Today's Features

Public Access Channel 8 will present “Democracy Now!” host Amy Goodman with co-author of “The Silenced Majority,” Denis Moynihan, Oct. 11 at Fuller Lodge. 

Award-winning journalist Amy Goodman, anchor of the daily, grassroots, global, radio/TV news hour “Democracy Now!” is on a two-month, 100 city tour holding public events to help raise funds for the public broadcasters that carry “Democracy Now!”  

She will give a public talk from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Otowi Station Bookstore will host a book signing of  “The Silenced Majority,” following the event at Fuller Lodge. 

The price of the book is not included in luncheon cost. 

It's a medical nightmare: a 24-year-old man endures 350 surgeries since childhood to remove growths that keep coming back in his throat and have spread to his lungs, threatening his life. Now doctors have found a way to help him by way of a scientific coup that holds promise for millions of cancer patients.

The bizarre case is the first use in a patient of a new discovery: how to keep ordinary and cancerous cells alive indefinitely in the lab.

The discovery allows doctors to grow "mini tumors" from each patient's cancer in a lab dish, then test various drugs or combinations on them to see which works best. It takes only a few cells from a biopsy and less than two weeks to do, with materials and methods common in most hospitals.

Although the approach needs much more testing against many different types of cancer, researchers think it could offer a cheap, simple way to personalize treatment without having to analyze each patient's genes.

The Los Alamos Animal Shelter, 226 East Road, 662-8179, has a great selection of on site adoptable pets waiting for their forever home.
Come find a companion that will give you unconditional love. Be sure to visit lafos.org, where you can get more information about volunteering, adopting and donating.
All adoptable pets are spayed or neutered, have their shots and are micro chipped. Visitor guides: Between 4-6 p.m. Friday, volunteers will be at the shelter to give potential adopters personal introductions to the adoptable animals.
DOGS
Ciera — Spayed female Shepherd-cross who likes to get to know her human associates before she shares her story with them.
Coqueta — Six-year-old spayed female Retriever/Chow-mix surrendered. Good with adults and gentle children. Has been an outdoor dog.
Four Border Collie puppies (Desmond, Bones, Reggie and Romper) — Four-months-old, all males. They are pretty shy and the volunteers are working on socialization. Keep watching as they develop into fun, approachable pups.
Houdini — Not a magician, but rather an adorable black-and-white Spaniel/Border Collie-mix. He recently got a bath and is ready to show off his lovely, clean coat. He is affectionate and sweet with both dogs and people and would love to accompany his new person everywhere.

On the top of a list of varied things Roberta Arruda likes to do is playing her violin. She likes to play in chamber groups and big and small orchestras, but best of all she likes to solo.  
“Playing as a soloist is very special,” she said. At 7 p.m. Oct. 5 at the Crossroads Bible Church, Arruda will solo with the Los Alamos Symphony Orchestra. She will play the “Saint-Saens Violin Concerto No. 3” —a work that Arruda grew up listening to on recordings by Josh Bell.
Arruda, born in Brazil to non-musical parents, began her musical journey on the recorder at the age of seven. By 10, she had switched to the violin. It was a perfect match and she has continued to study violin all over the world — the United States, France, Belgium and Hungary.  
Now, living in New Mexico, she has an active life, which involves teaching at New Mexico State University, playing with the La Catrina Quartet (the resident quartet at NMSU), and playing with the Santa Fe Pro Musica.  
In past years, she has played with the Opera Southwest, the San Juan Symphony, UNMSO, the Santa Fe Symphony and the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra.