Chuck Thompson's article in the New Republic responds to the recent 80,000-signature-strong petition to the White House requesting that Texas be allowed to secede from the union. Thompson writes: Rather than secession, which would radically fracture our nation, Texas should be granted semi-autonomy in the form of "political and social expression in exchange for diminished power in federal government." Thompson, author of "Better Off Without 'Em: A Northern Manifesto for Southern Secession," is definitely no conservative sympathizer, and concludes ...

Why Federal Tax Refunds Matter in Your Bankruptcy Case The federal income tax refund is considered to be your property under bankruptcy law - even if you haven't received it yet - which, unfortunately, also means that the bankruptcy trustee will consider this money as an asset in both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases, subject to his or her control and disposition. (See 11 U.C.S. Section 541(a)(1) and 11 U.S.C. Section 1306(a)(1).) Tax Refunds After Filing Chapter 7 If you're facing overwhelming debt, you may choose to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, in which case ...

The past July, an Illinois appeals court affirmed a lower court ruling that stated a widow of a maintenance man who died in an accident while repairing a garage door at a car dealership may not sue in court for her husband's wrongful death. Rather, his status as a "borrowed employee" at the dealership made a workers' compensation award her only legal remedy. Because workers' compensation covered the incident, it was the "exclusive remedy," preventing other types of legal claims, including her wrongful death lawsuit. Explaining the Workers' Compensation ...

The Eddie and Ozzie Awards program for digital and print magazine publishers presented EYES IN Magazine with the Bronze Award for "Best Digital Magazine Consumer App" on Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. The annual ceremony organized by Folio Magazine celebrates excellence in magazine editorial and design. The Eddie and Ozzie Awards is the largest awards competition for all magazine publishers, their websites and digital apps. According to Folio Magazine's website, over 2,000 entries were narrowed down to 400 finalist in ...

In the Skill Session our seven rookies had to pick the correct line around a tricky course - the winner was the rider with the fastest lap time. But even a lesson in slow manoeuvring couldn't stop eager Daniel putting pedal to the metal causing him to skid out just minutes into his ride. "Makes me a bit nervous young Dan" Team Honda Racing Principal Paul Free said, watching on from the sideline. One rider doing everything he could not to make a similar mistake was 17-year-old Brody from country New South Wales. Topping the leader board, Brody was acutely ...

We all know that a blog is essential for content marketing and SEO, yet some people are terrified at the idea and many more are unsure just where to start. Remember that blog stands for web log - in other words, a diary or journal. Just as you would with a journal, you should write your blog from a personal perspective. Blog posts, by nature, are informal in tone; write as if you were talking to a friend, or at least chatting to a prospective client. You should write about topics you are passionate and knowledgeable about. Your passion will shine through your writing, ...

WASHINGTON, D.C., November 14, 2012—Individuals who do not obtain recommended intake levels of calcium through dietary sources can safely utilize calcium supplements to achieve optimal bone health, an expert panel concludes. These findings appear in the November online edition of Advances in Nutrition, a journal that highlights the significance of recent research in nutrition and illustrates the central role of nutrition in the promotion of health and prevention of disease. Responding to questions raised last year about a possible link between calcium supplements and ...

Hypothermia victims whose hearts have stopped functioning should be transported to a medical facility with advanced heart and lung support equipment, even if that means longer travel time, according to a new study by a University of British Columbia medical resident. In a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, UBC medical resident Dr. Doug Brown and collaborators from Banff, Austria and Italy reviewed the medical literature and concluded that two aspects of the European approach to hypothermia rescue – rewarming and transport –should be adapted ...

Researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated a technique for growing virtually pure samples of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with identical structures, a process they liken to "cloning" the nanotubes.* If it can be suitably scaled up, their approach could solve an important materials problem in nanoelectronics: producing carbon nanotubes of a specific structure to order. Single-wall carbon nanotubes are hollow cylinders of carbon atoms bound together in a hexagonal ...

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have provided evidence in the laboratory that single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) may help protect DNA molecules from damage by oxidation. In nature, oxidation is a common chemical process in which a reactive chemical removes electrons from DNA and may increase the chance for mutations in cells. More studies are needed to see if the in vitro protective effect of nanotubes reported in the laboratory also occurs in vivo, that is, within a living organism. "Our findings don't tell us whether carbon ...

Australian researchers have discovered for the first time that reduced heart rate variability – or changes in heart beat timing – best predicts cognitive disturbances, such as concentration difficulties commonly reported by people with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). This adds to the growing body of evidence linking autonomic nervous system imbalance to symptoms of this poorly understood disorder. The findings are reported in the journal PLOS ONE. Chronic fatigue syndrome is characterised by medically unexplained, disabling fatigue and neuropsychiatric symptoms of ...

Berkeley — Prenatal and childhood exposure to flame retardant compounds are linked to poorer attention, fine motor coordination and IQ in school-aged children, a finding by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, that adds to growing health concerns over a chemical prevalent in U.S. households. The new study, to be published in the Nov. 15 issue of the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, focuses on PBDEs, or polybrominated diphenyl ethers, a class of persistent, endocrine-disrupting compounds widely found in foam furniture, electronics, carpets, ...

