SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea said on Wednesday world leaders visiting Seoul for a nuclear summit next week will discuss North Korea and Iran's "illegitimate" atomic activities, angering the North that said such talk would be a "declaration of war".
Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan told Reuters that while nuclear weapons and proliferation issues were not on the formal agenda at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul from Monday, Iran and North Korea would clearly be key issues on the sidelines.
"There is no question that international community has serious concerns about the illegitimate nuclear activities of North Korea and Iran," he said in a written interview.
"As major leaders including leaders of the participating countries in the six-party talks will attend the Seoul summit, the North Korean nuclear issue will naturally be discussed on the separate occasions such bilateral talks on the margins of the summit," he said, adding dozens of such meetings had been planned.
Along with South Korean host President Lee Myung-bak, leaders from four other six party states -- U.S. President Barack Obama, China's Hu Jintao, Russia's Dmitry Medvedev and Japan's Yoshihiko Noda -- will be in Seoul for the two-day summit.
North Korea will not attend the summit and its pursuit of nuclear program and ballistic missile program had not been on the formal agenda, but the announcement of a long-range rocket launch in April is now expected to take centre stage.
North Korea will consider it a "provocation" if its "nuclear issue is placed on the agenda at the Seoul summit" and if any statement is issued against the North for pursuing such a program, its official KCNA news agency said.
"Any provocation will amount to a declaration of war against the DPRK (North Korea) and result in throwing a stumbling block in the way of discussing the denuclearization of the peninsula," it said on Wednesday.
MISSILE TEST
Lee is expected to urge China's Hu to use his influence with North Korea to stop the planned rocket launch, which it says will put a satellite into orbit to mark the birth centenary of the state's founder Kim Il-sung.
Experts say the launch is clearly a ballistic missile test, banned by U.N. resolutions and it would likely undermine an agreement last month between Pyongyang and Washington to suspend such testing to foster talks on resuming U.S. food aid.
China has already put rare public pressure on the North over the reclusive state's plan to launch the rocket, which cast fresh doubts on talks aimed at ending its nuclear ambitions in return for economic aid and diplomatic rewards.
The announcement last week of the rocket launch caused outrage among international powers which pressed the North to call off the move saying it would deepen tension and further isolate it.
The North has twice tested a nuclear device, but experts doubt whether it has the ability to miniaturize an atomic bomb to place it atop a warhead.
North Korea is believed to have enough fissile material to make up to a dozen nuclear bombs, and in 2010 unveiled a uranium enrichment facility, in addition to its plutonium program, which opened a second route to making an atomic weapon.
Kim said South Korea had shared its concern with six-party members about the rocket launch, and would try to dissuade the North from following through with its plan.
You might be surprised to know that the Bible contains more than 2,000 references to money. It's a money reference guide. God's Word, the source of all truth, is the place to find guidance for establishing our beliefs and attitudes.
Money Is A Tool
Money is a handy convenience. Without it we'd have to carry around chickens and pigs to trade for goods and services we need.
Money is to be a non-emotional subject. We are not to love money or hate it, be fearful of not having enough or worried about having too much.
We are to be comfortable with money, not anxious about it or careless with it. We are not to hoard it, nor are we to throw it away. That kind of financial balance is called solvency. Solvency occurs when money takes its proper place in our lives as a tool with which to serve God, not as a filler of empty souls.
Money Is Powerless
Money has no power of its own, in the same way a computer or a coffee maker has no inherent ability. The truth is that no matter how fancy, how turbo-charged, how modern or technically capable, any tool left in the closet or used contrary to the purpose for which it was intended is not going to produce the best results; and in some cases, the results can be negative.
Money Is A Neutral Commodity
It's what we do with a tool that counts. The way we manage money is a direct reflection of our commitment to obey God and serve others. We are not to worry about from where money will come. Employers (or pensions, bonuses, real estate income, support, unemployment checks or any other entity) are not the source of our income. They are simply the conduits through which God delivers it.
God is the source because He is the one who has given us the skills and ability to work. Jobs may come and go, stock markets may crash, real estate values may fall off the face of the earth, but the Source is the same yesterday, today and forever. Our job is to be faithful, diligent and trustworthy stewards.
Over the years, I have taken the lessons I've learned, the mistakes I've made, the principles of Scripture and wisdom from experts, counselors and teachers whom I respect and boiled it all down to these simple money rules that changed my life.
Rule 1: Spend Less Than You Earn Rule 2: Save for the Future Rule 3: Give Some Away Rule 4: Anticipate Your Irregular Expenses Rule 5: Tell Your Money Where to Go Rule 6: Manage Your Credit Rule 7: Borrow Only What You Know You Can Repay
My rules are not seasonal, nor are they based on emotion. They work for people who have lots of money as well as those who are struggling to survive on a single income or are between jobs.
Money Makes Us Happy
I'm sure you've heard this, perhaps you've even said it a time or two. But it's a little more complicated than that. Each of us has a body, an ego and a spirit. Our egos are in search of happiness; our souls long for contentment.
Your ego is not a bad thing. It's that part of you that includes your personality -- your thinking, feeling and acting self. Your ego is responsible for your style and personal tastes. Your ego produces emotions and desires -- and I mean all kinds of desires, from little, so-so ones to those that scream out to be satisfied. Some desires are for needs, others for wants.
Face it. Satisfying a desire produces happiness and it usually takes money to fulfill desires. Anyone who says money can't buy happiness has never bought a new car or gone on a shopping spree, or seen the look on a child's face on Christmas morning. The frustrating thing is that this kind of happiness is temporary. It always wears off.
