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New Jersey's Chris Christie will FINALLY implement medical marijuana program [Video]
In a very surprising change-of-heart, New Jersey's Governor Chris Christie has decided to allow the Garden State's medical marijuana program to move forward, with dispensaries open before the end of the year. Christie has roadblocked the NJ medical marijuana program again and again so this is a welcome change of heart.
"I have been struggling, as has my administration, to find a way to accomplish what I wanted to accomplish. Which is to provide compassionate treatment to those who are suffering, in a way that will not expose them, the operators of our dispensaries, the employees of the state of New Jersey to criminal liability. But that is a lot easier said than done." Said Christie in his statement. "That is why we have taken the steps we've taken. Set up a regulatory system that makes this a very narrow and medically-based program that will not lead itself to the abuses we've seen, particularly in California and Colorado."
Video via NJ.com
Featured Partner: Leafbuyer - The Best Marijuana Deals, Save At Your Local Dispensary
Leafbuyer is all about finding you the best ways to save money on your favorite cannabis products. Every day, hundreds of local Marijuana Dispensaries, Head Shops, and Grow Stores help us bring you deals and savings on anything you need. Whether you're looking to try the latest strain, find the perfect pipe, or start growing your own, Leafbuyer is your one stop shop to find the best marijuana deals in town. Businesses post new offers to Leafbuyer.com every day


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Advisers who resist new technology and talk about their age aren't doing themselves any favors with clients, writes Craig Faulkner, CEO of FMG Suite. "[S]top talking about your age, toss out the instruction manual and start tinkering, and get on those social sites today," he writes. "You'll reap the benefits in increased client confidence, more business, and the fun of showing up those Gen-X types!"
View Full Article in:Financial-Planning.com
Published in Briefs:

subset: commoncrawl


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Crew of 150 snake-boats take part in celebrations
Thousands of devotees from different parts of the State partook of the ritualistic feast, held at the Sree Parthasarathy temple premises at Aranmula as part of the Sri Krishna Janmashtami celebrations on Wednesday.
Swami Sandeepananda Giri of the School of Bhagavad Gita in Thiruvananthapuram inaugurated the annual event by lighting a ceremonial lamp immediately after the Utchapuja at the temple.
According to Ratheesh R. Mohan, Palliyoda Seva Sanghom secretary, and P. Mohanachandran, treasurer-cum-convener, crew of 50 Palliyodams (snake-boats) attended the annual event, besides scores of devotees.
Oarsmen of 48 Palliyoda Karayogams reached the temple ghats in their own Palliyodams in the forenoon and those from the remaining eight Karayogams came in decorated vehicles. The oarsmen were accorded a traditional reception. They were escorted to the temple premises with the customary Thalappoli and the traditional temple percussion.
The Palliyoda Karayogams were provided with separate space on the temple premises for attending the Vallasadya.
Mr. Mohan said about one lakh people partook of the feast. The devotees and the boat crew relished the feast, squatting on the sprawling temple premises, braving the sun. As many as 48 items, including sweet, sour and fried items and five types of payasom, were served to them.
The ceremonial parade of the Palliyodams, Ashtami Rohini Vallamkali, was also held in the Pampa as a prelude to the mega feast.
Superintendent of Police P. Vimaladitya deployed a 300-strong police force headed by R. Chandrashekhara Pillai, Dy SP at Aranmula to ensure the smooth conduct of the event.
Keywords: Janmashtami celebrations, Sree Parthasarathy temple Aranmula, Vallasadya, Krishna Jayanthi feast


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obturator ob·tu·ra·tor (ŏb'tə-rā'tər, -tyə-)
A structure, such as the soft palate, that closes an opening in the body.
A prosthetic device that serves to close an opening or cleft, especially in the palate.
A stylus or removable plug used during the insertion of many tubular instruments.
obturate ob·tu·rate (ŏb'tə-rāt', -tyə-)
v. ob·tu·rat·ed, ob·tu·rat·ing, ob·tu·rates
To close or obstruct.


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After five weeks of beauty sleep and Sandy repairs, the G train is back in service between Nassau Avenue in Brooklyn and Court Square in Queens. Time to resume your awkward jogs to the middle of the ... More >>
With 11 days to go until the Democratic primary election, it looks pretty unlikely that Governor Andrew Cuomo will ever debate Zephyr Teachout, his main challenger, despite many requests from her, and... More >>
If Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Tumblr don't allow you to air quite enough of your private life, Miranda July's got the app for you. The filmmaker, artist, and author launched Somebody today, a ... More >>
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The Westboro Baptist Church will return to New York City in September as part of an ongoing bid to troll the universe and fill their days with some semblance of meaning. According to their picket sche... More >>
Daniel McGowan, the environmental activist and former member of the Earth Liberation Front who spent five and a half years in an extreme prison isolation unit, is suing the federal Bureau of Prisons f... More >>
James Foley, an American freelance journalist who was kidnapped in Syria by terrorists two years ago, has been murdered by his kidnappers, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, also known as ISIS and I... More >>
The Staten Island District Attorney's office says a grand jury will hear evidence on the death of Eric Garner, the 43-year-old man who died in July after NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo put him in a chok... More >>
It was a strange July morning in Lower Manhattan, and getting stranger by the minute. On the Brooklyn Bridge, sometime during the night, someone had swapped all the American flags for bleached white... More >>
It was another long, bad night in Ferguson, Missouri, where protests over the killing of 18-year-old Mike Brown by police officer Darren Wilson continued for the ninth straight day. The National Guard... More >>
It was a strange July morning in Lower Manhattan, and getting stranger by the minute. On the Brooklyn Bridge, sometime during the night,... More >>
City Council speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito used Twitter Sunday night to announce that she's been diagnosed with high-risk human papillomavirus, or HPV, a common sexually transmitted infection. The spe... More >>
In 90 cities around the country last night, demonstrators marched in what was dubbed National Moment of Silence 2014 to honor Mike Brown, the teenager killed in Missouri by police last week, as well a... More >>
An upstate New York farm has been fined by the state Division on Human Rights for refusing to host a wedding for a lesbian couple two years ago. Liberty Ridge Farm is located in Schaghticoke, New York... More >>
It seems pretty clear that the situation at Rikers Island, the jail that holds the vast majority of New York City's prisoners, is reaching some kind of critical mass. While no one has ever been under ... More >>
"I feel great," Zephyr Teachout said, actually seeming to mean it. "It's not fun to have anybody staring you down, and trying to knock you off your game. But all this has done is proved that I am a Ne... More >>
For the second time in three weeks, the New York Police Department has announced they're looking for a suspect who attempted to rape a woman in the stairwell of her apartment building. The department ... More >>
Well, here's some good, reassuring, non-itchy news: just days after three N train cars were discovered to have bedbug stowaways living in them, two N line workers have found bedbugs in their lockers .... More >>
An Ozone Park, Queens couple has been arrested after their 12-year-old daughter told authorities about the abuse that she endured at their hands, including being isolated, beaten and starved down to j... More >>
It's set to get hot, humid and occasionally stormy this week, as New York's weirdest summer ever (weather-wise, anyway) continues. But it's still summer, dammit, and that means you should be spending ... More >>
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Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
De thuisreis (original 1999; edition 2005)
by Olaf Olafsson
Work details
The Journey Home by Olaf Olafsson (1999)
No current Talk conversations about this book.
Title: The Journey Home: A woman makes one last journey home to face what she left behind.
Disa is at the end of her life. Her doctor has given her, at the outside, a year to live. The disease that is killing her doesn't matter, its finality makes her realize that she can no longer put off dealing with a past she did not want to relive. So Disa sets off on a journey to her native Iceland to see the outcome of that terrible time during WW2 when she found happiness for a while and then lost it when the horrible realities of war became all to real to her younger self.
Along the way we learn about what led her to start her successful bed and breakfast with her friend Anthony, her attempt to fix a falling out with a old friend, and finally what caused her to move to England.
This was a nice departure from my usual staple of Sci-Fi and action / adventure stories. I like these kinds of books every now and then especially when they are done well. In this case, at least to me, it was done well as the author succeeds in moving the story along by bringing the past alive and by making the conversations between characters interesting.
