ECO2 Forests International Targeted Projects Exceed 1.5 Million Acres

April 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

SACRAMENTO, CA, Apr 05 (MARKET WIRE) —
ECO2 Forests Inc. (PINKSHEETS: ECOF) has announced its projects in their
pipeline under review has passed a global total of 1.5 million acres for
the first time.

The 1.5 million acres include a combination of reforestation,
afforestation and avoided deforestation projects. Projects are planned to
be delivered as part of the company’s Global Forestry Plan, producing
sustainable lumber and carbon credits for sale on global markets.

“ECO2 Forests has been working extremely hard to build up our list of
potential projects and land partners. We have now surpassed a total of
1.5 million acres of projects in our project pipeline for the first time,
with many of these projects well advanced in negotiations and undergoing
due diligence,” ECO2 Forests CEO Collie Christensen said today.

“Projects in the pipeline under review are located in multiple regions of
mainland USA, Australia, Mexico, Europe, South East Asia and South
America and are in various stages of review, from initial due diligence
and area feasibility through to final stages of negotiation and letters
of intent being completed.

“We see this as a significant milestone for ECO2 Forests and recognition
of the support we are receiving internationally towards the Global
Forestry Plan.”

In accordance with the Global Forestry Plan, the network of forests are
strategically located around the world and not focused on one region,
thus positioning ECO2 Forests to deliver significant, consistent and
sustainable lumber supplies globally.

The combination of the preservation of old growth forests and the
creation of new forests for sustainably managed lumber production is
central to the ECO2 Forests strategy.

“Our revenue forecast for forestation projects under the Global Forestry
Plan is approximately $110,000 per acre for each 7-year regenerative
harvest cycle using our range of Kiri Trees. We look forward to securing
more projects for our shareholders and investors and also for the
environmental and social benefits our projects are intended to deliver,”
Christensen said.

As projects enter the pre-execution stage, direct investment
opportunities are intended to be made available to suitably qualified
investors. Further details regarding investment into projects will be
released with future project announcements and will be available through
the investor section of the Company’s website, www.eco2forests.com.

About ECO2 Forests Inc.
ECO2 Forests is a progressive international
forestation company focused on reforestation, afforestation and avoided
deforestation projects for the generation and sale of sustainable lumber
and carbon credits to the global markets.

Headquartered in Sacramento, California, the Company has adopted an ‘E4
Philosophy’ to achieve positive Environmental, Economic, Employment and
Educational outcomes through its projects.

For more information please visit www.eco2forests.com.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains statements which
may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the
Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking
statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and
uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those
contemplated by such forward-looking statements. Important factors
currently known to management that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in forward-looking statements include fluctuation
of operating results, the ability to compete successfully, and the
ability to complete before-mentioned transactions. The Company undertakes
no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect
changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events, or changes
to future operating results.

For all media enquiries please contact:

United States and International
Abbi Whitaker
Abbi Public Relations Inc.
P) (775) 323 2977
M) (775) 722 2254
E) Email Contact

Australia
Andrew Laing
ECO2 Forests Inc.
P) (+61) 420 971 030
E) Email Contact
W) www.eco2forests.com

Copyright 2010, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

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Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , ,

L.A. refineries say no impact from earthquake

April 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

HOUSTON, April 5 (Reuters) – Two Los Angeles-area refineries said their operations were unaffected by a powerful Mexican earthquake felt across southern California on Sunday.

Tesoro Corp (TSO.N) and Valero Energy Corp (VLO.N) said operations at their refineries in Wilmington, California, were not impacted by the quake, which was centered in Baja California about 40 miles south of San Luis, Arizona.

Representatives of other refineries in Los Angeles were unavailable to comment on Sunday night.

BP Plc (BP.L) reported to California pollution regulators a spill of about 1 barrel of “waste water oily sludge” when “a sewer manway lifted during the earthquake causing the product to spill onto concrete.”

BP was cleaning up the spill, which was on refinery property, according to the notice filed with the California Emergency Management Agency. One barrel is equal to 42 gallons.

Refineries in the Los Angeles area are the farthest south on the U.S. West Coast. (Reporting by Erwin Seba)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , ,

Standard Gold Announces New President

April 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

MINNEAPOLIS–(Business Wire)–
Standard Gold, Inc. (OTCBB:SDGR) has hired gold industry veteran Steve Flechner
to serve as its president.

At Standard Gold, Mr. Flechner will be working closely with and relying upon two
highly-qualified mineral project specialists, Senior Technical Vice President
Clyde Smith, Ph.D. and Vice President of Exploration and Sustainability David S.
Smith. Together, they have plans for acquisition, exploration, development, and
mining of gold and other profitable mineral opportunities being considered and
pursued in North and South America.

