Brazil?s President Dilma Rousseff waves upon her arrival to Havana, Cuba, Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Rousseff is in Cuba for a visit emphasizing economic cooperation. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)
Brazil?s President Dilma Rousseff waves upon her arrival to Havana, Cuba, Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Rousseff is in Cuba for a visit emphasizing economic cooperation. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)
Brazil?s President Dilma Rousseff waves upon her arrival to Havana, Cuba, Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Rousseff is in Cuba for a visit emphasizing economic cooperation. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)
HAVANA (AP) ? Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff began a tour of Cuba on Monday in a visit emphasizing trade and economic cooperation.
Rousseff was greeted at Havana's international airport in the afternoon by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez. She waved to reporters but did not make any public statements before leaving by car.
Her office said the trip would seek to bolster trade between the two nations, which rose 31 percent from 2010 to hit a record $642 million last year.
Rousseff planned to meet with President Raul Castro on Tuesday in the capital and also tour the nearby port of Mariel, which is being expanded with the goal of turning the facility into a base for industry and oil operations in the Gulf of Mexico.
Brazil has financed almost 80 percent of the port project's $683 million price tag, according to a statement by the Brazilian presidency.
Also Monday, one of Brazil's biggest construction companies, Odebrecht, said an independent subsidiary would sign a contract to help administer the September 5 sugar mill in Cienfuegos province.
In a statement, Odebrecht said the 10-year agreement between its Infrastructure Works Co. and Cuba's state-run Azcuba sugar group "aims to increase sugar production and milling capacity and aid in revitalization."
LOS ANGELES, Jan 30 (TheWrap.com) ? Jennifer Lopez now has a job presenting at the Oscars to go with her People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" honor.
On Monday, Oscar producers Brian Grazer and Don Mischer named "American Idol" judge Lopez as the latest presenter at the 84th Academy Awards. The cast of "Bridesmaids" became the first announced presenters last week.
Lopez also has a movie career to go along with recording, judging and being beautiful. Her next film will be "What to Expect When You're Expecting"; and she has also appeared in "Out of Sight," "Selena," "Maid in Manhattan," "The Back-Up Plan" and "Monster-in-Law."
The 84th Oscars will take place on Sunday, February 26, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.
Cancer patients' pain can be helped by psychosocial interventions, say researchersPublic release date: 30-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Ferdie De Vega Ferdinand.DeVega@moffitt.org 813-745-7858 H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
Up to one-third of cancer patients experience moderate to severe pain
TAMPA, Fla. -- Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center, who teamed with colleagues at five universities around the United States, analyzed past studies of cancer-related pain reduction and found that psychosocial interventions can have a beneficial effect on cancer patients' pain severity. They also found that certain psychosocial interventions provide better pain management and are effective in reducing the degree to which pain related to cancer and its treatment interferes with patients' lives.
Their analysis was published in a recent online issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
"Pain is one of the most common, burdensome and feared symptoms experienced by patients with cancer," said Paul B. Jacobsen, Ph.D., associate center director for Moffitt's Division of Population Science. "Our study looked at randomized, controlled studies of psychosocial interventions for pain published between 1966 and 2010 in which pain was measured as an outcome in adults with cancer, or in adults undergoing procedures to diagnose cancer."
According to the authors, cancer-related pain can arise for a variety of reasons, including direct tumor involvement, metastasis to bone or organs, treatment toxicity and diagnostic procedures. Moderate to severe pain suffered by up to one-third of cancer patients often interferes with sleep, daily activities, enjoyment of life, and work and social interactions.
In their analysis of past pain intervention studies, the researchers investigated separately data on pain severity and data on how pain may interfere with daily life. While there is a significant body of literature devoted to study of cancer pain intervention, the authors note that not all studies they surveyed measured pain as a primary outcome. Moreover, pain was measured inconsistently across the studies.
When 37 past studies were analyzed to assess the effects of psychosocial interventions on patient pain, the researchers found that the most successful psychosocial, non-pharmacological pain interventions were either skill-based interventions or educational. Skill-based interventions focused on changes in the ways in which patients interpret pain, while educational approaches provided instruction on how to better use medications or helped patients more effectively communicate with clinicians about their unrelieved pain.
"Skill-based interventions focus on changing a patient's dysfunctional beliefs about pain and promote the use of skills such as distraction and relaxation to manage it," explained Jacobsen.
The authors noted that their findings on the value of psychosocial interventions are consistent with the recommendations of both the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the American Pain Society. Both organizations recommend the use of psychosocial interventions as part of a "multimodal" approach to the treatment of cancer-related pain as well as the inclusion of experts in psychosocial care as members of the multidisciplinary care team.
The researchers concluded that psychosocial interventions worked equally well in reducing pain across patient demographic characteristics, such as sex and racial/ethnic subgroups. However, because the majority of the available patient data was on white females, the researchers recommend further study to determine if the same interventions could better manage pain across different subgroups of patients with cancer and in different treatment settings a strategy also suggested by the IOM.
"In short, we found that psychosocial interventions, including skills instruction and education can improve cancer pain management," concluded Jacobsen.
###
About Moffitt Cancer Center
Follow Moffitt on Facebook: www.facebook.com/MoffittCancerCenter
Follow Moffitt on Twitter: @MoffittNews
Follow Moffitt on YouTube: MoffittNews
Located in Tampa, Florida, Moffitt Cancer Center is an NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center a designation that recognizes Moffitt's excellence in research and contributions to clinical trials, prevention and cancer control. Moffitt currently has 14 affiliates in Florida, one in Georgia, one in Pennsylvania and two in Puerto Rico. Additionally, Moffitt is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a prestigious alliance of the country's leading cancer centers, and is listed in U.S. News & World Report as one of "America's Best Hospitals" for cancer.
Media release by Florida Science Communications
[ | E-mail | Share ]
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Cancer patients' pain can be helped by psychosocial interventions, say researchersPublic release date: 30-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Ferdie De Vega Ferdinand.DeVega@moffitt.org 813-745-7858 H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
Up to one-third of cancer patients experience moderate to severe pain
TAMPA, Fla. -- Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center, who teamed with colleagues at five universities around the United States, analyzed past studies of cancer-related pain reduction and found that psychosocial interventions can have a beneficial effect on cancer patients' pain severity. They also found that certain psychosocial interventions provide better pain management and are effective in reducing the degree to which pain related to cancer and its treatment interferes with patients' lives.
Their analysis was published in a recent online issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
"Pain is one of the most common, burdensome and feared symptoms experienced by patients with cancer," said Paul B. Jacobsen, Ph.D., associate center director for Moffitt's Division of Population Science. "Our study looked at randomized, controlled studies of psychosocial interventions for pain published between 1966 and 2010 in which pain was measured as an outcome in adults with cancer, or in adults undergoing procedures to diagnose cancer."
According to the authors, cancer-related pain can arise for a variety of reasons, including direct tumor involvement, metastasis to bone or organs, treatment toxicity and diagnostic procedures. Moderate to severe pain suffered by up to one-third of cancer patients often interferes with sleep, daily activities, enjoyment of life, and work and social interactions.
