Breast cancer chemotherapy is known as a therapy of brutalizing proportions. Highly toxic drugs are still given in high doses through chemotherapy but there is a difference. Fat coated droplets are released. These droplets must be heated to 102 degrees before the toxins can be released. The breast is gently warmed until the cell killing compounds are released only in the breast. This brutalizing treatment actually becomes relatively pleasant.

Each year there are 215,000 cases and 40,000 deaths, but slowly, incrementally, new approaches for combating this cancer in a more humane way are being developed. One of the most important advances is gene profiling. Gene profiling determines what treatments will be effective based on the particular female patient’s genetic profile.

Genomic Health Inc. of Redwood City can assess 21 key genes in a tumor-tissue sample. A score is then developed from zero to 100. To determine the effectiveness of the drug taxmoxifen a score is given to that particular woman with a high score being a determent that taxmoxifen will not do the job alone. The cost is $3,400 which is high but not as high as the costs of chemotherapy.

Taxmoxifen has been the most successful drug to combat breast cancer but is not effective after five years of treatment. Disease free survival can now be extended by three aromatise inhibitors named Femara, Aromasin and Armidex. These are only effective in post menopausal women.

The one weapon with the most promise is one that will literally vaporize the tumor without surgery. Pilot studies are being done at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and Victoria General Hospital in British Columbia. Instead of surgically removing the cancerous breast tumors they are shot with radio frequency waves. This is useful for only small tumors in older women. Inserted in the breast is a radio probe that is guided to the tumor site by ultrasound. The power radio frequency waves are turned on and it literally shrivels and kills these small tumors.

The 135,000 square mile Great Barrier Reef is in the sate of Queensland This biological extravaganza is a 1,250 mile-long chain of reefs and coral islands off the east coast of Queensland. For thousands of years it has grown and to see it, to touch it, to be in awe of its beauty and in fear of its perils is an uncommon experience. The Great Barrier Reef is sometimes referred to as the single largest living animal being in the world.

The coral of the great barrier reef is the living landscape that is created by billions of polyps whose skeletons form the massive reefs. Some of the coral is soft, some hard, some sharp as a needle, some blunt and knobby. There are castles of coral and flowers of coral, lacy fans of coral and mushrooms of coral—a gallery down there, in 20 feet of water, of form and color.

Crown-of-Thorns Starfish are predators of corals. When the reef system is out of balance, Crown-of-thorns populations can explode. Several popular areas of the reef have been severely damaged by Crown-of-thorn attacks in recent decades.

The most significant threat to the future of the Great Barrier Reef is global warming. Many of the corals of the Great Barrier Reef are currently living at the upper edge of their temperature tolerance, as demonstrated in the coral bleaching events of the summers of 1998 and 2002. Under the stress of waters that remain too warm for too long, corals expel their photosynthesizing zooanthellae and turn colorless, revealing their white skeletons, and soon die.

The state is a major supplier to the world of bauxite, used in the making of aluminum. Massive reserves of coal are here. Oil and gas wells have been brought in, and foreign investors are after the uranium known to be in the ground.

Of all the rural economic activity in Queensland, none is more vital to the well-being of the state than the cattle industry. In addition to horses and cowboys, the helicopter is now used for mustering cattle on some large stations.

As one travel the state of Queensland one will encounter cranes, pelicans, eagles, pelicans, geese, kangaroos and wallabies. In jungle areas, cassowary may be found. They are large flightless birds with extremely long broad claws. Recently, they have been invading urban gardens in search of food since typhoons have destroyed their natural habitat in early 2006.

Piny the Elder (A.D. 23-79) named the sea horse “hippus,” Today the generic name of the seahorse has been retained. Hippocampus mans horse-caterpillar.

The alleged medicinal properties range from a supposed aphrodisiac effect when used in a love potion to more prosaic uses as a cure for baldness and pains in the side; or when a living sea horse has been dipped into oil of roses, for chills and fever.

There are approximately two dozen species of seahorses. Seahorses are strictly marine in habitat.

The female actually deposits the eggs in the brood pouch of the male, who, in turn, incubates them for a minimum of eight to ten days

The jackknife contortions of the male seahorse, not to mention the female’s depositing eggs in the males brood pouch, are rarely observed..

In watching seahorses one will be impressed by the independent movement of the eyes, one eye may be looking in one direction and the other roving elsewhere.

Since they are unable to move rapidly enough to chase their prey, they have had to develop their own method of capture. This secret weapon consists of a netlike suction of pinpoint accuracy. A brine shrimp or other planktonic organism swimming with the 1 ½ inch range of the elongated snout is sucked into the opened mouth so rapidly that the observer cannot follow the movement of the hapless creature.

