BERLIN (AP) -- Federal prosecutors say they have charged three German-Iranian dual nationals and a German man with breaking export laws for allegedly supplying Iran with parts needed to build a nuclear reactor in violation of the country's trade embargo.
Prosecutors said in a statement Monday suspect Hamid Kh., 80, set up contact for Gholamali Ka., 70, and his son Kianzad Ka., 25, with German businessman Rudolf M., 78, whose Thuringia firm produced valves needed for a nuclear reactor's construction. Their last names were not released in accordance with German privacy laws.
The group is accused of supplying Iran with 92 German-made valves, and another 856 Indian-made valves, in 2010 and 2011.
They're accused of supplying the parts through front companies in other countries in deals worth millions of euros in total.
The dancers of the North Carolina Youth Tap Ensemble (NCYTE) brought their youthful exuberance and polished precision to an enthusiastic audience at the Carolina Theatre on opening night for their new show Rhythm Evolved. They?ll be repeating the performance Sunday, April 28th at 2:00 pm and you would do yourself a favor to be there.
The two seniors, Laura and Sarah, planned the show with the help of director Gene Medler and assistant director Rachel Teem. The pair of seniors?also choreographed the opening number, entitled Rhythm Evolved. The apt name of the dance and program was given in recognition of tap?s historical evolution to the present, the evolution of NCYTE over its 30 years, and the two seniors? personal tap journeys over the years with NCYTE, according to Laura.
When the curtain lifted you could feel positive energy and a lightness in the theater. The dancers looked sharp in black dress clothes, uniform but individual.
I found it impossible not to smile when I heard the Old Crow Medicine Show song Hard to Love and heavy footsteps coming from backstage that signaled the beginning of the Bluegrass Suite, one of two suites choreographed for the company by alum Michelle Dorrance. Petite Suite, a set of three dances is equally charming and quirky. The newest addition to Petite Suite, The Waltz is a laugh out loud dance full of show-offs with a Spanish flare.
Dancers Luke and Max performed the demanding tap dance choreographed and made famous by Steve and Nick Condos in 1938, The Condos Brothers? Indian Routine. Sam Weber reconstructed and restaged the work in 2003. It?s a dance full of unbelievably fast and challenging flash tap steps in which Luke and Max remained consistently in sync with each other and the music.
The Taiko Drumming Dance is a new piece conceived by Medler based on traditional Japanese Taiko drumming. In this beautiful piece, drummers move slowly and cast long shadows, gradually increasing the tempo. They are joined by two dancers who add to the complexity of the drums? rhythm before finishing as one with the drums.
Rhythm Evolved features guest artists Matthew Shields and Michelle Dorrance, who each dance alone and return to the stage together later in the show. Shields, currently based in Austin, TX where he is a principal dancer with Tapestry Dance Company, gave a whimsical performance to continuously changing music. His ease with slides and turns made it seem he was on ice. Shields danced in a familiar and understated way and worked his way up to super-fast taps that came from imperceptible movements.
Dorrance?s physical whole-body based tapping and authentic expression created an attention grabbing and captivating performance. I?ve never seen a tap dancer so connected to the sounds she produces. The sounds separated from her movement as smoothly as liquid mercury separates into droplets.
Dorrance, who is a Bessie award winner and the first tap? choreographer to receive a Princess Grace award, spoke as a former NCYTE member about the company?s 30 years, its legacy, and the impact of Gene Medler as the director. ?He is developing artists,? Dorrance said of Medler. She also said the company is unprecedented in the world and throughout tap history.
From the seniors to the youngest and newest, NCYTE members are creative in improvisation, precise and engaged in groups, and a joy to witness in action. These kids are top-notch artists you don?t want to miss. Do yourself a favor and go see the Sunday performance.
For ticket information visit: http://www.ncyte.dreamhosters.com/?page_id=43
See some pictures from a studio rehearsal at Artsview NC : A day with NCYTE
Tagged as: Carolina Theatre of Durham, Gene Medler, Matthew Shields, Michelle Dorrance, NCYTE
ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY, APRIL 28, 2013 AND THEREAFTER - Sarah Toce, editor of a daily online news magazine "The Seattle Lesbian," poses for a photo Friday, April 19, 2013, in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, in an alleyway that has been the site of fights and other violence against gay men. Even as society has become more accepting of homosexuality overall, longstanding research has shown more societal tolerance for lesbians than gay men, and that gay men are significantly more likely to be targets of violence. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Society ? Research shows more societal tolerance for lesbians, and gay men face more violence.
Chicago ? It may be a man?s world, as the saying goes, but lesbians seem to have an easier time living in it than gay men do.
High-profile lesbian athletes have come out while still playing their sports, but not a single gay male athlete in major U.S. professional sports has done the same. While television?s most prominent same-sex parents are the two fictional dads on "Modern Family," surveys show that society is actually more comfortable with the idea of lesbians parenting children.
And then there is the ongoing debate over the Boy Scouts of America proposal to ease their ban on gay leaders and scouts.
Reaction to the proposal, which the BSA?s National Council will take up next month, has been swift, and often harsh. Yet amid the discussions, the Girl Scouts of USA reiterated their policy prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, among other things. That announcement has gone largely unnoticed.
Certainly, the difference in the public?s reaction to the scouting organizations can be attributed, in part, to their varied histories, including the Boy Scouts? longstanding religious ties and a base that has become less urban over the years, compared with the Girl Scouts?.
But there?s also an undercurrent here, one that?s often present in debates related to homosexuality, whether over the military?s now-defunct "Don?t Ask, Don?t Tell" policy or even same-sex marriage. Even as society has become more accepting of homosexuality overall, longstanding research has shown more societal tolerance for lesbians than gay men, and that gay men are significantly more likely to be targets of violence.
That research also has found that it?s often straight men who have the most difficult time with homosexuality ? and particularly gay men ? says researcher Gregory Herek.
"Men are raised to think they have to prove their masculinity, and one big part about being masculine is being heterosexual. So we see that harassment, jokes, negative statements and violence are often ways that even younger men try to prove their heterosexuality," says Herek, a psychologist at the University of California, Davis, who has, for years, studied this phenomenon and how it plays out in the gay community.
That is not, of course, to downplay the harassment lesbians face. It can be just as ugly.
But it?s not as frequent, Herek and others have found, especially in adulthood. It?s also not uncommon for lesbians to encounter straight men who have a fascination with them.
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"The men hit on me. The women hit on me. But I never feel like I?m in any immediate danger," says Sarah Toce, the 29-year-old editor of The Seattle Lesbian and managing editor of The Contributor, both online news magazines. "If I were a gay man, I might ? and if it?s like this in Seattle, can you imagine what it is like in less-accepting parts of middle America?"
