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We also observed a hetero geneous response of sorafenib and gemci

We also observed a hetero geneous response of sorafenib and gemcitabine in inhibiting cell proliferation of 4 PDAC lines tested. The two agents brought on inhibition of cell proliferation to various extents plus the addition of sorafenib improved gemcitabine results. Results of combinations of EMAP with sorafenib and gemcitabine had been evaluated in ECs and fibroblast cells, and a important additive result on inhibition of cell proliferation was observed in contrast with single or dual agent treatment. A gemcitabine plus sorafenib blend was identified to get efficient in pre clinical and phase I trials of PDAC, lending support to the significance of combining cytotoxic medication with agents inhibiting Ras Raf MEK ERK pathways and angiogenesis. Having said that, a phase II trial showed no meaningful impact of the gemcitabine plus sorafenib combination in innovative PDAC individuals.
The extremely little amount of 17 patients and 94% of individuals carry ing metastatic ailment were the contributing things in the negative phase II clinical trial results. These outcomes also indicate the significance of focusing on other appropriate pathways that contribute inside the progression of PDAC. At this time, two phase II trials are evaluating the blend treatment benefits of gemcitabine, sorafenib and the EGFR inhibitor erlotinib in state-of-the-art investigate this site PDAC. The anti vascular endothelial growth issue agent bevacizumab, the primary FDA authorized angiogenesis in hibitor, showed promising phase II information in combination with gemcitabine in PDAC individuals but failed to demon strate any survival advantage in phase III trials. Since sorafenib inhibits the raf kinase and VEGF pathways, we assumed that the addition of EMAP, an inhibitor of VEGF and integrin fibronectin pathways,to gemcitabine and sorafenib would potentially make improvements to in vivo outcome of clinical PDAC.
This assumption was primarily based about the ef fective in vitro combination data with EMAP in preceding studies displaying EMAP enhancing antitumor results of gemcitabine paired with bevacizumab or together with the mTOR and AKT inhibitor NVP BEZ235. Activating K ras mutations are very prevalent and also have been shown to be crucial in the initiation and progression of pancreatic cancer. Farnesyltransferase selleck chemicals GSK2118436 in hibitors that will block K ras activation happen to be tested clinically, but the final results showed inadequate antitumor exercise maybe indicating the importance of multi targeted techniques towards PDAC that can lengthen past the inhibition of the single upstream mediator within a fre quently activated signaling pathway. Later scientific studies centered on therapeutic focusing on from the Ras Raf MEK ERK network in combination with other important molecular targets by multikinase inhibitors such as sorafenib that has been proven to generate some antitumor activity as single agent within a pancreatic cancer cells.

ERK is implicated in a variety of cellular processes, such as pro

ERK is implicated in different cellular processes, which include proliferation, differ entiation, apoptosis, and transformation. Raf kinase inhibitor protein,also termed phos phatidylethanolamine binding protein one, is really a twenty 25 kDa globular protein that belongs to the PEBP loved ones, encompassing more than 400 members. RKIP is sup posed to bind to Raf 1 and inhibit Raf 1 mediated phos phorylation of MEK. As being a modulator of signaling pathways, RKIP also affects a variety of cellular processes. Deviant manage in the MAPK cascade is implicated while in the advancement of human neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimers condition, Parkinsons ailment, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, at the same time as various types of human cancer. A lot of Ras and B Raf mutations arise in human cancer.
The objective of this research was to investigate the expression of phosphorylated ERK and its upstream regulating signals for instance phosphorylated MEK and RKIP in human gastric cancer and also to assess full article relations in the expressions of these proteins to clinicopathological variables and outcomes. Techniques Patients February 2004 via December 2007 we studied 105 patients who underwent curative gastrectomy for primary gastric adenocarcinomas penetrating beyond the muscularis mucosa on the Department of Esophagogas tric Surgery, Tokyo Healthcare and Dental University. This study was conducted due to Declaration of Helsinki,and accepted by Institutional Review Board with the Tokyo Health-related and Dental university. Every tumour was classified according for the tumour node metastasis classification advised by the Union for Worldwide Cancer Handle. All patients were evaluated for recurrent disease by examinations of tumour markers or by diagnostic imaging, including computed tomography, ultrasonography, magnetic reso nance imaging, and endoscopy, each and every three six months.
No patient obtained neoadjuvant treatment. The median fol minimal up time was fifty five months. Recurrent illness was diagnosed in 45 individuals and selleckchem was the trigger of death in 40 patients. Immunostaining of p MEK and p ERK and RKIP Immunohistochemical staining was carried out from the streptavitin biotin approach applying a Histofine SAB PO kit. Polyclonal rabbit antibody towards p ERK was obtained from Abcam,monoclonal Rabbit antibody towards p MEK one 2 was bought from Cell Signaling Tech nology, Inc,and RKIP antibody was bought from Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Inc. All readily available haematoxylin and eosin stained slides of your surgical specimens were reviewed. For each case, representative paraffin blocks have been picked for immunohistochemical research. 3 micrometer thick sections were cut from each formalin fixed, paraffin embedded tissue block. Soon after deparaffini sation and rehydration, antigen retrieval remedy was carried out at 98 C for 15 min in ten mmolL sodium citrate buffer,followed by deal with ment with 3% hydrogen peroxide for 15 min to quench endogenous peroxidase action.

Splicing is carried out through the host cell splicing machinery,

Splicing is carried out through the host cell splicing machinery, but is most likely regulated by NS1,which binds to many cellular splicing elements such as U6 compact nuclear RNAs and UAP56, a splicing component involved in spliceosome formation. Translation Influenza viral mRNAs are translated through the host cell translation machinery. so not surprisingly, numerous cellular translation components just like eIF4A,eIF4E, and eIF4G interact with viral mRNAs and or polymerase complexes. On IAV infection, host cell protein synthesis is restricted, and IAV mRNAs are preferentially translated. Specifically, cap snatching could de plete newly synthesized, nuclear mRNAs of their cap structures, resulting in their quick degradation just before nuclear export and translation.
On top of that, the inter action of NS1 with all the cellular PABII binding protein II and CPSF proteins,plus the interaction from the viral polymerase complicated together with the C terminal domain of your largest subunit of cellular DNA dependant RNA polymerase II may contribute for the inhibition of host mRNA synthesis. Just after their synthesis inside the cytoplasm, the viral polymer ase subunit proteins and NP are imported into the nucleus via their selleck chemicals nuclear localization signals to catalyse the replication and transcription of vRNA. Furthermore, the M1,NEP NS2,and NS1 proteins are imported to the nucleus to execute their roles in vRNP nuclear export or the processing and export of cellular and viral mRNAs. vRNP export The nuclear export of newly synthesized vRNP com plexes calls for the viral NEP NS2 and M1 proteins. The latter is thought to type a bridge concerning vRNPs and NEP NS2,and M1 association with vRNP may perhaps need M1 SUMOylation. Inside the nucleus, vRNPs destined for export are targeted to chromatin wherever they associate with Rcc1, and export is mediated from the cellular export element Crm1 within a manner that is most likely regulated by phosphorylation.
The cellular Y box binding protein 1 protein URB597 also associates with vRNPs within the nu cleus, is most likely exported from your nucleus along with vRNPs, and facilitates vRNP association with microtubules for transport to the plasma membrane. Following their synthesis from the cellular translation machinery, the viral HA, neuraminidase,and M2 proteins enter the endoplasmic reticulum wherever these are glycosylated or palmitoylated. Cleavage of the HA proteins of extremely pathogenic avian H5 and H7 viruses sb431542 chemical structure into the HA1 and HA2 subunits oc curs most likely by cellular furin like proteases while in the trans Golgi network. this cleavage occasion is important for your virulence of influenza viruses. Transport of virus proteins to the cell membrane Transport of viral proteins to the plasma membrane very likely requires MTOCs,mi crotubules,and additional host aspects includ ing COPI protein members of the family,a Rab GTPase,and the HIV Rev binding protein.

The other plat kind was the 13,000 human gene promoter microarray

The other plat form was the 13,000 human gene promoter microarray used for the p53 binding and histone acetylation study. DNA samples from just about every within the four mt p53, parental HME1 and vector only transformed cell lines had been ana lyzed utilizing a McrBC digestion process and hybridiza tion towards the CpG island microarray. No significant changes in DNA methylation state in response to long run mt p53 overexpression had been found. To ver Changes2in acetylation of histones H3 and H4 in studied cell Adjustments in acetylation of histones H3 and H4 in stud ied cell lines. Heatmaps present histone acetylation status of promoters that show considerable changes from control cell lines in any sam ple detected by chromatin immunoprecipitation and hybridi zation to 13,000 human gene promoter microarray. Promoters were sorted inside the y axis direction by decreasing normal acetylation.
Green shade reflects large acetylation, red shade reduced acetylation. The common acetylation from three independent experiments is proven. Cell line labels are displayed below the x axis. The two bottom lines display the number of promoters that have been considerably a lot more or significantly less acetylated than in peptide synthesis price the manage cell lines, and therefore are proven by black dots inside the figure. Acetylation of histone H3 is proven around the left and acetylation of histone H4 around the suitable. The complete record of differentially acetylated promoters is available as supplemental file two. ify these observations, DNA from parental HME1, vector only, plus the R175H mt cells which demonstrated one of the most adjustments in histone acetylation, was immunoprecip itated which has a 5 methylcytosine exact antibody. Labeled DNA was hybridized for the 13,000 human gene promoter microarray against input DNA as being a reference. No signifi cant modifications in DNA methylation had been discovered.
Our data suggest that overexpression of wt p53 impacted histone acetylation of a multitude of gene promoters. The expression of mt p53 forms did not have an impact on his tone acetylation, using the exception from the R175H mt. This p53 mutant, inhibitor C59 wnt inhibitor having said that, doesn’t bind DNA in any way, so the observed alterations had been most likely an indirect result of expression of R175H mt p53 protein while in the cell. Despite adjustments in acetylation of histones in R175H mt, we didn’t uncover important modifications in DNA methylation in any mutant expressing cell lines. The methylation of DNA during the cell line overexpressing wt p53, which can be harvested a quick time after infection. was not determined because earlier final results suggest that DNA methylation doesn’t adjust in such a brief time frame. Alterations in acetylation in response to wt p53 binding The sole cell line that showed a significant quantity of p53 bound promoters and improvements in histone acetylation was HME1 overexpressing wt p53.

Interestingly, B AR stimulation has lately been demonstrated to g

Interestingly, B AR stimulation has not long ago been demonstrated for being a significant factor that contributes on the initiation of IH by Mayer et al,who uncovered that intrauterine publicity to B2 sympathomimetic hexoprenaline can increase the occurrence of IH in preterm infants. In addition, the B2 AR antagonist but not the B1 AR antagonist fully abolished ISO induced cell professional liferation, suggesting that the mitogenic effect of ISO predominately occurred through the B2 AR. This locating is in agreement that has a former report that showed that the stimulatory effect of ISO on aorta endothelial cells was preferentially mediated by the B2 AR. Having said that, it had been reported that the present selective B1 blockers in use are usually not completely B1 certain. The truth is, MET partially inhibits B2 AR also. Its therefore possible that even limited B2 adrenergic inhibition by MET may be enough to inhibit cell proliferation.
Management of cell cycle progression in tumor cells may perhaps be an efficient tactic for treating tumors. The present findings clearly showed that the B AR antagonists arrested ISO treated cells at the G0 G1 phase on the cell cycle, suggesting the B AR antagonists inhibited cell proliferation through interactions with cell cycle regulators. Indeed, cyclin D1, supplier Tyrphostin AG-1478 CDK four, CDK 6 and phospho Rb have already been reported to manage the vascular endothelial cell proliferation during pathogenic neovascularization. We investigated regardless of whether the expression of these estab lished cell cycle regulators was managed by the B ARs in HemECs. Our effects showed that remedy of HemECs with ISO resulted in a moderate to sturdy in crease in the protein ranges of cyclin D1, CDK 4, CDK six and phospho Rb, but these substantial ranges of expression have been reversed by pre treatment with either the B1 or B2 AR antagonist.
The mechanism responsible for these changes stays unknown and merits further investigation. ERK proteins are reversibly AM251 phosphorylated by many different protein kinases and upstream signaling molecules because of the activation of receptor tyrosine kinases and G protein coupled receptors. The B ARs promoted vascular endothelial cell ERK activation by at the very least two mechanisms. Initially, stimulation of endothelial B ARs right activated ERK signaling cascades, and second, B AR stimu lation induced the release of VEGF A, which may also activate ERK. Inside the current study, ERK inhibition prevented HemEC proliferation, demonstrating that this kinase is significant for B AR mediated cell mitogenesis and proliferation. In addition, ISO substantially induced ERK activation, sb431542 chemical structure and this effect was abolished by either the B1 or B2 AR antagonist. Publicity to a continual stressor promoted in vivo angiogenesis and manufacturing of VEGF.

the endogenous GC in mice and in other versions of inflammation

the endogenous GC in mice. and in other designs of irritation or GC associated muscle atrophy administration of GR receptor antagonists prevented or attenuated muscle atrophy. Indeed, LPS induced increases in plasma cortisol have been paralleled by a substantial decrease in myofiber CSA, and only the latter was prevented by GSK three inhibition. Remarkably, basal GSK 3 inhibition likewise resulted within a decrease in myofiber CSA, which might have been the consequence of the blunted boost in entire body bodyweight in re sponse to SB216763. In excess of inhibition of GSK three under usual conditions may not be favorable as GSK three is essential while in the management of many physiological processes such as development and cell proliferation. As elevated GSK three action was previously reported in atro phying muscle. our data may indicate the utilization of GSK 3 inhibitors needs to be limited to ailments characterized by aberrant GSK three regulation, aimed at res toration of physiological GSK three exercise amounts.
Nonetheless, pharmacological GSK three inhibition resulted in major sparing of muscle mass and myofiber CSA, despite sustained pulmonary irritation and elevated cortisol ranges. This is often in line with previously reported scientific studies highlighting the efficacy selleckchem of GSK three inhibitors in re ducing proteolysis in septic muscle. and in muscle groups from burned rats. Furthermore, GSK three inhibition was demonstrated to decrease general protein degradation comparably to IGF I in the model of GC induced muscle proteolysis. and earlier operate by our lab delineated a pivotal role for GSK 3B during the induction of skeletal muscle atrophy, as reduction of GSK 3B expression in muscle resulted in unique sparing of myofibrillar protein abundance fol lowing synthetic GC treatment.
Consequently, the inability of GSK three inhibition to cut back pulmonary irritation im plies that the SB216763 inhibitor may have straight inhib ited GSK 3 in muscle. In view of the significance of GSK 3 signaling from the processes that determine muscle mass. markers of protein synthesis and degradation have been assessed SB 431542 ALK inhibitor in muscle homogenates. As indicated earlier, Akt activation effects while in the phosphorylation and cytoplasmic retention of the FoXO transcription things, and is responsible for your subsequent attenuation of protein breakdown. Conversely, decreased phosphorylation of FoXO, consequent to dimin ished Akt activity, may possibly maximize proteolysis signaling, and consequently muscle atrophy. However, pulmonary inflammation only appeared to marginally lessen p FoXO3a protein amounts, even though the phosphorylation status of FoXO1 remained un affected. It is noteworthy that suppression of GSK 3 activ ity didn’t influence the phosphorylation of FoXO beneath any problems. Of note, these moderate effects of pulmon ary inflammation and GSK 3 inhibition on FoXO corre sponded to the unaltered phosphorylation state of Akt.

On UVR or ROS strain, MAP kinase is activated which prospects to

On UVR or ROS worry, MAP kinase is activated which leads to phosphorylation of MiTF on serine 73 and subsequent degradation of MiTF protein. The short-term degradation was corre lated with a short-term G1 cell cycle arrest, correspond ing with p21WAF1 CIP1 degradation and re activation, which enables sufficient time for DNA injury repair and guarantee of a far better cell survival, In response to UVB radiation, MiTF ranges weren’t changed on the examined dose and time variety, nor its phosphorylation standing, However, MiTF was degraded without the need of apparent band shifting soon after UVA treat ment, Pre remedy with U0126 also didn’t protect against MiTF degradation soon after UVA radiation, suggest ing that right after UVA MiTF was not phosphorylated by Erk1 2 kinase, nor was the degradation mediated by phosphorylation.
These data indicate that signaling path techniques just after UVA, UVB and UVC are different, which is steady with former observations that distinctive wavelengths of UV light trigger distinct cellular responses, The UVA MiTF signaling pathway is still under intensive inhibitor LY2157299 investigation in our laboratory. Conclusions In summary, our information indicated that MiTF played an active purpose in response to UVC radiation by immediately linking Erk1 2 and p21WAF1 CIP1 activation. Erk1 2 kinase is downstream of BRAF and NRAS pathways, that are often mutated in human melanomas, Lately it had been reported that the MiTF pathway was also frequently mutated in human melanomas, Taken with each other, mutations in these pathways may perhaps compromise the cellular defense mechanisms towards UV mediated DNA harm and for that reason maximize the genome instability, at some point resulting in melanomagenesis. Strategies Cell lines and cell culture Usual human melanocytes were isolated from new born foreskin followed the process by Eisinger and Marco, and cultured in MCDB153 medium containing 2% FCS, 0.
3% bovine pituitary extract, 10 ng mL 12 O tetradecanoylphorbol Ostarine 13 acetate, 2 mmol L CaCl2, five ug mL insulin, and 0. 1 mmol L IBMX, Melanoma Malme three M cells had been cultured in IMDM media containing 20% FBS and 1% penicillin and streptomycin. The c83 2C, A375, SK Mel 28 or SK Mel five cells have been cultured in F10, DMEM, EMEM or AMEM media. every single provided with 5% FBS, 5% new born bovine sera, and 2% penicillin and streptomycin. All cells were stored at 37 C in 5% CO2 incubator. UV radiation and cell remedy Cells have been grown to about 70% confluence and media was eliminated totally for UVB and UVC radiation. For UVA radiation, 5 ml of one? PBS was extra to 1 ten cm dish of cells and ice cubes have been placed upcoming to dishes for absorbing the heat produced by UVA.

