Monthly Archives: January 2014

Cygnus headed to space station with food, clothing, and other supplies

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After a series of delays, including a 24-hour slip prompted by a solar flare,Orbital Science's robotic Cygnus spacecraft is en route to the International Space Station.

The commercial spaceflight company Orbital Sciences Corp. launched a robotic spacecraft from Virginia's Eastern Shore Thursday (Jan. 9) on a milestone flight: the company's first official cargo delivery to the International Space Station.

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An Orbital-built Cygnus spacecraft launched into space atop the company's Antares rocket from a seaside pad at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Va. Liftoff occurred at 1:07 p.m. EST (1807 GMT) after a series of delays, including a 24-hour slip due to ahuge solar flare on Tuesday.

The Cygnus spacecraft is hauling about 2,780 lbs. (1,260 kilograms) of fresh food, clothing, scientific equipment and other gear for astronauts on the International Space Station. The mission, called Orb-1, is the first of at least eight cargo missions Orbital will fly for NASA under a $1.9 billion contract. [See more launch photos of Orbital's 1st Cygnus cargo mission]

"We are really looking forward to thisfirst Orbital cargo mission," Dan Hartman, NASA's deputy space station program manager, said in a prelaunch briefing this week.

The Cygnus spacecraft is due to arrive at the space station early Sunday (Jan. 12), where it will be captured by astronauts using a robotic arm and attached to a station docking port.

Orbital'sCygnus spacecraftare bus-size cylindrical vehicles designed to haul payloads of up to 4,400 lbs. (2,000 kg) to the International Space Station. They include an Orbital-built service module for power and propulsion and a 17-foot-long (5 meters) pressurized compartment built by Italy's Thales Alenia Space.

In April 2013, Orbital launched itsfirst Antares rocket test flightfrom Pad-0A at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility. A second demonstration flight in September launched the first Cygnus vehicle to the space station. Pad-0A at Wallops is managed by Virginia's commercial Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport.

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Cygnus headed to space station with food, clothing, and other supplies

Space Radiation Can Affect Rocket Launches

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On Jan. 8, 2014, Orbital Sciences Corp. elected to scrub that day's launch attempt of an Antares rocket from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Va., due to unusually high levels of space radiation - an example of the ways in which space weather can affect human technology.

Monitoring for space radiation - which refers to excessive high-energy protons in near-Earth space, often funneled in from space in association with an event on the sun such as the solar flares and associated coronal mass ejections that occurred on Jan. 7, 2014 - is a standard protocol for any launch attempt. Excess radiation can affect the critical computer systems aboard the launch vehicle.

"The launch vehicle avionics do everything from guiding the rocket, to telling it when to start up, to moving it through the various stages, to communicating with the payload after it has been ejected," said Chris St. Cyr, a space weather scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "If there's too much radiation these crucial systems could be damaged."

There are two ways that the radiation can cause problems. First, a single well-aimed proton can interfere with the electronic systems, causing circuit damage or system shut downs. Second, a strong dose of radiation can cause degradation of microelectronics. Such radiation effects are also of concern to satellites that orbit high above Earth, and in the face of a strong proton storm spacecraft operators sometimes put their spacecraft into safe mode for added protection.

Launches, however, are simply postponed. As the radiation subsides, the Antares launch team will determine a new launch date and time.

For more on space weather effects:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/spaceweather/index.html

For updates on the Antares launch:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/wallops/home/index.html

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Space Radiation Can Affect Rocket Launches

Seasteading: Sustainable Solution to Offshore Platforms: Urban …

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(Image: Andrs Gyrfi, cc-3.0)

Seasteading the concept of creating autonomous communities at sea offers a sustainable solution to dealing with abandoned oil rigs and other redundant offshore platforms. In theory, seasteads would be established beyond the territories claimed by national governments, and some would even be mobile. As eccentric as it sounds, theres a substantial movement to make this form of oceanic dwelling a realityby 2014.

