SMU researcher receives Hogg Foundation grant to study childhood depressionPublic release date: 24-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Christina Voss cvoss@smu.edu 214-768-7641 Southern Methodist University
Dr. Chrystyna Kouros, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Southern Methodist University, received a $19,250 grant from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health to examine ethnic differences in the identification of and attributions about children's depression symptoms.
The research project by Kouros was one of 10 selected from a pool of 38 applicants from 17 universities across Texas. The foundation awarded the two-year grants, totaling $192,130, to tenure-track assistant professors exploring different aspects of mental health in Texas.
The study by Kouros, who will be collaborating with Dr. Naomi Ekas, Texas Christian University Department of Psychology, will examine ethnic differences in the way that parents and children identify depressive symptoms, and their attributions about depression, as predictors of whether children receive treatment. The overarching goal of the research is to understand barriers to seeking treatment for depression in Hispanic youth.
"Depression in childhood is prevalent and poses a significant public health problem," said Kouros. "Hispanic youth, in particular, report higher levels of depression and are at greater risk for suicide than non-Hispanic whites and other ethnic groups, yet they are less likely to seek treatment from a mental health practitioner and often receive poorer quality of care."
"Rates of untreated childhood depression are staggering," Ekas adds. "I believe our study will fill an important void in understanding why Hispanic and non-Hispanic children with mental health challenges do not seek treatment even when community resources are available."
The goals of the Hogg grants are to increase the pool of junior faculty doing quality mental health research and to encourage the disbursement of research findings through presentations at state and national conferences and meetings.
"Fifty to 80 percent of children in need of services never receive treatment or utilize community mental health resources," said Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation. "This research fills an important gap in the literature. Previous research on attributions of child symptoms has typically focused on children's behavioral challenges or physical health, but has not looked at ethnicity as a moderating factor."
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The Hogg Foundation advances recovery and wellness in Texas by funding mental health services, policy analysis, research and public education. The foundation was created in 1940 by the children of former Texas Gov. James S. Hogg and is part of the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at The University of Texas at Austin.
SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools.
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SMU researcher receives Hogg Foundation grant to study childhood depressionPublic release date: 24-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Christina Voss cvoss@smu.edu 214-768-7641 Southern Methodist University
Dr. Chrystyna Kouros, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Southern Methodist University, received a $19,250 grant from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health to examine ethnic differences in the identification of and attributions about children's depression symptoms.
The research project by Kouros was one of 10 selected from a pool of 38 applicants from 17 universities across Texas. The foundation awarded the two-year grants, totaling $192,130, to tenure-track assistant professors exploring different aspects of mental health in Texas.
The study by Kouros, who will be collaborating with Dr. Naomi Ekas, Texas Christian University Department of Psychology, will examine ethnic differences in the way that parents and children identify depressive symptoms, and their attributions about depression, as predictors of whether children receive treatment. The overarching goal of the research is to understand barriers to seeking treatment for depression in Hispanic youth.
"Depression in childhood is prevalent and poses a significant public health problem," said Kouros. "Hispanic youth, in particular, report higher levels of depression and are at greater risk for suicide than non-Hispanic whites and other ethnic groups, yet they are less likely to seek treatment from a mental health practitioner and often receive poorer quality of care."
"Rates of untreated childhood depression are staggering," Ekas adds. "I believe our study will fill an important void in understanding why Hispanic and non-Hispanic children with mental health challenges do not seek treatment even when community resources are available."
The goals of the Hogg grants are to increase the pool of junior faculty doing quality mental health research and to encourage the disbursement of research findings through presentations at state and national conferences and meetings.
"Fifty to 80 percent of children in need of services never receive treatment or utilize community mental health resources," said Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation. "This research fills an important gap in the literature. Previous research on attributions of child symptoms has typically focused on children's behavioral challenges or physical health, but has not looked at ethnicity as a moderating factor."
###
The Hogg Foundation advances recovery and wellness in Texas by funding mental health services, policy analysis, research and public education. The foundation was created in 1940 by the children of former Texas Gov. James S. Hogg and is part of the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at The University of Texas at Austin.
SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools.
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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.
The robo-ape?developed by DFKI (the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence)?is still in its early testing phases, as is plenty apparent by its slowly, careful gait. But the form factor has already proven itself pretty versatile in nature, and it seems plenty possible that this thing will be lurching and climbing around in no time.
What exactly DFKI is attempting to accomplish with its robo-ape isn't totally clear, but the center's admittedly vague description suggests it's all about melding robots' locomotive structures with sensors and internal wiring. The result are "intelligent structures," robotic analogs for biological structures like legs that move and feel, or a full-on artificial spines. It's a step closer to building robots like they are real living creatures that just happen to be made out of metal and plastic.
Clearly this can only mean one thing: there's an army in the making, and a Planet of the Apes and Terminator crossover will be real life. Better get to work on developing some robot bananas in the meantime. [DFKI via IEEE Spectrum]
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Supreme Court has 11 cases, including the term's highest profile matters, to resolve before the justices take off for summer vacations, teaching assignments and international travel.
The court is meeting Monday for its last scheduled session, but will add days until all the cases are disposed of.
A look at some of the cases:
?Gay Marriage: Actually two cases. One is a challenge to California's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. The other is an attack on a provision of federal law that prevents legally married gay couples from receiving a range of tax, health and pension benefits.
?Affirmative action: A white woman denied admission to the University of Texas seeks to overturn the school's consideration of race among many factors in filling the last quarter of its freshman classes. A broad ruling could end the use of race in college admissions nationwide.
?Voting rights: A suburb of Birmingham, Ala., wants the court to end the nearly 50-year-old requirement for some state and local governments, mainly in the South and with a history of discrimination in voting, to get the advance approval of any changes in the way they hold elections.
?Native American adoption: A wrenching dispute over who gets custody of Native American girl, her biological father or the adoptive couple who cared for her until she was 2. The case involves the interpretation of a 1978 law intended to prevent American Indian children from being taken from their homes and typically placed with non-Indian adoptive or foster parents.
