Contacts: Chriss Swaney / 412-268-5776 / swaney@andrew.cmu.edu / Carnegie Mellon University Paul Kovach / 412-624-0265 / pkovach@pitt.edu / University of Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH-Carnegie Mellon University's David A. Dzombak and the University of Pittsburgh's Radisav D. Vidic were recently recognized by the American Academy of Environmental Scientists and Engineers (AAEES) at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., for helping to address the global water shortage for use in power plant cooling systems.
Dzombak and Vidic received the 2013 Grand Prize in the University Research category of the AAEES Excellence in Environmental Engineering and Science competition for a project titled "Use of Treated Municipal Wastewater as Power Plant Cooling System Makeup Water."
"This is a wonderful honor for seven years of work, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, to develop an integrated approach for use of municipal wastewater for cooling systems in electric power plants," said Dzombak, the Walter J. Blenko, Sr. University Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and director of the Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research at CMU.
"We need a great deal of water for electric power production to condense steam in the power plant steam cycle. Air cooling is possible but is more costly and less efficient. Water will continue to be the preferred coolant for new thermoelectric power plants," said Vidic, the William Kepler Whiteford Professor and chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Swanson School of Engineering at Pitt.
The CMU-Pitt research shows that treated municipal wastewater is a common and widely available alternative source of cooling water for thermoelectric power plants across the U.S. However, the biodegradable organic matter, ammonia, carbonate and phosphates in the treated wastewater pose challenges, including fouling and corrosion issues. The researchers along with their graduate students from both CMU and Pitt investigated how to address these challenges.
Dzombak and Vidic noted that the results of their work show the need to evaluate the growing competition among the energy industry, farmers and residents for scarce water supplies. Every day, water-cooled thermoelectric power plants in the U.S. withdraw more than 200 billion gallons of fresh water from rivers, lakes, streams and aquifers. Freshwater withdrawals for cooling thermoelectric power production alone account for about 40 percent of all withdrawals, essentially the same amount taken for agricultural irrigation, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
"Our research shows that alternative sources of water are needed for new power production in regions without new sources of available freshwater," Dzombak said. "Our research will not only help promote the use of properly treated municipal wastewater at cooling plants, but help contribute to economic development." ?
For more information about the research project and topic investigated, see http://cooling.ce.cmu.edu or http://www.waterreuse.pitt.edu/.
School of Management 2013 seniors surveyed by Bloomberg Businessweek ranked SMG?s finance degree seventh nationwide, beating out New York University and Boston College. Photo by Kalman Zabarsky
Michael Tobitsch took his first finance class junior year at BU and never looked back. He landed a job after graduation in investment banking at Wachovia Securities, now merged with Wells Fargo, where he honed his skills before securing a position on the mergers and acquisitions team of insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Companies in New York City.
A rising star in his field, Tobitsch (SMG?07) says BU gave him a strong foundation in finance, so he was hardly surprised to hear that 2013 seniors of the School of Management surveyed by Bloomberg Businessweek recently ranked the school?s finance program the seventh best nationwide, beating out competitors like New York University and Boston College.
Tobitsch credits Kenneth Freeman, Allen Questrom Professor and Dean of SMG, for changing the curriculum so students can select finance courses as early as freshman year (an option unavailable to him) and predicts other top-notch rankings will follow. ?I really think it?s an indication of what?s to come.?
In compiling its results, Bloomberg Businessweek surveyed Class of 2013 seniors about the courses they took and their overall satisfaction with their individual programs. The student satisfaction score rose to 18th overall, an increase from last year?s rank of 26th. And the publication ranked SMG?s overall undergraduate program as 23rd nationwide. Freeman expects more favorable survey results assessing other departments in the coming weeks.
Bloomberg Businessweek ranked SMG's undergraduate program 23rd nationwide. Photo by Vernon Doucette
?Being able to rise to the top 10 for finance is a validation of the really strong commitment of our faculty to our students,? says Freeman. ?It?s heartening to see that our efforts are being recognized by our students to really differentiate the schools of management.?
Marcel Rindisbacher, an SMG associate professor and chair of finance, thinks the survey reflects the school?s decision to redefine the undergraduate curriculum and ?shows the kind of efforts we put in to address students? needs are paying off.?
?Employers know the quality of our curriculum as well as the quality of our students,? says James French, an SMG lecturer in organizational behavior and acting assistant dean. ?Nearly one third of the 2012 graduating class took a position in financial services with a starting salary of over $54,000.?
According to SMG?s Feld Career Center, 92 percent of Class of 2012 graduates concentrating in finance landed a job within six months of graduation, many with Fortune 500 companies, among them Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Fidelity, and J.P. Morgan. Across all SMG departments, 93 percent of Class of 2012 graduates are employed in their respective fields.
Tobitsch wants that trend to continue. That?s why he?s planning his fourth Your Future in Finance conference at BU in September, where young alumni professionals join professors to mentor students for the career of their dreams.
?This ranking was really fully driven by the SMG student experience,? he says, and ?demonstrates that the University and alumni care about them.?
Sharing examination questions threatens trust in medical professionPublic release date: 29-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachael Zaleski mcpmedia@elsevier.com 215-239-3658 Elsevier Health Sciences
Experts call for medical leaders to establish guidelines, embed honesty in academic cultures, reported in Mayo Clinic Proceedings
Rochester, MN, April 29, 2013 Unethical behavior among physicians-in-training threatens to erode public trust and confidence in the medical profession, say two academic physicians in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Reacting to CNN reports last year about the widespread use of "recalls" and "airplane notes" by radiology and dermatology residents, Gregory W. Ruhnke, MD, MS, MPH, of the Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, and David J. Doukas, MD, of the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine, University of Louisville, call on leaders in medical education to establish guidelines and change the culture of medical school and training programs.
Illegal reproduction and transmission of board certification examination questions have received wide public attention recently. In 2010, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) suspended or revoked the certification of 139 physicians found to be disclosing or soliciting examination questions for a board review prep company in New Jersey; the company encouraged physicians to recall questions from memory and convey them to the course director for inclusion in course materials. In early 2012, CNN revealed that doctors training to become dermatologists and radiologists had for years shared exam questions by memorizing them and writing them down after their board certification examinations.
Ruhnke and Doukas say there is a crucial distinction between cheating and guided study, noting that historical test questions are routinely used throughout higher education. They cite the American College of Physicians' Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program, which includes a summary of high-yield information vetted by post-examination residents to choose material likely to appear on future examinations. Some physicians have defended the use of "recalls." Moreover, "the difference between the use of questions reproduced verbatim and a focused study guide based on examinee input lies in the detail and specificity of information transmitted," they say.
