Vista’s Javo Beverage Co., has raised $4.1 million in a private placement, the company announced in a Nov. 19 filing..
Javo makes coffee and tea for vending machines and other drink dispensers.
Javo Raises $4.1 Million Beans
By: Bradley Fikes — November 23rd, 2009Stanley Crooke Gives Isis Shareholders A Pep Talk
By: Bradley Fikes — November 23rd, 2009Isis Pharmaceuticals has had a rough ride with its flagship drug for lowering cholesterol, mipomersen. The drug has shown effectiveness in reducing lipids in patients with a hereditary disease that causes extremely high levels of cholesterol. But safety concerns have sent the stock down.
Despite progress in Phase III clinical trials for mipomersen, Isis stock has fallen back from its late summer high of more than $18 to just over $11 a share, about where it started the year.
“We are disappointed with the reaction on Wall Street to what we believe is very positive news. We believe mipomersen will continue to provide results that speak for themselves. Each success brings us closer to getting mipomersen to the market and making the drug available to patients in need.”
Crooke urged investors to listen to a replay of the mipomersen presentation conducted last week at a meeting of the American Heart Association.
Cal State San Marcos To Launch Biotech Lab Tech Program
By: Bradley Fikes — November 23rd, 2009Stepping up its focus on biotech, California State University San Marcos Extended Learning will begin offering a Biotechnology Laboratory Technician Certificate program.
According to CSUSM’s press release, “The program is specifically designed to provide program participants with the skills necessary to secure entry-level positions as biotechnology lab technicians or research assistants. Consisting of five classes (16 semester units), the part-time program is tailored to be completed within two semesters of study or approximately eight months.
The Biotechnology Laboratory Technician Certificate courses cover a range of topics deemed crucial in supplying a solid science foundation, supplemented by hands-on training in a laboratory setting. All courses are taught by CSUSM faculty from the Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Biotechnology departments, and will train students to be well-versed in cutting edge technologies and current market trends.”
For those who need a better scientific background to meet the program’s prerequisites, CSUSM offers a two-week “Biotechnology Boot Camp,” giving basic instruction in mathematics, chemistry and biology .
Federal funding is available for the program. Students who qualify as “Adult” or “Dislocated Workers” under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) may be eligible to have all costs associated the program paid. The cost for the program is $$10,000. Without the Boot Camp, the cost of the program is $9,000.
To learn more about the program, go to www.csusm.edu/el or call 760-750-4020.
QB Simms will start for Denver
By: Scott Bair — November 22nd, 2009Chris Simms will be the starting quarterback today against the Chargers. The left-hander will get the nod over Kyle Orton, the regular starter who missed a week’s practice with an ankle injury.
Simms will make his first start in more than three years, a week after he personally grinded his offense to a halt in the second half of last week’s loss to Washington
Chargers: trouble at right tackle; injury update
By: Scott Bair — November 19th, 2009Right tackle Jeromey Clary missed practiced again Thursday due to an ankle sprain, which puts Sunday’s playing prospects in jeopardy. He hasn’t seen action since the second half of last week’s game, when he hurt his ankle.
“I would expect him to potentially take some snaps tomorrow or on Saturday before we leave for Denver,” Chargers head coach Norv Turner said. “We’ll make more of an evaluation then.”
If Clary can’t go, Brandyn Dombrowski or Corey Clark will likely start at right tackle.
Defensive linemen Travis Johnson (groin) and Ogemdi Nwagbuo (ankle) and outside linebacker Shaun Phillips (ankle) were limited in Thursday’s practice. Tight end Antonio Gates (foot) and outside linebacker Shawne Merriman (foot) were back at work after missing Wednesday’s session primarily to rest. Center Nick Hardwick (ankle) will miss the entire week and has the Nov. 29 game versus Kansas City targeted for a return.
Notes from Wednesday practice
By: Jay Paris — November 18th, 2009The Chargers started preparations for their Sunday showdown with the Broncos with their first practice of the week on Wednesday.
In the early portion of the workout, numerous players were absent.
Those not taking part were: TE Antonio Gates, C Nick Hardwick, OLBs Shawne Merriman and Shaun Phillips, RT Jeromey Clary and DL Travis Johnson.
In other news, OLB Jyles Tucker was placed on IR and is out for the season with an ankle injury. T Corey Clark was elevated from the practice squad to fill Tucker’s roster spot.
“The Project Success Method,” Clinton Padgett
By: Jeff Rowe — November 17th, 2009
San Diego-based project consultant Clinton Padgett offers a step-by-step how-to guide on managing a project from idea to completion.
How important is careful stewardship of a project? Consider an enterprise the reviewer was deeply engaged in three years ago —- a $10 million project to create an ultra-modern digital television studio. The project manager resisted all efforts to even create a spreadsheet so everyone involved could follow the acquisition and assembly of systems. He would smile, point to his head and say “it’s all in here.”
The folly of such a non-system became apparent after we had started broadcasting from the new studio and endured multiple equipment failures.