The existing effects motivate curiosity in deciphering their role

The current benefits motivate interest in deciphering their roles in RA induced differentiation augmented by FICZ. RA has clinically been notably profitable in inducing remissions, albeit transient, in APL, but hasn’t been ef fective in other myeloid leukemias. APL is defined by the presence in the PML RAR fusion protein resulting from the t translocation that cytogenetically char acterizes the condition, that is a FAB M3. There’s consequently prospective curiosity in the therapeutic viewpoint of bringing RA differentiation induction treatment to non APL FAB M2 or 1 ailment. In particular mechanistic as pects of how a FAB M2 derived cell that is capable of RA induced differentiation undergoes granulocytic dif ferentiation and G0 cell cycle arrest may offer insights into the best way to drive differentiation within a non APL cell. Such is HL 60, the currently utilized model derived from a mye loblastic leukemia.
Therefore indicates of driving RA induced differentiation right here might contribute insights of thera peutic relevance. Approaches Cell culture and solutions HL 60 human myeloblastic leukemia cells derived in the original patient isolate, a generous gift of Dr. Robert Gallagher, had been grown in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 5% fetal bovine serum and 1x antibiotic antimycotic in the 5% CO2 humidified ambiance at 37 C. The cells have been cultured in frequent selleck exponential development as previously described, The experimental cultures had been initiated at a density of 0. one ? 106 cells ml. Viability knowing it was monitored by 0. 2% trypan blue exclusion and routinely exceeded 95%. All reagents were bought from Sigma unless of course otherwise stated. For therapies, all trans retinoic acid was extra from a five mM stock option in 100% ethanol to make a last concentration of 1 uM in culture.
ipi-145 chemical structure six Formylindolo carbazole, was additional from a a hundred uM DMSO stock to make a last concentration of a hundred nM in culture. The concentration was picked from an initial dose response experiment because the decrease concentration yielding a phenotypic response when additional with RA without any toxic results. This corresponds to a often utilized concentration from the literature. naphthoflavone and B naphthoflavone had been every single utilised at a last concentration of 1 uM in culture. The stock answers have been one mM in DMSO. Similar to FICZ, there was no obvious toxicity of NF or B NF at this dose discernible by proliferation prices, cell cycle distribu tion, or trypan blue exclusion. CD38, CD11b quantification Expression of cell surface differentiation markers was quantified by movement cytometry. 1 ? 106 cells were col lected from cultures and centrifuged at 1000 rpm for 5 min.

Considering the fact that u calpain and m calpain are regulated b

Since u calpain and m calpain are regulated by PLCb Ca and cAMP PKA pathways respectively, which perform direct and important roles in cell migration regulation, we upcoming examined calpain activities in these cells. Total calpain activity did not adjust much in RWPE 1 cells following CXCR3 chemokine therapy. Interestingly, m calpain exercise drastically decreased with CXCL4 PF4 and CXCL10 IP10 in these regular prostate cells, suggesting that inhibition of cell motility and invasiveness from CXCR3 chemokines is actually a consequence of m calpain activity reduction. A lot more impor tantly, this action reduce was not a result of m cal soreness protein expression degree transform, Since there exists no maximize of cAMP volume following CXCL4 PF4 or CXCL10 IP10 treatment method from the prostate cancer cell lines, m calpain activities remained at similar amounts when compared to the untreated cells, sug gesting that inhibition of cell migration by way of the CXCR3B pathway was not lively in prostate cancer cells.
CXCR3B overexpression in DU 145 cells blocked chemokine induced cell motility and invasion by way of m calpain activation inhibition CXCR3B was identified to be the main CXCR3 isoform in prostate regular tissue and prostate selleckchem epithelial RWPE 1 cells. Having said that, in prostate carcinoma tissues and cell lines, not only was CXCR3A very expressed but the level of CXCR3B was diminished. Consequently, a question remains as to no matter if the reduced expression of CXCR3B was operative as an alternative to the novel expression of CXCR3A. To understand superior about CXCR3B signaling in pros tate cancer cells, the CXCR3B splice variant was overex pressed in DU 145 cells up to 2 fold at the protein expression degree, Overexpression of CXCR3B in DU 145 cells didn’t alter CXCR3A or CXCR3 ligands expression levels at a mRNA degree or cellular localization of CXCR3, No proliferation price alteration was observed in these cells either, How ever, in these DU 145 cells with CXCR3B overexpres sion, chemokines inhibited cell motility and invasion, suggesting that prostate cancer cell motility and invasiveness elevation was on account of a lack of CXCR3B signaling at the least in portion in addition to CXCR3A expression.
However, to examine no matter whether CXCR3 expression nevertheless contributes to motility, PLCb3 was down regulated by siRNA and cell motility was measured. Interestingly, DU 145 cells with CXCR3B overexpression and PLCb3 knockdown showed a even more reduction of cell motility compared to cells with CXCR3B overexpression only, suggesting that PLCb3 was even now energetic in DU 145 CXCR3BOX TG100115 cells, but that CXCR3 signaling by PLCb3 was contributing positively to migration. this may be happening by an endogenous CXCR3A signal. We observed that cell motility and invasion was inhibited in the two RWPE one and DU CXCR3BOX prostate cancer cells, and this inhibition is due to upregulation of cAMP level and m calpain activity reduction in RWPE 1 cells, Consequently, we asked the question that irrespective of whether DU CXCR3BOX cells activated same signaling pathway mostly through CXCR3B to block cell motility and inva siveness.

Procedures Cell Culture Four E cad extremely expressing SCCHN c

Techniques Cell Culture 4 E cad tremendously expressing SCCHN cell lines have been implemented in these studies. Tu686 and 686LN have been estab lished from a principal base of tongue SCC and its lymph node metastasis, respectively, Tu212 was established from a principal hypopharyngeal SCC, UPCI 37A was established from SCC inside the larynx on the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Insti tute, The cell lines had been maintained as monolayer cultures in Dulbeccos modified Eagles medium F12 medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum at 37 C in the humidified atmo sphere with 5% CO2. Reduction of E cad by siRNA Cells have been seeded at a concentration of 1. five ? 105 nicely in twelve effectively cell culture plates 12 hrs in advance of transfection. The two E cad siRNA and non targeted manage siRNA have been transfected implementing HiPerFect transfection reagent according towards the makers instruction.
The effects on E cad reduction of your transfection had been evaluated by Western blot and flow cytometry evaluation as described beneath. Western Blot Examination Cells had been washed twice with phosphate buffered saline in advance of staying lysed on ice for thirty min with lysis buffer containing 50 mmol L HEPES buffer, 150 mmol L NaCl, 1 mmol L EDTA, one mmol L EGTA, 1% IGEPAL CA 630, 0. 5% Triton X a hundred, ten mmol L NaF, 2 mmol L Na3VO4, 10 mmol L read the article b glycero phosphate and 1% Protease Inhibitor Cocktail, The lysate was centrifuged at sixteen,000 g at 4 C for 15 min. Fifty micrograms of complete protein for each sample were separated by 10% SDS Web page and transferred onto a polyvinylidene difluoride membrane, plus the desired proteins had been probed with corresponding anti bodies. Mouse anti E cad and rabbit anti EGFR anti bodies were bought from Santa Cruz Biotechnology. Phospho p42 44 MAPK and phospho AKT antibodies have been obtained from Cell Sig naling Technologies.
Antibody for phospho EGFR was bought from Upstate. GAPDH was used as an internal handle. HRP conjugated secondary antibodies selleckchem have been anti Rabbit IgG and anti Mouse IgG, Bound antibody was detected employing the SuperSignal West Pico Chemoluminescence system, Flow Cytometric Analysis To quantify EGFR expression around the cell membrane, flow cytometric examination of cell surface staining was carried out. After dissociation with Cell Stripper, one ? 106 cells have been incubated with monoclonal mouse anti EGFR for 45 min at area temperature. Mouse IgG was utilized as an isotype manage. Following washing, the cells were incubated with Alexa Fluor 488 goat anti mouse IgG remarkably cross absorbed antibody, Cells have been resuspended in one ml 2% BSA to run flow cytometry analysis with FACS can, Data had been analyzed by the software program FlowJo, For actual time PCR, equal amounts of total mRNA from E cad knock down cells and manage cells have been made use of to amplify cDNA.


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Teenage Dreamers

My father had this sixth sense. He knew when people would die.