Visit the new Standard Gold website at www.standardgoldmining.com

About Steve Flechner

Mr. Flechner is the former vice president and general counsel of Gold Fields
Mining Corporation, which was the U.S. subsidiary of the former Consolidated
Gold Fields of London. In that position, he established and directed Gold
Fields` land, legal, and environmental functions in order to acquire, permit,
finance, and develop low-cost, heap-leach gold mining operations at the Ortiz
Mine in New Mexico, the Mesquite Mine in California, and the Chimney Creek Mine
in Nevada. These three mines collectively produced over 400,000 ounces of gold
per year with high profitability. Mr. Flechner negotiated $150 million of gold
loans and equipment leases for these projects with Chase, Citibank, Mellon and
Westpac banks. He also served on management committees for budgeting,
environmental compliance, and community relations as Gold Fields grew from 20 to
1200 people. The Mesquite and Chimney Creek mines were later acquired by Newmont
Mining.

More recently, Mr. Flechner has worked with publicly-traded junior exploration
companies on project acquisitions and development. He was instrumental in the
acquisition of a major South Korean tungsten-molybdenum project (one of the
largest tungsten mines in the world) and the formerly-producing largest gold
mine in South Korea. He also assisted in establishing a major gold exploration
project in Papua New Guinea and has worked on other gold projects in Utah,
Nevada, Ireland, Slovakia, Mexico and Columbia.

Mr. Flechner holds a Doctorate in Law from Yale University and has lectured at
the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute on “Environmental Laws & Regulations
Governing Gold Mining in the West”. His track record with Gold Fields and his
experience in domestic and international mining project acquisitions are
indicative of his ability to significantly contribute to the growth of Standard
Gold.

About Dr. Clyde Smith

Dr. Smith, Standard Gold`s senior technical vice president, holds a B.A. from
Carleton College, a M.Sc. from the University of British Columbia, and a Ph.D.
from the University of Idaho. He is a registered Professional Engineer with the
Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia. Dr.
Smith has founded or co-founded five exploration companies and is responsible
for the discovery of four deposits: the Jason lead-zinc-silver deposit, Yukon
Territory, Canada; the Santa Fe gold deposit, Nevada; the North Lake gold
deposit, Saskatchewan, Canada; and the Solidaridad gold-silver-copper deposit,
Mexico.

About David S. Smith

Mr. Smith, Standard Gold`s vice president of exploration and sustainability,
holds a B.A. from Carleton College, a M.Sc. from the University of Oregon, and
an MBA from Bainbridge Graduate Institute. He has been involved in minerals
exploration for over 20 years in the US, Canada, Mexico, and China, serving most
recently as a chief geologist, exploration program manager, and sustainability
advisor. He has published research in the leading ore deposits journal Economic
Geology and brings substantial hands-on geologic, management, and project
development experience to the Standard Gold team.

About Standard Gold, Inc.

Standard Gold is a minerals exploration and development company. Through our
wholly-owned subsidiary, Hunter Bates Mining Corporation, we hold title to the
past producing gold mine in Colorado known as the Bates-Hunter Mine. We do not
claim to have any mineral reserves at the Bates-Hunter Mine. Our common stock
trades on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board under the symbol “SDGR.” To find
out more about Standard Gold, Inc. (OTCBB:SDGR) visit our website at
www.standardgoldmining.com.

Forward-Looking Statements and Risk Factors

Certain statements included in this press release may constitute forward-looking
statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results
to differ materially. Such statements are valid only as of today, and we
disclaim any obligation to update this information. These statements are subject
to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual future
experience and results to differ materially from the statements made. These
statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations as to such future
outcomes. These risks and uncertainties relate to Standard Gold and its
affiliates, and include, among others, the ability to obtain or maintain
regulatory approvals; the ability to obtain necessary financing; and other risks
and uncertainties described in Standard Gold`s filings from time to time with
the Securities and Exchange Commission. Standard Gold disclaims any obligation
to update its forward-looking statements.

In addition, the exploration for and development of mineral deposits involves
significant financial risks, which even experience and knowledge may not
eliminate, regardless of the amount of careful evaluation applied to a process.
While the discovery of a mineral deposit may result in substantial rewards, few
properties are ultimately developed into producing mines. Moreover, we cannot
make any estimates regarding probable reserves in connection with any of our
projects and any estimates relating to possible reserves are subject to
significant risks. Therefore, no assurance can be given that any size of
reserves or grades of reserves will be realized. If a discovery is made, the
mineral deposit discovered, assuming recoverable, may differ from the reserves
already discovered and recovered by others in the same region of the planned
areas of exploration. Further, the cost of exploration and exploitation can be
extensive and there is no assurance that we will have the resources necessary or
the financing available to pursue projects we currently hold interests in or to
acquire interests in other mineral exploration projects that may become
available. The risks we face are numerous and detailed information regarding
these risks may be found in filings made by us with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including our most recent annual report.

Standard Gold Inc.
Stephen King, CEO, 612-490-3419
Investor Relations: Dan Schustack, 646-278-6787

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , ,

Mobile Devices and Their Semiconductors:New Report from Jon Peddie Research Looks at 10 Unique Markets for Mobile Devices

April 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

TIBURON, Calif.–(Business Wire)–
Jon Peddie Research (JPR), the industry’s research and consulting firm for
graphics and multimedia, announced today its new report on mobile devices.

