Promising drug slows down advance of Parkinson's disease and improves symptoms

Public release date: 29-Nov-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Steve Graff
stephen.graff@jefferson.edu
215-955-5291
Thomas Jefferson University

GM1 ganglioside slowed progression of disease in patients over at least a 2-year period

PHILADELPHIATreating Parkinson's disease patients with the experimental drug GM1 ganglioside improved symptoms and slowed their progression during a two and a half-year trial, Thomas Jefferson University researchers report in a new study published online November 28 in the Journal of the Neurological Sciences.

Although the precise mechanisms of action of this drug are still unclear, the drug may protect patients' dopamine-producing neurons from dying and at least partially restore their function, thereby increasing levels of dopamine, the key neurochemical missing in the brain of Parkinson's patients.

The research team, led by senior author Jay S. Schneider, Ph.D., Director of the Parkinson's Disease Research Unit and Professor in the Department of Pathology, Anatomy and Cell Biology and the Department of Neurology at Jefferson, found that administration of GM1 ganglioside, a substance naturally enriched in the brain that may be diminished in Parkinson's disease brains, acted as a "neuroprotective" and a "neurorestorative" agent to improve symptoms and over an extended period of time slow the progression of symptoms.

What's more, once the study participants went off the drug, their disease worsened. The study enrolled 77 subjects and followed them over a 120-week period and also followed 17 subjects who received current standard of care treatment for comparison.

"The drugs currently available for Parkinson's disease are designed to treat symptoms and to improve function, but at this time there is no drug that has been shown unequivocally to slow disease progression," said Dr. Schneider. "Our data suggest that GM1 ganglioside has the potential to have symptomatic and disease-modifying effects on Parkinson's disease. If this is substantiated in a larger clinical study, GM1 could provide significant benefit for Parkinson's disease patients."

Symptoms of the Parkinson's disease, which affects over 1 million people in the United States today and is diagnosed in 60,000 adults every year, include tremors, slowness in movement, difficulty initiating movements, difficulty walking, balance problems and decrease in speech volume and facial expression. The motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease result from the death of dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra, the brain region that dies in Parkinson's disease; the cause of this cell death is unknown.

GM1 ganglioside is a chemical that is normally found in the brain and part of the outer covering of nerve cells. It plays important roles in neuron development and survival and modulates a wide variety of cell activities. GM1 has been found to rescue damaged neurons and increase dopamine levels in pre-clinical studies, and has been suggested to have beneficial effects in other neurodegenerative conditions.

Dr. Schneider and his team made a case for the use of GMI for Parkinson's disease beginning in the 1980s. The pathological processes contributing to the development and progression of Parkinson's disease are still unclear, but they appear to be multifactorial. Because GM1 has effects on many different cellular functions, it seemed a logical approach to try using a drug like GM1 ganglioside to modify the pathological processes occurring in Parkinson's disease, rather than focusing on a specific potential disease mechanism, said Dr. Schneider.

"Instead of a magic bullet, we think of it like a magic shotgun," he said. "This study was truly a success of translational research."

The GM1 research started in mice, where Dr. Schneider and his team found that animals with an experimentally induced form of Parkinson's disease and administered GM1 had significantly higher levels of dopamine in their brains and less loss of dopamine neurons than animals that did not receive GM1.

A follow-up study in a non-human primate Parkinson model found similar results: animals that received GM1 had higher levels of dopamine than animals that did not and had a significant improvement in Parkinson symptoms.

In the late 1990s, Dr. Schneider conducted a short-term study (16 weeks) using GM1 in a small number of patients. Improvement in symptoms was observed in patients who received GM1 compared to patients who received a non-active placebo. However, in order to determine if there was potential for GM1 to slow the progression of the disease, they would have to study patients over a longer period of timewhich led them to this current study.

There were three main groups of subjects in this controlled, randomized, delayed start trial funded by the National Institutes of Health. Patients were given a placebo for the first six months and then GM1 for 2 years (known as the delayed start group); patients were given GM1 from the beginning and continued on GM1 for the duration of the study (early-start group); and a comparison group, where patients agreed to be observed over the same time period, but did not take the drug or a placebothey only took the drugs prescribed by their doctor.

The delayed start study design has been suggested to be useful for studying a drug that may have effects both on symptoms and disease progression in Parkinson's disease.

The change over time in the Unified Parkinson's Diseasing Rating Scale (UPDRS) motor score was the primary measure used to assess symptoms and disease progression in patients.

At the end of the first six months of the study, the early-start group had significant improvement in UPDRS motor scores versus a significant worsening of scores in the delayed-start group. Over the next two years, early start subjects maintained much of the initial benefit of GM1 treatment, showed relatively minor symptom progression compared to patients using standard anti-Parkinson medications, and at the end of the study, their symptoms were still less severe than at the start of the study over two years earlier.

Delayed start subjects also showed improvement of symptoms after switching to GM1 use and also showed less symptom progression over the next two years compared to the standard-of-care patients. Both groups had significant symptom worsening over the next one to two years after stopping use of GM1.

In short, GM1 appeared to improve symptoms and with extended use, slow symptom progression.

"The data from this small proof-of-concept study suggest that GM1 has the potential to have a very positive effect on the lives of Parkinson's disease patients," said Dr. Schneider. "We've been working on this for a long time and have some good ideas on how to move this forward. I think it's important to continue to develop this therapy."

