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A Randomized, Double-Blind Study of MKC-442 Combined With Viracept in Patients Who Are Epivir + Retrovir Experienced and Are Protease Inhibitor- and Non-Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor-Naive
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|HIV Infections
|Drug: Emivirine Drug: Nelfinavir mesylate
|Study Type:
|Study Design:
|Masking: Double
Primary Purpose: Treatment
|Official Title:
|A Randomized, Double-Blind Study of MKC-442 Combined With Viracept in Patients Who Are Epivir + Retrovir Experienced and Are Protease Inhibitor- and Non-Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor-Naive
In this randomized, placebo-controlled study, patients are allowed to switch at entry to d4T plus 3TC or d4T plus ddI based on investigator and patient preference. Patients are stratified based on the number of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) treatments that are changed at entry and on screening HIV-1 RNA (obtained within 30 days of entry) as follows: switched 1 NRTI and 10,000-50,000 copies/ml vs switched 1 NRTI and greater than 50,000 copies/ml vs switched 2 NRTIs and 10,000-50,000 copies/ml vs switched 2 NRTIs and greater than 50,000 copies/ml. Patients are randomized within each of these strata to 1 of the following treatment arms:
Arm 1: MKC-442 placebo plus nelfinavir. Arm 2: MKC-442 plus nelfinavir. Arm 3: MKC-442 plus nelfinavir (higher dose). Treatment is administered for 48 weeks. Patients who are considered virologic successes at Week 48 may continue to receive MKC-442 at the discretion of the investigator.
|Ages Eligible for Study:
|18 Years and older (Adult, Senior)
|Sexes Eligible for Study:
|Accepts Healthy Volunteers:
Inclusion Criteria
Concurrent Medication:
At least 1 different nucleoside analog, e.g., 3TC, d4T, or ddI (excluding zidovudine).
- Chemoprophylaxis for Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia.
- Short courses (less than 21 days) of acyclovir for acute treatment.
- Recombinant erythropoietin or G-CSF for Grade 3 or greater anemia and neutropenia, respectively.
- Allowed only with caution and close patient monitoring:
- Ketoconazole, fluconazole, itraconazole, and grapefruit juice.
- Medications metabolized by cytochrome P450.
- Oral contraceptives, contraceptive implants such as Norplant, or injection-type contraceptives such as Depo-Provera only if not sole method of contraception.
Patients may have:
- HIV-1 RNA greater than 10,000.
- No active AIDS-defining illnesses.
- Prior experience with 2 nucleoside analogues and able to switch to at least 1 different non-nucleoside analog, e.g., lamivudine (3TC), stavudine (d4T), or didanosine (ddI) with HIV-1 RNA 10,000 copies/ml or less. [AS PER:
- Nucleoside analog-naive patients must have HIV-1 RNA greater than 50,000 copies/ml.].
Prior Medication:
Treatment with 2 nucleoside analogs. Note:
- able to switch to at least 1 different nucleoside analog e.g., lamivudine (3TC), stavudine (d4T), or didanosine (ddI), while on study [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
Exclusion Criteria
Co-existing Condition:
Patients with any of the following symptoms or conditions are excluded:
- Active AIDS-defining illnesses.
- Malabsorption syndrome or severe chronic diarrhea within 30 days of entry, or inability to consume adequate oral intake due to chronic nausea, emesis, or abdominal or esophageal discomfort. [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
- Inadequately controlled seizure disorder [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
- Any intercurrent illness that could affect viral load determination [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
Concurrent Medication:
- Zidovudine.
- Immunomodulators (e.g., systemic corticosteroids, interleukin-2, or interferons). [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
- Rifampin, rifabutin, phenobarbital, and hydantoin.
- Amiodarone, quinidine, astemizole, terfenadine, ergot derivatives, midazolam, triazolam, and cisapride.
- Neurotoxic agents (e.g., vincristine, thalidomide). [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
Patients with the following prior conditions are excluded:
- History of acute or chronic pancreatitis.
- History of > grade 2 peripheral neuropathy.
- Patients with an acute and clinically significant medical event within 30 days of screening.
Prior Medication:
- Protease inhibitors.
- Non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors.
Excluded within 30 days of study drug administration:
- Immunomodulators (e.g., systemic corticosteroids, interleukin-2, or interferons). [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
- Rifampin, rifabutin, phenobarbital, and hydantoin.
- Amiodarone, quinidine, astemizole, terfenadine, ergot derivatives, midazolam, triazolam, and cisapride.
- Immunotherapeutic vaccines.
- Cytotoxic chemotherapeutic agents [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
Prior Treatment:
Excluded within 30 days of study drug administration:
Radiation therapy [AS PER AMENDMENT 8/4/98].