In their analysis of past pain intervention studies, the researchers investigated separately data on pain severity and data on how pain may interfere with daily life. While there is a significant body of literature devoted to study of cancer pain intervention, the authors note that not all studies they surveyed measured pain as a primary outcome. Moreover, pain was measured inconsistently across the studies.
When 37 past studies were analyzed to assess the effects of psychosocial interventions on patient pain, the researchers found that the most successful psychosocial, non-pharmacological pain interventions were either skill-based interventions or educational. Skill-based interventions focused on changes in the ways in which patients interpret pain, while educational approaches provided instruction on how to better use medications or helped patients more effectively communicate with clinicians about their unrelieved pain.
"Skill-based interventions focus on changing a patient's dysfunctional beliefs about pain and promote the use of skills such as distraction and relaxation to manage it," explained Jacobsen.
The authors noted that their findings on the value of psychosocial interventions are consistent with the recommendations of both the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the American Pain Society. Both organizations recommend the use of psychosocial interventions as part of a "multimodal" approach to the treatment of cancer-related pain as well as the inclusion of experts in psychosocial care as members of the multidisciplinary care team.
The researchers concluded that psychosocial interventions worked equally well in reducing pain across patient demographic characteristics, such as sex and racial/ethnic subgroups. However, because the majority of the available patient data was on white females, the researchers recommend further study to determine if the same interventions could better manage pain across different subgroups of patients with cancer and in different treatment settings a strategy also suggested by the IOM.
"In short, we found that psychosocial interventions, including skills instruction and education can improve cancer pain management," concluded Jacobsen.
###
About Moffitt Cancer Center
Follow Moffitt on Facebook: www.facebook.com/MoffittCancerCenter
Follow Moffitt on Twitter: @MoffittNews
Follow Moffitt on YouTube: MoffittNews
Located in Tampa, Florida, Moffitt Cancer Center is an NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center a designation that recognizes Moffitt's excellence in research and contributions to clinical trials, prevention and cancer control. Moffitt currently has 14 affiliates in Florida, one in Georgia, one in Pennsylvania and two in Puerto Rico. Additionally, Moffitt is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a prestigious alliance of the country's leading cancer centers, and is listed in U.S. News & World Report as one of "America's Best Hospitals" for cancer.
Media release by Florida Science Communications
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
A Second Take on Meeting the Press: From an up-close look at Rachel Maddow's sneakers to an in-depth look at Jon Krakauer's latest book ? it's all fair game in our "Meet the Press: Take Two" web extra. Log on Sundays to see David Gregory's post-show conversations with leading newsmakers, authors and roundtable guests. Videos are available on-demand by 12 p.m. ET on Sundays.
LONDON ? A paralyzed British man who wants to die won the first round in his legal battle Friday, when the High Court ruled his lawyers won't be prosecuted if they seek out experts to help him commit suicide.
The man, who is in his 40s and identified only as Martin, has locked-in syndrome after a stroke and communicates by moving his eyes. He says he wants to end his life, and his lawyers sought a declaration that they could seek information about his options ? including Swiss assisted-suicide clinics ? to help him prepare a legal challenge.
Under British law, assisting a suicide is punishable by up to 14 years in prison, but convictions are rare. More than 100 Britons have died in clinics run by the Swiss group Dignitas since 1998, and no relative or friend has been charged.
In Martin's case, lawyers say neither his wife nor any other member of his family is willing to help him die.
Two judges declared Friday that the lawyers could obtain information from experts and "identify one or more people or bodies that might be willing to assist Martin."
Martin's lawyers still plan to go to court seeking clarification of guidelines laid out by the country's chief prosecutor in 2010, which listed mitigating factors, such as compassion, in cases of assisted suicide.
Martin's lawyers want a declaration that professionals they find to help their client end his life will not face criminal or disciplinary action in doing so.
Rosa Curling, one of Martin's lawyers, welcomed the ruling.
"Martin has made clear to us that he wishes to end his life, and, thanks to the judgment handed down today in the High Court, we can now proceed with preparing his legal claim," she said.
"We can instruct doctors to advise him on his options regarding his wish to die and also take steps to identify an individual who might be willing to assist him in taking his life."
When SUMO grips STAT5, a protein that activates genes, it blocks the healthy embryonic development of immune B cells and T cells unless its nemesis breaks the hold, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports today in Molecular Cell.
"This research extends the activity of SUMO and the Sentrin/SUMO-specific protease 1 (SENP1) to the field of immunology, in particular the early lymphoid development of T and B cells," said the study's senior author, Edward T. H. Yeh, M.D., professor and chair of MD Anderson's Department of Cardiology.
SUMO proteins, also known as the small ubiquitin-like modifiers or Sentrin, attach to other proteins in cells to modify their function or to move them within a cell. SENP1 is one of a family of six proteins that snips SUMO off of SUMO-modified proteins. SUMOylation (SUMO modification) of proteins has been implicated in development of cancer, heart and neurodegenerative diseases, among others.
The team first analyzed the role of SENP1 in the development of lymphoids in mice and found it is heavily expressed in precursor cells, the early stages of B and T cell development.
Working with genetically modified mice they developed that lack SENP1 gene expression, Yeh and colleagues found the mouse embryos had severe defects in their T and B cells, white blood cell lymphocytes that identify and fight infection.
SUMO pins STAT5 in the nucleus
Subsequent experiments led them to STAT5, a transcription factor known to play critical roles in the development and function of immune cells. Transcription factors work in the cell nucleus, activating gene expression by connecting to a gene's promoter region.
"STAT5 works in a cycle, moving from the cytosol of a cell into the nucleus to activate genes and then back out to the cytosol," Yeh said. "We found that when STAT5 is SUMOylated in the nucleus it gets trapped there when there's no SENP1 to remove SUMO."
The team found that SUMO muscles in on two other signaling events that govern STAT5 activity - phosphorylation and acetylation.
SUMO inhibits STAT5 signaling
STAT5 is activated in the cell cytosol when the JAK tyrosine kinase attaches a phosphate group at a specific site on the STAT5 protein. This transformed STAT5 crosses the nuclear membrane into the nucleus to transcribe genes.
The team found that SUMO attaches to STAT5 close to its phosphorylation site and that cells lacking SENP1 have increased SUMOylation and decreased phosphorylation.
SUMOylation vs. acetylation
In addition to phosphorylation, acetylation of STAT5 has been shown to be essential for STAT5 to cross the nuclear membrane into the nucleus to enhance gene transcription. Yeh and colleagues found that SUMO competes directly with acetyl groups for the same binding site, inhibiting acetylation.
"Without SENP1 to remove SUMO, STAT5 can't be acetylated or phosphorylated and can't be recycled for use again," Yeh said. "We discovered that SENP1 controls lymphoid development through regulation of SUMOylation of STAT5."
Since Yeh's lab discovered SUMOylation in 1996, SUMO has been found to alter the function of thousands of proteins.
