Most of the ads for “After Earth” have neglected to mention that M. Night Shyamalan co-wrote and directed the film. Movie studios finally seem to be realizing that having Shyamalan’s name plastered above the title will no longer sell tickets. If anything, it will have audiences fleeing from the theater in revulsion. Whenever it looks like Shyamalan can’t embarrass himself any further, he always comes out with a new film that’s even more atrocious than the last. At least with his previous debacle, “The Last Airbender,” Shyamalan hit ground zero. There’s no way he could possibly make a film even more poorly written, effortlessly acted, and bleakly directed, right?


Most of the ads for “After Earth” have neglected to mention that M. Night Shyamalan co-wrote and directed the film. Movie studios finally seem to be realizing that having Shyamalan’s name plastered above the title will no longer sell tickets.

If area track athletes are posting state-leading and even record-breaking times and jumps just three weeks into the season, just what can be expected at the end of the year?

In a previous column I discussed the PACER, a test of cardiovascular fitness that is part of the national youth physical fitness test battery (FITNESSGRAM). FITNESSGRAM, was developed at the Cooper Institute in Dallas and is now offered as a cooperative program with the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition (PCFSN) and the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (AAHPERD). In addition to assessing cardiovascular fitness, the FITNESSGRAM Test Battery includes tests of muscle fitness, flexibility, and body composition.

Doug Christofis had some of the little things slip and it didn’t sit well.

It’s pretty much the premise behind Desert Vista’s administration decision to hire former Xavier co-head coach Jeff Messer to be the Thunder’s next girls cross country coach.

Can’t beat him, hire him.

Quick, what is the first thing that pops into your head when someone says Girl Scouts? It’s probably not Girls Scouts Baby Camp or Girl Scouting Behind Bars or Girl Scouting in Detention Centers.

Cardiovascular fitness is generally considered to be the most important component of health-related physical fitness. Other commonly used terms for cardiovascular fitness include cardiorespiratory endurance, aerobic fitness, and aerobic capacity. The national youth physical fitness test (FITNESSGRAM), developed at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, is now offered as a cooperative program with the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition (PCFSN) and the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (AAHPERD). The recommended test for youth in the FITNESSGRAM battery is called the Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER).

Professional triathlete Kristi Johnson, 31, was unable to compete in Ironman Arizona this past month but will be heading into next year’s season with unwavering fortitude and a master’s degree in landscape architecture from Arizona State University.

The College of Medicine at the University of Arizona recently announced recipients in the physiology undergraduate major of the dean’s list awards for the spring semester, which included Ahwatukee Foothills resident and Desert Vista High School graduate Rafe Arlotti. Students earning a GPA of 3.5 or higher are awarded the distinction of dean’s list.

Saturday, Sept. 29

Vital signs. Now there’s a phrase that brings a particular image to mind: An emergency room in a hospital with doctors and nurses flurrying about in life and death struggles; monitors and machines beeping, humming and whirring all clamoring to provide their piece of information as part of the care and treatment being provided. One such piece of vital information is blood pressure.

The state’s most active anti-abortion group is taking credit for what appears to be a significant drop in the number of women terminating their pregnancies.

Everyone wants their yards to look their best, have lush and beautiful plants year-round. Summertime, though, seems to make us all wilt, plants and people alike. But, even though it’s hot and humid this month, your plants can thrive and stay healthy by understanding a few basics: what is plant heat stress, how do you know your plant is stressed, and what do you do when your plants have been affected?

Let’s say you just finished an intense workout, or you have a child that plays an outdoor sport. Maybe you’re a construction worker with a physically demanding job or a salesperson in and out of your vehicle during the hot, summer months.

Every cell of the body continuously carries out biochemical processes that require oxygen. The overall term for this on-going process is metabolism. By-products of this cellular metabolic process are unstable electrons called oxidants or “free radicals.” Unfortunately, these free radicals are not harmless. Their chief danger comes from the damage they incur upon internal cellular structures such as DNA.

Two Ahwatukee Foothills sisters are gaining college laboratory experience before they even graduate from high school.

Summertime is full of fun, freedom and hot dogs, and we don’t mean the kind you get at the ballpark. Although an exact number is difficult to find it is estimated that thousands of dogs die every year from heat related causes. A little information and common sense can save lives.

I was in the gym sweating up a storm. As the salty droplets fell from the tip of my nose, from my armpits and even from my knees I wondered, “Why do we sweat when we exercise?” Why do we sweat more in the heat of summer or when we have fevers? Why do we sweat more if we become nervous, angry or embarrassed? The quick answer, of course, is that it is the body’s way of cooling itself. I knew that, and you probably do, too. But why and how does the body know it needs to sweat to cool itself down?

The average American has 116 synthetic compounds in their body, according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. We’re exposed to toxins from food additives and preservatives, the environment, smog, exhaust and pollution, heavy metals, digestive distress, dry cleaners, obesogens, non-organic foods, pesticides, xenoestrogens, chemicals, and so much more.

The average American has 116 synthetic compounds in their body, according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. We’re exposed to toxins from food additives and preservatives, the environment, smog, exhaust and pollution, heavy metals, digestive distress, dry cleaners, obesogens, non-organic foods, pesticides, xenoestrogens, chemicals, and so much more.

The heart is actually one big muscle. But it is a specialized muscle and different from the other muscles that are attached to your bones. Where you have to purposefully make your arm or leg muscles move, the heart muscle is continuously and, hopefully, efficiently pumping away, day and night without you thinking about it. 

Why do some of our organs come in pairs, but other organs do not? We have two eyes, two lungs, two kidneys, but only one nose, one heart, one stomach, etc. Oh well, if someone knows the answer, please forward it to me. In the meantime, since I've got your attention, let's talk about the pair of kidneys that sit in the middle of the abdomen toward the back.

Being pregnant and having a cold or the flu is miserable.