It’s a fairly unusual day at the Korean Central News Agency in Pyongyang when they have to emphasize that a large delegation of Chinese leaders are leaving the country.

Pyongyang, November 26 (KCNA) — Col. General Liang Guanglie, minister of National Defense who doubles as a state councilor of the People’s Republic of China, flew back home Thursday.
Leaving with him were Col. General Huang Xianzhong, political commissar of the Shenyang Military Area of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Lieu. General Feng Zhaoju, deputy commander of the Jinan Military Area, Vice Admiral Xu Hongmeng, deputy commander of the Nanjing Military Area and commander of the East Sea Fleet of the Navy, Lieu. General Jiang Jianzeng, deputy commander of the Nanjing Military Area and commander of the Air Force of the area, Maj. General Chai Shaoliang, organizational director of the General Political Department of the CPLA, Maj. General Wang Jin, vice-director of the Operation Department of the General Staff, Maj. General Jia Xiaoning, deputy director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Ministry of National Defense, and other suite members.

Do you suppose they’re worried about rumors that Chinese are taking over the place?

The fact that KCNA was so quick on the draw with this news — “they’re leaving! seriously!” — and that North Korean propaganda releases are usually about two days behind Xinhua and the press releases of the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang (which as yet has said nothing about the departure of the Defense Minister from the capitol) indicates perhaps a bit of North Korean nervousness.

Or maybe I’ve just been reading a bit too much of The Book of Corrections and am wrong to imagine that the appearance of Chinese military command supremacy over Korean troops rubs North Korean observers the wrong way, kind of like a hand wrapped in duct tape moving up a cat’s spine.

Screams at South Korea about sadaejuui, or “flunkeyism,” can be quickly turned against the North Koreans and the traditional target of “submission to the great,” China. Anti-Chinese sentiment in North Korea is a very, very real phenomenon, ranging from fear of absorption by Chinese companies to contempt for Chinese disorder. Mix  all this in with nervousness over the degree of Chinese influence in the successor generation, and you’ve got some combustible themes in the North Korean body politic.

At least the relevant folks have had some relevant conversations about securing the border, although these meetings didn’t seem to get much press in North Korea:

9月22日，中国人民解放军副总参谋长马晓天上将（右）在北京会见由朝鲜人民武装力量部副部长朴在京大将率领的朝鲜军事代表团一行。 中新社发 富田 摄 -- via Huanqiu Shibao

One of China’s top test pilots recalls a problem he had with an nuke.

H/T- War News Updates

On December 30, 1971, weather conditions were good. I took off from the airbase in the late morning and headed toward the target, ground zero at Lop Nor, three hundred kilometers (186 miles) away. I flew at 900 kilometers an hour (559 mph) and an altitude of 300 meters (984 feet), following the procedures we had established. Twelve kilometers (7.5 miles) from the target, I started my 45-degree-angle climb, and exactly at 1,200 meters (3,936 feet) released the bomb. Nothing happened!

Today we celebrate Chrissi Antonopoulos, a Business & Leadership major who just completed a 45-credit Prior Learning Assessment portfolio. 45 credits is the maximum number of PLA credits students can earn, and Chrissi achieved it! Here are the topics she wrote for:

• BIO 164: Introduction to Human Anatomy
• BIO 165: Alternatives to Health and Healing
• CCM 322: Interpersonal Communication
• CCM 323: Effective Listening
• CCM 333: Intercultural Communication
• CCM 346: Conflict Management
• SP 111: Public Speaking
• SP 130: Business and Professional Speech Communication
• CTD 440: Principles of Instructional Design
• CTD 446: Helping Adults Learn
• CTD 450: Instructional Presentation & Interaction Techniques
• BA 206: Management Fundamentals
• MSD 117 / 161: Customer Relations
• BUS 400: Personal Ethics in Organizations

Here’s part of what Chrissi wrote in her Final Reflection Essay:

As a student, my PLA experience has also helped me in my other courses; I am a better writer, I can convey my thoughts more precisely and I have learned to be more efficient and organized when it comes to course work. I have also used some of the reading materials I discovered in other classes or papers as references. . . I value my experience highly and can see how it fits in with my overal educational experience at Marylhurst.

In the following video, Chrissi talks about her experiences with the PLA program, highlighting how writing PLA essays helped her develop her academic writing skills, which have served her in all of her other coursework. Enjoy her tips for writing PLA essays and organizing her time.

CONGRATULATIONS CHRISSI!

Updated throughout the day.

Playboy (NYSE:PLA) may outsource many of its publishing operations.  (WSJ)

Cadbury (NYSE:CBY) may counter the Kraft (NYSE:KFT) big by making an offer for Kraft’s confectionery business. (NYPost)

Palm (NASDAQ:PALM) board member Rajiv Dutta may join Elevation partners, Palm’s largest shareholder. (Bloomberg)

Freddie Mac’s (NYSE:FRE) losses may grow because of the bankruptcy of Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (NYTimes)

British Air may buy Qantas (FT)

GE (NYSE:GE) Capital’s losses may fall.  (Reuters)

Douglas A. McIntyre

Reuters:   Hewlett-Packard’s (NYSE:HPQ) profit was up 14% and the company will triple its share buyback.

Reuters:   Banks have been asked to give their TARP repayment plans to the government.

Reuters:   Rich people are likely to shop early this year.

Reuters:   The US pitched the F-35 fighter to Israel.

Reuters:   Home sales hit a 2 1/2 year high.

Reuters:   Hedge funds may get $11 billion frozen at Lehman.

