W M Keck Foundation

"My priority is doing what's best for the child," said Dr. Dutta. "Visible scars can be psychologically painful for children, so we want to reduce or eliminate them whenever we can. We're proving this type of surgery works, and we're thrilled to offer it."

"We are delighted with the expansion of single port surgery into pediatric minimally invasive procedures," said Joe Guido, Novare Surgical's Vice President of Marketing and Sales. "A significant pediatric patient population may soon realize the potential of reduced post operative pain, faster recovery and improved cosmetic results through this approach and we are proud that Novare's RealHand instruments are a key element in this process."

About RealHand(R) High Dexterity (HD) Instruments for Minimally Invasive Surgery

RealHand HD instruments are the very first full range of motion hand-held laparoscopic instruments. RealHand technology is designed to mirror the surgeon's hand direction with the added benefit of tactile feedback. As such, when the surgeon's hand moves in one direction, the instrument tip exactly follows.

Unlike standard laparoscopic instrumentation, RealHand offers complete 7 degrees of freedom of movement in a hand-held instrument and with no need for additional hardware. Moreover, RealHand will enable surgeons to perform more difficult maneuvers that otherwise cannot be completed with traditional rigid instruments. RealHand HD instruments make it easy to actively manipulate and complete tasks regardless of whether the instrument is positioned over, under, or around structures.

RealHand HD instruments provide for greater dexterity and control around critical structures and vasculature. The increase in range of motion is

leading the way in the development of new surgical approaches and techniques. RealHand instruments have received FDA 510(k) clearance.

About Novare Surgical Systems

Based in Cupertino, Calif., Novare Surgical Systems was originally founded in 1999. RealHand was developed entirely at Novare Surgical and represents a shift in the company's focus toward devices for minimally invasive surgery. For more information, visit the company's web site at http://www.novaresurgical.com.

SOURCE Novare Surgical Systems Inc.

http://www.novaresurgical.com

Areas of expertise: Election process, American politics, national public policy, national political institutions; author, Red Over Blue: The Election of 2004 and American Politics; author, Reagan's Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 and the Rise of the Right; media experience includes L.A. Times, Investors Business Daily, WSJ Week in Review (PBS), McLean's as well as local print and broadcast outlets.

Contact: Andrew Busch, 909-607-3382 or 909-946-9249, andrew.busch@claremontmckenna.edu

John J. Pitney, Jr., Roy P. Crocker Professor of American Politics, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: 2008 presidential and congressional elections, Sarah Palin as VP candidate, the presidency, presidential transition, Democratic and Republican parties, political leadership, American politics, Bush Administration, California politics, United States Congress; served as the acting director of the Republican National Committee's Research Department during President George Herbert Walker Bush's administration; author, The Art of Political Warfare; media experience includes NPR, The New York Times, USA Today, NBC Nightly News, ABC World News Tonight and CBS Evening News.

Contact: John J. Pitney, Jr., 951-323-0239, jpitney@cmc.edu

Frederick R. Lynch, Associate Professor of Government, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: generational politics, affirmative action, baby boomers, Obamamania (Obama candidacy as a political and social movement), Obama fatigue, universal health care, entitlement reform (social security and Medicare), inequality, immigration; author, Diversity Machine and Boomers, Obama and the AARP: Managing Generational Tensions (in progress); media experience includes NPR, The New York Times, USA Today, NBC Nightly News, ABC World News Tonight, CBS Evening News and Oprah.

Contact: Frederick Lynch, 909-607-3799, fred.lynch@claremontmckenna.edu

Ken Miller, Assistant Professor of Government, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: California politics, American politics, constitutional law, direct democracy (initiative, referendum, recall), courts; co-author, The New Political Geography of California; worked in California state capital as legislative staff; provided commentary on California's 2003 recall election; media experience includes BBC, Minnesota Public Radio and various print outlets.

    Contact: Ken Miller, 909-607-2811, ken.miller@cmc.edu

    U.S. ECONOMY

Gregory Hess, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty/Russell S. Bock Chair of Public Economics and Taxation, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: Financial crises, politics and economics, business cycle issues, Federal Reserve; author, Economic Conditions, Elections and the Magnitude of Foreign Conflicts.

