Typhoon heads back to Philippines after nearly 600 die

Bullit Marquez / AP

Eddie Jotojot on Saturday checks the coffin of his son, who was killed at the height of Tuesday's Typhoon Bopha in New Bataan.

By Bullit Marquez, The Associated Press

NEW BATAAN, Philippines -- A typhoon that had left the Philippines after killing nearly 600 people and leaving hundreds missing in the south has made a U-turn and is now threatening the country's northwest, officials said Saturday.

The weather bureau raised storm warnings over parts of the main northern island of Luzon after Typhoon Bopha veered northeast. There was a strong possibility the disastrous storm would make a second landfall Sunday, but it might also make a loop and remain in the South China Sea, forecasters said. In either case, it was moving close to shore and disaster officials warned of heavy rains and winds and possible landslides in the mountainous region.

Another calamity in the north would stretch recovery efforts thin. Most government resources, including army and police, are currently focused on the south, where Bopha hit Tuesday before moving west into the South China Sea.

With many survivors still in shock, soldiers, police and outside volunteers formed most of the teams searching for bodies or signs of life under tons of fallen trees and boulders swept down from steep hills surrounding the worst-hit town of New Bataan, municipal spokesman Marlon Esperanza said.


"We are having a hard time finding guides," he told The Associated Press. "Entire families were killed and the survivors ... appear dazed. They can't move."

He said the rocks, mud, tree trunks and other rubble that litter the town have destroyed landmarks, making it doubly difficult to search places where houses once stood.

On Friday, bodies found jammed under fallen trees that could not be retrieved were marked with makeshift flags made of torn cloth so they could be easily spotted by properly equipped teams.

Authorities decided to bury unidentified bodies in a common grave after forensic officials process them for future identification by relatives, Esperanza said.

The town's damaged public market has been converted into a temporary funeral parlor. A few residents milled around two dozen white wooden coffins, some containing unidentified remains.

One resident, Jing Maniquiz, 37, said she rushed home from Manila for the wake of two of her sisters, but could not bring herself to visit the place where her home once stood in Andap village. Her parents, a brother and nephew are missing.

"I don't want to see it," she said tearfully. "I can't accept that in just an instant I lost my mother, my father, my brother."

She said that at the height of the typhoon, her mother was able to send her a text message saying trees were falling on their house and its roof had been blown away.

Maniquiz said her family sought refuge at a nearby health center, but that was destroyed and they and dozens of others were swept away by the raging waters.

"We are not hopeful that they are still alive. We just want to find their bodies so that we will have closure," she said.

Mary Joy Adlawan, a 14-year-old high school student from the same village, was waiting for authorities to bury her 7-year-old niece.

Her parents, an elder sister, five nieces and a nephew are missing.

"I don't know what to do," she said as she fixed some flowers on the coffin.

Esperanza said heavy equipment, search dogs and chain saws were brought by volunteers from as far away as the capital, Manila, about 950 kilometers (590 miles) to the north.

Nearly 400,000 people, mostly from Compostela Valley and nearby Davao Oriental provinces, have lost their homes and are crowded inside evacuation centers or staying with relatives.

The typhoon plowed through the main southern island of Mindanao, crossed the central Philippines and lingered over the South China Sea for the past two days. It made a U-turn Saturday and is now threatening the northwestern Ilocos region.

President Benigno Aquino III, after visiting the disaster zone, declared a state of national calamity late Friday to speed up rescue and rehabilitation, control prices of basic commodities in typhoon-affected areas and allow the quick release of emergency funds.

In Bangkok, Thailand, U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos said the Philippines had appealed for international aid. She said many countries have already provided assistance, but did not specify the amounts.

Officials say 276 people were killed in Compostela Valley, including 155 in New Bataan, and 277 in Davao Oriental. About 40 people died elsewhere and nearly 600 are still missing, 411 from New Bataan alone.

Davao Oriental Gov. Corazon Malanyaon told the AP that clean water and shelter were the biggest problem in three towns facing the Pacific Ocean. She said she imposed a curfew there and ordered police to guard stores and shops to stop looting.

The Philippines is also counting economic losses. Banana growers reported that 14,000 hectares (34,600 acres) of export banana plantations, equal to 18 percent of the total in Mindanao, were destroyed. The Philippines is the world's third-largest banana producer and exporter, supplying international brands such as Dole, Chiquita and Del Monte.

