Finding Affordable SEO Writers to Improve Your Rankings

If you are trying to figure out how to unlock the internet, the search engine is the key, and affordable SEO options are necessary. Search engines are used to search for everything from a dentist to buying goods from another part of the world. Whatever you're looking for, you almost always turn to the search engines typing in their keyword(s) and then browsing through the results.

There are complex algorithms that determine which websites will place where. The best way to improve your likelihood of placing on those first couple of search pages for your keyword(s) is so ensure your site is properly search engine optimized. Thankfully, affordable SEO can be found with only a bit of searching. Hiring an affordable SEO will make it easy to fit your budget.

Search engine optimization is extremely time consuming, confusing, and mundane job.

This is why so many website owners hire an affordable SEO professional to optimize their websites. Finding an SEO writer to build content and articles for your site isn't as difficult as you might think. There are highly skilled individuals all around the world. It's also why you can find affordable SEO professionals. After all, it is a highly competitive industry.

The key when looking for an SEO writer is to find an affordable SEO writer that is highly skilled and offers you the highest quality content, so that it will actually benefit your site. There are two ways to hire an affordable SEO writer. You can hire them tell them what your goal is and leave the rest to them, and then be satisfied with what you receive since you haven't given any direction. The second method is to provide the SEO write with instructions about what it is you want and then you will receive content and articles that you are happy with. Having search engine optimized content and articles will improve the traffic flow to your site significantly.

SEO content and articles will use your keywords at percentage ratio that will aid in boosting your page rank. However, the content you put on your site shouldn't just be for the search engines. It should be meaningful content and actually add value to your website. Google and many of the other search engines are very smart and your site will be punished in rankings if you aren't offering value in conjunction with your SEO work. In addition if you aren't offering quality content visitors are going to become annoyed and frustrated and likely will not return to your site again, which is exactly the opposite of what you want to do.

Affordable SEO writers can be found in a number of places online including sites like Guru and Elance. So take your time and shop around. In addition, make sure you have a look at the work the affordable SEO professional has already done so that you can see both the writer's style and quality of work. It's a great way to not be disappointed.

There are many affordable SEO tools on the market. Take advantage of many of them and improve your sites rankings in the search engines.
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May 2012 Contest Winner Announcement. | Travel + Leisure ...

Admin 31 May 2012

Thanks to everyone who participated in our May 2012 contest for a fabulous three nights at Andara Resort & Villas, Phuket. Your favorite Southeast Asian dishes included chili crab, nasi lemak, chicken adobo and Cambodian amok. The #1 favorite? Tom Yam Goong!

The lucky winner is Shinn Teo from Singapore, who won a complimentary three-night stay at a one bedroom terrace suite including breakfast for 2 persons at Andara Resort & Villas Phuket! Congratulations!

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Rockies designate Jamie Moyer for assignment

DENVER (AP) ? Jamie Moyer was designated for assignment by the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday, the move being made about six weeks after he became the oldest starting pitcher to win a game in major league history.

The 49-year-old Moyer said in a news conference Wednesday that he still had hopes of continuing his career elsewhere but his immediate plan was to return home and attend a son's high school graduation.

"It's a tough pill to swallow but it's part of the business," Moyer said.

Rockies manager Jim Tracy told Moyer of the team's decision in a meeting earlier Wednesday. The Rockies recalled Carlos Torres from Triple-A Colorado Springs to take Moyers' roster spot.

After missing all of the 2011 season while recovering from reconstructive elbow surgery, Moyer signed with the Rockies and made the team with an impressive spring training. He became the oldest pitcher to win as a starter on April 17, when he led the Rockies to a 5-3 win over the San Diego Padres.

"I enjoyed my time here in Denver," Moyer said, expressing his appreciation both to Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd and Tracy for helping him to revive his career after a year away from the game.

"Dan gave me a great opportunity in spring training. Jim stuck his neck out for me. He gave me an opportunity and that's all I can ask for, when I came, an opportunity," Moyer added.. "Unfortunately I didn't hold up to my end of the bargain. That's what happens in the game."

Moyer had struggled recently. He was 2-5 with a 5.70 ERA in 10 starts. By designating him for assignment the Rockies have 10 days to trade him or release him.

"I just felt like that by sending him out there, we were compromising him and the team," Tracy said before Wednesday night's game against the Houston Astros. "It's difficult, because he's as professional as any player I've ever been around. But we felt like this is something we had to do."

Moyer picked up his second win of the season a month after his milestone victory, allowing one earned run and six hits in 6 1-3 innings in the Rockies' 6-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 16.

But the successes were proving few and far between. In his last start at Cincinnati on Sunday, Moyer was unable to hold a 5-0 lead and took the loss in a 7-5 Rockies' setback. He went five innings and gave up seven hits and seven runs.

"It is all about putting up results, individually and as a team," Moyer said. "When you don't do that, obviously management has to just step back and reevaluate things and their choices are their decisions."

When asked, though, if he thought he could still pitch, Moyer said, "I do believe so."

He added that he thought he could iron out his problems with his command and consistency.

"When you talk to any pitchers, consistency is the most important thing," Moyer said. "I haven't had that to this point. But I know I can find that."