The way the story is written almost reminds me of an old sci-fi book I read called "Cuckoo's Egg by C.J. Cherryh". In that story the conversations are almost more interesting and tense than any of the battles that occur throughout the story. In this story it's more the recreation of what it was like for those that were affected by WW2 and what the atmosphere was like at the time. When it comes to Disa she can come off as a little stiff and frosty on occasion but in the end it's understandable why she trys to keep everyone and everything at arm's length. If I have one complaint with this story its that it does have the "whiplash" effect occasionally as the story can bounce back and forth around the time line abruptly sometimes. All and in all I recommend this to anyone who is looking for a story that takes the reader to the past and tells a story about why someone became who they are. m.a.c
This character-driven novel is a qiet, introspective look at the life of Asdis "Disa" Jonsdottir as she prepares herself and Anthony for her death. She and Anthony have been running a hotel from his ancestral home, where Disa as the chef has been offering excellent food to their clientele. Disa has a terminal illness and has promised to return to her native Iceland before she dies to put to rest the ghosts of her past. A beautifully rendered book about family, love, persistence, and regret.
A very good book, but not a great book and I guess I was hoping for great. The story of a dying woman in Scotland who decides to journey home to the village in Iceland where she grew up. In the process she faces many demons from her past. My main problem was that the character wasn't entirely likable, which I suppose made her more human, but I was thinking that with all she had been through she would have been more humane.
Disa Jonsdottir is looking back on her life as she prepares to return home to Iceland for the first time in many years. The story unfolds in a series of vignettes that jump around chronologically, which took some getting used to, but, with its first-person narrative and sometimes dreamlike, sometimes discursive style, felt very much like an intimate conversation. Disa is a wonderfully drawn, authentic character, with a short temper, an impetuous nature, and deep wounds from the past. Her flashes of pique are interspersed with kindnesses and quiet reflections of the unique, meditative, and even stark beauty of the English countryside, where she runs a summer inn with her companion Anthony, and Kopasker, Iceland, the wild, remote village of her childhood. I was so moved by Olafsson's descriptions of Kopasker that I looked it up -- it is a sheepherding and fishing village of about 130 residents located just about as far north as can be in Iceland, with rivers, lava fields, and dramatic fjords, and in my imagination it is little changed from Disa's youth in the 1930s. I ached for Disa when she remembers her fiancé, and when she revisits issues unresolved with her mother and sister. I was touched by the tender relationship Disa has with her companion Anthony, and even the quiet conversations with her dog Tina. There's no epiphany; no redemptive reconciliation, but though the reader takes this journey with Disa near the end of her life, regret does yield to hope. Highly recommended.
Middle-aged Asdis "Disa" Jonsdottir has been living in England for many years but on learning that she is terminally ill, decides to go on a journey to Iceland, the land of her birth. The story is the narrative of her life and her loves, as she quietly reflects on her past, sharing her greatest disappointments, and joys. This was a good, atmospheric read.
References to this work on external resources.
Wikipedia in English
Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0385720416, Paperback)Holed away in lush British farm country, Disa runs a small inn with her friend Anthony. They're both past middle age, eccentrics who understand each other too well. Their life consists of early mornings, chores, twilight walks down to the reflecting pool. Guests descend on the place in spring, full of noise and expectation. Disa runs the kitchen, serving up gourmet dinners that have become famous among savvy food critics and tourists.
Olaf Olafsson's The Journey Home is constructed in tight succinct fragments, like journal entries. Shuttling between past and present, it's about reckoning with grief and bad memories in the face of death. Diagnosed with a terminal illness, Disa knows she needs to make a journey back to Iceland, a place that reflects the past back to her: a mother who abandoned her, a fiancé eventually killed by the Nazis.
Although not much directly happens in this novel, great tension develops between the pull of memory and the push of the moment. In Disa, Olafsson (Absolution) has created a vibrant character who wants to overcome sadness by plunging into the sensual. She's always cooking up fantastic meals, and the descriptions of food are truly mouthwatering: trout "fried with a sprinkling of ground almonds," apples "which I love to bake after they have soaked in port for a long, quiet afternoon." The powerful smells and sights of life rescue Disa from fear--if she doesn't quite believe in God, she believes in the immediacy of the world. This is the novel's subtly redemptive tendency, laid out piece by piece in Disa's soothing melancholy voice: "Sometimes you have to get a grip on yourself to keep your thoughts under control, but it's worth it. The reward is just around the next corner, whether it is a clutch of perfect eggs in a basket or the sound of birdsong on a still day. The soul can take delight in small things if one's dreams only leave it in peace long enough." --Emily White
(retrieved from Amazon Mon, 30 Sep 2013 13:28:10 -0400)
Disa Jonsdottir has managed an inn for years with her companion, Anthony, in the English countryside. Compelled by the demands of time to revisit the village of her childhood, she departs England for her native Iceland. Along the way memories surface-of the rift between her and her mother, of the fate of her German-Jewish lover, of the trauma she experienced while working as a cook in a wealthy household. Skillfully weaving past and present, Olafsson builds toward an emotional climax that renders The Journey Home moving, suspenseful, and unforgettable.… (more)
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Economic Botany Collection, including the Kew Museums
Economic Botany Collection
Royal Botanic Gardens
Kew, Richmond, Surrey
Email or post ensures a prompt reply - we aim for within 5 working days.
History of Kew
Contact Kew's Archives; consider copying your email or letter to us if the subject falls within our research interests.
Uses of plants (non-historical)
Please make use of the Economic Botany Enquiries service.
General enquiries about Kew or plants
Please see Kew's Contacts page.
The Economic Botany Collection is located the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew which situated on the south bank of the River Thames near Richmond, about 10 km south-west of London. We encourage you to visit Kew Gardens via public transport for environmental reasons, and because it is usually more convenient as we have limited parking.
The ground floor of Museum No. 1 is open to the public and showcases 500 specimens from the Economic Botany Collection in the Plants+People exhibition. The exhibition highlights the variety of useful plants around the world and celebrates people's ingenuity and craft skills in using these riches.
Although much of the Collection is in storage it is available to researchers, both through pre-arranged visits and remotely, by email and digital photograph. Please visit the Research section of our site and then write to us by post or email to arrange a visit.


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Ms Daoust can kiss my a$$
Submitted by MikeLawson on Thu, 04/14/2011 - 15:40. Permalink
International rules mean nothing to me. Tax feeders are the lowest form of life. Global tax feeders should be exiled to the moon or the bottom of a deep volcano. International rules. What a joke.
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Saw this in the paper this morning and thought it was interesting considering some of the issues related to the recent USAT election cycle.
Well, my sense is that there is a glut on the Colorado Springs commercial real estate market and they couldn't sell the building. This way, they give it to us at a [sic] bargain price, and we get to be responsible for it. The idea is to rent space other NGBs. All I can say is that when I was on the USAT board, we had a rigorous discussion of this specific proposal and rejected it out of hand as a poor financial proposal. When you find a detailed debate of the finances in the USAT minutes making the argument for this decision, please let us all know. My guess is that you won't see any figures, just someone's "word" that it's a good deal. One ore reason to vote NO on the by-laws proposals. Please do.


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Murdoch's Influence Wanes as Cameron Slams Downing Street Door
July 27 (Bloomberg) -- Rupert Murdoch, feted by leaders who feared the sway his media empire held over British voters, has been put on notice by U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron that "the clock has stopped" on his influence over British politics.
Summoned to Parliament on July 19 to say what he knew about illegal activities at the News of the World, Britain's best-selling newspaper before it was shut by the scandal, Murdoch said premiers asked him "many times" to visit their 10 Downing Street office in London through the back door.
"He's not going to have anything like the same influence he's had in the past," said Lance Price, who worked for Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair from 1998 to 2001 before leaving and publishing "The Spin Doctor's Diary." Lawmakers would take Murdoch's likely reaction into account when deciding policies, Price said. "No prime minister's going to treat him in the way he once did."
Leaders of both Britain's main parties -- Labour and the Conservatives -- wooed Murdoch, whose News Corp. still publishes The Sun, the biggest selling daily tabloid, and the upmarket Times and Sunday Times. The Sun has backed the winner in every election since 1979, when it urged voters to support Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Party.
'More Healthy'
"We have all got to be open about the fact that both front benches spent a lot of time courting Rupert Murdoch, courting News International," News Corp.'s U.K. publishing division, and other media, Cameron told the House of Commons last week. "This sort of relationship needs to be changed and put on a more healthy basis. Now we are prepared to admit it, but basically, if you like, the clock has stopped on my watch."
Blair once flew to Australia to address a meeting of News Corp. executives as he sought to woo Murdoch's support for Labour in the mid-1990s.
Blair's communications chief, Alastair Campbell, described in his diaries the moment in the run-up to the 1997 election when The Sun announced it would back Labour instead of John Major's Conservatives.
Blair "thought it was good news in its own right," as well as being "good in the effect it would have on the other side's morale," Campbell wrote. "On one level, it was ridiculous that it should be seen as a big event, but the reality is that is exactly how it is seen."
The News of the World, with a reputation for covering sex and scandal, was Murdoch's first newspaper purchase in Britain in 1969. He added The Sun shortly afterward. The Times and Sunday Times joined the Murdoch stable at the start of the 1980s, bought from Thomson Corp. after a labor dispute had shut the Times for more than a year.
