Do you all have anything fun & exciting planned for this weekend? As of right now, it looks like we'll be spending most of our weekend at home! Not much on our agenda, so hopefully I can finish up a few projects I've been working on lately and maybe even share them here on the blog next week! Fingers crossed!! :)
For this week's Happily Ever Before & After post, I am featuring a simple, but beautiful guest bedroom makeover courtesy of Christa at Brown Sugar Toast.?
Christa is a loving wife & mommy of two. She has a passion for Jesus, cooking up yummy recipes for her little family, and decorating her home. ?She states in her "About Me" Page that the main goal she has in blogging is that she wants to encourage others to live a creative & joyful life in Christ. Isn't that a wonderful goal to have?! I just love that!
Christa had a guest bedroom that was just begging for some attention. With a half bath attached to this room, Christa knew it would make a perfect space for visiting guests. She wanted to make it a warm & inviting place for their visitors, but also give the space a little personality. You'll see in just a minute, that she totally accomplished that goal!
Let's take a look at the room "Before"....
Pretty much a blank slate!?
Like most of us, Christa turned to Pinterest & other sources on the web for paint & color inspiration for the room. ?After finding a few inspiring photos, she figured out the direction she wanted to go with this space. Wanna see it?!
Let's take a look at the "After" photo....
SO PRETTY!!
I love the dark blue walls with the pops of yellow in the room. The yellow is such a great contrasting color...don't ya think?!
I also love the decision to go with white bedding for the room! The bedding & the white furniture really help to balance out the dark walls. I think its important to bring in lighter & brighter pieces when going with a bold & dark wall color like she did.
Christa made almost all of the accessories for this room....the throw pillows, the curtains, & wall art. Be sure to head on over to her blog to learn more about those projects & to see more inspiring photos of her new room!! You won't be disappointed! CLICK HERE
Looking for more room makeover inspiration?!? Be sure to check out my?"Happily Ever Before & After" Page. Gotta makeover that you would like to see featured in this segment?! Email me: tdiehl2005 (at) yahoo (dot) com
Thanks so much for stopping by!! I hope you all have a great weekend!! Don't Miss Out -?DIY projects, home decorating, crafts & more by checking out?my subscribe page.
Several major gaming press sites have been hoaxed by a disgruntled gamer who pretended to be a Microsoft employee who seeded rumours about next-gen hardware.
Posing as an anonymous insider, the hoaxer distributed an email claiming to know details of the next Microsoft console as well as a dedicated Surface-based gaming tablet which was dubbed the X-Surface.
The mail was sent out to a number of gaming publications early yesterday morning. Eight hours later it was being circulated as a valid news piece, although qualified as a rumour by most who published it. Before long, it had spread to many major gaming specific and technology sites, a ripple-effect which the hoaxer aptly describes as "Chinese whispers."
In the flurry of leaks and rumours surrounding the forthcoming next generation of home consoles, nearly every site has covered at least one set of leaked specifications or another, including GamesIndustry International. By taking advantage of the whirl of information, pulling various stats from different reports to form a nebulous but semi-convincing whole, the hoaxer exposed one of online reporting's major flaws: the rush to be quickest to publish.
"It's all about being first," the hoaxer wrote on a Tumblr page exposing the fake emails. "To get such news out (whether you believe it or not) before any other publication does, will guarantee you page impressions, and that all-important advertising revenue. Gaming 'journalism' is completely broken.
"By tagging a post with 'rumour', most writers/editors believe they can get away with spreading false information for their own benefits. They are the only ones to gain from such practices, whilst the gaming fans end up with speculation and, sometimes, outright lies."
Jan. 23, 2013 ? University of Alberta researchers used fossilized teeth to identify at least 23 species of small meat-eating dinosaurs that roamed western Canada and the United States, 85 to 65 million years ago.
Until now, only seven species of small two-legged meat-eating dinosaurs from the North American west had been identified.
U of A palaeontologist Philip Currie and student Derek Larson examined a massive dataset of fossil teeth that included samples from members of the families to which Velociraptor and Troodon (possibly the brainiest dinosaur) belong.
