Microsoft Unveils Its New Company Logo, After 25 Years

After 25 years Microsoft will be using a new logo, The Redmond software company is leaving it's simplistic, italic font has found its home on millions software's installed on PC, not to mention mouses, keyboards, webcams items for 25-year long period.

The design match the Metro/Modern UI design that Microsoft has been using in Windows Phone, Windows 8 and their Xbox 360 devices.

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10 Refreshing Raspberry Recipes!

Raspberries are now in season and I hope to squeeze in a quick trip to Wisconsin soon for some raspberry picking before the fields are picked over. Although, realistically my availability will be pretty limited the next few weeks. I'm in the midst of packing up and so far so good! I've only got a few more rooms to go and the added pressure of both domestic and international travel to add to the chaos is helping, ironically. This weekend I'll be in Portland, OR attending the International Food Blogger Conference. Catch me on Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare and Instagram {itsjoelen} for my social media coverage on the event, local hot spots and pictures of the fun in store. Now if you're lucky enough to be able to go raspberry picking this weekend, here are 10 Refreshing Raspberry Recipes to try out with your berry stash!...

Raspberry Lemon Scones

Sweet raspberries play off the fresh lemon zest in a dough full of heavy cream and butter.
Every now and then, this is a delicious and indulgent way to have breakfast...

Fresh Raspberry Lemonade

Sweet, tart, and thoroughly refreshing, this is one drink that
will make those hot summer days even better...

 

Raspberries & Cream Stuffed French Toast

It's a delicious recipe where the french toast is crispy on the outside yet
has a custard like texture on the inside, mixed with a fruity cream filling..

 

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

A traditional chocolate cake made with raspberry jam is crowned with a
sweet raspberry cream cheese frosting. What's not to love?!

White Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream

This combines white chocolate morsels and a fresh raspberry puree.
It's a great flavor profile with a bit of texture and it's easy to make! 

Raspberry Cream Cheese Brownies

These brownies were so decadent with its swirled cream cheese
and raspberry jam throughout a perfect chocolate batter.

Summer Berry Crisp

To make this dessert even more decadent, finish it off with a
scoop of cold and creamy homemade vanilla ice cream!

Triple Berry Pie

I loved the fruity mix of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries...
and the only way to make this pie better was having it a la mode!

Raspberry Chocolate Swirl Muffins

Raspberry & chocolate are a delicious way to start the day...

Brioche Raspberry Tart

A butter dough baked to perfect and topped with raspberry preserves and fresh raspberries...

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12 Years Later: Environmental Causes of Autism Still Unexplored

"The Environment as an etiologic factor in autism: a new direction for research"  by EA London was published online by ehp, Environmental Health Perspectives, in 2000. Today, 12 years later, it remains the direction not taken as "autism research" continues down the road of genetic obsession and largely ignores environmental autism research.

Although public health authorities have paid lip service to the idea that autism appears to result from gene environment interaction funding has been overwhelmingly directed towards the gene side of the equation. The people who are much smarter than most of us, who understand things we can not possibly understand, who do not need our input as unwashed, unthinking parents of autistic children simply keep on keepin' on with their religious like belief that autism is primarily genetic.  Following is the abstract and the suggestion for new lines of investigation into environmental exposures which the US IACC, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and other agencies involved with setting directions for autism research do not appear to have accepted. Of course the genetic obsession research has brought us a better understanding of autism causes .... hasn't it?

Abstract

Autism is one of a group of developmental disorders that have devastating lifelong effects on its victims. Despite the severity of the disease and the fact that it is relatively common (15 in 10,000), there is still little understanding of its etiology. Although believed to be highly genetic, no abnormal genes have been found. Recent findings in autism and in related disorders point to the possibility that the disease is caused by a gene-environment interaction. Epidemiologic studies indicate that the number of cases of autism is increasing dramatically each year. It is not clear whether this is due to a real increase in the disease or whether this is an artifact of ascertainment. A new theory regarding the etiology of autism suggests that it may be a disease of very early fetal development (approximately day 20-24 of gestation). This theory has initiated new lines of investigation into developmental genes. Environmental exposures during pregnancy could cause or contribute to autism based on the neurobiology of these genes.

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Windows 8 Upgrade for only $14.99, Registration now Available on Windows Upgrade Offer Website

Microsoft is now accepting registrations for Windows 8 upgrade program for all existing Windows 7 users. Registered users can get the Windows 8 upgrade for only $14.99, instead of the $39.99 when Windows 8 is offered on October 26th.

