Quadrantid meteor shower: Will moon wash out the show?

Quadrantid meteor shower-watchers will have to deal with a three-quarter-full moon, but the event peaks overnight Wednesday, meaning the show will go on.

By Pete Spotts,?Staff writer / January 2, 2013

A meteor streaks across the sky near Lafayette, Ind., during the annual Geminid meteor shower in December. The Quadrantid meteor shower, the first of 2013, peaks Wednesday night.

Michael Heinz/Journal & Courier/AP/File

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Just when you thought the New Year's fireworks were over, a defunct comet is providing a natural encore.

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One of the year's meteoric show stoppers ? the Quadrantid meteor shower ? peaks overnight Wednesday.

Anyone with the good fortune of living under very dark skies on a moonless night could expect to see as many as 120 meteors an hour when the shower's source region in the sky ? or radiant ? is directly overhead.

Wednesday, however, the shower will have competition from a moon nearly three-quarters full, so moonlight will mask most of the dimmer bulbs on the shelf. Given the moon's phase, that translates into a rate of between five and 10 meteors an hour visible to people from urban centers through suburbs and into rural areas, according to estimates from the American Meteor Society.

The shower actually spans six days, starting Jan. 1. But this year Earth is encountering the bulk of this cosmic debris in the predawn darkness of Jan. 3.

While other meteor showers typically derive their names from constellations near each shower's radiant, the Quadrantids appear to come from a kind of netherworld between the end of the Big Dipper's handle and the four stars that comprise the head of Draco, the dragon. Astronomers already recognize a meteor shower each October as the Draconids. The Ursids come each December. And it's hard to get excited about something that could have been named the Dippids. So Quadrantids it is. Warning: You can't take that explanation to the bank.

Skywatchers have been observing the Quadrantids at least since 1825.

Somewhere between a short item entitled "Account of the Poison Plants of the Southern Parts of Brazil" and "Professor Buckland's Notice of the Hyaena's Den near Torqay," the Edinbrugh Philosophical Journal informed its readers that "on the 2d of January 1825, about 5 a.m.; Antonio Brucalassi ... observed ... a singular electric phenomenon." He saw what researchers later would refer to as a fireball, with "a great number of shooting stars ... seen before and after the appearance of the meteor." The issue was dated 1826.

Some 14 years after Signore Brucalassi's observation, scientists in the US and Belgium would independently posit that what Brucalassi saw was a recurring event.

In 2003, the shower was pegged to a near-Earth asteroid dubbed 2003 EH1. Using data gathered by the Lowell Observatory's Near-Earth Object Search, Peter Jenniskens, with the SETI Institute in Mountain View, Calif., ran calculations that showed how in the past, the object's closest approach to the sun coincided with Earth's passage through the densest part of the debris ? quite like meteors from comets, he noted.

After some additional sleuthing, he suggested that 2003 EH1 was the remnant of comet C1490 Y1, observed in Asia between 1490 and 1491 and that later broke apart.

While this year's Quadrantid shower risks being a relative washout visually, you may be able to snag more meteors on your FM radio. As meteors plummet through the atmosphere and heat to the point of glowing, they leave a streak of ionized gas behind them ? briefly. Ionized gases reflect radio signals.

By tuning to a powerful FM station roughly 800 miles away that broadcasts on a quiet part of the FM band where you live, you may be able to pick up the "ping" of a passing meteor. They sound like this. Nothing like Steely Dan, but clearly noticeable. For detailed information on observing meteor showers via radio, try this website.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/R9EwzgbJtGA/Quadrantid-meteor-shower-Will-moon-wash-out-the-show

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Why Apple Failed to Stop the Application of Apple-Trademark by ...

20121220093547935(By?Luo?Yanjie)?Two?companies?with?a?great?gap?in?their?relative?strength?have?been?seen?battling?with?each?other?over?the?trademark?of?an?apple?image;?they?are?the?globally?known?Apple?Inc.?and?a?fruit?food?making?company?in?Zhuang?He,?a?small?city?of?China.?At?the?end?of?the?battle,?the?small?company?won?the?fight,?Dalian?Chenji?Guopin?Co.,?Ltd.?(the??Chenji?)?was?supported?by?the?authority?in?the?dispute?lasted?for?5?years.?The?dispute?was?triggered?by?Chenji?s?design,?which?consists?two?apples?overlapped?together,?and?the?Chinese?characters??????written?on?them.?In?examining?the?mark,?we?can?find?the?apple?resembles?that?of?Apple?s,?which?appears?to?have?been?bitten?by?someone.?For?this?reason,?Apple?filed?the?trademark?opposition?with?the?trademark?office.

In?March?of?this?year,?the?Trademark?Review?and?Adjudication?Board?(the??Board?)?of?the?State?Trademark?Office?judged?that?the?mark?of?Chenji?consists?of?two?apples?with?the?Chinese?character??????on?them;?furthermore,?the?gap?is?not?specially?designed,?but?made?simply?by?overlapping?the?apples.?Therefore,?taking?into?account?Apple?s?inadequate?amount?of?proof,?Chenji?s?application?was?approved.?So?far,?we?have?received?no?news?on?Apple?s?lawsuit?regarding?the?conflict.?How?then?could?the?world-renowned?brand?Apple?lose?this?battle??For?more?regarding?our?thoughts?on?this,?please?check?today?s?post.

I.?Apple?has?registered?no?defensive?trademark?in?the?Class?31?of?fruit?

The?most?direct?way?for?Apple?to?challenge?Chenji?s?application?is?to?claim?it?has?made?a?first?application?in?the?classes?involved.?As?checked?by?the?author,?Apple?did?make?its?trademark?application?of??Apple??in?Class?31?as?well?as?the?application?of?the?image?mark.?But?all?these?applications?were?refused?by?the?authorities,?and?are?currently?in?the?process?of?review?regarding?the?refusal.

As?stipulated?in?Article?11?of?the?Trademark?Law:

?[?]?those?only?comprising?generic?names,?designs?or?models?of?the?goods?in?respect?of?which?the?trademarks?are?used,?

shall?not?be?granted?the?trademark?right,?and?the?ones?applied?by?Apple?are?undoubtedly?within?the?description?of?products?in?Class?31.?Therefore,?it?is?no?wonder?its?application?was?refused.?In?addition,?once?Apple?could?succeed?in?its?application,?due?to?filing?its?application?later?than?Chenji,?we?could?see?no?reason?for?Apple?to?challenge?Chenji?s?application.

II.?No?abuse?use?of?the?trans-class?protection?on?well-known?trademark?is?allowed?

Article?13?of?the?Trademark?Law?provides?that:

?A?trademark?that?is?applied?for?registration?in?non-identical?or?dissimilar?goods?shall?not?be?registered?and?its?use?shall?be?prohibited,?if?it?is?a?reproduction,?an?imitation?or?a?translation,?of?a?well-known?mark?which?is?registered?in?China,?misleads?the?public,?and?the?interests?of?the?registrant?of?the?well-known?mark?are?likely?to?be?damaged?by?such?use.?

As?a?company?with?a?worldwide?reputation,?its?status?as?being?well?known?is?totally?beyond?question.?Could?this?then?be?the?reason?Apple?is?fighting?against?a?similar?trademark?application?in?Class?31??The?author?thinks?the?answer?is?no.