Think back to a time when you longed for something. I mean really longed and yearned. You were nearly obsessed by your desire and could think of little else. Maybe it was your first car or certain article of clothing or a new piece of furniture. When you finally got it you were happy beyond belief. But the happiness wore off, didn't it? That's because desires once satisfied do not stay satisfied. Gratification received from fulfilled desires is, at best, temporary. That's how our minds and emotions work.
Your soul, your spiritual nature seeks contentment -- satisfaction with what you have, whatever your situation might be. Contentment is a learned behavior, an acquired skill. It doesn't just happen when you fall into the right set of circumstances. Contentment cannot be purchased, which is the best news because it means contentment is available to everyone, no matter what their financial situation.
Longing for Contentment
Once you understand that fulfilling the desires of ego produces temporary satisfaction and fulfilling the desires of your spirit brings lasting satisfaction, you can stop hoping to find lasting contentment in a new sofa, or joy and peace in new carpeting. Sure, your new sofa and carpeting will likely bring you happiness for some period of time. And that's wonderful. But you will quit looking to material things to produce the contentment your spirit seeks. You will instinctively know the difference between momentary pleasure and deep-seated contentment. What a change that will make in your life.
Contentment has a way of quieting insatiable desires. Contentment is the best antidote for an overly needy ego.
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Follow Mary Hunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Debt-Proof Livi
By vince.baker | 20th March 2012 | Online Casino News
Online gaming is known to do a lot ? waste time, provide entertainment, help people double their monthly income, but it is also known to reduce levels of stress as well. A study done at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada stated that online gaming may actually be good for people?s overall health. This study demonstrated that after playing some online games, which included online casino games, individuals were a lot less stressed. In fact, cortisol levels, the hormone responsible for inducing stress, fell by 17 percent on average. For a number of behavioral scientists, this is strong proof that there is a correlation between online gaming and reducing stress levels.
There have been other studies to prove the same thing as well. A study done at Eastern Carolina University that lasted for six month and had 134 subjects found that online gaming can reduce stress and elevate one?s mood. A study at Oxford University also revealed that online gaming may be beneficial for those suffering from PTSD ? post traumatic stress syndrome.
An online casino also recently conducted their own informal research study using Blackjack players. In this informal study, it was noted that 74 percent of all the players in the study felt that online casino games were a great way to have an enjoyable time as well as reduce stress. Those players that said that online casinos did not help reduce stress levels played online casino games with much higher stakes involved. Another survey, this time using Roulette players demonstrated the same thing ? approximately 77 percent said that online casinos were a great way to reduce stress.
So, if someone is having a bad day at work or at home, take a minute to play a few online casino games and watch as the stress melts right off!
In the modern age, a growing awareness is being developed among people about their health and fitness. People, who can afford specialists, hire them to take full care of their health. These specialists help them exercise and suggest proper nutritious and balanced diet to keep their body healthy and energetic. However, not everyone can afford these specialists, and thus they look for other cheaper solutions to keep their health as good as possible.
Women are very much concerned about their health and fitness. They want to be as healthy as possible, and want to look appealing and attractive at the same time. The natural foods available these days are not of the same quality as they were in the past, and thus are not able to supply the necessary nutrition needed by the human body.
However, due to the development in medical sciences many vitamin and other health supplements are available for women that ensure the supply of nutrition needed by the body for a healthy growth and development.
However, there is also some confusion regarding which supplements should be utilized by women and which should be avoided.
This is not as problematic as you might think as any multi-vitamin and mineral supplements can be used to make up for the deficiency of required nutrition. However, it would be advisable to consult a doctor before taking any supplements to ensure that these supplements would be enough, and also to establish the quantity of the supplements that should be taken.
Excess of everything is bad and the same goes for these health supplements. Many people think that they are good for health so they should take as many as they can to ensure good health.
However, this is not a fact as excess of these supplements can have adverse effects on the body. Therefore, any excess of these supplements should be avoided and you should always consult a doctor before taking these supplements to establish the required quantity as per needed by your body.
Many doctors have prepared daily formulas for women according to which they can take these supplements. These formulas are based on general observation of the nutrition needs of women, and provide the most optimum dosage of these supplements. However, these formulas do not apply to everyone and you should carefully consider the conditions in which these combinations should be used.
Health supplements for pregnant women are different from general health supplements, because anything taken by women in this stage will definitely have an effect on pregnancy, and thus proper care should be taken while taking health supplements in such situations. Nevertheless, these supplements should not be avoided and you should ensure proper nutrition in this stage for a healthy future of both the mother and the child.
Women under any sort of other medication should also take extreme caution while taking these health supplements. Although, they are designed to make up for the deficiency of required minerals and vitamins in the body, but they can sometimes also cause reaction with other medication thus making conditions worst. Therefore, you should take proper care while consuming these health supplements.
When you happen to be learning about interesting things, it?s not hard to sense overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of relevant details available. This informative article must aid you focus on the middle issues.
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To find the auto repair business in Florida is not an easy task, if you follow the right path to find the company and that the priorities identified which type of service required for your car at the end. The real solution is surprised; most vehicle owners are the least aware. There's hell lot of difference between finding a good auto repair service in Florida, FL and just finding an auto body repairs company Florida. If you notice a difference, then you are on the right track and a good choice for professional auto body repair business in Florida.
Some tips are here, so you will be able to locate a best auto repair service in Fl:- ?
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For people about to retire?and many folks who already have?figuring out how to make the most of their Social Security benefits usually requires a combination of strategy, informed guesswork, careful planning, calculation, and quality time with a tax advisor or CPA. But don't be discouraged?while your situation may be unique, you probably share questions and concerns with a lot of other people. Here are answers to some of the questions we hear the most:
Are Social Security payments based on average lifetime income?