Reuters:   Businesses are still cautious on borrowing.

Reuters:   Murdoch’s News Corp (NYSE:NWS) may face trouble if he blocks Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) News.

Reuters:   A falling Chicago Fed index is a bad sign for the economy.

WSJ:   One in four US homeowners is underwater.

WSJ:   HSBC (NYSE:HBC) is telling individual investors to move their gold out of its New York vault to make room for institutional clients.

WSJ:   Some government factions are urging pay czar Ken Feinberg to ease up on AIG (NYSE:AIG) pay restrictions.

WSJ:   Early numbers show electronics sales may be good this holiday but apparel sales will not be.

WSJ:   Fitch cut the rating of Mexico’s debt.

WSJ:   The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said rich nations are moving out of a recession but that stimulus spending was still necessary.

WSJ:   The EU will coordinate will coordinate national spending deal with GM’s Opel.

WSJ:   Banks have trillions of dollars in debt due over the next few years.

WSJ:   Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) bought display ad start-up Teracent.

WSJ:   China is slowing bank lending activity.

WSJ:   Hershey’s (NYSE:HSY) bid for Cadbury could hurt the company financially.

WSJ:   Upscale auto companies are doing well in China.

WSJ:   Playboy (NYSE:PLA) will outsource much of its magazine’s  business operation.

WSJ:   Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT), offering big discounts, are fighting over the future of retailing.

NYT:   Many analysts believe that customers are saving money to spend the day after Thanksgiving.

NYT:   A public database could be used to help monitor drug safety.

FT:   The IMF chief said an early exit from stimulus packages could cripple the recovery.

FT:   The EU dropped its antitrust probe of Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM).

FT:   S&P raised issues over the health of many banks that will have to raise more money.

FT:   China’s rules on derivatives are hurting banks.

Bloomberg:   China’s five largest banks gave regulators plans for them to raise capital.

Bloomberg:   The Fed ask stress tested bank to set schedules for pay back TARP.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Inaugurando a categoria Plá, recomendo que divulguem suas ideias.

Com isso, três possíveis resultados serão obtidos:

1º- Ao exteriorizar seus planos, você pode acabar percebendo que eles são, indiscutivelmente, inúteis… O que certamente lhe conduzirá para a reciclagem das suas ideias e o questionamento acerca de quão real tem sido a sua percepção do mundo. Se isso acontecer, reveja seus valores, informe-se mais e tome isso como desafio para aprimoramento do seu senso crítico e da sua criatividade.

2º- Tornando públicas suas intenções, ainda que você seja tomado pela indolência, permitirá que elas viajem a um interlocutor que detenha as ferramentas necessárias para colocá-las em prática. Nesse caso, crer (e ver) que você imagina algo possível servirá como estímulo para a ebulição das boas ideias.

3º- Ainda que seu nome não entre na História por descobertas que mudaram o rumo da humanidade, você pode descobrir que ao divulgar e colocar suas ideias em prática, contribuiu para uma melhoria aqui e acolá. Isso certamente não fará de você o melhor ou mais talentoso ser humano, mas com certeza lhe trará a sensação de ser útil, de estar vivo e ativo, de fazer bom uso da sua capacidade criativa. Além disso, traz a sensação de que você fez a diferença na sua própria vida – definindo, como dizem uns e outros, se você é palco ou plateia…

Dianne Conrad and Bruce Spencer – Distance Education Online: A forum for Adult Education?

Can distance education in its current online form serve the social purposes of adult education that demand authenticity, openness, critical thinking, purposeful and respectful reflection, and the promotion of participative democracy and citizenship? With the advent of collaborative online learning, distance education has moved from individualized and often isolated study to dynamic, interactive exchanges that, properly facilitated, encourage knowledge building, teamwork, and communication skills. The groundwork has been laid for social purpose educational practices and outcomes.

Current distance education emphasizes social, communication-based, and constructivist learning… The creation of community simulates for online learners the comforts of home and provides a safe climate, an atmosphere of trust and respect, and invitation for intellectual exchange, and a gathering place for like-minded individuals who are sharing a journey that includes similar activities, purpose, and goals.

Geoff Peruniak and Rick Powell – Coming to Terms with Prior Learning Assessment

PLA concerns informal learning; that is, learning not formerly attested to by an accredited educational institution. PLA is a means by which informal and nonformal learning can be recognized by accredited programs of study. …

There is certainly a constituency within the Canadian academic community that is fundamentally opposed to PLA. They have argued that university-led learning can take place only in a classroom and when taught by an academic. Although this school of thought is undoubtedly a barrier to the acceptance of PLA, it is probably not critical because a number of respected Canadian universities have formally acknowledged PLA as legitimate – at least in principle. A much more serious barrier is the challenge of PLA to academics’ notions of their educational role – even those who might accept PLA in principle.

Academics have traditionally viewed their educational roles of teaching and student assessment as an organic whole. The acceptance of PLA as an integral practice rather than a marginal practice means unpacking these educational functions. The discomfort of academics is understandable. A necessary but usually tiresome and unrewarding aspect of their university roles now comes to the forefront. Moreover, one must attest to what one has not taught.

In a conventional university setting,  formal course learning objective and expectations are not usually needed. They are implied by the course syllabi and reinforced through the process of classroom instruction. Indeed academics’ take on course objectives may undergo change as a result of the classroom experience. Formalizing course objectives and learning expectations has not traditionally been emphasized. Also, some forms of PLA (e.g., portfolio-based) are assessed by panels: Collective assessment is a foreign experience to most academics. When PLA becomes an integral, rather than a marginal, practice for assessment and attestation, it extends beyond the comfort zone of even the most sympathetic academics.