One of Herek?s studies found that, overall, 38 percent of gay men said that, in adulthood, they?d been victims of vandalism, theft or violence ? hit, beaten or sexually assaulted ? because they were perceived as gay. About 13 percent of lesbians said the same.
A separate study of young people in England also found that, in their teens, gay boys and lesbians were almost twice as likely to be bullied as their straight peers. By young adulthood, it was about the same for lesbians and straight girls. But in this study, published recently in the journal Pediatrics, gay young men were almost four times more likely than their straight peers to be bullied.
At least one historian says it wasn?t always that way for either men or women, whose "expressions of love" with friends of the same gender were seen as a norm ? even idealized ? in the 19th century.
"These relationships offered ample opportunity for those who would have wanted to act on it physically, even if most did not," says Thomas Foster, associate professor and head of the history department at DePaul University in Chicago.
Today?s "code of male gendered behavior," he says, often rejects these kinds of expressions between men.
We joke about the "bro-mance" ? a term used to describe close friendships between straight men. But in some sense, the humor stems from the insinuation that those relationships could be romantic, though everyone assumes they aren?t.
Call those friends "gay," a word that?s still commonly used as an insult, and that?s quite another thing. Consider the furor over Rutgers University men?s basketball coach Mike Rice, who was recently fired for mistreating his players and mocking them with gay slurs.
If two women dance together at a club or walk arm-in-arm down the street, people are usually less likely to question it ? though some wonder if that has more to do with a lack of awareness than acceptance.
"Lesbians are so invisible in our society. And so I think the hatred is more invisible," says Laura Grimes, a licensed clinical social worker in Chicago whose counseling practice caters to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender clients.
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REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) ? Five years after Iceland's economy imploded, austerity-weary voters looked set Saturday to return the parties widely blamed for the disaster to power.
Polls showed the Progressive and Independence parties, who are promising to ease Icelanders' economic pain, leading the Social Democrat-led coalition that has spent the last four years trying to pick up the pieces after the crash.
Iceland's economic recovery has been hard and uneven, and many voters are fed up.
"I think that Icelanders are craving change. The last government failed to lead us out of the economic crisis in the way people liked," said Svavar Bjorgvinsson, owner of a computer games company.
He said many voters were swayed by the center-right parties' promises of tax cuts and mortgage relief.
"Many people that have been struggling will give these parties their vote as they are seeing some light in the end of the tunnel," he said.
A shift to the right in Saturday's parliamentary election would likely shelve Iceland's plans to join the European Union, with which it has begun accession talks. Both Progressives and Independents oppose joining the 27-nation bloc.
Progressive Party chief Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson and Independence Party leader Bjarni Benediktsson are the two most likely candidates for prime minister under the system of proportional representation used for elections to Iceland's 63-seat parliament, the Althingi.
The two parties governed Iceland for several decades, often in coalition, overseeing economic liberalization that spurred a banking and business boom ? until Iceland's economy crashed spectacularly during the 2008 credit crisis.
A volcano-dotted North Atlantic nation with a population of just 320,000, Iceland went from economic wunderkind to financial basket case almost overnight when its main commercial banks collapsed within a week of one another.
The value of the country's currency plummeted, while inflation and unemployment soared. Iceland was forced to seek bailouts from Europe and the International Monetary Fund.
Despite being widely blamed for the meltdown, the Independents and Progressives say they are now best placed to lead the economic recovery.
The Progressives are promising to write off some mortgage debt, taking money from foreign creditors. Benediktsson's Independence Party is offering lower taxes and the lifting of capital controls that he says are hindering foreign investment.
"We believe we can do a lot for indebted households, but our plan is not to do only that" Benediktsson said after casting his vote in a Reykjavik suburb.
"I think the only way out of the economic difficulties we've had is growing the economy, and we need to create new jobs, start new investments and we have a very strong plan to start doing that tomorrow."
Whatever the outcome, 70-year-old outgoing Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir has said she will retire from politics after the election. Iceland's first female ? and first openly gay ? prime minister, she was elected as head of a center-left alliance in 2009 on a wave of public disgust at the previous administration.
Since then, Iceland has in many ways made a strong recovery. Unemployment has fallen and the economy is growing.
But inflation remains naggingly high, and many Icelanders still struggle to repay home and car loans they took out ? often in foreign currencies whose value soared after the crash ? in the years of easy credit.
Some accuse the government of caving in to international pressure to compensate Britain and the Netherlands for their citizens' lost deposits in the failed online bank Icesave. Icelanders have twice rejected repayment deals agreed to by Sigurdardottir's government.
"The government that many people thought was cleaning up the mess is getting severely punished for the last four years," said journalist and political analyst Egill Helgason. "I don't know whether they deserve it. In many ways I think not. But this is politics ? cruel."
Some voters say the outgoing government did as good a job as could be expected.
"We cannot forget that everything collapsed here and still health care, schools and society in general functions better than in most countries", said Jon Gunnar Bjornsson, an operations manager of one of Iceland's new, post-crisis banks.
"We still retain ownership of hospitals, the road system and the utility companies. I'm not sure we could have expected more.
"But still people are unhappy and want someone to take their debt away and shower them with golden fairy dust."
Polls close at 2200GMT (6 p.m. EDT), with full results expected early Sunday.
___
Lawless reported from London. Associated Press writer David Mac Dougall in Reykjavik contributed to this report.
A United Airlines jet departs in view of the air traffic control tower at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Tuesday, April 23, 2013, in Seattle. A day after flight delays plagued much of the U.S., air travel is smoother Tuesday. But the government is warning passengers that the situation can change by the hour as it runs the nation's air traffic control system with a smaller staff. Airlines and members of Congress urged the Federal Aviation Administration to find other ways to make mandatory budget cuts besides furloughing controllers. While delays haven't been terrible yet, the airlines are worried about the long-term impact late flights will have on their budgets and on fliers. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
A United Airlines jet departs in view of the air traffic control tower at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Tuesday, April 23, 2013, in Seattle. A day after flight delays plagued much of the U.S., air travel is smoother Tuesday. But the government is warning passengers that the situation can change by the hour as it runs the nation's air traffic control system with a smaller staff. Airlines and members of Congress urged the Federal Aviation Administration to find other ways to make mandatory budget cuts besides furloughing controllers. While delays haven't been terrible yet, the airlines are worried about the long-term impact late flights will have on their budgets and on fliers. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Legislation to end furloughs of air traffic controllers and delays for millions of travelers is headed to a House vote after a dark-of-night vote in the Senate that took place after most lawmakers had left the Capitol for a weeklong vacation.
The bill passed late Thursday without even a roll call vote, and House officials indicated it likely would be brought up for quick approval there.
