Prolonged Sitting Linked to 173,000 Cancer Cases Yearly (LiveScience.com)

WASHINGTON ? Our culture of sitting may be responsible for 173,000 cases of cancer each year, according to new estimates.

Physical inactivity is linked to as many as 49,000 cases of breast cancer and 43,000 cases of colon cancer a year in the United States, said Christine Friedenreich, an epidemiologist at Alberta Health Services-Cancer Care in Canada.

Breast and colon cancer appear to be the cancers most influenced by physical activity, according to the research we have to date, Friedenreich said, in presenting her findings here today (Nov. 3) at the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) conference.

But her findings also suggested that an estimated 37,200 cases of lung cancer, 30,600 cases of prostate cancer, 12,000 cases of endometrial cancer and 1,800 cases of ovarian cancer could be prevented if people were more physically active.

The work adds to a growing body of research indicating that prolonged sitting has lethal consequences, regardless of how active people are the rest of the day.

"It seems highly likely that the longer you sit, the higher your risk [of cancer]," said Neville Owen, head of behavioral epidemiology at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Australia, who also presented findings at the meeting. Owen's study showed that U.S. adults, on average, sit 15.5 hours a day.

The amount of time we spend standing up and walking "makes up such a tiny sliver of a person's waking hours," Owen said.

However, there's good news. It seems that long, uninterrupted periods of sitting are what is most unhealthy, and that by frequently breaking up long bouts of sitting with just a few minutes of light exercise, a person can lower his or her cancer risk. Owen's study found that one- to two-minute breaks from sitting can reduce levels of molecules in the body that are linked with cancer risk.

[Don't Sit Tight: 6 Ways to Make a Deadly Activity Healthier]

This research reveals that there's more to physical activity than working out on a treadmill. Alice Bender, a spokeswoman for AICR, noted that someone who exercises 30 minutes a day ? the recommended amount of physical activity ? is really only active for 3 percent of his or her day.

While getting to the gym or doing other regular exercise is still important, it is not the whole story, Bender said.?The AICR recommends we take small breaks from sitting during our day to "infuse the remaining 97 percent of [our] day with short periods of activity that can protect against many cancers," she said.

Exercise and cancer

In Friedenreich's study, postmenopausal women who engaged in moderate to vigorous daily exercise had lower levels of ?C-reactive protein in their bodies after one year compared with women who did not engage in this level of activity. Low levels of this protein have been linked to reduced breast cancer risk.

C-reactive protein is a marker of inflammation, an immune response that normally helps your body fight off infection. Chronically high levels of inflammation may damage cells and possibly increase cancer risk.

Using data from her study and previous work on cancer indicators, Friedenreich estimated that daily exercise reduced the risk of breast and colon cancer by 25 to 30 percent.

"For many of the most common cancers, it seems like something as simple as a brisk walk for 30 minutes a day can help reduce cancer risk," Friedenreich said.

Owen's study suggested that even very brief exercise may reduce cancer risk. In the study, the one- to two-minute breaks were associated with smaller waists, less insulin resistance (an early sign of diabetes) and lower levels of inflammation? all risk factors for cancer.

Get up and move

The American Institute for Cancer Research recommends the following tips for breaking up your sitting sessions:

  • Set a timer on your computer to remind you every hour that it?s time to step away from your desk, and take a short walk down the hall.
  • Instead of emailing a co-worker, chat with him or her over a walk.
  • If possible, stand up and walk around during phone calls and meetings.
  • Keep light hand weights in your office to use while reading email or talking on the phone.

Pass it on: Sitting down for prolonged periods may increase cancer risk, researchers say.

This story was provided by MyHealthNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow MyHealthNewsDaily staff writer Rachael Rettner on Twitter @Facebook.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/cancer/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20111103/sc_livescience/prolongedsittinglinkedto173000cancercasesyearly

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CFT: Sandusky child sex scandal rocks Penn State

Head Scratcher

For those looking for some type of clarity when it comes to the top of the Big Ten Legends division, you?ll be sorely disappointed.

Thanks to Iowa?s upset over No. 15 Michigan, those schools currently sit at 3-2 in conference play. ?Michigan State?s closer-than-expected win over Minnesota kept the Spartans at 4-1 and a half game ahead of Nebraska, pending the outcome of the Cornhuskers? home game with Northwestern this afternoon; should NU win, those two schools would be tied atop the division, although the ?Huskers hold the head-to-head edge.