Stephen Antig, executive director of the Pilipino Banana Growers and Exporters Association, said losses were estimated at 12 billion pesos ($300 million), including 8 billion pesos ($200 million) in damaged fruits that had been ready for harvest, and the rest for the cost of rehabilitating farms, which will take about a year.

At the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI expressed closeness to the people hit by the typhoon. "I pray for the victims, for their families and for the many homeless," the pontiff said Saturday, addressing pilgrims and tourists from his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square.

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Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/08/15779980-typhoon-makes-u-turn-heads-back-towards-philippines-after-killing-nearly-600?lite

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What Washington can learn from Finland's success in K-12 education

Finnish students are among the best in the world. Their success has come through a system that would seem unorthodox here in the United States: no standardized testing, no private schools, fewer hours in school, teacher autonomy, full national funding, and equality in education, among other things.

This document, prepared for a November 2012 conference titled ?Excellence in K-12 Education: Experiences in Finland and Washington State?, highlights some of the distinguishing characteristics of the Finnish education system, in hopes of catalyzing further conversation and exploration.

Download: The Finnish education model: Highlights, resources and research [PDF]

Origins of the Finnish system

Finland was not always the gold standard in public education. After the Second World War, it languished in the middle strata of European countries. Faced with few natural resources, the push to prepare to thrive in the knowledge-based global economy began with a governmental commitment to break away from a class-based system of educational rudiments and advancement toward a system that opened up secondary and tertiary education to all children.

Here?s the process as described by Lynnell Hancock in a recent Smithsonian Magazine article:

?Lawmakers landed on a deceptively simple plan that formed the foundation for everything to come. Public schools would be organized into one system of comprehensive schools, or peruskoulu, for ages 7 through 16. Teachers from all over the nation contributed to a national curriculum that provided guidelines, not prescriptions.

Besides Finnish and Swedish (the country?s second official language), children would learn a third language (English is a favorite) usually beginning at age 9. Resources were distributed equally. As the comprehensive schools improved, so did the upper secondary schools (grades 10 through 12).

The second critical decision came in 1979, when reformers required that every teacher earn a fifth-year master?s degree in theory and practice at one of eight state universities?at state expense. From then on, teachers were effectively granted equal status with doctors and lawyers.

Applicants began flooding teaching programs, not because the salaries were so high but because autonomy and respect made the job attractive. In 2010, some 6,600 applicants vied for 660 primary school training slots?

By the mid-1980s, a final set of initiatives shook the classrooms free from the last vestiges of top-down regulation. Control over policies shifted to town councils. The national curriculum was distilled into broad guidelines. National math goals for grades one through nine, for example, were reduced to a neat ten pages.

Sifting and sorting children into so-called ability groupings was eliminated. All children?clever or less so?were to be taught in the same classrooms, with lots of special teacher help available to make sure no child really would be left behind.

The inspectorate closed its doors in the early ?90s, turning accountability and inspection over to teachers and principals. ?We have our own motivation to succeed because we love the work,? said Kari Louhivuori, a veteran teacher and principal, ?our incentives come from inside.?[1]

Hallmarks of the Finnish system

Equality: ?The goal of the program that Finland instituted, resulting in so much success today, was never excellence. It was equity.? [2]

?The main driver of Finnish education policy has been the idea that every child should have exactly the same opportunity to learn, regardless of family background, income, or geographic location?[3] The learning difference between the highest performing school in Finland and the lowest performing school is the smallest in OECD.

Finnish schools are funded based on a formula guaranteeing equal allocation of resources to each school regardless of location or wealth of its community. Schools are funded based on the number of students, and given extra money if they have high proportions of immigrants or students with unemployed and/or uneducated parents.

Students are held back only as a last resort, the effects deemed too damaging to self esteem. Instead, struggling students are given extra attention, often through the provision of an extra teacher to work on a particular subject. ?Even many of the most severely disabled will find a place in Finland?s expanded system of vocational high schools, which are attended by 43 percent of Finnish high-school students, who prepare to work in restaurants, hospitals, construction sites and offices.?[4]

Accountability and Testing: ?Accountability is something that is left when responsibility has been subtracted.? [5]

?If I could change one thing in [US education] policy, I would seriously rethink the role of standardized testing,? says Pasi Sahlberg. Indeed, Finland?s success has come without intensive testing, deemed too costly and stress-inducing by the Finnish Board of Education.