E-Books, tablets, slates, netbooks, notebooks, phones, and MIDS – the mobile
device market is fragmenting as low-cost, power-efficient processors emerge with
advanced capabilities. Jon Peddie Research has released its latest market study
– a guide to ten markets for mobile devices and covers the application and
multimedia processors designed for those handheld consumer devices. The markets
covered are:

DAB-HD radio Digital Picture Frames
Digital Still Cameras e-books
MIDs & Gadgets Mobile Game Console
Navigation Personal Media Devices
Smartphones Tablets & Smartbooks

The report provides an individual segment historical background of the market
from 2006 and forecasts unit shipments for each individual market from 2009 to
2015.

The companies covered include:

Anyka Broadcom Freescale Intel
Marvell MediaTek Mtekvisio NEC
NetLogic Nvidia Qualcomm Renesas
Samsung Sigma Design ST-Ericsson Telechips
Texas Instruments Wondermedia Zoran

The total available market (TAM) for these multifunctional devices is almost 700
million units in 2010, growing to over 1.3 billion by 2015, representing a CAGR
of 14.3%.

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 CAGAR
Total Device Shipments 597.4 682.9 771.8 881.9 1,014.7 1,164.7 1,335.1 14.3%

The market for eBooks, tablets, smartphones and other mobile consumer products
is exploding and with the recession behind us the consumer is ready to start
spending again.

This report is written for:

* Senior management who are looking for adjacent market opportunities for their
products
* Financial analysts who want to understand the mobile device space better and
look at companies and their chances of success
* Marketing staff at companies that sell mobile products that work with mobile
devices
* Technology professionals who want an introduction to mobile technology and
mobile devices
* Engineers who need to select a processor for a mobile device
* Press and public relations professionals who need to get up to speed on the
mobile devices market, players, and products

This report has been created as a resource to uncover the opportunities for
semiconductor suppliers and their IP partners who traditionally have served the
non-PC and industrial markets such as POS, medical, and test equipment and to
help them extend their technology into what we are calling the “adjacent
consumer markets” with a focus on mobile devices for consumers.

Prices:
1 – 5 user PDF team license: $1,395 USD
Full site license: $2,500 USD
Prices do NOT include VAT or sales tax

Purchasers of this report may also be interested in the companion report,
“Suppliers of Low Power GPU and IP: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and
Threats.”

Discounts for a bundled sale are offered.

Pricing and Availability

The Q4’09 edition of Jon Peddie Research’s Market Watch is available now in both
electronic and hard copy editions, and can be purchased for $995. Included with
this report is an Excel workbook with the data used to create the charts, the
charts themselves, and supplemental information. The annual subscription price
for JPR’s Market Watch is $3,500 and includes four quarterly issues. Full
subscribers to JPR services receive Tech Watch (the company’s bi-weekly report)
and a copy of Market Watch as part of their subscription. For information about
purchasing Market Watch, please call 415/435-9368 or visit the Jon Peddie
Research website at www.jonpeddie.com.

About Jon Peddie Research

Dr. Jon Peddie has been active in the graphics and multimedia fields for more
than 30 years. Jon Peddie Research is a technically oriented multimedia and
graphics research and consulting firm. Based in Tiburon, California, JPR
provides consulting, research, and other specialized services to technology
companies in a variety of fields including graphics development, multimedia for
professional applications and consumer electronics, high-end computing, and
Internet-access product development. Jon Peddie’s Market Watch is a quarterly
report focused on the market activity of PC graphics controllers for notebook
and desktop computing.

View all JPR press releases http://www.jonpeddie.com/about/press/index.shtml

Company Contact:
Jon Peddie Research
Jon Peddie, 415-435-9368
jon@jonpeddie.com
Robert Dow, 415-435-9368
robert@jonpeddie.com
or
Agency Contact:
Pat Meier Associates
Pat Meier-Johnson, 415-389-1700
patmeier@patmeier.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , ,

NiMin Energy Corp. to Host Year-End 2009 Conference Call

April 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

CARPINTERIA, CALIFORNIA, Apr 05 (MARKET WIRE) —
NiMin Energy Corp. (TSX: NNN)(OTCQX: NEYYF) (“NiMin” or the “Company”)
will host a conference call to discuss the results of operations in 2009
and provide an operations update.

The call will be held on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 9:00 AM EDT (6:00 AM
PDT). The conference call chairperson will be Mr. Clancy Cottman,
Chairman and CEO of the Company, also on the call will be Dr. Sven Hagen,
President and Mr. Jonathan Wimbish, CFO.

Interested parties in the United States can join the call by dialing
(877) 407-8031; parties outside the U.S. should dial (201) 689-8031.
Please call in five to ten minutes prior to the call start time. The call
will also be webcast live on the Company’s website at
www.niminenergy.com. A replay of the call will be available by calling
(877) 660-6853 or (201) 612-7415 for international callers; account
number 286 and conference ID number 347657. The replay will be available
until April 19, 2010.

About NiMin Energy Corp.

NiMin Energy is a California based independent oil and gas exploitation
and production company with principal operations in the Bighorn Basin of
Wyoming, the San Joaquin Basin in California and South Louisiana onshore
areas of the U.S. The Company has over 27 million barrels of proved and
probable reserves, 97% of which are oil in California and Wyoming. The
Company has current gross production of approximately 920 barrels of oil
equivalent per day.