Although?a?well-known?trademark?can?obtain??trans-class?protection?,?such?protection?can?only?be?applied?in?cases?where??the?interests?of?the?registrant?of?the?well-known?mark?are?likely?to?be?damaged?.?But?objectively?speaking,?no?relation?can?be?confirmed?between?Class?31?and?Apple?s?reputation.?Moreover,?to?judge?the?trademarks,?despite?their?resemblance,?they?could?retain?an?obvious?difference?between?them,?and?no?likelihood?of?confusion?among?consumers?to?mistake?products?produced?by?Chenji?and?Apple,?respectively..?Since?no?confusion?can?reasonably?occur?between?similar?trademarks?in?different?classes,?no?damages?to?their?individual?interests?can?be?certain.?For?this?reason,?a?well?known?trademark?such?as?that?of?Apple?s?has?no?reasonable?basis?by?which?it?can?challenge?that?of?Chenji?s?(for?the?scope?of?protection?of?a?well-known?trademark,?you?may?check?our?previous?post??How?Large?Is?the?Scope?of?Protection?for?Well-Known?Trademarks?in?China???)

III.?When?Chenji?s?trademark?infringes?the?copyright?of?Apple?

As?mentioned?above,?from?the?trademark?law,?Apple?will?have?difficulty?in?fighting?Chen?s?trademark.?If?the??Apple??graphic?can?be?identified?as?a??work?,?can?Apple?claim?Chenji?s?trademark?constitutes?a?form?of?copyright?infringement??The?author?thinks?that?idea?can?only?be?carried?out?with?great?difficulty.

It?cannot?be?denied?the?apple?image?of?Apple?is?designed?by?the?IT?giant?itself,?and?could?reasonably?be?protected?under?Copyright?Law.?But?unlike?regulations?in?Patent?Law,?once?the?development?of?an?image?relies?on?the?independent?effort?of?its?creator,?then?that?creation?can?also?be?considered?a?work?afforded?legal?protection,?even?if?it?looks?much?like?the?prior?created?one.?In?other?copyright?infringement?cases,?due?to?the?complexity?of?the?work,?once?a?similarity?among?them?could?be?found,?the?likelihood?of?copyright?infringement?is?impossible?to?decide,?because?it?is?not?easy?for?a?defendant?to?explain?with?clarity?its?creative?process.

In?this?case,?because?Apple?s?trademark?itself?is?a?normal?apple?shape,?the?so-called?similarity?is?mainly?due?to?the?fact?that?both?marks?simply?represent?a?similarity?in?the?shape?of?an?apple.?In?practice,?trademarks?with?two?shapes?overlapped?together?are?countless,?like?that?of?Audi?Motors,?not?to?mention?the?difference?between??the?two?trademarks?as?a?whole.?In?this?case,?Chenji?s?trademark?is?used?in?the?category?of?fruit.?It?is?reasonable?for?them?to?an?apple?as?its?trademark?graphic.?Therefore,?it?is?hard?for?Apple?to?claim?copyright?infringement?by?Chenji.

Therefore,?from?existing?trademark?query?results?and?news?reports,?the?author?supports?the?committees??decision.?Although?the?law?should?protect?well-known?brands?to?prevent?others?from?taking?advantage?of?them,?this?kind?of?protection?must?be?conformable,?and?cannot?be?infinitely?expanded,?resulting?in?damage?to?market?competition.

Lawyer?Contacts

You?Yunting?86-21-52134918??youyunting@debund.com/yytbest@gmail.com

Disclaimer?of?Bridge?IP?Law?Commentary

Source: http://www.chinaiplawyer.com/apple-failed-stop-application-apple-trademark-others/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=apple-failed-stop-application-apple-trademark-others

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The Best Health And Fitness Apps For Your New Year's Needs ...

The holidays wreak havoc on our bodies, with their mandatory over-indulgence in food as well as family and reminiscences. As we reflect on the year past ? its victories and losses ? we also begin looking ahead to the next, and in big ways or small, making plans to keep our momentum going.

For many, this involves taking health more seriously, whether it?s losing a few pounds, training for that first marathon, or just being more active. In turn, there?s been a lot of activity in the health space over the last year, as we?ve seen a number of apps and startups launch ? or continue iterating ? in the quest to help us make healthier choices, get in shape and conquer the world.

The health space is always in a state of transformation, but its evolution has accelerated of late, and technology is playing an increasingly vital role in this development. Improvements in sensor technology (and a reduction in the cost of production) have led to a boom in the popularity of health monitoring and tracking devices, which itself is becoming a crowded market.

Increased government involvement in health insurance and delivery (via ObamaCare), mobile technology, next-gen networks, Big Data and analytics are all having a disruptive effect on the industry, and startups have moved to take advantage.

For Quantified Self devotees, data-vores and the fitness conscious it?s a great time to be alive. Wearable health-tracing devices and platforms are maturing, as is the technology that makes them tick, and it won?t be long before doctors are prescribing mobile health apps and devices. The FDA?s recent approval of AliveCor?s iPhone-based heart monitor is a great example of how much there is to be excited about at the intersection of technology and health.

And for startups, there?s a lot to be excited about when deciding to build a business in this space, as we saw big developments from health-focused accelerators like Rock Health this year. A number of new accelerators hit the scene or turned into legitimate resources in 2012, like Startup Health, Healthbox, DreamIt, NY Digital Health Accelerator and Blueprint Health. Even Nike got into the game.

Nonetheless, with all the excitement in the space, it can be tough to cut through the noise, keep tabs on all the options and figure out which apps and startups should matter for you. Everyone has their own individual agenda, but collectively we?re all bound to be making a few health-related resolutions in preparation for 2013 and beyond.

Without further ado, the Health Stars:

The Wearable Tech

scaled-1054Jawbone UP

Up is one of the members of the exciting new generation of movement and health-tracking devices. The $129 bracelet suffered from some major problems when it first debuted, but it re-emerged in November with a much-improved look and experience. You can use it to track your activity during the day, your sleep at night, as well as log food intake and mood to give you a better overall picture of your health, happiness and calorie input and output.

The device comes with about a week?s worth of battery life in a single charge, is sleek and relatively unobtrusive, insulated in rubber and is waterproof. It includes a silent alarm that will wake you in the morning at the right time and a buzzer to remind you when it?s time to get up and get moving during the day.

Most of the re-design centers around the internal hardware and keeping it immune to wear and tear. The device doesn?t come with much connection to the desktop, or an external display, so, as John wrote recently, the appeal is mostly in its simplicity and the fact that it doesn?t scream ?nerd device? to all who see you wearing it. More in John?s write up here.

fitbit-one-editFitbit

Fitbit is another popular wearable activity tracker that, compared to Up, is slightly more favorable in the pricing department at $99. The small, lightweight device clips onto your clothing (and is meant to be worn somewhere on the torso) or fits into an elastic armband when sleeping. It works like a charm, tracking the number of steps one takes each day, the amount of sleep one gets each night (though this is still buggy), is sensitive to movement and offers a look into the number of calories burned each day.