"Small meat-eating dinosaur skeletons are exceedingly rare in many parts of the world and, if not for their teeth, would be almost completely unknown," said Larson.
The researchers say the huge increase in the number of small meat-eating species to 23, shows that instead of a few species existing for many millions of years, there were actually many small meat-eating species, each existing for shorter periods of time.
"We can identify what meat-eaters lived in what geographic area or geologic age," explained Currie. "And we can do this by identifying just their teeth, which are far more common than skeletons."
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Alberta, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Derek W. Larson, Philip J. Currie. Multivariate Analyses of Small Theropod Dinosaur Teeth and Implications for Paleoecological Turnover through Time. PLoS ONE, 2013; 8 (1): e54329 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054329
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Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Tumor cells engineer acidity to drive cell invasion, Moffitt Cancer Center researchers sayPublic release date: 25-Jan-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Kim Polacek kim.polacek@moffitt.org 813-745-7408 H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
Using buffers to increase pH may inhibit cancer growth
Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues at Wayne State University School of Medicine investigated the acidity in solid tumors to determine if pH levels play a role in cancer cell invasion in surrounding tissues. They found that an acidic microenvironment can drive cancer cells to spread and propose that neutralizing pH would inhibit further invasion, providing a therapeutic opportunity to slow the progression of cancers.
Their study appeared in the Jan. 3 online release of Cancer Research, a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research.
According to the study's corresponding author, Robert J. Gillies, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Cancer Imaging & Metabolism at Moffitt, acidity in solid tumors is the result of an increased fermentative metabolism combined with poor delivery of blood to tissues.
In this study, tumor invasion and pH were monitored in immunodeficient laboratory mice hosting a variety of tumors. "We monitored the test animals over time using microscopy and found that the highest regions of tumor invasion corresponded to areas with the lowest pH," Gillies explained. "Tumor invasion did not occur in regions with normal or near normal pH levels. Furthermore, when we neutralized the acidity with oral sodium bicarbonate, the invasion was halted."
Researchers proposed that the acidic pH of the tumor microenvironment represents a "niche engineering" strategy on the part of tumor cells, promoting invasion and growth of malignant tumors into surrounding tissue. Niche engineering is a concept in ecology describes how plants and animals alter their environment to in ways that promote their own growth and survival over their competitors. "We have long regarded cancers cells as an invading species," said study co-author Robert Gatenby, M.D., chair of the Diagnostic Imaging Services and Integrated Mathematical Oncology departments at Moffitt.
A key to this process of adaptation and invasion is increased glucose metabolism in the tumor. "The vast majority of malignant tumors metabolize glucose at high rates," Gillies said. "We have proposed that there is a direct, causative link between increased glucose metabolism and the ability of cancer cells to invade and metastasize."
According to the research, elevated glucose metabolism is the cause of increased acidity in the tumor microenvironment. Most tumors develop an abnormal vascular network that tends to be poorly organized and leaky, disrupting blood flow and hampering the delivery of oxygen.
"This poorly organized vascular system has a two-fold effect on tumor acidity," explained Gatenby. "First, it subjects tumor regions to poor perfusion, which restricts oxygen and increases the rate of glucose fermentation. Second, the poor perfusion hampers the ability to eliminate the resulting acids, resulting in very low pH in surrounding tissues."
As tumor cells adapt to increasing acidity, niche engineering through normal cell death and new blood vessel formation occurs in the tumor and the immune response is suppressed.
"Tumor cells perform niche engineering by creating an acidic environment that is not toxic to the malignant cells but, through its negative effects on normal cells and tissues, promotes local invasion of malignant cells," Gatenby said.
The researchers suggested that targeting this activity with buffers and other mechanisms aimed at increasing pH levels will likely provide a valuable alternative to traditional therapies focused entirely on killing tumor cells.
###
Funding for this study came from federal grants U54 CA143970; R01 CA 077575; R01 CA 131990S.
About Moffitt Cancer Center
Located in Tampa, Moffitt is one of only 41 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, a distinction that recognizes Moffitt's excellence in research, its contributions to clinical trials, prevention and cancer control. Since 1999, Moffitt has been listed in U.S. News & World Report as one of "America's Best Hospitals" for cancer. With more than 4,200 employees, Moffitt has an economic impact on the state of nearly $2 billion. For more information, visit MOFFITT.org, and follow the Moffitt momentum on Facebook, twitter and YouTube.
