Bishop Ranch Veterinary Center: Hot Weather & Summertime ...

We have gathered all of our hot weather tips from previous posts and made one handy list. We cover how to keep your pet cool, heatstroke symptoms, pool parties, hiking, camping and even how to keep your pocket pets cool! This is an indispensable resource for protecting your pets when its is hot outside!
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General Guidelines

• If possible, keep your pets indoors with the shades drawn and the air conditioning or an oscillating fan on.

• If your pet has to stay outside make sure they have access to cool and shaded areas.The best option is to keep your pets indoors during the heat of the day.

• Whether they are indoors or outside, make sure your pet has access to plenty of cool, fresh water. You can even try putting ice cubes in their bowls to keep the water extra cool.

• Keep long, thick fur trimmed in a lightweight summer cut.

• Avoid strenuous exercise or play in general in the hot weather; don't go on long hikes or lengthy walks.

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Symptoms of heatstroke include:

• Increased heart and respiratory rate

• Weakness, stupor, and possible collapse

Flat nosed breeds such as Pugs, French Bulldogs, and Persians are more susceptible to heat stroke since they cannot pant as effectively. Other pets at high risk include the elderly, overweight pets, and pets with heart or lung disease.

If you think your pet may be suffering from heat stroke, get them to a vet immediately. In the interim you can try to cool them off by dousing them with cool (but not COLD water) especially on the groin, arm pits, and paws. You do not want to soak them completely with cold water. This can cause shock and can also cause the blood vessels to constrict, thereby trapping heat inside the body.

Cars
NEVER leave your pet unattended in the car!? Even with the windows cracked, the temperature inside a car can reach 120 degrees in a matter of minutes. The result can be devastating for your pet.?

Remember that it is against the law in California to "confine an animal in any unattended motor vehicle under conditions that endanger the health...of an animal due to heat...lack of adequate ventilation?or other circumstances that could...be expected to cause suffering...or death to the animal." If you come across this situation contact the police right away or Contra Costa Animal Control at 925-335-8300 and select option #1.

Pool Parties & Barbecues

Do not leave your pet unsupervised by the pool or any other bodies of water. Even swim savvy pets can get tired and struggle to keep afloat. Better yet - get your dog a special life jacket!

Avoid feeding your pet any human foods or scraps from the grill. Bones pose many dangers, including chocking and intestinal obstruction. Fatty, sugary, and greasy food can cause pancreatitis.? This is a serious illness that often requires hospitalization. Keep alcohol out of reach. Alcohol is poisonous to pets and can cause severe stomach upset. Be especially aware of the grease trap on your grill - dogs love to lick it clean. Make sure you clean it out before they do!

Make sure your pet has a safe and secure room. This is especially important if you are having a party. This room should be off-limits to guests. Set it up so that it is quiet and escape proof with plenty of fresh water. Place their favorite things in the room such as toys and a bed. If the safe room is for a cat, make sure to place a litter box in the room. This should be a place for your pet to feel secure when things get noisy as the night goes on. Some people like to leave a TV or radio on to help counter act loud party noises or to provide familiar sounds for your pet if you are away.

If you are having guests over, remember to inform them that you have pets and to keep all doors and gates closed at all times. Make sure your pet has a collar with a current idea and is micropchipped! It is not uncommon for indoor kitties and dogs to be accidentally let out the door or gate when people have guests over for back yard cook outs. Current collars and a microchip give you that extra layer of protection and ups the odds of a missing pet returning to your loving arms. A microchip placement is a quick and easy procedure done with a technician - call us today to schedule!

Outdoor Activities, Camping, & Hiking

Make sure your dog is in good health before going on a camping or hiking trip. It is a good idea to bring a copy of your pet's medical records when you go camping in case of any accidents. It will also be helpful to have on hand to put other campers at ease with proof that your dog is up to date on all their vaccines. Protect your pet by applying flea and tick preventative prior to leaving for your trip to avoid infestation.? Always make sure your pet has a current ID tag and collar on, as well as a registered microchip. Don?t forget to pack plastic baggies for bathroom breaks, portable water bowls, and a pet first aid kit.

Every day in the summer we remove foxtails, a weed rampant in California with seeds that look like a fox's tail. The tip of each seed has barbs, allowing it to move only deeper into your pet's eyes, ears, nose, feet, genitals, and coat. Foxtails cause a lot of discomfort to dogs and cats and can even migrate internally, potentially causing organ damage and severe illness. Check your dog's feet and coat for foxtails after a hike. If you think your dog or cat has a foxtail that you cannot remove at home, take them to your veterinarian as soon as possible to reduce the risk of the foxtail migrating deeper.

Tips for Keeping Pocket Pets Cool?

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• Place a large, ceramic tile in the freezer overnight, then place inside the pet's cage. Make sure to cover the sharp edges so your pet won't get cut. You can purchase tiles at most hardware stores for fairly cheap.

• Make sure they have access to full, fresh water bottles.

• Place a cold, damp (not soaking wet) towel in one part of their cage, insuring your pet still has warm, dry spots in their habitat. You can also drape the towel on the outside of the cage, over one side to create a cool, shaded shelter.

• Keep their cages indoors and out of direct sunlight.

• Place frozen water bottles wrapped in towels in their cage for pets to lean against. Secure them so they do not have the chance to roll over.

• Use an oscillating fan near their cage. This way the fan is not constantly blowing directly on your pocket pet but is still providing cool air flow.

• Feed them frozen fruit and refrigerated veggies.

• Mist rabbit ears lightly with water to help them regulate their temperature.

• The House Rabbit Society has an informative page on rabbits and heat exhaustion with useful tips that can be applied towards other pocket pets as well.?

????????? http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/warm-weather.html?

Have a safe and wonderful summer with your family, friends, and pets! And remember - we're here when you need us. If you have any questions, concerns, or need to schedule an appointment, please call us at 925.866.8387.

Source: http://bishopranch.blogspot.com/2012/09/hot-weather-summertime-activities.html

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DCmud - The Urban Real Estate Digest of Washington DC: Another ...

The federal government has issued a Notice of Intent?that could potentially remake part of Washington D.C.'s Southwest quadrant, asking the private sector for input to make better use of the agency-heavy quadrant. ?The area, now dominated by superblocks, highways, feeder roads, checkpoints and nondescript, outdated federal buildings that make it feel more like a secure compound than one of the city's neighborhoods, was intentionally erased in the 1950's when urban planners last redesigned the neighborhood and has since faced scrutiny by myriad planners. The government's notice, issued on Friday and calling the area "Federal Triangle South", could be the beginning of the most significant reshuffling of GSA-controlled space in the greater DC area, though the area covered in Friday's issuance is only a small portion of the land dominated by government agencies. ?The notice was also admittedly vague, with no timetable and an official "inquiry" only to be released in 90 days. ?But the space at issue is also part of the "Southwest Ecodistrict," a 110-acre redevelopment zone. ?Along with?the reinvention of the?Southwest Waterfront, now just months away from beginning, and the rebuilding of 10th Street, the redevelopment could herald an entirely new neighborhood, transforming housing, roads, railroad tracks, parks and streetscapes.

The Southwest Ecodistrict, shepherded by the National Capitol Planning Commission, would stretch from Constitution Avenue along the Mall down to the edge of the waterfront. ?But because the land is controlled by a mash of private, municipal and federal entities ("walkability" sites don't even consider it a neighborhood) that make any coordinated redevelopment not unlike herding barnacles, the project has remained in the planning stages. ?The project centers on recreating Maryland Avenue which, like Pennsylvania Avenue, radiates from the Capitol Building, but which has been subordinated to railways, highways and monolithic buildings.

The government's solicitation notes the value of the land and its incongruent underuse:?"Challenges in the Federal Triangle South include older buildings that are driving high operating costs, a backlog of required capital improvements, land use inefficiencies, space inefficiencies, and lack of area amenities...GSA seeks to leverage the value of its real property assets to provide more efficient facilities for Federal Customers and potentially create the catalyst for a revitalization of this area of Southwest Washington."