In reality, the path to one of the two spots in the first-ever Big Ten title game could be very simple: if Nebraska, which has games against Penn State, Michigan and Iowa remaining, wins out, they will represent the Legends division in Indianapolis regardless of what any other team does the rest of the way. ?If not? ?Hello chaos.

Should Iowa, which has games against Nebraska, Purdue and Michigan State left, win their last three games, and Nebraska and MSU win out with the exception of their game against the Hawkeyes, those three teams would be tied at 6-2. ?That would be bad news for any school that doesn?t answer to the name ?Nebraska? as the three-way tiebreaker would favor the Cornhuskers. Here are the Big Ten rules that govern three-way ties atop a division, in order of use:

1. The records of the three tied teams will be compared against each other
2. The records of the three tied teams will be compared within their division
3. The records of the three teams will be compared against the next highest placed teams in their division in order of finish (4, 5, and 6)
4. The records of the three teams will be compared against all common conference opponents;
5. The highest ranked team in the first Bowl Championship Series Poll following the completion of Big Ten regular season conference play shall be the representative in the Big Ten Championship Game, unless the two highest ranked tied teams are ranked within one spot of each other in the BCS poll. In this case, the head-to-head results of the top two ranked tied teams shall determine the representative in the Big Ten Championship
6. The team with the best overall winning percentage [excluding exempted games] shall be the representative
7. The representative will be chosen by random draw.

Based on the scenario we laid out above, Nebraska ? again, pending their game with Northwestern today ? would finish the season with an overall record of 10-2 compared to 9-3 for both Iowa and Michigan State. ?Thus, the Hawkeyes would need to win out and have either Nebraska or Michigan State lose an additional game ? remember, Iowa plays both Nebraska and MSU in the last three games ? in order to get into a two-way tie, which would favor them in head-to-head matchups. ?If Iowa loses another game? ?They?re done in the divisional race, barring a complete collapse on the part of the ?Huskers and/or Spartans.

The Spartans path to a division title is relatively simple to explain compared to the Hawkeyes? scenario but much more difficult to accomplish on the field: win their last three games and hope the Cornhuskers lose at least two of their three remaining games. ?MSU cannot finish in a two-way tie with Nebraska as the ?Huskers, again, own the head-to-head.

For Michigan, the odds of winning the first-ever Legends title are very, very long, simply because the Wolverines have already lost to both Michigan State and Iowa. ?If the Wolverines were to win out against Illinois, Nebraska and Ohio State to get to 6-2, their optimum route to a title would be for MSU to lose at least two games and Iowa to lose at least one, creating a two-way tie with Nebraska. ?A three-way tie involving Nebraska would likely spell doom for the Wolverines due to what would be projected as a superior overall record for the ?Huskers. ?A three-way tie that went to the No. 2 tiebreaker would also, in theory, hurt the Wolverines as both of their losses thus far have come from within the division. ?In other words, Michigan will need nearly every ball to bounce its way in order to have even the slimmest of shots.

And if Nebraska happens to lose to Northwestern this afternoon ? the Wildcats are leading 7-0 late in the first quarter at the time of this posting ? you can pretty much forget just about everything written above. ?And, while you?re busy forgetting, I?ll be jabbing sharp objects into my eyes and/or ears.

UPDATED 6:59 p.m. ET: Northwestern 28, Nebraska 18.

Thus, forget about every single word written above ? especially the parts where I screwed up. ?I?ll have an updated post on the muddled Legends division at some point in the not-too-distant future. ?The short version? ?If Michigan State or Iowa wins out, that team will represent the Legends division in the Big Ten title game. ?In other words, next weekend?s Spartans-Hawkeyes game could very well decide the division.

Source: http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/11/05/penn-state-prez-offers-unconditional-support-to-ad/related/

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Protests shut Oakland port, tensions flare in streets (Reuters)

OAKLAND, Calif (Reuters) ? Demonstrators shut down operations at Oakland's port and blocked traffic on Wednesday in daylong protests against economic inequality and police brutality, before riot police moved in firing tear gas.

The protests, which drew some 5,000 activists at their peak, fell short of paralyzing the northern California city that was catapulted to the forefront of national anti-Wall Street protests after a former Marine was badly wounded during a march and rally last week.

But at about midnight, a police force that had largely kept its distance through the day moved in to confront hundreds of protesters lingering on streets near a public plaza that has been a hub for demonstrations, ordering crowds to disperse as officers declared an unlawful assembly.

