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Marinated beef and pasta bento
Bento is not only rice, but also other ingredients, like... pasta. This recipe came to life when I had some uncooked beef left-overs and just wondered what to do with them. Cooking them as a part of bento was a great idea!
Vegetarian bento
Today was one of these days that my coffee needed a coffee... And I really couldn't make myself cook in the morning. So, the vegetarian bento was made! It's fast, it's simple, and it tasted great. Consider that a fancy salad for lazy days.
Sweet Mustard Eggs Bento
I got tired of sausages after yesterday's deluxe bento, so today I decided to have some eggs with lunch. I put some sweet mustard over the cooked yolk to have them pack some punch and they were really interesting!
I prepared also hand-made furikake (rice sprinkles) with ingredients I like, which made my rice extra tasty today!
Deluxe bento idea
This idea mixes the basic sausage bento idea with previously mentioned teriyaki smoked salmon don for a more premium feel of the bento, without adding any more trouble while making the bento.
Teriyaki sausages and rice bento
Sausages are a huge part of my bento making — they are easy to prepare, ridiculously delicious and so straightforward to store that I just like to toss some of them into any of my bento!
This particular recipe has a teriyaki twist, thanks to cooking the sausages in water with teriyaki sauce. Yum!


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Ten Year Vamp presented by The Great Unknowns Presents, Ep XXVIII - 0 views
shared by Michael J on 25 Sep 09 - Cached
Michael J on 25 Sep 09Ten Year Vamp is an awesome rock band from Albany, New York. But, don t take my word for it. Listen yourself in this 4-track preview. Also read my interview with Debbie Gabrione! http://greatunknownsmusicexpose.com

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There's a reason for the "i" in iPhone. It's all about me! Forget Microsoft Exchange Sync and Loopt and social networking and connecting with the world.
If you've got an iPhone, you can live within your own universe of egocentric applications, including some that make your phone ring to aid your escape from an incessantly chattering coworker, one that helps you plan a dinner party down to the seating arrangements and a yet another that offers a "chill pill" to calm you down from the stresses of the day.
Some of the programs have become available in the last few weeks. Others have been among more than 6,000 applications available in Apple's online "App Store" since July, when it launched as part of the iTunes Store. There are many, many useful iPhone programs. Those are not the focus of this story.
The iPhone handily lets you can create your own iCocoon because Apple's device is like no other in terms of its operating system, visual richness and ease of use, and because thousands of software developers know a good marketing opportunity when they see it.
With a press of a button right from the phone to download the programs onto it, and a dollar or two in many cases for these vanity apps, your iPhone really can be all about you, even more than it already is.
Here's a look at the top 10 most recent iRreverent, iNane or, depending on your take, iNnovative, iPhone programs:
iCycle: Sure to iRritate your wife
This one's for guys who really should consider relationship counseling first before buying this program, which launched Oct. 10. It lets you know when your significant other or others are having their periods. Seriously.
It's up to you to set up the names and cycles of the women in your life. That should be a fun question to ask, and when you tell them why you're asking — but of course you won't, because you're not a total idiot, are you? (Or are you?) Then you get to program that into iCycle.
Your reward for entering all this info is a series of stoplights in yellow, green and red.
"The visual cues show when your women are about to get their period in their current cycle (the Caution Zone), when they are having their period and are highly irritable (the Warning Zone), when they are coming off their period (the Good Zone), and when they are in the green zone (The Best Zone or Ovulation Period)," say the developers.
Oh, and there's a lame attempt at the high ground with iCycle: "Great if you are planning to get pregnant and know when she is most fertile."
The iPhone may be a miracle, but is not a miracle worker, buddies. Use your heads, not your … $1.99 for this program.
iThrown: A virtual tossup
So, you've spent $199 or $299, or maybe even more for the first-generation iPhone, and admit it, sometimes the urge to fling it is unbearable.
This free program "enables you to check how far you can throw your iPhone…without really throwing of course," says Magnatron, the developer of iThrown.
The program uses the iPhone's accelerometer motion sensor to "measure your throw and how far the phone would have flown." Hmm. That's satisfying.
Oh, and in case you need to have that virtual throw validated, iThrown also "includes nice audience recordings to make sure everybody around you knows how good your arm really is."
iBubbleWrap: A pop notion
Among the stress-relieving programs for the iPhone — and there are several — this one uses virtual bubble wrap for popping to do the trick.
"Just swipe your finger to reveal more bubbles and pop them all," says developer Lima Sky of its 99-cent program that debuted Oct. 24.
Among the upsides: "Unlike real bubble wrap, iBubbleWrap never runs out of bubbles to pop and you always have it with you." Not recommended for symphony- or library-goers.
iClouds: Breezy and easy
Get your head in the clouds instead of out of them with this 99-cent relaxation program that debuted Oct. 20 from Studio-Kura of Japan. The program shows floating clouds. That's it. You can choose daytime, evening or night clouds, and view them at various speeds and angles. A similar program is iDaydream (also 99 cents).
Take A Chill Pill: Very safe and non-narcotic
This, too, can help relax you and give you a virtual fix of Advil or Tylenol with more pleasant results: the sounds of rain, birds, chimes, crickets, clocks, bells — whatever floats your boat (oh, and there's an ocean sound, too). The 99-cent program from Gabe Jacobs Productions launched Oct. 23. There are also similar apps, but the idea of popping a rain pill is quite appealing.
Exitstrategy: The art of the fake phone call
"Ever been stuck somewhere you don't want to be? In a meeting? An uncomfortable social gathering? Your in-laws' family reunion? On a date gone bad? Exitstrategy can help." So says developer Maglevity Labs of its 99-cent "phoney" program.
"When your phone rings, you can show the caller information to anyone around you. Once they're convinced, you can then choose to either decline or 'answer' the call, speaking into the phone in an appropriate tone … as you step outside to talk."
Executing Exitstrategy is a little tricky, and you have to make sure you're not caught in the act pressing the icons to activate it. Otherwise, your frantic effort to exit will boomerang swiftly with dagger eyes and social ramifications.
This program is not recommended for those who blush easily or who have honest faces. But then, if that's you, you would just suffer the insufferable until you could no longer bear it and say: "I gotta go. No, I really gotta go." Now, that's an exit strategy.
Excuses, Excuses: More lame social engineering
"Need an excuse to skip work today? How about school? Or a family event? This app can help and it has a funny new excuse for you to try every day," says the developer of Excuses, Excuses, a 99-cent program that launched Oct. 31. (It's to be confused with another 99-cent program — Excuses — that basically does the same thing.)
Caution: Excuses, Excuses crashed as it tried to install on my iPhone. What's its excuse?
DaysTo Concert: No applause necessary
This 99-cent app and its siblings, "DaysTo Festival" and "DaysTo Barbeque" from ZATZ Publishing launched Oct. 30. Pre-Halloween trick?
DaysTo Concert, for example, tells you "how soon you'll be attending that rock concert you've been anticipating … Find out how many days you have to get ready for that all-important concert …strategize for what you're bringing."
And it's much the same for "Festival" and "Barbeque." "DaysTo Barbeque, for example, "gives you the instant gratification of knowing exactly how soon you'll be at that exciting BBQ you've been anticipating."
Instant gratification? This one's an instant insult to anyone with half a brain, no matter how big your ego.
iDinnerParty: For overachieving iPhone users
If you're planning a wedding or big event, you may find this $1.99 app appetizing.
The program, launched Oct. 29 by Serendipity App Company, gives meal and event planners more data fields to fill in than the IRS.
Not only can you record whether your guests are attending, you can record their meal choices, and e-mail that information to a restaurant. The program also has a "table organization" feature with up to 10 tables for seating charts.
The Dialing Cat: Might be purrfect for you
If the idea of having a cat dial your phone numbers makes you laugh — repeatedly — and if you don't mind allotting more than 12 megabytes of space to this program (that's a lot for an iPhone app), The Dialing Cat, released Nov. 1, may be the cat's meow.
And, yes, the cat can meow when dialing. The $1.99 program, from NaughtyNuts, was released Nov. 1. There's also a Dialing Frog app for $1.99.
The Frog is cute too — for about five seconds. Then all the flies flittering around the keypad as you press each number quickly become annoying.
That's when you definitely need to reach for an iPhone Chill Pill — or an iLife (your own).
© 2013 msnbc.com Reprints


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Vorbis Encoders
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Vorbis-OptSort improves source code of the Vorbis codec library (libvorbis-1.0) to accelerate encoding time about 10% (not apply clean on 1.1.1).
AoTuV encoders are optimized encoders for higher quality. AoTuV beta2 was adopted as a part of Vorbis 1.1 of Xiph.Org. The latest release is AoTuV beta 4.51 which improves quality at all bitrates (versus xiph.org 1.1.2) and can also go down to 32 Kb/s (q-2). Note that this patch also include the Vorbis-OptSort patch. Quality test of AoTuV beta4 vs. libvorbis 1.1.1:
- 80Kbps comparison of many audio codec and libvorbis 1.1.1 vs. AoTuV beta4
- libvorbis 1.1.1 ABR vs libvorbis 1.1.1 VBR vs AoTuV beta4 VBR summary:
"Vorbis (aoTuV beta 4, VBR –q 0,9): this is by far the most enjoying thing I've heard at this bitrate. I was highly surprised by results I've got with the 150 classical samples; I was literally astonished by the final score obtained with the 35 remaining samples! Vorbis is obviously an amazing tool at this bitrate." guruboolez
- 96Kbps comparison of many audio codec and libvorbis 1.1.1 vs. AoTuV beta4 (french)
- Google traduction
- libvorbis 1.1.1 vs AoTuV beta4 summary:
- Comment on AoTuV beta 4:
"Vorbis: Vorbis is now –thanks to Aoyumi– an excellent audio format for 180 kbps encodings (and classical music). It has apparently no flaws (lowest note was 3.5) but only minor problems audible from time to time: additional noise, fatness, or softened details. One third of the tested samples are transparent to my ears with aoTuV encodings. My own limits are close to be reached." guruboolez
"Vorbis: Vorbis is now impressive. Last year constant noise boost or coarseness spoiled the performance of this format. I was surprised to hear those problems on –q6,00 setting supposed to be free of them due to lossless coupling. Aoyumi has apparently identifies precisely the cause of this problem and he worked to solve it. Not entirely though: some remaining trails are still audible with few samples but the intensity is now really frail (at least on the tested samples). Other artifacts are also corrected: micro-attacks on Orion_II (sample 09) are now much less dusty (aoTuV performed even better than any other tested format at this bitrate!). Performance are remarkable and the slightly gain in bitrate consumption is the icing on the cake. Just a question: Does aoTuV mean Tuned for Victory? Or Tuned by Visitors? From what planet is Aoyumi coming from? By the way, I wouldn't say anymore than Vorbis is not mature enough. At least not for classical, which appeared to be a weak point for this format" guruboolez
Optimized Ogg Vorbis Encoders
These encoders are highly optimized encoders developed by the Ogg Vorbis Acceleration Project that are much faster than the standard builds with negligible to no effects on audio quality.


