale. The housing recovery is still faced with a number of obstacles. However, tight supply conditions should cause home prices to continually rise next year.

Over the last two years, the national average price for single-family homes was $186,100, a 7% increase from last year. Short-sales and foreclosures, in which the price of the home is less than the balance of the mortgage, are also down from last year. All-cash home purchases are also down 2%. Investors make up the majority of cash purchasers and generally compete with first-time homebuyers. The largest market gain in a metro area was in Phoenix, AZ where prices increased 35% from last year. In Cape Coral, Florida prices went up 28% and in Akron, Ohio the prices rose 27%. Raleigh, North Carolina showed the biggest decline, with the average selling price falling 16%, followed by York, Pennsylvania, down 9% and Binghamton, New York, with a 6% decline. A recent Fannie May survey showed Americans expect home prices to increase over the next year. People who expect home prices to decrease fell to 10%.

So is the market is shifting towards a sellers? market for 2013? Over the next few years, most areas will have more people selling homes than buying them. Most people will abandon or walk away from their homes. For example, Metro Atlanta experienced extraordinary housing growth for decades. As a result, they have suffered the most due to the recent recession. But the decline in home values is not universal. Since 2007 the average value of homes declined by 30% in the inner city markets. Outside the city, a 40% decline in home values shows that they are recovering slower. In the surrounding suburban areas home values have fallen by 50%.

Some homes in these areas may never return to their previous value.

The observations have been apparent in an anecdotal manner as well.? Affordable housing consultant Felicia Ramirez works with rent to own homes listing aggregator, HomeStarSearch. In her capacity, she consults with individuals seeking cost-attainable housing. She observes, ?a lot of people are waiting out this market. We actually have found that some of the people renting to own simply don?t want to commit to a neighborhood due to home value volatility. We?ve seen this trend especially take foot in suburban communities.?

However, a few of the 6,000+ square-foot homes built in the suburbs could be transformed into several units that could accommodate three or more families. According to recent University studies, more people want to live in a walkable community. The trend is toward neighborhoods in which people can ride bicycles or mass transit to their destination. This dynamic changes the entire market. Nowadays, most home buying professionals are freelancers or contractors instead of employees. This new style of professional normally requires a shorter commute. Urban communities are more in demand where the option exists to either buy or rent a home. Future housing markets will see little demand for new single-family homes on large lots. New homes will be built near transit stations. There will be a sizable premium for more walkable and mixed transit areas that offer more options for transportation and mobility.

Another looming question is about property values increasing due to lowered interest rates. Interest rates always have a substantial effect on the value of real estate. The influence of interest rates on our ability to purchase property by affecting the cost of mortgage capital is extremely important. Most people assume that the key factor in real estate value is the mortgage rate. However, mortgage rates are only one of the interest-related factors which determines property values. Interest rates also affect capital flow. The supply and demand for capital and the required return on investment will influence prices in a number of ways.

The housing market is changing generationally. The statistical housing profile is changing day by day. In 1970, 45% of U.S. households included children. In 2000, there were only 33%. By the year 2030, a mere 29% of homes are estimated to include children. The average household is stabilizing. The average number of occupants has gone from 4.6 in 1900 to 2.75 in 2000. At the same time, more households have returned to being multi-generational. More young adults are living with their parents and elderly parents are moving in with their children. This is a trend that has been driven by the economic recession and greatly decreases the demand for new housing. After WWII, there was a huge demand for housing as the ?baby boom? continued and families required new homes. Today, baby boomers are now seniors. We have rapidly become an aging population. Adults age 65+ will account for over 75% of the housing demand over the next 20 years. 90% of housing market growth will be homes without children.

American households are also getting more diverse. 75% of population growth in the next 20 years will be minorities. All of these factors will contribute to fewer people owning homes and more people renting them. The largest demand in the years to come will be for rental housing. Many developers believe we may not be able to build apartments and condominiums fast enough to meet the new demand. On the other hand, there will be an increase of homes on the market, due to seniors selling their homes. Today, 80% of adults age 65 or older own their home. However, when seniors move out of their homes, 60% of them decide to rent rather than buy. Economic growth and interest rates account for almost half of the variations in the buy/rent ratio. The other half is calculated by risk premium and pricing error. There is evidence that suggests that pricing error is related to fears about inflationary currency in light of the burst of the housing market bubble, which caused both a rise in home prices and an increase in interest rates. Prior to the financial crisis in 2008, the market experienced a sharp rise in housing prices due to an increase in the pricing error and a decrease in the housing market risk premium.

