Car Loans and Bad Credit Vehicle Financing | welcome to pestrada ...

A great number of need autos, and car finance and bad credit car funding are some of the nearly all searched matters today. This is the short assessment on what each loans supply to people.

About car finance

Car loans or maybe auto loans are financing indicates given to qualified loan applicants. Applying for the credit entails publishing identification reports, proof of profits, credit rating and application form.

Firms typically give loans to folks with acceptable credit rating, the best financial history plus a permanent job. Lending corporations set these kind of criteria in order that they will acquire all because of payments on time. Payments made to these firms are usually in turn important so they can shell out their employees, taxes and utilities.

On this setup, criminal background has treating vehicle alternative. The person may well choose just about any model by an SUV to a compact or maybe everything else between. The individual?s favorable credit rating and financial background allow this particular since financial institution trusts that he or she may meet the required payments.

Low credit score car funding

Bad credit car financing is yet another vehicle loan type primarily concentrating on people with low credit score. This includes people who have gone through a bankruptcy proceeding and those even now dealing with bad debts. People who have an extended history of bad credit may also sign up for the loan.

The money company, in this particular setup, may scrutinize their applicants? vehicle alternative. Some corporations are watchful about this portion since they know the applicant?s payment history. Choices for example SUVs and also other expensive car models usually are not encouraged. Quite a few end up disapproving apps due to some extent to car choice.

Reality and other difficulties

Many people consult which choices are more useful since each give funding options regardless. The answer uses person?s particular situation. Car loan is the ideal option if you have a favorable credit history and your score reaches or above median. A bad credit mortgage loan is necessary when you have a a lesser amount of desirable financial background and to your credit rating suffered from it.

Interest rate is yet another point to look at. Bad credit funding applicants may incur increased interest rates in comparison to their competitors. This happens simply because prospective lenders view these as financial risks. Offering a car well worth $5,000, for instance, to a person using bad credit credit score and lengthy history of because of debts includes a big threat since the car finance company might not acquire due transaction at the end.

Deposit is also another fundamental matter. People with acceptable evaluations can pay cheaper amounts in comparison to people with cheaper scores. All over again, this has related to the risk the actual lending firm represents.

Loan access also is important. Many financial companies help make their packages highly accessible only to people with reliable or maybe good ratings. People with under median evaluations, on the other hand, ought to be more alert and conscientious in their try to find lending corporations.

Make sure you are well prepared whether you might choose a car loans or a bad credit auto funding. Study car affordability, functionality efficiency and fuel use. Check your month to month expenses regarding food, resources, and unexpected emergency to know the amount of you can spend to get a new car. Examine financial institution backgrounds, as well, before providing applications to defend your financial privacy.

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Calif. shooting: Christian college catered to Koreans

According to investigators, 43-year-old shooting suspect One Goh was upset with students at the because of the way he says he was treated when he enrolled at Oikos University two months ago. NBC's Kristen Dahlgren reports.

By msnbc.com staff, msnbc.com

Oikos University, the private college in Oakland, Calif., where authorities say an expelled student methodically gunned down seven people, caters to a fast-growing target market: Korean-American Christians.

One L. Goh, 43, a South Korean national, had been a nursing student at Oikos. Oakland police do not have a precise motive yet, but they say the alleged gunman was upset with his former school, where he apparently had been teased over his poor English. He went hunting for a female administrator at the school on Monday and then opened fire on others when he couldn?t find her, according to police.

Oikos, a one-building evangelical Christian college in an industrial park near Oakland?s airport, was founded in 2004 by the Rev. Jongin Kim of San Leandro, who remains the school?s president.

According to its website, its mission is to ?educate men and women to be the leaders to serve the church, local communities, and the world by using their learned skills and professions in the areas of biblical studies, music performance, Asian medicine and practical vocational nursing.?


Oikos awards degrees in nursing, biblical studies, music, ministry, divinity and Asian medicine. It attracts mostly Korean Americans from the Bay Area as well as Koreans from abroad. Tuition runs between $2,200 and $3,100 per semester for most bachelor?s programs and students are required to attend church services.

The school is one of about 1,400 institutions licensed by the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education, established in January 2010 within the Department of Consumer Affairs to oversee private postsecondary schools operating in California.

Police: Oikos shooter targeted female administrator

Bureau spokesman Russ Heimerich says the state has not received any merited complaints about Oikos. But he says the school?s nursing program, separately accredited by the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians, could be in hot water because its pass rate for the nursing exam is well below the state average of 75 percent. (Oikos? nursing pass rate was 58 percent and 41 percent, respectively, for 2010 and 2011, Heimerich said.)

?They are in jeopardy of having their accreditation altered in some way or withdrawn? if the school doesn?t bring up its pass rates, Heimerich told msnbc.com.

NBC's Kristen Dahlgren reports.

It was not immediately clear how many students attend Oikos. The school's website lists about 50 instructors.

Boyung Lee, associate professor of educational ministries at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, says Oikos is among a number of theology-related schools catering to Korean-Americans that have sprung up in Los Angeles, Atlanta, northern New Jersey-New York and other places around the U.S. with sizable Korean-American populations.