Standardized tests and performance assessments so popular in the US, are seen as intrusive, too narrowly focused, and not as effective as a teacher?s knowledge of their student. Finland has no nationwide tests to evaluate teachers, students or schools. Instead, statistically significant samples and observations by principals are responsible for identifying problems

The only mandatory test in Finland, called the National Matriculation Exam, comes at the end of the Finnish equivalent of high school and serves as an entrance exam to university. An optional district-wide test is given at 6th grade, but results are not publicized.

Instead, teachers learn to evaluate children in the classroom using their own tests and measures. Report cards for children are based on individualized grading by each teacher.

Quality of Instruction: ?It?s the quality of the teaching that is driving Finland?s results?The U.S. has an industrial model where teachers are the means for conveying a prefabricated product. In Finland, the teachers are the standard.? [6]

Recently, Raija Vahasalo, who chairs the Education and Culture Committee of the Finnish Parliament, told a U.S. delegation of policy leaders and educators that the her government, a coalition of six political parties, has ?quite a good consensus over how to improve our education system ? because we trust teachers.? MP Vahasalo continued, ?we know we have so many good teachers; they all have master?s degrees in education.?[7]

Part of the reason Finland can step away from extensive testing is because of the high level of trust and respect placed in teachers. That trust is well earned; becoming a teacher in Finland is not easy. Teachers go through a five year teaching program with a three year masters degree?funded completely by the state.

?Subject-matter teachers earn their master?s degree from the university?s academic departments, not?in contrast to the US?the department of teacher education, or in special schools for teacher education. Every candidate prepares to teach all kinds of students, including students with disabilities and other special needs. Every teacher must complete an undergraduate degree and a master?s degree in education.?[8]

The program is highly competitive ? only 1 in 10 are accepted. ?In 2008, the latest year for which figures are available, 1,258 undergrads applied for training to become elementary-school teachers. Only 123, or 9.8%, were accepted into the five-year teaching program?[9] ?Teachers? preparation includes both extensive coursework on how to teach?with a strong emphasis on using research based on state-of-the-art practice?and at least a full year of clinical experience in a school associated with the university.?[10]

The perception of teachers is also radically different. They are accorded status greater than lawyers and doctors, and have salaries to match that status. Finnish high school teachers with 15 years of experience make 102 percent of what their fellow university graduates do. In the US, they earn just 65%.[11] Starting, take-home salaries were about $29,000 in 2008, compared to $36,000 in the United States. (This comparison does not take into account elements of social insurance that cover all Finns, such as health care, family leave insurance, and early childhood education costs.)[12]

Teachers work 190 days a year, spending on average 4 hours a day in the classroom [13] They are paid to spend 2 hours a week on professional development.[14] 96% of Finland?s teachers are unionized.[15]

Curriculum and Pedagogy: ?A handful of 9-year-olds are sitting back to back, arranging sticks, pinecones, stones and berries into shapes on the frozen ground. The arrangers will then have to describe these shapes using geometric terms so the kids who can?t see them can say what they are.? [16]

During the recent Finnish study tour, Pasi Sahlberg told the U.S. delegation that ?so much of what we do in curriculum and assessment we have learned from American researchers and educators.?[17]

Finland distinguishes itself from other high-achieving countries (like Korea and Singapore) by getting results, not through rote memorization or teaching to a test, but through a curriculum based in cooperation and problem-solving. A national curriculum exists, but it is short (the math section is only 10 pages) and is used more as a guide than a set of rules. The system allows for ample experimentation and cooperation.