###

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 29-Nov-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Steve Graff
stephen.graff@jefferson.edu
215-955-5291
Thomas Jefferson University

GM1 ganglioside slowed progression of disease in patients over at least a 2-year period

PHILADELPHIATreating Parkinson's disease patients with the experimental drug GM1 ganglioside improved symptoms and slowed their progression during a two and a half-year trial, Thomas Jefferson University researchers report in a new study published online November 28 in the Journal of the Neurological Sciences.

Although the precise mechanisms of action of this drug are still unclear, the drug may protect patients' dopamine-producing neurons from dying and at least partially restore their function, thereby increasing levels of dopamine, the key neurochemical missing in the brain of Parkinson's patients.

The research team, led by senior author Jay S. Schneider, Ph.D., Director of the Parkinson's Disease Research Unit and Professor in the Department of Pathology, Anatomy and Cell Biology and the Department of Neurology at Jefferson, found that administration of GM1 ganglioside, a substance naturally enriched in the brain that may be diminished in Parkinson's disease brains, acted as a "neuroprotective" and a "neurorestorative" agent to improve symptoms and over an extended period of time slow the progression of symptoms.

What's more, once the study participants went off the drug, their disease worsened. The study enrolled 77 subjects and followed them over a 120-week period and also followed 17 subjects who received current standard of care treatment for comparison.

"The drugs currently available for Parkinson's disease are designed to treat symptoms and to improve function, but at this time there is no drug that has been shown unequivocally to slow disease progression," said Dr. Schneider. "Our data suggest that GM1 ganglioside has the potential to have symptomatic and disease-modifying effects on Parkinson's disease. If this is substantiated in a larger clinical study, GM1 could provide significant benefit for Parkinson's disease patients."

Symptoms of the Parkinson's disease, which affects over 1 million people in the United States today and is diagnosed in 60,000 adults every year, include tremors, slowness in movement, difficulty initiating movements, difficulty walking, balance problems and decrease in speech volume and facial expression. The motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease result from the death of dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra, the brain region that dies in Parkinson's disease; the cause of this cell death is unknown.

GM1 ganglioside is a chemical that is normally found in the brain and part of the outer covering of nerve cells. It plays important roles in neuron development and survival and modulates a wide variety of cell activities. GM1 has been found to rescue damaged neurons and increase dopamine levels in pre-clinical studies, and has been suggested to have beneficial effects in other neurodegenerative conditions.

Dr. Schneider and his team made a case for the use of GMI for Parkinson's disease beginning in the 1980s. The pathological processes contributing to the development and progression of Parkinson's disease are still unclear, but they appear to be multifactorial. Because GM1 has effects on many different cellular functions, it seemed a logical approach to try using a drug like GM1 ganglioside to modify the pathological processes occurring in Parkinson's disease, rather than focusing on a specific potential disease mechanism, said Dr. Schneider.

"Instead of a magic bullet, we think of it like a magic shotgun," he said. "This study was truly a success of translational research."

The GM1 research started in mice, where Dr. Schneider and his team found that animals with an experimentally induced form of Parkinson's disease and administered GM1 had significantly higher levels of dopamine in their brains and less loss of dopamine neurons than animals that did not receive GM1.

A follow-up study in a non-human primate Parkinson model found similar results: animals that received GM1 had higher levels of dopamine than animals that did not and had a significant improvement in Parkinson symptoms.

In the late 1990s, Dr. Schneider conducted a short-term study (16 weeks) using GM1 in a small number of patients. Improvement in symptoms was observed in patients who received GM1 compared to patients who received a non-active placebo. However, in order to determine if there was potential for GM1 to slow the progression of the disease, they would have to study patients over a longer period of timewhich led them to this current study.

There were three main groups of subjects in this controlled, randomized, delayed start trial funded by the National Institutes of Health. Patients were given a placebo for the first six months and then GM1 for 2 years (known as the delayed start group); patients were given GM1 from the beginning and continued on GM1 for the duration of the study (early-start group); and a comparison group, where patients agreed to be observed over the same time period, but did not take the drug or a placebothey only took the drugs prescribed by their doctor.

The delayed start study design has been suggested to be useful for studying a drug that may have effects both on symptoms and disease progression in Parkinson's disease.

The change over time in the Unified Parkinson's Diseasing Rating Scale (UPDRS) motor score was the primary measure used to assess symptoms and disease progression in patients.

At the end of the first six months of the study, the early-start group had significant improvement in UPDRS motor scores versus a significant worsening of scores in the delayed-start group. Over the next two years, early start subjects maintained much of the initial benefit of GM1 treatment, showed relatively minor symptom progression compared to patients using standard anti-Parkinson medications, and at the end of the study, their symptoms were still less severe than at the start of the study over two years earlier.

Delayed start subjects also showed improvement of symptoms after switching to GM1 use and also showed less symptom progression over the next two years compared to the standard-of-care patients. Both groups had significant symptom worsening over the next one to two years after stopping use of GM1.

In short, GM1 appeared to improve symptoms and with extended use, slow symptom progression.

"The data from this small proof-of-concept study suggest that GM1 has the potential to have a very positive effect on the lives of Parkinson's disease patients," said Dr. Schneider. "We've been working on this for a long time and have some good ideas on how to move this forward. I think it's important to continue to develop this therapy."