Social Security benefits generally are based on the average of your 35 highest years of earnings indexed for inflation. Years in which you had low earnings or no earnings can be counted to bring the total years of earnings up to 35. That said, keep in mind that most people need 10 years of work (40 credits) to qualify for benefits.
When does it make sense to collect Social Security early, and when does it make sense to delay?
The answer depends largely on how long you expect to live. Starting Social Security , but it also means you'll receive monthly checks for a longer time. On the other hand, starting Social Security later results in fewer checks over your lifetime, but those checks will be larger. Theoretically, it shouldn't matter when you start as long as you have an. But, in reality, about half of us will live longer than average.
A big factor in your decision is how long you expect to live. There is no way to know for sure, but if you?re in good physical shape, don't have any chronic illnesses or bad habits, and have a history of longevity in your family, then the general rule of thumb is that you should wait as long as possible to collect benefits. You will receive your until age 70, so it never makes sense to wait past that age.
If you don't expect to reach average life expectancy, then it might be better to take the money early. Just don't forget to consider your spouse. If your spouse earned less than you did during your working lives, and you expect that your spouse might live longer than you, then think about whether it makes sense for you, the higher-earning spouse, to postpone benefits as long as you can in order to maximize your spouse's .
If you start taking Social Security at age 62, will the monthly amount automatically increase once you reach full retirement age?
No. For benefit purposes, the Social Security Administration (SSA) defines the full or (NRA) as between 66 and 67 for people born in 1943 or later. If you start collecting benefits before your NRA, that will result in a in your monthly Social Security check. SSA may give you an annual cost-of-living increase, but that?s it.
If I'm retiring early, should I take Social Security first and avoid tapping my 401(k) and IRA?
In isolation, it can make financial sense to postpone receiving Social Security as long as possible?assuming you have the discretion to do so, are in good health and expect to beat . Also, it's generally best to postpone tax-deferred account withdrawals for as long as you can.?
So all else being equal, the preferred place to start tapping is taxable-account money. But if you need extra money to live on at age 62 and the only choice is between taking early Social Security or tapping tax-deferred retirement accounts, then you need to crunch the numbers to see what makes sense.
Basically, it depends on how much return you expect to earn on your tax-deferred investments, such as your IRA and 401(k). The higher the expected return, the more sense it makes to leave that money alone and for the additional cash flow you need now. The level of return that favors going one way or the other will vary depending on the facts and circumstances?your benefit and life expectancy, for example. For someone who anticipates living a long life, an expected return on tax-deferred assets below 5% or so would likely favor , while an expected average annual return on tax-deferred accounts above 5% would generally favor taking the early Social Security and postponing tax-deferred account withdrawals for as long as you can.
Can I repay the Social Security Administration for benefits I've already received and then restart benefits later at a higher amount? When does this make sense?
If you previously elected to receive early Social Security benefits at a reduced rate, you do have the option of paying back to the government what you've already received and then restarting benefits at a later date to take advantage of a higher payout. This option is limited to one year's worth of benefits.
For example, let's say you elected to receive early benefits at age 62 and you're now 63 and thinking of going back to work. You could stop receiving Social Security, pay back the one years' worth of benefits you received, go back to work, and then wait until a later age to restart your benefit checks at a higher level. (You will receive your largest benefit by delaying retirement until age 70, so it never makes sense to wait past that age.)
Paying back prior benefits is similar to buying an annuity, except that you don't have to pay any interest on the benefits you've already received and there are no fees (which is why the SSA decided to limit this option to only one year).
As to your second question?whether it makes sense to take advantage of this option?it depends on your tax situation, your age and life expectancy. Of course, you also have to come up with the repayment money. You might want to enlist the help of a certified public accountant (CPA) or another financial professional to help you crunch the numbers. For important details about repaying benefits please read the SSA publication, . If you determine that it makes sense for you to repay your benefits, you can get the process going by filling out Form 521, Request for Withdrawal of Application.
I'm already collecting Social Security. How will going back to work affect my benefits?
If you haven't yet reached your full or (NRA is between 66 and 67 for those born in 1943 or later), earning a wage could reduce your benefits.
For example:
If you go back to work before the year you reach your NRA, $1 in benefits will be deducted for every $2 you earn above the (which is $14,640 in 2012).
In the year you reach your NRA, $1 in benefits will be deducted for every $3 you earn above a ($38,880 in 2012), but that's only counting earnings before the month you reach your NRA.
Starting the month you hit your NRA, your benefits are no longer reduced no matter how much you earn.
Note: Any reduction in benefits due to the earnings test is only temporary, analogous to "withholding." You will get the money back in the form of a higher benefit at full retirement age, so you shouldn't cut back on working or worry about earning too much
You can estimate how much your annual benefits will be reduced by using the SSA?s . Also see the SSA publication .
Are Social Security benefits taxable?
Your Social Security benefits may be taxable, depending on your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). As your MAGI increases above a certain threshold (from earning a paycheck, for instance), more of your benefit is subject to income tax, up to a maximum of 85% of your benefit (see below). For details about taxation of your benefits see IRS Publication 915, Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits.
Is it true that nontaxable income (such as Roth IRA withdrawals or municipal bond interest) is included when determining income to calculate taxes on Social Security payments?
Not all nontaxable income is included in the calculation.
Up to 85% of your Social Security benefit could be taxable, depending on your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). Your MAGI is your regular adjusted gross income plus any tax-exempt municipal bond interest you earned. You don't have to pay federal income tax on the muni bond interest?it's just being included for purposes of calculating the tax on your Social Security benefits.
Roth IRA withdrawals are not included in income for the purposes of figuring the tax on Social Security. But any taxable money you withdraw from a traditional IRA (or convert from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA) is included in your regular adjusted gross income and so would affect the taxability of your Social Security benefit.
