NewsBlotter.com

Copepods are teeny crustaceans that play a big role in the food chain; they float around eating algae and in turn get eaten by bigger animals. This type of copepod, called Metridia, emits a glow similar to a firefly. “The thought is that they emit this blue light to scare off a predator," said WHOI biologist Carin Ashjian during an April 2009 cruise to study the Arctic ocean ecosystem. (Photo by Chris Linder, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

The United States has numerous buildings and other structures that represent the freedom and opportunity expressed in the American dream. Here are a few of those defining monuments.

Although the arduous Senate confirmation process can break even the strongest candidates, the vast majority of presidential appointees are ultimately confirmed. We present the cases of 10 unfortunate exceptions to that rule.

A Japanese street drifter describes the tires used for drifting in this clip from "Street Racing: A Night on Earth" on Discovery Channel.

It could be the distinctive body styling, or maybe it's the recognizable rumble. But there's just something about Harley-Davidson motorcycles that can be irresistible.

Some people associate the 4th of July with hamburgers, hot dogs, apple pie and an aerial fireworks show. But have you ever wondered how these sparklers make such incredible colors and designs?

We all want a fresh-smelling house, but at what cost? Check out these 4 green ways to keep your house fresh in a natural, green way.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - More than half a million fans from around the world applied for 17,500 free tickets to Michael Jackson's public memorial service next week, organizers said on Friday as a massive security operation got underway.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - A newspaper editor seen as close to Iran's top authority said on Saturday defeated election candidate Mirhossein Mousavi and a former pro-reform president had committed "terrible crimes" which should be tried in court.

KIRKUK, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi army forces arrested a man on Saturday suspected of being behind two vehicle bombs in the northern city of Kirkuk that killed more than 100 people, an Iraqi army official said.

KABUL (Reuters) - Two U.S. soldiers were killed in a complex attack on a base in southeast Afghanistan that ended with air strikes Saturday, the U.S. military said, two days after a major operation against the Taliban was launched in the south.

Three pachyderms chomped down 505 hot dog buns in six minutes. Their human counterparts forced down only 143 buns.

KALLAY, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani helicopter gunships attacked Taliban militants on Saturday in a northwestern region where a military helicopter crashed the previous day killing 26 soldiers on board, a government official said.

NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Saturday he was "deeply disappointed" that military-ruled Myanmar's top general had rejected his request to meet with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Lynne Kiesling The Tour starts today, yay!!!! I'm totally jazzed. Here's a very useful guide from Wired to various ways to follow the Tour online. And even more cool, it's a wiki, so if you know of some other sources they are missing, log in and add 'em! This year I'm cheering all-American - Christian Vande Velde, Team Gar... Read More from Knowledge Problem

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Sarah Palin, the brash, deeply conservative governor of Alaska who crashed onto the U.S. national political scene last year as the Republican candidate for U.S. vice president, announced abruptly on Friday she was resigning as governor.

Environmental groups lost all five of their cases before the Supreme Court last term, a trend scholars see continuing as the court moves to the right.

In the General Grant Houses in Manhattan, two women are spreading the word about recycling, door by door.

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea fired seven ballistic missiles on Saturday, South Korea's defense ministry said, in an act of defiance toward the United States that further stoked regional tensions already high due to its nuclear test in May.

On July 4, birthday of the USA, we're supposed to blow off fireworks, eat hot dogs and buy a Chevrolet.

On Columbus Day, birthday of an early imperialist, we're supposed to shop and march in a parade.

On Martin Luther King Jr. day, marvelously, we're supposed to participate in a national day of service.

So, what should we do on your birthday?

With all due respect to Hallmark, the idea of sending people cards and presents on their birthday seems both selfish and small-minded. It seems to me that we could think bigger.

On the birthday of your company or brand, what would you like your customers to do?

On your birthday, what should your friends do? Let's say you have a shoe buying fetish. Perhaps on your birthday, your friends could buy shoes--for themselves, not for you. Share the joy, right? Or perhaps buy shoes for their friends?