In South Korea, Christianity is the dominant religion; about 35 percent of the population are either Protestant or Catholic, Lee says.

?In Korea getting into college is extremely competitive so a lot of parents send their kids abroad. We have this term called 'goose family,' where the father stays in Korea and makes money while the children and mom are abroad? for education,? Lee says.

?Every parent wants their children to be fluent in English. Some parents may feel safe if their children are attending a school like Oikos because of its exclusive fundamentalist Christian environment.?

Pyong Gap Min, a sociology professor at Queens College in New York, said about 60 percent?of Korean immigrants in the U.S.?are Protestant. "Korean immigrants have drawn largely from the Protestant segment of the population in Korea and many non-churchgoers in Korea attend Korean churches here," Min?told msnbc.com by email.?"But Korean protestantism is very interesting because they are heavily evangelically oriented. ?They have sent? about 15,000 missionaries to all over the world. ?This number is the second largest group in the world next to the U.S."

Andrew Sung Park, a professor of theology and ethics at United Theological Seminary in Ohio,?told CNN?that most of 1.3 million Korean Americans are Christian?and they generally subscribe to evangelical Protestantism.

Jeff Chiu / AP

An Oakland police officer walks outside of Oikos University in Oakland, Calif., Tuesday, a day after a deadly shooting.

"There is a saying that when Koreans get together in the United States, they establish churches first," Park, who is Korean-American, told CNN.?"Some other Asians are more concerned with businesses or finances, but Koreans care about religion and about Christianity."

Kim, the school?s president, didn?t return media calls Tuesday, and Oakland police said the school is closed indefinitely. According to the Oakland Tribune, Kim is affiliated with the Praise God Korean Church in Oakland and is listed as the president of California Ezra Bible Academy in Sunnyvale.

The term "oikos" is ancient Greek for household or family. In a statement on Oikos University's?website Kim says the school?s main goal is ?to foster spiritual Christian leaders who abide by God?s intentions and to expand God?s nation through them.?

The statement adds:

?To accomplish our mission, we actively seek out, educate and train students, ministers, teachers and church leaders to become more qualified leaders. Oikos University has rapidly grown in its quality and size to become an institution that contributes to and positively changes their surrounding environment--and the world in general.?

The school?s ?Doctrinal Statement? lists 11 fundamental beliefs, including the Bible, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Number 11 on the list is Satan:

"We believe the existence of a personal, malevolent being called Satan who acts as tempter and accuser, for whom the place of eternal punishment was prepared, where all who die outside of Christ shall be confined in conscious torment for eternity. He can be resisted by the believer through faith and reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit."

?I was taken aback by how fundamentalist and conservative these systems are. I assume that those beliefs, doctrines were taught to students,? Lee said.? ?I wonder whether such a system creates liberation among students.?

Msnbc.com's James Eng contributed to this report.

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News:

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Insurers offer hope for flood zones | Nicosia Business Review ...

Some 200,000 homeowners in flood-prone areas who face the potential withdrawal of insurance next year could be rescued under proposals put forward on Tuesday by the reinsurance industry.

Nicknamed Project Noah, the plan from insurance broker Marsh involves setting up a new ?risk pool? of more than 20 million homes in Britain to dilute the risks of providing flood cover, describing the move as a chance to break the deadlock in talks between the industry and government.

The model, which has taken its brokers two years to devise, would put all homes in Britain in a single pot ? with the industry sharing the risk across the board. ?The basic principle is that reinsurers would be willing to back the pot because the entire UK will not all flood at once,? said Hutton Swinglehurst, head of flood risk at the group.

Previous attempts to provide universal cover have been hampered by reinsurers? reluctance to cover the sector because many insurers are concentrated in regions ? meaning they are exposed to localised flooding.

Ministers, who have promised a statement on flood insurance this spring, are under pressure to produce a solution because the current ad hoc agreement with insurers ? called the ?agreement of principles? ? will run out in June 2013.

Designed a decade ago as a short-term measure, it has enabled home insurance to be offered in high risk areas, as long as the government maintains flood defences. The Association of British Insurers has warned that without a deal, some 200,000 households may become uninsurable.

Talks to replace it come against a backdrop of claims tripling in high-risk areas in the last decade. The 2007 summer floods in England and Northern Ireland cost the economy more than ?3bn, and the Cumbria floods in 2009 led to enormous damage including the loss of 20 road bridges.

A landmark study by Defra last month, the ?climate change risk assessment?, pinpointed flooding as the biggest climate risk faced by British business. It estimated that the cost of flood defences could have to rise tenfold to ?12bn a year by 2070 due to rising sea levels and heavier rainfall.

Defra said it welcomed the attempt to find a solution to the pressing problem. ?Industry-led solutions that allow insurers to compete even for the highest risk homes, without government intervention in the market, would give the best value for taxpayers? money,? a spokesman for the department said.