Police lined up shoulder to shoulder by the dozens and donned gas masks, then fired tear gas as protesters turned and ran, some stopping to pick up canisters and hurl them back at officers. Some protesters shouted: "This was peaceful until you came!"

At about the same time many of the street lights in the area suddenly went dark, but it was not clear whether they were turned off or were knocked out by a power disruption.

Earlier in the evening, an official said maritime operations at the Oakland port, which handles about $39 billion a year in imports and exports, had been "effectively shut down."

"Maritime area operations will resume when it is safe and secure to do so," the port said in a statement.

A port spokesman said officials hoped to reopen the facility on Thursday morning.

Protesters, who streamed across a freeway overpass to gather in front of the port gates, stood atop tractor-trailers stopped in the middle of the street.

Others climbed onto scaffolding over railroad tracks as a band played a version of the Led Zeppelin song "Whole Lotta Love," using amplifiers powered by stationary bike generators.

"The reason I'm here is, I'm sick and tired of trying to figure out where I should put my vote between the lesser of two evils," student Sarah Daniel, 28, said at the port.

The atmosphere turned tense after a protester was apparently struck by a car in downtown Oakland, and incorrect reports spread that the person had died. Acting Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan later said the pedestrian was taken to a local hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

Before police moved in to disperse protesters, small groups were seen in local TV images running through the streets, trying to start small fires or climbing on top of moving television news vans.

At one point, several people appeared to force open the driver's-side door of a news van, but after a few tense moments the door closed again and the van drove away safely.

The anti-Wall Street activists, who complain bitterly about a financial system they believe benefits mainly corporations and the wealthy, had aimed to disrupt commerce with a special focus on banks and other symbols of corporate America.

The demonstrations centered at Frank Ogawa Plaza adjacent to city hall, scene of a tug-of-war last week between police who cleared an Occupy Oakland encampment there and protesters who sought to return, and ultimately succeeded in doing so.

Protesters, prior to marching on the port, had also blocked the downtown intersection of 14th street and Broadway, where ex-Marine Scott Olsen was wounded during a clash with police on the night of October 25.

Windows were smashed at several Oakland banks and a Whole Foods market, with pictures of the damage posted on Twitter.

Few uniformed police officers were spotted at the rallies, and Jordan blamed the vandalism and unruliness on a small group he identified as anarchists.

Local labor leaders, while generally sympathetic to the protesters, said their contracts prohibited them from proclaiming an official strike.

Oakland Unified School District spokesman Troy Flint said more than 300 teachers had stayed home, most of those having made formal requests the night before.

"We did have to scramble a little bit to cover the extra absences," Flint said, adding that some classes were combined but no students were left unsupervised.

Other residents like Rebecca Leung, 33, who works at an architectural lighting sales company, went about their ordinary activities. Leung said she generally supported the protests.

It was the wounding of Olsen, a former Marine turned peace activist who suffered a serious head injury during protests last week, that seemed to galvanize protesters and broadened their complaints to include police brutality.

He remains in an Oakland hospital in fair condition.

Protest organizers say Olsen, 24, was struck by a tear gas canister fired by police. Jordan opened an investigation into the incident but has not said how he believes Olsen was hurt.

(Additional reporting by Dan Whitcomb, Mary Slosson, Steve Gorman, Emmett Berg, Matthew Ward, Bill Rigby and R.T. Watson; Writing by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Jerry Norton and Cynthia Johnston)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111103/us_nm/us_usa_protests_oakland

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Cain defends ties to conservative political group (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Embattled Republican Herman Cain is pressing ahead with his White House bid, noting he has "attracted a little bit of attention" and defending his close ties to billionaire brothers whose organization bankrolls right-leaning causes.

Cain gave a speech to Americans for Prosperity, headed by Charles and David Koch. The group has ties to the tea party and lobbies for lower taxes, less regulation and spending.

He noted a New York Times story on the relationship, saying the newspaper was seeking to "attract more attention." Cain said he was "very proud" to know the Koch brothers. He said, "I am the Koch brothers' brother from another mother ... and proud of it."

Cain's links to the Koch brothers could undercut his outsider, non-political image among people fed up with conventional politics.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111104/ap_on_el_ge/us_cain_koch_brothers

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Galaxy Nexus set for Verizon on Nov. 17 as well?

