While we've always thought that brain-controlled cat ears are a perfectly viable business model, it's usually in a company's best interest to diversify, in case, you know, the bottom ever drops out of the furry accessory market. Neurowear, the company behind the Necomimi, which provided some of the more memorable moments at this year's CES, showed off its latest project, the Mico, which continues the company's core competency of letting people do stuff with mind waves. In this case, it's music control. A big white pair of headphones are connected to a sensor that rests on your forehead and a dangling clip for your earlobe (a la the Necomimi).
The cans connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth, using your current mood to select a song from the company's app, which currently contains about 100 tracks. According to the company, the songs have been "neuro-tagged," based on its testing, to ensure that they match up to perceived mood. If your mood changes, just give the phone a shake and it will clean the musical slate Etch-a-Sketch-style.
LONDON -- British researchers have proposed a new theory for the origins of Stonehenge: It may have started as a giant burial ground for elite families around 3,000 B.C.
New studies of cremated human remains excavated from the site suggest that about 500 years before the Stonehenge we know today was built, a larger stone circle was erected at the same site as a community graveyard, researchers said Saturday.
"These were men, women, children, so presumably family groups," University College London professor Mike Parker Pearson, who led the team, said. "We'd thought that maybe it was a place where a dynasty of kings was buried, but this seemed to be much more of a community, a different kind of power structure."
Parker Pearson said archeologists studied the cremated bones of 63 individuals, and believed that they were buried around 3,000 B.C. The location of many of the cremated bodies was originally marked by bluestones, he said. That earlier circular enclosure, which measured around 300 feet (91 meters) across, could have been the burial ground for about 200 more people, Parker Pearson said.
The team, which included academics from more than a dozen British universities, also put forth some theories about the purpose of the second Stonehenge ? the monument still standing in the countryside in southern England today.
Various theories have been proposed about Stonehenge, including that it was a place for Druid worship, an observatory for astronomical studies, or a place of healing, built by early inhabitants of Britain who roamed around with their herds.
Parker Pearson said the latest study suggested that Stonehenge should be seen less a temple of worship than a kind of building project that served to unite people from across Britain.
Analysis of the remains of a Neolithic settlement near the monument indicated that thousands of people traveled from as far as Scotland to the site, bringing their livestock and families for huge feasts and celebrations during the winter and summer solstices.
The team studied the teeth of pigs and cattle found at the "builders' camp," and deduced that the animals were mostly slaughtered around nine months or 15 months after their spring births. That meant they were likely eaten in feasts during the midwinter and midsummer, Parker Pearson said.
"We don't think (the builders) were living there all the time. We could tell that by when they were killing the pigs ? they were there for the solstices," he said.
The researchers believe that the builders converged seasonally to build Stonehenge, but not for very long ? likely over a period of a decade or so.
The mass monument building is thought to end around the time when the "Beaker people," so called because of their distinctive pottery, arrived from continental Europe, Parker Pearson said.
"People, Hell and Angels," a new posthumous album from music legend Jimi Hendrix, is set to be the deceased rocker's biggest album since his 1968 smash hit, "Electric Ladyland."
While "Electric Ladyland" hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200, "People, Hell and Angels" is set to debut at No. 2.
The 12-track "People, Hell and Angels" was produced by Eddie Kramer, Hendrix's former sound manager. The album features tracks that were recorded to serve as a follow-up to "Electric Ladyland," including the recently released single, "Somewhere."
Billboard reports that "People, Hell and Angels" is on track to sell 70,000 copies. The rock album will likely come in second to Luke Bryan's latest album, "Spring Break... Here to Party," which is projected to take the No. 1 spot.
Hendrix and Bryan will be joined at the top of Billboard's chart by Josh Groban, Bruno Mars, and Tim McGraw, among others.
For more, head over to Billboard.
US rock singer and guitarrist Jimi Hendrix ('Hey Joe', 'Purple Haze') pictured during his concert on the island Fehmarn in the Baltic Sea, West Germany, 1970.
US rock singer and guitarist, Jimi Hendrix performs on stage at the Isle of Wight festival in 1970.
US Rock singer and guitarist Jimi Hendrix on stage at the Pop festival on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn 1970.
1970 photo of Jimi Hendrix performing on the Isle of Wight in England. (AP Photo/FILE)
The Jimi Hendrix Experience; Noel Redding, Jimi Hendrix and Mitch Mitchell.
