The new site, designed in line with the current World Wide Web Consortium accessibility guidelines, features a whole new look with clean and clear icons and colours. However, the visual improvements are merely the tip of the iceberg with many changes made to the usability and navigation having been made. The MBNA Irish credit card site has been redesigned with a focus on being easier to use and more accessible for customers and visitors. This has been achieved through clearer labeling of sections and easy to see and use buttons that take users to the various areas of ...

Pelican Brands announced today as part of their long-term strategic agreement with Schwartz Olcott Imports (SOI Wines), that they will import and manage the national sales & marketing rollout of (oops) Wines following a successful limited test market. (oops) is the first wine brand from Chile to capture the history and romance of Carmenere, "The Lost Grape of Bordeaux", discovered in 1994. Carmenere, one of the six noble grapes of Bordeaux, was thought lost forever after phylloxera, a nasty root louse, destroyed the great vineyards of Europe in the 1800s. (oops) Wines ...

Taking a leaf from animals like dolphins and pilot whales that are known to have anti-fouling skins, researchers from A*STAR's Industrial Consortium On Nanoimprint (ICON) are using nanotechnology to create synthetic, chemical-free, anti-bacterial surfaces. The surfaces can reduce infections caused by pathogens such as S. aureus and E. coli and can be used on common plastics, medical devices, lenses and even ship hulls. Conventional methods for preventing bacterial surface attachment may use potentially harmful metal ions, nanoparticles, chemicals or UV-radiation. Nanoimprint ...

The BIOMICs Group, based at the Lucio Lascaray building in the Álava/Araba campus of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), is specially known for overseeing the SGIker DNA Bank, not only undertaking this task, but also feeding data into the gene research bank and making good use of it for their own lines of research. Led by Doctor Marian Martínez de Pancorbo, BIOMICs has numerous research specialists in diverse areas of genetics (neurodegenerative, cancer, forensic, and so on), and works jointly with Basque hospitals and universities as well as with centres worldwide. The ...

Tel Qudadi, an ancient fortress located in the heart of Tel Aviv at the mouth of the Yarkon River, was first excavated more than 70 years ago ― but the final results of neither the excavations nor the finds were ever published. Now, research on Tel Qudadi by archaeologists at Tel Aviv University has unpeeled a new layer of history, indicating that there is much more to learn from the site, including evidence that links ancient Israel to the Greek island of Lesbos. "The secrets of this ancient fortress are only beginning to be revealed," Dr. Alexander Fantalkin ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Researchers have overcome a fundamental obstacle in developing breath-analysis technology to rapidly diagnose patients by detecting chemical compounds called "biomarkers" in a person's respiration in real time. The researchers demonstrated their approach is capable of rapidly detecting biomarkers in the parts per billion to parts per million range, at least 100 times better than previous breath-analysis technologies, said Carlos Martinez, an assistant professor of materials engineering at Purdue who is working with researchers at the National Institute ...

As people on Earth celebrate the holidays and prepare to ring in the New Year, an ESA/NASA spacecraft has quietly reached its own milestone: on December 26, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) discovered its 2000th comet. Drawing on help from citizen scientists around the world, SOHO has become the single greatest comet finder of all time. This is all the more impressive since SOHO was not specifically designed to find comets, but to monitor the sun. "Since it launched on December 2, 1995 to observe the sun, SOHO has more than doubled the number of comets ...

JUPITER, FL, December 28, 2010 – Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have identified a molecular interaction between a structural hepatitis C virus protein (HCV) and a protein critical to viral replication. This new finding strongly suggests a novel method of inhibiting the production of the virus and a potential new therapeutic target for hepatitis C drug development. The study was published in the January 2010 issue (Volume 92, Part 1) of the Journal of General Virology. These new data underline the essential role of the viral protein ...

LEXINGTON, KY – Polyethylene mulches, used widely in commercial vegetable production to improve crop yields and produce quality, have distinct disadvantages. Disposal options are limited, and plastic mulches often end up in landfills, being burned, or disposed of illegally. Recycling polyethylene mulches is also a challenge; the mulches used in large-scale vegetable production are contaminated with too much dirt and debris to be recycled directly from the field in most power plants and incinerators. Timothy Coolong from the University of Kentucky's Department of Horticulture ...

QUEBEC, CANADA – A study in HortTechnology featured a new technology that improved greenhouse climates by reducing solar heat radiation and temperatures during the hot summer season. The study, published by a team of Canadian researchers, was the first investigation into the effects of application of the liquid foam technology as a shading method. Results showed that the technology improved greenhouse and plant microclimates and decreased air temperature more than conventional shading curtains traditionally used by greenhouse growers. Excess temperature, solar radiation, ...

CORVALLIS, OR – Diseases caused by a species of fungus called Phytophthora syringae are responsible for significant economic losses on a wide range of plants, including pear. In the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, disease occurs during the winter in nursery stock, especially on trees that are harvested and stored in coolers or in outdoor sawdust beds. Recent field observations by growers suggest that increased nitrogen content in nursery trees resulting from foliar sprays with urea in the autumn increases tree susceptibility to infection by Phytophthora syringae. ...

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have learned why changes in a single gene, ROP18, contribute substantially to dangerous forms of the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. The answer has likely moved science a step closer to new ways to beat Toxoplasma and many other parasites. In a study published in Cell Host & Microbe, scientists show that the ROP18 protein disables host cell proteins that would otherwise pop a protective bubble the parasite makes for itself. The parasite puts the bubble on like a spacesuit by forming a membrane around itself ...

