News (Noticias) Tagged ‘RSS’

A handful of genes could mark the difference between high-strung Chihuahuas and unflappable basset hounds. A comparison of 148 dog breeds has uncovered genes for size, lifespan, and even complex behaviours such as pointing and herding.

Geneticists have previously uncovered genes for dog traits such as coat colour and narcolepsy, but these searches tended to focus on a single breed, comparing pooches with variations in a single trait – for example, boxers with and without white spots.”*

If you were looking for a new way to make semiconducting diamond, you might not have thought of starting with tequila. But the potent spirit turns out to be excellent raw material.

Diamond is normally an electrical insulator, but becomes a semiconductor when doped with the right impurities. Diamond film is tougher than silicon, so it could be useful for devices that must operate at high temperatures or under other harsh conditions.”*

President Felipe Calderon on Tuesday signed landmark judicial legislation that allows U.S.-style public trials and creates a presumption of innocence for the accused.

Under the long-awaited constitutional amendments, guilt or innocence no longer will be decided behind closed doors by a judge relying on written evidence.

Prosecutors and defense lawyers will argue their cases in court, and judges must explain their decisions to defendants.”*

For as far as the eye can see, stalks of sugar cane march across the hillsides here like giant praying mantises. This is ground zero for ethanol production in Brazil — “the Saudi Arabia of biofuels,” as some have already labeled this vast South American country.

But even as Brazil’s booming economy is powered by fuel processed from the cane, labor officials are confronting what some call the country’s dirty little ethanol secret: the mostly primitive conditions endured by the multitudes of workers who cut the cane.”*

The explosions that shatter the early morning quiet here are perfect metaphors for another kind of boom, the economic one transforming Panama’s capital.

The blasts a few miles north of the city are part of the first phase of the $5.25-billion Panama Canal expansion project. They are clearing a path for new locks that will modernize the historic waterway and, in 2014, enable bigger ships to traverse the isthmus.

This country’s economy grew 11% last year, in large part because of expectations of continued prosperity resulting from a bigger and busier canal. But there is more going on in Panama than just a massive public works project.”*

A famous Nicaraguan revolutionary singer-songwriter has asked the government to stop using his music.

Carlos Mejia Godoy, who penned the hymn of the ruling Sandinista National Liberation Front, said in a letter published Saturday that President Daniel Ortega and his staff are not authorized to use his songs at government events.

He did not dispute the use of the party hymn he wrote, but he gave government-supported television and radio outlets a week to stop using a version that he recorded.”*

Elian Gonzalez said he will never let down ex-President Fidel Castro and his brother Raul Castro, according to the Communist youth newspaper Juventud Rebelde.

Raul Castro succeeded Fidel as president earlier this year.

Now 14, Elian was 6 when his relatives in Miami, Florida, lost their fight to keep him in the United States and he was returned to Cuba in mid-2000 with his father.”*

Law enforcement officials said that the shift toward prescription-drug abuse, which began here about eight years ago, showed no sign of letting up and that the state must do more to control it.

“You have health care providers involved, you have doctor shoppers, and then there are crimes like robbing drug shipments,” said Jeff Beasley, a drug intelligence inspector for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which co-sponsored the study. “There is a multitude of ways to get these drugs, and that’s what makes things complicated.””*

TWO OF Cuba’s artistic exports — 20th century Modernist Wifredo Lam and emerging artist Carlos Luna — have landed side by side at Long Beach’s Museum of Latin American Art, in shows offering two variations on the theme of Cuban identity.

“The identity of being Cuban is not a one-way road,” says painter and sculptor Carlos Luna, via his wife and translator, Claudia. After all, modern Cuba is a conglomeration of Spanish, African and Indian elements, a mixed culture influenced by slave trading and the international sugar cane market. And though the works of Luna and the late Lam may differ in focus and style, Luna says, they both address “a very essential part of Cuban life, which stems from certain traditions and mixture.”"*

Nearly 40 years after they opened their first Tijuana restaurant, the entire extended family — 18 people, including Javier Plascencia’s wife and four children — moved across the border to a suburb southeast of San Diego.

Such migrations have become increasingly common in metropolitan areas along the U.S.-Mexico border, as the ongoing violence of a brutal drug war has disrupted lives from Tijuana to Nuevo Laredo, across the Rio Grande from Texas. The Mexican government has sent more than 3,000 troops into Tijuana in the last 1 1/2 years, and on several occasions soldiers have shot it out with drug cartel gunmen on residential streets.