Project Noah has the backing of the reinsurance industry and was welcomed by the British Insurance Brokers? Association. Eric Galbraith, chief executive of BIBA, said: ?Project Noah is a deliverable reinsurance solution ensuring flood insurance availability for UK homes. The government can focus their spending on improving flood defences whilst homeowners should be paying a more equitable premium.?

The ABI has come up with a separate proposal for an insurance pot to cover all flood-prone areas ? rather than the entire country ? but its model depends on a government guarantee. ?No other country in the world provides insurance for the most flood-prone properties without government support,? a spokesman said. However, ministers are understood to be determined not to do so given the stretched public finances.

.

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Five simple steps to improve your networking ... - Business Productivity

Last week I attended a seminar in Dubai called ?Business Networking & Sex? (as in gender). The speaker, Phil Bedford, shared some interesting facts?about the importance of networking and how men and women go about networking differently. Whether you are a man or a woman, a good network is crucial for your career and business success. Even though most of us know this, we don?t spend enough time building and maintaining our network. In this article I?ll share with you five simple steps to help you improve your networking skills.

The benefits of a network

According to Brian Uzzi and Shannon Dunlap in the HBR article, ?How to build your network?, the three unique advantages of a network are:

  • Access to private information- Whether you are looking for a new job, you are looking to invest in a new company or you are looking for a nursery for your kids, the private information you will get through your network is more valuable than any public information you can find on a web site, a newspaper or brochure. The information will be subjective, and it is up to you to decide whether or not you trust the person who gave you the information, but in many cases it?s invaluable.
  • Access to diverse skill sets ? As Nobel prize winner Linus Pauling said, ?The best way to have a good idea is to have many ideas?. In today?s connected world where information flows freely and access to talent is global, having access to a diverse skill set is key. There is no way that your company will have all the skills needed in-house. In order to be successful you need to be able to tap into the best resources of talent and diverse skill sets ? and a good network will help you do just that.
  • Power ? Traditionally, power was embedded in the hierarchy of the organization. The more senior your title, the more power you had. Not anymore! In today?s flat organizations the ones with power are the ones with the best networks. The ?informal brokers? who can sign that new customer, who can influence decisions and who can quickly adapt to change are the ones with the real power.

There are a number of quick steps you can follow to improve your networking skills.

1. Change your mind set about networking

To a lot of people the word ?networking? is synonym to schmoozing, selling yourself and sucking up to people. They think that networking is all about attending networking events and swapping business cards. If this is the way you think of networking you have to change mindset! Networking is not about selling yourself, building and maintaining a network is about giving. As Robert Cialdini writes in his popular book, ?The Influencer?,? one of the key principles of persuasion is reciprocity. If you do someone a favor, they will feel obligated to return this favor. However, instead of doing someone a favor with the intention of getting a favor back, just focus on the pleasure you get by giving and helping other people. Someday, somehow, the person will give back in a way that you couldn?t have imagined or planned.

2. Know that you always have something to give

You might think, ?What can I give, I have nothing to offer?. Don?t be fooled into thinking you have nothing to give. You always have something to give ?but to know what it is you need to be attentive, ask questions and listen to other people. ?Last week when I attended the networking event in Dubai I was speaking to a woman and it turned out one of her business partners was looking for pregnant women to volunteer to try a new 360 degree scanning product by one of their clients. I said I would be happy to volunteer! I would never have thought that my pregnancy could be of benefit to someone else!

3. Don?t be selective in building your network

Some people only want to build relationships with high-level executives. This is totally the wrong mind-set for building a network. When you build your network you shouldn?t be selective ? anyone can be a great value in your network. You have no idea what their position will be in a few years, who their relatives are or their hidden talents.

4. Lower the bar for staying in touch

I know that the best way to stay in touch with someone in my network is to pick up the phone and call the person, or better yet go by their office and say ?hi?.? I know that I?m ?supposed? to do this, but it doesn?t come naturally to me. If you are the same, it?s easy to give yourself an excuse for not doing it. My recommendation is that you lower the bar for staying in touch. If you are not comfortable with calling someone, or dropping by their office ? send them an email. If you feel that email is too direct ? send a message through a social network like LinkedIn. Lower the bar and stop making excuses!

5. Stay in touch without asking for favors

Whether you call, send an email or a text message remember that the ?staying in touch? part should be effortless and positive for the receiver. There are thousands of things you can say to stay in touch ? you can give the person a compliment for something they have done, you can say that you met someone who knew them, you can say you were in a place that made you think of them, and so on.

For example, if you?re in London for a business trip, an example of a message to a London-based contact in your network could be:

Hi John,

I?m in London for a business trip and I thought of you and just wanted to drop you a note. I hope all is well with you and your family. It was really great seeing you last time you were in Dubai. ?Great job on the launch of XYZ, I saw the articles in the news. ?Take care!

Sincerely, Ulrika

This requires no follow up from the receiver and is just a nice message. If your message on the other hand includes some ?action? from the receiver it?s no good ?staying in touch? message.

Hi John,

I?m in London for a business trip and I thought of you and just wanted to drop you a note. I hope all is well with you and your family. It was really great seeing you last time you were in Dubai.? By the way, can you send me a copy of the article you wrote on XYC? Take care!

