PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Obama administration responds to call to action from Concordia researchers

Concordia institute continues to mobilize the will to intervene to prevent mass atrocities

2010-09-13
(Press-News.org) Montreal / September 13, 2010 – September 21, 2010 marks the one year anniversary of the release of a landmark document produced by researchers at Concordia University. Mobilizing The Will to Intervene (W2I) offers governments practical steps to prevent future genocides and mass atrocities. Produced by researchers with the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies (MIGS) based at Concordia, the document was presented to the governments of Canada and The United States of America. It has already yielded concrete results.

Under President Barack Obama's leadership, the US Government has enacted two of the policies called for in the document:

The White House named human rights lawyer David Pressman to the newly-created position of National Security Council Director for War Crimes and Atrocities

The President's National Security Advisor, James L. Jones has created an Interagency Policy Committee on Preventing Mass Atrocities to coordinate policy proactively across the executive branch

Response has also been positive in Canada from officials working on all three political levels; federal, provincial and municipal. Earlier this year, a "civic dialogue" was held in Vancouver to debate the proposals and recommendations put forward in Mobilizing the Will to Intervene.

You are invited to attend the next civic dialogue

Wednesday, September 15, 2010 – 3pm
Concordia University - J.W. McConnell Library Building
1400 de Maisonneuve W. - Room # LB 1014

The director of MIGS, history professor Dr. Frank Chalk, and W2I's lead researcher, Kyle Matthews, continue their travels across North America and to other countries looking to act on the policy recommendations outlined in W2I. Chalk meets with officials in Uganda later this week while Matthews will travel to South Africa in October to present the W2I project to government officials, academics and directors of think tanks with the aim of actively setting up a framework for action using the document as a key reference.

###To read a summary of the recommendations in W2I click here (http://migs.concordia.ca/W2I/the_report.htm)

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Latent HIV infection focus of NIDA's 2010 Avant-Garde Award

2010-09-13
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, announced today that Dr. Eric M. Verdin of the J. David Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco, Calif., has been selected as the 2010 recipient of the NIDA Avant-Garde Award for HIV/AIDS Research for his proposal to study the mechanisms of latent HIV infection. NIDA's annual Avant-Garde award competition, now in its third year, is intended to stimulate high-impact research that may lead to groundbreaking opportunities for the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS in drug abusers. Awardees ...

New study reconciles conflicting data on mental aging

2010-09-13
WASHINGTON — A new look at tests of mental aging reveals a good news-bad news situation. The bad news is all mental abilities appear to decline with age, to varying degrees. The good news is the drops are not as steep as some research showed, according to a study published by the American Psychological Association. "There is now convincing evidence that even vocabulary knowledge and what's called crystallized intelligence decline at older ages," said study author Timothy Salthouse, PhD. Longitudinal test scores look good in part because repeat test-takers grow familiar ...

Scientists glimpse dance of skeletons inside neurons

2010-09-13
Scientists at Emory University School of Medicine have uncovered how a structural component inside neurons performs two coordinated dance moves when the connections between neurons are strengthened. The results are published online in the journal Nature Neuroscience, and will appear in a future print issue. In experiments with neurons in culture, the researchers can distinguish two separate steps during long-term potentiation, an enhancement of communication between neurons thought to lie behind learning and memory. Both steps involve the remodeling of the internal ...

CU-Boulder study sheds light on how our brains get tripped up when we're anxious

2010-09-13
A new University of Colorado at Boulder study sheds light on the brain mechanisms that allow us to make choices and ultimately could be helpful in improving treatments for the millions of people who suffer from the effects of anxiety disorders. In the study, CU-Boulder psychology Professor Yuko Munakata and her research colleagues found that "neural inhibition," a process that occurs when one nerve cell suppresses activity in another, is a critical aspect in our ability to make choices. "The breakthrough here is that this helps us clarify the question of what is happening ...

Energy Express focus issue: Thin-film photovoltaic materials and devices

2010-09-13
WASHINGTON, September 13 – Developing renewable energy sources has never been more important, and solar photovoltaic (PV) technologies show great potential in this field. They convert direct sunlight into electricity with little impact on the environment. This field is constantly advancing, developing technologies that can convert power more efficiently and at a lower cost. To highlight breakthroughs in this area, the editors of Energy Express, a bi-monthly supplement to Optics Express, the open-access journal of the Optical Society (OSA), today published a special Focus ...