Contacts:
EnergyIR
Brad Holmes
(713) 654-4009
B_holmes@att.net

NiMin Energy Corp.
Jonathan Wimbish
CFO
(805) 566-2900
jwimbish@niminenergy.com

Copyright 2010, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , ,

Strong quake shakes cities around U.S.-Mexico border

April 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Roads were torn up, buildings cracked and electricity posts toppled on Monday after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake shook cities in northern Mexico and Southern California, but few casualties were reported.

Mexican civil protection officials said at least one man died in a collapsed house and about 100 more were injured in Sunday’s quake.

Another person was killed in a car accident on a darkened street in Mexicali, a border city near the epicentre of Sunday’s quake, which was almost entirely without power.

Some buildings in Mexicali appeared to have structural damage and many had cracked floors, walls and broken windows, though no major buildings collapsed.

A liquefied natural gas import terminal operated by Sempra Energy south of Tijuana was not damaged by the quake, a company spokeswoman said.

However, a major highway connecting Mexicali with Tijuana on the Pacific coast was badly damaged by a crack that opened up that was at least a meter (3 feet) deep, according to a Reuters witness.

Vacationers returning from their Easter holidays found themselves snarled in huge traffic jams with many motorists reporting difficulty finding fuel.

“Thank God nothing happened to us. Now we just have to wait until the police let us fuel up,” said Maria Lopez, who said she had been waiting four hours for gasoline to allow her to return to Tijuana.

Despite the relatively light casualties, the powerful quake rattled nerves in the United States and across tremor-prone Latin America in the aftermath of devastating earthquakes in Haiti and Chile this year.

HOURS OF AFTERSHOCKS

Telephone and electricity crews struggled to restore service in Mexicali and the surrounding area, which is home to more than one million people and is a prosperous centre for food processing and assembly for exports.

The relatively shallow quake was cantered in a lightly populated area in northeastern Baja California. For several hours a series of aftershocks rocked the area around the epicentre, 30 miles (50 km) southeast of Mexicali.

Across the border in the U.S. town of Calexico, eight downtown blocks were closed off with Border Patrol agents helping police to secure the area against looters.

Store fronts had leaning awnings, smashed windows and broken crockery vases strewn in the window displays.

“It was violent, like the earth was mad … My home was shaking very violently, pictures coming off the walls, then the TVs came down,” said Channing Dawson, a firefighter with the Calexico Fire Department.

Several Mexican families wandered the streets carrying suitcases, hoping to spend the night with relatives on the U.S. side of the border.

“The number one thing is public safety, with continued aftershocks. If these buildings come down, people can get hurt, the second thing is looting,” police Lieutenant Gonzalo Gerardo told Reuters.

“There’s a lot of structural damage, really big cracks in the buildings, broken glass, so right now everything is shut down until the building inspectors get into carry out inspections to see if they are safe,” he said. “We will not know what the damage is until tomorrow.”

The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake at 7.2, a magnitude that can cause serious damage to urban areas.

Some neighbourhoods of San Diego reported minor structural damage and burst water pipes and callers to local radio said the rolling tremor made it hard to keep vehicles on the road.

In Los Angeles, some 200 miles (320 km) northwest of the epicentre, people felt buildings swaying.

Southern California with its many active geological faults is prone to frequent quakes, and many residents fearfully anticipate the next big one. The last to cause major damage was the 6.7 magnitude Northridge quake in 1994 that left 57 dead and 9,000 injured.

(Additional reporting by Tim Gaynor in Calexico and Robert Campbell and Tomas Sarmiento in Mexico City; Writing by Robert Campbell and Catherine Bremer; editing by Chris Wilson)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , ,

UPDATE 5-Major 7.2 quake near Mexico-US border kills one

April 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment

TIJUANA, Mexico, April 4 (Reuters) – A major 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck near the Mexico-California border on Sunday, killing at least one person as it rocked buildings, ruptured a highway and panicked residents from Tijuana to Los Angeles.

One person died when a house in Mexicali collapsed, Alfredo Escobedo, director of emergency services in Baja California state, Mexico, said. He said others had been trapped in elevators, retaining walls collapsed in some places and electricity was out in several parts of the state.

“There are around 100 people injured,” Escobedo told Reuters, but he had no reports of people stuck under collapsed buildings.

Local newspaper La Cronica said two people had died.

The relatively shallow quake was centered in a lightly populated area in northeastern Baja California near the city of Mexicali on the U.S. border. It knocked down power lines, cut off most phone communications and tore big cracks in a highway linking Tijuana to Mexicali.

The U.S. town of Calexico, over the border from Mexicali, suffered substantial structural damage but no casualties, local Fire Chief Pete Mercado told ABC7 TV News in Los Angeles.

“We are a population of 40,000 people, bordered next to 1.5 million. So we have a significant amount of damage down in Mexicali,” he said. “I have not got an update from the Mexican side.”

Mexicali is a prosperous city and a busy border crossing with the United States. Local industry is mainly agriculture, food processing plants and assembly-for-export plants. Images after the quake showed damaged but not collapsed buildings.

A series of aftershocks rocked the area around the epicenter, 30 miles (50 km) to the southeast of Mexicali and close to the town of Guadalupe Victoria for several hours.

