Anvil | SilverScorpio.Com

Simplified test for early breast cancer detection on the anvil

April 17, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Washington, Apr 17 (ANI): A library of synthetically produced antibodies that can detect and rapidly validate proteins secreted by breast cancer cells is being built by University of Arkansas researchers.

The researchers’ work will accelerate the process of developing a simple blood test for early detection of breast cancer.

“We want to implement a rapid screen that is sensitive – meaning highly accurate – non-invasive and inexpensive,” said Shannon Servoss, assistant professor of chemical engineering. “Such a test would be easy to use – as easy as a pregnancy test – and applicable to women of all ages, races and ethnicities. The ultimate goal, of course, is early detection of breast cancer.”

At the moment, researchers use specific protein binders called affinity reagents, which are molecules that interact with proteins, to recognize and validate proteins that indicate breast cancer. But this process is tedious and problematic because there are a limited number of affinity reagents available, and techniques to develop them are slow and expensive.

Servoss’s team seeks to overcome these obstacles by developing a collection of affitoids, which are synthetic, peptoid-based affinity reagents. A library of these affitoids, which are inexpensive and easy to make, will facilitate the development of techniques for protein validation.

The affitoids have other advantages. They can be designed to have desired properties, such as structural stability and specificity for a single protein. They also do not have to be limited to breast cancer detection. They could be designed to detect other complex diseases.

“This technique is superior to those currently available because affitoids specific for proteins secreted by breast cancer cells can be rapidly selected from a large collection, which isn’t too expensive to build,” Servoss said. “The selected affitoids will be used to determine a profile – a protein fingerprint – that indicates breast cancer. Of course, all of this is happening at the cell level, before the tumor is detectable.” (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: affinity, antibodies, anvil, Arkansas Researchers, assistant professor, Binders, blood test, breast cancer, breast cancer cells, Breast Cancer Detection, Chemical Engineering, Early Detection Of Breast Cancer, molecules, obstacles, Pregnancy Test, protein, proteins, reagents, specificity, university of arkansas

Reform of Education system on anvil

July 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, July 13 (ANI): In a bid to check the drop out rate in higher education, the Centre would launch Madhyam Shiksha Abhiyan programme as part of the proposed education reforms.

“We want to take Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan forward as Madhyam Shiksha Abhiyan as the drop out rate increases in higher education,” Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said during Question Hour in the parliament.

Sibal also said that the government has no policy to introduce “uniform syllabus” in all the universities.

“Let there be creativity. Let there be competition among universities. So this is not government’s policy to introduce uniform syllabus in universities,” he said.

There may be a university focussing on bio-science and another on humanities, he said adding that let the student choose the university based on his or her preference.

He, however, said there should be a CBSE (class 10th or 12th) degree for skilled education as children want jobs immediately after completing school rather than pursuing professional courses.

On the issue of complaints regarding diversion of funds by states under the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, Sibal said there were lakhs of schools across the country, it was not possible to carry out audit of each and every school and the CAG takes a sample audit.

Furthermore, he informed the parliament that the Government is in favour of bringing about a regulatory body to monitor the functioning of foreign universities as it is determined to prevent the exploitation of Indian students.

“We will not allow our students to be exploited by any one. We have our eyes firmly on setting up several world-class educational institutions which could make our children compete with others anywhere,” Sibal said. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: abhiyan, ANI, anvil, audit, bid, Bio Science, body, CAG, cbse, centre, class, competition, country, creativity, degree, Development, development minister, diversion, drop, Education, Education Reforms, education system, educational institutions, exploitation, favour, focussing, functioning, Government, higher education, hour, human, human resource development, Humanities, indian students, issue, July, Kapil, kapil sibal, lakhs, Madhyam, minister, New Delhi, parliament, part, policy, preference, Professional Courses, programme, question, rate, Rate Increases, reform, Regulatory Body, resource, sample, Sarva, school, shiksha, Sibal, Siksha, student, Syllabus, system, uniform, University

Novel vaccine to prevent ear infections on the anvil

July 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 1 (ANI): Scientists are working on a novel vaccine that may one day help prevent ear infections.

Presently, ear infections are generally treated through antibiotics or surgery, in case they occur often enough.