Challenges abound. ?It is not clear how entire federal agencies could be moved, nor how far the federal government is willing to go toward allowing mixed-use development and relocation of federal agencies. ?But, if the concerned parties permit, the vastness of the area could allow planners to start over much as was done 6 decades ago when the government opted to tear down troubled neighborhoods in favor of a pristine federal enclave.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Source: http://dcmud.blogspot.com/2012/09/another-big-push-for-southwest-revamp.html

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vassalage texes: Why Aerobics Exercise is So Important | Internet ...

Most people first think of how great they are going to look on the outside if they following an aerobics workout routine, and this is true it will give you an attractive, toned, and fit looking body, that people will admire and even envy.

The main motivation is not the external benefits but rather the internal health derived from a consistent cardio workout, which is coupled with good nutrition.

It has now been scientifically proven that a smoker who does regular and consistent cardio workouts exercises, is healthier than a none-smoker who don?t. This is not an endorsement of smoking of course, but to show how important exercise is for overall optimal health.

So what does aerobics do for my body?

Have a Heart

Well for starts it increases the blood flow hence the oxygen levels in the body, more oxygen means the body will become efficient in caring out its daily function. Increasing the heart rate during aerobics activity will build the muscles of the heart and over time the rest rate of your heart beat will be slower; this is because your heart has become much more efficient in pumping nutrient rich blood around the body, this decrease in heart rate during rest means less wear and tear on the heart.

Once the heart becomes more efficient due to consistent aerobics cardio, oxygen is transported around the body in more volume, more efficiently and this aerobics or oxygenated blood burns fat faster and more efficiently.

Regular aerobics workout will help prevent arteriosclerosis or heart disease and even prevent stroke by strengthening the heart muscle and keeping the arteries elastic and open, this will lower blood pressure and raise your high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels (good cholesterol) and lower your low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels (bad cholesterol).

Aerobics workout does not burn cholesterol the way we know it burns fat, but what it does is stimulate the blood?s cholesterol levels and lower LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides and increase HDL (good) cholesterol.

Your Brain Will Thank You

Regular cardio vascular workouts such as aerobics increases the ?brain-derived neurotrophic factor? (BDNF). BDNF is believed to play a key role in the regulation of mood. BDNF also help brain cells and neurotransmitters live longer, so exercise can prevent dementia.

Another major chemical produces from the amino acid L-tryptophan in the brain is serotonin or (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT). This hormone is a neurotransmitter in the brain and influences a lot of different brain functions. Regular aerobics activity is shown to increase the serotonin levels in the brain.

Serotonin is a critical chemical produces by the brain and influences control over appetite, memory and learning, mood, behavior, depression, sleep, endocrine regulation, temperature regulation, sex drive or the lack there of, cardiovascular function, and muscle contraction. Regular aerobics exercise is key in maintaining proper levels of this very important chemical.

Workout for Your Bone

like muscles bones are alive and ever changing, either for the better or the worst. Aerobics exercise strengthen bones just like it does muscles, stronger bones will reduce your risk of small fracture and weakening of your skeletal structure as you get older, which could lead to osteoporosis. Regular exercise also serves to lubricate the joints and reduce inflammation and prevent arthritis. So increase your bone?s strength and mass with some cardio.

Aerobics for Immunity

It has been shown that regular cardio workouts strengthens the immune system and enable it to fight off sickness and infection. The increased aerobic activity serves to expel airborne viruses and bacteria from the lungs before they have a chance to invade. Rapid blood flow throughout the body and the action of sweating during a workout also rid the body of toxins and certain carcinogens. Built up waste mater is excreted through the sweat glands and urination. That?s why proper hydration is important during a workout.

Antibodies and white blood cells are used by the immune system to fight invaders, regular exercise activities helps to circulate and distribute these fighters throughout the body, reducing the risk of infection and sickness.

So Strengthen, tune and tone your body with aerobics workout exercises, both on the outside but most importantly on the inside.

Staying fit and healthy is not a Fad but rather a lifestyle,

Steve Robertson

Steve Robertson is the owner of the website http://www.stepaerobicsdvds.com and is a health and fitness consultant and blogger. Visit his site to review his top pick of aerobics dvds online and to find the best prices for workout videos.

Content About : Why Aerobics Exercise is So Important Article

-- Download Why Aerobics Exercise is So Important as PDF --

Source: http://www.econtentz.com/contents/health-and-fitness/aerobics-cardio/why-aerobics-exercise-is-so-important/

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Source: http://lecugebil.posterous.com/why-aerobics-exercise-is-so-important-interne

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Source: http://vassalage-texes.blogspot.com/2012/09/why-aerobics-exercise-is-so-important.html

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Source: http://carsons222.posterous.com/vassalage-texes-why-aerobics-exercise-is-so-i

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Bioengineers design rapid diagnostic tests inspired by nature

ScienceDaily (Sep. 27, 2012) ? By mimicking nature's own sensing mechanisms, bioengineers at UC Santa Barbara and University of Rome Tor Vergata have designed inexpensive medical diagnostic tests that take only a few minutes to perform. Their findings may aid efforts to build point-of-care devices for quick medical diagnosis of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), allergies, autoimmune diseases, and a number of other diseases. The new technology could dramatically impact world health, according to the research team.

The rapid and easy-to-use diagnostic test consists of a nanometer-scale DNA "switch" that can quickly detect antibodies specific to a wide range of diseases. The research is described in an article published this month in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

The design was created by the research group of Kevin W. Plaxco, a professor in UCSB's Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. He noted that, despite the power of current diagnostic tests, a significant limitation is that they still require complex laboratory procedures. "Patients typically must wait for days or even weeks to receive the results of most STD tests," said Plaxco. "The blood sample has to be transported to the lab, its content analyzed by trained personnel, and the results sent back to the doctor's office. If we can move testing to the point of care, it eliminates the lag between testing and treatment, which would enhance the effectiveness of medical interventions, and, for infectious diseases like STDs, reduce transmission."

The key breakthrough underlying this new technology came from observing nature. "All creatures, from bacteria to humans, monitor their environments using amazing 'molecular nanoswitches' that signal the presence of a specific target by changing their structure," said Alexis Vall?e-B?lisle, a postdoctoral scholar and co-first author of the study. "For example, on the surface of our cells, there are millions of receptor proteins that detect various molecules by switching from an 'off state' to an 'on state.' The beauty of these switches is that they are able to work directly in very complex environments such as whole blood."

Plaxco's research group teamed with Francesco Ricci, professor at University of Rome Tor Vergata and co-first author of the paper, to build synthetic molecular switches that signal their state via a change in electric current. This change in current can be measured using inexpensive electronics similar to those in the home glucose test meter used by diabetics to check their blood sugar. Using these "nature-inspired" nanoswitches, the researchers were able to detect anti-HIV antibodies directly in whole blood in less than five minutes.

"A great advantage of these electrochemical nanoswitches is that their sensing principle can be generalized to many different targets, allowing us to build inexpensive devices that could detect dozens of disease markers in less than five minutes in the doctor's office or even at home," said Ricci.

The authors noted that it may take several years to bring the devices to the market.

The additional co-authors are Fan Xia of Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China; and Takanori Uzawa of Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan.

