CDC: Flu seems to level off except in the West

New government figures show that?flu cases?seem to be leveling off nationwide. Flu activity?is declining in most regions although?still rising in the West.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says hospitalizations and deaths spiked again last week, especially among the elderly. The CDC says quick treatment with antiviral medicines is important, in particular for the very young or old. The season's first flu case resistant to treatment with Tamiflu was reported Friday.

Eight more children have died from the flu, bringing this season's total pediatric deaths to 37. About 100 children die in an average flu season.

There is still vaccine available although it may be hard to find. The CDC has a website that can help.

___

CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2013-01-25-US-MED-Flu-Season/id-8c244fba5f4e4f89a84949d4f1d4c261

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Stem cell therapy to repair damaged knee cartilage

Jan. 24, 2013 ? Rush University Medical Center is conducting the nation's first clinical study of an innovative stem cell drug, Cartistem, to repair knee cartilage damaged by aging, trauma or degenerative diseases such as osteoarthritis.

Cartistem is manufactured from mesenchymal stem cells derived from allogeneic (donor) umbilical cord blood. Umbilical cord blood is a readily accessible source of high-quality stem cells, is associated with minimal health risks and carries relatively few ethical concerns.

The stem cells are mixed with hyaluronan, a natural polymer that plays a major role in wound healing and is a building block of joint cartilage. Cartistem is surgically administered into the area of cartilage damage following an arthroscopic surgery as an adjunct to microfracture, a commonly used technique used to repair cartilage damage.

The principal investigator on the study is Dr. Brian Cole, a professor in the department of orthopedics and anatomy and cell biology at Rush University Medical Center. Dr. Cole is the head of Rush's Cartilage Restoration Center and is also the head team physician for the Chicago Bulls. Cole and his co-researchers will assess the drug's safety as well as its ability to regenerate cartilage repair tissue and reduce pain in patients with localized cartilage loss in the knee.

Treating cartilage damage can be problematic because the tissue does not contain blood vessels or nerves and therefore has a limited ability to re-grow. Various treatments for cartilage degeneration, such as drug therapy, arthroscopy and joint replacement, yield mixed results and are unable to regenerate damaged tissue.

"Finding a biological solution for cartilage regeneration in orthopedics is one of the fastest growing areas of research and development in our specialty, said Cole. "Rush is spearheading this field of research with the ultimate goal of safely improving outcomes and sparing patients from having more complicated surgery at a relatively young age."

The two-year, phase I/IIa study will enroll a total of 12 participants aged 18 years and older, with a body mass index of less than 35. Initially, six individuals with lesions sized 2 to 5 centimeters will be recruited into the study; an additional six volunteers with lesions larger than 5 centimeters will be enrolled sequentially. Each participant will undergo eligibility screening followed by a 12-month observation period to determine the safety and efficacy of the drug with an additional long-term follow-up evaluation at 24 months.

"With a burgeoning aging, yet active population, our patients are looking for effective non-joint replacement solutions to treat their damaged knee cartilage," said Cole. "This research is significant in that it utilizes a commonly performed operation (microfracture) in an effort to improve upon variable outcomes."

"Notably, this is a treatment for patients with localized cartilage damage and not for patients who are diagnosed with diffuse or bone on bone arthritis who have otherwise been told they require a knee replacement." said Cole.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Rush University Medical Center.

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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/top_news/~3/JQLYRyKO9fM/130124163246.htm

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Anonymous members jailed for card company attacks

LONDON (AP) ? A 22-year-old member of the Anonymous movement has been jailed for 18 months for taking park in high-profile cyberattacks on several major financial companies' computer systems.

Self-described "hacktivist" Christopher Weatherhead was convicted last month of conspiracy to impair the operation of computers. The attacks hit the sites of MasterCard, Visa, PayPal and several others.

Prosecutors said Weatherhead and his fellow conspirators targeted companies in the music industry involved in combating Internet piracy and companies that had stopped processing online donations to the secret-busting site WikiLeaks.

One co-defendant, 28-year-old Ashley Rhodes, was jailed for seven months. Another, 24-year-old Peter Gibson, received a suspended sentence.