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Coffee roasting for the computer age
Posted by TheShot on 26 Mar 2007 | Tagged as: Machine, Quality Issues, Roasting
It's no secret that I generally disdain superautomated espresso machines (myself and Howard Schultz apparently included) and the convenience-step-forward/quality-step-backwards home pod machines. So you may get the (false) impression that, when it comes to coffee, I am an anti-technology Luddite. While I have never placed PID temperature controllers on the group of my home machine — and while I have no faith a machine will ever be able to toss out substandard shots the way Sammy Piccolo can — with coffee roasting it's a different story.
Recently I met Matt Weisberg, general manager of Fresh Roast Systems (not to be confused with the infamous Fresh Roast home roaster, of which I am a longtime owner, from Fresh Beans, Inc.). Matt's company consists of a number of innovative, patented retail coffee roasters — self-contained and deployable for on-site fresh roasting just about anywhere — and a handful of techie/coffee geeks who manage and evolve them. The team may know squat about operating an espresso machine, but they are religious fanatics when it comes to the freshness of roasted coffee. Matt is one of the most vocal advocates I know for making the public recognize that roasted coffee is a lot more like fresh baked bread than the bottled cola our society has long treated it as. And that's music to my taste buds.
Last month, Matt invited me down to their East Palo Alto office/coffee roasting lab to check out some of their roasting equipment and operations. It was clear from my visit that Fresh Roast Systems — through sophisticated instrumentation that includes lasers, pressure systems, and computer controls in a device the size of a large refrigerator — were attempting to scientifically emulate the job of a roastmaster.
This is highly controversial. Matt has been stirring up controversy and trouble (two things I seem to be naturally attracted to) on the SCAA's Roasters Guild Web forums. Most traditional "artisan" roasters (a term Matt scoffs at) are men and women of art rather than of science. On the surface, that hardly sounds like modern day grounds for the Hatfield-McCoy feud. But to many roasters who act as the guardians of the trade, Matt's company represents a threat that illicits a visceral reaction. They scoff at the notion that anything they do could be scientifically deconstructed through instrumentation, measurements, and controls. So they tend to be reactionary: "this stuff tastes like garbage", "it comes out of a computerized machine instead of the hands of a traditional roastmaster — so what do you expect?" Ultimately, this debate is a modern version of John Henry folklore.
John Henry versus the Steam Wand
Which side do I fall on in this debate? I personally could care less about any pretense of science or tradition: just give me good coffee. And while I wouldn't say that Fresh Roast's steam drill killed off the John Henry roastmasters with a heart attack, I can say both approaches are pretty good in their own right.
Making espresso at home from the coffee I roasted with Fresh Roast's equipment, I may have to disappoint many a roastmaster: the flavor profile for single-origin stocks of green beans measured up quite well, producing full flavors (and very good crema) for many days afterwards.
Unlike the curse afflicting superautomatic coffee machines, the variables involved with coffee roasting appear to be fewer and rather self-contained and controlled. Roasting seems to lend itself much more to a successful scientific approach rather than relying exclusively on an artisanal "black arts" explanation for how good roasts can be achieved. Take a look inside the automation of the Illy roasting plants in Trieste, and you'll see — and taste — what science and technology can offer.
For Fresh Roast's latest technology "trick", last week Matt had me run a roast from my office 40 miles away using an Internet connection. Using a simple prototype made of an Internet-accessible building security camera along with GoToMyPC access to their touch screen roast controller, I was able to remotely roast (and watch) a couple pounds of F.T.O./shade grown El Salvador coffee. Slap on a computer-generated label and Fedex shipment, and you've got a nice webcam application that delivers custom-roasted fresh coffee without the mess or smell.
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5 Responses to "Coffee roasting for the computer age"
Automatic coffee roaster receives high praise for quality
Texas Roast of Rockwall, TX received a respectable 89 point review of their Cowboy Roast dark blend from reviewer Ken Davids of CoffeeReview.com. Just respectable, that is, until you take into account that the coffee was roasted by a computer! Amazing!…
[…] don't roast your beans to the namesake Charbucks level. (When visiting the guys down at Fresh Roast Systems , it was clear that the comparison Starbucks roasts practically flew off the Agtron scale.) And […]
The interesting part about the article that was left out is this-
The Roasters Guild is in fact a bunch of artisans- but they are not afraid of technology- they actually embrace it- you can look at several other companies that produce similar technologies like Probat, Ambex, Diedrich, Agtron… that all of the members of the GUild regularly use and give input to all of those companies to help them improve their products for the benefit of the roasting community.If you actually talk to most roasters you will find that most PREFER to have automated controls for their roasters- as long as they can disctate the curve for the program
The "visceral' reaction is not to the technology or the concept, the reaction is to the way Mr. Weisberg approaches the industry, like a used car salesman. If you know nothing about cars you may be fooled by his rhetoric, but if you know enough about the product you realize he is just a sales guy trying to badger his 'customers' into buying a product.
I have never seen a visceral reaction to Carl at Agtron (his competitor, Nor to Probat, Diedrich or Ambex…. hmmm something is amiss in the article
The marketing scheme of Fresh Roast systems exploits and fosters a misconception that roasters are artists afraid of losing their iron grip on coffee. The fresh roast system is ostensibly marketed as a way to free a cafe or grocery from the over-priced, stale coffee roasters are peddling. This rubs roasters the wrong way because it fails to recognize the true skill of a great roasting company: coffee selection and profile development.
The system they provide is certainly capable of roasting good coffee with reproducible results, no one from the roasters guild argues against this point. They balk at the portrayal that roasters are unwilling to embrace automation or engineering. This is patently false and every roaster manufacturer offers many degrees of automation for all of their roasting equipment, including retrofitted systems for vintage machines.
Mr Wiesberg is at the center of his own controversy because his abrasive personality NOT his equipment. He has ruffled feathers amongst a broad spectrum of the coffee community, from roasters to consultants to engineers. Breaking many of the rules of sales, not the least of which is disparaging his competitors, he has sought to create controversy in an effort to market his product as groundbreaking and paradigm shifting.
Freshly roasted coffee is a mantra of many roasters and has been for ten years running. To allude to Mr Weisberg and Fresh Roast are central to and champions of the cause is shortsighted and utterly lacking in historical context. I can count a few dozen roasters who have been marketing coffee with production dates and a very short freshness window for many, many years, long before Mr Wiesberg joined the coffee community.
As we move forward, automation will be central to the industry. Very few roasters would disagree with this notion. Indeed, the true roastmaster will excel with automation because the secret to a great coffee lies in the development and execution of the profile and coffee selection.
Selecting exceptional green coffee is at the very core of great coffee. Without the sensory skills of a trained professional, all the automation and technology in the world cannot make a lackluster green coffee taste great. While tools and instruments can be employed here, nothing is as capable as the sensory skills of a good cupper and the initial profile development of a skilled roaster.
The idea that roasters are opposed to technology is laughable and honestly the negative reaction to Fresh Roast Systems is rooted in their apparent disdain for the so-called artisan roaster.
Honestly, there are a number of roasters who would consider an 89 from Ken Davids a bad day. There are a number roasters who consistently score 92 points and higher 5,10 or more times over the past few years.
These roasters use Probats, Gothots, Loring Smart Roast, Samiac, Diedrich, Roure, Renegades, Primo and Sivetz machines. The common thread is flat out amazing green coffee and a knack for finding the profile that brings out the best qualities. A great roaster can take a great coffee and make it sing on any machine, however even a great roaster can't make chicken soup out of chicken poop.
Have never talked to Matt, but have often found his commentary on online forums abrasive and unprofessional.
That said, the FR system is certainly good enough for some pretty good shops. And if you're a cafe/retailer capable of doing 1000#/mo but can't add a gas roaster at your store (for any number of reasons – and there are many), the FR system appears at this time to be the only logical recourse as well as one that's affordable.


