Benefits of Blogging a Book - Interview with Nina Amir

I?m delighted to host author and coach, Nina Amir during her blog tour for her new book, How to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time. Read the interview to see how you can benefit from blogging a book, the difference between that and booking a blog, and how blogging a book can lead to speaking engagements. You can also hear a recent podcast I did with Nina with more helpful advice on these topics

Q: What is the difference in blogging a book and booking a blog?

A: There?s a huge difference. When you blog a book you actually write a new book from scratch on your blog. When you book a blog you repurpose your old blog posts into a book. Let me explain.

When you blog a book, I suggest you approach the project just as you would any book project. When you first get the idea, evaluate its viability. By this I mean, find out if your idea is unique by comparing it to already published books, decide if there is a market for your book, determine if there is a need for your book. Look at your book idea through the eyes of an acquisitions editor to determine if it has a chance of succeeding both as a book in online and brick and mortar book stores and in the blogosphere. In other words, see how your idea holds up against other books and blogs.

If you think your idea is viable, then come up with a content plan and chunk the content down into post-sized bits. Write your book in short pieces just long enough for a blog post?about 250-500 words in length. Come up with a schedule, and write these posts first into a word processing program on that schedule. You will then copy and paste and publish these on your blog, sticking to that schedule, consistently over time on your blog. So, if you write three days a week, you post three days a week. Each post takes just 30 minutes or so to write and a bit longer to post. ?In this way, you create a manuscript and ?blog your book? into existence.

Now, when you book a blog you actually go back and search through your blog looking for posts that will fill in the content plan for a book. You first create that content plan, and then you go through your blog posts looking for posts to create a manuscript. You can do this in a variety of way, such as simply reading through all your blog posts, using your blog?s search box and keywords, searching for posts using the tag or label function, or looking in specific categories. You then copy and paste the relevant blog posts into a word processing document to create a manuscript. Viola. A booked blog.

Q: How can non-fiction authors benefit from blogging a book?

A: They can benefit in many ways! First, when you blog a book you get your book written. Eighty-one percent of Americans say they want to write a book, but only about two percent actually write a book. If you blog and write a short post a few times a week you will get your book written in those short increments of time. I wrote the first draft of How to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time in just five months. How? Blogging provided me with a consistent writing practice with accountability partners?readers. They wait for me to keep posting installments, and if I quit before I finished, I failed publicly; no one likes to do that. For most people, the fear of failing publicly keeps you writing, or blogging, until you finish.

Second, when you blog a book you build an author?s platform, or a built in base of potential readers. Think of this like a fan base ready to purchase your book when you say it has been released. The longer and more consistently you blog, the more blog readers you gain. These are potential book buyers as well. If you tie your blogging into your social networking, you will also gain fans and followers on these networks. This builds an author?s platform that will help your book succeed once you finish blogging it and turn it into a printed book or an ebook.

Third, a blogged book works like a test marked book idea, as does a blog in general. That?s why publishers and agents troll the internet looking for successful blogs. A blog with lots of readers represents a successfully test marketed book idea, which is why so many blogs continue to land blog-to-book deals from traditional publishers. Today, more bloggers are landing book deals than ever before, and for nonfiction authors this is a great benefit to blogging a book. You could land a book deal. If you don?t, you can publish a successful book yourself from your blog?and your blog will already have produced a book. You have no need to go back and book your blog.

Fourth, and this goes along with platform building, blogging a book allows you to promote yourself and your work a you write your book. That platform you build comes from content marketing. The more content you produce and the more you tell people you?ve produced it?via your social networking, your newsletter, ezine articles, word of mouth, and by sheer discoverability of your blog?the more you drive people to your site, and ultimately to your book. Blogging, in general, is a superb promotional tool.

Q: Should authors be concerned about copyright issues?

A: No, authors should not.? When you hit the ?publish? button on your blog, you basically copyright the material by publishing it. Under the Copyright law of 1976, which went into affect in 1978, any work created in a fixed form is protected by copyright upon creation. So, when a work is put into any fixed form?printed out from your office printer, published as an e-book, booklet or POD book, or sent out into Cyberspace as a blog post, your written work is protected by copyright. That means your completed and published blog post, or all the posts that comprise your blogged book, represent written works created in fixed form, thus they are protected by copyright.