“The emergence of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms and the invasive nature of the surgical procedure raise the need to develop different ways to treat or, preferably, prevent ear infections,” said Dr Lauren Bakaletz, director of the Centre for Microbial Pathogenesis in The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

The new vaccine being developed in collaboration with Dr John Clements, at Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans, was recently tested by placing a droplet of formula on the outer ears of chinchillas and then rubbed into the skin.

The vaccine works by activating cells, which can be found just under the surface of the skin.

When the liquid touches the skin the cells deliver the vaccine to the lymphoid organs, where it can generate an immune response rapidly reducing or eliminating NTHI, one of the bacteria commonly responsible for ear infections, from the nose and ears.

Bakaletz said that it was extremely effective, and that her research team was excited about the ability to immunize without needles.

“These studies lay the foundation for an effective, yet simple, inexpensive and potentially transformative way to deliver vaccines,” said Bakaletz.

“It’s our hope the method of applying the vaccine to the skin will allow us to distribute it to some of the poorest children in the world,” she added.

In addition to protecting against ear infections, the research could have important implications for the prevention of other diseases of the respiratory tract caused by NTHI. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ability, addition, ANI, antibiotics, anvil, Bakaletz, case, centre, children, Children S Hospital, chinchillas, collaboration, day, director, Dr John Clements, dr john, droplet, ear, ear infections, effective, emergence, formula, Foundation, hospital, immune response, immunize, institute, Invasive Nature, John Clements, July, lauren, lymphoid, Lymphoid Organs, medicine, method, microbial, microbial pathogenesis, Microorganisms, nationwide, Nature, need, New Orleans, nose, novel, Novel Vaccine, NTHI, Outer Ears, pathogenesis, presently, prevention, procedure, Research, Respiratory Tract, response, school, school of medicine, skin, surface, surgery, team, tract, tulane, Tulane University School, Tulane University School Of Medicine, University, vaccine, vaccines, Washington, way, world

Gecko-inspired multifocal contact lenses, cameras on the anvil

May 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, May 8 (ANI): Scientists are all set to harness the mechanism behind nocturnal geckos’ unique ability to see colours at night, in making multifocal contact lenses and better cameras.

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have found that the key to the exceptional night vision of the nocturnal helmet gecko is a series of distinct concentric zones of different refractive powers.
The multifocal optical system in geckos is comprised of large cones, which was calculated to be over 350 times more sensitive than human cone vision at the human colour vision threshold.

“We were interested in the geckos because they – and other lizards – differ from most other vertebrates in having only cones in their retina.With the knowledge from the gecko eyes we might be able to develop more effective cameras and maybe even useful multifocal contact lenses,” said project leader Dr. Lina Roth, from the Department of Cell and Organism Biology at the university.

The nocturnal geckos’ multifocal optical system gives them an advantage because light of different ranges of wavelengths can focus simultaneously on the retina.

Another possible advantage of their optical structure is that their eyes allow them to focus on objects at different distances, which makes their multifocal eye to generate a sharp image for at least two different depths.

Roth said that geckos that are active during the day do not possess the distinct concentric zones and are considered monofocal.

The scientists also developed a new method to gather optical data from live animals without any harm to their modifications to the Hartmann-Shack wavefront sensor.

“Studies of animals with relatively large eyes, such as owls and cats, have included surgery and fixation of the head. In this study, we demonstrate that it is possible to obtain high-resolution wavefront measurements of small, unharmed gecko eyes without completely controlling the gaze or the accommodation of the animal eyes,” said the authors.

The study has been published online in the Journal of Vision. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ability, accommodation, advantage, ANI, animal, anvil, biology, cell, colour, Colour Vision, Concentric Zones, cone, Cone Vision, contact, day, department, Dr. Lina Roth, eye, fixation, gecko, Gecko-inspired, Geckos, harm, harness, Hartmann, head, helmet, image, journal, key, knowledge, Large Eyes, leader, light, live animals, lizards, Lund, lund university in sweden, May, mechanism, method, monofocal, multifocal, Multifocal Contact Lenses, night, nocturnal, Online, Optical Data, Optical System, organism, Organism Biology, project, project leader, retina, roth, sensor, series, shack, structure, study, surgery, Sweden, system, threshold, University, university in sweden, vertebrates, vision, Washington, wavefront, Wavefront Sensor, wavelengths

Swine flu vaccine on the anvil

May 4, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, May 4 (ANI): After the recent swine flu scare, researchers from all over the world have stepped up efforts to build a vaccine, and British scientists are the latest to join the race.