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Someone was smoking some really strong shit when they came up with the Burning-Man-esque "Natural High" photo shoot in the October issue of Vogue. Three lithe, billy goat-ish moddles are on a rocky landscape, under a blazing sun, wearing huge shaggy furs, and the magazine calls it "beastly beauty." Add "hooflike heels" and you've got a lurid fairy tale — without the bridge, troll or moral. It's hallucinatory and ridiculous. But! I mock because I love! Which is why, inspired by LOLCats, here is another episode of LOLVogue. After the jump: We're in ur magazeen, puttin werdz on ur moddles. (And! A contest!)
OMG. OH NOES. THIS MODDLE HAZ NO CAPSHUN. RITE A SUGGESSHUN IN TEH COMMINTZ!!!11!! TEH WINNR GITZ A CHEEZBURGR. SRSLY. Earlier: LOLVogue: Sumwon Elss Kleanz Up (Plus Contest!) LOLVogue: I Can Haz Wind Tunnel? LOLVogue: All Dat Glitterz Iz Mah Pantz LOLVogue: Superhero Photo Shoot Gets Super Stoopid French LOLVogue: I Can Has My Close-Up? I Can Has Jeetann? C'est LOLVogue En Faux Français LOLVogue: Teh Hare Toss & Teh Bunnee Hop LOLVogue: Tard Moddles & Bahlinceeyagga Bon Joor, C'est Paris LOLVogue Encore! LOLVogue: Sheez Over Ayteen, I Sware LOLVogue: Hungry Moddles & Rorschach Tests LOLVogue: Carbs, Botox & Pink-Eye LOLVogue: Good Help Is Hard To Find Mon Dieu! C'est French LOLVogue: Shoulders, Champagne and Cigarettes LOLVogue: Starving Models & Marionettes LOL'Vogue': Scarves, Silverware & Scooters Related: LOLLost: Srsly, Guiz, Dis Izland Is Weeerd


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Can Whitney Cummings crack you up and turn you on at the same time? She's determined to find out with her new sitcom "Whitney."
An accomplished standup comedian who rose to fame skewering celebs on Comedy Central's roasts, Cummings has gotten as much attention for her looks as for getting laughs. And as a writer, producer and star of her series, in which she plays a determined marriage-phobic in an otherwise committed long-term relationship, she tells PopcornBiz that she plans to keep intermingling the funny and the sexy.
"Because the show has a lot of sexual elements in it and it's about a relationship and the pilot is about spicing up our sex life, there's going to be a lot of opportunities in the show where I'm going to try to be sexy for my man, which we all try to do in relationships. I'm sure there's going to be more skimpy outfits on the way."
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
She's nodding to a sequence in the pilot episode in which she dons a revealing nurse's uniform for a bit of saucy cosplay. "The nurse thing was so fun," says Cummings. "Something that's really important to me with the show is that I'm really open and honest with my flaws and my clumsy approach to relationships. I think that it's really important for a comedienne to be private and public. That's sort of my job. So that really intimate moment that you normally wouldn't want to share with people, dressing up in a costume and trying to make your man think you're sexy which can be pretty embarrassing, it's really important that we do all that on the show. It's not necessarily trying to be sexy and hot. It's like 'This is what would really happen.'"
Cummings says she's glad to have come into her own at a time when comediennes can be known as much being glamorous as for their pithy punchlines. "People say 'Being a comedian is not as hard [for a woman] anymore,'" she says. "Women have obviously always been funny – Phyllis Diller and Joan Rivers and Lucille Ball, the list goes on and on. Now I feel like women can be feminine and sexy and funny too, and embrace that and not have to hide that. Beautiful women in comedy, whether it's Maya Rudolph and Christina Applegate and Tina Fey and Kristin Wiig."
She's already honing in on the similarities and differences between standup and sitcoms. "I think the similarities are that if you're honest, you will get laughs. If people believe you, you will be funny," says Cummings. "I think the differences are that on stage, it's obviously just you and a microphone. You're telling a story on your own and you're very independent, whereas on a sitcom you have a lot of other people and the idea isn't to tell funny jokes. It's to be in funny situations and to act real, instead of being on stage and saying funny things."
Her future seems definitively tied to television for the moment – she also co-created the CBS sitcom "2 Broke Girls" starring Kat Dennings – Cummings says she'll never stray from the standup stage for long. "Standup is what got me here so I don't ever want to get away from that because that's what keeps me strong and, I think, quick and honest," she says. "There's nothing that keeps you more honest than a group of drunk strangers. It keeps you honest and humble. It's like going to the gym: if you want to be a bodybuilder, you've got to go to the gym every day. If you want to be a funny comedian, you've got to perform every day."
"Whitney" debuts tonight at 9:30 PM ET on NBC


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Businesses join in on new Polar Bear Plunge event
New corporate plunge set for 3 p.m. Friday
A new corporate Polar Bear Plunge event is allowing businesses to get in on the action benefiting the Special Olympics, and one longtime sponsor is bumping up its commitment to the athletes.
This weekend, thousands will make the trip to Sandy Point State Park for the Maryland State Police Polar Bear Plunge. The corporate dip into the icy Chesapeake Bay will take place at 3 p.m. Friday.
For the past four years, Carnival Cruise Lines has been a proud sponsor of the Special Olympics and the Plunge. It's something Regional Vice President of Sales Kirk Neal, who will be a Super Plunger for a second time, said he knew instantly when he visited from Florida.
"I was driving down the freeway when I first came to Baltimore to scope it out, and it was right around the plunge time when I saw a sign that said, 'Be a fan of fun.' That was one of the slogans that they had, and I thought, 'That's perfect. We're all about fun.' Carnival Cruise Lines is a fun cruise. Let's check out the Special Olympics," he said.
Since 2009, Carnival, which leaves out of the Port of Baltimore, has raised more than $60,000 for the Special Olympics, and it's increasing its commitment. Members of the northeast sales force will jump in Friday in the first corporate plunge in which 20 businesses and more than 200 plungers will take part.
"It's one of those things (workers) keep hearing, and they're like, 'Isn't it cold? Should we do it?' And we're like, 'Come on in. You've got to experience it,'" said Carnival spokeswoman Kathy Donnelly. "The athletes are great. It's always a good time to bring everyone together."
"It's a lot of fun. It's an incredible organization. If you get to talk to an athlete, you know how much it means to them," said two-time Super Plunger Jason Stull.
This year, the Carnival team is plunging in honor of Special Olympian Annu Singleton, a track and field star who said he is grateful for their efforts.
"I feel happy that people with disabilities can participate in these events," Singleton said. "I'm real ready!"
If you know someone taking the plunge, text a good luck message to 88509 and 11 News will show as many messages as possible on 11 News Saturday Morning.


