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Tuesday, May 14, 2013
World first clinical trial supports use of Kava to treat anxiety
May 13, 2013 ? A world-first completed clinical study by an Australian team has found Kava, a medicinal South Pacific plant, significantly reduced the symptoms of people suffering anxiety.
The study, led by the University of Melbourne and published in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, revealed Kava could be an alternative treatment to pharmaceutical products for the hundreds of thousands of Australians who suffer from Generalised Anxiety Disorders (GAD)
Lead researcher, Dr Jerome Sarris from Department of Psychiatry at the University of Melbourne, said GAD is a complex condition that significantly affected people's day-today lives. Existing medications have a modest clinical effect and new effective options were needed for patients with anxiety. "Based on previous work we have recognised that plant based medicines may be a viable treatment for patients with chronic anxiety. In this study we've been able to show that Kava offers a potential natural alternative for the treatment of chronic clinical anxiety. Unlike some other options it has less risk of dependency and less potential for side effects," he said.
The study also found that people's genetic differences (polymorphisms) of certain neurobiological mechanisms called GABA transporters, may modify their response to Kava. "If this finding is replicated, it may pave the way for simple genetic tests to determine which people may be likely to have a beneficial anxiety-reducing effect from taking Kava," Dr Sarris said.
During the eight-week study, 75 patients with clinically diagnosed Generalised Anxiety Disorder were given Kava or placebo, and anxiety levels were regularly assessed. Results showed a significant reduction in anxiety for the Kava group compared to the placebo group at the end of the study.
In participants diagnosed with moderate to severe GAD, Kava had an even greater effect in reducing anxiety. Following the completion of the controlled phase, 26 per cent of the Kava group were classified as in remission from their symptoms compared to six per cent of the placebo group.
Participants in the Kava group were given tablets twice per day consisting of water-soluble extracted Kava (peeled rootstock) for a total dose of 120mg of kavalactones for the first three-week controlled phase. In cases of non-response this was increased to a double-dose twice per day for the second three-week controlled phase. Participants in the placebo group took matching dummy tablets in the same manner.
Kava was also well tolerated. Results showed no significant differences across the two groups for liver function which had previously been a concern for Kava's medicinal use. In addition there were no considerable adverse reactions that could be attributed to Kava and no difference in withdrawal or addiction between the groups.
An additional novel finding of the study, recently published in Phytotherapy Research was that Kava increased women's sex drive compared to those in the placebo group, believed to be due to the reduction of anxiety, rather than any aphrodisiac effect.
Future studies confirming the genetic relationship to therapeutic response, and any libido-improving effects from Kava is now required. Dr Sarris said these significant findings are of importance to sufferers of anxiety and to the South Pacific region which relies on Kava as a major export.
The study was funded by the NHMRC and Integria Healthcare who manufacture MediHerb and Thompson's Kava products.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/UZI3WZKRJBI/130513095750.htm
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New method of finding planets scores its first discovery
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Public release date: 13-May-2013[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Christine Pulliam
cpulliam@cfa.harvard.edu
617-495-7463
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Detecting alien worlds presents a significant challenge since they are small, faint, and close to their stars. The two most prolific techniques for finding exoplanets are radial velocity (looking for wobbling stars) and transits (looking for dimming stars). A team at Tel Aviv University and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) has just discovered an exoplanet using a new method that relies on Einstein's special theory of relativity.
"We are looking for very subtle effects. We needed high quality measurements of stellar brightnesses, accurate to a few parts per million," said team member David Latham of the CfA.
"This was only possible because of the exquisite data NASA is collecting with the Kepler spacecraft," added lead author Simchon Faigler of Tel Aviv University, Israel.
Although Kepler was designed to find transiting planets, this planet was not identified using the transit method. Instead, it was discovered using a technique first proposed by Avi Loeb of the CfA and his colleague Scott Gaudi (now at Ohio State University) in 2003. (Coincidentally, they developed their theory while visiting the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, where Einstein once worked.)
The new method looks for three small effects that occur simultaneously as a planet orbits the star. Einstein's "beaming" effect causes the star to brighten as it moves toward us, tugged by the planet, and dim as it moves away. The brightening results from photons "piling up" in energy, as well as light getting focused in the direction of the star's motion due to relativistic effects.
"This is the first time that this aspect of Einstein's theory of relativity has been used to discover a planet," said co-author Tsevi Mazeh of Tel Aviv University.
The team also looked for signs that the star was stretched into a football shape by gravitational tides from the orbiting planet. The star would appear brighter when we observe the "football" from the side, due to more visible surface area, and fainter when viewed end-on. The third small effect was due to starlight reflected by the planet itself.
Once the new planet was identified, it was confirmed by Latham using radial velocity observations gathered by the TRES spectrograph at Whipple Observatory in Arizona, and by Lev Tal-Or (Tel Aviv University) using the SOPHIE spectrograph at the Haute-Provence Observatory in France. A closer look at the Kepler data also showed that the planet transits its star, providing additional confirmation.
"Einstein's planet," formally known as Kepler-76b, is a "hot Jupiter" that orbits its star every 1.5 days. Its diameter is about 25 percent larger than Jupiter and it weighs twice as much. It orbits a type F star located about 2,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus.
The planet is tidally locked to its star, always showing the same face to it, just as the Moon is tidally locked to Earth. As a result, Kepler-76b broils at a temperature of about 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit.
Interestingly, the team found strong evidence that the planet has extremely fast jet-stream winds that carry the heat around it. As a result, the hottest point on Kepler-76b isn't the substellar point ("high noon") but a location offset by about 10,000 miles. This effect has only been observed once before, on HD 189733b, and only in infrared light with the Spitzer Space Telescope. This is the first time optical observations have shown evidence of alien jet stream winds at work.
Although the new method can't find Earth-sized worlds using current technology, it offers astronomers a unique discovery opportunity. Unlike radial velocity searches, it doesn't require high-precision spectra. Unlike transits, it doesn't require a precise alignment of planet and star as seen from Earth.
"Each planet-hunting technique has its strengths and weaknesses. And each novel technique we add to the arsenal allows us to probe planets in new regimes," said CfA's Avi Loeb.
Kepler-76b was identified by the BEER algorithm, whose acronym stands for relativistic BEaming, Ellipsoidal, and Reflection/emission modulations. BEER was developed by Professor Tsevi Mazeh and his student, Simchon Faigler, at Tel Aviv University, Israel.
###
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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.
Public release date: 13-May-2013[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Christine Pulliam
cpulliam@cfa.harvard.edu
617-495-7463
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Detecting alien worlds presents a significant challenge since they are small, faint, and close to their stars. The two most prolific techniques for finding exoplanets are radial velocity (looking for wobbling stars) and transits (looking for dimming stars). A team at Tel Aviv University and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) has just discovered an exoplanet using a new method that relies on Einstein's special theory of relativity.
"We are looking for very subtle effects. We needed high quality measurements of stellar brightnesses, accurate to a few parts per million," said team member David Latham of the CfA.
"This was only possible because of the exquisite data NASA is collecting with the Kepler spacecraft," added lead author Simchon Faigler of Tel Aviv University, Israel.
Although Kepler was designed to find transiting planets, this planet was not identified using the transit method. Instead, it was discovered using a technique first proposed by Avi Loeb of the CfA and his colleague Scott Gaudi (now at Ohio State University) in 2003. (Coincidentally, they developed their theory while visiting the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, where Einstein once worked.)
The new method looks for three small effects that occur simultaneously as a planet orbits the star. Einstein's "beaming" effect causes the star to brighten as it moves toward us, tugged by the planet, and dim as it moves away. The brightening results from photons "piling up" in energy, as well as light getting focused in the direction of the star's motion due to relativistic effects.
"This is the first time that this aspect of Einstein's theory of relativity has been used to discover a planet," said co-author Tsevi Mazeh of Tel Aviv University.
The team also looked for signs that the star was stretched into a football shape by gravitational tides from the orbiting planet. The star would appear brighter when we observe the "football" from the side, due to more visible surface area, and fainter when viewed end-on. The third small effect was due to starlight reflected by the planet itself.
Once the new planet was identified, it was confirmed by Latham using radial velocity observations gathered by the TRES spectrograph at Whipple Observatory in Arizona, and by Lev Tal-Or (Tel Aviv University) using the SOPHIE spectrograph at the Haute-Provence Observatory in France. A closer look at the Kepler data also showed that the planet transits its star, providing additional confirmation.
"Einstein's planet," formally known as Kepler-76b, is a "hot Jupiter" that orbits its star every 1.5 days. Its diameter is about 25 percent larger than Jupiter and it weighs twice as much. It orbits a type F star located about 2,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus.