Risk Behavior:
Current alcohol or illicit drug use that, in the opinion of the investigator, may interfere with ability of patient to comply with dosing schedule and protocol evaluations.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00002215
|United States, Pennsylvania
|Anderson Clinical Research
|Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15213
|ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
|NCT00002215 History of Changes
|Other Study ID Numbers:
|Study First Received:
|November 2, 1999
|Last Updated:
|June 23, 2005
Keywords provided by NIH AIDS Clinical Trials Information Service:
Drug Therapy, Combination
HIV Protease Inhibitors
RNA, Viral
Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors
Viral Load
Additional relevant MeSH terms:
HIV Infections
Lentivirus Infections
Retroviridae Infections
RNA Virus Infections
Virus Diseases
Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Viral
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes
Immune System Diseases
Protease Inhibitors
HIV Protease Inhibitors
Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors
Enzyme Inhibitors
Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action
Anti-HIV Agents
Anti-Retroviral Agents
Antiviral Agents
Anti-Infective Agents
Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors
ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on September 21, 2017


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Don't miss out on a lower price on this hotel
Get an overview of this hotelChic rooms and a pool in downtown San Diego
Popular property highlights
In the Gaslamp Quarter
Omni San Diego Hotel places guests in the city's vibrant Gaslamp Quarter, opposite San Diego Convention Center and connected to PETCO Park by a skybridge. It's a 10-minute drive north to the world-famous San Diego Zoo, and 15 minutes by car to the airport.
Tanning on the terrace
On the outdoor terrace, guests can sunbathe on the tanning deck between dips in the pool. Open for lunch and dinner, McCormick & Schmick's Restaurant attracts connoisseurs of spanking fresh seafood. The 24-hour fitness center is packed with modern equipment, and offers free water and fruit.
Floor-to-ceiling views
Chic, spacious guestrooms have floor-to-ceiling windows framing views of the bay, skyline, or PETCO Park. Plush bathrobes, coffeemakers, and 40-inch LED TVs with on-demand movies keep guests snug, refreshed, and entertained. WiFi is available for a fee, and free mini-fridges can be provided on request.Information missing or incorrect? Tell us!Opens in a new window
Omni San Diego Hotel
Hotel Amenities
Hotel Amenities
In addition to an outdoor pool, Omni San Diego Hotel provides a spa tub and a 24-hour fitness center. The hotel offers a restaurant and a coffee shop/café. Guests can unwind with a drink at one of the hotel's bars, which include a poolside bar and a bar/lounge. There is also a lobby bar featuring local craft brews. High-speed wireless Internet access is available for a surcharge.
Business amenities at this 4-star property consist of a business center, limo/town car service, and 21 meeting rooms. Event facilities measuring 27000 square feet (2508 square meters) include conference space. This business-friendly hotel also offers multilingual staff, gift shops/newsstands, and a picnic area. Parking is available onsite for a surcharge. Tours/ticket assistance is also available.
Omni San Diego Hotel is a smoke-free property.
- Outdoor pool
- Poolside bar
- Spa tub
- Babysitting or childcare (surcharge)
- Coffee shop or café
- Breakfast available (surcharge)
- Business center
- Meeting rooms 21
- Conference space
- Total number of rooms - 511
- Porter/bellhop
- Multilingual staff
- 24-hour front desk
- Gift shops or newsstand
- ATM/banking
- Elevator/lift
- Number of floors - 21
- Valet parking (surcharge)
- Number of bars/lounges - 2
- Wedding services
- Concierge services
- Dry cleaning/laundry service
- Express check-out
- 24-hour fitness facilities
- WiFi (surcharge)
- Wired Internet access - surcharge
- Tours/ticket assistance
- Rooftop terrace
- Luggage storage
- Safe-deposit box at front desk
- Year Built 2004
- Number of restaurants - 2
- Conference space size (feet) - 27000
- Conference center
- Conference space size (meters) - 2508
- Number of meeting rooms - 27
- Smoke-free property
- Number of buildings/towers - 1
- Spa services on site
- Television in common areas
Family Friendly Amenities
- Family Hotel
- Outdoor pool
- Babysitting or childcare (surcharge)
- In-room childcare (surcharge)
- Cribs/infant beds (complimentary)
Available in all rooms: Wired high-speed internet ( USD 9.95 per 24-hour period ), Wired high-speed internet ( USD 9.95 per 24-hour period )
Available in some public areas: Wired high-speed internet ( USD 9.95 per day ), Wired high-speed internet ( USD 9.95 per day )
Valet parking (surcharge)
Room Amenities
- Premium TV channels
- Pay movies
- Premium bedding
- Hypo-allergenic bedding available
- In-room climate control (air conditioning)
- Air conditioning
- Blackout drapes/curtains
- Phone
- Minibar
- Coffee/tea maker
- Daily housekeeping
- Private bathroom
- Bathrobes
- Free toiletries
- Hair dryer
- In-room massage available
- Shower/tub combination
- In-room childcare (surcharge)
- Iron/ironing board
- Desk
- In-room safe (laptop compatible)
- Cable TV service
- Room service (24 hours)
- Connecting/adjoining rooms available
- Free cribs/infant beds
- Rollaway/extra beds (free)
- WiFi (surcharge)
- Wired Internet access (surcharge)
Where to Eat
Cooked-to-order breakfasts are available for a surcharge and are served each morning.
McCormick and Schmicks - Onsite restaurant. Guests can enjoy drinks at the bar.
24-hour room service is available.
Nearby Things to Do
An outdoor pool and a spa tub are on site. Other recreational amenities include a 24-hour fitness center.
The recreational activities listed below are available either on site or nearby; fees may apply.