The cybercrime spree focused attention on Anonymous, a loose-knit collection of Web-savvy activists and Internet pranksters.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/anonymous-members-jailed-card-company-attacks-180055936--finance.html

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How unemployment insurance affects the unemployment rate ...

Scott Sumner offers this explanation, by way of Larry Summers, on how unemployment insurance influences the unemployment rate:

In a study using state data on registrants in Aid to Families with Dependent Children and food stamp programs, my colleague Kim Clark and I found that the work-registration requirement actually increased measured unemployment by about 0.5 to 0.8 percentage points. If this same relationship holds in 2005, this requirement increases the measure of unemployment by 750,000 to 1.2 million people. Without the condition that they look for work, many of these people would not be counted as unemployed. Similarly, unemployment insurance increases the measure of unemployment by inducing people to say that they are job hunting in order to collect benefits.

The second way government assistance programs contribute to long-term unemployment is by providing an incentive, and the means, not to work. Each unemployed person has a ?reservation wage??the minimum wage he or she insists on getting before accepting a job. Unemployment insurance and other social assistance programs increase that reservation wage, causing an unemployed person to remain unemployed longer.

So UI a) brings more of the unemployed to the attention of government statisticians, and b) creates an incentive not to work. Sumner mentions reforming the system, such as through personal accounts. I assume he means Individual Unemployment Accounts:

The unemployment compensation system in the United States is out of date and in trouble. The system has four fundamental problems: (1) during recessions, it often cannot meet its financial obligations without federal aid or deficit spending; (2) it is out of step with the structural and cultural realities of the modern workforce; (3) it encourages layoffs and unemployment; and (4) it operates in isolation from other programs related to employment and financial security. We propose an alternative unemployment policy based on the individual unemployment account (IUA). The IUA would be a mandatory and portable individual trust to which the employer and employee contributed. It shifts control and responsibility from the employer and the state government to the employer and the employee, and it is compatible with the realities of a twenty-first-century economy. We begin by providing an overview of how the current unemployment insurance system works and discussing its problems. We then describe an alternative unemployment policy based on IUAs and discuss the benefits of such a policy.

?

Tags: Labor market, Unemployment

Source: http://www.aei-ideas.org/2013/01/how-unemployment-insurance-affects-the-unemployment-rate/

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Former Secretary of State Rice joins CBS News

FILE - In this July 19, 2012, file photo, Condoleezza Rice talks on the Stanford University campus in Palo Alto, Calif. Rice has joined CBS News as a contributor. CBS News Chairman Jeff Fager and president David Rhodes say Rice "will use her insight and vast experience to explore issues facing America at home and abroad." Rice served as secretary of state during President George W. Bush?s second term. She was the first African-American woman to hold the post. Rice was Bush?s national security adviser during his first term and worked on the National Security Council under President George H.W. Bush.(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)

FILE - In this July 19, 2012, file photo, Condoleezza Rice talks on the Stanford University campus in Palo Alto, Calif. Rice has joined CBS News as a contributor. CBS News Chairman Jeff Fager and president David Rhodes say Rice "will use her insight and vast experience to explore issues facing America at home and abroad." Rice served as secretary of state during President George W. Bush?s second term. She was the first African-American woman to hold the post. Rice was Bush?s national security adviser during his first term and worked on the National Security Council under President George H.W. Bush.(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Just in time for inauguration coverage, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has joined CBS News as a contributor.

Rice, who served as secretary of state during President George W. Bush's second term, made her debut on "Face the Nation" Sunday and will be included in inauguration coverage on Monday.

CBS News Chairman Jeff Fager and president David Rhodes made the announcement Sunday, saying Rice "will use her insight and vast experience to explore issues facing America at home and abroad."

Rice was the first African-American woman to serve as secretary of state, following Colin Powell in the office. She was Bush's national security adviser during his first term and worked on the National Security Council under his father, President George H.W. Bush.

As secretary of state, Rice warned of weapons of mass destruction in pressing for war in Iraq that killed more than 4,400 Americans. No weapons of mass destruction were found.

More recently, Rice was part of the team offering Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney general strategy and advice on foreign policy.

Her primetime speech at the Republican National Convention in August received raves. She did not mention President Barack Obama by name, but spoke of the crisis in education and the need for immigration laws that protect the country's borders while meeting economic needs. She also said that although there was a sense that for far too long America has carried the burdens of supporting free people and free markets, but that if the United States does not lead no one will lead, fostering chaos.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-01-20-US-CBS-Rice/id-83a84bfe0bfa4518a80b500095a95416

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Downton Abbey, Season 3

Daisy and Mrs. Patmore

Photograph courtesy of ? Carnival Film & Television Limited 2012 for Masterpiece.

Editor?s note: For the benefit of American readers who haven?t yet seen Season 3 of Downton Abbey, please do your best to avoid spoilers when commenting.

June Thomas: Well, that episode was full of weeping men, domineering dads (biological and otherwise), and new arrivals. I was also struck by how visually dynamic the show is. Despite how little actually happens, there are tons of scene changes and short sequences to keep things moving. I'm always so focused on themes and plot, I sometimes overlook Downton Abbey's surprisingly zippy pacing.

Seth Stevenson: My vote for most visually dynamic element goes to the HOT NEW DOWNSTAIRS HELP. Not just one but two pretty faces were added to the staff. I wonder if viewer focus groups were demanding more eye candy. I did feel bad for oft-aggrieved Daisy (whose DNA is, I?m pretty sure, at least one-quarter mouse) when she was overshadowed by that winsome new kitchen maid. And do we think Thomas will find love at last with that dashing footman?

Thomas: Daisy sure is the nail Downton Abbey's creators love to hammer on. The look on her face when Alfred?a dead ringer for her dead husband?flirted with new girl Ivy! I think we just saw an early moment in Daisy's transformation into O'Brien.

I do not think that Thomas will find love with young James, "Call me Jimmy." I can't see the show ever allowing Thomas to be happy?not because he's gay, but because he's a shortcut-taker. Carson, the downstairs dad, is surely serving as a proxy for Julian Fellowes when he praises hard work and question-asking as the path to success.

Stevenson: I think you?re right?Thomas? passion (I grinned at his lightning-quick gander up and down Jimmy?s bod) will end up being thwarted in some excruciating manner. You?ve also given me visions of an old, embittered Daisy. I can picture her aging mouse face turning sour and mean. More rat-like.

Thomas: Speaking of true love, I almost wonder if Edith will fall for Alfred. I love the way she stuck up for him, telling the others they mustn't allow him to be "completely overshadowed" by the handsome Jimmy.

Stevenson: We?ve already plucked Branson up out of the service ranks and into the arms of a Crawley lady. Would Fellowes do it again with Alfred? Of course he would! Basically every storyline this season is something we?ve seen before. Random inheritances. Downstairs scheming. The Ethel plot barely evolved at all?we got a near repeat of the scene last season in which little Charlie?s grandpa blustered at her from under his moustache. But I think I?m on Team Daisy when it comes to pairing someone off with Alfred (even if she?d need to climb atop a stepladder to smooch him).

Carson?s sense of entitlement really struck me this episode. He seems to feel he is owed a massive org chart of underlings, when Matthew rightly observes that the house could make do with less help. How do we think this whole ?Downton is being mismanaged? plotline will play out?

Thomas: The mismanagement plot has already led Matthew to one strange place: "cousin Violet's" sitting room. That was a canny move. The dowager countess is clearly on the side of tradition, but she's a sensible woman, unlike Robert (less likable by the day) and Mary, whose connection to the estate seems to trump all other ties. I foresee some conflict with those two over Matthew's attempt to clean up Downton's Augean stables.

Stevenson: Ugh, Robert. When he?s not plowing his wife?s money into risky investments, he?s blundering the household accounting. Or slurring Catholics. I feel increasingly Branson-ish and resentful as I watch Robert smoking his cigars and swirling his brandy. He?s due for a comeuppance.

Speaking of Branson, I detest the way that Fellowes has turned him into a cowardly, pregnant-wife-abandoning representative of the Irish cause. That?s stacking the deck!