###

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-11/tju-pds112912.php

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Bill Ackman: The Basics Of Stock Market Investing - Wall Street ...

From: Streettalk Daily X-Change - 7:31pm - November 29, 2012

Investor Bill Ackman has produced an excellent commentary on the basics of fundamental analysis and investing. ?Starting with a basic lemonade stand he goes through the importance of balance sheet and income statement analysis and how it all ties back into understanding how investing in stocks should be done. ? Unfortunately, the problem for most individuals is "short-term-ism" as this type of fundamental and investing view requires a long term holding period which ignores the short term movements of the market. ?History has shown that individuals do very poorly at true long term investing. Nonetheless, this is a terrific starting point for understanding the basics of how to read a financial statement and understanding what the various data points actually mean. {youtube}WEDIj9JBTC8{/youtube}

Continue reading this article ?

Source: http://ewallstreeter.com/bill-ackman-the-basics-of-stock-market-investing-4434/

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Source: http://www.i4giveu.com/adultery/2012/11/29/find-the-robert-griffin-iii-jersey-finest-website-marketing-suggestions-around/

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Obama, Romney having lunch Thursday at White House (San Jose Mercury News)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/266978203?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Sega's Jet Set Radio is a half-gigabyte, $4.99, and available now

I'm not normally one to worry about the size of Android applications these days. Twenty megabytes? Download without thinking. Fifty? Sure. Why not?

Sega's much-anticipated Jet Set Radio, however, clocks in at a whopping 587 megabytes. Not exactly a record or anything, but this sucker's big. Took about 8 minutes from download to first push. 

This game is worth the $4.99, though. If you're into the skate culture at all, you'll find something here. The premise, if you're new to the game, is that you're a "Rudie" in Tokyo-To, with magnetically-driven in-line skates. They're powered by some sort of "netrium" battery -- and you're powered by Jet Set Radio, "a pirate radio station manned by the DJ Professor K that plays nothing by non-stop hardcore music." And you skate around, tagging stuff and giving the finger to the man -- all that jazz.

Gameplay is pretty good. You get the feel of the on-screen joystick easily enough (and I've never been a big fan of those). The four-button layout is simple, and the tutorials get you going. The graffiti tagging gets a little more intricate as time goes on, so pay attention to that.

Hit the download link above to give it a go (again, remember, it's $5, so keep in mind that 15-minute refund window if this isn't your thing), and we've got promo video after the break.

read more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/hD7sS8cO4PQ/story01.htm

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RG3 is Redskins' most accurate passer since Baugh

Associated Press Sports

updated 5:11 p.m. ET Nov. 28, 2012

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) - With all the focus on Robert Griffin III's running ability, it can be easy to overlook the fact that he's having the most accurate passing season by a Washington Redskins quarterback since Sammy Baugh.

Through his first 11 NFL games, Griffin has completed 67.5 percent of his passes, trailing only Alex Smith, Matt Ryan and Peyton Manning among regular starters. The only Redskins QB with a better percentage for an entire season is the legendary Baugh, who hit 70.3 percent in 1945.

Coaches say Griffin's ability to extend a play with his legs gives him more chances to find open receivers - whereas other quarterbacks might have to throw the ball away to avoid a sack.

The Redskins host the New York Giants on Monday night.

---

Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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More news

This is Kaepernick's 'great chance'

CSN Bay Area: Colin Kaepernick now takes over as quarterback of a playoff-bound team that's 8-2-1 and owns a 2 1/2-game lead in the NFC West. How will he fare?

One-on-one with 49ers' Whitner

??ProFootballTalk: Erik Kuselias sits down with San Francisco 49ers S Donte Whitner to ask what Alex Smith is feeling now that Colin Kaepernick will start on Sunday. They also discuss the latest Adderall fad in the NFL and his prediction for how the '9ers will conclude their season.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/50001568/ns/sports-nfl/

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An engraved stone artifact found at the Shuidonggou Paleolithic site, northwest China

Public release date: 29-Nov-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Yan Bei
yanbei@scichina.org
86-106-400-8316
Science China Press

The origin and dispersal of modern humans and modern human behavior are key interests in Paleolithic archaeology and anthropology. Engraved objects are usually seen as a hallmark of cognition and symbolism, which are viewed as important features of modern human behavior. In recent years, engraved ochre, bones and ostrich eggs unearthed from various Paleolithic sites in Africa, the Near East and Europe have attracted the attention of many scholars. However, such items are rarely encountered at Paleolithic sites in East Asia. Here, we report a very important discovery of such a cultural relic. Professor Gao Xing and Dr. Peng Fei from the Laboratory of Human Evolution, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences found an engraved stone artifact in a stone tool assemblage unearthed at the famous Shuidonggou (SDG) Paleolithic site. This site is in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region of northwest China. This new discovery was announced in the Chinese Science Bulletin, 2012, No.26.

Dr. Peng Fei, Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and first author, described the finding: "This engraved stone artifact was a recent accidental discovery during our technological analysis of the stone tool assemblage unearthed at the Shuidonggou site in 1980. It is the first engraved non-organic artifact from the entire Paleolithic of China. However, it is not just a coincidence. We were aware that when analyzing the materials unearthed from the site during excavations in the 1920s, French archaeologist Henry Breuil observed parallel incisions on the surface of siliceous pebbles. Unfortunately, he did not provide details on those incised pebbles. So during our lithic analysis, we paid special attention to the possible existence of engraved objects."

