Pics

Suneal putting his funk on
interesting! HOPE click on to make it bigger
Brian and Thomas-brothers from Ireland
Mike getting his funk on

Mike and Donna's son Ryan
Mike and Donna

Lobby
this is a gingerbread city modeled after Shenyang

Tim and Terry from Florida



you know who they are

pics

Barbara and Phil-prince edward is.-canada
at the sheraton last night
Diana and her MOM

I'm in post dinner coma

PICS FROM LAST NIGHT'S DINNER

LIFE IS NOT MEASURED BY HOW MANY BREATHS YOU TAKE BUT BY THE MOMENTS THAT TAKE YOUR BREATHE AWAY!!!!!!!

ARTICLE

Germany to double funding for stem cell research: minister says
Sat Nov 24, 4:36 PM ET
The German government will double its funding for stem cell research, the research minister announced Saturday.
Berlin is to increase the current allocation of five million euros (7.4 million dollars) to just under 10 million euros, Annette Schavan told the weekly Focus magazine in an interview to be published Monday.
"From now on we are going to double the annual funding total for adult cell recoding techniques, in order to push forward advances in this area," she said.
"Over the next few years Germany must be a motor in adult stem cell research so that we can expand on the results already obtained," she added.
The German announcement came after scientists in Japan and the United States said earlier this week they had generated stem cells from human skin. The breakthrough could help in the fight against major diseases and sidestep the battle over using embryonic cells.
Schavan said the success would not have been possible without "the knowledge gained from research on embryonic stem cells."

An article about stem cells

My cousin Sally sent this to me-VERY INTERESTING! BUT A LONG WAY OFF!

Fri Nov 23, 3:00 AM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20071123/ts_csm/astemcell
Colonies of tiny cells flourishing in petri dishes in the US and Japan are reshaping the political and ethical landscape surrounding human stem-cell research.

In the process, these diminutive colonies also may level the playing field in stem-cell research – internationally and domestically.
These are some of the effects analysts say they see coming out of this week's announcements that two teams have genetically reprogrammed skin cells so that they take on the traits of embryonic stem cells.
Embryonic stem cells are the subject of intense medical interest because of their ability to develop into any of the major cell types in the human body. Over the long term, these stem cells could become the foundation for therapies for a range of diseases, scientists say. This week's announcement suggests it will be possible for scientists to study these cells without the ethical and political difficulties of harvesting them from unused human embryos.
For the emerging field of stem-cell research, "this is enormous," says Jesse Reynolds, a policy analyst at the liberal Center for Genetics and Society, based in Oakland, Calif. "I can't think of another development "that has been this big,"
"This is a paradigm shift," agrees Rev. Tad Pacholczyk, director of education at the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. "This will have a huge impact on the ethical debate."
That debate has centered on the sources for human embryonic stem cells – especially those that have the potential to be patient-specific. For research purposes, scientists have turned to fertility clinics where patients either have donated their nascent embryos to research or no longer need them to start a family. But the process of extracting the stem cells destroys these soon-to-be embryos, technically called blastocysts. The destruction is abhorrent to those who hold that human life begins at conception.
The ethical debate grows more heated when cloning – the most controversial idea for generating patient-specific stem cells – enters the picture. In 1997, a team in Scotland led by Ian Wilmut cloned Dolly the sheep from adult tissue by extracting the DNA from nucleus of adult cells and injecting it into the emptied nuclei of unfertilized sheep eggs. The eggs were fertilized, then implanted into ewes.

The approach is banned in humans. Last week, however, scientists from the Oregon National Primate Research Center in Beaverton, reported for the first time that they had used the technique to generate embryonic stem cells cloned from an adult primate – a macaque monkey. This strongly hinted that eventually the approach could work with humans.
But the technique, which in principle could draw on patient's a own cells to generate new tissue for treatments, is highly inefficient – requiring many eggs to yield one successful clone from which stem cells can be drawn and nurtured. It implies generating nascent embryos exclusively as stem-cell factories. And it raises the concern among many people that the approach will lead eventually to cloning humans as a means of reproduction.