?Generic Drugs: The industry is asking the Supreme Court to extend protections that makers of generic drugs have from state court lawsuits if federal officials have approved the design of the brand-name version the generic drug copied.
?Private property: A Florida property owner wants compensation, under the Constitution's requirement that the government must pay if it takes your property, for a local government's refusal to issue a development permit.
? Workplace discrimination: Two cases test different aspects of federal law barring discrimination on the basis of race. In one, the court has to decide what level of responsibility it takes to be considered a worker's supervisor in a discrimination complaint. The other asks whether an employer's action can be considered retaliation against an employee who complains of racial harassment if retaliation was a motivating factor, or must it be the only factor.
JOHANNESBURG (AP) ? The South African government says an ambulance carrying Nelson Mandela to a hospital two weeks ago had engine trouble and the former leader was then transferred to another ambulance for the rest of the journey. It said care was taken to ensure the condition of the 94-year-old was not affected.
The office of President Jacob Zuma said in a statement Saturday that it was confirming media reports about the transport problem at the time of the former leader's hospitalization. Zuma's office says doctors believe Mandela suffered "no harm" during that period.
The statement also says that Mandela remains in a serious but stable condition in a hospital. The government has previously said that the anti-apartheid leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate was being treated for a recurring lung infection.
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) ? Water levels dropped, providing a measure of relief to the western Canadian city of Calgary, hit hard by floods that devastated much of southern Alberta province, causing at least three deaths and forcing thousands to evacuate.
The flooding forced authorities to evacuate Calgary's entire downtown and hit some of the city's iconic structures hard. The Saddledome, home to the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames, was flooded up to the 10th row, leaving the dressing rooms submerged.
Flames' president and CEO Ken King said Saturday that the Saddledome is a "real mess," with water still up to row 8 of the lower bowl. He said the flooding had caused a total loss on the event level with all mechanical equipment submerged under 15 feet (4.5 meters) of water.
"If you were a hockey player walking out of the tunnel to the ice, you'd be underwater yourself," he said during a news conference.
Water lapped at the roof of the chuckwagon barns at the grounds of the Calgary Stampede, which is scheduled to start in two weeks. Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi has said the city will do everything it can to make sure that the world-renowned party goes ahead.
Bruce Burrell, director of the city's emergency management agency, said Saturday they are seeing improvements in the rivers. Dan Limacher, director of water services for the city, said the Elbow river is expected to recede by about 60 percent over the next two days, while the larger Bow river will recede by about 25 percent.
The improving conditions Saturday morning prompted Calgary's mayor to tweet: "It's morning in Calgary! Sunny, water levels are down, and our spirit remains strong. We're not out of this, but maybe have turned corner."
However, Nenshi said later Saturday that while the city may have turned a corner, there is still a state of emergency in effect.
"Flows on Elbow and Bow (rivers) are dropping slowly. We do believe the peak has passed on the Elbow. However, water levels are still four times higher than 2005 flood levels," he said during a press conference.
Overflowing rivers on Thursday and Friday washed out roads and bridges, soaked homes and turned streets into dirt-brown waterways around southern Alberta.
High River, southwest of Calgary, was one of the hardest-hit areas and remained under a mandatory evacuation order. Police said they have recovered three bodies in the town.
It is estimated that half the people in the town of 13,000 experienced flooding in their homes. Police cut off access to most of the town and helicopters circled overhead. Abandoned cars lay submerged in water, while backhoes worked in vain to push water back from houses.
Police asked residents who were forced to leave the High River area to register at an evacuation shelter. By Saturday morning, 485 evacuees had registered at the shelter in Nanton, south of Calgary, and 278 people were on the inquiry list.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said Saturday that during rescue and evacuation efforts on Friday in the High River area, approximately 800 people were evacuated by helicopter along with 100-200 people rescued by various water craft.
Ed Mailhot, a volunteer in High River, was working to build a database of registered evacuees and those who are looking for them. Cellphone service was not restored until late Friday.
"There are a lot of loved ones out there that people can't find, or they don't know where they are," he said. "It's still chaos."
Alberta Premier Alison Redford has warned that communities downstream of Calgary have not yet felt the full force of the floodwaters. Medicine Hat, downstream from Calgary, was under a mandatory evacuation order affecting 10,000 residents.
As the sun rose in Calgary on Saturday morning it wasn't raining. Burrell said some of the 75,000 flood evacuees from more than 24 neighborhoods will be allowed back into their homes. He said the goal is to allow people from portions of six communities back into their homes on Saturday. Residents of a neighborhood in one of those communities ? the high ground portion of Discovery Ridge ?have already been allowed back.
About 1,500 people in Calgary went to emergency shelters during the flooding, while the rest of those evacuated found shelter with family or friends, Nenshi said. Schools and courts were closed Friday. Transit service in the city's core was shut down.
Dale McMaster, executive vice president of ENMAX, Calgary's power company, said Saturday that at least 30,000 customers remain without power.
Calgary's mayor said the downtown area remained off limits and employers will have to make arrangements to have staff work remotely until at least the middle of the week.
"It is extremely unlikely that people will be able to return to those buildings before the middle of next week," Nenshi said.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, a Calgary resident, said he never imagined there would be a flood of this magnitude in this part of Canada.
The Conservative Party said Saturday that it has postponed its federal policy convention which was scheduled to begin Thursday at the Telus Convention Centre in downtown Calgary because of the floods.
"There are neighborhoods under water, so there is a lot of work we have to do to rebuild," said Michelle Rempel, a member of Parliament for Calgary Center. "Postponing the convention is the right thing to do for the people of Calgary."
Calgary, a city of more than a million people that hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics, is the center of Canada's oil industry.
About 350,000 people work in downtown Calgary on a typical day. However, officials said very few people had to be moved out, since many heeded warnings and did not go to work Friday.
A spokesman for Canada's defense minister said 1,300 soldiers from a base in Edmonton were being deployed to the flood zone.
The Mounties added that approximately 200 additional Royal Canadian Mounted Police personnel were deployed Saturday from other parts of Alberta to assist with evacuation, rescue, traffic safety and security operations,
Calgary was not alone in its weather-related woes.