Some other distinguishing aspects of Finnish schools include:

  • According to the OECD, Finnish children spend the fewest number of hours in the classroom in the developed world. Schooling starts at age 7, with 9 years of compulsory education (until age 16), and school days are shorter than in the US. Finnish elementary schools have 75 minutes of recess a day in compared to an average of 27 minutes in the U.S.
  • Teachers spend about 80 percent as much time leading classes as their U.S. counterparts. Ideally, the teacher stays with a class from first grade through sixth grade. An additional teacher is also provided, to help those who struggle in a particular subject ? but all pupils all kept in the same classroom.
  • ?Students in grades one through nine spend from four to eleven periods each week taking classes in art, music, cooking, carpentry, metalwork, and textiles. These classes provide natural venues for learning math and science, nurture critical cooperative skills, and implicitly cultivate respect for people who make their living working with their hands.?[18] Science classes are capped at 16 students so each pupil may do labs each lesson.

Beyond the Classroom: ?Dr. Sahlberg pointed to Finland?s Lutheran leanings, almost religious belief in equality of opportunity, and a decision in 1957 to require subtitles on foreign television as key ingredients to the success story.? [19]

Outside of the classroom, there are significant and important factors beyond the classroom experience that distinguish Finland from the United States. A strong taxpayer-funded system ensures all children show up ready to learn.

Finland provides three years of family leave and subsidized day care for all children.[20] Preschool is provided for all 6-year-olds, and 97 percent of 6-year-olds attend. The emphasis is on play and socializing, with some beginning academics.[21] Higher education is tuition-free.

Schools provide comprehensive health services including medical care and counseling, lunch every day, and taxi service if needed?free of charge for all children. Fewer than 4 percent of Finnish children are in poverty. [22]

The state subsidizes parents, paying around 150 Euros per month for every child until he or she turns 17.[23] And there is a culture of reading with the kids at home and families have regular contact with their children?s teachers.

Results and Implications for Washington State: ?I?m not trying to convince people that if they follow what Finland is doing, things will be good. All the education issues and reforms are done specifically to the culture and should be done locally?I?m very much aware that America is very different culturally. I?m trying to tell what we?ve been doing and use Finland as real-world evidence.? [24]

International tests such as the Program for International Student Assessment have helped Finland garner so much attention. Finnish students consistently place at the top in measures of math, science, and reading.

In 2009, Finnish students ranked 6th in math, 2nd in science, 3rd in reading. US students ranked 30th, 23rd, and 17th, comparatively. In 2006, Finland?s pupils scored the highest average results in science and reading in the whole of the developed world. ?Ninety-three percent of Finns graduate from academic or vocational high schools, 17.5 percentage points higher than the United States, and 66 percent go on to higher education, the highest rate in the European Union. Yet Finland spends about 30 percent less per student than the United States.?[25]

There is reason to believe that it is the Finnish system, in conjunction with the country?s culture, which is leading to such great results. While implementation in the United States may not make sense on a national scale, it may be more feasible at the state level.

To those who say that Finland?s successes are unique to their size and Nordic culture, the example of Norway stands out as a counterexample.

?How could it possibly offer lessons to a country the size of the United States? The answer is next door. Norway is also small (4.8 million people) and nearly as homogeneous (10 percent foreign-born), but it is more akin to the United States than to Finland in its approach to education: Teachers don?t need master?s degrees; high school teachers with 15 years of experience earn only 70 percent of what fellow university graduates make; and in 2004, authorities implemented a national system of standardized testing?[26]

When comparing the two countries? 2009 PISA scores, the differences in outcome become stark. While Finland scored near or at the top of the reading, mathematics and science assessments, Norway?s students only scored markedly ahead of the OECD mean on the reading exam.[27] Norwegian students scored just higher than the mean in mathematics, and were slightly behind the mean in science.


Endnotes

[1] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian Magazine. September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[2] Partenen, Anu. ?What Americans Keep Ignoring About Finland?s School Success.? The Atlantic, December 29, 2011: http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/12/what-americans-keep-ignoring-about-finlands-school-success/250564/

[3] Sahlberg, Pasi. ?A short history of educational reform in Finland.? April 2009: http://192.192.169.112/filedownload/%E8%8A%AC%E8%98%AD%E6%95%99%E8%82%B2/A%20short%20history%20of%20educational%20reform%20in%20Finland%20FINAL.pdf

[4] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why Are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian Magazine. September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[5] Partenen, Anu. ?What Americans Keep Ignoring About Finland?s School Success.? The Atlantic. December 29, 2011: http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/12/what-americans-keep-ignoring-about-finlands-school-success/250564/

[6] Levine, Joshua.?Finnishing School.? Time, April 11, 2011: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2062465-2,00.html