Professor Gao, director of this study, stated: "The SDG Paleolithic site includes 12 localities, ranging in date from Early Late Paleolithic to Late Paleolithic. The engraved stone artifact was found at Locality 1, which is about 30 ka BP. As the first Paleolithic site discovered in China, SDG Locality 1 is distinctive in Late Paleolithic industry of north China, because of its components of elongated tool blank production and Levallois-like technology. The identification of such engraving incisions made intentionally by human beings on stone artifact surfaces is a challenging issue. In China, we have found some engraved objects, but most are controversial. So, this time we hope to provide irrefutable evidence."

Dr. Peng explained: "We used a digital microscope to observe all the incisions, obtaining many 3D images. After excluding the possibility of natural cracking, trampling and animal-induced damage, and unintentional human by-products, we believe that the incisions were made by intentional behavior. Although we cannot be sure of the function of these incisions, the straight shape of each line shows that it was incised once over a short time interval without repeated cutting, implying the possibility of counting or recording at that time. Furthermore, creation of such an engraved object may indicate the possible existence of complex communicative systems such as language."

Professor Gao affirmed:"This discovery provides important material for the study of symbolic and cognitive capability of humans in the Late Paleolithic of East Asia. As we know, so-called 'behavioral modernity' is often defined as changes of technology and subsistence strategies, expansion of activity areas, revolution in cognition, and other features. Most of these features have been identified at Paleolithic sites in Europe, the Near East and Africa. But in East Asia, the issue is more complex."

Dr. Peng summarized some remaining findings and uncertainties. "In addition to the engraved stone artifact, one ostrich egg bead was unearthed from SDG Locality 1. The lithic assemblage of this locality includes blade production and elongated tool blanks. But at Locality 2, about 2.4.9 ka BP and very close to Locality 1, typical flake productions were found with ostrich egg beads in the same cultural horizon. The blade technology was probably introduced from the Altai region of Russian Siberia, according to comparison between lithic assemblages. The flake technology is typical of the Late Paleolithic in north China. So, who created the ostrich beads and incisions? Were they made by the populations who migrated from the west, such as from the Altai region? Or were they the result of acculturation, such that aborigines in north China learned this kind of technology from exogenous populations? Or were they created solely by the local people because of technological renovation or cognitive advancement? At this time, we cannot provide a clear scenario. We need not only more archaeological evidence, but also evidence from anthropological, genetic and other disciplines. Integrating all information from different fields of study is the means to solve the puzzle."

###

See the article: http://csb.scichina.com:8080/kxtb/CN/abstract/abstract508713.shtml

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 29-Nov-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Yan Bei
yanbei@scichina.org
86-106-400-8316
Science China Press

The origin and dispersal of modern humans and modern human behavior are key interests in Paleolithic archaeology and anthropology. Engraved objects are usually seen as a hallmark of cognition and symbolism, which are viewed as important features of modern human behavior. In recent years, engraved ochre, bones and ostrich eggs unearthed from various Paleolithic sites in Africa, the Near East and Europe have attracted the attention of many scholars. However, such items are rarely encountered at Paleolithic sites in East Asia. Here, we report a very important discovery of such a cultural relic. Professor Gao Xing and Dr. Peng Fei from the Laboratory of Human Evolution, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences found an engraved stone artifact in a stone tool assemblage unearthed at the famous Shuidonggou (SDG) Paleolithic site. This site is in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region of northwest China. This new discovery was announced in the Chinese Science Bulletin, 2012, No.26.

Dr. Peng Fei, Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and first author, described the finding: "This engraved stone artifact was a recent accidental discovery during our technological analysis of the stone tool assemblage unearthed at the Shuidonggou site in 1980. It is the first engraved non-organic artifact from the entire Paleolithic of China. However, it is not just a coincidence. We were aware that when analyzing the materials unearthed from the site during excavations in the 1920s, French archaeologist Henry Breuil observed parallel incisions on the surface of siliceous pebbles. Unfortunately, he did not provide details on those incised pebbles. So during our lithic analysis, we paid special attention to the possible existence of engraved objects."

Professor Gao, director of this study, stated: "The SDG Paleolithic site includes 12 localities, ranging in date from Early Late Paleolithic to Late Paleolithic. The engraved stone artifact was found at Locality 1, which is about 30 ka BP. As the first Paleolithic site discovered in China, SDG Locality 1 is distinctive in Late Paleolithic industry of north China, because of its components of elongated tool blank production and Levallois-like technology. The identification of such engraving incisions made intentionally by human beings on stone artifact surfaces is a challenging issue. In China, we have found some engraved objects, but most are controversial. So, this time we hope to provide irrefutable evidence."

Dr. Peng explained: "We used a digital microscope to observe all the incisions, obtaining many 3D images. After excluding the possibility of natural cracking, trampling and animal-induced damage, and unintentional human by-products, we believe that the incisions were made by intentional behavior. Although we cannot be sure of the function of these incisions, the straight shape of each line shows that it was incised once over a short time interval without repeated cutting, implying the possibility of counting or recording at that time. Furthermore, creation of such an engraved object may indicate the possible existence of complex communicative systems such as language."