By contrast, the US and Japanese teams discovered genetic triggers that could in effect turn back the clock on already-developed cells. Working independently, each team found four genes that, when introduced into the nucleus of skin cells, yielded cells indistinguishable from embryonic stem cells. The Japanese team, led by Kazutoshi Takahashi at the University of Kyoto, used the approach on mice last year. His lab, and one led by the University of Wisconsin's James Thompson, essentially tied for the race to test the approach using human cells.
For now, the two groups' work "changes everything and changes nothing; and caution is warranted," says Dr. Thompson. "This changes everything because these are not from embryos." But, he adds, it changes nothing because scientists still don't know how embryonic stem cells morph into the wide variety of cell types in the body. The caution comes because without that information, it's unclear if the new cells can live up to their promise. Thus, research on human embryonic stem cells is still vital, he emphasizes.
Still, some labs appear to be doing that. In Scotland, Dr. Wilmut announced earlier in the week that his lab is dropping the cloning approach and focusing on the genetic reprogramming approach as well.

If this is any indication, a shift in stem-cell research could follow. The new technique's relative ease, lower cost, higher output, and scrubbed-up ethics are likely to draw more labs into the field, Thompson suggests.
Moreover, such an expansion might further invigorate US research in the face of aggressive competition from countries like Britain and Japan.
The advance could trigger some interesting political shifts, some analysts suggest. For example, US restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research could become harder to change in light of these discoveries, according to Alta Charro, a University of Wisconsin law professor.
Already, the issue appears to be losing traction, Mr. Reynolds adds. Earlier this month, for instance, New Jersey voters rejected a plan to borrow $450 million for the state's stem-cell research program.
Indeed, the defeat, the discoveries, and the prospect that a new administration might loosen the federal purse strings for human embryonic stem research could add an element of uncertainty to existing or planned state stem-cell programs.

"Right now, all of the activities on the pro-stem-cell front in the states has been driven by the lack of federal funding for this research," says Patrick Kelly of the Biotechnology Industry Organization. "So if a new administration comes in and approves more federal funding, the need in the states is going to be diminished." But in states with existing programs "I don't think they'll ever be redundant."

I THINK ALL THESE PEOPLE AGAINST EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS ARE NOT "DYING".
IF THEY WERE IN MY SHOES OR ANY ONE'S THAT'S FACING THE PATH OF TIME-THERE TAKE ON THIS SUBJECT WOULD BE FAR DIFFERENT. I WOULD LOVE TO GET IN FRONT OF THESE PEOPLE AND SAY, "IS IT FAIR THAT I'M 34 AND HAVE ALS? IS IT FAIR THAT I CAN'T GET THE TREATMENT I NEED IN THE MY OWN COUNTRY? IS IT FAIR W/ OUT ANY TREATMENT AVAILABLE I'M DEFINITELY GOING TO DIE-IS IT F#%K%4G FAIR?

THOUGHT SO!!!!!!!!!

SORRY IF I OFFENDED SOME PEOPLE THAT ARE AGAINST THIS TYPE OF TREATMENT. YOU'RE NOT IN MY SHOES AND IF YOU WERE, YOU WOULD DO THE SAME. IT'S HUMAN NATURE TO DO ANYTHING POSSIBLE TO STAY ALIVE. ANYTHING

Pics of the day

dreaming about stem cells-zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

me waiting outside the OR
the stem cells being flown in
McDonald's delivers!! That's what I had on thanksgiving!
Mike-from Toronto and I waiting to get into the OR
Phil-Brian-Thomas playing poker w/ Q-tips.

Post Turkey Wisdom!

