SAN ANTONIO -- David Ash threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes, the last a 36-yard strike to Marquise Goodwin with 2:24 left, to give Texas a 31-27 comeback victory over No. 15 Oregon State in the Alamo Bowl on Saturday night. ?
The Longhorns (9-4) never led before Goodwin scored his second touchdown on a deep post pattern, just a down after Texas converted a fourth-and-1 play to keep its chances alive. ?
Storm Woods ran for 118 yards and scored two touchdowns for Oregon State (9-4). The Beavers left stunned after looking as though they would wrap up their first 10-win season since 2006. ?
Down 20-10 at halftime, Texas coach Mack Brown said he told his players they would win. ?
"I told them this it wasn't going to be easy, but I told them this game was ours and we would win it," Brown said. "This one is really special." ?
The victory was a dose of much-needed good news for Texas after coming into the game under a cloud of questions following the suspensions of backup quarterback Chase McCoy and injured linebacker Jordan Hicks. ?
Ash, whose been pulled at times for McCoy this season, was 21 of 33 for 241 yards. Ash sputtered until the fourth quarter, when he went 9 for 11 for 146 yards. Texas had no choice but to stick with the only backups two redshirt freshmen who haven't taken a snap all season.? ?
Brown announced the suspensions Friday but wouldn't reveal which players were sent home. A person with knowledge of the suspensions told The Associated Press the players were McCoy and Hicks, speaking on condition of anonymity because Texas wasn't releasing the names. ?
Brown addressed the suspensions during a previously schedule news conference and referred to a local TV report that police were investigating two unidentified Texas players in an alleged sexual assault at a San Antonio hotel. Police released a heavily redacted incident report that only identifies the suspects as two students, one 20 and the other 21. ?
Authorities are still investigating and no charges have been filed. ?
Brown said he would not address the suspensions further. ?
Oregon State quarterback Cody Vaz was 15 of 28 for 194 yards. The Beavers had negative 4 yards in the fourth quarter as they were muffled by the Longhorns defense that was led by Alex Okafor, who finished with 4 1/2 sacks. The Longhorns had 10 sacks in the game.
Although Goodwin's touchdown catch might have won the game, two spectacular Texas plays in an earlier 83-yard scoring drive handed the Longhorns momentum -- and a chance. ?
First was wide receiver Jaxon Shipley rescuing a pass sailing behind him with a dazzling one-handed grab at midfield. Ash made up for that off-target throw six plays later, slithering out of safety Anthony Watkins' near-certain sack and flinging the ball to Jonathan Gray, who then zipped down the sideline for a 15-yard scoring play that got the Longhorns to 30-27. ?
The Longhorns played for a national championship in 2009. What's followed has been the shakiest of Brown's 15 years at Texas: a combined 22-16 record, an overhaul of assistant coaches and stubborn instability at quarterback following seven spoiled years with Heisman Trophy finalists Colt McCoy -- the suspended player's brother -- and Vince Young under center. ?
A surge of four consecutive victories late this season put this nine-win season in reach -- a benchmark that had been the ho-hum standard of the Brown era. It comes following an unexpected twist earlier this month, when school President Bill Powers went to his blog to write that Brown had his "full support" and would remain the head coach. ?
Powers cited an increase an "increase in media speculation" about Brown's future. It was published on his blog the same day Brown would not yet commit to Ash or Case McCoy as his starting quarterback for the Alamo Bowl. ?
PENDLETON, Ore. (AP) ? A tour bus careened through a guardrail along an icy Oregon highway and 100 feet down a steep embankment Sunday, killing nine people and injuring more than 20 others, authorities said.
The charter bus carrying about 40 people lost control around 10:30 a.m. on snow- and ice-covered lanes of Interstate 84 in a rural area of eastern Oregon, according to the Oregon State Police. The bus crashed near the start of a 7-mile section of road that winds down a hill.
The bus came to rest at the bottom of a snowy slope and landed upright, with little or no debris visible around the crash site.
More than a dozen rescue workers descended the hill and used ropes to help retrieve people from the wreckage in freezing weather. The bus driver was among the survivors, but had not yet spoken to police because of the severity of the injuries the driver had suffered.
Lt. Greg Hastings said the bus crashed along the west end of the Blue Mountains, and west of an area called Deadman Pass. The area is so dangerous the state transportation department published specific warnings for truck drivers, advising it had "some of the most changeable and severe weather conditions in the Northwest" and can lead to slick conditions and poor visibility.
St. Anthony Hospital in Pendleton treated 26 people from the accident, said hospital spokesman Larry Blanc. Five of those treated at St. Anthony were transported to other facilities.
The East Oregonian said it spoke with two South Korean passengers, ages 16 and 17. Both said through a translator that they were seated near the rear of the bus when it swerved a few times, hit the guardrail and flipped. They described breaking glass and seeing passengers pinned by their seats as the bus slid down the hill. Both said that they feared for their lives.
The paper said that the teens, one of whom injured a knee and the other suffered a broken collarbone, were staying at a hotel arranged by the Red Cross.
I-84 is a major east-west highway through Oregon that follows the Columbia River Gorge.
Umatilla County Emergency Manager Jack Remillard said the bus was owned by Mi Joo travel in Vancouver, B.C., and state police said the bus was en route from Las Vegas to Vancouver.
A woman who answered the phone at a listing for the company confirmed with The Associated Press that it owned the bus and said it was on a tour of the Western U.S. She declined to give her name.
A bus safety website run by the U.S. Department of Transportation said Mi Joo Tour & Travel has six buses, none of which have been involved in any accidents in at least the past two years.
The bus crash was the second fatal accident on the same highway in Oregon on Sunday. A 69-year-old man died in a rollover accident about 30 miles west of the area where the bus crashed.
A spokesman for the American Bus Association said buses carry more than 700 million passengers a year in the United States.
"The industry as a whole is a very safe industry," said Dan Ronan of the Washington, D.C.,-based group. "There are only a handful of accidents every year. Comparatively speaking, we're the safest form of surface transportation."
The bus crash comes more than two months after another chartered tour bus in October veered off a highway in northern Arizona, killing the driver and injuring dozens of passengers who were mostly tourists from Asia and Europe. Authorities say the driver likely had a medical episode.
John Arensmeyer, CEO of Small Business Majority, an advocacy group for small business owners, poses for a portrait at the Small Business Majority office in Washington, on Wednesday, July 11, 2012. Health care has been another source of uncertainty for small business owners. The new year will bring some, but probably not all, of the answers to questions about how the new health care law will affect them."They'll have to get their arms around the law, look at their options, learn more about the exchanges," says Arensmeyer. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
In 2013, small-business owners will contend with many of the same issues that made it hard to run their companies over the last 12 months.