After you calculate your MAGI, add half of your Social Security income to it.
Once you have calculated your income as described above, see the table below to find out what percentage of your Social Security benefit is taxable.
Filing status
Income
Percentage of Social Security that is taxable
Single, head of household, qualifying widower, and married filing separately (where the spouses lived apart the entire year)
Below $25,000
All Social Security income is tax-free.
$25,000 - $34,000
Up to 50% of Social Security benefit may be taxable.
More than $34,000
Up to 85% of Social Security benefit may be taxable.
Married couple filing jointly
Below $32,000
All Social Security income is tax-free.
$32,000 - $44,000
Up to 50% of Social Security benefit may be taxable.
More than $44,000
Up to 85% of Social Security benefit may be taxable.
For more information please see IRS Publication 915, Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits.
My wife is two years younger than me, and is the lower-earning spouse. She plans to start collecting Social Security benefits based on her earnings record at age 62. When I start collecting Social Security at age 66, she'll be eligible to collect half of my benefits. Will we be maximizing our total benefits this way?
If you begin collecting Social Security at age 66, your wife will be eligible for 50% of your benefit. But, assuming her is also 66, she would incur a 13.33% penalty because she would only be 64 when you start receiving your Social Security.
A potentially better strategy is the "62/70 split," where the lower-earning spouse begins drawing at age 62 based on his or her own earnings record, and the higher-earning spouse waits until age 70 in order to receive the maximum benefit. Assuming both of you expect an average life expectancy or greater, this strategy will generally maximize your Social Security cash flow over both of your lives. Keep in mind that, once both you and your spouse reach age 65, the odds of at least one of you reaching age 90 are greater than 60%, on average. So, as the higher wage earner, it could make sense for you to postpone benefits for as long as you can, up to age 70.
We recommend that you check with the Social Security Administration to be sure about the details in your particular situation. Meanwhile, the SSA's has some good information about spousal benefits.
As always, if you have questions or need help, please contact your Schwab consultant. If you're not yet a Schwab client but would like to learn more, a Schwab consultant can help. Call 800-435-4000 to get started.
Squads of disposable mini-satellites able to provide reconnaissance to soldiers at the "press of a button" are being considered by the US military.
The Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) says the machines could provide tactical information at times when existing satellites were not in position.
Darpa has invited manufacturers to discuss the project.
It says the satellites should cost $500,000 (?318,500) apiece.
"We envision a constellation of small satellites, at a fraction of the cost of airborne systems, that would allow deployed warfighters to hit 'see me' on existing handheld devices and in less than 90 minutes receive a satellite image of their precise location to aid in mission planning," the agency says in a statement.
It adds that each constellation should consist of about 24 satellites able to stay in low-Earth orbit for 60-90 days before burning up on re-entry.
Beyond drones
Darpa says that contractors will probably have to make use of rapid manufacturing techniques more commonly associated with the smartphone industry to meet its price target.
It adds that they will also need to "develop advanced technologies for optics, power, propulsion and communications to keep size and weight down".
The US Army already has access to drone aircraft to provide intelligence from the skies. Last year it announced new helicopter-style machines equipped with 1.8 gigapixel cameras were due to go into service in Afghanistan.
However, Darpa says such unmanned aircraft cannot cover extended territory without frequent refuelling.
"With a SeeMe constellation, we hope to directly support warfighters in multiple deployed overseas locations simultaneously with no logistics or maintenance costs beyond the warfighters' handhelds," said Dave Barnhart, the programme's manager.
Cost challenge
Elizabeth Quintana from the Royal United Services Institute defence think tank told the BBC that the challenge would be keeping the new technology to budget.
"Currently UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] and other airborne ISR [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] assets are very popular with ground troops but the criticism is that there is never enough and that bandwidth demands make it difficult to get imagery products forward to the front line," she said.
"UAVs were adopted with affordability and disposability in mind but the most popular platforms are too expensive to use in this way. The trick will be to keep the costs low enough that the system will be cheaper than existing airborne programmes and can be truly disposable."
Darpa has organised a "Proposers' Day" to discuss the project further on 27 March.
The announcement coincides with news that the organisation's director is leaving to work for Google.
Wired revealed that Regina Dugan is expected to leave "sometime in the next few weeks". Google told the BBC that it was not yet ready to disclose what role she would assume.
Researchers attempt to solve problems of antibiotic resistance and bee deaths in onePublic release date: 14-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Dr. Alejandra Vasquez alejandra.vasquez@med.lu 46-705-898-089 Lund University
The stomachs of wild honey bees are full of healthy lactic acid bacteria that can fight bacterial infections in both bees and humans.
A collaboration between researchers at three universities in Sweden Lund University, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Karolinska Institutet has produced findings that could be a step towards solving the problems of both bee deaths and antibiotic resistance.
The researchers have now published their results in the scientific journal PLoS ONE and the legendary science photographer Professor Lennart Nilsson from Karolinska Institutet has illustrated the findings with his unique images.
Today, many people eat healthy lactic acid bacteria that are added to foods such as yogurt.
"In our previous studies, we have looked at honey bees in Sweden. What we have now found from our international studies is that, historically, people of all cultures have consumed the world's greatest natural blend of healthy bacteria in the form of honey", says Alejandra Vasquez, a researcher at Lund University.
In wild and fresh honey, which honey hunters collect from bees' nests in high cliffs and trees, there are billions of healthy lactic acid bacteria of 13 different types. This is in comparison with the 1-3 different types found in commercial probiotic products, she explains.
The honey bees have used these bacteria for 80 million years to produce and protect their honey and their bee bread (bee pollen), which they produce to feed the entire bee colony. The researchers have now also shown that the healthy lactic acid bacteria combat the two most serious bacterial diseases to affect honey bees.