- Golfing nearby
- Surfing/boogie boarding nearby
- Sailing nearby
- Bicycle rentals nearby
- Scooter/moped rentals nearby
- Segway rental/tour nearby
If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please note them at check-out when you book your room.
- Accessible bathroom
- In-room accessibility
- Roll-in shower
Hotel Policies
Check-in time ends at 6 AM
Check-in time starts at 3 PM
Check-out time is noon
Payment types
Children and extra beds
- Children are welcome.
- Free rollaway/extra beds!
- Free cribs (infant beds)!
- Pets allowed for an extra charge of USD 50.00 per accommodation, per stay, plus a deposit of USD 50.00 per stay
- Dogs only
- Up to 25 lb
You need to know
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy.
Optional extras
- Breakfast fee: between USD 20 and USD 35 per person (approximately)
- Fee for in-room wireless Internet: USD 9.95 per 24-hour period (rates may vary)
- Fee for in-room wired Internet: USD 9.95 per 24-hour period (rates may vary)
- Fee for wireless Internet in public areas: USD 9.95 per day (rates may vary)
- Fee for wired Internet in public areas: USD 9.95 per day (rates may vary)
- Valet parking fee: USD 47.00 per night (in/out privileges)
- Pet deposit: USD 50.00 per stay
- Pet fee: USD 50.00 per accommodation, per stay
Hotel Name
- Hotel Omni San Diego
- Omni Hotel San Diego
- Omni San Diego
- Omni San Diego Hotel
- San Diego Hotel Omni
- San Diego Omni
- San Diego Omni Hotel
We should mention
Reservations are required for massage services and spa treatments. Reservations can be made by contacting the hotel prior to arrival, using the contact information on the booking confirmation. The property has connecting/adjoining rooms, which are subject to availability and can be requested by contacting the property using the number on the booking confirmation.

subset: commoncrawl


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Chapter 2: Expenses
As noted above, universities in the Football Bowl Subdivision sponsor football and also must fund at least 15 others sports, and most universities actually sponsor significantly more. Some athletic departments have more than 250 employees, including coaches, administrators, academic advisers, marketing and ticket sales personnel, videographers, and sports medicine staff. Some have as many as 900 student-athletes on their men's and women's teams, with an average of 493 per institution.
One of the primary ways in which university athletic programs are distinct from professional sports is that the labor cost of the athletes involved is largely fixed. An athlete participating in football, basketball, women's gymnastics, women's tennis, or women's volleyball receives a scholarship equivalent to tuition, room, board, books, and mandatory fees. Athletes in most other sports receive partial scholarships. Universities are not required to award all the scholarships permitted in a given sport, and most do not fully fund grants in all the sports they offer. There are no requirements for facilities, spending, or any other expense category as it relates to a particular sport.
Division I athletic programs operate as semiautonomous units within the university enterprise, but they share commonalities with both academic and auxiliary enterprises. Attached to their universities, they report to their central administrations. Some athletic "associations" are separately-incorporated 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporations. They offer academic services to student-athletes, much as academic units do to students as a whole. They simultaneously serve student-athletes and also mandate their participation in particular activities without compensation beyond a grant-in-aid. This is not dissimilar in form to on-campus jobs such as those of residence hall assistants or graduate assistants, but is different enough to prompt debates about whether student-athletes constitute an unpaid labor force.
The median budget for athletics programs in the Football Bowl Subdivision is about $40 million, but that number is deceiving. There is a wide gap in spending from the very top programs to the bottom. If we split big-time athletics programs into 10 deciles of 12 institutions based on expenses, the median budget for the lowest decile was $14 million in 2007 and the median budget for the top decile was $83 million. The highest spending categories for the average athletics program includes the following:
- Salaries and benefits, especially coaches' salaries (32 percent of total expenses);
- Tuition-driven grants-in-aid—or sports scholarships (16 percent);
- Facilities maintenance and rental (14 percent);
- Team travel, recruiting and equipment and supplies (12 percent combined);
- Fund-raising costs, guaranteed payments to opponents, game-day expenses, medical costs, conducting sports camps and other miscellaneous costs (12 percent).
The greatest challenge facing universities and their athletics departments today is dealing with the rapid rise of expenses. Athletics expenses are growing at an annual rate approaching 7 percent, according to a variety of studies (For more information, see references to Cheslock, Fulks, and Orszag and Israel at the end of this report.)
At the same time, revenues are not keeping up. In 2009, the National Collegiate Athletic Association published a report that found median operating spending for athletics increased 43 percent between 2004 and 2008, but median revenue generated by athletics programs grew only 33 percent over the same time period (Fulks, 2008). In another telltale spending reality a few years earlier, the NCAA reported in 2005 that athletic expenses rose as much as four times faster than overall institutional spending between 2001 and 2003 (Orszag & Orszag, 2005).
The myth of the business model – that football and men's basketball cover their own expenses and fully support non-revenue sports – is put to rest by an NCAA study finding that 93 [of the then 119 FBS] institutions ran a deficit for the 2007-08 school year, averaging losses of $9.9 million.
