Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
""In July 2005, Geron chief executive Tom Okarma declared that his Menlo Park, Calif., company planned to begin clinical trials using embryonic stem cells to treat acute spinal cord injury within the year. Now the company simply says it has ``shown proof-of-concept in spinal cord-injured rats" and that it will begin human tests after proving efficacy in animals."
And the comment added by the reporter is not only not a quote and misleading, it is totally false.
Geron HAS shown efficacy in animals... there are videos of at least two different studies to prove it.
This reporter has an obvious Rabid Republican anti-stem cell bias.
Chris
"In July 2005, Geron chief executive Tom Okarma declared that his Menlo Park, Calif., company planned to begin clinical trials using embryonic stem cells to treat acute spinal cord injury within the year. Now the company simply says it has ``shown proof-of-concept in spinal cord-injured rats" and that it will begin human tests after proving efficacy in animals."
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/10/01/hope_unfulfilled_promise...
231 Republicans who need to go
This list should be plastered on every message board and every billboard across the country before November so that every last one of them is kicked out of the People's house, because they no longer represent the will or the good of the People.
Voted Against ESCs:
(would rather throw leftover IVFs in the garbage than use them to treat people)
Senate:
NAYs ---37
Allard (R-CO)
Allen (R-VA)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Coleman (R-MN)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Hagel (R-NE)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Martinez (R-FL)
McConnell (R-KY)
Nelson (D-NE)
Roberts (R-KS)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Sununu (R-NH)
Talent (R-MO)
Thomas (R-WY)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/ro...
gress=109&session=2&vote=00206#position
House:
---- NAYS 193 ---
Aderholt
Akin
Alexander
Bachus
Baker
Barrett (SC)
Bartlett (MD)
Beauprez
Bilirakis
Bishop (UT)
Blackburn
Blunt
Boehner
Bonilla
Bonner
Boozman
Boustany
Brady (TX)
Brown (SC)
Burgess
Burton (IN)
Buyer
Camp (MI)
Campbell (CA)
Cannon
Cantor
Carter
Chabot
Chocola
Cole (OK)
Conaway
Costello
Crenshaw
Cubin
Culberson
Davis (KY)
Davis (TN)
Davis, Jo Ann
Deal (GA)
Diaz-Balart, L.
Diaz-Balart, M.
Doolittle
Drake
Duncan
Ehlers
English (PA)
Everett
Feeney
Ferguson
Fitzpatrick (PA)
Flake
Forbes
Fortenberry
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Gallegly
Garrett (NJ)
Gillmor
Gingrey
Gohmert
Goode
Goodlatte
Graves
Green (WI)
Gutknecht
Hall
Harris
Hart
Hastert
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Hensarling
Herger
Hobson
Hoekstra
Holden
Hostettler
Hulshof
Hunter
Hyde
Inglis (SC)
Istook
Jenkins
Jindal
Johnson (IL)
Johnson, Sam
Jones (NC)
Kaptur
Keller
Kennedy (MN)
Kildee
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kline
Knollenberg
Kuhl (NY)
LaHood
Latham
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Lucas
Lungren, Daniel E.
Manzullo
Marchant
Marshall
McCaul (TX)
McCotter
McCrery
McHenry
McHugh
McIntyre
McMorris
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller, Gary
Mollohan
Moran (KS)
Murphy
Musgrave
Myrick
Neugebauer
Ney
Norwood
Nunes
Nussle
Oberstar
Osborne
Otter
Oxley
Paul
Pearce
Pence
Peterson (MN)
Peterson (PA)
Petri
Pickering
Pitts
Poe
Pombo
Price (GA)
Putnam
Radanovich
Rahall
Rehberg
Renzi
Reynolds
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Ros-Lehtinen
Royce
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Saxton
Schmidt
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Shadegg
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shuster
Simpson
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Sodrel
Souder
Stearns
Stupak
Sullivan
Tancredo
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thornberry
Tiahrt
Tiberi
Turner
Walsh
Wamp
Weldon (FL)
Weller
Westmoreland
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson (SC)
Wolf
Young (FL)
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2006/roll388....
