Thomson, a leading tour operator, has launched three new May Edition Summer 12 brochures; Summer Collection, Faraway Shores and Florida. Following on from sister-brand First Choice's move to 100% all-inclusive from next summer, Thomson will continue to offer holidays across all boards, from room only in Florida, to all inclusive at its exclusive Sensatori properties. Due to First Choice's re-branding, all Florida properties will now be available through Thomson, and to reflect this, the new Florida brochure contains all the top International-drive hotels, villas and ...

New research from North Carolina State University shows that a "gatekeeper" protein plays an important role in skin-cancer prevention in humans and lab mice. The protein, C/EBP alpha, is normally abundantly expressed to help protect skin cells from DNA damage when humans are exposed to sunlight. The NC State research shows, however, that the protein is not expressed when certain human skin cancers are present. Moreover, when the protein is inactivated in special lab mice exposed to small amounts of the UVB solar radiation, the mice become more susceptible to skin cancer. Dr. ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Despite the fears of some Americans, Arab television networks such as Al Jazeera do not promote anti-American feelings among all their viewers, according to a new study. Research based on surveys of nearly 20,000 residents of six Arab countries suggests that while watching networks like Al Jazeera fuels anti-American feelings in some viewers, it actually reduces such sentiment in others. The results suggest that it is too simplistic to blame the Arab media for stoking resentment and hatred of America, said Erik Nisbet, lead author of the study and assistant ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Mayo Clinic has developed a screening procedure that could dramatically increase testing for Lynch syndrome (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/lynch-syndrome/DS00669), a hereditary genetic disorder that raises cancer risk, particularly for colorectal cancer. An estimated 3 percent of colon cancers can be attributed to Lynch syndrome. At least 80 percent of people with Lynch syndrome develop colorectal cancer (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/colon-cancer/DS00035), many of them before age 50. In the past, as few as 50 percent of patients who fit the ...

TUI UK & Ireland, parent company of Thomson and First Choice Holidays, becomes the first tour operator to introduce NVQ Level 2 Diploma in Tour Operations to its 800 overseas holiday advisor roles. The ground-breaking programme has been tailored to the needs of the tour operator, and has been certificated by City & Guilds, so both managers and holiday advisors will gain professional qualifications whilst driving even higher standards in holiday experience. Based on UK National Occupational Standards, this pioneering work-based qualification will differentiate ...

A gene-sequencing study of children with autism, described in an advance online publication in Nature Genetics on 15 May, offers a sneak peek at a technique which, combined with other approaches, may explain 40 to 50 percent of the genetic causes of the disorder within just a few years, proposes the study's lead investigator. This approach, says Evan Eichler of the University of Washington in Seattle, will potentially allow clinicians to "lift the hood on what has gone wrong in each individual child with autism," with the hope of ultimately devising individually-tailored ...

Vitamin D, which is primarily absorbed from the sun, plays a role in protection against childhood asthma. Now, a new study led by Valencian researchers has shown that children who live in colder, wetter cities are at greater risk of suffering from this respiratory problem, since there are fewer hours of sunlight in such places. "Prolonged exposure to the sun can cause cancer, but it's also dangerous to avoid it. There has to be a balance between the pros and cons", Alberto Arnedo-Pena, an epidemiologist at the Public Health Centre in Castellón and lead author of the research, ...

First Choice has announced that its summer 2012 holidays are now available to book. The leading operator has also unveiled the first of its new look brochures. The first two brochures to be launched are First Choice's Tropical and the Summer Sun preview brochures.  Both feature new additions, including a new Holiday Village in Menorca, the Club Turquesa Mar. The hotel will be receiving a family friendly make-over this winter, getting kitted out with all the high-ropes and child care facilities to ensure it meets the standards expected of a Holiday Village.  It is scheduled ...

PHILADELPHIA — A biomechanical experiment conducted at the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science has answered a long-standing theoretical question: Will microorganisms swim faster or slower in elastic fluids? For a prevalent type of swimming, undulation, the answer is "slower." Paulo Arratia, assistant professor of mechanical engineering and applied mechanics, along with student Xiaoning Shen, conducted the experiment. Their findings were published in the journal Physical Review Letters. Many animals, microorganisms and cells move by undulation, ...

Thomson Airways has announced that in just three years, sales of 'Thirsty Planet' bottled water have raised over GBP142,000 towards Pump Aid, the charity that aims to provide clean water for underprivileged communities.  In this time Pump Aid has built over 4,000 Elephant Pumps, bringing water supplies to at least an estimated 350,000 people in Sub-Saharan Africa. Thomson Airways first started working with 'Thirsty Planet' in November 2007 and have since sold millions of bottles of their water. For every bottle of 'Thirsty Planet' water sold onboard, five pence is donated ...

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL, Minn. (May 18, 2011) – University of Minnesota Medical School researchers have discovered a method to quickly and exponentially grow regulatory T-cells – also known as "suppressor cells." The new process enables replication of the cells by tens of millions in several weeks, a dramatic increase over previous duplication methods. Historically, regulatory T-cells have been difficult to replicate. The new technique will give patients a better chance of having a successful bone marrow or organ transplant, and will have profound implications for patients ...

CHESTNUT HILL, MA (5/18/2011) – Carbon found within ancient rocks has played a crucial role developing a time line for the emergence of biological life on the planet billions of years ago. But applying cutting-edge technology to samples of ancient rocks from northern Canada has revealed the carbon-based minerals may be much younger than the rock they inhabit, a team of researchers report in the latest edition of the journal Nature Geoscience. The team – which includes researchers from Boston College, the Carnegie Institution of Washington, NASA's Johnson Space Center ...