I've never stayed awake at night over a chance I took that failed, but I've stayed awake over chances I didn't take.-Garth Brooks

Never deny a diagnosis, but do deny the negative verdict that might go with it.-Norman Cousins


We learn to fly not by becoming fearless, but by the daily practice of courage.-Sam Keen

The most wasted of all days is that during which one has not laughed." -- Nicolas De Chamfort

Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.-James Baldwin


from a
friend-thought I would share

FRIDAY AFTER THANKSGIVING

The Friday after thanksgiving

Well here’s the skinny-My physical therapist Dr. Doris (she is a doctor-she practiced in the Philippines before she came to US) has a brother and sister who are also doctors living in the Philippines. They know this world renowned healer priest and they are trying to get me in front of him. So, it looks as though mom and I are going. We won’t no for sure until a few days from now but how great is this. A person going out on a limb for another for another human being-can’t be a greater gift than that!! Hey, it is what it is and WHATEVER IT TAKES!!
I’m just thankful they’re people in my corner(LIKE ALL OF YOU). A year ago I would have said, “no way”. It’s amazing when you’re facing the path of time, how close you become to your higher power. I have a few close friends to thank for that. They got me to go to church and really let go and let God. I’m not a holy roller but I do think I need a miracle here.

My day was great! All my sessions went well. I found this letter on the Project main st. website www.projectmainst.org .
It’s from the founder-Tim. He wrote this to be read at last’s years gala. In the face of a ton of uncertainty his words comforted me I more ways than one:

Tim Sheehy's Speech:
Tim's emotional greeting to the equally emotional crowd, his beautiful and poignant speech, was delivered lovingly by his sister-in-law Megan April l7th 2006.


When the Dr. wrote ALS on the prescription pad and handed it to me, I didn't even know what ALS was. Over the last 2 years I've learned what ALS is. ALS is growing up on Roosevelt Island, playing in the abandoned ruins or playing pickup baseball games all day, and then playing basketball all night at Blackwell Park. ALS is going to a public Junior High School on 96th street, meeting all types of kids from all over the city and learning what Motion Bombing is. ALS is going to Loyola High School and not knowing what a Preppy is or what parish I came from because I was never baptized. Despite this fact, Father Prior took me in and taught me the valuable lesson that it's better to live in the service of others. ALS is going to the University of South Carolina to play soccer, becoming a DJ on WUSC and discovering Hank Williams Sr. Before going down south, I thought the Yankees were just a baseball team in the Bronx. ALS is about coming back from college and finding that the perfect girl for me was right across the street my whole life. ALS is getting my first job at A Current Affair, working 16 hours a day, learning how to write promo copy and finding that the Royals were not just a baseball team in Kansas City, but the tabloid news term for the royal family in England. ALS is starting my own set-building company in Brooklyn with the best partner a guy could have, and working with friends on jobs where we have to work as a team, day in and day out. And doing watershoots with supermodels isn't bad either. ALS is having a daughter who is everything you'd thought she would be. She's funny, strong-willed and compassionate. ALS is family coming together, and in-laws becoming immediate family. ALS is reuniting with old friends, making new friends, and people doing the right thing for other people. ALS is realizing that there are many good people in the world and that it is more rewarding to do for others than it is to always do for yourself. ALS is having hope, showing love, and telling people what you've always wanted to tell them. ALS is about sitting in my La-Z-Boy chair between Netflix movies replaying the adventure movie that was my life.

ALS IS NOT ABOUT GIVING UP AND LISTENING TO YOUR DOCTORS SAY,”GO HOME AND GET YOUR AFFAIRS IN ORDER, THERE’S NOTHING WE CAN DO”. IT’S ABOUT EXACTLY WHAT TIM SAID-IN SHORT-IT’S ABOUT LIVING IN THE DAY-IT’S ABOUT LOVE,LAUGHTER AND TAKING IT ALL IN-IT’S ABOUT LOVED ONES-IT’S MOST IMPORTANTLY ABOUT HOPE BECAUSE IF YOU DO NOT HOPE YOU’LL NEVER FIND WHAT’S BEYOND YOUR HOPE.

HAVE A GREAT DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

more pics

I WAS SHOCKED WHEN MY MOM -I HAD NO IDEA!