Galaxy Nexus Verizon date

We're still firmly filing this one in the "unconfirmed" category, but the screen you see above supposedly is a "work in progress" of what's about to go out to Verizon stores. And it pretty much looks like we could be looking at a Nov. 17 availability (and Nov. 15 in-store marketing) for the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, which would bring Big Red in line with the rest of the world.

We're going to remain a bit dubious until we get word from Verizon itself, and our source says it's "been told the document pictured is a work in progress that will be sent out next week to all retail stores/partners along with promotional materials such as posters and flyers." So we'll see if the document is the work in progress, or the date, or what. And it's always possible this is just a friend of a friend messing with people (hey, it happens). But it does make more sense than waiting past the Black Friday holiday, don't it?

Thanks, anon!
More in the Galaxy Nexus Forums


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/LcJHIjtMq9c/story01.htm

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Google Chrome's Newest Beta Enables Multiple Accounts [Updates]

Google Chrome's Newest Beta Enables Multiple AccountsChrome: The newest version of the Google Chrome beta introduces multiple account syncing, a feature many users have been asking for a while.

The primary use for the feature is to let multiple users who share a computer easily swap out accounts, but Google notes in their post it doesn't have any security options, so it's meant primarily as a tool to quickly swap interfaces for people who already share a computer. Of course, it will also be handy for those who use multiple accounts for work or personal use. You can download the beta from the official blog post below. To try it out for yourself, you'll need to enable it under Options (or Preferences) >Personal Stuff > Add new user.

Take your Chrome stuff with you in the new Chrome Beta | Google Chrome Blog via Read Write Web

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/w3iKkSktdS0/google-chromes-beta-enables-multiple-sync-accounts

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Shorter hospital stay with person-centered healthcare

[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 1-Nov-2011
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Inger Ekman
inger.ekman@gu.se
46-031-786-3711
University of Gothenburg

Healthcare that implements a person-centred approach not only make care more efficient, but also yields more satisfied patients. A study carried out at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, shows that if there is an active partnership between the patient and healthcare professionals, the patient's hospital stay can be reduced by one-third.

Person-centred care takes its starting point in the patient's own experience of the treatment, and it begins with a healthcare plan based on the patient's individual condition and limitations. This includes a partnership between the patient and the healthcare professional: the first is an expert in living with the illness and the latter is an expert in the illness itself. The patient's social network is also involved in this process.

Unique comparative study

Aiming at taking the lead in research and implementation is the Centre for Person-Centred Care (GPCC) at the Sahlgrenska Academy and the University of Gothenburg. GPCC researchers have conducted a unique comparative study with 123 patients who were treated according to the person-centred care principle. The purpose of the study was to evaluate if person-centred care can shorten patients' hospital stay, if it improves their daily functional capacity and quality of life and if it reduces their re-admission rate.

Hospital stay shortened by one-third

The results show that the hospital stay for patients who undergo person-centred care is reduced by 2.5 days. 'The hospital stay was reduced by 30 percent compared to patients who underwent traditional care,' says Inger Ekman, professor at the Sahlgrenska Academy and the centre's Director.

Improved daily capacity

Despite the shorter hospital stay, the patients in the person-centred groups showed no improvement in quality of life or readmission rate. However, there was a significantly improved daily functional capacity. Yet the study also points to difficulties in changing the perspective of health care. 'Our study shows that person-centred care leads to effective and high-quality health care. However, only 60 percent of the patients in our study actually did receive consistent person-centred care during their entire stay ,' says Ekman. 'It shows the difficulty of rearranging the healthcare culture since it is based on a person with an illness and not on the person's illness alone. The biggest challenge will be to break the traditional and rigid structure of healthcare.'

Planned further studies

The study, published in the respected European Heart Journal, is one of the largest controlled studies ever to evaluate the effect of wards on patients with degenerative chronic heart failure. Inger Ekman hopes that the study will be the first step towards a change where evidence-based care will be combined with the patients' experiences and knowledge of their condition. Gothenburg's researchers are already preparing a new study on the effects of person-centred care on patients with acute coronary syndrome.

###



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 1-Nov-2011
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Inger Ekman
inger.ekman@gu.se
46-031-786-3711
University of Gothenburg

Healthcare that implements a person-centred approach not only make care more efficient, but also yields more satisfied patients. A study carried out at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, shows that if there is an active partnership between the patient and healthcare professionals, the patient's hospital stay can be reduced by one-third.