We were watching a Leslie Cheung film together—a Wong Kar-Wai one with swollen colours, Happy Together—and my father was enthralled, totally outside himself, his small feet embracing the seats in front of us. In the dark of the Chinatown cinema, he massaged his wrists.
Leslie’s character was bleeding in an old lover’s doorway.
Without warning, the sound of sobbing leaked through the warm air of the cinema. At first, I thought it was one of the girls in school uniform, hugging each other in the front row. Their Leslie was hurt on screen. They had iPods in their ears, playing his hits, I guess.
But it was my father who made a sound like a ruined gate, his hands clamped to his cheeks.
I kept my eyes nailed straight ahead.
Ever since my mother had left him, my father had become obsessed with Leslie Cheung. I could picture him—a short ball of a man with grey-shot hair amongst the throng of girls, screaming at Leslie’s concerts. He simply studied the singer on stage with the dreaming eyelids.
‘He’s a Solo Man like me,’ my father said after one show, sprinkling in English he learnt from TV. ‘So lonesome tonight.’
If he had been somebody else’s father, I would have thought he was infatuated with Leslie.
While he continued crying in the cinema, I wondered if it would make me want to see him more often, or not again for another three months. Even though the rows of seats were mostly empty and I could hear a truck rumble in the outside world, I still flushed with embarrassment. One of the iPod girls turned to twist her face at me.
‘Ba,’ I said. ‘Do you want a tissue?’
‘He’s going to die.’
‘Come on, you’ve seen this film three times, he doesn’t die. Maybe emotionally, isolation, you know——’
‘That doesn’t happen. How do you even know that word? Take this tissue.’
He wouldn’t stop crying. ‘He was such an April fool. ’
‘Don’t be stupid, he’s still alive.’
He unmasked his face to me and looked more serious than I had ever seen him before. ‘He’s going to die next month,’ he said with a metal sting to his words.
My mother always used to say, ‘Too much drama. Your father is a victim.’
Now I knew what she had seen all those years they were together.
I felt my chest flatten in the now-hot air of the cinema. I arranged my wandering limbs into the leather seat, and I believed him. The previous Spring Festival, my cousin, Fat Lydia, had emerged from hospital with a new lung blown into her. Everybody gave her red envelopes plumped with dollars, teased her about her first grey hairs, and laughed clumsily in chairs around her bed.
Except for father. He said she’d be ‘returning home’ soon. {mosimage}
Her lung didn’t take and her funeral was two weeks later.
I hadn’t believed him then, or cared about Fat Lydia, but the idea of no Leslie Cheung in the silver-screened world made my stomach tense. I was a fan too, though I didn’t go to Kinko’s to get posters of the star laminated, like my father did. I listened to him talking about Leslie’s childhood. His story was recited into the air every other night. My father’s voice was wet with pride for the other son he never had.
Sitting up in the aisle, waiting for my father to stop whimpering, I realised Leslie’s childhood had become muddled with my own; I had reframed his history around mine. Was it me that loved Gone with the Wind? The problem was, some patches of our backstory overlapped. My parents were never at home—working in factories—just like Leslie’s. Other things were obviously fantasy: just like my father had an imaginary Leslie son, I had an imaginary Leslie father. He was the tailor to Cary Grant and other A-list stars; he didn’t work in a Hills Hoist factory. He didn’t live in a weatherboard house in Footscray.
In the restaurant after the movie, my father seemed resigned to the fact of Leslie’s death. ‘Do you have enough money to pay for your own ticket? You should get a real job,’ he said, ripping the crackled pork skin from the shell of bone.
‘Ticket for what?’
‘For Hong Kong, of course, that’s where he was born and where he will die. Beautiful stories. Beautiful pictures.’
I plucked the soy sauce from a small plastic basket on the table for my father. His Kodak memories were making me even more muddled. ‘Accountancy is a real job.’ My face was filled with heat. My parents had pushed me into it. It wasn’t my problem that the moment I actually found satisfaction in my work was the moment that they lost pride in it as a profession.
‘I’m not going. There’s SARS,’ I said. Hong Kong always had the fragrance of death, even before the disease came along. An old man shouldn’t be going there. ‘You wouldn’t even come to my graduation.’
‘We’ll buy face masks.’
‘Paper won’t stop it. I’m staying here.’ I was starving and put some plain rice in my bowl.
‘Poor Leslie. If he wasn’t a gay, he would be happy,’ my father said, slipping his eyes from my gaze. ‘It’s not his fault.’
I never enquired about my father’s private life, but in that pause, I felt I was compelled to do so. We were silent for a long time. The drawn sound of Vietnamese voices stretched from the kitchen. My noodles still hadn’t arrived. The tiled floor felt cold, even through my runners. I dragged the plastic tablecloth between my fingers to keep my hand steady.
A question formed on my lips before I knew I was even asking it. ‘Are you happy?’
My father’s fingernails pressed crescent moons into his hand. A pause. ‘Yes.’
‘Right.’ I pushed up a smile. ‘Why don’t I see if they’ll play that Leslie song, like they did last time?’ I went off and asked the woman to put it on.
Leslie’s voice shone into the room. It was a narrow restaurant, slotted into the street like all the others, but in ours, His voice breathed through it.
We both stared out the red-neon buzzed window to the street below.
‘We’ll have to make a sign to carry,’ I said.
‘For his funeral.’
My father lifted his eyes to mine and swiftly back down. He picked up his chopsticks and wiped the oily ends on a tissue. ‘You loved to draw when you were a boy.’

On April 1, 2003, Leslie Cheung jumped from the 24th floor of his hotel. In a note he said, ‘In my life I did nothing bad.’
My father and I carried a big placard that read, ‘In my life I did nothing as good as you, Leslie.’

Phillip Tang

1 thought on “Teenage Dreamers”

  1. is this true??did his father really predict that Leslie Cheung would suicide on Apirl 1, 2003????

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Max Meyers

Max Meyers is an experienced Ecological Designer, Permaculture Teacher, Consultant, Registered Aquaculturist, Aquaponic System Designer/Installer, Rainwater and Greywater System specialist, Farmer, and the Executive Director of the Mendocino Ecological Learning Center a nonprofit educational organization and ecological reserve offering green job training and sustainable living skills to the public. Through his work as an instructor of Permaculture and Ecological Design he has successfully trained over a thousand students from more than 40 countries world wide. In addition to the work at MELC, Mr. Meyers provides Ecological design services to the public, organizations, and schools through Osiris Designs and Nor Cal Aquaponics. He is passionate about all things related to a more just and sustainable world. Most recently Mr. Meyers helped write the guidelines for the newly formed  California Fish and Wildlife Aquaponics subcommittee. He has been studying, practicing and teaching Permaculture and Ecological Design for 18 years.

Friday, Oct 6| 3:00pm| Yurt

Restoring Salmon and Redwooods Using Recirculating Aquaponics

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Susan Juniper Park

Susan Juniper Park is an activist working at the cross-section of ecological, economic and social justice. She is also involved in urban farming, healing work, education and permaculture. She was a co-founding member of the Economic Development Without Displacement Coalition (Oakland-based anti-gentrification project), ran a food justice economic project at Phat Beets Produce (Oakland-based grassroots food justice organization), worked as a fundraiser for the Ruckus Society (a direct action training organization empowering frontline communities), and was an organizer with Occupy the Farm (Bay Area based land defense effort). These days you can find her subsitute teaching in Oakland K-12 schools, doing gardening gigs, and cultivating a healing justice practice.  She is grateful and humbled to be an immigrant and permanent guest living on Ohlone territory.

Friday, Oct 6| 4:30| Hops Tipi

Decolonizing Our Resiliency Movements

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May 15-16 Estate of Gloria Marie Meyer

May 15-16 Estate of Gloria Marie Meyer

2925 Chapelwood, Hermitage, TN

Coming May 15th & 16th
8am to 4pm
Fantastic Estate! Beautiful Furniture & Accessories! Loads of Items! Plus Collections including Antique Iron Toys and Much Much More!!! Check out our ad on Estate for more information/pics
on Apr 18

Featured Pictures

2925 Chapelwood Hermitage, TN

“ Beautiful estate, everything in fantastic condition! “

MAY 15th & 16th

8am to 4pm

Contemporary *** Collectible *** Antique

Beautiful Furniture & Accessories! Great Collectibles & Antiques! Gorgeous Jewelry! Designer Purses/Clothes/Shoes

Fantastic collection of original Antique Iron Toys! Huge collection of Baseball Cards!

Antique Dolls! US Plate Block Stamp Collection & So Much More!!!

Gloria Meyer ( 1938 – 2014 ) was renown by her family and friends as an avid 'World Class Shopper, Nordstrum regular, San Francisco 49'ers fan and an impeccable dresser'. Gloria found many successes in life and as an entrepreneur established Puffery Patch, a business that sold whimsical faric-based artwork. Born in Illinois, living over 40 yrs in California, and finally moving to Tennessee, the birthplace of her parents, to be near her daughter, she felt she had finally moved back to the place of her people.” Now you have the privilege to peruse and to purchase from her Estate. The Estate is compact but with great variety. Everything is in beautiful condition from her furniture and accessories, to jewelry, to antiques & collectibles, to appliances & TV, to books, to dolls and more!!!

Join us won't you for a fantastic sale!!!

