The recession is finally taking its toll on national, state and local unionization rates, according to UCLA's annual report on organized labor. Following an uptick last year, unionization rates fell between July 1, 2009, and June 30, 2010, by just more than half a percentage point in California and by a full percentage point in the five-county Los Angeles metropolitan area, researchers at UCLA's Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) found. "Given the duration and depth of the recession, it was inevitable that union jobs would be hit," said Lauren ...

Plaque-causing bacteria can jailbreak from the mouth into the bloodstream and increase your risk of heart attack says a scientist at the Society for General Microbiology's autumn meeting in Nottingham. Professor Howard Jenkinson, from the University of Bristol explains how oral bacteria can wreak havoc if they are not kept in check by regular brushing and flossing. "Poor dental hygiene can lead to bleeding gums, providing bacteria with an escape route into the bloodstream, where they can initiate blood clots leading to heart disease," he said. Streptococcus bacteria ...

Selfish bacterial cells that act in their own interests and do not cooperate with their infection-causing colleagues can actually reduce the severity of infection. The selfish behaviour of these uncooperative bacteria could be exploited to treat antibiotic-resistant infections, according to research being presented at the Society for General Microbiology's autumn meeting today. Bacteria work together by using a well-studied communication system called Quorum Sensing (QS). During infection, bacteria talk to each other using QS to coordinate the release of toxins. Researchers ...

While we are often exposed to bacteria in our food which could cause food poisoning, we don't always become ill - why should this be so? Professor Colin Hill who is presenting his work at the Society for General Microbiology's autumn meeting in Nottingham today describes how bacteria use different tricks to aid their survival inside the body, helping to explain why food poisoning can be so unpredictable. One of the biggest challenges faced by food-borne bacteria is acid. Acidic conditions, particularly in the stomach and in the gut will kill most microbes found in contaminated ...

TORONTO, ON - Widespread reports of a decline in the population of bees and other flower-visiting animals have aroused fear and speculation that pollination is also likely on the decline. A recent University of Toronto study provides the first long-term evidence of a downward trend in pollination, while also pointing to climate change as a possible contributor. "Bee numbers may have declined at our research site, but we suspect that a climate-driven mismatch between the times when flowers open and when bees emerge from hibernation is a more important factor," says James ...

STOCKHOLM (6 September 2010)—Against a backdrop of extreme weather wreaking havoc around the world, a new report warns that increasingly erratic rainfall related to climate change will pose a major threat to food security and economic growth, especially in Africa and Asia, requiring increased investment in diverse forms of water storage as an effective remedy. "Millions of farmers in communities dependent on rainfed agriculture are at risk from decreasing and erratic availability of water," said Colin Chartres, director general of the Sri Lanka-based International Water ...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Plants are good at doing what scientists and engineers have been struggling to do for decades: converting sunlight into stored energy, and doing so reliably day after day, year after year. Now some MIT scientists have succeeded in mimicking a key aspect of that process. One of the problems with harvesting sunlight is that the sun's rays can be highly destructive to many materials. Sunlight leads to a gradual degradation of many systems developed to harness it. But plants have adopted an interesting strategy to address this issue: They constantly break ...

SANTA CRUZ, CA--A tiny optical device built into a silicon chip has achieved the slowest light propagation on a chip to date, reducing the speed of light by a factor of 1,200 in a study reported in Nature Photonics (published online September 5 and in the November print issue). The ability to control light pulses on an integrated chip-based platform is a major step toward the realization of all-optical quantum communication networks, with potentially vast improvements in ultra-low-power performance. Holger Schmidt, professor of electrical engineering in the Baskin School ...

One of the key drivers of human evolution and diversity, accounting for changes that occur between different generations of people, is explained by new research published today (Sept 5) by world-renowned scientist Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys, who discovered DNA fingerprinting at the University of Leicester. Professor Jeffreys has spent over two decades since his landmark discovery in 1984 investigating what he describes as "pretty bizarre bits of DNA" - highly variable repeated parts of DNA called 'minisatellites' - found in the human genome. Sir Alec observed that ...