A team from National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC) in Hertfordshire have started their work for developing a vaccine against the H1N1 virus.

The researchers aim to drill a hole in hen’s egg, which are considered ideal for growing up flu viruses.

“They are like virus production factories,” the BBC quoted principal scientist Dr John Wood as saying.

The process involves injecting a small amount of virus into each egg.

The scientists are using two different techniques for the process.

The first one is “reverse genetics”, where scientists take the H and the N surface proteins from the H1N1 virus and mix them with a laboratory virus known as PR8.

This leads to a creation of a harmless hybrid virus, which can be used for the vaccine.

The second technique involves injecting both the H1N1 and PR8 viruses into eggs and allowing the hybrid strain to be created through a natural re-assortment of their genes.

The vaccine will work by dodging the immune system into thinking it has been infected with the H1N1 swine flu virus so that it creates antibodies against it.

The researchers hope that the first seed strain of H1N1 swine flu vaccine will be ready in three to four weeks.

It will then take another four or five months for vaccine manufacturers to produce the vaccine in bulk. (ANI)

Filed Under: Health News Tagged With: antibodies, anvil, biological standards, British scientists, dr john, five months, Flu, flu virus, flu viruses, hertfordshire, hybrid virus, john wood, laboratory virus, nibsc, Principal Scientist, production factories, Surface Proteins, swine flu vaccine, vaccine manufacturers, virus production

Gene therapy for Huntington disease on the anvil

April 21, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Apr 21 (ANI): Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have come a step closer to using gene therapy for Huntington disease.

The team led by Kelvin J. A. Davies, professor of gerontology in the USC Davis School of Gerontology and professor of biological sciences in the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences has found that a form of the gene RCAN1, known as RCAN1-1L, is dramatically decreased in human brains affected by Huntington disease.

“Our findings allow for the possibility that controlled over-expression of RCAN1-1L might in the future be a viable avenue for therapeutic intervention in Huntington disease patients,” said Davies.

The investigators also showed that increasing levels of RCAN1-1L rescues cells from the toxic effects of Huntington disease, a result that could someday lead to new avenues of treatment.

“Our discovery offers real hope and may even have wide-ranging implications for a variety of other important CAG repeat-related diseases,” Davies said.

“It is important to keep in mind that these protective findings are in-vitro, meaning in cell cultures,” said lead author Gennady Ermak, research associate professor at the USC Davis School of Gerontology.

“Further proof of protection by RCAN1-1L will be required in-vivo, or in actual Huntington disease patients,” Ermak added.

The study appears in Journal of Biological Chemistry. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: 1l, ANI, anvil, Apr, arts, author, avenue, biological, biological sciences, CAG, cell, cell cultures, chemistry, college, Davis, discovery, disease, disease patients, Ermak, form, gene, gene therapy, general, Gennady, Gerontology, hope, hospital, human brains, Huntington, Huntington Disease, intervention, journal, journal of biological chemistry, Kelvin, Kelvin J. A. Davies, Letters Arts, massachusetts, massachusetts general hospital, mgh, mind, new avenues, possibility, professor, proof, protection, RCAN, Research, research associate professor, result, school, step, study, team, Therapeutic Intervention, therapy, toxic effects, treatment, USC, Usc College, variety, Washington

Revolutionary treatment to obtain bone marrow from stem cells on the anvil

April 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, April 17 (ANI): Researchers at Universiti de Montrial have successfully produced a large quantity of laboratory stem cells from a small number of blood stem cells obtained from bone marrow.

The research team, led by Dr. Guy Sauvageau, has taken a giant step towards the development of a revolutionary treatment based on these stem cells.

It is known that a bone marrow stem cell transplant can reconstitute the recipient’s bone marrow. The main difficulty is to obtain a sufficient number of compatible stem cells.

But these patients will be able to obtain new bone marrow within the next few years, thanks to Sauvageau and his team.

“It could be possible to envision transplants for all adults from existing umbilical cord blood banks. The stem cell content of these blood banks is currently too limited for large-scale use in adults,” Sauvageau said.