There are two key challenges facing athletics programs when it comes to cost reduction. First, athletic programs cannot control university tuition and fees, which determine the cost of scholarships. Second, they have not controlled salaries, particularly coaches' salaries. Between 2005 and 2007, total coaches' salaries in the top decile of big-time programs increased by 25 percent, according to the data supplied by the NCAA. A separate study from the NCAA found that for head football coaches alone, in the period from 2004-2006, the median salary across the top tier of major athletic programs increased by 47 percent, by 20 percent for head women's basketball coaches, and 15 percent for head men's basketball coaches (Fulks, 2006). The Chronicle of Higher Education reported that University of Southern California football coach Pete Carroll, at more than $4 million per year, was the highest-paid employee of any kind at any private university in the nation in 2007 (Brainard, 2009).
In an article on coaches' compensation, USA Today found that at public universities, the salaries are comparable: Bob Stoops at the University of Oklahoma received a raise early in 2009 to $3.7 million, plus an $800,000 bonus should he remain at his job through 2011. The University of Florida's Urban Meyer received a raise of $750,000 weeks before the start of the 2009 season, lifting his annual salary to $4 million.
The University of Alabama's Nick Saban, Louisiana State University's Les Miles, Ohio State University's Jim Tressel, and the University of Iowa's Kirk Ferentz are all being paid more than $3 million per year. While they are among the highest-profile university employees and may have multi-year contracts, coaches can be fired for not winning enough games despite meeting or exceeding other expectations, such as leading teams with high graduation rates. Coaches can also break their contracts and jump to another university for massive pay raises, leading to the proliferation of buyout clauses in coaches' contracts. While the competition among top universities for elite faculty members and administrators can be intense, it tends not to be as public as the battle for coaches.
An example of this process is the story of the University of Memphis men's basketball coach John Calipari jumping to the University of Kentucky. Calipari, who was being paid a reported $2.5 million in 2008-09 at Memphis, jumped to Kentucky for a reported eight-year, $31.5 million contract. As with many coaches' deals, Calipari was also guaranteed, among other things, two "late model, quality automobiles," a country club membership, income from basketball camps at university facilities and hundreds of thousands of dollars in performance incentives. Kentucky paid Memphis $200,000, the amount Calipari was required to compensate his former institution for voiding his contract.
"We're the pre-eminent basketball program in the country," Kentucky athletics director Mitch Barnhart told the Memphis Commercial Appeal, "and if we want a premier coach, then that's what it takes to get it done" (McMurray, 2009).
Calipari's contract was negotiated weeks before the state of Kentucky, facing a statewide budget deficit, cut back funding to the university by 2 percent, according to published reports. As part of the cuts, about 20 faculty positions were eliminated or remained unfilled.
Football and men's basketball make enough operating revenue to cover their operating expenses at more than half of the elite athletics programs, including salaries of their head and assistant coaches and additional personnel. During the period from 2004-2006, 54 percent of those football programs reported external revenue (i.e., that from ticket sales, television contracts, and other sources outside the university) that exceeded operating expenses for their football teams, according to the NCAA (Fulks, 2006). Men's basketball programs achieved greater financial success, with 57 percent producing net revenue during the same three-year period.
With few exceptions, however, reported operating surpluses from the two marquee sports were not enough to cover the costs of an athletic department's other sports offerings, whether it be 14 or 24 squads. The myth of the business model – that football and men's basketball cover their own expenses and fully support non-revenue sports – is put to rest by an NCAA study finding that 93 institutions ran a deficit for the 2007-08 school year, averaging losses of $9.9 million. That was more than twice as large as the average net revenue ($3.9 million) for the 25 programs that reported an operating surplus in 2008.
Even so, this may understate the true cost of intercollegiate athletics at any given institution. Data produced by NCAA member institutions suffer from varying methods of accounting; for instance, the major item of capital costs for facilities, the projected costs of maintaining an athletic department's infrastructure, the time spent on athletics issues by the central administration, and other factors generally are not fully included in athletic departments' financial statements or reports to the NCAA. Also, colleges have different ways of accounting for the cost of athletes' grants-in-aid: Many big-time programs pay the full cost of tuition to the institution, but sometimes colleges forego such revenue by, for instance, placing athletes on in-state tuition.
Overall, spending on athletics appears to have created a so-called "arms race" between competing athletic programs and institutions. Economists Jonathan Orszag and Mark Israel (2009) define an arms race as "a situation in which the athletic expenditures by a given school tend to increase along with expenditures by other schools in the same conference." In their analysis of the college sports business, using data from 2004-2007, Orszag and Israel (2009) found evidence to support such a dynamic; one university spends an additional dollar in operations costs in Conference X and a rival in the same conference spends an increased 60 cents, and the spending continues among those who can afford it and even those who cannot.
In 2007, two of the nation's most watched conferences, with some of the most popular college sports brands among its members, posted some of the largest financial deficits of the 11 top-tier football-playing conferences. The median net revenue for one league's member athletic departments was negative $7.2 million; for another it was negative $10.4 million. For the former, its red ink had grown by 44 percent since 2005. Meanwhile, every athletic program in three less prosperous conferences relied on more dollars from their central administrations than they were able to generate on their own.
