The Ghost Bike story | The Legal Examiner Chico

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Posted by John DemasNovember 06, 2012 6:15 PM

In 2003 a Ghost Bike project was launched in St. Louis, Missouri after Patrick Van Der Tuin witnessed a motorist strike a bicyclist. He later put a white-painted bicycle on the spot with a sign that read ?Cyclist Struck Here.? Motorists were indeed paying attention to these haunting bikes, so Van Der Tuin enlisted the help of friends to place 15 more ghost bikes in prominent areas.

To-date, it has been estimated that there are over 500 ghost bikes in over 180 locations around the world including New York City, Seattle and Toronto to name a few.

Below is a better explanation of what a Ghost Bike is and why they what their intended purpose is.

What is a Ghost Bike?

Ghost bikes are small and somber memorials for bicyclists that were killed or struck on the road by a motor vehicle. The bicycle is painted white and set up as a roadside memorial. The white bikes are often old and/or mangled for dramatic effect, than attached to a suitable object such a stop sign or lamp post.

What?s the Purpose of a Ghost Bike?

Aside from serving as a memorial, it is intended as a silent reminder for passing motorists to share the road and practice safe driving. In short they are reminders to support bicyclists? right to safe travel.

A Google search finds Ghost Bikes have recently been placed in Boston and Chicago to memorialize the recent deaths of bicyclists?. The Web site GhostBikes.org chronicles the custom and has more information.

Bicycle Safety Tips

Control your bicycle ? About half of cyclist accidents are single rider crashes. Learn how to properly control your bike by starting, stopping and smoothly stopping.

Know the rules ? In all 50 states, a bicycle is considered a legal vehicle. As such you are required to obey all traffic laws, signs and signals. Ride in the direction of traffic, on the right side. NEVER ride against traffic.

Bicycle Protection ? Helmets serve as your last line of protection. Make sure you are using a CPSC-approved bike helmet that properly fits your head. Reflectors attached to the bicycle wheels and the rider wearing reflective clothing is also important practice for bicycle safety.

%ta_ start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255)% About John Demas %ta_ start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255)% John Demas is a Sacramento personal injury attorney who represents the victims of DUI accidents, as well as those involved in other vehicular collisions, pedestrian accidents, bicycle crashes, slip-and-fall accidents, dog bite injury accidents, and product liability lawsuits. Demas Law Group, P.C., is dedicated to giving injury victims the best possible legal representation.

Source: http://chico.legalexaminer.com/miscellaneous/the-ghost-bike-story-.aspx?googleid=305374

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TECHdotMN ? Minnesota Broadband and Biz: Oct 2012

By Ann Treacy, Blandin on Broadband

The National Broadband Plan (released in 2010) and the Minnesota Broadband Task Force report (released in 2009) that informed the Minnesota Broadband Law both promote public-private partnerships as a way to improve broadband expansion.

Minnesota has seen both sides of that coin so far ? partnerships that has gone smoothly, resulting in progress, and where partnership has wavered, leading to stalled infrastructure developments.

In the last month, the Blandin on Broadband blog has highlighted several stories on efforts to improve broadband in various areas:

• Brainerd: Local newspapers published diverging editorials on broadband deployment in Brainerd. Northland?s NewsCenter?s editorial spoke about excitement building for the nearly 430 miles of fiber optic network cable that is underway in Brainerd. While the Brainerd Dispatch editorial was surprised that public money is going to build redundant networks.

• Cloquet Valley: Cloquet Valley Internet Initiative has implemented recommendations based on a feasibility study from U-reka Broadband. They are testing new satellite improvements and making plans for other options.

• Dakota County: Dakota County is detailing long term government plans for infrastructure construction, which they will share with utility companies in March 2013. It is an opportunity for interested utilities to talk to local governments about piggybacking their plans for construction. The goal is to plan to dig once and make room for plenty of conduit.

• Fergus Falls: Dave Bickett, from Park Region/Otter Tail Telecom, spoke at the Minnesota Telecom Alliance conference about Fergus Falls Forward, a partnership between local economic development efforts and the broadband provider. He detailed their success in promoting telework as a local economic development strategy.

• Goodhue & Dakota Counties: Goodhue and Dakota County officials are talking about joining together to purchase 44 strands of optical fiber that are being installed between Red Wing and Hastings. This would help further the multi-county network being developed by metro area counties and expanding to more rural places.