Efforts were under way Saturday to move more than 2,000 people from their homes in a flood-prone part of northeastern Saskatchewan because of rising water levels.
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Associated Press writers Rob Gillies and Charmaine Noronha in Toronto and Jeremy Hainsworth in Vancouver, British Columbia, contributed to this report.
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- For jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney, a long-simmering dispute over worker illnesses was settled by a massive 11-year study that found no elevated risk of brain cancer at its plants. But for dead workers' relatives who first raised concerns years ago, the matter is far from closed.
Their next step hasn't been decided, and the choices are limited. Matt Shafner, a New London lawyer who represents families, said more than 90 workers' compensation claims have been filed. But he won't move forward until an independent review of the study is completed, he said.
"It's not over," said Carol Shea, whose husband, John Shea, worked at Pratt & Whitney's North Haven plant for 35 years and died of brain cancer in 2000 at age 56.
Some relatives of workers who died of brain cancer a decade or more ago are dissatisfied with the study, saying it failed to prove that the deaths of their loved ones were part of a broader problem.
Todd Atcherson, whose father, Charles Atcherson, died in 1998 after working at Pratt & Whitney for about 25 years, said the enormous scope of the study ? health and work records of more than 200,000 employees were reviewed ? fail to explain the deaths of his father and a small group of other workers at the North Haven plant.
"They skewed out the numbers so far, they lost focus of five people who worked in the same site and all died," he said.
Shea said she believes the researchers are "way off."
"I couldn't believe they couldn't come up with anything," she said.
The study, released last month, was launched "in response to the perception of an unusual occurrence" of glioblastoma, a common and aggressive malignant brain tumor, at the North Haven plant. It found the incidence rates of glioblastoma at the site weren't related to workplace exposures.
The environment at the plant featured a blue haze, a product of aerosol generated from metalworking fluids during fast, hot grinding.
The study, which examined seven other Pratt & Whitney plants in Connecticut, found no statistically significant elevations in the rate of cancer among workers. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and University of Illinois at Chicago said they identified 723 workers diagnosed with tumors between 1976 and 2004 at the subsidiary of United Technologies Corp.
The tumors were malignant, benign or unspecified and included 277 cases of brain cancer. Of those, 167 were at Pratt & Whitney's East Hartford site and 57 at North Haven, though North Haven workers were at greater risk of having brain cancer, the study said.
But following a study of the North Haven plant, researchers said they couldn't conclude that the environment or exposures were related to the overall elevations in brain cancer.
Gary Marsh, the University of Pittsburgh researcher who led the study, said that he understands family members' frustrations but that the study is conclusive and definitive.
"Let's face it: Brain cancer is a terrible disease and anyone who suffers from it or had a loved one suffer from it wants to know why they got that disease," he said. "We looked at everything conceivable as a possible cause of brain cancer."
Ray Hernandez, a spokesman for Pratt & Whitney, said the company is satisfied with the study's conclusions and considers the matter closed.
"Since we are confident in the scientific rigor of this comprehensive study, we think it provides the best possible information about this issue," he said in an emailed statement.
The study found no connection between brain cancer and the workplace and researchers found no patterns or trends of other causes of death "suggestive of a workplace relationship," Hernandez said.
In Connecticut, Pratt & Whitney over the years has shut down all but its Middletown and East Hartford plants. Manufacturing processes from decades ago have been transformed and haven't recently raised safety issues.
A few family members said they are wary of the study because it was commissioned by Pratt & Whitney at a cost of $12 million. The university researchers worked independently of Pratt & Whitney and the state Department of Public Health established an advisory group to review the progress, methods and other aspects of the study and address concerns about the study's independence.
John DeLeone, a grinding machine operator at the North Haven plant from 1984 until it closed in 2002, said workers suspected that chemicals specific to that plant were lethal. He criticized the study, which was launched in 2002 in response to concerns about employee deaths at North Haven, for being overly broad rather than focusing on that plant.
"It seemed that only people who got sick were those who transferred from North Haven," he said.
Marsh said the study adds to the body of knowledge of occupational health, used by researchers and relevant to other jet engine manufacturers, such as General Electric Co. and Rolls Royce, he said.
"We concluded there is no evidence of elevated health risks of this population. That's a good thing to know," he said.
But Debra Belancik, the Machinists' union's safety and health representative, said the study "doesn't bring any closure at all."
"All this work we did, all the high rates, all the funerals and wakes I went to, it kind of bothered me a little bit," she said.
'Sheep-eating' plant: The Royal Horticultural Society has been nurturing a 10-foot-tall Puya Chilensis for 15 years. This 'sheep-eating' plant is now ready to bloom.
By David Clark Scott,?Staff writer / June 22, 2013
The Puya Chilensis growing at the Royal Horticultural Society Garden Wisley. It's nearly ready to bloom but there's been no 'sheep-eating' by this particular plant.
Royal Horticultural Society
Enlarge
There's nothing like a giant carnivorous plant headline to get your heart racing ? and to draw folks to the Royal Horticultural Society's Garden Wisley.
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So, let's start by being completely accurate here. The?Puya chilensis is not actually a sheep eater - or even a meat eater. Yes, it's been known to kill sheep. But it's no Venus fly trap or pitcher plant. Those are true carnivores, and really only eat insects.
What makes the Puya chilensis so fascinating is that it has been known to capture and kill sheep in Chile, its native environment, for fertilizer.
"Most bromeliads have firm, hard leaves, but Puya chilensis is sort of an extreme example. Its leaves look sort of like aloe leaves, but in between them are huge, sharp spines that jut out past them. Most plants that have spines, like cacti, use them for protection, but it's theorized that Puya chilensis actually uses them for hunting," according to PopSci.com.
If a sheep gets close enough, the spines can snag on the wool of the sheep, entrapping them. The sheep starve and die at the base of the plant, thus providing a rather grisly but effective fertilizer.