On my birthday, it would make me really happy if people started a project, launched an idea or engaged in a difficult interaction that made something good happen. Make a difference day.

What's your story?

rampart: fortification.

TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) - The Organization of American States prepared to suspend Honduras on Saturday after a caretaker government refused to restore ousted President Manuel Zelaya and defiantly renounced the OAS charter in an apparent preemptive move.

A few years ago, we had breakfast at Sandeep's house and he made us a delicious breakfast.  One of the dishes was a strange egg and tortilla chip creation that everybody loved.  I got the recipe from Sandeep and it has become part of our regular rotation ever since.  We never knew what to call it so in my house ... Read More from Cheap Talk

Argentina’s president said she would not rule out closing major public venues where swine flu could spread more quickly.

A dieter’s commitment to weight loss can sometimes be linked to how much money he or she is willing to spend.

Paul Krugman songs continue: Paul may have the blues but we don't: Happy 4th of July! (Hat tip: Our music correspondent, Tomas Sjostrom) Paul Krugman songs continue: Paul may have the blues but we don't: Happy 4th of July! (Hat tip: Our music correspondent, Tomas Sjostrom) ... Read More from Cheap Talk

A common tuberculosis vaccine is too risky to give to those born infected with the AIDS virus, says a new study published by the World Health Organization.

On a remote Scottish island, the sheep are shrinking, and the cause appears to be the warming of winter.

The President recounts America’s great history of overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges, and pledges to lead America in continuing that tradition. Focusing on creating a clean energy economy, comprehensive health reform, and revitalizing an education system in need of change, the President pledges not to leave these decades-old problems to yet another generation to solve.

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National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations system

Nasdaq. A computerized system established by the NASD to facilitate trading by providing broker/dealers with current bid and ask price quotes on over-the-counter stocks and some listed stocks. Unlike the Amex and the NYSE, the Nasdaq (once an acronym for the National Association of securities Dealers Automated Quotation system) does not have a physical trading floor that brings together buyers and sellers. Instead, all trading on the Nasdaq exchange is done over a network of computers and telephones. Also, the Nasdaq does not employ market specialists to buy unfilled orders like the NYSE does. The Nasdaq began when brokers started informally trading via telephone; the network was later formalized and linked by computer in the early 1970s. In 1998 the parent company of the Nasdaq purchased the Amex, although the two continue to operate separately. Orders for stock are sent out electronically on the Nasdaq, where market makers list their buy and sell prices. Once a price is agreed upon, the transaction is executed electronically.

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Jimmy Fallon will emcee a special concert featuring the Foo Fighters and Michelle Branch on Saturday, July 4th, 2009 from the South Lawn of the White House. We'll be providing the exclusive live video at whitehouse.gov/live beginning with President Obama's opening remarks at 7pm EDT.

The concert, put on by the USO honoring the hundreds of service members and their families who will be in attendance, will begin at 8:10 pm ET, followed by fireworks over the National Mall at approximately 9:10pm.

Hybrid car sales in June were up 9 percent from a year ago and rose 2 percent compared to last month—outperforming the overall new car market that was down 28 percent from June 2008 and 7 percent from May.

June hybrid sales suggest that hybrids are recovering more quickly than the overall car market—just as they defied the economic downturn several months after overall car sales started to decline in 2008. June marks the sixth consecutive month of higher hybrid sales.

Nationally, car dealers sold 26,205 hybrids in June, the highest one-month total in 13 months. Hybrid car sales numbers exceeded 3 percent of the new car market, and could reflect the beginning of an anticipated long-term trend in which hybrid market share grows by as much as 1 percent every year. Dozens of new hybrid models will be introduced in the next few years. The world’s largest carmakers are significantly investing in increased production capacity for hybrid cars and advanced auto batteries.

The overall market continues to suffer, but declining sales have begun to slow down for four of the six major carmakers. Ford reported the smallest drop of 10.7 percent. Jesse Toprak, executive director of industry analysis for Edmunds.com told Associated Press, “It is unlikely things will get any worse."