ESC Diabetes treatment
Cowen Mar 6, 2006 (tx esammee for transcripts)
"Prior preparations - not the one I just showed you - have already shown some efficacy. So here we take a streptozocin induced diabetic rat which is basically a fatal animal who can make no insulin and we show that about 80 percent of the animals live to day 50, when we sacrifice them all and do the histology whereas virtually none of the animals live who get BJ fibroblasts. The reason these animals survive is because the cells we transplant are producing human insulin that we can measure in their bloodstream. Now we’ve not yet made these animals normal glycemic and that’s what we hope to show when we inject the cells I showed you a moment ago into the same model and that work is ongoing with our collaborators at the University at Edmonton in Canada."
Needham June 14, 2006
"We now have a protocol that enables us the scalably produce islet cells from human embryonic stem cells. They not only make all of the right islet hormones but they also express the right pattern of genes, letting us know unequivocally these are human islets and here for one of the first times you’re actually seeing this. What we’re able now to do is from a mass of cells that are being driven to differentiate by the sequential addition of particular growth factors, we’re producing in a budding form a cell bud that’s producing the precursor of insulin as well as glucagon and somatostatin. So in a lower power field you can see this is not a rare event. Each one of these cell masses is producing the bud, which is an actual ES derived human islet. These cells are not yet in animal models but prior editions of this cell type have been in animal models at Edmonton where we show that animals that received the islets have a dramatically increased lifespan compared to animals that get skin cells and we can actually pick up human insulin in the bloodstream of the animals. So when the prior slide's cells enter animals we expect to actually normalize the blood glucose of these diabetic animals.
cc 02-28-06
A very important announcement on the 27th of January this year was substantial progress in our generating insulin producing islets from embryonic stem cells. You've probably heard me say before that the islets are the most difficult cell type for us to produce and we have really I think now turned the corner on that problem. Not only do we see exuberant production of insulin and other important islet hormones, but the cells are also demonstrating the appropriate spectrum of gene product expression that shows them to be true pancreatic endoderm. So we're very pleased with that and going forward in terms of our program, obviously we are in our IND enabling studies now for the oligodendrocyte program and we plan to move both the cardiomyocyte and islet programs forward in proof of concept studies this year with a view toward choosing one of them, cardiomyocytes or islets to place into clinical development in the following year."
5-17-06 BofA
"Well, on all of the cell types - that will include liver cells for drug discovery application, chondrocytes for arthritis, bone cells for fail to heal fractures which are – those three cell types are being developed in the UK with our wholly owned subsidiary, Geron BioMed. There'll be presentations on those. And more advanced presentations on the spinal cord cell in terms of the characteristics of the glial cell that we are now putting into the IND, as well as new data on both the cardiomyocyte and the islet. We didn't have time to talk about our approach for diabetes, but early this year and a few months ago we – a few weeks ago – we a) presented new data demonstrating that we have the cell. We have learned how to make a true, potentially scalable, islet cell from embryonic stem cells that secretes insulin and glucagon. We have work to go yet to demonstrate in vivo that that cell normalizes blood glucose in the animal model, but for the first time as far as we're aware, we're the only folks that have really developed the, the islet cell from embryonic stem cells. So you will hear about that. "
ESC Heart repair
Needham June 14, 2006 (tx esammee for transcript)
"Cell types behind the oligodendrocyte are first cardiomyocytes, heart muscle cells. These cells respond normally to cardiac drugs. They have absolutely normal electrophysiology. We have a new direct differentiation protocol that enables us now to move into large animal studies. And as I'll show you we now have important efficacy in the infarcted rat model. So here is a picture of a section of an infarcted rat demonstrating extensive scar in the left ventricular wall four weeks after the infarct. We inject cells several days after the infarction and when we stain with a human specific cardiomyocyte stain in the same section you can see surviving human cardiomyocytes. Do these do the animal any good? We actually prevent the onset of heart failure, so we show significant decreases in the n systolic and n diastolic diameter of the left ventricle. When the–when an animal goes into heart failure the ventricles swell to a larger size. Animals that get cells have a much smaller size. We’ve actually prevented the onset of heart failure, which again is the object of the exercise when we move into the clinic."
Fantastic recruiting and info... is wallstreet the only people who have never heard of telomerase inhibitors and cancer treatments and Geron?
"Posted by: esammee
In reply to: None
Date:9/11/2006 12:10:04 PM
Post #of 901
Oh, and a bit of an anecdotal story.
I know a fellow with intractable bone cancer who is once again facing chemo. I printed up the 163L trial information and gave it to him, fully expecting he'd do nothing. By the end of the week he was like a kid at Christmas. He had called the contact number, they gave him a referral to a doctor in Sacramento who consulted with his oncologist. He also took the information to his local GP and a doctor at UC Davis who treated him for many years. He says they are all pleased beyond pleased that this therapy has made it to the clinic and have started him on the screening process, recommending early that if eligible he give it a shot! One of them said she'd been talking about this stuff for years and years and didn't realize it had advanced this far. I suspect the word is going out, at least in the local oncology circles. They have all shared with him that one of the clinical trial challenges is getting local hospitals engaged. If nothing else, it's interesting to see how a patient is recruited, the process, and I'm energized that the bastions of the medical community are embracing this trial."
Geron Conferences
September 4 - 6, 2006
British Association of Cancer Research Special Conference,
York, UK
September 9 - 10, 2006
American Chemical Society Meeting,
San Francisco, CA
October 14 - 18, 2006
Society for Neuroscience Meeting,
Atlanta, GA
INVESTOR CONFERENCES
September 25 - 28, 2006
UBS Global Life Sciences Conference,
New York, NY
October 18 - 19, 2006
BIO Investor Forum,
San Francisco, CA
Wild Willy West and Tommy Tomorrow (Not rated) 7-Sep-06 07:30 pm
Own both stock, Gern over 8 years,there is
a lot to be said about Geron truthfulness to investors. Over the years, investments in Nexia
Technology, Merix, Roslin, Japan Kirin, University of Wiscounsin,Phase 2 Prostrate Cancer, 4 or 5 sites three in New York, Roche bladder test, Merck and the beat goes on with no results. If you think the spinal cord testing IND
will be on time you are dreaming.
Act is another story, of interest,is the
patents and those pending, the caliber of scientist on board and the ability to have a
deal with the University of Wiscounsin, Kirin,
University of Mass, Darmouth, Big Pharma in the works. Its hard for me to believe they were that
naive about what they published. They held back
and know what can be done with insights particularly with hormone and genetic engineering
and new stem cell lines never thought about.
Will both make it, one not smart enough based on the experience of the last eight years the other could be shooting from the hip but my
instinct tells me not. This should be fun to watch and surprises along the way.
Still drinking from the saucer and living in the "NOW"
Rate it:
awful/not related to pooraveragegoodexcellent
tubalcain28"
Interesting post.
Chris
>>Owned by Advanced Cell Technology, Inc.
Number Patent Country Filing Date Issue Date Title
6,808,704 US 09/06/00 10/26/04
===========
Ok, I was wrong... they own at least one US patent out-right.
Chris
This would be infinitly better than storing cord blood.
Chris
This post of mine from June 2006 at IHub Gern Home(when you click Show Board Info, and scroll down) is still pretty up-to-date... including Geron's patents.
I believe ACT does not own any patents out-right, but I could be wrong.
I think West is great, and Geron would never have acquired the patents and technology it has without him, but I like Half's analogy... West is the Ben Franklin with the kite and electricity and Okarma is the Edison who put it into a lightbulb.
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/board.asp?board_id=1634
"But because it was a laboratory experiment, none of the embryos was implanted and in fact several were destroyed. And no cell lines were created from single cells, but instead created by incubating several cells together."
=========================
Whoo... not so fast... there may be problems reaching the stated goals.
Save the embryo for implantation AND start a new ESC line with the extracted cell.
The proven procedure to remove a single cell without destroying the embryo DOES destroy the cell to extrace it's DNA for genetic testing.
It seems, a single cell cannot survive to become a cell mass all by itself.
