BACKGROUND Beige adipose tissue is associated with improved glucose homeostasis in mice. Adipose tissue contains β3-adrenergic receptors (β3-ARs), and this study was intended to determine whether the treatment of obese, insulin-resistant humans with the β3-AR agonist mirabegron, which stimulates beige adipose formation in subcutaneous white adipose tissue (SC WAT), would induce other beneficial changes in fat and muscle and improve metabolic homeostasis.METHODS Before and after β3-AR agonist treatment, oral glucose tolerance tests and euglycemic clamps were performed, and histochemical analysis and gene expression profiling were performed on fat and muscle biopsies. PET-CT scans quantified brown adipose tissue volume and activity, and we conducted in vitro studies with primary cultures of differentiated human adipocytes and muscle.RESULTS The clinical effects of mirabegron treatment included improved oral glucose tolerance (P < 0.01), reduced hemoglobin A1c levels (P = 0.01), and improved insulin sensitivity (P = 0.03) and β cell function (P = 0.01). In SC WAT, mirabegron treatment stimulated lipolysis, reduced fibrotic gene expression, and increased alternatively activated macrophages. Subjects with the most SC WAT beiging showed the greatest improvement in β cell function. In skeletal muscle, mirabegron reduced triglycerides, increased the expression of PPARγ coactivator 1 α (PGC1A) (P < 0.05), and increased type I fibers (P < 0.01). Conditioned media from adipocytes treated with mirabegron stimulated muscle fiber PGC1A expression in vitro (P < 0.001).CONCLUSION Mirabegron treatment substantially improved multiple measures of glucose homeostasis in obese, insulin-resistant humans. Since β cells and skeletal muscle do not express β3-ARs, these data suggest that the beiging of SC WAT by mirabegron reduces adipose tissue dysfunction, which enhances muscle oxidative capacity and improves β cell function.TRIAL REGISTRATION Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02919176.FUNDING NIH: DK112282, P30GM127211, DK 71349, and Clinical and Translational science Awards (CTSA) grant UL1TR001998.

Apple in mid-April reopened Apple Garosugil, its lone store in South Korea, located in the Seoul's Gangnam District.


Apple's South Korea reopening has served as a test ground for further store reopenings, and Apple created an instructional video on reopening practices that's now being shared with other retail employees around the world as they prepare to reopen stores. We're not able to share the video, but it provides a good overview of the measures Apple is putting in place to safely operate retail locations.

Retail employees are following a strict set of guidelines that very heavily emphasize social distancing of two meters (or six feet in the United States). Apple is taking the following measures:

• Prior to when work starts, all employees undergo a health screening complete with a temperature check, with the results logged in a daily spreadsheet.


• Daily briefings are done in the mornings in the Forum area at Apple Stores, with employees making sure to sit at least two meters apart.


• Prior to being allowed in the store, customers are also given a temperature check.


• All ‌Apple Stores‌ are providing hand sanitizer, which customers are encouraged to use.


• Stores are limiting the number of people inside, forming lines with customers waiting at least two meters apart.


• Products purchased by customers or returned after repair are delivered from the back in a relay system, being handed off from employee to employee to allow each person to stay in a separated zone without back and forth.


• Product specialists and Genius Bar staff are positioning themselves across tables away from customers in order to maintain distance.


• In the forum area, employees sit one cube away from customers they're interacting with.


• Employees are encouraged to communicate with one another through the Talk app to cut down on unnecessary movement within the store.


• Half of the workstations in the back are empty, with employees working at alternating workstations to keep more distance between them.


• Tables have been rearranged to put products on corners to prevent customers from being near one another.


• Products on tables have been reduced.


• Communal tables and couches have been removed from employee break rooms and have been replaced with individual chairs evenly spaced about the room.


• Operating hours are reduced.


• Employees are all wearing face masks.

After opening its South Korea store on April 16, Apple has reopened its sole store in Vienna, Austria, and 21 stores located in Australia. Stores in Germany will begin reopening on May 11, and all of the newly opened locations are following many of the same guidelines listed above to keep both customers and employees safe.

There's no word yet on when Apple retail stores in the United States will start to reopen, but Apple CEO Tim Cook last week said that stores in North America will begin reopening starting in the month of May.

Apple plans to evaluate data and make reopening decisions on a city by city, county by county basis, following local guidelines and recommendations before opening up a store.
This article, "Apple Preparing Retail Employees to Return to Work With Tips From South Korea Reopening" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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After the bumper here, the review will get into spoiler territory. I will say that if you are a Sonic fan this movie will give you a sense of pride as it is far better than it should have had any right in being. Taking the franchise’s lore and resetting it to tell its own story, but retaining the strong characterization and quip heavy personalities of Sonic and Robotnik that makes their rivalry such a strong one. It also keeps the first entry simple with the hedgehog and doctor being the only two characters from the universe being in the film. This makes the story stronger since it can develop those two far more and not have to worry about any other kind of side character fan service for now.

