SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) ? Danell Leyva likes being right as much as he enjoys winning.
The world parallel bars champion has been saying for months there is not just one guy pushing him on the way to the London Olympics. And every competition, someone else comes along to back him up.
Leyva moved into the overall lead in the race for London on Thursday, but it was Sam Mikulak who won the first day of the Olympic trials. The 19-year-old who oozes California cool finished with 91.8 points, edging Leyva by a mere 0.1 points. John Orozco, who beat Leyva for the U.S. title earlier this month, was third.
"That's huge because I did a pretty good meet myself," Leyva said. "To know he had the highest all-around score today, that's awesome."
While individual prizes are nice, the Americans want that big shiny gold medal that goes to the best team. And for the first time since 1984, they just might have the goods to do it.
Leyva and Orozco remained in position to earn automatic spots on the five-man London squad, reserved for the top two all-arounders ? so long as they also rank among the top three in at least three of the six disciplines. At the moment, Orozco and Leyva both meet those criteria, with Mikulak closing fast.
Leyva has a total score of 276.500 going into Saturday's finals, followed by Orozco (275.550) and Mikulak (274.650). Jonathan Horton, a double Olympic medalist, is fourth, and Jake Dalton is fifth.
Chris Brooks, a former world team member, lost ground in his quest to get off the London bubble, falling on both vault and parallel bars. He is in sixth place, and is in the top five in only one event.
"I don't think anybody's out of it," Brooks said. "You've got to get your head back into the game and continue to fight."
Or, if you're Mikulak, keep doing what you're doing.
Mikulak has been one to watch since claiming the NCAA title as a freshman at Michigan. But he never had a shot at last year's world championships team after breaking both his ankles at a meet in Puerto Rico. His rehab set him back several months, and the legs remained so tender it wasn't until recently that coach Kurt Golder let his precocious star bust loose.
But look at him now. Cheered on by a raucous bunch of friends wearing "Team Sam" T-shirts ? complete with Mikulak's picture ? and moving around the arena with every event, Mikulak let everyone know from the start that he cannot be overlooked. His parallel bars routine was exquisite, filled with difficult skills and combinations but done with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker.
His handstands were so still he could have been a model for an art class, and when he hit the mat with an emphatic thump, the low-key Golder pumped his fists. His score of 15.7 included a 9.5 execution mark that would be matched by only one other person the rest of the day.
He had the crowd oohing and aahing with his acrobatic high bar routine, and he displayed cat-like reflexes on floor exercise. Looking as if he was about to go out of bounds on one of his tumbling passes, his toes almost seemed to pull back into his feet to keep him safely in bounds.
His only real "flaw" was on pommel horse, where he stalled before his dismount. But he managed to hang on, and walked off the podium with a grin.
"I was just able to zone everything out, breathe and keep control over all my skills," Mikulak said.
He was so in the zone he didn't even realize he'd finished ahead of Leyva and Orozco, the last two U.S. champions.
"What?" Mikulak said when Horton told him. "Seriously?"
"Kid's a gamer," Horton said. "He just knows how to perform. That's all there is to it. He just knows how to go out there and do his job."
Indeed, Mikulak was able to keep his cool while the high stakes seemed to get the best of his more seasoned competitors.
The dynamic Leyva was perhaps a little too amped up. Leading off on floor, he zipped through a sloppy set that included a step out of bounds, moving so quickly it appeared he'd chugged a fistful of Red Bulls during warmups.
Orozco, dubbed the "Silent Ninja" because of the way he sneaks up on the competition, stumbled a bit on pommel horse, stalling just before his dismount. Two events later he took a step back, literally on vault. He failed to get the proper height off the table and crouched while landing. His rear never hit the floor, but his hands did, and the 14.8 he received blunted his momentum.
"The only thing I would like to do is my best and show the committee I'm ready and ready to compete and represent the USA," Orozco said. "I think I didn't show enough of that tonight."
It was all the opening Leyva needed despite a somewhat ho-hum afternoon that lacked the "wow" factor that's made him perhaps the most charismatic gymnast of his generation.
But as Leyva has been telling everyone, there's plenty more where he came from.
"This is such a deep team and everybody is so good," Mikulak said. "This is such a deep USA team ... but if I keep hitting routines, and they see that I'm consistent and reliable, I think that's a good quality."
All Critics (59) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (57) | Rotten (1) | DVD (9)
It's among the most understated anti-war films ever made, effortlessly humanistic but far too subtle to indulge in preaching.
A model of simplicity and grace, with emotional effects that move you when you least expect it, the kind of great film that only a master can pull off.
It's still one of the key humanist expressions to be found in movies: sad, funny, exalting, and glorious.
It's an excellent film, with Renoir's usual looping line and deft shifts of tone, though today the balance of critical opinion has shifted in favor of the greater darkness and filigree of The Rules of the Game.
An artistically masterful feature, the picture breathes the intimate life of warriors on both sides during the [First] World War.
Renoir has created a strange and interesting film, but he owes much to his cast.
a monumental humanist work
Its very simplicity of utterance gives it a purity that makes other films that try to express similar sentiments feel forced and obvious.
Funny, heart-wrenching, nail-biting, caustic and profound, touting the futility of armed combat while turning imprisonment and escape into a microcosm for society's aspirations and contradictions.
Renoir's 1937 anti-war masterpiece created a new genre, the POW movie, and with his 1939 La R?gle du jeu constitutes a diptych of unparalleled excellence.
A timeless classic of acting and filmmaking genius that uses the artificiality of war to explore the very construct of society, and is a classic must-see.