The authors review the literature and discuss what drives dishonest behavior. Cheating is surprisingly common among medical students, with estimates ranging widely between five and 88%. Of medical students surveyed, 59% believed that cheating was impossible to eliminate because of its pervasiveness. Perhaps of greatest concern for the public, cheating on examinations by medical students correlates with falsifying information in a patient's medical record.
"Difficult exam content unnecessary for clinical care, the desire to assist friends, and peer behavior are important factors," says Ruhnke. For example, subjects not immediately relevant for clinical care, such as biochemistry and pharmacology, are seen as a "rite of passage." Assignment and test content that medical students view as unnecessary for clinical care makes them more likely to cheat.
The authors consider a number of potential interventions that might reduce the impetus to reproduce questions in verbatim form, such as not reusing test questions and the return of oral examinations, but recognize separate challenges of such solutions. Avoiding the reuse of test questions might threaten the statistical reliability and consistency of passing standards. In addition, harsh punishments are unlikely to be completely effective because their impact on peer behavior is not sufficiently powerful.
The authors urge the American Board of Medical Specialties and the Association of American Medical Colleges to establish guidelines regarding the detail and specificity of information that examinees may ethically disclose, and to be proactive in requiring examinees to acknowledge that reproduction or dissemination of test materials is both illegal and a violation of professional standards.
"Successful certification must demonstrate that physicians are vested with the trust of their peers but also the public. Sponsoring rigorous examinations that cover material critical for patient care will bolster what the profession provides to patients," according to the authors. "The literature suggests that this can best be achieved by embedding academic honesty into institutional cultures. Ultimately, the sanctity of our profession and the faith that patients place in us as physicians demands the highest moral standards."
In an accompanying Editorial, Christine K. Cassel, MD, Eric S. Holmboe, MD, and Lorie B. Slass, MA, of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), Philadelphia, welcome the work of Ruhnke and Doukas as an important "call to action" for academic medicine to actively, and intentionally, strengthen the culture of medical school and training programs to value integrity and to respect the need for examinations to demonstrate competence throughout a professional career.
In its legal actions and information campaign related to the board review prep company transgressions, "ABIM conveyed a clear message to the physician community that ABIM will not tolerate unethical behavior from board candidates, that test takers need to know that this kind of 'brain dumping' is grossly unethical, and that any physician who seeks to compromise the integrity of the ABIM examination process will face swift and serious consequences," explains Cassel.
"The certifying examination is one of the first tests of professionalism for physicians. 'Everyone does it' is never a sufficient answer when faced with an ethical dilemma, and if the profession is to meet its societal obligation to uphold the highest ethical standards, we most certainly cannot accept such an excuse from board certified physicians," she concludes.
###
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Sharing examination questions threatens trust in medical professionPublic release date: 29-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachael Zaleski mcpmedia@elsevier.com 215-239-3658 Elsevier Health Sciences
Experts call for medical leaders to establish guidelines, embed honesty in academic cultures, reported in Mayo Clinic Proceedings
Rochester, MN, April 29, 2013 Unethical behavior among physicians-in-training threatens to erode public trust and confidence in the medical profession, say two academic physicians in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Reacting to CNN reports last year about the widespread use of "recalls" and "airplane notes" by radiology and dermatology residents, Gregory W. Ruhnke, MD, MS, MPH, of the Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, and David J. Doukas, MD, of the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine, University of Louisville, call on leaders in medical education to establish guidelines and change the culture of medical school and training programs.
Illegal reproduction and transmission of board certification examination questions have received wide public attention recently. In 2010, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) suspended or revoked the certification of 139 physicians found to be disclosing or soliciting examination questions for a board review prep company in New Jersey; the company encouraged physicians to recall questions from memory and convey them to the course director for inclusion in course materials. In early 2012, CNN revealed that doctors training to become dermatologists and radiologists had for years shared exam questions by memorizing them and writing them down after their board certification examinations.
Ruhnke and Doukas say there is a crucial distinction between cheating and guided study, noting that historical test questions are routinely used throughout higher education. They cite the American College of Physicians' Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program, which includes a summary of high-yield information vetted by post-examination residents to choose material likely to appear on future examinations. Some physicians have defended the use of "recalls." Moreover, "the difference between the use of questions reproduced verbatim and a focused study guide based on examinee input lies in the detail and specificity of information transmitted," they say.
The authors review the literature and discuss what drives dishonest behavior. Cheating is surprisingly common among medical students, with estimates ranging widely between five and 88%. Of medical students surveyed, 59% believed that cheating was impossible to eliminate because of its pervasiveness. Perhaps of greatest concern for the public, cheating on examinations by medical students correlates with falsifying information in a patient's medical record.
"Difficult exam content unnecessary for clinical care, the desire to assist friends, and peer behavior are important factors," says Ruhnke. For example, subjects not immediately relevant for clinical care, such as biochemistry and pharmacology, are seen as a "rite of passage." Assignment and test content that medical students view as unnecessary for clinical care makes them more likely to cheat.
The authors consider a number of potential interventions that might reduce the impetus to reproduce questions in verbatim form, such as not reusing test questions and the return of oral examinations, but recognize separate challenges of such solutions. Avoiding the reuse of test questions might threaten the statistical reliability and consistency of passing standards. In addition, harsh punishments are unlikely to be completely effective because their impact on peer behavior is not sufficiently powerful.
The authors urge the American Board of Medical Specialties and the Association of American Medical Colleges to establish guidelines regarding the detail and specificity of information that examinees may ethically disclose, and to be proactive in requiring examinees to acknowledge that reproduction or dissemination of test materials is both illegal and a violation of professional standards.
"Successful certification must demonstrate that physicians are vested with the trust of their peers but also the public. Sponsoring rigorous examinations that cover material critical for patient care will bolster what the profession provides to patients," according to the authors. "The literature suggests that this can best be achieved by embedding academic honesty into institutional cultures. Ultimately, the sanctity of our profession and the faith that patients place in us as physicians demands the highest moral standards."
In an accompanying Editorial, Christine K. Cassel, MD, Eric S. Holmboe, MD, and Lorie B. Slass, MA, of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), Philadelphia, welcome the work of Ruhnke and Doukas as an important "call to action" for academic medicine to actively, and intentionally, strengthen the culture of medical school and training programs to value integrity and to respect the need for examinations to demonstrate competence throughout a professional career.
In its legal actions and information campaign related to the board review prep company transgressions, "ABIM conveyed a clear message to the physician community that ABIM will not tolerate unethical behavior from board candidates, that test takers need to know that this kind of 'brain dumping' is grossly unethical, and that any physician who seeks to compromise the integrity of the ABIM examination process will face swift and serious consequences," explains Cassel.