Consider these disparities. The University of Alabama, one of the nation's most prestigious football powers, is paying salaries of nearly $6.6 million to its head football coach and his nine assistants for the 2009 season. That's more than 32 bowl-subdivision programs spend on football as a whole, according to an analysis by the Orlando Sentinel (Limon, 2009). The "have-not" institutions within each conference cannot compete revenue-wise with some of their "have" peers because of stadium capacity, fan demographics and other factors. Some athletic directors believe these intra-conference disparities are as much of a threat to financial stability as the differences among conferences. It is, said one athletic director, similar to the disparities in Major League Baseball, in which the Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals must try to compete for players in the same market as the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Iowa State University of the Big 12 is an example of a have-not school in a big-time conference. It brings in a respectable $17 million per year in football revenue. Among its competitors are Texas, with $73 million in football revenue, and Nebraska, with $49 million in football revenue. But Iowa State's fans and boosters expect its program to retain coaches and build facilities at the same level as their richer Big 12 colleagues. Keeping up with the Joneses is increasingly difficult, if not impossible.


text:
FedEx Launches an Integrated Campaign to Optimize Multiple Digital Channels
October 12, 2011
Dennis Shirokov, marketing manager, FedEx, and David Skinner, SVP, client solutions/account management, [x+1], discussed how FedEx created its first end-to-end interactive campaign which leveraged multiple channels to provide an optimized online experience.
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text:
Chico >> Sportsman's Warehouse will open its new store in Chico next week in the former Mervyn's location.
According to the Utah-based company's website, the store opening is 9 a.m. Monday. The company carries fishing, hunting, and camping gear, along with other sporting and recreation goods, such as archery and boating.
Earlier this year, remodeling started on the remaining portion of the former Mervyn's store, in what was left vacant after Goodwill moved into the northern portion of the building last year.
The company had been looking at a site in south Chico, but ended its search when the economic downturn hit. At that time, it told this newspaper that a variety of consumers from this area often visited the Rocklin store, hence the interest in Chico.
Tara Clements is the store manager, according to the website. The company's recorded telephone message said a grand opening is planned on May 10.


text:
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Double Sink 4-H gets around! Leaders Melissa Mills, Trish Depew, and Mary Carr want to expose 4-H kids to a wide variety of what Florida has to offer.
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text: "He says." You have made very specific claims here. Let us see not generalities, but your specific sutta evidence for these claims.nowheat wrote:What I see is that the Buddha recognized this. He set out to cure the suffering for the world, not for one individual. How could he be asking us to focus on one individual, when he says we aren't individuals -- we are not separate.


text:
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Link to Google News homepage or to Google News search results
If you choose to do this, please use one of our Google logos found at Google Doodles.
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Note that we reserve the right to terminate any use of these feeds on grounds that we deem appropriate.
Grounds for feed termination may include, but are not limited to, the following:
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text:
Swisher chooses to ease into Spring Training
GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- It is not uncommon for a veteran player to ease his way into the Spring Training routine. Nick Swisher took that approach in the early days of camp this year, but the Indians first baseman was back on the field Sunday afternoon.
For his Cactus League debut, Swisher was slotted into the second spot of the lineup for the Indians, providing an early look into how he might be used this season. Swisher said he was thrilled to be back in the order as Cleveland begins its quest to build on last summer's run to the postseason.
"It was nice to get out there, man," Swisher said, "just to be out there with the guys and playing. We're super early in Spring Training now, but just to be able to get out there, get a few hacks, it felt good."
Swisher went 0-for-3 in his three plate appearances for the Tribe, but he did strike the first blow within a three-run outburst in the fifth inning. With one out and runners on the corners, Swisher chopped into a fielder's choice, but Yan Gomes scored from third base to put Cleveland on the board.
Cleveland played its first three games of the spring without Swisher, who asked manager Terry Francona to keep him off the field for a handful of contests to start the preseason. Swisher took that approach due to feeling that he pushed things too hard too early in the schedule last year, when he joined the Indians after signing a four-year, $56-million contract.
Swisher felt that too much was made this past week over the fact that he took the first few games off.
"In February? It's not a big deal," Swisher said. "I just said, 'Hey, man, let's give myself a week to get into Spring Training and then start playing some games.' I don't know, man. I think you guys are looking way too into it. Go to some other clubs and see how they do it."
In 146 games for Cleveland last season, the 33-year-old Swisher hit .246 with 22 home runs, 27 doubles and 63 RBIs. At various points throughout the year, Swisher dealt with a left shoulder issue, which had its roots in Spring Training.
Jordan Bastian is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Major League Bastian, and follow him on Twitter @MLBastian. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
Shootin' & Scootin' In Bangkok; A Day Of Endless Photo Ops
From my home in upstate New
York, Bangkok, Thailand, is on the other side of the planet--actually
a day and a half away, door to door. That grueling travel time is something
that you really don't want to think about when you're stuck
in coach at 30,000 ft shortly after takeoff.
The exotic, magical, and enthralling
city is filled with dozens of Buddhist temples, the Temple of the Emerald
Buddha (Wat Phra Kaeo) being the most elaborate. Upon seeing the Temple
of the Emerald Buddha, one immediately appreciates the temple's
name: it seems as though every inch of the temple is inlaid with jewels
(actually pieces of colored glass). The temple is magnificent, but it's
only a small part of the stunning Grand Palace complex, which comprises
many throne halls and stupas (sacred sites for religious relics), all
seemingly inlaid with jewels and covered with gold leaf.