Over the course of his 24-year career, Moyer has gone 269-209 with a 4.25 ERA while playing for eight big league teams. Moyer also has pitched for Philadelphia (2010-2006), Seattle (2006-1997), Boston (1996), Baltimore (1995-1993), St. Louis (1991), Texas (191990-1989) and the Chicago Cubs (1988-86).

Associated Press

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Neuron function restored in brains damaged by Huntington's disease

ScienceDaily (May 29, 2012) ? Researchers from South Korea, Sweden, and the United States have collaborated on a project to restore neuron function to parts of the brain damaged by Huntington's disease (HD) by successfully transplanting HD-induced pluripotent stem cells into animal models.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be genetically engineered from human somatic cells such as skin, and can be used to model numerous human diseases. They may also serve as sources of transplantable cells that can be used in novel cell therapies. In the latter case, the patient provides a sample of his or her own skin to the laboratory.

In the current study, experimental animals with damage to a deep brain structure called the striatum (an experimental model of HD) exhibited significant behavioral recovery after receiving transplanted iPS cells. The researchers hope that this approach eventually could be tested in patients for the treatment of HD.

"The unique features of the iPSC approach means that the transplanted cells will be genetically identical to the patient and therefore no medications that dampen the immune system to prevent graft rejection will be needed," said Jihwan Song, D.Phil. Associate Professor and Director of Laboratory of Developmental & Stem Cell Biology at CHA Stem Cell Institute, CHA University, Seoul, South Korea and co-author of the study.

The study, published online this week in Stem Cells, found that transplanted iPSCs initially formed neurons producing GABA, the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system, which plays a critical role in regulating neuronal excitability and acts at inhibitory synapses in the brain. GABAergic neurons, located in the striatum, are the cell type most susceptible to degeneration in HD.

Another key point in the study involves the new disease models for HD presented by this method, allowing researchers to study the underlying disease process in detail. Being able to control disease development from such an early stage, using iPS cells, may provide important clues about the very start of disease development in HD. An animal model that closely imitates the real conditions of HD also opens up new and improved opportunities for drug screening.

"Having created a model that mimics HD progression from the initial stages of the disease provides us with a unique experimental platform to study Huntington's disease pathology" said Patrik Brundin, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Center for Neurodegenerative Science at Van Andel Research Institute (VARI), Head of the Neuronal Survival Unit at Lund University, Sweden, and co-author of the study.

Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative genetic disorder that affects muscle coordination and leads to cognitive decline and psychiatric problems. It typically becomes noticeable in mid-adult life, with symptoms beginning between 35 and 44 years of age. Life expectancy following onset of visual symptoms is about 20 years. The worldwide prevalence of HD is 5-10 cases per 100,000 persons. Key to the disease process is the formation of specific protein aggregates (essentially abnormal clumps) inside some neurons.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Van Andel Research Institute.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. Iksoo Jeon, Nayeon Lee, Jia-Yi Li, In-Hyun Park, Kyoung Sun Park, Jisook Moon, Soung Han Shim, Chunggab Choi, Da-Jeong Chang, Jihye Kwon, Seung-Hun Oh, Dong Ah Shin, Hyun Sook Kim, Jeong Tae Do, Dong Ryul Lee, Manho Kim, Kyung-Sun Kang, George Q. Daley, Patrik Brundin, Jihwan Song. Neuronal Properties, In Vivo Effects and Pathology of a Huntington's Disease Patient-Derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells. Stem Cells, 2012; DOI: 10.1002/stem.1135

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

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

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Tea party favorite Ted Cruz forces run-off election in Texas (Los Angeles Times)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS Feeds and Widgets via Feedzilla.

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Letters to the editor for June 1, 2012 | ABC Newspapers

Time to step up and file

To the Editor:

Do you have the willingness and ability to serve in public office? Now is the time to step up and file!

The 2012 election season officially got under way on Tuesday, May 22 with the opening of filings for offices that will be on the Nov. 6 ballot. Candidates can continue to file for office through 5 p.m. on Tuesday, June 5.

This filing period is for those offices for which there will be a primary election on Tuesday, Aug. 14.

Offices for this filing period include all Minnesota Senate and House seats, five of the six seats on the Anoka County Board of Commissioners, three of five district supervisor positions on the Anoka County Soil and Water Conservation District, offices in local cities that have a primary system, judicial offices, and all U.S. Senate and Congressional seats.

For city and county offices, check with your respective local offices for further candidate filing information.

For state, federal and judicial offices, information is available from the Minnesota Secretary of State?s office.

The Secretary of State?s office is also hosting a statewide candidate filing page at http://www.sos.state.mn.us/

As the election season progresses, the local ABC League of Women Voters will schedule nonpartisan candidate forums so voters can listen, ask questions and compare candidates? stands on issues.

We encourage all candidates to participate in these forums and we ask citizens, as well, to encourage the participation of their candidates.

To keep these candidate forums fair, at least two candidates for any given office must be present at a scheduled forum in order for the forum to take place.

In the last election cycle, two forums had to be canceled because not all candidates participated.? Democracy is better served when voters are informed.

Please join us in these goals of involved citizenship and informed voters.

Arlene Gillett and Geri Nelson
Voter service co-chairpersons, LWV ABC

?