It displays users? activity in a personal analytics linked to their Fitbit account, which is made easy through a wireless USB dongle that can be paired with its software in a few minutes. Users can keep the dongle in a USB port of sync it with Fitbit?s new Bluetooth radio functionality. As to the data, users can view their levels of activity in graphs, food and calorie intake, and add in other data, like blood pressure mood, etc. Like Up, it?s also got a silent alarm, and at $99, it?s becoming one of the most popular of these devices. [More in Chris' review here.]

screen-shot-2012-01-19-at-11-43-46-amNike+ FuelBand

Nike has been looking to leverage its brand recognition and massive footprint in the sports world to make waves in the fitness-tracking space with its wearable health tracker. The QS bracelet debuted in January 2012, and is now selling for $150 on Nike?s website ? and, giving it a leg up over others beyond what it already had from the Nike brand ? is now selling in the Apple Store across the U.S., Canada and the U.K.

Reviews of the FuelBand run the gamut, and with the trend seeming to be that, up to this point, it hasn?t been accurate enough to be used in real training and workouts, putting it more in the casual use category as a motivator for workouts and just getting off your butt. It looks great (although not unlike UP), comes with a great mobile app, and tracks whether or not you?re burning calories each day and meeting your basic fitness goals. It?s also started to gain some experimental integrations, like with Path, for example.

Nike also offers similar apps like Nike+ Running and Training Club in its growing arsenal of smartphone fitness motivators.

screen-shot-2012-11-29-at-4-31-31-amBasis

I say this haltingly, not having spent significant time with it yet, but Basis? new health-tracking wrist watch is probably the one I?m most excited about. The company quickly ran through its first batch after bringing the product to market in November and has since stopped accepting new orders to concentrate on meeting early demand.

The Basis band is a bit more expensive than the aforementioned gear at $200, and the question, of course, is whether there?s enough going on to justify that higher price. But from the looks of it, there is, especially for the Quantified Self and wristwatch nerds among us. The device comes with an LCD display (a la Pebble) that shows date and time, touch capacitive buttons, a 4-day battery life and Bluetooth support, which will be activated when the company releases its accompanying mobile apps (expected in the near future).

The device is loaded with sensors, which beyond using the accelerometer to measure sleep patterns, include an optical scanner to track blood flow (i.e. heart rate), a perspiration monitor, as well as skin and ambient temperature monitors to measure workout intensity, heat dissipation and so on. On top of that, the company offers a dashboard complete with a host of metrics, which include stuff like calories burned, steps taken, resting heart rate and hours slept and allows users to track their progress and create small, achievable goals to begin establishing healthy habits.

One of the more noteworthy aspects of Basis is that it adjusts to your daily activity (and sleep patterns) automatically, so you don?t have to mess around with different modes and settings. The idea is that it just works in the background, suggesting personalized goals and habits that you can actually meet ? when you want it to. There are still more pieces to add, like integrations with other devices, an API, mobile apps (and of course wider availability), but Basis looks to have a lot going for it ? at least at this early stage. [More in our review here.]

lark-new-productLark

Lark was originally a sleep-monitoring device, app and coaching service that recently expanded beyond sleep to go after the broader, general wellness market. The TechCrunch Disrupt grad now combines, a nighttime and daytime wristband and iOS app to track basic fitness statistics, food eaten, sleep logged, calories burned, distance traveled, and so on. Lark CEO Julia Hu recently told TechCrunch that Lark has sold ?tens of thousands? of devices, and that 73 percent of insomniacs saw an improvement after using Lark Pro for a month. The wristbands are designed by Ammunition ? which also designed the Beats by Dre headphones ? and through its new platform the startup is trying to move beyond its initial, core user base: Athletes.

The app and wristband combo now offer one-tap diet tracking, which allows users to tap a button to indicate they?re eating, tracking dietary info, stress and productivity data to help users make more informed decisions about their health. The platform offers personalized advice, developed in consultation with its scientific advisors, which include Stanford ?neuroeconomists,? psychologists and sleep experts and so on. The ?Larklife? product, which includes the two wristbands and mobile apps, will sell for $150. Lark looks great and has a lot to offer, but it does have to contend with the fact that others are offering a lot of this functionality in one device ? at competitive prices.

Misfit Wearables? Shine is another elegant-looking activity tracker that isn?t yet available but looks promising.

Amiigo, which, described in our recent coverage, is a ?fitness app and lightweight plastic bracelet (with detachable shoe-clip) that can identify the type of exercise you?re doing and tell you how well you?re doing it as you?re doing it, thanks to a variety of sensors analysing how your body is responding as you run, bike, swim (yes it?s waterproof), or whatever your preferred exercise poison.?

No Gadgets Here, Just The Apps

Screen shot 2012-12-25 at 8.54.04 PMRunKeeper

This Android and iOS app is one of the strongest in the category of those that look to turn your smartphone into a personal trainer. RunKeeper is part motivator, part tracker and (long-term) part health graph. The app allows you to track your walks, runs, bike rides, hikes, etc. by using the GPS in your phone, keeping stats on each activity, comparing those stats, setting short-term and long-term goals, offers customizable training plans, and voice coaching. The startup also aims to be a health and fitness data aggregator (or graph) and appeal to Quantified Self enthusiasts by connecting to Bluetooth and leveraging its API to integrates with Fitbit, WeightTraining, Fitocracy, Lose It!, Gympact and GAIN Fitness, among others.

The company just passed its 100th integration, leading in this regard. However, RunKeeper co-founder and CEO Jason Jacobs tells us there?s still a long way to go, as the category heats up and more apps and devices become available on the market.

The startup now has over 14 million users and many, he says, are looking to tie in data from other health apps to their RunKeeper accounts, especially as the company now allows them to earn credits for their workouts and apply them to corporate wellness programs, fitness games, rewards systems and so on. Usage of these integrations, Jacobs tells us, grew 825 percent year-over-year in 2012. Part of the reason Mark Zuckerberg included RunKeeper in a short list of apps that had caught his attention this year.

As to what?s next, Jacobs said that the startup will be looking to more tightly integrate the data from its partners into the core RunKeeper experience in the coming months ? and to better integrate RunKeeper data into theirs ? and will be announcing a number of partnerships in the next quarter as well.

Find it here.

screen-shot-2012-10-30-at-10-38-55-amRuntastic

This one may be better known to European readers, as Runtastic got its start across the pond, but it?s beginning to establish a footprint in the U.S. as well. And overall, it was a good year for the startup, which has looked to carve a name for itself in the space by becoming a full-service health and fitness platform. Traditionally, it?s been focused on tracking and coaching fitness enthusiast through outdoor recreation, allowing users to take advantage of fitness plans with voice coaching, as well as track and analyze their exercise data, monitoring speed, elevation and distance and storing that info in the cloud to measure progress against yourself and others (along with some cool ?PRO? features for Android users.)

More recently, it?s expanded into ?indoor? fitness as well, with motion-activated apps for activities like push ups and pull ups, and now offers a heart-monitoring app to boot. All in all, a productive 2012 for Runtastic has meant the launch of seven new apps for a total of 14 (including free and PRO/paid apps), over 12 million downloads this year alone (for over 16 million total), along with the addition of 5 million registered users on Runtastic.com, the launch of hardware in Europe (a heart rate monitor with GPS watch, armband and chest strap), integration with MyFitnessPal as a launch partner for the debut of its API, Google Earth integration and the launch of a fitness channel on YouTube. Going forward, users can expect more apps, more integrations, and the launch of its hardware in the U.S. during Q1. [More in our coverage here.]

screen-shot-2012-11-27-at-6-34-24-amLift

Lift is a great-looking iPhone app that?s operating behind an ambitious goal: Improving human potential. The Obvious-incubated and now venture-backed startup wants to help you reach your goal, whether that?s getting in shape, living healthier, becoming more productive, or being more kind to animals ? or your mother in law.