?

Source: http://gayrealtynetwork.com/blog/2012/12/the-us-housing-market-in-review-what-to-watch-for-in-2013.html

frank gore nfl games jesus montero hiroki kuroda kuroda gene hackman pineda

AIG Is The Best Insurance Play For 2013 - Seeking Alpha

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. (More...)

Introduction

AIG is an insurance conglomerate that spans the globe, but during the great recession like many other giant financial institutions, AIG got itself into a lot of trouble taking on the counter-party risk of mortgage backed securities. During the 4th quarter of 2008, AIG set the world record for reporting the biggest loss. It lost $99.3 billion dollars in a single quarter.

Despite the hazy past, AIG is the definition of a turnaround story. I anticipate the company to generate outstanding earnings growth going forward, and that investors will be able to earn some phenomenal yields by investing into AIG.

Qualitative Analysis

Source: Information pertaining to AIG came from the shareholder annual report

The company currently operates one of the largest insurance networks in the world, with more than 85 million clients in 130 countries. AIG is split into four business divisions: Chartis, SunAmerica Financial Group, Aircraft Leasing, and other operations.

Chartis offers a unique portfolio of insurance products and services. The insurance products are: casualty, property, financial lines, and specialty. Chartis conducts its business through multiple entities such as: New Hampshire Insurance Company, American Home Assurance Company, Lexington Insurance Company, AIU Insurance Company, Chartis Overseas, Fuji Fire & Marine Insurance Company Limited, Chartis Europe Holdings Limited, and Chartis Europe.

SunAmerica Financial Group - offers a comprehensive suite of products such as: term life, universal life, fixed/variable annuities, mutual funds, financial planning. The SunAmerica Financial Group operates under these subsidiaries: American General Life Companies (American General), Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company (Western National), SunAmerica Retirement Markets (SARM).

AIG's other operations primarily consisted of derivatives trading, and aircraft leasing. The other operations: International Lease Finance Corporation, AIG Markets, United Guaranty Corporation, AIG Financial Products, and AIG Trading Group Inc.

Currently AIG generates 91% of its revenue through the SunAmerica Financial Group, and Chartis.

(click to enlarge)

AIG's current management strategy remains simple: by 2015 achieve return on equity above 10%, generate share growth in mid-teens, grow insurance divisions, and reinvest retained earnings.

AIG aggressively competes with Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A/BRK.B), The Travelers Companies (TRV), Chubb (CB), Allstate (ALL), Loews (L), Progressive (PGR), Hartford Financial Services (HIG), CNA Financial (CNA), among many others.

Technical Analysis

The stock has been on a continuous up-trend since November 2012. On 12/24/2012 the stock is between a very narrow symmetrical triangle formation. I anticipate the stock to break out no later than the 26th or 27th, meaning that the stock will be forced to make a major move.

(click to enlarge)

Source: Chart from freestockcharts.com

The stock is trading above the 20-, 50-, and 200- Day Moving Averages. The stock will experience further upside through 2013, as investors have under-bought the growth prospects of the company.

Notable support is $23.00, $27.30, and $30.60 per share.

Notable resistance is $37.50, $46.00, and $60.00 per share.

Street Assessment

Analysts on a consensus basis have high expectations for the company going forward.

Growth Est	AIG	Industry	Sector	S&P 500
Current Qtr.	-113.40%	-99.90%	-93.80%	9.50%
Next Qtr.	-48.50%	-99.80%	-92.70%	15.30%
This Year	266.70%	99.80%	23.30%	7.20%
Next Year	-6.70%	20.80%	6.90%	13.10%
Past 5 Years (per annum)	-42.91%	N/A	N/A	N/A
Next 5 Years (per annum)	21.93%	13.20%	10.60%	8.72%
Price/Earnings (avg. for comparison categories)	9.41	19.56	13.83	14.69
PEG Ratio (avg. for comparison categories)	0.43	1.67	0.95	1.41

Source: Table and data from Yahoo Finance

Analysts have high expectations, as analysts on a consensus basis have a 5-year average growth rate forecast of 21.93% (based on the above table). This growth rate is above the industry average for next 5-years (13.20%).