The great illusion is that these men of the officer class are somehow different from the masses who suffered the bloodiest of wars. Renoir proves that they are not.
A vividly humanist, anti-war classic.
A sorrowful, acutely thoughtful, and wholly imperishable masterpiece...
Tragic. Moving. Funny. A pure joy.
The film makes its moral point about the futility of combat by emphasising the interconnectedness of all humanity via such shared experiences as hunger, desire and friendship. It's also a ripping yarn with a vein of charming and sometimes risqu? humour.
La Grande Illusion retains its power as an example of European camaraderie and co-operation.
It ranks proudly alongside The Rules Of The Game as Renoir at his stunning best.
La Grande Illusion is a sublimely poignant and lucidly insightful commentary on the social legacy of the Great War in Europe.
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The wait for a FBS college football playoff finally ended on Tuesday.
Since Rutgers beat Princeton 6-4 in the first American football game on Nov. 6, 1869, major college football didn't have a playoff to decide who the best team was.
That all changes in 2014 after a committee of university presidents approved the BCS Commissioners' plan for a four-year playoff.
No longer will a team -- given it's ranked among in the top four by a selection committee -- have a gripe for being left out of playing for a national championship.
Since 1998, the year the BCS became the formula to decide which two teams played for the crystal ball, controversy rose more times than not over who the best two teams in the country were.
In '98, Tennessee was the clear-cut No. 1 team in the country after the regular season, but who was the second-best was up for debate. Upset losses by UCLA and Kansas State on the final Saturday of the regular season put the BCS to the test in its first year. The Bruins, Wildcats, Ohio State and Florida State all had one loss. Even Tulane, who was undefeated, wanted to stake a claim.
The Seminoles probably weren't the No. 2 team in the country at the end of the regular season because their starting quarterback -- future Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke -- was injured in midseason and missed the rest of the year.
Still, All American linebacker Al Wilson would've led the Volunteers to victory over any team on that Arizona night in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 4, 1999. Hopefully former Beacon sports editor Colin Skinner, a noted Buckeyes fan, would agree Ohio State, most likely the second-best team in the country, couldn't beat Tennessee.
The only other time UT has been in the running for the BCS National Championship was 2001. Then, all the 11-1 Vols had to do was beat an 8-4 LSU in the SEC title game. Led by second-year coach Nick Saban and a tight ends coach named Derek Dooley, the Tigers upset Tennessee. That loss began the Vols' downfall from national prominence, which they're still trying to return to.
Tennessee could've impacted the BCS title game two other times. In 2004, the Vols played an undefeated Auburn team in the SEC Championship Game. A UT win would've allowed USC and Oklahoma to play for the national title with no controversy. Instead, Auburn won that game and the Sugar Bowl and remains the only undefeated team from a BCS conference to not play for the national championship.
In 2007, LSU's 4th quarter rally against the Vols send the Tigers to the national title game. That LSU team remains the only two-loss team to ever play for, and win, the national championship.
With the SEC winning the last six BCS National Championships, a playoff increases the league's chances of having two conference teams play for the title. Though, that happened last year when LSU played Alabama, in a rematch from the regular season. A game that send the rest of the country outside the south into a frenzy.
But the BCS has send fans, including the SEC, into a frenzy since 1998.
Luckily, that's changing in 2014.
? Matt Dixon is a senior in journalism and electronic media. He can be reached at mdixon3@utk.edu.
Tower blocs of the Athletes' Village soar over Victory Park on Saturday, June 30, 2012. Olympic organizers showed off the village to a select group of visitors as a test run of their services before athletes arrive for the London Olympics, which start July 27 and end Aug. 12. (AP Photo/Danica Kirka)
Tower blocs of the Athletes' Village soar over Victory Park on Saturday, June 30, 2012. Olympic organizers showed off the village to a select group of visitors as a test run of their services before athletes arrive for the London Olympics, which start July 27 and end Aug. 12. (AP Photo/Danica Kirka)
A few trees are lined up and ready for planting on Saturday June 30, 2012 as Olympic organizers put the final touches on preparations for the games. Olympic organizers showed off the village to a select group of visitors as a test run of their services before athletes arrive for the London Olympics, which start July 27 and end Aug. 12.(AP Photo/Danica Kirka)
A runner goes out for a jog on the edge of Victory Park in the Athletes' Village on Saturday June 30, 2012. Olympic organizers showed off the village to a select group of visitors as a test run of their services before athletes arrive for the London Olympics, which start July 27 and end Aug. 12. (AP Photo/Danica Kirka)
LONDON (AP) ? Usain Bolt can thank me anytime for helping ensure that he gets a good night's sleep at this summer's London Olympics.
Organizers held a slumber party this weekend, opening the big glass doors and immense dining halls of the Athletes' Village to several hundred journalists, local officials and assorted others in a trial run - giving games planners a chance to work out the glitches before the Olympians arrive. I was a willing guinea pig.
This wasn't a stress test really. Stress comes in just a few weeks when 16,000 athletes and officials come rolling in, a flag-waving tide of youth and vigor, ready to play. No, no, this was just a little warm up trot - and let's be frank - a big party at a way above average location.
"It's to help us flesh out the glitches," said Nigel Garfitt, the director of the village and games services.
There were a few of those. The chatter at the breakfast table Saturday morning, particularly at the journalist end, was about all the things that went wrong. There was no water in my room for example (whoops!) and a village crew thought that 3:30 a.m. was a good time to dig up paving stones outside my window.
That's why Usain, the word-famous Jamaican sprinter, can thank me, because it gives me a chance to make this suggestion to Sebastian Coe, the head of the organizing committee: Please don't dig up the street in the middle of the night! Olympians are slumbering.