The Toyota Prius led the hybrid pack with 12,998 sales, representing 49.6 percent of all hybrid sales in June. The vast majority of Prius sales—85 percent, according to Toyota— came from the new 2010 model. The introduction of the new Prius apparently affected sales of the 2010 Honda Insight and Honda Civic Hybrid, which declined by 25 percent and 42 percent respectively, compared to last month. Sales of the Ford Fusion Hybrid continued to gain momentum, jumping nearly 10 percent compared to May.

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MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Friday rejected U.S. President Barack Obama's charge that he was mired in Cold War thinking, setting the scene for a stormy first meeting at a Moscow summit next week.

Jimmy Fallon, Foo Fighters, Michelle Branch and “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band Among Invited Guests to Pay Tribute to America’s Armed Forces and Perform USO Concert

NEW YORK/VIENNA (Reuters) - Austrian fund manager Sonja Kohn did not receive any kickbacks from Bernard Madoff to steer Bank Medici customer funds to the swindler's investment business, a Medici lawyer said on Friday.

In the watery limbo between sea and river, where salt and fresh water mingle in the roots of mangrove trees, a handful of uniquely adapted species--terrestrial and aquatic--have evolved to fill the novel niche. [More]

Red, white and blue aside, how green will this weekend’s firework festivities be? Not very, argue some. [More]

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar will officially reopen the crown of the Statue of Liberty to the public on July 4, 2009.  About 20 lucky visitors will be among the first to climb the 354 steps to the crown on Saturday morning, but thanks to the power of technology, everyone can join in the celebration.  The public can view photos of the day’s events on Flickr and follow Lady Liberty on Twitter.  

A weekly round-up of the latest promotions and executive appointments.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - What happens when you put a Muslim imam, a Christian priest, a rabbi and a Buddhist monk in a room with 10 atheists?

RIGA (Reuters) - Ready to give your soul for a loan in these difficult economic times? In Latvia, where the crisis has raged more than in the rest of the European Union, you can.

Lynne Kiesling Gee, I really feel like the new, new world has truly arrived, when one of the most visible conversations in the places I frequent is about Malcolm Gladwell's New Yorker review of Chris Anderson's Free: The Future of a Radical Price. Chris Anderson responds to Gladwell, continuing the conversation. But you know that it's game ... Read More from Knowledge Problem

Americans consume more fructose than ever before, yet concerns remain that the sugar, used to sweeten beverages and processed foods, poses health risks. In animals, fructose-rich diets increase the production of fat and promote resistance to the energy-regulating hormone insulin. New research suggests that memory suffers as well, at least in rats.

Neuroscientist Marise B. Parent of Georgia State University and her col­leagues fed 11 adolescent rats a diet in which fructose supplied 60 percent of the calories. For 10 other rats, cornstarch took the place of the sweetener. The scientists trained the rats to find a submerged platform in a pool, with the help of surrounding cues.

[More]

Healthy Mindswww.wliw.org/healthyminds

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A word to the wise: stay out of the emergency room this long weekend. [More]

Our top articles ranked by reader popularity.

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[The following is an exact transcript of this podcast.]

We might think perfect pitch is an innate talent. Well, a study in the American Journal of Human Genetics is providing some evidence for that.

[More]

University of Quebec's Team OMER found inspiration in nature--penguins, actually--as they set two international speed records last week at the International Human-Powered Submarine Races held at the U. S. Naval Surface Warfare Center's Carderock test tank in Bethesda, Md. [More]

Via Robin Goldstein, the work of Coco Krumme who analyzed wine reviews and classified words according to whether they are typically used to describe expensive or inexpensive wines. She found that “about 65% of commonly occurring words are non-overlapping.” Words like “old,” “elegant,” “intense,” “supple,” “velvety,” “smoky,” “to... Read More from Cheap Talk

As moviegoers make plans to watch summer blockbusters this weekend, there is an additional choice for New Yorkers: Journey to the Stars, the new space show opening July 4 at the Hayden Planetarium in the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) Rose Center for Earth and Space. [More]

The pain of balancing budgets is felt in California and many other states

THE mantra in Washington, DC, is simple: spend billions now, pay later. Congress has been crafting ambitious plans for energy, health care and transport. But the mood in state capitals has been different. Forty-six states had a deadline of June 30th to pass their budgets. Just as important, those budgets had to be balanced. With the sole exemption of Vermont America’s state governments, unlike the federal one, are not allowed to run deficits. For many states June was an agonising month.