Yeh is hosting the 6th International Conference SUMO, Ubiquitin, UBL Proteins: Implications for Human Diseases Feb. 8-11 in the Dan L. Duncan Building at MD Anderson. Yeh organizes the meeting every other year.
"There used to be so little known about SUMO. Now, a protein is assumed to be SUMOylated until proved otherwise," Yeh said.
###
University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center: http://www.mdanderson.org
Thanks to University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center for this article.
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Standing atop a huge mound of black, hydrocarbon sand, your sandboard tucked under your arm, you take in the view. Row after row of black dunes march into the distance as far as the eye can see, until everything disappears behind an orange curtain of smog.
This is no Earthly vista: you're on Saturn's largest moon, Titan. You strap your feet onto the board and slip off down the dune. Titan's low gravity means it takes a while to build up speed, but also keeps friction to a minimum, so it's a long glide down before you come to a halt.
Sandboarding on Titan still, sadly, only happens in our imagination, but the moon's amazing dunes are real ? and lie in a trippy landscape worthy of a late Beatles song. They were discovered in 2006 in radar images from NASA's Cassini spacecraft (see photo) and could be key to unravelling the climatic history of this eerily Earth-like moon.
Though chilling at -179??C, Titan has rain and lakes ? albeit of liquid methane rather than water ? along with mountains and river channels.
"Methane raining out and flowing across the surface leads to landscapes that are so much like Earth," says Jani Radebaugh, a planetary scientist at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.
Plastic sand
Perhaps more like Earth than anywhere else in the solar system, in fact. Comparing and contrasting the two worlds could lead to a better understanding of climate and surface features on both, she says.
What makes the similarities so astonishing is the completely different materials of which Titan and Earth are made. Titan's crust and mountains are made of water ice. The sand grains comprising its dunes are thought to be hydrocarbons like benzene, which has been detected in the dunes by the Cassini spacecraft.
On Earth, hydrocarbons tend to exist as liquids or gases in oil deposits. On Titan, though, many are frozen solid. They are thought to form when ultraviolet light drives chemical reactions in Titan's atmosphere, and then to rain down onto the surface.
"The dunes may have a composition that's a little like plastic," says Radebaugh. To visualise standing on a dune on Titan, imagine "standing on huge volumes of plastic sand", she says.
Seasonal sculptures
Despite their unusual composition, Titan's dunes ? typically 100 metres tall, a kilometre wide, and up to hundreds of kilometres long ? are very similar in shape and size to long, skinny dunes in the Sahara desert called linear dunes.
As on Earth, Titan's dunes can tell us about climate. Last year, simulations of the dunes suggested the winds on Titan change seasonally, reversing direction and getting much faster twice a year. This solved a mystery of why Titan's dunes look as though they have been sculpted by winds blowing from west to east, even though the moon's winds were thought to blow in the opposite direction.
Now Alice Le Gall of the Space Atmospheres, Environments and Observations Laboratory (LATMOS-UVSQ) in Paris, France and colleagues have discovered more tantalising climate clues from measurements of the dunes.
They lie in a band 30 degrees both north and south of Titan's equator. Le Gall's team have shown that the dunes get smaller and more widely spaced towards the northern end of this range.
Egg-shaped orbit
The team conclude that this happens because the ground gets wetter with liquid methane towards the north, making the sand stick together and less prone to forming dunes.
This latitudinal variation in weather is likely to be due to Saturn's egg-shaped orbit, the team conclude, which produces more intense, drier summers in Titan's southern hemisphere compared with the north.
The discovery of dunes on Titan was a stroke of luck, says Radebaugh, who worked with Le Gall's team on the latest analysis. "We had no idea that these things would be there," she says. "We were surprised to find such a close analogue to Earth in something so far away."
And if there were only some way to hop over to Titan, she would love to try sandboarding there. "I think it would be possible and probably would be really fun," she says.
Read previous Astrophile columns: How to spot a dark-matter galaxy , Glimpse elusive matter in shattering star, Cool echoes from galaxy's biggest star, Stopped clocks deepen pulsar enigmas, Wounded galaxy is crux of cosmic whodunnit, Did comet killing spark Christmas light show?, Blinged-out stars were born rich, Supercritical water world does somersaults, Attack of the mystery green blobs, Undead stars rise again as supernovae, The sticky star cluster that's mostly black hole, The rebel star that broke the medieval sky, Star exploded? Just another day in Arp 220.
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ATLANTA ? He's an ardent supporter of Israel. A megabillionaire casino mogul whose Las Vegas Sands Corp. is under federal investigation. And the self-proclaimed "richest Jew in the world."
Sheldon Adelson is also, far and away, the biggest patron of Newt Gingrich's surging Republican presidential bid. Adelson and his wife, Miriam, have pumped $10 million into a political action committee backing Gingrich that is run by the former House speaker's onetime aides. Campaign finance experts say the two $5 million contributions are among the largest known political donations in U.S. history.
No other candidate in the race for president appears to be relying so heavily on the fortune of a single donor. It's been made possible by last year's Supreme Court rulings ? known as Citizens United ? that recast the political landscape by stripping away restrictions on contributions and how outside groups can spend their money.
Sheldon Adelson is Citizens United come to life.
"The bottom line is that it creates that potential for one person to have far more influence than any one person should have," said Fred Wertheimer, president of the campaign finance watchdog group Democracy 21.
When any candidate is beholden to a single donor for so much money, Wertheimer said, "it opens the door to corruption and influence peddling." Wertheimer said the infusion of cash would raise questions about any decision Gingrich would make that touches on gambling, for example. And similar questions could be raised about Gingrich's Mideast policies.
Indeed, without recent disclosures by news organizations, voters would not have even known about the large contributions until campaign filings due Feb. 20. That would be long after a number of key primaries.
The outsized contributions are stirring some unease among the evangelical voters whom Gingrich is counting on to help him defeat Mitt Romney. Richard Land, head of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, called the gambling cash fueling Gingrich's bid "discomforting."
Land said Gingrich should make clear what his views are on legalized gambling.
Gingrich spokesman R.C. Hammond said the candidate believes it is a states' rights issue and does not gamble.
Friends say Adelson and Gingrich met when Gingrich was House speaker and Adelson was lobbying to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Gingrich backed the legislation and the two bonded over a shared hardline stance on Israel.
In Cocoa, Fla., Gingrich on Wednesday called Adelson "very deeply concerned about the survival of Israel" and the threat of a nuclear Iran. Asked if he had promised Adelson anything, Gingrich replied that he pledged "that I would seek to defend the United States and United States allies."
Those who have followed Gingrich's career say he has long staked out a tough stance on Israel that predated his friendship with Adelson.
Gingrich "has been one of the few politicians who has had the courage to tell the truth about Israel," said Morton Klein, head of the Zionist Organization of America. "I think that is why they became such good friends."