Jimi Hendrix performs live on stage 1969
Noel Redding, left, Jimi Hendrix, centre, and Mitch Mitchell, of the Jimi Hendrix Experience, arrive at Heathrow airport, London, Aug. 21, 1967, after completing a nine week tour of the United States. (AP Photo/Peter Kemp)
The American rock singer and guitarist Jimi Hendrix performs at a pop festival on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn.
An undated portrait of the US-American rock singer and guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix died on 18th Septmenber 1970 after the consumption of alcohol and sleeping pills.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience; (clockwise from top left) Mitch Mitchell, Noel Redding and Jimi Hendrix. Circa 1969
The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing live on stage. Circa 1968
American-born guitarist Jimi Hendrix with his girlfriend Kathy Etchingham at a record launch in central London. 1969
Shown in photo is 25-year old Pop singer Jimi Hendrix was jailed for drunkenness in Stockholm, Sweden in morning on Thursday, Jan. 5, 1968 after having gone berserk and destroyed everything in his room at Goteborg hotel Opa Len. Jimi Hendrix is escorted by two police. (AP Photo)
Hendrix In England, 1966
Hendrix In England, 1966
Singer and songwriter, Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970) smiles as he arrives at Heathrow airport, London, England. 1965
Photo of Jimi HENDRIX and Curtis KNIGHT and SQUIRES, 1966
Jimi Hendrix At An Airport Around 1966-1970
Al Hendrix and his son Jimi Hendrix (3 years old), 1945
Photo of Jimi HENDRIX 1967
Photo of Jimi HENDRIX performing, 1967
Photo of Noel REDDING and Mitch MITCHELL and JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE and Jimi HENDRIX
Photo of Noel REDDING and Jimi HENDRIX
Photo of Jimi HENDRIX EXPERIENCE and Jimi HENDRIX and Mitch MITCHELL and Noel REDDING
Photo of Jimi HENDRIX 1967
Photo of Jimi HENDRIX EXPERIENCE and Jimi HENDRIX and Mitch MITCHELL and Noel REDDING
1967
Photo of Mitch MITCHELL and Jimi HENDRIX and Noel REDDING 1967
BRAF inhibitor treatment causes melanoma cells to shift how they produce energyPublic release date: 8-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Michelle Marcella mmarcella@partners.org 617-724-2755 Massachusetts General Hospital
Identifying mechanism behind treatment resistance suggests possible strategy for improvement
A multi-institutional study has revealed that BRAF-positive metastatic malignant melanomas develop resistance to treatment with drugs targeting the BRAF/MEK growth pathway through a major change in metabolism. The findings, which will be published in Cancer Cell and have been released online, suggest a strategy to improve the effectiveness of currently available targeted therapies.
"We were surprised to find that melanoma cells treated with the BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib dramatically change the way they produce energy to stay alive," says David E. Fisher, MD, PhD, chief of Dermatology at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and a co-corresponding author of the Cancer Cell paper. "While current BRAF inhibitor treatment is a major improvement shrinking tumors in most patients and extending survival for several months patients eventually relapse. So there is an ongoing need to improve both the magnitude and durability of these responses."
In about half the cases of malignant melanoma the most deadly form of skin cancer tumor growth is driven by mutations in the BRAF gene. Research by investigators at the MGH Cancer Center and elsewhere has shown that treatment with drugs that block BRAF activity temporarily halts tumor growth. Combining a BRAF inhibitor with a drug that targets MEK, another protein in the same growth pathway, strengthens and extends the antitumor response. The current study was designed to investigate how BRAF inhibition changes metabolic activity within melanoma cells and to find other possible treatment targets.
The most common way that cells convert glucose into energy is called oxidative phosphorylation and largely relies on the activity of the cellular structures called mitochondria. Many cancer cells use an alternative mechanism that produces the energy compound ATP without involving mitochondria. A series of experiments by the MGH team revealed that the elevated BRAF activity in BRAF-positive melanoma cells suppresses oxidative phosphorylation by reducing expression of a transcription factor called MITF. Suppressing production of MITF reduced levels of a protein called PGC1? that regulates the generation and function of mitochondria. But melanoma cells treated with a BRAF inhibitor showed elevated MITF activity, along with increased expression of oxidative phosphorylation genes and greater numbers of mitochondria. By switching to oxidative phosphorylation to supply the energy they need, the tumor cells increased their ability to survive in spite of BRAF inhibitor treatment.