Professor Gao affirmed:"This discovery provides important material for the study of symbolic and cognitive capability of humans in the Late Paleolithic of East Asia. As we know, so-called 'behavioral modernity' is often defined as changes of technology and subsistence strategies, expansion of activity areas, revolution in cognition, and other features. Most of these features have been identified at Paleolithic sites in Europe, the Near East and Africa. But in East Asia, the issue is more complex."

Dr. Peng summarized some remaining findings and uncertainties. "In addition to the engraved stone artifact, one ostrich egg bead was unearthed from SDG Locality 1. The lithic assemblage of this locality includes blade production and elongated tool blanks. But at Locality 2, about 2.4.9 ka BP and very close to Locality 1, typical flake productions were found with ostrich egg beads in the same cultural horizon. The blade technology was probably introduced from the Altai region of Russian Siberia, according to comparison between lithic assemblages. The flake technology is typical of the Late Paleolithic in north China. So, who created the ostrich beads and incisions? Were they made by the populations who migrated from the west, such as from the Altai region? Or were they the result of acculturation, such that aborigines in north China learned this kind of technology from exogenous populations? Or were they created solely by the local people because of technological renovation or cognitive advancement? At this time, we cannot provide a clear scenario. We need not only more archaeological evidence, but also evidence from anthropological, genetic and other disciplines. Integrating all information from different fields of study is the means to solve the puzzle."

###

See the article: http://csb.scichina.com:8080/kxtb/CN/abstract/abstract508713.shtml

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-11/scp-aes112612.php

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Moral judgments quicker, more extreme than practical ones, but also flexible

ScienceDaily (Nov. 28, 2012) ? Judgments we make with a moral underpinning are made more quickly and are more extreme than those same judgments based on practical considerations, a new set of studies finds. However, the findings, which appear in the journal PLOS ONE, also show that judgments based on morality can be readily shifted and made with other considerations in mind.

"Little work has been done on how attaching morality to a particular judgment or decision may affect that outcome," explains Jay Van Bavel, an assistant professor in New York University's Department of Psychology and one of the study's co-authors. "Our findings show that we make and see decisions quite differently if they are made with a morality frame. But, despite these differences, there is now evidence that we can shift judgments so they are based on practical, rather than moral, considerations -- and vice versa."

"Our findings suggest that deciding to frame any issue as moral or not may have important consequences," said co-author Ingrid Haas, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "Once an issue is declared moral, people's judgments about that issue become more extreme, and they are more likely to apply those judgments to others."

"Ultimately, the way that people make decisions is likely to affect their behavior," said co-author Dominic Packer, an assistant professor at Lehigh University. "People may act in ways that violate their moral values when they make decisions in terms of pragmatic concerns -- dollars and cents -- rather than in a moral frame. In ongoing research, we are examining factors that can trigger moral forms of decision making, so that people are more likely to behave in line with their values."

The study, which gauged decisions ranging from voting to saving for retirement to dating a co-worker, also included researchers from Ohio State University and the University of Toronto.

Millions of decisions are made every day -- which type of car to purchase, which restaurant to dine in, which company to invest in. But sometimes these decisions are made under a morality-based framework (e.g., purchasing a hybrid automobile because of our concerns about the environment) and other times we have practicality in mind (e.g., purchasing a hybrid automobile because of its fuel efficiency) -- even though we end up making the same decision.

However, less known are the differences between the nature of judgments based on morals and those driven by a practical, or non-moral, considerations.

To address this question, the researchers conducted three experiments at Ohio State's Social Cognitive Science lab in which they prompted subjects to evaluate a variety of decisions from either moral or non-moral (pragmatic) standpoints. In the first experiment, participants were presented with 104 actions, one at a time, on a desktop computer. Participants made moral evaluations for 52 actions using the keyboard, rating "how morally wrong/right it would be for you to" take a specific action, ranging from 1 (very wrong) to 7 (very right); they also made pragmatic evaluations for the other 52 actions, rating "how personally bad/good you think it would be for you to" take a specific action, ranging from 1 (very bad) to 7 (very good). Following each moral and pragmatic judgment, participants made universality judgments for the same action, rating "how many other people should" take a specific action (1 = nobody to 7 = everybody).

Actions to be evaluated morally versus pragmatically were randomly assigned within participants. Each action was equally likely to be evaluated according to moral or pragmatic standards. This ensured that any differences between moral and pragmatic evaluations were not due to the specific actions, but, rather, to differences in moral versus pragmatic evaluation.

Their results showed that morality-based decisions were made significantly faster than non-morality ones and that the decisions with a moral underpinning were more extreme -- they rated, on a 1 to 7 scale, moral decisions more extremely than they did pragmatic ones. In addition, subjects were also more likely to make universality judgments under the moral-decision frame than under the pragmatic one -- that is, they were more likely to indicate that others should make the same decisions they did for judgments made with a moral underpinning.

But perhaps more significantly, the findings revealed flexibility in what we consider to be moral or non-moral decisions. The study's subjects were randomly assigned moral and non-moral judgments -- for instance, some were asked about if it is "morally right" to "flatter a boss with a lie" while others were asked if "how personally good" it would be for them to take such an action. Subjects had different responses to the same decision, depending on whether or not it was framed as a moral or pragmatic decision, indicating that how we view a particular decision (buying organic food, reporting a crime) may be malleable.