This work was funded by the National Institute of Health, the Fond Qu?b?cois de la Recherche sur la Nature et les Technologies; the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR) project "Futuro in Ricerca;" and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, through the Grand Challenges Explorations Grant.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of California - Santa Barbara.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. Alexis Vall?e-B?lisle, Francesco Ricci, Takanori Uzawa, Fan Xia, Kevin W. Plaxco. Bioelectrochemical Switches for the Quantitative Detection of Antibodies Directly in Whole Blood. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2012; 134 (37): 15197 DOI: 10.1021/ja305720w

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/LDWWmF4zukY/120928093721.htm

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Jay-Z's Hard Knock Life Took Him To Another Level, 14 Years Ago Today

'It was just so pure,' Jay-Z tells MTV News of his 1998 Grammy Award-winning Vol.2 ... Hard Knock Life.
By Rob Markman

Jay-Z in his "Hard Knock Life" music video
Photo: UMG

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1694679/jay-z-hard-knock-life-anniversary.jhtml

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Panasonic to Showcase Eco & Smart Lifestyle at CEATEC JAPAN 2012

Osaka, Sept 27, 2012 - (JCN Newswire) - Panasonic Corporation will showcase its latest products and technologies that will realize an eco-friendly and smart lifestyle at CEATEC JAPAN 2012, the largest cutting-edge IT and electronics trade show in Japan, from October 2 to 6 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba City on the outskirts of Tokyo. Panasonic will run two booths: "Life & Society Stage" in Hall 2 and "Panasonic Devices Booth" in Hall 8.

1. Panasonic Booth in Hall 2 - Life & Society Stage

Under the theme of "Eco & Smart Lifestyle," Panasonic will present an ecological lifestyle which is simple, convenient, safe and secure, pleasant and comfortable, with a variety of the company's smart offerings ranging from audiovisual equipment to home appliances and energy solutions.

Visitors to the Panasonic booth will experience the following:

- Corporate Stage

On the Corporate stage, Panasonic's concepts, products and technologies will be presented in an easy-to-understand way. Smart appliances, which are linked to each other and are connected to cloud-based services, offer new value for consumers. Panasonic will take the lead and develop its business with its wide range of smart appliances.

The introduction on the stage includes the company's Smart AV equipment which not only serves as an entertainment center but also a communications tool with a variety of content, games and applications offered on the cloud; Smart Appliances that evolve even after the purchase in line with advances in lifestyle in the future; and Smart Energy that lets users save energy without sacrificing comfort as well as helping prepare for emergencies such as power cuts.

- Eco & Smart Lifestyle Demonstration Tour

The tour provides visitors firsthand experience of the benefits of connectivity with demonstrations in everyday life settings.

- Display Corners

Smart AV:
This corner introduces Panasonic's latest digital AV products with enhanced network functions, including Smart VIERA televisions and Smart DIGA Blu-ray Disc players and recorders that offer increased ease of use through connectivity with smartphones and other AV equipment.

Smart Appliances:
A wide-ranging lineup of Panasonic smart appliances that can be connected to cloud-based services via smartphones are demonstrated. They include cooking appliances that will add new joy to cooking by enabling the user to search and download recipes from the cloud and speed up cooking time, and personal healthcare equipment that will make daily health management easier.

Smart Energy:
Panasonic's Smart Home Energy Management System (SMARTHEMS) and AiSEG, a core component of SMARTHEMS, are presented with compatible home appliances - air conditioners, IH cooking heaters and EcoCute heat pump hot water supply system - and Panasonic's energy creation-storage linked system.

- Special & Topical Exhibits

Panasonic's 145-inch 8K plasma display and 20-inch 4K LCDs are on display to demonstrate the company's high-definition display technology. Fujisawa Sustainable Smart Town is also introduced. Other exhibits include Panasonic's Interactive Plasma Display (digital blackboard), LUMIX digital cameras and Let's note personal computers.

2. Panasonic Devices Booth in Hall 8 - Key Technology Stage

Under the theme of "Innovative Industrial Devices Paving the Future of Our World," Panasonic will introduce here a wide range of advanced devices and solutions that fulfill customer needs, with focus on the three key areas: environmental infrastructure, eco cars and mobile. Visitors will be able to find the following in the booth:

- Environmental Infrastructure:

Devices for power meters, LED lighting and solar/power conditioners

- Eco Cars:

Devices for powertrains and HMI (human machine interface) that assist drivers

- Mobile:

Devices supporting compact and slim design, a variety of UIs (user interfaces) and sensors.

The exhibits are subject to change without prior notice.

About Panasonic

Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of electronic products in three business fields, consumer, components & devices, and solutions. Based in Osaka, Japan, the company recorded consolidated net sales of 7.85 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2012. Panasonic's stock is listed on the Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and New York (NYSE:PC) Stock Exchanges. The company has the vision of becoming the No. 1 Green Innovation Company in the Electronics Industry by the 100th year of its founding in 2018. For more information on Panasonic, its brand and commitment to sustainability, visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net/.

Contact:

 Panasonic Corporation
 Global Public Relations Office
 Tel: +81-3-3574-5664 
 Fax: +81-3-3574-5699
 

Sept 27, 2012
Source: Panasonic
Panasonic (TSE: 6752) (U.S: PC)
From the Japan Corporate News Network
http://www.japancorp.net
Topic: Trade Show or Conference
View more news from these Sectors: Consumer Electronics, Alternative Energy, Environment General

Source: http://www.japancorp.net/press_release/25718/panasonic_to_showcase_eco_amp_smart_lifestyle_at_ceatec_japan_2012

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S'pore green building movement takes to the streets | Eco-Business ...

The green building industry needs green attitudes from occupants to be effective. Image: SIEW.

Green buildings may have risen in popularity in Singapore in the past few years, but such buildings are ?green? only if their users are too.

This is why the local green building movement is moving beyond physical walls to reach out to the man in the street, Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC) president Tai Lee Siang told Eco-Business in a recent interview.

Strong government leadership here has enabled building owners to adopt newfangled green technology to make their buildings more efficient. ?But the industry is mindful that if the people who occupy them do not have a ?green attitude? to conserving energy and resources, such buildings will not function well,? he said.

The SGBC, an industry association with more than 300 members, is thus focusing its efforts to include engaging the wider community, so that ?green lifestyles can complement green buildings to achieve greater results?, he said.

For example, SGBC is collaborating with technology giant IBM and the Ministry of Education on ?Project Green Insights?, which will raise awareness of energy efficiency with schools in Singapore. Education is important, said Mr Tai, as green attitudes are best adopted from a young age and the youth will become the future generation of building users.

SGBC?s industry members, such as property developers Lend Lease, are also developing green leases where tenants have to agree to certain environmental targets when they lease a retail space.

This focus on the community will be the main theme at this year?s upcoming International Green Building Conference (IGBC), organized by SGBC, which will feature activities that reach out to tenants, consumers and the youth.

To be held at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre from 10 to 12 October, the conference will convene more than 50 international experts from 25 countries to speak on green buildings and sustainable lifestyles.

National building regulator, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), is also set to unveil new Green Mark schemes for big users of energy such as supermarkets, retailers and data centres at the conference.

The Green Mark is a system developed by the BCA to rate buildings on their environmental performance. Singapore currently has more than 1,200 Green Mark buildings.

Director of BCA?s technology development group, Mr Tan Tian Chong noted in statement that since its launch in 2005, the Green Mark scheme has ?provided a meaningful differentiation of buildings in the real estate market.?

?Indeed, a Green Mark building is internationally recognized as having best practices in environmental design and performance. This can have positive value-add for building owners as well as end-users as they will be living and working in energy-efficient, greener and healthier environments. We will extend the Green Mark scheme to new frontiers to make Singapore an even greener and healthier place,? he said.

BCA also plans to introduce a web-based carbon calculator that will help building professionals determine the footprint of major construction materials and energy used in buildings.

To ensure that the industry is held to high standards, the SGBC will announce at the conference a new Green Services Certification Scheme, which will cover related sectors such as architectural design, mechanical and electrical services, energy management and consultancy, and contractors.

It is an extension of an existing Green Building Product Certification, launched in 2010, which certifies green building products. SGBC has certified a total of 144 green products to date.