"The certifying examination is one of the first tests of professionalism for physicians. 'Everyone does it' is never a sufficient answer when faced with an ethical dilemma, and if the profession is to meet its societal obligation to uphold the highest ethical standards, we most certainly cannot accept such an excuse from board certified physicians," she concludes.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
The New York Review of Books says it has found the mysterious Misha. Mikhail Allakhverdov says he's no Svengali
When Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev's family members started mentioning a mysterious man named Misha, and suggested he was a driving force behind Tamerlan's descent into radical, violent Islam, it didn't seem like it should be too hard to find the man: How many balding, red-bearded Armenian Muslim converts live in the Boston area?
Then days passed, with no news but lots of speculation. Many Armenians protested that no such figure could exist, since the stalwartly Christian nation's bloody history with its Muslim neighbors would prevent any Armenian from converting to Islam. In The Week, Walter Katz suggested that Misha may be an FBI informant who started grooming Tamerlan for a federal sting operation before giving up (prematurely).
SEE MORE: The Tsarnaev brothers' Chechnya connection
On Saturday, anonymous law enforcement sources released a dribble of news: The FBI had identified Misha, they told The Associated Press, but found he had no ties to terrorism generally or the Boston bombings specifically. On Sunday evening, Christian Caryl at the New York Review of Books introduced the world to the man he says is Misha:
Today I was able to meet "Misha," whose real name is Mikhail Allakhverdov. Having been referred by a family in Boston that was close to the Tsarnaevs, I found Allakverdov at his home in Rhode Island, in a lower middle class neighborhood, where he lives in a modest, tidy apartment with his elderly parents. He confirmed he was a convert to Islam and that he had known Tamerlan Tsarnaev, but he flatly denied any part in the bombings. "I wasn't his teacher. If I had been his teacher, I would have made sure he never did anything like this," Allakhverdov said.
A 39-year-old man of Armenian-Ukrainian descent, Allakhverdov is of medium height and has a thin, reddish-blond beard.... Allakhverdov said he had known Tamerlan in Boston, where he lived until about three years ago, and has not had any contact with him since. He declined to describe the nature of his acquaintance with Tamerlan or the Tsarnaev family, but said he had never met the family members who are now accusing him of radicalizing Tamerlan. He also confirmed he had been interviewed by the FBI and that he has cooperated with the investigation. [New York Review]
That seems pretty cut and dry ? Allakhverdov wouldn't be the first person wrongly accused of involvement in this case. But also on Sunday, the AP's David Caruso, Michael Kunzelman, and Max Seddon published their report on the recent radicalization of another character in this drama: The suspected bombers' mother, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva. And Tsarnaeva says she became religious thanks to the influence of, yes, Misha:
In photos of her as a younger woman, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva wears a low-cut blouse and has her hair teased like a 1980s rock star. After she arrived in the U.S. from Russia in 2002, she went to beauty school and did facials at a suburban day spa. But in recent years, people noticed a change. She began wearing a hijab and cited conspiracy theories about 9/11 being a plot against Muslims....
Zubeidat said she and Tamerlan began to turn more deeply into their Muslim faith about five years ago after being influenced by a family friend, named "Misha." The man, whose full name she didn't reveal, impressed her with a religious devotion that was far greater than her own, even though he was an ethnic Armenian who converted to Islam. "I wasn't praying until he prayed in our house, so I just got really ashamed that I am not praying, being a Muslim, being born Muslim. I am not praying. Misha, who converted, was praying," she said. [AP]
Both these accounts can't be true. Caryl, for example, talks to a "close friend of the family in Boston" who says that "Misha was not known to have visited Tamerlan at home" ? a point contradicted now by Tamerlan's mom, uncle, and former brother-in-law. Maybe it was always inevitable that the media would find Misha, and it's probably good for Allakverdov that a Russian-speaking journalist was the first to break the story. But now that his name and state of residence are out there, it's safe to say this isn't the last we've heard about Misha.
SEE MORE: 5 ways the Samsung Galaxy S4 stunned an iPhone user
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Yesterday while taking a nap due to feeling exhausted and somewhat sick, I had a nightmare, one in which I had somehow met this guy and I found myself in his room which I knew to be inside his mother's house. I never saw her. The guy was kind of lonely so I wanted to help, yet throughout this all he exhibited a weird mean streak. Only afterwards did I realize that he had just been cruel. I eventually managed to sneak away and hide in a pile of firewood ("becoming the wood"). I woke up from this dream with one of my arms crossed over my chest, and both hands more or less clenched into a fist and my heart pounding like crazy.
Today I felt very agitated and depressed. After deciding to go take a nap again I got to my bed where something inside me kind of snapped. I felt so frustrated that I began to hit myself on the head over and over again until it started hurting so much that I could only drag myself into bed where I fell asleep. I then had another nightmare.
The initial part of the dream I do not remember well. I was apparently in the house in which I grew up, and yet it wasn't really. It was more light and spacious. There was something going on with food. Dinner, I think. I didn't feel like eating yet, until at one point I told my mother that she could warm up some of the pasta for me. Shortly after that I decided to go upstairs to my room. Nearing the top of the stair I could see that my room's door wasn't fully open as I had left it, but slightly ajar. Pushing it open I went into my room, which again wasn't really like my room of the past. Again more light and spacious. To my left was my bed, but in it was already someone. A woman. First she looked like Jeri Ryan, who was wriggling about under the blankets, seemingly amused. As I got closer and slid into the bed as well, she changed into a more African looking woman.
The moment I first saw a woman in my bed I didn't really feel anything, it was more a matter of observing a fact. Sliding into the bed next to her I found it to be a comforting thought to be next to her. Nice and cozy. Lying next to her she suddenly proposed getting intimate with me, which caught me by surprise. Working in my head through the logistics of such a thing, I found no problems there. Preparing, I had just changed from fully clothed into wearing the same but my pink pyjama pants instead of my jeans, when my mother came into the room to tell that dinner was ready. At this point I thought it would be a good idea to lock the door, so I got out and wandered over the other side of the room where I knew that the key probably was. I didn't find it, however.
Meanwhile the woman was just wandering about near the bed, talking with my mother or such. Her presence didn't incite anything negative, which I think meant that she was supposed to be there. Maybe she was my girlfriend after all. I decided to ditch the locked door idea and walked back over to her. My mother and the shadowy male figure I had sensed near her had left. As the woman and I came close we embraced. As we stood there, I started trembling. The really bad kind of shaking when you're either nervous or anxious enough to nearly bolt away to safety, or stricken with fear. I held her tightly as I said to her in a trembling voice that I felt so nervous, more than I had ever felt before. The image then suddenly distorted into nonsense.
As I woke up from that nightmare, I found both my arms firmly crossed on my chest and both hands tightly clenched into fists. I was crying.