"These findings suggest that combination treatment with mitochondrial inhibitors could improve the efficacy of BRAF inhibitors in malignant melanoma," says Fisher, the Wigglesworth Professor of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School. "Several small molecules that target mitochondrial metabolism have been identified by investigators here at the MGH and elsewhere, and laboratory investigations of specific combinations of BRAF inhibitors with mitochondrial antagonists are currently underway."
###
Rizwan Haq, MD, of the MGH Cancer Center and Department of Dermatology, is lead author of the Cancer Cell paper, and co-corresponding authors are Zolt Arany, MD, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Hans Widlund, PhD, Brigham and Women's Hospital. Support for the study includes grant R01AR043369-16 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, National Cancer Institute grants R01CA163336 and P50CA093683, and grants from the Melanoma Research Alliance and the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Medical Research Foundation.
Massachusetts General Hospital (http://www.massgeneral.org), founded in 1811, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The MGH conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the United States, with an annual research budget of more than $775 million and major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer, computational and integrative biology, cutaneous biology, human genetics, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders, regenerative medicine, reproductive biology, systems biology, transplantation biology and photomedicine. In July 2012, MGH moved into the number one spot on the 2012-13 U.S. News & World Report list of "America's Best Hospitals."
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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.
BRAF inhibitor treatment causes melanoma cells to shift how they produce energyPublic release date: 8-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Michelle Marcella mmarcella@partners.org 617-724-2755 Massachusetts General Hospital
Identifying mechanism behind treatment resistance suggests possible strategy for improvement
A multi-institutional study has revealed that BRAF-positive metastatic malignant melanomas develop resistance to treatment with drugs targeting the BRAF/MEK growth pathway through a major change in metabolism. The findings, which will be published in Cancer Cell and have been released online, suggest a strategy to improve the effectiveness of currently available targeted therapies.
"We were surprised to find that melanoma cells treated with the BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib dramatically change the way they produce energy to stay alive," says David E. Fisher, MD, PhD, chief of Dermatology at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and a co-corresponding author of the Cancer Cell paper. "While current BRAF inhibitor treatment is a major improvement shrinking tumors in most patients and extending survival for several months patients eventually relapse. So there is an ongoing need to improve both the magnitude and durability of these responses."
In about half the cases of malignant melanoma the most deadly form of skin cancer tumor growth is driven by mutations in the BRAF gene. Research by investigators at the MGH Cancer Center and elsewhere has shown that treatment with drugs that block BRAF activity temporarily halts tumor growth. Combining a BRAF inhibitor with a drug that targets MEK, another protein in the same growth pathway, strengthens and extends the antitumor response. The current study was designed to investigate how BRAF inhibition changes metabolic activity within melanoma cells and to find other possible treatment targets.
The most common way that cells convert glucose into energy is called oxidative phosphorylation and largely relies on the activity of the cellular structures called mitochondria. Many cancer cells use an alternative mechanism that produces the energy compound ATP without involving mitochondria. A series of experiments by the MGH team revealed that the elevated BRAF activity in BRAF-positive melanoma cells suppresses oxidative phosphorylation by reducing expression of a transcription factor called MITF. Suppressing production of MITF reduced levels of a protein called PGC1? that regulates the generation and function of mitochondria. But melanoma cells treated with a BRAF inhibitor showed elevated MITF activity, along with increased expression of oxidative phosphorylation genes and greater numbers of mitochondria. By switching to oxidative phosphorylation to supply the energy they need, the tumor cells increased their ability to survive in spite of BRAF inhibitor treatment.
"These findings suggest that combination treatment with mitochondrial inhibitors could improve the efficacy of BRAF inhibitors in malignant melanoma," says Fisher, the Wigglesworth Professor of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School. "Several small molecules that target mitochondrial metabolism have been identified by investigators here at the MGH and elsewhere, and laboratory investigations of specific combinations of BRAF inhibitors with mitochondrial antagonists are currently underway."
