Floridians want open carry, and lawmakers should listen to them – Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Luis Valdes| Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Only three states fully prohibit the open carry of firearms by citizens, and I bet youd be surprised to hear Florida is among them. Yes, we frustratingly find ourselves in the company of New York and Illinois on this issue. And Republican leaders, including Gov. Ron DeSantis, appear poised to keep it that way under the misnamed constitutional carry bill that is expected to pass this session.

Gun owners saw right through the faade when House Speaker Paul Renner threw a press conference at the end of January to celebrate introduction of the constitutional carry bill.

On the one hand, it does go a long way in restoring the rights of our residents and visitors alike to carry arms in public for self-defense without a permit. On the other hand, the bill falls short of every constitutional carry law in the country by quietly omitting the right to carry openly. So our leaders are trying to appease one side and fool the other.

I drove eight hours to testify at a hearing earlier this month on the current bill, and walked away ecstatic when witness after witness demanded the addition of open carry. In contrast, when pressed about open carry afterward, sponsor state Rep. Chuck Brannan (R-Macclenny) apathetically stated the bill is what it is as filed. Meanwhile, Brannan's sentiments were shared by Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples).

This indifferent attitude is standing in the way of what the majority wants and are united in demanding.

Republicans, who are members of the party that champions the Second Amendment, hold a supermajority in our Legislature. Instead of taking insignificant baby steps they hope will appease their base, they should take the large leaps for freedom which they have promised the voters. Lawmakers in more politically divided states have introduced and passed the very policy we are demanding and guess what it's popular!

Forty-seven states have open carry on the books in some fashion, including 25 via authentic constitutional carry laws. Even Hawaii, a Democrat supermajority-run state whose entire economy relies on tourism, has open carry.

The same old arguments about bad people getting guns and Wild West shootouts materializing in the streets will be raised, but we have a mountain of evidence from other states to refute these claims. And to clarify, this legislation has nothing to do with acquiring firearms rather it only authorizes those who already own firearms legally to carry them in public without government permission.

Now is the chance for Gov. DeSantis to once again step in and snag victory from the clutch of defeat by the members of his own party in the Legislature. While hes catching some flak over other Second Amendment missteps, DeSantis can prove the doubters wrong with this issue by demanding open carry before anything gets his signature.

We dont want watered down legislation. We want the great leap that other states have taken, which will put Florida at the forefront of liberty on another critical issue and far away from New York, Illinois and Washington, D.C. Im urging Floridas leadership to get it done the right way!

Luis Valdes is the Florida state director for Gun Owners of America, a nonprofit, grassroots lobbying organization. He is a former police officer and detective.

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Floridians want open carry, and lawmakers should listen to them - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Why the Mainstream Media Refuses to Learn Anything About Guns … – America’s 1st Freedom

When The New York Times tweeted out a photo of shotgun shells last December as art to promote an editorial arguing that America needs another ban on popular, semi-automatic rifles, anyone with even a little firearms knowledge laughed.

If the editorial board at The New York Times had the gun expertise to quibble, they might have tried to weasel out of the gaffe by noting there are quite a few tactical shotguns made to look and function something like the AR-type rifles on the market todayand, certainly, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) would be happy to point out that such shotguns have almost always been included in any proposed assault-weapons ban.

But then, a semantic game like that would make the Times ignorance even funnier. It would be like that Monty Python skit about the dead parrot. When a dissatisfied customer returns to a pet shop after recently buying a parrot that actually had been dead for some time, the shop owner tells him the dead bird is just resting. The skit keeps getting funnier because, even as the customer insists, as well as clearly demonstrates, that parrot should be pushing up the daisies, the pet-store owner just keeps right on insisting it is only resting.

Like the shop-owners unflinching persistence in the skit with the dead parrot, the mainstream medias plainly obvious ignorance of firearms and everything to do with the Second Amendment is, nevertheless, often tossed at us with a straight-faced insistence that, regardless, they are right about everything. They continue to insist that theyre right even as the policies they embraceso-called bail-reform laws that allow caught criminals to walk right back onto the streets, woke prosecutors who refuse to prosecute violent criminals and moreare clearly harming law-abiding citizens.

Is It Just BecauseThey Can Get Away With It?This ignorance of guns posing as informed righteousness is so pervasive among the gun-control elite that former President Barack Obama (D) didnt realize he was about to make a fool of himself in 2013.

Obama responded to a question asking whether hed ever fired a gun by saying, Up at Camp David, we do skeet shooting all the time.