It?s a good idea for writers to print out their work, including blog posts, before actually posting them on the Internet, but if you post often, that?s a lot of paper to have hanging around. You could actually file your work with the copyright office, but, again, if you produce a lot of writing, such as daily blog posts, that can get expensive and time consuming. That said, if you want to sue someone for infringement and collect damages, if you worry about being infringed, or if you ever want to bring a lawsuit against someone for infringement and want to collect money, having a document that says you own the copyright to your work certainly can be a useful.

You can put a copyright sign on your blog somewhere.

I find there is very little theft of content going on. Occasionally content gets ?scraped,? and used verbatim on another blog without acknowledgement. You can usually get it taken down. More often you find your work copied and cited correctly with a link back to your blog.

I always say?and someone said this first, but I?m not sure who?you should be more afraid of not having your work found than of it being stolen. If it?s being stolen, you?re discoverable, and discoverability is everything when it comes to blogging or blogging a book.

Q: Who else should consider blogging a book?

A: In particular, businesspeople, or entrepreneurs, should consider blogging books. A blog will help them increase their discoverability both locally and nationally (or globally), thus increasing their sales and leads. The more entrepreneurs ?blog, the higher up in the search engine page ranks their website or blog will move, making it easier for customers and clients to find them. Plus, if they blog a book, they will be seen as the expert in their field. Customers and clients will almost always buy from the expert author over someone who just hands them a business card or who is not seen as an expert or authority. When potential clients and customers see that the business owner, coach or consultant is an expert author, and the subject of the site is relevant to their web search, they will click through to that website, for example.

Memoir writers and fiction writers also are finding blogging a book to be a useful promotional tool. It?s a bit harder to blog memoirs and novels, but it can be done?and it is being done.

Q: How can blogging a book lead to speaking engagements?

A: By blogging, or blogging a book, you become the expert on your topic. But if you blog a book, you become an author expert as well as an expert blogger. You are then more likely to get speaking engagements. Take your blogged book to the next level?off the blog?and get it published?traditionally or as an indie publisher?and you again increase your chances of landing speaking gigs.

Also, organizations looking for speakers do so these days on the internet using search engines. The more you blog, the higher likelihood you have of being found by someone searching for a speaker. Blogging a book is a superb way to add high-quality content to a blog and become searchable, achieve expert status on line and rise up in the page ranks quickly and organically.

The same is true of the press, by the way; when they want to find an expert, they look online.

Q: Where can folks find more info on you and your book?

A: They can visit the How to Blog a Book blog, http://www.howtoblogabook.com. They can also visit either http://www.copywrightcommunications.com, my website centered on writing and publishing, or http://www.ninaamir.com, my website that works as an umbrella to point people to everything I do?all my websites, blogs, online columns, etc.

How to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time can be purchased at
amazon.com
barnsandnoble.com
writersdigestshop.com


Nina Amir is the Inspiration-to-Creation Coach, who inspires writers to create the results they desire with publishable and published products and careers as writers and authors. She is the author of How to Blog a Book, Write, Publish and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time (Writer?s Digest Books), and a seasoned journalist, nonfiction editor, proposal consultant, blog-to-book coach, and book and author coach with more than 33 years of experience in the publishing field. Additionally, she is a popular speaker on topics related to publishing and writing and the regular writing and publishing expert on the Dresser After Dark radio show. Nina is the founder of Write Nonfiction in November, she writes five blogs, including Write Nonfiction NOW! and How to Blog a Book, and has self-published 10 short books.? Also a popular human potential and spiritual writer and speaker, in all she does Amir encourages people to combine their purpose and passion so they Achieve More Inspired Results.

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Nintendo teases Wii U Pro Controller, black Wii U hardware (update: video)

Aside from officially detailing tweaks to its Wii U Gamepad today, Nintendo has announced a secondary controller for those who'd prefer a more traditional control method. Dubbed as the Pro Controller, the wireless peripheral has a remarkably similar shape and button layout to what comes standard with the Xbox 360 -- albeit with a duo a of joysticks and Nintendo-focused function buttons. You'll also notice that it's the first Wii U accessory to be colored in black, rather the white we've become accustomed to. It doesn't stop there either. While showing more video of how the Gamepad functions, it and the Wii U were also shown in the murdered-out hue for the first time -- eye pleasing to say the least. There's not word on pricing for the Pro Controller or whether the system will be released in both black and white just yet, but we'll be sure to bring you more details from the show floor at E3 when we have them. Click past the break for a look at the console and Gamepad in their darker attire.

Update: Join us past the break to view the webstream for yourself!