STORRS, CT – Woody ornamental plants with colorful or unusually shaped stems, buds, flowers, or fruits represent a growing specialty niche in cut flower production markets. These unique plants can be good prospects for off-season production, offering distinct benefits such as extended growing seasons, respectable financial returns, hardiness, and the ability to produce multiple harvests from single plantings. A research team from the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture at the University of Connecticut recently published the results of a poll of North ...

DALLAS – Dec. 29, 2010 – Patients with diabetes, kidney disease and anemia who don't respond to treatment with an anti-anemia drug have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease or death, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found. The results suggest that testing such patients' responsiveness to the drug and keeping blood iron levels a little low might reduce their risk, said Dr. Robert Toto, professor of internal medicine and clinical sciences and a senior author of the study, which appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine. "These patients required ...

To succeed in the global business arena, companies that manufacture and distribute products must be agile, efficient and operationally adept at marketing in unique local geographies. At the center of this formidable challenge is the often complex process of translating and localizing high-quality product-related content ¨C typically under intense time pressures. Combined with an ever-expanding list of markets and languages, these multilingual projects can become overwhelming. This requires companies to treat translation as a critical path event, not merely an afterthought, ...

Staging Diva, Debra Gould, is helping new and aspiring home stagers to make 2011 the year they finally follow their dream of earning a good living from their decorating talents by throwing a huge year end sale. From December 26 until midnight EST on December 31, every item in the Staging Diva Store is marked down and the Staging Diva Program is priced lower than it's ever been before as Gould encourages stagers to 'Make 2011 Your Own.' "2010 has been a challenging year for many of us and everyone's sick of hearing negative headlines about the economy," says Gould. She ...

iFunia, a professional developer of Mac multimedia applications, today launches an ultimate video and DVD package, MediaConverter Suite for Mac, which provides Mac users with an integrated solution to video conversion and DVD ripping In the holiday season, MediaConverter Suite for Mac will be priced at 49, saving $21 from the full price $70. iFunia MediaConverter Suite for Mac is bundled by two programs: iFunia DVD Ripper Pro for Mac and iFunia Video Converter Pro for Mac. With this MediaConverter Suite, Mac users can easily convert all video files and DVD movie collections ...

Thanks to a number of American and British sitcoms that have gained popularity in Italy, kids today are better placed in understanding English. In fact TV advertisements are now being made with short English phrases as slogans to their products. With the internet making inroads in Italy, almost every Italian finds it imperative to learn English. This has led to a number of people starting tutorials for 'corsi di inglese Roma' or learning English in Rome. English is the gateway for people all over the world to succeed. No other language has single handedly influenced ...

WebEden.co.uk the award winning UK website builder http://www.webeden.co.uk has announced this week that they are to giving away 100 free websites to worthy charities beginning in January. WebEden's revolutionary approach to website building allows users, whether beginners or professionals, to build their own website which not only looks great but performs well too. The website packages being given away will be packed with the latest features. There are over 4000 templates to choose from with unlimited pages & colours; award winning drag & drop editing tools; Facebook, ...

Tens Medical Services Ltd is an independent UK based tens machines ( http://www.tens.co.uk ) specialist. We provide a wide range of quality tens machines that offer effective pain relief management. Benefits of Tens Machines We can provide tens machines for a variety of different circumstances. You should consider using a tens machines as part of your treatment if you are suffering from any form of pain including the following: - post operative pain - Arthritis and joint pain - Back pain - Muscle pain - Pain resulting from sports injuries - Headache - Migraine Pain-killing ...

Sioux City Catering, the affordable catering tampa ( http://www.caterertampa.org ) experts, announces the arrival of this season's most sought after item: Baked Ham in Golden Pear Sauce. This holiday season, you simply must include this to-die-for dish to your upcoming Tampa catered event menu! Sioux City Catering is already raved about for their fabulous selection of catered dishes, however, this dish is sure to top the lists of all of your guests at this year's holiday party. Whether you are planning a formal Christmas Day dinner, or you are hosting a casual New Year's ...

Everybody loves television but because of the advancement of technology, people would prefer taking more control of their entertainment experience. They don't just want to sit and watch but want to get engage with the leisure. The computer is now what people commonly sits in front with and because television is becoming obsolete, Satellite Direct decides to put those television programs and radio into your PCs. Who would have thought that cable television would now be available on your laptop while you are at the airport waiting for your flight or when you are taking ...

Dog lovers get professional advice from Dogtrainingspot on how to stop dogs chewing items around the house. The site gives out the main reasons why the dog display such behaviors and offers the best dog obedience training tips ( http://www.dogtrainingspot.org ) to prevent the pup's destructive nibbling. The site also covers topics such as training aggressive dogs. Chewing is a dog's choice in its playtime and it's their way to handle teething. It comes natural for dogs to chomp as it becomes an instinctual need to sharpen their teeth and improve their biting. Even if ...

Many people are daunted by the idea of fixing electrical problems at home and their first instinct is to call a professional. While this is the best course of action, there are a few 'do it yourself' jobs out there for the more adventurous home handymen. Having some basic electric tools will make the world of a difference. Here are a few must haves. Circuit tester: A circuit tester is used to test the presence of electricity. It plugs into an electrical outlet and tells whether or not the circuit is "hot" or properly grounded. Neon voltage tester: A neon voltage tester ...

George Squires of DitchtheBottle.com hates bottles (water bottles, that is). Ditch the Water is a company that offers the latest in pure water technology. The company's goal is to offer customers environmentally friendly, high quality water, ice and coffee systems and services. Ditch the Bottle states that 96% of the people who use the system keep it. The company will easily and safely install systems up to 600 feet from a water source with their patented O3 'Activated Oxygen' technology. This ensures that the drinking water customers receive is always clean and sanitary. In ...