The app helps you break down your challenging personal goals into micro habits in order to make it easier to gain momentum and, presumably, achieve those goals. For Lift, it?s all about simplicity; while many startups and app developers say that, Lift really means it. Users create and join habits, clicking Lift?s big button if they?ve met their goal that day, and all activity is public, where users can cheerlead for their peers and receive encouragement of their own. The app pushes your accumulated data into good-looking graphs and charts, showing you how consistent you?ve been in meeting your new, positive habits.

Last week, the startup updated its app in the hopes of helping people meet their New Year?s resolutions, adding reminders (the most-requested feature), along with updating the overall user experience. In a crowded space, where companies like Basis are building some of this functionality into their wearable tech experiences, it will be more difficult for apps like Lift to stand out. However, the company recently recruited Matt Matteson, employee numero uno at Path and is backed by the guys behind Twitter, so it?s got some heavy-weight support. And focus on simplicity is a big leg-up in the data-noisy world of Quantified Self apps and devices.

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 2.24.57 AM Beeminder

Beeminder is attempting to take an evil-genius approach to motivating you to reach your goals. Namely, if you don?t stay on track towards your stated goal every day, Beeminder will charge you a predetermined amount, starting at $5, that increases each time you fall off track. The idea is that you quickly reach an amount that motivates you. Your rational, forward-thinking self is putting this restriction on your lazy, impetuous self in order to make it do the things you really want to do. Beeminder works for any quantifiable goal, like losing weight, exercising three times a week, or even productivity goals like checking things off your to-do list. It can automatically track your data from other services like Fitbit, Withings, and RunKeeper.

Beeminder is similar to StickK.com, but more data-oriented. Basing your commitment on a graph of your progress also creates flexibility (without defeating the point of a commitment contract). You can adjust your goal at any time, but updates take effect in a week, so if you want to be lazy, you have to plan ahead to be lazy.

screen-shot-2012-11-13-at-13-11-12Retrofit

Retrofit, which just raised $8 million led by DFJ, is a weight-loss program designed for busy people that uses a little bit of Skype, Fitbit, connected, wireless scales and live mentorship from wellness experts to help you get in shape. Retrofit allows users to set small, achievable weight loss goals ? one pound per week is the typical maximum target ? and private Skype video sessions with real, live fitness instructors to combat empty promises and increase healthy outcomes.

It incorporates data from your wearable health-tracking devices (like Fitbit) and wireless activity monitors and scales (which it provides in your ?welcome package?) and displays that information in a way that makes it easy to consume and customizable. What sets Retrofit apart is the personalized instruction from its wellness experts, who are registered dietitians, behavior coaches, and exercise physiologists and a ?maniacal? focus on helping you lose weight. Retrofit comes at a cost, though, with its starter, 10 percent weight loss program (which includes 12 expert sessions) beginning at $259/month for a year-long commitment and scaling up from there.

screen-shot-2012-05-21-at-6-41-19-pmMapMyFitness

MapMyFitness is a well-backed conglomeration of fitness-oriented websites and apps, which allows users to track and store their running, cycling, walking and hiking activity and access a considerable database of international routes, fitness calculators, events, listings, nutrition tracking and more. Founded in 2005, MapMyFitness is one of the early movers in the space and has grown into one of the more popular fitness apps in the App Store, passing 9 million registered users and 30 million downloads (across all apps) this summer.

The company has been expanding into international markets of late (along with its offline partnerships) and recently rebuilt its portfolio of websites, updating its routes, courses, personal challenges and integrating with the latest version of Google Maps? API. This means that users can now get real time info on weather, safer routes, directions, elevations, customer markers and traffic, on top of leaderboards, the ability to check-in at workout locations and compare progress to specific groups, be it friends, running rivals or local clubs. An oldie but a goodie.

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 1.35.43 AMKeas

Keas is a venture-backed social wellness platform brought to you by Adam Bosworth, a familiar name in the Health 2.0 space and one of the creators of Google Health. Keas allows companies to pick health goals and compete against each other to lose weight and get in shape, incentivized by a reward system which offers both real and virtual prizes.

The idea is to reduce the cost of healthcare plans and increase productivity in the enterprise by giving employees a wellness program that encourages participation and engagement by creating an experience that is fundamentally social and actually fun. Employees join teams of up to six people, competing for cash (or bragging rights) offered by their employers in pursuit of healthier lifestyles. One corporate client (Chilton hospital) reported that participating teams (about 40 percent of 1,300 employees) lost 1,230 pounds in a 12-week challenge. A great option for healthier workplaces.

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 4.31.16 AMGympact or Pact, Inc.

Pack, Inc. is a website and iPhone app that aims to complement all those new health data trackers, devices and training apps with an incentive plan that adds another layer of encouragement to get you off your butt. For Pact, the key to achieving your health and fitness goals revolves around negative motivation. Rather handing out points or badges, Pact offers peer pressure and cold, hard cash as its incentive, allowing users to check in and set goals for, say, how many times they?ll hit the gym in a given week and how much they?re willing to pay if they don?t reach that goal.

If you meet your goal, you earn a cash reward, and if not, the money goes into a community pot and is doled out to those who do hit their milestones. Pact Co-founder Yifan Zhang tells us that, since the startup launched in January of last year, it?s managed to retain 50 percent of its users and has been focused on creating value for its partners. For RunKeeper for example, Pact was able to increase RunKeeper usage by 64 percent across the board and by over 520 percent for its least active users by employing its monetary reward structure.

The startup was on its way to 1 million workouts facilitated in 2012, and is getting ready to release its Android app on January 1st, just in time for those New Year?s resolutions. [Check out our coverage here.]

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 4.34.39 AMCardiio

Along with AliveCor and Azumio, Rock Health grad Cardiio is the maker of a $5 heart rate monitoring app that requires you to touch the iPhone?s camera to capture your pulse ? all you have to do is let the app take a picture of your beautiful mug. The app?s sensors attempt to pick up minute differences in the color of your face that indicate changes in heart rate. It also offers long-term tracking to see how your resting heart rate morphs over time, along with comparisons to population averages. Next, the company plans to use this technology to expand into other types of biofeedback. [More in our coverage here.]

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 4.35.42 AMAzumio

Thanks the popularity of its biofeedback apps like Instant Heart Rate, Stress Doctor and Stress Check, this startup has seen over 30 million downloads across its iOS and Android apps. In July, it acquired SkyHealth, the makers of Fitness Buddy, one of the top-ranked paid health apps on the App Store. With the acquisition, Azumio now counts 15 health and fitness apps in its portfolio and is on a mission to create a fitness platform that gives users a complete picture of their health, spanning heart rate, stress, sleep behaviors, blood sugar levels and workout routines. With the recent addition of its Fitness Trainer app, Azumio is looking to become a mobile, adaptable personal trainer and health-tracker that allows you to reach your fitness goals without ever going to the gym. [Check out our coverage here.]