Folks at the Royal Horticultural Society make it clear that no sheep have been harmed in the past 15 years of nurturing their Puya chilensis. And now, the three-meter (10- foot) tall plant is finally ready to bloom.?
?I?m really pleased that we?ve finally coaxed our Puya chilensis into flower. We keep it well fed with liquid fertiliser as feeding it on its natural diet might prove a bit problematic. It?s well worth a visit but parents coming along with small children don?t need to worry about the plant devouring their little ones. It?s growing in the arid section of our Glasshouse with its deadly spines well out of reach of both children and sheep alike," said Cara Smith, who looks after the plant at RHS Garden Wisley, in a statement.
This is not the first Puya chilensis brought to bloom in England. The society has done it in years past and it's always a crowd (and media) pleaser.
In fact, the Society's website lists 11 nurseries around the United Kingdom where local gardeners can buy the South American plant and attempt to create their own backyard botanical snare for small animals wandering by.
"Room 237" evolves from an ode to movie love at its most delirious to a wry examination of the crackpot mind at work.
There's enough real evidence supporting the theory that Kubrick was a genius, and that's pretty entertaining all by itself.
It's about the human need for stuff to make sense - especially overpowering emotional experiences - and the tendency for some people to take that sense-making to extremes.
An intellectual exercise, and an entertaining one, especially for those who don't want to label The Shining as just a ghost story.
It has the same entertainment value as listening to a late-night radio host indulge his listeners on Roswell, Area 51 and 9/11. Everything sounds completely crackers, until it all makes crazy sense.
What emerges from Room 237 is not a denigration of conspiracies, but a kind of celebration of our ability to create patterns where (perhaps) none exist.
"Room 237" could become an essential companion piece to "The Shining" from now on. For those who see both, it will be impossible to think about one without the other.
...all about the work of criticism - finding fresh avenues of delight.
Watching it makes you feel like you're attending a really entertaining film class where your classmates confidently let their freak flags fly.
It's an essay about the human need to reject the notion of a random universe and find order and meaning in existence. These people are developing their own creation myths, with Kubrick the mastermind responsible for the Intelligent Design.
Termitic film nerds could chow down for years on the wood chips.
You know when "Room 237? starts getting really scary? When the people in the film start making sense.
Kubrick fans and movie geeks will want to check this film out as soon as possible
Kubrick fans will take 'Shining' to 'Room 237.'
The credibility of these theories ranges from faintly plausible to frankly ridiculous, but Ascher isn't interested in judging them; his movie is more about the joys of deconstruction and the special kind of obsession that movies can inspire.
Some of the interpretations seem more of a stretch than others but all are entertainingly presented by director Rodney Ascher. (The movie) serves as a testament to Stanley Kubrick's cinematic mastery.
As fascinating as it is frustrating
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By DAVID PITT | Associated Press ? Published June 21, 2013 Modified June 21, 2013
By DAVID PITT The Associated Press
DES MOINES, Iowa ? Microsoft announced plans Friday to build another massive data center in Iowa, which has attracted some of the biggest names in computer technology by exempting crucial ingredients for processing and storage from sales taxes as well as offering cheap electricity.
The Iowa Economic Development Authority approved $20 million in job creation tax incentives for Microsoft, which plans on spending more than $677 million to build the first phase a project in West Des Moines, near its existing data center. Additional phases could be added later. The company plans on hiring 29 workers.
It's the third major information technology company to invest more than $1 billion in Iowa in recent years. Facebook and Google also have chosen Iowa for data centers - large buildings that house thousands of refrigerator-sized racks of computer servers, processors, hard drives, and other equipment.
The developments are being spurred by a 2009 law specifically covering data centers exempts electricity, computers and other equipment from sales taxes, and another law from the same year that exempts computers and other equipment - cooling systems, cooling towers and equipment related to electricity distribution or management - from property taxes.
Typically, cities and counties also offer property tax breaks in addition to building streets to the sites.
"Right now we're seeing data centers at this level continuing to scale up across the globe," said Iowa Economic Development Director Debi Durham. "Legislation Iowa put in place many years ago is creating this business climate."
Sales tax breaks are important for these companies because they equip data centers with costly computer servers and other equipment that must be replaced every three years, said Mark Bramfitt, an industry consultant who focuses on data center energy use. A server can cost $2,000 and a data center can have 20,000 or 30,000 of them - sometimes more.
Microsoft has spent about $200 million on its existing data center on 40 acres in West Des Moines, which opened last year and employs about 50 workers. Construction on the new one nearby will begin late this year and is expected to be finished by the end of 2015.
Microsoft's total spending is expected to reach about $1.2 billion when finished, Durham said. Elsewhere in the state, Google has a $600 million data center in Council Bluffs and recently committed to a second $700 million center. And Facebook is building a $300 million center near Altoona but says it could triple the size of the project to exceed $1 billion.
Each company received additional state tax breaks for creating jobs, including $20 million for Microsoft's latest project.
Far from threats of earthquakes and hurricanes, Iowa is also considered a prime location because the state can offer abundant electricity at a reasonable cost, Bramfitt said. The large data centers being built today demand between 20 megawatts and 40 megawatts of electricity, enough to power between 15,000 and 30,000 homes.
"They're tremendous energy users," Bramfitt said. "They require the juice of a small town."
The average retail industrial price for power in Iowa was 5.21 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2011, the latest year for which comparable data was available from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The only states with lower rates were Idaho and Utah, both at 5.10 cents per kilowatt-hour. The surrounding states of Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Nebraska all had rates exceeding 6 cents a kilowatt-hour.
Iowa also leads the nation in percentage of power generated from wind energy - 25 percent from more than 2,800 wind turbines - which is important to companies such as Microsoft, Facebook and Google. Microsoft said it will buy renewable energy credits to offset carbon emissions from its new data center. Google in 2010 entered into a long-term agreement to buy wind energy from a central Iowa wind farm, and last year, it invested $75 million in another one.