Presently, transplant recipients are condemned to take medications against rejection of the transplanted organ and suffer the side effects for the rest of their lives.

However, “mouse studies exist, showing that bone marrow stem cells can prevent the rejection typically directed against solid organs,” Sauvageau said.

Rejection occurs because the immune system cells manufactured by bone marrow attack the transplanted organ as if it were an invader.

By extrapolation from laboratory studies, it is very likely that transplanting hematopoietic stem cells collected from the organ donor and developed in the laboratory could avoid rejection of this organ.

This is why it is important to have large quantities of hematopoietic stem cells, so that compatible stem cells can be matched with the organ to be transplanted.

To produce large quantities of hematopoietic stem cells in the laboratory, the researchers identified 10 proteins out of 700 candidates.

These 10 proteins are naturally present in hematopoietic stem cells and researchers can use each of them to force these cells to multiply in the laboratory.

“The next step is to verify whether this also works in humans. Everything is already in place,” Sauvageau said.

The findings are being published in the prestigious scientific journal Cell. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: anvil, blood cells, bone cells, Bone marrow, cell content, cord blood banks, dr guy, extrapolation, giant step, Hematopoietic Stem Cells, immune system cells, Laboratory Studies, Montrial, organ donor, organs, proteins, rejection, Revolutionary Treatment, sauvageau, stem cell transplant, transplant recipients, transplants, umbilical cord blood banks

Anorexia drugs on the anvil

March 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Mar 29 (ANI): Anorexia treating drugs could be developed following study which found that subtle differences in brain development in the womb can be responsible for the condition.

In a research, scientists have found that 70 per cent of anorexic individuals show signs of problems with neurotransmitters, chemicals which help brain cells communicate, reports The Telegraph.

The report, which will be released at a conference at the Institute of Education in London this week, suggests that these developmental changes meant the patients were particularly vulnerable to eating disorders – a finding which prompted authors to propose screening children at the age of eight and experts to claim it could “pave the way for the first drugs”.
One of the report’s authors, Ian Frampton, an honorary consultant in paediatric psychology at London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital, said: “Our research shows that certain kids’ brains develop in such a way that makes them more vulnerable to the more commonly known risk factors for eating disorders, such as the size-zero debate, media representations of very skinny women and bad parents.

“Arguments that social factors such as girls feeling under pressure to lose weight in order to look like high-profile women in the media contain logical flaws because almost everyone is exposed to them, yet only a small percentage of young people get anorexia.”

Susan Ringwood, chief executive of Beat, an eating disorder charity, said the research could “pave the way for the first drugs to be developed to treat eating disorders, similar to the way that anti-depressants help rebalance the brain of people with depression”.

“Parents always blame themselves,” she said, “but what we are learning more and more is that some people are very vulnerable to anorexia and that is down to genetic factors and brain chemistry and not them trying to look like celebrity models or suffering a major traumatic even early in their lives.” (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: age, ANI, anorexia, anti depressants, anvil, arguments, beat, brain, brain cells, Brain Chemistry, brain development, celebrity, celebrity models, cent, charity, chemistry, condition, conference, consultant, debate, depression, Development, Development In The Womb, developmental, Developmental Changes, disorder, Education, everyone, executive, genetic factors, Great, great ormond street, Great Ormond Street Hospital, help, Honorary Consultant, hospital, Ian Frampton, institute, institute of education, Logical Flaws, London, mar, Media Representations, order, Ormond, percentage, pressure, psychology, rebalance, report, Research, research scientists, risk, screening, Screening Children, skinny, Skinny Women, social factors, street, study, subtle differences, Susan Ringwood, Telegraph, way, week, weight, womb, Women In The Media

Equal right to royal women in Britain on anvil

March 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Mar.27 (ANI): Britain could soon witness a historic change in the rules of succession to the throne, including giving royal women an equal right to access the throne.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown held an important meeting with Buckingham Palace in this regard.

According to the BBC, Brown also put forth a resolution to do away with the ban on heirs to the throne marrying Roman Catholics.

Brown during his visit to Brazil earlier had already hinted towards a need for such reforms.

“There are clearly issues about the exclusion of people from the rights of succession and there are clearly issues that have got to be dealt with.But I think in the 21st Century people do expect discrimination to be removed and they do expect us to be looking at all these issues,” Brown had said.