Mr Tai noted that products are only one aspect of what makes a building green. Service providers, who help create such buildings, are also important. ?So the new scheme will create a certain benchmark? on which these providers can be certified,? he said.

Some 10,000 people are expected to attend October?s conference. It will be held together with Bex Asia 2012, an annual regional building expo focusing on eco-friendly products and solutions. Both events are part of the annual Singapore Green Building Week.

Some notable figures due to speak include Professor Jacqueline Cramer, Director of Utrecht Sustainability Institute and former Minister of Housing, Social Planning and the Environment of the Netherlands, Ms Jane Henley, chief executive of the World Green Building Council and the founder of Earth Hour, Mr Andy Ridley.

To register for the upcoming International Green Building Conference 2012, click here.

Source: http://www.eco-business.com/features/spore-green-building-movement-takes-to-the-streets/

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News in Brief: Atom & Cosmos

The gassy halo engulfing the Milky Way, a comet in the neighborhood, and extraterrestrial rocks as the source of life on Earth

Web edition : 5:58 pm

Huge halo may hold missing matter
The Milky Way galaxy is cocooned inside an enormous cloud of hot gas, a finding that could solve a persistent astrophysical conundrum. Heated to more than 1 million degrees Celsius, the halo extends more than 300,000 light-years from the galactic center and contains at least as much mass as 10 billion suns, scientists report in the Sept. 1 Astrophysical Journal Letters. An international team of astronomers used NASA?s orbiting Chandra X-ray Observatory to detect hot, charged oxygen atoms. If verified, the halo?s size could solve what?s been called the ?missing baryon? problem: In the Milky Way and local neighborhood, at least half the expected baryons???normal subatomic particles like protons and neutrons???are unaccounted for. Now, scientists think these particles might be hiding in this and other superhot, gassy halos. ??Nadia Drake

Comet could dazzle or fizzle
The skies might blaze with a visitor shining more brightly than the moon beginning in November 2013. A large comet, called C/2012 S1, was discovered September 21 by the International Scientific Optical Network in Russia and confirmed September 24 by the International Astronomical Union?s Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Mass. Also called Comet ISON, the icy traveler is currently outside the orbit of Jupiter and in the constellation Cancer, heading for a close encounter with the sun. As it whizzes by the sun, the comet?s frozen ingredients could evaporate and leave behind a long, spectacular tail???if it doesn?t begin breaking up before then. Though predicting cometary orbits is easy, predicting brightness is trickier, because that depends on how a comet behaves. Comet ISON has the potential to be the brightest observed from Earth in a century, ?or it could fizzle,? writes amateur astronomer Bill Gray in a guest blog post for the Planetary Society. ??Nadia Drake

Neighbors may have lent life
Life could have been brought to Earth aboard rocky chunks ejected from neighboring planetary systems. The idea, called lithopanspermia, is often viewed with derision or incredulity???but conditions in the early solar system may have been just right for such a thing to occur, Amaya Moro-Mart?n of Spain?s Centro de Astrobiolog?a reported at the European Planetary Science Congress in Barcelona on September 25. After considering the dynamic environment in the very young solar system and its proximity to neighboring planetary systems, Moro-Mart?n and colleagues concluded that life-bearing materials could be efficiently exchanged between systems if interstellar rocks traveled at slow speeds. In a related paper published September 12 in Astrobiology, the team calculates that more than a trillion rocks heavier than 10 kilograms could have traveled between the sun and its neighbors before the sun?s native star cluster dispersed. ??Nadia Drake

Found in: Astronomy and Atom & Cosmos

Source: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/345450/title/News_in_Brief_Atom_+_Cosmos

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Potentially dangerous new malaria mosquito identified

ScienceDaily (Sep. 28, 2012) ? University of Notre Dame entomologists are part of a team of researchers that recently discovered a potentially dangerous new malaria-transmitting mosquito. The as yet unnamed, and previously unreported, mosquito breeds in the western areas of Kenya and has an unknown DNA match to any of the existing malaria-transmitting species.

The Anopheles species of mosquitoes which transmits malaria in Africa is already widely studied by researchers. It prefers to rest indoors during the day and feed on humans during the night. Current malaria control programs, including spraying of insecticides and using insecticide-treated bed nets, are designed with these behaviors in mind.

Although the new species has never been implicated in the transmission of malaria, new discoveries in its biting habits pose a threat because it was found to be active outdoors and prefers to bite people earlier in the evening, soon after sunset, when people are not protected by current malaria control techniques.

Neil Lobo, a Notre Dame research associate professor and Brandy St. Laurent, a former Notre Dame doctoral student, joined forces on the team of researchers that made the discovery. y Frank Collins, Notre Dame's George and Winifred Clark Professor of Biology, Collins was principal investigator of the Malaria Transmission Consortium effort funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The discovery was announced in a paper whose lead author was Jennifer Stevenson of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/health_medicine/genes/~3/FXD88XY98pc/120929140348.htm

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Russian metals moguls settle RUSAL stake spat

LONDON/MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian billionaires Oleg Deripaska and Michael Cherney reached an 11th-hour settlement in a dispute over a billion dollar slice of aluminum giant RUSAL , shortly before they were due to give evidence in a drawn-out London court case.

The case, which had been expected to run well into 2013, was due to dwell on allegations of broken promises, criminality and mob rule while shining a light on the murky carve-up of lucrative smelters in the 'wild east' of post-Soviet Siberia.

"Mr. Deripaska announces that Mr. Cherney's litigation in London against him has been terminated," a spokesperson for Deripaska said in a brief statement. "Neither party will be making any further comment in relation to the litigation or matters raised therein."

Cherney's team released a nearly identical statement.

Cherney, born in Ukraine, raised in Uzbekistan, Jewish by creed and living in Israel since leaving Russia in 1994, alleged that metals mogul Deripaska reneged on a deal to buy him out of their joint aluminum business, RUSAL.

Well-connected Deripaska, who controls RUSAL and is a survivor of President Vladimir Putin's crackdown on oligarchs who once wielded great political power, denied having had any such business relationship with Cherney. He alleged he was the victim of a protection racket Cherney helped orchestrate - an accusation Cherney denied.

Cherney, who in 2008 won the right to bring his case against Deripaska in London's respected courts - the venue of choice for the warring Russian wealthy - was due to be cross-examined next Tuesday via video-link from Israel. An outstanding arrest warrant relating to a separate money laundering investigation prevents him from travelling to London.

Lawyers were intrigued at the last-minute deal.

"The experience in most of these cases is that they do go to trial because no one is willing to back down," said Philippa Charles, a litigation partner at law firm Mayer Brown.

"So it's interesting that the level of publicity has perhaps focused the minds of both parties on whether or not it is actually worth having their dirty linen washed in public."

THE POWER OF METAL

The Russian aluminum industry, like much of Russia's raw materials sector, came under the control of a few powerful oligarchs during the huge selloff of state assets that followed the collapse of communism and of the Soviet Union in 1991. The brutality of the business rivalry over aluminum smelters gave birth to the term 'aluminum wars'.

Cherney's case against Deripaska had overtones of a recent battle between Russian oligarchs Boris Berezovsky and Roman Abramovich, which in August helped ensure the concept of "krysha", or roof, was established in English courts.

Berezovsky's claim for $6 billion was dismissed and Judge Elizabeth Gloster described him as an 'inherently unreliable witness'. Abramovich had said he had paid money to Berezovsky for 'krysha' services of political cover and protection,

A "krysha", in Russian gangster parlance, can be either a figure who genuinely protects, in return for payment, the interests of a business in a sometimes brutal business world or it can refer to a racketeer extorting money by intimidation. The boundary between the two can, of course, be blurred.

The case, which began in July when both sides published opening statements and lawyers laid out the details of their arguments in front of Judge Andrew Smith, hinged in part on what was agreed in a London hotel 11 year ago.

