MIAMI (Reuters) - There is no evidence that anyone listened in to confidential meetings between a Guantanamo war crimes defendant and his lawyer, at least during the last two years, a U.S. military judge said in a ruling made public on Tuesday.
Therefore, the judge ruled, there is no need to issue an order prohibiting future monitoring of attorney-client meetings.
The ruling came in the death penalty case against alleged al Qaeda chieftain Abd al Rahim al Nashiri, a Saudi prisoner accused of orchestrating the bombing of the USS Cole off Yemen in 2000. Seventeen U.S. sailors were killed when suicide bombers detonated a boat full of explosives against the warship's hull.
In a February hearing at the Guantanamo Bay U.S. Naval Base in Cuba, Nashiri's lawyers asked that pretrial proceedings be halted until they could determine whether military or intelligence agents were eavesdropping on supposedly private meetings with the defendant.
The request followed revelations that what appeared to be smoke detectors in the meeting rooms were actually microphones, and that intelligence agents outside the courtroom had cut the public audio feed in the mistaken belief that secrets were being discussed at another hearing. The microphones and the outside kill switch have since been disabled, according to court testimony.
Prosecutors and a defense technical expert subsequently searched for records of any monitoring and found none, the ruling said.
At an evidentiary hearing in June, the top legal adviser for the task force that runs the prison and the Army officer who acts as the warden both testified under oath that there had been no monitoring of attorney-client meetings during their tenure.
The judge, Army Colonel James Pohl, said their testimony was convincing and no evidence had been found to contradict it.
"While neither officer could possibly testify to what may have happened for the prior 10 years of detention at Guantanamo Bay, their testimony established beyond the required evidentiary threshold that monitoring has not occurred" since the current charges were filed against Nashiri in September 2011, Pohl wrote.
The judge said the confidentiality of attorney-client communications was sacrosanct under U.S. law and that any unlawful invasion of those conversations by any government agency "would be viewed very dimly."
But without evidence of past monitoring, the judge said, it would be superfluous and "a judicial overreach" to issue an order prohibiting future monitoring.
Nashiri's lawyers could not immediately be reached for comment on the ruling, which was dated August 5 and released publicly on Tuesday.
The duke provides a grand setting for cooking and entertaining, featuring a spacious kitchen designed with the chef in mind.. and after a night hosting friends and family, this home offers luxurious respite in its master bedroom, which includes a private den and a dedicated dressing area. once you enter through the two-story foyer, which is flanked on one side by a living room and on the other by a dining room, this gracious floorplan leads you to an expansive family room with a fireplace. adjacent to the family room, a private study can be used as an extra bedroom. upstairs, the lush master bedroom suite includes a spacious master den and an indulgent master bath with a cathedral ceiling, a roman tub, a separate shower, and a private dressing area.
SEOUL (Reuters) - Flat-screen maker LG Display Co Ltd, a key supplier to Apple Inc, said on Thursday that it was seeking to broaden its smartphone customer base, betting that diversification would bolster its second-half earnings.
The move came as the South Korean company posted a forecast-beating 53 percent rise in quarterly operating profit, as stable prices of large-sized TV screens helped counter slower growth in mobile display shipments to Apple.
LG Display follows other Asian suppliers that are looking to ease their dependence on the iPhone maker because of seasonal orders fluctuations and as Samsung Electronics Co Ltd erodes market share from Apple. Japanese display maker Sharp Corp is now aiming to boost sales to Samsung.
Like many suppliers, LG Display does not officially identify Apple as a client but analysts and sources say that most of its mobile screens are sold to the U.S. company.
"In the smartphone business, a specific customer accounts for a relatively high portion" of our sales, Chief Financial Officer James Jeong told analysts after the earnings announcement.
"We are in talks with various firms on new product line-ups ... We will gradually diversify our smartphone customers," he said, adding that diversification would help improve its earnings in the second half of this fiscal year.