Thanks to today's nightmare I think I now know what yesterday's nightmare was about, namely my experiences living together with that person. The second nightmare was for me a frightening look into how traumatizing sexuality has always been to me. I have actually experienced such trembling before with a real-life experience, though I chose to ignore it at the time. In the nightmare I chose to finally admit to myself that there's nothing which fills me more with terror than the thought of sexuality. I have just been forcing myself to try and accept it as something normal, while further damaging myself that way. My experiences the past months more so.
This all taken together it seems quite clear where some of my worst traumas are, and the worst roadblocks on the way to recovery. It's in some ways infuriating that a good, healthy relationship could be so beneficial to me, while the possibility of such a thing happening is sheer random chance. I could run into the perfect person tomorrow, or never. Maybe a plan B is in order, with a shrink specializing in sexuality poking and prodding me. Maybe.
Or maybe that's plan C and plan B is to become a bloody hermit.
BOSTON (AP) ? Boston hospitals say the number of patients being treated for injuries sustained in the marathon bombing continues to drop, nearly two weeks after the attack that killed three and hurt more than 260.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center said Sunday morning six patients with bombing injuries remain hospitalized, down from more than 20 immediately following the April 15 attack.
All six are in good or fair condition.
Nine victims remain at Brigham and Women's Hospital, down from 36 after the bombing. Seven are in good condition.
Massachusetts General Hospital continues to treat six bombing victims, with one in serious condition and the others in good or fair condition. The hospital has treated 31 bombing victims.
In all, 26 hospitals have treated people injured in the bombing.
The UFC 159 picks are in. Check out how Kevin Iole and I picked the fights, and who Cagereaders said will win. Thanks to everyone who weighed in on Cagewriter's Facebook page. Want to join in on the fun? Like Cagewriter on Facebook.
Kevin Iole -- Jon Jones TKO2 Chael Sonnen: I've been on a terrible run with my picks in 2013, so my choice might be the thing that helps produce one of the UFC's greatest upsets. But looking closely at the bout, I see no way Sonnen can win it. I expect Jones to get a takedown at some point, cut Sonnen open with an elbow and finish it that way.
Maggie Hendricks -- Jon Jones TKO3 Chael Sonnen: When you cut through the smack talk and look at their actual skills in the cage, Sonnen is moving up in weight to meet a fighter who is younger, faster and more skilled.
Cagereaders -- 68 percent of Cagereaders said Jones would win: I believe that Jones has more of an arsenal and can keep sonnen guessing as to what is coming next. - Fred Mull Sonnen never deserves this title shot. Jones by KO in 2nd by GNP elbows, or Sonnen simply quits before getting knocked out when he realizes he has no business in the octagon with Jones. - Chris Dryden
***
Kevin Iole -- Michael Bisping TKO3 Alan Belcher: Both men are inconsistent and both badly need a solid win. I think Bisping gets it by staying on his feet and going back to his kick boxing background.
Maggie Hendricks -- Alan Belcher W3 Michael Bisping: This is a tight fight, but Belcher will take it by bringing the fight to the ground.
Cagereaders -- 50.8 percent of Cagereaders said Bisping will take this bout: Belcher is more well rounded than Bisping -- Trampas Lee Fleming
***
Kevin Iole -- Roy Nelson SUB2 Cheick Kongo: Roy has the power to knock Cheick out. I think he'll hurt him with one of those big windmill right hands he fires and then finish him with a choke.
Maggie Hendricks -- Roy Nelson W3 Cheick Kongo: Nelson has an iron chin, and will be able to withstand Kongo's power.
Cagereaders -- 81 percent of Cagereaders say Nelson will take this fight: Nelson has a heavy hand and stronger chin than Kongo. -- Pinkie Aman Suarez
***
Kevin Iole -- Phil Davis W3 Vinny Maghalaes: Davis will have to be careful on the ground with Maghalaes, but I believe he's the better overall fighter and that he'll score a convincing decision victory.
Maggie Hendricks -- Phil Davis W3 Vinny Magalhaes: It may not be thrilling, but it will be a wrestling-filled win for Mr. Wonderful.
Cagereaders -- 84 percent of Cagereaders said Davis will take this bout: Potential submission of the night. Phil is too quick and talented, will submit the submission expert -- Marvin Ishmael
***
Kevin Iole -- Jim Miller W3 Pat Healy: This has the potential to steal the show. It's an excellent bout and I see Miller with a very slight edge.
Maggie Hendricks -- Jim Miller SUB2 Pat Healy: It's been three years since Healy was submitted, but Miller has the skill to do it.
Cagereaders -- 92 percent of you said Miller will win: Miller had a war against Joe last time out and will come out strong as usual -- Mike Terry
Here are the terms of trades completed on Friday, April 26, the second day of the 2013 NFL Draft. All draft picks are 2013 selections unless otherwise noted:
The Titans acquired a second-round pick from San Francisco (No. 34 overall), sending second- and seventh-round picks (Nos. 40, 216) in 2013 and a 2014 third-rounder to the 49ers. The Titans selected Tennessee wide receiver Justin Hunter at No. 34. The 49ers took Florida State defensive lineman Cornellius ?Tank? Carradine at No. 40.
The Chargers traded for the Cardinals? second-round pick (No. 38), giving up second- and fourth-round picks (Nos. 45, 110) to Arizona. The Chargers used selection No. 38 on Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te?o, while the Cardinals took LSU linebacker Kevin Minter at No. 45.
The 49ers acquired the Packers? second-round pick (No. 55). In return, San Francisco surrendered second- and sixth-round picks (Nos. 61, 173). The 49ers took Rice tight end Vance McDonald at No. 55. The Packers used the No. 61 choice on Alabama running back Eddie Lacy.
The Ravens traded for the Seahawks? second-round selection (No. 56). Baltimore sent Seattle second-, fifth- and sixth-round picks (Nos. 62, 165, 199) to complete the deal. The Ravens took Kansas State linebacker Arthur Brown with pick No. 56. Six picks later, the Seahawks selected Texas A&M running back Christine Michael at No. 62.
The Saints acquired a third-round selection from Miami (No. 82). In exchange, the Dolphins received two fourth-round picks (Nos. 106, 109) from New Orleans. The Saints took Georgia nose tackle John Jenkins at No. 82. The Dolphins would trade selection No. 109 to Green Bay.
The 49ers traded for the Packers? third-round choice (No. 88), surrendering third- and seventh-round picks (Nos. 93, 216) to Green Bay. With pick No. 88, San Francisco chose Auburn defensive lineman Corey Lemonier. The Packers would deal the 93rd selection to Miami (see next entry).
The Dolphins acquired a third-round pick from Green Bay (No. 93), giving up fourth-, fifth- and seventh-round picks (Nos. 109, 146, 224). The Dolphins selected Utah State cornerback Will Davis at No. 93.
The Dolphins traded wide receiver Davone Bess and their fourth- and seventh-round picks (Nos. 111, 217) to Cleveland. In return, the Browns sent the Dolphins fourth- and fifth-round picks (Nos. 104, 164).