Former President Barack Obama (D) once had this photo taken to prove hed shot a gun. Look closely, and youll see why this photo was mocked.

At first, his reply sounded like it had just the right amount of you-dont-know-me savoir-faire to not only deflect the question, but to make the person who asked it look like foolish. But then it turned out that Obama couldnt back up the claim.

Someone soon called his bluff. On CNN, then-Rep.Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) challenged Obama to prove he had shot a gun by showing everyone a photoshe even challenged him to a skeet-shooting competition.

With Obamas man card in question, he responded.

A few days later, the White House released a photo of Obama skeet shooting. Only, it was a very odd photo. The over/under shotgun he was shown shooting only had an extended choke in the top barrel. There could have conceivably been a flush choke in the bottom, but that would be odd, as skeet is typically shot with the same choke in both barrelsand skeet does require doubles. Obama also holds the shotgun nearly parellel to the ground and he looks uncomfortable with it. Still, in the photo, gas can be seen shooting from the shotguns top barrel, so yes, he certainly shot the gun, at least once.

So, why didnt Obamas White House call in an experienced shotgunner to make sure they got it right? Why didnt The New York Times seek just one fact checker who could help them get basic firearms details right? Why dont all of the outlets that pretend that popular semi-automatic rifles are a big problem (when rifles of all types, according to FBI Uniform Crime Reports, are used in less than 3% of homicides each year) at least try to get this stuff right? Why didnt New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) consult county sheriffs or a myriad of other people who are knowledgeable about guns, crime and our constitutional rights before hastily writing and signing the Orwellian-named Concealed Carry Improvement Act?

These questions go on and on; indeed, whenever a mainstream-news outlet dives into issues related to firearms, gun owners see less-humorous versions of the mainstream medias wanton ignorance of guns, coupled with obnoxious preaching about what laws must be passed to punish lawful gun owners, on display.

Its impossible for an informed person not to notice that gun-control proponents want to take away Second Amendment rights, even though they dont understand the difference between a rifle and a shotgun or a semi-automatic and a machine gun. Politicians like President Joe Biden (D) say they are for the Second Amendment, but then, in the next breath, they tell us the Second Amendment doesntdespite what the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Heller (2008)protect the ownership of commonly owned firearms. They refuse to look at the data showing that the citizens who lawfully carry concealed basically dont commit crimes, and then, in the same series of talking points, they tell us that lawful gun ownership is fueling a crime wave.

Now, the entire reason for this willful ignorance of an important topic cant just be that they dont think they have to get this stuff right, as few in popular culture or the mainstream media will call them out on it; after all, they must find some of these gaffes embarrassingthe Times tweet with the shotgun shells ended up on top of Fox News webpage!

Surely, part of the explanation is they see themselves as the college-educated class, the new smart set, and so they just assume they know more than those deplorable gun owners possibly could. But that cant be the whole answer, as again, they dont likely enjoy playing the fool.

What Lies Beneath This IgnoranceIve probed for answers to these questions many times when interacting with mainstream news journalists around tables in congressional hearings, on media junkets to visit government agencies and even during a long wait in the White House press room. Ive often found that the power structure of their workplace hierarchies insists that they stay in step with a gun-control orthodoxythey are less likely to be promoted if they dont adhere to the tenets of gun-control politics. This is the explanation Stephen Hunter, the author of the Bob Lee Swagger series of thrillers and a now-retired Pulitzer Prize-winning movie critic for The Washington Post, gave me when I interviewed him for my book The Future of the Gun.

But, along with this self-protective reason for conformity from the mainstream-media members Ive encountered is often a smug expression, a contempt-loaded shrug, a snarky smile or an I-know-better-than-you disdain. They are sure they are rightso certain they dont need to even debate the point. So insecure, actually, they view debating this issue as slumming or even as dangerous. Or, perhaps, they sense their own ignorance, and so shy away.

What this comes down to, as far as they are concerned, is they are right and enlightened therefore any counterpoints they might encounter are simply the opinions of extremists, or even just thoughts from the less-educated; after all, a majority of college graduates voted for President Bidens campaign promises for more gun-control (indoctrination in academia has had its impact) in 2020.

Now, a lot of opinion writers and social scientists have explained this political conformity by noting that many Americans prefer to stay in news bubbles, echo chambers, or information silos. They explain this by noting that those on the left watch CNN, PBS and MSNBC and read, say, The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times; whereas those on the right watch Fox News and Newsmax, listen to talk radio and read a growing number of conservative news sites. Meanwhile, adding to this bifurcation of national opinion is the fact that social-media algorithms spit out certain politics to target users who have shown they like particular points of viewthese algorithms are designed to get more clicks by feeding people what they like to consume.