Data centers are important to companies such as Microsoft because of the increased use of cloud computing. Cloud computing allows the companies to provide massive computer processing and storage of photos, music and other data for customers using smartphones and tablet computers. Microsoft, for example, says it offers 200 services over the Internet, including its search engine Bing and Microsoft Office 365. The company also says it will require significant expansion of data center servers for its Xbox Live video game system.
Other companies that are heavily investing in data centers around the country include Apple, Amazon and eBay.
BISHKEK (Reuters) - Kyrgyzstan on Thursday gave the United States until July next year to shut its airforce base at Manas, a staging post for U.S. troops and supplies in the Afghanistan conflict but now deemed unnecessary as foreign forces pull out.
The move is likely to please Russia as it vies with the West and China for influence in the resource-rich region, once part of Soviet Central Asia.
Troops from NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) are preparing to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014, ending a costly and increasingly unpopular war launched after the September 11, 2001, attacks by al-Qaeda on U.S. cities.
The Manas Transit Center outside the capital Bishkek, which numbers about 1,000 U.S. servicemen, has been in operation since the end of 2001. The Kyrgyz government said in a note issued prior to a vote in parliament: "Further functioning of this facility is unnecessary".
Parliament passed the law by 91 votes to five, setting a deadline of July 11, 2014, for the base to close.
Russia secured an extension of the lease of its own air base in Kyrgyzstan last September.
In the wake of the 2001 attacks, Moscow said it had no objections to the United States and its allies using Central Asia for deployment and transit of their troops and cargo to neighboring Afghanistan.
But the Kremlin later became wary of the growing foreign military presence in a region which was once its imperial backyard.
Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev, elected in 2011, has staked heavily on closer ties with Russia and repeatedly assured Moscow that the U.S. air base would be shut in 2014.
Visiting Bishkek last September, Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to write off nearly $500 million in debt from Kyrgyzstan in exchange for a package of deals that extended Moscow's economic and military foothold in the volatile nation.
This included a 15-year extension to Russia's lease of the Kant military air base outside Bishkek.
Kyrgyzstan, a mountainous nation of 5.5 million which lies on a drug trafficking route out of Afghanistan, has been hit by periodic bouts of violence and has seen two presidents deposed by revolts since 2005.
The economy, which contracted last year, relies heavily on a gold venture with Canada's Centerra Gold and cash remittances sent home by its migrant workers in Russia.
Ending its agreement on Manas with the United States, Kyrgyzstan will lose annually $60 million paid by Washington for the lease, and maybe more significant sums in indirect revenues from the base, parliamentarian Akmatbek Keldibekov told Reuters.
Kyrgyzstan is part of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (ODKB) of several post-Soviet states, which is led by Moscow. It is also a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation dominated by Russia and China.
"Politically, we won't renege on our commitments - we will stay with Russia both in the SCO and ODKB," Keldibekov said.
(Writing by Dmitry Solovyov; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Youth and Society, an advocate for peace, justice and peoples? rights?has called?upon the leadership and politicians of Malawi and Tanzania?to refrain from making inflammatory and irresponsible statements that would frustrate the peaceful process of resolving the dispute.
?We wish?to express our growing dismay over the on-going lake dispute between Malawi and Tanzania specifically in view of the recent developments that threaten the peaceful mediation process in which Tanzania intends to deploy two passenger ships on the disputed Lake?Malawi.
?As Youth advocates, we shall protest against any illicit intention by any government or politician to frustrate the peaceful mediation process,? the grouping said in a petition signed by Chairperson Charles Kajoloweka and Board member Emily Mkamanga.
Malawi claims sovereignty over the entire Lake Malawi, Africa?s third largest, based on the Helgoland Treaty, a colonial relic, while Tanzania claims under international law it is entitled to over 50 percent of the Lake known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania.
Kajoloweka: Resolve the lake row amicably
The border row is more than 40 years old and resurfaced after Malawi discovered oil in the Lake.
The Mzuzu based group made their impassioned plea in a two-paged petition dated June 20, 2013 addressed to Malawian president Dr. Joyce Banda and her Tanzanian counterpart Jakaya Kikwete and copied to?the Chairman?SADC?forum for retired Heads of State?former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano.
The Youths and Society group observed that the lake Border row?is gradually becoming a political campaign issue in Malawi and Tanzania in view of the Elections to be held in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
?The?leadership of the two countries needs to rise above mere party politics and swallow their pride and put the interest of the people first.?As young people?will not hesitate to voice out against any attempt by any leadership or institution to deliberately thwart the dialogue path?bearing in mind a long peaceful co-existence that continue to exist?between the two countries,? reads part of the petition.
The grouping also asked the two Presidents?to desist from any act of provocation and unnecessary political hypocrisy to ruin the ongoing peaceful process.
?We urge?the two leaders??to vest trust and confidence in the integrity of the on-going mediation process and believe that the matter would be handled with professionalism and objectivity.
?It must be clearly stated that any attempt to dismiss or frustrate the dialogue and mediation processes sends unnecessary message of a growing conflict and indeed speculation of war among the citizens of the two countries,? they said.
In its submission to the Southern African Development Community?s Forum of Former African Heads of State Malawi said the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) or legal instruments addressing trans-boundary watercourses are invalid arguing that the Anglo ?German treaty of 1890 on which most borders in Africa are based has the overall authority.
Malawi also questioned the legitimacy of the 1890 treaty could have grave consequences for regional stability saying even countries such as Kenya and Tanzania, DRC and Tanzania, Tanzania and Zambia, Ivory Coast and Togo and boundaries in the Lake Chad are based on the same treaty.
Malawi made its official submission in January 2013 in the Mozambican Capital Maputo to the African Forum for Former Heads of State and Governments, which Former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano heads and is tasked with the mediation process on the Malawi/Tanzania Lake Border row.
While Tanzania submitted its official submission in February 2013 and reiterated that, it will not go to war with its neighbor Malawi over the much publicized and controversial lake border row saying it is pleased with the mediation process.