In the journal article, the researchers describe how the bees have these healthy bacteria in their honey stomachs and that they get the bacteria as newborns from the adult bees that feed them. The researchers have also seen that large quantities of harmful microorganisms such as bacteria, yeasts and fungi are found in the nectar and pollen that the bees collect from flowers to make honey and bee bread. These microorganisms could destroy the food through fermentation and mould in just a couple of hours, but in fact, the healthy bacteria in the honey stomach kill all the microorganisms.
"As humans have learnt to use honey to treat sore throats, colds and wounds, our hypothesis is that the healthy bee bacteria can also kill harmful disease bacteria in humans. We have preliminary, unpublished results which show that this could be a new tool to complement or even replace antibiotics", says Alejandra Vasquez.
The present study also shows that bees' healthy bacteria die when beekeepers treat bees preventively with antibiotics, which primarily happens in the USA. The bees have their own defence system against disease in the form of cooperative healthy bacteria. However, this system is weakened in commercially farmed bees that are treated with antibiotics, suffer stress, eat synthetic food instead of their own honey and bee bread and are forced to fly in fields sprayed with pesticides.
"Our results provide the research community with an undiscovered key that could explain why bees are dying worldwide in the mysterious 'colony collapse disorder'", says Tobias Olofsson.
###
http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0033188
Researchers at Lund University:
Dr Alejandra Vsquez, email: alejandra.vasquez@med.lu.se, mobile: +46 705 898089
Dr Tobias Olofsson, email: tobias.olofsson@med.lu.se, mobile: +46 706 837683
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Researchers attempt to solve problems of antibiotic resistance and bee deaths in onePublic release date: 14-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Dr. Alejandra Vasquez alejandra.vasquez@med.lu 46-705-898-089 Lund University
The stomachs of wild honey bees are full of healthy lactic acid bacteria that can fight bacterial infections in both bees and humans.
A collaboration between researchers at three universities in Sweden Lund University, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Karolinska Institutet has produced findings that could be a step towards solving the problems of both bee deaths and antibiotic resistance.
The researchers have now published their results in the scientific journal PLoS ONE and the legendary science photographer Professor Lennart Nilsson from Karolinska Institutet has illustrated the findings with his unique images.
Today, many people eat healthy lactic acid bacteria that are added to foods such as yogurt.
"In our previous studies, we have looked at honey bees in Sweden. What we have now found from our international studies is that, historically, people of all cultures have consumed the world's greatest natural blend of healthy bacteria in the form of honey", says Alejandra Vasquez, a researcher at Lund University.
In wild and fresh honey, which honey hunters collect from bees' nests in high cliffs and trees, there are billions of healthy lactic acid bacteria of 13 different types. This is in comparison with the 1-3 different types found in commercial probiotic products, she explains.
The honey bees have used these bacteria for 80 million years to produce and protect their honey and their bee bread (bee pollen), which they produce to feed the entire bee colony. The researchers have now also shown that the healthy lactic acid bacteria combat the two most serious bacterial diseases to affect honey bees.
In the journal article, the researchers describe how the bees have these healthy bacteria in their honey stomachs and that they get the bacteria as newborns from the adult bees that feed them. The researchers have also seen that large quantities of harmful microorganisms such as bacteria, yeasts and fungi are found in the nectar and pollen that the bees collect from flowers to make honey and bee bread. These microorganisms could destroy the food through fermentation and mould in just a couple of hours, but in fact, the healthy bacteria in the honey stomach kill all the microorganisms.
"As humans have learnt to use honey to treat sore throats, colds and wounds, our hypothesis is that the healthy bee bacteria can also kill harmful disease bacteria in humans. We have preliminary, unpublished results which show that this could be a new tool to complement or even replace antibiotics", says Alejandra Vasquez.
The present study also shows that bees' healthy bacteria die when beekeepers treat bees preventively with antibiotics, which primarily happens in the USA. The bees have their own defence system against disease in the form of cooperative healthy bacteria. However, this system is weakened in commercially farmed bees that are treated with antibiotics, suffer stress, eat synthetic food instead of their own honey and bee bread and are forced to fly in fields sprayed with pesticides.
"Our results provide the research community with an undiscovered key that could explain why bees are dying worldwide in the mysterious 'colony collapse disorder'", says Tobias Olofsson.
###
http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0033188
Researchers at Lund University:
Dr Alejandra Vsquez, email: alejandra.vasquez@med.lu.se, mobile: +46 705 898089
Dr Tobias Olofsson, email: tobias.olofsson@med.lu.se, mobile: +46 706 837683
[ | E-mail | 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.
Stocks slipped on Wall Street Wednesday, a day after the market had its biggest gain of the year. Citigroup fell after failing to convince regulators it was healthy enough to raise its dividend.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down four points at 13,173 at 2:15 p.m. Eastern, giving up an earlier gain of 44 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was off five points at 1,391, and the Nasdaq composite was down 10 at 3,029.
Only one of the 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 rose, technology. Falling stocks outnumbered rising ones more than 2-to-1 on the New York Stock Exchange.
On Tuesday, a powerful rally in bank stocks pushed the Dow to its highest close since the last day of 2007. The Federal Reserve said 15 of the 19 major banks it surveyed passed a so-called stress test to see how they would stand up in a financial crisis worse than what happened in 2008.
Citigroup, among the four that weren't deemed strong enough to raise their dividends or make other distributions to shareholders, fell 4 percent in morning trading. Other banks that passed the Fed's test mostly rose. Regions Financial rose 6.6 percent after the bank said it would sell $900 million in stock to repay some of the money it received as part of the 2008 bank bailout. Bank of America rose 2.6 percent and Zions Bancorporation rose 7.3 percent, the most of any stock in the S&P 500 index.