Societal prejudices

To the Editor:

How will Janet and Angela, a loving, committed couple for 12 years, be impacted if the marriage amendment is written into Minnesota?s constitution? I?m really concerned about the inaccuracies and hurtful claims which have been put forth as reasons to vote for the amendment. I believe Minnesotans want and deserve accurate information.

Scientific research has led the medical and psychological community to recognize that gay, lesbian and bisexual orientations are normal sexual orientations. Aside from the pain and stress of discrimination, gay, lesbian and bisexual citizens of Minnesota lead productive, healthy and happy lives. Just as heterosexuals do.

They can form healthy, satisfying and committed relationships with another person of the same sex. My uncle Tom and uncle Jim recently celebrated 27 years of a steadfast and committed relationship.

Committed relationships between same-sex partners are similar in other ways to marriages between heterosexual partners. Studies consistently show that ?the development, adjustment and well-being of children of lesbian and gay parents do not differ markedly from that of children with heterosexual parents? (American Psychological Association).

Like other minority groups, gay and lesbian people are often subject to discrimination and violence, including bullying in schools and social media. Damage from the stigma can cause the same stress and resulting physical and psychological issues that are somewhat higher in most minority groups.

Denying civil marriage to our gay, lesbian and bisexual citizens reinforces outdated societal prejudices. It can hurt people who just want to love each other and live in the same way heterosexual spouses love and live. Lack of access to marriage even produces an average economic disadvantage of more than $400,000 for a family.

In a pluralistic democracy, religious authorities have every right to perform or deny religious marriage ceremonies as they choose. But denying civil marriage to citizens, based strictly on sexual orientation, imposes the religious views of some onto each and every citizen; whether a citizen adheres to Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism or no religion. I can?t look my uncles in the eye and tell them they are inferior and second class citizens because I know better. Lesbian, gay and bisexual citizens are good, bad and in between just like any slice of Minnesotans. If you take the time to get to know them, I can guarantee you will learn the same.

Many inaccurate and inflammatory claims have been spread on this important issue. I believe we deserve accurate information in order to make informed public decisions.

Minnesota already has an unjust law against same-sex marriage. Let?s not put that discrimination in our Constitution too!

Dan Rebek
Coon Rapids

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Online Fishing Gear Retailer | International Business News

Do you know that you can get the fishing gear with affordable price and discount? You can get both if you try to be online fishing gear retailer. Of course, in order to run this business, you need to have basic knowledge on fishing gear such as fly rods, reels, and other gears. Setting up online business for fishing gear retailer means you can reach up many clients from other continents as well. To provide easy access for your potential online buyers, you need to classify fishing gear such as sage fly rods based on its size and types. Don?t forget to give compact and practical profile and viewable photo of the products with retail price.

The term online fishing gear means you are not only selling the fishing equipment, but also fishing outerwear because you definitely don?t want to wet your clothes, right? Although professional fishermen considered getting wet during fishing is what fishing is all about. Some fishermen prefer certain fishing gear from particular brands and you could provide this by putting hardy fly rods on the special offer segment. Special offering might help you clearing out your old fishing gear before you offer your online clients the new batch of gears.

Since this is online business, it means that you need to ship the ordered fishing gear to the clients? address. You can provide some kind of online form filling that contains the details of the client such as name, address, fishing gear code, and if you able, you can put the shipment payment as well. For example, your client orders for winston fly rods and it costs around $300 and he lives outside US which means that the shipping fee might cost more than the standard fee. So, the client could pay around $500 including shipping fee and import tax because sending this to another country means you export something.

Tags: fishing gear, hardy fly rods, professional fishermen, sage fly rods, winston fly rods

Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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Time is Running Out to register for our next Junior Golf Tournament ?

Saturday, June 2nd & Sunday, June 3rd, GRN is hosting it?s second Junior Golf Tournament at Mill Pond Golf Course in Coram, NY.

The opportunity is there for junior golfers of all skill levels to be part of something big. Since the first few tournaments will be new to the island, the pool of players will be small and manageable. We will have several staff members on location to pay close attention to each golfer and assess their skill level. The 2012 inaugural season will serve as the greatest opportunity to reach the Junior Golf National Championships.

Mill Pond Golf Course in Coram

Global Recreation Network was established in 2011 with one goal in mind, to treat amateurs like professionals and ensure each participant has an experience they will never forget. As with our youth baseball tournament, GRN will have a professional photographer and videographer at all of our junior golf events and will follow each participant throughout the tour. Each golfer will be interviewed that will stream live on the internet and a pre and post tournament story will?also be streamede?on our website. Each player will be treated and feel like a professional golfer.