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Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry
Print version ISSN 1516-4446
Rev. Bras. Psiquiatr. vol.33 no.2 São Paulo June 2011 Epub Apr 08, 2011
Cerebellar volume in patients with dementia
Volume cerebelar em pacientes com demência
Leonardo BaldaçaraI, II; João Guilherme Fiorani BorgioI; Walter André dos Santos MoraesIII; Acioly Luiz Tavares LacerdaI, IV; Maria Beatriz Marcondes Macedo MontañoV; Sérgio TufikIII; Rodrigo Affonseca BressanI; Luiz Roberto RamosV; Andrea Parolin JackowskiI
ILaboratório Interdisciplinar de Neurociências Clínicas (Linc), Department of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
IIUniversidade Federal do Tocantins (UFT), Palmas, TO, Brazil
IIIDepartment of Psychobiology, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
IVInstituto Sinapse de Neurociências Clínicas, Campinas, SP, Brazil
VDepartment of Preventive Medicine, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the cerebellar volume of subjects at different stages of Alzheimer's disease and to investigate whether volume reductions in this structure are related to cognitive decline.
METHOD: Ninety-six subjects from an epidemiological study were submitted to a magnetic resonance imaging scan and evaluated using the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Functional Activities Questionnaire. Subjects were divided into five groups according to the Clinical Dementia Rating scale. Twenty-six subjects from the original group who had no dementia diagnosis at baseline were re-evaluated for the onset of dementia after two years.
RESULTS: The volumes of the cerebellar hemispheres, posterior cerebellar lobe, vermis and temporal lobe were found to be reduced as a function of the severity of the disease. There were significant positive correlations between the volume of the temporal lobe and cerebellum and the language, attention, and total scores in the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Functional Activities Questionnaire. A logistic regression analysis demonstrated that reduced temporal lobe, posterior cerebellar lobe and vermal volume at baseline is a risk factor for the onset of dementia.
CONCLUSION: This is the first study demonstrating that reduced cerebellar volume is already apparent at the predementia stage. The results of this study support the involvement of the cerebellum in the progression of dementia. Whereas the cerebellum might not be directly associated with the origin of Alzheimer's disease, it may provide useful information related to its prognosis.
Descriptors: Cerebellum; Epidemiological studies; Dementia; Alzheimer disease; Disease progression
OBJETIVO: O objetivo deste estudo foi examinar o volume cerebelar em indivíduos em diferentes fases da doença de Alzheimer e investigar se sua redução estaria relacionada com o declínio cognitivo.
MÉTODO: Noventa e seis indivíduos de um estudo epidemiológico foram submetidos à ressonância magnética e avaliados por meio do Mini Exame do Estado Mental e do Questionário de Atividades Funcionais. Os sujeitos foram divididos em cinco grupos de acordo com a Escala de Gravidade da Demência. Vinte e seis indivíduos do grupo original que não tinham o diagnóstico de demência no início do estudo foram reavaliados após dois anos para detectar o desenvolvimento da doença.
RESULTADOS: Os volumes dos hemisférios cerebelares, lobo cerebelar posterior, vermis e lobo temporal estavam diminuídos proporcionalmente à gravidade da doença. Houve correlações positivas e significativas entre o Questionário de Atividades Funcionais, Mini Exame do Estado Mental e seus respectivos subtestes para linguagem e atenção com os volumes do lobo temporal e cerebelar. A análise de regressão logística demonstrou que o volume reduzido do lobo temporal, lobo cerebelar posterior e vermis pode ser um fator de risco para o futuro desenvolvimento de demência.
CONCLUSÃO: Este é o primeiro estudo que demonstrou que o volume do cerebelo pode estar reduzido na fase pré-demência e reforça o papel dessa estrutura na progressão da doença de Alzheimer. Considerando que o cerebelo pode não estar diretamente associado com a origem da doença de Alzheimer, este achado tem valor para o prognóstico.
Descritores: Cerebelo; Estudos epidemiológicos; Demência; Doença de Alzheimer; Avanço da doença
The occurrence of dementia is rising substantially worldwide. There is currently no cure for dementia; therefore, extensive efforts for the prevention of the disease have mounted.1 The proper identification of individuals at increased risk for dementia will allow for a more efficient implementation of preventive measures currently available.1
There is a growing interest in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based measures and associated standard cognitive assessments as methods allowing for the optimal prediction of future clinical decline.2 MRI is widely used as a noninvasive method to assess gray and white matter volumes, with highly reproducible results.3 Gray and white matter volumes were shown to correlate with confirmed pathological neuronal loss and with the molecular hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD).4
Recently, the possibility of an early diagnosis of AD has brought attention to the importance of neuroimaging investigations in predementia patients.5 Several studies using region-of-interest (ROI) and voxel-based analyses have reported reduced volumes in the hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, cingulate and other brain regions in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD.2,6-8 The spatial pattern of brain atrophy in MCI is complex and highly variable and does not always progress in a linear manner. Characterizing these inter-individual variations in the manifestation of these diseases through the development of biomarkers poses even greater challenges.8,9
There is strong evidence that the cerebellum not only modulates important motor functions, but also plays a significant role in the operation of cognitive functions, emotional processing, and behavior.10,11 From this perspective, the cerebellum exerts a regulatory function that enhances and supplements other brain functions, throughout direct and indirect circuits.10,11 In AD, diffuse plaques are commonly found in fibrillar and thioflavin positive cells of the granular layer and Purkinje cells in the molecular layer of the cerebellar cortex.12,13 It has been suggested that neuronal loss in the cerebellum, such as decreases in granule cell numbers and volumetric loss in the molecular layer, may be the result of primary pathologic changes in the cerebral cortex, a process called diaschisis.14 Diaschisis is the mechanism suggested for cerebellar impairment in dementia.10
There is a lack of studies examining the cerebellar volume in patients with AD. In this study, we analyzed the volume of the cerebellum and its subregions in subjects with AD, MCI, and in healthy control subjects. We hypothesized that the cerebellar volume would be proportionally reduced at different stages of dementia. We also investigated whether cerebellar reductions are related to cognitive impairment including orientation, memory, attention, language, and executive functions.
1. Database
All data used in this study were obtained from the Elderly Epidemiology Study (EPIDOSO) database. The EPIDOSO study was the first community-based cohort study examining the elderly in Brazil.15 This epidemiological study evaluated 1,667 individuals aged 65 years and older living in an urban district of the city of São Paulo. The main goal of the EPIDOSO was to identify predictors of good health in the elderly.15
2. Subjects
We selected 96 subjects from the outpatient clinic of EPIDOSO with AD (n = 70) and cognitive impairment without dementia (n = 16), in addition to 10 subjects without cognitive complaints or functional impairment and with a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score of 30. All subjects were classified with the Clinical Dementia Rating scale (CDR).15
Subjects were divided into five groups according to dementia severity (CDR score) as follows: 0 = controls, 0.5 = questionable or very mild impairment, 1 = mild impairment, 2 = moderate impairment, and 3 = severe impairment. We classified all the subjects without cognitive complaints or functional impairment and with an MMSE equal to 30 as CDR = 0. The patients who met the diagnostic criteria proposed by Petersen et al. for MCI were included in the CDR = 0.5 group.16
Alzheimer's diagnosis was made according to the criteria of the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke and the Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders Association (NINCDS-ADRDA).17 A clinical and sociodemographic questionnaire including questions about age, gender, education, neurological and psychiatric family history, previous psychiatric treatment, and drug treatment was administered to each patient. Subjects were excluded if they had any neurological, psychiatric or medical conditions that could potentially affect the central nervous system, such as substance abuse or dependence, atypical headache, head trauma with loss of consciousness, asymptomatic or symptomatic cerebral infarction detected on T2weighted MRI, hypertension, chronic lung disease, kidney disease, chronic hepatic disease, cancer or diabetes mellitus. Subjects were also excluded if the cause of dementia was not AD (8 cases). We used the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID)18 to exclude psychiatric disorders as the cause of cognitive impairment.
The cognitive evaluation was performed with the MMSE19 and adjusted for years of education based on information provided by Bruck et al.20 Functionality was evaluated with the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ).21
All participants signed informed consent forms before participation in this study, which was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the Universidade Federal de São Paulo (CEP n° 0258/08).
3. Outcome
Twenty-six subjects without dementia at baseline (CDR = 0 and CDR = 0.5) were re-evaluated after two years. MR images were analyzed to evaluate whether cerebellar volume alterations at baseline could be related to future cognitive decline.
4. Image acquisition and analysis
MRI scans were performed immediately or up to 15 days after the neuropsychological evaluation. Images were collected using a GE Sigma 1.5T scanner (General Electric Medical Systems, Milwaukee, Wisconsin) with a coronal 3D SPGR acquisition sequence (TE = 5msec, TR = 33.3msec, flip angle = 45 degrees, acquisition matrix = 256x256, NEX = 1, FOV = 34cm, slice thickness = 1.3mm, 124 slices). Data were analyzed using the software Brains 2.22 Two raters, blind in regard to the subjects' diagnoses, performed ROI analyses. All brain structures, except the cerebellar vermis, were measured using the Brains 2 semiautomated method.22 Brain segmentation was performed for all patients and manually checked and edited to ensure accuracy.23,24 Volumes were output in cm3. To evaluate whether cerebellar volume reductions were secondary to superior structure atrophy, the cerebral and temporal lobes were also segmented. All cerebral and cerebellar measurements were corrected for the total intracranial volume (TIV).
1) TIV, cerebral, and temporal lobe volumes
Total intracranial volumes were calculated by manually tracing the intracranial volume of each coronal slice after exclusion of the skull and dura, summing these areas across successive coronal slices including gray and white matter and CSF volumes, and multiplying the sum by the slice thickness. These measures included the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital cortices, subcortical structures, the cerebellum, and the brainstem.
The cerebral volume was obtained from T1-weighted volumetric imaging using a semi-automated, iterative 3D morphologic technique. This technique includes a consistent CSF-brain intensity threshold set at 60% of mean brain intensity. Every slice between the superior point of the cortex and the inferior limit of segmentation, set at the lowest point of the brain, was measured.25
The temporal lobes were segmented on cerebral images, which required detecting their boundaries as determined by the upper plane of the cerebellum, the Sylvian fissure, the upper plane of the medial temporal lobe, and the posterior plane of the temporal lobe. The posterior plane of the temporal lobe was determined manually. The posterior border was defined as the point at which the posterior horn of the lateral ventricle appeared.26
2) Cerebellar volumes
The cerebellar hemispheres and vermis volumes were calculated by summing up the areas of successive coronal slices after ROI tracing. Tracing of the cerebellum was also performed using the Brains 2 semi-automated model and manually corrected based on descriptions from previous studies.23,24 The left and right cerebellar hemispheres and the vermis were manually traced using protocols described elsewhere (De Bellis and Kuchibhatla27 and Luft23). The measurement of the cerebellum started as it appeared laterally to the pons. The tentorium cerebelli acted as the superior limit and the base of the cerebellum itself as the inferior limit. The cisterna magna and transverse sinus were excluded.27 The last slice included was the one at which the cerebellum was no longer distinguishable from the transverse sinus or had disappeared. The measurement of the vermis began at the slice where the anterior and/or inferior posterior lobes appeared. Measurements were made until the vermis was no longer visible.27
3) Reproducibility
To evaluate the intra-rater reproducibility, the same rater repeated the TIV, brain, temporal lobe, and cerebellar measurements twice, at least a week apart, for 10 randomly selected subjects. Inter-rater reproducibility was assessed by two investigators, blinded in regard to the patient's details, who measured TIV and brain volumes for five randomly selected subjects. Inter- and intra-rater reliability tests were considered excellent (ICC > 0.96) for all regions.
5. Data analyses
All statistical analyses were conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 15.0 for Windows.28 Before analysis, the measures were examined for normality using the Shapiro-Wilk test. The level of significance was set at p < 0.05, 2-tailed.
A Chi-square test was used to assess gender differences, whereas age, years of education, MMSE scores, and FAQ differences between groups were assessed using analyses of variance (ANOVAs). To account for inter-individual differences in head size, cerebellar volumes were corrected by dividing them by each subject's intracranial volume and multiplying this ratio by 1000.
By employing the General Linear Model, analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) were performed to investigate volume differences in the brain and cerebellar subregions across CDR groups, followed by Duncan's post hoc test. Age and years of education were used as covariates. We examined the relationship between the cerebellar volume, MMSE total score, MMSE sub-tests scores, and FAQ score by employing a multivariable regression model controlled for age, years of education, and cerebral and temporal lobe volumes.
Student's t-test was used to assess differences in cerebral, temporal lobe, and cerebellar volumes between patients that developed dementia and patients that did not develop dementia two years after baseline. Logistic regression analysis was used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) of association with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of dementia onset with possible predictive variables. The left and right cerebellum and the vermis at baseline were used as main variables in each analysis and compared in a full multivariate model for potentially confounding effects of age, years of education, and left temporal lobe, right temporal lobe, and cerebral volume. Given the disproportionate stratified sampling, weighted analyses were performed. The level of alpha was set at p < 0.10.
1. Demographic and clinical data
The general demographic characteristics of the groups are displayed in Table 1. No significant gender differences were observed between groups (χ2 = 1.635, p = 0.802), but there were significant differences in age (F = 1.787, p = 0.138) and years of education (F = 1.733, p = 0.150).
2. Brain and cerebellar measurements
Cerebellar hemispheres were progressively reduced in CDR groups 1, 2, and 3. The volume of the vermis, however, was found to be already reduced in the CDR 0.5 group, and this reduction trended progressively along with increasing CDR scores (see Table 2 for details).