(Image: Richard Lazenby, public domain)

The term can be traced to the works of two people Ken Neumeyer and Wayne Gramlich and proposals range from refitted cruise ships and adapted oil rigs to decommissioned anti-aircraft platforms and custom-built floating islands. To date, no autonomous states exist on the high seas that are recognised as sovereign nations, although the Principality of Sealand(above) a disputed micronation located on an abandoned sea fort near the UK coast might disagree.

(Image: via JackDayton, cc-3.0)

Various other seasteading proposals have been put forward, including spar platforms and modular islands. In 2009, the Seasteading Institute patented a design for a 200-person resort called ClubStead, equivalent in size to a city block. With a focus on community, the Institute hopes to launch the first seastead in San Francisco Bay in 2014. Despite the legal issues, the concept at least presents an sustainable means of dealing with abandoned sea platforms in a community driven environment.

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House panel votes to ban new red-light cameras

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TALLAHASSEE

Installation of new red-light cameras would be banned across the state under a bill that passed a key committee in the Florida House Thursday, signaling a renewed debate over the devices use to catch traffic-light violations.

The measure, approved 10-3 by the House Transportation and Highway Safety Subcommittee, would prohibit cities and counties from installing cameras after July 1 and would sharply limit the revenue that local governments could raise from the enforcement systems.

The bill would not affect the cameras already in use by the estimated 77 local governments in Florida including Sarasota, Bradenton and Manatee County.

We are not removing the cameras that are already there, said Rep. Frank Artiles, R-Miami. What were saying is that the local governments are not going to profiteer from it. ... If its about safety, make it about safety.

Artiles said leaving the existing cameras in place would meet the safety concerns raised by camera advocates, while at the same time reducing the revenue being generated for the cities, counties and the state. Critics have called the cameras a back-door tax for local governments.

The bill is opposed by local governments and law enforcement advocates.

Our message has never changed or wavered, said Chris Connell, a Tallahassee police officer representing the Florida Police Chiefs Association. We do believe that the red-light cameras are a safety improvement and they do save lives.

Connell was not able to offer any crash statistics but said his city has seen a significant decrease in red-light violations since the cameras have been installed. That tells us driving habits have been changed, he said.

Artiles noted the safety statistics are unclear since a quarter of the local governments using the cameras do not provide any crash information to the state.

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UFOs sighting in solar space – Browse Images NASA satellites for January 4, 2014 – Video

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UFOs sighting in solar space - Browse Images NASA satellites for January 4, 2014
Giant cube - UFO hologram 0:54 Please help me make my channel better! Visit the main page of the channel. http://www.youtube.com/myunhauzen74 And click on th...

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UFOs sighting in solar space - Browse Images NASA satellites for January 4, 2014 - Video

Giant cubes – UFOs, "RODs", anomalies in the solar space on NASA pictures for January 5, 2014 – Video

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Giant cubes - UFOs, "RODs", anomalies in the solar space on NASA pictures for January 5, 2014
The disappearance of the sun in space. This has happened several times in the past. We see the stars, but do not see the sun! Amazing! 1:20 Detailed analysis...

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Giant cubes - UFOs, "RODs", anomalies in the solar space on NASA pictures for January 5, 2014 - Video

NASA Television Airs Pre Launch Status Briefing for Resupply Mission to Space Station – Video

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NASA Television Airs Pre Launch Status Briefing for Resupply Mission to Space Station
NASA TV aired a pre-launch news briefings from Wallops Flight Facility to update the status of Orbital Sciences #39; Cygnus spacecraft and Orbital #39;s mission to r...

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NASA Television Airs Pre Launch Status Briefing for Resupply Mission to Space Station - Video

Foundation Medicine Extends and Expands Collaboration to …

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Mon Jan 6, 2014 4:30pm EST

* Reuters is not responsible for the content in this press release.

Foundation Medicine Extends and Expands Collaboration to Provide Molecular Information and Genomic Profiling for Clinical Oncology Programs

Foundation Medicine today announced it has extended and expanded its ongoing collaboration with Novartis to provide molecular information and comprehensive genomic profiling analysis in support of many of Novartis clinical oncology programs. The collaboration will now extend through at least September 2016.