MetLife, an insurance company, also failed to pass the Fed's stress test. The stock slid 5 percent in early trading, the most in the S&P 500.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose sharply, to 2.27 percent from 2.11 percent late Wednesday. The benchmark yield has risen for five days straight and is at the highest level since October. That's a sign that investors believe the economy is improving and that they're more willing to hold higher-risk assets like stocks and commodities.
Gold fell $51 to $1,643 an ounce. The dollar rose against the euro and the yen and European markets were mostly higher. Germany's DAX rose 1.2 percent. France's benchmark index rose 0.4 percent and Spain's edged up 0.2 percent.
The Fed was planning to wait until Thursday to release the results of its stress tests, which determine which financial companies are healthy enough to raise their dividends. After JPMorgan Chase surprised the market with an announcement Tuesday that it would raise its dividend and buy back stock, the Fed released the results early.
Apple rose for a sixth straight day, gaining $18, or 3 percent, to $585. The stock started the year at $405. The company announced the latest version of its blockbuster tablet computer, the iPad, last week.
Southwest Airlines fell 3 percent a day after the low-cost carrier said it didn't expect to earn a profit in the first quarter because of higher fuel costs. The airline also said ticket bookings for spring travel weakened in late February.
Cliffs Natural Resources jumped 7 percent. The Cleveland-based mining company said late Tuesday it was bumping its dividend to 62.6 cents, from 28 cents.
There have been much reports over the annuals namely folk who purchase tea plus beverage it regularly are really consuming as much caffeine as whether they were drinking coffee. However,????????? ??????, the latest research has proven this apt be wrong plus namely coffee drinkers are truly getting double the aggregate of caffeine per glass for those who purchase tea. The truth namely that consuming some caffeine namely truly agreeable as your health,???? ???,and it is merely those who drink dozens of glasses of caffeinated coffee every day who have also much. Buy tea plus beverage a few cups a daytime plus you are getting equitable the right total with no risk of consuming likewise much. brewing. Buy tea plus brew it for five minutes and your a m cuppa ambition embody between 40 plus 100 milligrams of caffeine; merely whether you buy tea plus merely brew it for three minutes,??? ??, the caffeine content drops dramatically to 20 to 40 milligrams per glass. Related articles?
This entry was posted on ???, 3? 14th, 2012 at 12:10 PM and is filed under ???. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Twirl! is a refreshing approach to the world of puzzle games. It has a classic goal -- matching colors -- but a unique method -- twirling a block of 9 squares around the center square. Moving 8 blocks in single move is what makes Twirl! for iPhone and iPad so challenging.
Many of the clients I work with are foreign companies expanding to the U.S. There are many things a new company needs to have on it's to-do?list - applying for a tax id number, selecting a site to locate?their business - but one of the top items on the list of any new business, whether foreign or domestic, should be hiring payroll services.
Why? Because you need to pay your employees of course! Payroll is a complex process, and every country has different rules. I can't think of a single client I've worked with that does their own payroll in-house. Don't forget to shop around for payroll services though - just because a company is big and famous does not mean that it is the right payroll service provider for your business!
Why should you hire a payroll company? Isn't that just another cost to add to your company's expenses?
Avoid the hassle
If you are running a small business, chances are, you don't have time to keep track of payroll yourself. Hiring another employee isn't worth it either, since payroll processing most likely won't be?a full-time job at a small company.?Save yourself?the time and effort of having to become a payroll expert instead of working on your business. Most companies find it to be?more cost effective to hire an outside service for these duties.
Hiring an expert
Payroll comes along with many moving parts. Employers need to withhold taxes from their employees' paychecks, accrue?for accumulated vacation time employees earn, and keep track of any advances or withholding?from employees' pay. Employers also need to make sure that everyone's check is cut?on time and makes it to the right employee in a timely fashion. A good payroll company will know the laws of the country it operates in, as well as any specifics of the state/regions that your employees are working in. Their employees should be?well-trained in the running of payroll, and managers should oversee their work. Chances are, your in-house employees won't be as savvy as an employee of a firm that does nothing but payroll all day long.
Advanced technology
Your typical payroll service provider will offer your employees perks that would most likely be difficult for your small business to provide, such as direct deposit, and secure electronic paystubs. Most of my coworkers and I prefer and?to receive our pay checks and pay stubs electronically. This method of paying employees is commonplace and expected from employees.
Separation of duties
In a small business with only one or two employees handling the accounting, it can be very difficult to create enough separation of duties to prevent any one employee being able to commit fraud. By outsourcing the payroll process, you will be able to separate this vulnerable area away from any accounting employee that may already have access to many other accounting functions. An employee that keeps the accounting books, cuts the checks, and keeps track of payroll could easily add fictitious employees to the monthly payroll without vigilant oversight from a manager. Rather than keeping an eagle eye on the employee, outsourcing payroll can prevent some potential frauds from arising.
Add-on services
Many payroll companies offer additional services that you may find that your business needs as it grows. Since it makes sense to hire a payroll company right from the start, you will have the added benefit of developing a relationship with the company so that you can feel comfortable putting other services in their hands - such as bookkeeping and other accounting services.
Convinced yet? Ask around a few other business owners in your area to see what choice they made to help you make your decision of whether to outsource payroll. You may be surprised how many of these businesses use outside companies to handle this function.
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Just 60 seconds of combat impairs memoryPublic release date: 13-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Lucy Hyde lhyde@psychologicalscience.org 202-293-9300 Association for Psychological Science
Just 60 seconds of all-out physical exertion in a threatening situation can seriously damage the memories of those involved for many details of the incident, according to a new study of police officers.