There were significant correlations between all cerebellar regions and the MMSE total scores and sub-tests, and the FAQ. However, when controlling for brain and temporal lobe volumes, few correlations remained significant. MMSE total scores correlated positively with the volumes of the left temporal lobe (β = 0.492, t = 1.876, p = 0.064), right cerebellum (β = 0.0543, t = 1.263, p < 0.080), and posterior cerebellar lobe (β = 0.0627, t = 1.774, p = 0.058). The MMSE language sub-test correlated positively with the left temporal lobe (β = 0.452, t = 1.642, p = 0.052), right cerebellar hemisphere (β = 0.442, t = 9.542, p < 0.020), posterior cerebellar lobe (β = 0.422, t = 1.284, p = 0.062) and vermis (β = 0.380, t = 4.520, p < 0.018). Attention correlated positively with the posterior cerebellar lobe (β = 0.365, t = 2.252, p = 0.044) and vermis volumes (β = 0.260, t = 2.747, p = 0.007). FAQ scores correlated negatively with the left temporal lobe (β = -0.666, t = -3.196, p = 0.002), right cerebellum (β = -0.111, t = -1.736, p = 0.086) and vermis volumes (β = -0.809, t = -2.884, p = 0.005).
3. Outcome
Of the 26 subjects without dementia at baseline, 10 subjects (1 with CDR = 0 and 4 with CDR = 0.5) developed dementia after two years. There were no differences in intracranial volume, cerebral volume, temporal lobes, and right cerebellum between the two groups at baseline.
In a logistic regression analysis, reduced left temporal lobe (OR = 2.002, C.I.: 1.102-3.123, p = 0.058), posterior cerebellar lobe (OR = 1.402, C.I.: 1.004-2.903, p = 0.068), and vermal volume (OR = 1.480, C.I.: 1.024-2.803, p = 0.042) were related to future dementia onset.
We determined the volumes of cerebellar substructures on MRI scans of healthy controls and subjects with cognitive impairment as classified with the CDR. Our study yielded three major findings: (1) the volumes of the cerebellum and its subregions were significantly smaller in subjects with cognitive impairment when compared to healthy controls; (2) the right cerebellar hemisphere, posterior cerebellar lobe, and vermis volumes were associated with poor cognitive performance as determined by the MMSE; and (3) the posterior cerebellar lobe and vermis volumes, together with the volume of the left temporal lobe, were associated with future dementia onset in the MCI group as compared to controls.
1. Cerebellar morphology in dementia
Dementias constitute a heterogeneous group of diseases that share a common cognitive impairment of organic etiology. Although several causes and pathophysiological mechanisms underlie the clinical presentation of different types of dementia, neuroimaging studies have confirmed some common findings such as atrophy of certain brain structures or even global brain atrophy and progressive impairment of different cognitive domains.10 In AD, for example, temporal lobe volume reduction is observed even at early stages of the disease, and hippocampal reduction can be observed before the first symptoms manifest.29
Previous studies have reported cerebellar abnormalities in dementia.13,30,31 In neuropathological studies, neuronal shrinkage and loss are well known changes that accompany AD and are most notable in the temporoparietal neocortex, limbic system, and some neuronal groups such as the locus coeruleus of the brain stem and the basal nucleus of Meynert in the basal forebrain.30 Morphological studies, conversely, have focused on the traditional neuropathological hallmarks of AD, such as amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and amyloid angiopathy,30 and little has been reported on neuronal loss and other structural changes in AD.13 There is only one structural MRI study that has previously demonstrated that the posterior cerebellar lobes are smaller in AD patients when compared to healthy controls, and that this atrophy is associated with poorer cognitive performance in AD subjects, but not in MCI patients.31
The most relevant pathological features of AD in the cerebellum are diffuse Aβ deposits and neurofibrillary tangles, but these are not associated with neuronal loss.32 However, in many neurodegenerative diseases, when a relatively large central nervous system region is affected by neuronal loss, other regions are not always completely spared in terms of morphology due to their direct and indirect connections with the primarily affected region.32 Therefore, in these 'secondarily' affected regions, despite the presence of mild atrophy, there is evidence that no relevant histopathological changes are visible under microscopic examination.33
Diaschisis is the cerebellar reduction related to the atrophy of superior structures and is commonly observed at late stages of dementia.13 The main hypothesis suggesting the implication of the cerebellum in dementia invokes a possible role for diaschisis,13,23,30 but our results show that cerebellar volume reductions can be observed even at early stages of the disease. Moreover, there are reports that secondarily affected regions could present mild atrophy and no histopathological changes,33 and this is what we investigated here. Possible reasons for cerebellar volume reductions in dementia include vascular factors, toxins (e.g. alcoholic dementia),13,23,30 and normal aging.30
In this study, we observed correlations between cerebellar volume reduction and cognitive decline in AD patients. Although the cerebellum is virtually free of neurofibrillary pathology, the magnitude of cerebellar atrophy strongly correlates with the duration and stage of illness.13,30 In previous studies, cerebellar atrophy was only evident at late stages of the disease,13,30 and a correlation was observed between the loss of granule cells and the duration of AD.13,30 Importantly, ascending fibers originating from the inferior olivary nucleus act as a powerful excitatory pathway on Purkinje cells in the cerebellar cortex that may play a substantial role in motor performance and learning of new motor skills.34 Therefore, even cerebellar changes that are present due to superior structure atrophy can lead to the impairment of these connections and may have important consequences.
2. Cerebellum and cognitive impairment
In our study, cerebellar volume correlated with MMSE total scores and sub-scores for language and attention, in addition to having a negative correlation with the FAQ. In past studies, the cerebellum has only been implicated in movement, gait, posture, and balance.10,11 However, recent studies suggest a possible involvement of the cerebellum in cognition, emotional processing, and behavior due to its connections with cortical areas and associated areas involved in superior mental functions.10,11,35
Some studies point to the involvement of the cerebellum in language control, and cerebellar lesions have been related to language impairments such as dysarthria, mutism, aggramatism, difficulty in naming and repetition tasks, verbal working memory, and impairment in verbal executive functions.36-38 Apart from speech motor deficits, aphasic syndromes and isolated constellations of agrammatic speech have sporadically been observed in cerebellar dysfunctions.38
Hassid was the first to provide evidence that crossed cerebral diaschisis might also be associated with extensive constellations of disrupted verbal functions.39 A recent report corroborates this idea and suggests that dysfunctional cortico-cerebellar connections could be related to deficient representations of temporal information and impaired sequencing of linguistic data.40
Even ifcerebellar volume reductions weredue todecreased temporal lobe and brain volume, to the best of our knowledge there are no studies demonstrating that vermis atrophy in dementia could be related to diaschisis. Although it is possible that reduced vermis volume could occur in conjunction with similar processes like cerebellar volume reduction, it may be best considered as a risk factor.
The possibility that the cerebellum might be a part of attentional networks was not seriously taken into consideration until the late 1980s and early 1990s. Since then, two lines of reasoning have been proposed to explain the role of the cerebellum in attention. It has become clear that the projections from the dentate nucleus (the largest and most phylogenetically recent of the cerebellar nuclei in humans and higher primates) to the primary motor cortex represent only a fraction of its output.41 Kelly and Strick found that other portions of the dentate nucleus innervate oculomotor, prefrontal, and posterior parietal areas of the cerebral cortex, parts of the brain that are essential for cognitive functions including attentional control.42 Activation has been observed in posterior parts of the cerebellum (including the hemispheres and vermis) when assessing spatial shifts in visual attention.41
Classically, the functions of the cerebellar vermis were thought to be related to the vestibular system and to be involved in balance, coordination, motor activity, tonus, and posture. But there is clear evidence of its involvement in such functions as speech, memory, visuomotor processing, attention, and emotion.10,43 These functions are mediated by afferent connections of the vermis such as vestibulocerebellum fibers, reticulocerebellum fibers, and spinalcerebellum tracts, and by efferent connections with the pons, medulla oblonga and reticular formation.11,44 Some studies reported connections between the cerebellar vermis and the flocculonodular lobe to the midbrain and the limbic system that have led to the idea of a 'limbic cerebellum'.11,45
The fact that visual information conveyed by the mossy and climbing fibers is integrated in Purkinje cells of the cerebellar vermis (lobules V, VI, VII) involved with oculomotor control has been firmly established from classical neurophysiological studies.46,47 The flocculonodular lobe and the vermis modulate the position and velocity of the eyes with respect to the orientation of the head and the body, enabling the subject to fixate clearly on a new target, reposition the gaze in saccadic eye movements, and fixate on points while moving, besides being involved in the refinement of motor commands before they reach the eye muscles.47 If the motor control of the eyes is impaired, the results of cognitive tests may also be impaired, because many cognitive tests like the MMSE require visual integrity.
3. Cerebellum and outcome
Based on these preliminary findings, reduced posterior cerebellar lobe and vermis volumes could be potential risk factors for future dementia onset, suggesting the possible involvement of the cerebellum in AD outcome. Although cerebellar changes accompany similar changes in the temporal lobe, they cannot be considered as an isolated factor. Our study evaluated volumes at one point in time, and we have hypothesized two possible ways in which cerebellar volume may change: (1) cerebellar volume reductions could be secondary to temporal lobe volume reductions, or; (2) cerebellar volume reductions could be evident prior to temporal lobe impairment and could be related to other factors not observed here. This suggests that cerebellar volume reductions can be considered as a risk factor later dementia onset.
Finally, a significant negative correlation between the volume of the vermis and functionality was observed. Previous studies have shown that the functioning of the vermis is related to the prognosis and mortality rates in dementia.48 Since the cerebellum is also related to motor and executive functions, this finding indicates a new possibility to be explored in the context of dementia rehabilitation.
4. Limitations
The interpretation of our results is currently limited because we were not able to obtain detailed and extensive neuropsychological data from our subjects, and were thus able to analyze only certain cognitive functions. Our control and MCI groups were very small, and we could not calculate ROC curves for cerebellar volumes and dementia onset. Our findings are correlational and thus cannot imply causality; whether cerebellar structural alterations and their relation to cognitive functioning are due to primary cerebellar impairment in the course of AD or secondary to destructive processes in other regions more typically associated with AD remains to be determined.
To the best of our knowledge, there are no studies evaluating cerebellar volume changes in patients with different levels of dementia and predementia. Our results support previous neuropathological findings of cerebellar involvement in cognition and AD. Moreover, they indicate that cognitive impairment may be at least partly related to structural changes in the cerebellum. Our findings and interpretations are preliminary and need to be confirmed and validated by future longitudinal studies. The cerebellum could be studied in MCI and AD cohorts to further examine the relationship between changes in the cerebellar morphology and cognitive impairment. The cerebellar roles in motor and non-motor functions could also be explored in studies on new therapeutics and rehabilitation for patients suffering from dementia.
This study was supported by the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq), Brazil, and the Fundação de Apoio à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP), Brazil. AJ is funded by the Programa de Apoio a Projetos Institucionais com a Participação de Recém-Doutores - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (PRODOC-CAPES, 0151/08-4).
The funding sources had no role in the study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation or writing of the report. The corresponding author had full access to all of the data in the study and had final responsibility for the decision to submit the manuscript for publication.
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33. Ribaut-Barassin C, Dupont JL, Haeberle AM, Bombarde G, Huber G, Moussaoui S, Mariani J, Bailly Y. Alzheimer's disease proteins in cerebellar and hippocampal synapses during postnatal development and aging of the rat. Neuroscience. 2003;120(2):405-23. [ Links ]
34. Baloyannis S. Pathological alterations of the climbing fibres of the cerebellum in vascular dementia: a Golgi and electron microscope study. J Neurol Sci. 2007;257(1-2):56-61. [ Links ]
35. Konarski JZ, McIntyre RS, Grupp LA, Kennedy SH. Is the cerebellum relevant in the circuitry of neuropsychiatric disorders? J Psychiatry Neurosci. 2005;30(3):178-86. [ Links ]
36. Im SH, Park ES, Kim DY, Song DH, Lee JD. The neuroradiological findings of children with developmental language disorder. Yonsei Med J. 2007;48(3):405-11. [ Links ]
37. Desmond JE, Fiez JA. Neuroimaging studies of the cerebellum: language, learning and memory. Trends Cogn Sci. 1998;2(9):355-62. [ Links ]
38. Ackermann H, Mathiak K, Riecker A. The contribution of the cerebellum to speech production and speech perception: clinical and functional imaging data. Cerebellum. 2007;6(3):202-13. [ Links ]
39. Hassid EI. A case of language dysfunction associated with cerebellar infarction. J Neurol Rehab. 1995;9:157-60. [ Links ]
40. Marien P, Saerens J, Nanhoe R, Moens E, Nagels G. Cerebellar induced aphasia: case report of cerebellar induced prefrontal aphasic language phenomena supported by SPECT findings. J Neurol Sci. 1996;144(1-2):34-43. [ Links ]
41. Haarmeier T, Thier P. The attentive cerebellum - myth or reality? Cerebellum. 2007;6(3):177-83. [ Links ]
42. Kelly RM, Strick PL. Cerebellar loops with motor cortex and prefrontal cortex of a nonhuman primate. J Neurosci. 2003;23(10):8432-44. [ Links ]
43. Schutter DJ, van Honk J. The cerebellum in emotion regulation: a repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation study. Cerebellum. 2009;8(1):28-34. [ Links ]
44. Schmahmann JD, Pandya DN.The cerebrocerebellar system. In: Schmahmann JD, editor. The cerebellum and cognition. San Diego, California, USA: Academic Press; 1997. p.31-60. [ Links ]
45. Bugalho P, Correa B, Viana-Baptista M. Role of the cerebellum in cognitive and behavioural control: scientific basis and investigation models. Acta Med Port. 2006;19(3):257-67. [ Links ]
46. Crowdy KA, Hollands MA, Ferguson IT, Marple-Horvat DE. Evidence for interactive locomotor and oculomotor deficits in cerebellar patients during visually guided stepping. Exp Brain Res. 2000;135(4):437-54. [ Links ]
47. Moretti R, Bava A, Torre P, Antonello RM, Cazzato G. Reading errors in patients with cerebellar vermis lesions. J Neurol. 2002;249(4):461-8. [ Links ]
48. Ramos LR, Simoes EJ, Albert MS. Dependence in activities of daily living and cognitive impairment strongly predicted mortality in older urban residents in Brazil: a 2-year follow-up. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2001;49(9):1168-75. [ Links ]
Leonardo Baldaçara
Universidade Federal do Tocantins - CUP - Medicina
Av. NS 15 ALC NO14, 109 Norte, Bloco BALA - Caixa Postal 114
77001-090 Palmas, TO, Brazil
Phone: (+55 63) 3232-8158 / Fax: (+55 63) 3232-8277
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Submitted: February 22, 1010
Accepted: September 24, 2010