Sincerely, Ulrika

Now, instead you are leveraging your network to help you. There is nothing wrong with that, but you shouldn?t confuse asking for favors with staying in touch. Manager Tools have some great podcasts that cover building a networking and how to stay in touch in more detail.

As always ? things don?t happen by themselves

Even though I?m fairly good at staying in touch with people in my network, I can definitely improve. Something I?ve realized is that I have to plan and schedule keeping in touch just like I schedule my ?normal? work tasks. Otherwise it just doesn?t happen. So I would advise you to add a daily/weekly task to Outlook or schedule time in your calendar to write those emails or make those phone calls.? This is time well worth investing!

(If you have difficulties reading this article, you can access the full article in pdf here)

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Chemo may get boost from cholesterol-related drug

[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 3-Apr-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Vanessa Wasta
wasta@jhmi.edu
410-614-2916
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions

Johns Hopkins investigators are testing a way to use drugs that target a cholesterol pathway to enhance the cancer-killing potential of standard chemotherapy drugs. Their tests, in mouse models of pancreatic cancer, may yield new and more effective combinations of current and possibly new anti-cancer drugs.

Besides their deadly consequences, pancreatic cancer and heart disease share a connection with genetic pathways that control cholesterol and a cell signaling system known as the Hedgehog pathway. (The name refers to the shape of its mutated protein in fruit flies, one that resembles the spiky-haired animal.)

Over-activity in the Hedgehog pathway has long been known to trigger many types of cancer and is the focus of five new drugs currently in development. Each of the drugs targets the same cell-surface protein that forms the business end of the Hedgehog pathway, according to the investigators, but tumors find a way to mutate the protein and make cancer cells resistant to these new therapies.

Looking for another way to target the Hedgehog pathway, investigator William Matsui, M.D., Ph.D., professor at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, teamed up with UCLA biologist Farhad Parhami, Ph.D, who had studied connections between components of cholesterol and Hedgehog pathways.

Parhami found that derivatives of cholesterol, called oxysterols, regulate the Hedgehog pathway via so-called "liver x receptors," which bind to cholesterol and guide redistribution of cholesterol throughout the body. In doing so, liver x receptors block the Hedgehog pathway.

"Activating liver x receptor could be an alternate target for blocking the Hedgehog pathway," says Matsui, who notes that activating a target to create an anti-tumor effect is an unusual strategy in therapy. Most drugs currently in development aim to block pathways not activate them, he says.

For the Hopkins study, mice bearing implanted human pancreatic tumors received treatments of a drug called TO901317 that activates liver x receptors along with a chemotherapy drug called gemcitabine. If given alone, the liver-x receptor drug did not affect tumor growth, but in combination with gemcitabine, the tumors shrank, and investigators found a five-fold reduction in expression of Hedgehog pathway components.

Matsui says that pancreatic tumors are crowded with scar tissue, and chemotherapy drugs encounter difficulty finding cancer cells amid the scar tissue. Blocking the Hedgehog pathway by activating liver x receptors may help pancreatic cancer drugs penetrate the tumor and attack cancer cells.

Matsui and Parhami, in collaboration with UCLA chemists Michael Jung and Frank Stappenbeck, are currently developing novel, more effective and safer liver X receptor activators for use in targeting pancreatic cancer and other Hedgehog pathway-mediated tumors.

Funding for the study was provided by the National Cancer Institute.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SEQUENCING CANCER MUTATIONS: THERE'S AN APP FOR THAT (ABSTRACT # 2095)

Using precise information about an individual's genetic makeup is becoming increasingly routine for developing tailored treatments for breast, lung, colon and other cancers. But techniques used to identify meaningful gene mutations depend on analyzing sequences of both normal and mutant DNA in tumor samples, a process that can yield ambiguous results. Now, a team of Johns Hopkins researchers says it has developed an easy-to-use online computer software application that can clear up any confusion faster and cheaper than other methods currently used to do the job.

The application, called "Pyromaker," and soon a related tutorial are available free-of-charge at http://pyromaker.pathology.jhmi.edu/. The software generates simulated pyrograms, which are readouts from a gene sequencing technique known as pyrosequencing.

Most pyrograms correspond precisely to a person's unique mutation or set of mutations, but some mutations can be more difficult to interpret than others, the Johns Hopkins researchers say. "Pyromaker's value is in rapidly sorting through each of several simulated pyrograms, until there is a clear match with the actual tumor pyrogram," says James R. Eshleman, M.D., Ph.D., a professor in the departments of pathology and oncology at Johns Hopkins. "Pyromaker enables us to do in minutes, essentially at no cost, what otherwise would take days of further, expensive tests."

Pyrosequencing works on shorter stretches of DNA than does the traditional method, known as "Sanger," named for Frederick Sanger who invented the process. But pyrosequencing is also more sensitive in registering the presence of mutant DNA in a tumor sample, which is a mix of tumor and normal cells. That sensitivity makes it very useful for tumor sequencing, says Eshleman, because the mutant genes that drive a tumor's abnormal growth typically are less prevalent in a tumor sample, compared with normal versions of those genes.