Cruise Amour, the online travel agency, has announced the launch of its new Find Me a Cruise tool. Although the Cruise Amour website is already the fastest UK cruise agency site and one of the easiest to navigate, managing director Tim Hurrell was keen to introduce the tool: "Giving our customers the best possible on-line experience has always been our goal. We're passionate about getting the customer experience right, so when it came to deciding on whether to introduce a tool which makes it even easier for customers to find their dream holiday - of course we said ...

Amusement Management Partners (AMP), a leading operator of theme parks, water parks and family entertainment centers chaired by former 'Ripley's Believe it or Not' CEO Bob Masterson, announced that it has selected as its exclusive financial advisor, EFA Partners (EFA), an entertainment financial advisory firm comprised of three former executives of GE Capital's entertainment group. EFA will assist with all financial aspects of AMP's current properties as well as leading the capital raising effort for AMP to achieve its growth goals. AMP is led by well-respected industry ...

DALLAS – May 18, 2011 – How fast can you run a mile? If you're middle-aged, the answer could provide a strong predictor of your risk of heart attack or stroke over the next decade or more. In two separate studies, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found that how fast a middle-age person can run a mile can help predict the risk of dying of heart attack or stroke decades later for men and could be an early indicator of cardiovascular disease for women. In one recent study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers analyzed the heart ...

CHICAGO --- A man's rising PSA (prostate-specific antigen) level over several years – which had been seen as a possible warning sign of prostate cancer – has recently come under fire as a screening test because it sometimes prompts biopsies that turn out to be normal. A new study, however, shows nearly 70 percent of men who had rising PSA levels and subsequent normal biopsies were eventually diagnosed with prostate cancer, according to research from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. The trend of a PSA level over several years is called PSA velocity. ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. – As the proliferation of social media in society continues, companies and organizations are taking advantage of online platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to communicate interactively with their customers and the public. With this influx of new technology, many organizations are struggling to find the most effective ways to manage these user interactions to maximize the positive experience for their customers. Now, University of Missouri researchers have found that utilizing a personal human voice when communicating online leads to much higher user satisfaction ...

One World Direct has been an exemplary partner to many businesses that deal directly with consumers. They provide fulfillment and call center services, effectively serving as the primary handler for transactions involving the end consumer. Their ability to execute on their mission is unquestionable, and since their opening day back in 1994, One World Direct has had the opportunity to provide fulfillment as well as call center services to B2C clients the world over. Today, One World Direct is an industry leader in the order fulfillment and call center outsourcing market, ...

The genetic 'wiring' that helps a seed to decide on the perfect time to germinate has been revealed by scientists for the first time. Plant biologists at The University of Nottingham have also discovered that the same mechanism that controls germination is responsible for another important decision in the life cycle of plants — when to start flowering. Their discovery throws light on the genetic mechanisms that plants use to detect and respond to vital environmental cues and could be a significant step towards the development of new crop species that are resistant to ...

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The more than 2.7 million new HIV infections recorded per year leave little doubt that the HIV/AIDS epidemic continues to spread globally. That's why there's the need for safe, inexpensive and effective drugs to successfully block HIV transmission. A new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine further validates the use of humanized BLT mice in the fight to block HIV transmission. The "BLT" name is derived from the fact that these designer mice are created one at a time by introducing human bone marrow, liver ...

The last day to register for the "Invitation To Foodies" culinary event's "Seminar Package" and be eligible to enter the Apple iPad 2 drawing is Friday, May 20, 2011. Are you a food adventurer? Are you comfortable with your knowledge about food? The "Invitation to Foodies" culinary event explores food in Hawaii from the ground up. Local experts offer insights into food preparation, food safety, farming, farmers' markets and food and community sustainability. Join us and learn what you should know about food and enjoy a great taste experience. ...

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), a scientific technique associated with outsized, very low temperature, superconducting magnets, is one of the principal tools in the chemist's arsenal, used to study everything from alcohols to proteins to such frontiers as quantum computing. In hospitals the machinery of NMR's cousin, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), is as loud as it is big, but nevertheless a mainstay of diagnosis for a wide range of medical conditions. It sounds like magic, but now two groups of scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National ...

Dr. Jason McCargar announces that he is now on staff at Scottsdale Shea and Scottsdale Osborn Hospitals. Dr. McCargar is one of only 6 dentists in the community working through Scottsdale Healthcare in area hospitals. Accepting this position allows Dr. McCargar to expand his family and cosmetic dental services by admitting patients to either hospital for dental treatments under general anesthesia or IV sedation. Dr. McCargar explains, "Patients who are afraid of having their dental work done in the typical dental office will now have the option for 'one-stop shopping' ...

May 18, 2011 (PASADENA, Calif.) – Children who are overweight or obese have a significantly higher prevalence of psoriasis, and teens with psoriasis, regardless of their body weight, have higher cholesterol levels, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published online in the Journal of Pediatrics. The study findings suggest that higher heart disease risk for patients with psoriasis starts in childhood in the form of higher cholesterol levels. Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the skin that often starts early in life and, according to the National Psoriasis ...

In today's fast-paced ecommerce world, business owners are finding it difficult and even impossible to effectively compete without a strong online presence. Shoppers in the current marketplace look for attractive sites, easy to understand purchase processes and reliable customer service when it comes to shopping online. As Gold Magento Solutions Partners, Niche Retail has successfully merged all of these needs into customized ecommerce solutions based on the Magento open source platform. In an online shopping environment that has long been dominated by world-wide operations ...