Retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly and his wife, Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, were among the high profile attendees at U.S. President Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday (Jan. 24) in Washington, D.C.
Kelly, who commanded NASA's second-to-last space shuttle mission last year, sat with First Lady Michelle Obama during the president's speech. He watched from the First Lady's box as Giffords received a standing ovation, a stirring show of support from her colleagues, when she arrived.?
Giffords suffered a gunshot wound to the head on Jan. 8, 2011 during an assassination attempt in Tucson, just months before Kelly's spaceflight.?She announced her plan to retire from Congress earlier this week.?
As President Obama approached the podium to deliver tonight's State of the Union address, he stopped to give Giffords a warm welcome. The two were all smiles as they embraced and rocked back and forth amid more applause. [Photos: Astronaut Mark Kelly & Gabrielle Giffords]
"Thankful to be watching tonight's #SOTU address next to @MichelleObama. Gabby's attendance will be a proud moment for all of us," Kelly write in a Twitter post.?"Wonderful to see my wife Gabby w/her colleagues at the #SOTU?I continued to be amazed by her. #Strong."
Giffords made a miraculous recovery and was even able to attend her husband's launch, on NASA's 134th space shuttle flight aboard the shuttle Endeavour, in May 2011.It was the final flight of the space shuttle Endeavour.?
Kelly?officially retired from NASA?and the U.S. Navy in June 2011. Vice President Joe Biden attended Kelly's retirement ceremony in Washington. Giffords announced on Jan. 22 that she will step down from office to focus on her health and rehabilitation.
"I have more work to do on my recovery, so to do what is best for Arizona I will?step down this week," Giffords said in a video message posted on her Facebook website. "Arizona is my home, always will be. A lot has happened over the past year; we cannot change that. But I know, on the issues we fought for, we can change things for the better: jobs, border security, veterans. We can do so much more by working together."
During his State of the Union address, Obama did not mention NASA or his vision for deep space exploration of asteroids and Mars, but he did emphasize the need for innovation to remain competitive in the fields of science and technology.
Obama's speech came one day after?Republican presidential debates?took place in Florida, where candidates Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich made statements that called for a leaner NASA and more support for private space industry initiatives.
You can follow SPACE.com staff writer Denise Chow on Twitter?@denisechow. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter?@Spacedotcom?and on?Facebook.
On Monday?s Howard Stern Sirius XM show, spitfire Chelsea Handler took the opportunity to lash out at the Mariah Carey?s ever-fluctuating weight battle. And despite his health troubles, Nick Cannon is standing up for his woman! Nick is taking his beef with Chelsea to the ultimate playground ? the Twitterverse.
On Howard?s show, Chelsea spoke of Mariah?s new Jenny Craig ad and her battle with the bulge, saying, ?She?s worse than Elizabeth Taylor.? The late night hostess continued,?She?s just so ridiculous with her body. You see her one day and she?s like 50 pounds heavier or lighter. I mean, what is she doing? I don?t even understand what hemisphere people like that operate in. There?s nothing real about her and her Hello Kitty whatever.?
Nick then took to Twitter for a string of defensive (but positive) tweets:
-"I hear @ChelseaHandler is out there talking shit about my wife again! She's lucky I'm trying to live right now! Jesus my cup runneth over."
-"I think @ChelseaHandler is still bitter that she got blasted on my radio show! It's okay I still love you!"
-"When miserable people see happiness they must attack it."
-"You know me, I'm always up for a good joke or wise crack but when people talk about my family the "Hood" in me wants to come out!"
-"I've learned cooler heads prevail. Life is too short to focus on negativity!"
Please note that Nick calls Chelsea bitter, negative, says she?s lucky he is sick, says she makes "the hood" in him want to come out and that he has a cooler head than she does ? but then essentially says he is too positive to be phased by her comments. Hey Nicky, sure sounds like you are focusing on negativity. Simply, tweeting these kind of responses kind of take away your holier-than-thou leg to stand up. Nick, just because you hurl insults too and then say Life?s too short after being negative ? doesn?t mean you aren?t being negative, it just means you are being passive aggressive.