Because a tumor pyrogram is an overlay of both healthy and mutant DNA, identifying the correct sequence may be difficult and further studies to sort it all out can delay diagnosis and add significantly to costs, he says.

###

Contributions to funding for the research came from the Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, the Michael Rolfe Foundation, the Dick Knox Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health (CA130938).



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


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


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 3-Apr-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Vanessa Wasta
wasta@jhmi.edu
410-614-2916
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions

Johns Hopkins investigators are testing a way to use drugs that target a cholesterol pathway to enhance the cancer-killing potential of standard chemotherapy drugs. Their tests, in mouse models of pancreatic cancer, may yield new and more effective combinations of current and possibly new anti-cancer drugs.

Besides their deadly consequences, pancreatic cancer and heart disease share a connection with genetic pathways that control cholesterol and a cell signaling system known as the Hedgehog pathway. (The name refers to the shape of its mutated protein in fruit flies, one that resembles the spiky-haired animal.)

Over-activity in the Hedgehog pathway has long been known to trigger many types of cancer and is the focus of five new drugs currently in development. Each of the drugs targets the same cell-surface protein that forms the business end of the Hedgehog pathway, according to the investigators, but tumors find a way to mutate the protein and make cancer cells resistant to these new therapies.

Looking for another way to target the Hedgehog pathway, investigator William Matsui, M.D., Ph.D., professor at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, teamed up with UCLA biologist Farhad Parhami, Ph.D, who had studied connections between components of cholesterol and Hedgehog pathways.

Parhami found that derivatives of cholesterol, called oxysterols, regulate the Hedgehog pathway via so-called "liver x receptors," which bind to cholesterol and guide redistribution of cholesterol throughout the body. In doing so, liver x receptors block the Hedgehog pathway.

"Activating liver x receptor could be an alternate target for blocking the Hedgehog pathway," says Matsui, who notes that activating a target to create an anti-tumor effect is an unusual strategy in therapy. Most drugs currently in development aim to block pathways not activate them, he says.

For the Hopkins study, mice bearing implanted human pancreatic tumors received treatments of a drug called TO901317 that activates liver x receptors along with a chemotherapy drug called gemcitabine. If given alone, the liver-x receptor drug did not affect tumor growth, but in combination with gemcitabine, the tumors shrank, and investigators found a five-fold reduction in expression of Hedgehog pathway components.

Matsui says that pancreatic tumors are crowded with scar tissue, and chemotherapy drugs encounter difficulty finding cancer cells amid the scar tissue. Blocking the Hedgehog pathway by activating liver x receptors may help pancreatic cancer drugs penetrate the tumor and attack cancer cells.

Matsui and Parhami, in collaboration with UCLA chemists Michael Jung and Frank Stappenbeck, are currently developing novel, more effective and safer liver X receptor activators for use in targeting pancreatic cancer and other Hedgehog pathway-mediated tumors.

Funding for the study was provided by the National Cancer Institute.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SEQUENCING CANCER MUTATIONS: THERE'S AN APP FOR THAT (ABSTRACT # 2095)

Using precise information about an individual's genetic makeup is becoming increasingly routine for developing tailored treatments for breast, lung, colon and other cancers. But techniques used to identify meaningful gene mutations depend on analyzing sequences of both normal and mutant DNA in tumor samples, a process that can yield ambiguous results. Now, a team of Johns Hopkins researchers says it has developed an easy-to-use online computer software application that can clear up any confusion faster and cheaper than other methods currently used to do the job.

The application, called "Pyromaker," and soon a related tutorial are available free-of-charge at http://pyromaker.pathology.jhmi.edu/. The software generates simulated pyrograms, which are readouts from a gene sequencing technique known as pyrosequencing.

Most pyrograms correspond precisely to a person's unique mutation or set of mutations, but some mutations can be more difficult to interpret than others, the Johns Hopkins researchers say. "Pyromaker's value is in rapidly sorting through each of several simulated pyrograms, until there is a clear match with the actual tumor pyrogram," says James R. Eshleman, M.D., Ph.D., a professor in the departments of pathology and oncology at Johns Hopkins. "Pyromaker enables us to do in minutes, essentially at no cost, what otherwise would take days of further, expensive tests."

Pyrosequencing works on shorter stretches of DNA than does the traditional method, known as "Sanger," named for Frederick Sanger who invented the process. But pyrosequencing is also more sensitive in registering the presence of mutant DNA in a tumor sample, which is a mix of tumor and normal cells. That sensitivity makes it very useful for tumor sequencing, says Eshleman, because the mutant genes that drive a tumor's abnormal growth typically are less prevalent in a tumor sample, compared with normal versions of those genes.

Because a tumor pyrogram is an overlay of both healthy and mutant DNA, identifying the correct sequence may be difficult and further studies to sort it all out can delay diagnosis and add significantly to costs, he says.

###

Contributions to funding for the research came from the Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, the Michael Rolfe Foundation, the Dick Knox Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health (CA130938).