This program covers 140 countries, qualified customers for this program are those who bought a Windows 7 PC after June 2, 2012 and January 31 2013. Now if you are qualified on this program head over to Windows Upgrade Offer and register now. This offer will last until March 31, 2013 after that date the full retail price will prevail.

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Edamame Stir Fry

"If you're quiet, you're not living. You've got to be noisy and colorful and lively."~ Mel Brooks. This quote says a lot to me simply because life is too short to just go about it in a boring, dull way. Lately, my life has been nothing but boring (if not subtly chaotic) but I'll take it over a hum-drum life any day! This week I'm slowing down a bit in order to gear up for my upcoming trip to Portland, OR on Friday. There, I'll be meeting up with a dear friend, Peabody of Culinary Concoctions of Peabody. She and I are participating in the International Food Bloggers Conference and I'm looking forward to what it has to offer. I've never been to Portland so it will be a delicious experience I'm sure! If you've been, do you have any recommendations, suggestions or any must visit Portland hot spots? Technically, I've got 2 days in Portland (I head back to Chicago Sunday morning) so hopefully I'll be able to squeeze in some sight seeing within the conference agenda.

Aside from that upcoming trip, I'm also in the midst of packing. Again. So much for the plan of settling in 10 months ago. {Man, I hate moving... well, the packing/unpacking process, really.} My second childhood home that I took over from my parents has sold - far quicker than I anticipated, even in this market. But I shouldn't be too surprised. It's quite a beautiful place that I am so thankful to have called home for the past 20+ years despite the various places I've lived after graduating college. It will be hard to say goodbye but the good thing is, I'll be moving to a new place with Joel a few miles away. I thought about buying a single family home, but since it's just me and Joel, a small condo/apartment seemed more fitting {and I don't want to clean and have more upkeep than I need to lol}. The crazy thing is, we move in 2 weeks. I've already started packing up a majority of our stuff so after I get back from Portland this coming weekend, I'll be finishing up the rest next week. Before I leave for Israel the week after. Yep. That's my life at the moment, noisy, colorful and lively.

Speaking of which, here's a dish that captures the essence of Mel Brook's quote. This Edamame Stir Fry is full of color, textures and it's a healthy dish too boot. Sugar snap peas and red bell pepper are sauteed with ginger, garlic and sesame oil before adding sweet pineapple juice and tossing with brown rice. With all the things going on, I love that it's a quick stir fry, allow for dinner to be ready in a few minutes tops!...

This recipe comes from the book of the amazing, Dawn Jackson Blatner. When we were shooting pics for her cookbooks and diet plans last year, she introduced me to this dish. I finally had a chance to make it at home and loved it! Joel loved it too because it made for a colorful dish and he enjoyed eating the edamame and sugar snap peas. {Seriously, any dish that can get him to eat more vegetables is a winner in my book!} Feel free to adapt this recipe by incorporating more protein such as chicken, pork, beef and/or shrimp. The pineapple juice is a great addition to add some sweetness and balance all the flavors out!

Edamame Stir Fry

recipe adapted from The Flexitarian Diet

½ inch piece of ginger, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
dash of salt
1 red bell pepper, sliced
¼ cup sugar snap peas
2 teaspoons sesame oil
¾ cup shelled frozen edamame
¼ cup pineapple juice
1 cup cooked brown rice
2 tablespoons chopped almonds for garnish

In a skillet over medium heat, add oil and saute ginger, garlic, crushed red pepper, salt, bell pepper and sugar snap peas until vegetables starts to soften. Add edamame and pineapple juice and cook for 8 minutes on high heat.

Add cooked brown rice to skillet and toss to combine.

Plate and garnish with chopped almonds.

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A VISUAL FEAST

DOUBLE VISION

Seek the wisdom of the ages, 

but look at the world through the eyes of a child

- Ron Wild

I spy the world through a camera lens. I wander the city peering through my iphone. Since discovering instagram, I have an entirely new outlook on my own city as if I am now standing on a mountaintop with the world spread out at my feet. I stroll through the streets at a snail’s pace instead of my usual dash, stopping here and there, maybe much too often, to snap photos, capture images, capture the details of this city that I had long been seeing as a whole.