Baskin Robbins was created by two brothers-in-law Irv Robbins and Burt Baskin. They were each running Ice Cream Stores in Glendale a suburb of Los Angeles. Beginning in 1946 their first store under the name of Baskin Robbins was opened and in two years they had six stores.

Fast forwarding to today we discover that with more than 5,00 locations globally this chain is the world’s largest ice cream specialty store. Each year more than 150 million ice cream cones-not counting sudaes ,banana splits, shakes, smoothies and other treats are sold.

Over a 1,000 flavors have been created over the years with many having whimsical names. Beatle Nut was named for the Beatles and Lunar Cheese cake commemorated the landing on the moon. The practice of offering free tastes on small spoons was made even more popular by this chain.

Baskin Robbins has a line of frozen beverages that includes real fruit smoothies and a line of frozen blended coffee drinks. Ice Cream and cake creations are offered in a wide range of styles.

In more than 50 countries, there are now more than 5,000 stores.

Today Baskin-Robbins is franchised around the world by Allied Domecq Quick Service Restaurants, headquartered in Randolph, Massachusetts, USA.

The heart of Madrid, the Plaza Mayor, is surrounded by 136 houses built in the 17th century. These home have been passed down through generations of the same family. For two centuries, the plaza served as the city’s chief forum for beheading, bullfights, and the canonization of saints. One of the world’s grandest palaces, the Royal palace was completed in 1764.

Contemporary Madrid came into its own after the death of the Fascist dictator Franco. Years of the Franco regime left Madrid and much the country in economic shambles due to isolation. With his death, Madrid, and Spain as a whole, began to re-assert itself on the international stage. Within Spain, reaction against the dictatorial bureaucracy centered in Madrid and a history of centralism that pre-dated Franco by centuries has resulted in the successful modern movement towards increased autonomy for the regions of Spain, considered as European regions, under the umbrella of Spain

Madrid is also noted for its nightlife and discotheques. It’s not uncommon for madrileños to dance all night, head to the Chocolateria San Ginés for chocolate y churros at dawn, go home, shower, shave, and go to work. This nightlife, called la movida and initially focused on the Plaza del Dos de Mayo, flourished after the death of Franco, especially during the 80s while Madrid’s most cherished mayor Enrique Tierno Galván was in office. A particular hub for this night activity is nowadays the nearby gay village of Chueca.

The Madrilenos don’t have dinner until ten or eleven in the evening. To quench hunger until that late dinner hour, they enjoy a light snack called tapa. Tapa can be king crabs, blood red, large as soccer balls; tiny squid cooked in their purplish ink; bull’s testicles sauteed in garlic; slivers of chewy air-cured ham; suckling pig, roasted in old ceramic wood-burning ovens; grilled flounder; fried hake, red snapper encrusted with salt and then baked; garlic soup, and tripe stew.

Madrid’s famous art museum is the Prado. Spanish works of Goya and El Greco compose the bulk of the Prado’s collection and of course there are paintings by the prolific Picasso. Hundreds of Italian and Dutch Renaissance pieces are displayed-–mostly bought with New World gold by the kings of Spain.

Madrid is also host to one of the most famous bullfighting rings in the world, Las Ventas.

Other Spain Links:

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In 2001, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received 86,212 complaints relating to personal identity theft. Two years later in 2003 those complaints had risen by 40% to 214,905. One wonders what would have caused a 40% increase in complaints from this new form of theft.

Its because we now make so many of our transactions without being seen or heard. We conduct our business over the internet and anyone’s fingers could be at the keyboard. Anyone who surfs the internet is aware of the multitude of passwords now needed for banking and literally most sites.

Even with unique passwords some spyware can steal your passwords, credit card and bank account numbers, and Social Security numbers.

Actually a method developed in the late 1800s by Charles Darwin’s first cousin, Sir Francis Galton, maybe the best solution to our thievery problems caused by this high tech world of ours. In 1901, Scotland Yard began using his system as a means of criminal identification. One identifying characteristic we all have at our fingertips is our finger prints.

A company named DigitalPersona now has fingerprint hardware and software for the home PC called Password Manager. For example if you were to do online banking and you click on the button that says “see accounts” a pop-up window always appears, requesting that you identify yourself. Instead of logging in a password that could be stolen from you just press your right index finger for a split second on a small scanner the size of a postage stamp that is near your keyboard. Your finger print identifies you and you can complete your transaction.

The Azteca Bank in Mexico has registered 4 million people who can now use their ATM by identifying themselves only with their fingerprint. This is an excellent method of identification for this bank since many of their customers are migrant workers who do not have existing forms of ID.