As the result of Foundation Medicine and Novartis pilot program established in January 2011 and an expanded three-year agreement in June 2012, Foundation Medicines comprehensive genomic profiling has generated clinically relevant data and is now regularly used in many of Novartis oncology clinical trials. This new agreement, which the companies agreed to extend and expand prior to the end of the existing term, includes committed capacity for Foundation Medicine to provide genomic profiling of patient samples from Novartis clinical trials, as well as access to Foundation Medicines molecular information and analysis services. The new three-year agreement also gives Novartis the option to extend the term for an additional two-year period. Financial terms are not being disclosed.

We are deeply committed to our relationship with Novartis and pleased with the continued growth of our collaboration, said Michael J. Pellini, M.D., president and CEO, Foundation Medicine. In addition to providing comprehensive genomic profiling for patients in Novartis clinical trials, this expanded agreement will allow Novartis to take advantage of our unique and growing database of molecular information to support the evaluation and development of Novartis oncology drug candidates, biological targets and clinical trials.

Foundation Medicine uses comprehensive, clinical grade next-generation sequencing to assess routine cancer specimens for all genes that are currently known to be somatically altered and unambiguous drivers of oncogenesis in solid tumors and hematologic malignancies, as well as many sarcomas and pediatric cancers. Novartis uses these capabilities to support its targeted therapy clinical development efforts by helping to align the genomic profile of individual patients cancer with clinical trial enrollment criteria and clinical outcome analysis.

About Foundation Medicine

Foundation Medicine (NASDAQ: FMI) is a molecular information company dedicated to a transformation in cancer care in which treatment is informed by a deep understanding of the genomic changes that contribute to each patients unique cancer. The companys clinical assays, FoundationOneTM for solid tumors and FoundationOneTM Heme for hematologic malignancies, sarcomas and pediatric cancers, each provide a fully informative genomic profile to identify a patients individual molecular alterations and match them with relevant targeted therapies and clinical trials. Foundation Medicines molecular information platform aims to improve day-to-day care for patients by serving the needs of clinicians, academic researchers and drug developers to help advance the science of molecular medicine in cancer. For more information, please visit http://www.FoundationMedicine.com or follow Foundation Medicine on Twitter (@FoundationATCG).

Foundation Medicine is a registered trademark, and FoundationOneTMis a trademark, of Foundation Medicine, Inc.

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UC San Francisco and Quest Diagnostics launch collaboration to advance the field of precision medicine

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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

9-Jan-2014

Contact: Kristen Bole kristen.bole@ucsf.edu 415-502-6397 University of California - San Francisco

MADISON, N.J. and SAN FRANCISCO, CA, January 9, 2014 Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the nation's leading university focused exclusively on health, have formed a collaboration to accelerate the translation of biomedical research into advanced diagnostics in the field of precision medicine, for improved patient care, treatment and outcomes. Initial clinical areas of focus include autism, oncology, neurology and women's health.

The collaboration, which combines the research discoveries and capabilities of UCSF with the national testing database and technical and clinical development capability of Quest Diagnostics, has an overarching aim of enabling holistic and integrated diagnostic solutions that close gaps in care or enable new clinical value.

Under the terms of the agreement, scientists will jointly research, develop and validate diagnostic innovations to solve specific clinical problems and provide actionable information to improve patient care. The organizations will focus on diagnostics to advance precision medicine, an emerging field of medical science that aims to integrate the most informative data from molecular, clinical, population and other research to create predictive, preventive and precise medical solutions for patients. Quest Diagnostics would independently develop and validate any lab-developed tests for clinical use that emerge from the collaboration's research.

Researchers will utilize laboratory-based diagnostics, imaging procedures and population analysis based on Quest's national Health Trends database, the largest private clinical database in the U.S., based on more than 1.5 billion patient encounters, to advance precision medicine.

The alliance is the first master agreement that UCSF's Office of Innovation, Technology and Alliances has signed with a clinical laboratory testing company and augments the university's efforts to translate laboratory research into new therapies. The broad agreement lays the groundwork for multiple projects between the two organizations.