Continue reading Nintendo teases Wii U Pro Controller, black Wii U hardware (update: video)

Nintendo teases Wii U Pro Controller, black Wii U hardware (update: video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Jun 2012 18:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Internet and Small Business | SEO | Internet | Blogging

    Internet and Small Business

    Internet and Small Business

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    Benefits of Online business ? Online business offers it?s distinctive benefits

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    Drawbacks associated with Online business -Of program, web offers main benefits however it offers a few drawbacks as well.

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    Web enables you to really feel separate and therefore this sets apart producer as well as client, which eventually end-up within insufficient believe in in between 2 events.

    It?s also hard for that person to find the item because there might be numerous items along with various types promote via web.

    Company Versions:

    Each and every Company requirements design to operate it?s company as well as procedures. With regards to web it?s not which businesses possess style or even constructed their very own versions The majority of the businesses maintain using the subsequent company versions via web.

    Items

    Expert Providers

    Info Company

    Web occupation

    E-Publishing

    E-Advertising

    Let us realize the above mentioned 6 confirmed online business design.

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    Professional/Specialized Providers: This particular design consists of Expert providers for example accountants, experts, designers and so on. Using technologies offers urged support company in order to develop revolutionary ways of assistance the character from the company.

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    Digital Posting: These days individuals will find free of charge information, publications, as well as news letters within the electronic structure. With this business design any kind of informative created materials could be released within electronic structure as well as submitted within the web site. On the internet or even Digital posting is actually overflowing because it?s as well economical in comparison with the actual imprinted edition associated with papers, publications, news letters and so on. There are lots of revolutionary methods a business may produce income out of this business design.

    E-Advertising: Digital marketing, the company design that develops continuously and it is likely to out-perform the standard marketing techniques. Out of this business design businesses can easily market marketing room on the internet which creates the shared knowing in order to both events (marketers as well as marketers).

    Marketers obtain income through publishing ad within their web site as well as marketers will get visitors in order to their web site and/or manufacturer understanding of their (marketers) item via ad. This particular is often a large company and something may generate income from his/her web site (in the event that obtainable) just by promoting the web site room.

    All these online business design may be used through numerous businesses and also have produced a brief history with this electronic period. Therefore web is just about the correct supply along with a effective device for that companies to produce a brand new as well as revolutionary company technique to be able to maintain the marketplace.

    Various writers possess described Online business versions inside a various method however the real proposal as well as which means is actually exact same. To determine the various online business design conditions take a look at this short article. Study Right here

    Like a Wannabe online business you need to evaluate that online business design is better for you personally or even exactly where you really easily fit in the entire situation.

    Related posts:

    1. Free Internet Marketing Tips for Small Business
    2. Internet Marketing Explained In 5 Minutes Or Less

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    Judge approves Dynegy bankruptcy pact with creditors

    [ [ [['Connery is an experienced stuntman', 2]], 'http://yhoo.it/KeQd0p', '[Slideshow: See photos taken on the way down]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Connery is an experienced stuntman', 7]], ' http://yhoo.it/KpUoHO', '[Slideshow: Death-defying daredevils]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['know that we have confidence in', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/LqYjAX ', '[Related: The Secret Service guide to Cartagena]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['We picked up this other dog and', 5]], 'http://yhoo.it/JUSxvi', '[Related: 8 common dog fears, how to calm them]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['accused of running a fake hepatitis B', 5]], 'http://bit.ly/JnoJYN', '[Related: Did WH share raid details with filmmakers?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['accused of running a fake hepatitis B', 3]], 'http://bit.ly/KoKiqJ', '[Factbox: AQAP, al-Qaeda in Yemen]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have my contacts on or glasses', 3]], 'http://abcn.ws/KTE5AZ', '[Related: Should the murder charge be dropped?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have made this nation great as Sarah Palin', 5]], 'http://yhoo.it/JD7nlD', '[Related: Bristol Palin reality show debuts June 19]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have made this nation great as Sarah Palin', 1]], 'http://bit.ly/JRPFRO', '[Related: McCain adviser who vetted Palin weighs in on VP race]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['A JetBlue flight from New York to Las Vegas', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GV9zpj', '[Related: View photos of the JetBlue plane in Amarillo]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['the 28-year-old neighborhood watchman who shot and killed', 15]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/white-house-stays-out-of-teen-s-killing-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120411/martinzimmermen.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AP', ], [ [['Titanic', 7]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/titanic-anniversary/', ' ', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/b/4e/b4e5ad9f00b5dfeeec2226d53e173569.jpeg', '550', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['He was in shock and still strapped to his seat', 6]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/navy-jet-crashes-in-virginia-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120406/jet_ap.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AP', ], [ [['xxxxxxxxxxxx', 11]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/russian-grannies-win-bid-to-sing-at-eurovision-1331223625-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/1/56/156d92f2760dcd3e75bcd649a8b85fcf.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP', ] ]

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    Romney net worth remains near $250 million

    WASHINGTON (AP) ? A new financial report from GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney shows that his personal fortune remains near $250 million, about the same as last year even after a mass sell-off of stocks from his vast investment portfolio.