Thomas: I'm having a hard time reading Mary's froideur with Matthew. I understand that she was angry with his dithering about accepting the Magical Estate-Saving Inheritance, and I would not have been happy if my spouse accused me of forging a letter in order to get my hands on a considerable sum of money. But why was she so cold when Matthew got all giddy at the prospect of the nursery being used for its intended purpose?

Stevenson: I couldn?t read where Mary?s distance was coming from. I doubt she?s looking to delay motherhood so she can start a career. Is she just not into being a mom? Wasn?t half the point of marrying Matthew (after his miraculous recovery of erectile function) that they?d produce an heir for Downton?

Thomas: There are times when I want to shiv Robert with a sharpened bouillon spoon. Given how few of the storylines I can stomach these days?I'm variously bored, offended, or tired of the Bates, Thomas, Daisy, Robert, and Branson threads?I'm amazed that I still enjoy watching.

Stevenson: I think perhaps the melon spoon would be more appropriate for a shiv-ing, June. I wouldn?t want you to pick up the improper utensil in a moment of blind anger. Manners are everything.

These are the current Downton characters I would most like to hang out with, in roughly descending order: The dowager countess, Sybil, Matthew, Mary, Branson, the smoking hot new kitchen maid, Isis the dog, and Mrs. Hughes. Everyone else I?ve gone sort of meh on.

Thomas: As annoying as the newly weak and weeping Branson is, I did enjoy his furtive arrival in the rain, especially when the archbishop of York declared, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." Could that possibly be a winking reference to Walter White's "I am the one who knocks" on Breaking Bad? No, I suppose not.

Stevenson: Were you at all moved by the closing sequence in which Anna and Bates receive their stacks of letters and then cry while reading? (Not to be confused with crying while eating.) I must admit I was left dry-eyed. It?s the sort of florid moment that Downton might once have hooked me with; this time, no dice.

Thomas: I was similarly unmoved by the Bateses? simultaneous letter drop. I think Isis might be the only one who could send me reaching for a tissue these days. May the gods of Downton keep that bitch safe!

Stevenson: I may be coming around on Edith, though. Bully for her, getting a letter published in the Times. Do you suppose women might ever get the vote?

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=e04741a827e98d5bf0b752a87ea5e39e

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Home and Family: Pregnancy: Where to Buy the Best Paintball

You know that you have a lot of things to do every day. You have to go to study or work to make money. The activities may bring you to a deep depressed situation so that you need some moments to refresh your mind and get your energy back. A lot of things you can do to refresh. And if you need something that will pump your adrenaline, sharpen your teamwork skill, and feel the best feeling of beating your enemy, playing paintball must be the best choice for you.?

Yes, paintball has been a popular game that a lot of people want to experience. It is clear that the game really has the complexity you need if you want to win. In this case, you should be able to work as a team and run the strategy to win the game. For all the things related to the game, playing paintball with style must be the best idea for you because most people have lifted the level of the game as the part of lifestyle. In this case, equip yourself with the best paintball equipments must be needed. It is a matter of how you find the reference of where you can buy the best paintball equipments.?

There are at least two things you should consider before you decide to buy the equipments such as the gun, the protector, the goggle and the others. The two things are the quality of the products and the prices offered to you.?

You know that paintball may give you certain risks especially if you are not well equipped with high quality products. Besides, you should make sure that the performance of the stuff will surely support your skill. Therefore, you should find the best place with the best products especially when you talk about the quality. Furthermore, you should also make sure that you can buy such qualified products at affordable prices. You know that best products are not always expensive as long as you know where to go.?

For this, you can buy the paintball gears online at www.zephyrpaintball.comfor the best products with the best offer. It is the recommendation you need for your needs of quality and affordable products of the paintball. Now, you have gotten the recommendation. What you need to do is just clicking the link above and be redirected to the best website for the best paintball equipments and prices. ??

Source: http://twilight-to-breakingdawn.blogspot.com/2013/01/where-to-buy-best-paintball-equipments.html

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Source: http://ryannorbert.typepad.com/blog/2013/01/home-and-family-pregnancy-where-to-buy-the-best-paintball.html

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Source: http://pantheistic-antipodes.blogspot.com/2013/01/home-and-family-pregnancy-where-to-buy.html

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