“San Diego is the only place you can forget the sense of insecurity and fear. There, you can breathe. Psychologically, crossing the border relieves the stress,” said Guillermo Alonso Meneses, a professor of cultural studies at El Colegio de la Frontera Norte in Tijuana.”*

A lot of kids sat up and took notice the day the mayor showed up at Cole Middle School, offering to make a deal: If they’d study hard and stay in school, he’d find the money to pay for college. Four years later, the first of those students are ready to take him up on his offer — and Mayor John Hickenlooper is ready to deliver.

But the deal has soured for some students in the group: those who are illegal immigrants. Because they would be required by Colorado law to pay out-of-state tuition, it would cost much more to pay for their college educations.

Although the mayor says he will give the students the same amount of monetary support that legal residents will receive, it’s far less than what they will need to cover tuition. At least 10 of the 38 who graduated are affected, according to a private group helping the students.”*

Leftist ideology may be gaining ground in Latin America. But it will never set foot on the manicured lawns of Francisco Marroquin University.

For nearly 40 years, this private college has been a citadel of laissez-faire economics. Here, banners quoting “The Wealth of Nations” author Adam Smith — he of the powdered wig and invisible hand — flutter over the campus food court.

Every undergraduate, regardless of major, must study market economics and the philosophy of individual rights embraced by the U.S. founding fathers, including “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”"*

No doubt about it, Francisco Navarro-Robles says, it’ll be a cool story to tell the grandkids. How in late May 2008, he was on the way to getting his U.S. citizenship when he feared the traffic crawling into downtown Los Angeles would make him late for the ceremony at the Convention Center.

And how he told his friends he was getting out of the car and then walked the last mile or so on the shoulder of the 110 Freeway in intermittent rain that soaked the shirt, tie and shoes he’d worn just for the occasion.

But it’s a story that started 17 years ago when he crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and illegally entered the country. “People always talked about the United States, and I wanted to see if what people said was true,” he says. “I was worried. I was only 18, crossing the border with a friend. It was not a pleasant moment in my life.”"*

In an upstairs hallway at the Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena, a small show of photographs by Maria Teresa Fernandez focuses on the fence along the U.S.-Mexico border that begins a couple of hundred feet out in the Pacific and ends about 60 miles inland, near El Centro, Calif.

That’s a lot of territory to cover, and rather than documenting all parts equally or presenting a historical overview of the politically charged barrier, Fernandez zeros in on details: little incidents that might seem insignificant but that accumulate to form a knot of narratives by turns tragic, defiant and touching. Of the 84 color prints that make up the accessible exhibition, all but eight are close-ups — tightly framed pictures that bring visitors nose to nose with the fence and arm’s length from the often poignant mementos left beside it by people whose lives it has affected.”*

Now, law enforcement experts wonder if there are lessons that can be applied to the escalating crisis in Mexico, where close to 500 police officers and soldiers have died at the hands of warring drug gangs since 2006. Is there something in the way the Americans and Italians worked together that could be applied to a partnership with the Mexicans? Certainly it is in the interest of the United States to seek such an alliance to stop the flow of drugs, guns and crime across the border, just as the Italian alliance helped stop that flow across the Atlantic. Indeed, President Bush has been pushing Congress to approve the first $500 million installment of a crime-fighting aid package to Mexico. Last week, American border governors met in Mexico with President Felipe Calderón to rally support for the effort and praise him for focusing on the drug lords.

And for its part, Mexico, struggling with a problem that seems to get bloodier and more intractable with each passing week, might well benefit from the expertise and experience of American law enforcement.”*

Latinos have cast a declining number of GOP votes in recent years, and their turnout in Democratic primaries has been growing.”* click through

Each day, over 30,000 people are housed within detention centers across the United States. The New York-based Detention Watch Network says that last year, over 276,000 immigrants were deported.

Deportations have increased significantly since 1996, when laws became much more punitive. A criminal charge results in jail time and guarantees deportation of non-citizen immigrants, regardless of legal status and family “*

Promotion of Latinos in the New York Police Department (NYPD) to higher rank positions has increased by 46.1 percent, reports Spanish language newspaper El Diario/La Prensa. In 2001, there were 13 Latinos holding positions above captain rank, compared to 19 as of May 2008, according to NYPD. During the same period, there were 307 Latinos that held positions below captain, compared to the current 443. “*