Every state but two, commodity-rich North Dakota and Montana, has faced a deficit this year. One legislator in New Jersey described her state as “functionally bankrupt”. More than 5,000 Illinoisans gathered on June 23rd to protest against cuts to social services, with a child placed in a coffin for dramatic effect. In California, which faces a $24 billion gap, Arnold Schwarzenegger, the governor, sent the leader of the state Senate a metallic pair of bull testicles to urge him to cut spending. ...

Fiji is far from returning to democracy

On July 1st Fiji's unelected prime minister, Voreqe (Frank) Bainimarama, unveiled plans to introduce a new constitution by 2013. The new charter would replace the one that Mr Bainimarama abolished in April, paving the way for elections promised for 2014. Given that Mr Bainimarama, who seized power in a 2006 coup, has already broken his promise to hold elections by March 2009—and that he has spent the past two and a half years consolidating his grip on power—his latest pledge to restore democracy will be met with scepticism.

Mr Bainimarama's record in office does not augur well for the restoration of democracy by 2014. Since the 2006 coup, the interim government has silenced its domestic critics by restricting civil liberties, including freedom of assembly and expression. The bureaucracy has been purged of anti-coup figures and supporters of Mr Bainimarama's regime have been appointed in their place. ...

The bike shop is busy in June. If you bring your bike in for a tune up, it will cost $39 and take a week.

A week!

What if someone says, "I have a bike trip coming up in three days, can you do it by then?"

At most bike shops, the answer is a shrug, followed by, "I'm sorry, we're swamped."

The problem with telling people to go away is that they go away. And the problem with treating all customers the same is that customers aren't the same. They're different and they demand to be treated (and are often willing to pay) differently.

So, why not smile and say, "Oh, wow, that's a rush. We can do it, but it's expensive. It'll cost you $90. I know that's a lot, but there you go."

Outcome: Maybe they'll still leave. But maybe they'll happily pay you for the privilege of doing business with you. Why should this be your choice, not theirs?

If you do tax accounting for mid-size businesses, why not offer a special last-minute service? A service in which you process shoeboxes filled with unsorted papers? A service that costs less but happens during your slow season?

There are two really good reasons to turn down special requests:

1. because you're marketing yourself as extremely busy and perfectly willing to turn down good work.

2. because you want to market yourself as someone who is a rigid artist, a stick in the mud or a crotchety perfectionist. This works great for pizza places.

My presentation to open our Games for Health Conference track is now available via SlideShare:

See Bird's Eye View of Cognitive Health Innovation

Description: Scientific, technological and demographic trends have converged to create a new $265m market in the US alone: serious games, software and online applications that can help people of all ages assess and train cognitive abilities. Alvaro Fernandez will provide a Bird’s Eye View of the science, market segments and trends, competitive landscape, and main challenges ahead, based on The State of the Brain Fitness Software Market 2009 report released in May, which included Research Executive Briefs prepared by 12 leading scientists and a survey of 2,000+ decision-makers and early adopters.

61% of respondents to the survey Strongly Agreed with the statement “Addressing cognitive and brain health should be a healthcare priority.” But, 65% Agreed/Strongly Agreed with “I don't really know what to expect from products making brain claims.” In this session, Alvaro will publicly unveil the new book The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness: 18 Interviews with Scientists, Practical Advice, and Product Reviews, To Keep Your Brain Sharp, co-authored by neuropsychologist Dr. Elkhonon Goldberg and himself, aimed at helping consumers and professionals understand and navigate this growing field.

To see slides, check out Bird's Eye View of Cognitive Health Innovation

Enjoy the 4th of July!