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Documents and research related to the roughly 780 people who have been sent to the Guantánamo Bay prison since 2002.
Fahmi Salem Said al Sani
Fahmi Salem Said al Sani is a 43-year-old citizen of Yemen. As of January 2010, the Guantánamo Review Task Force had recommended him for transfer. He was transferred to the United Arab Emirates on Nov. 13, 2015.
Note: These documents include some assertions that cannot be independently verified. Many allegations have been contested by detainees and their lawyers, and some have been undercut by other evidence.
Internment Serial Number: 554
Alternate name:
- Fahmi Salem Said al Asani
6 Documents
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In a small game Im working on I was able to implement ray picking with an opensource 3d engine called min3d but I cant figure how to keep track of what object is onscreen. I will some times have upwards of 120 objects to render within my scene and the raypicking is off occasionally. What id like to do is keep track of how many screen objects are within the camera and being rendered onscreen and set a boolean value based on that to add or remove objects from my arraylist I iterate through when the screen touch is registered and the ray picking method goes off.
So how can I check for which objects are onscreen and offscreen in opengl es on android.


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The opening night of the World Series seems like a good time to consider Jorge Posada's case for his election to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Posada, starting catcher for four World Series champions, belongs in the Hall of Fame, but I don't think he will get there. As Yankee catchers go, he doesn't have as strong a case as Thurman Munson. Just as the baseball writers kept Munson out, they will keep Posada out.
Of the "core four" Yankees from Posada's time, Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter are automatic Hall of Famers whose credentials are so strong they overcome the anti-Yankee bias. Posada is more like Andy Pettitte, worthy of the Hall of Fame, but likely to fall short.
Posada has not retired yet, but it's likely we've seen most, if not all, of his outstanding years, so I think we can evaluate him as a Hall of Fame contender.
For catchers, you have to throw out the milestones that play into consideration for players at other positions. No catcher has hit 500 homers or 3,000 hits. (You can't count Craig Biggio, who moved to second base before he had 500 hits). So it's more an assessment of the total package that matters. You really have to measure a catcher against his contemporaries and/or against other Hall of Famers.
As I noted in an earlier post, Munson absolutely belongs in the Hall of Fame on both counts. He was one of the two best catchers of his time (Carlton Fisk and Gary Carter played longer, but only Johnny Bench was better when Munson played). He died in a plane crash while active, and his career statistics are closely comparable to Roy Campanella and Mickey Cochrane, two Hall of Fame catchers whose careers were curtailed tragically. But even when you compare him to Hall of Fame catchers whose careers weren't shortened by tragedy, you see that Munson was clearly better than several and easily belongs in that group.
For Posada, the case is easy to make when comparing him to Hall of Fame catchers, but tougher when comparing him to his contemporaries.
Comparing contemporary catchers
Among Posada's contemporary catchers, Mike Piazza and Ivan Rodríguez were clearly better, and both will probably make the Hall of Fame (unless suspicions about performance-enhancing drugs keeps Rodríguez out). Joe Mauer hasn't played as long as Posada (and may move out from behind the plate), but with three batting titles and an MVP award, he is seven years into what appears to be a Hall of Fame career.
It would be unusual for three, or especially four, catchers from Posada's era to be elected to the Hall of Fame. He will stand at least third in line among his contemporaries, fourth if Mauer stays great long enough.
It's not without precedent for four catchers from an era to make the Hall of Fame: Five whose careers overlapped for seven years in the 1930s are in the Hall of Fame: Cochrane, Bill Dickey, Rick Ferrell, Gabby Hartnett and Ernie Lombardi. But the Hall of Fame has been especially generous to players from the 1920s and '30s.
I don't think the tougher voting today is deliberate racism, but the simple fact is that the Hall of Fame has many more players from the 1920s and '30s, when it drew its players only from white Americans, than it ever will from later years. Think of it: Five catchers from 16 teams made the Hall of Fame in the all-white 1930s. With African-American, Latino (Posada is from Puerto Rico) and Asian players on 30 teams now, we can expect two or three.
No catcher who played most of his career in the 1960s is in the Hall of Fame (Yogi Berra ended his career in the '60s and Bench started his in 1967, but in 1966, baseball actually didn't have an active catcher who was bound for Cooperstown). From catchers playing in the 1970s, only Bench, Fisk and Carter are in the Hall of Fame. For the '80s, only Fisk and Carter. Voting for old-timers will add a few, but no decade since baseball was integrated will match the five catchers who made Cooperstown from the all-white '30s. The numbers change with other positions, but the pattern is the same.
No other catchers of Posada's time beyond the four I've mentioned will get any serious Hall of Fame consideration. Biggio, a certain Hall of Famer, was a catcher his first four seasons, but he didn't start playing like a Hall of Famer until he moved to second base, so I don't consider him as a catcher and neither will the voters. His catching will be just an interesting note in his story.
Jason Varitek had some nice hype, but he trails Posada significantly in each Triple Crown category, both in career totals and single-season highs, and he wasn't as durable behind the plate. Jason Kendall is fifth all-time in games caught, with a slightly higher batting average than Posada, but hardly any power. Javy López had a couple outstanding offensive seasons, but didn't last as long behind the plate as Posada. None of them has a shot at the Hall of Fame.
Comparison with Cooperstown catchers
The only catchers in the Hall of Fame with more World Series championships than Posada are Berra and Dickey. However, championships don't count at all in Baseball Hall of Fame voting. I'll blog on this sometime: If you played a key role in an NBA or NFL dynasty, you're going into the Basketball or Pro Football Hall of Fame. But championships don't help borderline Hall of Fame candidates in baseball (or some borderline Yankees would be in the Hall of Fame). As I've noted before, the Yankees have far and away the most championships, but two teams have more Hall of Famers.
So I don't think Posada will make the Hall of Fame. And I don't think his case is as compelling as several other Yankees'. But it's still a strong case:
You always know that you're making a weak case for someone when you start comparing him to the weakest players at his position who are in the Hall of Fame, but Posada measures well against the whole field, ranking in the top half in many offensive statistical measures and only at the bottom in stolen bases (two, but what catcher made the Hall of Fame on his stolen bases?).
Posada hit 275 homers, with a high of 30 in 2003, a higher career total than all but four of the 14 Hall of Fame catchers. (The table at that link does not include Al López, who's ninth all-time in games caught and held the record when he was inducted into Cooperstown in 1977. While he made the Hall of Fame primarily as a manager, his plaque does cite his catching, so I include him to count 14 Hall of Fame catchers.) Hall of Famers Bench, Berra, Carter and Fisk hit more homers than Posada. Piazza and Rodriguez also have more homers. But the fact is, Posada hit more homers than 10 catchers already in the Hall of Fame.
Six catchers in the Hall of Fame drove in more runs than Posada (1,065). Again, not so impressive to make him an automatic choice (only one season with 100 RBI), but he still outproduced most catchers in the Hall of Fame.
Posada doesn't have a strong batting average, .273, and he topped .300 only once (.338 in 2007). This is one of the few measures where he's not in the top half of Cooperstown catchers. But that's better than five Hall of Fame catchers — Bench, Carter, Fisk, López and Ray Schalk — and just three points lower than Campanella. So an average in Posada's territory is not a detriment when considering a catcher's Hall-worthiness.
In fact, here's the list of Hall of Fame catchers with better career Triple Crown numbers in all categories than Jorge Posada: Yogi Berra. Piazza and Rodriguez also had better career Triple Crown numbers in all three columns than Posada. But that's a short list. Without question, his career stats match up well with Hall of Fame catchers. Those stats alone would be enough to win a spot in the Hall of Fame for a non-Yankee.
Similarly, his on-base and slugging percentages are better than most Hall of Fame catchers. He's just below the middle for hits and runs scored.
Awards provide some support for the Posada Hall of Fame case, but he didn't win a lot of awards: five times an All-Star, five times a Silver Slugger. He never won a Most Valuable Player award (finished third in the 2003 voting, sixth in 2007). Bench, Berra and Campanella were multiple MVP winners. Lombardi, Hartnett and Cochrane each won one, but the other Hall of Fame catchers didn't win MVP awards.
He was not a great defensive catcher, but he was good for most of his career, and he handled lots of successful pitchers, including the most successful reliever in baseball history.
Longevity matters to Hall of Fame voters and Posada caught 1,574 games, ninth among Hall of Fame catchers. Durability matters in evaluating catchers. Posada had eight seasons catching more than 130 games, one behind Carter, same as Fisk, one ahead of Bench and Berra, and more than all the other Hall of Fame catchers. Rick Ferrell, a mediocre hitter who's in the Hall of Fame primarily for his defense, caught more than 130 games only three times. Ernie Lombardi never caught 130 games in a season. (The seasons were eight games shorter then, but Lombardi caught 120 games only twice.) Rodríguez, who holds the record for most games caught, had six seasons with 130 or more games caught. Same with Piazza. So only one catcher in the Hall of Fame, or likely to get there, was more durable behind the plate, handling a big catching load year after year.
Think about that: Only two catchers in history won more world championships than Posada. Only one Hall of Fame catcher was across the board better in the Triple Crown categories, and he stacks up well with the Hall of Fame catchers in all three categories and several more offensive categories. He was more durable behind the plate than nearly all the Hall of Fame catchers. It's tough to picture a catcher who wasn't a Yankee doing all that and not ending up with a plaque in Cooperstown. But I don't think Posada will make it there.
Anti-Yankee bias is always a factor when a candidate such as Posada comes up for Hall of Fame voting. In addition to Munson, several other Yankees who are being denied entry to Cooperstown have stronger cases than Posada: Roger Maris, Don Mattingly, Ron Guidry, and Tommy John. Graig Nettles has a similar case (Allie Reynolds, too, though I haven't written about him yet).
Given the strong case for at least two contemporaries and the strong and consistent anti-Yankee bias of Hall of Fame voters, I think Posada is a long shot to get the recognition he deserves in the Hall of Fame.