Click here to register for the June 2-3 tournament at Mill Pond

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Too much vitamin D can be as unhealthy as too little

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

Contact: Darshana Durup, Ph.D.
dd@farma.ku.dk
01-145-617-05192
University of Copenhagen

Scientists know that Vitamin D deficiency is not healthy. However, new research from the University of Copenhagen now indicates that too high a level of the essential vitamin is not good either. The study is based on blood samples from 247,574 Copenhageners. The results have just been published in the reputed scientific Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Vitamin D is instrumental in helping calcium reach our bones, thus lessening the risk from falls and the risk of broken hips. Research suggests that vitamin D is also beneficial in combating cardiac disease, depression and certain types of cancers. The results from a study conducted by the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences now support the benefits of vitamin D in terms of mortality risk. However, the research results also show higher mortality in people with too high levels of vitamin D in their bloodstream:

"We have had access to blood tests from a quarter of a million Copenhageners. We found higher mortality in people with a low level of vitamin D in their blood, but to our surprise, we also found it in people with a high level of vitamin D. We can draw a graph showing that perhaps it is harmful with too little and too much vitamin D," explains Darshana Durup, PhD student.

If the blood contains less than 10 nanomol (nmol) of vitamin per liter of serum, mortality is 2.31 times higher. However, if the blood contains more than 140 nmol of vitamin per liter of serum, mortality is higher by a factor of 1.42. Both values are compared to 50 nmol of vitamin per liter of serum, where the scientists see the lowest mortality rate.

More studies are needed

Darshana Durup emphasises that while scientists do not know the cause of the higher mortality, she believes that the new results can be used to question the wisdom of those people who claim that you can never get too much vitamin D:

"It is important to conduct further studies in order to understand the relationship. A lot of research has been conducted on the risk of vitamin D deficiency. However, there is no scientific evidence for a 'more is better' argument for vitamin D, and our study does not support the argument either. We hope that our study will inspire others to study the cause of higher mortality with a high level of vitamin D," says Darshana Durup. She adds:

"We have moved into a controversial area that stirs up strong feelings just like debates on global warming and research on nutrition. But our results are based on a quarter of a million blood tests and provide an interesting starting point for further research."

The largest study of its kind

The study is the largest of its kind and it was only possible to conduct it because of Denmark's civil registration system, which is unique in the Nordic countries. The 247,574 blood samples come from the Copenhagen General Practitioners Laboratory:

"Our data material covers a wide age range. The people who participated had approached their own general practitioners for a variety of reasons and had had the vitamin D level in their bloodstream measured in that context. This means that while the study can show a possible association between mortality and a high level of vitamin D, we cannot as yet explain the higher risk," explains Darshana Durup.

Therefore in future research project scientists would like to compare the results with information from disease registers such as the cancer register. Financial support is currently being sought for such projects.

###

Contact:
PhD student
Darshana Durup
University of Copenhagen
The Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
Mobile: +45 61 70 51 92
Mail: dd@farma.ku.dk

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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

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

Contact: Darshana Durup, Ph.D.
dd@farma.ku.dk
01-145-617-05192
University of Copenhagen

Scientists know that Vitamin D deficiency is not healthy. However, new research from the University of Copenhagen now indicates that too high a level of the essential vitamin is not good either. The study is based on blood samples from 247,574 Copenhageners. The results have just been published in the reputed scientific Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Vitamin D is instrumental in helping calcium reach our bones, thus lessening the risk from falls and the risk of broken hips. Research suggests that vitamin D is also beneficial in combating cardiac disease, depression and certain types of cancers. The results from a study conducted by the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences now support the benefits of vitamin D in terms of mortality risk. However, the research results also show higher mortality in people with too high levels of vitamin D in their bloodstream:

"We have had access to blood tests from a quarter of a million Copenhageners. We found higher mortality in people with a low level of vitamin D in their blood, but to our surprise, we also found it in people with a high level of vitamin D. We can draw a graph showing that perhaps it is harmful with too little and too much vitamin D," explains Darshana Durup, PhD student.

If the blood contains less than 10 nanomol (nmol) of vitamin per liter of serum, mortality is 2.31 times higher. However, if the blood contains more than 140 nmol of vitamin per liter of serum, mortality is higher by a factor of 1.42. Both values are compared to 50 nmol of vitamin per liter of serum, where the scientists see the lowest mortality rate.

More studies are needed

Darshana Durup emphasises that while scientists do not know the cause of the higher mortality, she believes that the new results can be used to question the wisdom of those people who claim that you can never get too much vitamin D:

"It is important to conduct further studies in order to understand the relationship. A lot of research has been conducted on the risk of vitamin D deficiency. However, there is no scientific evidence for a 'more is better' argument for vitamin D, and our study does not support the argument either. We hope that our study will inspire others to study the cause of higher mortality with a high level of vitamin D," says Darshana Durup. She adds:

"We have moved into a controversial area that stirs up strong feelings just like debates on global warming and research on nutrition. But our results are based on a quarter of a million blood tests and provide an interesting starting point for further research."

The largest study of its kind

The study is the largest of its kind and it was only possible to conduct it because of Denmark's civil registration system, which is unique in the Nordic countries. The 247,574 blood samples come from the Copenhagen General Practitioners Laboratory:

"Our data material covers a wide age range. The people who participated had approached their own general practitioners for a variety of reasons and had had the vitamin D level in their bloodstream measured in that context. This means that while the study can show a possible association between mortality and a high level of vitamin D, we cannot as yet explain the higher risk," explains Darshana Durup.

Therefore in future research project scientists would like to compare the results with information from disease registers such as the cancer register. Financial support is currently being sought for such projects.