• Kanabec County: Kanabec County presented their broadband feasibility study to the community. It offers two options: one focused on a FTTP deployment and one focused on a fiber-wireless hybrid.

• Lake County: Lake Communications, Two Harbors and Frontier Communications are discussing ownership of utility poles and the issue of pole attachments as Lake Communication tries to strong fiber in the area. Frontier Communications apparently owns the poles, the county has been maintaining them and Lake Communications would like to gain access to them.

• Ramsey County: After working with a private company for three years, Ramsey County plans to reopen their RFP to deploy fiber to anchor institutions. Recently the St Paul Area Chamber has been involved with the process. Initially St Paul was also interested in working with Ramsey County; it sounds as if that part of the plan is also in question.

• Sibley and Renville Counties: Sibley County Commissions voted to discontinue their relationship with Renville-Sibley County Joint Powers (RS Fiber), leaving towns and Renville County to move forward with fiber to the home plans without them. They cited concerns with legal opinions and business plans based on low interest rates. Before the vote, dueling editorials had been published in local newspapers. After the vote, Sibley County farmers are considering options for a cooperative to move forward with a fiber to the farm plan. Preliminary remarks indicate that they may work with RS Fiber.

• Thief River Falls: Dick Sjoberg of Sjoberg Cable talks about how his company has partnered with local MIRC (Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities) efforts to offer reduced rate broadband connections to low income households in the area. It had been a project that brings together profit and nonprofit motives to provide a valuable service to residents.

Source: http://tech.mn/news/2012/11/06/minnesota-broadband-and-biz-oct-2012/

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altigen-communications-inc-to-announce-fourth-quarter ... - VoIP Wire

SOURCE: AltiGen Communications

SAN JOSE, CA?(Marketwire ? Nov 5, 2012) ? AltiGen Communications, Inc. (OTCQX: ATGN), the leading provider of integrated Microsoft-based Unified Communications solutions, will announce its fourth quarter and fiscal year 2012 financial results after the close of regular market trading on Wednesday, November 14, 2012. The Company will also hold a conference call to discuss the results at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. ET).

What:
AltiGen Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2012 Conference Call

When:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. ET)

Who:
Jeremiah Fleming, Chief Executive Officer and President, and Philip McDermott, Chief Financial Officer

How:
Dial (877) 407-8031 (domestic) or (201) 689-8031 (international) to listen in to the call. A live webcast will also be made available at www.altigen.com. A telephonic replay will be available approximately one hour after the call through December 14, 2012. To access the replay, dial (877) 660-6853 (domestic) or (201) 612-7415 (international), account #286 conference ID #403572.?A web archive will be made available at www.altigen.com for 90 days following the call?s conclusion.

About AltiGen Communications, Inc.

AltiGen Communications, Inc. (OTCQX: ATGN) is a leading provider of 100% Microsoft-based VoIP business phone systems and Unified Communications solutions. Having more than 10,000 customers around the world, AltiGen solutions are designed for high reliability, ease of use, seamless integration to Microsoft infrastructure technologies, and are built on a scalable, open standards platform. AltiGen?s worldwide headquarters is in Silicon Valley, California, with international operations based in Shanghai, China. Local sales, service and support are provided by AltiGen?s worldwide network of over 300 certified partners. For more information, call 1-888-ALTIGEN or visit the web site at www.altigen.com.

Source: http://www.voipwire.co.uk/altigen-communications-inc-to-announce-fourth-quarter-and-fiscal-year-2012-results/

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Statin substitutes go beyond drawing board

New cholesterol-lowering drugs help people who can?t take the usual ones

By Nathan Seppa

Web edition: November 5, 2012

LOS ANGELES ? People who can?t take cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins may someday have an alternative drug option that works about as well. Three new studies show that antibodies developed to target specific proteins in cells can knock down LDL, the so-called bad cholesterol, at a rate comparable to the highly successful statins, which go by brand names including Lipitor and Crestor.

The experimental drugs take a unique biological approach to clearing LDL from the blood, suggesting that they might replace statins in people who cannot abide those drugs? side effects, particularly muscle pain. The new drugs may even work in conjunction with statins in people who inherit extremely high cholesterol.