Under the legislation, the Federal Aviation Administration would gain authority to transfer up to $253 million from accounts that are flush into other programs, to "prevent reduced operations and staffing" through the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year.
In addition to restoring full staffing by controllers, Senate officials said the available funds should be ample enough to prevent the closure of small airport towers around the country. The FAA has said it will shut the facilities as it makes its share of $85 billion in across-the-board spending cuts ? known as the sequester ? that took effect last month at numerous government agencies.
The Senate acted as the FAA said there had been at least 863 flights delayed on Wednesday "attributable to staffing reductions resulting from the furlough."
Administration officials participated in the negotiations that led to the deal and evidently registered no objections.
After the vote, White House press secretary Jay Carney said, "It will be good news for America's traveling public if Congress spares them these unnecessary delays. But ultimately, this is no more than a temporary Band-Aid that fails to address the overarching threat to our economy posed by the sequester's mindless, across-the-board cuts."
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a key participant in the talks, said the legislation would "prevent what otherwise would have been intolerable delays in the air travel system, inconveniencing travelers and hurting the economy."
Senate approval followed several hours of pressure-filled, closed-door negotiations, and came after most senators had departed the Capitol on the assumption that the talks had fallen short.
Officials said a small group of senators insisted on a last-ditch effort at an agreement before Congress adjourned for a vacation that could have become politically problematic if the flight delays continued.
"I want to do it right now. There are other senators you'd have to ask what the hang-up is," Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., said at a point when it appeared no compromise would emerge.
For the White House and Senate Democrats, the discussions on legislation relating to one relatively small slice of the $85 billion in spending cuts marked a shift in position in a long-running struggle with Republicans over budget issues. Similarly, the turn of events marked at least modest vindication of a decision by the House GOP last winter to finesse some budget struggles in order to focus public attention on the across-the-board cuts in hopes they would gain leverage over President Barack Obama.
The Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, a union that represents FAA employees, reported a number of incidents it said were due to the furloughs.
In one case, it said several flights headed for Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York were diverted on Wednesday when a piece of equipment failed. "While the policy for this equipment is immediate restoral, due to sequestration and furloughs it was changed to next-day restoral," the union said.
It added it was "learning of additional impacts nationwide, including open watches, increased restoration times, delays resulting from insufficient funding for parts and equipment, modernization delays, missed or deferred preventative maintenance, and reduced redundancy."
The airlines, too, were pressing Congress to restore the FAA to full staffing.
In an interview Wednesday, Robert Isom, chief operations officer of US Airways, likened the furloughs to a "wildcat regulatory action."
He added, "In the airline business, you try to eliminate uncertainty. Some factors you can't control, like weather. It (the FAA issue) is worse than the weather."
In a shift, first the White House and then senior Democratic lawmakers have signaled a willingness in the past two days to support legislation that alleviates the budget crunch at the FAA, while leaving the balance of the $85 billion to remain in effect.
Obama favors a comprehensive agreement that replaces the entire $85 billion in across-the-board cuts as part of a broader deficit-reduction deal that includes higher taxes and spending cuts.
One Senate Democrat, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, noted that without the type of comprehensive deficit deal that Obama favors, a bill that eases the spending crunch at the FAA would inevitably be followed by other single-issue measures. She listed funding at the National Institutes of Health as one example, and cuts that cause furloughs of civilians who work at military hospitals as a second.
At the same time, Democratic aides said resolve had crumbled under the weight of widespread delays for the traveling public and pressure from the airlines.
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., involved in the discussions, said the issue was big enough so "most people want to find a solution as long as it doesn't spend any more money."
Officials estimate it would cost slightly more than $200 million to restore air traffic controllers to full staffing, and an additional $50 million to keep open smaller air traffic towers around the country that the FAA has proposed closing.
Across the Capitol, the chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa., said, "We're willing to look at what the Senate's going to propose."
He said he believes the FAA has the authority it needs under existing law to shift funds and end the furloughs of air traffic controllers, and any legislation should be "very, very limited" and direct the agency to use the flexibility it already has.
In a reflection of the political undercurrents, another House Republican, Rep. James Lankford of Oklahoma, said FAA employees "are being used as pawns by this (Obama) administration to be able to implement the maximum amount of pain on the American people when it does not have to be this way."
The White House and congressional Democrats vociferously dispute such claims.
___
Associated Press writers Joan Lowy, Henry C. Jackson and Alan Fram in Washington and David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.
Lasers could help weld intestines together with the aid of a novel glue filled with microscopic gold rods, researchers say.
Diseases that affect the bowels include colorectal cancer and inflammatory bowel disease, both of which afflict about 1.5 million people in the United States annually. During surgery to remove diseased tissue, leaks from intestinal holes are common and can lead to life-threatening bacterial infections.
Lasers are already able to weld ruptures in tissues such as cartilage, blood vessels, corneas, livers, urinary tracts, nerves and skin together by causing proteins to fuse. This stitch-free way of sealing holes is especially helpful in places where sutures and staples may not work, such as thin, fragile tissues.
One concern with conventional laser tissue welding, however, is that any welds might be weak. To solve this problem, chemical engineer Kaushal Rege at Arizona State University in Tempe and his colleagues are developing a protein-based glue that can act as a solder that lasers can heat to patch up holes. [(Warning: Blood) Veti-Gel Stops Bleeding Instantly]
When heated, the goo solidifies into an elastic material that can behave "much like a rubber band," Rege said. "Tissues like colons have to transport matter through them, and the elasticity of materials patching up holes is important."
The composite is mostly composed of artificial proteins, but embedded within it are tiny gold rods only 15 nanometers ? or billionths of a meter ? wide and 50 nanometers long. (In comparison, the average human hair is about 100,000 nanometers wide.) The nano-rods absorb near-infrared light, which passes harmlessly through human tissue for the most part, causing them to heat up enough to coagulate the surrounding proteins in the goo.
The researchers successfully used laser welding and their goo to patch holes up to several millimeters large in pig guts. These welds significantly increased the amount of pressure needed to cause leakage or bursting of repaired tissues and created liquid-tight seals that prevented gut bacteria from sneaking out.
The laser glue should be biodegradable, Rege noted, although tests of it in animals are needed to be sure. The gold nano-rods are also thought to be fairly inert, "although studies are needed to look for any long-term toxicity," he added.
The researchers aim to proceed to experiments with live animals. They also hope their composite might not only be capable of repairing holes, but intestines that have completely been cut in two, Rege said.
Rege, along with graduate student Huang-Chiao Huang and their colleagues, detailed their findings online March 26 the journal ACS Nano.
This story was provided by TechNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow TechNewsDaily on Twitter @TechNewsDaily. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
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Twinkies will return, announced the company that bought partnership that bought Hostess Brands' snack cake lines, including Twinkies.