This research was supported by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the John Templeton Foundation, and the National Science Foundation (BCS-0819250).

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by New York University, via Newswise.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Jay J. Van Bavel, Dominic J. Packer, Ingrid Johnsen Haas, William A. Cunningham. The Importance of Moral Construal: Moral versus Non-Moral Construal Elicits Faster, More Extreme, Universal Evaluations of the Same Actions. PLoS ONE, 2012; 7 (11): e48693 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0048693

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/living_well/~3/hBgthOcyb7k/121128182717.htm

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Quick Tips To Grow Hair Faster Naturally - Ayushveda

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Long hairs have always been identified with youth and beauty in all the cultures. Poets have written long verses about beauty of a woman with long hair. It is, therefore, natural for women folk to cultivate the desire to have long locks. Ironically, modern age curses like poor nutrition, stress, overuse of chemicals do not let the hair grow long. If your hair do not grow or tend to stabilize after achieving certain length then this article is meant for you.

Here, we will present you some tips which will make your hair grow faster.

How to Grow Hair Faster

Massage your Hair Daily

The simplest way to help hair grow quicker is by massaging your scalp daily. Experts believe that new hair take time to sprout through the layers of dirt, oil, grime and skin cells therefore massaging hair daily at bedtime for 10 minutes gives way to the hair follicles to grow. Be gentle when you massage your hair otherwise you will break your hair before growing.

Trim Regularly

If you want to grow your hair faster then be regular with their trimming. It may sound contradictory but the fact is that hairs tend to get damaged at the ends and damaged hairs do not grow. So, it is important to trim your hair every two months. Ask your hair professional to trim only split ends so that length may remain maintained.

Use Right Type of Shampoos and Conditioners

It is important to choose right kind of shampoos and conditioners for maintaining hair health. If you choose wrong shampoos and conditioners for your hair type then they will not let your hair grow to their optimum and will make them weak as well.

So, if you have dry hair then b which are hydrating, if you have damaged hair then go for nourishing products and if you have oily hair then go for products containing citrus extracts which help in controlling oil secretion.

Eat Well

It is very important to eat right kind of foods for hair growth. If you constantly live on a junk diet and want to grow your hair then it will be next to impossible to do so. Your hairs need nutrients like iron, zinc, vitamins, protein and calcium to grow optimally. Feed your hair good diet and see the difference within a couple of months. Include eggs, fish, nuts, seeds, fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low fat dairy products in your diet.

During winters, if you find it hard to munch on raw fruits and vegetables then saut? them, make stir fries and consume them. The idea is to give your hair and body adequate nutrients on daily basis. Make it a habit to snack on healthy foods like a handful of nuts or seeds, a fruit smoothie or a clear vegetable soup.

Also Read

How to Grow Hair With Care
Useful Tips for Healthy Hair Growth
Top 3 Natural Treatments for Hair Growth
Tips for Faster Hair Growth
Home Remedies for Hair Growth

Use a Suitable Hair Pack Every Week

Good hairs require good nourishment from inside as well as outside. For providing your hair nutrition from outside, go for a weekly hair pack. If you have dry hair, go for olive oil, honey and egg yolk combo, if you have oily hair go for weekly vinegar rinses and egg white and curd combo.

People with normal hair can go for yogurt and ripe banana hair pack. The idea is to provide hair nourishment and hydration. Fenugreek seeds soaked overnight and ground into a fine paste can be used for any hair type. Fenugreek hair pack promotes hair growth and adds luster to hair.

Manage Stress

Any kind of stress ? physical or mental, is bad for hair. Stress leads to hair fall and brings hair growth to a halt. To avoid stress, learn to meditate or practice deep breathing exercises.

These techniques calm our mind from within and teach us how to handle stress. There are many techniques of meditation, you can choose and practice one of them, which suits your ideology and temperament most.

Stay Away from Harmful Ways of Styling Hair

If you are too much into blow drying and brushing your hair then it can damage your hair permanently. In fact heat and friction are two biggest enemies of long hair as they damage the outermost covering layer of hair making it prone to breakage and splitting.

Always use a fine toothed comb for your hair and before blow drying use a heat shield spray on your hair to ward off evil effects of blow drying. You can also achieve waves by braiding damp hair and then opening them after a while. This method can minimize your regular use of blow drier.

The above mentioned tips can help your hair grow faster and people fall in love with your crowning glory.

Quick Tips To Grow Hair Faster Naturally, 5.0 out of 5 based on 1 rating

Source: http://www.ayushveda.com/magazine/quick-tips-to-grow-hair-faster-naturally/

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3 Tools to Simplify Your Social Media Marketing | Social Media ...

By Ian Cleary
Published November 28, 2012

Are you looking for powerful tools to manage your social media efforts?

How do you keep up with blog post comments, responses to LinkedIn status updates and Twitter interactions?

Social relationship management is about managing these relationships. And you need the right tools to help.

In this article, I?ll show you 3 new social media tools to help manage your online relationships and grow your presence on social media platforms.

#1: Engagio?Manage All of Your Online Conversations in One Place

Engagio is an inbox for conversations on the web. It tracks your conversations, your friends? conversations and you can even track any conversations you?re interested in through the search feature!