They?re also heading into the new year with a lot of uncertainty. It?s unlikely that negotiations in Congress will resolve all of lawmakers? disagreements over tax and budget issues that affect small businesses. And there are still many questions about the implications of the health care law for small companies.
That points to continued caution ? and perhaps slow hiring ? among the nation?s small companies.
"Uncertainty is the bane of every small business," says Scott Shane, a professor of entrepreneurship at Case Western Reserve University?s Weatherhead School of Management in Cleveland. "Their only rational response is to pull in their horns and slow down."
Small businesses aren?t likely to get much encouragement from the economy. It?s expected to grow by no more than 3 percent in 2013, according to the Federal Reserve. That?s a moderate pace, better than the 1.7 percent that the economy grew during the first three quarters of 2012. But it?s also far from robust.
Here?s a look at some of the issues facing small businesses in the coming year:
?
Taxes
Lawmakers are still haggling over what?s called the fiscal cliff, the combination of billions of dollars in tax increases and budget cuts. Even if Congress reaches an agreement, small-business owners won?t have the certainty they need, according to Todd McCracken, president of the National Small Business Association, a group that lobbies on behalf of small companies.
"It almost surely won?t be comprehensive enough that we won?t be revisiting it next year," McCracken says. He?s concerned that there?ll be another fiscal cliff in six months ? which would mean more negotiations and more uncertainty.
story continues below
Many small-business owners are worried about their personal tax rates. Sole proprietors, partners and owners of what are called S corporations, all report the income from their businesses on their individual Form 1040 returns. That means their companies are in effect taxed at personal rates, which can be higher than corporate rates.
One of the most important tax provisions for small businesses, the Section 179 deduction, will shrink to $25,000 next year from $125,000 in 2012. The deduction, which applies to equipment purchases, was $500,000 in 2011. Congress can increase the deduction at any time, even after 2013 has begun. But for the time being, business owners can?t count on getting a big break.
"It?s a huge change for companies planning on making investments," McCracken says.
It?s not known if Congress will extend the 2 percentage point payroll tax cut that workers have had for two years. If it doesn?t, consumers will have less money in their paychecks to spend, and that is likely to affect retailers and any other small businesses that sell directly to the public.
?
Health care
Health care has been another source of uncertainty for small-business owners. The new year will bring some, but probably not all, of the answers to questions about how the new health care law will affect them. Many will have to devote some time to understanding the law ? or hire someone to help them do it.
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Copyright 2012 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Birdwatchers in the San Fernando Valley remain angry after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recently began clearing about 50 acres of land at the Sepulveda Basin. The Corps now says the work will be halted until the agency meets with local environmentalists.
Members of the San Fernando Valley chapter of the?Audubon Society have been walking the south part of the basin below Burbank Boulevard this week. They don?t like what they see. Kris Ohlenkamp says it's a travesty.
"[The Army Corps] said they were going to remove non-native invasive plants. Instead they removed everything," Ohlenkamp says. "Every plant, every shrub, other than a few trees."
The Army Corps says the work is part of a five-year plan that aims to improve public safety in two ways: by improving flood control and controlling homeless populations and public lewd acts reported in the area.?
Thomas Beauchamp, operations branch chief for the Los Angeles Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, says the Corps' work is part of a vegetation management plan.
"We mulched the underbrush in that area," he says. "We did thin some trees on Haskell Creek. And we removed a palm tree, a pine tree and a eucalyptus tree."
Beauchamp maintains that the Army Corps circulated the proposal for public comment, as is required. Under normal circumstances that would be the end of the story. But Beauchamp says the district?s acting chief, Lieutenant Colonel Alex Deraney, has now told the Audubon Society the Corps would stop work ? temporarily ? on this first phase of the plan.
"The commander made a decision to hold off until we meet with [the] Audubon Society, to discuss the re-vegetation, the purpose of the project, and then move forward," Beauchamp says. "Because obviously we want to have a good relationship with them."
This first-phase work is 75% completed, Beauchamp says, and he admits that not a lot of work was likely to happen around the tail end of the holiday season anyway. The pause will give the Army Corps time to explain its plan.?This district, he says, gets only about 7% of the money it needs to manage all of the flood control basins in L.A. That's why the long-term plan is to minimize maintenance costs.
Ohlenkamp says he?s pleased with the Army Corps? move. But he?s not done with his wish list for the engineers. He argues that the Corps? vegetation management plan is inadequate because it doesn?t account for more than 250 species of birds that use the Sepulveda Basin for habitat.
"Their report [says] there are several birds in the area, mostly flying overhead," Ohlenkamp says, dismissively. "And there are mammals including squirrels and mice. And dogs and coyotes run rampantly through the area. That is the entirety of their biological survey."
Ohlenkamp argues that the city and county of Los Angeles spent $100,000 improving the Sepulveda Basin when it was still a wildland reserve. One thing members of the San Fernando Valley Audubon Society will ask for when they meet with the Army Corps is some compensation for what they say the improvements have destroyed.
"This is the old Corps of the '50s and '60s that destroyed the Everglades, and they?ve promised to get away from that," Ohlenkamp says. "They?ve said it?s a mandate of the Corps to be good stewards of the environment and assure a diversity of habitats."
According to Beauchamp and Deraney, the L.A. district of the Army Corps is planning a meeting with environmentalists after the New Year.?
A fossil dealer's guilty plea has set the stage for what is most likely the largest dinosaur fossil repatriation in history, according to an attorney representing the President of Mongolia, the country that will receive most of the fossils that federal officials are seizing from fossil dealer and preparer Eric Prokopi.
On Thursday (Dec. 27) Prokopi pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to smuggling fossils and agreed to forfeit a small menagerie of dinosaurs to federal officials. All but one of the dinosaurs in question came from Mongolia, where law makes fossils state property, and among them is a high-profile skeleton that received a $1.05 million bid at auction.
"We have looked into this, and we can't find any instance anywhere when one country has returned to another a lot of dinosaurs this large and this significant that have been looted or smuggled," said Robert Painter, attorney for Mongolian President Elbegdorj?Tsakhia.
The outcome has set precedent in other ways, according to observers and others who are involved in the case. In particular, some believe it will send a message to those involved in the black market for fossils, particularly those taken from Mongolia, which have been widely available for sale.