Biologists at the University of California, San Diego have discovered that a gene critical for programmed cell death is also important in the loss of adult stem cells, a finding that could help to improve the health and well-being of patients undergoing cancer treatment. "During chemotherapy or radiation therapy that kills cancer cells by inducing significant DNA damage in their genomes, one of the main side effects for human cancer patients is the depletion of their own adult stem cells, particularly the ones responsible for making new blood and intestine cells. So these ...

A new website providing busy mums with a central point to discover businesses that provide home delivery and in-home services was recently launched. The new website - http://www.mumsdelivery.com.au - is a business directory for mums interested in shopping and arranging in-home services from the comfort of their own home. The website is intuitive and easy to navigate, making it simple for users to find the businesses they are looking for. Mums today are particularly technologically savvy. The 'online mum' demographic is emerging as one of the fastest growing segments ...

The Bornmann Law Group, PLLC, a debt relief agency servicing all of Arizona, has launched their new informational and advisory blog, http://www.bankruptcy-az.com/wordpress/. This bankruptcy themed blog is written by bankruptcy attorneys and bankruptcy lawyers who advise and help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code. Their blog focuses on bankruptcy planning, Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 filing options, advice on wage garnishments and repossessions, bankruptcy law and advice for those that are experiencing extreme financial difficulty. Recent articles ...

Movage Movers Enjoy Summer 2010 Discount 1 Month Free Storage with Movage Moving & Storage. Our qualified staff of professional movers and fleet of new trucks will meet all of your moving needs. We carefully screen all our employees and regularly train them in the latest packing and moving methods. Our crews utilize state-of-the-art equipment to safely transport and deliver most fragile furniture, machinery, fine arts and pianos. Each vehicle in our fleet is equipped with a Real-Time Vehicle Tracking System, aka GPS (Global Positioning System). Real-time vehicle tracking ...

'Stop the Insanity' Your Thoughts Aired on Social Radio Network BlogTalkRadio 'Stop the Insanity' tackles America's Political Problem live on Monday-Thursday, starting September 6th, 2010 at 9 a.m. Mountain Standard time The question on every American' s mind today is how to 'Stop the Insanity' will be the focus of BlogTalkRadio 'Stop the Insanity' (http://blogtalkradio.com/charleymiller2010) with host Charley Miller on every Monday - Thursday, starting September 6th, 2010 at 9:00 am Mountain Standard time. The show will feature Charley Miller, who will be on the ...

First of all we have to say, that it is not about Magento shopping cart. This publication is about real implementation of Microsoft Dynamics GP version 10.0, integrated in quasi real time with custom PHP/MySQL ecommerce website. Ecommerce application itself was coded in PHP by in-house programmers. In initial discussions developers were interested to know Dynamics GP table structure and how master records (customers, items) and transactions (SOP Order with customer deposit) could be pushed down to Great Plains tables. We also discussed such integration methods as eConnect. ...

Los Angeles based, celebrity fashion designer Lauren Elaine continues to bring high fashion to the Mediterranean with the second of two fashion-themed voyages presented by Crystal Cruises. Handpicked by Crystal as the designer of choice, Lauren Elaine follows up the success of the first on-board runway show in June, by presenting an encore presentation of the SS2010 Black Label Siren Collection and adding a second poolside show featuring the international debut of the Black Label Swim Cruise Collection, from September 29-October 8th, 2010. With a mission to reinvent ...

COUGAR MARRIAGE CONTEST FOR COUGARS & CUBS SEEKING MATRIMONY The first-ever Cougar Marriage Contest & Mixer takes place on Saturday, October 2, 2010, at Maharani Restaurant, 1122 Post Street, San Francisco CA 94109. "Cougars and Cubs are unfairly stereotyped as only wanting casual relationships," says Rich Gosse, Executive Director of CougarEvents.com. "We will refute this myth at this event, which invites Cougars and Cubs who seek marriage." Psychology Today (Nov 28, 2009) reports "a recent survey of 100 self-proclaimed cougars sheds light: more than 90% of these ...