Jeong did not specify the customers that the firm is talking to, but industry sources say it is hoping to ride the coattails of affiliate LG Electronics Inc, whose once loss-making smartphone business is on a firm recovery track. LG Electronics is now ranked as the world's No.3 smartphone vendor after Samsung and Apple.
LG Display is widely expected to supply super-thin and full high-definition screens for the upgraded version of LG Electronics' flagship Optimus G smartphone due out in early August.
Q2 PROFIT
LG Display, which vies with Samsung's panel unit for the top position in liquid crystal display flat screens globally, made 366 billion won ($326 million) in operating profit for its April-June second quarter. That beat the average forecast of a 304 billion won profit in a Thomson Reuters poll of analysts.
But sales slipped 5 percent from a year earlier to 6.6 trillion won, missing analysts' expectations for 7.28 trillion won. LG Display said sales fell because weaker demand for screens used in mobile devices and laptops more than offset increases in total panel shipments.
Analysts expect LG Display to enjoy upbeat sales of screens used in mobile devices in the current quarter with Apple and LG Electronics planning to launch new products.
Apple is exploring launching iPhones with bigger screens, as well as less-expensive models in a range of colours, over the next year, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
But some analysts warn that profit margins could be squeezed if Apple does introduce low-end models, while sales of premium televisions using ultra high definition screens as well as organic light-emitting diode panels remain extremely weak.
A weak global market for televisions, the biggest source of LG Display's revenue, is also expected to pressure its earnings growth, analysts say.
Daiwa Capital Markets this month cut its 2013 global LCD TV shipment growth forecast to 2.2 percent from 4.2 percent. It now expects global PC shipments, another source of major flat-screen sales, will shrink 8.8 percent this year, sharper than its previous forecast for a 4.3 percent drop.
LG Display said it expects overall panel prices to weaken in the current quarter before they start to recover later in the period.
Shares in LG Display have dropped 12 percent over the past three months, lagging a 5.6 percent drop in the broader market. The stock closed down 3.1 percent prior to the earnings announcement.
(Reporting by Miyoung Kim and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Chris Gallagher)
The NY Times had the drop on this, but the state?s individual health insurance rates through the new Exchange system are out. For the relatively small group of people purchasing individual insurance, rates are will actually fall, which is something of a counterpoint to predictions about other aspects of Obamacare.
A couple of interesting features about the new options ? people can shop on-line and consumers will have a choice of bronze, silver, gold or platinum, so-called plans.
Today, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that the Department of Financial Services (DFS) has approved health insurance plan rates for 17 insurers seeking to offer coverage through New York?s Health Benefits Exchange, including eight new entrants into the market that do not currently offer commercial health insurance plans. Last year, Governor Cuomo took action to issue an Executive Order establishing the New York Health Benefit Exchange, which is expected to help more than one million uninsured New Yorkers access quality, affordable health care coverage.
Consumers and businesses will be able to choose among plans in four easy-to-compare metal tiers (bronze, silver, gold, and platinum) on the exchange. The plans within each metal tier will have standardized contract terms and product offerings, making it easier for consumers to truly comparison shop and encourage real price competition among insurers. Previously, New York insurers offered more than 15,000 plans that widely varied in terms of level and quality of coverage provided ? which encouraged ?competition through confusion? and made it difficult for purchasers to effectively compare plans side by side.
?New York?s health benefits exchange will offer the type of real competition that helps drive down health insurance costs for consumers and businesses,? said Governor Cuomo. ?The opportunity to choose among affordable, quality health insurance options will mean improved health outcomes, stronger economic security, and better peace of mind for New York families.?
Benjamin M. Lawsky, Superintendent of Financial Services: ?In setting these rates, we worked hard to do right by consumers and small businesses so they have access to affordable, quality health insurance. Moreover, where New York previously had a dizzying array of thousands upon thousands of plans, small businesses will now be able to truly comparison shop for the best prices. New York will continue to move ahead rapidly so the exchange is up and running for 2014.?