A long list of dinosaurs
In May, Prokopi put his 8-foot-tall and 24-foot-long (2.4 meters by 7.3 meters) Tarbosaurus bataar specimen up for auction. President Elbegdorj and several paleontologists objected, saying the dinosaur was almost certainly pilfered from Mongolia. The Manhattan U.S. Attorney became involved and sought legal possession of the dinosaur with the intent of returning it to Mongolia and later arresting Prokopi. [See Images of the Smuggled Tarbosaurus Skeleton]
In a plea deal, Prokopi pleaded guilty to three felony counts and agreed to give up his claim on this dinosaur, plus fossils from two other Tarbosaurus bataars, which are Asian relatives of the infamous T. rex; one Saurolophus or duck-billed dinosaur; and two birdlike Oviraptors. In September, federal officials seized another Saurolophus that Prokopi had sold to California-based gallery and auction houseI.M. Chait. A small four-winged Microraptor from China was taken by federal officials before this case began. One of the Tarbosaurus fossils is believed to be in Great Britain.
"We are pleased that we can now begin the process of returning these prehistoric fossils to their countries of origin," Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement.
Prokopi's prospects
After pleading guilty to charges of smuggling, making false statements on customs forms and dealing in fossils he knew to be illegal, Prokopi faces a maximum of 17 years in prison and a substantial fine. However, his defense attorney Georges Lederman said he believes it is highly unlikely Prokopi will receive anything close to the maximum sentence.
"We are confident that the sentence imposed will be a fair and reasonable one and will take into account all the proactive measures my client has made," Lederman said, noting that Prokopi has cooperated with investigators and, as part of his plea deal, will continue to do so.
The outcome of the case disappointed David Herskowitz, an independent natural history consultant. While employed by auction house Heritage Auctions, Herskowitz arranged for the sale of Prokopi's Tarbosaurus.
"I know Eric, and I know he is not a criminal," Herskowitz said. "I don't believe he knowingly broke any laws, and I believe the only reason why he had to cop a plea was financial and the pressures [of being involved in a court case]."
Prokopi spent a year preparing the Tarbosaurus fossils, which were once rough fossils that made up about 75 percent of a skeleton, to create a complete, mounted specimen with the intent of selling it at auction, Herskowitz said. But the $1 million sale was never completed.
Since releasing a statement in June, in which he described himself as "just a guy in Gainesville, Florida trying to support my family, not some international bone smuggler," Prokopi has been silent.
At roughly the same time federal officials seized the Tarbosaurus bataar, fossils of probable Mongolian origin were easily found in auction catalogs and on eBay. Herskowitz noted that he has seen Mongolian fossils for sale during the 20 years he has been working in the field.
"Mongolia never stepped forward to do anything about the buying and selling of Mongolian fossils, and that was the reason why everyone felt it was legal and OK," Herskowitz said.
A legal question
With the deal still fresh, not everyone agrees about its legal implications. An important issue in the case was the relationship between Mongolian law ? which Prokopi?s civil attorneys said did not clearly make fossils state property ? and U.S. law. This is important because prosecutors were basing the claim that the fossils were stolen on Mongolian law, however, Prokopi was being prosecuted under U.S. law.
From Herskowitz?s perspective, the plea deal doesn?t resolve this issue, but the ambiguity will likely change the market.
??I would believe that no one should be selling Mongolian fossils until this whole thing is resolved,? he said.
Ricardo St. Hilaire, an attorney who practices cultural law, disagreed, saying that the deal created a foundation for using Mongolian law on cultural property to invoke U.S. law on stolen property.
"This conviction should signal to those of us in the legal community and to anybody in the collecting community that Mongolian law has served as the basis to trigger the National Stolen Property Act," St. Hilaire said. Prokopi pleaded guilty to one count of violating this law. [Faux Real: A Gallery of Art Forgeries]
The case and its outcome signal the willingness of the Manhattan U.S. Attorney to pursue cultural property cases, said St. Hilaire, who has been following the case and writing about it on his blog.
Robert Painter, attorney for the Mongolian President, put the significance in more blunt terms: "Smugglers like Eric Prokopi used to think they could do this with impunity. Now they realize this is very serious."
The Mongolian reaction
Mongolian officials have announced plans to establish a temporary facility in the central square of the capital Ulaanbataar to display the dinosaurs once they return, Painter said.
"President Elbegdorj and Mongolians are so grateful for what the U.S. government has done, there is just a tremendous amount of excitement," he said.
The dinosaur's saga from auction block to courtroom has captured Mongolians' attention: A Mongolian media company, shuud.mn, named the dinosaur's story the top event of the year, said Bolorsetseg Minjin, a Mongolian paleontologist who has advocated for the return the dinosaur.
"It is not only on the news, just talking to the people in Mongolia, they really want to know what is going on with the whole case," Minjin said.
Mongolian officials are investigating the illicit trade within their own borders as well, Painter said.
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Copyright 2012 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The Florida Football team closes out its season on Wednesday, January 2nd at 8:30pm ET when it takes on Louisville at the 2013 Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. The game can be seen live on television, online, and via mobile devices; and the audio ?
I have been looking online for different doctors in the area who will do an allergy testing procedure. I am not quite sure what it is that I am allergic to. However, something is really making me sick. I was talking with a friend of mine last week and she told me that an allergy doctor would be able to run some tests and hopefully figure out the problem. I am glad that she gave me this information. Now, I just need an appointment.
TORONTO (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar was flat against its U.S. counterpart on Friday as investors waited for the resumption of talks in Washington to avoid a fiscal crisis and currency players squared positions for year-end and month-end balances.
World shares sagged and the dollar climbed as U.S. President Barack Obama and lawmakers were set to have a last round of talks before a New Year's deadline to reach a deal and avoid massive tax hikes and spending cuts that could drag the economy, and others around the world, into recession.
Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will meet congressional leaders from both parties at the White House at 3.00 p.m. ET.
Commodity-linked currencies like the Canadian dollar tend to benefit when U.S. budget negotiations run smoothly, but when there are snags, investor flows go into the highly liquid U.S. dollar.
"Canada is sidewise, there is not much to say when the range is 17 points. The flow in dollar-Canada is really in many respects a microcosm of the overall flow, which is a function of 'cliff' developments," said Jack Spitz, managing director of foreign exchange at National Bank Financial.
"That being said, we remain cognizant of month-end as well as well as year-end rebalancing flow as well as repatriation, all of which is expected to be U.S. dollar positive. Add to the equation, thin market conditions and an overall Street that is sensitive to position squaring."