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 4.36.44 AMSkimble

Rock Health grad Skimble has created a motivation and fitness instruction platform with ?Workout Trainer? that offers hundreds of workouts, which are guided by a dynamic audio and visuals aimed at giving aspiring health nuts an easy way to exercise, regardless of how much time they have, or what equipment they have close at hand. The app looks great, and if you upgrade to the startup?s premium service, bland voice-overs are replaced by actual coaches and instructional videos ? a much more rewarding and useful experience.

Users can create their own workouts, adding it to the startup?s sizable multimedia exercise library, get reminders on your phone, via email, Facebook and Twitter, and share progress with friends. The modular database is easy to navigate, the app looks good, and everything syncs with user accounts on Skimble.com, and the subscription plan is affordable at $25/year.

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 5.24.16 AMFitocracy is a social network that aims to gamify fitness for those RPG lovers out there by awarding you with points, the ability to level-up and win badges in an attempt to encourage you to engage more consistently with your exercise routines and trips to the gym. The invite-only, free web app has you set up a profile, add a pic, your current weight (which you can keep private), and then introduces you to a status feed that shows updates and level-ups from other users, group categories where you can learn about and dig into niche fitness info, Q&As and data, forum-style. The app also includes access to public and group leaderboards, RunKeeper integration, activity trackers, which let you add sets and reps in particular categories, earn points for completing those activities and receiving real time notifications as you progress. The app currently has around 600,000 users. [Check out our coverage here.]

Screen shot 2012-12-26 at 5.27.41 AMEndomondo is a veteran fitness tracking app, launching in 2008, that recently passed 10 million registered users (with 3 million+ coming in 2012 alone), putting it in the ballpark of MapMyFitness, Azumio, RunKeeper and Runtastic. The app, which is especially popular in Europe, is, as Chris wrote recently, ?part personal trainer and part fitness-focused Facebook,? which runs across platforms and lets users track workouts, share with its community of exercise enthusiasts, with a focus on the social and collaborative side of fitness. [More in TC coverage here.]

The Honorables

GAIN Fitness offers personal trainers, digital-style in an app that lets these coaches help you create interactive, personalized work out routines that help you through easy-to-reach fitness goals. Workouts and plans are matched to your personal fitness level, goals and available time ? instantly and from the comfort of your mobile device. [See Colleen's GAIN test drive here.]

Zombies, Run is an awesome running game that immerses you in an action-packed story (mixed with your own music) that you play while jogging in the park or running on a treadmill. Basically, zombies chase you as you run, and the faster you move and better you perform, the longer you remain free from craving brains ? and that is what?s important.

JEFIT is an app that makes training routines and workout regimens that were initially only available to bodybuilders open and free to the average, non-bodybuilder, like you and me. The app lets you choose from a long list of exercises, comes with animations and how-to tips that are searchable by muscle group and available equipment. The app makes it a cinch to track your routines, rest and to sync your data with your web-based account.

Pocket Yoga is by far the best app for developing yoga skills at your own pace, in the comfort of your own home. The app includes voice instruction and visual guides, illustrated images of different poses and posture, as well as a dictionary of postures and positions that describes the benefit of each so that you know why you?re humiliating yourself with something called ?the downward dog.?

Lose It! is another app that helps you shed those extra pounds by allowing you to track your food consumption and compare to previous meals, monitor nutrient-intake (protein, fat, carbs, etc.), log packaged foods through the app?s barcode scanner, and access a sizable database of both foods and activities.

MyFitnessPal offers aspiring weight-shedders a food diary, diet profile and huge database of food items to track calorie intake, along with discussion forums to ask questions of those who?ve already walked similar paths.

Weight Watchers is another oldie-but-goodie that helps you track food intake, calories logged, associate meals and particular foods to a point system that helps you gamify your diet. Weight Watchers was one of the first to do so, and it?s adapted nicely to mobile, where it now allows you to scan barcodes to see the ?point value? of products while you?re at the grocery store.

Everest is a cool app for doing everything from setting goals and dreams, and getting in shape to learning Italian.

DietBet is similar in concept to Pact, Inc, offering a social dieting platform that asks users to make a financial commitment (i.e. put up cash) to encourage themselves and their friends to hit their weight loss targets. Users create teams that compete against each other, with the first person to lose four percent of their starting weight getting the pot (or total money pledged). DietBet verifies weight loss through photos and algorithmic auditing.

HealthRally is another ?crowdmotivator? platform that leverages peer pressure and real, live rewards to help you get healthy. Users can enlist friends and family to rally behind them as supporters, with your cheerleading squad pitching in to pay for a new iPad or some other sweet reward to keep you on track. [Check out our coverage here.]

Beyond Fitness: Awesome HealthTech To Watch

Sherpaa, Practice Fusion, dr chrono, Simplee, Doximity, MotherKnows, LumoBack, Beyond Lucid Technologies, Aidin, CarePlanners, Eligible, NatureBox, Omada Health, HealthTap, CareZone and QuantiaMD

Source: http://techcrunch.com/2013/01/02/best-health-apps/

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New Year Resolutions - web design Singapore

New year?s here; time to start revving up for 2013. Year in, year out, we make resolutions to better ourselves in terms of getting rid of poor habits, picking up good ones, taking better care of ourselves and the people around us, learning to manage our lives better etc.

Quitter

The good news is that in this age of smartphones, we can actually use our smartphones to help us achieve these resolutions. We?ve compiled 40 iOS apps that you can use for free, to help out with your New Year resolutions. Some feature productivity enhancement traits, others help you to watch your finances and your health, and if you have a habit to kick, there?s an app for that too.

There?s no better way to celebrate a renewed year with the right spirit to take on the next batch of challenges. Here?s to a fruitful 2013 ahead. Onward to the list!

Save More Money

Can?t seem to save enough money to buy yourself all those awesome geeky stuff you really must have? Looks like you need your very own financial advisor, like the ones below.

Toshl Finance

This all-in-one finance manager syncs with all your devices with an account on their website. You can track your expenses and view your budget to ensure you?re not overspending. It also has the option to add bills so that you get reminded of those due dates.

Toshl Finance

Concur

For a more business-focused app, Concur can help keep track of and manage travel expenses. Set different currencies and manage hotels or flight plans for overseas travel. You can then generate an expense report when you return home.

Concur

Expensify

With Expensify, you can sync your credit cards and bank accounts to track purchases with real-time updates. It?ll be able to track transactions via eReceipts; otherwise you can take pictures of paper receipts, and with that information be able to generate a expense report.

Expensify

HelloWallet

HelloWallet allows you to track multiple bank account balances. It also gives you a summary of your budget progress and can average out your spending trends based on categories you?ve created.

HelloWallet

Mint.com Personal Finance

Mint allows you to add multiple type of bank accounts to your account on their website. You can add your personal bank, credit, loan and retirement account to Mint and it?ll automatically retrieve transactions as you make them.

Mint.com

Bills & Accounts Manager

When you have many little ?accounts? like rent, phone or cleaning services, then you can manage them with this app. Manage bills for each of these little accounts and remind you when it?s time to pay via SMS or email.