With Engagio, you have the functionality to manage, support and encourage conversations.

Features

It?s very easy to set up and free to use. Here are some of the top features:

• Because your conversations happen in many places, you need a tool to support many platforms. Engagio integrates with a broad range of platforms and currently supports Disqus, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, AngelList, WordPress Hosted, Stack Exchange, The?Hacker News, Tumblr, Foursquare, LinkedIn, StockTwits and Google Contacts.

  Engagio tracks conversations from a broad range of networks.

• You can track and respond to conversations that you initiated.
• You can follow people to track conversations. Engagio allows you to follow conversations from other Engagio users or from friends you communicate with online. For example, you may identify influential people and track where they engage online and what they say.
• The Engagio dashboard shows a summary of the interactions you have with your connections. This highlights whom you are talking to and whom you may not be talking to enough.

  The Engagio dashboard shows a summary of interactions with your contacts.

• You can send an internal message to other Engagio users. This helps continue the conversation privately.
• You can initiate conversations in your social networks and send status updates to your social networks.
• You can respond to conversations that start in one of the supported platforms. For example, if you comment on a blog, you can be notified of responses through Engagio and respond directly within Engagio. This response on Engagio will be updated on the blog.
• You can search for conversations on topics using keywords and keep track of them via email alerts so you can decide when to start engaging in the conversations.

  Search for conversations that you may want to engage in.

• The Engagio mobile app (currently in beta) allows you to continue these conversations while on the move.

Setup

It?s very straightforward to set up your Engagio account. Register an account by connecting to your social network of choice and then select the networks/commenting systems you want to connect with.

Select your platforms. You can then follow some people. By following them, you can keep track of conversations they are having.

When you log into Engagio, it displays an inbox that contains the responses you receive from conversations initiated across the networks that you configured in your Engagio account.

Here?s a summary of some conversations. It displays the people involved in these conversations and the original topic of the conversation.

Your Engagio inbox shows a summary of the conversations you are involved in.

All you have to do is click on an item in this list to view the full conversation it refers to.

You can view conversations and reply to them within Engagio.

In this example, the original conversation was initiated through a comment on a blog. The subsequent response from the blog then showed up in Engagio. Even though the final comment was made from within Engagio, the response also appeared in the conversation thread on the blog.

It?s very easy to lose track of conversations. While some blogs and websites provide email notifications when someone responds to your comment, a lot of them don?t.

Engagio simplifies the management of these conversations by enabling you to monitor, track and respond to all of your conversations within the same interface. Why monitor numerous websites when you can just monitor one?

Benefits

There are several reasons to use Engagio.

• You?re able to track your comments/interactions in one central place. This makes it easier to manage your social conversations and encourages more interaction.
• The dashboard shows your engagements in a leaderboard style, which helps you assess if your level of engagement with key people needs to be improved. This is great for building relationships online.
• You?re able to track conversations from key people you follow. This enables you to see what others are interested in and also gives you the opportunity to join conversations.

Summary

Social media is great for building relationships, but with so many interactions it?s hard to keep track.

Engagio provides functionality to monitor, track and respond to conversations from a variety of platforms in one central place.

It is free to use, so try it out!

#2: AgoraPulse?Better Market Your Business on Facebook

To get the maximum benefit from Facebook, it?s important to use a management tool that provides functionality to improve engagement, grow fans and help develop business for your company.

AgoraPulse helps you to manage and grow your Facebook presence and has a broad range of functionality.

Features

First of all, you?ll be happy to note that you can operate all of the essential features on AgoraPulse without any technical skill. Here are some of the key features:

• Facebook Page Management. You can update content on your page, schedule updates and target updates based on groups of countries or languages.
• Facebook Applications. You?ll get 14 applications to help you grow your fans including applications for a competition, quiz, top fans, document application and many more.
• Lead Management and Customer Relationship Management. AgoraPulse builds up a profile of your fans based on interactions on your Facebook Page and participation through the applications. For example, when you run a competition, you can collect additional information related to your products or services that can be used for targeting specific offers to these fans.
• Analytics. There?s a detailed analytics module that gives you an overview to see how your Pages and posts are performing.

Setup

You can sign up for AgoraPulse using your Facebook account and then choose the Facebook Page you want to manage. You can try it for free for 28 days before deciding to buy.

Once you select your Page, you are shown the dashboard that contains an overview of your Page?s performance.

From this dashboard, you can see which posts are effective, what?s not working, when it?s the best time to interact and much more.

Monitor important analytic information through your AgoraPulse dashboard.

You can also choose to focus on other areas via the additional menu options. These options include:

• Applications. You can add new applications to your Facebook Page or view details on the performance of existing applications.
• Calendar. This gives you a visual display of posts made or scheduled on your Page.
• Timeline. There?s a view of the posts made with details of comments, likes and a gauge on sentiment (e.g., positive or negative). You can also schedule updates to be posted at the optimum time to get the best engagement.
• Fans. This gives you a graphic display of the top users who have posted content or interacted on your Page. When you identify your most loyal fans, you can build a closer relationship with them. Your loyal supporters will be the people to turn to when you want to get the word out about a new product or service.

  AgoraPulse shows you the interactions from fans.

• Statistics (premium feature). AgoraPulse gives you detailed analytics and stats on your Facebook Page, such as who is getting your content and how your fans engaged with each post. This helps you identify what?s working, and more importantly, what?s not.