At 7:30 a.m., the Canadian dollar stood at C$0.9951 versus the U.S. dollar, or $1.0049, barely changed from Thursday's North American session close at C$0.9949 versus the U.S. dollar, or $1.0051.
The Canadian currency hit C$0.9959 on Thursday, its weakest level since November 28, after U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the top Democrat in Congress, warned a deal was unlikely before the deadline.
Canadian government bond prices were higher across the curve on the flight to safety. The two-year bond was up 2 Canadian cents, yielding 1.127 percent, while the benchmark 10-year bond rose 8 Canadian cents to yield 1.786 percent.
(Reporting by Andrea Hopkins; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
Did you pony up $699 or more to the Kickstarter-famed Ouya in hopes of an early hands-on with the unreleased gaming platform? If so, you may want to keep an eye on your email's inbox, because orders for the developer version of the Android-powered console are starting to ship out. As for the package itself, early adopters can expect a dev unit console, two controllers and a copy of the system's "ODK" software development kit. If you went all-in on Ouya and have received your order or notification email, we'd love to hear about it via the comments below.
The first genome sequence of Chinese plum provides important resource for fruit improvementPublic release date: 27-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jia Liu liujia@genomics.cn BGI Shenzhen
Study published online today in Nature Communication
December 27, 2012, Shenzhen, China - A Chinese research team, led by Beijing Forestry University, BGI, Beijing Lin Fu Ke Yuan Flowers Co., Ltd, and other institutes, has completed the first genomic sequence of Prunus mume, known as mei. This work is extremely important for the deeper understanding of Rosaceae evolution and provides an invaluable resource for the improvement of fruit trees. The latest study was published online today in Nature Communication.
As one of the longest-lived flowering fruit trees, the P. mume was domesticated in China more than 3,000 years ago. It belongs to Rosaceae, the third most economically important plant family in temperate regions, and is characterized by high nutrition, medical value, and tolerance to low temperature in winter. Writers and artists have extolled the beauty of its flowers, and the blossom is considered to be the symbol of Chinese national spirit. The availability of P. mume genome will open a new way for better decoding the mysteries of this fascinating tree.
The plantation technique that makes P. mume so diverse--the artificial grafting--also makes their genomes difficult to assemble. In this study, researchers sequenced the genome of P. mume, a wild species from Tibet in China, using a robust approach integrated with next-generation sequencing (NGS) and whole-genome mapping (WGM) technologies. Then they constructed a high-density genetic map by applying restriction-site-associated DNA (RAD) marker strategy that further improves the quality of the genomic reference. Through all the efforts, researchers yielded the ~237Mb P. mume reference genome.
The poor phylogenetic resolution of the Rosaceae suggests rapid evolution within the family. In this study, the evolutionary analysis of P. mume genome demonstrated that there was no recent whole-genome duplication (WGD) event happened after the differentiation between P. mume and Malus x domestica (apple). However, the triplicated genomic arrangement was found in the P. mume genome by paleo-history analysis in Prunus.
Supported by the genomic data of apple and strawberry (Fragaria vesca), researchers successfully reconstructed nine ancestral chromosomes of Rosaceae family, and analyzed the chromosome fusion, fission and duplication history in three major subfamilies, including genera Prunus, Malus and Fragaria. Through analysis, they hypothesized that at least 11 fissions and 11 fusions occurred in P. mume from the nine common ancestral chromosomes. For apple, at least one WGD and five fusions took place to reach the 17-chromosome structure, compared with 15 fusions for strawberry to affect the 7-chromosome structure.
P. mume is one of the first trees that bloom in early spring, blooming even below 0?. In this study, researchers investigated the genetic characteristics underlying the mechanisms related to acclimate to cold weather and release itself from dormancy. They found that dormancy-associated MADS-box transcription factors (DAM) family and C-repeat-binding transcription factors (CBF) were two important factors related with flowering dormancy.
As the saying goes, "Plum blossom incense from the cold weather", P. mume always has a special fragrance in winter. To understand its mechanism of floral scent, researchers identified a series genes related to the biosynthesis of volatile compounds, such as benzyl alcohol acetyltransferase (BEAT) gene. They supposed the expansion of the BEAT gene family might increase the content of benzyl acetate and therefore induces the special fragrance of P. mume.
The disease resistance related-genes may benefit the future breeding improvement. In this study, researchers found many related genes expanded tremendously in the P. mume genome, such as leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase (LRR-RLK) genes, the nucleotide-binding site-coding resistant gene (NBS-coding R gene), and pathogenesis-related (PR) gene families. It was reported that PR proteins could mediate plant defence against pathogenic constraints and the general adaptation to stressful environments. Most PR gene families in P. mume were expanded notably especially PR10, suggesting their expansion might be related to the response of P. mume to salt, drought and fungal infection in roots and leaves.
Wenbin Chen, Project Manager of BGI, said, "The P. mume genome lays a solid foundation for identification of important economic traits, and provides a valuable resource for P. mume breeding and other Rosaceae species studies. The work here also brings a new approach for further exploring the biosynthesis of floral scent and regulation mechanism of early blooming in endodormancy, and other comparative genomics studies on Rosaceae species."
###
About BGI
BGI was founded in 1999 with the mission of being a premier scientific partner to the global research community. The goal of BGI is to make leading-edge genomic science highly accessible through its investment in infrastructure that leverages the best available technology, economies of scale, and expert bioinformatics resources. BGI, which includes both private non-profit genomic research institutes and sequencing application commercial units, and its affiliates, BGI Americas, headquartered in Cambridge, MA, and BGI Europe, headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, have established partnerships and collaborations with leading academic and government research institutions as well as global biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, supporting a variety of disease, agricultural, environmental, and related applications.
BGI has established a proven track record of excellence, delivering results with high efficiency and accuracy for innovative, high-profile research which has generated over 250 publications in top-tier journals such as Nature and Science. These accomplishments include sequencing one percent of the human genome for the International Human Genome Project, contributing 10 percent to the International Human HapMap Project, carrying out research to combat SARS and German deadly E. coli, playing a key role in the Sino-British Chicken Genome Project, and completing the sequence of the rice genome, the silkworm genome, the first Asian diploid genome, the potato genome, and, most recently, have sequenced the human Gut metagenome, and a significant proportion of the genomes for 1,000 genomes. For more information about BGI please visit www.genomics.cn.
Media Contact:
Bicheng Yang
Public Communication Officer
BGI
86-755-82-639-701 yangbicheng@genomics.cn www.genomics.cn
[ | 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.