That said, since this is the closest I'll ever come to being an Olympian, these minor mishaps must be taken in stride, particularly as it is clear that the village is within a whisker of being ready. For this village there will be no disasters in landscaping such as occurred in the Athens Olympics, where the outside of many venues were bare. In London, the grass is manicured within an inch of its existence - you weren't even allowed to walk on its lush cushiness unless you ditched your shoes.
Much of the village is that way - it looks as if it were lifted from an architectural drawing and broadcast on a big empty space. It's kind of boxy and utilitarian, but very tidy. Its monochrome-ness will offer a good backdrop for the athletes, who will drape flags from the balconies and transform it with color.
The rooms are spare but designed first and foremost with the athletes in mind. Beds for the tall and small. Mattresses wear-tested by former Olympians. Bedside lamps that work. Blackout curtains to make the room dark should the sun ever decide to shine in this light-deprived nation.
The duvets feature pictograms of the Olympic sports, and the communal areas offer sofas in electric aqua with hot pink cushions.
The televisions will feature an Olympic broadcast channel showing the action but no commentary. There's WiFi and a laundrette in the basement.
There are no kitchens - but who needs to cook? Just a short stroll away, in the shadow of the basketball arena known as "the Meringue," is the massive dining facility, which will operate for 24 hours a day and seat 5,000 at a time.
The size of several American football fields, it features cuisine from each of the continents, and includes a Halal pod - food prepared in compliance with Islamic guidelines. It is the pride and joy of Jan Matthews, the head of catering.
Matthews once ran catering for the British army in Germany and knows a thing or two about serving on a huge scale. That's kind of necessary, as this is a place where having seconds or sixths is just fine. Portion sizes are up to the athletes. No charge.
Non-Olympians won't really get a chance to eat here, unless they have some super special reason to be with a team. Heads of state are known to pull up trays with their squads, but there's no VIP treatment for them here.
"This is about the athletes," she said. "It's not about anyone else."
Besides food, other diversions and services beckon along tidy paths with sporty names such as Champions Walk, Medals Way or Celebration Avenue. There is a post office, a nail bar, a Lloyds Bank, and hairdressers where free styling and shaves are on offer.
Judging by past games, athletes will get the Olympic rings shaved into their hair, according to Emily Brett, the athletes' services manager.
But just to make sure no one gets bored, there's also a recreation zone called The Globe, after the theater most closely associated with William Shakespeare. It has sort of a pub-like feel, though no alcohol will be served, making it unpub-like to anyone who lives in Britain, but never mind.
It features light boxes that say things like "fun fun fun," ''Wow" and "Boogie." There's a bar, a stage, a music studio, pool tables, a computer gaming area and TVs.
"It is going to be the buzziest place in the Athletes' Village," Brett said.
Just over 200 national Olympic committees will be represented, and each will get a little welcoming ceremony all their own that features the playing of national anthems. With so many athletes and committees, it may take as long as four days to run through them all. But there will be one for everyone, as organizers want to make it special for the athletes - the people without whom there wouldn't be any games.
As one might expect at an event about the Athletes' Village, concerns about the competitors' happiness came up a lot. But the slumber party was also about the thousands of people who make up an Olympics - the caterers, the transport workers, the firefighters and so on who have worked - some for many years - on a project whose primary goal is to show Britain at its most welcoming.
"We wanted to use it as a thank you to them," Garfitt said before he gleefully described all the forms he would scoop up with "feedback," on the event.
FILE - This file publicity image provided by FX shows Charlie Sheen as Charlie Goodson and Selma Blair as Kate Wales in a scene from the new comedy "Anger Management." FX network says Thursday's debut of his sitcom, "Anger Management," was the most-watched series premiere in that network's history, drawing 5.5 million viewers. Then the audience for the evening's second episode grew to more than 5.7 million viewers, FX said Friday, June 29, 2012. (AP Photo/FX, Adam Rose)
FILE - This file publicity image provided by FX shows Charlie Sheen as Charlie Goodson and Selma Blair as Kate Wales in a scene from the new comedy "Anger Management." FX network says Thursday's debut of his sitcom, "Anger Management," was the most-watched series premiere in that network's history, drawing 5.5 million viewers. Then the audience for the evening's second episode grew to more than 5.7 million viewers, FX said Friday, June 29, 2012. (AP Photo/FX, Adam Rose)
NEW YORK (AP) ? Charlie Sheen can claim a winning reception back on weekly TV.
FX network says Thursday's debut of his sitcom, "Anger Management," was the most-watched series premiere in that network's history, drawing 5.5 million viewers. FX said Friday that the audience for the evening's second episode grew to more than 5.7 million viewers.
"Anger Management" marks Sheen's return to sitcoms after his tumultuous exit from his long-running CBS hit "Two and a Half Men" last season.
Apple made mention of a standalone podcast app earlier this month, but most figured it would arrive with iOS 6 this fall. Not so. Earlier this week, Apple released Podcasts. It's free and universal, designed for both the iPhone and iPad.
When you first launch the app, you'll see the Library view, which features two columns of large tiles of your podcasts. Any podcasts you have previously subscribed to in iTunes get pulled in. There are two buttons at the bottom, labeled Podcasts and Top Stations. Tap the Top Stations button to browse popular podcasts by subject. At the top of this page is a toggle switch for browsing audio or video podcasts, and just below it is a dial you can swipe to view the various subject areas (some subjects feature subtopics). Below each subject are five large tiles; tap on a tile to listen/view that podcast.