If you solve this problem by extracting several cells from a 8-10 cell embryo, you will probably destroy the embryo. I f you solve the problem by placing several different extracted cells together in culture, you probably will not be able to isolate a mass for a new ESC line composed of cells from only one parent cell.
Chris
"It seems to me that Dr.WEST has spent a great deal of time with the kites rather than the light bulbs. halfaleague "
Nice quotable, Half.
Chris
Does anyone looking at this graph suspect a relationship between the two lines?
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=%5EIXIC&t=5y&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=%5EGSPC
How about between These two lines?
http://www.whrc.org/resources/online_publications/warming_earth/scientific_evidence.htm
http://www.whrc.org/resources/online_publications/warming_earth/scientific_evidence.htm
193+37 vote Against ESCs
Virtually ALL are Republicans!
Senate:
NAYs ---37
Allard (R-CO)
Allen (R-VA)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Coleman (R-MN)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Hagel (R-NE)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Martinez (R-FL)
McConnell (R-KY)
Nelson (D-NE)
Roberts (R-KS)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Sununu (R-NH)
Talent (R-MO)
Thomas (R-WY)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/ro...
gress=109&session=2&vote=00206#position
House:
---- NAYS 193 ---
Aderholt
Akin
Alexander
Bachus
Baker
Barrett (SC)
Bartlett (MD)
Beauprez
Bilirakis
Bishop (UT)
Blackburn
Blunt
Boehner
Bonilla
Bonner
Boozman
Boustany
Brady (TX)
Brown (SC)
Burgess
Burton (IN)
Buyer
Camp (MI)
Campbell (CA)
Cannon
Cantor
Carter
Chabot
Chocola
Cole (OK)
Conaway
Costello
Crenshaw
Cubin
Culberson
Davis (KY)
Davis (TN)
Davis, Jo Ann
Deal (GA)
Diaz-Balart, L.
Diaz-Balart, M.
Doolittle
Drake
Duncan
Ehlers
English (PA)
Everett
Feeney
Ferguson
Fitzpatrick (PA)
Flake
Forbes
Fortenberry
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Gallegly
Garrett (NJ)
Gillmor
Gingrey
Gohmert
Goode
Goodlatte
Graves
Green (WI)
Gutknecht
Hall
Harris
Hart
Hastert
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Hensarling
Herger
Hobson
Hoekstra
Holden
Hostettler
Hulshof
Hunter
Hyde
Inglis (SC)
Istook
Jenkins
Jindal
Johnson (IL)
Johnson, Sam
Jones (NC)
Kaptur
Keller
Kennedy (MN)
Kildee
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kline
Knollenberg
Kuhl (NY)
LaHood
Latham
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Lucas
Lungren, Daniel E.
Manzullo
Marchant
Marshall
McCaul (TX)
McCotter
McCrery
McHenry
McHugh
McIntyre
McMorris
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller, Gary
Mollohan
Moran (KS)
Murphy
Musgrave
Myrick
Neugebauer
Ney
Norwood
Nunes
Nussle
Oberstar
Osborne
Otter
Oxley
Paul
Pearce
Pence
Peterson (MN)
Peterson (PA)
Petri
Pickering
Pitts
Poe
Pombo
Price (GA)
Putnam
Radanovich
Rahall
Rehberg
Renzi
Reynolds
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Ros-Lehtinen
Royce
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Saxton
Schmidt
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Shadegg
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shuster
Simpson
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Sodrel
Souder
Stearns
Stupak
Sullivan
Tancredo
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thornberry
Tiahrt
Tiberi
Turner
Walsh
Wamp
Weldon (FL)
Weller
Westmoreland
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson (SC)
Wolf
Young (FL)
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2006/roll388....
"Chris, you can't talk to hasbro. He doesn't want to understand that this study is about a new method of creating cell lines. He wants it to be about embryos and claiming that a procedure that's been verified thousands of times suddenly now doesn't work. He doesn't know one single thing about the science and obviously isn't interested in figuring it out." Exactly... if scientists had to re-invent the wheel every time, we would have no progress. Chris
Go to the Source.
>>In the experiment, the embryos were dismantled cell by cell;
but other embryos >>should<< survive the extraction of a single cell, just as they do in preimplantation genetic diagnosis.<<
That's from the Nature article.
=========================
You have to expect errors in hasty news conferences and press releases. Go to the source, and you will get closer to the accurate information.
What part of S H O U L D don't you understand?!
using old board for scratch paper, I'll sort out the data later
When you think it will take 1 year, and it ends up taking 4 years, I believe "other" factors are involved. (GOP controlled FDA).
Over 1 year ago FDA scientists recommended that Plan B be available over-the-counter to all because it was completely safe, but the higher-ups at FDA appointed by Bush blocked it.
210 Republicans voted to flush left-over embryos instead of using them to treat real people and even then, enough joined the Democrats to pass the measure, only to see it vetoed by that sadist-in-chief Bush.
Chris
ESC spine IND March 2003?
(Not rated) 12 second(s) ago
By Kristen Philipkoski| Also by this reporter
02:00 AM Mar, 11, 2002
Gearhart used stem cells taken from voluntarily aborted fetuses, while Keirstead used stem cells obtained from Geron Corporation, which were collected from in vitro fertilization clinics and would have otherwise been discarded.
President Bush announced on Aug. 9, 2001 that he would limit federal funding of embryonic stem cell research to the 60 lines he said already existed at the time of his announcement. That number was later reduced to around 40, and many believe it is even lower.
Stem cells can replicate themselves indefinitely, and millions of stem cells can be derived from just one embryo, creating one stem cell line. In the lines that have already been derived, "the life/death decision has already been made," said Bush, at the time of his announcement.
The Ortiz bill would establish permits in California to allow researchers to derive more stem cell lines.
Keirstead's results must be repeated, and duplicated by another lab, before his team can approach the FDA with a proposal for a study in humans. But he believes he'll be ready to do so in about a year "if all goes well," he said, after the hearing.
http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286...
FDA recent spinal repar roadblocks (12 Ratings) 42 minutes ago
Do others have the impression that about 4 months ago, the FDA threw another roadblock in front of Geron because they were getting too close to starting the ESC spinal cord repair trial?
We are now delayed 2 1/2 years from when Keistead said the trial woud start.
the first 1 1/2 years of this delay may be because Keirstead did not know the standard steps that are required before starting the trial, but I think the additional 6 month delay we recently got is strictly due to neocon politics at the FDA doing all they can to make sure this trial Never starts.
For the last 4+ years, Okarma said he has been working closely with people at the FDA to ensure Geron was doing all that was required to get approval to start the trial... up until this spring, it looked like the IND would definitly be approved by now, and the trial would start this fall.
With this latest roadblock and delay, it looks like the trial won't start until next summer, if then.
==================
It's be nice if esammee could make a list of dates and okarma/kierstead quotes as the date kept slipping.
Chris
ACT ESC procedure (17 Ratings)
1. The process starts with a very-early-stage embryo, containing only eight to ten cells.
2. A single cell is sucked out and placed in a growth medium.
3. A small percentage of the time, that cell survives and becomes a colony of embryonic stem cells.
4. This colony can keep dividing indefinitely, and researchers could use it to try to understand the roots of some diseases.
5. Scientists think that the embryo, with one cell missing, can go on to become a healthy baby.
http://www.forbes.com/2006/08/23/cz_mh_0...
Indications this procedure may not be that safe for the embryo...
"Scientists think that the embryo, with one cell missing, can go on to become a healthy baby."
Think??? Hasn't any baby been born after PDG (1,000 PGDs per year)?
I think "think" was an error in the publication, however, this is probably true...
"A small percentage of the time, that cell survives and becomes a colony of embryonic stem cells."
Small percentage? how small? 1%, 5%?
However, this percentage should increase as researchers master their techinque.
Chris
Hey Weatherman!
Nice to see you are still around.
Most of the others have made it too.