Cherney and Deripaska agreed they met at the Lanesborough Hotel on a March morning in 2001, that they signed one document and that Deripaska handed Cherney $250 million. Everything else, even exactly when they first met each other, was disputed.

Deripaska says he made the payment to terminate a krysha arrangement with Cherney, partly because his business was now powerful enough, and his security forces strong enough, to confront criminal gangs.

Cherney says he had orally agreed a 50/50 partnership with Deripaska in 1993, which lasted until March 2001. He alleges Deripaska then agreed at the Lanesborough meeting to pay him a preliminary $250 million for his aluminum interests held by Deripaska - and also agreed to buy him out of the remainder of his stake within a few years.

RUSAL, the product of a slew of takeovers and mergers mainly in Siberia, where the hydro-electric power needed to fuel hungry smelters comes cheap, has emerged as Russia's only aluminum producer. Cherney alleged a 13.2 percent stake belongs to him.

Deripaska, a former physics student who started investing in aluminum assets in 1991 who has entertained top British politicians on his 70 million pound ($114 million) yacht, says he was forced into a "krysha" after being threatened by some of the country's most powerful criminal gangs in the mid-1990s.

Stories abound about such "protection" mobs attacking the wives and relatives of those who failed to do their bidding, launching fictitious criminal proceedings, violent takeovers of businesses or simply liquidating rivals and critics.

($1 = 0.6164 British pounds)

(Writing by Kirstin Ridley, Additional reporting by Clara Ferreira-Marques; Editing by Ralph Boulton and Mark Potter)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/russian-metals-moguls-settle-rusal-stake-spat-023152951--finance.html

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Pilot proposes with plane crash prank

(ABC)One man's airborne proposal took his girlfriend's breath away when he pretended that their small plane was in trouble and asked her to read an emergency checklist that contained instructions for a "ring engagement procedure."

The groom-to-be was filming the entire episode on hidden camera, and he posted the video, "In Descent Proposal," on YouTube.

The man, Ryan Thompson, was flying his girlfriend, Carlie Kennedy, on a breathtaking flight above the Chicago skyline.

The video, which includes the date 2.11.12, contains no dialogue, just music and captions at the bottom of the screen to describe the conversation.

At first, the two are smiling. They appear happy, and the sky forms a brilliant blue backdrop.

"I thought he was surprising me for Valentine's Day," said Kennedy. "It was a gorgeous day, as you can see in the video."

Related: Russian man fakes car accident death in grisly proposal

But after a short while, the plane appears to shake and Carlie's smile falters.

"All of a sudden I felt my stomach kind of go up in my throat and I realized we were heading straight for the water," Kennedy said. "And then he [Thompson] said, 'Honey, I need you to stay calm. The flight controls aren't working.'"

In the video, Kennedy appears clearly shaken, but she complies, reading the emergency checklist he hands her.

"Unresponsive flight controls ? ," she begins, eventually getting to the instructions "to initiate the ring engagement procedure."

"Pilot in command. Determine if he is a good mate. Note: he will always love and honor you," she continues, appearing not to fully comprehend the meaning of the words .

"I genuinely did believe that we were going to die," she said, recounting the moment. "I felt like our lives depended on me making it through that checklist."

While Carlie reads, Thompson reaches into his pocket for the ring.

When she reads the question "Will you marry me?" she stops for a moment, stunned, then covers her face and bursts out laughing, casting several glances at the ring he's holding in front of her.

"Will you marry me?" he asks.

She said yes.

"A lot of the women that I've told the story [to] said, 'I would have slapped him,'" Kennedy said.

"But, for us, it was a perfect match," said her now-fiance, Thompson.

Also Read

Source: http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/pilot-proposes-plane-crash-prank-120547490--abc-news-lifestyle.html

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T-Mobile USA in $2.4 billion tower deal with Crown Castle

NEW YORK (Reuters) - T-Mobile USA, the No. 4 U.S. mobile provider, has agreed to sell the rights to operate 7,200 of its wireless broadcast towers for $2.4 billion to Crown Castle International Corp to help its parent Deutsche Telekom pay back debt.

Crown Castle has the option to pay another $2.4 billion to buy the towers outright from T-Mobile USA at the end of the lease term for each tower - between 2025 and 2048 - under the deal announced Friday.

T-Mobile USA, which is spending $4 billion on a network upgrade, has also been looking for ways to become more financially independent from its parent, which had tried to exit the U.S. market the year before.

The customer-losing U.S. operator has been struggling to stem customer losses as it has a tough time competing with bigger and smaller rivals.

It had been trying to sell its wireless towers since its proposed purchase by AT&T Inc failed last year due to regulatory opposition. It had looked into selling the towers in early 2011 before it started the AT&T process.

Deutsche Telekom declined to give specifics on the impact on its financials, except to say it would use the cash to pay back some debt.

Crown Castle said it expects the towers to generate about $125 million to $130 million in adjusted funds from operations before financing costs in 2013.

JPMorgan analyst Phil Cusick said while the price tag was at the high end of his expectations it was mitigated by Crown Castle's strong growth outlook for the assets.

Crown Castle also said that the towers will have enough space to accommodate at least one additional wireless service provider customer on each tower without significant incremental capital.

As part of the deal, T-Mobile USA committed to maintaining its communications facilities on the towers for at least 10 years with annual rent increase provisions tied to the consumer price index. T-Mobile's rent includes the rights to complete its current network upgrade on these sites.

"The deal is well structured to account for the inherent risks of purchasing a tower portfolio highly weighted to one carrier," Piper Jaffray analyst Christopher Larsen said.

Deutsche Telekom said the company had multiple bidders for the assets but declined to name them.

Analysts have said other companies that considered the towers included American Tower Corp and SBA Communications Corp.

Crown Castle shares fell 18 cents to $64.73 in morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Deutsche Telekom shares were down 1.1 percent in afternoon trading in Frankfurt.

(Reporting By Sinead Carew; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/t-mobile-usa-inks-2-4-billion-tower-121836677--sector.html

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Dark money poured into New Mexico Senate contest | New Mexico ...

by Kim Barker and Justin Elliott ProPublica, Sept. 27, 2012, 4:32 p.m.

Dark money groups flooded Albuquerque?s airwaves in August, aiming to sway a hotly contested U.S. Senate race by making more than half the political ad buys on top TV stations.

That fact, gleaned through a review of TV station political ad records now available in our Free the Files news application, highlights the role that unlimited anonymous money is playing in this year?s election.

Our analysis of a month of ad orders in the Senate race between Republican Heather Wilson and Democrat Rep. Martin Heinrich is possible because of a new Federal Communications Commission rule requiring major-market affiliates of ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC to upload political ad files to a government website.

In statements to ProPublica, the campaigns of Heinrich and Wilson blamed each other for relying on dark money.

Wilson campaign spokesman Chris Sanchez accused ?environmental extremists? of pouring money ?into New Mexico to falsely attack Heather Wilson because they know her opponent, Congressman Heinrich, supports their radical agenda.?

Heinrich campaign spokeswoman Whitney Potter accused ?corporate special interest groups? of spending millions in secret money to support Wilson ?because they know she will support their misplaced priorities that put the wealthy special interests ahead of middle-class families in New Mexico.?

The Senate race has attracted national attention because, with incumbent Democratic Sen. Jeff Bingaman retiring, it is a rare open seat. The race was considered tight earlier this year. After a summer of heavy spending by outside groups on both sides, Heinrich is now the favorite.

In August, while Wilson?s campaign contracted to spend about $512,000 on ads in Albuquerque, four prominent conservative groups booked almost $658,000 of ads attacking Heinrich, station records show.

That means about 56 percent of the ad orders on the Republican side came from groups that don?t disclose their donors, including Americans for Prosperity, founded by billionaire brothers David and Charles Koch, and Crossroads GPS, launched by GOP strategist Karl Rove. Campaigns are required to report their donors.