Allan Quigley – What Does It Mean to Be a “Professional”? The Challenges of Professionalization for Adult Literacy and Basic Education

Schon (1983) found that the world’s top professionals were not necessarily those with the most prestigious certificates, but that the best-of-the-best had truly mastered ways to learn from all aspects of practice. The could critically reflect on what they had learned through their own experience, from the literature, and from others; and the could internalize both theory and practice into their current work. Schon argued for practitioner critical reflection. No external list of requirements will force striving for excellence; no standardization will force professionalization. The energy for literacy professionalism needs to be placed in enhancing what we do well now. This can be seen as a praxis approach and is suggested as a way forward.

Schon, D. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. New York: Basic Books. 

Mohamed Hrimech & Nicole Tremblay – Training of Adult Educators in Quebec

The right to education for all has yet to be recognized for adults, and the means to implement it are scarce. The fight for this right is far from being on the agenda in today’s social and economic context. Cruikshank (1998) suggested that adult educators who still believe in adult education in terms of social justice must be alert to the dangers of this new reality of corporate training. Today’s globalization, combined with the development of distance education and an increasingly present virtual world brings its share of upheavals to the customary training of adult educators. How relevant are our lengthy graduate programs with all their academic and time constraints when the clientele is increasingly made of learner-consumers who are used to quick changes, on the lookout for tailor-made, small, and fast courses. One wonders whether our universities have responded quickly enough compared to private training services for adult educators. Competition is great from private consultation companies, internal training departments, and professional colleges that provide their own continuing education to their members and training to instructors. Consider the many catalogues of seminars and workshops published by private training organizations. Moreover, their training is often offered on very appealing and fairly informal premises.

Cruikshank, J. (1998). Are we aiding the enemy? Adult education in the global economy. Canadian Journal of University Continuing Education, 24(1), 101-113.

Denis Haughey – Not Waving But Drowning: Canadian University Extension for Social change Revisited

Edwards and Miller (2000), in looking at issues in contemporary adult education and lifelong learning, also reinforced the crucial point that in lifelong learning greater emphasis is placed upon learner control and what goes on outside the educational institution; thus, placing boundaries around that learning and creating spaces for learning in the face of other demands becomes problematic. Learning can be adopted as part of lifestyle rather than arising from a need for enlightenment. Foley (2001) pointed out that extremely vital and comprehensive learning and teaching for social purposes is taking place not only in educational institutions, but in the workplace, families, communities, the mass media, and social movements. Increasingly, the new terrain is outside of the formal university setting and requires a new understanding of the role of the adult educator.

Edwards, R. and Miller, N. (2000). Go your own way: Lifelong learning and reflexive autobiographies in postmodernity. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 19(2), 126-140.

Foley, G. (2001). Radical adult education and learning. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 20(1/2), 71-88.

Maurice Taylor & Adrian Blunt – Towards a Canadian Research Culture in Adult Literacy Learning

Two dialogical problems persist to shape and define the culture and common spaces occupied by literacy researchers. Dialogism, according to Bakhtin (1981), is the occurence of opposing positions among social actors, positions that are permanently irresolvable; they are foundational positions that are self-affirming and sustain resistance to the positions of others. The first dialogical problem is the difference in priorities between practitioner-researchers in the field and researchers in the academe. Typically practitioners value most highly research that focuses directly on the problems that they encounter in their daily work. They tend to see concrete solutions to improve practice; that is, strategies to enhance the effectiveness of instruction and the achievement of community program and individual learners’ goals. Although academic researchers may espouse similar pragmatic outcomes for their research, as social scientists they must also use abstractions of reality to develop theory, seek conceptual understandings that will allow research findings to be extended beyond micro-level concerns, and seek understandings and findings to inform policy and program development at the macro-societal level.

The second sphere of dialogism is apparent in discourses on the purposes and valuing of adult literacy education in society. On one hand, literacy is highly valued and resources are provided for homo economicus, “an actor whose salient criterion is an economic calculus, and who is educated for productive roles in the commercial world” (Blunt, 2001, p. 103). On the other hand, resources are withheld and literacy education is not provided for homo literatus, “an actor who thinks as a person-in-the-community,  … [with] multiple roles in society, [who values] person-within-the community relations, and … [who acts] to meet valued labour market demands” (p. 103).

Both dialogisms demonstrate how social practices in literacy work are linked to ideological positions, which in turn are linked to social sites and communities. The metaphor of a mosaic to describe the culture of research is as valid and problematic for the field as it is a national metaphor to describe and construct Canadian national identity and social cohesion.

Bakhtin, M. (1981). The dialogic imagination (C. Emerson and M. Holquist, Trans.). Austin, TX; University of Texas Press.

Blunt, A. (2001). Workplace literacy: The contested terrains of policy and practice. In M.C. Taylor (Ed.), Adult literacy now (pp. 89-108). Toronto, ON: Irwin.

Shahrzad Mojab – Adult Education Without Borders

We live in a very troubled world: The conditions that sustain life, both human and non-human, are seriously deteriorating; human beings, or rather small sections of them, have created conditions that disrupt the ability of living beings on the planet to reproduce the conditions of their (co)existence. The modern institutions of  the market and nation together with institutions such as patriarchy, state, and religion are at work in creating these conditions. The ever-growing rule of the capitalist market – globalization – destroys borders but creates new boundaries that sharply divide the world’s haves and have-nots. If this characterization of the our world is accurate, the most urgent question for us would be the role of adult education. If we indeed witness a serious turn in the history of the world, how do we envisage adult education?