'Polluted Press'
"There is no one person more responsible for the pollution of what was already a fairly polluted press, and the pollution of the British press is an important part of the pollution of British political life," a leading television playwright, Dennis Potter, said in a BBC television interview shortly before his death in 1994.
"I call my cancer, the main one, the pancreas one, Rupert," Potter said. "I would shoot the bugger if I could," he said of Murdoch.
"An organization whose newspapers demanded greater responsibility among the powerless in our society believed it was so powerful that it was beyond that self-same responsibility," opposition Labour Party leader Ed Miliband said of News Corp. in a speech last week. "It was one of the great failures of politics that their power went unchallenged for so long."
'Falling Asleep'
During his testimony last week, Murdoch "looked very weak," said Labour lawmaker Jim Sheridan, who questioned the 80-year-old News Corp. chairman about his relationships with prime ministers. "If it was an act, it was a very good act. He was falling asleep."
Murdoch told Sheridan he had "never guaranteed anyone the support of my newspapers." Asked by another lawmaker, Damian Collins, about his "frequent meetings" with premiers, Murdoch replied: "I wish they would leave me alone."
Murdoch told the committee that he was not responsible for the phone-hacking scandal and that the News of the World made up just 1 percent of a global company. Instead, he blamed "the people that I trusted to run it, and then maybe the people they trusted."
'Clear Up'
Cameron said at the end of last week that "News International has got some big issues to deal with and a mess to clear up."
The widening phone-hacking scandal and its political backlash also forced News Corp. to drop its 7.8 billion-pound ($12.8 billion) bid for the 61 percent of British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc, the country's biggest pay-television operation, it doesn't own.
At least 10 people have been arrested, including former News International Chief Executive Officer Rebekah Brooks and ex-News of the World editor Andy Coulson, who was Cameron's press chief until January of this year.
Data released by the government as it tries to create a clean break show that 41 percent of Cameron's meetings with senior media figures since coming to power were with News Corp. For Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, the figure was 40 percent.
Bloomberg LP, the parent of Bloomberg News, competes with News Corp. units in providing financial news and information.
'Rumble On'
Lawmakers should take Murdoch at his word that he's not interested in influencing British public life, said Chris Bryant, a Labour lawmaker who's suing News International over the affair.
Murdoch's son James, News Corp.'s deputy chief operating officer, who also testified that he was unaware of hacking allegations, "is in much more difficulty," Bryant said in an interview. "All of this is going to rumble on for him."
Philip Cowley, professor of politics at Nottingham University, said he believes the power of Murdoch's newspapers was already waning, along with the rest of the printed press, as circulations have fallen.
Blair and his successor, Gordon Brown, "spent so much time courting them because of Labour's experience in the 80s and early 90s" during an 18-year absence from government, Cowley said in an interview. "They were fighting the last war. But if it got them a few extra votes, why not do it?"
Even so, Sheridan, the Labour panel member, said he's unconvinced that Murdoch's influence is gone for ever.
"There's nothing to demonstrate that he's not as powerful as he was," Sheridan said. "The proof will be in the eating. I don't think we're out of the woods yet."
To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Hutton in London at firstname.lastname@example.com
To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Hertling at firstname.lastname@example.com


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15,000 Extra Tourists Use Airport Info Centre
By CLAIRE HARRISON
THE Tourist Information Centre (TIC) situated at George Best Belfast City Airport is celebrating a successful first year after handling 55,000 enquiries since opening, significantly more than expected.
Located in the arrivals hall, the TIC was opened last August next to the redesigned airport information desk. The aim of the project was to provide an enhanced service for both visitors and local users.
Catering for the immediate needs of visitors, the facility provides assistance with onward travel, accommodation, sight-seeing and event bookings for both Belfast and the rest of Northern Ireland.
Councillor Michael Browne, chair of Belfast City Council's development committee, said: "The aim was to service in the region of 40,000 enquires in the first year of operation so it is very positive that the demand for information surpassed the expectation.
"The figures show a clear need for effective visitor servicing and we know the TIC provides a key role in encouraging people to make the most out of their stay and driving business into the local economy."
Robert Cully, director of business development at the Northern Ireland Tourist Board said the service "ensures that the needs of visitors arriving at the airport are dealt with in a comprehensive and professional way".
Katy Best, business development director for the airport said:"By the end of 2008, our 25th anniversary year, we expect to carry 2.7 million passengers through our airport. We believe that the TIC is a fantastic product that sets the tone for our customers visit to Belfast."
(c) 2008 Belfast Telegraph. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.


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SHOPPING CART: New food products in stores, restaurants
Cereal muffin mixes : Betty Crocker has a new line of muffin mixes inspired by General Mills cereals. Each 12.7-ounce box makes 12 muffins. Varieties are Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Reese's Puffs and Cocoa Puffs. The mixes are priced at $3.49.
Easy-bake desserts : Betty Crocker has debuted a line of child-friendly dessert mixes packaged in a plastic bottle. The Shake-n-Pour desserts, in Chocolate Cupcake, Chocolate Brownie and Confetti Cupcake varieties, come in a wide-mouth bottle. Just pour in water, shake and dispense into muffin cups or a brownie pan. Each 13-ounce bottle makes 12 cupcakes or 9 brownies and is priced at $3.49.
Sweet teas at Target : For the summer, Lipton Iced Tea has added two bottled varieties of its 100 percent Natural Iced Tea line. Strawberry Dragonfruit and Honey Peach are available for a limited time at Target stores.
Farmer Boys goes natural: Farmer Boys is getting into the gourmet burger business with The Natural, a 1/3-pound burger made with USDA certified hormone-free Angus beef that's vegetarian-fed. The Natural is served with cheese, onions and pickles. The Natural starts at $3.99, or $4.99 with cheese, $5.29 with cheese and bacon and $5.99 with avocado, bacon and cheese.
Bardot gets fruity: Bardot Bars, the newly opened gourmet ice cream bar shop in La Jolla, has introduced frozen fruit bars with 100 percent real fruit. Varieties are Inner Peace (ice cream with matcha green tea), Forbidden Fruit (fresh soursop fruit), Yin Yang (yogurt ice cream with passion fruit sherbet) and Acapulco Love (manila mango).
Chicken at Wienerschnitzel: The hot-dog fast food chain is now offering Der Chicken Dippers. The menu item includes bite-size snacks made with 100 percent white meat boneless chicken served with choice of sauce (BBQ, Spicy Buffalo Wing, Creamy Ranch). Portions range from one-third pound to one pound. Prices start at $3.59.
YoCrunch adds Breakfast Blends : YoCrunch, single-serve nonfat yogurt cups with mix-in crunchy toppings, has added two products made with breakfast cereal: YoCrunch with Post Fruity Pebbles cereal and YoCrunch nonfat Greek yogurt with Honey Bunches of Oats (vanilla and strawberry varieties). A four-cup multipack of the Pebbles variety starts at $2.89. The Greek yogurt two-pack is $2.49.
Special K debuts chips : Kellogg's has expanded its Special K cereal line again with Popcorn Chips. The crunchy, triangle-shaped baked chips are available in Butter and Sweet & Salty varieties. A 28-chip serving has 120 calories and 2 grams of fat. A 4.5-ounce multiserve box has 4.5 servings and is priced at $3.89.
Hallow-reos : During October, Target stores will be selling Candy Corn-flavored Oreo sandwich cookies. The cookies have vanilla wafer cookies and a cream filling that is striped orange and yellow cream.


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Warning that another 26/11 type attack could result in an Indo—Pak war, a former Bush—era diplomat has highlighted the need for the U.S. to target the LeT hideouts in drone strikes in view of Pakistan's reluctance to act aggressively against the terror outfit.
"What we're suggesting is that we include LeT in this target list, because if the Pakistanis aren't willing to see this as a threat and indeed an existential threat to them, then we see it that way, and we're going to prosecute it," Richard Armitage, former deputy Secretary of State, said.
Mr. Armitage was speaking at the release of a report by an independent task force at the Council on Foreign Relations —— a Washington—based think—tank —— on 'the U.S. Strategy for Pakistan and Afghanistan' The nearly 100—page report is authored by Mr. Armitage and two other experts on South Asia —— Samuel R. Berger and Daniel S. Markey.
"I would hope they would see the Haqqani Network in the same way they see Pakistani Taliban, that this is ultimately a threat to them as well. On Lashkar—e—Taiba, they have to see this as something that is — that could be, in a single stroke, — something that causes war between India and Pakistan, something that I think would delight al—Qaeda no end," he observed.