?The approval of health plan rates marks a significant milestone for the New York Health Benefit Exchange,? said New York State Health Commissioner Nirav R. Shah, M.D., M.P.H. ?The state continues to be on target to begin enrolling consumers and small business owners and their employees in health insurance coverage on October 1, 2013. Access to affordable, quality health care will mean better health, peace of mind and financial security for New Yorkers.?
On average, the approved 2014 rates for even the highest tier of plans individual New York consumers could purchase on the exchange (gold and platinum) represent a 53 percent reduction compared to last year?s direct-pay individual rates. The fact that these average individual rates are effectively being cut more than in half is primarily because a greater number of uninsured individuals are expected to obtain coverage in the individual insurance market ? lowering overall premiums. 1 (Note: That 53 percent reduction does not include the impact of federal financial assistance for individuals meeting certain income thresholds who are purchasing coverage on the exchange, which would lower costs even further for many consumers.)
Furthermore, despite the fact that health care costs per capita are approximately 18 percent higher in New York than the national average, the average approved rates for the benchmark individual ?silver plan? in New York would be in line with (nearly 10 percent lower)the nationwide average previously forecast by the independent, non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) for when health care reform is implemented.
For approved 2014 small group plan rates, existing premium rates do not provide a functional year-over-year comparison. In 2013, insurers offered more than 15,000 different small group plans that significantly varied in terms of the quality and level of coverage provided. This year, insurers are offering standardized contracts and product offerings within metal tiers (bronze, silver, gold, and platinum).
The approved small group rates, however, are generally lower than indicated by the estimates of other independent forecasters.The average approved small group rate in New York for the benchmark ?silver plan? is well below(nearly 32 percent lower) the nationwide average previously forecast by the independent, non-partisan CBO ? notwithstanding the relatively higher per capita health care costs in New York compared other states. Moreover, a number of small businesses will be eligible for tax credits that would lower those premium costs even further.
The following companies had health insurance plan rates for the health benefits exchange approved today by DFS. The rates approved today are subject to final certification of the insurers? participation in the exchange. Aetna Affinity Health Plan, Inc. American Progressive Life & Health Insurance Company of New York Capital District Physicians Health Plan, Inc. Health Insurance Plan of Greater New York Empire BlueCross BlueShield Excellus Fidelis Care Freelancers Co-Op Healthfirst New York HealthNow New York, Inc. Independent Health MetroPlus Health Plan MVP Health Plan, Inc. North Shore LIJ Oscar Health Insurance Co. United Healthcare Individuals with incomes below 400 percent of the federal poverty level ($45,960 for individuals and $94,200 for a family of four), could qualify for financial assistance that lowers cost of coverage. Enrollment for the exchange begins on October 1, 2013 for coverage that will be effective January 1, 2014.
?These plans and rates deliver on the promise that the Exchange will offer quality health insurance coverage at a price that works for New Yorkers,? said Donna Frescatore, executive director, New York Health Benefit Exchange. ?We were pleased to see that there was much interest from health plans regarding participation in the Exchange. Our partners at the New York State Department of Financial Services did a thorough job of negotiating affordable prices while ensuring that consumers will have access to the providers they need. Robust competition among health plans has resulted in meaningful choices and better options for consumers.?
For a listing of the health insurance plan rates approved today by region, please visit, http://www.dfs.ny.gov/about/press2013/pr1307171_health_rates_2014 .
For more information about the New York Health Benefit Exchange, please visit, HealthBenefitExchange.ny.gov .
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1 It is challenging to compare existing premium rates to those that have been approved for 2014. The 2014 health insurance plans are for new products with new rates. However, plans in the existing ?direct-pay? market where individual New York consumers who do not have insurance through their employer can purchase coverage have relatively uniform terms with high standards for the level and quality of coverage provided. These existing ?direct-pay? plans are generally comparable to 2014 gold and platinum plans. For the lower-cost tiers of individual coverage (silver, bronze, and catastrophic), the approved 2014 rates would represent a even greater reduction than 53 percent compared to last year?s average direct pay rates ? however, those plans are not directly comparable to existing offerings.