Sources privy to the Downing Street confirmed the prime minister would raise the prospect of the major reforms at a Commonwealth summit in November this year.

If such Act to give equal right to the royal daughters comes into fore, then Princess Anne would be fourth in line to the throne, behind Prince Harry. Currently she is behind the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex, and their children. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 21st century, act, ANI, anvil, ban, bbc, Brazil, Britain, British, british prime minister, british prime minister gordon brown, brown, buckingham, buckingham palace, century, change, commonwealth, Commonwealth Summit, discrimination, Downing Street, duke, duke of york, Earl, Earl Of Wessex, equal, Equal Right, exclusion, fore, Gordon Brown, Heirs To The Throne, line, London, mar, meeting, minister, need, November, palace, prime minister gordon brown, Prince Harry, Princess Anne, prospect, regard, resolution, right, roman, Roman Catholics, royal women, succession, summit, throne, visit, Wessex, witness, year, york

Cancer-sniffing artificial noses on the anvil

March 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Feb 28 (ANI): Duke University researchers are decoding the way people’s noses recognize scents – a development that will lay the groundwork for a future of cancer-sniffing artificial noses.

In an experiment, researchers tested hundreds of receptor gene types found in human and mouse noses, reports National Geographic News.

Scientists were able to figure out which receptors respond to which odor molecules and translate the smells into brain signals by inundating the receptors with odors.

Unlocking this interface would show how the brain recognizes and reacts to different smells.

“We used many different types of [odorus] chemicals, from strawberries to garlic, and these chemicals have specific structure. [We asked] what kinds of receptors are activated by each?” said study co-author Harumi Saito of Duke University.

“Only three receptor types facilitate all of color vision,” said geneticist Joel Mainland of the Duke University Medical Center, whose findings will appear in tomorrow’s issue of the journal Science.

“For human smell you have 400 [receptors], so it becomes a very complex system to decode,” the expert added.

Avery Gilbert, author of What the Nose Knows: The Science of Scent in Everyday Life, added that “the big problem is lining up which odor molecules go with which receptors. It’s as if you have a pile of locks and a pile of keys and you’ve got to find out which key goes to each lock.”

Knowing how different receptors recognize odors could help produce artificial noses able to sniff out scents from cancer to bombs. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: anvil, artificial noses, Brain signals, color vision, complex system, duke university medical, duke university medical center, geneticist, harumi, journal science, many different types, National Geographic News, odor molecules, receptor gene, receptor types, receptors, saito, scents, university medical center, university researchers

China to buy 13,000 Jaguars as part of new Mo

March 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb.28 (ANI): TATA-owned Jaguar Land Rover yesterday signed a “very significant” order to supply 13,000 vehicles to China.

The vehicles will be supplied over a three-year period, The Sun reports.

The news is a huge boost for the company – which employs thousands of workers in the UK at sites including Castle Bromwich and Solihull in the West Midlands and Halewood, Merseyside.

Yesterday the car firm said sales in China have been “growing rapidly” in recent years and the country had already become established as its fifth largest market in the world.

Bosses have signed an agreement called a memorandum of understanding with a business partner in the Far East.

They called it a “solid base” to build on in a “key emerging market”.

A spokesman added: “It is particularly welcomed at this challenging time for us and the automotive industry.”

The sale to China comes days after it was announced that a deal to save hundreds of jobs at the TATA-owned carmaker Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is on the anvil.

According to Sky News, the deal with the unions should save JLR 60 million pounds.

Staff at the firm has been voting on proposals to cut their hours and freeze pay in exchange for the guarantee of no compulsory redundancies for two years.

Under the deal, workers would work a four-day week, with hours cut from 35 hours to 32. They would also give up bonuses and have their pay frozen until October 2010.

The proposals have been hammered out between the unions and Jaguar Land Rover bosses.

“We”re very clear about what our requests are and we”ll see what response we get at that time,” Jaguar boss David Smith was quoted, as saying.

Some workers voted on Monday on the proposals – others were voting on Tuesday – and the result is due to be announced on Thursday.

Union bosses told Sky News they are confident staff will back the deal.

JLR is based in Gaydon, Warwickshire, and employs about 15,000 people in Castle Bromwich, Coventry, Solihull, and Halewood in Merseyside.