ad:tech expositions, LLC ( www.ad-tech.com ), the leading conferences and exhibitions organizer for the global marketing community, is hosting its second annual event in Miami on June 3-4, 2008 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. The event will address the challenges faced by marketers, executives and businesses alike when trying to communicate with domestic Hispanic and Latin American audiences. This event is the only digital marketing conference focused on exploring the Hispanic narrative and the trends that have led the growth of their increasing Internet usage and understanding the cultural force driving their connectivity and responsiveness.
With Hispanics accounting for 44.3 million of the U.S. population(1) and their purchasing power expected to reach $1 trillion by 2010(2), it’s no wonder interactive marketers are clamoring to reach this burgeoning segment. Hispanics are now not only the largest minority in terms of population size but also online consumer presence(3). This online audience is growing almost as rapidly as its population size, and now the hurdle that remains is how best to ensure engagement and adoption.
“Hispanics are certainly embracing all that digital media and technology has to offer. They’re currently leading the total population in adoption of various devices and technologies, seeking the best and the newest brands and services out there,” said Monica Gadsby, CEO SMG Multicultural and keynote speaker at ad:tech Miami on June 3rd on The Attention Economy: Mastering the Touchpoints that Captivate Multicultural Consumers. “Since Hispanic consumers view the internet as a leading source of information to make purchasing decisions and a platform to engage with relevant content, I think we’ll certainly see further growth in Hispanic online penetration as more options become available on the web.”
The new digital age we find ourselves amidst calls for a new approach altogether in reaching target audiences. Hispanic and Latin American consumers are tapping into social networking sites, RSS feeds and blog feeds at a feverish rate for the latest and greatest, and as such, companies have to position themselves within this space to obtain exposure. The increase in online content, such as broadband video, social networks and mobile applications, will increase the time spent online thus offering marketers innumerous direct connections with consumers.
“The number of Latin American households with broadband Internet access is currently growing at one of the fastest rates in the world,” said Marcos Galperin, MercadoLibre’s President and CEO and keynote speaker at ad:tech Miami on June 4th on Technology + Commerce + Culture: The Story of an eCommerce Pioneer. “What we experience in Latin America is positive growth trends influencing Internet, broadband and PC penetration rates, and we believe this course will persist for many years to come.”
ad:tech Miami offers the ideal setting to listen and learn from the best and brightest marketing minds who will share their expertise and know-how while discussing the opportunities and challenges affecting the digital landscape and the global market. The exhibit hall will showcase 40 key exhibitors from Latin America, Mexico and the United States. Expo and Conference attendees will have the opportunity to meet and engage with domestic and international organizations, as well as time and space to network with colleagues at the event.

For an exhibitor list, please visit
www.ad-tech.com/miami/adtech_miami_exhibitors.aspx.

For public information, please visit www.ad-tech.com/miami “*

On a recent Sunday, they raised an orange circus tent in the yard of the Castañeda family home on the edge of this town where wind-blown dust paints the landscape brown and gray.

The Castañedas are not rich people. Vicente Castañeda, the sixtysomething patriarch, owns a few acres of land where he grows beans and corn. Benita, the seventh of his nine children, travels two hours to Mexico City every Monday to work in the home of an expatriate American family: mine.”*

Patricia Riso, a mother of two, has been in the United States illegally for more than 30 years. And although she has seen immigration authorities arrest co-workers at the factory where she sews garments, she has never been targeted and never dwelt on the possibility of deportation.

But after seeing TV reports of recent immigration raids, Riso is asking questions she previously avoided: Who would care for her children — U.S. citizens — if she were deported? And what about rent, bills and food for her children?

“We have to plan for these things so that a bad thing doesn’t become worse,” she said after attending a workshop that helps parents make family plans in case of deportation.”*

AT THE MOUTH OF THE COLORADO RIVER — Fighting a fierce north wind and cresting waves, a dozen Cucapa Indian fishermen were in trouble before they were halfway home, their small boats and balky outboard motors overmatched by the roiling estuary of the Colorado River Delta.

“Malo viento,” muttered Julio Figueroa, as he nosed his boat slowly through the wind-whipped waves, his feet submerged in 10 inches of standing water. Boats have capsized and men have drowned in these waters, where river and sea collide. Many others have drifted out to sea after waterlogged motors stalled.

The Cucapa say that every year they must venture farther downstream, braving some of the highest spring tides in the world. Rough seas aren’t the only hazard. It is illegal to fish here. The waters are part of a federal sanctuary created to protect several imperiled marine species. Although getting caught could cost them their boats, the Cucapa say they have little choice. Upstream, where the current is slower and the fishing legal, there is not enough water anymore and, consequently, not enough fish.”*

But the gap between an English-speaking city government and an overwhelmingly Spanish-speaking population has grown so wide that the federal government has stepped in to mandate that the city bridge the divide.

After a legal aid group filed a Civil Rights Act complaint, the U.S. Department of Justice worked with the city and Police Department to develop a language assistance plan.