The planet is tidally locked to its star, always showing the same face to it, just as the Moon is tidally locked to Earth. As a result, Kepler-76b broils at a temperature of about 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit.
Interestingly, the team found strong evidence that the planet has extremely fast jet-stream winds that carry the heat around it. As a result, the hottest point on Kepler-76b isn't the substellar point ("high noon") but a location offset by about 10,000 miles. This effect has only been observed once before, on HD 189733b, and only in infrared light with the Spitzer Space Telescope. This is the first time optical observations have shown evidence of alien jet stream winds at work.
Although the new method can't find Earth-sized worlds using current technology, it offers astronomers a unique discovery opportunity. Unlike radial velocity searches, it doesn't require high-precision spectra. Unlike transits, it doesn't require a precise alignment of planet and star as seen from Earth.
"Each planet-hunting technique has its strengths and weaknesses. And each novel technique we add to the arsenal allows us to probe planets in new regimes," said CfA's Avi Loeb.
Kepler-76b was identified by the BEER algorithm, whose acronym stands for relativistic BEaming, Ellipsoidal, and Reflection/emission modulations. BEER was developed by Professor Tsevi Mazeh and his student, Simchon Faigler, at Tel Aviv University, Israel.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/hcfa-nmo051313.php
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Monday, May 13, 2013
2 bodies found after NJ standoff; suspect killed
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) ? The bodies of a woman and her 13-year-old son were found after a dayslong standoff, and her boyfriend was killed as officers stormed the home to rescue three other children he had been holding captive, authorities said Sunday.
Police officers went to the South Trenton home Friday afternoon after reports that some of the children hadn't been to school in 12 days, authorities said at a Sunday news conference. Officers entered the home through a rear door and smelled an odor consistent with that of a decomposing body, Trenton Police Director Ralph Rivera Jr. said.
They found 38-year-old Gerald Tyrone Murphy in an upstairs bedroom, and he told them he was armed with a gun and explosives and had three children with him, Mercer County Prosecutor Joseph L. Bocchini Jr. said. Officers retreated from the second floor and rescued a 19-year-old man from the basement, who said he hadn't seen his mother or siblings since about April 24.
Homes on the surrounding block were evacuated as a precaution, and police tape cordoned off the street in front of the house. A SWAT team was called, and an arson bomb unit was also on the scene. Police said Murphy could be seen from a window holding a black handgun.
Police remained in contact with Murphy throughout the 37-hour-long standoff and passed food into the home through an upstairs window, state police Col. Rick Fuentes said.
Officers stormed the home at around 3:45 a.m. Sunday after noting Murphy's "deteriorating state of mind" and deciding it was necessary to enter to help ensure the captives survived, Fuentes said. An officer shot Murphy because he was threatening one of the children, he said.
Murphy was taken to a hospital and later died of his injuries.
Authorities found the bodies of 44-year-old Carmelita Stevens and her teenage son in separate bedrooms. The woman's body was in an advanced state of decomposition, and police said she appeared to have died two weeks ago.
Three of her children ? an 18-year-old woman, a 16-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy ? were rescued and taken to a medical center for evaluation and treatment. Murphy had abused and assaulted the captives, Bocchini said.
Murphy and Stevens had been dating for a few months, and both lived in the house, police said. He was not the father of any of her children.
Authorities wouldn't comment on a possible motive or say how the victims died, citing the ongoing investigation.
Murphy was a registered sex offender with a long criminal history including convictions for aggravated assault and criminal conspiracy, Bocchini said. He had previously been arrested for robbery and weapons offenses and child endangerment. He also had an arrest warrant in Pennsylvania for failing to register as a sex offender.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/2-bodies-found-nj-standoff-suspect-killed-142325525.html
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Sunday, May 12, 2013
'Django Unchained' back in Chinese movie theaters
BEIJING (AP) ? Quentin Tarantino's violent slave-revenge movie "Django Unchained" returned to Chinese theaters on Sunday, about a month after it was pulled on opening day for unspecified "technical reasons."
The rare suspension order on April 11 by the movie's importer, China Film Group Corp., led to speculation that the Hollywood film had run afoul of Chinese censors despite weeks of promotion.
"Django Unchained" reportedly already had some violent scenes cut and had been cleared by China's rigorous censors, who generally remove violence, sex and politically edgy content.
"The new version is one minute shorter than the previous one," said a manager at a UME Cineplex cinema in Beijing.
The manager, who gave only his surname, Wang, speculated that a nude scene might have been cut.