Hey, at least now Sonic fans can brag to Mario ones that Mario may still be the king of games, but Sonic blew the plumber’s cinematic pieces out of the water. Not that that was a high bar I suppose. Then again, having better quality games than Sonic these days isn’t one either (the author quips while using a quote from Sonic Forces for his review’s headline).

In the video game Sonic the Hedgehog, timing is everything. While at the heart of the game is a fast paced platformer, its foundation has always been learning the layout of a level and timing your actions appropriately. In a twist, the timing of this film and its release had quite a bit of impact on my view of it.

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While the pandemic has been chipping away at the furry convention scene, other furs have stepped forward to try and give those in the community events to look forward to over the now dormant weekends. This had started with a group of Furnal Equinox members creating a digital replacement for their late March convention called Keep Calm and Carry Con - Furnal Isolation. More have started to spring up this spring.

They can have internet dealers dens, streaming dance competitions, and other staples that conventions are known for. Accessible from the safety of your own home.

Below is a comprehensive list of conventions. Last updated May 2nd, 2020 12:18 ET.

Please feel free to place any not listed here in the comments below and we will look into adding it if it appears legitimate.

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As of today, my current job is now the longest one I’ve ever held.

Erowid Exp102582

Cornel West and Tavis Smiley criticize President Barack Obama for being to the right of even President Richard Nixon. Continue reading →

Online criminals have been systematically targeting TurboTax, filing fraudulent tax returns of individuals, and diverting their tax refunds to prepaid debit, cards, stealing their personal information, and using and impairing their credit ratings. Continue reading →

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders talks about the need for a "serious debate about serious issues," and whether he plans to challenge Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. Sanders also adds that America needs to hear Hillary Clinton's opinions on the TPP, middle class struggles, and the Keystone XL pipeline. Continue reading →

SANDERS: ... there is more coverage about the political gossip of a campaign, about raising money, about polling, about somebody saying something dumb, or some kid works for a campaign sends out something stupid on Facebook, right? We can expect that to be a major story. But what your job is, what the media's job is, is to say, look, these are the major issues facing the country. We're a democracy. People have different points of view. Let's argue it. Continue reading →

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) warns not to underestimate him in the 2016 Democratic race for the White House. Sanders, who is formally launching his campaign Tuesday, said he has a strong message. Continue reading →

An Offer in Compromise is an agreement between the taxpayer and the government that settles a tax liability for payment of less than the full amount owed. The Internal Revenue Service will generally accept an Offer in Compromise when it … Continue reading →

We need a mass movement of tens of millions of people prepared to say that we want national health care, that we want the millionaires and multi-national corporations who are not paying their fair share, to pay their fair share. Continue reading →

The evidence is adding up that this election is a SHAM! Exit polls do not add up on the Democratic side and regularly predict better results for Bernie than the voting machines are telling us! The mainstream media won't even come close to touching this, and in fact they're even attacking Lee Camp for bringing it up. Don't miss this segment of Redacted Tonight! Continue reading →

Green Party's Jill Stein says that what we Fear from Donald Trump is what we have already seen from Hillary Clinton. Continue reading →

'Lesser of Two Evils' argument is not resonating with DNC protestors. Salon.com's Ben Norton says grassroots movements will be more mobilized under a Republican candidacy. "There?s no question that Trump would be horrific as a candidate but if we have 4 or 8 years of Clinton of more wars, of more austerity, of another economic crisis, and potential bailouts of banks and large corporations etc., you know you think Trump is bad now? Wait for what we'?ll see in 4 or 8 years." Continue reading →

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter James Grimaldi of The Wall Street Journal, who has covered the Clinton Foundation for years, looks at the relationship between the Clinton Foundation and the State Department during Hillary Clinton’s time as secretary of state, and what it would be if she became president. Newly released State Department emails include exchanges between top members of the Clinton Foundation and Clinton’s top State Department advisers, including Huma Abedin and Cheryl Mills. The FBI reportedly wanted to investigate the Clinton Foundation earlier this year, but U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch pushed back. Continue reading →