Brain Fitness, brain fitness software, cognitive, cognitive health, demographic, g4h09, Games for Health, Games for Health Conference, innovation, neuropsychologist, scientific, Serious Games, slideshare, technological, trends

The world may be all a-Twitter, but it seems the inordinate amount of time now spent there is costing other places traffic. Given the social aspect of Twitter, it could be a forum killer long before it becomes a serious threat to Google. ...

doughty: valiant; brave.

Why airborne automobiles will never take off

WHAT is it about “flying cars” that makes otherwise sensible engineers lose touch with reality? Ever since Glenn Curtiss, a seaplane pioneer, racing legend and the Wright brothers’ rival, tried to make a flying car early in the last century, tinkerers have dreamed of having an automobile sprout wings, soar above the traffic, then land and tuck its wings away ready for a short trip into town. Flying cars of one sort or another have dominated the pages of schoolboy comics ever since.

Enthusiasm for flying cars reached a peak in the 1950s when the Ford Motor Company almost started mass-producing one. Studies done at the time showed such a vehicle was technically feasible, was fairly easy to manufacture and had commercial appeal. The markets identified for it included the police, ambulance and other emergency services plus the armed forces and wealthy individuals. ...

Beijing is steering a push toward wind and solar power, while the U.S. is just starting.

Action by the leaders of the Senate health committee cleared the way for a vote by the panel next week.

America provides around half of the foreign forces in Afghanistan

AMERICA, which provides the majority of the forces deployed to counter the Taliban, launched a big offensive in southern Afghanistan on Thursday July 2nd. The operation's aim is to take swift control over a strategically important valley in Helmand province, one of Afghanistan's most lawless regions, using thousands of Marines. By doing so America hopes to achieve what NATO forces have failed to do in several years—strike deep into the Taliban's stronghold and the country's main opium-growing region. The offensive is intended to bring a semblance of order to the country ahead of a presidential election on August 20th. Many British and other troops are also deployed. On Thursday two British soldiers were killed, including a colonel, the highest ranking British officer to die in Afghanistan since the invasion of 2001.

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The discovery that a periodic warming pattern in the central Pacific Ocean is linked to more frequent hurricanes in the Atlantic may help improve forecasts.

The United States will donate 420,000 packets of the antiviral drug Tamiflu to the Pan-American Health Organization to help fight the swine flu pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Iowa Republican is seeking details about insurance the company sold to a man in Texas that left him owing nearly $200,000 in medical bills.

Sanofi plans to begin marketing Multaq, generically known as dronedarone, in the United States this summer.

Compared to non-fiction.  Co-authorships leverage specialization.  Certainly there are heterogeneous strengths in fiction writing and this should create gains from collaboration.  But we don't see it.  I can't think of any great work of fiction that was co-authored.  There must be a good reason. Writing style is crucial in fiction.  Multip... Read More from Cheap Talk

The DuBois Review has a whole issue on the Obama election, with articles written by a slate of distinguished social scientists such as Howard Winant and Richard Thompson Ford. One especially interesting thing is a dialogue between Orlando Patterson and Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Here is the video. Recommended! If that's not enough, there have also been Oba... Read More from orgtheory.net

On July 2, an important and positive step was taken towards strengthening research capacity in Africa. As part of its African Institutions Initiative, the Wellcome Trust announced the formation of seven new international consortia, each led by an African institution. By developing research networks and building a critical mass of sustainable research capacity across Africa, local ability to tackle disease and poverty will be improved.

In the UK there may be up to 15 000 avoidable deaths from cancer every year in people over the age of 75 years. A study presented last week at the National Cancer Intelligence Network annual conference highlights the disparity in cancer mortality rates between the UK and 11 European countries and the USA. Using data from the WHO mortality database, Tony Moran and colleagues showed that between 2003 and 2005, cancer mortality rates in the UK were 23% higher than in six western European countries among those aged 75–84 years and 31% higher than in the USA among people over the age of 85 years. From 1995–97 to 2003–05, there was a 2% increase in cancer death rates in people older than 85 years in the UK; in western Europe, there was a 16% decrease. The UK's National Health Service has some of the world's top researchers and physicians. So why is the UK lagging behind its neighbours in delivering cancer care? There is scant research in this area, but limited access to effective state-of-the-art treatments, with policy makers placing much emphasis on cost-effectiveness for cancer drugs, might play a part.