By Associated Press / April 25, 2013
Twinkies first came onto the scene in 1930 and contained real fruit until rationing during World War II led to the now-standard vanilla cream Twinkies.
Interstate Bakeries Corporation / AP
Enlarge
The partnership that bought Hostess Brands' snack cake lines, including Twinkies, has announced it will reopen the bakery in Emporia this summer, with 250 employees to start.
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The private equity groups Apollo Global Management and Metropolis & Co. ? now doing business as Hostess Brands LLC ? recently paid $410 million for the rights to buy the Hostess and Dolly Madison snack cake lines as well as five plants, including the one in Emporia.
But Emporia City Commissioner Jon Geitz told KVOE-AM there had been no assurance the local bakery would reopen, so Thursday's announcement was good news.
"Having 250, 300 new employees coming in is a big win for the community," Geitz said, noting the plant and the city had been "'good partners for nearly 40 years."
Hostess Brands LLC said hiring is already underway for an initial 250 employees. The company is aiming for a total workforce of about 300 over the next several years, and the plant will be expanded. Officials hope it will start turning out Twinkies, HoHos and other Hostess mainstays by mid- to late summer.
Company spokesman Mike Cramer declined comment on whether union employees would be a part of the picture. More than 90 percent of the plant's employees at the time of the shutdown were union members.
Geitz is vice president of the Regional Development Association of Eastern Kansas, which together with Emporia Mayor Bobbi Mlynar worked to convince the new owners to reopen the plant.
In a statement issued by the company, Mlynar said the plant has been a "good corporate citizen in our community. We look forward to the same type of relationship with the new owners."
Kansas officials also worked for the reopening.
"Certainly the city and state were way out in front, trying to stay in touch, seeing what they could do to help," Cramer said.
With the plant idle since November, Cramer said a lot of work is needed to make the plant current. Besides cleaning and maintenance, the company is investing in new equipment and refurbishing existing equipment. It is also changing its packaging and shipping methods before starting to roll out cake products.
PICT, a San Francisco-based startup that has built a "shoppable photo" technology platform for brands and retailers that embeds smart watermarks into images, is emerging a bit out of stealth mode today with the beta launch of the newest version of its mobile and web app. The company, which we first met as "Dropt" when it graduated out of the AngelPad accelerator last year, is also announcing today that it has raised $1.4 million in seed funding. PICT's investors include some big names in the tech and retail worlds: Christ Sacca's Lowercase Capital, Kirsten Green's Forerunner Ventures, New York fashion designer and businessman Steven Alan, Opus Capital, Angelpad, 500 Startups, Gary Vaynerchuk, Scott Belsky, and Seth Berman, among others.
William Gibson has long been known as something of a prophet, predicting everything from reality TV to "cyberspace" itself. Way back in 1981 AD, he imagined something very similar to Google Glass when he introduced us to Molly Millions, the badass cyborg with a screen-like digital eye augmentation. But we'd yet to see Gibson weigh in on Glass. Until now. More »
(Reuters) - Health insurer Centene Corp reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as it added more states under its Medicaid contracts and expanded its coverage in existing ones.
The company raised its full-year forecast for premium and service revenue to $10.1 billion to $10.4 billion, and reiterated its profit forecast of $2.60 to $2.90 per share.
"We believe we are well positioned for profitable growth in 2014 and beyond," CEO Michael Neidorff said in a statement.
Net income fell marginally to $23 million, or 42 cents per share, in the first quarter from $24 million, or 45 cents per share, a year earlier.
Premium and service revenue rose 53 percent to $2.54 billion, mainly driven by the expansion of contracts in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana, and contract additions in Kansas, Missouri and Washington, the company said.
Analysts were expecting a profit of 37 cents per share, on revenue of $2.46 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Health benefits ratio, a measure of medical expenses expressed as a percentage of premium revenue, rose to 90.4 percent from 88.2 percent a year earlier.
The increase in medical expenses reflected a higher level of flu costs during the first quarter, and a higher level of medical costs in new business, the company said.
Insurers take a hit from the flu because of an increase in claims related to visits to doctors and hospitals.
Centene was hit by high costs at its Medicaid contracts in Texas and Kentucky last year as higher utilization of its services in the states ate into profit.
The insurer intends to exit Kentucky from July 5.
Several other health insurers providing Medicaid services in the two states had also experienced high medical costs.
Shares of the St. Louis, Missouri-based Centene closed at $45.35 on Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.
(Reporting by Esha Dey in Bangalore; Editing by Roshni Menon)
The president of a Cedar Rapids natural care products company has been named 2013 Iowa Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Chuck Hammond, chief executive officer and owner of Raining Rose, will represent the state at National Small Business Week activities in Washington, D.C., during the week of June 16. Hammond will compete for the National Small Business Person of the Year award.
Chuck Hammond, Raining Rose CEO
?Candidly, I?m a little embarrassed because I really didn?t do it on my own,? Hammond said on Tuesday. ?I continue to harp about the fact that we have a great group people. I understand that awards are set up sometimes for individuals, but we all know this was a team effort.
?While the award may say ?person of the year,? it truly is the company.?
Raining Rose started in 1996 as a family hobby in a Cedar Rapids basement. The company, which today produces lip balm and other personal care products, began its rise in production in 2003 when Hammond and business partner Art Christoffersen purchased the company.
Hammond and Christoffersen spent their first year focused on learning the natural body care products industry. That self education, combined with their individual business knowledge and experience, enabled Raining Rose to expand with its line of products.
When Hammond and Christoffersen purchased the company, Raining Rose had 12 employees working in a single room. The company moved in 2003 to an 18,200-square-foot former beverage distribution facility at 407 Ninth Ave. SE.
In December 2005, Christoffersen died from cancer, leaving Hammond as the sole owner of Raining Rose. Hammond successfully led the company through the ownership transition as employment, customers and product lines continued to grow.
Hammond and Raining Rose faced its toughest test in June 2008 the plant and equipment was inundated with 8 feet of water as 10 square miles of Cedar Rapids was flooded. Before entering their flooded building, Hammond and his managers plotted the strategy that ultimately would save the company.
Hammond placed orders for new equipment and found new temporary office and manufacturing sites. He also was able to gain assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration?s disaster loan program.
Within a year, Raining Rose, one of 25 U.S. lip balm manufactures that operate both as a contract manufacturer and a private label company, not only survived, but saw its sales grow 13 percent.
In 2011, Hammond and Raining Rose broke ground for a 125,000-square-foot office and manufacturing facility at 100 31st Street Dr. SE. The company, with more than 140 employees, moved into its new home in October 2012.
