by the University of Michigan

Ann Arbor, Mich.— Reducing jet lag is the aim of a new mathematical methodology and software program developed by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) and the University of Michigan.

A major cause of jet lag is the desynchronization of the body’s internal clock and the local environment when a person travels across several time zones. Symptoms include trouble sleeping at night and trouble staying awake during the day.

The new methodology and software program helps users resynchronize their internal clock with the local time using light cues. The software program gives users exact times of the day when they should apply countermeasures such as bright light to intervene in the normal course of jet lag.

The findings are published in the June 19 issue of PLoS Computational Biology.

Timed light exposure is a well known method for synching an individual’s internal clock with the environment, and when used properly, this intervention can reset an individual’s internal clock to align with local time. This results in more efficient sleep, a decrease in fatigue, and an increase in cognitive performance. Additionally, poorly-timed light exposure can prolong the re-synchronization process.

“Because the timing of proper light exposure is so important in synching the internal clock with local time, we have developed this mathematical computation that is able to automate the process of determining the timing of appropriate light cues,” said Dennis Dean, a researcher in the Division of Sleep Medicine Vocesat BWH and the paper’s lead author.

Using the computation, researchers simulated shifting sleep and wake schedules and the subsequent light interventions for realigning internal clocks with local times.

They found that the mathematical computation resulted in quicker design of schedules and also predictions of substantial performance improvements.

“Using this computation in a prototyped software application allows a user to estimate background light level and the number of time zones traveled to determine the recommendation of when to expose a subject to bright light, such as bright light sometimes used to treat Season Affective Disorder, to realign the internal body clock,” said Dean.

“Although this method is not yet available to the public, it has direct implications for designing jet lag, shift-work and scheduling for extreme environments, such as in space, undersea or the Polar Regions.”

This is a very practical way to combat jet lag, which can be a significant problem, says Daniel Forger, an assistant professor in the U-M Department of Mathematics and research assistant professor in the Department of Computational Medicine and Biology at the U-M Medical School.

“There are a lot of situations in which being alert and not falling asleep at the wrong time is critical. Imagine you’re a military pilot, for example. You want to be at your optimal performance because mistakes can have huge consequences,” Forger said.

The next phase of this research includes the addition of interventions such as naps, caffeine and melatonin to help the process.­

­by Marvin Ramírez

ENew SFPD Chief George Garcón shakes S.F. Mayor Gavin Newsom during his introduction as the new highest rank police leader. (photo by Marvin J. Ramirez)­

For the first time, the Golden City picked a Latino to lead its police force of a little more than 2,000 sworn-in officers.

The mayor went outside the city and hired George Gascón, police chief of Mesa, Ariz., to replace outgoing Chief Heather Fong.

Gascón a Hispanic, an immigrant who came as a boy from Cuba, is an advocate for sanctuary policies for undocumented immigrants, which San Francisco has long embraced. He is also considered an expert on the issue of racial profiling of suspects.

At a press conference, Garcon articulated his plans as the new chief, stating as one of the most important ones, to follow the Constitution.

This has been violated repeatedly by the SFPD for a longtime, even though the city prides itself highly on issues of civil rights and bill of rights, especially on the City Sanctuary status. The sanctuary mandates that no city resources shall be used to assist immigration officers in the enforcement of immigration laws.

He said that if any of his officers conduct themselves unethically or outside the scope of the law, “we need to talk.”

Garsón had been in charge of the Mesa Police Department since August 2006, after serving in the Los Angeles Police Department for more than 28 years. In his final assignment before joining the Mesa Police he served as the LAPD’s Assistant Police Chief and Director over the Office of Operations.

He Received a B.A. degree in History from California State University, Long Beach, and a Juris Degree from Western State University, College of the 1Law, and is an active member of the California Bar Association.

You’re saying you’re going to follow the Constitution, is that right,” asked El Reportero’s editor.

Yes, responded Garcón.

Well, San Francisco, its mayor and the police, have been confiscating the cars of the undocumented for lack of a driver’s license, and this is unconstitutional, it is illegal,” said the reporter. “Unconstitutional in capital letter.”

The U.S. Constitution states that no private property shall be confiscated without due process.

This reporter handed in to the new chief a coy of former and highly decorated ex police officer Jack McLamb of Arizona, whose articles exposing government and police corruption, have been read and republished in dozens of media outlets.

The article’s headline states that, “Despite actions of police and local courts, higher courts have ruled that American citizens have a right to travel without state permits,” meaning no one is obligated by law to be demanded a driver’s license.

Garcón promised El Reportero to look into it, and to discuss the matter later.