Heinrich, who as a congressman has called for donor disclosure and campaign-finance reform, booked an estimated $246,000 worth of ads in August. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which also reports its donors, chimed in with another $74,000.

But nonprofits on the Democratic side spent an additional $288,000 on ads criticizing Wilson, about 47 percent of the money spent on ads overall.

The liberal dark money groups included a coalition of environmental organizations and the Citizens for Strength and Security Fund, which appears to be a successor to a nonprofit active in the 2010 election.

The spending figures are estimates because most of the files uploaded to the FCC website are ad orders. Sometimes, ordered ads never run because of changes in programming. The numbers also are ?not comprehensive; other TV stations in the Albuquerque market besides affiliates of the major networks do not have to put political ad files online until 2014.

While the FCC files have long been public, they were previously kept on paper at TV stations and were largely inaccessible. The files capture certain spending not reported to the Federal Election Commission and offer a detailed look at how campaigns and outside groups are spending ad dollars, including how many ads have been ordered, which stations are running them, the programs they run on, and how much they cost.

The ad spending in Albuquerque shows that nonprofit social welfare groups are playing at least as significant a role this election cycle as super PACs, which can also accept unlimited donations but must report their donors. Not a single super PAC reported buying ads in August on the top stations in the Albuquerque market, the FCC filings show.

Some of the most prominent conservative social welfare nonprofits signed up to support Wilson, producing ads labeling Heinrich an out-of-control spender.

?Big Washington spending is not helping New Mexico. And the more money Martin Heinrich is spending is part of the problem,? a narrator in a Crossroads GPS ad says. Pointing to Heinrich?s support for the stimulus, the ad claims he voted to send $2 million to California to collect ants and $300,000 to Texas to study weather on Venus.

The group ordered about $166,000 in ads in Albuquerque in August, TV station filings show.

Unlike most candidates Crossroads is helping around the country, Wilson has a direct connection to the group. After she left Congress in 2009, she sat on Crossroads? board for a six-month period ending in February 2011, according to her financial disclosure form.

In that role, ?she attended board meetings, wrote an op-ed on defense policy, and provided general guidance, as all Crossroads board members do, on the organization?s activities and policies,? said Crossroads spokesman Jonathan Collegio.

Sanchez said Wilson does not currently have an ?existing relationship or communication with Crossroads GPS.? Outside spending groups such as Crossroads are not allowed to coordinate directly with candidates.

Like the Crossroads ad, another pair of August ads funded by anonymous money labeled Heinrich an irresponsible spender. The American Future Fund, the conservative Iowa nonprofit, signed up to spend almost $97,000 on ads. Americans for Prosperity ordered almost $328,000 in ads in August.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the only trade association spending money in Albuquerque in August, spent more than $67,000 on ads criticizing Heinrich.

Heinrich?s campaign has seized on the outside money on the conservative side even as he has benefited from dark money spending by liberal groups.

Last week, his campaign put out an ad featuring TVs playing conservative attack ads arriving at an airport luggage carousel. ?Here they come,? the narrator says. ?The special interests are here to distort Martin Heinrich?s record.??

Heinrich has also supported a bill, which has failed twice in Congress, to require outside spending groups to disclose their donors for political ads. In March, he sent a letter to the FCC urging it to swiftly implement greater transparency measures in disclosing who paid for political ads.

Nonetheless, a coalition of environmental groups including the League of Conservation Voters and the National Wildlife Federation Action Fund, has spent more than $1 million supporting Heinrich, including an ad accusing Wilson of being too cozy with polluting corporations.

In August, the coalition put in orders for more than $70,000 for TV ads in Albuquerque. (Most of the environmental groups? spending took place earlier in the summer, before the FCC required TV stations to put political ad files online.)

On Tuesday an official from the League of Conservation Voters sent out a press release claiming the groups? spending had decisively turned the race in Heinrich?s favor.

Another group, the Citizens for Strength and Security Fund, ordered about $218,000 in commercials to aid Heinrich in Albuquerque in August. Its ad says that Wilson is ?promising more tax giveaways for millionaires?: ?

So what is the Citizens for Strength and Security Fund? Its website says it is a social welfare nonprofit formed in 2011 to strengthen the country and make the middle class more secure. Yet the site uses the same clip art, cites the same issues, and repeats much of the language as a now-defunct website for a similarly named group, the Citizens for Strength and Security Action Fund, or CSS Action Fund, that spent millions on ads supporting Democrats in the 2010 election.

A ProPublica story in August detailed how some social welfare nonprofits pop up for elections and disappear, only to re-form later, always staying a step ahead of the IRS. ProPublica found that some groups, including the CSS Action Fund, never applied to the IRS for recognition of their nonprofit status.

A March 2 letter in the FCC filings from Albuquerque says the Citizens for Strength and Security Fund is run by Lora Haggard, the chief financial officer for John Edwards? campaign in 2008. The other officer named is Jeremy Van Ess, another longtime operative who works for Hilltop Public Solutions, a Beltway consulting firm that supports Democratic causes. The two people listed as running the CSS Action Fund (the earlier nonprofit) worked for Hilltop.

Haggard didn?t return calls for comment. Van Ess confirmed the group?s spending in New Mexico and said it had not applied to the IRS for recognition of its tax status because it was not required to do so. He declined to answer any other questions about Citizens for Strength and Security.

Source: http://www.nmtelegram.com/2012/09/28/dark-money-poured-into-new-mexico-senate-contest/

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Fabricated: Scientists develop method to synthesize the sound of clothing for animations (video)

Developments in CGI and animatronics might be getting alarmingly realistic, but the audio that goes with it often still relies on manual recordings. A pair of associate professors and a graduate student from Cornell University, however, have developed a method for synthesizing the sound of moving fabrics -- such as rustling clothes -- for use in animations, and thus, potentially film. The process, presented at SIGGRAPH, but reported to the public today, involves looking into two components of the natural sound of fabric, cloth moving on cloth, and crumpling. After creating a model for the energy and pattern of these two aspects, an approximation of the sound can be created, which acts as a kind of "road map" for the final audio.

The end result is created by breaking the map down into much smaller fragments, which are then matched against a database of similar sections of real field-recorded audio. They even included binaural recordings to give a first-person perspective for headphone wearers. The process is still overseen by a human sound engineer, who selects the appropriate type of fabric and oversees the way that sounds are matched, meaning it's not quite ready for prime time. Understandable really, as this is still a proof of concept, with real-time operations and other improvements penciled in for future iterations. What does a virtual sheet being pulled over an imaginary sofa sound like? Head past the break to hear it in action, along with a presentation of the process.

Continue reading Fabricated: Scientists develop method to synthesize the sound of clothing for animations (video)

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Fabricated: Scientists develop method to synthesize the sound of clothing for animations (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Sep 2012 23:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/26/scientists-develop-method-to-synthesize-the-sound-of-fabric/

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The Dragons Are Coming! Watch the New Promo Trailer for ...

This summer, entertainment history was made as audiences across North America experienced the magic of fire-breathing dragons soaring through arena skies in DREAMWORKS? HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR.

Following a critically acclaimed launch in Australia and New Zealand, the US tour of DREAMWORKS? HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR has more dates on sale, following an engagement at the Izod Center, East Rutherford, NJ September 27 ? September 30.

Here are the new dates:? In 2012, Tacoma, WA (December 6?9), Fresno, CA (December 19?22), San Jose, CA (December 26?30), and in 2013, Sacramento, CA (January 3-6), Salt Lake City, UT (January 10-13) and Anaheim, CA (January 17-20).

Go to www.dreamworksdragonslive.com for on-sale dates and other ticket information.? Check back for additional tour markets in 2013 which will be announced soon.

Created by the studio that brought us blockbuster hits such as Shrek and Madagascar, The HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR was produced by the storytellers at DreamWorks Animation, and Global Creatures, the masterminds behind the international phenomenon Walking with Dinosaurs, the #1 grossing world tour of 2010. The tour is exclusively promoted by S2BN Entertainment.