Police officers, witnesses and victims of crime suffer loss of memory, recognition and awareness of their environment if they have had to use bursts of physical energy in a combative encounter, according to scientists.
Researchers, led by Dr Lorraine Hope of the University of Portsmouth, found that less than 60 seconds of all-out exertion, as might happen when an officer is forced to chase-down a fleeing suspect or engage in a physical battle with a resistant criminal, can seriously impair their ability to remember details of the incident or even identify the person who was involved. Even officers in top condition are not immune to the rapid drain of physical prowess and cognitive faculties resulting from sustained hand-to-hand combat.
The findings, published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, are a stark warning to police officers, police chiefs and the courts, according to Dr Hope, a Reader in applied cognitive psychology of the university's Department of Psychology.
She said: "Police officers are often expected to remember in detail who said what and how many blows were received or given in the midst of physical struggle or shortly afterwards. The results of our tests indicate it may be very difficult for them to do this.
"As exhaustion takes over, cognitive resources tend to diminish. The ability to fully shift attention is inhibited, so even potentially relevant information might not be attended to. Ultimately, memory is determined by what we can process and attend to.
"The legal system puts a great deal of emphasis on witness accounts, particularly those of professional witnesses like police officers. Investigators and courts need to understand that an officer who cannot provide details about an encounter where physical exertion has played a role is not necessarily being deceptive or uncooperative. An officer's memory errors or omissions after an intense physical struggle should not unjustly affect his or her credibility."
The research, conducted on police officers in Winnipeg, Canada was coordinated and funded by the Force Science Institute. The research team in Canada included Dr Lorraine Hope (University of Portsmouth), Dr Bill Lewinski (Force Science Institute) and specialists from the Metropolitan Police in the UK.
Researchers recruited 52 officer volunteers (42 males, 10 females), with an average of eight years on the job. All officers were fit and healthy and engaged in regular exercise.
During an initial briefing, the officers were given background information about a recent spate of armed robberies in the city. The briefing included details of how the robberies were conducted and witness descriptions of the perpetrators. Half of the officers then engaged in a full-force physical attack on a 300lb hanging water bag and the others (a control group) were assigned as observers. Officers selected their own "assault movements" on the bag attack punches, kicks, and/or palm, elbow, and knee strikesand were verbally encouraged by a trainer during the task. They continued the assault on the bag until they no longer had strength to keep going or until they were breathless and struggling to continue.
The next part of the test required the officers to approach a trailer that a "known criminal" was suspected of occupying. On entering the trailer, the officer found themselves in a realistic living area where a number of weapons, including an M16 carbine, a revolver, a sawn-off shotgun and a large kitchen knife were visible. After a short delay, the "target individual" emerged from another room and shouted aggressively at the officer to get out of his property. The individual was not armed, but several of the weapons were within easy reach.
Dr Hope found those who had been asked to exert themselves physically remembered less about the target individual and made more recall errors compared to the control group of observers. The officers who had been exerted also recalled less about the initial briefing information and what they did report was less accurate. Officers who had been exerted also reported less about an individual they encountered incidentally while en route to the trailer. While more than 90 per cent of non-exerted observers were able to recall at least one descriptive item about him, barely one-third of exerted officers remembered seeing him at all.
Everyone remembered seeing the angry suspect in the trailer, but non-exerted observers provided a significantly more detailed description of him and made half as many errors in recall as those who were exhausted. These observers were also twice as likely to correctly identify the suspect from a line-up.
However, another striking aspect of the findings showed that exerted officers were able to register threat cues in the environment to the same degree at non-exerted officers.
These new findings reveal that although exerted officers were able to pay attention to the threatening aspects of the scene, their ability to then process other aspects of the interaction was affected. As a result of this, some information may only have been processed weakly or not at all resulting in an impaired memory for many details of the encounter.
###
For more information about this study, please contact: Lorraine Hope at lorraine.hope@port.ac.uk.
The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "Witnesses in Action: The Effect of Physical Exertion on Recall and Recognition" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Lucy Hyde at 202-293-9300 or lhyde@psychologicalscience.org.
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?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Just 60 seconds of combat impairs memoryPublic release date: 13-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Lucy Hyde lhyde@psychologicalscience.org 202-293-9300 Association for Psychological Science
Just 60 seconds of all-out physical exertion in a threatening situation can seriously damage the memories of those involved for many details of the incident, according to a new study of police officers.
Police officers, witnesses and victims of crime suffer loss of memory, recognition and awareness of their environment if they have had to use bursts of physical energy in a combative encounter, according to scientists.
Researchers, led by Dr Lorraine Hope of the University of Portsmouth, found that less than 60 seconds of all-out exertion, as might happen when an officer is forced to chase-down a fleeing suspect or engage in a physical battle with a resistant criminal, can seriously impair their ability to remember details of the incident or even identify the person who was involved. Even officers in top condition are not immune to the rapid drain of physical prowess and cognitive faculties resulting from sustained hand-to-hand combat.
The findings, published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, are a stark warning to police officers, police chiefs and the courts, according to Dr Hope, a Reader in applied cognitive psychology of the university's Department of Psychology.
She said: "Police officers are often expected to remember in detail who said what and how many blows were received or given in the midst of physical struggle or shortly afterwards. The results of our tests indicate it may be very difficult for them to do this.
"As exhaustion takes over, cognitive resources tend to diminish. The ability to fully shift attention is inhibited, so even potentially relevant information might not be attended to. Ultimately, memory is determined by what we can process and attend to.
"The legal system puts a great deal of emphasis on witness accounts, particularly those of professional witnesses like police officers. Investigators and courts need to understand that an officer who cannot provide details about an encounter where physical exertion has played a role is not necessarily being deceptive or uncooperative. An officer's memory errors or omissions after an intense physical struggle should not unjustly affect his or her credibility."