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HOUSTON, Oct. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Kraton Performance Polymers, Inc. (NYSE: KRA), a leading global producer of styrenic block copolymers announces that it has scheduled a conference call on Thursday, November 1, 2012 at 8:00 a.m. Central Time (9:00 a.m. Eastern Time) to discuss Third Quarter 2012 financial results. The company expects to release its results after market close on Wednesday, October 31, 2012.
Kraton invites you to listen to the conference call, which will be broadcast live over the internet, at http://www.Kraton.com by selecting the "Investor Relations" link at the top of the home page and then selecting "Events" from the Investor Relations menu on the left side of the Investor Relations page. Company spokespeople will include Kevin M. Fogarty, President and Chief Executive Officer; Stephen E. Tremblay, Chief Financial Officer; and Gene Shiels, Director of Investor Relations.
You may also listen to the conference call by telephone by contacting the conference call operator 5-10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time and asking for the Kraton Conference Call - Passcode: "Earnings Call". U.S./Canada dial-in #: 888-989-5214. International dial-in #: 517-308-9285.
For those unable to listen to the live call, a replay will be available beginning at approximately 10:00 a.m. Central Time on November 1st through 11:00 p.m. Central Time on November 15th. To hear a replay of the call over the Internet, access Kraton's Website at http://www.Kraton.com by selecting the "Investor Relations" link at the top of the home page and then selecting "Events" from the Investor Relations menu on the left side of the Investor Relations page. To hear a telephonic replay of the call, dial 866-349-4505 and International callers dial 203-369-0029.
About Kraton
Kraton Performance Polymers, Inc., through its operating subsidiary Kraton Polymers LLC and its subsidiaries, is a leading global producer of engineered polymers and, we believe, the world's largest producer of styrenic block copolymers (SBCs), a family of products whose chemistry was pioneered by us almost fifty years ago. SBCs are highly-engineered thermoplastic elastomers which enhance the performance of numerous products by delivering a variety of attributes, including greater flexibility, resilience, strength, durability and processability. Our polymers are used in a wide range of applications, including adhesives, coatings, consumer and personal care products, sealants and lubricants, and medical, packaging, automotive, paving, roofing and footwear products. We offer a broad range of products to more than 800 customers in over 60 countries worldwide, and are the only SBC producer with manufacturing and service capabilities on four continents. We manufacture products at five plants globally, including our flagship plant in Belpre, Ohio, as well as plants in Germany, France and Brazil, and a joint venture plant operated in Japan.
Kraton, the Kraton logo and design, and the "Giving Innovators Their Edge" tagline are all trademarks of Kraton Polymers LLC.
For Further Information:
H. Gene Shiels 281-504-4886
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100728/DA42514LOGO)
SOURCE Kraton Performance Polymers, Inc.