Contact: Gregory Hess, 909-621-8117 or 909-267-8310 (cell), gregory.hess@claremontmckenna.edu

WOMEN/GENDER IN POLITICS

Catherine Allgor, Visiting Kingsley Croul Professor of American History, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: Women in government, influence of first lady (and potential first lady), gendered politics, influence of gender on election outcome, female vs. feminine values, first lady as future presidential candidate, inaugural gown fashion, etiquette in Washington, D.C.; Sarah Palin, Michelle Obama and Cindy McCain and their roles and/or influence in election; author, Parlor Politics: In Which the Ladies of Washington Help Build a City and a Government; author, A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation; has spoken at White House; media experience includes CNN, NPR, New York Times, US News & World Report and various local radio and television outlets.

    Contact: Catherine Allgor, 951-684-0044, catherine.allgor@ucr.edu

    WAR IN IRAQ

P. Edward Haley, W.M. Keck Foundation Professor of International Strategic Studies; Director, Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: U.S. foreign policy with an emphasis on the Gulf, great power relations and Arab-Israeli and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts; author, Strategies of Dominance: The Misdirection of U.S. Foreign Policy (Woodrow Wilson Center, 2006); author, Strategic Foreign Assistance: Civil Society and International Security (Hoover Institution, 2006), numerous op-eds and radio and television interviews, including commentary on President Bush and Iraq and President Bush's State of the Union Address for NPR's Morning Edition.

Contact: P. Edward Haley, 909-445-0866, ehaley2@verizon.net

Elizabeth Spalding, Associate Professor of Government, Director of the Washington Program, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: American foreign policy, U.S. role and goals in the war on terrorism, what should candidates be thinking about as they campaign, what now with War on Terrorism and War in Iraq, presidency and foreign policy; regularly called upon by organizations and publications to comment on lessons learned from U.S. involvement in various foreign conflicts; based in Washington, D.C.

    Contact: Elizabeth Spalding, 202-607-0749,
elizabeth.spalding@claremontmckenna.edu

RELIGION

Gaston Espinosa, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Claremont McKenna College; Co-Editor, Columbia University Press Series in Religion and Politics; President, La Comunidad of Hispanic Scholars of Religion at the American Academy of Religion

Areas of expertise: Religion and the 2008 Election, Obama and religion, race and religion, Latino religion and the 2008 election, Evangelicals and the 2008 election, religious right, religion and the American Presidency; author, Religion, Race, and the American Presidency; author, Religion and the American Presidency: From George Washington to George W. Bush; author, Latino Religions and Civic Activism in the United States; author, Mexican American Religions: Spirituality, Activism, and Culture; provided direct insight on religious and Latino issues to for the Obama and McCain 2008 presidential campaigns; met with Obama faith outreach coordinator and McCain Latino faith outreach coordinator in California; contributed to the Rebranding the Democratic Party all-day symposia as expert on religion and Latinos; media experience includes LA Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Dallas Morning News, Christian Science Monitor, Boston Globe, BBC World News, NPR, and the National Press Club. He is working on a book on Religion and the 2008 Presidential Election.

Contact: Gaston Espinosa, 909-621-8395, gaston.espinosa@cmc.edu (prefers email)

Stephen T. Davis, Russell K. Pitzer Professor of Philosophy, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: How religion affects a voter's choice on Election Day, how religious Americans want their president to be, religion and politics, role of candidate's religious choices, philosophy of religion.

    Contact: Stephen Davis, 909-607-2827, stephen.davis@cmc.edu

    SUPREME COURT ISSUES

Ralph A. Rossum, Salvatori Professor of Political Philosophy & American Constitution, Director of The Rose Institute of State and Local Government, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: U.S. Supreme Court, future of Supreme Court, future Supreme Court and lower level federal court appointments; served as deputy director of Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), U.S. Department of Justice from 1983 to 1984; author, Federalism, the Supreme Court, and the Seventeenth Amendment: The Irony of Constitutional Democracy.

    Contact: Ralph Rossum, 909-607-3392, ralph.rossum@claremontmckenna.edu

    IMMIGRATION

Roderic Camp, Philip M. McKenna Professor of the Pacific Rim, Claremont McKenna College

Areas of expertise: Immigration, Mexican politics, religion and politics in Latin America; contributing editor for Microsoft Encarta and World Book Encyclopedia; Senior Associate, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C.

Contact: Roderic Camp, 909-607-4138, roderic.camp@claremontmckenna.edu

SOURCE Claremont McKenna College

In the past 15 years, Mr. Taylor worked with in-house corporate design departments, ad agencies, and boutique design firms. This diverse experience has given him a unique perspective into brand development, advertising, and corporate communications for every size client, whether a start-up or large fortune 500 company. Mr. Taylor spent four years at Oracle Corporation, most recently as the creative director, leading a team of designers to create and produce projects that extended the company's brand image globally. Prior to that, Mr. Taylor honed his expertise in package design and corporate communications while a senior designer at AutoDesk, Inc.