The first genome sequence of Chinese plum provides important resource for fruit improvementPublic release date: 27-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jia Liu liujia@genomics.cn BGI Shenzhen
Study published online today in Nature Communication
December 27, 2012, Shenzhen, China - A Chinese research team, led by Beijing Forestry University, BGI, Beijing Lin Fu Ke Yuan Flowers Co., Ltd, and other institutes, has completed the first genomic sequence of Prunus mume, known as mei. This work is extremely important for the deeper understanding of Rosaceae evolution and provides an invaluable resource for the improvement of fruit trees. The latest study was published online today in Nature Communication.
As one of the longest-lived flowering fruit trees, the P. mume was domesticated in China more than 3,000 years ago. It belongs to Rosaceae, the third most economically important plant family in temperate regions, and is characterized by high nutrition, medical value, and tolerance to low temperature in winter. Writers and artists have extolled the beauty of its flowers, and the blossom is considered to be the symbol of Chinese national spirit. The availability of P. mume genome will open a new way for better decoding the mysteries of this fascinating tree.
The plantation technique that makes P. mume so diverse--the artificial grafting--also makes their genomes difficult to assemble. In this study, researchers sequenced the genome of P. mume, a wild species from Tibet in China, using a robust approach integrated with next-generation sequencing (NGS) and whole-genome mapping (WGM) technologies. Then they constructed a high-density genetic map by applying restriction-site-associated DNA (RAD) marker strategy that further improves the quality of the genomic reference. Through all the efforts, researchers yielded the ~237Mb P. mume reference genome.
The poor phylogenetic resolution of the Rosaceae suggests rapid evolution within the family. In this study, the evolutionary analysis of P. mume genome demonstrated that there was no recent whole-genome duplication (WGD) event happened after the differentiation between P. mume and Malus x domestica (apple). However, the triplicated genomic arrangement was found in the P. mume genome by paleo-history analysis in Prunus.
Supported by the genomic data of apple and strawberry (Fragaria vesca), researchers successfully reconstructed nine ancestral chromosomes of Rosaceae family, and analyzed the chromosome fusion, fission and duplication history in three major subfamilies, including genera Prunus, Malus and Fragaria. Through analysis, they hypothesized that at least 11 fissions and 11 fusions occurred in P. mume from the nine common ancestral chromosomes. For apple, at least one WGD and five fusions took place to reach the 17-chromosome structure, compared with 15 fusions for strawberry to affect the 7-chromosome structure.
P. mume is one of the first trees that bloom in early spring, blooming even below 0?. In this study, researchers investigated the genetic characteristics underlying the mechanisms related to acclimate to cold weather and release itself from dormancy. They found that dormancy-associated MADS-box transcription factors (DAM) family and C-repeat-binding transcription factors (CBF) were two important factors related with flowering dormancy.
As the saying goes, "Plum blossom incense from the cold weather", P. mume always has a special fragrance in winter. To understand its mechanism of floral scent, researchers identified a series genes related to the biosynthesis of volatile compounds, such as benzyl alcohol acetyltransferase (BEAT) gene. They supposed the expansion of the BEAT gene family might increase the content of benzyl acetate and therefore induces the special fragrance of P. mume.
The disease resistance related-genes may benefit the future breeding improvement. In this study, researchers found many related genes expanded tremendously in the P. mume genome, such as leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase (LRR-RLK) genes, the nucleotide-binding site-coding resistant gene (NBS-coding R gene), and pathogenesis-related (PR) gene families. It was reported that PR proteins could mediate plant defence against pathogenic constraints and the general adaptation to stressful environments. Most PR gene families in P. mume were expanded notably especially PR10, suggesting their expansion might be related to the response of P. mume to salt, drought and fungal infection in roots and leaves.
Wenbin Chen, Project Manager of BGI, said, "The P. mume genome lays a solid foundation for identification of important economic traits, and provides a valuable resource for P. mume breeding and other Rosaceae species studies. The work here also brings a new approach for further exploring the biosynthesis of floral scent and regulation mechanism of early blooming in endodormancy, and other comparative genomics studies on Rosaceae species."
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About BGI
BGI was founded in 1999 with the mission of being a premier scientific partner to the global research community. The goal of BGI is to make leading-edge genomic science highly accessible through its investment in infrastructure that leverages the best available technology, economies of scale, and expert bioinformatics resources. BGI, which includes both private non-profit genomic research institutes and sequencing application commercial units, and its affiliates, BGI Americas, headquartered in Cambridge, MA, and BGI Europe, headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, have established partnerships and collaborations with leading academic and government research institutions as well as global biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, supporting a variety of disease, agricultural, environmental, and related applications.
BGI has established a proven track record of excellence, delivering results with high efficiency and accuracy for innovative, high-profile research which has generated over 250 publications in top-tier journals such as Nature and Science. These accomplishments include sequencing one percent of the human genome for the International Human Genome Project, contributing 10 percent to the International Human HapMap Project, carrying out research to combat SARS and German deadly E. coli, playing a key role in the Sino-British Chicken Genome Project, and completing the sequence of the rice genome, the silkworm genome, the first Asian diploid genome, the potato genome, and, most recently, have sequenced the human Gut metagenome, and a significant proportion of the genomes for 1,000 genomes. For more information about BGI please visit www.genomics.cn.
Media Contact:
Bicheng Yang
Public Communication Officer
BGI
86-755-82-639-701 yangbicheng@genomics.cn www.genomics.cn
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Ben Affleck might be one of Hollywood's most politically outspoken celebrities, but don't expect him to follow in the footsteps of fellow stars-turned-politicos Arnold Schwarzenegger or Clint Eastwood.
CAIRO (AP) ? The official approval of Egypt's disputed, Islamist-backed constitution Tuesday held out little hope of stabilizing the country after two years of turmoil and Islamist President Mohammed Morsi may now face a more immediate crisis with the economy falling deeper into distress.
In a clear sign of anxiety over the economy, the turbulence of the past month and expected austerity measures ahead have some Egyptians hoarding dollars for fear the currency is about to take a significant turn for the weaker.
The battle over the constitution left Egypt deeply polarized at a time when the government is increasingly cash-strapped. Supporters of the charter campaigned for it on the grounds that it will lead to stability, improve the grip of Morsi and his allies on state institutions, restore investor confidence and bring back tourists.
"In times of change, politics are the driver of the economy and not the other way around," said Mourad Aly, a media adviser for the political arm of the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood, the backbone of Morsi's presidency and the main group that backed the constitution.
But there are already multiple fights on the horizon.
The U.S. State Department bluntly told Morsi it was now time to make compromises, acknowledging deep concerns over the constitution.