Media release by Florida Science Communications
[ | E-mail | Share ]
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Tumor cells engineer acidity to drive cell invasion, Moffitt Cancer Center researchers sayPublic release date: 25-Jan-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Kim Polacek kim.polacek@moffitt.org 813-745-7408 H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
Using buffers to increase pH may inhibit cancer growth
Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues at Wayne State University School of Medicine investigated the acidity in solid tumors to determine if pH levels play a role in cancer cell invasion in surrounding tissues. They found that an acidic microenvironment can drive cancer cells to spread and propose that neutralizing pH would inhibit further invasion, providing a therapeutic opportunity to slow the progression of cancers.
Their study appeared in the Jan. 3 online release of Cancer Research, a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research.
According to the study's corresponding author, Robert J. Gillies, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Cancer Imaging & Metabolism at Moffitt, acidity in solid tumors is the result of an increased fermentative metabolism combined with poor delivery of blood to tissues.
In this study, tumor invasion and pH were monitored in immunodeficient laboratory mice hosting a variety of tumors. "We monitored the test animals over time using microscopy and found that the highest regions of tumor invasion corresponded to areas with the lowest pH," Gillies explained. "Tumor invasion did not occur in regions with normal or near normal pH levels. Furthermore, when we neutralized the acidity with oral sodium bicarbonate, the invasion was halted."
Researchers proposed that the acidic pH of the tumor microenvironment represents a "niche engineering" strategy on the part of tumor cells, promoting invasion and growth of malignant tumors into surrounding tissue. Niche engineering is a concept in ecology describes how plants and animals alter their environment to in ways that promote their own growth and survival over their competitors. "We have long regarded cancers cells as an invading species," said study co-author Robert Gatenby, M.D., chair of the Diagnostic Imaging Services and Integrated Mathematical Oncology departments at Moffitt.
A key to this process of adaptation and invasion is increased glucose metabolism in the tumor. "The vast majority of malignant tumors metabolize glucose at high rates," Gillies said. "We have proposed that there is a direct, causative link between increased glucose metabolism and the ability of cancer cells to invade and metastasize."
According to the research, elevated glucose metabolism is the cause of increased acidity in the tumor microenvironment. Most tumors develop an abnormal vascular network that tends to be poorly organized and leaky, disrupting blood flow and hampering the delivery of oxygen.
"This poorly organized vascular system has a two-fold effect on tumor acidity," explained Gatenby. "First, it subjects tumor regions to poor perfusion, which restricts oxygen and increases the rate of glucose fermentation. Second, the poor perfusion hampers the ability to eliminate the resulting acids, resulting in very low pH in surrounding tissues."
As tumor cells adapt to increasing acidity, niche engineering through normal cell death and new blood vessel formation occurs in the tumor and the immune response is suppressed.
"Tumor cells perform niche engineering by creating an acidic environment that is not toxic to the malignant cells but, through its negative effects on normal cells and tissues, promotes local invasion of malignant cells," Gatenby said.
The researchers suggested that targeting this activity with buffers and other mechanisms aimed at increasing pH levels will likely provide a valuable alternative to traditional therapies focused entirely on killing tumor cells.
###
Funding for this study came from federal grants U54 CA143970; R01 CA 077575; R01 CA 131990S.
About Moffitt Cancer Center
Located in Tampa, Moffitt is one of only 41 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, a distinction that recognizes Moffitt's excellence in research, its contributions to clinical trials, prevention and cancer control. Since 1999, Moffitt has been listed in U.S. News & World Report as one of "America's Best Hospitals" for cancer. With more than 4,200 employees, Moffitt has an economic impact on the state of nearly $2 billion. For more information, visit MOFFITT.org, and follow the Moffitt momentum on Facebook, twitter and YouTube.
Media release by Florida Science Communications
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
(Reuters) - A chemist at a western Massachusetts drug laboratory pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges of tampering with drug evidence, the second such accusation against a crime lab chemist in the state in recent months.