Researchers step closer to custom-building new blood vesselsPublic release date: 16-Jul-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Shawna Williams shawna@jhmi.edu 410-955-8236 Johns Hopkins Medicine
Vessels grown from pluripotent stem cells able to function inside mice
Researchers at Johns Hopkins have coaxed stem cells into forming networks of new blood vessels in the laboratory, then successfully transplanted them into mice. The stem cells are made by reprogramming ordinary cells, so the new technique could potentially be used to make blood vessels genetically matched to individual patients and unlikely to be rejected by their immune systems, the investigators say. The results appear online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"In demonstrating the ability to rebuild a microvascular bed in a clinically relevant manner, we have made an important step toward the construction of blood vessels for therapeutic use," says Sharon Gerecht, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Johns Hopkins University Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Physical SciencesOncology Center and Institute for NanoBioTechnology. "Our findings could yield more effective treatments for patients afflicted with burns, diabetic complications and other conditions in which vasculature function is compromised."
Gerecht's research group and others had previously grown blood vessels in the laboratory using stem cells, but barriers remain to efficiently producing the vessels and using them to treat patients.
For the current study, the group focused on streamlining the new growth process. Where other experiments used chemical cues to get stem cells to form cells of a single type, or to mature into a smorgasbord of cell types that the researchers would then sort through, graduate student Sravanti Kusuma devised a way to get the stem cells to form the two cell types needed to build new blood vessels and only those types. "It makes the process quicker and more robust if you don't have to sort through a lot of cells you don't need to find the ones you do, or grow two batches of cells," she says.
A second difference from previous experiments was that instead of using adult stem cells derived from cord blood or bone marrow to construct the network of vessels, Gerecht's group teamed with Linzhao Cheng, Ph.D., a professor in the Institute for Cell Engineering, to use induced pluripotent stem cells as their starting point. Since this type of cell is made by reverse-engineering mature cells from the skin or blood, for example using it means that the resulting blood vessels could be tailor-made for specific patients, Kusuma says. "This is an elegant use of human induced pluripotent stem cells that can form multiple cell types within one kind of tissue or organ and have the same genetic background," Cheng says. "This study showed that in addition to being able to form blood cells and neural cells as previously shown, blood-derived human induced pluripotent stem cells can also form multiple types of vascular network cells."
To grow the vessels, the research team put the stem cells into a scaffolding made of a squishy material called hydrogel. The hydrogel was loaded with chemical cues that nudged the cells to organize into a network of recognizable blood vessels made up of cells that create the network and the type that support and give vessels their structure. This was the first time that blood vessels had been constructed from human pluripotent stem cells in synthetic material.
To learn whether the vessel-infused hydrogel would work inside a living animal, the group implanted it into mice. After two weeks, the lab-grown vessels had integrated with the mice's own vessels, and the hydrogel had begun to biodegrade and disappear as it had been designed to do. "That these vessels survive and function inside a living animal is a crucial step in getting them to medical application," Kusuma says.
One of the next steps, she says, will be to look more closely at the 3-D structures the lab-grown vessels form. Another will be to see whether the vessels can deliver blood to damaged tissues and help them recover.
###
The study was funded by the American Heart Association, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (grant numbers F31HL112644, 2R01 HL073781 and R01 HL107938), the National Cancer Institute (grant number U54CA143868) and the National Science Foundation (grant number 1054415).
Other authors on the report were Yu-I Shen, Donny Hanjaya-Putra and Prashant Mali, all of The Johns Hopkins University.