In December, Gingrich proclaimed the Palestinians "an invented people." Israel's Haaretz daily reported later that month that Adelson approved of the remarks. And Gingrich has said that one of the first executive orders he would sign if elected president would move the American Embassy to Jerusalem.
Through a spokesman, Adelson declined an interview request from The Associated Press.
His rags-to-riches story as the son of poor Ukrainian immigrants in Dorchester, Mass., is well-known lore in the pro-Israeli circles he inhabits and where his philanthropy is legendary.
Adelson entered the business world as a 12-year-old selling newspapers. He began to make his fortune when he founded Comdex, a trade show that became a staple for the computer industry. He then moved into the casino industry. His gambling empire stretches from Las Vegas to Macau and Singapore and includes the Venetian and Palazzo casinos in Las Vegas.
The FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating Adelson for possible violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, according to a filing with the SEC. The company denies any wrongdoing and says the investigation stems from the allegation of a disgruntled employee.
The son of a cab driver, Adelson now ranks as the eighth wealthiest person in America, according to Forbes Magazine, which places his net worth at $21.5 billion.
Last year, Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial in Israel, said it received its largest private donation ever ? a $25 million gift ? from Adelson. Since 2007, he has donated more than $100 million to Birthright Israel, a group that sends young adult Jews from the United States and other countries on 10-day trips to Israel.
Adelson is an outspoken supporter of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and owns a widely read, right-wing Israeli newspaper, Israel Hayom, which is distributed at no cost throughout Israel and is supportive of Netanyahu.
The hefty donations to Gingrich's presidential bid aren't the first checks he's written to help the former Georgia congressman. He ponied up more than $7 million to help get Gingrich's conservative political group American Solutions for Winning the Future off the ground.
The first $5 million donation from Adelson came at a critical juncture for Gingrich as he entered South Carolina, stung by a humbling fifth-place finish in New Hampshire's Republican primary. The Adelson money to Winning Our Future, a pro-Gingrich PAC led by former Gingrich aide Rick Tyler, helped finance a 28-minute movie bashing Mitt Romney's tenure at the helm of the private equity firm Bain Capital.
Gingrich was able to leverage the support into a double-digit win in South Carolina over Romney.
Presumably pleased with his investment, Adelson doubled down in Florida, where the next Republican contest will take place Jan. 31. This week, Adelson's wife chipped in another $5 million. The money is quickly going right back out the door.
Tyler told the AP that Winning Our Future had made a $6 million ad buy in Florida. A spot is planned to take aim at Romney's health care plan as governor of Massachusetts and its connection to President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, Tyler said.
___
Associated Press writers Ian Deitch in Jerusalem, Brian Bakst in Cocoa, Fla., and Jack Gillum in Washington contributed to this report.
TAMPA, Fla. ? The Buccaneers are counting on Greg Schiano to lead them back to respectability and transform Tampa Bay into consistent winners ? much in the same way he made Rutgers matter again.
The 45-year-old former Scarlet Knights coach was hired Thursday, more than three weeks after the Bucs fired Raheem Morris following a 4-12 finish.
The team scheduled a press conference for Friday to introduce Schiano, who inherits a team that allowed the most points in the NFL this season.
"Coach Schiano is a bright, meticulous teacher who knows how to get the most out of his players," general manager Mark Dominik said. "He built and ran a pro-style program at Rutgers, and he's a defensive-minded coach whose teams have always been characterized by toughness and a physical style of play."
Schiano was at Rutgers for 11 seasons, taking them from college football laughingstocks to a program that has had winning records in six of the last seven years. He was an assistant coach in the NFL with Chicago from 1996-98.
The Scarlet Knights appointed offensive line coach Kyle Flood as interim head coach while the school searches for Schiano's replacement.
The Bucs fired Morris on Jan. 2 after Tampa Bay lost 10 straight games to end the season, most of them by double-digit margins. The collapse following a promising 4-2 start came only a year after the NFL's youngest team went 10-6 and narrowly missed the playoffs.
The Glazer family that owns the team interviewed at least 10 candidates for the opening, including Oregon's Chip Kelly, who was offered the position before turning it down earlier this week.
The Bucs also talked to former NFL head coaches Mike Sherman, Brad Childress and Marty Schottenheimer; Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski; Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Jerry Gray; Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer; Green Bay quarterbacks coach Tom Clements and former Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin, who accepted the head coaching opening with the Miami Dolphins.
An 11th known candidate, ex-Dallas Cowboys coach and current Houston defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, canceled a scheduled interview with the Bucs that would have taken place while the Texans were in the playoffs.
Bucs co-chairman Joel Glazer said the club was thrilled to entrust the team's rebuilding project to Schiano.
"During our thorough search, we met with numerous impressive candidates, but coach Schiano surely distinguished himself," Glazer said. "From his leadership skills to his considerable track record, he is, simply put, the right man for the job."
It's not the first exhaustive search the Glazers have conducted for a coach.
The Bucs pursued Steve Spurrier before hiring Tony Dungy in 1996, then tried to lure Bill Parcells and Steve Mariucci to Tampa Bay before trading two first-round draft picks, as well as a pair of second-rounders and $8 million cash to the Oakland Raiders in exchange for the opportunity to negotiate a contract with Jon Gruden after the 2001 season.
Gruden led the Bucs to their only Super Bowl title the following season, but Tampa Bay hasn't won a playoff game since. The Glazers fired him three weeks after the Bucs lost the final four games of 2008 to miss the playoffs, and promoted Morris as his successor.
Tampa Bay went 17-31 under Morris, who served as his own defensive coordinator. The Bucs allowed a franchise-record 494 points in 2011, including 31 of more in seven of the last eight games.
In addition to fixing a defense that's been rebuilt over the past two drafts, getting young quarterback Josh Freeman back on track with be a priority this offseason.
Freeman threw for 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions in 2010, his second year in the league and his first as a full-time starter. The 24-year-old passed for 16 TDs vs. 22 interceptions this season.
The timing of the move could put Rutgers in a bind with national signing day less than a week away. This is a pivotal time in the recruiting process, with coaches locking up commitments from high school prospects who make those agreements official by signing national letters of intent starting Wednesday.
Schiano's contract with Rutgers runs through 2016 and pays him around $2.35 million per year.
He played linebacker at Bucknell, but never in the NFL. His first big break in coaching came at Penn State, where Joe Paterno hired him to coach defensive backs in 1991. He was at Penn State through 1995, before being hired by the Bears.
Because of his success at Rutgers, there had often been speculation for years about Schiano possibly replacing Paterno when the Hall of Famer was done coaching. But when Penn State was looking for a replacement after firing Paterno amid a child sex-abuse scandal involving one of his former longtime assistants, the school hired Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien.
Schiano has been courted by several other colleges during his time at Rutgers, most notably Miami and Michigan.
Michigan pursued Schiano after Lloyd Carr retired in 2007. Schiano passed and the Wolverines hired Rich Rodriguez.
Schiano's first four seasons at Rutgers produced losing seasons, but the program he took over was practically at rock bottom in major college football. Before he was hired, the Scarlet Knights played in only one bowl game in their history.