Bills Monitor

With Bills Monitor, you can easily categorize and manage your bills. You can view weekly, monthly, quarterly or yearly reports on your spending in each category and view due dates on the in-app calendar.

Bills Monitor

MoneyPad

MoneyPad is a simpler way to manage your budget and expenses. You can set a monthly budget for each category and be able to view if you?ve exceeded your expenses.

MoneyPad

Pageonce ? Money and Bills

Pageonce not only allows you to to connect your bank, credit card and investments accounts, but also allows you to pay bills with their app. You can track your spending and bills then get reminders to pay those bills within the secure app.

Pageonce

Shoeboxed Receipt Tracker

If you want to keep track of your spending through receipts, Shoeboxed allows you to take pictures of your receipts where it will automatically extract the store and expenditure information.

Shoeboxed

Visual Budget

Visual Budget allows you to manage expenses of different accounts simultaneously and sort them into different groups at the same time for easier management. You can also set recurring transactions such as your Internet or phone bill.

Visual Budget

Eat And Live Healthier

Not too long ago, we featured health-related apps you can download on your iPhone. Here are more apps to add to that list.

Sworkit ? Circuit Training Workouts

For easy to do home workouts, Sworkit comes with a few moves and instructions for both strength training and yoga. You then set the amount of time you want to work out for, and it?ll provide a simple workout program for you.

Sworkit

Whole Foods Market Recipes

If eating healthy is the goal of your New Year, then this app will give you the information and recipes you need to start eating healthy. It features diary free, fat free, gluten free and many other healthier-than-usual recipes to suit your needs.

Whole Foods

The Eatery

Want a reason to take pictures of your food? This app encourages you to do so and allows your friends to rate what you?re eating. It also keeps track of what you eat and ensures you?re on a good overall diet.

Eatery

Restaurant Nutrition

If you?re not one to cook at home and find yourself eating out a lot, this app will give you the nutrition information of food you can get in popular restaurants.

Restaurant Nutrition

My Diet Diary

With this app, you can track your weight loss by inputting food, exercise, weight and water consumption information. It will then take these information and determine if you?re on the right path to losing weight.

My Diet Diary

40.30.30

If you?re closely watching what you eat, this app suggests that you have a 40%-30%-30% ratiointake of carbohydrates, protein and fat in grams. Keying in this information from the packet of food you?re eating will determine if what you?re eating is nutritious or not.

40.30.30

Juice

Juice allows you to track your sleep, diet and exercise to help you change the way you use your daily supply of energy. It gives you tips to help better the usage of your energy and has weekly reports to track how well you?re progressing.

Juice

Calorie Counter by FatSecret

This app has a barcode scanner and a database of all the nutritious info of food with barcodes. It helps you keep track of your meals, exercise and weight to help you get healthier faster.

Calorie Counter

DailyBurn Tracker

DailyBurn features a combination of tracking your food and calories, and also provides workout and training plans to help you achieve your health goals.

DailyBurn

Make Or Break Habits

During this New Year, if your goal is to break a bad habit like smoking or drinking, we?ve got some apps to help you. Need to pick up a new habit? We got that too.

Habit Maker Habit Breaker

All you have to do is add a habit and then decide if you want to ?make? it or ?break? it. You then start tracking by tapping the happy or sad face ? happy if you succeed, sad if you do not ? then watch your progress with charts and graphs.

Habit Breaker

Kickit

Kickit is an app designed to help you quit smoking by showing you financial incentives. By saving up on the cigarettes you are not buying, you can see an estimate of how many more days are left before you can buy that thing you have been eyeing.

Kickit

Quitter

Quitter is an app to break bad habits that cost you money. It could be smoking or a constant craving of junk food. You can see how much you?ve saved each day, add pictures to motivate you and share your progress on social networking sites.

Quitter

Since iQuit

If you have a bad smoking habit, then this app may be able to motivate you through each day by showing you how much time and money you?ve saved since you quit smoking.

Since iQuit

Way Of Life

This is a habit-building app to help you identify and track your habits with charts and notes. You can then share these charts with others to ensure you?re on the right path of building a good habit.

Way Of Life

Bloom

Bloom will inspire you to create good habits and make better choices as it reminds you to do productive things throughout your day. You can also add pictures and it?ll show them to you via reminders as a way of self-motivation.

Bloom

Be More Productive

With only 24-hours in a day, these apps could help you be more productive by better managing your time and daily to-do tasks throughout each day.

30/30

30/30 is a simple app that helps you keep track of the tasks that you should be doing. You set up a list of tasks and allocate a specific time for each task. Once the timer for the first task starts, it will tell you to move on to the next task once the time of the first task finishes.

30/30

Any.DO

We?ve done an in-depth look of Any.DO before, but it needs to be on this list. Having a to-do list and setting deadlines for each list item can help you manage your time better and not miss out on any important tasks. Not only does it work across iOS and Android devices, it?s now integrated into Gmail and you can set reminders right from your mailbox.

Any.Do

Cozi Family Organizer

If most of the members on your family have an iOS device, this app will be able to share family calendars, shopping lists, to-do lists and family journals. Everyone logs in to one account with their own email address and will be able to see daily tasks that each person has to do.

Cozi

Errands To-Do List

Here?s a simple to-do list that enables you to plan out the entire month ahead of you. It also comes with a wide range of image icons to be used together with individual tasks. You can also email individual tasks or folders of tasks as a way to share the information with others.

Errands

Intuition: Mom?s Assistant

If you?re a busy supermom and need to get a million things done in a day, this app will help you organize a to-do list which you can share with family members via email. You can also get reminders and notifications of nearby locations which can help you complete your errands.

Mom's Assistant

Organizer To-Do

Another to-do list organizer that will help you manage your daily tasks easier. You can color-code tasks, sort by priorities or due dates, organize tasks by folders and show a number badge on the home screen icon to easily tell how many tasks you have each day.

Organizer

RE.minder

A reminder app that allows you to set an alarm that repeats each minute, hour or day until you actually complete the task, kinda like having a mom-style virtual assistant who can?t stop nagging you to get your stuff together. You can also share reminders with others via email.

RE.minder

Remember The Milk

This app works really well with the features on their website. With an account on their website, you can set reminders via email, SMS and instant messenger. It also syncs and backs up whatever information you add to your mobile device to the web account.

Remember The Milk

Todoist

Todoist is a productivity app that helps organize your tasks and works well with your desktop browser or Android device. It also works well with services like Gmail and you can get notification reminders via SMS or email.

Todoist

Schedule Planner

This to-do app allows for integration with the iOS calendar or Google Calendar. You can easily plan your day by color-coded categories. At the end of the day, you get a colorful diagram that tells you how you spent your time each day.

Schedule Planner

Look For A Better Job

Feel like you?ve hit a brick wall in your career? Maybe these job search apps can help you get a new, better job you want to get up out of bed for.

LinkedIn

If you?re looking for a job and want an online presence of your skills, then go to LinkedIn and create an account immediately. This app will help you get job-related notifications wherever you are.

LinkedIn

Interview Skill

This app has resources for interview skills to help you get through different questions that the interviewer might ask. You get tips via text, audio and video which you can listen and even watch on the app.

Interview Skills

Job Search

Based on the job search site Indeed.com, this is the iPhone app where you can look for jobs wherever you go.