FURNITURE: gorgeous Chippendale style Dining table highly carved with glass top and matching chairs, beautiful Buffet with accented iron leaf legs and back splash, lovely Entry way or Sofa Table uniquely melded with wood and rattan in a “ suitcase style” appearance, matching Sofa & Loveseat, Queen Anne style Occasional/End tables, glass top & iron Coffee table, beautiful polished Pine Ar moire styled Entertainment Center, polished pine Writing Desk, Oak Chair with slatted seat, beautiful Polished Pine Wardrobe with double doors and 4 drawers, ornate white Iron Bed with brass accents, polished Pine End Table, antique Trunk, gorgeous polished Pine Dresser with 4 drawers Queen Anne legs with pie crust top, Sleeper Sofa, Wing backed Chair, antique Windsor Rocker, antique Wooden Rocker, mahogany Duncan Phyfe occassional table, antique Windsor Settee, small antique drop leaf table, beautiful 1920's Tudor style Occasional Table, antique oval style carved Mahogany Table (could be humidor table) absolutely unique and gorgeous, 1920's Tudor style upholstered High backed Rocker, 1800's Spool style Bed beautiful head & foot boards with original wooden rails, lovely 7 drawer knee hole Desk, rustic antique Occasional Table, polished Pine Box with hinged lid and brass latch, beautiful polished Pine Baby Crib with matching Changing Table, box spring and mattress, a pair of provencial white Occasional Tables, set of 4 antique Slat backed and bottom Chairs, drop leafed Dining Table, antique Desk Computer Table, Bookcase, Camphor Trunk, & more! *** ACCESSORIES: Wall Mirrors, Carriage Clock, mantle piece metal Flower Vases, ornate parrot Candle Holders, artsy Wooden Boxes, large Pottery Jug with Flo-blue design, brass candle holders, Table Lamps, Wall Clocks, Pottery Pieces, floor style Iron Plant/Candle Stand, Pitchers, Crystal Decanter w/ matching set of 6 glasses, wooden/brass/rattan Suitcase style accessory, unique Cherub style “ledge setter” with horn, large Flo blue Platter by Macao, contemporary Serving Platter & matching Plates, German Steins, Glass bowls, Sad Iron, Christmas Santas & Ornaments, large antiqued & footed Jewelry Box, Sheets, Blankets, large carved wooden Stork, carved Ducks, Swans, other Birds, Miali Pottery Crock with lid and other Crockery, vintage etched & handled Cake Plate, vintage compote, antique Coffee Mill with adjustment screws, Brass items, Longaberger traditions collection 1995 Family Basket old/new with orig. box, antique & vintage Brass Lamps desk and wall, vintage balloon tire Bicycle, porcelain Figurines, Oil Lamps, Paragon China, vintage alcohol proof serving tray, Fostoria Platter, Wooden Bowls, antique Milk Bottle Silver Sugar Bowl ( Meriden Co. 12oz ), Greenbrier Humidor, huge set of antique Crystal Stemware ( over 100 yrs ), Russel Wright Iroquois casual china, vintage Jackson China service for 8, many pieces of vintage China & Glassware *** JEWELRY: Gorgeous Vintage 14K, Sterling & Costume all beautifully kept! *** DESIGNER: Purses/Clothes/Shoes (Tignanello, Tano, B. Makowsky, Etienne Aigner, Vince Camuto, Calvin Klein, Ganson, and More!!! ) DOLLS: antique “Superba” Germany jointed leather Doll, Antique jointed porcelain Doll, antique German Doll jointed leather and porcelain combination ( these antique dolls are in beautiful condition! ), along with many stuffed dolls*** ART: lovely contemporary prints & paintings including Amish themed, some lithographs, large Tapestry with colonial dining scene in Gold Gilded Frame, *** BOOKS: these books are in fine shape from antique to contemporary ( most contemporary with covers ) *** KITCHEN WARE: Loads of very nice kitchen ware! *** SPORTS CARDS: 1,000's of Cards from 1974 – 1990 mostly in the 80's ( detailed card list e mailed upon request - taking offers on entire set )*** APPLIANCES/ELECTRONICS: Sony Bravia flat screen TV, Sony CD/DVD player, AudioVox CD Player/Radio, Cd's, DVD's, Microwave, Clean View Deeper Clean Vacuum, Washer & Dryer, Refrigerator *** & MORE!!!

A wonderful sale is in store for you here! We look forward to seeing and sharing this Estate with you. We are certain you will make some of it your own!”

"PICS of Jewelry will follow starting Sunday"


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Hi, I’m Phil! This site is all about my travels around the globe.

In 2013 I decided to quit my job, rebuild a motorcycle to handle all sorts of terrain, and ride from Austin, TX to Ushuaia.

Phileas Abroad?

Phileas Fogg is the main character in the 1873 Jules Verne novel “Around the World in Eighty Days”.

My buddy Todd suggested the name; it’s got a nice ring to it, and it’s highfalutin, which is a major theme of this entire journal. Just like the semicolon. Sadly there was no bet involved with my decision to journey abroad, unlike my literary contemporary.

  • DK

    Fucking outstanding Phil. I bet it’s a blast.

  • MG

    What happens when you arrive? Staying? Making a u-turn and heading back? What’s the plan, man?

    • Phil

      Check out my route page, but basically I’m gonna fly back from Buenos Aires.

  • Proud you are making your way!

    • Phil

      Thanks brotha! Hope to see you soon as well, enjoy the powder up there in the Pacific Northwest!

  • Cheaper than a boat! hahaha I am not used to seeing SPOT maps with Motorcycles on them. This is soooo epic. I am so happy for you… bastard.

    • Phil

      Thanks Sean, can’t wait to follow your boat journey as well!

  • Chris

    Awesome traveling with you in Mexico and being part of your grand adventure!

    • Chris! Thanks so much for stopping by, glad you made it back safe. The adventure would have been far less memorable without you and Agnes there, so thanks for letting me ride with you guys, it was an amazing trip I will never forget!

  • Chris

    I’m following along and wishing you safe, fun, and happy travels…wish I was with you! Keep up the posts!


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Caribbean Sail & Panama Canal - offyonder
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GATUN LOCKS, PANAMA CANAL, PANAMA -Ten days of sailing from Nassau, Bahamas to Panama City, Panama through the Panama Canal. Over 1700 miles covered, seas were fair, sunny most of the way. Crew: Shawn Griffith (Captain), Amy Griffith Redfern, Sasha Gates, Cameron Martindell

sailingdeliverywatercaribbeanseacentral americacatamaranyacht090426066sail


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The cat sat on the mat!

Chris Creagh's picture

What does this mean? In the blurb that goes with the video Spring Constants I state that “the phrase contains more meaning than the individual words” so what information can we glean from the phrase “The cat sat on the mat!”?

1) The cat is alive because it did something – it sat.

2) The cat and the mat exist at the same time in the same place.

3) Both cat and mat are in a gravitational field otherwise “sat on” has no meaning because there would be no up and no down.

4) The mat is probably on a solid surface because the weight force of the cat is balanced by a reaction force of the mat. The word “sat” implies a situation of equilibrium. The reaction force could be supplied if the mat was stiff and suspended in some way, like the seat of a swing, but it is more likely to be a flexible mat on the floor – as is the nature of mats.

5) The exclamation at the end means that this is more than a statement of fact, that there is some level of surprise about the cat sitting in the mat. Perhaps the cat did not previously like the mat; it was uncomfortable, smelled bad, had belonged to a dog. Perhaps it was an expensive mat and the cat should not be sitting on it, but what does a cat care about money? Perhaps the mat was covering a trap.

To get back to physics there are phrases that experts use to be concise and precise in their conversation and students have to learn what these phrases really mean for them to fully understand and take part in the conversation.

Rob Phillips's picture

That's a nice example, but does it only apply in Newtonian Physics?

How would the cat and the mat behave if they were moving at close to the speed of light relative to me?


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Home >> Resources >> Designing an experiment

Designing an experiment

The ‘story’ behind this video is that my tutors were helping me to evaluate the lab work that we do with our first year students. It was created in answer to the students question “Why do we do labs?” Again the viewer is the fly-on-the-wall watching what is going on without the risk of being preached to.

By labs students mean cook-book type ‘experiments’ that are done in a dedicated room and have a formatted write-up. They do not consider the open-ended experimental design activities that we do in tutorials to be labs.

For several years now I have used both types of experimental activities because I think the students can learn different things in each. In all cases the labs are linked to the content that the students are learning at the time so it gives them some hands-on experience of the underlying relationships.

With the cook-book labs they also learn how to: use spreadsheets, analyse data, record relevant observation, measure with precision and accuracy, and other skills that will make them good technicians. Some will also learn error analysis and significance of results. The more open-ended experimental design type of activities: encourages their creativity and imagination, allows them to see themselves as part of a research team and gives them the opportunity to present their results using several of the forms of communication they have been working with.

The lab analysis sheet we are using in the video can be found below. It has not been used beyond this video activity but it was collated from all of the comments that came from my peers about what they expect their students could get out of doing labs, so you might find it interesting reading.

Learning & Teaching Materials

This is the list we were using with the labs in the video. It is effectively a summary of my thoughts and the feedback I got from my peers when I asked them what they thought students could learn from doing labs if the students were open to the experience / posibilities of learning things.

If I was to use this video as a motivation for a WIO workshop the Challenge would be: Determine what prior skills and knowledge it would have been useful for you to have had at the beginning of your university studies. Choose a small subset of these and develop a laboratory activity that will help high school students acquire those skills and that knowledge.

The focus activity would direct the students to use the check-list to work out the purpose of the lab and the type of lab (cook-book/open-ended) they should develop to achieve this purpose. They would need to consider the activities to be included in it, the objectives, how the outcomes are assessed and what are the indicators of success for the students using the developed activity. The small group discussion would also necessitate planning for such things as time and resources.

NB Another use for the check-list could be to aid staff in assessing the learning outcomes of current labs. The second part of the check-list could also be used to help staff think about different aspects of student lab design.

All videos available for use under a Creative Commons Australia CC-BY-NC licence


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Three Insider secrets That Gurus of Digital Dentistry at Southpoint Do not Want You to definitely Know.

Sustain Your Teeth With One Of These Tips

Many people feel self-conscious of their teeth because they don’t engage in proper dental hygiene. Many people think about the it’s perseverance pursuing dental treatments. If you feel like this, it’s not often true. With a little bit of time invested from you daily, you may have a perfectly healthy smile. Continue reading for additional details on good dental care.

Brush twice a day. Dentists and dental associations recommend this for optimal oral health. You owe it to you to ultimately follow through along with your dental hygiene by adhering to a minimum of the minimum guidelines. Use these moments for flossing.

Avoid soda. Sugar impacts the design of your teeth, so make sure you are water often as well as other healthy beverages. This may improve the way your teeth look, along with the way you might be feeling.

Certain foods are just plain damaging to your teeth. Foods full of sugar are some of the main culprits for tooth damage. Avoid drinking beverages which are really cold or hot, and make sure you don’t drink coffee when you need whiter teeth. You are able to drink by using a straw to aid minimize problems for your teeth Digital Dentistry at Southpoint

Brushing your teeth after every meal is essential.

Usually do not wait very long or plaque may have a chance to form on your teeth. Brushing within a half-hour of eating can greatly diminish damage to your teeth by ridding yourself of plaque before it grows. You will experience a very long time lowering of dental problems.