Earnings History	11-Dec	12-Mar	12-Jun	12-Sep
EPS Est	0.63	1.12	0.57	0.86
EPS Actual	0.82	1.65	1.06	1
Difference	0.19	0.53	0.49	0.14
Surprise %	30.20%	47.30%	86.00%	16.30%

Source: Table and data from Yahoo Finance

The average surprise percentage is 44% above analyst forecast earnings over the past four quarters (based on the above table).

Forecast and History

Year	Basic EPS	P/E Multiple
2003	$ 3.10	21.38
2004	$ 3.77	17.42
2005	$ 4.03	16.93
2006	$ 5.38	13.32
2007	$ 2.40	24.29
2008	$ (37.84)	-
2009	$ (93.69)	-
2010	$ 14.75	3.27
2011	$ 8.60	2.7
2012	$ 3.74	9.41

Source: Table created by Alex Cho, data from shareholder annual report

The EPS figure shows that throughout the 2003-2006 period earnings were growing due to favorable economic conditions. Then the company was adversely affected by the great recession throughout 2007-2009, as the net income rapidly declined, and AIG eventually logged the biggest loss in corporate history. During 2010 the company was able to generate a profit by restructuring the company; this involved selling business units, which inflated earnings by $17.7 billion dollars. Once the United States economy exited the recession in 2010-2012 the company earnings have improved, albeit gradually. In 2011 the abnormal earnings of $8.60 were due to a provisional benefit from taxes worth $18.03 billion dollars. The improvements in net income for 2010-2011 were one-time events and should not be considered a part of the long-term earnings growth trend. So in essence, 2012 is likely to be the most normal year for AIG over the past 5 years.

(click to enlarge)

Source: Table created by Alex Cho, data from shareholder annual report

By observing the chart we can conclude that the business is somewhat cyclical and is affected by macroeconomics. Therefore one of the largest risk factors to AIG is the slowing of international gross domestic product growth. So as long as the global economy continues to grow, the company will generate reasonable returns over a 5-year time span based on the forecast below.

(click to enlarge)

Source: Forecast and table by Alex Cho

By 2018 I anticipate the company to generate $10.19 in earnings per share. This is because of earnings growth, improving global outlook, earnings management and continued development overseas.

The forecast is proprietary, and below is a non-linear chart indicating the price of the stock over the next 5-years.

(click to enlarge)

Source: Forecast and chart by Alex Cho

Below is a price chart incorporating the past 10 years and the next 6 years. Detailing 16 years in pricing based on my forecast and price history on December 31st of each year.

(click to enlarge)

Source: Forecast and chart created by Alex Cho, data from shareholder annual report, and price history is from Yahoo Finance.

*The period 2003-2008 were price quotes based on pre-split stock prices (multiply by 20 to accurately calculate the price of the shares between 2003 and 2008). On 7/01/2009 the stock had a 1:20 split (reverse split).

Investment Strategy

AIG currently trades at $35.20. I have a price forecast of $37.94 for 2013. AIG is in a long-term up-trend. I anticipate momentum in the price of the stock, as the growth rate offers compelling stock appreciation for the foreseeable future.

Short Term

Over the next twelve months, the stock is likely to appreciate from $35.20 to $38.60 per share. This implies 9.6% upside from current levels. The technical analysis indicates an up-trend (break above the symmetrical triangle formation). While the previously mentioned price forecast using fundamental analysis further supports the trade set-up.

Investors should buy AIG at $35.20 and sell at $38.60 to pocket short-term gains of 9.6% in 2013. This return is pretty measly, meaning that short-term investors would likely do better investing in other opportunities.

Long Term

The company is a great investment for the long-term. I anticipate AIG to deliver upon the price and earnings forecast despite the risk factors (macroeconomic, competition, etc.). AIG's primary upside catalyst is international development, and earnings management. I anticipate the company to deliver upon my forecasted price target of $100.12 by 2018. This implies a return of 185% by 2018. This rate of return is exceptional, considering AIG has a market capitalization of $52B. The extra liquidity makes this a compelling growth investment for institutional investors who require higher liquidity.