Combining operations from three separate locations, Hammond had the building constructed with growth in mind. The space is filling up quickly as Raining Rose continues to increase products, sales and staff.
?Right now, behind the scenes, we have a hard time in that we?re just growing,? Hammond said. ?We moved into this building and we?ve had a surge of growth that no one anticipated. We?ve had to add a bunch of people and we?re running three shifts a day, six days a week.
?That has created challenges and stresses, but our folks have stepped up and said, ?We can do this and we want to do it for our customers.??
While sales have continued to grow, Hammond said Raining Rose management is focused on the company?s bottom line.
?Growth for growth sake is not a positive thing,? he said. ?While the top line is exciting, the bottom line is more important.
?Behind the scenes there are mid-course corrections. We have parted ways with customers that aren?t good fits either from a product or culture standpoint.
?We want to focus on good business. We have had customers that have grown significantly and we?ve been a part of that growth.?
The headline number climbed 1.5% to an annualized rated of 417k.
Economists were looking for a 1.2% increase to a level of 416k.
The discrepancy in the numbers comes from the fact that last month's 4.6% drop was down to a 7.6% drop.
"The median sales price of new houses sold in March 2013 was $247,000; the average sales price was $279,900," added the Census. "The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of March was 153,000. This represents a supply of 4.4 months at the current sales rate."
"The drop in sales in February was probably at least partly reversed," said Jim O'Sullivan of High Frequency Economics in a note yesterday.
(Reuters) - The U.S. government filed court documents Tuesday laying out its case against cyclist Lance Armstrong, who is accused of defrauding the Postal Service by taking millions of dollars in sponsorship money while flouting professional cycling rules by doping.
The U.S. Department of Justice said in February it would join a whistleblower lawsuit brought in 2010 by Armstrong's former teammate, Floyd Landis, and on Tuesday filed its formal complaint.
Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and was banned for life from cycling in 2012 after accusations he had cheated for years. In January, he said the accusations were true in an interview with television host Oprah Winfrey.
Armstrong and his teammates from Tailwind Sports were paid $40 million by the Postal Service from 1998 to 2004, according to the suit. Armstrong's salary during that time, excluding bonuses, was $17.9 million, according to the complaint.
The government is suing under the False Claims Act and can recoup up to three times the amount it lost as a result of the fraud. The complaint also alleges breach of contract, unjust enrichment and fraud.
An attorney for Armstrong said the complaint was opportunistic and insincere.
"The U.S. Postal Service benefited tremendously from its sponsorship of the cycling team. The USPS was never the victim of fraud," said attorney Elliot Peters in a statement. "Lance Armstrong rode his heart out for the USPS team, and gave the brand tremendous exposure during the sponsorship years."
The complaint echoes Landis' claims that Armstrong and others defrauded the U.S. government by falsely denying the doping accusations and continuing their sponsorship relationship with the Postal Service.
When the government believes a suit has merit, it may take over the litigation. The individuals, or whistleblowers, get a portion of the proceeds if the case is successful.
The U.S. complaint accuses Armstrong of using at least one prohibited substance or method in connection with every Tour de France between 1999 and 2005. "Moreover, he knew that his teammates were engaged in similar doping practices, and he actively encouraged and facilitated those practices," the complaint said.
"(T)he United Stated suffered damage in that it did not receive the value of the services for which it bargained," the complaint said.
A lawyer for Landis, Paul Scott, said in statement that he was "pleased to see the United States take this important step toward recovering taxpayer dollars lost to fraud."
The case is U.S. ex rel Landis v. Tailwind Sports Corp, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, No. 10-976.
(Reporting by Jessica Dye in New York; Additional reporting by Mark Hosenball; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
TALLAHASSEE (Reuters) - Public university students in Florida next year will be able to start working toward college degrees without actually going to college, under a law Governor Rick Scott signed on Monday in front of educators and business lobbyists.
The state-run University of Florida plans to start a series of online bachelor's degree programs next year, with $15 million start-up funds for 2014.
Until now full-time online education has just been available to elementary and high schools in the state.
"This bill transforms education in Florida," said House Speaker Will Weatherford, a Republican who has long been a proponent of "virtual learning" in public schools.
"Now, we will be home to the first fully accredited, online public research university institute in the nation," said Weatherford. "These bold higher-education reforms will help increase Florida's global competitiveness and ensure our students have meaningful opportunities after high school."
California and Texas are developing totally online university programs, while Illinois considered the idea and discarded it, according to a spokesman for the American Public and Land Grant Universities Association in Washington.
State Senator Bill Montford, a Democrat from Tallahassee who is executive director of the Florida Association of School Superintendents, said, "I haven't heard of any state that's moving as aggressively as Florida can" in online education.
The online courses will cost no more than 75 percent of in-state tuition for regular classes at the University of Florida.
The online university degree programs are part of an education package pushed by Scott and the state's Republican party leadership that they say will more closely link curriculums with the needs of employers.
The state's new education law also retreats in some areas from the toughened curriculum required in 2010, the year before Scott became governor. Students can select "scholar" courses, but others can focus more on job skills and will be able to graduate without passing tougher courses in math and science.
The governor, who campaigned in 2010 on a platform of creating 700,000 jobs in seven years through a series of business-friendly tax cuts and regulatory changes, has made job-oriented education and low tuition a big part of his economic development package.
Scott last year caused a stir by saying he did not want Florida's higher education system producing anthropologists or other specialized graduates whose main job prospect is teaching others to do what they do.
Before the session, he persuaded all 28 state colleges to come up with four-year bachelor's programs costing $10,000 or less in tuition, emphasizing skills sought by employers.
Watch an excerpt from "The King's Skeleton: Richard III Revealed."
By Alan Boyle, Science Editor, NBC News
The tale surrounding the discovery of King Richard III's skeleton beneath an English parking lot is about much more than a pile of 528-year-old bones ? all you have to do is look at the face of Philippa Langley as she breaks down during an archaeological autopsy.
"I don't see bones on that table," she says, during an emotional scene in a new documentary about the king's remains. "I see the man."
Langley, a 50-year-old Scottish screenwriter, plays almost as big a role as the much-maligned monarch in "The King's Skeleton: Richard III Revealed." The show airs Sunday night on the Smithsonian Channel in the U.S., after racking up royal ratings on British TV. It was Langley who enlisted the Richard III Society to help jump-start the excavation, and she serves as the on-screen witness for many of the key twists in the excavation.
Medieval CSI Based on an analysis of the historical records, archaeologists from the University of Leicester obtained a license from the British government to dig into that parking lot next to Leicester Cathedral last year. "The King's Skeleton" traces each step in the CSI-style investigation, leading to February's conclusion that the bones were indeed the mortal remains of the last Plantagenet king.