Imposed development and loss of land have had disastrous effects on the health of Indigenous people everywhere. Paradoxically, Indigenous people endure not only the ill health associated with poverty but also the chronic diseases that come with the lifestyle in industrialised countries—a situation that is directly attributable to loss of land and traditions and the resultant move to poor urban environments.

Cardiovascular mortality has greatly reduced over the past 50 years, yet cardiovascular disease is expected to remain a leading cause of death worldwide over the next two decades. Most patients who present with an acute coronary syndrome in 2009 can expect to survive the initial event and enjoy a good quality of life. However, a small but substantial proportion of patients will present with recurrent ischaemic events or will die over the next 1–2 years; therefore, reducing this morbidity and mortality further is a target for ongoing research. These efforts have focused on strategies aimed at either plaque stabilisation (or regression) or more potent antithrombotic strategies. In The Lancet today, Jessica Mega and colleagues present the results of a phase II trial (ATLAS ACS-TIMI 46) assessing rivaroxaban for secondary prophylaxis in patients presenting with an acute coronary syndrome. Rivaroxaban is an oral direct factor Xa inhibitor that has been investigated extensively for prophylaxis of deep vein thrombosis in patients undergoing orthopaedic surgery. In previous studies, this drug provided better thromboprophylaxis without any excess of bleeding events than did enoxaparin.

Type 2 diabetes is reaching epidemic proportions. Therapeutic maintenance of strict glycaemic control limits the risk of microvascular (retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy) and macrovascular complications, and treatment of diabetes also requires aggressive intervention against dyslipidaemia, hypertension, and excessive weight. Yet only about 40% of type 2 diabetic patients reach target glycaemia with standard therapies (eg, metformin, sulphonylurea, and insulin). Moreover, many antihyperglycaemic drugs induce hypoglycaemia, weight gain, or both. Weight gain is undesirable because about 85% of type 2 diabetic patients are overweight or obese, which could worsen cardiovascular risk. Therefore, efficacious new antidiabetic agents without serious side-effects are highly desirable.

In The Lancet today, Peter Schmid and colleagues describe their long-term experience in the UK of the management of placental-site trophoblastic tumours. The report comes from the gestational trophoblastic disease centres at Charing Cross Hospital in London and Weston Park Hospital in Sheffield that serve patients with gestational trophoblastic disease in the UK, by mandate of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Department of Health. Placental-site trophoblastic tumour is the second most rare of gestational trophoblastic neoplasms, accounting for only 0·5% of patients with gestational trophoblastic disease worldwide.

The natural history of central nervous system infection by Trypanosoma brucei gambiense consists of a distinctive neurological syndrome (sleeping sickness) proceeding to inevitable death. For more than 50 years intravenous melarsoprol has been the most common therapeutic approach, but this arsenical compound can cause a reactive encephalopathy with high risk of mortality and shows falling efficacy in certain areas. Eflornithine is an efficacious alternative with fewer side-effects, but the need for its 6-hourly administration via slow infusion, over 14 days, has limited uptake in resource-poor settings. Oral nifurtimox shows too low an efficacy for routine use as monotherapy but has been tested recently in combination with eflornithine, yielding encouraging data on efficacy and side-effect profile.

In the past decade, the G8 played an important part in the establishment or support of global health initiatives that are at risk today of becoming part of the problem rather than the solution for granting health coverage to disadvantaged populations. The fragmentation of financing for global health and increased transaction costs contrast with the need for efficient and effective health systems, and underline the need for a review of quick-fix and selective approaches. In view of the present economic crisis, a heightened commitment from wealthy countries to sustain global health will be needed. As chair of the G8 Summit 2009, Italy will have a unique opportunity to renew its commitment to global health and orient action towards a more effective approach.