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There are plenty of good reasons why a parish should have a book club and why parishioners should participate in one. Beyond the obvious benefits of encouraging time for fellowship, fulfillment, and faith, a parish book club is a great way to involve, educate, and affirm those parishioners who might otherwise be hesitant to become involved in parish life.
Luckily, after generating some awareness and contacting any interested parties, the process of setting up a book club is as simple as 1, 2, 3:
1) Pick a leader and a discussion format. The choice of a leader is closely related to the discussion format because the role of the leader will depend on the style of conversation. Will the meeting be more like a relaxed gathering of friends with the leader merely starting the discussion and keeping the group on task? Will the book club meet for a presentation on the book or topic with something like a question-and-answer session at the end (with the leader being responsible for the presentation or finding a presenter). Or will the meeting be somewhere in between, with the leader responsible for asking questions and guiding the discussion but not for formally lecturing on the book?
And should the same person lead for many sessions, or should there be a new leader for every meet-up? Will everyone taking a turn hosting? The meeting format and role of the leader may affect some members' willingness to volunteer to lead, so while not everyone may be comfortable leading the group in discussion, there should be at least a couple of members willing to step up and take turns.
2) Pick a meeting location and schedule. The size of the group will probably be the biggest factor in determining a meeting location. Will the book club meet at members' homes, a local coffee shop, or the parish center? If there are lots of people interested in joining the book club, it may be more effective to break them up into smaller groups-too large a group may intimidate some members and make it difficult for everyone's thoughts to be shared. Meetings with a format that includes a lecture or other structured activity are more difficult to plan since they require more space and setup, but they can generally accommodate more people at once.
The trick to establishing a reading schedule is to leave enough time for members to purchase and read the selected book, without leaving so much time that members may forget about doing the reading or forget what they read in the interim. A meeting every four to eight weeks is probably the "safest" schedule. As for choosing specific meeting times (days of the week, time of day, etc.), that should be determined around member schedules, parish activities, and meeting location availability.
3) Pick a book. U.S. Catholic makes this easy with our monthly U.S. Catholic Book Club selection. Every month U.S. Catholic will spotlight and review a title we believe is worthy of attention. The Book Club selections and reviews can be found in the print magazine as well as online at http://www.uscatholic.org/bookclub. U.S. Catholic also offers monthly book reviews and a monthly book list, so take your pick-there's bound to be something suitable for your group.
Happy reading!
For more information on starting and running a book club, see http://www.spl.org/default.asp?pageID=collection_readinglists_bookclub_howtos.
For information on book selection and book discussion guides, see http://www.hclib.org/pub/bookspace/BookClubs.cfm.


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Geriatrics and Extended Care
Geriatric Research
Need for Geriatric Research
The VHA opened the first Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Centers (GRECCs) in the 1970s to attract scientists and health science students to the field of geriatrics. VHA wanted to be prepared to meet the challenges of providing care to the aging World War II Veteran population. Aging Veterans from post-World War II continue to make up a large segment of the Veterans VA cares for. The purpose of the Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Centers is to increase the basic knowledge about the aging process and how diseases of the elderly are best managed, transmit this knowledge to health care providers, and improve the quality of care delivered to elders.
Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Centers
Each Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC) has a research component, an education component, and a clinical component. Currently there are 20 GRECC that conduct basic laboratory research on the origins of aging and the diseases commonly associated with aging. Research is also conducted on how care is delivered to elders and how to teach doctors and others to care for older Veterans. The research is paid for by grants from the National Institutes of Health, from VA's Office of Research and Development, and from private foundations.
Research Outcomes
Each year the 20 GRECCs together publish over a thousand scientific articles, educate thousands of VA staff and health professions students (like those training to become doctors, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, and others) in geriatrics, conduct over a hundred million dollars of research (about 10% of VA's total research activity), and study and improve several dozen news ways to deliver care to older Veterans. The centers share existing knowledge and new discoveries of geriatrics by offering education, instruction, and training programs to train doctors, nurses, and other professionals in geriatric care.
Impact on VA Healthcare
GRECCs assist clinical staff at VA medical centers to provide state of the art care to elderly Veterans and demonstrate improved methods of health care delivery.
For more information, please go to the GRECC website.


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You are here
Condominium association moved for relief from the stay to enforce its lien rights as to Debtor's real estate due to Debtor's failure to pay post-petition assessments. Movant and Debtor, pro se, submitted a proposed consent order that the Court found lacking in several respects. In this Order Denying Consent Order Modifying Stay Without Prejudice, the Court articulates its general requirements for consent orders, including (1) that the debtor is given an opportunity to cure a subsequent default thereunder and (2) that the movant cannot proceed to collect from other property of the estate, such as by obtaining a lien against any other real or personal property or garnishing Debtor's wages, without first obtaining further authorization from this Court.


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Three Investing Lessons From 'The Sopranos'
"The Sopranos," the HBO show in which the late actor James Gandolfini played a mafia boss, often crossed thematically into the investment world. MarketWatch's Laura Mandaro discusses three investing lessons from the series. (Photo: HBO)
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
I ... so ... nowadays ... the issue it's a socialist ... going Sally Jesse well beyond ... their products ... what happened to it ... I recall ... the strong silent night ... that was an American ... back again again Delphine SN and roleplaying to come up with any soprano ... crafted bands this week three servicemen and the actors and characters bass lines ... ten a soprano was a much of a stock picker to be organized crime PTX business interests that anymore to black market exchanges but as recollections Radisys Everett is investing for Fatah and many of Sopranos wisecracking commonsense taking this ... living with the consequences ... IMI Mandela with any luck in some of the best clients ... Chris let's Island settlement supply and demand ... this isn't anything Tencent's ... file and a day ... that evening in any market ... he signs his son in any base of real estate man is that ... if the press to be a great investment because it is a ... finite supply ... however any investor in the ... mind of the season and incentive plan or I'll cry just a fairyland ... we've had a big run-up in real estate investment trusts in home building stocks ... rug was pulled out from under them recently after the Fed signaled that they can start ... taking some of the stimulus away ... members to file our self high it sounds easier said than done isn't wet came to France as ... it stood to gain something from the ground floor and I came too late for then I now ... play lately and getting the feeling that a key win at the end ... and that's isn't over ... that way that you coming to lay that you've missed the best times ... is one any investor and then in the market on the sidelines of the last few years has had a tremendous rally ... on a more than double fence two thousand and nine ... and its climax even with a lot of investors that they're saying it's time to buy cheap stocks ... makes you wonder ... am I too late ... and this one is something that anyone has looked at the top performing stock ... mutual fund with a high rating ... area lazy to keep in mind ... that ... past performance is no guarantee of a future is all this is what the floated ... remember when is the lowest form of compensation ... just because something worth in the past doesn't mean squat ...


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IBM Certified Expert
Tested & Approved IBM Study Materials
Pass-Keys is the leader in supplying IT Certification candidates with current and up-to-date training materials for IBM and Exam preparation. IBM training tools are constantly being revised and updated for relevance and accuracy by real IBM-certified professionals. You will engage in the most relevant IBM topics and technologies needed to ensure you are 100% prepared. Pass-Keys IBM exam materials' quality and reliability will help you pass any IBM certification exam.


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Point One – Unlucky Stars (Release Year – 2007)
Kudos goes out to Point One from Seattle, Washington. Somehow this band has managed to create a sound that is a blend of 80's, 90's and 00's metal.
I didn't think something like that was possible in this day and age, but Unlucky Stars, sounds so unlike anything I have listened to lately, it is a total breath of fresh air.
With Point One you get some guitar work reminiscent of 80's metal, the pure vocal style of today's rock, bits of grunge, a dabble of hardcore (but not too much), and small hints of industrial. The marriage of all of these different sounds some how works for Point One, and better yet, works for this listener's ears.
There are several songs on Unlucky Stars that are radio ready, and a few that have hit potential. Sadly, with Point One being an indie artist, I doubt that there are enough radio stations out there that have the balls to play this disc. If you are a hard rock fan, with an open mind, you ought to give Unlucky Stars a listen. I think you will find some tunes you can enjoy on this disc.
Point One has six of the tunes from Unlucky Stars available for listening on their myspace page. You can also view the video for Monochrome Mistress below! Go check them out!
Rating:Out of 10
Track Listing:
- Unlucky Stars
- Oxygen
- Monochrome Mistress
- Crime
- Best Part Of Me
- Cruel
- Drama Queen
- Sometimes
- Running Away
- Bodies For Freedom
- Pain That I Am Used To
Point One is:
Len Hotrum – Vocals, Additional Guitars
Keith Wright – Lead Acoustic & Electric Guitars, Backing Vocals
Chase Culp – Drums & Percussion, Backing Vocals
Darren Howard – Bass, Vocals, Backing Vocals, Additional Guitars
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people are our gold
With heads full of wits & giggles, a global company with the personality of a small village, and a generous staff discount to boot, phil&teds is a top place to work. We've got 145 heads around the world, working in a range of fields, including industrial designers, marketing gurus, numbers nuts and more! Design, distribution and marketing is led from Wellington, New Zealand - with an additional four sales and marketing offices based worldwide. Teamwork makes this dream work, baby!
We hire the best, back them to succeed and applaud them when they do, going the extra mile to help our staff achieve their full potential. We've got the trophy to prove it, too. A Team Gold Award for our investment in people, stellar HR, and wellness programmes. Go team, go!
Our parent company cares for three great brands: phil&teds, Mountain Buggy and mokopuna, so we're always on the hunt for new talent. Take a look at our current roles listed below. Nothing suited for you? Heck! Send us your CV anyway - firstname.lastname@example.com .If you've got the goods - personality, passion and drive - then we've got a role for you!


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We need official transcripts of your previous college-level work in order to:
Have your previous schools send official transcripts to us:
Cabrillo College
Admissions and Records
6500 Soquel Drive
Aptos, CA 95003
When we receive your transcripts we enter information into our system about typical math and english prerequisites that you have already taken. This should make it easier for you to register for classes that have prerequisites.
After we've entered the information in our system, we send your transcripts to the Counseling Department.
Please note: We accept electronic transcripts from participating institutions. If transcript is sent by mail, the transcript must be a hardcopy, on official paper, and sealed to be considered official.
Want to check on the status of a transcript? Call us at (831) 479-6100.