The research, conducted on police officers in Winnipeg, Canada was coordinated and funded by the Force Science Institute. The research team in Canada included Dr Lorraine Hope (University of Portsmouth), Dr Bill Lewinski (Force Science Institute) and specialists from the Metropolitan Police in the UK.
Researchers recruited 52 officer volunteers (42 males, 10 females), with an average of eight years on the job. All officers were fit and healthy and engaged in regular exercise.
During an initial briefing, the officers were given background information about a recent spate of armed robberies in the city. The briefing included details of how the robberies were conducted and witness descriptions of the perpetrators. Half of the officers then engaged in a full-force physical attack on a 300lb hanging water bag and the others (a control group) were assigned as observers. Officers selected their own "assault movements" on the bag attack punches, kicks, and/or palm, elbow, and knee strikesand were verbally encouraged by a trainer during the task. They continued the assault on the bag until they no longer had strength to keep going or until they were breathless and struggling to continue.
The next part of the test required the officers to approach a trailer that a "known criminal" was suspected of occupying. On entering the trailer, the officer found themselves in a realistic living area where a number of weapons, including an M16 carbine, a revolver, a sawn-off shotgun and a large kitchen knife were visible. After a short delay, the "target individual" emerged from another room and shouted aggressively at the officer to get out of his property. The individual was not armed, but several of the weapons were within easy reach.
Dr Hope found those who had been asked to exert themselves physically remembered less about the target individual and made more recall errors compared to the control group of observers. The officers who had been exerted also recalled less about the initial briefing information and what they did report was less accurate. Officers who had been exerted also reported less about an individual they encountered incidentally while en route to the trailer. While more than 90 per cent of non-exerted observers were able to recall at least one descriptive item about him, barely one-third of exerted officers remembered seeing him at all.
Everyone remembered seeing the angry suspect in the trailer, but non-exerted observers provided a significantly more detailed description of him and made half as many errors in recall as those who were exhausted. These observers were also twice as likely to correctly identify the suspect from a line-up.
However, another striking aspect of the findings showed that exerted officers were able to register threat cues in the environment to the same degree at non-exerted officers.
These new findings reveal that although exerted officers were able to pay attention to the threatening aspects of the scene, their ability to then process other aspects of the interaction was affected. As a result of this, some information may only have been processed weakly or not at all resulting in an impaired memory for many details of the encounter.
###
For more information about this study, please contact: Lorraine Hope at lorraine.hope@port.ac.uk.
The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "Witnesses in Action: The Effect of Physical Exertion on Recall and Recognition" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Lucy Hyde at 202-293-9300 or lhyde@psychologicalscience.org.
[ | E-mail | 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.
One radio host gets an early listen to the Believe track, out March 26, and compares it to Justin Timberlake's work. By Jocelyn Vena
<P>It's still two weeks until <a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/bieber_justin/artist.jhtml">Justin Bieber</a> drops his single <a href="/news/articles/1680212/justin-bieber-boyfriend-single.jhtml">"Boyfriend,"</a> but there's already a lot of buzz about it online. </P><P> </P><P>Radio host <a href="http://www.z1043.com/pages/mick-lee.html?article=9876912#ixzz1ouJA7UIf" target="_blank">Mick Lee at Z104.3</a> in Baltimore got to hear the track and has great stuff to say about it. "All I'm saying ... is wow ... so much different than his previous music," he wrote on the station's website. "Produced by Mike Posner ... the best way to describe it is a mix of Justin Timberlake 'Sexy Back' ... N Sync 'Girlfriend' — AND get this ... he raps ... best comparison is it sounds like 'Wait' by the Ying Yang Twins ..." </P><P> </P><P><embed src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:uma:video:mtv.com:744691/cp~vid%3D744691%26uri%3Dmgid%3Auma%3Avideo%3Amtv.com%3A744691" width="460" height="260" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" base="."></embed> </P><P> </P><P>Bieber's vocal producer Kuk Harrell recently spoke about the track, which is set for release on March 26, to <a href="http://www.hollywoodlife.com/2012/03/08/justin-bieber-boyfriend-new-single-believe-kuk-harrell-interview/" target="_blank">Hollywoodlife.com</a>, describing it as "hot." "Now that Justin is 18, he knows what his brand is," he said. "He knows what kind of songs are right for him. That's how you know you are genuine artist. Justin is a genuine artist!" </P><P> </P><P>Harrell added that he thinks this album could help him win a Grammy, noting, "Justin is a very creative person. He has tons of ideas. When we are working together, I allow him to flush out all of those ideas. He will be an amazing producer one day." </P><P> </P><P>"Boyfriend" is the lead single off <a href="/news/articles/1680373/justin-bieber-believe-album.jhtml">Bieber's next album, <i>Believe</a>,</i> due later this year. </P><P> </P><P>"You can't really expect anything from my album. It's really, really different," Bieber told MTV News. "And it's new; it's not the same thing everyone's used to hearing right now on the radio. It's really exciting for me, 'cause I'm able to break out of my shell and show my fans what I'm all about and show other people who might not like my music that maybe they can like my music. </P><P> </P><P>"I'm not trying to lose any of my young fans," he continued. "I'm not trying to lose any of my fans, I'm just trying to gain fans, and I think that's the best way to do it. Rather than try to grow up and lose your fans, you can get better and evolve and gain respect from more people." </P><P> </P><P><embed src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:uma:video:mtv.com:744688/cp~vid%3D744688%26uri%3Dmgid%3Auma%3Avideo%3Amtv.com%3A744688" width="460" height="260" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" base="."></embed></p>
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Public release date: 14-Mar-2012
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