Over-the-top grass control in sorghum on the horizon

2010-09-13
AMARILLO - Apply today's chemicals to a sorghum crop for grass control and the sorghum will be killed off also. But a solution could be only a few years away if Texas AgriLife Research plots are any indication. Dr. Brent Bean, AgriLife Research and Texas AgriLife Extension Service agronomist, has test plots that demonstrate sorghum hybrids tolerant to herbicides typically associated with grass control. The control is needed not only for annual grass control but also for Johnsongrass, Bean said. Because Johnsongrass is closely related to grain sorghum, herbicides typically ...

Study finds that sorghum bran has more antioxidants than blueberries, pomegranates

2010-09-13
Athens, Ga. - A new University of Georgia study has found that select varieties of sorghum bran have greater antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties than well-known foods such as blueberries and pomegranates. Researchers measured polyphenolic compounds, which naturally occur in plants to help fight against pests and disease, and found that the black and sumac varieties of sorghum have significant levels of antioxidants. Many fruits also contain these compounds, they said, though sorghum bran may prove to be the richest and cheapest source. "Since most human chronic ...

Mount Sinai performs first tricuspid ring implantation

2010-09-13
David H. Adams, MD, Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Professor and Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at The Mount Sinai Medical Center, has performed the first implantation of the Medtronic Tri-Ad Semi-Flexible Tricuspid Annuloplasty Ring in the United States. Dr. Adams invented the ring, which was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The tricuspid valve lies between the right atrium and right ventricle of the heart. Tricuspid valve regurgitation occurs when the valve does not close completely and blood leaks back into the right atrium ...

Good long-term results for fusion surgery for high-grade spondylolisthesis

2010-09-13
A group of children who underwent fusion surgery for spondylolisthesis in the lumbar spine 30 years ago showed a clear reduction in back pain when followed up seven years later. A new study of these patients as adults has found that the benefits have lasted, reveals research from the Sahlgrenska Academy and Sahlgrenska University Hospital presented this week at the International Society of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology (SICOT) annual international conference in Gothenburg. Spondylolisthesis (forward displacement of a vertebra) in the lumbar spine occurs in 6% ...

Bone-anchored leg prostheses improve quality of life

2010-09-13
Today sees the presentation of a study that, for the first time, shows the results of treatment using prostheses attached to titanium implants in the bones of patients with above-the-knee amputations. It reveals that the treatment improves function and quality of life in nine out of ten patients, and is the result of research carried out at the Sahlgrenska Academy and Sahlgrenska University Hospital that is being presented this week at the International Society of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology (SICOT) annual international conference in Gothenburg. At a symposium ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Intra-arterial tenecteplase for acute stroke after successful endovascular therapy

Study reveals beneficial microbes that can sustain yields in unfertilized fields

Robotic probe quickly measures key properties of new materials

Climate change cuts milk production, even when farmers cool their cows

Frozen, but not sealed: Arctic Ocean remained open to life during ice ages

Some like it cold: Cryorhodopsins

Demystifying gut bacteria with AI

Human wellbeing on a finite planet towards 2100: new study shows humanity at a crossroads

Unlocking the hidden biodiversity of Europe’s villages

Planned hydrogen refuelling stations may lead to millions of euros in yearly losses

Planned C-sections increase the risk of certain childhood cancers

Adults who have survived childhood cancer are at increased risk of severe COVID-19

Drones reveal extreme coral mortality after bleaching

New genetic finding uncovers hidden cause of arsenic resistance in acute promyelocytic leukemia

Native habitats hold the key to the much-loved smashed avocado’s future

Using lightning to make ammonia out of thin air

Machine learning potential-driven insights into pH-dependent CO₂ reduction

Physician associates provide safe care for diagnosed patients when directly supervised by a doctor

How game-play with robots can bring out their human side

Asthma: patient expectations influence the course of the disease

UNM physician tests drug that causes nerve tissue to emit light, enabling faster, safer surgery

New study identifies EMP1 as a key driver of pancreatic cancer progression and poor prognosis

XPR1 identified as a key regulator of ovarian cancer growth through autophagy and immune evasion

Flexible, eco-friendly electronic plastic for wearable tech, sensors

Can the Large Hadron Collider snap string theory?

Stuckeman professor’s new book explores ‘socially sustainable’ architecture

Synthetic DNA nanoparticles for gene therapy

New model to find treatments for an aggressive blood cancer

Special issue of Journal of Intensive Medicine analyzes non-invasive respiratory support

T cells take aim at Chikungunya virus

[Press-News.org] Obama administration responds to call to action from Concordia researchers
Concordia institute continues to mobilize the will to intervene to prevent mass atrocities