Tap the Catalog button in the upper-left corner to discover new podcasts. You are given three views for the Catalog: Featured, Top Charts, and Search. When you find a podcast you like, tap on it to view its page. On each podcast page is a gray Subscribe button, which adds a tile to your Podcasts list. Below the podcast's title, Subscribe button, and ratings and comments is a handful of recent shows.
I've been using the Podcasts app for only two days, but what I like most about it is the clear differentiation it gives between streaming and downloading. To stream an episode, simply click on the title of an episode and it will begin playing. To download an episode, click the gray download button to the right of its title. Episodes you have downloaded are then listed without the download button. Better yet, when you do not have an Internet connection, episodes you have not previously downloaded are grayed out, giving you an easy-to-scan list of available episodes at your disposal while offline.
You are given great control over your subscriptions. You can temporarily suspend a subscription, which stops new episodes from showing up in the list, whether they are downloaded or not. To do so, click on the title of one of your subscriptions above the list of episodes and turn the Subscriptions button off. (Doing so does not remove the podcast from your list of subscriptions.) Below this Subscription on/off switch is an Auto-Download switch, which lets you either set up a list of episodes to stream or, when turned on, will automatically download new episodes as they become available.
To unsubscribe from a podcast, tap the Edit button in the upper-left corner of the Library view and then tap the X on one of the tiles to remove that podcast from your subscriptions. To the right of this button are two small buttons, which let you view your subscribed podcasts as these large tiles or as a list.
The Now Playing screen features play/pause, fast-forward, and rewind buttons, along with two buttons that let you skip back 10 seconds and skip forward 30 seconds. Tap the large tile of the podcast to reveal additional controls. You get a scrub bar, and a dial that lets you listen at half speed or double speed. There is also a button to share a link of the podcast (via e-mail, text, or Twitter), and another that lets you set a sleep timer if drifting off to podcasts is how you like to end your day.
Canadian sire Philanthropist to South Africahttp://www.paulickreport.com/news/bloodstock/canadian-sire-philanthropist-to-south-africa/Thoroughbred NewsBloodstock2012-06-29 08:11:26
Successful Canadian sire Philanthropist will relocate to the?Rupert family's?Drakenstein Stud in the Western Cape in South Africa. The 11-year-old son of Kris S. formerly stood at Gardiner Farms Limited near Caledon, Ontario, Canada.
?
The 11-year-old stallion by Kris S. has sired five stakes winners, including Pender Harbour, the 2011 Canadian champion 3-year-old male.
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Michael Phelps and Charlie Houchin talk after swimming in the men's 200-meter freestyle final at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Wednesday, June 27, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Michael Phelps and Charlie Houchin talk after swimming in the men's 200-meter freestyle final at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Wednesday, June 27, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Michael Phelps, left, talks with Tyler Clary after swimming in the men's 200-meter butterfly final at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Thursday, June 28, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. Phelps won the final. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Michael Phelps dives at the start of the men's 200-meter butterfly final at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Thursday, June 28, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. Phelps won the final. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Michael Phelps swims to victory in the men's 200-meter butterfly final at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Thursday, June 28, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
David Walters, from left, Jason Lezak and Ryan Lochte dive at the start of a men's 100-meter freestyle semifinal at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Thursday, June 28, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) ? The Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte Show is down to its last act at the U.S. Olympic trials.
The world's two best swimmers go at it in the 200-meter individual medley starting with preliminaries on Friday morning. So far, they are 1-1 against each other in thrilling races.
Lochte won their first showdown in the 400 IM on opening night. Then Phelps got revenge by winning the 200 freestyle on Wednesday.
The 200 IM is up for grabs.
Lochte beat Phelps in the event at last year's world championships in Shanghai while setting the first world record since high-tech body suits were banned. But the Floridian also has to swim the prelims and semifinals of the 200 backstroke ? he's the world champ ? on Friday, while Phelps only has one event.
"I have a hard double tomorrow," Lochte said.
He scratched the 100 freestyle final on Friday night to ease his schedule and focus on his stronger events, opening up a spot in the eight-man final for first alternate Jason Lezak. The 36-year-old sprinter saved Phelps' bid for eight gold medals in Beijing with his anchor leg of the 400 free relay.
"He better owe me something," Lochte said joking when asked about giving Lezak another chance to get back to the Olympics.
The 100 free is loaded with Olympic medalists like Lezak, Nathan Adrian, Ricky Berens, Cullen Jones and Garrett Weber-Gale.
Matt Grevers will swim in the 100 final, USA Swimming announced Friday. It cited bad information, noting the third-fastest qualifier had not scratched.
While Lochte advanced through the prelims and semis of the 100 free before bowing out, Phelps scratched the event altogether so he could steal a rare morning off. He spent part of Thursday in his hotel watching "Act of Valor" and ordering room service with training partner Allison Schmitt.
"We were able to just sit around and tell jokes," he said.
In the evening, he returned to the pool and easily won the 200 butterfly, his signature event and a favorite of his family since his two older sisters used to swim it, too.
"Very relaxing day. And yeah, I think it showed in the race," Phelps said. "I was comfortable. That was something that just helped everything, and hopefully will carry through the rest of the meet."
Phelps took the lead on the third lap and he finished a body length ahead of the field in 1 minute, 53.65 seconds, his easiest final yet in Omaha.
Phelps said he will have to go even faster in London to claim his third straight gold in the 200 fly.
"It's not a good enough time to win a gold medal, but I think I'm OK with it," he said. "Going into the last wall. I didn't want to have any close ones, so I tried to stay under as long as I could. Today was the best my stroke has felt throughout the whole meet."