These are this morning’s top day trader and active trader alert stocks.  More detailed analysis and data has been offered via a link to each story at VSInvestor.com:

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) is trading higher by 6% despite poor sales.

RINO International Corp. (NASDAQ: RINO) is hitting new 52-week highs after strong earnings.

Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: CADX) is down 6% after the FDA extended the review for its painkiller Acetavance.

Telestone Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: TSTC) is the top percentage gainer.

Playboy Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: PLA) is up again 8% after yesterday’s takeover chatter.

Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) is down about 5% on soft earnings despite raised guidance.

You can join our open email distribution list which goes out several times per week to be notified of key merger news, key analyst calls, top early morning day trader alerts, along with news of IPO’s, key offerings, guru investor data on Buffett and others, mergers, and more.

JON OGG

3Com Corp (NASDAQ: COMS) rose over 30% to a yearly high of $7.52 after Hewlett-Packard, the PC maker, announced plans to buy 3Com for $2.7 billion.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) rose over 20% to a yearly high of $6.73 after the announcement that the company would receive $1.25 billion from Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) under an agreement that ends a legal dispute between the two companies over patents and antitrust accusations.  

Playboy Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: PLA) rose over 60% to a yearly high of $4.75 because the magazine is in talks to sell itself to Iconix Brand Group (NASDAQ: ICON).

Sotheby’s (NYSE: BID) rose as high as 11% to a yearly high of $19.50 after the action house raised $117 million at a sale yesterday.  

Garrett W. McIntyre

Thanks to TJOwens on Flickr for making this image available.

This week I am reading PLA essays and lots (and lots and lots) of them! For those of you in the midst of revising and editing your essays, let me offer this nugget of writing wisdom:

“If you re-read your work, you can find on re-reading a great deal of repetition can be avoided by re-reading and editing.” ~William Safire

Los medicamentos incrustados dentro de polímeros especiales logran reducir los tumores de forma más efectiva.

Destructoras del cáncer: Estas nanopartículas cargadas con medicamentos (mostradas en rosa) desarrolladas por BIND Biosciences, se han acumulado dentro de una célula de cáncer de próstata (mostrada en verde; el núcleo de la célula está en azul). Las partículas fueron diseñadas para atacar a las células del cáncer de próstata. Los científicos esperan que este tipo de partículas logren reducir los efectos secundarios asociados con la quimioterapia. Fuente: BIND Biosciences

En un pequeño centro de manufactura en Cambridge, Massachusetts, localizado en una calle poblada por diversas compañías de biotecnología, Greg Troiano trabaja con una serie de brillantes recipientes de metal de los que entran y salen diversos tubos de plástico. Los recipientes están diseñados para mezclar violentamente una mezcla de componentes químicos y crear precisas nanoestructuras. La tarea de Troiano, como director de desarrollo de procesos en la startup BIND Biosciences, es crear varios kilogramos de esta sustancia—una novedosa nanopartícula en la que se incluye un medicamento. La compañía espera que el nuevo sistema de distribución de medicamentos disminuya los efectos secundarios de la quimioterapia e incremente su efectividad a la hora de destruir el cáncer.

Los científicos de BIND han demostrado que sus nanopartículas—en las que no sólo se coloca el medicamento sino que también se insertan dentro de proteínas utilizadas para atacar el cáncer—pueden detener el crecimiento de los tumores de próstata, pecho y pulmón en roedores. BIND ha creado unas partículas capaces de permanecer en el flujo sanguíneo durante más de un día, incrementando las probabilidades de que el medicamento alcance al tejido que se tenga como objetivo. También están refinando un método para fabricar grandes volúmenes de este sistema de distribución basado en nanopartículas, como preparación para las pruebas clínicas de esta tecnología en pacientes de cáncer durante el año próximo.

El método de la compañía está basado en unos polímeros capaces de auto ensamblarse, desarrollados en el laboratorio de Robert Langer, profesor de ingeniería química en MIT y pionero dentro de la investigación de biomateriales. Langer fundó BIND en 2006 con Omid Farokhzad, un científico y médico en la Escuela de Medicina de Harvard y antiguo investigador de postdoctorado en el laboratorio de Langer.

“La idea de utilizar nanopartículas consiste en bajar la dosis y al mismo tiempo mantener la eficacia a la hora de reducir los efectos secundarios,” afirma Piotr Grodzinski, director de Nanotecnología para Programas de Cáncer en el Instituto Nacional del Cáncer, en Bethesda, Maryland. Grodzinski afirmó que en algunos casos las nanopartículas se podrían utilizar para incrementar la dosis y al mismo tiempo reducir la toxicidad. Esto es especialmente importante para los componentes quimioterapéuticos, que a menudo tienen que ser administrados en altas dosis y provocan graves efectos secundarios—tan graves que algunos pacientes eligen no pasar por el tratamiento.

Algunos de los medicamentos ya existentes y algunos otros en estado de desarrollo utilizan nanopartículas basadas en lípidos y otro tipo de tecnologías para extender el ciclo vital del medicamento dentro del flujo sanguíneo, permitiendo que una mayor cantidad del componente llegue al tejido a través de los vasos sanguíneos. Sin embargo ninguno ha logrado distribuir el medicamento a las células específicas y a la vez aumentar su tiempo de circulación.

