Nanosponges Could Soak up Toxins Released by Infections, Venom

A team of researchers at the University of California San Diego has created ‘nanosponges’ capable of removing a broad class of toxins from the bloodstream, including toxins produced by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), poisonous snakes and bees.

Left: schematic structure of a toxin nanosponge. Right: zoomed-in view of a single toxin-absorbed nanosponge, scale bar – 20 nm (Che-Ming J. Hu et al / Zhang Research Lab)

These ‘nanosponges,’ which thus far have been studied in mice, can neutralize pore-forming toxins, which destroy cells by poking holes in their cell membranes. Unlike other anti-toxin platforms that need to be custom synthesized for individual toxin type, the nanosponges can absorb different pore-forming toxins regardless of their molecular structures.

In a study, reported in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, against alpha-haemolysin toxin from MRSA (α-toxin), pre-innoculation with nanosponges enabled 89 percent of mice to survive lethal doses. Administering nanosponges after the lethal dose led to 44 percent survival.

“This is a new way to remove toxins from the bloodstream,” said Prof Liangfang Zhang, senior author of the study.

“Instead of creating specific treatments for individual toxins, we are developing a platform that can neutralize toxins caused by a wide range of pathogens, including MRSA and other antibiotic resistant bacteria.”

The study could also lead to non-species-specific therapies for venomous snake bites and bee stings, which would make it more likely that health care providers or at-risk individuals will have life-saving treatments available when they need them most.

Now the team is aiming to translate this work into approved therapies.

“One of the first applications we are aiming for would be an anti-virulence treatment for MRSA. That’s why we studied one of the most virulent toxins from MRSA in our experiments,” said Dr Che-Ming Hu, the first author on the paper.

NANOLIGHT the future lightbulb

NANOLIGHT

The NanoLight is made of printed circuit-board material folded into the shape of a light bulb. The three U of T grads behind the product say that if you burn the bulb for an average of three hours a day, it would last for 20 years.

How many men does it take to design a new energy-efficient light bulb?

Three.

A team of self-described adventure-seeking Canadian “tree-huggers” have produced the NanoLight, which they call a breakthrough in LED lighting technology, touting it as the world’s most energy-efficient light bulb.

Gimmy Chu, who got his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Toronto, is co-founder of the company. He has more than seven years of experience as a technology consultant.

Along with fellow U of T grads Christian Yan and Tom Rodinger, he developed the bulb, using their science and engineering backgrounds.

What is the NanoLight? It’s a light that uses only 12 watts of electricity yet generates over 1,600 Lumens, which is the equivalent output of a 100-watt incandescent bulb. Lumens measure the brightness of a bulb.

“The reception has been phenomenal,” Chu told the Star from San Diego, where he is works at his fulltime job as a technology consultant.

His two other partners are in China trying to set up an assembly line.

The products are posted on the Kickstarter website.

The three partners became acquainted at the University of Toronto, where they worked on the university’s solar car team.

After going their separate ways, they reunited about three years go.

“We wanted to take our knowledge and skills and create real-world products,” Chu said.

The NanoLight, which is designed to operate under different countries’ standards, was launched Jan. 7. Since then, the team has gained about 2,500 backers and eclipsed its $20,000 funding goal by raising $125,000 so far.

The Kickerstarter campaign concludes March 8, and the first batch of bulbs is scheduled to ship out in May.

Soon, they hope to begin selling the 85-gram NanoLight through the website.

They are reaching out to distributors and investors.

They have two main lines of NanoLight, neither of which can be dimmed.

A 10-watt bulb, which is the equivalent of a 75-watt incandescent bulb at a price of $30, including shipping.

A 12-watt bulb, which is equivalent to a 100-watt incandescent bulb at a cost of $45.

Chu likes the look of the NanoLight, but expects many consumers to be hesitant to warm up to its shape.

The bulbs are made of printed circuit-board material folded into the shape of a light bulb.

“It looks kind of funky,” Chu said. “But it’s hard to change the consumer’s mind on what a light bulb is supposed to look like. But this light bulb is a lot brighter and lasts longer.”

The company said that if you burn the bulb for an average of three hours a day, the bulb would last 20 years.

“Really the future the lighting industry is LEDs,” Chu said. “It’s a tough market. We’re just little guys.”

Asked if a light bulb went off in their heads prior to their invention, Chu laughed and said no.

The idea developed over time.

However, while their bright idea comes to fruition, Chu will continue to work full-time for clients as a technology consultant.

“I’ve still got to keep the lights on,” he quipped.