The mystery is gone. Or replaced with another, replaced with fascination. My everyday habits are no longer automatic reflexes, the city I traverse every day no longer a bundle of buildings standing tall, anonymously above the hard pavement and nothing more. I look up rather than always in front, look up and notice gorgeous detailing on buildings, statues in niches, swags of flowers, faces and animals carved into stone curving graciously, lightly over door tops. Slowed down, I look around and spy artwork, paintings, graffiti, sculptures, elegant, humorous, silly sneaking around me, waiting to be noticed, a city’s playfulness awaiting my reaction. I peer in windows and see treasures; I pause in front of glass cases and see wonderful delicacies. I sit on terraces, camera poised, and notice individuals rather than masses of movement, crowds of the anonymous.

Spending a day in Paris with David and The One, visiting the market street of Rue Poncelet with her food shops open and spilling out onto the sidewalk, I saw and experienced the food I take for granted everyday through the eyes of visitors, visitors excited by the novelty, the picturesque beauty, the very Frenchness of what was offered. We admired the roasted chickens, we tasted terrine de foie gras, we breathed in the heady scent of a jumble of cheeses. We were dazzled by the brilliant colors of rows upon rows of fruits and vegetables dressed in violet, red, yellow and greens. We ogled the pastry in the neighborhood boulangerie as for the very first time, weighing the delight of chocolate versus fruit tarts, buying a baguette as a great treat. Not exactly “look(ing) at the world through the eyes of a child” but almost. A shopping trip with David, his own phone poised to capture every enticing image, I began looking at what I was surrounded with day after day in a new light, appreciating the abundance of fresh products piled high on market stalls or stacked elegantly behind glass windows.

Wondrous beauty like objects of art, I now wander through my own city’s market and look carefully at each and every delicacy from glistening sausages and roasts decorated and wrapped like Christmas gifts, from golden apricots and fragrant berries, blocks of pale cheeses graced with ripples of black truffles like valuable ore in marble, to perfect rows of chocolate éclairs and fruit tartlets, powdery soft puffs of flour dusted and tossed over perfect oval gnocchi. The colors, the scents and odors, the shapes and textures pop out at me, offering a veritable feast before carrying home my treasures for degustation.

I now leave my home with my phone or camera clutched in my fingers, at the ready, my eyes peeled for each and every detail, unusual feature, the ordinary now seen as extraordinary. Through my iphone, I now see the magic in the world around me, the mysteries and enchantment in all that I have come to take for granted. And I am left enthralled.

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Autism Reality Check: Where Are The IACC Results?

I have previously written about the importance of the IACC and in a 2009 blog comment expressly thanked the IACC for its role in advancing autism research.  With the passage of 3 years though I have  become a less enthusiastic IACC booster.  Both the Canary Party and the Elizabeth Birt Center for Autism Law and Advocacy (EBCALA) have called for an accounting from the IACC and its leadership. I support their calls for accountability.  

Autism advocate representatives on the committee have been anti-cure ideologues while autistic persons seeking cure like Jonathan Mitchell are ignored in every sense of the word.  The IACC, despite paying lip service to gene environment interaction has for the most part continued to subscribe to the "it's gotta be genetic" belief system for explaining what causes autism. 

During the IACC existence, and during the 14 years since my son's autistic disorder diagnosis,  autism diagnosis rates have literally exploded. Yet the IACC makes no serious effort to address this burgeoning rate and allows the public to believe the tired, repetitive, and unsubstantiated excuses that every single reported increase in autism is due entirely to mid 90's diagnostic definition changes, enhanced awareness and diagnostic substitution motivated by parental desire to obtain all those wonderful autism services that apparently exist in every school district in the US.

I am not anti-IACC but I do believe there should be some accounting provided.  As the Autism Gadfly Jonathan Mitchell has said non-Americans, including Canadians like me, have no right to DEMAND anything from an American taxpayer funded institution but the IACC has an important role to play in autism research and, like many US institutions, has a world wide impact.  As a Canadian autism dad I ask the IACC to provide a real world accounting of its efforts.  Are we any closer to understanding autism causes? Will the IACC continue to politely ignore the environment side of the gene environment base of autism disorders?  Will we actively direct our research towards cures and treatments?

If I have been too one sided I invite anyone reading this blog, including the academics and researchers who occasionally humor this autism dad with a visit to my blog, to please provide examples of real world results achieved by the IACC or indicate where the IACC is going and whether it still hopes to find causes, cures and treatments for the increasingly diagnosed autism disorders.

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