###

Contact:
PhD student
Darshana Durup
University of Copenhagen
The Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
Mobile: +45 61 70 51 92
Mail: dd@farma.ku.dk

---

[ | 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.

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Gonzalez dominates, Nats sweep Braves

By CHARLES ODUM

AP Sports Writer

Associated Press Sports

updated 11:36 p.m. ET May 27, 2012

ATLANTA (AP) - Davey Johnson didn't expect Gio Gonzalez to be this good.

Johnson and the Nationals hope Bryce Harper, only 19, keeps proving he's as good as his billing.

Harper hit his second homer in two days, Gonzalez gave up only one hit in seven innings and the NL East-leading Nationals beat the struggling Atlanta Braves 7-2 on Sunday night to complete a three-game sweep.

"It's huge," said Harper of Washington's first three-game sweep of the season, which came after the Nationals won two of three in Philadelphia.

Gonzalez (7-1) struck out 10 and outpitched Brandon Beachy (5-3) in the matchup of ERA leaders.

Gonzalez was acquired in an offseason trade after a combined 31 wins the last two seasons in Oakland.

Is this what Johnson expected of the lefty?

"No, he's better than I expected," Johnson said. "I knew he was a good pitcher. I knew he made the All-Star team with Oakland. But I thought he was a little wilder."

Harper had two hits, stretching his hitting streak to seven games. He is hitting .287 with four homers in 27 games.

"I feel really comfortable up there right now," Harper said. "I'm not trying to do too much. ... Having guys hitting around me has been huge. We've been scoring a lot of runs."

Washington's first sweep at Turner Field in three years left the Braves with a seven-game losing streak, their worst skid since dropping nine straight in 2010.

"We just haven't, as a whole, been playing like we're capable of playing," said Braves second baseman Dan Uggla, whose ninth-inning double was one of only three hits for Atlanta.

The Braves are struggling without Chipper Jones, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a left leg contusion on Saturday. Catcher Brian McCann has not started a game in a week due to an illness, and first baseman Freddie Freeman was held out with ongoing vision problems.

"I know we've got injuries," Uggla said. "Everybody's got injuries. You've got to battle through it."

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said the Nationals are stretching their lead in the NL East despite having Michael Morse, Wilson Ramos and Jayson Werth on the disabled list.

"There are no excuses," Gonzalez said. "Look at their DL. Look at the DL of the (Cardinals) who are coming in tomorrow."

The Nationals took the lead with four runs in the sixth. They scored at least seven runs in each game of the series.

At 29-18, the Nationals moved 11 games over .500 for the first time since their 2005 inaugural season in Washington.

Gio Gonzalez gave up two runs and three walks in seven innings. Craig Stammen allowed two hits in 1 2-3 innings before Sean Burnett recorded the final out.

Beachy's 1.77 ERA, the best in the major leagues, did not change as he permitted three runs - only one earned - on three hits and four walks in five-plus innings. He was pulled with the game tied at 2 after hitting Danny Espinosa with a pitch to open the sixth.

The Nationals jumped on former Washington pitcher Livan Hernandez following Beachy's exit. Hernandez walked Rick Ankiel on four pitches before Jesus Flores gave Washington the lead with an RBI single. Steve Lombardozzi added a two-run double.

The losing streak is having a toll on Braves fans, who booed after the hit by Lombardozzi. There were more boos from the crowd of 38,543 after Lombardozzi scored easily from second when right fielder Jason Heyward bobbled Ryan Zimmerman's single.

Flores had three hits. He left the game following his third hit in the seventh with a mild strain of his right hamstring.

Harper hit his homer, a high shot into the right-field seats, off Hernandez in the eighth.

The Braves scored a run without a hit in the first. Michael Bourn walked, stole second, moved to third on Tyler Pastornicky's sacrifice and scored on Martin Prado's groundout.

Atlanta added a run in the third. Bourn had a one-out triple for Atlanta's lone hit off Gonzalez and scored on Pastornicky's suicide squeeze.

Flores had a run-scoring and Gonzalez hit a sacrifice fly as the Nationals tied the game with two runs in the fourth.

Washington's only other sweep this season came in a weather-shortened series. The Nationals won two games against Miami on April 20-21 before the third game was postponed due to rain.

Braves third baseman Juan Francisco did not start after Fredi Gonzalez said he "tweaked something" on Saturday, when he had three hits. Francisco had a pinch-hit single off Stammen in the eighth.

NOTES: The Nationals had been 0-9 this season when closing out a series with a sweep on the line. ... Plate umpire Kerwin Danley went down to the ground in the third inning after he was hit in the groin area when a pitch from Beachy bounced past C J.C. Boscan. Danley remained in the game following a visit from Braves assistant trainer Jim Lovell. ... The last time the Nationals were 11 games over .500 was July 25, 2005, when they were 55-44. ... The Braves will open a three-game home series against St. Louis on Monday with RHP Tommy Hanson facing RHP Lance Lynn. The Nationals open a series at Miami on Monday. RHP Jordan Zimmerman will face RHP Carlos Zambrano.

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

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Halladay's sore shoulder not new

HBT: Phillies ace Roy Halladay leaves Sunday's game with a sore shoulder, but pitching coach Rich Dubee says the issue has "been lingering."