[7] Berry, Barnett. Center for Teaching Quality, blog, http://www.teachingquality.org/node/139

[8] Ravich, Diane. ?Schools We Can Envy.? The New York Review of Books, March 8, 2012: http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/mar/08/schools-we-can-envy/?pagination=false

[9] Anderson, Jenny. ?From Finland, An Intriguing School Model.? New York Times, December 12, 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/education/from-finland-an-intriguing-school-reform-model.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

[10] Darling-Hammond, Linda. ?What we can learn from Finland?s successful school reform?? NEA Today Magazine, October-November 2010: http://www.nea.org/home/40991.htm

[11] Abrams, Samuel. ?The Children Must Play: What the United States could learn from Finland about education reform.? The New Republic, January 28, 2011: http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/82329/education-reform-Finland-US?page=0,0

[12] Anderson, Jenny. ?From Finland, An Intriguing School-Reform Model?, New York Times, December 12, 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/education/from-finland-an-intriguing-school-reform-model.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

[13] The Finnish PISA 2006 pages. http://www.pisa2006.helsinki.fi/education_in_Finland/Curriculum_and_assessment/Curriculum_and_distribution_of_lesson_hours.htm

[14] Anderson, Jenny. ?From Finland, An Intriguing School-Reform Model.? New York Times, December 12, 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/education/from-finland-an-intriguing-school-reform-model.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

[15] Anderson, Jenny, ?From Finland, An Intriguing School-Reform Model.? New York Times, December 12, 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/education/from-finland-an-intriguing-school-reform-model.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

[16] Levine, Joshua.?Finnishing School.? Time, April 11, 2011: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2062465-2,00.html

[17] Berry, Barnett Center for Teaching Quality, blog, http://www.teachingquality.org/node/139

[18] Levine, Joshua.?Finnishing School.? Time, April 11, 2011: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2062465-2,00.html

[19] Anderson, Jenny.?From Finland, An Intriguing School Model.? New York Times, December 12, 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/education/from-finland-an-intriguing-school-reform-model.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

[20] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why Are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian, September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[21] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why Are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian, September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[22] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why Are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian, September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[23] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why Are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian, September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[24] Tung, Stephen. ?How the Finnish school system outshines U.S. education,? Stanford Report, January 20th, 2012: http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/january/finnish-schools-reform-012012.html

[25] Hancock, LynNell. ?Why Are Finland?s Schools Successful?? Smithsonian, September 2011: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-Successful.html?c=y&page=1

[26] Abrams, Samuel. ?The Children Must Play: What the United States could learn from Finland about education reform.? The New Republic, January 28, 2011: http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/82329/education-reform-Finland-US?page=0,0

[27] Kj?rnsli, Marit and Astrid Roe. ?On the right track: Norwegian Students? proficiency in Reading, Mathematics and Science Literacy in the PISA Assessment 2009.? http://www.pisa.no/pdf/publikasjoner/Short_version_in_English_PISA2009_Norway.pdf

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Source: http://washingtonpolicywatch.org/2012/11/30/what-washington-can-learn-from-finlands-success-in-k-12-education/

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Android Central 117: Ingress, Nexus, and other hard-to-get items

Who is new Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby?

As a former oil executive turned Anglican bishop, the new archbishop followed an atypical path to leadership of the Church of England.

By Ben Quinn,?Correspondent / November 9, 2012

Justin Welby, the bishop of Durham and newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, speaks to the media during a news conference at Lambeth Palace in London today.

Dylan Martinez/Reuters

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As a former student of elite Eton College ? just like the current prime minister and generations of other senior figures in British public life ? the new Archbishop of Canterbury comes with some impeccable establishment credentials.

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While his mother had been Winston Churchill?s private secretary, business is also in the blood: He is the son of a businessman who traded in whiskey during America?s prohibition years and later worked for a company that survived the ban by selling communion wine.

Born in London in 1956, Justin Portal Welby studied law and history at Trinity College, in Cambridge, England, after the initial schooling that made him an "Old Etonian."

A career in the oil industry beckoned and he spent 11 years in the sector as a senior executive, based in Paris and London. He worked on projects in the North Sea and the Niger Delta, gaining a familiarity that would come in useful in later years as a cleric traveling to the West African reaches of the Anglican Communion, Nigeria.