See your dentist twice a year. Regular dentist visits can protect your teeth from many serious problems. Frequent visits can make certain that no dental cavities or plaque buildup is found, and might aid in avoiding gum disease.

How old you are shows inside your teeth. View a restorative dentist in case you have broken, discolored, or crooked teeth. An ugly smile could make you look older. To assist you look young, view your dentist to get your dental problems corrected.

Going to the family dentist could be a scary experience for children. Assist them to understand what the dentist does and the way he helps people as a way to calm their fears. Search for a pediatric dentist who stocks the waiting room with books, toys and games for young kids. These pleasant distractions will help you to allay your little one’s fears.

Make sure you visit your dentist regularly. If you avoid having regular checkups with the dentist, you may wind up dealing with serious problems in the future. Your dentist should be able to remove plaque and tartar and may detect issues before they have any worse.

When you are a lady of sufficient age to put on lipstick, make use of it to conceal the colour of the teeth. Red lipsticks help the teeth to look like whiter compared to they are. Lipstick in lighter shades possess the opposite effect. Your teeth can look yellow even if they are white!

Maintaining the health of your teeth isn’t a complicated process. You can get the glowing smile that can make you content, provided that you retain the info with this article in mind. When you know that your teeth look their finest, you will need to share your smile with all the world..


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The Pickering Post
Thursday, 20th September 2018

If you would like to be involved or support the upkeep and further development of this site, it would be very welcome no matter how small.

Making Things Matters

Viv Forbes

Viv has a degree in Applied Science Geology and is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy

Recent headlines exulted: “Real estate makes bigger profits than mining”.... This is an omen, not a signal to celebrate.

In peacetime, societies may survive without making “things” providing they have valued skills, assets to sell or barter, or savings in sound currencies. But during military or financial crises, “things” may not be available unless they are made locally. Then we must rely on the primary producers of new wealth - miners, farmers, foresters, fishermen, engineers, builders, tradesmen and skilled workers.

Back in war-torn 1943, Australia had ration cards for petrol, food and clothing, and insufficient copper to make cartridges for our own defence.

Now, because of the war on carbon, Australia will soon have no oil refineries to produce fuel and lubricants for our tractors, ships, tanks and cars. Mines and base-load power plants are closing. There are fewer smelters and refineries producing steel, copper, aluminium, lead or zinc, and no factories making engines, rifles, ships, planes, cars, trucks or dozers.

Our children are more skilled in soft options and electronic gadgetry than in maths, science and engineering; too many despise trades, soldiering, farming and manual work.

This industrial decay will become obvious one still, dark, winter evening when wind turbines stand idle, solar panels have logged off, batteries are flat, and overloaded standby generators fail. There will be no power for trains, lifts, heaters, stoves, fridges, traffic lights, retail checkouts or electronic money. With every addition of intermittent electricity (wind/solar), and every closure of reliable base-load power (coal), this blackout danger increases.

Real estate speculation, bureaucracy, parliamentary debates, games, entertainment, and arts are froth on the river of basic industry where things are made.

That river is running dry.

Making things does matter.

Thanks Frank... have it up and running.

Judges 3:21
And Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. And the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not pull the sword out of his belly; and the dung came out.

Genesis 15:9
The Lord answered, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a she-goat, three years old, a ram three years old, a turtle dove and a young pigeon.”

14. Genesis 16:8
And he said “Hagar, Sarai’s slave girl, where have you come from and where are you going?” She answered, “I’m running away from Sarai, my mistress.” The angel of the Lord said to her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to ill treatment at her hands.”

The Australian online Theresa Gambaro another treasonous Abbott hating Liberal MP retires.. no doubt having achieved her aim of ousting Tony Abbott by coup to enthrone Turnbull.A paid up member of the Turnbull cabal for whom the will and wishes of the Australian people and thus our democracy means zilch.

Hallelujia! Praise the Lord of hosts for his mercy.

WHERE IS BARNABY???? something like a. " Where is Wally" book

Old news from November 2014?

Dumb, Sodomy and the Cash

The wonder is not that a red-raggin' academic on a mission to de-gender society would package Safe Schools as an anti-bullying campaign, rather than a crash course in the gay lifestyle. No, the real shock is that her crusade, animated by a gross miscasting of history, was funded by alleged conservatives

The founder and coordinator of the Safe Schools Coalition Australia (SSCA) is an avowed Marxist who lives in a fantasy world where communism supports free love and LGBTI lifestyles. The ascension of Roz Ward (left) to the position of sexuality commissar for Australian schools is therefore an unforgivable indictment of federal and state governments. Her rise to power reflects very poorly on both Christopher Pyne and Simon Birmingham — two Liberal Party progressivists — under whose stewardship as federal ministers of education this destructive ideological juggernaut was smuggled into the national school curriculum.

Indeed, it appears that Australia is entering into a Brave New LGBTI World dominated by orifice politics, courtesy of a federal Coalition government so desperate to suck up to the progressivist elites that it is happy to sacrifice the physical and mental health of a generation of young Australians.

Ward is at the core of a coalition of organizations seeking to radically subvert the most intimate areas of social and personal relationships in the name of Marxism and LGBTI ideology. With funding since 2010 from the Victorian government, Ward set up the Safe Schools Coalition Victoria, which was a joint initiative of the Foundation for Young Australians (FYA) and Gay & Lesbian Health Victoria. This became the basis of the SSCA. It has since received $8 million in federal funding and is now convened by the FYA, which boasts of 93 supporter organizations and 515 member schools; it claims also to have trained 15,102 staff and have access to 403,392 school students. Under its auspices SSCA now has branches in every state and territory, and its campaign is to be rolled out to all schools in the country, aimed at 12- and 13-year-old children. Its services are to be delivered by diverse sexual-health, family-planning, and AIDS organizations. In Victoria it is delivered by Gay & Lesbian Health Victoria at La Trobe University, where Ward is based.

Despite her power and influence, Ward’s academic qualifications are very basic. She doesn’t possess a doctorate or any qualifications in medicine, but holds only a BA (Hons), and an MA in Gender Studies from the University of Sussex in the UK. According to its website this MA focusses on the contribution of feminist theory to analysing sexual identity and the social construction of gender; gender as an embodied social relation and experience; and the political aspects of gender and feminist research. It appears to offer little or no training in conventional medicine, psychology or psychiatry, preferring the study of such subjects as Feminism and Film; Queering Popular Culture; The Cinematic Body; Race Critical Theory; and Embodiment and Institutionalisation of Violence.

This academic concentration on feminist theory and cultural studies, rather than on medicine and psychology, was reflected in the construction of the Safe Schools campaign, which quite avoided consultation with child psychiatrists and paediatricians, and other professionals who possess expert medical knowledge of sexuality and gender-identity issues.

In Australia, Ward became a member of the far-left Socialist Alternative organization, giving full expression to her Marxist-LGBTI ideology in her address last March to the 2015 Marxism Conference in Melbourne (her full sermon can be heard here). As several commentators have observed, this speech puts the Safe Schools program into its ideological context as part of a far-left strategy to initiate a sexual revolution within Australian schools. It is therefore, “extraordinary that politicians have not examined the ideological context of the SSCA program”, given the immense sensitivity of the issues at stake.

In her address on “The Role of the Left in the Struggle for LGBTI Rights”, Ward followed the standard Marxist line in blaming all social and personal problems on capitalist exploitation, arguing that capitalism promotes a ‘myth’ that there is a biological basis for gender identification and imposes arbitrary cultural and moral constraints on sexuality that inhibit sexual freedom. It does this, she says, to facilitate the exploitation of the working class (with which Ward absurdly identifies):

To smooth the operation of capitalism the ruling class has benefited, and continues to benefit, from oppressing our bodies, our relationships, sexuality and gender identities alongside sexism, homophobia and transphobia.

Consequently, she claims in paranoiac fashion:

LBGTI oppression and heteronormativity are woven into the fabric of capitalism [and] push to fit people into gender constructs that promote heterosexuality … Alongside sexism, homophobia and transphobia both serve to break the spirits of ordinary people, to consume our thoughts, to make us accept the status quo …

According to Ward, capitalism makes us “keep living or aspiring to live, or feel like we should live, in small social units and families”. There, she complains, “we must reproduce and take responsibility for those people in those units” – a diabolical presumption apparently.

By way of relief, Ward insists,

Marxism offers the hope and the strategy needed to create a world where human sexuality, gender and how we relate to our bodies can blossom in extraordinarily new and amazing ways that we can only try to imagine today.

To support this claim Ward cites sexual policies introduced in the Soviet Union after the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. These included the use of gender neutral language and the abolition of any fixed age of consent, amongst many other anti-family measures designed to achieve a collectivist utopia.

It is at this point that Ward’s argument and the entire Marxist-LGBTI ideology plunges into fantasy and absurdity. In fact, as the historical record shows, the utopian plans of the Russian communists that Ward so admires brought only tragedy and disaster. It all began with Lenin, as Orlando Figes describes in A People’s Tragedy: The Russian Revolution 1891-1924 (1996). Frustrated by his inability to create a communist paradise, Lenin had called upon I. P. Pavlov, the infamous scientific expert on programming animal behaviour, and demanded that he extend his methods to the entire human population:

“I want the masses of Russia to follow a Communistic pattern of thinking … There was too much individualism [and] communism does not tolerate individualistic tendencies. They are harmful. They interfere with our plans. We must abolish individualism”, Lenin declared.