###
Rizwan Haq, MD, of the MGH Cancer Center and Department of Dermatology, is lead author of the Cancer Cell paper, and co-corresponding authors are Zolt Arany, MD, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Hans Widlund, PhD, Brigham and Women's Hospital. Support for the study includes grant R01AR043369-16 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, National Cancer Institute grants R01CA163336 and P50CA093683, and grants from the Melanoma Research Alliance and the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Medical Research Foundation.
Massachusetts General Hospital (http://www.massgeneral.org), founded in 1811, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The MGH conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the United States, with an annual research budget of more than $775 million and major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer, computational and integrative biology, cutaneous biology, human genetics, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders, regenerative medicine, reproductive biology, systems biology, transplantation biology and photomedicine. In July 2012, MGH moved into the number one spot on the 2012-13 U.S. News & World Report list of "America's Best Hospitals."
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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.
DENVER ? The best start in NHL history is over. The Chicago Blackhawks finally left the ice without a point.
The Blackhawks were stunned 6-2 by the struggling Colorado Avalanche on Friday night. It was their first loss in regulation and ended a remarkable run in which they earned at least one point in their first 24 games, an NHL record.
Matt Duchene scored four points and Ryan O'Reilly got his first goal since his contract dispute was resolved more than a week ago. O'Reilly assisted on another goal in a four-goal onslaught in the second period that turned a 1-1 tie into a laugher.
The Blackhawks (21-1-3) hadn't lost in regulation since a 6-1 rout by Nashville on March 25, 2012, and their last loss in regulation on the road came more than a year ago, with a 5-1 defeat at St. Louis on March 6, 2012.
Dating back to last year's regular season, the streak was 30 games.
Chicago's overall points streak was the second longest in NHL history. The 1979-80 Philadelphia Flyers set the league record with a staggering 35-game unbeaten streak that included 25 wins and 10 ties ? all in the same season.
Duchene, John Mitchell and Jamie McGinn also put pucks past Corey Crawford in the second period for the Avalanche, who had lost six of their previous seven, including a 3-2 heartbreaker at Chicago 48 hours earlier.
Crawford (11-1-3) allowed five goals on 19 shots before being replaced in net by Ray Emery to start the third period.
Semyon Varlamov had 30 saves for Colorado.
The Avalanche nearly ended the spectacular streak in Chicago on Wednesday night before the Blackhawks pulled out the win when Daniel Carcillo scored the tiebreaking goal with 49.3 seconds left. Chicago was skating without three key forwards and playing its second game in two nights then.
There was no such comeback Friday night at the Pepsi Center, where a good portion of the sellout crowd was rooting for the Blackhawks, who hadn't allowed more than four goals in a game this season.
The crowd chanted, "End of streak! End of streak!" over the final minutes.
Bryan Bickell's goal with 11:07 left made it 5-2. He nearly scored again from the same spot 90 seconds later, but Varlamov smothered the shot.
The teams got into a scuffle with 5:04 left after Bickell squared off with Gabriel Landeskog, who had checked Duncan Keith in the back.
P.A. Parenteau's 10th goal of the season made it 6-2.
Chicago's Jonathan Toews got the scoring started when he knocked the puck past Varlamov after a turnover on a give-and-go with forward Marian Hossa, who returned from an upper-body injury.
Colorado (9-10-4) tied it when Paul Stastny, who was between the circles, tipped a pass from Duchene into the net. It was a rare power play goal for the Avalanche, who came into the game ranked 29th in the league with just 82 shots when skating with a man advantage.
Duchene's goal between Crawford's legs made it 2-1. Just 33 seconds later, Mitchell scored on an assist from O'Reilly, who was signed to a two-year $10 million deal last week after the Avalanche matched Calgary's offer sheet following a nasty contract dispute.
O'Reilly's goal came on a slap shot from the top of the right circle 4 seconds into another power play. Duchene set him up with a pass after Stastny won the faceoff.
Duchene got his third assist when he dug out a loose puck from the boards in a scramble with Keith and kicked it out to McGinn, who put made it 5-1.
The Blackhawks' run comes with somewhat of an asterisk because they actually lost three games along the way ? all in shootouts. Under NHL rules, that's still worth a point, but that makes it different from what the Flyers accomplished nearly a quarter-century ago.
During that streak, Philadelphia won 25 games and tied 10. There was no overtime until the playoffs, and the shootout was still a far-off creation. If the teams were tied after 60 minutes, that's how it ended. Each got a point.