Link to the PNAS article: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/07/10/1306562110.abstract?sid=90ae5bc4-5a8e-41ec-be25-ec2c25923f9a
Related articles:
Steering Stem Cells to Become Two Different Building Blocks for New Blood Vessels: http://releases.jhu.edu/2012/12/20/steering-stem-cells-to-become-building-blocks-for-blood-vessels/
Researcher Seeks to Turn Stem Cells into Blood Vessels: http://www.jhu.edu/news/home09/feb09/gerecht.html
Linzhao Cheng on Making Stem Cells from a Patient's Blood Sample: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/institute_cell_engineering/_includes/videos/Transcriptions/Cheng_txn.html
[ | 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.
Researchers step closer to custom-building new blood vesselsPublic release date: 16-Jul-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Shawna Williams shawna@jhmi.edu 410-955-8236 Johns Hopkins Medicine
Vessels grown from pluripotent stem cells able to function inside mice
Researchers at Johns Hopkins have coaxed stem cells into forming networks of new blood vessels in the laboratory, then successfully transplanted them into mice. The stem cells are made by reprogramming ordinary cells, so the new technique could potentially be used to make blood vessels genetically matched to individual patients and unlikely to be rejected by their immune systems, the investigators say. The results appear online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"In demonstrating the ability to rebuild a microvascular bed in a clinically relevant manner, we have made an important step toward the construction of blood vessels for therapeutic use," says Sharon Gerecht, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Johns Hopkins University Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Physical SciencesOncology Center and Institute for NanoBioTechnology. "Our findings could yield more effective treatments for patients afflicted with burns, diabetic complications and other conditions in which vasculature function is compromised."
Gerecht's research group and others had previously grown blood vessels in the laboratory using stem cells, but barriers remain to efficiently producing the vessels and using them to treat patients.
For the current study, the group focused on streamlining the new growth process. Where other experiments used chemical cues to get stem cells to form cells of a single type, or to mature into a smorgasbord of cell types that the researchers would then sort through, graduate student Sravanti Kusuma devised a way to get the stem cells to form the two cell types needed to build new blood vessels and only those types. "It makes the process quicker and more robust if you don't have to sort through a lot of cells you don't need to find the ones you do, or grow two batches of cells," she says.
A second difference from previous experiments was that instead of using adult stem cells derived from cord blood or bone marrow to construct the network of vessels, Gerecht's group teamed with Linzhao Cheng, Ph.D., a professor in the Institute for Cell Engineering, to use induced pluripotent stem cells as their starting point. Since this type of cell is made by reverse-engineering mature cells from the skin or blood, for example using it means that the resulting blood vessels could be tailor-made for specific patients, Kusuma says. "This is an elegant use of human induced pluripotent stem cells that can form multiple cell types within one kind of tissue or organ and have the same genetic background," Cheng says. "This study showed that in addition to being able to form blood cells and neural cells as previously shown, blood-derived human induced pluripotent stem cells can also form multiple types of vascular network cells."
To grow the vessels, the research team put the stem cells into a scaffolding made of a squishy material called hydrogel. The hydrogel was loaded with chemical cues that nudged the cells to organize into a network of recognizable blood vessels made up of cells that create the network and the type that support and give vessels their structure. This was the first time that blood vessels had been constructed from human pluripotent stem cells in synthetic material.
To learn whether the vessel-infused hydrogel would work inside a living animal, the group implanted it into mice. After two weeks, the lab-grown vessels had integrated with the mice's own vessels, and the hydrogel had begun to biodegrade and disappear as it had been designed to do. "That these vessels survive and function inside a living animal is a crucial step in getting them to medical application," Kusuma says.
One of the next steps, she says, will be to look more closely at the 3-D structures the lab-grown vessels form. Another will be to see whether the vessels can deliver blood to damaged tissues and help them recover.
###
The study was funded by the American Heart Association, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (grant numbers F31HL112644, 2R01 HL073781 and R01 HL107938), the National Cancer Institute (grant number U54CA143868) and the National Science Foundation (grant number 1054415).
Other authors on the report were Yu-I Shen, Donny Hanjaya-Putra and Prashant Mali, all of The Johns Hopkins University.