Schiano brought structure and discipline to a program that sorely lacked both on every level. Not only has Rutgers become a consistent winner in the Big East, but the Scarlet Knights have regularly been among the top teams in the country when it comes to graduating players. He also helped secure funding for multimillion dollar upgrades to Rutgers' facilities, including a major stadium renovation.
In 2005, Rutgers went 7-5 and the next season the Scarlet Knights were 11-2. They played in six bowls under Schiano, winning five, including a victory over Iowa state in the Pinstripe Bowl to cap a 9-4 season in 2011.
___
AP College Football Writer Ralph Russo in New York contributed to this report.
ROME ? Officials from Costa Crociere SpA met with consumer activists Thursday in an attempt to work out what could be a blanket compensation deal for uninjured passengers who were aboard the cruise ship that capsized off Italy's coast.
The deal being discussed would apply to 3,206 people from 61 countries who suffered no physical harm when the Costa Concordia hit a reef Jan. 13 after the captain made an unauthorized maneuver that brought the enormous ship too close to shore.
The offer would take into consideration the price of the ticket, any costs incurred in getting home after the disaster, the cost of items lost aboard the ship as well as damages for the ruined vacation and trauma resulting from the accident, said Furio Truzzi of the consumer group Assoutenti.
The offer would not apply to the hundreds of crew aboard the ship, the roughly 100 cases of people who were injured or the families who lost loved ones. Sixteen bodies have been recovered since the ship hit a reef carrying 4,200 people, with another 16 people still missing and feared dead.
"We are working for a collective transaction to come up with a value for damages," Truzzi said. "Each passenger can decide if this proposal is satisfactory. If it is not, they are free to react through a lawyer."
Truzzi said it was premature to discuss exact amounts of compensation. He said it would be an average and that any passenger who deemed his or her losses greater than the offer was free to counter the proposal.
"We will not close any doors," he said.
Costa has said it was in the process of reimbursing tickets and immediate expenses. Truzzi said those reimbursements did not preclude any future legal action on the part of those who were shipwrecked.
He said Assoutenti would work separately on a proposal for those who lost loved ones in the disaster and were also open to working with members of the crew if they came forward.
Truzzi said any damages agreed with Costa would be in addition to insurance policies taken out by passengers before embarking. He said 91 percent of the passengers had such policies.
Divers on Thursday were continuing the search for missing crew and passengers, although no one expected to find any more survivors.
Salvage experts were setting up operations so they could begin pumping tons of fuel off the ship starting Saturday to avert an environmental catastrophe. The stricken ship lies in pristine waters off the Tuscan coast that are prime fishing grounds and part of a protected area for dolphins and whales.
Costa is a unit of Miami-based Carnival Corp., the world's biggest cruise operator.
LITTLE ROCK ? Arkansas? unemployment trust fund is in the black and, barring another recession, the $330 million the state owes the federal government for unemployment insurance could be paid off by 2015, lawmakers heard today.
?That?s much better news,? Sen. Johnny Key, R-Mountain Home, said after hearing a report from Artee Williams, director of the state Department of Workforce Services.
The state owes the federal government for money it borrowed to keep unemployment benefits flowing to thousands of out-of-work Arkansans during the recession. The current balance is down from $360 million.
In an effort to address the debt, the Legislature last year approved and the governor signed into law Act 861 of 2011. The law capped the maximum unemployment benefits and cut the benefit period by a week. It also eliminated wage indexing and changed some of the eligibility requirements for workers seeking unemployment.
The jobless benefit changes were in addition to legislation approved in 2009 that increased by 20 percent the unemployment insurance rate employers pay.
Williams and Ron Calkins, assistant DWS director of unemployment insurance, told lawmakers Tuesday that those changes have enabled the state to replenish the state?s unemployment trust fund. The fund has about $52 million, they said.
The state paid $30 million on unemployment insurance debt last year and expect to make another $30 million payment on the debt later this year. Officials also expect a $21 million reduction in the debt this year because of a federal tax credit.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. ? Members of the Penn State football team and the athletic department have arrived at the campus faith center, where a viewing is being held Tuesday for Joe Paterno.
The players wore dark suits and filed out of three blue Penn State buses ? the same buses that once carried Paterno and the team to games on fall Saturdays. Son Scott Paterno was seen coming in and out of the center.
The 85-year-old Paterno, the winningest coach in major college football, died Sunday. He disclosed his lung cancer in November, days after he was fired in the aftermath of the child sex-abuse charges against former assistant Jerry Sandusky.
This marked the start of three days of public events as the Penn State community in State College and beyond said goodbye to the man who led the Nittany Lions to 409 wins over 46 years.
Big crowds were expected to show their love for Paterno, starting with a 10-hour public viewing at 1 p.m. EST. The viewing on campus is at the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center, with another public viewing Wednesday. After that, Paterno's family will hold a private funeral and procession through State College.
On Thursday, the school's basketball arena will be the site of a public service called "A Memorial for Joe." Penn State was expecting a huge demand for seats and set a two-per-person limit on tickets.
Scott Paterno said despite the turmoil, Paterno remained peaceful and upbeat in his final days and still loved the school.
The revered coach was fired Nov. 9 after he was criticized over his handling of the allegations against Sandusky in 2002. Pennsylvania's state police commissioner said in not going to the police, Paterno may have met his legal duty but not his moral one.
Bitterness over Paterno's removal has turned up in many forms, from online postings to a rewritten newspaper headline placed next to Paterno's statue at the football stadium blaming the trustees for his death. A headline that read "FIRED" was crossed out and made to read, "Killed by Trustees." Lanny Davis, lawyer for the school's board, said threats have been made against the trustees.
Scott Paterno, however, stressed his father did not die with a broken heart and did not harbor resentment toward Penn State.
___
Associated Press writer Mark Scolforo contributed to this report.
The Maximum Airspeed Above Which Birds And Drones Are Bound to Crash In pursuit of fleet-footed prey, the northern goshawk wings through thick forest canopies and underbrush at breakneck speeds, dipping and diving to avoid colliding with trees or other obstacles. But it can only go so fast, apparently obeying an unspoken speed limit dictated not by biology, but by the density of its environment ? beyond a certain threshold, it is certain to crash into something. This is an important lesson for makers of drones and other flying objects, according to researchers at MIT and Harvard.
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OSAKA, Japan (Reuters) ? Shareholders of scandal-hit Olympus Corp will file a lawsuit against the company as early as Monday, seeking more than 200 million yen ($2.6 million) in damages over the fall in its share price, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.