The CEO replaced the project manager and one of the first actions the new man took was to return $70,000 in equipment for which no use was evident. No question even a rudimentary system would have shown at least some of the items were not needed.
The book says 10,000 projects in 25 nations have been completely successfully using the Project Success Method.
Too bad our station was not one of them.
Besides reading the book, you can learn more about the the Project Success Method by going online to:
http://www.projectsuccess.com/
Chargers 50 greatest
By: Scott Bair — November 17th, 2009Quarterbacks
Dan Fouts
John Hadl
Stan Humphries
Philip Rivers
Running backs
Keith Lincoln
Paul Lowe
Natrone Means
Chuck Muncie
LaDainian Tomlinson
Wide recievers
Lance Alworth
Wes Chandler
Gary Garrison
John Jefferson
Charlie Joiner
Tight ends
Antonio Gates
Kellen Winslow
Offensive tackles
Ron Mix
Russ Washington
Ernie Wright
Offensive guards
Kris Dielman
Walt Sweeney
Ed White
Doug Wilkerson
Centers
Nick Hardwick
Don Macek
Defensive ends
Fred Dean
Earl Faison
Leslie O’Neal
Defensive tackles
Gary Johnson
Louie Kelcher
Ernie Ladd
Jamal Williams
Linebackers
Chuck Allen
Woodrow Lowe
Shawne Merriman
Junior Seau
Billy Ray Smith
Defensive backs
Willie Buchanon
Gill Byrd
Rodney Harrison
Quentin Jammer
Charlie McNeil
Kickers
Rolf Benirschke
John Carney
Kick returners
Speedy Duncan
Darren Sproles
Punters
Darren Bennett
Mike Scifres
Special teamers
Hank Bauer
Kassim Osgood
Coaches
Don Coryell
Sid Gillman
Bobby Ross
Hall of Fame trainer Frankel dies
By: Jeff Nahill — November 16th, 2009Hall of Famer trainer Bobby Frankel died early Monday morning of lymphoma. He was 68.
His death doesn’t come as a surprise. Frankel hadn’t been seen at a Southern California or New York race track —- where he based his operations —- for months.
In these parts, Frankel was known as “Mr. Pacific Classic.” After Best Pal won the inaugural Pacific Classic in 1991, Frankel won the next four runnings of Del Mar’s first —- and only —- $1 million race with Missionary Ridge, Bertrando and Tinners Way (twice).
After four years of watching others win it, Frankel came back to win the 2000 and 2001 runnings of the race with Skimming, giving him six Pacific Classic victories in 11 years. Not a bad batting average.
I will never forget one year when Del Mar hosted a hall of fame luncheon before one of the runnings of the race. Frankel held court with the media for more than an hour. To this day, it’s one of the best interview sessions I’ve ever been involved with.
Frankel told us stories of growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., the early years in the business and his favorite horses. I still remember sitting there thinking this guy is quite a character and a person passionate about his job.
Now, there were other times Frankel wasn’t so cooperative. I remember getting up at 5 a.m. one morning to call Frankel’s barn in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., about a horse he had running at Del Mar —- he would split his barn in the summers while wintering at Santa Anita every year —- and getting the royal brush off with a few choice curse words thrown in.
That was Bobby. He could be nice one moment and gruff the next. I know the feeling. I can be the same way, too, but there was never any doubting Frankel’ s abilities to train horses.
He was one of the best. He will be missed.
Maybe Del Mar should reconsider reviving that hall of fame and making Robert Frankel its first inductee. It would only be fitting for a man known as Mr. Pacific Classic.
Gonzalez backs Kouzmanoff
By: Dan Hayes — November 12th, 2009Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez said on Wednesday he was surprised that teammate Kevin Kouzmanoff didn’t get the nod at third base when the Rawlings Gold Glove awards were handed out. Washington Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman won instead, even though Kouzmanoff set a National League record with a .990 fielding percentage and only three errors in 311 chances.
Gonzalez, who received the honor for a second straight season, could only speculate that Kouzmanoff wasn’t on enough radars to gain the necessary votes to win the award.
“I think Kouz is in that spot where I was (in 2006),” Gonzalez said. “My first year I felt like I had a chance. But you need a couple of years doing things over and over. …
“If you watched him every day, he deserved to win it. I think his name doesn’t pop to mind, which probably hurt him.”
Gonzalez believes the reputation of his left arm has hurt him; that other teams are more aware of him, resulting in fewer opportunities to make plays. He said he noticed coaches talking to base runners more frequently to warn them of his arm and reaction time —- a one-two combo that makes him perhaps the best defender at first in all of baseball.
“Teams don’t want to bunt your way because they know you’re a threat to make a play,” Gonzalez said. “… Teams were more reluctant to bunt my way. I also think one of the reasons Kouz made so many plays is they bunted more his way.”
Kouzmanoff wasn’t the Padres’ only other Gold Glove threat to be denied; second baseman David Eckstein led the NL with a .996 fielding percentage and only two errors in 556 chances. But he was edged out by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Orlando Hudson, who finished with a .988 fielding percentage (eight errors) in 692 chances.