Phelps' biggest challenge came at the end of the night when he visited the news conference room, where the air conditioning was cranked and cold air was blowing.
"Sorry, I can't even think right now, it's freezing in this place. Holy crap," he said, his arms wrapped around his shivering body, "and I just got out of a 48-degree ice bath."
Phelps' victory locked up his third individual event for the London Games, and he's got the 200 IM and 100 butterfly left in Omaha. That sets him up to swim eight events at the Olympics, including a likely spot on all three relays, and gives him a chance to duplicate his record from the Beijing Games.
On Friday, Eric Shanteau and Brendan Hansen are the favorites in the 200 breaststroke final, although Clark Burckle goes in with the fastest qualifying time. Teresa Crippen, sister of the late open-water swimmer Fran Crippen, has a shot at making the Olympic team in the 200 butterfly final.
The other Olympic berth in the 200 fly went to Tyler Clary, who finished second with a time of 1:55.12 on Thursday.
"It was amazing," Clary said. "I can't even put into words how the end of that race felt, not only the pain in the last 20 meters but just the complete and total turnaround."
Phelps' pal Schmitt was equally dominating in winning the 200 free. She broke her own American record with a time of 1:54.40, the best in the world this year. She had already won the 400 free here.
"I didn't feel like I was on my record pace, but I could hear the crowd," Schmitt said. "And when I touched and saw the flames go off I was pretty excited before I even looked up and saw the time."
Seventeen-year-old Missy Franklin locked up another Olympic race, claiming the second 200 spot in 1:56.79. She rallied from fifth place at the first turn.
Franklin already won the 100 backstroke and looks poised to have another huge performance in London, after breaking through at last year's worlds with five medals.
Dana Vollmer and Lauren Perdue finished third and fourth, assuring themselves of being in the pool for the 800 free relay. Shannon Vreeland (fifth) and Alyssa Anderson (sixth) also are likely to be taken to London as potential relay swimmers.
Caitlin Leverenz became a first-time Olympian with a victory in the 200 IM. She was dominating on the final two legs ? breaststroke and freestyle ? and pulled away to win in 2:10.22.
Ariana Kukors, who won gold in the event at the 2009 world championships and was third at last year's worlds, rallied to claim a spot on her first Olympic team, as well. She touched second in 2:11.30, just 25-hundredths ahead of Elizabeth Pelton, who led the first two laps but couldn't hang on.
After two years of construction, the first segment of Los Angeles' new Grand Park is set to open in the final days of July, a milestone in the revitalization of downtown that will be celebrated with a nationally-promoted dance celebration. The first two blocks of the park--from Grand Avenue to Hill Street--will be dedicated by civic leaders on Thursday, July 26, near the spectacularly restored Arthur J. Will Memorial Fountain. But the big coming out party is scheduled for Saturday, July 28, with a public inaugural coinciding with National Dance Day, an event founded by producer Nigel Lythgoe, who co-created the hit TV show "So You Think You Can Dance." Tonight, Lythgoe is scheduled to promote the Grand Park dance celebration on his Fox network show.
Research at UH finds cognitive-behavioral therapy effective in combatting anxiety disordersPublic release date: 28-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Melissa Carroll mcarroll@uh.edu 713-743-8153 University of Houston
Combination of treatments provides improvement for disorders such as fear of flying, public speaking or spiders
Whether it is a phobia like a fear of flying, public speaking or spiders, or a diagnosis such as obsessive compulsive disorder, new research finds patients suffering from anxiety disorders showed the most improvement when treated with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in conjunction with a "transdiagnostic" approach a model that allows therapists to apply one set of principles across anxiety disorders.
The combination was more effective than CBT combined with other types of anxiety disorder treatments, like relaxation training according to Peter Norton, associate professor in clinical psychology and director of the Anxiety Disorder Clinic at the University of Houston (UH).
Norton concludes that therapists treating people with anxiety disorders may effectively use a treatment that applies one set of principals across all types of anxiety disorders. The findings are the result of a decade of research, four separate clinical trials and the completion of a five-year grant funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.
Norton defines anxiety disorders as when anxiety and fear are so overwhelming that it can start to negatively impact a person's day-to-day life. He notes anxiety disorders include: panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social anxiety disorder, specific phobias and generalized anxiety disorder. Often anxiety disorders occur with a secondary illness, such as depression, substance or alcohol abuse. Norton says there are targeted treatments for each diagnosis, but there has been little recognition that the treatments don't differ much, and they only differ in very specific ways.
"The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) has been an important breakthrough in understanding mental health, but people are dissatisfied with its fine level of differentiation," said Norton. "Panic disorders are considered something different from social phobia, which is considered something different from PTSD. The hope was that by getting refined in the diagnosis we could target interventions for each of these diagnoses, but in reality that just hasn't played out."
As a graduate student in Nebraska, Norton couldn't get enough people together on the same night to run a group treatment for social phobia, and that marked the beginning 10 years of work on the transdiagnostic treatment approach.
"What I realized is that I could open a group to people with anxiety disorders in general and develop a treatment program regardless of the artificial distinctions between social phobia and panic disorder, or obsessive-compulsive disorder, and focus on the core underlying things that are going wrong," said Norton.
Norton finds cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), a type of treatment with a specific time frame and goals, helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviors to be the most effective treatment. The twist for him was using CBT in conjunction with the transdiagnostic approach. The patients receiving the transdiagnostic treatment showed considerable improvement, especially with treating comorbid diagnoses, a disease or
condition that co-exists with a primary disease and can stand on its own as a specific disease, like depression.