Inspired by the hit movie How To Train Your Dragon, this live event is a never-before-seen production that audiences of all ages will never forget. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR features more than a dozen dragons, some with wingspans of up to 46 feet, Viking warriors and world-class circus artists and acrobats combined with a heartwarming story that truly delivers a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the entire family.

Fire-breathing action, epic adventure and heartfelt laughter come together in a captivating story set in the mythical world of Vikings and wild dragons.? Based on the book by Cressida Cowell, it centers on Hiccup, a Viking teenager who doesn?t fit in with his tribe?s longstanding tradition of heroic dragon slayers.? Hiccup?s world is turned upside down when he encounters a dragon that challenges him and his fellow Vikings to see the world from an entirely different point of view.

?It is incredibly exciting to see our movie characters live on to thrill audiences in new entertainment experiences,? said Jeffrey Katzenberg, Chief Executive Officer of DreamWorks Animation. ?HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR is an extraordinary re-imagining of the story that breaks new ground in visual storytelling. The early reception to the show has been phenomenal, and we are now pleased to add more dates to bring HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR to even more audiences throughout America and Canada.?

Global Creatures Chief Executive Officer Carmen Pavlovic added, ?With DreamWorks we have forged a relationship with one of the world?s leading entertainment companies.?The collaboration fuses our own world-class technology with the vision and dedication of a company renowned for its cutting-edge creativity and storytelling skill.?We are excited to expand the boundaries of public expectation by creating a show that combines dynamic creatures, world class performers and incredible staging to not only thrill and intrigue, but to engage audiences on an emotional level as well.?

Michael Cohl is the founder and chairman of S2BN Entertainment, global promoter for HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR, and serves as lead producer of the Broadway?s smash hit Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. Cohl commented, ?HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR is the next logical step for me after Spider-Man: to be back in arenas where I?ve always been, and where the most exciting things happen. We are thrilled to be setting a new gold standard for live family entertainment while utilizing the full scope and scale of the arena floor and fly space. The show delivers cutting-edge production values which tell an incredible story and create an unforgettable and magical experience. This show will mesmerize children and parents alike.?

Sponsored by HP, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR is brought to life through state-of-the-art technology unlike anything ever seen before in a live event experience.? Through DreamWorks Animation?s ongoing strategic relationship with HP, HP technology is part of the digital backbone for the production, providing family audiences across the globe with the most captivating live entertainment possible.

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR breaks every rule of theatrical entertainment to fully immerse audiences into the show in ways that have not been attempted before. Barely contained within the arena, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR utilizes the full venue, maximizing every dimension of the performance space to transport audiences into a mythical world of fire-breathing dragons who soar overhead at great speeds. The state-of-the-art animatronic technology and large-scale cinematic projections interact seamlessly with the live actors, who bring DreamWorks Animation?s heart-warming story to life through theatrical storytelling, martial arts and acrobatics.

Young Hollywood actor Riley Miner, an accomplished dancer and musical theater performer, will play the lead role of Hiccup. ?Joining Miner to share the role of Hiccup is Rarmian Newton, who won a Helpmann Award for his performance in the Australian production of Billy Elliot The Musical (2008).?? American stunt performer Gemma Nguyen, a third degree Black Belt and six-time world champion in Tae Kwon Do, plays Astrid.? Sharing the role of Astrid is Queenslander Sarah McCreanor who has starred in her own comedic productions and performed in a range of musicals and comedy shows.? Stalwart Australian actor Robert Morgan plays Stoick, Hiccup?s father and the rough and ready old-school chieftain of the brawny Viking tribe.? American Will Watkins will star as Gobber; French Kung Fu champion and stuntman Godefroy Ryckewaert plays Snotlout and Texan hip-hop dancer and rapper Dexter Mayfield will play Fishlegs. ?Australian hip-hop and break-dancer Virackhaly Ngeth has been cast as Ruffnut and Sydney break-dancer Frace Luke Mercado, a founding member of SKB (Street Kulture Breakers), as Tuffnut.

The cast of performers is assisted by an international technical team who has collectively created many of the world?s most memorable spectacles.? The team is led by award-winning director Nigel Jamieson, who won the 2011 Helpmann Award as Best Director for his production of Opera Australia?s La Fanciulla del West, as well as production designer Peter England and costume / projection designer Dan Potra.? The dragons themselves are created by Sonny Tilders and his team at The Creature Technology Company, whose work includes Walking With Dinosaurs ? the Arena Spectacular.? The cast of dragons pays homage to all of the favorites from the DreamWorks Animation film, including the single largest animatronic creature ever made by The Creature Technology Company. The stunning score features compositions from Icelandic singer-songwriter Jonsi from Sigur Ros and Oscar-nominated British film composer John Powell, who created the original score for the feature film.

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR TOUR SCHEDULE

2012

September 20-23??????????????????? Buffalo, NY???????????????????????????? First Niagara Center

September 27-30??????????????????? East Rutherforld, NJ?????????????? Izod Center

October 4-7??????????????????????????? Albany, NY????????????????????????????? Times Union Center

October 11-14???? ?????????????????? Columbus, OH??????????????????????? Schottenstein Center

October 12-28 ?????????????????????? Milwaukee, WI?????????????????????? Bradley Center

November 1-4??????????????????????? Saskatoon, SK???????????????????????? Credit Union Centre

November 21-25??????????????????? Winnipeg, MB??????????????????????? MTS Centre

December 6-9???????????????????????? Tacoma, WA?????????????????????????? Tacoma Dome

December 20-23???????????????????? Fresno, CA????????????????????????????? Save Mart Center

December 26-30???????????????????? San Jose, CA?????????????????????????? HP Pavilion at San Jose

2013

January 3-6???????????????????????????? Sacramento, CA????????????????????? Powerbalance Pavilion

January 10-13???????????????????????? Salt Lake City, UT?????????????????? EnergySolutions Arena

January 17-20???????????????????????? Anaheim, CA????????????????????????? Honda Center

Visit:?www.dreamworksdragonslive.com

FOOTAGE and IMAGES available NOW at:

????????????https://dragons.sharefile.com/

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON LIVE SPECTACULAR? 2012 DREAMWORKS ANIMATION LLC.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

DREAMWORKS ANIMATION

DreamWorks Animation creates high-quality entertainment, including CG animated feature films, television specials and series, live entertainment properties and online virtual worlds, meant for audiences around the world.? DreamWorks Animation is the largest animation studio in the world and has released 23 animated feature films, which have enjoyed both critical and commercial successes. These include the franchise properties of Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon. DreamWorks Animation became the first studio to produce all of its feature films in 3D and in 2010 became the first Company to release three CG feature films in 3D in a single year.? The Company has been named one of the ?100 Best Companies to Work For? by FORTUNE? Magazine for four consecutive years. In 2012, DreamWorks Animation ranks #14 on the list.? DreamWorks Theatricals was established by DreamWorks Animation in 2007 to develop and produce live stage and arena show productions inspired by the Company?s franchise properties. DreamWorks Theatricals productions are guided by much of the creative leadership team that develops the studio?s award-winning feature films.

GLOBAL CREATURES

Global Creatures is an international entertainment group that develops new and exciting theatrical productions to take to audiences around the world.? The animatronics arm, The Creature Technology Company, invents and deploys the latest in animatronic design.? Their hugely successful production Walking with Dinosaurs ? The Arena Spectacular, based on the award winning BBC TV series, represents a new entertainment genre all on its own.? The production is a spectacle of unprecedented size and quality, which captivates young and old alike.? The Walking with Dinosaurs tour was the number one tour worldwide in 2010.? Global Creatures has announced King Kong ? Live on Stage, which will be produced in co-operation with the estate of ?Kong? creator Merian C. Cooper.? Global Creatures and Bazmark (the multi-media company founded and owned by Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin) have announced a partnership to produce a stage musical adaptation of the first movie of Baz Luhrmann?s ground-breaking Red Curtain Trilogy, Strictly Ballroom.