Conclusion

Buy AIG on long-term growth. AIG has not died off the surface of the earth; it is more stubborn than a roach.

The conclusion remains simple: buy AIG.

Source: http://seekingalpha.com/article/1082001-aig-is-the-best-insurance-play-for-2013

usher James Holmes Minka Kelly sex tape Colorado shooting Colorado shooting victims aurora Angie Everhart

Recognizing your dreams through franchise possession | A Manda ...

As people all cultures started to reach within the Usa, their dreams happen to be with an idea, begin a business and be wealthy along the way. This movement is constantly on the draw individuals all cultures towards the USA, and all sorts of these individuals are here to talk about one common goal an enhanced life-style. The chance to possess a brand new business and become effective happens to be, and try to is going to be, the American Dream.

Within The Usa today, more folks than in the past are recognizing their hopes for financial independence since being who owns a effective business, by present day qualifying criterion, is much more easily accomplished than in the past. Many of these fortunate people acquire financial freedom as proprietors of franchised companies. Franchises provide the finest chance to possess a effective business for individuals thinking about business possession the very first time because franchises derive from an established system. You will find various explanations why franchising is easily the most effective kind of operation for brand spanking new businesspeople.

Like a franchise owner, you won?t be required to develop a strategic business plan the franchisor has done that for you personally. You will get all the advantages of an established system, training and continuing support and reap the financial rewards.

Just how can a franchise chance provide you with a lifestyle of monetary independence? 70 5 % of people that have extreme wealth in the usa possess a business- this signifies that the best shot at being wealthy is as simple as getting your personal business. Beginning a company on your own, however, can be quite dangerous along with a complicated process including considerable time, assets and cash. And new companies don?t always succeed. The speed where new businsses succeed is very low, most likely because of bad planning and never getting a good hang on costs. being who owns a franchised business offers much less risk than Possessing an individually run business while offering all the same advantages, or even more, of the independent business. Being who owns a franchise diminishes down to needing to draft a strategic business plan and puts you on the path to success quickly.

After evaluating different choices you?ve made your final decision to buy a franchise, congratulations! You?ve decided to buy the privileges to market services or goods from a recognised brand-title company having a proven strategic business plan, training and continuing support. Soon you?ll be on the path to financial independence. You will find steps, however, that must definitely be come to insure that everything goes easily ? from researching the best franchise towards the opening of the start up business. The most crucial being researching the best franchise chance.

Its not all franchise is really a guarantee of success. Franchise possibilities are available in many tastes, each one of these as unique being an individual. To locate a franchise business that fits all of your needs, research different companies for the one which most closely fits your personality, abilities and interests. Guess that a person with fifteen years of monetary planning experience decides to buy a franchise. That individual researches different franchising options and selects to buy a company earnings chance. Performs this individual have the possibility to create e-commerce effective? Absolutely! Under different conditions and neglecting the rate of success of franchises generally, in the event that individual would pursue a job like a restaurant franchise owner he/she may go through misplaced for the reason that particular type of work. Selecting a company that you have proven know-how is definitely an immense advantage in franchising. The thing is it?s essential to choose a franchise that suits your character and expertise. When individuals the weather is met, you will have a much better chance at being effective.

Before you decide to choose any franchise, you will need bring your research one stage further and gain as much information as you possibly can on the organization that you like. Perform the right research! Must be franchise continues to be effective in other locations does not necessarily mean it?ll have exactly the same success in your town. Get contact details and speak with current franchisees operating in areas with similar census because the area that you is going to be operating. Exsisting franchisees are the best supply of information for discovering what really happens in business on the day-to-day basis.

A franchised clients are like running any small company ? you?ll need capital. Building the best budget will help you to add a realistic cash-flow plan. The first franchise fee may have the greatest effect on your money. You must have enough capital for that initial fee and enough to hold you thru the initial few several weeks after opening the doorways for your franchise.