"And why do I say this? LeT is trouble. As I've already indicated, if they have one more strike, another Mumbai—type attack, I do not think the Indian government can be held back.
But they're also in Afghanistan. They're killing us. I take it personally," Mr. Armitage, who was deputy Secretary of State from March 2001 to February 2005, said.
"If we can't be successful in the jawboning, pressuring or sticks—and—carroting them into this, then in the long run, we're dealing with very dangerous situation," Mr. Armitage warned.
Noting that he would not want the US to go to war with Pakistan, Mr. Armitage said it is very difficult for him to see much difference between the drone attacks that the US is having with some success right now and what the report is suggesting.
Mr. Markey said the report suspects an unstable U.S.—Pakistan relationship because lesser progress by Islamabad against combating terror would hamper their ties. "If we were to suffer an attack from Pakistan, we would be forced to, I think, take a very different line," he argued.
"So it's a recognition of that political reality, which leads us to look at what those alternatives would have to be.
It's not a desire to go there, and it's not an inherent threat or anything that we're trying to level against the Pakistanis.
"It's a recognition of the strategic reality that we both face and how uncomfortable that is for both sides," Mr. Markey noted.
Mr. Armitage argued that defeating and dismantling the LeT network is crucial for the regional peace as well.
"It's not totally necessary that drone strikes are the only weapon you have against LeT or, for that matter, the Haqqani network. The Afghan Taliban and the Quetta Shura and all of that, my own view is we ought to use all means necessary to root them out if we can't get assistance from Pakistan," he added.


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1st Corinthians Rhinestone Ring
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Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1st Corinthians 13:4-7 (New International Version)
Sixteen pink rhinestones encircle the Apostle Paul's perfect portrait of love. Our stainless steel ring is a comfort in times of trouble and certain to become a family heirloom.
- Stainless steel & rhinestones
- Laser engraved on inside of the band
- Approx. 0.5" W (1.3 cm)
- Imported
Ring Sizing: Please choose between U.S.A. ring sizes 6, 7, 8, or 9. For conversions to other countries' ring sizes, see our Ring Sizing Conversion Page.
For bulk pricing on these and other items, please contact our Customer Service department at firstname.lastname@example.com.
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Recent reviews:
November 18, 2014 - 2 stones fell out and have only had it since 10/18 not wSting my time returning cause the money goes to breast cancer but disappointed
Customer Service response:February 20, 2015 - Please contact our customer service department for store credit or exchange.
November 17, 2014 - Love the ring
March 24, 2014 - I "love" this little ring. I've gotten compliments on it also. Plan on ordering more, as this was my first purchase. And score, it helps others by my purchase. Praise God.
March 2, 2014 - Beautiful Scripture on ring with perfect fit and nice weight. I purchased it in celebration of 10 years being breast cancer free!
December 3, 2013 - I adore this ring. The ring fits ok but I bought the 6 and 9 also for my friends and they said it was a bit snug, I have to agree a little. But it looks great, and the 1Cor engraving is touching.
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text:
Treasuries Post Monthly Loss as Fed Flattens Yield Curve
March 29 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries are losing money for the first time since December as investors demand higher yields with the Federal Reserve signaling that a strengthening economy may prompt policy makers to raise rates sooner than forecast.
The difference in yields between five- and 30-year securities narrowed to the least this month since 2009 as investors shift to longer-maturity debt, which is less sensitive to changes in central bank rates. A report next week is forecast to show the U.S. added 197,000 jobs in March, the most since November, while the unemployment rate dropped.
"The fear of higher rates in the near term played havoc on the front end of the curve, and the market wasn't ready for that," said Sean Simko, a money manager who oversees $10 billion at SEI Investments Co. in Oaks, Pa. "If data comes in more with a stronger bias, you'll likely see the front end underperform again."
Treasury five-year note yields rose 25 basis points, or 0.25 percentage point, in March to 1.75 percent as of yesterday in New York, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader prices. Thirty-year bond yields fell three basis points on the month to 3.55 percent and touched 3.49 percent on March 27, the lowest since July 3.
The benchmark 10-year note yield rose seven basis points this month to 2.72 percent. The average the past decade is 3.46 percent.
Monthly, Quarterly
Treasuries handed investors a loss of 0.1 percent in March, based on the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Bond Index, the first monthly decline since December. That trimmed the gain this year to 1.9 percent, the biggest quarterly advance since April-June 2012.
Investors pulled $10.3 billion in government bonds from U.S. exchange-traded funds in March, the largest monthly exodus since December 2010, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
The gap between the five-year note yield and the 30-year bond, known as the yield curve, narrowed on March 27 to 1.79 percentage points, the least since October 2009.
"People are much more comfortable with curve trades, if they want to have a bias toward the Fed tightening faster than expected," Thomas Roth, senior Treasury trader in New York at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities USA Inc., said March 27.
A yield curve plots the rates of bonds of different maturities from the same issuer. It steepens when yields on shorter-maturity notes fall, those on longer-dated bonds rise, or both happen simultaneously. Longer-term bonds tend to rise or fall based on the outlook for inflation, while shorter maturities are anchored by the Fed's policy rate.
Futures Bets
Hedge-fund managers and other large speculators increased their net-short position in five-year note futures in the week ending March 25 to the most since January 2009, according to U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data.
Speculative short positions, or bets prices will fall, outnumbered long positions by 172,119 contracts on the Chicago Board of Trade. Net-short positions rose by 82,399 contracts, or 92 percent, from a week earlier, the Washington-based commission said in its Commitments of Traders report.
Speculative long positions on 30-year bonds, or bets prices will rise, outnumbered short positions by 10,550 contracts on the Chicago Board of Trade, the fewest since the period ended Dec. 20. Net-long positions fell by 18,397 contracts, or 64 percent, from a week earlier, the CFTC said.
Inflation Expectation
The difference between yields on 10-year notes and similar-maturity Treasury Inflation Protected Securities, a gauge of trader expectations for U.S. consumer prices over the life of the debt, was 2.14 percentage points yesterday, below the average over the past decade of 2.21 percentage points.
The Federal Open Market Committee on March 19 predicted their target interest rate will be 1 percent at the end of 2015 and 2.25 percent a year later, higher than previously forecast, as they upgraded projections for gains in the labor market. It has been zero to 0.25 percent since 2008.
The U.S. unemployment rate is forecast to drop to 6.6 percent in March from 6.7 percent in February, according to the forecast of economists in a Bloomberg News survey before the report April 4. The lower rate would match the least since October 2008.
The Fed is overhauling forward guidance after unemployment declined toward 6.5 percent, its previous threshold for a rate increase. The central bank dropped a linkage between the benchmark interest rate and a specific level of unemployment, saying its assessment takes into account a "wide range of information," including labor-market conditions, inflation expectations and financial markets.
'Higher Rates'
"Fundamentally, we're going to higher rates," Michael Franzese, senior vice president of fixed-income trading at ED&F Man Capital Markets in New York, said March 27.
Higher Treasury yields have attracted demand. An auction of $29 billion of seven-year notes March 27 at a yield of 2.258 percent, the highest since December, drew the strongest demand from investors that place bids directly with the Treasury since the U.S. resumed selling the maturity in 2009.
The U.S. auctioned $35 billion of five-year notes March 26 at a yield of 1.715 percent and $32 billion of two year notes the day before at 0.469 percent. Both securities were sold at the highest levels since 2011.
The Treasury also sold $13 billion of two-year floating-rate notes on March 26 at a bid-to-cover ratio of 4.67 percent, higher than the 2.9 average of fixed-rate debt sold this year by the government.
G-7 Peers
Treasury 10-year yields climbed to an almost four-year high versus their Group of Seven counterparts as the Fed trims stimulus and the European Central Bank is being encouraged by the Organization for Economic Cooperation to add more. The extra yield 10-year Treasuries offer over their G-7 peers touched 62 basis points on March 19, the highest level since April 2010. The average over the period is negative 13 basis points.
U.S. gross domestic product grew at a 2.6 percent annualized rate from October through December, more than the 2.4 percent gain reported last month, figures from the Commerce Department showed March 27 in Washington.
The economy of the Group of 10 nations is forecast to grow 2.02 percent this year, compared with 2.7 percent for the U.S.
To contact the reporter on this story: Susanne Walker in New York at firstname.lastname@example.com
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at firstname.lastname@example.com Kenneth Pringle


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Sauce to Add Flavor to Dry Puppy Food
posted 6 years ago
We bought this sauce to add to Amber's food to encourage her to finish her meals a little faster. At first, she liked it, then she decided it wasn't so good. Now we add gravy from a large can of dog food to her dry, and she eats it well.