($1 = 77.1200 Japanese yen)
(Reporting by Yoshiyuki Osada; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
Syrian army defectors gather at the mountain resort town of Zabadani, Syria, near the Lebanese border, on Friday Jan. 20, 2012. President Bashar Assad's forces attacked Zabadani, some 17 miles (27 kilometers) west of the capital, for six days, sparking fierce fighting that involved heavy bombardments and clashes with army defectors. On Wednesday, government tanks and armored vehicles pulled back, leaving the opposition in control of the town. Buoyed by the opposition's control of a town near the Syrian capital, thousands of people held anti-government protests Friday, chanting for the downfall of the regime. At least eight people were killed by security forces across the country, activists said. (AP Photo)
Syrian army defectors gather at the mountain resort town of Zabadani, Syria, near the Lebanese border, on Friday Jan. 20, 2012. President Bashar Assad's forces attacked Zabadani, some 17 miles (27 kilometers) west of the capital, for six days, sparking fierce fighting that involved heavy bombardments and clashes with army defectors. On Wednesday, government tanks and armored vehicles pulled back, leaving the opposition in control of the town. Buoyed by the opposition's control of a town near the Syrian capital, thousands of people held anti-government protests Friday, chanting for the downfall of the regime. At least eight people were killed by security forces across the country, activists said. (AP Photo)
Syrian army defectors gather at the mountain resort town of Zabadani, Syria, near the Lebanese border, on Friday Jan. 20, 2012. President Bashar Assad's forces attacked Zabadani, some 17 miles (27 kilometers) west of the capital, for six days, sparking fierce fighting that involved heavy bombardments and clashes with army defectors. On Wednesday, government tanks and armored vehicles pulled back, leaving the opposition in control of the town. Buoyed by the opposition's control of a town near the Syrian capital, thousands of people held anti-government protests Friday, chanting for the downfall of the regime. At least eight people were killed by security forces across the country, activists said. (AP Photo)
An anti-Syrian regime protester flashes victory sign as he marches during a demonstration at the mountain resort town of Zabadani, Syria, near the Lebanese border, on Friday Jan. 20, 2012. President Bashar Assad's forces attacked Zabadani, some 17 miles (27 kilometers) west of the capital, for six days, sparking fierce fighting that involved heavy bombardments and clashes with army defectors. On Wednesday, government tanks and armored vehicles pulled back, leaving the opposition in control of the town. Buoyed by the opposition's control of a town near the Syrian capital, thousands of people held anti-government protests Friday, chanting for the downfall of the regime. At least eight people were killed by security forces across the country, activists said. (AP Photo)
BEIRUT (AP) ? Syria rejected Monday a new Arab League plan aiming to end the country's 10-month crisis by calling on the government and the opposition to form a national unity government within two months.
The Syrian statement carried by the state-run news agency SANA came a day after Qatari Foreign Minister Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Bin Jabr Al Thani told reporters in Cairo that the Arab League was launching a new initiative to solve the crisis.
The Syrian uprising began in March following popular revolts that overthrew long-serving leaders in Tunisia and Egypt. President Bashar Assad retaliated with a deadly crackdown that the U.N. says has left more than 5,400 people dead.
A statement issued by Arab foreign ministers after a Sunday Arab League meeting in Cairo called for the establishment of a national unity government within two months, in which the government and the opposition are included, and which is led by a figure of consensus.
The mandate of this government, said the statement, is to prepare for free parliamentary and presidential elections to be held under Arab and international supervision.
It also provides for Assad to give his vice president full powers to cooperate with the proposed government to enable it to carry out its duties during a transitional period.
SANA quoted an unnamed official as saying Syria considers the plan "a violation of its sovereignty and a flagrant interference in its internal affairs." It added that the plan comes as part of the "conspiracy Syria is being subjected to."
The Syrian government blames the violence in Syria on terrorists and armed gangs that it claims are part of a foreign conspiracy to destabilize the country.
The Local Coordination Committees opposition group also criticized the Arab League plan saying it gives the Syrian regime "a new opportunity, time and cover, in its attempt to bury the revolution."
The LCC said the Arab League should declare that it failed to end the crisis, and ask for help from the "United Nations to force the regime to comply with the demands of the opposition."
Arab League foreign ministers also extended the much-criticized observers mission for another month, according to a statement from the 22-member organization.
The Arab League faced three options Sunday: ending the mission and giving up its initiative, extending it, or turning the crisis over to the U.N. Security Council, as some opposition groups have urged. There, however, it would face a possible stalemate because of disagreements among permanent members over how far to go in forcing Assad's hand.
The mission's one-month mandate technically expired on Thursday.
Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal told reporters that his country will pull out its observers because "the Syrian government did not implement the Arab plan." He urged Muslim countries, China, Russia, Europe and the U.S. to put pressure on Assad's government to stop the violence.
Saudi Arabia has been one of the harshest Arab critics of the crackdown, It recalled its ambassador from Damascus last year in protest.
___
Bassem Mroue can be reached on http://twitter.com/bmroue
(This version CORRECTS Updates with more details about Arab League plan, SANA, comment from opposition group; Corrects timeline for plan to two months, for the formation of unity government.)
WACO, Texas ? Ricardo Ratliffe scored a career-high 27 points and No. 5 Missouri held on for an 89-88 victory over No. 3 Baylor after a furious late rally Saturday by the Bears.
Ratliffe had a big two-handed slam dunk midway through the second half when he scored six points in an 8-0 spurt that put the Tigers (18-1, 5-1 Big 12) up 68-58. Missouri still had a 10-point lead with 3:07 left then didn't score again until Ratliffe's two free throws with a minute left.
Missouri had to make 10 of 12 free throws in the final minute for the victory. Marcus Denmon's free throw with 4 seconds left made it 89-85 before Brady Heslip hit a game-ending 3-pointer for Baylor (17-2, 4-2), which has lost two in a row after a 17-0 start.
Quincy Miller led Baylor with 29 points while Pierre Jackson had 20 points and 15 assists. Quincy Acy had 18 points with nine rebounds while Heslip had 10 points.
Jackson had 11 points and three assists in the final 2:06 when Baylor closed the game with a 19-10 run. Jackson started that when he drove and was fouled, yelling out "and one!" before he even hit the floor and the ball fell through the hoop. He made the free throw, cutting the deficit to 79-72.
After Denmon's last free throw, his fifth in the final 33 seconds, Jackson tried to throw up a 3-pointer and draw a foul in the same motion. The ball wound up in Heslip's hands along the left wing with no one around him.
Phil Pressey had 18 points for the Tigers while Denmon had 15 and Kim English 10.
The top two scoring and shooting teams in the Big 12 certainly lived up to that billing in the league's first top-five matchup that didn't involve either Kansas or Texas.
Missouri shot 55 percent (30 of 55), and Baylor finished at 57 percent (36 of 63).
Baylor was coming off a 92-74 loss at No. 7 Kansas that ended the Bears' record 17-game winning streak. The loss to Missouri ended their 10-game home winning streak.
The Tigers, who have won four in a row since their loss at Kansas State two weeks ago, led only 58-56 midway through the second half when Pressey had a turnover. Heslip tried a 3-pointer and appeared to be hit when he shot, but there was no foul and coach Scott Drew was called for a technical foul.
Denmon made both of those free throws, then after a layup by Acy, Ratliff had his big dunk and added two free throws between consecutive turnovers by Jackson. Ratliffe's layup after Pressey's steal made it 68-58 with 8 minutes left.