"What I have learned from my past research is that if you treat your principal diagnosis, such as social phobia and you hate public speaking, you are going to show improvement on some of your secondary diagnosis. Your mood is going to get a little better, your fear of heights might dissipate. So there is some effect there, but what we find is when we approach things with a transdiagnostic approach, we see a much bigger impact on comorbid diagnoses," said Norton. "In my research study, over two-thirds of comorbid diagnoses went away, versus what we typically we find when I'm treating a specific diagnosis such as a panic disorder, where only about 40 percent of people will show that sort of remission in their secondary diagnosis. The transdiagnostic treatment approach is more efficient in treating the whole person rather than just treating the diagnosis, then treating the next diagnoses."
Norton notes the larger contributions of the studies are to guide further development and interventions for how clinical psychologists, therapists and social workers treat people with anxiety disorders. The data collected will be useful for people out on the front lines to effectively and efficiently treat people to reduce anxiety disorders.
###
Norton is the author of the book, "Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy of Anxiety. A Transdiagnostic Treatment Manual," and co-author of "The Anti-Anxiety Workbook: Proven Strategies to Overcome Worry, Phobias, Panic and Obsessions." He has authored more than 90 research papers on such topics as anxiety disorders, CBT and chronic pain, and he serves on the editorial boards of two scientific journals. He has received early career awards and research grants for his work on studying and treating anxiety from the National Institute of Mental Health, the University of Nebraska Lincoln, UH, the Anxiety Disorders Association of America and the American Psychological Association.
About the Anxiety Disorder Clinic
The Anxiety Disorder Clinic (ADC) is a specialty treatment and research clinic at the University of Houston. The goal of the ADC is to help clients overcome their problems with anxiety without medication by using the most effective psychological therapies available. Both research opportunities and low-cost clinical services based on the latest scientific evidence are offered to individuals. For more information about research opportunities and clinical services at ADC, please call 713-743-8600 or visit the ADC website www.uh.edu/anxiety
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university recognized by The Princeton Review as one of the nation's best colleges for undergraduate education. UH serves the globally competitive Houston and Gulf Coast Region by providing world-class faculty, experiential learning and strategic industry partnerships. Located in the nation's fourth-largest city, UH serves more than 39,500 students in the most ethnically and culturally diverse region in the country.
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Research at UH finds cognitive-behavioral therapy effective in combatting anxiety disordersPublic release date: 28-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Melissa Carroll mcarroll@uh.edu 713-743-8153 University of Houston
Combination of treatments provides improvement for disorders such as fear of flying, public speaking or spiders
Whether it is a phobia like a fear of flying, public speaking or spiders, or a diagnosis such as obsessive compulsive disorder, new research finds patients suffering from anxiety disorders showed the most improvement when treated with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in conjunction with a "transdiagnostic" approach a model that allows therapists to apply one set of principles across anxiety disorders.
The combination was more effective than CBT combined with other types of anxiety disorder treatments, like relaxation training according to Peter Norton, associate professor in clinical psychology and director of the Anxiety Disorder Clinic at the University of Houston (UH).
Norton concludes that therapists treating people with anxiety disorders may effectively use a treatment that applies one set of principals across all types of anxiety disorders. The findings are the result of a decade of research, four separate clinical trials and the completion of a five-year grant funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.
Norton defines anxiety disorders as when anxiety and fear are so overwhelming that it can start to negatively impact a person's day-to-day life. He notes anxiety disorders include: panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social anxiety disorder, specific phobias and generalized anxiety disorder. Often anxiety disorders occur with a secondary illness, such as depression, substance or alcohol abuse. Norton says there are targeted treatments for each diagnosis, but there has been little recognition that the treatments don't differ much, and they only differ in very specific ways.
"The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) has been an important breakthrough in understanding mental health, but people are dissatisfied with its fine level of differentiation," said Norton. "Panic disorders are considered something different from social phobia, which is considered something different from PTSD. The hope was that by getting refined in the diagnosis we could target interventions for each of these diagnoses, but in reality that just hasn't played out."
As a graduate student in Nebraska, Norton couldn't get enough people together on the same night to run a group treatment for social phobia, and that marked the beginning 10 years of work on the transdiagnostic treatment approach.
"What I realized is that I could open a group to people with anxiety disorders in general and develop a treatment program regardless of the artificial distinctions between social phobia and panic disorder, or obsessive-compulsive disorder, and focus on the core underlying things that are going wrong," said Norton.
Norton finds cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), a type of treatment with a specific time frame and goals, helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviors to be the most effective treatment. The twist for him was using CBT in conjunction with the transdiagnostic approach. The patients receiving the transdiagnostic treatment showed considerable improvement, especially with treating comorbid diagnoses, a disease or
condition that co-exists with a primary disease and can stand on its own as a specific disease, like depression.
"What I have learned from my past research is that if you treat your principal diagnosis, such as social phobia and you hate public speaking, you are going to show improvement on some of your secondary diagnosis. Your mood is going to get a little better, your fear of heights might dissipate. So there is some effect there, but what we find is when we approach things with a transdiagnostic approach, we see a much bigger impact on comorbid diagnoses," said Norton. "In my research study, over two-thirds of comorbid diagnoses went away, versus what we typically we find when I'm treating a specific diagnosis such as a panic disorder, where only about 40 percent of people will show that sort of remission in their secondary diagnosis. The transdiagnostic treatment approach is more efficient in treating the whole person rather than just treating the diagnosis, then treating the next diagnoses."
Norton notes the larger contributions of the studies are to guide further development and interventions for how clinical psychologists, therapists and social workers treat people with anxiety disorders. The data collected will be useful for people out on the front lines to effectively and efficiently treat people to reduce anxiety disorders.