All of that is true up to a point, but, as Barton Swaim recently wrote in The Wall Street Journal, when you look at the country as a whole, this echo-chamber explanation has its limits.

The fact is, the left controls much of popular culture today; therefore, the gun-control-promoting bubble is just about everywhere they go. If a gun-control supporter is exposed to a competing opinionor just the plain facts on crimeits likely from some CNN talking head or an NPR show host mocking the opinion or simply talking it away; typically, these show hosts call anything they dont understand or agree with on guns extreme, and, just like that, its swept from their minds.

Even if a gun-control proponent runs into a gun owner in a store, sporting event or restaurantwhich must happen all the timegun owners tend to be quiet about the fact that they own, and perhaps carry, firearms, so the gun-control backer wont even know they are in the company of a gun owner.

In contrast, someone who appreciates their right to keep and bear arms runs into anti-Second Amendment opinions everywhere they go. Its on TV. Its constantly on the networks nightly news. Its on the local news. It was blaring on CNN in airport terminals as we waited for flights until the CNN Airport Network shut down in 2021. Now and then, even sports casters repeat it before games. Hollywood films and shows are full of it. YouTube, Facebook and more censor gun ads, but not the gun-control point of view. A gun owner, or anyone who appreciates this basic freedom, cant just hide in a gun-rights bubble.

This enables the gun-control elitist to actually think their views are enlightened, even though they are so often uninformed, as their point of view on the Second Amendment is championed in all the smart and snarky places across popular culture. So, then, given that their views, by their definition, are enlightened, why should they bother to try to understand those with actual experience with guns?

This impasse can be frustrating for anyone who appreciates their right to ownor to potentially defend themselves withmodern and popularly owned firearms because not only are gun-control groups insisting that the good armed citizens in our society are, despite all evidence, actually bad; and not only are they actually insisting that the real bad actors (the criminals in our society) are mostly just misunderstood; but they also insist on all of this with the raised chin and haughty smile of a superiority complex.

Now, surely, a gun-control purist on the editorial board of The New York Times and like publications can conceivably have their anti-Second Amendment belief system rattled to the core by any criminal who tries to break into their home, attempts to carjack them, robs them on the street or otherwise shows them firsthand that the police cant protect them instantaneously wherever they are. But, without such a confrontation (and we dont wish that on anyone), a gun-control-believing elitist can just assume they are right.

So, What Can We Do About This Impasse?Gun owners do need to mock gun-control elitists in the media and in politics, at least a little. Teasing them with memes or sly and funny remarks and critiques with links to the facts (such as to articles at A1F.com) on social media can be helpful, as this is the language they understand. Anecdotally, it feels to me like this is happening more on Twitterthanks Elon Muskthan it used to, which is a big deal. But a light-hearted approach is best. No trolling or meanness, pleasethat isnt helpful. Gun-control supporters actually need help. They need an education. It is easy to be turned off by harsh and snarky ridicule, but a lighthearted poke can make someone stop and thinkmaybe even click on a link.

There are millions of new gun ownersmany bought guns for self-defense when riots exploded in 2020. These millions of people need to learn how to be responsible gun owners. They need to learn how to use this freedom and they need to learn about this freedom. Every breakthrough to an individual who once thought the mainstream-media narratives on guns were, despite all the evidence, right, is a small step in the right direction. This is a civil-rights movement, after all, and the NRA is the association leading the way. Let people know this by telling them to join and by pointing them to NRA resources, such as nrainstructors.org.

This needs to be a nonpartisan issue again. And it can be. Even HBOs Bill Maher recently noticed that the far-lefts politics, which includes a hatred for the right to keep and bear arms, have become so obnoxiously woke that theyre not funny anymore. They are preachy. They are dishonest. They insist on a narrow orthodoxy thats stifling. This has made non-woke shows and movies that treat guns like tools, not as talismans of evil, such as Paramounts Yellowstone, feel so good. Such examples are freeing, as they are not restricted to a body of lies.

Such is how, over time, the mainstream culture can swing back to something more reasonable on this fundamental issue. It has happened before in America. There are, conservatively, over 100 million law-abiding gun owners in the U.S. right now. Thats a lot of potential influencers.