Grand Palace complex. You will
not be alone in the palace complex. In fact, there may be hundreds of
people sharing your experience! You can avoid getting people in your pictures
by getting down low and shooting at an upward angle. I used my Canon 16-35mm
lens set at 20mm for this photograph.
Temple of the Reclining Buddha.
The outer walls of the Temple of the Reclining Buddha are lined with hundreds
of statues set against an intricate background of carvings and colored
glass. To convey the depth and scale of the walls, shoot from a corner
with a wide angle lens set at a small f/stop. I used my Canon 16-35mm
lens set at 16mm and f/11.
Travel Info
- Don't Call Yourself a Photographer If You Still Make These 5 Beginner Mistakes (VIDEO)
- Are Full-Frame Sensors That Much Better Than Micro Four Thirds? The Answer May Surprise You (VIDEO)
- Photoshop Basics: Learn a Simple Trick Using Layer Masks for Creative Effects (VIDEO)
- Traveling Companions: My Favorite Photo Accessories & Apps for Travel Photography
- Take Better Portrait Photographs with These 6 Tips on Using a Simple Reflector (VIDEO)


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From the Canadian edition of Allergic Living magazine.
Can we make our cities breathable? It's a good time to ask now that air pollution – the kind that heats up the planet – has shot to the top of the public agenda. This is a high-level green revolution, focused on the stratosphere. People are trying to slow global warming by going on low-carbon-dioxide diets: cutting energy use at home, at work and on the road.
Even Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Canada's most prominent person with asthma, has switched gears to appeal to the green vote. But what about a green revolution on the ground level? What will it take to make our cities tolerable for those with asthma who are advised to stay indoors every time there's a smog warning?
You might wonder. Despite all the clamour about climate change, we still shrug off the monumental human toll that dirty air is exacting on our communities right now. Health Canada estimates that air pollution, mainly from burning fossil fuels to power industry, homes and cars, kills about 5,900 Canadians a year in eight cities: Quebec City, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Hamilton, Windsor, Calgary and Vancouver.
That's nine times the annual number of homicides. And for the three million Canadians with asthma, which includes 12 per cent of all Canadian children, the dirty air is particularly dangerous. In Ontario alone, asthmatics last year made more than 73,000 visits to the emergency room, according to hospital statistics.
Think of what that means: on 73,000 occasions, an adult or a child was wheezing or coughing or gasping so badly that he or she had to rush to emergency just to breathe. Although there are many asthma triggers, smog is a significant one; it's associated with a quarter of respiratory admissions to Toronto hospitals – and half of the admissions on peak air pollution days.
And yet, we tolerate the situation. In the Windsor-Quebec corridor, which has Canada's worst smog problem, a summer smog advisory has become commonplace. In 2005, a record year, there were 53 smog advisory days in Ontario, 24 in Quebec and three in Atlantic Canada (where most of the pollution blows in from the United States.) Last year was a little better: Ontario and Quebec each had 17 smog advisory days.
But that's little consolation when many asthmatics have trouble breathing outdoors even on days that are considered to be "safe". They have every right to demand change. Smog, for the person with asthma, means denial of the most basic right: to step outside, breathe a lungful of air and not choke.
The battle against smog and its components – ground-level ozone, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter – has a lot in common with the worldwide campaign to save the upper ozone layer by cutting greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide.
The man-made emissions that cause both are produced from burning fossil fuels, which power industry, heat and light homes, and run cars and trucks. Burn less fossil fuel, and you can reduce greenhouse gases and smog at the same time.
The biggest single human source of the smog is transportation. According to a 2005 air quality report from the Ontario government, vehicles create 17 per cent of VOCs and 29 per cent of nitrogen oxides. These combine in the sun and heat to create the ground-level ozone part of smog.
Vehicles also cause 56 per cent of carbon monoxide, while all forms of transportation, including cars, trucks, boats and trains, are responsible for 18 per cent of fine particulates or soot, another key part of the dirty haze. Ontario, the province with the worst smog problem, is taking action on the road.
It has cracked down on clunkers, and issues rebates to those who buy hybrids. The Harper government (which announced its own hybrid rebates), meanwhile, promises stricter fuel efficiency standards by 2010, but hasn't specified a standard.
Industry, especially coal-fired power plants, also plays a big role in creating smog, and is a big target for regulators. Ontario has ordered smelters and cement plants to reduce their emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxides to a new standard by 2015. Each of seven industrial sectors affected will have its own limit, so if new plants are built, they will only be permitted a small percentage increase in emissions. If industry also curtails energy use, it will help both the smog and the climate change issues.
But in the end, the biggest target is the hardest to hit. That's the way we live our lives. We are the ones driving the gas-guzzling SUVs from monster homes in the suburbs to work and soccer practice. We supply the coal-fired power plants with their raison d'être by thoroughly chilling our houses in summer. Consider that Ontarians, per capita, consume 55 per cent more electricity than people living in the state of New York.