###
Norton is the author of the book, "Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy of Anxiety. A Transdiagnostic Treatment Manual," and co-author of "The Anti-Anxiety Workbook: Proven Strategies to Overcome Worry, Phobias, Panic and Obsessions." He has authored more than 90 research papers on such topics as anxiety disorders, CBT and chronic pain, and he serves on the editorial boards of two scientific journals. He has received early career awards and research grants for his work on studying and treating anxiety from the National Institute of Mental Health, the University of Nebraska Lincoln, UH, the Anxiety Disorders Association of America and the American Psychological Association.
About the Anxiety Disorder Clinic
The Anxiety Disorder Clinic (ADC) is a specialty treatment and research clinic at the University of Houston. The goal of the ADC is to help clients overcome their problems with anxiety without medication by using the most effective psychological therapies available. Both research opportunities and low-cost clinical services based on the latest scientific evidence are offered to individuals. For more information about research opportunities and clinical services at ADC, please call 713-743-8600 or visit the ADC website www.uh.edu/anxiety
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university recognized by The Princeton Review as one of the nation's best colleges for undergraduate education. UH serves the globally competitive Houston and Gulf Coast Region by providing world-class faculty, experiential learning and strategic industry partnerships. Located in the nation's fourth-largest city, UH serves more than 39,500 students in the most ethnically and culturally diverse region in the country.
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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.
A photo of the back of George Zimmerman's head, taken during a police interview after the shooting. Zimmerman said Martin attacked him and was astride him, beating him, when Zimmerman fired a single shot into Martin's torso.
Prosecutors released more documents, photos and audiovisual files on Tuesday afternoon from the case of neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, accused of murder in the second degree?in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., on Feb. 26.
Here is a PDF file containing 29 pages of investigative reports.
Zimmerman told police that he saw Martin walking, followed him in his vehicle, passed him without identifying himself, called the police non-emergency line, lost sight of Martin as Martin ran toward his father's home, followed Martin on foot, and then was confronted by Martin, who attacked him when Zimmerman reached into his pocket for his cell phone to call 911.
The report shows that?Zimmerman passed a "lie detector" test, called a computer voice stress analyzer, showing no deception in his statements. Such tests are popular with police departments but usually cannot be admitted as evidence in court.
After reviewing the evidence and interviewing Zimmerman, the police detective concluded that Zimmerman's actions were "inconsistent" with someone who was afraid of Martin, and that Zimmerman had several chances to end the encounter without violence.
"Investigative findings show that Zimmerman admitted avoiding a confrontation with Martin while Zimmerman was observing Martin from his vehicle, because, as he told investigators, was afraid of Martin," Det. Chris Serino wrote. "Later in the encounter, Zimmerman exited his vehicle, in spite of his earlier admission to investigators that he was afraid of Martin, and followed Martin in an effort to maintain surveillance of him while Zimmerman awaited the arrival of law enforcement officers. His actions are inconsistent with those of a person who has stated he was in fear of another subject.
"Investigative findings show that George Michael Zimmerman had at least two opportunities to speak with Trayvon Benjamin Martin in order to defuse the circumstances surrounding their encounter. On at least two occasions, George Michael Zimmerman failed to identify himself as a concerned resident or a neighborhood watch member to Trayvon Benjamin Martin. Investigative findings show the physical dimension of Trayvon Benjamin Martin, and that of George Michael Zimmerman, coupled with the absence of any specialized training in hand to hand combat between either combatant, did not place George Michael Zimmerman in an extraordinary or exceptional disadvantage of apparent physical ability or defensive capacity.
"Investigative findings show the physical injuries displayed by George Michael Zimmerman are marginally consistent with a life-threatening violent episode as described by him, during which neither a deadly weapon nor deadly force was deployed by Trayvon Martin."
"The following sequence of events were obtained by admissions made by Zimmerman and cannot be corroborated by independent witnesses, nor can be refuted by independent witnesses:
In a video clip from Feb. 27, 2012, released by his attorney, George Zimmerman takes investigators back to the scene of his shooting of Trayvon Martin. (George Zimmerman featured at 2:15)
"While Zimmerman was returning to his vehicle, he states he was attacked by Martin, but only after Martin inquires to Zimmerman, 'What's your problem?'
"Zimmerman, instead of attempting to inform Martin of the reason he was following him, stated to Martin, 'I don't have a problem.'
"As Zimmerman responds to Martin, by his own admission, Zimmerman reaches into his pocket attempting to locate his cell phone.
"As Zimmerman reaches for his cell phone, he stated Martin replies, 'You have one now,' and Martin punches Zimmerman in the face, knocking him to the ground.
"Zimmerman stated that he was battered by Martin to the point of almost losing consciousness. He stated he ultimately had no choice but to shoot Martin in self-defense."
The report continues:
"The encounter between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin was ultimately avoidable by Zimmerman, if Zimmerman had remained in his vehicle and awaited the arrival of law enforcement, or conversely if he had identified himself to Martin as a concerned citizen and initiated dialog in an effort to dispel each party's concern. There is no indication that Trayvon Martin was involved in any criminal activity at the time of the encounter. Zimmerman, by his statements made to the call taker and recorded for review, and his statements made to investigators following the shooting death of Martin, made it clear that he had already reached a faulty conclusion as to Martin's purpose for being in the neighborhood."
The investigator concludes with a recommendation that Zimmerman be charged with manslaughter. He was ultimately charged with a more serious charge, homicide in the second degree.
Police also released a copy of Zimmerman's neighborhood watch handbook, including this warning: "Neighborhood Watch is NOT the Vigilante Police. Work with the police. Be our eyes and ears. Report suspicious activity."