Republish
How many men does it take to design a new energy-efficient light bulb?
Three.
A team of self-described adventure-seeking Canadian “tree-huggers” have produced the NanoLight, which they call a breakthrough in LED lighting technology, touting it as the world’s most energy-efficient light bulb.
Gimmy Chu, who got his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Toronto, is co-founder of the company. He has more than seven years of experience as a technology consultant.
Along with fellow U of T grads Christian Yan and Tom Rodinger, he developed the bulb, using their science and engineering backgrounds.
What is the NanoLight? It’s a light that uses only 12 watts of electricity yet generates over 1,600 Lumens, which is the equivalent output of a 100-watt incandescent bulb. Lumens measure the brightness of a bulb.
“The reception has been phenomenal,” Chu told the Star from San Diego, where he is works at his fulltime job as a technology consultant.
His two other partners are in China trying to set up an assembly line.
The products are posted on the Kickstarter website.
The three partners became acquainted at the University of Toronto, where they worked on the university’s solar car team.
After going their separate ways, they reunited about three years go.
“We wanted to take our knowledge and skills and create real-world products,” Chu said.
The NanoLight, which is designed to operate under different countries’ standards, was launched Jan. 7. Since then, the team has gained about 2,500 backers and eclipsed its $20,000 funding goal by raising $125,000 so far.
The Kickerstarter campaign concludes March 8, and the first batch of bulbs is scheduled to ship out in May.
Soon, they hope to begin selling the 85-gram NanoLight through the website.
They are reaching out to distributors and investors.
They have two main lines of NanoLight, neither of which can be dimmed.
A 10-watt bulb, which is the equivalent of a 75-watt incandescent bulb at a price of $30, including shipping.
A 12-watt bulb, which is equivalent to a 100-watt incandescent bulb at a cost of $45.
Chu likes the look of the NanoLight, but expects many consumers to be hesitant to warm up to its shape.
The bulbs are made of printed circuit-board material folded into the shape of a light bulb.
“It looks kind of funky,” Chu said. “But it’s hard to change the consumer’s mind on what a light bulb is supposed to look like. But this light bulb is a lot brighter and lasts longer.”
The company said that if you burn the bulb for an average of three hours a day, the bulb would last 20 years.
“Really the future the lighting industry is LEDs,” Chu said. “It’s a tough market. We’re just little guys.”
Asked if a light bulb went off in their heads prior to their invention, Chu laughed and said no.
The idea developed over time.
However, while their bright idea comes to fruition, Chu will continue to work full-time for clients as a technology consultant.
“I’ve still got to keep the lights on,” he quipped.

Anonymous hacks United States Sentencing Commission website.

Replaced with super nyan cat hahaha

http://www.ussc.gov/

Mega hits 100,000 registered users in one hour as Kim Dotcom teases MPAA with ‘MegaMovie’ screenshot

CODES AND KEYS

Dotcom says Mega is a different beast to Megaupload, as the new site enables users to control exactly which users can access uploaded files, in contrast with its predecessor, which allowed users to search files, some of which contained copyrighted content allegedly used without permission.

A sophisticated encryption system will allow users to encode their files before they upload them onto the site's servers, which Dotcom said were located in New Zealand and overseas. He declined to specify where.

Each file will then be issued a unique, sophisticated decryption key which only the file holder will control, allowing them to share the file as they choose.

As a result, the site's operators would have no access to the files, which they say would strip them from any possible liability for knowingly enabling users to distribute copyright-infringing content, which Washington says is illegal.

"Even if we wanted to, we can't go into your file and snoop and see what you have in there," the burly Dotcom said.

Dotcom - a German national who also goes by the name Kim Schmitz - and his colleagues face years in prison if they are convicted, although the case is expected to drag on for years.

Known as much for his previous cyber crime-related arrests as his penchant for fast cars and yacht parties, Dotcom promised an extravagant launch for Mega as builders put the finishing to a festival-sized concert stage in the mansion's grounds.

Two helicopters circled overhead as workers erected a massive white replica of Mega's capitalised, block-lettered logo on the hills flanking the approach to the mansion. Dotcom was coy about what guests could expect from the event.

Expecting huge interest in its first month of operation, he said Mega's launch will be a far cry from when Megaupload went live in 2005.

Then, he and his colleagues were glued to their computer screens in a tiny office, cheering each time the counter showing the number of hits on the site ticked up towards 10.

"I would be surprised if we had less than 1 million users," Dotcom said.

He built it. They came. Then the government took it away, and so he built it again. And they came yet again.

Today, an hour after he flipped the switch from no to go on Mega.co.nz, precisely one year after Megaupload was scuttled by the government, Kim Dotcom announced that his new service has totted up 100,000 registered users in its first hour as a live product.