El núcleo de la nanopartícula de BIND está hecho de unos polímeros biodegradables denominados como PLA (ácido poliláctico) y PLGA (ácido copoliláctico/ácido glicólico), que conservan el medicamento en cuestión dentro de una matriz molecular, permitiendo que se difumine lentamente. La capa exterior está hecha de glicol de polietileno, una molécula con propiedades muy parecidas a las del agua que permite que la nanopartícula no sea detectada por las proteínas y las células blancas (leucocitos) encargadas de comerse a los patógenos en la sangre. Esta capa de camuflaje también contiene unos péptidos diseñados para unirse a la célula que se quiere tratar, descargando así el contenido de la partícula.

Cuando los tres componentes se mezclan juntos y bajo condiciones químicas cuidadosamente controladas, las nanopartículas se forman espontáneamente. “Debido a que el auto ensamblaje no requiere el uso de numerosos y complejos procesos químicos, las partículas son muy sencillas de fabricar,” afirma Farokhzad. “Y las podemos fabricar a escala de kilogramos, algo que nadie ha logrado hasta ahora.” Con el resto de las nanotecnologías utilizadas para atacar objetivos específicos, primero se crea el núcleo de la nanopartícula y después se cubre con una capa del tipo de molécula que se tenga como objetivo, un proceso más complejo cuya repetición puede resultar difícil.

Siguiendo el mismo proceso de filtrado que utilizan los fabricantes de fármacos para encontrar las moléculas candidatas óptimas, los investigadores de BIND generaron cientos de versiones de las nanopartículas para cada medicamento y después las pusieron a prueba para ver cuáles eran capaces de sobrevivir en el flujo sanguíneo durante más tiempo, así como cuáles de entre todas ellas poseían las mejores capacidades para dirigirse a los tejidos. Mediante pequeñas variaciones en las concentraciones de cada uno de los tres componentes, los investigadores son capaces de generar partículas con distintos tamaños, cargas de superficie y concentraciones de moléculas sobre su superficie.

“Es un equilibrio muy delicado entre camuflaje y capacidad de alcanzar el objetivo,” afirma Jeff Hrkach, vicepresidente de ciencias farmacéuticas en BIND. “Si ponemos demasiada cantidad del ligando que se tiene como objetivo, la partícula será eliminada del flujo sanguíneo.” Aunque de forma tradicional los científicos han intentado empaquetar la mayor cantidad posible de este tipo de marcador en las nanopartículas para así mejorar su destreza a la hora de alcanzar el objetivo, Langer y Farokhzad descubrieron que es más efectivo utilizar una menor cantidad de estas moléculas.

Hasta ahora los científicos de BIND han puesto a prueba esta tecnología con 15 medicamentos contra el cáncer, enfermedades cardiovasculares y enfermedades inflamatorias distintas, aunque en primer lugar se están enfocando en los componentes quimioterapéuticos. Al poner a prueba las partículas con medicamentos en un grupo de ratones modificados para que posean células tumorales humanas, los investigadores demostraron que los animales tratados con las nanopartículas poseían una mayor concentración del medicamento dentro del tumor—hasta 20 veces más—12 horas después de la administración, en comparación con los animales que recibieron el medicamento sin enmascarar. La versión nanotécnica del medicamento también logró detener el crecimiento de los tumores de pecho, próstata y pulmón de forma más efectiva que el medicamento por sí solo, o que el medicamento suministrado mediante nanopartículas sin moléculas objetivo.

Los científicos de BIND también han logrado mejorar el tiempo de circulación desde tres a seis horas hasta 24 a 72 horas, según los resultados presentados el mes pasado en una conferencia dentro del Instituto Nacional del Cáncer. “Mostraron unos tiempos de circulación realmente impresionantes,” afirma Joseph DeSimone, químico de la Universidad de Carolina del Norte, Chapel Hill, y que no está involucrado con la compañía. “Daba la impresión de tener una duración mayor que muchas otras cosas sobre las que he leído.”

Para las pruebas previstas el año próximo con sujetos humanos, la compañía aún no ha especificado el tipo de cáncer o de medicamento quimioterapéutico que se va a utilizar. Sin embargo, la compañía está aumentando el proceso de manufactura para poder lograr fabricar una cantidad suficiente de partículas para las pruebas clínicas.

Además de los medicamentos ya existentes, BIND está trabajando con unas compañías farmacéuticas cuyos nombres no se han hechos públicos para determinar qué medicamentos candidatos, incluyendo aquellos que se hayan descartado por sus efectos secundarios problemáticos o por otros problemas, puede que acaben siendo mejorados o resucitados gracias al sistema de suministro con nanopartículas.

Fuente: TechnologyReview. Unas nanopartículas atacan sigilosamente a las células cancerígenas

Will we see a new shift in Chinese military spending?  The AFP reports:

A top China air force commander has called the militarisation of space an “historical inevitability”, state media said Monday, marking an apparent shift in Beijing’s opposition to weaponising outer space.

“As far as the revolution in military affairs is concerned, the competition between military forces is moving towards outer space… this is a historical inevitability and a development that cannot be turned back,” Xu told the paper. “We must build an outer space force that conforms with the needs of our nation’s development (and) the demands of the development of the space age.”

Could this be just a Chinese commander speaking out in a bellicose manner, like General Xiong Guangkai who in 1995 threatened Los Angeles with attack?  Or is it like the pipe dreams of the PLA in obtaining aircraft carriers, an idea that Peter Singer at Brookings demolished pretty handily?