Chris
Partial random list of informed posters
mistergern
captoutrageous34
texmac2323
aureas2
nolibertyforus
paulagem
trail_blazer_7
cancerfoe
rx7171
heathershotstocks
pac_p1yer
yalgrad97
biotechjunkie
totallysuite_dude
donlfought
reits_investor
reg3033
cheap1_2
CaptainBiology
liar_larry
chrisclub
redtailedhawkshadow
notquiteenough6
esammee
imtajamid
dtvaughan
schneiderlaw
sirloxley
littlegrasshopper2003
an_honest_fellow
catawabe
fundreader
abzon2000
leonerdo_zelig
gretna103
halfaleague
"UCSF is using private money to renovate an entire floor of a building so that its stem-cell researchers will be able to work in a central location. One team deriving new stem-cell lines currently works in a laboratory at Menlo Park, Calif.-based biotechnology company Geron Corp., while another labors at an off-site leased facility in San Francisco."
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06229/714269-115.stm
Linda Ronstadt stands by anti-Bush statements
MSNBC
Linda Ronstadt isn’t changing her tune.
The “Desperado” singer made international headlines when she was ejected from a casino in Las Vegas in 2004 after praising Bush critic and filmmaker Michael Moore as a “great American patriot.” Now Ronstadt is doing an encore.
“The Dixie Chicks said they were embarrassed he was from Texas,” Ronstadt recently said while touring in Canada. “I’m embarrassed George Bush is from the United States.”
“He’s an idiot,” Ronstadt told the Edmonton Sun, adding, “He’s enormously incompetent on both the domestic and international scenes.” She also defended performers’ rights to talk about politics. “Was it wrong for people like Peter, Paul and Mary or Joan Baez to speak out against racism? I think they educated a lot of people about something that was terribly unfair,” she said. “Now the fact that we were lied to about the reasons for entering into war against Iraq and thousands of people have died — it’s just as immoral as racism.”
http://www.nature.com/podcast/stemcells/index.html Listen to the podcast
#625 I'm feeling really overwhelmed after last night's research. Paula 8/17/2006 8:19:41 AM
#624 Chris, I think everyone here has seen that Paula 8/17/2006 8:12:07 AM
http://mysite.verizon.net/myk15/2percent.html The margin of error was actually +/- 1.5% for most of the exit polls. This one graph is hard evidence that could be used in court. This is hard data from the actual exit polls taken. When you talk about problems, this one graph and the statistics behind it is the strongest evidence that the machines were rigged.
"Minotaur - How do you translate discussion of the constitutionality of the president's actions and illegal manipulation of elections to " bashing the party out of favor".
If the administration is not subject to constitutional checks and balances and the vote can be hacked by whoever controls the machinery, then the current political environment doesn't have a prayer of changing or reflecting the will of the people.
This is my concern. It also concerns me greatly that my posts are constantly seen as partisan when they are not. If the Dems owned a voting machine company I'd be just as concerned with them. Yes, there are other ways to corrupt an election, but none of them can be done on a scale that can put the opposing party out of business on a national level."
==================
This post gets MY Rec.
Chris
Tue Aug 15, 1:38 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - Australian Prime Minister John Howard will allow members of his conservative government a conscience vote on stem cell research, officials said.
Howard had faced a backbench revolt from colleagues dissatisfied over his cabinet's decision last June to maintain an existing ban on theraputic cloning for embryonic stem cell research.
The prime minister had previously said there was no need to change existing laws on the issue. But a government spokesman said he had agreed to a free vote after a meeting of lawmakers from the ruling Liberal-National coalition Tuesday.
The spokesman said Howard told the meeting: "You can't impose a government view on something like this."
A government-commissioned review of biotechnology last December recommended scientists should be allowed to use therapeutic cloning to generate stem cells for research into specific diseases.
Instead, the cabinet voted to maintain 2002 laws allowing only spare embryos left over from in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures to be used for research.
Scientists who were part of the government review had claimed researchers were leaving Australia because of the government-imposed restrictions on their work.
Neuroscientist Peter Schofield said earlier this week that a conscience vote on stem cell research would help debate on the issue. "It is a difficult and emotionally charged area," he said.
Scientists hope that stem cells, which are master cells found in embryos and adults, can be grown into a variety of tissues and cells which will help treat degenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and motor neurone disease.
