In order for the ideal of international trade to become reality, customs procedures dating back centuries must be eliminated and replaced with modernized practices designed to foster cooperation and efficiency in world trade. The International Customs Modernization Process (ICMP), detailed in this remarkable book, will do just that. With the aid of modern technology and business practices, nations and industries will benefit through improved enforcement of customs, more streamlined trade of goods, and overall growth of economies.

The ICMP is an 11 step process that begins by improving the fundamentals. It then outlines three enabling processes and concludes with implementation and integration of the process and a vision of the promised future.

The continued debate regarding the stage at which the human embryo conceived in the laboratory should be placed in the mother, combined with recent developments in culture media formulations, have brought the role of the human blastocyst in ART back into the spotlight. ART and the Human Blastocyst presents the proceedings of the International Symposium on ART and the Human Blastocyst held from March 30- April 2, 2000 in Dana Point, California. This book brings to the forefront the main issues raised with the transfer of embryos at the blastocyst stage, including the reduction of high order multiple gestations and the role of the blastocyst culture and transfer in facilitating successful single embryo transfer. Sections include gamete quality and pregnancy outcome, physiology of the embryo, blastocyst development in culture, blastocyst transfer and fate, and implantation. More than 40 illustrations and 25 tables complement the text.

The field of human artificial reproductive technology (ART) is continually advancing and has witnessed significant changes since the inception of Louise Brown in 1978. Though Louise Brown herself was conceived after the trans fer of a blastocyst, there remain significant confusion and debate regarding the stage at which the human embryo conceived in the laboratory should be replaced in the mother. Developments in culture media formulations, leading to the introduction of sequential media, have brought the role of the blasto cyst in human ART back into the spotlight. It was due to this resurgence of interest in the niche of extended culture in human infertility treatment that the symposium on "ART and the Human Blastocyst" was held. of this meeting within this volume bring to the forefront The proceedings the main issues raised with the transfer of embryos at the blastocyst stage. It is evident from the chapters that follow that ART needs to be perceived as a continuum of procedures, each one dependent on the preceding one, and all equally as important as each other. That is to say, the development of a com petent embryo is ultimately dependent on the quality of the gametes from which it was derived. With regard to the oocyte, this then places the emphasis on the physician to use a stimulation protocol that both produces quality oocytes and does not impair endometrial function. Maintenance of gamete and embryo quality is the laboratory's role.

This book pulls together the full range of cell culture, biochemical, microscopic, and genetic techniques to study the early mammalian embryo. Until now, there has never been such a comprehensive compendium, though there have been more focused books of protocol, such as Manipulating the Mouse Embryo, from Cold Spring Harbor. This book is intended to appeal to all constituencies, from basic experimental science to clinical and animal science applications.

The Smithwick's introduce parents of novice/ beginner riders to the sequence of how to successfully get their child into the equestrian world. Parents of advanced riders are given critical, inside information on how to advance their child through the highest riding levels. Also, children with disabilities have a chapter dedicated just to them, where parents or guardians learn how beneficial horses are to kids with any disability, explaining the latest medical research. The little known knowledge of exactly when a child equestrian is most at risk to sustain a head injury and how one can prevent concussions is also highlighted for parents. This book is a must read for any parent who wants to advance their child in the equestrian community - at any level

Lili Carracino's curves get her in trouble. Boys bully her. Girls insult her. Cyber strangers stalk her with rumors and lies. Even with the help of her best friend, Sophie, they can't seem to stop the harassment at school. And with absentee parents, a pesky little brother, and a fashionable grandmother she barely knows stepping in to take over her life, fourteen-year old Lili feels lost and alone. The harassment escalates along with her doubts, and Lili is forced to take a hard look at herself -and make the toughest choice of all.