The Saints traded running back Chris Ivory to the Jets in exchange for New York?s fourth-round pick (No. 106). The Saints dealt No. 106 in a package for pick No. 82, which was used on Georgia nose tackle John Jenkins.
(Reuters) - Videogame publisher Activision Blizzard Inc's Chief Executive Robert Kotick received a total compensation of $64.9 million last year, making him one of the top paid CEOs in the United States.
Kotick's 2012 total compensation includes about $56 million in stock awards, while there were no stock awards for 2011. His base salary doubled to $2 million, according to regulatory filings on Friday. (http://r.reuters.com/bew67t)
Kotick, 50, also a board member of Coca-Cola Co, was paid $8.33 million in 2011 by Santa Monica-based Activision.
The company's revenues and net income, however, rose only in single digits for 2012, slower than the growth rate it saw in 2011.
Activision's Kotick makes over three times the $21 million pay package received by Goldman Sach Group Inc's CEO Lloyd Blankfein in 2012, and it is 50 percent higher than Walt Disney Co CEO Robert Iger's $40.2 million compensation in 2012.
Kotick has been a director and CEO of Activision Inc, since February 1991 until July 2008, when he became CEO of Activision Blizzard in connection with the combination of Activision and Vivendi Games.
(Reporting by Thyagaraju Adinarayan in Bangalore; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
THURSDAY, April 25 (HealthDay News) ? Autism risk may be spotted at birth by examining placentas for abnormalities, new research suggests.
?We can look at the placenta at birth and determine the chance of being at risk for autism with extremely high reliability,? said Dr. Harvey Kliman, a research scientist at Yale University.
One of 88 U.S. children has an autism spectrum disorder, the umbrella name for complex brain development disorders marked by problems with social interaction and communication, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The earlier autism is treated, the better the outcome. But children typically aren?t diagnosed until behavioral symptoms begin, perhaps at age 2 or 3 years, or even later. Kliman said the children identified as at risk at birth might benefit from early treatment.
For the new study, published online April 25 in the journal Biological Psychiatry, Kliman and his team examined 117 placentas from newborns whose mothers already had one or more children with some form of autism, which put the infant at higher risk for the disorder. The researchers compared those samples with placenta samples from 100 women who already had one or more typically developing children.
During pregnancy, the placenta keeps the unborn baby?s blood supply separate from the mother?s while providing the baby with oxygen and nutrients. At delivery, the placenta, also called the afterbirth, follows the baby out of the womb.
The placentas from women whose older children had autism were markedly different from the others, Kliman?s team found. They zeroed in on abnormal folds and abnormal cell growth in the placenta, known as trophoblast inclusions.
The placentas from the at-risk pregnancies were eight times more likely to have two or more of these abnormal folds than samples from not-at-risk deliveries. Placentas with four or more of the inclusions predicted an infant with at least a 74 percent probability of being at risk for autism, the researchers said.
?There were no [placentas from pregnancies not at risk] that had more than two of the folds,? Kliman said.
The study only predicted risk of autism, however, not actual autism. The researchers will continue to follow the children.
The testing can?t be done before delivery, Kliman said. ?You need enough placenta [to examine].?
But the test could help spot at-risk children much earlier than is now possible, Kliman suggested. ?There is no way [currently] to know at birth that your child might have autism,? he said. ?If you know you have a child who is at risk for autism at birth, you are ahead of the game.? Interventions can begin early, when the brain is more open to change.
How the folds in the placenta relate to autism risk isn?t clear, Kliman said. He and others speculated that the abnormalities in the placentas and the brains of the children affected with autism are marked by increased cellular growth, which then leads to the unusual folding. ?The heads of children with autism are bigger,? he said. Their brains grow rapidly early in life.
?I?d like to see it as a routine test,? Kliman said. The test is labor intensive and requires pathology, however, and Kliman estimated it could cost $2,000 or more.
This isn?t the first study to link placental abnormalities with autism risk, said Geraldine Dawson, chief science officer for Autism Speaks, an advocacy and research group. ?However, it is one of the largest studies to confirm this finding,? she said.
But more research is needed to confirm the findings, she said.
It is too soon to suggest this as a routine test, said Dr. Daniel Coury, medical director of the group?s Autism Treatment Network and chief of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at Nationwide Children?s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He praised the study, but also said more research is needed to duplicate the findings.
?Being able to identify those infants at greater risk so we can target our interventions is really big news,? he said.
The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health; the MIND Institute at the University of California, Davis; Yale University Reproductive and Placental Research Unit; and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The researchers don?t hold patents on the procedure or have financial interests in it.
More information
To learn about the signs of autism, visit Autism Speaks.
Anger on streets as Bangladesh building toll passes 300
DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh textile workers vented their anger on Friday, burning cars and clashing with police, as the death toll passed 300 following the collapse of a building housing factories that made low-cost garments for Western brands. Miraculously rescuers were still pulling people alive from the rubble - 72 since daybreak following 41 found in the same room overnight - two days after the eight-storey building collapsed on the outskirts of the capital, Dhaka.
Obama: Chemical weapons use in Syria would be "game changer"
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama warned President Bashar al-Assad on Friday that any use of chemical weapons in Syria's civil war would be a "game changer" but cautioned that intelligence assessments that such weapons had been deployed were still preliminary. Speaking a day after the White House said for the first time that Assad's government had likely used chemical weapons on a small scale, Obama talked tough while appealing for patience as he sought to fend off pressure at home and abroad for a swift U.S. response.
Fire kills dozens in Russian psychiatric hospital
RAMENSKY, Russia (Reuters) - Thirty-eight people were killed, most of them in their beds, in a fire that raged through a psychiatric hospital near Moscow on Friday, raising questions about the care of mentally ill patients in Russia. The fire, which broke out at around 2 a.m. (6 p.m. ET on Thursday), swept through a single-storey building at the hospital, a collection of wood and brick huts with bars on some windows that was home to people sent there on grounds of mental illness by Russian courts.
Boston bomb suspect moved to prison from hospital
BOSTON (Reuters) - Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been moved to a prison medical center from the hospital where he had been held since his arrest a week ago while recovering from gunshot wounds, U.S. officials said on Friday. The 19-year-old ethnic Chechen, wounded in a late-night shootout with police on April 18 hours after authorities released pictures of him and his older brother as suspects, was charged on Monday and could face the death penalty if convicted. His brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, died in the shootout.
"Evidence" of Syria chemical weapons use not up to U.N. standard
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Assertions of chemical weapon use in Syria by Western and Israeli officials citing photos, sporadic shelling and traces of toxins do not meet the standard of proof needed for a U.N. team of experts waiting to gather their own field evidence. Weapons inspectors will only determine whether banned chemical agents were used in the two-year-old conflict if they are able to access sites and take soil, blood, urine or tissue samples and examine them in certified laboratories, according to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which works with the United Nations on inspections.