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Why the Mainstream Media Refuses to Learn Anything About Guns ... - America's 1st Freedom

Effort to ban paramilitary groups from mobilizing in New Mexico progresses through Roundhouse – KRQE News 13

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.(KRQE) Theres a push in the roundhouse to essentially ban private militias in New Mexico. In the past few years, weve seen controversy as armed and uniformed paramilitary groups showed up at protests, and along the border. This bill is partially in response to what happened in Albuquerque in 2020 when a group calling themselves the New Mexico Civil Guard got involved in the Oate statue protest.

The state constitution prohibits private paramilitary activity, but today New Mexico doesnt have a law thats tailored to effectively preventing paramilitary groups from mobilizing for acts of intimidation and violence, says Mark Baker, Albuquerque attorney and expert witness for the bill.

House Bill 14 defines a paramilitary organization as a group with three or more people associating under a command structure. It stops people from publicly patrolling or drilling as a paramilitary group, interfering with government operations, pretending to be peace officers, or intimidating other people.

The discussion also cited an incident when a paramilitary group was stopping and detaining people on the Mexican borderexperts saying that case led to federal charges, but not state.

No one from the public spoke in opposition to this bill, but Republican Representatives John Block and Martin Zamora voiced their concerns about Second Amendment rights and how much latitude this would give prosecutors. Im thinking of rural areas. It may be a very long time until police can get there to the scene. And [an] insurrection that happens, people start storming a building and good Samaritans, Madam Chair, Representative, who may or may not be armed are protecting that building and the public employees within itI think that this could potentially charge them when theyre just trying to do a civic duty as an American to protect their fellow Americans, Block said.

The bill calls for charges ranging from a misdemeanor to a first-degree felony depending on the severity of the violation.

Baker said this law does fall within constitutional parameters, citing a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that paramilitary activity can be regulated by the states. It also falls within constitutional parameters. Justice Scalia in District of Columbia vs. Heller recognized the Second Amendment as an individual right; in that decision, cited an 1886 case noting that private paramilitary activity can be regulated by the states, Baker said.

The bill passed the House Government Committee on a six to two-vote. It heads to the House Judiciary Committee.

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Effort to ban paramilitary groups from mobilizing in New Mexico progresses through Roundhouse - KRQE News 13

SBHE: Amendments to the higher education budget bill would … – Prairie Public Broadcasting

The state Board of Higher Education is formally opposing amendments to the higher education funding bill, concerning how payment of non-renewed college presidents is handled.

This comes after some Legislators questioned the package given to former NDSU President Dean Breschani. Breschani was paid for the remainder of his contract, and became a tenured professor at NDSU.

In response, the House passed an amendment to HB 1003, saying the University System has to reimburse NDSU for that agreement something Chancellor Mark Hagerott says would be a big hit to the central office budget. A second amendment would require approvals of those kinds of agreements by the states Emergency Commission, and the Legislatures Budget Section.

Hagerott told the Board this is an erosion of the Constitutional authority of the Board.

"This is not how to transition long-serving, or even short-serving, presidents," Hagerott said. "I've talked to several senior legislators, and people in other branches of government involved in the Emergency Commission, saying 'That's the Board's job you need to defend yourself. We can't get into that business.'"

The measure will now be in the state Senate and the Board is hoping the amendments will be removed there.

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SBHE: Amendments to the higher education budget bill would ... - Prairie Public Broadcasting

Cryonics Technology Market Trends, Research Report, Growth, Opportunities and Forecast 2023-2029 – openPR

The global cryonics technology market is anticipated to grow significantly at a CAGR of 10.1% during the forecast period. Egg preservation/freezing, also known as mature oocyte cryopreservation, is a method used to save women's ability to get pregnant in the future. These preserved eggs can be combined with sperm in a lab and implanted in a female's uterus for pregnancy. The factors such as increasing infertility, late pregnancy, and late marriage are propelling demand for egg preservation/ freezing, which in turn is further increasing the growth of the cryonics market across the globe. Infertility is a disease of the male or female reproductive system failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more.

To learn more about this report request a sample copy @ https://www.omrglobal.com/request-sample/cryonics-technology-market

Carrying pregnancy at an advanced age has complications, thus this technology can aid in the situation it is an easily approachable and affordable process With the development and advancement in oocyte freezing techniques. According to WHO's latest data, around 48 million couples, and 186 million individuals have infertility globally, and a further 15% of married couples across the globe are affected by infertility. Environmental and lifestyle aspects such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, obesity, and exposure to environmental impurities have been associated with lower fertility rates.Increasing organ transplants is considered to be te another factor that is supporting the growth of the cryonics market across the globe. According to Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA), around 40,000+ transplants were performed in 2021 in the US, and another 106, 162 patients are on the waiting list, which is increasing the growth of the cryonics market.