Probably the most effective franchisees are recognized to have a less formal and much more relaxed method of selling. Effective franchisees truly enjoy speaking to other people and get involved with community occasions to locate new methods for marketing their small company. although franchisees are frequently supplied with standard corporate advertising programs and national exposure for that chain, being active in the community and being perceived included in the local family assists in keeping clients loyal.

Franchises influence the American economy beyond that which was every considered possible. Ought to be fact, the IFA estimations that franchising has already established a $1.5 trillion effect on the U.S. economy. Possessing a franchise is definitely an amazing chance that accompany many many advantages, however, you should be very devoted for your start up business. Make certain guess what happens it requires to achieve success which you own individuals characteristics.

Source: http://amandarecord.com/2012/12/25/recognizing-your-dreams-through-franchise-possession/

boston marathon tu pac hologram shuttle pippa middleton space shuttle discovery spacex tupac hologram

Blogger's death stirs political hornet's nest in Iran

BEIRUT (Reuters) - There was little about Sattar Beheshti that made him stand out in a working-class suburb south of Tehran called Robat Karim.

Like many of his peers, the 35-year-old laborer was devout and lived at home with his mother. But his life changed when he started a blog called "My Life for Iran" last year.

His entries often focused on the struggles of the working class as well as the political restrictions in Iran, sometimes mixed with personal anecdotes from Beheshti's daily life.

As months passed, the tone on the blog became sharper and more political, with unveiled criticism of the establishment and even the Supreme Leader, a red line in the Islamic Republic.

In one recent post, Beheshti criticized a speech made by the leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at a meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran with the title "You presented a bunch of lies instead of a speech" superimposed over a picture of the cleric.

Other posts faulted Iran's unwavering support for Hezbollah in Lebanon or highlighted the plight of human rights activists.

Retaliation quickly followed.

"Yesterday they threatened me and told me your mother will soon be wearing black," Beheshti wrote in a post on October 29.

The next day security agents from Iran's cyber police, known by the acronym FATA, arrested him. His bruised and battered body was handed to his family a week later, his death the result of torture, according to a smuggled letter from fellow prisoners.

The backlash was swift and furious, especially from other bloggers, even pro-government ones, disturbed at the fate of a pious young man with no known history of political activism.

Their most pointed criticism was directed at the cyber police and their campaign to stop any attempt at a "velvet revolution" in the Islamic Republic through the Internet.

Government officials have not denied the abuse.

"This individual was beaten but this beating was not in a manner that would result in his death," Attorney-General Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejehi told a news conference on December 3.

Within a month of Beheshti's death, seven policemen were arrested and the head of the cyber police was ousted, a dramatic turn of events in a divisive scandal that has shocked Iran.

As international pressure mounts over Iran's disputed nuclear program and harsh economic sanctions bite, the leadership is wary of domestic turmoil, especially with a potentially turbulent presidential election due in June.

IMPACT OF INTERNET

Beheshti's death exposed Iran's political fissures as a handful of lawmakers badgered President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government and the judiciary into ordering an inquiry.

But the most effective tool in publicizing Beheshti's unusual death was the one he had chosen - the Internet.

"I really do believe this is one of the great examples of the impact of the Internet in Iran," said Mahmood Enayat, director of the Iran Media program at the University of Pennsylvania and the founder of Small Media, a non-profit group that focuses on improving information flows in closed societies.

The Internet had become a watchdog, forcing the government to react to anything gathering enough attention, he argued.

"They can't just ignore it anymore."

Although many of the details of Beheshti's detention and death are murky, some are no longer in dispute. On the night of October 30, he was arrested at his home in Robat Karim and transferred to section 350 of Tehran's notorious Evin prison.

Fellow prisoners there said he was hung from the ceiling of a cell and beaten. His arms and legs were then tied to a chair and he was beaten again. At times, his interrogators threw him on the ground and kicked him in the head and neck.

A group of political prisoners talked to Beheshti while he was detained, and slipped out a letter based on their observations and his account to opposition activists.

"When they brought Sattar to section 350, the marks of torture were visible on all parts of his body," said the letter signed by 41 prisoners and published on opposition websites.

Despite his injuries, Beheshti filed a complaint about his treatment to prison officials. Shortly before he was transferred to another detention facility, Beheshti told his fellow prisoners that his captors intended to kill him. Four days later, authorities informed his family that he was dead.