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Jon Favreau Returns To 'Iron Man 3' In Today's Twitter-Wood

He's baaaaaaaaaack. No, we're not talking about Mr. Schwarzenegger. We're talking about Jon Favreau, of course. He's making his return to Marvel for "Iron Man 3"! While he won't be directing the three-quel, he's reprising his role as Happy Hogan, Tony Stark's bodyguard and side-kick. BTW twitter.com/Jon_Favreau/st? — Jon Favreau (@Jon_Favreau) May 24, 2012 The [...]

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First Impressions from a Long-Time iPhone User Trying a Windows Phone

Yesterday, the HTC Titan that Judie is loaning me for this experiment arrived on my doorstep. I opened the box she had packed it in, saw the AT&T HTC Titan box inside, and I actually stared at it for a few minutes pondering how this process was going to be a lot of fun.

But it was also likely to be kind of painful. ?After all, I?ve been heavily into the iPhone space since its initial release in 2007. ?I had Windows Mobile 6.5 before that, and in the meantime I have also had a couple of Android devices from my work, so I?ve been able to see the good and bad of a number of platforms. ?Now it?s time to see what happens with Windows Phone!

Twenty-four hours have passed since I opened the box and started on this experiment. ?So far, I?ve managed to accomplish the following tasks:

• I put my SIM card in and brought up the device (tied it to my Windows Live account).
• I made test phone calls and sent text messages to?my mother and brother.
• I installed my 3 email services, including one standard POP3 account, GMail, and my work MS Exchange account.
• I made the device live on my home and work networks.
• I installed apps for most of the iPhone apps I had that have direct Windows Phone equivalents or work-alikes.
• I set up my Marketplace account and bought 2 games (that I already had on my iPhone) ? Flight Control, and Civilization Revolution.
• I figured out how to add/remove/rearrange tiles and I started reworking things to my liking including changing the default ?color?.
• I installed the Windows Connector on my MacBook Pro and copied some of my photos, music, and video content to the phone.
• I changed my lock screen image.
• I activated my trial of AT&T Navigator and created a test route from my house to my mom?s house.
• I installed Facebook and Twitter and configured my accounts (including trying the integration with the ?People? tile which I decided I didn?t like and reverted to the stand-alone apps).
• I installed SkyDrive for Mac so I could better move some things to/from the phone.
• I tried importing my contacts from both my MB Pro and my iPhone using processes I learned about on the web and I just ended up with a contact mess ? and half-completed entries.
• I tried migrating my ebooks to Bookviser (via SkyDrive) but I got a lot of failures with an obscure error message (more about that shortly).

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So I got quite a bit done, but there is more to do. ?Here are some things I hope to look at in the coming days:

• I want to sort out the contact mess and get them back into shape.
• I want to investigate the ebook migration errors and see if there is a solution.
• I want to find a way to move some of the content that wouldn?t transfer on the first time (because of DRM etc.).
• I want to find some solutions to the foreign language keyboard limitations I already see on this device.

Despite these initial, small setbacks, I am basically up and running. ?I managed to use the device though my entire work day without going back to my iPhone. ?I had no trouble getting my work email (although it wasn?t issue free ? more on that in a bit), so my overall reaction is ?so far, so good?.

One interesting thing worth noting is that when people see that the screen isn?t an iPhone and it isn?t Android, they get curious. ?I have been asked a couple of times already what it was, and people want to see it and try things out. ?Although the most common comment so far is, ?Oh, I thought it was just another?HTC Android phone?; based on appearances, it might as well be. ?It?s not very spectacular or interesting looking as a device. ?But when people play with it, their reaction is more like ?oh, cool!?

Ok, so let?s take a look at the things that went well and the things I already like a lot.

Although the screen is bigger than the iPhone 4s screen, its pixel density is lower, and that makes it appear a little ?grainy? to me. ?That said, the display is much more readable in sunlight. I noticed that on the walk from my car into my office, and that brought a smile to my face ? not an easy thing to do before I have my first cup of coffee!

When I performed the initial device setup, I was pleased to see that it was really clean and easy. ?Not as fluid as my iPhone setup, but smoother then my Android device setups; it was an unexpectedly pleasant experience.

After one day with this thing, I have to say that I really like the main Metro interface ? the whole ?tile? thing, very much. ?Really, a lot. ?I like the ?live? feeling to many of them; it?s very vibrant and dynamic. ?I do, however, wish they were a little more customizable. ?I?ve seen comments that they are boring because of the limited color, but I have not felt this way. ?I like the appearance and the layout, ?but it does need some kind of folders or a better organization of apps. ?The main interface comes off as a great idea, but not taken far enough. ?I?ll be interested to see how I feel after living with it for a while. ?But really, the whole feel of the OS is nice and clean (for the most part) and snappy. ?I had absolutely no lag, and it is very nice!

I tried playing a movie on the Titan, and it was ? again, an excellent experience; colors were vivid, and the display was very smooth. ?This is something I wasn?t expecting, but I was very happy to see.

One of my favorite things in Windows Phone so far is the Outlook email client. ?I really like Outlook on this device. ?I love the way they implemented multiple item selection and marking/moving messages, but sometimes items ?jump? a little as they expand when they are being selected, especially when opening a conversation thread. ?I?ve started already to learn to select these things from the lowest on to the top one rather that top to bottom. ?The selection process seems to go a bit smoother that way. ?But that little thing aside, I really like the look and feel of the client, and I appreciate the way it?s implemented.