Market Coverage

The market number available for - 2022-2028Base year- 2021Forecast period- 2022-2028Segment Covered-By Cryoprotective AgentsBy MethodBy ApplicationBy End-UserRegions Covered-North AmericaEuropeAsia-PacificRest of the WorldCompetitive Landscape- Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc., GE HEALTHCARE, OREGON CRYONICS, Merck KGaA, and others.

Key questions addressed by the report

What is the market growth rate?Which segment/region dominates the market in the base year?Which segment/region will project the fastest growth in the market?How has COVID-19 impacted the market?oRecovery TimelineoDeviation from the pre-COVID forecastoMost affected region/segmentWho is the leader in the market?How players are addressing challenges to sustain growth?Where is the investment opportunity?

Global Cryonics Technology Market- Segmentation

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Life science and healthcare facilitiesResearch laboratories

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Cryonics Technology Market- Segment by Region

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ChinaJapanIndiaRest of Asia-Pacific

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Middle East & Africa Latin America

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BioCisionCryologics, Inc.Cryonics Asia, Ltd.Cryonics InstituteCryotherm GmbH & Co. KGGE HealthcareHumai Technologies GmbHKrioRus Oregon CryonicsPraxair Technology, Inc. Sigma-Aldrich

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Single drug injection wards off COVID-19 hospitalizations, in … – Stanford Medical Center Report

A closely related substance, alfa-interferon, has been injected as a drug to treat hepatitis C and other viral infections, as well as cancer. But alfa-interferon has proved toxic to numerous organ systems, as receptors for alfa-interferon abound on the surfaces of cells in many of the bodys tissues and on immune cells. Patients receiving alfa interferon report often-debilitating side effects such as fever, chills, intense muscle aches, nausea and more.

Receptors for lambda-interferon, though, are largely limited to the linings of the lungs, airways and intestine serendipitously, the main places SARS-CoV-2 strikes as well as the liver. As a result, side effects resulting from injecting this interferon tend to be quite mild, Glenn said.

That turned out to be the case in this trial. You couldnt tell who got PEG-lambda and who got placebo, Glenn said. This wasnt surprising, he added, because the drug has already been given to more than 3,000 people in other trials and been proven to be well tolerated even when given weekly for a year.

Some years ago Glenn, who is the Joseph D. Grant Professor II, founded Eiger BioPharmaceuticals Inc., a biotechnology company that acquired the rights to lambda-interferon to develop it as a drug for hepatitis D. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the company turned its attention to the new pathogen.

Glenn has since forged ties with the TOGETHER network, which operates test sites in countries around the world and has methodically conducted clinical trials of numerous prospective therapeutic agents for COVID-19.

The PEG-lambda trial took place between June 2021 and February 2022 at 12 sites in Brazil and five sites in Canada. To participate, patients had to test positive on a COVID-19 rapid-antigen test and receive PEG-lambda or a placebo within seven days of manifesting COVID-19 symptoms. Their average age was 43. Slightly more than half were women, and about 95% were mixed race. Only 3% were white. Some 85% had been vaccinated for COVID-19.

About 930 patients received a single subcutaneous injection of PEG-lambda, and about 1,020 were given a placebo injection. Of patients receiving PEG-lambda, 25 (2.7%) were hospitalized or, due to a shortage of hospital space, placed under observation for more than six hours in an emergency clinic within four weeks for COVID-19, versus 57 (5.6%) of patients who received the placebo.

Vaccinated patients treated with PEG-lambda experienced a 51% reduction in hospitalization relative to placebo. In unvaccinated patients treated within the first three days of symptom onset, there was an 89% reduction compared with placebo the same 89% reduction that was observed with Pfizers Paxlovid.

Only 11 (1.9%) of the 567 patients treated with PEG-lambda within the first three days after symptoms appeared wound up in the hospital within four weeks of getting the shot, versus 28 (3.1%) of the 590 who got a placebo injection within three days of symptom onset a relative reduction of 58%.

PEG-lambda was equally effective against several SARS-CoV-2 variants, including omicron. There were no deaths among patients treated with PEG-lambda within three days of symptoms onset. There were four COVID-19-related deaths in the placebo group.

With vaccine-induced immunity wearing off more rapidly than has been hoped, new SARS-CoV-2 variants constantly striving to outwit our immune systems, and people shying away from repeated rounds of vaccination due to fear of side effects both real and imagined (or due to vaccine fatigue), the need for effective COVID-19 therapies is paramount, Glenn said.