After Beheshti's death, security forces warned his family not to talk to media outlets, and security agents threatened to arrest Beheshti's sister if the family did not sign a consent form regarding the circumstances of his death, his mother said in an interview with the Persian service of German radio Deutsche Welle.

BLOOD-STAINED SHROUD

The family was also offered diye, or blood money, but Beheshti's mother, Gohar Eshqi, refused. When the family was allowed to see Beheshti's body, they noticed that blood from his knee and head had stained the burial shroud.

"They killed him and handed me back his body," Eshqi said in an interview with the pro-opposition Saham News website.

On December 13, a small crowd of friends, neighbors and family gathered to commemorate the fortieth day after Beheshti's death at his gravesite. The previous day security agents tore up notices about the ceremony in the neighborhood, Beheshti's sister Sahar told Kalame, another opposition website.

Videos of the event posted online show Eshqi, Beheshti's mother, holding his picture and shouting "I'm proud of my son" and "My son's killers must be executed." Police later attacked the crowd and beat Eshqi, wounding her leg, Sahar said.

Kalame published pictures of Eshqi's injuries.

Few Iranians could have predicted that Beheshti's death would make any waves. But the Internet buzz kept building. Websites linked with the opposition Green Movement took up the cause and published details of his detention and physical abuse. That led even conservative bloggers to speak out, concerned that the case would damage the image of the Islamic Republic.

The cyber police, a unit within the Iranian police force, was created in January 2011 with a relatively broad mandate.

While the Revolutionary Guards and Intelligence Ministry do their own web surveillance, the cyber police are mainly responsible for tracking down dissidents online.

They are also responsible for blocking websites with controversial content and for pursuing cases of web sabotage.

Earlier this year, new cyber police guidelines directed all Internet cafes to install cameras to monitor customers.

But in Beheshti's case, little sophisticated surveillance was necessary - he was blogging openly under his own name.

OUTRAGE AT HOME AND ABROAD

The affair has drawn international attention, with the United Nations, the United States and several other countries calling for an impartial investigation into Beheshti's death.

In Iran, Ahmadinejad's political foes smelled an opening.

"Foreign governments have raised an uproar about this issue. Why don't the foreign ministry and the judiciary explain the issue?" Ahmad Tavakoli, a parliamentarian from Tehran and one of Ahmadinejad's foremost opponents, said on November 11.

"A death has happened and there must be an explanation."

The outcry about Beheshti in Iran's majles, or parliament, may be linked partly to next year's presidential election.

A disputed 2009 election, in which Ahmadinejad was declared the winner, led to widespread violence and a loss of faith in the political system among some voters.

Shining a spotlight on Beheshti's death is an opportunity to restore confidence in the system and reassure Iranians that the government operates in a transparent and just fashion.

Hadi Ghaemi, director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, said the authorities were sensitive about their domestic image. "They want to say: 'Yes, we have a working system,' to say: 'Look, one bad apple committed a crime and we are going to make sure whoever is responsible is going to pay.'"

No clarity has yet emerged.

On November 12, the committee for national security and foreign affairs in the majles held a hearing on Beheshti's death with members of the national police force present. At the end of the session, the head of the committee, Alaeddin Borujerdi, said the evidence showed no marks of abuse or torture on Beheshti's body.

Only a few hours later on the same day, Mohseni-Ejehi, the attorney-general, announced that the official medical examiner had noted bruises in five places on Beheshti's body.

The shockwaves from his death rumble on.

After the dismissal of the cyber police chief, Mohammad Hassan Shokrian, on December 1, many hardliners complained that the regime had caved to pressure from the media and foreigners.

Ghaemi said ordinary Iranians who fell foul of the security services risked much harsher treatment than those with some name recognition, but that Beheshti's case marked a milestone.

"It has become a very important issue in terms of discourse between members of parliament, the political class and the judiciary," he said.

"It shows to me that the culture of human rights is really taking root in Iran - that they can't cover it up and run away like they did before."

(Editing by Alistair Lyon and Peter Graff)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bloggers-death-stirs-political-hornets-nest-iran-090640164.html

kellie pickler costa rica kevin hart living social Earthquake Costa Rica Clinton speech Michael Strahan