Jaguar cut 450 jobs in January and like other carmakers has held production suspensions. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 60 million, anvil, automotive industry, business partner, car firm, castle bromwich, compulsory redundancies, david smith, emerging market, gaydon, halewood, jlr, london feb, memorandum of understanding, Merseyside, significant order, sky news, solihull, union bosses, warwickshire

Tough Oz opener Hughes says he is ready for Proteas chin music

February 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Johannesburg, Feb.25 (ANI): Debutant Australian opener Phillip Hughes is not too concerned about walking out to the middle of the Wanderer’s cricket ground on Thursday to meet South Africa’s much vaunted pace attack.

Hughes is unperturbed and unflappable. Waiting to ruin his day, will be Dale Steyn and Makhaya Ntini.

Steyn took 10 wickets here last time and it has always been a happy hunting ground for Ntini.

But what does Hughes say?
“They played very well in Australia and now we come here. It’s definitely going to be a tough series and it’s definitely one we’re looking forward to.”

“In Australia, the domestic competition there has the likes of Shaun Tait, you face those guys in the nets. Obviously the nets are different, but there’s great skill and great bowlers around Australia. Obviously it’s a bigger stage and it’s going to be a challenge, no doubt. I love challenges.”

Hughes is buttoned down, polite, quiet and respectful, and tough too.
The selectors noticed it in Tasmania earlier this year. It wasn’t just that he scored half the NSW totals in both innings on a tricky deck, it was the way he got up off the ropes when he was sconned by Ben Hilfenhaus.

The delivery would have shaken a building and it shook Hughes. Selector David Boon was watching at the time and gets that delightful old chuckle going when he recalls the hit.

“Hilfy cleaned him up, it bopped him really hard and he stood there,” the hard man says, his moustache quivering with delight.

“It obviously knocked him around, shook him about a bit, but he took his time, got himself right and got back into the job and nothing changed.”

Boon was an anvil and Hughes appears the same. It remains to be seen whether the kid ever rubs a sore spot. The Tasmanian didn’t. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: anvil, bowlers, chin music, dale steyn, david boon, domestic competition, happy hunting ground, hard man, Johannesburg, makhaya ntini, moustache, no doubt, pace attack, ropes, selectors, shaun tait, tasmania, those guys, wanderer, wickets

Deal to save jobs at TATA-owned Jaguar on anvil

February 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb.25 (ANI): A deal to save hundreds of jobs at the TATA-owned carmaker Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is on the anvil.ccording to Sky News, the deal with the unions should save JLR 60 million pounds.

Staff at the firm has been voting on proposals to cut their hours and freeze pay in exchange for the guarantee of no compulsory redundancies for two years.

Under the deal, workers would work a four-day week, with hours cut from 35 hours to 32. They would also give up bonuses and have their pay frozen until October 2010.

The proposals have been hammered out between the unions and Jaguar Land Rover bosses.

“We’re very clear about what our requests are and we’ll see what response we get at that time,” Jaguar boss David Smith was quoted, as saying.

Some workers voted on Monday on the proposals – others were voting on Tuesday – and the result is due to be announced on Thursday.

Union bosses told Sky News they are confident staff will back the deal.

JLR is based in Gaydon, Warwickshire, and employs about 15,000 people in Castle Bromwich, Coventry, Solihull, and Halewood in Merseyside.

Jaguar cut 450 jobs in January and like other carmakers has held production suspensions. (ANI)

Filed Under: Business News Tagged With: 60 million, anvil, carmakers, castle bromwich, compulsory redundancies, coventry, david smith, gaydon, halewood, jaguar, jlr, land rover, london feb, Merseyside, sky news, solihull, suspensions, TATA, union bosses, warwickshire

Less claustrophic MRI machines on the anvil

February 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Feb 19 (ANI): Scientists from University of Zurich have come up with new MRI design that will not only improve scanning but also be less claustrophic.

They described a simple change to MRI machines that may provide better coverage at higher powers while also leaving more room for the patient.

Traditional MRI scans require patients to be placed closer to the radio frequency coils, which deliver the magnetic waves, in the scanning tube that also results in a claustrophobic feel for patients.

In the new study, David Brunner, a physicist at the University of Zurich, have replaced the coils with an antenna placed up to 9.8 feet (3 meters) away from a patient, thus making more room.