Richard III reigned for only two years, but his death in the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 was a key moment. In fact, many historians consider his fall to mark the end of the Middle Ages in England. A century later, William Shakespeare's play immortalized him as one of literature's greatest villains.
One of the themes of "The King's Skeleton" centers on how Richard III may have gained a blacker reputation than he deserved. The way Richard III's fans see it, the successors to the throne from the House of Tudor had an interest in making their Plantagenet forebears look bad?? to the point of portraying Richard III as a misshapen hunchback. "This is propaganda," historian Pamela Tudor-Craig says during the documentary.
So the truth comes as a shock to Langley.
"What we're actually seeing here is that this skeleton in fact has a hunchback," Jo Appleby, a bone expert at the University of Leicester, tells her in one scene.
"No!" Langley answers.
The bones of Richard III, who reigned for two years, have been discovered in Leicester, England, and they indicate that his spine was twisted by scoliosis. NBC's Stephanie Gosk reports.
The identification of Richard III's remains drew upon carbon dating and detailed studies of the skeleton, including evidence of wounds that matched up with historical accounts of the king's demise. But the weightiest evidence comes from analysis of DNA extracted from the skeleton: The chemical signature of the mitochondrial DNA matched up with two maternal-line descendants of Richard III's eldest sister, Anne of York.
Stay tuned Does this mean the case of Richard III is closed? Not yet. Mitochondrial DNA is not as precise an indicator as, say, a paternity test. "The DNA evidence is simply a single strand within the entire analysis procedure," Turi King, the University of Leicester geneticist who conducted the analysis, told NBC News on Friday. "You certainly wouldn't convict somebody on [the basis of this] DNA evidence."
However, King noted that the mitochondrial DNA signature for this particular skeleton is shared by only a few percent of Europeans. "It's quite a rare type, so that adds to the weight of the evidence," she said.
The next step will be to analyze the skeleton's Y-chromosome DNA, which is passed down from father to son. The Y-chromosome signature is far more precise than mitochondrial DNA, which all children get from their mother. Four paternal-line descendants of Richard III's family have already been identified and tested, and King is now waiting to do the much more complicated reconstruction of the skeleton's Y-chromosome DNA signature.
Working on the royal remains has been a "dream project," King said, but not without its drawbacks: "It's been very stressful. You're trying to work quite quietly and calmly. The pressure to make sure everything has been done properly has been intense. ... I feel like I'm still in the middle of it."
The license to work with the skeleton runs out next year, and King will have to finish up her DNA studies by then.
Meanwhile, a potential legal battle is looming over whether the remains will be reburied in Leicester Cathedral, as planned, or in York instead. Thankfully, that's one drama King and the other scientists involved in the Richard III mystery won't have to deal with.
"I just try to tune it out," she said.
More about the Richard III saga:
To tune in?"The King's Skeleton: Richard III Revealed,"?check your cable provider's TV listings or consult the?Smithsonian Channel's website. Britain's Channel 4 aired the show as?"Richard III: The King in the Car Park."
Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's?Facebook page, following?@b0yle on Twitter?and adding the?Cosmic Log page?to your Google+ presence. To keep up with Cosmic Log as well as NBCNews.com's other stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out?"The Case for Pluto,"?my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.
Queens Mama, Sandy Jimenez, discusses why pre-school is an important part of childhood learning and development.
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Early childhood education has been thrown into the spotlight recently, based on President Obama?s plea for high-quality preschool for all children in this year?s State of the Union address. There have been dozens of articles touting the merits of education in the early years and many others focusing on the minuses of early child-hood education.
No one can deny that a lot of important learning happens in the first years of a child?s life. Really good early education is linked to significant long-term effects in a person?s life.? Some say that students who participate in preschool go to college at higher rates, have higher income, and even go to jail at lower rates.
Honestly, it doesn?t take an expert study to figure out that preschool can help your kid prepare for kindergarten and therefore prepare for the rest of his/her education. The benefits of early childhood education are irrefutable:
1. A formal learning environment:? It?s natural for all kids to learn. They learn from the words you say and even from watching TV. Preschool makes sure they?re not just learning from you or from television; they create interesting learning opportunities through thematic and structured learning.? Kids in preschool do science experiments, draw, and take trips to the local firehouse. This means they are learning not only the abstract concept of firehouse, but the concrete aspect?that the firehouse really exists.
2. Routine, routine, routine: Kids thrive on routine. Repetition helps them learn and comforts them. How many times have you watched your child?s favorite video? Hundreds. You are bored, but they are not. ?Good preschool classes have routines that children adore. Little Logan walks in and grabs his name tag; he puts it up on the board under his daily chore, then he puts his jacket in his nook, etc. This routine will eventually be carried out at home, and soon, he will be picking up his own clothes and doing chores. Further, it?s your kid?s own little world apart from you, where he/she gets to be comfy because of routine and to learn to do his own thing.? It can feel a little weird that your little lady or guy is in his own world but this is a kind of learning that needs to happen.
3. Building relationships:? There is a lot of social learning in good preschool environments. Kids get to play a lot and therefore learn how to share and take turns. They also develop relationships with adults that are not their parents. This can help with learning about boundaries and discipline. It also helps them figure out what expectations teachers will have of them in the future.
4. Early prevention: Everyone has something they can work on. Attending preschool can help identify a child?s shortcomings early on and set you on the path of helping him/her work them out early; this is especially important if children have learning disabilities.
If you cannot afford pre-school or have an opposition to it, there are things you can do at home to simulate the pre-school environment.
Create a stimulating home environment: You can read to your child every day in order to increase vocabulary. You can join playgroups or set up play dates to foster social learning. You can also visit the museum and make a project out of it by having your child draw a picture and tell a story. ?Carve out time each day for an art project; cook, clean, engage with you child, and most importantly, have a routine.
Whatever you choose, make sure that your child is enjoying his/her time and that you are as well.
Thank you to Sandy Jimenez for this article.
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Improved bowel health, increased satiety and enhanced calcium absorption add to mounting evidence for the health benefits of certain added fibers in the diet
Chicago (April 22, 2013) The health benefits of fibre are relatively well known yet average fibre intake around the world continues to be inadequate (1,2). Many diets continue to lack recommended servings of foods naturally high in fibre like fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains resulting in low fibre intake (3). Three new studies contribute to the growing body of evidence for the health benefits of added fibres in the diet. These types of fibre can be added to a wide range of foods and contribute similar health benefits as "intact" fibres, providing a viable option to help people increase their fibre intake to achieve daily recommendations (3). Each of the studies was supported by Tate & Lyle, a global leader in health and wellness innovation and provider of specialty food ingredients.