In 1983, his seven-month-old, first-born daughter was killed in a car crash, leading to "a very dark time" for him and his wife. But it also "bought us closer to God," he has said.

He left behind his career in business in 1987 to train an Anglican priest, later telling business magazine Money Marketing "I was unable to get away from a sense of God calling."

He became a deacon in 1992 after taking a degree in theology, serving later as a curate in the Coventry diocese and was made a rector in 1995 before being made a canon at Coventry Cathedral in 2002.

At Coventry, he was involved in international conflict resolution before becoming dean of Liverpool in 2007. He was elevated to the fourth most senior post in the Church of England in November 2011, when he became the bishop of Durham.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/KomGDEMZ_q0/Who-is-new-Archbishop-of-Canterbury-Justin-Welby

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Prostate Cancer: Wishing for Clear Answers Where There Are Few

Recently I attended EMUC2012 in Barcelona. The acronym stands for European Multidisciplinary Meeting on Urological Cancer and it draws urologists, medical oncologists, and radiation oncologists from Europe and the U.S. The first day was devoted to prostate cancer and we attended at the urging of Patient Power?s partner, The Prostate Net. It?s led by former corporate executive Virgil Simons, who was treated for prostate cancer 16 years ago. Also attending was Eric Briers, one of the leaders of Europa Uoma, the consortium of prostate cancer patients? organizations in Europe, and a patient treated 10 years ago. All three of us were looking for clear answers as we heard the latest research and spoke with leading physicians.

But there were really no clear answers, only differing opinions from the range of experts.

The problem is doctors still don?t know with certainty which man needs treatment for early prostate cancer, and which man does not because, usually, prostate cancer is slow growing. Which man should have active surveillance? Which man should have surgery or radiation?

Then it?s a question of which man should have hormonal therapy to shut down testosterone, the ?fuel? for the cancer. It can have unwanted side effects that are managed with additional teamwork with your doctor. And then, if the cancer spreads, are there some men who could benefit, or even be cured, with radiation? And are all delivery systems of radiation equal? No!

And lastly, when hormonal therapy is not effective can any of the new drugs ? with more coming ? lengthen life expectancy and preserve quality of life? And which drug should be used alone or in combination and in what order?

Dr. Daniel Petrylak, a renowned prostate cancer expert and medical oncologist from Yale University, recently took us through his thinking on what drugs should be used and when.

So what does that mean for you the patient, or you the person who cares about Dad or Granddad? How can you feel confident about a course of treatment when generally there are many doctors (particularly generalist urologists and medical oncologists) who now have more questions than answers? And they are confounded because the new drugs are not tested head-to-head.

We won?t leave you in the lurch. At the conference we conducted more than 10 video interviews that are now being released and more will come over the coming weeks and months. We consult with some of the most famous experts and leading advocates, including Virgil and Eric, to bring you their latest perspective on how to proceed. The first step is always to GET SMART, to become informed about your specific prostate cancer situation and the broad range of treatment for that situation. The second step is to find true specialists in that condition, more than one. Remember, it does not matter if the doctor is ?a nice guy? (or woman), it matters whether they know their stuff. But again, second opinions are a must. And connecting with other men can be very helpful. This applies whether it is for initial treatment or somewhere down the road.

What all the doctors are excited about is that there are now more options than ever. And they are working on new tests to help you and them make informed decisions. But we are in a window of time when the clear answers are not there ? yet.

Please look for our new prostate cancer discussions, send us suggestions and be sure to be signed up for alerts so we can let you know as we post something new. And do us a favor and tell others. We are thrilled when people tell us we?ve helped them. As always, you can write to us as comments@patientpower.info.

Fortunately for me, prostate cancer is one cancer I have not yet faced. But my father did. Did he get the best treatment? I will always wonder. That?s why we all have to push for answers on the front end rather than worry?when it?s too late that?we didn?t get it right.

Wishing you and your family the best of health!

Andrew

Source: http://blog.patientpower.info/2012/11/30/prostate-cancer-wishing-for-clear-answers-where-there-are-few/

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NASA dialed in to smartphone satellites

NASA engineers are chipping away at how best to lower the cost of their satellites ? and one off-the-shelf answer is by using smartphone electronics.

