ARMONK, N.Y. – 22 Oct 2010: IBM (NYSE: IBM) inventors have developed a patented natural disaster warning system, which uses analytics to improve the effectiveness and timeliness of post-event rescue efforts in cities and other locations where efficient emergency response is essential following a natural disaster. It also offers a means to accurately predict the location and timing of subsequent catastrophic events, which will further aid evacuation efforts. (more…)
Microsoft Corp. today announced that Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., a Windows 7 Enterprise customer and the flagship company of the Samsung Group, has completed deployment of Windows 7 throughout its offices in South Korea, the global headquarters of the consumer electronics manufacturing company. Samsung Electronics’ offices in South Korea house a majority of the company’s 150,000 employees worldwide.
To reduce the amount of time spent managing its client computing environment, Samsung Electronics upgraded to the Windows 7 Enterprise operating system and the Windows Internet Explorer 8 browser across its offices in South Korea. As a result of the deployment, Samsung Electronics has enhanced IT security; simplified IT maintenance, which resulted in a 20 percent cost savings; reduced power consumption by 34 percent; and significantly improved employee productivity. (more…)
ANN ARBOR, Mich.— As Halloween approaches, tales of monsters and creepy crawlies abound. Among the most fearsome is the legendary beast known as the chupacabras.
But the real fiend is not the hairless, fanged animal purported to attack and drink the blood of livestock; it’s a tiny, eight-legged creature that turns a healthy, wild animal into a chupacabras, says University of Michigan biologist Barry OConnor. (more…)
John Tanner, who also teaches chemistry in the College of Arts and Science, is studying Aspergillus fumigatus. Image credit: University of Missouri
COLUMBIA, Mo. – If finding the cure for a fungus and parasite that affects millions of people were the subject of a detective show, University of Missouri Chemistry Professor John Tanner would be the forensic expert in the lab, using high-tech equipment to make a model that could eventually solve the crime.
Tanner, who also teaches chemistry in the College of Arts and Science, has joined forces with Pablo Sobrado, an assistant professor of biochemistry at Virginia Tech, to study a unique enzyme found on two “crime scenes”: in Aspergillus fumigatus, a fungus that causes pulmonary diseases in immuno-compromised people; and in a blood-sucking insect prevalent in South America and now being found in the southwestern U.S., called the Chagas parasite, also known as the “kissing bug” for the red welts left on the victims’ faces after being bitten in his or her sleep.
“My job is to figure out what the enzyme looks like using X-ray diffraction,” Tanner said. “This enzyme makes a special sugar molecule that these organisms need to survive, so if we can find a way to stop the reaction that makes that sugar, then we might find a way to kill these pathogens.” (more…)
Marc Therrien. Image credit: University of Montreal
Researchers at the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) of the Université de Montréal have identified a new mechanism controlling the transmission of an abnormal signal at the origin of several cancers. In an article published in the journal Cell, Marc Therrien’s team explains the recent discovery of a protein complex that controls the RAS/MAPK signalling pathway, responsible for some of the deadliest cancers, including pancreatic, colon and lung cancers, and melanomas. This regulating mechanism could prove to be a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of these diseases. The study conducted on the drosophila model organism is to be verified in humans in a forthcoming step. (more…)
SUNNYVALE, Calif. & NEW YORK, Oct 21, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Yahoo! and American Express today announced a new phase of their partnership, offering small business owners access to tools and content that will help them grow their businesses. The new features will live within the newly created Business Solutions website (BusinessSolutions.yahoo.com) sponsored by American Express OPEN and located within Yahoo! Small Business. (more…)
Online Poker Tournaments Drive Traffic to Gambling Sites
Education Sites Spike as School Year Kicks Off
RESTON, VA, October 21, 2010 – comScore, Inc. a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its monthly analysis of U.S. web activity at the top online properties for September 2010 based on data from the comScore Media Metrix service. Online Gambling sites were popular in September as the competition heated up at several online poker tournaments. Classes resumed for schools and universities nationwide prompting teachers and students alike to visit Education sites.(more…)
SEATTLE, Oct 21, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Amazon.com, Inc. today announced financial results for its third quarter ended September 30, 2010.
Operating cash flow increased 16% to $2.62 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $2.25billion for the trailing twelve months ended September 30, 2009. Free cash flow decreased 5% to $1.83 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $1.92 billion for the trailing twelve months ended September 30, 2009. (more…)