    Romney's campaign said Friday that his assets ranged between $190 million and $250 million, and a tally by The Associated Press put the figure at the high end of that range.

    The new financial report from Romney describes sales over the past year of a large amount of stocks that had been managed through his blind trust. The stocks sold included such familiar corporate entities as Boeing, Volkswagen and Pepsico.

    The stock sales also included several notable firms whose interests had conflicted with Romney's stances ? among them China-based businesses Hang Lung and Komatsu. Romney has advocated toughened dealings with China's government over its expanding economic interests.

    Romney campaign spokeswoman Andrea Saul stressed Friday that the investment decisions for Romney and his wife, Ann, were made under a blind trust administered by a Boston-based lawyer who has long worked with Romney. "Governor and Mrs. Romney's assets are managed on a blind basis," Saul said. "They do not control the investment of these assets, which are under the control and overall management of a trustee."

    In 2007 during his first presidential run, Romney had assured critics that the trustee, R. Bradford Malt, would see that his investments would not clash with his positions or Republican party stances. But the new 2012 disclosure ? along with other Romney financial documents released earlier this year ? showed that the Romneys held onto some of those investments well past 2007.

    The annual financial disclosure report that Romney turned over Friday to the Federal Election Commission showed a slightly wider range ? between $83 million and $255 million ? than the narrower asset range released by the Romney campaign. A Romney campaign official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the candidate's finances said that the campaign's figures were slightly more accurate because of differences in valuation.

    The new financial disclosure shows that even after his stock sales, Romney still made millions of dollars over the past year in lucrative bank notes and investment funds, including nearly 40 different funds associated with his former company, Bain Capital.

    Those assets include at least two investments that had not been previously disclosed in Romney's 2010 financial report. Both were described as "Bain Capital Inc." funds. One was valued at nearly $2 million; the other slightly more than $3,500.

    In notes provided Friday with the disclosure, Romney's trustee explained that the income from those investments and others cited in the disclosure were part of Romney's retirement agreement with Bain Capital. Romney's 2010 financial disclosure did not provide any details about his retirement agreement. The specifics of that agreement ? which provided Romney with steady income in the 13 years since he left Bain Capital in 1999 ? have never been made public.

    The notes explain that the two "Bain Capital Inc." funds are from expired entities that "formerly operated investment advisory businesses." The notes say that the income was provided to Romney under "true-up payments" ? in essence, catch-up payments ? to make up for payments not made before the entities ceased operation. Romney campaign officials were not immediately available to further explain those payments.

    Romney also reported owning as much as $500,000 in gold ? a holding similar to what he owned last year. He also reported $260,000 in stock retainer distributions from the Marriott Corporation, where he served on the board of directors until early 2011. Romney's father, George Romney, was close to the Marriott family, and the firm's current chairman, J.W. "Bill" Marriott is a prominent fund-raiser and has donated $500,000 to a pro-Romney political committee.

    Romney made $190,000 in speaker's fees for speeches at Emory University, Barclay's Bank, the International Franchise Assn. and the Intercontinental Real Estate Fund. He also received as much as $100,000 from proceeds from his campaign-themed book, "No Apology."

    Romney's stock sales unloaded dozens of investments that had been managed under his blind trust by several investment management companies. The campaign did not explain the rationale behind the stock sales, but tax forms released by the Romney campaign earlier this year showed that both the blind trust overseeing his and his wife's investments began shedding many stocks in 2010, just before he geared up his presidential campaign.

    Among the stocks that Romney sold, according to Friday's disclosure, included Wal-Mart's Mexican operation, which has been roiled by payoff allegations, and British Sky Broadcasting, the television operation sought by media magnate Rupert Murdoch.

    Other sold stocks included Komatsu and Schlumberger, firms that have been targeted in the past for doing business in Iran. The blind trust also shed an investment in Fresenius Medical Care, a German company that has done work in stem cell research, which Romney has said he opposes.