Missouri led 39-35 at the half after a 6-0 run that included consecutive putback baskets.
By that point, the Tigers had a 14-0 advantage in second-chance points and its 10 offensive rebounds were only one fewer than the Bears' total rebounds. Missouri finished with a 32-26 rebounding edge, and 18-11 advantage on second-chance points.
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) ? Tracy Morgan sent up his gay slur controversy on Thursday's "30 Rock," but this time GLAAD is laughing.
Morgan landed in the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation's crosshairs last summer when he joked during a standup routine that he would stab his son to death if he were gay. After the remarks went viral, NBC programming chief Robert Greenblatt and "30 Rock" creator Tina Fey issued statements condemning his act.
Morgan apologized to the gay community for the routine and met with GLAAD and victims of anti-gay violence.
The rainbow tour of remorse's final stop may have been on Thursday's "30 Rock." In the episode, Tracy Jordan (Morgan's clueless onscreen ego) sparks a protest after he angers audiences with a homophobic standup routine.
His boss, Liz Lemon (Fey) demands he apologize, telling him, "You're a public figure and, believe it or not, the dumb things you say may influence or hurt people."
But Morgan mistakenly apologizes to the makers of Glad bags, rather than to the anti-defamation group.
GLAAD's Senior Director of Programs Herndon Graddick told The New York Times, "I thought it was hilarious. We've been called worse than trash bag manufacturers and look forward to seeing the second part next week."
Jennifer Lopez and dancer Casper Smart have faced criticism over their 18-year age difference since going public with their relationship in November, and now, they?re defending their romance on Twitter.
?Age, status, n opinions of others are irrelevant,? Smart, 24, tweeted on Wednesday. ?Our hearts are endless and our souls infinite ?.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Celebrity May-December Romances
?Our ages are mere reminders of the hours logged on this earth and the precious time remaining,? he added. ?We should all honor our time here by indulging our passion and dreams. So, close your ears and open your hearts; Love and be happy!?
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As previously reported on AccessHollywood.com, Lopez?s soon-to-be ex-husband, Marc Anthony, is also reportedly dating a 24-year-old ? Venezuelan model Shannon de Lima.
Anthony, 43, tweeted a photo of the beauty in early January with the caption, ?To Shannon, my statue of Liberty. Kisses baby,? in Spanish.
He also posted a photo on his Facebook page of himself, embracing and kissing the model.
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Copyright 2012 by NBC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Researchers have discovered that the seemingly erratic behavior of the "Rostov Ripper," a prolific serial killer active in the 1980s, conformed to the same mathematical pattern obeyed by earthquakes, avalanches, stock market crashes and many other sporadic events. The finding suggests an explanation for why serial killers kill.
Mikhail Simkin and Vwani Roychowdhury, electrical engineers at the University of California, Los Angeles, modeled the behavior of Andrei Chikatilo, a gruesome murderer who took the lives of 53 people in Rostov, Russia between 1978 and 1990. Though Chikatilo sometimes went nearly three years without committing murder, on other occasions, he went just three days. The researchers found that the seemingly random spacing of his murders followed a mathematical distribution known as a power law.
When the number of days between Chikatilo's murders is plotted against the number of times he waited that number of days, the relationship forms a near-straight line on a type of graph called a log-log plot. It's the same result scientists get when they plot the magnitude of earthquakes against the number of times each magnitude has occurred ? and the same goes for a variety of natural phenomena. The power law outcome suggests that there was an underlying natural process driving the serial killer's behavior.
Simkin and Roychowdhury hypothesize that it's the same type of effect that has also been found to cause epileptics to have seizures. The psychotic effects that lead a serial killer to commit murder "arise from simultaneous firing of large number of neurons in the brain," they wrote. The paper, a preprint of which is available on the arXiv, has been submitted to Biology Letters.
In the brain, the firing of a single neuron can potentially trigger the firing of thousands of others, each of which can in turn trigger thousands more. In this way, neuronal activity cascades through the brain. Most of the time, the cascade is small and quickly dies down, but occasionally ? after time intervals determined by the power law ? the neuronal activity surpasses a threshold.
In epileptics, a threshold-crossing cascade of neurons induces a seizure.? And if the Simkin and Roychowdhury's theory is right, a similar buildup of excited neurons is what flooded the Rostov Ripper with an overwhelming desire to commit murder. Sometimes he went years without his neurons crossing the threshold, other times, just days.
When Simkin and Roychowdhury factored a delay into their model to account for the time it took for Chikatilo to plan his next attack, and when they treated his murders as having had a sedative effect on him by damping down the activity of his neurons, their model fit strongly with his murder pattern.
Murder rhythm
James Fallon, a neuroscientist at UC Irvine who studies the brains of psychopaths, said the new findings are well-aligned with prior observations about serial killers, many of whom seem to behave similarly to drug addicts. ?In both cases, Fallon said, withdrawal from their addiction "builds and builds and then hits a threshold trigger point, after which they go on a spree to release that 'longing.'"
And as with a drug addiction, withdrawal from killing may cause a buildup of hormones in a part of the brain called the amygdala, "and this very, very unpleasant feeling can only be reversed by acting out whatever the addicting stimulus might be," Fallon told Life's Little Mysteries.
Though the new paper presents a compelling systems-engineering quantitative analysis of serial killing, the theoretical model must be adjusted, Fallon said. "The time course of (neuronal cluster firing) is in terms of milliseconds to seconds, and not months to years (which the authors acknowledge). So I think they need to add a component, perhaps a hormonal-type damping mechanism that has a time constant over weeks, months and years," he wrote in an email.
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These types of hormonal clocks are involved in producing many types of biological rhythms, including the sleep-wake cycle, reproductive cycle and even the "sexual rut," Fallon said. If the authors were able to model a hormonal influence on the behavior of serial killers, "they may uncover a 'serial killer rhythm,' or some such beast."
Puppets of biology
Amanda Pustilnik, an assistant professor at the University of Maryland School of Law whose work focuses on models of the mind and neuroscience in criminal law, believes that a more rigorous, expanded version of the new paper could be admissible in court cases involving serial killers. However, as it stands, there isn't enough to go on.
"Certain patterns can occur randomly in nature without meaning anything. While it is interesting in itself that the case of this one serial killer fits a power law distribution, it would be incorrect to draw conclusions from that," Pustilnik said. "If (the authors) can expand their data set and it can turn out to be a more statistically valid model, then it might be an interesting line of research on recurring human behaviors caused by an urge or drive and the discharge of an urge or drive."
According to Pustilnik, neuroscience research demonstrating that a psychopath is merely a victim of his own faulty biology cannot be used in court as an argument for his innocence. It is admissible, however, as evidence that a jury should be lenient during sentencing.
"When we're trying to figure out 'how blameworthy is this person?' I can imagine that a serial killer could use this finding at sentencing to argue that he was not morally blameworthy, but rather the puppet of his biology," she said. "As in, 'the neuron firing pattern makes me do this.'"