But a little reality check may be in order. First, their “new” carrier is not all that new. Actually, the Varyag was first laid down back in 1985. Originally planned for the Soviet fleet, it was never completed. Instead, at the Cold War’s end, it was scrapped of all its electronics and engines and sold off to be a floating casino. Even if the Chinese can refurbish it, at best they will be getting an old, untested ship that carries only a third as many planes as a U.S. carrier.

What he also doesn’t say is that, in the event of a war with the US, any Chinese aircraft carrier would probably be sunk within minutes.

Still,  the same article (from mid 2009) rather hits the nail on the head in terms of combatting potential threats from East Asia:

Rather, as we wrestle with defense planning, we should focus less on fictional capabilities that will likely never match our strengths and more on the real, near-term capabilities the Chinese are building to defeat these strengths from other angles. Their computer hackers have reportedly obtained access to vital military and civil communications networks, as well as the designs of our latest jet fighters. Their submarines have snuck past the defenses of our aircraft carriers and surfaced, a little showoff of how they could have sunk them at will. Their army is presently obtaining anti-ship ballistic missiles able to target a warship 1,500 miles away, far past the range of the planes from our aircraft carriers.

Animosity against Jews intensified. Notes nailed to the homes of Jews accused them of working for Israel and corrupting Muslim morals. “Jews were specifically targeted by Houthi rebels,” says a spokeswoman for the Yemeni embassy in Washington.

In January 2007, Houthi leaders threatened Jewish families in Saada. “We warn you to leave the area immediately… [W]e give you a period of 10 days, or you will regret it,” read a letter signed by a Houthi representative cited in a Reuters article.

Virtually the entire Jewish community in the area, about 60 people, fled to the capital. Since then, they have been receiving food stipends and cash assistance from the government while living in state-owned apartments in a guarded enclave, says the Yemeni embassy in Washington.

President Saleh, a Shiite, has been eager to demonstrate goodwill toward the Jews. On the Passover holiday, he invited TV crews to videotape families in the government complex as they feasted on lamb he had ordered.

Raida became the last redoubt of Yemeni Jews, who continued to lead a simple life there alongside Muslims.

Ancient stone homes dot the town. Electricity is erratic; oil lamps are common. Water arrives via truck. Most homes lack a TV or a refrigerator. The cell phone is the only common modern device. Some families receive financial aid from Hasidic Jewish groups in Brooklyn and London, which has enabled them to buy cars.

Typically, the Jewish men are blacksmiths, shoe repairmen or carpenters. They sometimes barter, trading milk and cow dung for grass to feed their livestock. In public, the men stand out for their long side curls, customarily worn by observant Jewish men. Jewish women, who often marry by 16, rarely leave home. When they do, like Muslim women, only their eyes are exposed.

It is bewildering to me when people question the need for a Jewish Homeland.  The Jews have been persecuted for centuries.  Since the Roman era diaspora.  Christian purges, Czarist pogroms, Islamic expulsions.  The Holocaust of Nazi Germany.  Jews are forever the scapegoat for the inadequacies, incompetence and criminal acts of the elite.

Yet, today, people question the need for a homeland wherein the Jews can defend themselves and live with dignity.  A place where the Jewish people can live without fear.  A place where a future as a Jew is possible.

Palestine is a fiction.  There was never a Palestine in history except as a Roman province.  The name itself comes from the Roman language.  The Romans dubbed the area Palestine as an affront to the Jews.  Palestine is the Roman transliteration of the word Philistine.  Thus, the Romans named the area once known as Judea after the ancient enemy of the Kingdom of Judea.  Jews have had a constant presence in the area for thousands of years.  They have been present in the Levant since the time of the ancient Kingdoms of Assyria and Babylonia and the ancient Persian Kingdoms.  Alexander’s Generals and historians wrote of the Jews there.  The Romans conquered them there.

Then came the Muslim Empire.  The great and bloody Empire of Islam.

Islam conquered the area and forced mass conversion on the inhabitants of the region.  Well, technically the didn’t force conversion.  You had choices.  Flee.  Become a slave.  Pay a hefty tax called the Jizya.  To avoid all of these choices, one had merely to convert.  State three times the words “there is no God but Allah and Mohammad is his Prophet.” Yes, many people “chose” to convert to Islam.  And what a choice it was.

Today, all across the Muslim world, Jews are second or third class citizens.  They are treated poorly.  Subject to rules and regulations and the whims of a mostly illiterate populace.  Antisemitism is on the rise across the globe.  Especially in Europe and the Arab lands.

The Arabs like to say that Israel is a guilt price for the actions of Europe during World War II.

And perhaps there is some truth to that.

Even so, the Jews have paid their own blood price for that land.  When Israel declared independence in 1948, the Arabs attacked.  Killing thousands of Jews and proclaiming that they would drive the Jews into the sea.  The Jews fought back and held off that bloody calamity.  The Arabs maintained a steady war of attrition for the next 30 to 40 years.  Attacking at the borders.  Raiding across the border and murdering families and communities much like the bloodletting and rockets that the Palestinians and Hezbollah plan and execute today.  In 1956, 1967 and 1973, the various Arab factions have pursued outright war against Israel by closing the straits and bottlenecking the Red Sea, by bombarding the country with artillery and build ups on the borders of Israel and by outright attacking as Sadat did in the ‘73 October War.

Yet, through it all, Israel has survived.  They’ve had the assistance of the US at times.  Their enemies have also had assistance.  The Soviets paid for most of the militaries of Egypt and Syria.  The Army that attacked Israel in 1973 was “mentored” by Soviet “advisers.”  Soviet pilots were shot down in combat action in the ‘73 war.