Calls to China's regulatory agency, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, were not answered.
"Django Unchained," which won two Oscars, stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a plantation owner and Jamie Foxx as a freed slave who trains to become a bounty hunter and demands his wife's freedom before the U.S. Civil War.
China has become the second-biggest movie market behind the U.S. with sales of $2.7 billion last year, according to the Motion Picture Association of America. While Hollywood is eager for a slice of this market, directors are having to accept the altering of their movies if they show China in a bad light, or to make them suitable for all ages in the absence of a classification system in China.
Earlier this year, some Chinese moviegoers were left confused because of awkward cuts to the James Bond feature "Skyfall" that included unflattering references to the sex trade in the Chinese territory of Macau. Then "Cloud Atlas" was shown in Chinese cinemas minus 38 minutes that included gay and straight love scenes.
China is even getting American studios to sanction alternative versions of films specially tailored for Chinese audiences, such as "Iron Man 3." The Chinese version features local heartthrob Fan Bingbing ? absent from the version showing abroad ? and lengthy clips of Chinese scenery.
___
Associated Press researcher Henry Hou contributed to this report.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/django-unchained-back-chinese-movie-theaters-090336744.html
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Suicide tanker truck kills 3 people in Iraq
BAGHDAD (AP) ? Iraqi officials say that a suicide tanker truck packed with explosives blew up outside the home of an army intelligence officer, killing three people and wounding 18 others in the country's north.
Police officials say that the Saturday blast heavily damaged the house of Brig. Khalaf al-Jubouri in al-Shurqat, 250 kilometers (155 miles) northwest of Baghdad.
Police said that al-Jubouri's son and nephew were among the dead, but the officer himself was not home at the time.
A hospital official confirmed the casualties. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to media.
Violence has ebbed in Iraq, but insurgent attacks are still frequent.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/suicide-tanker-truck-kills-3-people-iraq-112541531.html
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Saturday, May 11, 2013
Romantic New Forest Bed And Breakfast Brief Vacations
Romantic New Forest Bed And Breakfast Brief Vacations
Author : Edward Douglas
Submitted : 2013-05-10????Word Count : 544????Popularity: ??Not Rated
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If you want to add the spark back into your relationship with that special someone there are plenty of ways to do it. One of the best ways is with a weekend getaway at a beautiful bed and breakfast. New Forest may offer just what you are looking for.
Life in the fast lane can really get a person down. Today's world moves so quickly that sometimes it is hard to breathe let alone relax. Eventually, all that stress can start to wear on even the best of relationships. That's when it's time to take charge and take your life back.
Let a feeling of contentment and relief rush over you while staying in a gorgeous environment. Even if it's only for a few days knowing that you have no obligations to worry about can be refreshing. It's hard not to smile for either you or your partner when you know that your biggest concern is caring for the wishes of the one you love.
Now you can enjoy each other because all the little things that get in the way have been removed from the equation. Tranquil landscaping, beautiful bedding and an array of knick-knacks combined with a hearty morning meal can help you and your loved one realize just what it was that you saw in each other.
After a gourmet breakfast the two of you may want to go for a stroll to take in the local culture. Who knows what you might see through a set of well rested eyes! Tour through shops, galleries, bookstores and the like and turn your day into an adventure. If you are looking for something a bit more athletic you might want to seek out a bicycle rental and tour the town that way. When the noon hour approaches you can be sure you will have stumbled upon a trendy little cafe or coffee house.
Rediscover the one you love as you discover your surroundings. Soon talking with each other just flows and seems so natural where before it may have seemed strained. Soon you are wondering what the problem ever was. With your new adventure afoot you should have plenty of things to talk about and engage in and when you are connecting emotionally then connecting physically is the next natural step. Now you are laughing and holding hands like when you were first dating.
As dusk falls maybe you have found a quaint little theater where you can take in a movie or, better yet, a live theater performance. Follow the show with a candlelit dinner at a sweet bistro or steak house. Maybe some foreign fare is more to your liking. Whichever it is, take time to savor the moment as much as you do the food.
At the end of the day your innkeeper will be there to greet you and make sure you have everything you need. If you want to end the day with a cup of hot cocoa or some tea all you have to do is ask and your wish will be fulfilled. Love is in the air and it's yours for the taking at a New Forest Bed and Breakfast.
Author's Resource Box
Pennavon are a wonderful bed and breakfast located in rural new forest, with attractive en-suite bathrooms and relaxing sitting rooms
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