Perhaps returning to the successful methods of identifying people used in Scotland Yard in 1901 will be the best technology in the year 2004 and beyond as well.

Some say the word Panama comes from an Indian word meaning “land of many fish. Others believe it stems from the Cuna Indian phrase “panna mai,” when Spanish solders met a Cuna Indian and asked where they could find gold, the reply was “panna mai–far away,” in the hope, according to the tale, that the soldiers, too, would go far away.

Panama varies in width from 30 to 120 miles. The Caribbean Sea hugs it to the north and the Pacific Ocean is on its south side; one can watch the sun rise over the Pacific and set in the Atlantic. Because the isthmus is narrowest here, Panama has become an international shortcut: Over 400,000 gold rushers en route to California crossed here. Bananas are grown in the northwest.

In the interior, farmers grow rice, potatoes, coffee, vegetables, and citrus fruits. In a mountainous region near Cerro Punta are raised thoroughbred horses. Cowboys are also in the interior tending their cattle.

Panamanians have clean water, good health services, ample food, ready transportation, and disposable income. Panama’s economy is service-based, heavily weighted toward banking, commerce, and tourism. This is stability in an area of the world that is in turmoil.

The Samurai of Japan reigned for 700 years from the late 12th to the mid-19th century These warriors inspired terror by wearing fierce masks with horned helmets, and on the battlefield they used their swords to harvest heads.

When a battle ended the warrior would ceremoniously present trophy heads to the general who would reward him in gold, silver, or land from the defeated clan. These were the samurai who lived by a code that valued death over defeat. To avoid the dishonor of capture the Samurai would have an attendant behead him as soon as he stabbed himself. When his honor is questioned a true samurai would prefer death.

The deeper instincts of the samurai for power was displayed in frequent warfare between 1300-1500. This period was named Sengoku Jidai, the Age of the Country at War.

We can understand the lasting appeal of the samurai when we realize he was the action figure of Japan who slays his enemies against impossible odds. Consider that the samurai of Japan was one character that embodied Japan’s cowboy, knight, gladiator, and the Jedi of Star Wars.

The samurai carried Japan from the medieval period into the modern era. The samurai spirit is still within the Japanese psyche.

Domino’s Pizza is the world leader in pizza delivery. They operate more than 5,500 franchise stores in America as well as 2,000 in other countries. The business began in 1960 when Tom Monaghan and his brother James purchased for $500 a pizza store in Ypsilanti, Michigan named DomiNick’s. Worldwide sales in the year 2000 were $3.4 billion.

Last year they delivered over 400 million pizzas which would be one pizza and a slice for every person in the United States. 9 million miles per week are covered by Domino’s drivers which would be 37.5 round trips to the moon weekly.

In 2003, they sold close to 1.2 million pizzas on the busiest pizza day of the year, Super Bowl Sunday.

Domino’s was the innovator of the sturdy corrugated pizza box which keeps moisture out thereby causing the box to weaken less and it prevents cheese from sticking to the top of the box during delivery.

A new hot bag was introduced in 1998 which contains a patented heat mechanism that warms via electro-magnetic energy. This technology keeps the pizza hot during delivery. The outer bag is made with nylon which is water-repellant.

The 3D car top sign was invented by Dominoes and is currently used by taxis, driving schools and others.

In 1998, Tom Monaghan, retired and sold 93% of his company to Bain Capital Inc

Kimberly Clark was founded by John A. Kimberly, who lived from 1880-1928. He and his three partners built their first paper mill in 1872.

Entire product categories have been invented by Kimberly Clark since its inception in 1872. They invented the product categories of facial tissue, feminine pads, paper towels, toilet paper on a roll and disposable training pants.

Innovative products continue with this company with the most recent product to be launched in October 2004. Their new facial tissue reportedly kills 99.9% of Cold and Flu Viruses. The tissue uses a patented super premium 3-ply tissue design. There is a moisture-activate middle layer that is treated with an anti-viral formula. When someone sneezes or coughs into this tissue the viruses hit the middle layer killing within 15 minutes cold and flu viruses. This is the only facial tissue that offers this benefit.

Kleenex is brand that is the first and best selling facial tissue. It was first marketed as a sanitary way to remove cold cream and makeup. When the advertising shifted to the use as a disposable handkerchief sale surged.

Their diaper business under the brand name of Huggies alone is 3.5 billion dollars.

Sales of $14.3 billion comes from products sold in more than 150 countries. Diaper sales of their brand name Huggies alone contribute 3.5 billion dollars.