After last year's Galaxy Camera, Samsung split in two directions. It went closer to the phone with the Galaxy S 4 Zoom, shrinking the form factor (and some of the specs) for something that closer approximates a pocket-friendly device, and it got serious about interchangeable-lens cameras. This is the Galaxy NX, an ILC with LTE connectivity that's capable of capturing at 8.6 fps and contains a hybrid autofocus system made by Samsung. In fact, the company says it's behind every part of this new device, from the quad-core 1.6GHz Pega-Q processor, to the 4.8-inch LCD screen, to even the shutter mechanism. With a "DSLR-class" 20.3-megapixel APS-C CMOS image sensor we've seen on other NX cameras, new DRIMe IV image processor and ISO settings from 100 to 25,600, Samsung appears to be making a serious pitch for photographers interested in more than just an Instagram hook-up. This mirrorless shooter will be compatible with the full gamut of NX lenses, currently totaling 13. We paired the Galaxy NX with its 18-55mm OIS kit lens and tested it out for a bit. Read up on our impressions after the break.
FILE - In this April 30, 2013 file photo, President Barack Obama answers questions during his new conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington. The president aims to assure Latin America that the U.S. is serious about immigration reform when he travels to Mexico and Costa Rica, beginning Thursday. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - In this April 30, 2013 file photo, President Barack Obama answers questions during his new conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington. The president aims to assure Latin America that the U.S. is serious about immigration reform when he travels to Mexico and Costa Rica, beginning Thursday. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama has his domestic ambition at the top of his travel agenda as he travels to Mexico on Thursday. To sell his immigration overhaul back home, he needs a growing economy in Mexico and a Mexican president willing to help him secure the border.
Obama was to fly to Mexico City on Thursday to meet with President Enrique Pena Nieto, eager to promote Mexico's economic success and the neighboring country's place as the second largest export market for U.S. goods and services. Mexicans will be hanging on the president's words, but Obama also has in mind an important audience back in the United States.
Though the role played by Latino voters in last year's U.S. presidential election gets much credit for the current momentum for changing immigration laws and providing a path to citizenship for 11 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally, another reason for the change in attitudes is that stronger border protections and the recession have been disincentives to cross into the U.S. As a result, illegal immigration has declined.
"With Mexico, first and foremost, they are critical to our ability to secure the border," said Ben Rhodes, an Obama deputy national security adviser. "All the immigration plans that have been contemplated put a focus on securing the border as an essential priority and starting point for immigration reform."
Even better than a strong border is an economy that keeps people from fleeing.
"If the Mexican economy is growing, it forestalls the need for people to migrate to the United States to find work," Rhodes added.
Eager to focus on the economy and immigration, the administration is downplaying Pena Nieto's recent steps to end the broad access Mexico gave U.S. security agencies to help fight drug trafficking and organized crime under his predecessor, Felipe Calderon. Still, the changes are likely to be a subject during the two leaders' private talks. Obama said this week he wouldn't judge the new moves until he heard directly from Mexican officials.
Pena Nieto took office in December, and for Obama the trip is an opportunity to take his measure of the Mexican leader early in his tenure.
"It's really important to go there while this new president is forming his own plans and judgments about what he's going to do about the border, about where he's going to be on immigration, about where he is on trade," U.S. Chamber of Commerce President/CEO Thomas Donohue said in an interview.
The chamber long has worked to improve U.S.-Mexico trade, noting that now about 6 million U.S. jobs depend on commerce with Mexico.
Striking the right note on border security is key, Donohue said, because it is a central to winning support in Congress for the rest of the immigration legislation.
"That's what everybody wants to hear, and we have to do that in a way that makes these guys down there feel like we're doing it in conjunction with them and for them, so we can do this thing on immigration well, so we can expand our trade, so we can deal with our political issues as they are trying to deal with theirs," Donohue said.
Still, with 33 million U.S. residents of Mexican origin, Obama's message in Mexico is also bound to resonate in the U.S., where Latinos could increase pressure on Congress to act.
"It helps keep these passions alive as far as an issue to promote for the administration," said Carl Meacham, a former senior Latin America adviser on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
But Meacham, now director of the Americas program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, cautioned that despite some bipartisan support to create a path to citizenship in the immigration bill, there is skepticism in Latin America. "They've been brought to the altar so many times by different American administrations that there's a little bit of a lack of trust," he said.
For Pena Nieto, Obama's visit is a chance for him to showcase his country's economic gains. After suffering along with the U.S. during the recession, its economy is now growing at a better clip than that of the U.S. Per capita income has gone from an annual $7,900 two years ago to $10,146. But Diana Negroponte, a Latin America expert at the Brookings Institution, says corruption remains endemic, human rights are still a problem, and efforts to change and improve the judicial system have been too slow.
"There is concern on our side of the border that greater help needs to be given in order for Mexico to reform its system," she said.
Pena Nieto's changes in the security relationship with the U.S. have prompted some U.S. officials to speculate that the new president might be embracing the policies of his Institutional Revolutionary Party, which long has favored centralized political and bureaucratic control.
Among those watching the new steps is Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who has held up $228 million sought by the Obama administration for Mexico under a security cooperation agreement. Under the agreement, known as the Merida Initiative, Congress has already given Mexico more than $1.9 billion in aid since 2008.
But Leahy, chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees the State Department budget, has been a critic of how the money has been used and with the results.
"Congress has been asked for a significant new investment, but it's not clear what the new Mexican government's intensions are," Leahy said in a statement to The Associated Press. "We're in a period of uncertainty until we know enough to be able to reset that part of our relationship. I'm not ready to sign off on more money without a lot more details."
VIENNA (Reuters) - Leopold Engleitner, the oldest known survivor of the Nazi concentration camps, has died at the age of 107, his biographer said.
Engleitner, a conscientious objector whose life was documented in the book and film "Unbroken Will", was imprisoned in the Buchenwald, Niederhagen and Ravensbrueck camps between 1939 and 1943.
He refused to renounce his Jehovah's Witness faith to win his freedom but was eventually released, weighing just 28 kilograms (62 pounds), on condition that he agree to spend the rest of his life working as a slave agricultural laborer.
He returned to work on a farm near his home town of Bad Ischl in Austria and was released from forced labor by U.S. troops in 1946 after a period in hiding in the mountains to escape a call-up to the German army.