Called biological products or ?biologics? because they contain natural components, the new drugs may fill a niche currently vexing doctors. ?We have been bumping up against statin intolerance in patients,? often in people who have had a heart attack, said Peter Wilson, an endocrinologist at Emory University and the Veterans? Affairs Medical Center in Atlanta. Wilson, who wasn?t part of these studies, estimates that 5 to 15 percent of people who need statins can?t take them. ?We now have biologics to treat this hyper-cholesterolemia, and they?re effective.?

The new drugs, including AMG-145 and RN-316, are still in the testing stage. But researchers offered tantalizing early results November 5 at a meeting of the American Heart Association. Cardiologist Evan Stein of the Metabolic and Atherosclerosis Research Center in Cincinnati reported that people with very high LDL who got AMG-145 injections every four weeks experienced a 41 to 51 percent drop in LDL scores by 12 weeks, depending on the dose. That study was also released online in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Another AMG-145 study showed LDL reductions of 43 to 55 percent in people with inherited high cholesterol. Those findings also appeared in Circulation. The drug is made by Amgen.

RN-316, made by Pfizer, knocked down LDL by up to 75 percent in a 12-week trial, reported Barry Gumbiner, an endocrinologist at Pfizer in San Diego. ?This is a new drug that shows a lot of promise, but there?s still a long way to go,? he said.

The drugs are antibodies that free up a protein on cells called the LDL receptor that lowers LDL by pulling it out of circulation. The antibodies do this by targeting a troublesome protein called PCSK9 that binds to LDL receptors, bogging them down.

?Cholesterol is essential for the normal functioning of cells,? said Frederick Raal, an endocrinologist at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg who presented the Circulation study. Even as LDL receptors remove LDL from the blood, the PCSK9 protein acts as a brake on that process, he said. Targeting PCSK9 allows the receptors to snag more LDL.

Besides helping people who cannot take statins, Raal said, the drugs may be added to therapy in those who can tolerate statins but who fail to benefit fully from those drugs even at high doses. That includes people with hereditary high cholesterol. Only a few hundred people in the United States have an extreme form of this condition inherited from both parents, Wilson said.? But about 500,000 have inherited the condition from one parent and fight high cholesterol all their lives, he said. Statins alone often don?t get their LDL levels into the safe range.

This line of research has come full circle. PCSK9 was originally found because people who lack it have few heart problems, Gumbiner said. ?Their LDL levels are much lower, and they live long, healthy lives,? he said. ?That was the genesis for looking at this as a drug target.?

---

Citations

B. Gumbiner. Effects of 12 Weeks of Treatment with RN316 (PF-04950615), a Humanized IgG2?a Monoclonal Antibody Binding Proprotein Convertase Subtilisin Kexin Type 9, in Hypercholesterolemic Subjects on High and Maximal Dose Statins. Oral presentation session LBCT.04. November 5, 2012, American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, Los Angeles.

F. Raal et al. Reduction of LDL-C with PCSK9 inhibition in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia disorder (RUTHERFORD): Results from a phase 2, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled trial. Oral presentation session LBCT-04. November 5, 2012, American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, Los Angeles.

F. Raal et al. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol lowering effects of AMG-145, a monoclonal antibody to proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 serine protease in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. Circulation. Published online Nov. 5, 2012. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.112.144055.

E.A. Stein et al. Goal achievement after utilizing ananti-PCSK9 antibody in statin-intolerant subjects (GAUSS): Results from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Oral presentation session LBCT-04. November 5, 2012, American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, Los Angeles.

D. Sullivan et al. Effect of a monoclonal antibody to PCSK9 on low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in statin-intolerant patients. Journal of the American Medical Association. Published online November 5, 2012. doi: 10.1001/jama.2012.25790.

E.A. Stein et al. Effect of a monoclonal antibody to PCSK9, REGN727/SAR236553, to reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia on stable statin dose with or without ezetimibe therapy: a phase 2 randomised controlled trial. Lancet. Vol. 380, July 2012, p. 29. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60771-5.

Source: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/346251/title/Statin_substitutes_go_beyond_drawing_board

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"Wreck-It Ralph" hammers box office, sails over "Flight"

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Wreck-It Ralph," Disney's animated film about a videogame character who destroys everything in his path, scored the highest-grossing opening weekend in Disney animation history with $49.1 million, as box office attendance picked up in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy.

The tally for "Wreck-It Ralph," which features the voices of John C. Reilly and Jane Lynch, hammered the Denzel Washington film "Flight," which generated ticket sales of $25 million at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

After a quiet box office last weekend with the U.S. East Coast preparing for superstorm Sandy, there was a jump in movie attendance this week in areas hit by the storm.