“So”, asked Pavlov, “you want me to standardize the population of Russia? Make them all behave the same way?”

“Exactly!” replied Lenin. “Man can be corrected. Man can be made what we want him to be”.

Consequently, as Geoffrey Hosking explains in A History of the Soviet Union (1985):

“In the 1920s the regime tried to weaken the family as a ‘bourgeois institution’ [by passing new laws according to which] any stable cohabitation … could be considered a family … Abortion was available on demand [and] a partner to a marriage could obtain a divorce simply by requesting it”.

The result was an astronomical increase in the number of broken homes and abortions (in 1934 in Moscow there were only 57,000 live births compared to 154,000 abortions), while large numbers of women died from botched procedures. Meanwhile, the number of orphans skyrocketed, and they roamed the streets, starving, dying of disease, and forming criminal gangs that attacked people and stormed apartment blocks.

Very quickly, this anti-family policy combined with the demographic catastrophes of the Great Terror and Great Famine to decimate the workforce and cripple Soviet society, forcing a policy reversal that leaves present-day Marxist-LGBTI fantasists high and dry. Suddenly, Soviet propaganda broadcasts declared that:

The state cannot exist without the family. Marriage has a positive value … So-called ‘free love’ is a bourgeois invention … Moreover, marriage receives its full value for the state only if there is progeny, and the consorts experience the highest happiness of parenthood.

The institution of marriage was once more promoted, divorce was made very difficult, abortions were prohibited, and there was no tolerance for LGBTI issues. Indeed, in the schools, the revolutionary cultural obsessions were dumped from the curriculum and the focus returned to teaching skills. School uniforms were reintroduced and pigtails made compulsory for girls. Indeed, right throughout Soviet society there was a return to traditional values and educational topics and methods, as the regime realized that it could not survive if society disintegrated under the impact of dysfunctional Marxist theories.

Nevertheless, vast numbers of single mothers and fatherless children were produced, and this situation was greatly exacerbated when the Great Patriotic war with Germany wiped out much of an entire generation of young men. Women were particularly oppressed as they struggled as single mothers while also working full-time and living in often pitiful accommodation. Ultimately, Soviet society never fully recovered (and hasn’t to this day) from what became a major demographic deficit caused by the communist policies presently advocated by the principle architect of the Safe Schools campaign. All of this happened because the Russian people became the tragic victims of the “engineers of the human soul”, as Stalin approvingly called the fanatical progressivist ideologues who imposed insane Marxist policies on the Soviet population.

Now Australia has its own Marxist-LGBTI engineers of the soul, like Ward and her comrades. Fanatically committed to promoting the sexual interests, values, and behaviours of a tiny minority, such apparatchiks look forward to nothing less that the transformation of society into an LGBTI playground populated by the children of heterosexual folk who choose to marry in the traditional fashion and procreate. In this brave new LGBTI world our new progressivist masters can reign supreme and run amok, promoted and generously funded by state largesse, and protected by draconian laws promulgated, to its eternal shame, by a Liberal government.

Look at the level of "discussion" we get from NSW politicians:

My goodness, isn't this Gov. sneaky. ?...
Malcolm Turnbull BRINGS BACK CARBON TAX/TRADING-OFFSETS BY STEALTH - Hunt wants 1st carbon-neutral precinct by 2017

Boy oh boy just read Miranda Devine's blast to Credlin for pulling "the gender card" I read the article but my blood pressure is now through the roof. What is it with M. Devine - her hatred of TA and P. Credlin is laid bare for all to see. Don't know if she is capable of being very objective at all. Case in point her lambasting Credlin on being rude to the Black Bishop. How in the name of goodness would she even know this??

Foreign Correspondent invited Rosie Batty to Sweden. It was her first big overseas trip since her son Luke was murdered by his father at cricket practice barely two years ago.

"In some ways it seems a long time ago; other times it just seems like yesterday." – Rosie Batty

For Rosie, this trip is no holiday. From the capital Stockholm to the remote far north where temperatures sink to minus 29, she is trying to understand what lies behind family violence in Sweden.

Christian, bloody hell, horsey, this is what these lunatics and date punching Pedos believe:

Question: "What is Christianity and what do Christians believe?"

Answer: The core beliefs of Christianity are summarized in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. Jesus died for our sins, was buried, was resurrected, and thereby offers salvation to all who will receive Him in faith. Unique among all other faiths, Christianity is more about a relationship than religious practices. Instead of adhering to a list of “do’s and don’ts,” the goal of a Christian is to cultivate a close walk with God. That relationship is made possible because of the work of Jesus Christ and the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Beyond these core beliefs, there are many other items that are, or at least should be, indicative of what Christianity is and what Christianity believes. Christians believe that the Bible is the inspired, “God-breathed” Word of God and that its teaching is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21). Christians believe in one God that exists in three persons—the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit.

Bloody Jew from Middle East who says he is the son of fairies up in the sky.

Clearly certifiable crazy.

Apparently Teresa Gambaro is the latest Federal MP to be on her way rejoicing at the next election. I thought Turnbull wanted more women MPs in Canberra, not less.

Can someone please explain this to me.
Reported on (

Results from Mitchigan.
Presidential Candidates Democratic.

Saunders 50.7% …… no delegates
Clinton 47.3% ……..10 delegates

Seriously this Turnbull Gov’t is WORSE than Kevin Rudd
?. ?
Michaelia Cash was on SkynewsAus yesterday Throwing $30,000,000.00 of YOUR money at NOTHING!

Michaelia Cash $30,000,000.00 to “Challenge & Change Relationships & Attitudes towards Men & women’

As Australia slides back from a first world country, clearly the money and resources are not there to run the mental services that are required.
Every day on the news, are stories (the copper being shot dead etc.) of incidents caused by people who really should be under mental care.
The shootings the other day are a good example, true we don’t know the full story but why after killing a wog and shooting his two brothers would you bump yourself off?

damn, that is a funny vid dusty! I've sent the link to a few people.


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Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Eclectic Shopping

Velocity Art and Design is an amazing website out of Seattle that offers unique trinkets and uncommon pieces of art. Miniature disaster building replicas to owl inspired throw pillows, this site is a one stop shop for that totally far out item.

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Video: Mystery creature in Sagami Bay

15 Oct 2010

Cameras aboard JAMSTEC's Hyper-Dolphin ROV have captured footage of something strange lurking on the floor of Sagami Bay, southwest of Tokyo.

+ Video

Giant sea frog? Ningen? Smiling rock with sea sponge eyes? You be the judge.

Red paper lantern medusa (video)

20 Oct 2008

Akachochin jellyfish, red paper lantern medusa --

Red paper lanterns, or aka-chochin, are a familiar sight on the city streets of Japan, where they typically hang at the entrances to cheap pubs, capturing the attention of passersby. The ocean, however, is home to a different variety of red paper lantern -- an unusual species of deep-sea jellyfish.

Officially named Pandea rubra, the red paper lantern medusa (aka-chochin kurage) was first discovered in the Bering Sea in 1913, but details about its distribution and life cycle have long remained a mystery. In recent years, the creature has caught the eye of researchers at the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) armed with high-definition video cameras.

Using manned and unmanned submersibles, the researchers have collected over 100 hours of high-definition footage showing more than 60 specimens of the jellyfish in waters from northeastern Honshu to Okinawa, at depths ranging from 500 to 1,000 meters. Here is some raw video:

The red paper lantern medusa has a transparent, bell-shaped hood measuring about 10 centimeters in diameter and 17 centimeters from top to bottom, with between 14 and 30 tentacles that extend up to 6 times the length of its body. Inside the transparent hood is a deep red colored mantle that can crumple up or expand like a paper lantern, hence the name. JAMSTEC researcher Dr. Dhugal Lindsay is credited with coming up with the name.

The gelatinous creature is commonly found at depths of between 450 to 900 meters in warm and temperate waters around the world. Observations have been reported in the Antarctic Ocean, but never in the Arctic Ocean.

Akachochin jellyfish, red paper lantern medusa --

The JAMSTEC videos suggest that a variety of sea creatures regard the red paper lantern medusa as a safe place to establish temporary residence. In the video, the developing larvae of shrimp and sea spiders can be seen hitching extended rides on the jellyfish.

"We didn't expect to find such a variety of organisms attached to the jellyfish," said Dr. Dhugal Lindsay. "Humans apparently are not the only ones attracted to red paper lanterns."

[Source: Mainichi]

Unidentified deep-sea creature

12 Jun 2007

Unidentified deep-sea creature --

On June 11, the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) released photographs of a mysterious deep-sea creature believed to be an unknown species of comb jelly, or ctenophore, a jellyfish-like marine animal. Taken by JAMSTEC's "Kaikou" unmanned submersible at a depth of 7,217 meters (nearly 24,000 feet) in the Ryukyu Trench about 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Okinawa, the photographs show a gelatinous animal with two pairs of long, spindly tentacles -- one pair extended horizontally in front of its body and one pair stuck to the ocean floor, allowing the creature to float in place like a kite.

The creature's elongated body is 10 to 20 centimeters (4 to 8 inches) long and 5 to 8 centimeters (2 to 3 inches) wide. The rear tentacles measure 1.5 to 2.5 meters (5 to 8 feet) in length, while the forward-reaching tentacles, which float on the current and catch prey, measure between 1 and 1.5 meters (3 to 5 feet) in length. The animal's gastrovascular system, which circulates nutrients through the body, appears whitish in color.