Pros: Comes with added vitamins, and antioxidants
Cons: doesn't taste great
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text:
fx5200 dual view problems
When I attach a 2nd monitor to the dvi port through a dvi-vga adapter, the 2nd monitor clones my primary display but when i select dual view in the display setup, the monitors are still cloned and both screens idnetify as '1'.
Re: fx5200 dual view problems
Same over here :(
Re: fx5200 dual view problems
nView works properly on a Gainward 5200 under 66.96 and 71.84. What are the specifics of your systems?
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There's no bad news!
Best Answer
Yes. The good news is that you are reading this and not someone else reading your name in an obituary column.
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text:
A process for producing a shaped porous article includes the steps of providing an extrudate of a fluoropolymer material which is capable of being stretched and bilaterally stretching the extrudate along a longitudinal axis. The stretching step is carried out under conditions sufficient to yield an article which is substantially uniformly stretched over a major portion of its length. After stretching, the material has a unique through-pore microstructure characterized by elongate nodes connected by fibrils. The stretched material is sintered while being maintained in its stretched state to produce the shaped porous article. A significant feature of the inventive process is that stretching is carried out by displacing both ends of the extruded material as opposed to known method wherein only one end of an extruded material is stretched, resulting in a microporous fluoropolymer article which are different than conventional fluoropolymer stretching/expansion processes.
1. An implantable article formed by a wall of material extending in a thickness dimension front an inner face to an outer face and said wall consisting of a single expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) material characterized in having a microstructure of a plurality of nodes interconnected by fibrils extending between the nodes, wherein internode spaces which are formed between pairs of adjacent nodes define oriented microchannels for passage of material therealong, wherein the microchannels are tapered and extend along the thickness dimension of the wall.
2. An implantable article according to claim 1, wherein the article is intended as a prosthesis and has a node and fibril microstructure that supports tissue growth, and the tapered microchannels taper outwardly to a wall on which tissue is to be grown.
3. A tube consisting of a single expanded, porous fluoropolymer material and having a longitudinal axis and a wall, the wall of said tube having a microstructure characterized by nodes being interconnected by fibrils, substantially all of the nodes each being disposed in annular region across the longitudinal axis of the tube and oriented such that space between adjacent nodes forms a channel oriented and extending in said region from the inner to the outer surface of the wall.
4. A tube as set forth in claim 3 wherein the fluoropolymer material comprises polytetrafluoroethylene.
5. A tube as set forth in claim 3 wherein the fluoropolymer material comprises a copolymer of tetrafluoroethylene and a monomer selected from the group consisting of ethylene, chlorotrifluoroethylene, perfluoroalkoxytetrafluoroethylene, and fluorinated propylenes.
6. A tube as set forth in claim 3 wherein the nodes are characterized by a dimension in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis ranging from approximately 500 micrometers to approximately 900 micrometers.
7. A tube as set forth in claim 3 wherein the nodes define internodal through-pores, the through-pores providing substantially direct passageways which traverse from one surface of the tube to another.
8. A tube as set forth in claim 3 wherein said microstructure is substantially uniform along said longitudinal axis.
9. A tube consisting of a single expanded, porous fluoropolymer material and having a longitudinal axis and a wall, the wall of said tube having a microstructure characterized by ring-shaped nodes interconnected by fibrils, wherein a substantial plurality of the ring-shaped nodes each extend about the longitudinal axis of the tube, the ring-shaped nodes being sized and oriented such that space between a pair of adjacent nodes constitutes a channel oriented and extending in a radial direction, the wall further having a microstructure characterized by a second group of nodes smaller than the ring-shaped nodes and located along a radial region extending partway through the wall.
10. A tube as set forth in claim 9 wherein the nodes define internodal through-pores, the through-pores providing substantially direct passageways which traverse from one surface of the tube to another.
11. A tube as set forth in claim 9 wherein the ring shaped nodes and the second group of nodes define passageways having a size distribution that varies along a radial direction through the wall for controlling the extent of tissue ingrowth.
12. A tube as set forth in claim 9 wherein the fluoropolymer material comprises polytetrafluoroethylene.
13. A tube as set forth in claim 12 wherein the fluoropolymer material comprises a copolymer of tetrafluoroethylene and a monomer selected from the group consisting of ethylene, chlorotrifluoroethylene, perfluoroalkoxytetrafluoroethylene, and fluorinated propylenes.
14. A tube according to claim 9 wherein said micro structure is substantially uniform along the axis and varies along a radial direction through the wall.
15. A tube having a central axis and consisting of a single expanded porous polytetrafluoroethylene material, said tube having a microstructure of nodes interconnected by fibrils, substantially all of the nodes having plate shape oriented perpendicular to the central axis and extending between approximately five hundred and nine hundred microns in a plane perpendicular to said axis, said fibrils extending parallel to said axis, such that space between each pair of adjacent nodes forms a channel oriented and extending in said plane perpendicular to said axis.
16. A tube having a central axis and consisting of a single expanded porous polytetrafluoroethylene material, said tube being stretched along said axis to form a microstructure of nodes interconnected by fibrils and characterized by an expansion ratio defined along its length as a ratio of stretched length to initial length, wherein the expansion ratio varies by less than ten percent along the length of the tube and substantially all of the nodes are plates oriented perpendicular to the central axis and extending between approximately five hundred and nine hundred microns in a plane perpendicular to said axis, said fibrils extending parallel to said axis, such that space between a pair of adjacent nodes forms a channel oriented and extending through the tube in said plane perpendicular to said axis.
17. A tube according to claim 16 wherein the expansion ratio varies by less than about 1:16 over a substantial preponderance of the tube's length.
18. A tube having a central axis and consisting of a single expanded porous polytetrafluoroethylene material, said tube having a microstructure of nodes interconnected by fibrils wherein individual nodes extend from an inner surface to an outer surface of the tube and define large-entry channels for enhancing tissue ingrowth, the channels having said fibrils therein and having one porosity at the inner surface and a different porosity at the outer surface, the inner surface and the outer surface consisting of a single polytetrafluoroethylene material.
19. An implantable prosthesis having a body formed by a wall consisting of a single polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) material and having a first face and a second face, the PTFE material being stretched to impart a node and fibril structure wherein the nodes are plates extending entirely through the wall such that pairs of adjacent nodes each form a direct channel therebetween oriented and extending from said first face to said second face, the channels being large-entry channels to enhance tissue ingrowth at one of said first or second faces, and containing fibrils extending perpendicular to said nodes.
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 07/850,862, filed on Mar. 13, 1992.
Many fluoropolymer materials, such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), are thermoplastic polymers. That is, they have the property of softening when heated and of hardening again when cooled. PTFE is generally produced in the form of white powder referred to as resin. It has a higher crystalline melting point (327� C.) and higher viscosity than other thermoplastic polymers, which makes it difficult to fabricate in the same manner as other plastics.
PTFE is a long chain polymer composed of CF2 groups. The chain length determines molecular weight, while chain orientation dictates crystallinity. The molecular weight and crystallinity of a given resin prior to sintering are controlled by the polymerization process.
Currently, three different types of PTFE resins are available which are formed from two different polymerization processes. The three resins are granular polymer, aqueous dispersions, and coagulated dispersion products.
In the coagulated dispersion of PTFE resin, small diameter (0.1-0.2 micrometer) particles are coagulated under controlled conditions to yield agglomerates ranging in size from 400 to 500 micrometers in diameter. The morphological structure of these agglomerates can be considered as long chains of PTFE that are intermingled in a tangled network.
A known method of forming articles from fluoropolymer resins, such as PTFE, is to blend a resin with an organic lubricant and compress it under relatively low pressure into a preformed billet. Using a ram type extruder, the billet is then extruded through a die in a desired cross-section. Next, the lubricant is removed from the extruded billet by drying or other extraction method. The dried extruded material (extrudate), is then rapidly stretched and/or expanded at elevated temperatures below the crystalline melting point of the resin. In the case of PTFE, this results in the material taking on a microstructure characterized by elongated nodes interconnected by fibrils. Typically, the nodes are oriented with their elongated axis perpendicular to the direction of stretch.
After stretching, the porous extrudate is sintered by heating it to a temperature above its crystalline melting point while it is maintained in its stretched condition. This can be considered as an amorphous locking process for permanently "locking-in" the microstructure in its expanded or stretched configuration.
It has been found that the effect caused by stretching PTFE is dependent on extrudate strength, stretch temperature, and stretch rate. Extrudate strength is a function of the molecular weight and degree of crystallinity of the starting resin and extrusion conditions such as extrusion pressure, lubricant level, and reduction ratio. These parameters also control the degree of alignment that results from extrusion. As stated, the degree of alignment, in turn, affects one's ability to homogeneously stretch the extrudate.