Mr. Taylor gained agency experience as a senior designer at Cramer-Krasselt. He also worked with the Fine Design Group as a senior designer before being promoted to design director, with Imageland as a designer, and at his own agency, D17 Studio. At these firms, Mr. Taylor worked with clients spanning a wide range of consumer, travel, technology, and business brands including Southwest Airlines, Hyatt Hotels, Bosch/Skil Tools, Haworth Furniture, Moen Faucets, Symantec, Canon and Kodak.

A graduate of Iowa State University with a bachelor of fine arts degree in graphic design, Mr. Taylor's work has been recognized by How Magazine, Print Magazine, and Communications Arts, and published in "Deconstructing Web Graphics II," "The Big Book of Logos II," and "Touch This: Graphic Design That Feels Good."

ZEESMAN COMMUNICATIONS, INC.

Over the past 18 years, Zeesman Communications has established a stellar reputation for strategically developing, creatively designing and efficiently executing everything from standalone design projects to comprehensive and integrated marketing communications programs for organizations in both the public and private sectors. The company's extensive capabilities include qualitative research, marketing strategy, brand identity and design, advertising, direct mail, email relationship marketing, public relations, websites and collateral. Zeesman's clients have included the City of Los Angeles, Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles World airports, Pioneer Electronics, Toshiba, Four Seasons Residence Clubs, the W. M. Keck Foundation, Walt Disney Company, Rock the Vote, the University of Southern California and Goodwill Industries. For more information, please visit www.zeesman.com.

Media Contact:
Phyllis Grabot
Zeesman Communications, Inc.
805.341.7269

SOURCE: Zeesman Communications

Bening joins school children and public officials at the ribbon cutting event at TreePeople Center, where visitors learn basic principles of how natural forests "work," and simple ways to apply these principles in an urban setting to actively prevent -- and protect against -- climate change, water and air pollution, and water shortages.

"Forests have always been the life support systems for the planet," said Bening. "I'm inspired by TreePeople's work in using trees as visible models of sustainability and helping to transform Los Angeles into a truly green city."

The Center supports the TreePeople vision of creating "functioning community forests" throughout Los Angeles, where local residents, government and businesspeople work together to transform neighborhoods into sustainable ecosystems that act like a natural forest.

"TreePeople is leading the way to help make Los Angeles a more sustainable city, by improving the health of our watershed," says Dr. Jennifer Wolch, Professor of Geography and Urban Planning, and Director of the Center for Sustainable Cities at the University of Southern California. "Their innovative programs teach children and adults the importance of harvesting the city's rainwater, and the need to become community stewards of urban nature."

"We're excited to open this phase of our Center for student groups and volunteers," said Andy Lipkis, founder and president, TreePeople. "Participants will be trained and supported to transform our region into one that is safe, healthy and sustainable."

TreePeople Center facilities include:

    --  The S. Mark Taper Foundation Environmental Learning Center, a training
        classroom for students and adults;
    --  The W. M. Keck Foundation Nursery, for growing native plants to restore
        damaged local watersheds;
    --  The La Kretz Urban Watershed Garden, offering hands-on exhibits to teach
        water harvesting and conservation using forest mimicking technologies to
        capture rainwater and reduce paving;
    --  A LEED(R) platinum-certified Conference Center to promote sustainability
        in Los Angeles and around the world;
    --  A 216,000-gallon underground cistern that stores rainwater collected
        from the buildings and Parking Grove for use in landscaping.

Design of TreePeople Center was provided by Marmol Radzinor and Associates, Mia Lehrer & Associates and Carlos Madrid III of DMJM Design / AECOM. Major funding was provided by the City of Los Angeles Proposition K Program, Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, Lloyd Rigler Lawrence Deutsch Foundation, Morton La Kretz, Kresge Foundation, S. Mark Taper Foundation, and W. M. Keck Foundation.

For over 35 years TreePeople has served greater Los Angeles with award-winning programs and a mission to inspire, engage and support people to take personal responsibility for the urban environment, making it safe, healthy, fun and sustainable and to share the results as a model for the world. School groups can register grades K-5 for weekly Eco-tours by calling (818) 623-4859; volunteers call (818) 623-4879. For other information about TreePeople, call (818) 753-4600 or log on to http://www.treepeople.org.

SOURCE TreePeople

http://www.treepeople.org