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


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


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Syria agrees to April 10 troop pullout from cities

UNITED NATIONS (AP) ? Syria told international envoy Kofi Annan that its military will withdraw troops and heavy weapons from populated areas by April 10, in what could be a first step toward ending the bloody yearlong conflict, U.N. diplomats said Monday.

The announcement came as Syrian troops hunted down activists and destroyed their homes in the country's rebellious areas, and the United States remained skeptical of Damascus' latest statements, pointing to previous broken promises. Britain, France, Germany and a number of other countries also questioned whether Syrian President Bashar Assad would keep his word, the diplomats said.

"We have seen commitments to end the violence followed by massive intensifications of violence," U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said. "So the United States, for one, would look at these commitments and say, yet again, the proof is the actions, not in the words."

Rice said Annan told the U.N. Security Council he received a letter from Syria's foreign minister on Sunday with the April 10 date and indicated he would have preferred the pullback to begin earlier. Annan urged the Syrian government to start the withdrawal immediately and move no further into populated areas, and "that commitment was provided," Rice added.

"Past experience would lead us to be skeptical and to worry that over the next several days rather than a diminution of the violence, we might, yet again, see an escalation of the violence," said Rice, the current council president. "We certainly hope that is not so. We hope the Syrian authorities will implement the commitments they made without condition or codicils."

Syria's U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari said the April 10 deadline was set "by common accord" between Annan and the Syrian government, and he again pledged his government's complete support for Annan's six-point plan to end the yearlong Syrian crisis.

Annan told the council if Syria meets the April 10 deadline, and this can be verified, then the opposition would have 48 hours to wind down its military activities so there would be a complete cessation of hostilities, the diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity because his briefing was closed.

Annan's plan to end Syria's crisis calls for an immediate withdrawal of troops and heavy military equipment from populated areas, followed by an overall cease-fire ? first by government forces and then by opposition fighters ? to pave the way for talks by all Syrian parties on a political solution. It includes an immediate daily two-hour halt to fighting so humanitarian aid can reach suffering civilians, and unhindered access for humanitarian groups and the media.

Rice stressed that the Syrian agreement was just on the pullout of troops and equipment from cities and towns. She said Annan, who briefed a closed council meeting by videoconference from Geneva, is expecting details from the Syrian government "very shortly" on the other aspects of the plan.

Annan is sending a U.N. peacekeeping team and some staff to Damascus this week to continue preparations for a potential U.N. cease-fire monitoring mission. The joint U.N.-Arab League envoy also was considering borrowing troops from U.N. operations in the Mideast, Rice said.

Rice said Annan asked the Security Council to support the April 10 deadline and start urgently considering a potential U.N. monitoring mission, which would need council authorization. Rice said the Council expressed its full support.

One of the key issues is trying to unite the many different opposition factions under a single umbrella.

Rice said Annan's deputy, Nasser Al-Kidwa, has had "constructive exchanges with the opposition to urge them to cease their operations within 48 hours of a complete cessation of government hostilities." Al-Kidwa attended a meeting of Syrian opposition groups in Istanbul last week.

Assad accepted Annan's plan a week ago, but late Friday the Syrian government rejected Annan's call for the regime to halt violence first.

Annan had appealed for the Syrian authorities to stop military operations first as "the stronger party" in a "gesture of good faith" to the lightly armed opposition.

But Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdessi said Friday the government will not pull tanks and troops from towns and cities engulfed by unrest before life returns to normal there.

That position may have changed, but Syria's Ja'afari said his government expects Annan to get similar commitments from the opposition.

"So far, the Syrian government says that it is committed and we are expecting Mr. Kofi Annan ... to get in touch with the other parties ? those who are involved with initiating, sponsoring and arming the armed groups also ? in order to make the stopping of the violence relevant to all parties," he said.

Key opposition figures joined representatives from more than 70 countries, including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, at Sunday's "Friends of the Syrian People" conference in Istanbul. The "Friends" pledged to send millions of dollars and communications equipment to Syria's opposition groups, pushed for tighter sanctions and diplomatic pressure to further isolate Assad, and urged the opposition to offer a democratic alternative to his regime.

Syria's Ja'afari lashed out at the meeting and its supporters.

"The so-called Conference of the Enemy of Syria in Istanbul is itself a violation and contradiction of Mr. Kofi Annan's mission," he said. "This is a parallel track set up by the enemies of Syria to compete with Mr. Kofi Annan's mission, not only maybe to compete, maybe to undermine his mission as a whole."

Ja'afari said those who want to send money to armed opposition groups or pay their salaries are committing "a violation and declaration of war against the sovereignty of Syria."

Earlier Monday, Russia raised pressure on an old ally, with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov saying Syria's government must take the first step toward settling the country's conflict by pulling troops from city streets.

Lavrov's statement at a briefing in Yerevan following talks with his Armenian counterpart appeared to reflect Moscow's increasing impatience with Assad.

Russia, along with China, has twice shielded President Assad from United Nations sanctions over his crackdown on an uprising in which more than 9,000 people have been killed, according to the United Nations. But Moscow also has strongly supported Annan's six-point plan.