"Advances in technology and science have identified many promising opportunities to improve outcomes through insights revealed by novel diagnostic solutions, yet fulfilling the full potential of these opportunities often hinges on translational clinical studies which validate their value," said Jay Wohlgemuth, M.D., senior vice president, Science and Innovation, Quest Diagnostics. "This unique collaboration between UCSF and Quest brings together the finest researchers and clinicians in the country to accelerate the development of a 'product pipeline' of scientific discoveries as clinically valuable diagnostic solutions that enable precision medicine for improved outcomes."

The collaboration is launching with two specific projects already underway. One project involves Quest's national database of molecular testing data to facilitate participation in research and development efforts related to genetic variations of autism, based on Quest's CGH microarray ClariSure technology, which can help identify genetic mutations associated with autism and other developmental disorders. While there currently is no treatment for autism, a test that aids its diagnosis could help identify individuals who might be appropriate candidates for research studies that could lead to future therapies.

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UC San Francisco and Quest Diagnostics launch collaboration to advance the field of precision medicine

UCSF and Quest Diagnostics Launch Collaboration to Advance Field of Precision Medicine

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UC San Francisco and Quest Diagnostics, the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, have formed a collaboration to accelerate the translation of biomedical research into advanced diagnostics in the field of precision medicine, for improved patient care, treatment and outcomes.

Initial clinical areas of focus include autism, oncology, neurology and womens health.

The collaboration, which combines the research discoveries and capabilities of UCSF with the national testing database and technical and clinical development capability of Quest Diagnostics, has an overarching aim of enabling holistic and integrated diagnostic solutions that close gaps in care or enable new clinical value.

Under the terms of the agreement, scientists will jointly research, develop and validate diagnostic innovations to solve specific clinical problems and provide actionable information to improve patient care. The organizations will focus on diagnostics to advance precision medicine, an emerging field of medical science that aims to integrate the most informative data from molecular, clinical, population and other research to create predictive, preventive and precise medical solutions for patients. Quest Diagnostics would independently develop and validate any lab-developed tests for clinical use that emerge from the collaborations research.

Researchers will utilize laboratory-based diagnostics, imaging procedures and population analysis based on Quests national Health Trends database, the largest private clinical database in the U.S., based on more than 1.5 billion patient encounters, to advance precision medicine.

The alliance is the first master agreement that UCSFs Office of Innovation, Technology and Alliances has signed with a clinical laboratory testing company and augments the universitys efforts to translate laboratory research into new therapies. The broad agreement lays the groundwork for multiple projects between the two organizations.

Advances in technology and science have identified many promising opportunities to improve outcomes through insights revealed by novel diagnostic solutions, yet fulfilling the full potential of these opportunities often hinges on translational clinical studies which validate their value, said Jay Wohlgemuth, MD, senior vice president, Science and Innovation, Quest Diagnostics. This unique collaboration between UCSF and Quest brings together the finest researchers and clinicians in the country to accelerate the development of a product pipeline of scientific discoveries as clinically valuable diagnostic solutions that enable precision medicine for improved outcomes.

The collaboration is launching with two specific projects already underway. One project involves Quests national database of molecular testing data to facilitate participation in research and development efforts related to genetic variations of autism, based on Quests CGH microarray ClariSure technology, which can help identify genetic mutations associated with autism and other developmental disorders. While there currently is no treatment for autism, a test that aids its diagnosis could help identify individuals who might be appropriate candidates for research studies that could lead to future therapies.

The second project aims to identify biomarkers to determine which children with glioma brain tumors may benefit from a drug that is currently available to treat the disease. That project will integrate molecular biomarker testing with advanced MRI imaging technologies. This project is the first phase of larger collaborative studies to develop and validate integrated care pathways, which would include laboratory diagnostics, imaging data and other clinical information to be used in the management of patients with brain cancer and neurological diseases.

UCSF has been at the forefront of the movement toward precision medicine, for which UCSF Chancellor Susan Desmond-Hellmann, MD, MPH, co-authored the initial National Academy of Sciences paper that defined the new field. That paper set the vision of harnessing the vast amounts of genetic, environmental and health data worldwide to make health care more predictive, precise and targeted.

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UCSF and Quest Diagnostics Launch Collaboration to Advance Field of Precision Medicine