Person-centred care takes its starting point in the patient's own experience of the treatment, and it begins with a healthcare plan based on the patient's individual condition and limitations. This includes a partnership between the patient and the healthcare professional: the first is an expert in living with the illness and the latter is an expert in the illness itself. The patient's social network is also involved in this process.

Unique comparative study

Aiming at taking the lead in research and implementation is the Centre for Person-Centred Care (GPCC) at the Sahlgrenska Academy and the University of Gothenburg. GPCC researchers have conducted a unique comparative study with 123 patients who were treated according to the person-centred care principle. The purpose of the study was to evaluate if person-centred care can shorten patients' hospital stay, if it improves their daily functional capacity and quality of life and if it reduces their re-admission rate.

Hospital stay shortened by one-third

The results show that the hospital stay for patients who undergo person-centred care is reduced by 2.5 days. 'The hospital stay was reduced by 30 percent compared to patients who underwent traditional care,' says Inger Ekman, professor at the Sahlgrenska Academy and the centre's Director.

Improved daily capacity

Despite the shorter hospital stay, the patients in the person-centred groups showed no improvement in quality of life or readmission rate. However, there was a significantly improved daily functional capacity. Yet the study also points to difficulties in changing the perspective of health care. 'Our study shows that person-centred care leads to effective and high-quality health care. However, only 60 percent of the patients in our study actually did receive consistent person-centred care during their entire stay ,' says Ekman. 'It shows the difficulty of rearranging the healthcare culture since it is based on a person with an illness and not on the person's illness alone. The biggest challenge will be to break the traditional and rigid structure of healthcare.'

Planned further studies

The study, published in the respected European Heart Journal, is one of the largest controlled studies ever to evaluate the effect of wards on patients with degenerative chronic heart failure. Inger Ekman hopes that the study will be the first step towards a change where evidence-based care will be combined with the patients' experiences and knowledge of their condition. Gothenburg's researchers are already preparing a new study on the effects of person-centred care on patients with acute coronary syndrome.

###



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/uog-shs110111.php

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Apple Seeds iOS 5.0.1 to Developers, Fixes iPhone 4S Battery Issues and Adds New Multitouch Gestures to Original iPad [In Brief]

Today Apple seeded a beta of iOS 5.0.1 to developers, providing a fix for the iPhone 4S battery life issues and bugs in iCloud. They also added the new multitouch gestures for iPad 1 users, which were a glaring omission in the initial release. It'll probably be a few weeks (or longer) until we all have access to this update, but it's good to know these fixes are imminent. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/3eApBozCphY/apple-seeds-ios-501-to-developers-adds-battery-life-fixes-and-multitouch-gestures-to-original-ipad

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Dear Rich: Nolo's Intellectual Property Blog: Insurance for Patent ...

Dear Rich: I am patent pending and am worried about what will happen if my patent is granted and a big company rips me off. I can't afford to sue a big company. Will lawyers take my case for a cut of the profits? What do the little guys do? Getting into a lawsuit sounds pretty scary, probably a lot scarier than our neighbor's excellent Franken-pumpkin which appeared yesterday afternoon. It's a beautiful job and when we asked him whether he bought that shaped pumpkin because it looked like Frankenstein, he replied that no, when he got it home and looked at it for a while, the pumpkin said "Frankenstein" to him. Now that's how creative people channel inspiration. It's a little bit like the sculptor who, when asked how to scultpt an elephant, said, "Take a big block of marble and chip away everything that doesn?t look like an elephant."
Right, you had a question. Yes, an independent inventor with limited funds is in a bind when it comes to patent enforcement. Even if the funds can be found to fight a big company, the battle can drag on for years and cause much personal turmoil. Like patent expert David Pressman puts it, the utility patent is basically a hunting license. Obtaining the license without the necessary funds to use it against others makes it a useless piece of paper. There are three common solutions for this issue:
  • align yourself with a big company. A big company?usually?will -- as part of your licensing agreement -- ?chase down (or possibly scare off) thieves and competitors. The downside is that you may end up earning less from your invention if someone licenses it (versus the profit margin if you manufacture it). On the other hand, often it's just the opposite and the right licensee can earn you substantial profits and save you a lot of hassle.
  • consider offensive insurance.?Yes, there is such a thing as offensive patent insurance and you can read more about its pros and cons.
  • find a contingency litigator. Some patent attorneys take cases on contingency. This is often difficult and can be expensive (giving up a third or more of the recovery). Learn more here.