But opponents of stem cell research say the artificial manipulation of human embryos raises religious and ethical problems.
While there is no legislation currently before parliament dealing with stem cell research, Democrats senator Natasha Stott Despoja has indicated she intends to introduce a private member's bill on the issue.
The Yahoo board had already become virtually useless with the new format.
It seems John Dean's 23% permanently brainwashed are about all that is left over there.
paulagem, chrisclub, etc. getting TOSed for highlighting the neocon abuses, while those who do nothing but make personal attacks against other posters stay, just shows that Yahoo is in bed with Bush, as we all knew when Yahoo handed over our records to Bush, while Google refused.
New Aug 15 Patent
United States Patent 7,091,021
Morin August 15, 2006
Inactive variants of the human telomerase catalytic subunit
Abstract
The invention provides compositions and methods related to human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTRT), the catalytic protein subunit of human telomerase. Catalytically active and inactive human telomerase reverse transcriptase variants comprising deletions or other mutations are provided.
Inventors: Morin; Gregg B. (Davis, CA)
Assignee: Geron Corporation (Menlo Park, CA)
http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2Fse...
What is claimed is:
1. A polypeptide encoded by DNA that hybridizes to the sequence complementary to SEQ. ID NO:1 at 5.degree. C. to 25.degree. C. below T.sub.m in aqueous solution at 1 M NaCl, wherein T.sub.m is the melting temperature of double-stranded DNA having the sequence of SEQ. ID NO:1 under the same reaction conditions; wherein said polypeptide has one or more of the following deletions: a) residues 560 565, b) residues 930 934, c) at least 10 consecutive amino acids from residues 326 415, d) at least 10 consecutive amino acids from residues 637 660, e) at least 10 consecutive amino acids from residues 748 766, f) at least 10 consecutive amino acids from residues 1055 1071, or g) at least 10 consecutive amino acids from residues 1084 1116 of SEQ. ID NO:2; and wherein said polypeptide inhibits telomerase enzyme activity when introduced into a cell expressing human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTRT) (SEQ. ID NO:2).
2. A polypeptide lacking telomerase enzyme activity, wherein said polypeptide comprises full-length hTRT (SEQ ID NO: 2), except for one or more deletions(s) selected from the group consisting of: a) residues 560 565, b) residues 930 934, c) at least 10 consecutive amino acids between residues 323 450, d) at least 10 consecutive amino acids between residues 637 660, e) at least 10 consecutive amino acids between residues 748 766, f) at least 10 consecutive amino acids between residues 1055 1071, or g) at least 10 consecutive amino acids between residues 1084 1116.
3. A polypeptide lacking telomerase enzyme activity, wherein said polypeptide comprises full-length hTRT (SEQ. ID NO:2), except for one or more deletions(s) consisting essentially of residues 560 565, 930 934, 326 415, 637 660, 748 766, 1055 1071, or 1084 1116, wherein said polypeptide lacks telomerase catalytic activity; and wherein said polypeptide inhibits telomerase enzyme activity when introduced into a cell expressing hTRT.
4. A method of inhibiting telomerase catalytic activity, comprising introducing a polypeptide according to claim 1 into an environment containing telomerase reverse transcriptase.
5. A method of inhibiting telomerase catalytic activity in a cell, comprising expressing in the cell a nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide according to claim 1.
6. A method of inhibiting telomerase catalytic activity, comprising introducing a polypeptide according to claim 2 into an environment containing telomerase reverse transcriptase.
7. A method of inhibiting telomerase catalytic activity in a cell, comprising expressing in the cell a nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide according to claim 2.
8. A method of producing an inactive variant of telomerase reverse transcriptase in a cell, comprising transfecting the cell to express a polypeptide according to claim 2.
9. A method of inhibiting telomerase catalytic activity, comprising introducing a polypeptide according to claim 3 into an environment containing telomerase reverse transciptase.
10. A method of inhibiting telomerase catalytic activity in a cell, comprising expressing in the cell a nucleic add encoding a polypeptide according to claim 3.
11. A method of producing an inactive variant of telomerase reverse transcriptase in a cell, comprising transfecting the cell to express a polypeptide according to claim 3.