Islamist says Egypt should press on with judge reforms
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Islamist-dominated parliament must move quickly to adopt judicial reforms that have sparked a revolt by judges, the deputy leader of the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm argued on Friday. The proposed reforms, which would get rid of more than 3,000 judges by lowering the retirement age, have widened the rift between President Mohamed Mursi's government and a judiciary seen by its critics as a last bastion of the old regime that was toppled in the 2011 revolution.
Top British publicist charged with 11 sex assaults
LONDON (Reuters) - Celebrity publicist Max Clifford on Friday became the first high profile figure to be charged in a wide-ranging investigation into a sex scandal that has grabbed front page headlines in Britain in recent months. Clifford, 70, was charged with 11 counts of indecent assault, prosecutors said, including on two underage girls, after being arrested in December as part of an investigation into sex crime allegations against the late Jimmy Savile.
Bombs kill at least 20 across Iraqi capital
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Bomb blasts in Baghdad killed at least 20 more people on Friday at the end of a week of bloodshed that prompted a United Nations envoy to warn Iraq was "at a crossroads". More than 160 people have been killed since Tuesday, when troops stormed a Sunni protest camp near Kirkuk, triggering clashes that quickly spread to other Sunni areas in western and northern provinces.
Russian court denies punk band convict Tolokonnikova parole
MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian court refused to release from prison one of two jailed members of the Pussy Riot punk band so that she can look after her young daughter. The court on Friday rejected Nadezhda Tolokonnikova's appeal for parole eight months after she was handed a two-year prison sentence for the band's performance of a "punk prayer" in Moscow's main Russian Orthodox cathedral.
Bosnian regional president arrested in graft probe
SARAJEVO (Reuters) - The president of Bosnia's autonomous Muslim-Croat federation and 19 others were arrested on Friday in an anti-corruption probe that also targeted the offices of the regional government, a spokesman for the state prosecutor said. The raid on Zivko Budimir's Sarajevo office and the regional government in the southern town of Mostar is the most high-profile anti-graft operation in Bosnia since independence more than two decades ago.
Apr. 25, 2013 ? Humpback whales are able to pass on hunting techniques to each other, just as humans do, new research has found.
A team of researchers, led by the University of St Andrews, has discovered that a new feeding technique has spread to 40 per cent of a humpback whale population.
The findings are published April 25 by the journal Science.
The community of humpback whales off New England, USA, was forced to find new prey after herring stocks -- their preferred food -- crashed in the early 1980s.
The solution the whales devised -- hitting the water with their tails while hunting a different prey -- has now spread through the population by cultural transmission. By 2007, nearly 40 per cent of the population had been seen doing it.
Dr Luke Rendell, lecturer in the School of Biology at the University of St Andrews, said: "Our study really shows how vital cultural transmission is in humpback populations -- not only do they learn their famous songs from each other, they also learn feeding techniques that allow them to buffer the effects of changing ecology."
The team -- also including Jenny Allen from the University of St Andrews, Mason Weinrich of the Whale Center of New England and Will Hoppitt from Anglia Ruskin University -- used a new technique called network-based diffusion analysis to demonstrate that the pattern of spread followed the network of social relationships within the population, showing that the new behaviour had spread through cultural transmission, the same process that underlies the diversity of human culture.
The data were collected by naturalist observers aboard the many whale-watching vessels that patrol the waters of the Gulf of Maine each summer.
Dr Hoppitt said: "We can learn more about the forces that drive the evolution of culture by looking outside our own ancestral lineage and studying the occurrence of similar attributes in groups that have evolved in a radically different environment to ours, like the cetaceans."
Humpbacks around the world herd shoals of prey by blowing bubbles underwater to produce 'bubble nets'.
The feeding innovation, called 'lobtail feeding', involves hitting the water with the tail before diving to produce the bubble nets.
Lobtail feeding was first observed in 1980, after the stocks of herring, previously the main food for the whales, became depleted.
At the same time sand lance stocks soared, and it would seem the innovation is specific to that particular prey, because its use is concentrated around the Stellwagen Bank, spawning grounds where the sand lance can reach high abundance.
Using a unique database spanning thirty years of observations gathered by Dr Weinrich, the researchers were able track the spread of the behaviour through the whales' social network.
Jenny Allen said: "The study was only made possible because of Mason's dedication in collecting the whale observations over decades, and it shows the central importance of long-term studies in understanding the processes affecting whale populations."
The scientists believe their results strengthen the case that cetaceans -- the whales and dolphins -- have evolved sophisticated cultural capacities.
The skills, knowledge, materials and traditions that humans learn from each other help explain how we have come to dominate the globe as a species, but how we evolved the capabilities to transmit such knowledge between ourselves remains a mystery that preoccupies biologists, psychologists and anthropologists.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of St. Andrews, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
J. Allen, M. Weinrich, W. Hoppitt, L. Rendell. Network-Based Diffusion Analysis Reveals Cultural Transmission of Lobtail Feeding in Humpback Whales. Science, 2013; 340 (6131): 485 DOI: 10.1126/science.1231976
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose on Thursday, lifted by stronger than expected earnings reports and by a large drop in weekly jobless claims.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> gained 27.41 points, or 0.19 percent, to 14,703.71. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> edged up 6.56 points, or 0.42 percent, to 1,585.35. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> rose 20.33 points, or 0.62 percent, to 3,289.99.
(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
Projections continue to suggest negative results for Apple, but what is preventing Apple from dominating the market like it used to?
By Steph Solis / April 23, 2013
A man looks at his Apple iPad in front an Apple logo outside an Apple store in downtown Shanghai. Apple's luster is diminishing as it continues to lose market share to its competitors and face criticism from investors and suppliers.
Aly Song/Reuters/File
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As Apple continues to face growing competition, the company's allure is starting to fade in the eyes of investors and suppliers, according to new report from?Reuters. Meanwhile, the once dominant tech giant is losing market share as Samsung and other rivals continue to grow.?
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The concerns of shareholders apparently range from worries about smaller shipments to criticisms that the company has lost its innovative edge since iconic co-founder Steve Jobs died a year and a half ago.
Asian suppliers have told Reuters that they are trying to become less dependent on Apple as they encountered delays on deadlines from the company.
For the first time since December 2011, Apple?s stock closed last week below $400.
Apple will hold its financial conference call on quarterly results Tuesday afternoon. While Apple is still expected to show growth ? estimates of quarterly revenue currently circle $42.77 billion ? the projection is that Apple may be moving downward, Dan Moren of MacWorld reports.