Link to the PNAS article: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/07/10/1306562110.abstract?sid=90ae5bc4-5a8e-41ec-be25-ec2c25923f9a
Related articles:
Steering Stem Cells to Become Two Different Building Blocks for New Blood Vessels: http://releases.jhu.edu/2012/12/20/steering-stem-cells-to-become-building-blocks-for-blood-vessels/
Researcher Seeks to Turn Stem Cells into Blood Vessels: http://www.jhu.edu/news/home09/feb09/gerecht.html
Linzhao Cheng on Making Stem Cells from a Patient's Blood Sample: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/institute_cell_engineering/_includes/videos/Transcriptions/Cheng_txn.html
[ | 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.
Statewide Day of Action in Florida for Trayvon Martin
WHO: Dream Defenders and student, youth and community supporters throughout the state of Florida.
WHAT: Direct Action at places of interest.
WHEN: Tuesday, July 16, 2013
WHERE: Florida Capitol Building / other locations | 400 South Monroe St, Tallahassee, FL 32399
WHY: Dream Defenders are demonstrating and organizing pressure in response to the ?not guilty? verdict in the State of Florida vs. George Zimmerman trial and other civil rights issues in the state of Florida.
Dream Defenders have also released this statement:
?Our thoughts are with Trayvon Martin?s family, who unfortunately will never have their son back. This is a true American tragedy for every child, mother, father, brother and sister in the nation. This is a reminder that our communities still find themselves profiled, targeted and oppressed each day. The battle for true Justice in an unequal society is never simple. Florida has taken another one of ours. We must hold on to our anger in the face of the injustice and let the feelings of love for our community push us forward in fixing our broken society. We will never forget his name.
Dream Defenders are building in cities all over Florida taking on the criminalization of our youth, private prisons, and poverty. This is our problem to fix. If you?re ready to work, join us.?
Friends and relatives of Chinese passengers onboard the South Korean-owned passenger jet that crashed at San Francisco airport killing two and injuring 182 were anxiously waiting Sunday for news of their loved ones.
Chinese nationals made up 140 of the 290 people aboard the Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 which burst into flames after it landed short of the runway.
Among them were around 60 students and several teachers, with only one slightly injured and two unaccounted for, the Xinhua state news agency said.
The friend of one student told AFP she was waiting at San Francisco airport, frantically phoning people in China to find out details.
"My best friend is on the plane. I've been at the airport all day, trying to contact my friends in China to get updates on the accident," she told AFP over Sina Weibo, China's version of Twitter.
"I was really scared and am still trying to recover," she said. "You just never know when planes will have a problem."
Xu Da, a Chinese passenger on board, described the dramatic incident on CCTV.
"I noticed the plane was flying quite low when landing, and as it was just about to land the plane suddenly accelerated and the nose started to rise," he said. "But at the time the plane was flying extremely low already."
He added: "I felt a shock. The oxygen masks fell down and a bad smell began to spread throughout the plane. I could also see sparks in the front part of the plane."
Once the plane landed the cabin was a "mess", the back of the plane had a large hole and the kitchen there had disappeared, he described on Sina Weibo.
Xu and his wife collected their luggage and rushed out the makeshift exit at the back.
He posted photos showing people waiting outside while thick black smoke billowed from the plane, and then later from inside the airport, though the images could not be verified.
"I feel very fortunate," he wrote a little later, before posting another photo from a car leaving the scene.
Other travellers were left waiting for their flights as the airport shut down immediately after the incident before reopening a few runways.
A Chinese pilot surnamed Wang who was waiting to fly to Hong Kong told the official China News Service he was still trying to reach his friend on board.
"I haven't got in touch with him yet," he was quoted as saying.
When the plane crash-landed, he said, "the slide was released very quickly and the plane caught fire. The fire got bigger and bigger. First there was white smoke, then black smoke."
CCTV urged survivors and their loved ones to post information on the online messaging system We Chat so they could find one another.
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Public release date: 16-Jul-2013
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