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    US economy appears weaker ahead of jobs report

    WASHINGTON (AP) ? The U.S. economy is looking slightly weaker one day before a critical report on May job growth.

    Economic growth was a little slower in the first three months of the year than first estimated, largely because governments and consumers spent less and businesses restocked their supplies more slowly.

    The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits rose to a five-week high last week. And a survey of private companies showed only modest hiring gains last month.

    Still, a softer job market hasn't caused Americans to scale back spending. Consumers spent more at retail stores in May than the same month last year, buying more clothes and Mother's Day gifts.

    The mostly disappointing data kept the Dow Jones Industrial Average on pace to record its first monthly loss since September. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note sank to 1.56 percent, a 66-year low.

    Thursday's data showed that:

    ? The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 1.9 percent in the first three months of the year, the Commerce Department said in its second of three estimates of January-March growth. That's lower than its initial estimate of 2.2 percent.

    ? Weekly applications for unemployment aid rose 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 383,000, the Labor Department said.

    ? Private businesses added 133,000 jobs last month, according to a survey by payroll provider ADP. That figure disappointed most economists, who had hoped to see job growth accelerate after ADP's survey found that just 113,000 jobs were added in April.

    Peter Newland, an economist at Barclays Research, said he was discouraged by the slowdown in first-quarter growth.

    "This report does little to change the perception of an economy ticking along at a moderate pace but failing to break out into a full-on recovery with consistently above-potential growth," Newland said.

    When the government issues its report Friday on May employment, economists expect it to say that employers added 158,000 jobs. That would be better than in the past two months but far below the winter's pace of 252,000 jobs per month. They also expect no change in the unemployment rate, which was 8.1 percent in April.

    Surveys show the economy is the top issue on voters' minds. Weaker growth and only modest job gains could give momentum to Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential challenger. Romney has made President Barack Obama's handling of the economy the central theme in his campaign.

    The government makes three estimates of quarterly economic growth, or gross domestic product. GDP measures the output of all goods and services in the United States, from haircuts and coffee to airplanes and appliances.

    A big reason growth slowed in the January-March quarter was that government spending at all levels fell at a 3.9 percent annual rate. That's the biggest decline in a year and nearly a full percentage point more than estimated last month.

    Government spending has declined for six straight quarters. And national defense spending has tumbled in the past two quarters. It fell at an 8.3 percent annual rate in the first quarter of 2012 and at a 12.1 percent annual rate in the final three months of 2011. The declines largely reflect the winding down of the Iraq war.

    Federal government spending fell at a 5.9 percent annual rate in the first quarter.

    Spending by state and local governments fell at a 2.5 percent annual rate in the first quarter, double the initial estimate. Many economists had thought the worst was over at the state and local level.

    "This throws some cold water on the view that state and local governments have already bitten the bullet and are now likely to add to, rather than subtract from, growth in 2012," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial.

    Government spending at all levels fell last year. That subtracted nearly a half of a percentage point from 2011 growth, which was 1.7 percent.

    Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors, said the economy would be growing at least a full percentage point faster if governments were spending at the rate they normally do three years into a recovery.

    "Fiscal austerity comes at a price whether you are talking about the United States or Europe," Naroff said. "In the United States, we are taking moderate growth and turning it into sluggish growth."

    Analysts think the economy is growing at a slightly faster rate this spring. Hiring has been steady and gas prices are lower, allowing consumers to spend more freely. Consumer spending drives 70 percent of economic activity.

    And more demand from consumers leads businesses to step up restocking. When companies order more goods, it increases factory production and boosts growth.

    Economists foresee growth at an annual rate of between 2 percent and 2.5 percent in the April-June quarter. Many expect the economy will maintain that pace for all of 2012.

    Still, growth of 2.5 percent typically generates only enough jobs to keep pace with population changes. Most economists say it takes almost twice as much growth to boost hiring enough to lower the unemployment rate by 1 percentage point over a year.

    The unemployment rate has fallen a full percentage point since August ? from 9.1 percent to 8.1 percent last month. Part of the reason for the drop is that employers added 1.5 million jobs in that time. But another reason the rate has fallen so fast is that some people have grown discouraged and given up looking for work. The government counts people as unemployed only if they're actively looking for a job.

    In a more encouraging development, major retailers reported bigger-than-expected sales gains in May compared with a year ago. Consumers bought more clothing and took advantage of Mother's Day promotions. The modest but healthy gains followed a dismal showing in April.