Next Page: The Green Prescription


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The judges had their work cut out for them this year. With over 92 entries in Spar for the Spurtle, narrowing it down to just three finalists meant watching a lot of videos! There was a lot of discussion about whether the dish could really be done in 30 minutes and whether the ingredients chosen would be something that could be procured in Scotland. After all, the winner of Spar for the Spurtle will have to take their dish to an international arena for the Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship and, as we learned in 2010, some ingredients are not available in Scotland.
I think the judges chose well with these three winners. If it were up to me, I'd fly everyone out and have a big spurtle party. There were so many creative videos and so many delicious dishes! We'll be working to get recipes for each video and put them up on our site soon. Without further ado, here are our finalists. Congratulations to the three finalists and our most sincere thanks to everyone who entered and voted!
Paradise Porridge Potstickers from Lanie Smith, The Vintage Cook
Raspberry Oatmeal Dumplings from Kerri Willoughby


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Posted 6 years ago
(99 items)
Antique wash stand that I picked up for $15, it's in great condition and even came with the pitcher and bowl. The wedding dress my wife picked up at a Estate sale and it's from about 1900, we have it on a vintage dress form. The dress looks spooky but yet cool in our bedroom, along with all the other Antiques, it also makes a great ghost for Halloween.


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Pressure Ulcer Prevention in Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
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- Tabular View
- No Study Results Posted
- Disclaimer
- How to Read a Study Record
The study is designed as a randomised controlled trial of trauma patients admitted to the Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH) Emergency Department (ED) and subsequently transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Patients meeting the study inclusion criteria will be randomly allocated to either the control group that will receive usual pressure ulcer prevention strategies or the trial group that will receive usual care plus have a Mepilex Border Sacrum dressing applied to their sacrum and Mepilex Boarder Heel dressing applied to each heel in the ED.
Hypothesis:Patients treated with Mepilex Border dressings will have a lower incidence rate of sacral and heel pressure ulcer development than patients receiving standard care.
|Pressure Ulcers
|Device: Mepilex Border Dressing
|Study Type:
|Study Design:
|Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary Purpose: Prevention
|Official Title:
|A Prospective Randomised Controlled Trial of the Effectiveness of Absorbent Silicone Self Adherent Dressings in the Prevention of Sacral and Heel Pressure Ulcers in Trauma and Critically Ill ED/ICU Patients
- Pressure ulcer incidence [ Time Frame: Weekly ]Number of pressure ulcers developed in the ICU per week
- Cost [ Time Frame: Weekly ]The cost of treating developed pressure versus the cost of preventing the development of pressure ulcers
|Study Start Date:
|June 2011
|Study Completion Date:
|June 2013
|Primary Completion Date:
|January 2013 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)
|Assigned Interventions
Experimental: Intervention
Patients in this arm will have Mepilex dressings applied to their sacrum and heels
Device: Mepilex Border Dressing
Soft silicone self adherent dressing
Other Names:
No Intervention: Control
Patients in this arm will have standard care
Show Detailed Description
|Ages Eligible for Study:
|18 Years and older (Adult, Senior)
|Sexes Eligible for Study:
|Accepts Healthy Volunteers:
Inclusion Criteria:
- ED and ICU admission for critical illness and/or major trauma Over 18 years old
Exclusion Criteria:
- Less than 18 years old Suspected or actual spinal injury Pre-existing sacral or heel pressure ulcer Trauma to sacral and/or heel area
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01356459
|Australia, Victoria
|Royal Melbourne Hospital
|Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3050
|Responsible Party:
|Melbourne Health
|ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
|NCT01356459 History of Changes
|Other Study ID Numbers:
|Study First Received:
|May 17, 2011
|Last Updated:
|May 8, 2015
Keywords provided by Melbourne Health:
Pressure ulcers
Additional relevant MeSH terms:
Pressure Ulcer
Pathologic Processes
Skin Ulcer
Skin Diseases
ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on September 21, 2017


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Study to Evaluate the Natural History of Osteoporosis in Children and Adolescents With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (BMD)
Recruitment status was: Active, not recruiting
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- Tabular View
- No Study Results Posted
- Disclaimer
- How to Read a Study Record
This is a study to determine if people with Lupus have weak bones.
Test which is a better method for detecting bone changes:
- Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)
- Single energy quantitative computed tomography (SEQCT)
Evaluate whether weak bones are associated with things like medications or amount of fat and muscle.
|Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic
|Study Type:
|Study Design:
|Observational Model: Cohort
Time Perspective: Prospective
|Official Title:
|Bone Mineral Density of Children and Adolescents With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
- Evaluate whether weak bones are associated with things like medications or amount of fat in muscle [ Time Frame: One year ]
Biospecimen Retention: Samples With DNA
|Estimated Enrollment:
|Study Start Date:
|September 2003
|Estimated Study Completion Date:
|September 2015
|Estimated Primary Completion Date:
|September 2015 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)
Detailed Description:
This is a longitudinal cohort study to evaluate the natural history of osteoporosis in children and adolescents with SLE.