Job Search

Jobsite Jobs

Here?s one for UK readers. The UK website Jobsite.co.uk app allows you to search for jobs by skills, location or job type. Results can be sort by relevance, date or salary which you can save into your account. Job applications have to be done via the website.

Jobsite

Source: http://www.ipixel.com.sg/blog/web-design/new-year-resolutions-40-apps-to-help-you-achieve-them/

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Jury selection begins in terror finance case

MIAMI (AP) ? Jury selection has begun in Miami for the trial of an elderly Muslim cleric and a son accused of funneling tens of thousands of dollars to the Pakistani Taliban terror group.

Prospective jurors on Wednesday were handed detailed four-page questionnaires in the case of Hafiz and Izhar Khan. The judge says the trial could last up to nine weeks, and he told jurors to pay particular attention to the written questions about their ability to be fair in a terrorism case.

The men say the money they sent overseas was for purely innocent purposes. The men are charged with providing material support to terrorists by allegedly funneling about $50,000 to the Pakistani Taliban. They have pleaded not guilty. Charges were dropped against another of Khan's sons.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/jury-selection-begins-terror-finance-case-163925675.html

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US manufacturing expanded slightly last month

In this Nov. 16, 2012 photo, an employee works on assembly line at Generac Power Systems, Inc., in Whitewater, Wis. After U.S. manufacturing shrunk in November, it grew slowly in December and hiring increased, a sign of modest economic momentum heading into the new year. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

In this Nov. 16, 2012 photo, an employee works on assembly line at Generac Power Systems, Inc., in Whitewater, Wis. After U.S. manufacturing shrunk in November, it grew slowly in December and hiring increased, a sign of modest economic momentum heading into the new year. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

(AP) ? U.S. manufacturing grew slightly last month and factory hiring increased. The modest gain suggests the economy entered the new year with some momentum.

The Institute for Supply Management said Wednesday that its index of manufacturing activity rose in December to 50.7. That's up from a reading of 49.5 in November, which was the lowest reading since July 2009, one month after the recession ended.

A reading above 50 indicates growth, while a reading below signals contraction. The ISM is a trade group of purchasing managers.

A measure of employment increased last month to 52.7. That's up from 48.4 in November, which was the first time the employment gauge fell below 50 in three years.

Factories have cut jobs in three of the four months through November, according to government data. The jump in employment in the ISM survey suggests manufacturers may have stepped up hiring last month.

The Labor Department releases the December jobs report on Friday.

Still, a gauge of new orders was unchanged and production grew more slowly, the survey found. Manufacturers also cut back on stockpiles, a sign of concern about future demand.

"The trend in manufacturing remains weak," Jim O'Sullivan, an economist at High Frequency Economics, said in a note to clients.

The closely watched manufacturing survey was completed before Congress reached a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff."

The last-minute deal passed Tuesday averts widespread tax increases and delays deep spending cuts that had threatened to push the country back into recession. Still, most Americans will see some increase in taxes this year, which will likely slow consumer spending.

Stocks surged immediately after the market opened in response to the deal. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 308 points ? the biggest gain in a year ? to close up at 13,412. Broader indexes also rose sharply.

A gauge of export orders rose above 50 for the first time in six months, according to the ISM survey. That's a hopeful sign that overseas economies are improving, raising demand for U.S. goods.

A survey in China on Monday found manufacturing activity in that country expanded for the third straight month. That adds to evidence that its economy is improving after a slowdown last year.

Growth in the U.S. economy is being driven by other sectors, such as housing. A government report showed that construction firms spent more on home building in November.

Overall construction spending slipped 0.3 percent because of a sharp drop in federal government projects. Spending on commercial buildings, such as office buildings and shopping malls, also fell.

There have been some positive signs for factory output. In November, companies substantially increased their orders for a category of large equipment that reflects their investment plans. That followed a big increase in the same category in October.

The economy grew at a 3.1 percent annual rate in the July-September quarter, much better than the 1.3 percent pace in the April-June quarter. But economists expect growth slowed in the final three months of last year, partly because of the uncertainties surrounding the fiscal cliff, to below a 2 percent pace.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-01-02-Economy-Manufacturing/id-9c074801897b4c8ca2e92e8593ca6c80

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Illinois Sen. Kirk to return a year after stroke

FILE - In this file photo taken Wednesday Nov. 3, 2010, in Wheeling, Ill., Illinois Sen.-elect Mark Kirk, R-Ill., speaks to media as he celebrates his election win. Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate?s front door this week _ a walk that?s significant not just for Illinois? junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

FILE - In this file photo taken Wednesday Nov. 3, 2010, in Wheeling, Ill., Illinois Sen.-elect Mark Kirk, R-Ill., speaks to media as he celebrates his election win. Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate?s front door this week _ a walk that?s significant not just for Illinois? junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

FILE - In this Nov. 4, 20102 file photo, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, right, emerges from the 103rd floor stairwell at Chicago's Willis Tower during the RIC SkyRise Chicago event, a fundraiser for the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where Kirk is a patient. Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate?s front door this week _ a walk that?s significant not just for Illinois? junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients. (AP Photo/Teresa Crawford, File)

FILE - In this Oct. 11, 2010 file photo, Illinois Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Mark Kirk laughs during the annual Coumbus Day parade in Chicago. Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate's front door this week _ a walk that is significant not just for Illinois' junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, File)

FILE - A 2012 file photo of an image taken from video and provided by Sen. Mark Kirk's office shows Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill. going through a walking exercise at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago following a stroke. Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate's front door this week _ a walk that is significant not just for Illinois' junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients. (AP Photo/Courtesy of Sen. Mark Kirk's office)

FILE - This undated photo provided by the Kirk for Senate campaign shows then U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., a candidate for the U.S. Senate, in a flight suit at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland as a member of the Navy Reserve. Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate?s front door this week _ a walk that?s significant not just for Illinois? junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients. (AP Photo/Kirk for Senate campaign, File)

(AP) ? Nearly a year after a stroke left him barely able to move the left side of his body, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is expected to climb the 45 steps to the Senate's front door this week ? a walk that's significant not just for Illinois' junior senator, but also for medical researchers and hundreds of thousands of stroke patients.

It's estimated only one-third of patients return to work after a stroke, said Dr. Elliot Roth, medical director of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago's New Patient Recovery Unit and AbilityLab, where Kirk recovered.

The 53-year-old Republican will return to the high-profile, demanding life of a Washington lawmaker after an experimental rehabilitation so intense it's often compared to boot camp, Roth said. Patients keep grueling schedules, often spending eight hours a day or more re-learning how to walk, talk and do other tasks.

Because there are risks to going back to work unprepared, patients do "practice runs" of what it will be like to be back on the job. If and when they successfully return to work, Roth added, "It's like having a great symphony play and recognizing it's all the practice beforehand that went into it."

Kirk will walk back into a Congress that has grappled for weeks over how to avoid going over the "fiscal cliff," a series of across-the-board tax increases and spending cuts due to take effect Tuesday. President Barack Obama indicated Monday afternoon that a deal was in sight, but not yet finalized. But House Republicans said they will not vote on the issue Monday night, and it remained unclear whether the Senate would vote Monday.

The Illinois senator's return will be inspiring to fellow stroke patients, said Frank Watson, the former Republican leader of the Illinois Senate who resigned from office after his 2008 stroke.