“It’s still shaking,” Nadia Camacho, a receptionist at a Mexicali hotel which had cracks in its floor and walls, said hours after the quake struck at 3:40 p.m. Pacific time (2240 GMT). “We are all on alert. Nobody is inside the hotel, everybody’s outside.”

NERVES IN QUAKE-PRONE AREAS

The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake at 7.2, a magnitude that can cause serious damage to urban areas.

Devastating earthquakes in Haiti and Chile this year have left many people nervous across tremor-prone Latin America.

An empty multistory parking garage under construction in Mexicali collapsed and broken gas pipes sparked a number of fires, Baja California civil protection official Eduardo Sandoval told Mexican radio.

In Tijuana, about 135 miles (200 km) from the epicenter, a Reuters witness said the quake visibly jolted cars in a parking lot and shook a computer on her desk.

Some neighborhoods of San Diego reported minor structural damage and burst water pipes and callers to local radio said the rolling tremor made it hard to keep vehicles on the road.

“This was by far in recent memory the biggest jolt to our area,” said a commentator on on local San Diego radio station.

People in Los Angeles, some 200 miles (320 km) northwest of the epicenter, felt buildings swaying.

“I’m shaking like a leaf … the pool water was just going everywhere,” said Jean Nelson in Indio, California, outside Palm Springs, about 120 miles (190 km) from the epicenter.

Southern California with its many active faults is prone to frequent quakes, and many residents fearfully anticipate the next big one. The last to cause major damage was the 6.7 magnitude Northridge quake in 1994 that left 57 dead, injured 9,000 and resulted in about $40 billion in property damage. (Additional reporting by Robert Campbell and Tomas Sarmiento in Mexico City, Mary Milliken in Los Angeles and Jackie Frank in Washington; Writing by Robert Campbell and Catherine Bremer; Editing by Will Dunham and Chris Wilson)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , ,

TUI University Partners with U.S. Army Engineers School

April 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Specialized Business Administration degree will focus on management and
leadership skills
CYPRESS, Calif.–(Business Wire)–
TUI University (www.tuiu.edu), a leader in online education, today announced a
partnership with the U.S. Army Engineers School at Fort Leonard Wood, MO to
establish a specially tailored Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
degree for U.S. Army Engineers. The degree will emphasize management and
leadership, providing relevant courses which develop critical thinking, writing,
communication, and other skills necessary to enhance professional success.

“This new partnership with the U.S. Army Engineer School and the specialized
degree available to U.S. Army Engineers demonstrates TUI University`s ongoing
commitment to the higher education of the service-men and -women in this
country,” said Kenneth Sobaski, president and chief executive officer, TUI
University. “By tailoring this new degree to provide the management and
leadership skills required by U.S. Army Engineers, we aim to provide these
students with a practical education that will further their military career.”

This specialized degree is available to students awarded a 12/21 series Military
Occupation Specialty (MOS) by the U.S. Army Engineer School. Courses taken at
institutions prior to TUI University, including the Army Engineer School, will
be reviewed and evaluated for transfer credit according to the guidelines of the
American Council on Education (ACE).

“This partnership with TUI affords Soldiers of the Engineer Regiment the
opportunity to build lifelong skills that will not only be of benefit to the
Soldier now, but also when the Soldier transitions to another calling,” said BG
Bryan Watson Commandant of the U.S. Army Engineer School. “It is essential that
we arm our Soldiers with the skills to be successful in a multi-cultural,
multi-national environment and I think TUI has done a great job of providing
that institutional knowledge. TUI’s learning model allows our Soldiers to
complete their degree wherever in the world the Army demands its Engineers.”

TUI University will admit students into this specialized program at the
discounted military tuition rate. Most graduates of the U.S. Army Engineer
School are active duty and will also utilize military tuition assistance or GI
Bill benefits.

About TUI University

Founded in 1998, TUI University (www.tuiu.edu) has become a leading online
postsecondary university. Its technology-enabled online learning model and
solutions provide a convenient, cost-effective, and high-quality education to
students. TUI University is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior
Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges
(WASC) and is based in Cypress, California.

The Castle Group
Scott MacKenzie, 617-337-9514
smackenzie@thecastlegrp.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Coming soon: a horror story on American Fritzl’s victim?

September 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Sept 20 (ANI): Publishers and Hollywood studios have begun a multi-million dollar bidding war for the rights to sex slave Jaycee Dugard’s horrifying life story.

Fresh details of the American Fritzl’s victim have emerged, including that in the early days of her captivity, the terrified schoolgirl was so hungry she ate bugs and worms in the rambling back garden where she was held in tents and lock-up sheds, reports The Daily Express.

She had to use a garden hose to shower outside, even in winters, say detectives guarding her and her two daughters, fathered by kidnapper Phillip Garrido.

However, the public apparently is desperate for the full story of how Jaycee, now 29, survived after being snatched on her way to a school bus stop when she was only 11.

A New York literary agent, who estimates the book and film rights to be worth up to 12million dollars, said: “You couldn’t dream up a script like this. Americans can’t wait to hear the story from the girl who lived it.”

A Hollywood studio producer said: “Everyone is in the market for this story. Poor Jaycee’s life may have been hell for 18 years but she’ll never want for anything for the rest of it.”