Dave Hollis, executive vice president of film distribution at Walt Disney Studios, told Reuters that movie attendance in affected areas was "very healthy," boosted by school closures on Friday, which saw a bounce in matinee showings.

"In a nice way, 'Wreck-It Ralph,' in areas affected by the storm, ended up actually becoming an opportunity to relieve yourself from the reality that might be going on around you, we saw the theater business around areas affected by the storm very healthy," Hollis said.

"The storm and its impact - I don't know if it was a function of cabin fever or just escaping by getting into a movie theater, but there was definitely a gravitating-towards-the- theater phenomenon."

Disney had developed "Wreck-It Ralph" for more than a decade and spent an estimated $165 million to produce the film, which featured cameo appearances by a Pac-Man ghost and Mentos candy.

The film was produced by the same team behind Disney's animated film "Tangled," which earned the previous highest opening weekend gross with $48.8 million in 2010. "Wreck-It Ralph" was forecast to generate sales in the mid-$40 million range, according to Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box office division of Hollywood.com.

New release "Flight," in which Washington stars as an airline captain who saves his plane from crashing but is accused of drinking before the flight, beat industry analysts' $13 million forecast. The film, produced by Viacom's Paramount Pictures unit, was made on a $31 million budget.

STORM BOOST

Unlike "Wreck-It Ralph," "Flight" did not experience the same benefit from school closures in parts of the East Coast, according to Don Harris, president of distribution at Paramount Pictures.

"The Disney movie would benefit from school being out in a large number of big urban and suburban eastern markets, they were always going to have a very good opening, I think they got a little help on Friday," Harris told Reuters.

He also said that the target adult audience for "Flight" would have probably been occupied with Tuesday's presidential election and being "more active in helping people in their neighborhood" in the aftermath of Sandy, and not necessarily attending theaters this weekend.

"We did about what we expected to do but we certainly didn't get a bump. I don't think it hurt us very much either," Harris said.

Critically acclaimed Iran hostage thriller "Argo," last week's box office leader, came in third this weekend after generating $10.2 million in sales.

Directed by and starring Ben Affleck, "Argo," produced by Warner Bros. and GK Films for $44 million, is based on the true story of a mission to rescue U.S. government employees held hostage in Iran in 1979. It has totaled $75.9 million in three weeks at movie theaters and earned Oscar buzz after stellar reviews from critics.

New release "The Man With The Iron Fists" was unable to beat "Argo's" momentum this weekend and came in fourth with ticket sales of $8.2 million.

Starring Russell Crowe and hip hop artist RZA, the film, produced on a budget of $15 million, follows a blacksmith in 19th-century China trying to defend his village from warriors and assassins searching for gold.

In fifth place, "Taken 2," an action-thriller starring Liam Neeson as a former spy who is kidnapped in Istanbul, earned $6 million this weekend. It has generated a total of $125.7 million at the U.S. and Canadian box office since its release last month.

Overseas, the new James Bond film, "Skyfall," enjoyed a stellar second weekend, earning $156 million in ticket sales at the international box office. The film will be released in North American theaters on November 9.

Walt Disney Co released "Wreck-It Ralph." "Flight" was distributed by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc. Warner Bros., a division of Time Warner Inc, distributed "Argo." Universal Studios released "Man with the Iron Fists." "Taken 2" was released by 20th Century Fox, a unit of News Corp.

(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy and Ronald Grover; Editing by Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/wreck-ralph-crushes-box-office-competitors-171234810--sector.html

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You?ll Never Guess What Apple Is Being Accused Of In New Zealand (Updated)

Apple has been involved in lawsuits all over the world in the last two years. From a billion-dollar windfall in the US to bitter defeat here in Australia, the Apple legal team has had nothing short of a rollercoaster time of it. Now Apple is in legal hot water in New Zealand, not against another tech giant, but against a disgruntled customer over a $NZ35 purchase.

It wasn?t just any $NZ35 purchase that Adam Crouchley bought from the New Zealand online Apple Store. He claims he stumbled upon a bug that saw products that were meant to be priced towards $100 marked down ? presumably in error ? to less than a dollar.