He openly wondered if the feat made Mega the “[f]astest growing startup in Internet history?” TNW isn’t sure about that, but hitting six figure usership in double digit minutes is damn impressive regardless.

On the eve of the launch, chatter was loud that Mega would be launched under a .co domain, and not a .co.nz TLD, over fear of the New Zealand government taking punitive action. Thus far that fear appears to have been either mistimed, or groundless given that Mega is up and cruising along.

Given the stunning demise of Megaupload, which led to the freezing of endless quantities of both pirate and legitimate data, the launch of Mega is construable as a challenge of sorts: take it down again, Kim dares you. Kim himself has called the new service “100% Safe & Unstoppable.” Another challenge.

And there is one more one more, from Kim to the MPAA. He released the following image, saying “Look at this @MPAA. Lets talk!:”

We’ll see what happens, but the site is proving to be tremendously popular. A prior tweet from its founder noted that it had gone from “0 to 10 Gigabit bandwidth utilization within 10 minutes.” It’s likely using more now. When the dust settles, Mega will likely have a seven-figure usership by the time it celebrates the conclusion of its first day.

Top Image Credit: Niklas Freidwall

Terrorists have successfully scared country's into changing its laws. 5 Year Old Girl in Pennsylvania Suspended From School for 'Terrorist Threat'

In other news idiot uneducated teachers at The Mount Carmel Area School District unable to tell difference between terrorist activities and kindergartner with bubble gun.

 

A 5-year-old girl was suspended from school earlier this week after she made what the school called a “terrorist threat.”

Her weapon of choice? A small, Hello Kitty automatic bubble blower.

The kindergartner, who attends Mount Carmel Area Elementary School in Pennsylvania, caught administrators’ attention after suggesting she and a classmate should shoot each other with bubbles.

“I think people know how harmless a bubble is. It doesn’t hurt,” said Robin Ficker, an attorney for the girl’s family. According to Ficker, the girl, whose identity has not been released, didn’t even have the bubble gun toy with her at school.

The kindergartner was ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation during her 10-day suspension, which was later reduced to two days.  The evaluation deemed the girl normal and not a threat to others, Ficker said.

The girl’s family is considering a lawsuit against the school to get the blemish — all because of bubbles — off their daughter’s record.

“The mother has tried to get the girl in another school since this time, and they won’t take the little girl because of this mark on her record,” Ficker said.

The suspension comes one month after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, which has created a heightened sense of alert at schools across the country.

The Mount Carmel Area School District told ABC News, “We are confident that much of the information supplied to the media may not be consistent with the facts… The Mount Carmel Area School District takes the well-being and safety of students and staff very seriously.”

ABC News’ Gio Benitez contributed to this report.

a fireman in Thailand dressed up as Spiderman to coax a superhero-loving autistic boy from a window ledge.

A Thai firefighter put on a Spider-Man costume to rescue a superhero-loving autistic boy who climbed onto a third-floor balcony and dangled his legs over the side because he was nervous on his first day of school.

By The Associated Press

A Thai fireman in a Spider-Man costume coaxed a frightened 8-year-old child from a balcony on Monday.

BANGKOK — Spider-Man to the rescue!

Thai firefighter Somchai Yoosabai said on Wednesday he put on a Spider-Man costume to rescue a superhero-loving autistic boy who climbed onto a third-floor balcony and dangled his legs over the side because he was nervous on his first day of school.

Somchai was called in after the 8-year-old boy's teachers and mother failed to coax him off the ledge on Monday, he said.

"He was nervous about the first day at school, and he was asking for his mother," Somchai said. "He cried and refused to let any of us get close to him."

Overhearing a conversation between the boy's mother and his teachers about his love for comics and superheros, Somchai rushed back to the fire station to change into a Spider-Man costume used to liven up fire drills at schools before swinging into action.

"I told him Spider-Man is here to save you. No monster will hurt you now," Somchai said. "Then I told him to walk slowly toward me. I was very nervous that he might have slipped if he got too excited and ran."

The teary-eyed boy broke into a smile and started walking into his arms, Somchai said,

The fictional Spider-Man was created by comic-writer Stan Lee in the early 1960s. The character gained worldwide popularity in recent years thanks to the trilogy of Hollywood films starring Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst.

Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company

Batch file resizing free use office 2010 picture manager

Select the files you want go to Edit pictures on the right is a bunch of options go to where it says Change picture size and press resize. Set the size or % of image reduction you wish then press Ok. When that is finished select CTRL+ S and wait till all images have been saved and compleated.

Windows Live Photo Gallery will work too