Most known methods for processing PTFE describe unilateral stretching techniques and stress the importance of stretching the fluoropolymer at rapid rates. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,953,566 and 4,187,390 to Gore state that while there is a maximum rate of expansion beyond which fracture of the material occurs, the minimum rate of expansion is of much more practical significance. Indeed, the patents state that at high temperatures within the preferred range for stretching (35� C.-327� C.) only the lower limit of expansion rate has been detected. The patents estimate this rate to be ten percent of the initial length of the starting material per second. The patents go on to note that the lower limit of expansion rates interact with temperature in a roughly logarithmic fashion so that at higher temperatures within the preferred stretching range, higher minimum expansion rates are required.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,609 to Browne describes another method for producing porous PTFE products by stretching at a rate of 10% per second. The patent also states that a differential structure is obtained by using an alloy of two different fluoropolymer resins which are characterized by significantly different stretch characteristics. The resins typically have different molecular weights and/or crystallinities. Accordingly, the final physical properties, such as strength, of PTFE articles formed in such a way are affected by the different molecular weights and/or crystallinities of the starting resins.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,208,745 and 4,713,070 also describe methods for producing porous PTFE products having a variable structure. The processes utilize a sintering step having a differential sintering profile. That is, one surface of an expanded PTFE article is sintered at a temperature which is higher than the sintering temperature of another surface. This results in fibrils being broken and provides an inherently weak material.
It is an object of the invention to provide a process for producing a shaped porous article which is more truly semi-permeable than known articles formed of fluoropolymer materials. It is another object of the invention to provide such a process in which a fluoropolymer extrudate can be homogeneously stretched independently of rate. Still another object is to provide a porous article. Yet another object of the invention is to provide a porous article having a porosity which is variable in the direction of the article's cross-section.
These and other objects are achieved by the present invention which in one aspect features a process for producing a porous article. The process includes the steps of providing an extrudate of a fluoropolymer material which is capable of being stretched and bilaterally stretching the extrudate along its longitudinal axis. Conditions are maintained during stretching sufficient to yield an article which is substantially uniformly stretched over a major portion of its length. These conditions include stretch rate, ratio, and temperature.
The stretched extrudate has a microstructure which is characterized by elongate nodes which are connected by fibrils. This microstructure is locked in by sintering the stretched extrudate while maintaining it in its stretched state.
An important feature of the invention is that the fluoropolymer extrudate is bilaterally stretched. That is, in accordance with the invention both ends of the extrudate are displaced along the extrudate's longitudinal axis away from a central portion of the extrudate. It has been found that this stretching method provides significant advantages over known stretching methods wherein one end of an extrudate is held stationary while only the other end is displaced.
In various embodiments of this aspect of the invention the bilateral stretching is carried out at rates not greater than ten percent per second. Indeed, it has been found that stretching at rates slower than even one percent per second provides a material having an extremely desirable microstructure of nodes and fibrils, the nodes being significantly larger than nodes resulting from known processes of rapidly stretching single-resin extrudates unilaterally.
In carrying out the stretching step in accordance with the process of the invention, the ends of the extrudate can be displaced either simultaneously or sequentially. For example, in one embodiment of the invention, a first end of the extrudate is displaced to a stretch ratio of not greater than two to one. That first end is then held stationary while the second end of the extrudate is displaced in the opposite direction to again result in a stretch ratio of not greater than two to one. Restricting the individual stretches to stretch ratios of not greater than two to one ensures a substantially homogeneous microstructure along a major portion the length of the extrudate.
In another aspect, the invention features a process for producing a porous tube of polytetrafluoroethylene including the step of providing a preformed billet of a mixture of a polytetrefluoroethylene resin and a lubricant. As with the above-described aspect of the invention, the billet is extruded, the extrudate is then dried, and bilaterally stretched along its longitudinal axis under conditions sufficient to yield a tube having a substantially homogenous microstructure over a major portion of its length. The stretched tube is then sintered while being maintained in its stretched state to produce the porous tube.
In one embodiment of this aspect of the invention, the preformed billet is formed to have a lubricant level which selectively varies in the direction of the billet's cross-section. That is, for example, the billet might have a lubricant level of fifteen percent by weight at its inner and outer surfaces and a lubricant level of approximately twenty percent at a radial position between its inner and outer surfaces. When extruded and stretched, such a billet results in a porous tube having a microstructure which varies in a controlled fashion in the direction of the tube's cross-section. This phenomenon and its advantages are described below in greater detail.
Accordingly, in the various embodiments of this aspect of the invention, a porous article having a desired microstructure is provided by controlling the billet lubricant level, the billet reduction ratio, and bilateral stretching conditions such as stretch rate and ratio. This avoids the problems such as weak material which are associated with known resin-blending and varied-profile sintering techniques.
In still another aspect, the invention features a tube formed of an expanded porous fluoropolymer material. The material has a microstructure characterized by ring shaped nodes interconnected by fibrils. An important feature of this aspect of the invention is that substantially all of the nodes each circumscribes the longitudinal axis of the tube and extends from the inner to the outer surface of the tube wall, thereby creating between the nodes continuous through-pores from one surface to the opposite surface.
These and other features of the invention will be more fully appreciated by reference to the following detailed description which is to be read in conjunction with the attached drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a porous article formed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a scanning electron microscopic view of a longitudinal cross-section of a porous article in accordance with the invention,
FIG. 3 is a scanning electron microscopic view of a radial cross-section of a porous article in accordance with the invention,
FIG. 4 is a schematic depiction of a billet suitable for extrusion in accordance with the invention,
FIG. 5A is a scanning electron microscope longitudinal cross-section view of another porous article in accordance with the invention,
FIG. 5B is a scanning electron microscope view of the inner surface of the porous article shown in FIG. 5A,
FIG. 5C is a scanning electron microscope view of the outer surface of the porous article shown in FIG. 5A, and
FIG. 6 is a schematic longitudinal cross-section view of still another porous article in accordance with the invention.
As stated above, in one aspect the invention features a process for producing a shaped porous article. A significant feature of the process is that an article having a homogeneous microstructure is formed independently of the rate at which it is stretched.
Various fluoropolymer resins are suitable for use in the present invention. For example, polytetrafluoroethylene or copolymers of tetrafluoroethylene with other monomers may be used. Such monomers may be ethylene, chlorotrifluoroethylene, perfluoroalkoxytetrafluoroethylene, or fluorinated propylenes such as hexafluoropropylene. In particular, however, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) works well. Accordingly, while the inventive process can be utilized to produce porous articles formed of various fluoropolymer materials, the following description pertains specifically to the formation of an article from PTFE resin.
For purposes of the present invention, when PTFE is used, resin of a molecular weight between 10,000,000 and 70,000,000 is suitable. Since, however, PTFE does not dissolve in any common solvent its molecular weight cannot be measured by the usual methods. According to the Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Engineering (Wiley and Sons, 1989), though, the following relationship has been established between number-average molecular weight (Mn), for molecular weights between 5.2�105 and 4.5�107, and the heat of crystallization (ΔHc) in Joules/gram (calories/gram).
Accordingly, by determining the heat of crystallization of a given PTFE resin, a number average molecular weight of the resin is determinable from this relationship.
As with known methods of processing PTFE, the invention utilizes a preformed billet which comprises a PTFE resin mixed with an organic lubricant. Various lubricants are suitable such as naphtha, ISOPAR-G and ISOPAR-H available from Exxon Corporation. Low odor paraffin solvents can be used as well. The blended resin is compressed at low pressure (less than 1000 PSI) into a tubular billet of approximately one third of the resin's original volume. Billet forming processes are generally known in the art.
As discussed above, extrusion conditions have a significant effect on the resulting extrudate's reaction to being stretched. In particular, once a resin of a given molecular weight and crystallinity has been selected, extrudate qualities are controlled by the level of lubricant mixed with the resin to form the billet, the reduction ratio at which the billet is extruded and the extrusion pressure. This is because these parameters control the degree to which the molecular chains of PTFE align themselves during extrusion.
The process of the invention is most effective when using lubricant levels that are higher than conventionally used in known methods for processing fluoropolymer materials. For example, preformed billets ranging in lubricant level of between 15 to 25 percent by weight produce an extrudate well adapted for the inventive stretching process. This is because higher lubricant levels facilitate the migration of molecular chains during the extrusion process to produce an extrudate having a higher degree of alignment. As discussed above, the degree of alignment in turn affects how the extrudate reacts to being subjected to an external tensile force.
When PTFE extrudate is subjected to an external tensile force, such as during stretching, the intermingled network of PTFE particles separate. Accordingly, the force required to separate these particles, and hence stretch the extrudate, is dependent upon the degree of intermingling of the PTFE particles. The longer the polymer chains (higher molecular weight), the greater the amount of intermingling that will occur and, therefore, the greater the force that will be required to separate the coagulated dispersion particles.