"Apple is in some ways a sort of victim of its own success, especially when the term innovation starts being thrown around," says?Charles Golvin, a principal analyst at Forrester Research. In other words, Apple, which?has introduced multiple revolutionary products in the past, is under fire for not bringing an entirely different product to the market recently ? or at least fast enough.
What seems to be preventing Apple from owning the market is its pricing for smart phones, Golvin says. Apple could benefit from having a range of smart phone prices, similar to the range of options that were available for the iPod.?
Another possible issue is Apple?s pattern of releasing new products every year, some of which had relatively minor adjustments. Golvin notes that it seems to be harder for Apple to continue that trend with Samsung and other competitors releasing products more often.
John Koetsier of VentureBeat expressed similar concerns with Apple?s dominance in the market in December. He emphasizes the need for a change in Apple?s market strategy, including more aggressive pricing, if the company expects to stay on top.?
He notes that while Apple has helped innovate the computer and electronics industry, they need to "fill available niches in the new ecosystem" to compete with rivals like Google and Samsung.?
The company is at risk of falling back into the lull it saw in the late 20th century, according to Mr. Koetsier. "The problem for Apple, if the current sales and market trends continue, is that iOS will get less and less important, relatively speaking," Koetsier said. "And those massive profits will start to wither away, start to follow the leaders ? the new leaders ? and we?ll be back to the 90s."?
For more tech news, follow Steph on Twitter: @stephmsolis
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) ? Slain Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer Sean Collier was remembered Wednesday for his dedication to law enforcement and his love of people as thousands gathered at a campus memorial.
Vice President Joe Biden joined students, faculty and staff, and law enforcement officials from across the nation at Briggs Field for the service to honor an officer who was already well-respected by his colleagues and superiors, and popular with students after little more than a year on campus
Collier was fatally shot on April 18, three days after the Boston Marathon bombings that killed three people. Authorities say he was shot by brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was charged Monday in his hospital room, where he is in fair condition with a gunshot wound to the throat suffered during his attempted getaway. His brother, 26-year-old Tamerlan, died Friday after a gunbattle with police.
"My heart goes out to you," Biden told Collier's family. "I hope you find some solace in this time of extreme grief."
Collier's casket was positioned in front of the thousands who gathered on a bright, sunny spring day. Music of bagpipes echoed through the field and a large American flag, suspended high about the crowd between two fire department ladder trucks, flapped slowly in the breeze.
Boston native James Taylor sang "The Water is Wide" and led a sing-along during "Shower the People."
Biden told the Colliers that no child should predecease their parents, and that better times are ahead.
"The moment will come when the memory of Sean is triggered and you know it's going to be OK," Biden said. "When the first instinct is to get a smile on your lips before a tear to your eye."
Andrew Collier said his 26-year-old brother would have loved everything about the day, including the bagpipes and the American flag.
"He was born to be a police officer and lived out his dream," Rogers said.
MIT President L. Rafael Reif told those gathered that Collier made countless friends on campus.
"Sean Collier didn't have a job at MIT, he had a life at MIT," Reif said. "In just 15 months, he built a life with us. He touched people across our community."
Campus Police Chief John DiFava acknowledged the risk that accompanied the position of police officer, but questioned whether the risk of a job in law enforcement needed to come with such devastation.
"Sean left a lot behind," DiFava said. "He left us a lesson: Do it right!
"If you want to cherish his memory, remember to do it right," he said.
State police said between 4,000 and 5,000 attended the service. The line of mourners stretched for about a half mile at MIT ahead of the service. They had to make their way through tight security, including metal detectors and bomb-sniffing dogs ahead of the service.
"He is the one of the nicest people that I've ever met," said Kelly Daumit, 35, of Seattle, an engineering student at MIT who had gone on hikes with Collier as part of the MIT Outing Club. "Everything people are saying about him is completely genuine; it's not because of what happened."
MIT employee Larry Clark said he had only talked to Collier a couple of times but wanted to pay his respects.
"It's very tough. It's still a shock," he said.
Bagpipers played "Amazing Grace" as Collier's casket was carried from the service, and there was a fly-by with three helicopters over the campus.
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian Federal Police have arrested the self-proclaimed leader of the international hacking groupLulzSec, the collective that claimed responsibility for infiltrating and shutting down the CIA website.
Police said the 24-year-old IT worker, who held a position of trust at an international company, was arrested in Sydney on Tuesday evening and charged with hacking offences that carry a maximum penalty of 10 years.
Glen McEwen, manager of cyber crime operations at Australian Federal Police, said the man was detained at work, where he had access to sensitive information from clients including government agencies.
LulzSec, an offshoot of the international hacking group Anonymous, has taken credit for hacking attacks on government and private sector websites, including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Sony Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp, 20th Century Fox and Nintendo.
Anonymous - and LulzSec in particular - became notorious in late 2010 when they launched what they called the "first cyber war" in retaliation for attempts to shut down the Wikileaks website.
The name LulzSec is a combination of "lulz", another way of writing "lols" or "laugh out loud", and security.
Australian police said the unnamed Australian man, who used the online moniker "Aush0k", was known to international law authorities.
His arrest comes a week after an American member of LulzSec, Cody Kretsinger, was sentenced in a Los Angeles court to a year in prison followed by home detention. Kretsinger, who used the online handle "Recursion", pleaded guilty in a plea agreement with prosecutors.
Court documents in that case revealed that Anonymous leader "Sabu", whose real name is Hector Xavier Monsegur, had provided the FBI with information on fellow hackers after pleading guilty to hacking offences.
The Australian hacker has been charged with two counts of unauthorized modification of data to cause impairment and one count of unauthorized access to a restricted data system after a government website was attacked earlier this month.
"Let me make it extremely clear to everybody out there, this is not harmless fun, this is serious," McEwen said at a press conference.
McEwen said the man posted in online forums frequented by other members of LulzSec that he was the group's leader.
"There were no denials of his claims of being the leader," McEwen told reporters.
The man has been granted bail and will appear before a court next month.
LulzSec allegedly broke into Australian government department and university websites in 2011. Anonymous last year took around 10 Australian government websites offline, protesting plans to force ISPs to store more user data and make it available to security services.
(Additional reporting by Michael Sin; Editing by Paul Tait and Jeremy Laurence)
The new Maid Right Franchise is the first residential cleaning brand available for Master as well as Unit franchisees. Growth of Maid Right will be built based on the Master/Unit business model used by sister company Jan-Pro, who has built over 10,000 Franchisees globally.
Alpharetta, GA (PRWEB) April 23, 2013 - Premium Franchise Brands LLC, a holding company of Jan-Pro Franchising International, Inc. (Jan-Pro), and Maid Right Franchising LLC, announced today the official launch of their new Maid Right Professional Grade Home Cleaning Franchise.