Lavrov also warned the West against giving ultimatums to Damascus, saying that the priority now should be to separate the warring parties and open the way for the delivery of humanitarian aid.

"Ultimatums and artificial deadlines rarely help," he said. "We all want a quick end to bloodshed, but that demand should be addressed to all warring parties in Syria."

In Geneva Monday, the president of the Red Cross said he had returned to Syria for a two-day visit aimed at convincing the country's leaders to give more access to aid workers.

Jakob Kellenberger said in a statement that he also will raise "the issue of access to all places of detention" and how to stop the fighting for two hours a day. He said a daily pause is essential to evacuate the wounded and deliver aid.

Lavrov said Russia didn't attend Sunday's meeting of the "Friends of the Syrian People" because its organizers had failed to invite Syrian government representatives.

"I think such an approach is dangerous and contradicts Kofi Annan's efforts," he said. "We are trying to be friends of all the Syrians, and not just some part of the Syrian people."

He said that Moscow will soon host two separate opposition delegations for talks.

___

Michael Astor at the United Nations, Avet Demourian in Yerevan, Armenia, and John Heilprin in Geneva contributed to this report.

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The Advantages Of Business Management Courses | Abu Sofyan

02. Apr, 2012

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Literarily Speaking ? Blog Archive ? Interview with Thriller Author ...

We have a wonderful guest today!? They?re all wonderful, aren?t they?? A.K. Alexander is on tour with her thriller Daddy?s Home.? And listen ? she is also giving away a paperback copy of her book!? Fill out the Rafflecopter thingee below to win!

About A.K. Alexander

A.K. Alexander

I started writing when I was nine-years-old. I used to write short stories on my dad?s notepads. One day he read one and he said to me, ?You are a writer.? It stuck. My dad is still my biggest supporter and he is also my mentor in many ways. I went to college at The University of Southern California. My parents though didn?t think that ?creative writing? at USC was a major that would likely be lucrative in the long run, so I figured I would be logical and look at writing in the journalistic field. God (the Universe), etc. had a different plan for me. Soon after I graduated from USC I gave birth to my first son. He was six weeks premature and he had some health issues, which caused me to decide that going into a career at that time would not benefit my son. So, I stayed home with him and I wrote my first book. That first book is tucked away in a box somewhere because it?s pretty darn bad, but it gave me the confidence I needed to know that I could start, write, and finish a book. From that point on, it took me twelve years to become a published author and several manuscripts. It has been a wonderful and amazing process, and although many challenges have presented themselves along the way, I have never quit writing. It is my passion!

My other passion is Horses. These amazing animals are very dear to my heart and I have been known to take in ?strays.? My daughter and I are very active in the horse world. My daughter is involved in pony club and three day eventing.

I enjoy work with other writers when I can , especially kids. I designed a program for young writers to help them learn how to write short stories and picture books to writing complete novellas for older kids. I have mentored several students now and it?s a joyful experience to see young writers and their creative minds at work. It is something I am working on expanding with some local teachers in my area.

Family and friends are extremely important to me. I am the proud mother of three amazing kids who have always supported me and are just great, awesome human beings (yes, I know I sound like every mother in the world about their kids, but I really mean it). My husband is my best friend and a very patient man, which is a real positive?he is married to a writer after all. We also have three dogs, a kitty, and eight horses.

When not writing, riding, or being a taxi-cab driver for my youngest, I try to find time to do a little yoga, meditate or cooking. I love cookbooks and cooking!

A.K.?s recent release is Daddy?s Home.

You can visit her website at www.michelescott.com/books/ak-alexander.>

About Daddy?s Home

Daddy's Home

A KILLER STALKS HIS PREY?
A calculating and deadly killer is in search for what he terms as his perfect family. Preying upon single mothers and their innocent children, the police have dubbed him ?The Family Man.?

HE WATCHES THEM?HE TAKES THEM?
He plays out his role as the perfect father. When things don?t go so perfect in his insane fantasy world, the family man kills.

HOLLY JENNINGS IS ON THE CASE?
Crime Scene Investigator Holly Jennings of the San Diego Police Department is determined to track him down and see that justice is served. With Holly being a single mother herself, this man?s crimes are deeply personal to her, and turn more so when a friend and her daughter become the latest victims of ?The Family Man.?

Along with tracking an evil killer, Holly is dealing with her own internal demons. She is raising her daughter Chloe alone after the death of her husband?a death she feels guilty for.

To complicate her life further, Holly is doing her best to avoid possibly falling in love again with charming veterinarian Brendan O?Neil. As Holly delves deeper into solving the murders, she finds herself being sucked into a game of cat and mouse by ?The Family Man,? that may lead her down a dark path too horrible to bear. One that may cost her gravely-her family, her new found love, and even her life.

Q: Thank you so much for this interview, A.K!? Can you tell us where you are from?

I was born and raised in San Diego, Ca. I?m still here.

Q: How did you come up with the title?