On June 20, The Lancet published the first results of the Maximising Positive Synergies Collaborative Group, which assessed the interactions between Global Health Initiatives and country health systems.

The International Whaling Commission (IWC) banned commercial whaling in 1986, except for the subsistence needs of Indigenous people and research. Norway and Iceland formally object to the moratorium and are therefore exempt from IWC regulations. Last month the IWC held its annual meeting, chaired by Cristian Maquieira, in Madeira, Portugal, on June 22–26. The committee met to provide a compromise on whaling regulation. Due to lack of progress within this year's meeting, any decision has been deferred until next year, with prospects of a new Japanese Government (a major whaling nation) in forthcoming elections. Also, the meeting did not come to a decision on Greenland's request to hunt ten humpback whales. The IWC grants the Greenland Inuit permission to hunt whales for subsistence.

Health workers are warning of an impending humanitarian disaster in Pakistan's camps for internally displaced people. Audil Rashid and Mian Nazish Adnan report on their visit to the camps.

Drastic threats to the land, rights, and culture of the northern Sámi population could adversely affect their mental and physical health, say experts. Kelly Morris investigates.

Each year more than 11 million people are locked up in US jails that incarcerate those who are awaiting trial, serving sentences of less than a year, or have violated parole conditions. As criminal justice and social policies in the USA have led to the incarceration of ever more people, jails have become the entry point into the correctional system. From a health perspective, jails collect people with HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, drug problems, mental illness, and victims and perpetrators of violence, and so prisons are both a lens through which to view urban epidemics and a site for public health interventions.

I am sitting down outside, in a city. It's pleasantly sunny and I can feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. I can hear a faint skirl of bagpipes and children laughing in the park as they hurl themselves down a steep bank. The smell of freshly cut grass is in the air. It feels good (even the bagpipe bit) and I'm relaxed. Before I'd read Healing Spaces by Esther Sternberg though, I wouldn't have been thinking about how the features of this environment that my senses are detecting could affect my capacity to heal. After this fascinating, engaging, and challenging read I'll think about the health consequences of where I am in a different way.

Marlene Kong had always thought about working in medicine. Now a general practitioner in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, she comes from a family of health-care professionals—her twin sister Marilyn, brother Kelvin, and their father, are all doctors, and their mother a nurse. Nothing unusual there, were it not for the fact that Kong is an Indigenous Australian; the Kong siblings alone represent 2·5% of Australia's 125 Indigenous doctors.

What are values? How do we discover those we live and work by? More crucially, how do we reappraise and develop them? Values inherent in practical wisdom, along with technical knowledge and skill, are the foundations of living and working, according to Aristotle. Values have substance only in practice: we are what we do; actions speak louder than words. Professional integrity can be defined as working according to values integrated within daily practice, but many practitioners might never have defined their own values explicitly. Insights into this vital area of professional life can be gained by writing stories about practice and discussing them with peers in confidence.

Dermatologist, founder of Turkish Leprosy Relief Association, and women's rights activist. Born on Dec 13, 1935, in Istanbul, Turkey, she died of liver cancer on May 18, 2009, in Istanbul, aged 73 years.

Since July, 2008, an armed conflict between the Taliban and the security forces in the districts of Buner, Swat, and Dir in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan has resulted in a large-scale migration of civilians. In the past 2 months, fighting has escalated and 1·96 million have so far been registered as displaced. The numbers are expected to rise further.

Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province, where the Swat Valley is located, has been excluded from the rest of Pakistan's society for a long time. The population has had no or very little access to economic, judiciary, and social development, let alone a democratic way of thinking. What is being dealt with is a long-term disenfranchisement problem.

In the JUPITER trial (April 4, p 1175), Paul Ridker and colleagues enrolled apparently healthy men and women who were regarded as being at increased vascular risk because of raised concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP). However, the assumption they make in associating elevated CRP concentrations with an enhanced inflammatory profile could be misleading in some patients. One study showed that certain polymorphisms in the CRP gene, although associated with substantial increases in CRP concentrations, are not in themselves associated with an increased risk of ischaemic vascular disease.