To be used as such, though, the result of the case study would need to be generalized across a much larger set of cases to determine whether its finding is significant, or merely a chance correlation, Pustilnik said.
As well as expanding the research to include a larger data set, there are many other lines of further inquiry. The study authors say they suspect many common human behaviors that stem from urges or addictions may also follow a power law distribution. For example, "shopping or getting drunk may follow similar pattern for some people," Simkin wrote in an email. Like some murders, these behaviors might be even less governed by free will than previously believed.
Follow Natalie Wolchover on Twitter @ nattyover. Follow Life's Little Mysteries on Twitter @ llmysteries, then join us on Facebook.
? 2012 LifesLittleMysteries.com. All rights reserved. More from LifesLittleMysteries.com.
Captain Francesco Schettino, the man accused of causing the deadly wreck of a cruise ship off the coast of Italy, is out of jail and under house arrest, as additional bodies were found aboard the capsized ship. NBC's Michelle Kosinski reports.
By msnbc.com and news services
Updated at 11:40 a.m. ET:?The Costa Concordia took a nearly identical route past Giglio Island in August to the one Friday that led to the sinking of the ship, NBC News has learned.
Adam Smallman, editor of shipping magazine Lloyd?s List, said the route taken in August, based on satellite tracking, was ?authorized by the company and the coast guard.?
"Our assessment of the route this vessel took (in August) is it must?have come perilously close, and?I mean possibly within touching distance of the rock that it hit this time ... which the company is saying wholly unauthorized in terms of its proximity to the island," Smallman said.
The search for missing passengers aboard the Costa Concordia is on hold over fears that the ship is shifting, making rescue efforts more dangerous.
The first victim was officially identified on Wednesday as Sandor Feher, a 38-year-old violinist from Hungary working aboard the ship. Hungarian ministry spokesman Jozsef Toth said the body was found inside the wreck and identified by his mother in the Italian city of Grosetto.
Jozsef Balog, a pianist who worked with Feher, told the Budapest newspaper Blikk that Feher was wearing a lifejacket when he decided to return to his cabin to pack his violin. Feher was last seen on deck en route to a lifeboat. According to Balog, Feher helped put lifejackets on several crying children before returning to his cabin.
DigitalGlobe
The Costa Concordia ran aground Jan. 13 off the coast of Italy, resulting in the evacuation of thousands of passengers as the ship began heavily listing.
The captain in charge of the specialist divers searching the stricken Costa Concordia tells NBC News that they need to blow four more holes in it to gain access to the bottom of the cruise ship. Asked about the search for bodies -- some 23 people are unaccounted for according to Reuters -- the captain said there was visual evidence suggesting some bodies were at the bottom of the sea.
NBC News, citing officials involved in the rescue effort,?reported that on Wednesday the ship had sunk 1.5 meters (4.9 feet) at the front and 1 meter (3.2 feet) at the back, raising concerns that the vessel may break up in the middle.
The coast guard is monitoring shifts with sensors installed by divers at the start of the rescue mission, and that movement is its main concern as it could trap divers. By late afternoon, officials still did not have enough data to reassure them that the ship had stopped resettling.
"The visibility is awful. Yesterday I couldn't see my hand in front of my face," Giuseppe Minciotti, director of a school for cave divers in the northern city of Verona and part of the specialist team deployed on the wreck, told Reuters.
"I grabbed a piece of floating debris, and I couldn't see what it was until I had my head out of the water. It was a woman's shoe," he said.? "We're waiting today for new openings to be made, and we'll see if the visibility is any better in those points."
Jim Fee, a yacht skipper for three decades, discusses the potential ecological problems related to the Costa Concordia disaster. NBC's Harry Smith reports.
Coast guard spokesman Cosimo Nicastro said work would focus on an evacuation assembly area on the partially submerged fourth deck, where most of the 11 bodies found so far have been located.
"It's where we have already found seven of the bodies and it's where the passengers and crew gathered to abandon ship," Nicastro said.
Fire services spokesman Luca Cari said the search was suspended at about 8 a.m. local time (11 p.m. ET) after a shift of a few inches, posing a potential threat to diving teams operating in the submerged spaces of the ship.
There was no word on when work might resume.?
The Costa Concordia had more than 4,200 passengers and crew on board when it slammed into a reef Friday off the tiny Tuscan island of Giglio after Capt. Francesco Schettino made an unauthorized maneuver from the ship's programmed course ? allegedly to show off the luxury liner to the island's residents.
Rescue workers discovered five bodies on Tuesday, bringing the death toll of the Costa Concordia accident to 11.?
The adult bodies, believed to be passengers, were all wearing life jackets and were found in the rear of the ship near an emergency evacuation point, according to Nicastro.
Schettino, whose actions during the disaster have come under intense scrutiny as details of his role on the night of the disaster emerge, appeared before a judge in Grosseto, Tuscany,?where he was questioned for three hours. Schettino remains under house arrest.
During a heated conversation the Italian coast guard told the captain of the Costa Concordia to go back to the ship. NBC's Michelle Kosinski reports.
Schettino's lawyer, Bruno Leporatti, said urine and hair samples have been taken from Schettino, apparently to determine if he might have consumed alcohol or used drugs before the accident.
Leporatti also told a news conference in Grosetto that house arrest made sense given there was no evidence the captain intended to flee. He cited the fact that the captain coordinated the evacuation from the shore after leaving the ship.
"He never left the scene," Leporatti said. "There has never been a danger of flight."
Leporatti added the captain was upset by the accident, contrary to depictions in the Italian media that he did not appear to show regret.
"He is a deeply shaken man, not only for the loss of his ship, which for a captain is a grave thing, but above all for what happened and the loss of human life," the lawyer said.
Martino Pellegrino, a crew-member on Costa Concordia, described Schettino as "authoritarian," "stubborn" and "egocentric," in an?interview with Italian newspaper La Republica on Tuesday.
"Schettino likes to be in control of the ship's wheel," he told the newspaper.
Also on Tuesday, a transcript of a conversation between Schettino and Capt. Gregorio De Falco of the Italian coast guard in Livorno, showed the coast guard official urgently commanding the captain to return to the cruise ship after he had abandoned it.
"There are people trapped on board," De Falco said. "Now you go with your boat under the prow on the starboard side. There is a pilot ladder. You will climb that ladder and go on board. You go on board and then you will tell me how many people there are. Is that clear? I'm recording this conversation, Cmdr. Schettino ..."
Passengers continued to make their way home, with consistent claims that crew members were ill-prepared to handle an emergency evacuation.
"The crew members had no specialized training ? the security man doubled as the cook and bartender, so obviously they did not know what to do," passenger Claudia Fehlandt told Chile's Channel 7 television after being embraced by relatives at Santiago's airport.
"In fact, the lifeboats, even the ones that did get lowered, they did not know how to lower them and they cut the ropes with axes," she said.
Msnbc.com staff, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Public release date: 30-Jan-2012
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