As for Chelsea's mean-spirited digs: let's be honest, those Mariah Carey/Jenny Craig ads are ridiculous (ridiculously amazing). It?s hard not to mock them. I can't watch them without with out laughing and thinking ? who do these people think they are fooling!? There aren?t enough smoke, mirrors and cut-away camera angles in the world to fool me into believing that Mariah Carey now has a hot bod. That just ain?t happening. But really, no one really likes to hear Chelsea Handler, a skinny woman built like a coat rack, whose main diet is probably vodka, pixie sticks and baby's blood, slam a woman who is curvier by nature. It?s just bitchy. But that's kind of Chelsea Handler?s thing. It's made her famous and Nick Cannon faux im-better-than-this tweets aren?t gonna stop that mouth of hers.
But good job Nick for standing up for your woman, I love a man who defends his lady?s honor (and weight). Clearly Mariah has trained you well.
It's not often that a celebrity kid tries out for Fox's American Idol. The reason seems obvious: Why face a cattle call when your parent could kick start your career with a few well-placed phone calls?
MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) ? A bomb blast ripped through a religious procession in eastern Pakistan on Sunday, killing 13 people and wounding at least 20 in the latest sectarian attack in the country, police said.
Hundreds of Pakistani Shiites had gathered in the town of Khanpur in Punjab province for a traditional procession to mark the end of 40 days of mourning following the anniversary of the death of Imam Hussein, a revered seventh-century figure.
The explosion went off as the mourners came out of a mosque, said District Police Chief Sohail Chatta. The bomb appeared to have been planted ahead of time in the path of the procession, he said.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Pakistani Taliban and other Sunni extremist groups have in the past claimed responsibility for the bombings of Shiite religious sites and ceremonies. Many Sunni extremists in Pakistan regard Shiites as heretics.
The Taliban and other groups have carried out hundreds of bombings over the last five years that have killed thousands of Pakistani troops and civilians as part of a campaign to install a hard-line Islamist government.
Police officer Ghazanfer Ali said the crowd of mourners started throwing rocks at police after the blast. and officers had to lob tear gas canisters into the crowd to control them.
Officials had originally thought the explosion came from a malfunctioning electric cable, but later found that there had been a bomb, he said.
Punjab law minister Rana Sanaullah said police investigators were still examining the area for clues. Security had been provided for the procession, but it had been breached, Sanaullah said.
LAS VEGAS ? A lawyer planned to ask a federal judge on Friday to reject a call for almost three years of prison time and instead give probation to a Roman Catholic priest who pleaded guilty to siphoning $650,000 over eight years from his northwest Las Vegas parish gift shop, votive candle collection and prayer funds to support his gambling habit.
In documents filed in advance of sentencing, Monsignor Kevin McAuliffe's attorney asks U.S. District Court Judge James Mahan to let McAuliffe, 59, continue getting counseling for a gambling addiction, keep practicing as a priest and pay restitution to his parish, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Summerlin.
As an ordained priest, McAuliffe will "continue to atone for his wrongdoing as he carries on with his life-long obligations and service" to the church, attorney Margaret Stanish said in Jan. 6 documents. She quoted excerpts from some of about 100 letters of support from supporters and parishioners at one of the largest church congregations in Nevada.
"I pray you to be as lenient as you can," wrote the Rev. John Kovalcin, a Roman Catholic Diocese of Las Vegas priest who teaches theology at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas. "What he did was wrong. He is paying for his actions. He has lost all he personally worked for.
"He must repair the damage he has caused and heal the people he has hurt. He cannot do that from a prison confinement," Kovalcin said.