"For us in the stroke fraternity, we're very happy to see this occur, to see somebody taking their life back," Watson said. "There are so many people who don't make it back."

Kirk, who won President Barack Obama's former Senate seat in 2010, checked himself into a hospital in January 2012 after feeling dizzy. Tests revealed that the avid swimmer had suffered a major stroke. Surgeons had to remove two small pieces of destroyed brain tissue, and temporarily removed a 4-inch by 8-inch portion of his skull to allow for swelling.

Doctors said movement in Kirk's left side was severely limited. He was in intensive care and would need speech therapy, but they expected he would make a full mental recovery.

Within days, they said Kirk was asking for his Blackberry. In May, Kirk released a video updating his progress and showing footage of him walking with the help of a harness, a cane and Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago staff. It also included clips of Kirk speaking while sitting in a chair, his left shoulder lower than his right and the left side of his face still largely paralyzed.

Kirk said in the video that his staff had counted the steps from the parking lot to the front door of the Senate. It was his hope to climb all 45 of them someday, "to fight for the people of Illinois."

In a separate video released three months later, Kirk was shown climbing stairs at the RIC and working in his home office. He said he had moved back to his home in the north Chicago suburbs, and that he was talking to his staff several times a day and keeping up with business in Washington via email. He also touted the experimental therapy, through which he had logged almost 15 miles and 145 flights of stairs.

Roth said the study represents a new approach to stroke rehabilitation, which has traditionally been slower and more cautious. In the study, one group ? which included Kirk ? was pushed harder and walked more, in an effort to see if it led to a quicker recovery.

In November, Kirk climbed 37 floors of stairs inside Chicago's Willis Tower as part of an RIC fundraiser. One of his therapists called it "remarkable progress."

Kirk has said little to the media throughout his rehabilitation. Through his staff, he declined to comment about his return to Washington. They have said he'll walk the steps Jan. 3, when the new Congress convenes.

Watson, who was in a wheelchair for months after his stroke, said it will be important for Kirk to take it slow and make time for continued rehabilitation, noting "it's not over."

Watson's stroke affected his emotions, prompting him to break down in tears at times he previously would not have. It's something that still happens a little, he said.

Moments later, talking about the significance of Kirk's return, Watson began to cry.

"We need success stories," he said, "and Mark's one of them."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2012-12-31-US-US-Senate-Kirk's-Return/id-f48b3d2041f746698ee7d8bf23576797

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Safe Driving Tips to Avoid Accidents in a Winter Storm ...

winter storm car accidentsFor people who have lived in areas in which snow and ice are a regular occurrence during the winter, driving in these conditions may seem like second nature. However, despite experience and expertise gained over time, operating any motor vehicle in severe wintry conditions can prove dangerous and, in some cases, fatal.

Every year, thousands of drivers, passengers and pedestrians are killed due to accidents associated with winter storms. Residents of states where snowfall and ice are regular tend to observe normal driving safety procedures, but even some of these drivers find themselves in unexpected situations t
hat may result in severe injury or death.

According to the California Department of Transportation, a federally certified source regarding all aspects of transit in the state of California, individuals who travel via car or truck during the snowy winter months should prepare themselves for driving with the following safety methods before setting out on a trek through any potentially hazardous area in the state. These tips apply to all states and regions where snow, sleet and ice may present the possibility of a problem while operating a motor vehicle.

Preparing Your Vehicle to Weather a Winter Storm

  • Always check your tires before driving ? Tires that possess insufficient tread are far more likely to lose traction in wet, snowy and icy conditions. When a vehicle loses traction in this type of environment, even the most skilled and seasoned drivers may find themselves suddenly without control of their car or truck. The instinct to apply the brake immediately and to swerve in order to avoid collision can quickly backfire, leading to an even more serious crash. Ensure that tire tread is deep and, if tires show obvious signs of wear or baldness, have them replaced promptly.
  • Ensure that snow chains are a good fit ? Unfortunately, many drivers who are not familiar with the function of snow chains mistakenly opt for a size that does not match the tires equipped on their vehicles. This can result in not only damage to the car or truck itself, but sudden loss of control and the inability to steer or brake properly.
  • Do not use the cruise control function ? While long treks through mountains or long stretches of highway may tempt a driver to set the vehicle to cruise control, this mistake may potentially result in a dangerous situation. When the vehicle is commanded to maintain cruise control, the integrated computer defaults to normal driving conditions. If one or more tires lose traction, the vehicle will attempt to compensate by changing gears or accelerating. In ice or snow, this can result in unexpected changes in velocity and direction, often causing both minor and major accidents.
  • Avoid panicking ? The feeling of drifting across thick snow or an icy road can strike an intense feeling of panic and fear into the heart of even the most experienced drivers. Rather than follow the instinct that tells you to slam on the brakes, gently lift your foot from the brake when you realize that your vehicle is sliding. Calmly steer the vehicle in the direction that places you away from traffic, if possible. Engage your hazard lights and wait for the drift to end before continuing.

Wintertime, with all of its snow, holiday cheer and family time spent together, can be a joyous and carefree time of year. Safe driving is of chief importance and keeping these factors in mind throughout the season can help to make your winter a fun-filled and exciting time for the entire family.

If you have been the victim of a car accident caused by poor winter driving conditions, you may have a case.? Scott C. Gottlieb a car accident injury law attorney, located in New York, is an experienced legal professional who can help car accident victims compensate for injuries they sustained in a car accident.? For more information, visit the website at www.ScottGottliebLaw.com.

Andrew Miller is an experienced Social Media expert and Author. He has worked in marketing for over a decade and finds his passion in bringing concepts to life for the world to enjoy. He is also an avid legal blogger and currently working on a book with his wife about social entrepreneurship. He is a true Socialpreneur and finds that his goal in life is to be an agent for positive social change through both his writing and business endeavors.

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Source: http://www.personalinjuryclaimsblawg.com/personal-injury-claims-law-2/safe-driving-tips-to-avoid-accidents-in-a-winter-storm

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Democratic aide: Fiscal 'cliff' deal reached

President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks about the fiscal cliff, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, in the South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington. The president said it appears that an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff is "in sight," but says it's not yet complete and work continues. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks about the fiscal cliff, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, in the South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington. The president said it appears that an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff is "in sight," but says it's not yet complete and work continues. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

President Barack Obama smiles and gestures as he speaks about the fiscal cliff, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, in the South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington. The president said it appears that an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff is "in sight," but says it's not yet complete and work continues. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The moon rises behind the U.S. Capitol Dome in Washington as Congress works into the late evening, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012 to resolve the stalemate over the pending "fiscal cliff." (AP Photo/J. David Ake)

(AP) ? A Democratic aide says the White House and congressional Republicans have reached an agreement to avert the so-called fiscal cliff.

The measure would extend Bush-era tax cuts for family incomes below $450,000 and briefly avert across-the-board spending cuts set to strike the Pentagon and domestic agencies this week.

Vice President Joe Biden was set to sell the agreement to Senate Democrats at a meeting at the Capitol on Monday night.

The aide required anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak publicly.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-12-31-Fiscal%20Cliff/id-5a0dc618161e4305afae2e3e0f035ccb

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