Garrido, a registered sex offender, has been linked to six child abductions and murders stretching back years within a 400-mile radius of the ramshackle home in Antioch, California, where Jaycee was held. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

‘Monty Python’ pals John Cleese and Michael Palin may work together again

September 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, September 20 (ANI): Former ‘Monty Python’ stars John Cleese, 69, and Michael Palin, 66, may soon be working together again.

They are said to have been discussing reuniting for the first time in more than a decade.

The pair met last month while Cleese, who lives in California, was in London after his 12million-pound divorce from third wife Alyce Faye Eichelberger.

Palin revealed on Michael Ball’s Radio 2 show that they were chatting about old times then Cleese, 69, said: “Wouldn’t it be good to act again?”

The Daily Express quoted Palin as saying: “I saw John the other night and we were saying it would be nice to do some acting again, so you never know.”

Palin’s agent, however, said that there were no definite plans yet for the pair to work together.

The pair starred together in the hit movie ‘A Fish Called Wanda’ in 1988, and its sequel ‘Fierce Creatures’ in 1997. (ANI)

Filed Under: Entertainment News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

MJ had secret hitlist of ‘enemies’

September 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 18 (ANI): Late singer Michael Jackson maintained a secret list of enemies, which only his closest associates were aware of.

The King of Pop’s former manager Dieter Wiesner has revealed that Jackson had a secret hit list of the people who he wanted to be kept away from him at all times.

The list included ex-friends Uri Geller and Rabbi Schmuley Boteach, Santa Barbara, California, District Attorney Tom Sneddon, who tried to put Jackson behind bars on child molestation charges and lawyer Glora Allred.

Wiesner admitted he transcribed the list as his client reeled off names.

“Sometimes he was a little bit paranoid… I’d ask him, ‘Michael, what are you doing…?’ He said… ‘These people are after me and they want to destroy my life,’” Contactmusic quoted him as saying.

The list of enemies also included music mogul Tommy Mottola and Janet Arviso, who accused Jackson of molesting her son at his Neverland Ranch home. (ANI)

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Genes controlling insulin ‘alter’ body clock

September 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 18 (ANI): Scientists at University of California, San Diego have identified certain insulin-regulating genes that can also alter the timing of the body clock.

They said that the findings can lead to new approaches to treating disorders such as metabolic syndrome that can result, at least in part, from chronic disruption of the sleep-wake cycle.

“People knew that the clock regulates many different processes, but what they didn’t realize what that when you tweak those processes, it feeds back and alters the clock,” said Steve Kay, Dean of the Division of Biological Sciences at the University of California, San Diego, who led the study along with John Hogenesch of the University of Pennsylvania.

A molecular clock controls daily physiological rhythms in many types of cells, even cells grown in culture.

By engineering cultured cells to glow yellow when a particular clock gene switched on, the team made the cycle visible. They then interfered with every human gene to see which would shift the clock. They found that hundreds altered the timing.

“We just suddenly discovered 350 new genes that affect the clock that weren’t known before,” Kay said.

However, subsequent screening to confirm the genes’ effect on a second clock gene narrowed the list to 200.

Seven genes involved in insulin control also influenced the rhythms of the clock.

“What came out very strongly was this close relationship between circadian regulation and insulin signalling. There’s a reciprocal relationship between circadian dysfunction and metabolic dysfunction,” said Kay.

The researchers suggest that genetically altered mice with malfunctioning clocks become obese and develop diet-induced diabetes.Understanding this close relationship between circadian regulation and metabolic homeostasis should provide novel ways of identifying new therapies for metabolic disease,” Kay added.

The study appears in journal Cell. (ANI)

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Archaeologists discover gemstone carrying portrait of Alexander the Great

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, September 16 (ANI): An archaeological team, during excavations in Israel, has discovered a gemstone that has a portrait of Alexander the Great engraved on it.

The excavations at Tel Dor were carried out by an archaeological team, which was directed by Dr. Ayelet Gilboa of the University of Haifa and Dr. Ilan Sharon of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

“Despite its miniature dimensions – the stone is less than a centimeter high and its width is less than half a centimeter – the engraver was able to depict the bust of Alexander on the gem without omitting any of the ruler’s characteristics,” said Dr. Gilboa, Chair of the Department of Archaeology at the University of Haifa.

“The emperor is portrayed as young and forceful, with a strong chin, straight nose and long curly hair held in place by a diadem,” he added.

The Tel Dor researchers have noted that it is surprising that a work of art such as this would be found in Israel, on the periphery of the Hellenistic world.

“It is generally assumed that the master artists – such as the one who engraved the image of Alexander on this particular gemstone – were mainly employed by the leading Hellenistic courts in the capital cities, such as those in Alexandria in Egypt and Seleucia in Syria,” according to the researchers.

“This new discovery is evidence that local elites in secondary centers, such as Tel Dor, appreciated superior objects of art and could afford ownership of such items,” they added.

The significance of the discovery at Dor is in the gemstone being uncovered in an orderly excavation, in a proper context of the Hellenistic period.

This tiny gem was unearthed by a volunteer during excavation of a public structure from the Hellenistic period in the south of Tel Dor, excavated by a team from the University of Washington at Seattle headed by Prof. Sarah Stroup.