The antenna transmits and receives the radio frequency waves, which are focused by a special conductive lining inside the MRI scanning tube.

The extra room “will usually be on the order of 15-20 centimetres [6-8 inches] in diameter, which really is a lot in terms of patient comfort,” National Geographic quoted study co-author Klaas Pruessmann, as saying.

Moreover, the ‘travelling waves’ transmitted by the antenna would help more uniform coverage of large body parts and gain deeper insights.

Pruessmann said that the technology “is currently being explored in centres around the world, including many in the U.S., and early pre-clinical applications look very promising.”

Peter Bornert, principal scientist at Philips Research Europe in Hamburg, Germany, called the new approach “very promising from a scientific point of view.”

The findings are published in journal Nature. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ANI, Antenna, anvil, approach, body, change, co-author, comfort, coverage, David Brunner, design, diameter, Europe, Feb, feel, frequency, gain, geographic, Germany, Hamburg, journal, Klaas Pruessmann, lining, lot, mri, national, Nature, order, patient, Peter Bornert, philips, physicist, point, radio, Research, room, scientist, study, Technology, the, traditional, tube, uniform, University, US, view, Washington, world, zurich

India for zero tolerance towards terrorism, left wing extremism

February 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Mumbai, Feb 10 (ANI): India has said a plan of action is on the anvil to check terror attacks and rein in left-wing extremists.
“Both in case of terrorism and in case of Naxalites (Maoists), left wing extremism our policy is zero tolerance. We will not tolerate any act of terror. We will not tolerate left wing extremist activity,” Chidambaram said in Mumbai after reviewing the internal security situation in the state on Monday.

The attack underlined the persistent threat that authorities face from rebel activity ahead of national elections expected by May.

Chidambaram said a plan of action was agreed upon to counter the Maoists and would be implemented soon.

“I am very saddened by the loss of 15 lives in Gadchiroli. Naxalism poses a threat to Maharashtra was confined to three districts Gadchiroli and Gondia. Now, it is moved to even to Gujarat-Maharashtra border. So, we have agreed upon a plan of action that will be implemented,” he said.

At least 200 people were killed in attacks in Mumbai late last year while suspected Maoists killed 15 policemen in the same state last month.

Maoists say they are fighting for the rights of poor farmers and landless labourers in an insurgency Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described as one of the gravest threats to the country’s internal security. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: act of terror, anvil, Chidambaram, extremist activity, internal security, labourers, Maharashtra, manmohan, Manmohan Singh, maoists, national elections, poor farmers, prime minister manmohan, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, rebel activity, security situation, terror attacks, wing extremism, wing extremists, zero tolerance

Pakistan Ban on Indian channels on the anvil

January 13, 2009 By Rajesh Leave a Comment

Islamabad, Jan.13 (ANI): Cable operators in Pakistan may soon have to black out airing Indian channels as the Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting has recommended a ban on all Indian channels being telecast by the cable operators across the country, The Daily Times reported.

PML-Q leader Tariq Azeem has asked the government to immediately ban the Indian TV channels from being aired in Pakistan, amidst rising tension between both the countries.

Azeem said that the Indian government has banned the books of Pakistani authors from being sold in India, so Pakistan should also give a reply to the Indian stance by slapping a ban on the T.V. channels.

The committee members also recommended that screening of Bollywood movies by the cable operators, and in theaters, should be stopped immediately.

“The government should immediately ban the Indian channels till normalization of relations between the two countries. It should direct the cable operators to stop screening Indian movies too,” said a committee member, Liaquat Bangulzai.

Awami National Party (ANP) leader Haji Adeel, however, had a different opinion on the issue.

“The ban should be on the Indian entertainment channels only, and not on the news channels so that Pakistanis could know what actually they (India) are propagating against Pakistan,” said Adeel. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Adeel, amidst, ANI, ANP, anvil, awami, ban, Bangulzai, bollywood, broadcasting, cable, committee, country, daily, entertainment, Government, Haji, India, Indian banned Pakistan books, information, Islamabad, issue, jan, leader, Liaquat, member, national, NEWS, normalization, opinion, Pakistan, Pakistan Ban, Pakistanis, party, pml-q, reply, screening, senate, slapping, stance, Tariq Azeem, telecast, tension, times, tv