McAuliffe could face up to 60 years in federal prison and a $750,000 fine. Deputy U.S. Attorney Christina Brown said in a sentencing memorandum there was no reason Mahan shouldn't follow a federal probation department recommendation that McAuliffe serve 33 months.
"Although the defendant had comforted and counseled others, he also enjoyed benefits, privileges and expertise not shared by others," she said, adding that McAuliffe was familiar with gambling addiction programs, "having been called upon through his position to make counseling arrangements for other priests."
McAuliffe had complete control from to 2002 to 2010 of church activities and finances, the prosecutor said, and was able to hide his embezzlement because he was a signatory to financial statements to the Las Vegas Diocese and Catholic Archdiocese in San Francisco.
When confronted by the FBI last May, "the defendant for two hours offered various explanations as to how his earnings supported his gambling," Brown said. "When these explanations failed, agents asked the defendant if he stole money from the church, which the defendant denied."
McAuliffe pleaded guilty in October, before an indictment or criminal complaint was filed, to three counts of federal mail fraud for falsifying documents sent in 2008, 2009 and 2010 to the archdiocese.
McAuliffe was removed as pastor of the northwest Las Vegas congregation of more than 8,000 families and relieved of diocese duties. A month before, the Rev. James Jankowski, interim pastor of the church, pleaded in the church newsletter for parishioners to be patient.
Bishop Joseph Pepe, head of the regional church administration since 2001, issued a statement saying the diocese and parish were cooperating with federal authorities, and that church administrators were handling the matter internally.
Stanish told the judge that McAuliffe began paying restitution to the church in May, and that to date, he had paid $13,420.
This clever little kitchen tablet is splash-proof and wipes down easily for marinara spills and greasy fingers, and the entire OS revolves around recipes and step-by-step cooking methods. It also stands on legs so you can use it hands-free. Hot! More »
Yippee!! Is the 16MP cam on the Titan II overkill though? Unless the optics are as good as an N8 and without a Xenon (or comparable) flash, not as exciting as it could be
New 'real-world' reassuring data from the SCAAR registry Public release date: 9-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: ESC Press Office press@escardio.org 0033-492-948-627 European Society of Cardiology
New generation drug-eluting stents associated with lower rates of mortality and restenosis than bare metal stents
A registry -which includes every patient in Sweden having percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for the treatment of acute and stable coronary artery disease- has found that PCI implantations using a new generation of drug-eluting stents is associated with lower rates of relapse (restenosis), stent thrombosis and subsequent mortality than older generation drug-eluting stents and bare-metal stents.(1)
The findings, from the Swedish Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty Registry (SCAAR), reported in the European Heart Journal, represent the outcome of treatment in a large "real-world population", and were derived from an analysis of 94,384 consecutive stent implantations performed in Sweden between November 2006 and October 2010.
An earlier study from the SCAAR registry, evaluating stent implantations between 2003 and 2004, had dramatically shown that those treated with drug-eluting stents (DES) had a higher rate of later mortality than those receiving bare-metal stents (BMS).(2) The results caused uproar, and prompted an immediate decline in the use of DES and an urgent review of their safety. However, follow-up of the same patient cohort two years later (with data extended to 2006) found no increased risk of death between the two groups.(3) The difference in outcome was largely explained by improvements in cardiology practice (including the application of dual antiplatelet therapy after PCI) and the introduction of improved devices.
Conclusions in this latest report, from what is the world's largest PCI registry with the longest follow-up of data, now confirm that mortality rates associated with both the new and old generations of DES were significantly lower than found with BMS. The risk of death was 28% lower with the old generation DES and 45% lower with the new generation; moreover, the new generation DES were associated with a 23% lower mortality rate at two years than the old generation DES.
The authors note that this is the first time any mortality reduction has been shown between DES and BMS, either in randomised trials or in reports from the SCAAR registry itself.