S2BN ENTERTAINMENT

S2BN is an entertainment company specializing in the production of family oriented shows for theatres and arenas.? Currently, S2BN has three successful shows in operation, the record breaking smash hit Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark on Broadway, Rock of Ages now in its 4^th year on Broadway, recently opened in London, touring throughout North America and on June 1^st, 2012 a major Warner Brother Picture Release, and thirdly, Fuerza Bruta, also in its 5^th year in New York and touring throughout the world.? For 30+ years S2BN?s leadership have been dominant and innovative forces in the international concert touring industry, working in exclusive partnerships with renowned, global artist such as The Rolling Stones, Barbra Streisand, U2 and Pink Floyd amongst many others.? In that time they have also created and/or promoted a wide range of unique family entertainment attractions in tennis, figure skating, motorsports, boxing and wrestling as well as theatre, opera and symphony.

RZO DRAGON PRODUCTIONS

The RZO Companies group was formed on July 1, 1988 through the merger of Sound Advice, Inc. and Joseph Rascoff & Company, Inc. by their principals William Zysblat and Joseph Rascoff, respectively. For over twenty-five years, RZO and its predecessor organizations have been actively involved in the music business as tour producers and full-service business managers. RZO has represented such illustrious music artists as Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Sting, U2, The Police, Luis Miguel, Patti LaBelle, David Byrne and many others.? The Company also represents personalities such as Carson Daly and Iman, along with the Estates of John Lennon and Ira and George Gershwin.

Source: http://www.boneaubryanbrown.com/blog/2012/09/the-dragons-are-coming-watch-the-new-promo-trailer-for-dreamworks-how-to-train-your-dragon-live-spectacular-global-tour/

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Lawyer-Proof Your Life in the Cook Islands and Panama | Sovereign ...

Bob Bauman (September 26, 2012)

If you?re waiting for a problem to start knocking ? whether it?s an individual litigant or the U.S. government itself ? it?s already too late. The best time for asset protection is long before a problem arrives.

Right now, like it or not, problems are heading straight up your driveway and your front door is within easy reach.

Through taxation and regulation, the U.S. government has stepped up attacks on our wealth. Eager to avoid dealing with our fundamental fiscal issues, our politicians will continue to dig deeper into our pockets to grab every penny they can, no matter who wins the upcoming election.

At the same time, a bad economy is making more people lawsuit-happy. Does your neighbor have a petty grievance against you and your barking dog? You?d better take that complaint seriously ? anyone with money (even people of moderate wealth) can become a target.

As sovereign individuals, we understand these trends and guard against them. Wisely, we choose where we place our assets and identify places where we can find safety and privacy guaranteed by law.

For true security, we require a system that also guarantees maximum possible legal tax avoidance, the highest possible financial privacy, the strongest asset protection and access to the most profitable investments available worldwide.

Fortunately, there is one legal device that does all of this: the offshore Asset Protection Trust (APT).

The idea of setting up an offshore APT may seem daunting, but it doesn?t have to be a complicated process. In some of my favorite offshore havens, you can lay the groundwork for a solid asset-protection strategy in just three days.

Making Yourself a Hard Target

One of the biggest threats to your financial well-being is litigation. The American judicial system is too often an enemy of prosperity. Courts in the United States are clogged with civil suits demanding enormous sums for imagined or statutorily-concocted injuries that create supposed victims of harassment, disability or discrimination.

No matter how safe you think you are, it doesn?t take much to have a lawsuit filed against you these days. Recent headlines have warned that people are now being sued for ?defamation? for writing negative product reviews on places like Amazon.

A U.S. group, Legal Reform Now, claims that more than 15 million lawsuits will be filed in state courts alone by the end of 2012, one new lawsuit every two seconds, one for every 12 adults in America. According to consulting firm Towers Watson, the direct cost of U.S. tort lawsuits in 2009 was $250 billion ? that?s a little over 1.5% of the entire U.S. gross domestic product.

For lawsuit protection, the best tactic is to shrink yourself and your assets as targets ? and an offshore asset protection trust can help you do exactly that. By transferring legal title and reducing control over assets through donating them to your offshore APT, you make yourself a smaller target. Once an APT is set up, this is something that can be done quickly and easily.

And any time hard assets are transferred to another nation (as when cash, stock shares or precious metals are moved to an offshore trust account, or an offshore trustee?s safe deposit box), a home country creditor will have difficulty reaching them, even if the existence of your offshore trust is known.

There is also the benefit of a harassing party knowing your assets are beyond immediate reach. The cost and difficulty of pursuit may discourage legal action or encourage an advantageous compromise.

A Foundation for a Secure Financial Future

Beyond being just a tool against legal threats, an offshore APT can serve as a powerful wealth-preservation structure in building a secure financial future for you and your family. The offshore APT has long been a favorite of those seeking a legal and safe way to distribute wealth to their heirs. While a U.S. domestic trust provides limited protection, that strength multiplies with distance when the APT is located outside U.S. jurisdiction.

As part of a sound estate plan, it can protect your assets while assuring that your heirs and chosen beneficiaries receive exactly what you wish after you?re gone. This can help you minimize estate taxes through planned giving, and also provide maintenance and tax-free income for a surviving spouse. Offshore APTs can also be set up to make sure you meet your family?s needs in the years ahead ? paying for medical care or arranging funds to pay for your grandchildren?s college education, for example.

Even as our privacy in the U.S. continues to dwindle and disappear, the security of offshore trusts are rooted in the financial privacy laws of the country in which they are created. And these are often always more strict than those at home.

While the U.S. economy continues to sputter, and the dollar continues its decades-long decline, an offshore APT can serve as an excellent investment vehicle with access to offshore profits and exposure to stronger currencies. These will provide you with the income you need to help build a secure retirement.

Where to Set Up Your Trust

While it is possible to set up a trust in as little as three days in places like Liechtenstein, or in five days in Panama, the more time you allow yourself to draft a solid plan, the more it will be able to meet all of your needs in the years ahead. That?s why the time to start planning is now ? when trouble is knocking at the door, it will be too late.

Many offshore financial centers specialize in the creation and administration of offshore asset protection trusts.

What the corporation-friendly State of Delaware is to U.S. companies, these jurisdictions are to asset protection trusts. Many are well developed, globally recognized financial centers. They boast modern, efficient banking, legal and other professional providers who understand servicing offshore APTs and offshore finance in general. Before you choose a place for your trust, always make certain of the latest developments in the jurisdiction you?re considering.

My top havens, based on my own personal experiences, are Panama and the Cook Islands.

Panama has had strong investor and asset protection-friendly laws in place governing trusts since the 1920s. The country has a growing, vibrant economy with a solid banking system that boasts maximum privacy.

A former British protectorate, the Cook Islands began adopting wealth protection laws in the 1980s that now have financial services second only to tourism as the biggest part of this island nation?s economy. The Cook Islands trust law embodies all the best legal concepts concerning modern trusts. As such, it has served as the example for many other offshore centers, from Nevis to Belize.

Both Panama and the Cook Islands can provide you with modern financial services and rock-solid financial privacy, making either an excellent home for your offshore trust. As places of both beauty and protection for your assets and your business interests, I would recommend either.

Faithfully yours,

?
Bob Bauman

P.S. Setting up an offshore asset protection trust is an important step towards securing your financial future, but it?s far from the only one. In my Offshore Confidential service, I?m tracking the latest threats to your wealth and liberty and what you can do to protect both. To learn more about how you can take advantage of my research and the steps you can start taking today, click here to read my special report.
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Source: http://sovereign-investor.com/2012/09/26/lawyer-proof-your-life-in-cook-islands/

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