Engleitner carried on his missionary work after the war while working jobs including a spell as a night watchman in a soap factory.
He became a public figure when Austrian author and film producer Bernhard Rammerstorfer published his biography and a documentary film about his life in 1999, which were translated into English in 2004.
He went on speaking tours in Europe and the United States and talked to students about his experiences through his last years, attending the U.S. premiere of a new Rammerstorfer documentary film about his life in November 2012.
"It's very hard for me to announce the painful news of the passing away of my best friend," Rammerstorfer wrote on his website.
The author said Engleitner had died peacefully in the company of Rammerstorfer's family on April 21.
(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
HONG KONG (AP) ? A six-story-high rubber duck is making a big splash in Hong Kong.
Crowds watched the inflatable duck being pulled by tugboat across Victoria Harbor in front of Hong Kong's signature skyscraper skyline.
Tourist Zhang Wenjin from Shanghai says it's a big surprise. "This is huge. My daughter liked it when she saw it just now. Because kids like cute stuff."
Yu Kwan Yee of Hong Kong was part of the crowd. "The duckie is swimming," the 2 ?-year-old said.
Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman created the bright-yellow duck, and it was built of PVC material in New Zealand by a company specializing in large sails.
Hofman was on hand as the duck arrived and said it later had to be deflated because high winds and waves created a "big challenge."
The duck has been transported around the world since 2007, bringing a message of peace and harmony. It has previously been to Osaka, Japan, Sydney, Sao Paulo, Auckland, New Zealand, and Amsterdam.
It will be anchored at a Hong Kong terminal for display until June.
Yes, as long as you have sufficient equity. This could mean that you have: 1) You now have 20% or more equity (Loan Amt Divided by the Appraised Value) 2) Nothing has changed, and you still have less than 20% equity could possibly bring you a Conventional loan, still with PMI, but possibly less than MIP. 3) Even if none above apply, it would be good to take a look at an FHA Streamline. No appraisal is required.
If you have at least 5% equity, then it would be worth entertaining the thought of a Conventional loan vs.your current FHA.
Expanding Medicaid -- mental and financial health improve, but no improvement shown in physical healthPublic release date: 1-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Todd Datz tdatz@hsph.harvard.edu 617-432-8413 Harvard School of Public Health
Boston, MA New findings from the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment show that Medicaid coverage had no detectable effect on the prevalence of diabetes, high cholesterol, or high blood pressure, but substantially reduced depression, nearly eliminated catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditures, and increased the diagnosis of diabetes and the use of diabetes medication among low-income adults. The Oregon Health Insurance Experiment is the first use of a randomized controlled study design to evaluate the impact of covering the uninsured with Medicaid and provides important evidence for policy makers as the U.S. undertakes Medicaid expansion in 2014.
The study, led by Katherine Baicker, professor of health economics at Harvard School of Public Health and Amy Finkelstein, Ford professor of economics at MIT, appears in the May 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
"This study represents a rare opportunity to evaluate the costs and benefits of expanding public insurance using the gold standard of scientific evidencethe randomized controlled trial. Without a randomized evaluation, it's difficult to disentangle the effects of Medicaid from confounding factors like income and health needs that also affect outcomes," said Baicker, co-principal investigator of the study.
In 2008, Oregon held a lottery to give additional low-income, uninsured residents access to its Medicaid program; about 90,000 individuals signed up for the lottery for the 10,000 available openings. Approximately two years after the lottery, the researchers conducted more than 12,000 in-person interviews and health examinations of lottery participants in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, and compared outcomes between those randomly selected in the lottery and those not selected in order to determine the impact of Medicaid.
Some of the key findings:
Physical health
Medicaid had no significant effect on measures of hypertension or high cholesterol, or on the rates of diagnosis or use of medication for these conditions.
Medicaid increased the probability of being diagnosed with diabetes after the lottery by 3.8 percentage points (compared to the 1.1% of the control group who were diagnosed with diabetes) and increased the use of diabetes medication by 5.4 percentage points (compared to the 6.4% of the control group who used diabetes medication), but had no effect on glycated hemoglobin (a measure of diabetic blood sugar control).
Mental health
Medicaid reduced rates of depression by 9 percentage points (compared to the 30% of the control group screening positive for depression) and increased self-reported mental health.
Financial hardship
Medicaid virtually eliminated out-of-pocket catastrophic medical expenditures (defined as out-of-pocket medical expenditures in excess of 30% of household income) and reduced other measures of financial strain.
Utilization and access
Medicaid increased health care use, including use of physician services, prescription drugs, and preventive care.
"The study highlights the important financial protections that Medicaid provides, as well as the substantial improvements in mental health, but does not provide evidence that Medicaid coverage translates to measurable improvements in physical health in the first two years," said Finkelstein, co-principal investigator of the study.
The current study is part of an ongoing research program gathering a wide array of data sources to examine many different effects of Medicaid, and represents a collaboration between non-profit and academic researchers and state policy makers. A previous study looking at data collected about a year after the lottery found that Medicaid substantially increased health care use, increased self-reported health, and reduced financial strain. More information can be found at http://www.nber.org/oregon.
###
Support for the study was provided by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Department of Health and Human Services; the California HealthCare Foundation; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; the National Institute on Aging (P30AG012810, RC2AGO36631, and R01AG0345151); the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; the Smith Richardson Foundation; and the Social Security Administration (5 RRC 08098400-03-00, to the National Bureau of Economic Research as part of the Retirement Research Consortium of the Social Security Administration); and by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
"The Oregon ExperimentEffects of Medicaid on Clinical Outcomes," Katherine Baicker, Sarah L. Taubman, Heidi L. Allen, Mira Bernstein, Jonathan H. Gruber, Joseph P. Newhouse, Eric C. Schneider, Bill J. Wright, Alan M. Zaslavsky, Amy N. Finkelstein, NEJM, May 2, 2013, 368;18
Visit the HSPH website for the latest news, press releases and multimedia offerings.