Questions surrounding Hillary Clinton and the Clinton Foundation continue to grow. On Sunday, Democratic National Committee interim chairperson Donna Brazile defended Clinton’s meetings as secretary of state with Clinton Foundation donors, saying, "When Republicans meet with their donors, with their supporters, their activists, they call it a meeting. When Democrats do that, they call it a conflict." Donna Brazile’s comments come in response to an Associated Press investigation revealing that while Hillary Clinton served as secretary of state, more than half of the private citizens she met with during the reporting period had donated to the Clinton Foundation. The AP investigation comes after a three-year battle to gain access to State Department calendars. The analysis shows that at least 85 of 154 people Hillary Clinton had scheduled phone or in-person meetings with were foundation donors. We speak to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Glenn Greenwald of The Intercept. His most recent piece is headlined "Why Did the Saudi Regime and Other Gulf Tyrannies Donate Millions to the Clinton Foundation?" Continue reading →

Jill Stein thinks that Hillary Clinton is scarier than Donald Trump: "On this issue of war and nuclear war, Hillary is much scarier." Continue reading →

The Brainwashing Of Hillary Voters Is Complete. Hillary Clinton voters are either getting paid or have been brainwashed into defending her pro-corporate status quo policies. Jimmy Dore breaks it down on his broadcast, October 20, 2016. Continue reading →

The middle class needs to vote for Donald Trump in order to oppose the elites, Corporate America, Wall Street, the career politicians, and the media, who have all conspired to destroy the middle class. Donald Trump is the Molotov cocktail, the human hand grenade, that every beaten-down, nameless, forgotten working stiff who used to be part of what was called the middle class can legally throw into the system that stole their lives from them. Continue reading →

There's got to be a reason for the Democrats to suppose to exist. And the reason the Democrats are supposed to exist is to be an opposition party to the Republicans. If you're in bed with the same people, taking money from the same people, you're no longer an opposition party. There's no reason for you to exist. And guess what? Don't be surprised that people don't vote for you. Continue reading →

Donald Trump sold out his supporters and the 99% by selecting Wall Streeters and war mongers for his top cabinet positions. Continue reading →

Claudia Stauber provides a perfect metaphor of how she felt listening to Bernie Sanders today in Vermont, telling us how much he still fights for us against the 1% and the oligarchs. Continue reading →

Connecticut General Assembly Majority Leader Joe Aresimowicz speaking at the 2014 CEUI Convention. Joe Aresimowicz, in speaking to a governmental employee union group in 2014, assured governmental union employees that he would be looking out for them: "You guys have one of your own that sits in the caucus room of the General Assembly. You cannot replicate that." "I will never allow an anti-collective bargaining bill to be called to the House floor. I'm the majority leader. I can make that guarantee." "Please, stand together, stand as brothers and sisters, and be a family. And make sure we are looking out for our own." Continue reading →

NEWS 8 IS YOUR LOCAL ELECTION HEADQUARTERS…. AND TONIGHT…VOODOO ECONOMICS! CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT MARK DAVIS TELLING US HOW REPEALING THE STATE INCOME TAX IS THE LATEST HEATED TOPIC BETWEEN THE CANIDATES FOR GOVERNOR.   DEMOCRAT NED LAMONT IS OPENING A … Continue reading →

Гитарист QUEENSRŸCHE Michael Wilton опубликовал фотографию в одной из социальных сетей, на которой он играет на гитаре и снабдил ее подписью:

«Напряженно тружусь в домашней студии над новым альбомом!» #Queensrÿche #GrungeRock #Grunge_Rock #ProgressiveMetal #Progressive_Metal

По сообщению TMZ, бывший вокалист BAD COMPANY Брайан Хоуи, скончался в возрасте 66 лет 6 мая в своем доме после сердечного приступа. У него уже были проблемы с сердцем и последний приступ он перенес в 2017 году.

Сообщается, что в конце апреля он попал в аварию и сломал ребра. За шесть дней до смерти один из поклонников спросил у него на Facebook о состоянии здоровья и он ответил, что "Ужасно. Сломать ребра вовсе не весело".

Хоуи пел в BAD COMPANY с 1986 по 1994 годы и записал партии для таких хитовых пластинок как "Dangerous Age" и "Holy Water". #Bad_Company #BadCompany #BluesRock #Blues_Rock #HardRock #Hard_Rock #Adult OrientedRock #Adult Oriented_Rock

"Entertain You", новая песня группы WITHIN TEMPTATION, доступна для прослушивания ниже. #Within_Temptation #WithinTemptation #PopMetal #Pop_Metal #GothicMetal #Gothic_Metal #ModernMetal #Modern_Metal

NCIS and NCIS: New Orleans will air the first new episodes of 2017 tonight. You can find sneak peeks, tweets and photos...

NCIS and NCIS: New Orleans aired new episodes last night. You can find ratings and links to watch the episodes below, along...

Criminal Minds aired the ninth episode of season twelve last night at 9:00pm ET/PT. “Profiling 202” pulled in 7.25 million viewers and...

NCIS: Los Angeles aired the twelfth episode of season eight last night. “Kulinda” pulled in 10.35 million viewers at 8:00pm, earning a...