Dialing in on the idea has resulted in the PhoneSat Project, a technology demonstration mission using a trio of tiny CubeSat satellites to be launched next year.

The PhoneSat nanosatellites ? each weighing in at just three pounds (1.4 kilograms) ? will be ejected into Earth orbit during the maiden flight of Orbital Sciences' Antares rocket. The rocket will launch from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport , located at NASA?s Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia.

Out-of-the-box
Quite literally out-of-the-box smartphones are imbued with capabilities comparable to a spacecraft's, such as fast processors, multipurpose operating systems, miniature sensors, high-resolution cameras, GPS receivers and several radios.

The three PhoneSats ? Alexander, Graham and Bell ? will be simultaneously deployed from a rocket-mounted dispenser. The latter two are PhoneSat 1.0s; they are battery-powered and make use of Nexus One smartphone technology from HTC Corp. and Google?s Android operating system.

A beta version of PhoneSat 2.0, Alexander is built around an updated Nexus S smartphone made by Samsung Electronics that runs Google?s Android operating system to provide a faster core processor, avionics and gyroscopes. It has solar cells for energy.

The attractive thing about PhoneSat is that it may make people more comfortable with the idea of using something almost directly off the shelf for a space mission, said Andrew Petro, program executive for the Small Spacecraft Technology Program within NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist. ?I?m excited about the potential here,? Petro told Space.com.

Nontraditional
PhoneSat is one of nine space technology programs in the Office of the Chief Technologist, according to Bruce Yost at the NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif.

Ames is home for a small tiger team of engineers that conceived of, constructed and tested PhoneSat, working on the project since early 2011, Yost told Space.com. "We?re exploring the use of nontraditional hardware and systems providers," trolling for technology beyond the traditional aerospace industry, said Yost, who is manager of the Small Spacecraft Technology Program.

PhoneSat engineers kept the total cost of the components to $3,500 for each of the three prototype satellites in the PhoneSat Project. They used only commercial, off-the-shelf hardware and established minimum design and mission objectives for the first flight.

The deployment mechanism is of a size tagged "3U" volume, said Jim Cockrell, PhoneSat 1.0 Project manager, "so it holds three CubeSats ? all three stacked up into the dispenser." (Each PhoneSats is built to standard dimensions? of 10x10x11 centimeters, about 4 inches cubed, or 1U ? for unit, he said.)

Citizen exploration
Once in Earth orbit, the PhoneSat Project comes alive. Amateur ground stations will receive health and status information as well as images, uploading packets of data onto amateur-run websites.

An early leader in the PhoneSat concept was Jasper Wolfe, technical lead of attitude determination and control, launch vehicle, at NASA Ames. He underscores multiple benefits in the project ? for one, leveraging hardware and software from the non-aerospace industry.

"I see PhoneSat as inspiring a new area of people to get involved in space," Wolfe said. "The actual building of a satellite is something we?re trying to develop and demonstrate as a really cheap and easy thing to do."

The battery-powered PhoneSats will orbit for 10 days or two weeks before re-entering the Earth?s atmosphere, while the solar-paneled PhoneSat 2.0 will have a longer stay in space, said Alberto Guillen Salas, technical lead of communications and electrical design of the PhoneSat Project.

The mission will demonstrate use of small satellites for space commerce, educational activities and citizen exploration ? all well within the reach of ordinary Americans because of the lower-cost, commercially available components involved, said Michael Gazarik, director of NASA?s Space Technology Program at NASA headquarters in Washington.

  1. Space news from NBCNews.com

    1. Chinese UFO sightings linked to rocket launch

      Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: Analysts have concluded that mysterious rays of light observed this month in Chinese skies were sparked by a European rocket stage.

    2. Smithsonian gives space spider a new home
    3. Water ice discovered on Mercury
    4. No organic material found on Mars yet
    5. NASA blasts away at doomsday bunk

Oriol Tintore Gazulla, technical lead of software and mechanical design for the PhoneSat Project at Ames, said next year?s mission is likely to be a forerunner of things to come. "This is a first step. Maybe in the future we could think of going farther ? going to the moon."