The study also found that the new generation of DES was associated with a 38% lower risk of restenosis and a 43% lower risk of stent thrombosis within two years of implantation than BMS. Late stent thrombosis has been a recurring safety concern with the original DES; the authors suggest that the new generation DES, with "thin, more biocompatible polymers" and greater flexibility, may have contributed to lowering this thrombotic risk.
Speaking on behalf of the SCAAR investigators, cardiologist Dr Stefan James from Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden described the latest findings as "intriguing" - not just because of the lower rates of restenosis with the latest generation of DES, which were expected, but also of stent thrombosis and mortality. "The low rates of restenosis and stent thrombosis correspond with the results of several recent randomised trials," said Dr James, "and this may well translate into mortality reduction in a sufficiently large study population."
However, he warned that all observational data should be interpreted with caution. "Despite the use of appropriate statistical methods," he said, "there may be residual confounding because of differences in concealed baseline variables." Nevertheless, this SCAAR analysis included only patients who where treated after 2006, to ensure that both the older and newer generation DES were used. "Since 2006 no major changes in recommendations for antithrombotic strategies or duration of dual antiplatelet therapy have occurred in Sweden," said Dr James, "so it seems likely that our more favourable outcomes are true findings."
The investigators say their results now add further weight to the strong recommendation for the use of DES as a default strategy in patients expected to tolerate extended dual antiplatelet therapy, in the treatment of coronary artery disease. "But our results also reinforce the need for randomised trials to evaluate the optimal strategy and duration of antithrombotic therapy following PCI in various indications," said Dr James.
###
Notes for editors
1. Sarno G, Lagerqvist B, Frober O, et al. Lower risk of stent thrombosis and restenosis with unrestricted use of 'new-generation' drug-eluting stents: a report from the nationwide Swedish Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty Registry (SCAAR). Eur Heart J 2012; doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehr479
2. Lagerqvist B, James SK, Stenestrand U, et al. Long-term outcomes with drug-eluting stents versus bare-metal stents in Sweden. N Engl J Med 2007; 356: 1009-1019.
3. James SK, Stenestrand U, Lindback J, et al. Long-term safety and efficacy of drug-eluting versus bare-metal stents in Sweden. N Engl J Med 2009; 360: 1933-1945.
* Drug-eluting stents are metallic mesh tubes which keep open narrowed coronary arteries while slowly releasing a medication to prevent the build-up of scar tissue inside the stent.
* The European Heart Journal is a journal of the European Society of Cardiology.
* More information on this press release, interview contacts and a PDF of the paper is available from the ESC's press office:
press@escardio.org
[ | 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.
New 'real-world' reassuring data from the SCAAR registry Public release date: 9-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: ESC Press Office press@escardio.org 0033-492-948-627 European Society of Cardiology
New generation drug-eluting stents associated with lower rates of mortality and restenosis than bare metal stents
A registry -which includes every patient in Sweden having percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for the treatment of acute and stable coronary artery disease- has found that PCI implantations using a new generation of drug-eluting stents is associated with lower rates of relapse (restenosis), stent thrombosis and subsequent mortality than older generation drug-eluting stents and bare-metal stents.(1)
The findings, from the Swedish Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty Registry (SCAAR), reported in the European Heart Journal, represent the outcome of treatment in a large "real-world population", and were derived from an analysis of 94,384 consecutive stent implantations performed in Sweden between November 2006 and October 2010.
An earlier study from the SCAAR registry, evaluating stent implantations between 2003 and 2004, had dramatically shown that those treated with drug-eluting stents (DES) had a higher rate of later mortality than those receiving bare-metal stents (BMS).(2) The results caused uproar, and prompted an immediate decline in the use of DES and an urgent review of their safety. However, follow-up of the same patient cohort two years later (with data extended to 2006) found no increased risk of death between the two groups.(3) The difference in outcome was largely explained by improvements in cardiology practice (including the application of dual antiplatelet therapy after PCI) and the introduction of improved devices.