In JUPITER, Paul Ridker and colleagues found that, in people with normal LDL cholesterol concentrations and elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), rosuvastatin gave substantial benefit with regard to cardiovascular endpoints. Concentrations of hsCRP increase with inflammation of any cause, including the accumulation of modified LDL cholesterol within the arterial wall. The amount of LDL cholesterol accumulating within the intima depends on the cholesterol entering the arterial wall (LDL) and the cholesterol being removed from the arterial wall by reverse cholesterol transport (HDL).

The data presented by Paul Ridker and colleagues on the benefit of combined reduction of LDL cholesterol and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) with rosuvastatin are another piece in the puzzle of the effects of statins on cardiovascular prevention. From a public health point of view, however, a major question is whether the benefit of rosuvastatin is limited to patients with increased hsCRP (those included in JUPITER) or if similar results would have been found (at least in terms of relative risk reduction) whatever the initial level of hsCRP.

Paul Ridker and colleagues conclude that reductions of LDL cholesterol and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) are indicators of successful treatment with rosuvastatin. However, the JUPITER trial did not target specific concentrations of hsCRP or LDL cholesterol by means of a strategy of titration of rosuvastatin. Rather, it assessed a single dose versus placebo. No evidence was presented to suggest that adjusting statin doses to reach a particular concentration of hsCRP (or LDL cholesterol) would improve outcomes.

The clinical implications of the JUPITER study are substantial. Therefore an understanding of the methods matters even more than usual.

Although I laud Paul Ridker and colleagues for demonstrating the vascular anti-inflammatory benefits of rosuvastatin, we should consider the less expensive anti-inflammatory option: aspirin.

Paul Ridker and colleagues conclude that, for people who choose to start pharmacological prophylaxis, reductions in both LDL cholesterol and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein are indicators of the success of treatment with statin therapy.

We agree with Jaime García de Tena that smoking cessation, blood pressure control, and lifestyle modification remain important for primary prevention. However, half of all vascular events occur among those with average or low concentrations of cholesterol. JUPITER showed that targeting statin therapy to those with elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and low LDL cholesterol reduces heart attack and stroke by 50% and total mortality by 20%. Similar benefits were seen among those with elevated hsCRP and no other major risk factors.

Sheila Bird (May 9, p 1604) refers to the UK Healthcare Commission's withholding of national comparative data that national health service (NHS) organisations could use in their performance assessments. She focuses on the work relating to mortality alerts and investigations, but this was only part of the much wider relationship the Commission had with health-care organisations in terms of providing comparative information, much of which is being taken forward by the new regulator, the Care Quality Commission. These include information relating to a range of measures, not only mortality, that were published with the Annual Health Check every year. Suites of comparative indicators have also been made available to individual trusts, and we provide a portal for the Society of Cardiothoracic Surgeon's trust-wide mortality data.

At around midnight on June 4, the public school attended by my daughter in Buckinghamshire, UK, confirmed its first case of swine-origin influenza in addition to six probable cases. My daughter had returned home to London earlier that day, after her final examination. Alerted by email, parents of pupils at home, who might have been exposed to the virus, were instructed to contact their local general practitioner (GP) for a course of oseltamivir and to watch for any symptoms.

In their Comment (Jan 31, p 365), J H Cummings and colleagues address the definition of dietary fibre approved by the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) during its meeting in November, 2008.

Yusuf A, Lonn E, Bosch J. Lipid lowering for primary prevention. Lancet 2009; 373: 1152–55—In this Comment (April 4), the final row (HR) for the JUPITER column in the table should read “0·80 (0·67–0·97)”.

Bohlius J, Schmidlin K, Brillant C, et al. Recombinant human erythropoiesis-stimulating agents and mortality in patients with cancer: a meta-analysis of randomised trials. Lancet 2009; 373: 1532–42—In this Article (May 3), the upper limit of the x-axis in figure 4 should have been 2·0.