At least one-third of the species that inhabit the world's oceans may remain completely unknown to science. That's despite the fact that more species have been described in the last decade than in any previous one, according to a report published online on November 15 in the Cell Press publication Current Biology that details the first comprehensive register of marine species of the world—a massive collaborative undertaking by hundreds of experts around the globe. The researchers estimate that the ocean may be home to as many as one million species in all—likely not more. ...

New York, NY (November 15, 2012) — About 10 percent of kids born with kidney defects have large alterations in their genomes known to be linked with neurodevelopmental delay and mental illness, a new study by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers has shown. The study was published today in the online edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics. Congenital defects of the kidney and urinary tract account for nearly 25 percent of all birth defects in the US and are present in about 1 in every 200 births. Eventually, an evaluation for genomic alterations ...

This press release is available in German. When infected with influenza, the body becomes an easy target for bacteria. The flu virus alters the host's immune system and compromises its capacity to effectively fight off bacterial infections. Now, a team of immunologists at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and cooperation partners has discovered that an immune system molecule called TLR7 is partly to blame. The molecule recognizes the viral genome – and then signals scavenger cells of the immune system to ingest fewer bacteria. The researchers published ...

Researchers in the voice, speech, and language branch of the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study the brain activity of rappers when they are "freestyling" – spontaneously improvising lyrics in real time. The findings, published online in the November 15 issue of the journal Scientific Reports, reveal that this form of vocal improvisation is associated with a unique functional reallocation of brain activity in the prefrontal cortex and ...

Every taxonomist has calculated the number of existing species within their specialty and estimated the number that remain to be discovered, both through statistical models as based on the experience of each expert. According to Enrique Macpherson, researcher at the Center for Advanced Studies of Blanes (CEAB-CSIC, Spain), who has participated in the study: "Bringing together the leading taxonomists around the world to pool their information has been the great merit of this research". The statistical prediction is based on the rate of description for new species in recent ...

PHILADELPHIA – Fifty years ago, British researcher John Gurdon demonstrated that genetic material from non-reproductive, or somatic, cells could be reprogrammed into an embryonic state when transferred into an egg. In 2006, Kyoto University researcher Shinya Yamanaka expanded on those findings by expressing four proteins in mouse somatic cells to rewind their genetic clocks, converting them into embryonic-like stem cells called induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells. In early October, Gurdon and Yamanaka were awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- For baby boomers, the peak interest in health issues comes at about age 51, with a second peak coming near age 65, according to a new study. The results may help doctors and other professionals target this generation with health messages at a time when they are most receptive to hearing them, the researchers said. The study, based on a survey of Americans age 45 to 65, showed that people in their late 40s had the lowest levels of interest in health issues. Interest rose quickly, however, and peaked in the early 50s, then dropped slightly and plateaued ...

MANHASSET, NY – Researchers at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research have discovered that tanshinones, which come from the plant Danshen and are highly valued in Chinese traditional medicine, protect against the life-threatening condition sepsis. The findings are published in the December issue of Biochemical Pharmacology. Inflammation is necessary for maintaining good health – without inflammation, wounds and infections would never heal. However, persistent and constant inflammation can damage tissue and organs, and lead to diseases such as sepsis. Sepsis affects ...

VANCOUVER, CANADA, NOVEMBER 15, 2012 -- It's time to economically value the greenhouse gas-trapping potential of mine waste and start making money from it, says mining engineer and geologist Michael Hitch of the University of British Columbia (UBC). Hitch studies the value of mine waste rock for its CO2-sequestration potential, or "SP." He says mining companies across Canada will, in future, be able to offset CO2 emissions with so-named "SP rock," and within 25 years could even be selling emissions credits. Digging, trucking and processing make mining an energy-intensive ...

Low levels of omega-3 may be behind postpartum depression, according to a review lead by Gabriel Shapiro of the University of Montreal and the Research Centre at the Sainte-Justine Mother and Child Hospital. Women are at the highest risk of depression during their childbearing years, and the birth of a child may trigger a depressive episode in vulnerable women. Postpartum depression is associated with diminished maternal health as well as developmental and health problems for her child. "The literature shows that there could be a link between pregnancy, omega-3 and the ...

Blending religion with familism — a strong commitment to lifelong marriage and childbearing — dampens secular civic participation, according to research by a Baylor University sociologist. "Strong family and strong religion. What happens when they meet? Is that good for the larger society? It is not always as it seems," said Young-Il Kim, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow in Baylor's Institute for Studies of Religion. His study — "Bonding alone: Familism, religion and secular civic participation" — is published online in Social Science Research. The findings are based on analysis ...

Starting a milk drinking habit as a child can lead to lifelong benefits, even improving physical ability and balance in older age, according to new research. A new study published in Age & Aging found an increase of about one glass of milk a day as a child was linked to a 5% faster walking time and 25% lesser chance of poor balance in older age. The researchers suggest a "public health benefit of childhood milk intake on physical function in old age" – a finding that has huge potential for adults over 65, a population expected reach more than 70 million by the year 2030, ...

The terms "black swan" and "perfect storm" have become part of public vocabulary for describing disasters ranging from the 2008 meltdown in the financial sector to the terrorist attacks of September 11. But according to Elisabeth Paté-Cornell, a Stanford professor of management science and engineering, people in government and industry are using these terms too liberally in the aftermath of a disaster as an excuse for poor planning. Her research, published in the November issue of the journal Risk Analysis, suggests that other fields could borrow risk analysis strategies ...