Conclusions in this latest report, from what is the world's largest PCI registry with the longest follow-up of data, now confirm that mortality rates associated with both the new and old generations of DES were significantly lower than found with BMS. The risk of death was 28% lower with the old generation DES and 45% lower with the new generation; moreover, the new generation DES were associated with a 23% lower mortality rate at two years than the old generation DES.
The authors note that this is the first time any mortality reduction has been shown between DES and BMS, either in randomised trials or in reports from the SCAAR registry itself.
The study also found that the new generation of DES was associated with a 38% lower risk of restenosis and a 43% lower risk of stent thrombosis within two years of implantation than BMS. Late stent thrombosis has been a recurring safety concern with the original DES; the authors suggest that the new generation DES, with "thin, more biocompatible polymers" and greater flexibility, may have contributed to lowering this thrombotic risk.
Speaking on behalf of the SCAAR investigators, cardiologist Dr Stefan James from Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden described the latest findings as "intriguing" - not just because of the lower rates of restenosis with the latest generation of DES, which were expected, but also of stent thrombosis and mortality. "The low rates of restenosis and stent thrombosis correspond with the results of several recent randomised trials," said Dr James, "and this may well translate into mortality reduction in a sufficiently large study population."
However, he warned that all observational data should be interpreted with caution. "Despite the use of appropriate statistical methods," he said, "there may be residual confounding because of differences in concealed baseline variables." Nevertheless, this SCAAR analysis included only patients who where treated after 2006, to ensure that both the older and newer generation DES were used. "Since 2006 no major changes in recommendations for antithrombotic strategies or duration of dual antiplatelet therapy have occurred in Sweden," said Dr James, "so it seems likely that our more favourable outcomes are true findings."
The investigators say their results now add further weight to the strong recommendation for the use of DES as a default strategy in patients expected to tolerate extended dual antiplatelet therapy, in the treatment of coronary artery disease. "But our results also reinforce the need for randomised trials to evaluate the optimal strategy and duration of antithrombotic therapy following PCI in various indications," said Dr James.
###
Notes for editors
1. Sarno G, Lagerqvist B, Frober O, et al. Lower risk of stent thrombosis and restenosis with unrestricted use of 'new-generation' drug-eluting stents: a report from the nationwide Swedish Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty Registry (SCAAR). Eur Heart J 2012; doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehr479
2. Lagerqvist B, James SK, Stenestrand U, et al. Long-term outcomes with drug-eluting stents versus bare-metal stents in Sweden. N Engl J Med 2007; 356: 1009-1019.
3. James SK, Stenestrand U, Lindback J, et al. Long-term safety and efficacy of drug-eluting versus bare-metal stents in Sweden. N Engl J Med 2009; 360: 1933-1945.
* Drug-eluting stents are metallic mesh tubes which keep open narrowed coronary arteries while slowly releasing a medication to prevent the build-up of scar tissue inside the stent.
* The European Heart Journal is a journal of the European Society of Cardiology.
* More information on this press release, interview contacts and a PDF of the paper is available from the ESC's press office:
press@escardio.org
[ | 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.
Protesters in a Chinese province force police to return the remains of a monk who self-immolated and died.
RFA
Sopa, a respected monk, died after setting himself on fire in Darlag, a Tibetan area of Qinghai province, on Jan. 8, 2012.
Hundreds of angry Tibetans forced Chinese authorities on Sunday to return the body of a monk who self-immolated, parading the corpse in the streets in China's western Qinghai province, witnesses said.
Sopa, a respected 42-year-old monk, set himself on fire and died in front of the police station of Darlag (in Chinese, Dari) county in Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture after shouting slogans calling for Tibet's freedom and the long life of Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, they said.
It was the 15th Tibetan self-immolation since March last year, with Chinese security forces pouring into Darlag amid indications that thousands of Tibetans are planning to turn up for a memorial service this week for Sopa at a monastery where he had served.