Harvard School of Public Health brings together dedicated experts from many disciplines to educate new generations of global health leaders and produce powerful ideas that improve the lives and health of people everywhere. As a community of leading scientists, educators, and students, we work together to take innovative ideas from the laboratory and the classroom to people's livesnot only making scientific breakthroughs, but also working to change individual behaviors, public policies, and health care practices. Each year, more than 400 faculty members at HSPH teach 1,000-plus full-time students from around the world and train thousands more through online and executive education courses. Founded in 1913 as the Harvard-MIT School of Health Officers, the School is recognized as America's first professional training program in public health. For more information on the school visit: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu.
HSPH on Twitter: http://twitter.com/HarvardHSPH
HSPH on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/harvardpublichealth
HSPH on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/user/HarvardPublicHealth
HSPH home page: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is dedicated to advancing knowledge and educating students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century. The Institute has more than 1,000 faculty members and 11,200 undergraduate and graduate students. MIT's commitment to innovation has led to a host of scientific breakthroughs and technological advances, in fields ranging from aeronautics to computing to cancer research.
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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.
Expanding Medicaid -- mental and financial health improve, but no improvement shown in physical healthPublic release date: 1-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Todd Datz tdatz@hsph.harvard.edu 617-432-8413 Harvard School of Public Health
Boston, MA New findings from the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment show that Medicaid coverage had no detectable effect on the prevalence of diabetes, high cholesterol, or high blood pressure, but substantially reduced depression, nearly eliminated catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditures, and increased the diagnosis of diabetes and the use of diabetes medication among low-income adults. The Oregon Health Insurance Experiment is the first use of a randomized controlled study design to evaluate the impact of covering the uninsured with Medicaid and provides important evidence for policy makers as the U.S. undertakes Medicaid expansion in 2014.
The study, led by Katherine Baicker, professor of health economics at Harvard School of Public Health and Amy Finkelstein, Ford professor of economics at MIT, appears in the May 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
"This study represents a rare opportunity to evaluate the costs and benefits of expanding public insurance using the gold standard of scientific evidencethe randomized controlled trial. Without a randomized evaluation, it's difficult to disentangle the effects of Medicaid from confounding factors like income and health needs that also affect outcomes," said Baicker, co-principal investigator of the study.
In 2008, Oregon held a lottery to give additional low-income, uninsured residents access to its Medicaid program; about 90,000 individuals signed up for the lottery for the 10,000 available openings. Approximately two years after the lottery, the researchers conducted more than 12,000 in-person interviews and health examinations of lottery participants in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, and compared outcomes between those randomly selected in the lottery and those not selected in order to determine the impact of Medicaid.
Some of the key findings:
Physical health
Medicaid had no significant effect on measures of hypertension or high cholesterol, or on the rates of diagnosis or use of medication for these conditions.
Medicaid increased the probability of being diagnosed with diabetes after the lottery by 3.8 percentage points (compared to the 1.1% of the control group who were diagnosed with diabetes) and increased the use of diabetes medication by 5.4 percentage points (compared to the 6.4% of the control group who used diabetes medication), but had no effect on glycated hemoglobin (a measure of diabetic blood sugar control).
Mental health
Medicaid reduced rates of depression by 9 percentage points (compared to the 30% of the control group screening positive for depression) and increased self-reported mental health.
Financial hardship
Medicaid virtually eliminated out-of-pocket catastrophic medical expenditures (defined as out-of-pocket medical expenditures in excess of 30% of household income) and reduced other measures of financial strain.
Utilization and access
Medicaid increased health care use, including use of physician services, prescription drugs, and preventive care.
"The study highlights the important financial protections that Medicaid provides, as well as the substantial improvements in mental health, but does not provide evidence that Medicaid coverage translates to measurable improvements in physical health in the first two years," said Finkelstein, co-principal investigator of the study.
The current study is part of an ongoing research program gathering a wide array of data sources to examine many different effects of Medicaid, and represents a collaboration between non-profit and academic researchers and state policy makers. A previous study looking at data collected about a year after the lottery found that Medicaid substantially increased health care use, increased self-reported health, and reduced financial strain. More information can be found at http://www.nber.org/oregon.
###
Support for the study was provided by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Department of Health and Human Services; the California HealthCare Foundation; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; the National Institute on Aging (P30AG012810, RC2AGO36631, and R01AG0345151); the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; the Smith Richardson Foundation; and the Social Security Administration (5 RRC 08098400-03-00, to the National Bureau of Economic Research as part of the Retirement Research Consortium of the Social Security Administration); and by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
"The Oregon ExperimentEffects of Medicaid on Clinical Outcomes," Katherine Baicker, Sarah L. Taubman, Heidi L. Allen, Mira Bernstein, Jonathan H. Gruber, Joseph P. Newhouse, Eric C. Schneider, Bill J. Wright, Alan M. Zaslavsky, Amy N. Finkelstein, NEJM, May 2, 2013, 368;18
Visit the HSPH website for the latest news, press releases and multimedia offerings.
Harvard School of Public Health brings together dedicated experts from many disciplines to educate new generations of global health leaders and produce powerful ideas that improve the lives and health of people everywhere. As a community of leading scientists, educators, and students, we work together to take innovative ideas from the laboratory and the classroom to people's livesnot only making scientific breakthroughs, but also working to change individual behaviors, public policies, and health care practices. Each year, more than 400 faculty members at HSPH teach 1,000-plus full-time students from around the world and train thousands more through online and executive education courses. Founded in 1913 as the Harvard-MIT School of Health Officers, the School is recognized as America's first professional training program in public health. For more information on the school visit: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu.
HSPH on Twitter: http://twitter.com/HarvardHSPH
HSPH on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/harvardpublichealth
HSPH on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/user/HarvardPublicHealth
HSPH home page: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is dedicated to advancing knowledge and educating students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century. The Institute has more than 1,000 faculty members and 11,200 undergraduate and graduate students. MIT's commitment to innovation has led to a host of scientific breakthroughs and technological advances, in fields ranging from aeronautics to computing to cancer research.
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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.
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