Two other extrusion parameters having an effect on a resulting extrudate's reaction to stretching are reduction ratio and extrusion pressure. The range of suitable reduction ratios is bounded at its lower end by the minimum reduction ratio permissible which provides an extrudate of sufficient strength so as not break during stretching. At its upper limit, the range of suitable reduction ratios is bounded by the maximum ratio permissible which provides an extrudate that is amenable to being homogeneously stretched. Accordingly, experimentation has shown that for purposes of the present invention the preformed billet should be extruded to a reduction ratio of between approximately 50:1 and 600:1. A preferred reduction ratio is between approximately 100:1 and 200:1.
Reduction ratio and stretch characteristics are interrelated since the force required to deform a PTFE extrudate and form fibrils from the nodes is related to how the material was aligned (packing density) during extrusion. Fibrils are not formed as easily from nodes with high reduction ratio extrudates as they are with low reduction ratio extrudates. This is because internal forces are much higher in high reduction ratio extrudates.
The third extrusion parameter which has a significant effect on the resulting extrudate's reaction to being stretched is extrusion pressure. While extrusion pressure is, to a certain extent, related to reduction ratio, by varying lubricant level, extrusion pressure can be varied independently of reduction ratio. While measured extrusion pressure will vary depending upon the type of extrusion equipment being used, the range of suitable extrusion pressures to practice the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, pressures between approximately 6000 PSI and approximately 10,000 PSI have been used successfully for the practice of the invention.
Once an extrudate has been produced according to the above described parameters, in accordance with the inventive process it is stretched under conditions sufficient to yield an article that is uniform over a major portion of its length. Stretching processes are characterized in terms of stretch rate and stretch ratio. Stretch rate refers to the percentage change in length of the extrudate per unit time. In the case of a fifty centimeter long extruded tube, for example, stretching five centimeters per second results in a stretch rate of ten percent per second. The percentage change is calculated in terms of the initial length of the extrudate.
Stretch ratio, on the other hand, is not time dependent but merely refers to the ratio of the final length of the stretched extrudate to that of the initial length of the unstretched extrudate. Accordingly, stretching a fifty centimeter long extruded tube to one hundred centimeters, results in a stretch ratio of 2:1 regardless of the duration of the stretch.
With this in mind, it is an important feature of the invention that extruded materials are stretched to form porous articles independently of stretch rate. In certain instances the process is dependent on stretch ratio. As stated above, known methods for processing fluoropolymer materials teach that stretching must be carried out at a rate generally exceeding approximately ten percent per second. In accordance with the invention, however, homogeneous articles are produced at stretch rates not greater than approximately ten percent per second. Indeed, the preferred rate of stretching ranges from approximately 0.5 percent per second to approximately 10 percent per second.
To stretch an extrudate, the extrudate must be placed in tension. This is done by applying opposed forces to the ends of the extrudate. The level of force applied to the extrudate, and hence the rate at which the extrudate stretches, determines how the above-described intermingled network of PTFE particles unravels. In known methods for stretching PTFE, force is applied to place the extrudate in tension by displacing one end of the extrudate with respect to the other end. At stretch rates lower than ten percent per second, this method of stretching cannot uniformly stretch the extrudate to greater than a 2:1 ratio. To the contrary, at greater ratios the material stretches preferentially at its moving end. The fixed end of the material, on the other hand, experiences significantly less stretching.
In accordance with the invention, on the other hand, bilateral stretching results in more even force distribution along the length of the extrudate and produces a more homogeneously stretched material. It has been found that stretching bilaterally, that is, displacing both ends of the extrudate away from the middle of the extrudate, provides a material that is homogeneously stretched over the majority of its length independent of the stretch rate.
After the extrudate has been bilaterally stretched it is sintered by heating it above its crystalline melting point under tension. As discussed above, this locks in the microstructure of the material and completes the process of producing the porous article.
FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a porous tube 10 formed by the above described bilateral stretching process. For purposes of description, the microstructure of the tube 10 has been exaggerated. Accordingly, while the dimensions of the microstructure are enlarged, the general character of the illustrated microstructure is representative of that microstructure prevailing in an article formed by the inventive process.
Accordingly, the tube 10 includes a microstructure characterized by elongate nodes 12 interconnected by fibrils 14. A significant feature of the tube 10 is that the nodes 12 are ring-shaped to form, in effect, a series of washer type structures circumscribing the tube's longitudinal axis L. The nodes 12 are oriented generally perpendicularly to the axis of stretching as represented by arrows T which is coincident with the longitudinal axis L.
Another significant feature of the tube's microstructure is that substantially all of the nodes 12 extend along a transverse axis t from an inner surface 16 of the tube to an outer surface 18 of the tube. Accordingly, this dimension of the nodes 12 is significantly larger than the corresponding dimension of nodes formed by conventional single-resin fluoropolymer processing methods. Such nodes are randomly arranged and characterized by a transverse axis which is generally oriented perpendicularly to the axis of stretch. Notably, however, the nodes of these known structures are considerably shorter and smaller than nodes produced in accordance with the present invention. Indeed, the above-referenced U.S. patents to Gore note that nodes formed by that known technique generally range in size from smaller than one micron to approximately 400 microns.
Unlike the short, randomly stacked nodes and microfibrillar spaces formed by conventional single-resin fluoropolymer stretch or expansion processing, the method of the present invention provides a microporous structure having microfibrillar spaces which define through-pores or channels extending entirely from the inner to the outer wall of the expanded extrudate. These through-pores are perpendicularly oriented internodal spaces which traverse from one surface to another. As discussed below in greater detail, by varying lubricant levels such internodal through-pores can be preferentially altered such that the surface pore on one surface is made to be larger or smaller than the surface pore on the opposing surface.
A longitudinal cross-section view of a tubular article formed by the process of the invention is shown in FIG. 2. There, it can be seen that the present invention produces an article having a microstructure characterized by elongate nodes which are substantially larger than the nodes of materials produced by known single-resin forming methods. Indeed, the nodes shown in FIG. 2 consistently range in size from approximately 500 microns to approximately 900 microns. Substantially all of the nodes of the article shown in FIG. 2 extend from the inner surface of the tubular article to the outer surface of the tubular article, thereby creating through-pores substantially all of which traverse from one surface of the article to the other.
FIG. 3 is a radial cross-section view of the tubular article shown in FIG. 2. There it can be seen that while the nodes are generally oriented perpendicularly to the axis of stretch, as represented in FIG. 1, they are not perfectly flat and, therefore, a radial cross-section cuts through many nodes. Accordingly, while the schematic representation in FIG. 1 is useful for purposes of explanation, the scanning electron microscope photographs in FIGS. 2 and 3 are truer depictions of a product produced by the inventive process.
Products provided by the invention are suitable for a wide range of biological applications such as for vessel implants or organ wall grafts. In particular, as described below, vascular grafts formed by the process of the invention enjoy various advantages. Indeed, the processes of the invention are well suited for the formation of the various biological devices described in the following commonly assigned and co-pending U.S. patent applications: U.S. Ser. No. 760,753 for "IMPLANTABLE PROSTHETIC DEVICE FOR THE DELIVERY OF A BIOACTIVE MATERIAL"; U.S. Ser. No. 760,716 for "MANUALLY SEPARABLE MULTI-LUMEN VASCULAR GRAFT"; U.S. Ser. No. 760,728 for "IMPLANTABLE PROSTHETIC DEVICE HAVING INTEGRAL PATENCY DIAGNOSTIC INDICIA"; U.S. Ser. No. 760,717 for "POLYLUMENAL IMPLANTABLE ORGAN"; and U.S. Ser. No. 760,718 for "SELF-SEALING IMPLANTABLE VASCULAR GRAFT" all of which were filed 16 Sep. 1991. The specifications of these applications for patent are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
As stated, several structural, clinical and biological advantages accrue from the microstructure engendered by the inventive process. For example, as discussed below in greater detail with regard to the various examples, larger node size provides a structure having a significantly improved radial tensile strength. Also, tubes formed by the inventive process have improved burst pressure and suture strength characteristics. The flat ring-like node structure imparts significantly more flexibility, without kinking, than conventional fluoropolymer processes, in addition to providing superior resistance to radial twist compression or "torque twist." The tubular article formed by the process of the invention allows a significant degree of bending or radial twist, before experiencing lumen collapse or kinking, unlike conventional fluoropolymer articles which exhibit significantly less resistance to "torque twist" or "bending." Conventional articles, therefore, kink under smaller stress loads than do the articles of the current invention.