Criminal Minds aired the tenth episode of season twelve last night at 9:00pm ET/PT. “Seek and Destroy” pulled in 7.53 million viewers...

An interactive history of the subway map @ NYTimes Audubon weighs in on memes: When Is a Bird a ‘Birb’? An Extremely Important Guide Wired profiles Cliff Stoll Lego Axle Sorter RasterCarve: A free software package for CNC carving images Touchscreen interfaces and the USS John S. McCain Waiting For An Earthquake is a demo … Continue reading Linkdump: December 2019 →

Open source SVG emoji from Twitter 2-Bit Mario: A physical Mario Brothers game The most important device in the universe, built by prop designer John Zabrucky Video made from photos of Comet 67p taken by Rosetta A Conversation on Microbiomes mostly focused on the Sourdough Project Cat Coat Genetics 101: A Tweetorial Thermochromic 7-segment display … Continue reading Linkdump: January 2020 →

Dial Indicator Clock Anatomy of a rental phishing scam The Best Crispy Roast Potatoes Ever Recipe Fixie Clock with OLED based “fake NIXIE” tubes The placebo effect and veterinary care Fruit Walls: Urban Farming in the 1600s A list of projects that took an exceptionally long time Trash Amps: Nifty DIY speaker and guitar amp … Continue reading Linkdump: March 2020 →

“Do we want to get to the moon or not?” John C. Houbolt was responsible for the Lunar-Orbit Rendezvous plan A video comparison of different laser marking compounds for use with CO2 lasers Figures in the Sky: How cultures across the World have seen their myths and legends in the stars A wonderful little <$10 … Continue reading Linkdump: April 2020 →

IBM Research today opened its second research location on the African continent and announced several new project collaborations in the areas of data driven healthcare, digital urban ecosystems and astronomy.

As climate change accelerates, IBM is galvanizing the global science community with a massive infusion of computing resources, weather data, and cloud services to help researchers examine the effects of climate change, and explore strategies to mitigate its effects. IBM pledges to help direct the equivalent of up to $200 million for up to five climate-related projects judged to offer the greatest potential impact, and will then broadly share the experiments' results.

IBM's Smarter Cities Challenge program (@CitiesChallenge) will be sending teams of company experts to five municipalities through 2018 to provide pro bono consultative advice on issues such as affordable housing, economic development, immigration, and public safety.

A fundraising initiative spearheaded by Canadian comic retailers and creators aims to auction off items in order to support their struggling industry.

The post Zdarsky, Fabok, & more ask you to “Be Our Heroes” for Canadian retailers appeared first on The Beat.

IBM today announced its Health Cloud and Watson cognitive computing capabilities will support health data entered by customers in iOS apps using Apple's ResearchKit and HealthKit frameworks. The move, which complements IBM’s new Watson Health business unit, will arm medical researchers with a secure, open data storage solution, as well as access to IBM’s most sophisticated data analytics capabilities.

As the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season gets underway, communities in severe weather-prone regions are anxiously tracking pending storms and working to create effective disaster response plans. IBM, through its strategic alliance with The Weather Company and its global B2B division WSI, today announced a new emergency management solution that features sophisticated analytics and the use of real-time weather data to help communities predict and plan for natural disasters far more accurately and deploy the right resources in advance.

ENGIE, a global leader in energy transition, today announced a new initiative with IBM. This nonexclusive, technological and commercial alliance is designed to improve the management of cities by looking at patterns, event correlation, anomaly detection and real-time data across all parts of cities.

IBM today announced that it is extending the annual Smarter Cities Challenge, a worldwide, highly competitive grant program that provides pro bono consulting to help cities improve the critical services they provide to their citizens.

I'm getting so very tired of safety/accident researchers claiming that root cause analysis is an invalid, blame-focused practice that ignores systems and complexity. Most root cause investigators that I know are pretty well oriented towards process, organization, and system issues as the fundamental sources underlying problems and accidents... and even some of our simplest analysis […]

My previous post about root causes in complex systems, in retrospect, looks a little bit like a rant. That doesn't bother me too much, really... but I wish I had included the following info: it is one way to go about resolving the mess that complex systems can make of your root cause analysis. Basically, when […]

The Weather Company, an IBM Business announced today that it is enhancing its global flight operations solution WSI Fusion, with live flight tracking data from FlightAware. WSI Fusion provides early insight into changing flight, airport and airspace conditions, enabling aviation providers to carefully plan and track flights, optimize operations and reduce the impacts of disruptive events. With the addition of FlightAware’s data, including its private network of over 12,000 Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) ground stations in over 160 countries, WSI Fusion customers will have access to enhanced flight following capabilities worldwide.