Dr. Jessica Nitschke, professor of classical archaeology at Georgetown University in Washington DC, identified the engraved motif as a bust of Alexander the Great.

This has been confirmed by Prof. Andrew Stewart of the University of California at Berkeley, an expert on images of Alexander and author of a book on this topic.

Alexander was probably the first Greek to commission artists to depict his image – as part of a personality cult that was transformed into a propaganda tool. (ANI)

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Glowing light show in American sky was actually astronaut pee

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Melbourne, Sep 16 (ANI): The trail of light that sparkled through the American sky on Wednesday night was not a unique celestial show, but was actually astronaut piss.

While skygazers marvelled at the beauty of the glowing trail, astronauts aboard the space shuttle Discovery were merely dumping water and urine out into space in preparation for a landing attempt on Thursday.

Although the astronauts had to postpone their landing due to poor weather, but the Discovery safely landed in California on Friday, reports the Courier Mail.

NASA spokeswoman Kylie Clem said that the light show was due to an unusually large amount of water (about 150 pounds) being dumped all at once.

Discovery had just undocked from the International Space Station the day before, and had not been able to unload wastewater during the 10-day visit. (ANI)

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Scientists unravel chemistry of Titan’s hazy atmosphere

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, September 16 (ANI): In a new research, a team of scientists has unraveled the chemical evolution of the orange-brownish colored atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan, the only solar system body besides Venus and Earth with a solid surface and thick atmosphere.

Scientists at University of Hawai’i at Manoa carried out the research.

The UH Manoa team, including Xibin Gu and Seol Kim, conducted simulation experiments mimicking the chemical reactions in Titan’s atmosphere utilizing crossed molecular beams in which the consequence of a single collision between molecules can be followed.

The team’s experiments indicate that triacetylene can be formed by a single collision of a “radical” ethynyl molecule and a diacetylene molecule.

An ethynyl radical is produced in Titan’s atmosphere by the photodissociation of acetylene by ultraviolet light.

Photodissociation is a process in which a chemical compound is broken down by photons.

“Surprisingly, the photochemical models show inconsistent mechanisms for the production of polyynes,” said Kaiser, who is the principal investigator of this study.

The mechanism involved in the formation of triacetylene, was also confirmed by accompanying theoretical calculations by Alexander Mebel, a theoretical chemist at Florida International University.

These theoretical computations also provide the 3D distribution of electrons in atoms and thus the overall energy level of a molecule.

To apply these findings to the real atmosphere of Titan, Danie Liang and Yuk Yung, planetary scientists at Taiwan’s Academia Sinica and California Institute of Technology (Caltech), respectively, performed photochemical modeling studies of Titan’s atmosphere.

All data together suggest that triacetylene may serve as a building block to form more complex and longer polyynes and produce potential precursors for the aerosol-based layers of haze surrounding Titan.

The study demonstrated for the first time that a sensible combination of laboratory simulation experiments with theory and modeling studies can shed light on decade old unsolved problems crucial to understand the origin and chemical evolution of the solar system.

The researchers hope to unravel next the mystery of the missing ethane lakes on Titan – postulated to exist for half a century, but not detected conclusively within the framework of the Cassini-Huygens mission.

In the future, the UH Manoa team will combine the research results with terrestrial-based observations of Titan’s atmosphere. (ANI)

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US Fritzl told wife “to take the cute blond girl” during “child shopping” trip

September 14, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Sept 13 (ANI): Phillip Garrido, the “American Fritzl”, selected Jaycee Lee Dugard as his prey during a “child shopping” trip because she looked cute, his wife has told police in California.

Describing the precision that went into the abduction of the then 11-year-old Jaycee, Nancy told cops that they decided not to snatch the pretty blond girl with the gap-toothed grin that day in June 1991 because she was walking through South Lake Tahoe along with few school friends.

Instead, they apparently trailed her to her home before returning the next morning to complete their mission.

Garrido allegedly jumped out of their car and grabbed her as she walked to nearby a bus-stop, while her husband remained behind the wheel.

“That’s the one I want,” Garrido told her when he saw Jaycee in the resort town.

“She’s cute, but she’s with the other kids. Let’s come back later and get her,” she added.

After being briefed on Mrs Garrido’s testimony by law enforcement contacts, Michael Cardoza, a Californian attorney and former prosecutor, relayed his coldly calculating words to the Telegraph.

“This was nothing less than a child shopping trip. It just makes their actions all the more horrendous and reprehensible,” he said. (ANI)

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Weight gain in adulthood linked to prostate cancer risk

September 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Sep 12 (ANI): Body size and weight gain in younger and older adulthood may help weigh a man’s proneness to prostate cancer, according to a study by researchers at the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Cancer Research Center of Hawaii.

Led by Dr. Brenda Hernandez, the researchers said that the risk varies among different ethnic groups

For the study, the researchers studied the relationship in a multiethnic population consisting of blacks, Japanese, Hispanics, Native Hawaiians and whites, and compared differences among age groups using the Multiethnic Cohort, a longitudinal study of men 45-75 years of age established in Hawaii and California from 1993-1996.