Now let me mention some of the things that haven?t been as good so far.

I already mentioned the difficulties moving my contacts. ?That is partly due to the way Apple implemented them, ?the limits surrounding what they will/will not sync with, and part of it is the limitation on the Windows Phone side and the things it will/will not sync with. ?Short form ? moving contacts is a mess, and I?m going to have to do more work before I can call that a success.

The music/videos I chose to sync went pretty well except for DRM-protected materials ? exactly what I would have expected. ?There are tools out there that will remove the DRM, but the biggest one out there won?t work with the current version of iTunes, and it hasn?t been updated yet. ?Although this is a nuisance, this really is NOT any reflection on the OS; it?s simply an issue that has to be worked through.

This evening, I started the process of transferring my books ? many of which are ePubs. ?This involves using SkyDrive (Microsoft?s cloud/sync offering). ?Basically, I move my ePubs up to SkyDrive, and then import them into my eReader app. ?In my case, however, the results have been mixed and?I don?t yet know why. ?I?m using Bookviser?as my eBook app on the Windows Phone. ?I?m seeing an error when I try to download some of my books from SkyDrive ? ?Unable to download book. (Operation not permitted on IsoltatedStorageFileStream.? ?I don?t know what this means ? I haven?t investigated yet, but I have uploaded the error to the developer.

I bought two games ? Flight Control and Civilization Revolution. ?Both look grainier than their iPhone counterparts, and Flight Control definitely had a few small control issues ? it was difficult to get the planes to accept the path sometimes ? an issue I never saw on the iPhone or the iPad, but they played pretty smoothly and I would call them useable, but not particularly impressive ports.

Let me say right now that I am not crazy about the physical aspects of this device. ?With alarming regularity, I find myself accidentally pressing the camera button or the volume controls. ?I don?t like that there is no physical mute toggle, and that the power button is the only way to wake the phone (on an iPhone you can tap the power button or the home button). ?The placement of the earpiece is such that I have to hold the phone in an uncomfortable place on my ear in order to hear, and when I do it seems that my face keeps touching the screen and accidentally muting the call. ?Maybe there is a simple setting somewhere to fix this behavior, maybe not. ?Nonetheless, it?s a little annoying when you are used to an iPhone that came set up to turn the screen off automatically when held against your face.

My mother reports that I sound ?tinny? to her when I am talking on this phone, although I think the speakerphone is better than the one on the iPhone. ?I will likely try pairing a bluetooth headset to this device soon and see if that improves the situation at all. ?I?m also kind of ?meh? on the materials used to construct this device, but that is more a matter of taste than anything else. ?Still, to me, the physical aspects of this device make it feel a little less thought out, less polished and less complete than an iPhone or Nokia Lumias.

Earlier, I mentioned that I like the tiles and the whole tile idea, and I do. ?But I am not always crazy about the way some of those tile links work, or the way things are organized one you select some of the tiles. ?For example ? the Facebook and Twitter integrations as integrated into the ?People? tile seems really muddled and confused to me. ?I tried them, but I immediately didn?t like how things were organized and displayed, and I was much happier once I simply installed separate apps for those services and used them that way. ?I?ll be keeping an eye on how those keep functioning for me.

I also am not crazy about the Office Hub. ?It also seems unnecessarily complicated. ?I just want to create a new document, and it seems like I have to do more steps than I expected to do something that should be very something. ?It?s also not terribly obvious how you are supposed to go about syncing between your desktop/laptop Office apps and the ones on your Windows Phone. ?It?s not that it?s particularly?hard, but it just seems like it is more complicated to do and less intuitive than it should be.

Let?s talk alarms. ?Windows Phone has many ?pretty? alarms just like the iPhone and Android denies do, but I wish the device came with a more aggressive alarm ? maybe like the klaxon alarm sound on the iPhone.

I write emails and such to my friends in numerous countries. ?I?ve learned a enough of several languages that I often find myself needing to type special characters in order to write those words correctly. ?So I have to say that my single biggest disappointment with the OS so far, is the weak foreign keyboard support, especially when it comes to Eastern European languages. ?For example, it?almost seems like the Balkans don?t exist. ?Now I know that MS has indicated that they are committed to more language support and making the OS and devices more availability in more markets, but I have to say that Apple has been consistently way ahead in area of foreign language and keyboard/character support than it?s competitors.

When the iPhone was at the age that Windows Phone is now, it was considerable further ahead in the maturation of these types of services. ?To be fair, Android support for multiple languages and keyboards has historically been weak and slow to come out too, but I am disappointed and I hope that this is an area that improves a lot in the upcoming Windows Phone releases.

So, In general, I?m enjoying my first day with this device. ?I was afraid I?d be fighting it a lot, but that hasn?t been the case. ?For me, that is saying a lot! ?Many things went more smoothly than I expected, and the snags are ones that I think I can work through.