These are things that the opponents of Israel will deny or claim inconsequential.

Israel has always existed in one form or another.  Most of the land that comprises Israel was owned by Jews in 1948.  This land was purchased from the Arabs who owned the land.  Most of the business in Israel in 1948 was Jewish owned.  The Arabs who lived in the area in 1948, moved there because of developments created by the Jewish immigrants to the area.

I have been to Israel.  What is striking about the region is that Israel is much like a mini-European country in a vast wasteland.  Exit Israel and enter Egypt or Jordan or Syria.  You enter a time warp.  As if traveling back to the Ottoman Empire.  If Israel were to fail as a nation, this is the same fate that awaits the land.  It will corrupt and fall into disuse and neglect.  This is why the Arabs want it?  The people of Israel took a barren wasteland and made it into a paradise.  The Arabs simply let the wasteland stand as it is.

I do not support the creation of a Palestinian State.  Never do I think this should happen.  A Palestinian State would be nothing more than another Islamic Despotism wherein the people are kept illiterate and a few corrupt leaders in the mold of Yassar Arafat will enrich themselves at the expense of  the masses.  The Arabs of Palestine would do better to make their own treaty.  Expel the thugs of the PLA, Hamas and FATAH and make their own treaty with Israel.  Create a non-religious state and live side by side with Israel in peace.  Either as an autonomous region or a City-State along the lines of the Vatican.  Live in peace with their neighbors and let religion be no issue at all.

Israel is the only beacon of light in the darkest region of the Planet.  In almost every country that claims Islam as it’s dominant religion, the people are merely slaves to the whims of despotism and tyranny.

Israel should be supported by all democracies and all liberal peoples.  The PLA and the other groups that keep this war going should be international pariahs.  Iran, Saudi Arabia and any other country who supports these groups should be ignored.

But, of course, oil makes that impossible.  America, China, Europe and India will kiss the feet of the Arab oil men of the Middle East and ignore the real injustice of the region.  And the despots of the Arab Nations will forever use Israel as the scapegoat for their corruption to avert the eyes of their illiterate masses away from the real enemies that are the leaders of their own nations.

Barbara Eckroad recently submitted her PLA Portfolio for the maximum number of credits allowed — 45! For Barbara, all of that life experience has added up — big time!

Congrats Barbara!

Barbara is an Interdisciplinary Studies major with concentrations in English, Literature & Writing, Media Studies, and Religious Studies. The topics she wrote for were:

• LIT 223: Introduction to Literary Genre
• WR 367: Writing Workshop I: Poetry
• WR 368 & 468: Writing Workshop I & II: Short Fiction
• LIT 329: The Novel
• WR 312: Writing the Novel
• SSC 210: Introduction to Hebrew Bible
• SSC 211: Introduction to Christian Bible
• SSC 422: Gospels
• SPP 330: Spiritual Discernment through Writing
• SPH 357: Existentialism
• CCM 321: Small Group Communication
• HST 353: History of the 1960’s
• SPH 300: Ethics and Social Issues
• CCM 333: Intercultural Communications

Barbara shares her experiences of the PLA program — including her experience as a distance learner — in this video, in addition to lots of helpful hints for current PLA students. Enjoy!

‘Estudiar no vol pas dir solament llegir i repetir. Estudiar vol dir llegir i a més a més reflexionar, relacionar, integrar, detallar, aclarir, absorbir, rebutjar, decidir –saber el que té importància i el que no en té. És una operació enormement complexa i al mateix temps naturalíssima. Estudiar és fer funcionar l’esperit, partint de vegades de l’esperit mateix o per incitació de coses que provoquen una curiositat: és a dir, que agraden positivament. El que no agrada, el que no provoca un grau o altre de fascinació, no pot ésser objecte de reflexió, d’estudi. No hi ha atenció ni aproximació possible. Estudiar és una forma de l’amor –en definitiva una forma de la sensualitat: la carícia mental més fina i delicada que l’esperit pot produir’.

Josep Pla, El quadern gris

And here she goes again…

Another Portland design event brings another set of thoughts and, likely, questions.  I’d like to start by climbing to the highest rooftop I can find, so I can do my shout from the rooftops rant.  But instead, I’ll settle for this metaphorical rooftop I have here.

This story will begin and end with grapes.  That’s right—grapes.

Last night I attended an open house at Portland’s Leftbank Project, a cool revamp of a 1923 building originally designed by architect A.E. Doyle.  In theory, I’m a supporter of the building and its purpose: to connect and support mission-driven businesses in an inspiring environment, and to do so in an ecologically responsible way.  But based on my recent post about The GreenVille Project—one of Leftbank’s tenants—one could say I’m a bit leery of what this “mission-driven” concept sometimes means.

I was hanging out in the office of dc202 design collective, and became privy to a conversation that really threw me for a loop.  One of dc202’s neighbors (a Leftbank tenant) came by and started grilling a dc202 employee about their sustainability practices.  I guess it’s fine to ask the questions, but here’s where it turned strange:

Apparently, there was a question posed about where the grapes dc202 was feeding its guests came from.  As in, the neighborly tenant thought it necessary to remark on the large size of said grapes and therefore, the fact that they probably weren’t from the local farmer’s market.  No, sorry people, the grapes were from Costco.

Oh, how I hate that I have to repeat myself from a previous post, but:

Really?!?!