JAMSTEC filmed the gelatinous animal in April 2002, and subsequent research has led the researchers to conclude it is very likely a new species. However, they are unable to say for certain until they capture an actual specimen.

[Source: Asahi, JAMSTEC press release, photos]

Seaweed as biofuel

23 Mar 2007

Sargasso seaweed as biofuel --- On March 22, a group of Japanese scientists released details of an ambitious proposal calling for the large-scale production of bioethanol made from cultivated seaweed.

Researchers from Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, Mitsubishi Research Institute, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and several other private-sector firms envision a 10,000 square kilometer (3,860 square mile) seaweed farm at Yamatotai, a shallow fishing area in the middle of the Sea of Japan. They claim a farm of this scale could produce about 20 million kiloliters (5.3 billion gallons) of bioethanol per year, which is equivalent to one-third the 60 million kiloliters (16 billion gallons) of gasoline that Japan consumes each year.

Seaweed has long been discussed as a potential source of bioethanol, which is typically made from crops such as sugar cane and corn, but the idea has never been brought to fruition. According to the proposal, giant nets used in nori and wakame seaweed cultivation would be laid out to cultivate sargasso seaweed (hondawara), which grows rapidly. Floating bioreactors -- special facilities that use enzymes to break the seaweed down into sugars -- would prepare the seaweed for conversion into ethanol, which would also be done at sea. Tankers would then transport the ethanol to land.

The main components of seaweed are fucoidan and alginic acid. While an enzyme for breaking down fucoidan has already been discovered, the scientists are looking for an enzyme that breaks down alginic acid. They are also looking at the possibility of using genetic modification technology.

The group is also conducting research on how to develop the production plants and attract investment. Other participants in the project include NEC Toshiba Space Systems, Mitsubishi Electric, IHI, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Shimizu Corporation, Toa Corporation, Kanto Natural Gas Development Co., Ltd., and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC).

The researchers claim that in addition to serving as a source of fuel, the seaweed would help clean up the Sea of Japan. According to Professor Masahiro Notoya from Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, the seaweed would work to remove some of the excess nutrient salts that flow into the sea from the surrounding land masses.

Professor Notoya will formally present the proposal at the International Seaweed Symposium, which is set to begin on March 26 in Kobe, Japan.

[Source: Fuji Sankei]

Top 10 robots selected for Robot Award 2006

04 Dec 2006

UPDATE Dec 21, 2006: Winners announced

GRAND PRIZE: Robotic building cleaning system (Fuji Heavy Industries and Sumitomo). The system received high marks for its efficiency and its ability to work both independently and alongside humans. The judges believe the robot has great potential to develop the market for robotic cleaning systems, as well as establish new business models in which robots and humans work side by side to provide inexpensive cleaning services.

SMALL-TO MEDIUM-SIZED VENTURE PRIZE: KHR-2HV (Kondo). The judges gave high marks to KHR-2HV for its relatively low price tag and its popularity with individual users both young and old. KHR-2HV was also recognized for fostering closer ties between humans and robots, as well as for its educational value.

HONORABLE MENTION: My Spoon (SECOM). The judges awarded their special prize to My Spoon for its contributions to society. The robot has received praise both in Japan and overseas for helping people enjoy the meals they want to eat and enabling them to eat with friends and family. The judges recognized the high quality of My Spoon resulting from SECOM's close cooperation with users and medical professionals in the development phase. They also like it because it is affordable.

// Dec 21, 2006 //

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has announced its top ten list of finalists for the 2006 Robot Award. The ten robots selected from 152 applications fall into four categories -- service robots, industrial robots, public sector robots, and small- to medium-sized venture robots.

METI established the annual Robot Award this year to recognize outstanding developments in the field of robotics, encourage further research and development, and stimulate demand. Winners of the grand prize and the special prize for small- to medium-sized ventures will be announced on December 21.

Here's a rundown of the top robots in each category...

Robot -- - Paro -- seal robot with therapeutic properties (Intelligent System/ AIST/ Microgenics)

Paro is a furry white robot modeled after a baby harp seal. Paro can serve as a pet alternative for general households, and research has shown that Paro has therapeutic effects on patients. Paro's entire body is covered in tactile sensors, and its actuators provide it with smooth movement. Lovingly crafted one by one, Paro is recognized for its safety, cleanliness, user-friendliness and durability. About 800 of the robotic seals have been adopted around Japan, and Paro's future plans include overseas travel. [More]

* * * * *

Robot -- - My Spoon -- meal assistance robot (SECOM)

Designed to assist patients unable to use their hands, My Spoon enables users to enjoy ordinary meals by transporting food from a tray to the patient's mouth, one bite at a time. Users can select from three levels of contol -- manual (joystick control), semi-automatic or fully automatic -- to best suit their physical condition. My Spoon is available outside Japan, in the Netherlands and other locations in Europe. [More]

* * * * *

Robot -- - Robotic building cleaning system (Fuji Heavy Industries/ Sumitomo)

This autonomous robot roams the hallways of buildings, performing cleaning operations along the way. Capable of controlling elevators, the robot can move from floor to floor unsupervised, and it returns to its start location once it has finished cleaning. The robot is currently employed as a janitor at 10 high-rise buildings in Japan, including Harumi Triton Square and Roppongi Hills. [More]

* * * * *

Robot -- - MOTOMAN-DIA10/ MOTOMAN-IA20 (Yaskawa Electric)

These industrial robot arms are capable of human-like movement, which is great news for factories worried about Japan's shrinking population (and human labor force). The DIA10 consists of two 7-axis arms mounted on a torso.

According to this spec sheet (PDF), the robot has the "finesse of the human arm without the physical limitations." The same 7-axis design is incorporated into the IA20, a "snake" robot with great freedom of movement and the ability to operate in tight spaces.

* * * * *

Robot -- - High-speed reliability verification robot (Denso Wave)

This robot relies on advanced machine vision technology to perform automated inspections on the go.

Highly reliable inspections can be performed at each location without stopping the line, allowing for speedier and more cost-effective operations.

* * * * *

Robot -- - Tele-operated construction equipment (Fujita/ Technical Office of Kyushu, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (Kyugi))

These remote-control unmanned construction machines were originally developed for dangerous recovery operations following disasters such as avalanches and rockslides.

Designed to prevent the occurrence of secondary disasters and greatly limit further damage and injury, these robots were deployed at the site of a disastrous mudslide that occurred in Okinawa in June 2006. [More]

* * * * *

Robot -- - Urashima -- deep-sea autonomous underwater vehicle (Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology)

Urashima is a remotely operated vehicle for deep-sea exploration. The 10-meter long vessel relies on hydrogen-based fuel cell batteries that allow it to travel much greater distances than vessels powered by standard lithium-ion batteries. Urashima is expected to play an important role in pre-dive surveys for manned submarines and in the survey of areas considered dangerous for or inaccessible by manned research submarines. [More]

* * * * *

Robot --
- URG Series scanning laser range finders (Hokuyo)

These lightweight, compact laser range finders feature low power consumption, making them ideal sensors for autonomous mobile robots. [More]

* * * * *

Robot -- -KHR-2HV (Kondo)

KHR-2HV is a high-performance build-it-yourself biped humanoid robot kit.

The popular KHR-2HV is faster, lighter and more agile than its predecessor, KHR-1, and it is packed with more controls, gears, servos and software.

Seventeen adjustable joints allow KHR-2HV to perform back flips, cartwheels and human-like moves, and USB connectivity means you can teach it lots of neat tricks. [More]

* * * * *

Robot -- - Squid-fishing machine (Towa Denki)

Towa Denki has made a number of improvements to its automated squid-fishing machines since the company began manufacturing them in the 1970s.

Relying on functions such as high-tech load detectors, squid finders and water depth detectors, the machines can perform automated operations that boost squid-fishing productivity. [More]

[Source: Robot Award 2006]

Combustible ice found off Niigata coast

21 Feb 2006

Methane hydrate: combustible iceOutcrops of combustible ice, or methane hydrate (also known as methane ice or methane clathrate), which many view as a potential source of fuel in the future, have been discovered on the ocean floor near the coastal city of Joetsu in Niigata prefecture. According to a statement made by scientists on February 20, the methane hydrate appears to be the exposed tips of ice columns that extend about 100 meters (325 feet) beneath the ocean floor.

The recent discovery marks the first time that exposed methane hydrate deposits have been found in Japanese waters. Methane hydrate, which is normally found several hundred meters beneath the ocean floor, is a sherbert-like substance that burns when exposed to flame. It forms when low temperature and high pressure under the ocean floor causes methane molecules to become trapped inside frozen water molecules.

Scientists from the University of Tokyo, the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) are working together to collect samples from two points located at depths of 800 to 1000 meters (2600 to 3300 feet), about 30 kilometers (19 miles) offshore. They are using unmanned submarines to collect the ice. Based on the high electrical conductivity of the ground beneath the ocean floor, the scientists suspect the existence of large underground columns of methane hydrate.

While methane hydrate is being hailed as a potential source of fuel in the future, methane is a greenhouse gas. Methane is generated when organic matter in deep layers of sedimentary rock breaks down due to heating. The methane moves into upper layers, where it accumulates and forms methane hydrate. As the temperature rises and pressure falls, methane hydrate dissociates into methane and water. The resulting methane concentration in the surrounding seawater ranges from dozens to thousands of times higher than normal.

The research group is also committed to exploring the impact that the use of methane hydrate will have on global warming.

[Source: Asahi Shimbun]