Sopa, who ran an old people's home and an orphanage in Darlag, was a Rinpoche, an honorific used in Tibetan Buddhism for lamas and other high-ranking or respected teachers. He is believed to be the most senior monk to have self-immolated so far.?
Before setting himself ablaze, he climbed a local hill, burned incense, prayed, and then distributed several leaflets in which he wrote that he was performing the deadly act "not for his personal glory but for Tibet and the happiness of Tibetans," a source from inside Tibet told RFA.
"The Tibetans should not lose their determination. The day of happiness will come for sure. For the Dalai Lama to live long, the Tibetans should not lose track of their path," Sopa wrote, according to the source.
Dressed in the yellow outer gown of an ordained monk, he set himself alight at around 6 a.m. after he "drank and threw kerosene all over his body."
"His body exploded in pieces [and the remains were] taken away by police," the source said.
Several hundred Tibetans marched to the police station to demand his remains, and when their request was denied, "the protesters smashed windows and doors of the local police station," another source said.
When the police finally relented and handed over Sopa's remains, the protesters paraded the body in the streets, sources said.
"Only the head and chest parts [of the body] are intact, the rest were in pieces when Tibetans received the remains from the police," a third source said.
High-ranking lama
Chinese authorities tightened security in Darlag, deploying additional security forces from the main town of Golog, as posters praising Sopa's act and calling for a boycott of Chinese goods appeared in the county.
"Sopa Rinpoche has done this act for the freedom and peace of Tibet," one poster said.
Sources said Tibetans planned to organized a large prayer session comprising about 2,000 people at Sopa's monastery.
"Now it's difficult to reach the Darlag area by phone," a source said.
Sopa's death came after two Tibetan monks set themselves on fire Friday in restive Ngaba (in Chinese, Aba) prefecture in China's Sichuan province, protesting against Chinese rule and calling for the return of the Dalai Lama to Tibet.
The two from the troubled Kirti monastery, identified as Tenyi and Tsultrim, are believed to have died,? a Tibetan said in an email to RFA, adding that the authorities have not handed over their bodies to their next of kin.
Rights groups say the unending self-immolations underscore the "desperate" situation facing Tibetans as Chinese authorities pursue a security clampdown.
?These latest self-immolations confirm that what we are currently witnessing in Tibet is a sustained and profound rejection of the Chinese occupation," Free Tibet Director Stephanie Brigden said, before the Darlag incident on Sunday.
?It is a damning indictment of the international community that 14 people, in different parts of Tibet, have now chosen to set themselves on fire and the international community has failed to respond."
?We can only expect that such acts of protest will continue for as long as world leaders turn a blind eye to the desperate situation in Tibet," she said.
Kalachakra
The latest self-immolations came as tens of thousands of Buddhist pilgrims from around the world traveled this week to Bodhgaya, a town in northern India, to hear the Dalai Lama give the "Kalachakra" religious teachings. Sopa had wanted to attend the event but the Chinese authorities refused to provide him a visa.?
At least 9,000 Tibetans traveling on Chinese passports, along with an estimated 1,200 Chinese Buddhists from the mainland, are among those who have registered with event authorities.
Tensions in the Tibet Autonomous Region and in Tibetan-populated areas in China's provinces have not subsided since anti-China protests swept through the Tibetan Plateau in March 2008.
Chinese authorities have blamed the Dalai Lama for the tense situation, saying he is encouraging the self-immolations, which run contrary to Buddhist teachings.
But the Dalai Lama shot back, blaming China's "ruthless and illogical" policy toward Tibet.
He called on the Chinese government to change its "repressive" policies in Tibet, citing the crackdown on monasteries and policies curtailing the use of the Tibetan language.
Reported by Dolkar, Chakmo Tso and Taklha Gyal for RFA's Tibetan service. Translated by Karma Dorjee and Rigdhen Dolma. Written in English by Parameswaran Ponnudurai and Rachel Vandenbrink. ?
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Public release date: 9-Jan-2012
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