Again, let’s not get caught up in the details, folks.  Before we start nit-picking about grapes, we’ve got to think about the bigger picture here.  Sorry, but local farmer’s market grapes will do nary a thing to save the world.  Yeah, yeah, I get it that all those little actions add up to a greater whole.  I’m not completely oblivious to this concept.

But for the sake of point-making, how about I call attention to another silly sustainability detail from last night: the PLA “biodegradable” corn cups used to serve wine.  I could go on and on about the fact that the term biodegradable is awfully generous, given the process required for these cups to biodegrade, and the lack of availability of said processes.  I could rant about the fact that most people don’t have access to the required commercial composting system—and that these cups can’t be recycled—so more often than not end up in landfills, or contaminating recycled traditional plastics.  I could go on for hours about the fact that these cups are made from genetically modified corn, and that the epidemic agribusiness of corn growth is extremely harmful to the environment—by using excessive amounts of insecticides and herbicides, and contributing to soil erosion and water pollution.

Yes, I could do all of that.  And for the sake of illustrating my point, I just did.  But the real point I’d like to make here is that if we all can’t get off of our sustainability high-horses and stop this nit-picking about silly details, we’re never going to get anywhere.

News flash: the problem is much bigger and much deeper than grapes or corn cups.

I guess what it comes down to for me is this:

Are grapes and corn cups really worth fighting over?

I’m beginning to feel that sustainability—a word I’m starting to despise—has just become another way for people to express their superiority, their virtuosity, their perceived willingness to do the right thing. It’s another topic to fight about, and most of the arguments are truly futile.

I waver between feeling that there is hope for change, and feeling that we should all just do the best we can, and most importantly—live and let live. Because really, if we aren’t willing to seriously tackle the root of this problem, which in my opinion is over-population, chances of any major turn-around in the state of our environment are slim to none.

So let’s just stop with the sour grapes, please.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125625173429702481.html#project%3DSLIDESHOW08%26s%3DSB125621157646101033%26articleTabs%3Darticle

This article describes the history, positions, trade and problems between China and India in a nutshell.

Yadu Singh/Sydney/23rd Oct 2009

Is your computer acting squirrelly, your internet connection spotty? It might not be Microsoft after all, it could be Chinese military sponsored hackers.

Congressional commission focuses on China’s cyberwar capability

In war and possibly in peace, China will wage cyberwar to control the information flow and dominate the battle space, according to a new report compiled for a congressional commission.

Chinese military strategists see information dominance as the key to overall success in future conflicts and will continue to expand the country’s computer network exploitation capabilities, according to the report, titled “Capability of the People’s Republic of China to Conduct Cyber Warfare and Computer Network Exploitation.” The report was prepared for the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission under contract by Northrop Grumman’s Information Systems Sector.

In a conflict, China will likely target the U.S. government and private industry with long-term, sophisticated computer network exploitation and intelligence collection campaigns, the report concludes. U.S. security agencies can expect to face disciplined, standardized operations; sophisticated techniques; high-end software; and a deep knowledge of the U.S. networks, according to the report (PDF).

The strategy employed by the People’s Liberation Army–China’s military organization–is to consolidate computer network attacks with electronic warfare and kinetic strikes, creating “blind spots” in enemy systems to be exploited later as the tactical situation warrants, according to the report. The strategy, which has been adopted by the world’s other technologically inclined armies, is referred to by the PLA as “Integrated Network Electronic Warfare,” the report stated.

The emphasis on information warfare has forced the PLA to recruit from a wide swath of the civilian sector, according to the report. As is the case with the U.S. military and its new Cyber Command, the PLA looks to commercial industry and academia for people possessing the requisite specialized skills and pasty pallor to man the keyboards. And although it hints broadly at it, the report offers no evidence of ties between the PLA and China’s hacker community.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission reports and provides recommendations to Congress on the national security implications of the bilateral trade and economic relationship between the United States and the People’s Republic of China.

China Expands Cyberspying in U.S., Report Says

The Chinese government is ratcheting up its cyberspying operations against the U.S., a congressional advisory panel found, citing an example of a carefully orchestrated campaign against one U.S. company that appears to have been sponsored by Beijing.

The unnamed company was just one of several successfully penetrated by a campaign of cyberespionage, according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission report to be released Thursday. Chinese espionage operations are “straining the U.S. capacity to respond,” the report concludes.

See also:
Capability of the People’s Republic of China to Conduct Cyber Warfare and Computer Network Exploitation
Evidence Points To China In Cyber Attacks
Report: China building cyberwarfare capabilities
Security report finds Chinese cyberspying threat growing
U.S. report says China engages in cyber warfare
China fingered in cyberattack on mystery high tech co.
‘Huawei continues to receive preferential funding from China’s army’, says US Commission
United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission

/I sure hope Obama and company are putting at least as much time and energy into fighting this undeclared cyberwar with China as they are prosecuting their childish, whiny, crybaby media war against Fox News

Suposo que inspirat en aquest acudit de Montt en Dosis Diarias.

I have a bit of a soft spot for a halloween party. Perhaps it’s the rebel in me, as my mum wouldn’t even open the door to trick or treaters when I was at school. We’re planning a very spooky halloween party here at eco my party and have just accepted delivery of another batch of our gorgeous traditional paper garlands which include fat bodied spiders, dancing skeletons, brilliant bats and grinning pumpkins. They look gorgeous strung up all over the log cabin!

fancy some eco-friendly halloween party decorations of your own? Visit www.ecomyparty.co.uk