Looking ahead, I have a lot of language learning apps on my iPhone. ?This is an area of particular interest to me. ?I already know, however, that this category of apps isn?t very strong in the Windows Phone Marketplace yet. ?The pickings are?really slim. ?And you?ve already heard me mention the lack of keyboards for many languages. ?So I?ll be talking more about these things in the near future, but for now, it?s important to note that

• My basic services are functioning,
• I?m starting to work on the more difficult transition issues,
• And I?m having a good time doing it so far!

So now we will see how it goes for at the next few days or so! ?Stay tuned!

If you have any recommendations to share for the things that I?ve mentioned so far, please feel free to share!

Have you recently made a platform transition? ?How did it go for you? ?Are you happy with the change?

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Tags: Apple iPhone, HTC, Microsoft Windows Phone Apps, Microsoft Windows Phone Devices

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Retro Business Networking May 24 Hosted By Sandra McCarty of ...

? May 22, 2012Posted in: Business Networking, Marketing

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Be willing to give something of value before expecting to receive

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Business Networking Tip:?

Come with an attitude of gratitude. You are happier when you are grateful and happy people are far more attractive than complainers.

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About Sandra McCarty

Founder of SM Business Solutions LLC, offering inbound marketing services that are both innovative and tailored to my clients needs. I use inbound marketing media such as blogging, emails and social media to help independent professionals, business owners and entrepreneurs successfully engage their target markets and increase their revenues. I am passionate about making sure my clients are satisfied and their companies experience tangible gains. A graduate of Martin J Whitman School of Management, Syracuse University, University of the West Indies and of the Royal Institute of Marketing, London. Some of my clients are; Retro Lounge & Grill, The Cybernet Place, Optic Masters, Balance & Power Inc, Long Island Entrepreneurs Meetup Group, Best Buyer's Brokers and Male Ego Ltd.

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U.S. Advisers Say 'No' to Routine PSA Tests for Prostate Cancer

MONDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- In a highly anticipated move sure to unleash heated debate, a prominent U.S. government advisory panel is recommending that men of all ages no longer be screened for prostate cancer by undergoing the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an independent group of medical experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine, said PSA screening results in overdiagnosis of prostate cancer and unnecessary treatment that can leave men impotent and incontinent.

This final recommendation comes seven months after the task force drafted a report giving a "D" rating for the PSA blood test. Previous guidelines had stated that most men should undergo screening beginning at age 50.

"Some may say that by rating the test a 'D' we're taking away the possibility of an informed decision, but we don't want that to be the case," said task force co-vice chair Dr. Michael LeFevre, a professor in the department of family and community medicine at the University of Missouri School of Medicine. "This decision does not preclude a man choosing to be screened."

The task force is the same panel that in 2009 rejected regular mammograms for women in their 40s, after also concluding the benefits don't outweigh the harms.

The new recommendation is published online May 22 in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

About 242,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in Americans this year, and about 28,000 will die from it, according to the U.S. National Cancer Institute. More than two-thirds of those deaths occur after age 75, the task force said.

PSA tests -- which measure prostate-specific antigen, a protein produced by the prostate gland -- can detect which men are developing the malignancy. But they cannot discern between cases that will never become life-threatening and those that require treatment, such as surgery, radiation or hormone therapy.

Basing its recommendation mainly on two major trials of PSA testing in asymptomatic men in the United States and Europe, the task force concluded screening may only help one man in every 1,000 to avoid dying from prostate cancer. Up to five in 1,000 men will die within a month of prostate cancer surgery, the panel said, and between 10 and 70 per 1,000 men will suffer lifelong adverse effects, such as urinary incontinence, erectile dysfunction and bowel dysfunction.

Many will also suffer unduly from persistent anxiety, the report said.

Critics of the task force's decision said the group underestimated the PSA test's benefits and overestimated its harms and also overlooked significant methodological flaws in the studies on which it based the "D" recommendation. None of the task force members are urologists or oncologists, making them unqualified to broach the topic, some health experts said.

"I think they're throwing away the baby with the bathwater," said Dr. William Catalona, a professor of urology and director of the clinical prostate cancer program at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, who wrote an accompanying journal editorial condemning the move.

"There's just no other way to detect prostate cancer early than through PSA testing," Catalona added. "If we were to completely stop PSA testing in all men . . . it would result in countless men dying of metastatic prostate cancer. People are happy to be cured of their prostate cancer, even if they have some side effects."

Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society and an outspoken figure on the pros and cons of cancer screening tests, encouraged men to make their own choice about PSA screening while keeping the risks and benefits in mind. Certain men, including blacks and those with a family history of the disease, are at significantly higher risk of developing prostate cancer, he noted.

"I am hoping this (recommendation) shuts down mass screenings, where men are only told that this will help them, which is stretching the truth," Brawley said. "They're rarely told about the potential for harm and that, for the people running the screening, the [venture] is usually quite lucrative for them."

LeFevre said it remains to be seen whether health insurers will change their coverage of PSA screening based on the task force's recommendation. For one thing, insurers aren't supposed to tailor coverage decisions to USPSTF guidelines, he said.

"If you look at the overall costs of screening, the PSA test itself is very small," LeFevre said. "I'd be surprised to see them take what I call the political risk of backing away from that."

More information

For more on prostate cancer, visit the American Cancer Society.

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