Adopted in March, the plan is unique in Washington and is seen as a bellwether for cities with similar demographics. The plan requires Mattawa to employ at least one bilingual employee during regular business hours and to make vital information available in Spanish as well as English. It also requires the police to have qualified interpreters on call at all times.”*

Federal grand juries in Key West and Miami have indicted 28 South Florida men on charges of smuggling immigrants into the United States, the U.S. attorney’s office said Tuesday.

The dramatic move was apparently aimed at the thriving industry in which speedboat operators charge Cubans thousands of dollars apiece to be spirited out of their homeland.

The indictments stem from 13 smuggling operations intercepted over the last two years. The charges — involving the thwarted smuggling of more than 225 foreign nationals, all but 11 of them Cuban — could send each defendant to prison for as long as 10 years. “*

– ad:tech expositions, LLC (www.ad-tech.com), the leading conferences and exhibitions organizer for the global marketing community, is hosting its second annual event in Miami on June 3-4, 2008 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. The event will address the challenges faced by marketers, executives and businesses alike when trying to communicate with domestic Hispanic and Latin American audiences. This event is the only digital marketing conference focused on exploring the Hispanic narrative and the trends that have led the growth of their increasing Internet usage and understanding the cultural force driving their connectivity and esponsiveness.

With Hispanics accounting for 44.3 million of the U.S. population and their purchasing power expected to reach $1 trillion by 2010 , it’s no wonder interactive marketers are clamoring to reach this burgeoning segment. Hispanics are now not only the largest minority in terms of population size but also online consumer presence . This online audience is growing almost as rapidly as its population size, and now the hurdle that remains is how best to ensure engagement and adoption.

“Hispanics are certainly embracing all that digital media and technology has to offer. They’re currently leading the total population in adoption of various devices and technologies, seeking the best and the newest brands and services out there,” said Monica Gadsby, CEO SMG Multicultural and keynote speaker at ad:tech Miami on June 3rd on The Attention Economy: Mastering the Touchpoints that Captivate Multicultural Consumers. “Since Hispanic consumers view the internet as a leading source of information to make purchasing decisions and a platform to engage with relevant content, I think we’ll certainly see further growth in Hispanic online penetration as more options become available on the web.”

The new digital age we find ourselves amidst calls for a new approach altogether in reaching target audiences. Hispanic and Latin American consumers are tapping into social networking sites, RSS feeds and blog feeds at a feverish rate for the latest and greatest, and as such, companies have to position themselves within this space to obtain exposure. The increase in online content, such as broadband video, social networks and mobile applications, will increase the time spent online thus offering marketers innumerous direct connections with consumers.

“The number of Latin American households with broadband Internet access is currently growing at one of the fastest rates in the world,” said Marcos Galperin, MercadoLibre´s President and CEO and keynote speaker at ad:tech Miami on June 4th on Technology + Commerce + Culture: The Story of an eCommerce Pioneer. “What we experience in Latin America is positive growth trends influencing Internet, broadband and PC penetration rates, and we believe this course will persist for many years to come.”

ad:tech Miami offers the ideal setting to listen and learn from the best and brightest marketing minds who will share their expertise and know-how while discussing the opportunities and challenges affecting the digital landscape and the global market. The exhibit hall will showcase 40 key exhibitors from Latin America, Mexico and the United States. Expo and Conference attendees will have the opportunity to meet and engage with domestic and international organizations, as well as time and space to network with colleagues at the event.

For an exhibitor list, please visit www.ad-tech.com/miami/adtech_miami_exhibitors.aspx.

For public information, please visit www.ad-tech.com/miami

Editors: For interviews, images or more information, please contact Gracia Larrain at Edelman, ph: 305.358.7643 or Latiffe Ghanem at Edelman, ph: 305.358.8042

About ad:tech: ad:tech expositions, LLC is the leading organizer of conferences and exhibitions for the interactive marketing community worldwide. ad:tech produces the world’s largest interactive marketing events held in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Miami, London, Paris, Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore and Sydney. ad:tech is produced by dmg world media; based out of the company’s headquarters in Larkspur, California. For listings of exhibitors, speakers, events and upcoming conference offerings, visit www.ad-tech.com.

About dmg world media: An international exhibition and publishing company, dmg world media produces over 300 market-leading trade exhibitions, consumer shows and fairs each year and publishes 45 related magazines, newspapers, directories and market reports. dmg world media employs 700 people and maintains a worldwide presence through more than 30 offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, the United Arab Emirates, China, India, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. dmg world media is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Daily Mail and General Trust plc (DMGT), one of the largest and most successful media companies in the United Kingdom. Additional information on dmg world media can be found at www.dmgworldmedia.com.

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