"President Morsi, as the democratically elected leader of Egypt, has a special responsibility to move forward in a way that recognizes the urgent need to bridge divisions, build trust, and broaden support for the political process," said Patrick Ventrell, acting deputy spokesman. "We hope those Egyptians disappointed by the result will seek more and deeper engagement. "
He said Egypt "needs a strong, inclusive government to meet its many challenges."
After a spate of resignations of senior aides and advisers during the constitutional crisis, Morsi appeared to have lost another member of his government late Tuesday night when his communications minister posted on his Twitter account that he was resigning.
The minister Hany Mahmoud said he "couldn't cope with the culture of government work, particular in the current conditions of the country." The resignation could not be immediately verified because it came so late at night.
Morsi signed a decree Tuesday night that put the new constitution into effect after the election commission announced the official results of the referendum held over the past two weekends. It said the constitution has passed with a 63.8 percent "yes." Turnout of 32.9 percent of Egypt's nearly 52 million registered voters was lower than most other elections since the uprising nearly two years ago that ousted authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak
Morsi is expected to call for a new election of parliament's lawmaking lower house within two months.
In the meantime, the traditionally toothless upper house, the Shura Council, will hold legislative power. But the chamber is overwhelmingly Islamist-dominated so any laws it passes could spark a backlash from the opposition. Many fear a legal crackdown on independent media, highly critical of Islamists.
In a bid to reach out to opposition, the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood said he hoped the charter will be a "good omen" for Egyptians.
"Let's all begin to build the renaissance of our country with free will, good intentions and strong determination, men, women, Muslims and Christians," Mohammed Badie said on his Twitter account.
But the opposition said the passing of the document is was not the end of the political dispute. Critics fear the constitution will usher in Islamic law in Egypt and restrict personal freedoms.
"This is not a constitution that will last for a long time," said Khaled Dawoud, a spokesman for the main opposition group, the National Salvation Front, vowing to fight for more freedoms, social and economic rights.
In a sign that the new front for the opposition against Morsi's policies may be the economy, Dawoud said the Morsi administration was "confused" both on the political and economic fronts.
"We want stability and economic prosperity like everybody else. But we don't believe that the policies of Morsi and the Brotherhood will lead to more stability," he said.
The turmoil over the constitution sparked huge protests that turned deadly at times. For a moment, the tension looked like it was spiraling out of control and only added to an already weakened economy.
At the height of the protests, the government called off its talks with the International Monetary Fund over a $4.8 billion loan which Morsi's government viewed as a way to attract much needed foreign investors, and deal with a high budget deficit.
Major foreign currency earners, such as foreign direct investment and tourism, have dropped off because of political unrest and deterioration in security following Mubarak's ouster in February 2011.
Over the last two years, the country has lost more than half of its foreign currency reserves from $36 billion in 2010 to around $15 billion currently. The reserve level has been slightly propped up by some Qatari deposits in past months.
Economic experts say that Egypt's current foreign reserves barely cover three months of imports, which is the IMF's minimum recommended coverage.
There were signs on Tuesday that some Egyptians were starting to hoard dollars for fear that the local currency could weaken significantly.
The run on the dollar was fueled in part by a decree issued by Morsi late Monday banning people from leaving Egypt with more than $10,000 or its equivalent in other currencies.
Some currency exchanges in the upscale Cairo neighborhood of Zamalek ran out of dollars by midday and offered only euros ? a rare occurrence. Some banks, too, said they had run out of cash dollars.
"I asked around in many exchange places and can't find dollars anywhere," said Cairo resident Mahmoud Kamel after unsuccessfully visiting one exchange office. "I want to exchange money because I'm afraid the Egyptian pound will not have any value soon."
The dollar rush prompted the Central Bank of Egypt to issue a statement on Monday calling on banks not to listen to rumors circulating about the fiscal health of the nation.
The bank declared its commitment to guarantee all deposits in local and foreign currencies to banks in Egypt and said banks are "financially strong enough."
There was one particularly nerve-rattling report in recent days that longtime Central Bank Governor Farouk Okdah had resigned. The report came on Saturday during the second and final round of voting on the constitutional referendum.
Official media quickly retracted the news after reporting it. The governor then turned up at a meeting of the government's economic team on Sunday in an apparent attempt to quell nervousness over the state of the economy.
Egypt's currency had been stable trading around 6 pounds to the dollar for the first half of the year. It has since slipped, especially in the past two months as political instability worsened. The dollar was selling Tuesday at 6.18.
Rumors swirling around impending tax hikes, subsidy cuts and other bread-and-butter issues have heightened the public's concern. Around 40 percent of Egyptians live just at or below the poverty line of surviving on around $2 a day.
In a sign of the worsening economy, the number of people living on under $1 a day rose to 25 percent in 2011, up from 21.6 percent in 2009, according to government statistics released last month.
Promises that the Islamist-drafted constitution would bring about the stability Egyptians crave were dismissed by economic experts who warned that without enough currency reserves, there is little to stop the pound from falling.
"The instability of the foreign exchange rate is not at all detached from the political instability. It is a reflection and clear mirror to what is happening," said Haytham Abdel Fattah, head of the Treasury and International Markets Manager at Industrial Development Bank.
Michelle Obama took calls from children across the country on Christmas Eve.
Part of the annual NORAD Tracks Santa program, the First Lady answered the phone calls from kids asking about Santa's locations.
"He's on his way to you guys pretty soon, but he doesn't get there until you're fast asleep," she told siblings Griffin and Sophia. "So you guys have to go to bed on time tonight and close your eyes and go fast asleep. And when you wake up in the morning he'll be there -- or he will have come."
She also chatted with kids about their Christmas celebrations and gift wishes.
The Obamas are spending Christmas in Kailua, Hawaii.
Here's a photo of the First Lady on the phone, courtesy of the White House Flickr account.
This article is primarily directed toward people who work at home in a business that happens to involve teamwork in a network marketing environment.
I am often contacted by members of my business team with complaints regarding a lack of response or lack of action on the part of their affiliates. Their complaints typically go something likeI send out lots of emails to all of them and I very rarely get any response and it seems like very few of them are taking any action. What am I doing wrong?.
There are many types of internet-based home businesses where feedback and interaction are quite important and getting an affiliate or business team member to communicate with you is a definite objective. Its not at all surprising that this can be a challenge when you stop to think that what you are trying to do is initiate a dialog between two complete strangers who have never even seen each other.
In the case of network marketing it is of critical importance to build a sense of trust with your team members. Network marketing is very definitely a relationship business and each relationship typically starts out with two complete strangers sitting at their respective keyboards.