The actions of the police confiscating the cars from the undocumented have been followed and covered by the El Reportero during the past three years, with both, editorials and news reports.

­The Police and the Mayor’s Office, as well as the Board of Supervisors have put a deaf ear to the issue on the racial profiling going on within their motorcycle unit that end up in confiscation of automobiles. It’s a profitable business to the city, while it is a hardship to those poor and disadvantage people who lose theirs cars for simply making a wrong turn, or in most of the cases, looking too humble in an old model car, giving the impression to the cops, that they might be undocumented.

So, they become prime suspects instantly by some motorcycle officers who apparently have a grouch against immigrants, taking their cars and sending them home on foot, sometimes carrying bags of groceries with infants and elderly people.

None of the mainstream media present during the press conference at the Mayor’s office, said a word about the issue of confiscation mentioned by the El Reportero.

­by the El Reportero’s news services

Alan García

Prime minister, Yehude Simon, began to negotiate a settlement to the confrontation at Andahuaylas on June 22.

The simmering unrest across the country that has been a constant feature of President Alan García’s second term is unlikely to boil over into outright conflict, but nor is it likely to disappear.

García’s credentials as the centre-right leader of a successful economy have been shredded by the confrontation at Bagua on June5, which left 24 policemen and 10 indigenous protesters dead. Politically, neither of García’s most likely successors, the rightwing populist Keiko Fujimori, nor the leftwing populist Ollanta Humala, are benefiting from his difficulties.

Instead, opinion polls indicate rising disenchantment with the political class as a whole. Presidential elections are due in April 2011.­

by Roxana Hernández

Some 300 Peace Corps alumni and supporters gathered at the Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C, June 14 to encourage Congress and the Obama Administration to expand the program The two-hour rally was part of a campaign organized by MorePeaceCorps.org, a National Peace Corps Association initiative.

Currently, with 7,232 volunteers, the Corps is active in 74 countries, including a dozen in Latin America. During his campaign for the White House, Presidential candidate Barack Obama promised to double the number of volunteers and increase its funding. Volunteers sign for two-year stints.

The Corps was created in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy.

“For 2009 the funding is $340 million’” said spokesperson Erica Burman, “The purpose of the rally was to call on President Obama and Congress to increase funding to $450 million.”

Former Peace Corps volunteer, journalist/ author Ron Arias of Hermosa Beach’ Calif., told Weekly Report, “For young Latinos, joining is a way to reconnect to your roots and understand the variety of Latin America.”

In 1963, at age 21, he served in Sicuani, a Peruvian town several hours south of Cuzco.

“Reading books is one way to get an education, but the foundation comes from helping others. It is an experience you don’t get in a classroom,” said Arias, who is first generation Mexican American.

Persons of color represent 15 percent of the Corps’ volunteer force. Hispanic involvement has increased dramatically in recent years—from 223 in 2005 to 373 last year.

Only Asian Americans, at 380’ outnumber them among persons of color. Read about Arias’ Peace Corps experience on www.HispanicLink.org.

Judge rules Padilla can sue

A California judge June 12 ruled a man convicted OR terrorcharges can sue a former government lawyer for drafting the legal grounding for his alleged torture.

Jose Padilla, 38, is serving a 17-year sentence on terror charges. He claims he was tortured while being held for almost four years as a suspected terrorist.

U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White ruled that Padilla, also known as the “Taliban Boricua,” could prove that former senior Justice Department official John Yoo “set in motion a series of events that resulted in the deprivation of Padilla’s constitutional rights… Like any other government official, government lawyers are responsible for the foreseeable consequences of their conduct.”

Yoo authored memos on interrogation, detention and presidential powers from 2001 to 2003. He is currently a professor at the University of California law school. Recently released Yoo memos stated the military could use “any means necessary” to hold terror suspects in custody. Another said treatment of so-called enemy combatants constituted torture “only if it caused pain equivalent to organ failure or death.”

White rejected the Justice Department’s argument that courts are barred from examining administration decisions during wartime and doing so would harm national security.

Padilla, born in Chicago to Puerto Rican parents, was arrested in 2002 and accused of conspiring with al-Qaida to detonate a radioactive “dirty bomb.” He was held at a military prison in South Carolina for nearly four years and classified as “an enemy combatant. “

His lawsuit claims, in addition to exposure to temperature extremes, painful positions and other tortures, he was threatened with harm to himself and his family.

Yoo personally approved Padilla’s prison time and treatment. Padilla nosotros ­was charged in an unrelated conspiracy of sending money and suppOes to extremist groups.

He is appealing his 2007 conviction. Hispanic Link.