    During the January-March quarter, consumer spending grew at an annual rate of 2.7 percent. While that was the fastest pace since the end of 2010, it was down from the initial estimate of 2.9 percent.

    Jennifer Lee, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, pointed out that some components of GDP were revised higher. Among them was housing, which is beginning to show signs of a modest recovery.

    Another positive development this month: Gas prices have fallen sharply.

    A gallon of regular unleaded has dropped by 32 cents since peaking in the first week of April. U.S. retail gasoline prices fell Thursday to $3.62 a gallon, according to auto club AAA.

    Experts see gas falling to at least $3.50 by July 4.

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    Are bee, bat and frog deaths related?

    In recent years, diseases have ravaged through bat, honeybee and amphibian populations, and now animal experts suspect that shared factors may link the deaths, which are putting many species at risk for extinction.

    The latest setback affects bats, given this week's announcement that the deadly fungal disease known as white-nose syndrome has been confirmed in already endangered gray bats. The illness, caused by the fungus Geomyces destructans, has mortality rates reaching up to 100 percent at some sites.

    PHOTOS: 'Pinocchio' Frog Among Species Found in 'Lost World'

    Simultaneously, Colony Collapse Disorder continues to kill honeybees, while yet another fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, has wiped out more than 200 frog species across the world.

    "It appears that many species are under an immense amount of stress, allowing opportunistic diseases to take hold," Rob Mies, executive director of the Organization for Bat Conservation, told Discovery News. "Life is far more complex, so a single cause is likely not the only explanation for the bat, bee and frog deaths. There could be five, six or more factors involved."

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    One is how humans may be helping fungal spread. According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, white-nose syndrome can be inadvertently transferred from people to bats.

    "Some of the first caves in North America to be affected by white nose syndrome were in very high tourism areas," Mies said. "Somebody could have visited a cave in Europe wearing boots, and then brought back a tiny bit of mud on the boots containing dormant fungus."

    He explained that the fungus, which is sensitive to body warmth, does not infect humans and most other animals. Bats experience a lower body temperature while hibernating, when the fungus can set in.

    "It may eat into a bat's skin, even putting holes in it," Mies said. "The fungus can grow to a point where it winds up replacing the skin."

    NEWS: Deadly, Bat-Killing Epidemic Came From Europe

    The amphibian fungus also attacks through the skin, causing an infected frog's skin to become up to 40 times thicker than usual, according to San Francisco State University biologist Vance Vredenburg, who recently conducted a study on the related disease, known as chytrid. Since frogs use their skin to absorb water and vital salts, such sodium and potassium, infection often leads to death.

    Other human factors tied to the bat, frog and bee deaths include the use of chemical pesticides that may be absorbed through the skin, climate change, habitat loss and the spread of other health threats, such as viruses and mites.

    Helene Marshall of Marshall's Farm Natural Honey told Discovery News that "the virus causing CCD came to us when U.S. beekeepers were importing Australian packaged bees to meet the high pollination demand of the almond growers here in California."

    Both bees and bats are critical to agriculture. Bats, like bees, can help to pollinate. They are also a primary predator of agricultural and other insect pests, such as mosquitoes. Frogs additionally consume insect pests.

    The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service now has a national plan for managing white-nose syndrome in bats. It allows for diagnostics, disease management, disease surveillance and more. But Mies points out that for animals such as bats and frogs, antifungals can be "pretty nasty medicines," doing damage of their own and perhaps further damaging ecosystems.

    He said that man-made antifungal-treated mines might be created in the future so that bats ready for hibernation can use them. For bees, Marshall has partnered with hotels, businesses and individuals to establish more carefully monitored honeybee hives.

    Bees, frogs and bats are usually not poster species for animal conservation, so educating people about their benefits to the environment and economy (via agriculture) is important. Bats are particularly maligned.

    "Humans are still killing bats," Mies said. "If one finds its way into your home, please humanely evict it. If possible, you can also put up bat houses, providing much needed safe habitat for them."

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    Legal Scholarship Blog: Copyright Society ? Hamburg, NJ

    This blog features law-related Calls for Papers, Conferences, and Workshops as well as general legal scholarship resources. If you would like to have an event posted, please contact us at legalscholarshipblog|at|gmail.com.

    This blog is managed by faculty and staff at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and the Gallagher Law Library of the University of Washington School of Law

    This blog seeks to facilitate the legal academy's development and dissemination of scholarship, and so does not feature events such as Continuing Legal Education programs or regional bar association meetings.

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