Sanford Police Department
A page from George Zimmerman's neighborhood watch training manual.
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Opposition presidential candidate Henrique Capriles speaks during a news conference in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, June 26, 2012. Capriles will challenge Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez in the presidential elections scheduled for Oct. 7. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Opposition presidential candidate Henrique Capriles speaks during a news conference in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, June 26, 2012. Capriles will challenge Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez in the presidential elections scheduled for Oct. 7. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez looks up as he waits for the arriving of Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, June 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) ? Venezuelan presidential candidate Henrique Capriles is demanding election officials prevent President Hugo Chavez from taking over the airwaves of the nation's TV and radio stations for lengthy speeches while campaigning for re-election.
Capriles criticized his adversary on Tuesday for attempting to take political advantage of special broadcasts ahead of Venezuela's Oct. 7 presidential election, and he demanded the National Electoral Council intervene.
The council's directors have approved campaign regulations that prohibit television and radio messages that favor a presidential candidate to run longer than three minutes.
The new rules take effect Sunday when the campaign officially starts. It's unclear whether they will limit the president's frequent and lengthy use of special broadcasts known as "cadenas," which all networks are required to air.
"We are demanding that there by no cadenas starting on Sunday," said Capriles at a news conference in Caracas. "He can lead his campaign on television, but without using cadenas."
Chavez has not responded to Capriles' remarks. He has been making frequent use of his ability to take over the airwaves in recent weeks, talking on television and radio for several hours a couple times a week.
The leftist president has frequently warned Venezuelans that Capriles would roll back his banner social programs for the poor. He's also trumpeting his government's plans to resolve pressing domestic problems such as widespread violent crime and soaring inflation.
In the past year, Chavez has undergone two surgeries that removed tumors from his pelvic region, most recently in February. That's meant Chavez has appeared in public less frequently than in the past, a dramatic shift for his 13-year-old presidency.
Recently, however, he has been stepping up his public appearances and has mentioned his health less frequently.
"I've been recovering, doing exercise, walking, jogging," Chavez said Tuesday after meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus. "I'm not like the horse I was 20 years ago, but we're moving along and we're going to win these elections."
Capriles has spent recent months traveling across the country to drum up support for his candidacy.
FILE - In this March 21, 2012 file, Nissan Motor Co. Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn speaks during a news conference on the company's brand "Datsun" at its head office in Yokohama, near Tokyo. Ghosn said Tuesday, June 26, the automaker needs to conserve cash despite its quick recovery from a year of disasters as the global economic outlook is highly uncertain. Ghosn told the company's annual shareholders meeting that Nissan Motor Co. had bounced back from the earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan and the flooding in Thailand that battered Japanese automakers last year. Nissan, like other Japanese automakers, is also looking to growth in emerging markets such as Indonesia, India and Russia. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
FILE - In this March 21, 2012 file, Nissan Motor Co. Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn speaks during a news conference on the company's brand "Datsun" at its head office in Yokohama, near Tokyo. Ghosn said Tuesday, June 26, the automaker needs to conserve cash despite its quick recovery from a year of disasters as the global economic outlook is highly uncertain. Ghosn told the company's annual shareholders meeting that Nissan Motor Co. had bounced back from the earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan and the flooding in Thailand that battered Japanese automakers last year. Nissan, like other Japanese automakers, is also looking to growth in emerging markets such as Indonesia, India and Russia. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
In this photo taken May 29, 2012, the global headquarters of Nissan Motor Co. in Yokohama, near Tokyo is shown. Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn defended the quick recovery of the Japanese automaker from a year of disasters to record global sales Tuesday, June 26, 2012, while fielding shareholders questions about low dividends and lagging stock prices. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
YOKOHAMA, Japan (AP) ? Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said Tuesday the automaker needs to conserve cash despite its quick recovery from a year of disasters as the global economic outlook is highly uncertain.
Ghosn told the company's annual shareholders meeting that Nissan Motor Co. had bounced back from the earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan and the flooding in Thailand that battered Japanese automakers last year. Nissan, like other Japanese automakers, is also looking to growth in emerging markets such as Indonesia, India and Russia.
Nissan's January-March profit more than doubled to 75.3 billion yen ($941 million). Its global sales reached a record 4.85 million vehicles for the business year ended March in a remarkable recovery from production disruptions stemming from the disasters. Nissan is expecting a 400 billion yen ($5 billion) profit for the business year through March 2013.
But a shareholder who identified herself only by her surname Takahashi demanded to know why she was getting a dividend of only 20 yen (31 cents) a share if Nissan was doing so well.
Ghosn said Nissan has less cash than Japanese rivals Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. and must be more prudent in the current economic situation. The U.S. economic recovery has stalled and Europe's economy is stymied by high debt and austerity measures.
"We are facing extreme volatility," he told nearly 1,200 shareholders packing a convention center in the port city of Yokohama, where Nissan is headquartered.
Ghosn also grumbled about the strong yen, which erodes the value of overseas sales for Japanese exporters like Nissan. He said he was worried Nissan might have to reduce Japan production if the government didn't do something to bring the yen's strength under control.
Nissan, which makes the Altima sedan, Infiniti luxury model and Leaf electric car, is allied with Renault SA of France.
Nissan is reviving the Datsun nameplate brand that helped it grow in the U.S. when it was still a newcomer during the 1960s, but this time for emerging markets.
Nissan is also counting on growth in China, although not at the stupendous pace of a few years ago.
"We continue to be bullish on China," Ghosn said.
___
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Public release date: 28-Jun-2012
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