Nowadays, both teams still receive a point if the game is tied at the end of regulation. Then, the team that scores in a five-minute, four-skaters-a-side overtime period or wins the shootout gets an extra point.
NOTES: Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson returned to the lineup after missing 11 games with a head injury. ... Chicago RW Michael Frolik returned from an illness that sidelined him for two games. ... The Blackhawks were without forward Patrick Sharp, who left Wednesday's home win over the Avalanche with a shoulder injury after being checked along the boards by Colorado's Ryan O'Byrne. ... The Avalanche matched their season high for goals.
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Follow Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton
Community responsibility -?businesses and business leaders come out for Omaha
Let?s be honest. Sometimes we cringe when we are told that we are responsible for doing something, like attending a distant relative?s birthday party on a beautiful Saturday afternoon or cleaning the garage when a good book is calling. We just hate being told that ?we have to.? But kicking and screaming, we usually do what we have to do.
Other times, our sense of responsibility wells up and we voluntarily do the noble thing. We visit a great aunt in the hospital after a long day at work and when we leave we think, ?I?m glad I did that. I know she really appreciated the company?? And we smile, feeling good all the way around, for stepping up to what we know is right, for doing what it means to be human.
So it?s not surprising when business people have different responses to the notion of communityresponsibility. Sometimes I have heard business people rail ?don?t tell me we have to do anything for the community. If I want to, I will. But I am not obligated to do so!? Other times, I talk to business people who enjoy using their position and power to advance community causes. Community responsibility is not a requirement for them, but a right?.a satisfying, thirst-quenching, honor-building right.
Omaha business includes all kinds of people with every kind of attitude about community responsibility. In this, we are like every other metropolitan area. But absolutely everyone I?ve ever talked to about the uniqueness of the Omaha business climate ? newbies in Omaha, business visitors in Omaha, seasoned Omaha leaders ? says the same thing. ?Businesses and business leaders come out for Omaha. They turn up for community events. They sponsor community programs. They donate money and support volunteerism. There is a strong sense of community responsibility here.?
Three years ago, the Omaha Business Ethics Alliance? worked with a cross section of Omaha business practitioners to identify the core values that define our business climate. ?A team of researchers scoured thirty interviews of Omaha business leaders, facilitated numerous focus groups and conversed with the Business Ethics Alliance? Trustees. Five core values surfaced, one was community responsibility. Its definition emerged from the lips of the business people:
a sense of responsibility to the whole community and not just oneself, one?s family or one?s organization; a culture of reciprocity between business and the community where commitment of time, talent and treasure shape the long-term vibrancy of the community and business.
Beautiful words. Inspiring words. The words acknowledge that there is a natural tie that binds us. That self worth evolves from recognizing our relationship with others. That business is built from its community and its community from business.
But how community responsibility is exemplified is different for different business people. For some it means holding onto the Omaha traditions. For others it means finding responsible way to encourage economic development. There are many worthwhile ways to demonstrate community responsibility.
Now is the time to bring the intricacies of the Omaha definition of community responsibility to life! The Business Ethics Alliance? has created a short three minute video that will be presented around town at various public events. The video, and facilitator notes, can also be downloaded from our website for use within organizations to create discussion about the Omaha core value. ?We challenge you to access our entire website (www.businessethicsalliance.org) and introduce its contents to your colleagues at work.
In the next two months, we will be blogging about community responsibility. We will describe best practices, giving examples from Omaha and beyond, of companies and business leaders that exemplify community responsibility to the extreme. Guess bloggers will join in the fun, so be sure to watch for them.
We invite you to play with us. Make comments on our blog. Join in the conversation about Omaha?s community responsibility!
Bev
Beverly Kracher Executive Director Business Ethics Alliance?
Just because the PlayStation 4 centers around an AMD-based platform doesn't mean that NVIDIA is out of the picture. The graphics firm is updating the software developer kits for both its Apex dynamics framework and PhysX physics modeling system to address Sony's new console, even if they won't have the full hardware acceleration that comes with using NVIDIA's own chipsets. The introductions will mostly take some of the guesswork out of creating realistic-looking games -- theoretically, adding a larger number of collisions, destructible objects and subtler elements like cloth and hair modeling. Most of us won't see the fruits of the updated SDKs until at least this holiday, but programmers looking for more plausible PS4 game worlds can hit the source links.
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Public release date: 8-Mar-2013
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