The villain in this is so evil and although the families he takes are obviously not his own, he announce himself as Daddy to the women and children. He reminded me a bit of Jack Nicholson?s character in THE SHINING and in particular the scene where Jack breaks down the door with the wild look in his eye. Instead of Johnny?s here?I thought of DADDY?S HOME.

Q: They say you can judge a book by its cover.? Can you tell us a little about your cover and who designed it?

I really took some time to study other bestselling thriller author?s covers and I took note that the titles are quite large and colorful. The title seems to be a big part of the cover on a thriller. I took that idea and then explained to my cover artist?Anthony Sclavi at Brio Books what the story was about. Anthony did a terrific job with it and putting it together. He also did the cover for MOMMY, MAY I?

Q: Can you tell us something about your book that would make me run out and buy it?

It?s been on The Wall Street Journal Bestseller List and also Amazon?s bestseller list both in The U.S. and The U.K. If you want a book that will have you on edge for a few hours and take you on a roller coaster ride due to its twists and turns then give DADDY?S HOME a try.

Q: Are there any messages in this book that you want the reader to know about?

I know this is basic common sense, but people go missing all of the time?women and children, even men. I just want to remind people to always be aware of their surroundings and who is around you. Listen to your gut. If someone or something does not ?feel? right, then trust that and get away.

Q: What was your most favorite chapter to write and why?

The ending because everything is sewn up, and it does end as happily as it possibly could, considering?

Q: Why did you feel you had to write this book?

It was an idea that came to me when I was a single parent and I just really felt it was a solid idea that although may be creepy and scary, it has that message of trusting yourself in it.

Q:? Now, some fun questions ? What deep dark secret would you like to share with us?

I don?t know how to type. I hunt and peck?but I am fast. I make a ton of mistakes, so I have a good editor and copy editor and a handful of proof readers. J

Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

I think I would like to go to The Maldives. It looks beautiful and peaceful there. My husband is an avid surfer so he could surf, and I could snorkel and read books on the beach!

Q: Are you a morning person or a night person?

Both. I get up early because I have a big family and we roll at an early hour. I stay up a bit late because it is the only time I sort of have to myself where I am not writing or doing something for other.

Q: Are there any members in your family who also like to write?

All three of my kids are great writers. My youngest enjoys writing stories. My middle kid wants to go into screen writing and is planning to go to film school next year. My oldest is also a talented writer and we have tossed around doing a book together. I think he would write a fantasy.

Q: As a child, were you a dreamer?

Absolutely and I still am.

Q: Last but not least, the magic genie has granted you one wish.? What would that be?

To cure my dad who has a disease called Multiple Systems Atrophy.

Q: Thank you so much for this interview! Do you have any final words?

I am grateful for my readers who are the reason I do what I do. I owe any successes I have to them. They are truly the extension of what I do as a writer.

GIVEAWAY

Sorry, only U.S. and Canada residents may enter.? This contest runs from April 2 to May 11 2012.? The winner selected will be announced on this blog.? It is up to the winner to notify Dorothy at thewriterslife (at) gmail.com to claim your prize.? Pump Up Your Book is not responsible for damaged or missing goods.? Good luck!


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  5. A Day in the Life of Medical Mystery Thriller Author Christopher Stookey

Tags: A.K. Alexander, blog tour, book promotions, book publicists, book publicity, book publicity companies, book tour, California, California author, Daddy's Home, deadly killer, evil killer, family man, Jamul, killer, Michele Scott, online book tour, Pump Up Your Book, thriller, thriller author, thriller book, thriller novel, virtual book tour

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Ai Weiwei sets up live webcams at his home

PETER PARKS/AFP/Getty Images

Artist and fierce government critic Ai Weiwei has turned the tables on China's Communist regime by transforming a crippling tax fine he says is designed to silence him into a huge wave of solidarity.

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By msnbc.com staff and news services

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei turned his life into an unscripted version of Big Brother when he set up four live webcams at his home, BBC reported.?

Ai told the AFP he hoped the cameras -- which include one filming him while he sleeps -- will encourage transparency from all sides, BBC reported.

The artist was detained for three months last year during an overall crackdown on dissent. Following his release, authorities demanded his design company pay 15 million yuan ($2.4 million) in back taxes and fines. Activists interpreted the penalty as punishment for his criticism of the authoritarian government. He is now banned from leaving Beijing.

Ai insists he has done nothing wrong. He said the tax case against his company appeared designed to damage his reputation while intimidating him and preventing him from "taking part in public affairs and criticizing the government."


The artist was detained April 3 and released June 22. Chinese authorities have said that although Ai was released, he is technically still under investigation for at least a year and could be brought in for further questioning at any time.

According to the BBC, Ai said he had "no clear answers" about why he was placed under surveillance.

"In my life, there is so much surveillance and monitoring... our office has been searched, I have been searched, every day I am being followed, there are surveillance cameras in front of my house," he told the AFP news agency, according to the BBC.

"So I was wondering, why don't I put some [cameras] in there so people can see all my activities. I can do that and I hope the other party can also show some transparency."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Follow us on Twitter: @msnbc_world

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