The specific Aims are:
- To compare the BMD of children and adolescents with SLE to healthy controls utilizing Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and Single energy quantitative computed tomography (SEQCT). The following questions will be addressed at baseline:
What is the variation of BMD seen among subjects with SLE? Is the BMD of children with SLE diminished relative to healthy controls? If BMD is diminished, what is the severity of the reduction?
- To characterize the annual change in BMD for children and adolescents with SLE over a five year period in a longitudinal cohort study utilizing arial and volumetric densitometry methods of both trabecular- and cortical-rich regions of bone.
- To compare the use of DXA and SEQCT for measuring BMD in children and adolescents with SLE.
- To characterize the determinants of BMD and corresponding markers of bone metabolism in a longitudinal cohort of pediatric SLE subjects.
- To bank SLE subject blood and urine specimens for future analysis. Future analysis will focus on newly developed bone metabolism markers, as this is a currently evolving area.
- To evaluate body composition in SLE utilizing whole body DXA and to determine the contribution of body composition abnormalities to BMD.
Research Design and Method: This study includes a baseline cross-sectional component comparing SLE subjects to normal healthy controls followed by a longitudinal follow up study of SLE subjects. SLE subjects and controls will be evaluated in a single-day visit to the UCSF PCRC for clinical assessment and phlebotomy followed by a radiologic evaluation at the Department of Radiology.
|Ages Eligible for Study:
|7 Years to 22 Years (Child, Adult)
|Sexes Eligible for Study:
|Accepts Healthy Volunteers:
|Sampling Method:
|Non-Probability Sample
Inclusion criteria:
- SlE subjects 4/11 of the American College of Rheumatology criteria for SLE (23), age less than 22 years.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Neonatal SLE or drug-induced SLE
- Subjects who are pregnant, and subjects weighing over 300 pounds, as the densitometry techniques are not reliable above this weight.
- Subjects receiving calcium or vitamin D supplementation will not be excluded but this information will be recorded and evaluated further in the dietary/nutritional assessment.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00582465
|United States, California
|University of California, San Francisco
|San Francisco, California, United States, 94143
|Principal Investigator:
|Emily von Scheven
|University of California, San Francisco
|Responsible Party:
|University of California, San Francisco
|ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
|NCT00582465 History of Changes
|Other Study ID Numbers:
|Study First Received:
|December 19, 2007
|Last Updated:
|October 25, 2014
Additional relevant MeSH terms:
Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic
Connective Tissue Diseases
Autoimmune Diseases
Immune System Diseases
ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on September 21, 2017


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Building a Subwoofer Box - Box-Building Basics
Go behind the scenes with the pros
When it comes to designing a stereo system that you can be proud of, the enclosure is equally as important as the woofer and amplifier and should be designed for use with the particular woofer. The type of music you listen to will determine every other parameter for the build of your box. For this build we went with Rockford Fosgate T1 10-inch subs because of the tight space parameters we had to work with. Initially, we were looking to go with 12's but our pro installer (Joe Provenzano from Audio Innovations) took his measurements and told us to trust that he'll make the 10's sound better than 12's (due to our limited space). We put our faith in Joe and away we went.
Deciding which enclosure and woofer is best can be a huge task all its own, but understanding the size constraints of the vehicle, the Thiele/Small parameters, and the inherent sound characteristics of different enclosure designs, teamed with help from the professionals, will make the difference between average and phenomenal!
All enclosures should be constructed of at least 5/8-inch MDF (medium-density fiberboard) or material of comparable rigidity or better. Bracing should be used throughout the enclosure as needed to prevent any loss of energy due to flexing. Obvious materials include wood glue and/or silicon, and wood screws or nails. Now all we need to do is get some measurements to determine our box size. The number of equations and calculations that box builders and installers use could fill up this entire magazine, so we'll just stick with the basics.
For our sub choice the minimum air space required is .75 cubic feet, so even with limited space Joe had us dead-on for air space parameters, which will give us the total sound we're after. Follow along to see just how to build a one-off box for any area you can stick it. For more information, contact the companies listed in the source box.
Box-Building Equations
To determine the box size for a sealed enclosure system (which is what we are building) you'll need to know the following Theile/Small parameters for the driver:
To determine the box size for a sealed enclosure system (which is what we are building) you'll need to know the following Theile/Small parameters for the driver:
Vas = Equivalent air compliance (for the T1 Rockford) = .67 cubic feet
Qts = Total Q of the driver at Fs (frequency response) = .574 cubic feet
Fs = Resonance frequency of the driver (Hz) = 32 Hz
Qts = Total Q of the driver at Fs (frequency response) = .574 cubic feet
Fs = Resonance frequency of the driver (Hz) = 32 Hz
Choose a final Qtc (total Q of system at resonant frequency) for your design. Recommended values for Qtc are from 0.6 to 1.0. Transient response degrades with higher Qtc values, but the power handling of the system increases. A Qtc of 0.75 will usually give pretty good, even results but you can use a higher figure if the subwoofer has a low resonant frequency (under 20 Hz).
The volume of air space equation to figure out the total air space for a box is
H (height) x W (width) x D (depth). Our space used is 6.25x13.25x16.75/1,728 = .8 cubic feet.
Audio InnovationsGlendora, CA 91740
Rockford FosgateTempe, AZ 85281