SHE IS THE NURSE AT THE ACUPUNCTURISTS OFFICE

OH, BY THE WAY THAT'S MY ASS WITH NEEDLES AND ELECTRODES HOOKED UP TO IT!!~

SUNEEL AND DIANA WAITING THEIR TURN
SOME RANDOM

AHH! THE ACUPUNCTURIST AKA THE MAD SCIENTIST.

LOOK AT HIS EYES! HE REALLY LOVES HIS JOB AND HE YELLS IN CHINESE EVERY TIME HE PUTS A NEEDLE A HALF INCH DEEP INTO YOUR MUSCLES!

HEY ALL,


I'M HAVING GREAT DAY. I HAD POTATO BREAD AND MCNUGGETS FOR THANKSGIVING. GOT MY STITCHES SO I CAN FINALLY WASH MY WHOLE HEAD OF HAIR!!!!!!!!!!!!





HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL


SMILE AT SOMEONE TODAY!


LOVE YA,


DREW

a little piggy at walmart-they cut it up right there in the open
if you listen closely you can here him squeal-weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
and for you fish lovers I have a treat-they will fillet it for you upon request-some people take them in a bag -live and they are thrashing around all the way through the checkout line

mom and Phil(Canada) waiting for us in the acupuncture room- actually they are trying to decide the fish or the pig-weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

pics

mike-toronto
brandon-wilton

PICS

SOME OF TEAM

GOING FROM L TO R

SHANNON-FROM WILTON/DONNA-TORONTO/SUNEAL-TRINIDAD/MIKE-TORONTO-ALS LIKE ME/BRANDON-WILTON/DIANA AND HER MOM-TRINIDAD

THE GUY ON THE LEFT TOP ROW-HE SPEAKS AS MUCH ENGLISH AS A PIECE OF WOOD-SO, NO I DIDN'T GET HIS NAME

SORRY

PICS

THOUGHT WAS AMAZING-FROM MY WINDOW
THAT'S TONY-THE DOCTOR(CAN'T SPELL THE NAME) AND MAISY-SHE AND TONY ARE LIKE THE PATIENT CARE REPRESENTATIVES

AWESOME IS WHAT THEY ARE
BRANDON FROM WILTON, CT-REMEMBER, HE WAS GUY POLE VAULTING. HE MOVES REALLY WELL-I GIVE HIM THE BEST CHANCE IN THE YEARS TO COME-TO BE ABLE TO FREE OF CRUTCHES-LIKE ANYONE ELSE-GREAT GUY!

PICS

SNOW

PICS

ME WORKING W/ MY LADY FRIENDS PLAYING CATCH AND RELEASE
PROOF I CAUGHT ONE!!!!!!!!!
THIS WAS TAKEN AT10AM
THIS WAS 12:30PM

SNOW

MOM AND I(I'M WEARING THE HAT BECAUSE OF MY STITCHES-THEY COME OUT TOMORROW-MY MOM HAS BEEN WASHING ONLY HALF OF MY HEAD!!1

THAT'S THE STAR GYMNAST FROM CHINESE NATIONAL TEAM-SHE WOULD BEEN IN THE OLYMPICE IN BEJIING THIS SUMMER- BEHIND ME-SHE'S REALLY NICE

PIC

THIS IS A STEM CELL FOLKS

FINALLY AT 11:45PM I'M UP FROM LYING DOWN

THEY SURPRISED ME AT 4PM TODAY. INSTEAD OF GETTING STEM CELLS THROUGH IV(I ONLY HAVE 1 IV OUT OF 6 STEM CELLS-SO 5 INJECTIONS AND 1 IV) THEY SAID IT WOULD BE AN INJECTION. WELL W/ IV YOU IMMEDIATELY GET UP WHEN THERE DONE. W/ THE INJECTIONS YOU HAVE TO LIE FLAT-NO PILLOW-FOR 6 HOURS. SO A WRENCH WAS THROWN INTO MY WRITING TIME.
I HAD SPASMS IN MY LEGS WHEN I FINALLY GOT UP-WHICH IS A GREAT SIGN. I WAS IN THE OPERATING ROOM W/ MIKE FROM TORONTO-HE HAS ALS TOO. HE SAID WHEN HE SAW ME GET WHEELED IN, "WOW A DOUBLE HEADER, HOPE IT'S A SWEEP FOR BOTH OF US". I KNEW WHAT HE MEANT. HE'S GREAT PEOPLE AND MOM AND HIS WIFE-DONNA-ARE FAST BECOMING GREAT FRIENDS. THEY LEAN ON EACH OTHER.