A unique concept within the residential cleaning franchise arena, the Maid Right Home Cleaning Franchise is the first and only residential cleaning franchise in America with the Master/Unit business model concept. This is the franchise concept wherein a Master Franchise controls a defined territory, and builds by adding Unit Franchisees within that territory. The two-tiered concept has been proven successful with sister company, Jan-Pro, who using it, has built an organization with over 10,000 franchisees globally.
The new Maid Right franchise gains much through the relationship with sister company Jan-Pro, namely the power of the Jan-Pro brand, a proven playbook for success, as well as world class support and experience with cleaning and franchising from an established company of 20+ years.
?We feel that the launch of Maid Right will be one of the most energetic growth opportunities of any franchise in years,? said Danessa Itaya, Vice President Maid Right. ?Many cleaning industry sources have told us that the Master/Unit concept is needed in residential cleaning. Maid Right is providing just that.?
As part of the Maid Right team, Itaya brings a wealth of residential cleaning experience, with over 18 years in the residential cleaning industry, over 10 years in multi-brand franchising, and has an extensive background in systems and new franchise development. Having a complete franchise development team for the new Maid Right franchise is an approach that Premium Franchise Brands feels will super charge the launch.
?The time is right for the Maid Right franchise concept,? said Rich Kissane, President & CEO of Premium Franchise Brands. ?There is a need for a new and different approach in residential cleaning, one that finally addresses the issues of high customer turnover and the quality of service offered.?
Today, the home cleaning industry has an average customer retention time of only about 6 months. One reason for this short time period is that in many cases, the homeowner does not get the quality of service they were expecting, as hourly paid cleaning crews come and go. Maid Right is out to change this industry standard and is committed to long term customer retention and high quality service.
Longer customer retention will come for Maid Right, due to the fact that the Unit Franchisees will be owners and more invested in establishing trust with customers. Innovative products and services will be provided to help franchisees in this area, like EnviroShield, the unique branded system that delivers 100% disinfection coverage.
?By having Unit franchise owners do the cleaning, they are definitely more invested in the residential customer, and are committed to providing the best in professional service,? continued Itaya. ?The result is a win/win situation for all involved, and long-lasting customer relationships.?
Both Master and Unit owners will have strong support in helping develop their business, through the company?s MaidView Software System and Processes. Master Franchisees will have thorough support, which will include ongoing advanced training, a service center, a business coach, webinars, hotline, regional meetings, call center, SEO, and more.
Premium Franchise Brands is currently in the stage of interviewing Master Franchise interested parties. Inquiries should contact Brad Smith at brad.smith@premiumfranchisebrands.com.
About Premium Franchise Brands
Premium Franchise Brands LLC is a franchise development company, representing Jan-Pro Franchising International, Inc, and Maid Right Franchising LLC. Jan-Pro was founded in 1991 by Jacques Lapointe in Providence, Rhode Island, with a desire to offer the highest quality cleaning techniques and systems available. Currently, the Jan-Pro team is comprised of business leaders with experience from around the world, as well as seasoned cleaning industry executives. Today, the international company structure is comprised of over 10,000 Master and Unit franchisees. Jan-Pro regularly receives inquiries and accolades nationally as well as internationally. Maid Right Professional Grade Home Cleaning is a franchise, focused on strong customer retention, and is currently being initially launched domestically in America.
To learn more about Maid Right visit http://www.maidright.com
SOURCE: Premium Franchise Brands
Media Contact:
Mike Dektas (513) 234-0560 brad(dot)smith(at)premiumfranchisebrands(dot)com
Brian Stelter's expos? on TV's morning news shows has gotten lots of publicity.
By Molly Driscoll,?Staff Writer / April 23, 2013
'Top of the Morning' hit bookstores today.
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There's been plenty of talk about ?Top of the Morning,? journalist Brian Stelter's inside look at TV's morning news shows. But when it comes to book critics, not all of the words have been kind.?
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?Top of the Morning,? which hit bookshelves today, aims to examine the ?cutthroat world of morning TV,? according to the book?s subtitle. Grand Central, the book's publisher, calls the expos? ?a gripping look at the most competitive time slot in television, complete with Machiavellian booking wars and manic behavior by the producers, executives, and stars."
The book is released following the firing of ?Today? co-host Ann Curry by NBC. It also details ?Good Morning America??s attempt to defeat ?Today? in the ratings struggle as well as ?GMA??s Robin Roberts? battle with MDS (myelodysplastic syndrome).
Stelter is a New York Times reporter, but even the NYT? wasn?t enamored of the book, with reviewer Ed Bark complaining that it ?ends up being like a breakfast made not quite to order? and saying that the book has ?more than a little overblown prose, some of it just plain silly.? Bark does suggest, however, that Stelter is ?just 27, so there?s ample time really to get the hang of this.?
Bark also notes that both ?Today? anchor Matt Lauer and Curry declined to be interviewed, which necessarily limits the access to the story of Curry?s departure.
Entertainment Weekly reviewer Henry Goldblatt also found the lack of direct quotes from Lauer and Curry disappointing, opining that while the book's jacket compares ?Top of the Morning? to writer Bill Carter?s books about TV, including ?The Late Shift,? there's a big difference between the work of Stelter and that of Carter.
?In Carter?s books, you get the sense that the author was in the room when big decisions were made,? Goldblatt wrote. ?In Stelter?s debut, you get the sense that he was staring at his smartphone.?
In addition, Goldblatt found Stelter?s prose distasteful, writing of his ?Hemingwayesque sentences (in length, not substance), hackneyed analogies (Today is Coke! Good Morning America is Pepsi!), and antipathy for the medium he covers.? Stelter ?seems to have a vendetta against Lauer,? he wrote.
Meanwhile, Hollywood Reporter writer Andy Lewis said the book ?flops.?
?Stelter is at his best when he lets the story carry itself, offering a fly-on-the-wall view of key moments (including the drama of Curry?s last day),? Lewis wrote. ?Still, his enthusiasm often gets the better of him, and the purple prose, strangely dated analogies (the Today-GMA rivalry is like 1971?s Ali-Frazier fight) and fondness For Capitalizing For Emphasis overwhelm the story.?
Lewis was also displeased that the book?s hype presented some of the details inside as Stelter?s own.
?Stelter conducted about 350 interviews, but many details and quotes have been reported in the Times and elsewhere, including by THR,? he wrote.
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Public release date: 29-Apr-2013
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The UFC 159 picks are in. Check out how Kevin Iole and I picked the fights, and who Cagereaders said will win. Thanks to everyone who weighed in on Cagewriter's Facebook page. Want to join in on the fun? Like 
Kevin Iole -- Roy Nelson SUB2 Cheick Kongo: Roy has the power to knock Cheick out. I think he'll hurt him with one of those big windmill right hands he fires and then finish him with a choke.