Additionally, the method of the current invention produces articles which exhibit significantly more simple compression resistance than conventionally processed articles. This provides more resistance to luminal collapse under equivalent stress loads. The articles provided by the invention also exhibit increased flexibility for enhanced drapability, or ability to bend more readily, without restricting luminal cross-sectional area, thereby improving ease of handling during surgery, without increasing stress on the points of attachment and fixation. The ring like nodal architecture of the invention also produces tubular structures with significantly more resistance to tearing or splitting in the horizontal direction, as compared to conventional non-reinforced fluoropolymer tubular articles.
For experimentation, an extrudate was prepared by blending PTFE resin (Fluon CD-123 obtained from ICI Americas) with "ISOPAR-H" odorless solvent (produced by Exxon Corporation) used as an extrusion aid at a level of 150 cc of solvent per pound of resin. The blend was compressed into a tubular billet, heated to 30� C., and extruded into a 6 mm I.D. and 7 mm O.D. tube in a ram extruder having a reduction ratio of about 149:1 in cross-sectional area from billet to the extruded tube. The volatile extrusion aid was removed by drying in a heated oven prior to stretching.
To demonstrate the advantages of bilateral stretching in accordance with the invention, samples of the tubular extrudate were then stretched various ways as discussed below.
An apparatus was developed that allowed samples of the tubular extrudate to be stretched at controlled rates and temperatures. The apparatus consisted of two clamps for holding the tube, one clamp held fixed within the oven and another clamp attached to a chain drive coupled to a variable speed motor. The tube was stretched an amount equal to 50% of its original length at a rate of approximately 10% per second. The fixed and moveable ends were then inverted and the stretching step repeated. The stretch and inversion steps were repeated until the extrudate sample had been stretched to a final stretch ratio of three to one. The oven temperature was then raised to 370� C. for ten minutes while the samples were held clamped.
An apparatus was developed that allowed both ends of the extrudate to be displaced simultaneously, at a controlled temperature and rate. The apparatus included two clamps independently mounted to two slide drive systems. Following mounting to the stretch apparatus, both sides of the sample were displaced simultaneously at equal speeds in opposite directions for a selected distance. The applied stretch rate using the combined displacements rates from each side was calculated to be approximately 10% per second. The final stretch ratio was approximately three to one.
The apparatus described in Method 2 was used to displace each end of the extrudate sequentially. That is, first one end of the extrudate was held fixed while the other was displaced a given distance at a constant speed, then, without inverting the sample, the previously displaced end was held stationary while the formerly stationary end was displaced the same distance at the same speed. Again, the sample was stretched at a rate of approximately 10% per second to a final ratio of approximately three to one.
Samples produced by the above described methods were then tested along with commercially available PTFE tubes produced by conventional, unilateral stretch techniques, the results appearing below.
______________________________________SAMPLE A B C D E F______________________________________Conventional 3060 640 7.9 55 2.2 800Method 1 2660 803 2.9 90 0.5 1462Method 2 2720 833 2.8 95 0.5 1382Method 3 2400 845 2.8 95 0.5 1861______________________________________
Where A is longitudinal tensile strength (pounds per square inch);
where B is radial tensile strength (pounds per square inch);
where C is water entry level (pounds per square inch);
where D is radial burst pressure (pounds per square inch);
where E is ethanol bubble point (pounds per square inch); and
where F is suture strength (in grams) for a 2 mm bite.
Further, tubular extrudate samples as produced above were bilaterally stretched, displacing both ends simultaneously, at other stretch rates. Again, the stretch rates were calculated by combining the displacement rates of both ends of the extrudate. Tests performed on samples produced in this manner yielded the results detailed below.
______________________________________ A B C D F______________________________________ 10%/sec 2232 780 2.8 95 1838 5%/sec 2144 933 2.4 90 16570.5%/sec 2372 953 2.1 105 1612______________________________________
The data clearly indicate that enhanced radial strength and suture strength along with a corresponding decrease in Water Entry Pressure and Ethanol Bubble Point, result from the inventive bilateral stretching process.
For purposes of evaluating homogeneity, additional tubular extrudate samples were marked at 1/2" spaced intervals using a permanent marker. The samples were mounted and stretched either unilaterally with one end held fixed throughout the stretching process or bilaterally in which both ends were displaced simultaneously. After stretching at rates equal to or lower than 10% per second the samples were sintered and analyzed by measuring the distance between the marks along the sample lengths. The results detailed below indicate that at low rates of stretch bilateral stretching produces a structure which is more uniform than unilaterally stretched products. That is, with the bilaterally stretched samples, each 1/2" inch segment stretched an amount comparable to all segments through the length of the sample. Each unilaterally stretched sample, on the other hand, stretched preferentially at its moving end.
It can be seen that at a rate of 10% per second, bilaterally stretching an extrudate to a ratio of 3:1 in accordance with the invention yields an achieved expansion factor that varies by under 10% along the length of the stretched extrudate. Bilaterally stretching to a 4:1 ratio at this rate yields a variation of less than 8%.
Bilaterally stretching at 5% per second yields similar uniformities in achieved expansion factor. Moreover, such variations as there are, appear to be distributed in a more spatially uniform way.
These results show that with unilateral stretching at the above-noted rates and ratios, a far greater variation in achieved expansion results. In particular, the results show that at these rates and ratios, a unilaterally stretched sample stretches preferentially at its moving end.
In another embodiment of the invention, a porous article is formed utilizing a preformed billet such as billet 50 shown in FIG. 4. Billet 50 includes radial inner portion 52 and radial outer portion 54. A significant feature of billet 50 is that while radial portions 52 and 54 comprise the same resin, different levels of lubricant prevail in the portions.
The formation of layered preform billets is generally known in the art. For example, various known techniques have been used to produce extrudates having a conductive layer in electronic applications or a colored layer in general tubing applications. U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,609 assigned to Browne describes a layering technique using different resins.
In accordance with the invention, the microstructure of an extruded and expanded PTFE article is controlled using one resin with varying lube levels through the preform billet. For instance, the sample shown in FIGS. 5A through 5C was produced using a single PTFE resin that was preformed in a layer fashion at two different lube levels and processed according to the above described bilateral stretching process.
FIG. 5A is a longitudinal cross-section view of a wall 60 of a tubular article formed utilizing the billet 50 in accordance with the above-described inventive process. As can be seen in the Figure, the material forming the wall 60 is characterized by a microstructure of large nodes 62A and small nodes 62B interconnected by fibrils 64. This results due to the inner radial portion 52 of billet 50 having a lower lubricant level than the outer radial portion 54. That is, lower lubricant levels result in smaller, more closely spaced nodes.
Several advantages accrue from the structure of wall 60. For example, by forming a tube having porosity at an inner surface 66 (FIG. 5B) which is smaller than the porosity at an outer surface 68 (FIG. 5C), a vascular graft is provided which defines an efficient flow channel at its inner surface while fostering improved cellular ingrowth at its outer surface.
It should be understood that in addition to the illustrated embodiment, billets can be formed in accordance with the present invention having lubricant levels which vary in a selected pattern through the cross-section to achieve desired pore or channel distribution. Accordingly, by forming a tubular billet which has a lubricant level which is different at a radial position of the cross-section from the lubricant level at the inner and outer surfaces of the cross-section, a unique product is formed. For example, a tubular article having a wall 70, such as shown in FIG. 6, can be formed by this method. Note that the wall 70 has relatively large pores at its inner and outer surfaces 76 and 78 but includes a barrier region 80 of smaller pores between the inner and outer surfaces. Such a structure used as an implant or vascular graft is expected to promote cellular ingrowth from both sides of the wall 70 while preventing cellular growth completely through the wall.
For biological applications, the unique through-pore orientation created by the individual nodal spaces is exploited, for example, to either increase or decrease the migration of certain cellular and or biological materials directly into or onto the inventive tubular structure. This results in improved biocompatibility. For example, it is well documented that specific cell types penetrate, grow into, or onto porous fluoropolymer structures. By providing a matrix of large, oriented nodes to present non-tortuous pathways, full cellular penetration is possible, without "dead ended" channels. This offers a significantly improved cellular event. The provision of large-entry channels with a taper offers similar advantages, with the added feature of precisely limiting the depth of tissue penetration. Hence the hybrid nodal structure design of this invention offers many structural, physical and biological characteristics not found with other, well documented fluoropolymer process tubular articles.
In accordance with the invention, therefore, methods and materials are provided for the formation of biological implants having enhanced structures and tissue support features. Both organ wall grafts and vessel implants can be formed by practice of the invention.
Other alterations to the above described embodiments of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and are intended, therefore, to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. That is, the preceding detailed description is intended as illustrative rather than limiting. Accordingly, the invention is to be defined not by the preceding detailed description but by the claims that follow.
Patent Citations
Non-Patent Citations
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