Career Step, a leading online healthcare education company, has been named as one of the fastest growing companies in the state for the second consecutive year by Utah Business magazine's Fast 50 awards program. "Career Step has enjoyed continued success over the last year, and we're very pleased with the Company's recognition in the Utah Fast 50 for the second year in a row," said John Hiatt, Career Step CFO. "Utah has a very diverse economy, and, even with our national audience, it's valuable to see how we compare with other strong, local companies." Career Step ...

It has been a busy summer for the Boston Pop/Rock sensation One Step Away with many days spent away from home in the recording studio and on their promotional tour. Their new full length studio album: "For the Broken" is the result of several prior months of songwriting, juggled amidst demanding schedules which included school, sports, jobs , practices and performances. One Step Away is comprised of Terence Healy (Lead Guitar), Adam Carrington (Lead Vocals), Mike Nuzzolo, (Bass & Vocals) and newest member: Ben Trudeau (Drums). Most of the songs on the album are brand ...

The Elite Cambridge Business Circle is holding a symposium on "The Future of Sustainable Economic Development in Cambridgeshire" later this month. The event will take place at the next business breakfast networking meeting of the Elite Cambridge Business Circle, at 8am on the morning of Thursday 30 September in the boardroom of the Clydesdale Bank, Terrington House, 1st Floor, 13-15 Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 1NL, courtesy of managing partner Martin Guildford. The main platform speakers will be: * Dr Julian Huppert, MP for Cambridge * Sir David Trippier, Chairman, ...

Lost Luggage Studios releases v1.2 of "Anirah: Riddle of the Pharaohs", an ancient Egyptian-themed puzzle game best described as, "Similar to MahJongg, but with math". Not the typical Match-3 type of game, in Anirah you are given a target number and can select as many tiles as it takes to total that number. Tiles can be selected if they can freely slide off the board - straight up, down, left, or right. You can make a match with three tiles, ten tiles, or even just one tile. The goal is to clear the board and proceed to the next round. 4 gameplay modes -- including ...

The United States Department of Labor projects that service occupations will see an incline in employment over the next 8 years. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Economic News Release, skin care and other personal care service jobs are projected to see employment increases between 35 and 40 percent. The service-providing industry as a whole is projected to add 14.6 million jobs, which amounts to 96 percent of the increase in total employment. Organizations providing training ( http://academydicapelli.com/dates/index.html ) for these future service employees ...

In a world dominated by television, video games, and other forms of inactive entertainment, the idea of children going outside to play and entertain themselves is quickly fading into the past. In an effort to combat the growing trend among young people to lock themselves in their homes and avoid sunlight, Children's Physicians Medical Group ( http://www.cpmgsandiego.com ) (CPMG) has partnered with Youth Fitness Magazine to promote active and healthy lifestyles in children. CPMG and Youth Fitness Magazine ( http://www.youthfitnessmag.com ) want children to understand ...

Eco-upstart GreenDoggieBags debut as the exclusive dog waste bag in HollyWOOF, the celebrity dog gift bag given to luminaries such as Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, Rachael Ray, Hillary Duff, Miley Cyrus, and Drew Barrymore. Given the new focus on 'green' pet products, GreenDoggieBags was identified as a perfect fit for Hollywood's eco-conscious, dog-loving celebrities and is one of only 18 products to be included in the bag. "Our inclusion in this year's HollyWOOF bag reflects America's shifting attitude towards not only our own lifestyles and its ecological, but the lifestyles ...

Evander Holyfield won the celebrity 'Beat the Champ' poker tournament live at Poker in the Park last night. As always, preparation paid off and Evander 'Real Deal' Holyfield rose to the occasion to win the special tournament held at Poker in the Park in London's Leicester Square. Thousands of poker fans attending Europe's largest poker festival watched the game between the five-time world heavy weight champion and the Midlands father who faced him on the felt. The celebrity poker tournament was presented by RealDealPoker.com, the only online poker site to deal real cards ...