Improved Bowel Health
Recently published in the Journal of Nutrition, Timm et al. reported that 36 healthy adults consuming 20 grams of added fibre, either STA-LITE Polydextrose or PROMITOR Soluble Corn Fibre* per day, in addition to their usual lower fibre diet, which was approximately 13-14 g/day compared to the recommended 25 g/day for women and 38 g/day for men (3), experienced improved laxation with minimal gastrointestinal tolerance issues4. These results indicate that both types of fibre tested in this study are well tolerated and can be successfully added to the diet to help meet dietary recommendations.
"Since people aren't meeting their fibre goals with the foods they currently eat, adding fibres to foods is a realistic and simple way to address this global public health concern," said Joanne Slavin, PhD, RD of the University of Minnesota, an expert in fibre research and lead investigator of this study.
Maintained Satiety after a Meal
Another study which was presented this week at the American Society for Nutrition Experimental Biology conference in Boston, using a double blind, randomized cross-over design found that an emerging fibre, soluble fibre dextrin (SFD) from Tate & Lyle, may help promote satiety, or the feeling of fullness, from 3 to 8.5 hours after consumption (5). Tate & Lyle's soluble fibre dextrin is a resistant dextrin that can be isolated from tapioca or corn.
Researchers from Iowa State University provided 41 healthy adults with lunch including a test beverage containing 10 or 20 g of fibre from tapioca SFD versus a maltodextrin control beverage followed by a snack two and a half hours later. The study participants reported feeling fuller, less feeling of hunger and less desire to eat compared to the control beverage from 3 to 8.5 hours after consumption of the beverage that contained 20 g of fibre as SFD, while the SFD had no impact on appetite or overall food intake during the first 2.5 hours post consumption. These results indicate that the SFD may be slowly digested leading to delayed effects on appetite. "This newly developed soluble fibre dextrin can increase fibre intake, helping consumers meet fibre recommendations, while simultaneously controlling their appetite which may lead to reduced energy intake," stated James Hollis, PhD, a lead researcher on the study.
Increased Calcium Absorption
A third study (6), also presented at the American Society for Nutrition Experimental Biology conference in Boston, assessed the effect of PROMITOR Soluble Corn Fibre* (SCF) on fecal microbiota (bacterial environment of the gut) in relation to calcium absorption in 24 racially diverse, male and female adolescentsa population in need of adequate calcium intake for bone growth and development. Researchers from Purdue University found that when the adolescents consumed 12 g/day of SCF versus a control, they experienced a 12% increase in calcium absorption. This increase in calcium absorption was correlated with significant increases in specific strains of beneficial bacteria, namely Bacteroides, Alistipes, Butyricicoccus, Oscillibacter, and Dialister in the gut suggesting that SCF may increase calcium absorption through changes in gut microbiota (6).
"Emerging research on soluble corn fibre indicates that added fibres provide health benefits such as increased calcium absorption via their effect on beneficial bacteria" said Connie Weaver, PhD, a lead researcher on this study. This is the first study to show that increases in these specific bacteria were significantly correlated with the observed increase in calcium absorption.
Meeting Fibre Intake Recommendations
Most fibre recommendations for adults call for intakes ranging from 25-38 g/day depending on country specific worldwide guidelines (3). While individuals should increase their consumption of dietary fibre from sources such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains, fibres added to foods, like PROMITOR Soluble Corn Fibre*, STA-LITE Polydextrose, and soluble fibre dextrin, can help close the gap between recommended and actual intakes of fibre while providing additional health benefits such as increased calcium absorption, improved gut health, and increased satiety.
"The results from these new studies add to the growing body of research that supports the addition of fibres to foods that consumers are already eating, which easily allows for increased fibre intakes and provides added health benefits," said Priscilla Samuel, PhD, Director of Global Nutrition for Tate & Lyle. "Tate & Lyle is committed to investment in innovation and research to ensure that our ingredients, which can be incorporated into great tasting foods, can also help consumers meet their nutrition, health and wellness needs every day."
*PROMITOR Soluble Gluco Fibre in Europe
###
About Tate & Lyle:
Tate & Lyle is a global provider of ingredients and solutions to the food, beverage and other industries, operating from over 30 production facilities around the world.
Tate & Lyle operates through two global business units, Speciality Food Ingredients and Bulk Ingredients, supported by Innovation and Commercial Development. The Group's strategy is to become the leading global provider of Speciality Food Ingredients through a disciplined focus on growth, and by driving the Bulk Ingredients business for sustained cash generation to fuel this growth.
Speciality Food Ingredients include starch-based speciality ingredients (corn-based speciality starches, sweeteners and fibres), no calorie sweeteners (including SPLENDA Sucralose) and Food Systems which provides blended ingredient solutions. Bulk Ingredients include corn-based bulk sweeteners, industrial starches and fermentation products (primarily acidulants). The co-products from both divisions are primarily sold as animal feed.
Tate & Lyle is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol TATE.L. American Depositary Receipts trade under TATYY. In the year to 31 March 2012, Tate & Lyle sales totalled 3.1 billion. http://www.tateandlyle.com. SPLENDA is a trademark of McNeil Nutritionals, LLC.
References:
U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/dgas2010-dgacreport.htm
Spiller GA (ed.) CRC Handbook of Dietary Fiber in Human Nutrition, 3rd Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, Fla. 2001.
Gray J. Dietary Fibre. Definition, Analysis, Physiology and Health. ILSI Europe Dietary Fibre Concise Monograph Series. 2006. http://www.ilsi.org.ar/index.php?com=descarga&que=publicaciones&id=80
Timm DA, Thomas W, Boileau TW, Williamson-Hughes PS, Slavin JL. Polydextrose and Soluble Corn Fiber Increase Five-Day Fecal Wet Weight in Healthy Men and Women. J Nutr. 143:473-478;2013.
Hutchinson C, Hsu WH, Hollis JH. Effect of soluble fiber dextrin on postprandial appetite and subsequent food intake in healthy adults. Presented at Experimental Biology. Boston, MA. April 20-24, 2013.
Whisner CM, Nakatsu CH, Martin BR, McCabe LD, McCabe GP, Weaver CM. Soluble corn fiber modulates calcium absorption by altering colonic microbiota.. Poster at Experimental Biology. Boston, MA. April 20-24, 2013.
[ | 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.
3 new studies reveal added fiber's impact on various health indicesPublic release date: 22-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Improved bowel health, increased satiety and enhanced calcium absorption add to mounting evidence for the health benefits of certain added fibers in the diet
Chicago (April 22, 2013) The health benefits of fibre are relatively well known yet average fibre intake around the world continues to be inadequate (1,2). Many diets continue to lack recommended servings of foods naturally high in fibre like fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains resulting in low fibre intake (3). Three new studies contribute to the growing body of evidence for the health benefits of added fibres in the diet. These types of fibre can be added to a wide range of foods and contribute similar health benefits as "intact" fibres, providing a viable option to help people increase their fibre intake to achieve daily recommendations (3). Each of the studies was supported by Tate & Lyle, a global leader in health and wellness innovation and provider of specialty food ingredients.
Improved Bowel Health
Recently published in the Journal of Nutrition, Timm et al. reported that 36 healthy adults consuming 20 grams of added fibre, either STA-LITE Polydextrose or PROMITOR Soluble Corn Fibre* per day, in addition to their usual lower fibre diet, which was approximately 13-14 g/day compared to the recommended 25 g/day for women and 38 g/day for men (3), experienced improved laxation with minimal gastrointestinal tolerance issues4. These results indicate that both types of fibre tested in this study are well tolerated and can be successfully added to the diet to help meet dietary recommendations.
"Since people aren't meeting their fibre goals with the foods they currently eat, adding fibres to foods is a realistic and simple way to address this global public health concern," said Joanne Slavin, PhD, RD of the University of Minnesota, an expert in fibre research and lead investigator of this study.
Maintained Satiety after a Meal
Another study which was presented this week at the American Society for Nutrition Experimental Biology conference in Boston, using a double blind, randomized cross-over design found that an emerging fibre, soluble fibre dextrin (SFD) from Tate & Lyle, may help promote satiety, or the feeling of fullness, from 3 to 8.5 hours after consumption (5). Tate & Lyle's soluble fibre dextrin is a resistant dextrin that can be isolated from tapioca or corn.
Researchers from Iowa State University provided 41 healthy adults with lunch including a test beverage containing 10 or 20 g of fibre from tapioca SFD versus a maltodextrin control beverage followed by a snack two and a half hours later. The study participants reported feeling fuller, less feeling of hunger and less desire to eat compared to the control beverage from 3 to 8.5 hours after consumption of the beverage that contained 20 g of fibre as SFD, while the SFD had no impact on appetite or overall food intake during the first 2.5 hours post consumption. These results indicate that the SFD may be slowly digested leading to delayed effects on appetite. "This newly developed soluble fibre dextrin can increase fibre intake, helping consumers meet fibre recommendations, while simultaneously controlling their appetite which may lead to reduced energy intake," stated James Hollis, PhD, a lead researcher on the study.
Increased Calcium Absorption
A third study (6), also presented at the American Society for Nutrition Experimental Biology conference in Boston, assessed the effect of PROMITOR Soluble Corn Fibre* (SCF) on fecal microbiota (bacterial environment of the gut) in relation to calcium absorption in 24 racially diverse, male and female adolescentsa population in need of adequate calcium intake for bone growth and development. Researchers from Purdue University found that when the adolescents consumed 12 g/day of SCF versus a control, they experienced a 12% increase in calcium absorption. This increase in calcium absorption was correlated with significant increases in specific strains of beneficial bacteria, namely Bacteroides, Alistipes, Butyricicoccus, Oscillibacter, and Dialister in the gut suggesting that SCF may increase calcium absorption through changes in gut microbiota (6).
"Emerging research on soluble corn fibre indicates that added fibres provide health benefits such as increased calcium absorption via their effect on beneficial bacteria" said Connie Weaver, PhD, a lead researcher on this study. This is the first study to show that increases in these specific bacteria were significantly correlated with the observed increase in calcium absorption.
Meeting Fibre Intake Recommendations
Most fibre recommendations for adults call for intakes ranging from 25-38 g/day depending on country specific worldwide guidelines (3). While individuals should increase their consumption of dietary fibre from sources such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains, fibres added to foods, like PROMITOR Soluble Corn Fibre*, STA-LITE Polydextrose, and soluble fibre dextrin, can help close the gap between recommended and actual intakes of fibre while providing additional health benefits such as increased calcium absorption, improved gut health, and increased satiety.
"The results from these new studies add to the growing body of research that supports the addition of fibres to foods that consumers are already eating, which easily allows for increased fibre intakes and provides added health benefits," said Priscilla Samuel, PhD, Director of Global Nutrition for Tate & Lyle. "Tate & Lyle is committed to investment in innovation and research to ensure that our ingredients, which can be incorporated into great tasting foods, can also help consumers meet their nutrition, health and wellness needs every day."
*PROMITOR Soluble Gluco Fibre in Europe
###
About Tate & Lyle:
Tate & Lyle is a global provider of ingredients and solutions to the food, beverage and other industries, operating from over 30 production facilities around the world.
Tate & Lyle operates through two global business units, Speciality Food Ingredients and Bulk Ingredients, supported by Innovation and Commercial Development. The Group's strategy is to become the leading global provider of Speciality Food Ingredients through a disciplined focus on growth, and by driving the Bulk Ingredients business for sustained cash generation to fuel this growth.
Speciality Food Ingredients include starch-based speciality ingredients (corn-based speciality starches, sweeteners and fibres), no calorie sweeteners (including SPLENDA Sucralose) and Food Systems which provides blended ingredient solutions. Bulk Ingredients include corn-based bulk sweeteners, industrial starches and fermentation products (primarily acidulants). The co-products from both divisions are primarily sold as animal feed.
Tate & Lyle is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol TATE.L. American Depositary Receipts trade under TATYY. In the year to 31 March 2012, Tate & Lyle sales totalled 3.1 billion. http://www.tateandlyle.com. SPLENDA is a trademark of McNeil Nutritionals, LLC.
References:
U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/dgas2010-dgacreport.htm
Spiller GA (ed.) CRC Handbook of Dietary Fiber in Human Nutrition, 3rd Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, Fla. 2001.
Gray J. Dietary Fibre. Definition, Analysis, Physiology and Health. ILSI Europe Dietary Fibre Concise Monograph Series. 2006. http://www.ilsi.org.ar/index.php?com=descarga&que=publicaciones&id=80
Timm DA, Thomas W, Boileau TW, Williamson-Hughes PS, Slavin JL. Polydextrose and Soluble Corn Fiber Increase Five-Day Fecal Wet Weight in Healthy Men and Women. J Nutr. 143:473-478;2013.
Hutchinson C, Hsu WH, Hollis JH. Effect of soluble fiber dextrin on postprandial appetite and subsequent food intake in healthy adults. Presented at Experimental Biology. Boston, MA. April 20-24, 2013.
Whisner CM, Nakatsu CH, Martin BR, McCabe LD, McCabe GP, Weaver CM. Soluble corn fiber modulates calcium absorption by altering colonic microbiota.. Poster at Experimental Biology. Boston, MA. April 20-24, 2013.
[ | 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.
Queens Mama, Sandy Jimenez, discusses why pre-school is an important part of childhood learning and development.![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 22-Apr-2013
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