VERY INTERESTING INFO:

Q&A: Creating stem cells
Stem cells have huge potential
Stem cells are thought to hold huge potential for treating a wide range of disease and disability.
Scientists around the world are working on techniques to refine stem cell therapy.
The latest technique, nuclear reprogramming, promises to solve some of the trickiest practical and ethical issues.


What are stem cells?
Most adult cells in the body have a particular purpose which cannot be changed.
For instance, a liver cell is developed to perform specific functions, and cannot be transformed to suddenly take on the role of a heart cell.
Stem cells are different. They are still at an early stage of development, and retain the potential to turn into many different types of cell.


Why are they so useful?
When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential to either remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialised function.
Scientists believe it should be possible to harness this ability to turn stem cells into a super "repair kit" for the body.
Theoretically, it should be possible to use stem cells to generate healthy tissue to replace that either damaged by trauma, or compromised by disease.
Among the conditions which scientists believe may eventually be treated by stem cell therapy are Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, ALS, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes, burns and spinal cord damage.
Stem cells may also provide a useful way to test the effects of experimental drugs.
It is also hoped that studying stem cells will provide vital clues about how the tissues of the body develop, and how disease takes hold.


Are there different types of stem cell?
Yes. Scientists believe the most useful stem cells come from the tissue of embyros.
This is because they are pluripotent - they have the ability to become virtually any type of cell within the body.
Stem cells are also found within adult organs. They have not taken on a final role, and have the potential to become any of the major specialised cell types within that organ.
Their role is to maintain the organ in a healthy state by repairing any damage it suffers.
It is thought their potential to become other types of cell is more limited than that of embryonic stem cells. But there is evidence that they are still relatively "plastic".


Can they be easily grown in the lab?
Large numbers of embryonic stem cells can be relatively easily grown in culture.
However, adult stem cells are rare in mature tissues and science is still working on ways to grow them in the lab in sufficient numbers.
This is an important distinction, as large numbers of cells are needed for stem cell replacement therapies.


Is the use of stem cells controversial?
Very. Campaigners are vehemently opposed to the use of embryonic stem cells.
These cells are typically taken from lab-created embryos that are just four or five days old, and are little more than a microscopic ball of cells.
However, opponents argue that all embryos, whether created in the lab or not, have the potential to go on to become a fully fledged human, and as such it is morally wrong to experiment on them.
They strongly advocate the use of stem cells from adult tissue.


What is nuclear reprogramming?
A new technique, in which cells isolated from skin tissue called fibroblasts are modified by inserting gene-controlling proteins.
This chemical cocktail causes the cells to be "reprogrammed" to take on the plastic quality of embryonic stem cells.


Why is the nuclear reprogramming an advance?
There are two big potential benefits. The current methods derive stem cells from from existing lab lines, but these cells are foreign to the body, and run the risk of rejection if used to repair or replace damaged or diseased tissue.
Nuclear reprogramming can potentially produce a supply of stem cells derived from a patient's own tissue - avoiding the issue of rejection of the cells.
Secondly, the technique does not require the creation of, or destruction of an embryo, and so is not ethically contentious.


Are there safety concerns?
Yes. Some researchers fear that it is possible that stem cell therapy could unwittingly pass viruses and other disease causing agents to people who receive cell transplants.
Some research has also raised the possibility that stem cells may turn cancerous.
Work also still needs to be done to refine the new technique. Similar results were achieved by two teams using a different combination of gene-controlling proteins.
In both cases the success rate in producing new stem cells was also low.

pic

wait till tomorrow-the wireless lan is having issues
sorry