Leonard David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. He is a winner of last year's National Space Club Press Award and a past editor-in-chief of the National Space Society's Ad Astra and Space World magazines. He has written for Space.com since 1999.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/50026977/ns/technology_and_science-space/

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100 Amazon GC Giveaway Event - Mom Knows It All.

Do you remember I mentioned that I?d be joining in a giveaway event with a group of other bloggers where the prize would be a $100 Amazon GC? The giveaway is now live. Here how to enter.

The holiday shopping season is here and I am sure everyone is excited! I know I am. This is my favorite time of the year.

Happy Home and Family has teamed up with a group of the most amazing bloggers around to bring you this great giveaway to help you out with your holiday expenses!!

One lucky reader will be winning a $100 Amazon Gift Card!

Special thanks to our co hosts ? Capri?s Coupons, My Mushings, Mum Writes , SaMie Designs and Din?s Fashion

Giveaway details:

  • One lucky reader will be winning a $100 Amazon Gift Code ( or $100 cash through PayPal )
  • Giveaway is open worldwide
  • The giveaway will run from November 25- December 15

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received no compensation for this publication. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Mom Knows It All is not responsible for sponsor prize shipment.

Tags: giveaway event

Category: Current Giveaways

Source: http://www.valmg.com/index.php/2012/100-amazon-gc-giveaway-event-2/

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A Party Must-Have: The Photo Booth!


Photo booths are a blast and add an element of excitement to nearly any type party, bringing guests together for photo opportunities that might have otherwise been missed. Renting a photo booth can pretty much guarantee that you will receive fun and unique photos that capture the spirit of your guests and your event. One of the best things about these booths, besides their entertainment value, is the viewing and sharing option for photos. People can post and share photos on social media outlets, which friends and family can then comment on or send to others. In addition, guests often have the option of ordering reprints on a variety of photo-type products such as coffee mugs, key chains, and tee shirts, which can make fun gifts.

Photo booth rentals can range in price based on size, amenities and customizations, photo quality and quantity, number of hours the booth is needed, and delivery/setup services, however, prices are becoming more competitive, as companies offering numbers services can now be found in just about any city. In addition, many photo booth rental companies offer packages that allow you to view live photos and upload photos to your mobile phone and/or social media outlets to satisfy your instant gratification needs!

To select the best photo booth for your occasion, it?s important to find a company that offers packages suitable to your party needs, vision, and budget, and to make sure that you read the contract thoroughly before agreeing to the service. There are many options to choose from, and can include a number of interesting features such as:
? Output photos with 2-6 photos per strip featured in high resolution color, black and white, or ?old fashioned? prints.
? Unlimited photo sessions with customized script or logos printed on the strip.
? Backdrops in a variety of backgrounds and colors that can be customized for and/or changed throughout the event.
? Customized booth styles to match the colors and theme of the event.
? Special sizing, stand-up or sit-down booths as well as booth with wheelchair accommodations.
? Live viewing and re-print options of photos.
In addition, there are many types of services that can come with photo booth rentals, including:
? Assistance from personnel throughout the event.
? Photo booth scrapbooks, cds/dvds, postcards, or and/or online galleries of all photos taken at the event.
? Transportation and set up of booth to and from the event, or DIY photo booth kits and instructions.
? Special props and costumes on hand for guests to use in photos.

Renting a photo booth is a great way to capture fun, creative, and hilarious pictures of party guests. These are the photos that oftentimes end up being the best and most remembered photos of the party.

About the Author

Granville Photobooth is a provider of photo booths for weddings and any other events in Vancouver BC & surrounding areas. Visit us online at http://www.granvillephotobooth.com/ to learn more about how exciting photo booth rental can be!

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/jasonsimmons/327638


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Source: http://www.articlerich.com/Article/A-Party-Must-Have--The-Photo-Booth-/2452473

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Announcing the winner of the HTC One X giveaway

One X +

About a week ago we set up a little giveaway in the Android Central forums, where a lucky person was going to win themselves a shiny new HTC One X+ from AT&T and AC. Today is the day when the contest was shut down, the numbers were randomized, and we picked a winner. Join me in congratulating i love storms for the awesome One X+ he has heading his way.

So, i love storms, enjoy that beauty and be sure to put the great camera on it to the test. I'm jealous!

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/MdFt14e2rtE/story01.htm

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