Of the 83,879 men who participated in the study, 5,554 developed prostate cancer.

Overall, men who were overweight or obese by age 21 had a decreased risk of localized and low-grade prostate cancer, according to Hernandez.

Their results suggested that being overweight in older adulthood was associated with increased prostate cancer risk among white and Native Hawaiian men, but a decreased risk among Japanese men.

While excessive weight gain between younger and older adulthood was observed to increase the risk of advanced and high-grade prostate cancers in white men and increase the risk of localized and low-grade disease in black men, it appeared to decrease the risk of localized prostate cancer in Japanese men.

“The relationship of certain characteristics, such as body size, with cancer risk may vary across ethnic groups due to the combined influence of both genes and lifestyle,” said Hernandez.

However, the relationship between body size and prostate cancer risk is not entirely understood.

Excess fat is associated with a number of conditions that contribute to cancer development including low-grade chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, metabolic abnormalities, and hormone imbalances.

These conditions may in turn contribute to more aggressive prostate malignancies.

Ethnic differences in cancer risk may be explained by differences in the distribution of stored body fat that could have a differential effect on the development of prostate cancer.

And the distribution of body fat may influence the specific way that excess fat influences cancer risk.

The study has been published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. (ANI)

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Biocon limited, Amylin pharmaceuticals enter global development agreement

September 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Bangalore/ California Sep 11(ANI/Business Wire India): Biocon, Limited (NSE: BIOCON) and Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMLN) announced today that they have entered into an exclusive agreement to jointly develop, commercialize and manufacture a novel peptide therapeutic for the potential treatment of diabetes.

Amylin and Biocon will collaborate to develop the therapeutic potential of the compound and share development costs. Research will center on Amylin’s “phybrid” technology. A phybrid is a peptide hybrid molecule that combines the pharmacological effects of two peptide hormones into a single molecular entity.

Under the terms of the Development and Commercialization Agreement, Amylin will provide expertise in peptide hormone development, particularly in the area of phybrid technology, as well as metabolic disease therapeutics. Biocon will utilize its expertise in recombinant microbial expression to manufacture the compound and also leverage its experience in pre-clinical and clinical development of diabetes products.

“This agreement fully leverages the synergistic capabilities of the two companies,” said Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairman and Managing Director, Biocon, Ltd. “Amylin’s knowledge of peptide therapeutics and their leadership in the diabetes market, paired with Biocon’s capabilities in process development, manufacturing and clinical development, provides this global program with the potential to effectively bring a novel therapy to patients living with diabetes.”

“This program could unleash the potential of cutting-edge peptide science to transform the lives of patients with diabetes,” said Daniel M. Bradbury, President and Chief Executive Officer, Amylin Pharmaceuticals. “We are pleased to work with Biocon, a biologics innovator and world-class manufacturing expert, and look forward to collaborating with them on this exciting program.”

Amylin Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company committed to improving lives through the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative medicines. (ANI)

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Arnie believes sex is most important part of marriage

September 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, September 11 (ANI): Comedian Tom Arnold has revealed that California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger advised him before his wedding that sex is the most important thing in marriage.

The ‘Pride’ star met the actor turned politician just before marrying his fourth wife Ashley Groussman.

“He (Schwarzenegger) called me and he said he was concerned. He said, ‘It’s getting close to the marriage, how’s the sex?… Keep your eye on that,” Contactmusic quoted him as saying.

Tom added: “He doesn’t mean it in a sexy way, he means keep it (the marriage passionate), because you forget about the important things and sex is important in the marriage. He’s reminding me: Don’t forget about the sex!’”

The two became friends long before the ‘Terminator’ star joined politics. (ANI)

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Exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke linked to liver disease

September 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, September 11 (ANI): People can develop liver disease even when they are exposed to second-hand tobacco smoke, according to a study.

Scientists at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) have found that exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke can lead to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a common disease and rising cause of chronic liver injury wherein fat accumulates in the liver of people who drink little or no alcohol.

For their study, the researchers exposed some mice to second-hand cigarette smoke for a year in the lab, and observed fat build-up in their liver cells, a sign of NAFLD that eventually leads to liver dysfunction.

The researchers focused on two key regulators of lipid (fat) metabolism that are found in many human cells as well: SREBP (sterol regulatory element-binding protein) that stimulates synthesis of fatty acids in the liver, and AMPK (adenosine monophosphate kinase) that turns SREBP on and off.

They found that second-hand smoke exposure inhibits AMPK activity, which, in turn, causes an increase in activity of SREBP.

More active SREBP results in more fatty acids getting synthesized, they say.

The result is NAFLD induced by second-hand smoke, according to the researchers.

“Our study provides compelling experimental evidence in support of tobacco smoke exposure playing a major role in NAFLD development,” said Manuela Martins-Green, a professor of cell biology, who led the study.

“Our work points to SREBP and AMPK as new molecular targets for drug therapy that can reverse NAFLD development resulting from second-hand smoke. Drugs could now be developed that stimulate AMPK activity, and thereby inhibit SREBP, leading to reduced fatty acid production in the liver,” Martins-Green added.

A research article describing the study has been published in the Journal of Hepatology. (ANI)

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