Sonja Farak, 35, was arraigned on two counts of tampering with evidence and two counts of drug possession, according to a court clerk at Eastern Hampshire District Court in Belchertown, Massachusetts. Farak, who was arrested on Saturday, was being held in custody in lieu of $5,000 bail.
Farak lives in Northampton and handled drug evidence at the Amherst Drug Laboratory on the University of Massachusetts campus about 90 miles west of Boston.
Prosecutors alleged that Farak, on two days in January, completed tests on samples that tested positive for illicit drugs, then removed relatively small quantities of heroin and cocaine for personal use and replaced the drugs with other substances.
Farak's attorney was not immediately available to comment.
The charges came a month after another state crime lab chemist in Boston, Annie Dookhan, 34, was indicted on charges of falsifying drug evidence in thousands of cases. She was arrested in September.
Investigators identified some 10,000 people convicted or accused of crimes based on evidence that Dookhan handled at the Hinton lab in Jamaica Plain, and state officials said in December that hundreds of people had been released from prison pending new trials in the investigation.
The new case against Farak fanned fears about potential effects on criminal cases involving evidence she handled, but state officials said a preliminary investigation indicates she allegedly stole already-tested illegal drugs for her own use.
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said in a Sunday press conference that "the allegations against do not implicate the reliability of testing done or fairness to defendants."
Meanwhile, the state's District Attorneys Association said it had begun internal case reviews to assess any potential impact from Farak's activities.
The Amherst lab campus stores and analyzes controlled substances seized by local and state police. Supervisors at the lab on Friday contacted State Police to report a discrepancy in the controlled substance evidence inventory, and police and Coakley's office began investigating.
Farak began working as a state lab chemist at the Hinton lab in 2002 and moved to the Amherst lab in 2004, Coakley said. State police assumed oversight of the Hinton and Amherst labs from the Department of Public Health in July after learning of Dookhan's activities.
Both the Amherst and Hinton labs have been temporarily closed and the chemists moved to another lab.
India is trying hard to get the rural poor access to bank accounts and loans.It is a laudable aim. As Reuters reports, only 35 of Indians have bank accounts. The countrys farmers are incredibly unproductive Out Of Bankruptcy After Filing
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#39 We Must Act#39 As the NYT put it, the American President, suffused his second Inaugural Address with the spirit of a favourite phrase the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s call to heed the fierce urgency of now.Printable Us Map To Label States
Vietnams Sang Says Low Growth a Must While Restructuring Vietnam must accept low economic growth while it restructures its economy and should aim for annual expansion of at least 5 percent, according to President Truong Tan Sang.Bankruptcy Court Los Angeles California
Schools must prepare better for snow, says education chairman, as 800 close today Schools must be better prepared for snow as the thousands of closures across Britain are having a huge impact in terms of quotlost education and wasted moneyquot, a senior Tory has said.Private Student Loans Ok Bankruptcy
The Note#39s Must-Reads for Tuesday, January 22, 2013 The Notes Must-Reads are a round-up of todays political headlines and stories from ABC News and the top U.S. newspapers. Posted Monday through Friday right here at www.abcnews.com Compiled by ABC News Jayce Henderson, Amanda VanAllen and Jordan Mazza INAUGURAL ADDRESS ABC News Devin DwyerFree Anniversary Poem By Helen Steiner
The Note#39s Must-Reads for Monday, January 21, 2013 The Notes Must-Reads are a round-up of todays political headlines and stories from ABC News and the top U.S. newspapers. Posted Monday through Friday right here at www.abcnews.com Compiled by ABC News Jayce Henderson, Amanda VanAllen and Jordan Mazza REVENUE ABC News George Stephanopolous DavidPreschool Printables Newsletter
Schools must prepare better for snow, says education chairman Schools must be better prepared for snow as the thousands of closures across Britain are having a huge impact in terms of quotlost education and wasted moneyquot, a senior Tory has said.Kindergarten Math Centers Free Printable
Obama We must reduce health costs, deficit President Barack Obama says the nation must make the quothard choicesquot to reduce the cost of health care and the size of the deficit.But the president said every citizen deserves a basic measure Bank Account Software Requirements Specifications
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Public release date: 25-Jan-2013
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