The team building aspect of network marketing is of vital importance to the success of each individual member and to the team as a whole. Two key elements of team building are trust and confidence and these factors play a very large role particularly for new team members.
With all that being said many people love the IDEA of making good money working at home in their own business and expect it to just happen chaumet replica but have no willingness to take any action or put forth any effort to make it happen.
Having been involved with team building and network marketing for some time gst chronograph watch I have come to adopt the following as my operating credoif you have the desire and are willing to put in the effort baume & mercier classima executives replica watches Ill pull you along so you can go faster down the road to success girard perregaux watch graham watches but if you dont want move on your own Im not going to waste my time trying to push you forward.
Its like working with a length of chainpulling it along works fine replica movado vivo watches but trying it push it forward only results in a pile of frustration.
You need to be able to distinguish between people that have a legitimate interest in developing a home based business and those lost souls that feel that they have just joined another chat group and only want to engage in an endless debate about the virtues of whatever business you are promoting chopard grand prix de monaco historique watches u-boat classico replica watches but never actually had any intention of establishing a businessyou will have to develop your own method of reading people like this (its mainly a sense of feelsort of a belly button thing).
You can help someone reach for successbut you cant reasonably expect to make them want to be successful. Its just another variation of that very old and tired clichethat you can lead a horse to water but you cant make it drink.
Another way of looking at it is if you are trying to move people forward you pull them from in front (a leadership position) but if you have to push them it will be from behind (not a position of leadership).
Kirk Bannerman operates his own successful home based business and also coaches others seeking to start their own home based business. For more information visit his website at
Retired Army Col. Jack Jacobs talks to MSNBC's Richard Lui about the killing of a U.S. civilian working for the military outside police headquarters in Kabul.
By Akbar Shinwari, NBC News
A U.S. civilian working for the military was killed inside Kabul?s police headquarters when a policewoman opened fire in apparent ?insider? attack, officials told NBC News on Monday.
The man, a member of the International Security Assistance Forces and a logistics adviser to the Kabul police, was severely wounded and died on Monday in the office of the local police chief, according to Mohammad Zahir, head of the criminal investigation department.
Zahir described the incident as an ?insider attack? in which Afghan forces turn their weapons on Western military they are supposed to be working with.?
What's leading Afghan troops to turn on coalition forces?
ISAF confirmed to NBC News the victim was one of its civilian employees.
However, a spokesman for the NATO forces in Afghanistan described the victim to Reuters as "a U.S. police adviser".
No further details were immediately available.
Earlier this year, U.S. military officials briefly suspended the training of Afghan Local Police (ALP) in the wake of a deadly series of insider killings, also known as ?green on blue? attacks.
In a separate incident, an ISAF member died following an insurgent attack in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, according to a statement released to NBC News.?
A blast killed 10 Afghan girls who were collecting firewood in eastern Afghanistan, according to government officials. In a separate incident, two Afghans died in an attack in Kabul. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
More world stories from NBC News:
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(CNN) ? On Christmas, Pope Benedict XVI spread a hopeful message to his followers, calling for peace in many of the world?s hot spots.
From Syria to northern Nigeria, the leader of the Catholic Church urged dialogue and the protection of civilians.
?In this world, there is a good soil God has prepared,? the pope said. ?Consequently, there is hope in the world; a hope in which we can trust, even at the most difficult times and in the most difficult situations.?
Benedict spoke to a crowd of about 50,000 gathered at St. Peter?s Square in Vatican City.
He called for an end to the bloodshed in Syria, where a civil war has claimed more than 40,000 lives.
?May peace spring up for the people of Syria, deeply wounded and divided by a conflict which does not spare even the defenseless and reaps innocent victims,? Benedict said. ?Once again, I appeal for an end to the bloodshed, easier access for the relief of refugees and the displaced, and dialogue in the pursuit of a political solution to the conflict.?
Benedict also asked for dialogue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
?May peace spring up in the land where the redeemer was born, and may he grant Israelis and Palestinians courage to end long years of conflict and division and embark resolutely on the path of negotiation,? he said.
Regarding China, where there have been tensions this year between the Catholic Church and Chinese authorities over the oversight of church leaders there, Benedict called for expanded freedom of religion.
Addressing China?s new leaders, he expressed hope that, ?in fulfilling this task, they will esteem the contribution of the religions, in respect for each, in such a way that they can help to build a fraternal society for the benefit of that noble people and of the whole world.?
Benedict also expressed concern about violence in Mali and Nigeria, ?where savage acts of terrorism continue to reap victims, particularly among Christians.?
And he expressed hope that the citizens of Egypt will ?build societies founded on justice and respect for the freedom and dignity of every person.?
The pontiff added, before delivering Christmas blessings in 65 languages: ?May every land become a good earth which receives and brings forth kindness and truth, justice and peace. Happy Christmas to all of you.?
After a week of silence following the Sandy Hook school shooting that killed 20 first graders and six staff in Newtown, Conn., the National Rifle Association blamed the entertainment industry ? specifically the producers of violent video games for inciting what has become a pattern of gun violence in the United States.
In describing the industry, NRA Vice President Wayne LaPierre said, ?There exists in this country a callous, corrupt and corrupting shadow industry that sells, and sows, violence against its own people.?
Mr. LaPierre faulted the news media for failing to report on ?vicious, violent video games? such as ?Grand Theft Auto,? ?Mortal Kombat,? and ?Splatterhouse? as egregious examples. He also singled out ?Kindergarten Killer,? a free, fairly obscure online game.
?How come my research department could find it and all of yours either couldn?t or didn?t want anyone to know you had found it?? he asked reporters.
Recommended: Second Amendment Quiz
Most academic research, as well as studies by the FBI and the US Secret Service, examining the link between violent video games and incident of violence does not support the gun lobby?s charge.
For example, a 2008 report by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital funded by the US Department of Justice found that violent video games may increase bullying or physical fighting in schools, but not mass gun violence.
?It's clear that the ?big fears? bandied about in the press ? that violent video games make children significantly more violent in the real world; that they will engage in the illegal, immoral, sexist and violent acts they see in some of these games ? are not supported by the current research, at least in such a simplistic form,? the report states.
Joan Saab, director of the visual and cultural studies program at the University of Rochester in New York, says the gaming industry should share in the blame for promoting military weaponry to young people, but adds that the popularity of such games reflect the ?larger culture we live in, which is heavily militarized,? in the midst of lengthy combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Ms. Saab says that the NRA?s call for armed guards in schools would make that kind of military culture more pervasive for children.