Source: http://dearrichblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/dear-rich-i-am-patent-pending-and-am.html

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Rising star Miranda Lambert reveals more on 'Four' (AP)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? Producer Frank Liddell compares most country music stars to drivers in Manhattan. They circle and circle until they find a parking spot, and once they find one, they never want to leave.

Miranda Lambert found a roomy space in the shade when she released the career-changing "Revolution" in 2009.

"A lot of times, that parking place will dictate an artist's entire career," Liddell said. "Miranda, with this last record, she had a pretty good parking place. And she just drove right out of it without thinking twice about it."

You can hear where she's headed on her new album, "Four the Record," out Tuesday. It's Lambert's follow-up to the album that won her universal critical praise, enough fans to ratchet her career to the headliner level and a bushel of trophies, including a Grammy.

All conditions were right for Lambert to deliver a new version of "Revolution," repeating the blend of sass and smarts and a little bit of tenderness that turned out to be such a combustible mix. But the 28-year-old delivered something very different. There's still a little bit of that blonde firebrand who set country music ablaze in "Four," Lambert's fourth album. But the overall picture the album leaves you with is a little more somber and mature.

"I'm one of those fortunate few, few, few artists that get to do what I want to do, make the album I want to make, with nobody telling me what it should sound like or what songs I should cut, and the best part about it is, people actually buy it," Lambert said.

Most emerging country stars would have spent time building their brand after such a career leap. She and new husband Blake Shelton appeared on the cover of Us Weekly after their wedding, the peak of the carnival atmosphere that surrounded the two over the last 18 months. With Shelton's turn on "The Voice," their visibility had never been higher, and the opportunities never more lucrative.

Lambert did the unexpected, though. Instead of chasing tour sponsors and endorsement deals, she's turned down most offers. Instead of trying to recreate those hit songs from her last album, she sought new writing partners and even considered a higher than usual percentage of songs from outside writers.

She also formed a band on the side, Pistol Annies, something of a maverick move in a town where such things are considered wastes of energy at best and brand killers at worst. With no radio airplay and little marketing, Pistol Annies' debut album "Hell on Heels" hit No. 1 on the Billboard country albums chart.

All of these things are unusual moves ? and part of the plan that Lambert has put together with her manager, Marion Kraft.

"The interesting part about it is we think of expanding, not in a financial way, but we're thinking of expanding in a creative way where I feel like we are inspired by what we're doing and she gets better because she keeps re-inspiring herself," Kraft said. "That's how Pistol Annies came about, because we didn't fight it. ... The expansion that we are hoping will happen is that we broaden our fan base because we allow art to drive it rather than commerce."

It sure worked with the platinum-selling "Revolution." No. 1 songs like "White Liar" and "The House That Built Me" brought more fans into Lambert's camp and they fell for what they found. Those songs, Lambert said, were reflections of where she was when she recorded "Revolution," which won album of the year from both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.

"Four" finds Lambert somewhere a little different. She's grown up some, moving from young womanhood into maturity, and started a new life with her husband in Oklahoma. There's more humor here, probably thanks to the influence of the ever-funny Shelton, and more and deeper emotion.

There's still a little fuel for the fire on songs like "Fastest Girl in Town" and "Mama's Broken Heart." But from the first notes of opener "All Kinds of Kinds," a song about Horatio the Human Cannonball, the dog-faced boy and the three-ring circus that is life, "Four" little resembles her previous work. There's also "Over You," a song she wrote with Shelton about the death of his brother. And there's "Safe," which she wrote backstage while Shelton performed.

"I kind of felt that feeling come over me," Lambert said. "That's my fiance. That's going to be my husband. I'm going to keep him safe. I feel safe with him. So that's definitely some insight into my softer side."

Liddell, who has produced all of Lambert's albums, said she came to the studio this time with none of the nervousness she displayed in the recording of her previous albums. She would play the basic song for Liddell and her musicians, then turn the discussion over to the group.

"She just allows everything ? courage and creativity and interesting musicianship ? and doesn't get bogged down in little things, minutiae or what's expected of her, or the last hit on her last record," Liddell said. "None of that really comes in. If she feels it in her heart, she really starts pushing the buttons, and I think that's the most exceptional thing about her."

___

Online:

http://www.mirandalambert.com

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/music/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111031/ap_en_mu/us_music_miranda_lambert

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