Naturally, Adam reportedly chatted with an Apple employee online who confirmed the prices were legitimate. You beauty, though Adam, who went and placed an order that would normally be around $NZ1600 for the paltry sum of ? you guessed it ? $NZ35.

Before he could get his hands on the super-cheap swag, though, Apple Australia (who runs the Apple New Zealand store) allegedly cancelled the order, which left Adam decidedly miffed.

Apple apparently intercepted some of the packages before they could reach Adam and cancelled the rest of the order. Some gear had already landed on his doorstep which Apple has said it will honour, but Adam is taking the tech giant to the Disputes Tribunal on December 13.

From billion-dollar lawsuits right down to $NZ35 squabbles. Never a dull day for Apple, is there?

Update: Adam kindly got in touch in the comments below and clarified that he?s not suing Apple as it were, he?s taking them to the tribunal. He writes:

To clarify, I am not SUEING Apple, that is not accurate. I am taking them to disputes tribunal, (small claims court).

I contacted Apple to confirm the price twice, by online chat and by phone. They confirmed on both occasions. I only bought gear for my office, not for resale, and I have not actually received anything at all like the story says.

Adam also claims to have the screenshots from his conversation with Apple. Here?s hoping he comes back to post them like we?ve asked!

[TVNZ]

Source: http://feeds.gizmodo.com.au/~r/GizmodoAustralia/~3/_Hyu8D_UQpM/

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Florida Democrats file suit to extend early voting in some counties

Published: Sunday, November 4, 2012 at 6:29 p.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, November 4, 2012 at 6:29 p.m.

TALLAHASSEE ? Florida?s early voting period, which was shortened from two weeks to eight days last year by the Republican-led Legislature, came to a controversial conclusion over the weekend.

On Sunday, the Florida Democratic Party filed a lawsuit in federal court in Miami urging the court to order extended early voting times in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties ? three counties with roughly a third of the state?s Democrats.

?The extraordinarily long lines deterred or prevented voters from waiting to vote,? the lawsuit said. ?Some voters left the polling sites upon learning of the expected wait, and others refused to line up altogether. These long lines and extreme delays unduly and unjustifiably burdened the right to vote.?

There is no indication how the court will handle the lawsuit and whether it will act before Election Day.

Five counties ? Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, Orange, Hillsborough and Pinellas ? responded on their own by allowing voters to come to the local supervisor of elections? office on Sunday to cast an in-person absentee ballot, which is a procedure that can be done in any local elections office during normal business hours until the polls close on Tuesday.

In a separate action, a judge in Orange County extended early voting on Sunday at a Winter Park site that had been closed on Saturday because of a suspicious package.

Democrats and groups aligned with them had urged Gov. Rick Scott to extend the early voting period after witnessing long lines and waiting times of up to six hours in some of the state?s largest counties. Scott rejected that plea.

The early voting period is critical to the Democrats because the latest data shows they are not likely to duplicate the advantage they had in early voting in the 2008 presidential race, where Barack Obama carried the state by a 2.8 percent margin.

Based on an analysis of the 2008 race in Florida by associate professor Michael McDonald of George Mason University, the Democrats had more than a 363,000-vote margin in the 4.3 million early or absentee ballots that were cast. It represented 45.6 percent of the pre-Election Day vote to the Republicans? 37.3 percent. And much of the Democrats? advantage came from the two-week early voting period rather than the absentees, where the GOP was stronger.

Other analyses put the Democrats? margin at closer to 280,000 votes in 2008.

But, in either case, based on the latest total of 4.42 million early and absentee votes, the Democrats are heading into Tuesday?s election with roughly a 160,000-vote advantage. It represents a 42.7 percent margin to the GOP?s 39 percent of those votes.

The impact of the shortened early voting period is also apparent in the latest numbers. Early voting is down from 2008 ? from 2.6 million votes to 2.4 million. Absentees are up from 2008 ? at least 2 million to the 1.74 milllion cast in the previous presidential race.

Nevertheless, the total of votes cast indicate that more than half of the Floridians who will vote in this year?s presidential race will have done so before Election Day.

The estimate is based on the assumption that roughly 8.9 million Florida voters will participate in the election ? based on a 75 percent turnout in line with the last two presidential elections in the state.

The pre-Election Day voting is part of a continuing trend in the state. In 2008, 52 percent of the 8.4 million voters who voted in the general election did it in the same way.

Source: http://www.ocala.com/article/20121104/articles/121109860

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