"...In 1996 the Republican-controlled Congress began forbidding the NIH to use funds for research in embryonic stem cells.
Two years later, though, one researcher derived the first human embryonic stem cells by turning to private funding. James Thomson, a biologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, turned to Geron (nasdaq: GERN - news - people ), a biotech firm in Menlo Park, Calif., to fund work at an off-campus lab and sidestep the U.S. ban."
Cell donors
Billionaires have been at the forefront of funding controversial embryonic stem-cell research.
Michael Bloomberg
A reported $100 million gift to alma mater Johns Hopkins included cash for its stem-cell institute. At a speech there, he lambasted the feds for not funding the research.
Eli Broad
Gave $25 million to build a stem-cell building at USC. More gifts could be coming. A big supporter of the California proposition that could give researchers $3 billion.
Ray Dolby
With wife Dagmar gave $16 million to UCSF to help build a new stem-cell research center. Has remained quiet about his gift.
Larry Ellison
Through his medical foundation, has given almost $4 million to various embryonic stem-cell projects.
Bill Gates
He and wife Melinda donated $400,000 to the campaign to support California embryonic stem-cell proposition. Their foundation has given a $1.9 million grant to AIDS research at China's Peking University that uses human embryonic stem cells.
Pierre Omidyar
He and wife Pamela donated a combined $1 million to the campaign supporting the California ballot proposition.
http://www.forbes.com/2006/08/16/cz_mh_rl_0816mag124.html?partner=yahootix
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._presidential_election,_2000 The Florida Ballot Project recounts
The National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, sponsored by a consortium of major United States news organizations, conducted a Florida Ballot Project comprehensive review of all ballots uncounted (by machine) in the Florida 2000 presidential election, both undervotes and overvotes, with the main research aim being to report how different ballot layouts correlate with voter mistakes. Its findings were reported by the media during the week after November 12, 2001.
Although the NORC study was not primarily intended as a determination of which candidate "really won", analysis of the results, given the hand counting of machine-uncountable ballots due to various types of voter error indicated that they would lead to differing results, reported in the newspapers which funded the recount, such as The Miami Herald (The Miami Herald Report: Democracy Held Hostage) or the Washington Post [8].
Candidate Outcomes Based on Potential Recounts in Florida Presidential Election 2000
(outcome of one particular study; not representative of all studies)
Review Method Winner
Review of All Ballots Statewide (never undertaken)
• Standard as set by each county Canvassing Board during their survey Gore by 171
• Fully punched chads and limited marks on optical ballots Gore by 115
• Any dimples or optical mark Gore by 107
• One corner of chad detached or optical mark Gore by 60
Gore's Victory
By Robert Parry
November 12, 2001
So Al Gore was the choice of Florida’s voters -- whether one counts hanging chads or dimpled chads. That was the core finding of the eight news organizations that conducted a review of disputed Florida ballots. By any chad measure, Gore won.
Gore won even if one doesn’t count the 15,000-25,000 votes that USA Today estimated Gore lost because of illegally designed “butterfly ballots,” or the hundreds of predominantly African-American voters who were falsely identified by the state as felons and turned away from the polls.
Gore won even if there’s no adjustment for George W. Bush’s windfall of about 290 votes from improperly counted military absentee ballots where lax standards were applied to Republican counties and strict standards to Democratic ones, a violation of fairness reported earlier by the Washington Post and the New York Times.
Put differently, George W. Bush was not the choice of Florida’s voters anymore than he was the choice of the American people who cast a half million more ballots for Gore than Bush nationwide. [For more details on studies of the election, see Consortiumnews.com stories of May 12, June 2 and July 16.] http://www.consortiumnews.com/2001/111201a.html
List of 37 Senators who voted against?
Anyone have it?
My site won't post it till tomorrow.
http://senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/vote_menu_109_2.htm
Important Videos (Not rated) 3 minutes ago
Dean and Oberman on the 23% Republlizombies:
Snow is R from Main.
I'd like a list of Rs that spoke in favor of 810. The final vote is supposed to be tomorrow night.