  See how your individual posts are performing.

• Competitors?(only available with the diamond premium account). This gives you a grid comparing your Facebook Page against your competitors? for fans, engagement, posting, etc.

  Comparison of competitors in your niche.

• Settings. You?ll have additional settings for your Page. For example, you can set a return on investment measurement for fans to monitor the value you are getting from your fans.

Benefits

AgoraPulse has a variety of features to impress most Facebook Page owners.

• There are many configuration options to set up the applications for great flexibility and control.
• The ability to collect additional information about your fans and build a profile of your fans is valuable.

  Capture additional personal details with applications to gain insights into your fans.

• AgoraPulse provides an extensive suite of applications, page management and analytics in one platform. This saves you a lot of time and ensures that you can see all activity in one place.
• The applications support frictionless sharing through Facebook Open Graph. This means that participants entering a competition you set up with AgoraPulse can share information related to the competition automatically. This results in many more shares.
• You?ll get useful information on analytics and engagement on your Page. For example, there?s a calendar showing what you posted over the past month, what fans are engaging with and how your Page is performing.
• There are currently 14 applications to choose from. A broad range of Facebook applications reduces the chances of your fans getting bored with similar content.
• You can moderate user posts and create actions based on the content. For example, you can flag a user post or assign it to a team member to respond.

  Moderation allows you to set a flag to take action.

Summary

AgoraPulse provides effective management of your Facebook Page that results in a more active and engaged fan base. You?ll have significant management functionality for your Facebook Page.

By using a management tool such as AgoraPulse, you have the tools required to manage your Page effectively and get maximum performance from it.

#3: Pingraphy?Manage Your Pins on Pinterest

Pinterest is an increasingly popular site where people identify images on the web and share them on Pinterest. When they select an image, they ?pin? it and this image then gets pinned onto a virtual board that displays the pinned images.

There are some useful tools available to help grow your presence on Pinterest.

Pingraphy is a tool that allows you to schedule pins on Pinterest.

When you browse the web, you may come across various images that you want to pin and you may find several images you like on one page.

Pingraphy identifies all images on a page and allows you to select which images you want to share and when you want to share them.

Features

Pingraphy is a relatively simple but effective tool with a core set of features. Here are the main ones:

• You can select all images on a page and make them available for pinning.
• You have the ability to pin a group of images at the same time or at later scheduled date.
• There?s photo editing software so you can modify pictures before uploading them.
• Pingraphy provides analytics to track repins, likes, clicks and reach for every item shared.

Setup

To use Pingraphy, you?ll need to have a Pinterest account. When you have a Pinterest account, go to Pingraphy.

You now need to connect your Pinterest account with Pingraphy by entering your Pinterest login details.

Use your Pinterest login details to create a Pingraphy account.

Once registered, the next step is to add the Pingraphy bookmarklet to your browser?s toolbar so that you can pin things instantly.

Drag the Pingraphy bookmarklet to your browser's toolbar.

Simply click on the Pingraphy button and drag it to your browser?s toolbar.

In Pinterest, you create boards that are like virtual pinboards. When you find images that are relevant to a board, you pin them to the board.

For example, if you are a wedding organizer and you have a ?Stunning Dresses? board, you could go to a wedding designer?s website. And when you see something you like, all you need to do is click on the Pingraphy button in your browser.

Pingraphy recognizes the images on the page and lets you create pins with the ones you like.

Pick the images you want to pin to your board.

By default, all images are selected. Simply deselect any images you do not want to pin by clicking on the check mark in the top left of the image.

Next you need to enter a brief description of each image. The URL field allows you to enter the web address for the image you want to share on Pinterest. This generally goes back to the source where the image was found.

Finally, you can decide whether you want to schedule pins for later or upload them now.

Enter descriptions for each image and schedule when you want them pinned.

At the time of writing this article, you can delete a scheduled pin from the dashboard, but you cannot change the scheduled date and time. So when pinning multiple images, make sure you want them all uploaded at the same time. The ability to choose a different date and time for each image is due to be implemented soon.

You also have the option to edit the images to enhance or improve how they look. Click the bottom left-hand part of the picture. You can then modify the image by applying an effect, cropping it, rotating it and much more.

Edit the picture before pinning it to enhance how it looks.

When you upload images, you can track statistics on the items pinned such as the amount of repins (other people pinning items already pinned), likes and comments.

Pingraphy lets you track the images you pin.

Benefits

• You can schedule pins to deliver them at the most appropriate times for your audience.
• You can save time when you upload more than one pin at a time.
• You can easily pin items on a page that may not already have the functionality to pin.
• Pingraphy analytics is useful to track which pins work or don?t work.

Summary

Pinterest is growing in importance. Tools such as Pingraphy help you manage content sharing on Pinterest. This also saves you valuable time and provides you with useful analytics.

Final Thoughts

Management tools are becoming increasingly important as social media continues to grow.

By implementing the right tools, you can become more efficient and effective with your social media efforts.

What do you think? Have you used any of these tools or will you try them? Please share your thoughts and comments in the box below.

Tags: agorapulse, analytics, comment tool, engagio, facebook management tool, facebook page, ian cleary, pingraphy, pins, pinterest tool, social media management, social media tools

Source: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/3-social-media-management-tools/

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