?If there are more armed guards in schools, kids are exposed to more guns. That?s when fantasy and reality aren?t blurred. When there are guns in schools, it becomes real life and the day-to-day environment becomes more dangerous than the game,? she says. In Newtown, as in Aurora, Colo. and the sites of other mass shootings, the gunman was outfitted in military-style dress.
By blaming video games for gun violence, the NRA also puts itself in a vulnerable position because, as Mother Jones reports, the company partnered with gaming producer Cave Entertainment in 2006 for ?NRA Gun Club,? a PlayStation 2 game that allows users to fire over 100 different brand-name handguns.
LaPierre did not specify if Congress should move forward in regulating the gaming industry, perhaps because previous attempts were not successful.
A US Supreme Court ruling in 2011 struck down a California law that made it a crime to sell or rent what it classified as violent video games to minors. The ruling said the law, signed by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) in 2005, violates First Amendment protections.
In the wake of Sandy Hook, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller introduced a bill that calls for the National Academy of Sciences to examine the possible links between violent video games and violent incidents caused by children.
Overall, gun-based video games do not wholly represent total gaming industry sales, according to data from VGChartz, a UK-based research firm that tracks gaming sales. In 2011, for example, just seven of the top 20 best-selling games in the US involve warfare simulation. The other titles ? ?Just Dance 3,? ?Kinect Adventures!? ?New Super Mario Bros. Wii,? ?Madden NFL 12,? and ?Pokemon Black/White? ? are designed around sports, dance, and children?s cartoon characters.
All of the games LaPierre mentions are more than 15 years old, with some dating back to the 1980s, with their popularity waning. For example, total unit sales in the US for the ?Mortal Kombat? franchise dropped 70 percent in 2012, compared to the previous year total. The game debuted in 1992.
Gaming experts say that the majority of the games LaPierre cited do not portray gun violence ? ?Mortal Kombat? involves hand-to-hand combat, for example. They say they do not understand why he did not single out ?first person shooter? games such as blockbuster franchises like the ?Call of Duty? series, which is based on simulated gun action and is considered one of the most hyper-violent on the market. In fact, according to news reports, the game was also a favorite of Adam Lanza, the Newtown gunman who spent hours at home playing it.
?Some of those games [LaPierre mentions] are older than the [Newtown] shooter,? who was 20, says Christopher Grant, editor-in-chief of Polygon.com, an online site based in New York City that covers gaming news and trends. ?I have no idea why he chose them. My theory is he didn?t want to pick anything too modern [such as ?Call of Duty? or ?Doom?] that might overlap unfavorably with something their own members might enjoy.?
?Call of Duty? is known as a favorite of the military and is often credited for driving up recruitment. Activision Blizzard, the company behind ?Call of Duty,? has donated thousands of copies to the US Navy; the company also created a non-profit foundation to help returning US military veterans.
According to the NPD Group, a global market research firm, retail gaming sales in the US plummeted 20 percent in the first eight months of 2012 compared to the same time period the previous year, a trend that follows years of declining sales. Between 2008 and 2011, total sales of industry software and hardware dropped 20.5 percent. According to the gaming industry website Gamasutra, 2012 sales are expected to be the lowest since 2006.
The sales drop is representative of major shifts in the gaming industry, which is slowly moving away from console-based games to those that are played via smartphones, digital tablets, and online through social networks.
The change has produced a new type of gamer: They are generally older, more ethnically and economically diverse, and they feed their gaming appetite in smaller bites and on-the-go, as opposed to the traditional gamer profile of a few years ago, which tended to be young males playing for hours in one sitting.
The Entertainment Software Association, an industry trade group based in Washington, reports that the average gamer today is 30 years old, the most frequent game purchaser is 35 years old, and that almost half (47 percent) of all gamers are women.
Your mom's router is broken, your dad's laptop is frozen, your aunt's tablet is covered in bees, and they're all looking at you, tech blog reader, to fix it before and after Turkey. Not all family is equal. More »
ScienceDaily (Nov. 13, 2012) ? Languages are highly complex systems and yet most children seem to acquire language easily, even in the absence of formal instruction. New research on young children's use of British Sign Language (BSL) sheds light on one mechanism -- iconicity -- that may play an important role in children's ability to learn language.
For spoken and written language, the arbitrary relationship between a word's form -- how it sounds or how it looks on paper -- and its meaning is a particularly challenging feature of language acquisition. But one of the first things people notice about sign languages is that signs often represent aspects of meaning in their form. For example, in BSL the sign EAT involves bringing the hand to the mouth just as you would if you were bringing food to the mouth to eat it.
In fact, a high proportion of signs across the world's sign languages are similarly iconic, connecting human experience to linguistic form.
Robin Thompson and colleagues David Vison, Bencie Woll, and Gabriella Vigliocco at the Deafness, Cognition and Language Research Centre (DCAL) at University College London in the United Kingdom wanted to examine whether this kind of iconicity might provide a key to understanding how children come to link words to their meaning.
Their findings are published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
The researchers looked at data from 31 deaf children who were being raised in deaf BSL signing families in the United Kingdom. Parents indicated the number of words understood and produced by their children between the ages of 8 and 30 months. The researchers decided to focus on 89 specific signs, examining children's familiarity with the signs as well as the iconicity and complexity of the signs.
The findings reveal that younger (11-20 months) and older (21-30 months) children comprehended and produced more BSL signs that were iconic than those that were less iconic. And the benefit of iconicity seemed to be greater for the older children. Importantly, this relationship did not seem to depend on how familiar, complex or concrete the words were.
Together, these findings suggest that iconicity could play an important role in language acquisition.
Thompson and colleagues hypothesize that iconic links between our perceptual-motor experience of the world and the form of a sign may provide an imitation-based mechanism that supports early sign acquisition. These iconic links highlight motor and perceptual similarity between actions and signs such as DRINK, which is produced by tipping a curved hand to the mouth and represents the action of holding a cup and drinking from it.
The researchers emphasize that these results can also be applied to spoken languages, in which gestures, tone of voice, inflection, and face-to-face communication can help make the link between words and their meanings less arbitrary.
"We suggest that iconicity provides scaffolding -- a middle-ground -- to bridge the "great divide" between linguistic form and bodily experience for both sign language and spoken language learners," says Thompson.
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Journal Reference:
Robin Thompson, David Vison, Bencie Woll and Gabriella Vigliocco. The Road to Language Learning Is Iconic: Evidence From British Sign Language. Psychological Science, 2012
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Public release date: 27-Dec-2012
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