But even the best treatments available today have drawbacks.

Paxlovid is a very good drug, Glenn said of the drug now most commonly prescribed for newly infected COVID-19 outpatients. But its not perfect. You need to take six pills a day for five days. One of its component medications can interfere with your metabolism of many other drugs. The older you get, the more drugs youre likely to be taking, and the more susceptible you are to COVID-19.

Glenn is an inventor on intellectual property associated with the use of lambda-interferon for treating COVID-19. While he no longer actively consults for Eiger BioPharmaceuticals, he owns equity in the company and sits on its board of directors. The company has supplied PEG-lambda free of charge to several investigators for use in independent clinical trials, including this one. Eiger BioPharmaceuticals played no role in the design of this trial, patient recruitment, data acquisition, analysis or any other function in the trials operation, and was informed of the trials results only after its completion.

Additional researchers from Eiger BioPharmaceuticals Inc., Cardresearch, Platform Life Sciences, RainCity Analytics and the TOGETHER Network contributed to the work.

The study was funded by FastGrants, the Rainwater Charitable Foundation, the Latona Foundation and Eiger BioPharmaceuticals Inc.

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Single drug injection wards off COVID-19 hospitalizations, in ... - Stanford Medical Center Report

Loma Linda University School of Medicine partners with … – Loma Linda University

Loma Linda University School of Medicine students now have the opportunity to spend their clinical years at AdventHealth Orlando thanks to a new regional campus partnership. Through the agreement, medical students can select the Florida-based healthcare system for their required clinical rotations during their third and fourth years of education leading to a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree.

The Loma Linda University School of Medicine AdventHealth Orlando Campus offers medical students the opportunity to train in Central Florida to diversify their clinical education across a variety of patient care settings and environments.

A cohort of students are learning in a setting that shares similar visions and common values with an emphasis on whole-person care just like Loma Linda University Health, said Tamara Thomas, MD, dean of Loma Linda University School of Medicine.

Medical students training at AdventHealth Orlando will follow core curriculum of Loma Linda University School of Medicine and will complete their medical education under the supervision of AdventHealth Orlando faculty.

We have a long-standing relationship with AdventHealth, and the Orlando location is an additional rotational site for students to spend their clinical years learning from a diverse group of providers and researchers, including many of whom are alumni, said Elaine Hart, MD, assistant dean of regional campuses at Loma Linda University School of Medicine.

Regional campuses are becoming more common as medical schools and healthcare organizations recognize the partnership benefits of training the next generation of physicians. The campuses boost enrollment and help increase the workforce in that region.

There is strong interest and enthusiasm to learn and participate in medical care in Central Florida, said George Everett, MD, assistant dean of Loma Linda University School of Medicine AdventHealth Orlando Campus. Students will learn in a large hospital system that offers advanced medical research and exceptional primary and specialty care to a diverse patient population.

AdventHealth Orlando is a major tertiary and quaternary referral hospital for much of the Southeast, the Caribbean, and Latin America. The facility has several residency and fellowship programs already in place, with additional programs set to launch soon. Residencies in OBGYN and orthopedics will admit their first classes in July.

According to an Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) study, the U.S. could see an estimated shortage of primary care physicians between 17,800 and 48,000 and non-primary care specialties of between 21,000 and 77,100 physicians by 2034. Other key findings state that the U.S. population is projected to grow by 10.6%, with a projected 42.4% increase in those aged 65 and above over the next decade, which will create an increased demand for physician specialties that predominately care for older Americans.

Students applying or accepted to Loma Linda University School of Medicine who are interested in spending their third and fourth year at a regional campus such as AdventHealth Orlando may indicate their preference in their secondary application.

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Loma Linda University School of Medicine partners with ... - Loma Linda University

WVU Medicine Children’s, medical experts speak out against bill that would loosen immunization requirements for schools, daycares – WV News

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WV News) WVU Medicine Childrens and a number of medical experts have come out against legislation that would loosen vaccination requirements for entry into schools and daycares in West Virginia.

State law requires children entering schools or daycares to provide proof of vaccination against chickenpox, hepatitis B, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus and pertussis, also known as whooping cough.

The state is one of six in the nation that allow only medical exemptions from the school immunization requirements.

Senate Bill 535, introduced Feb. 1, would change that by allowing religious and philosophical exemptions to the immunization requirements, with simply a letter from the childs parents needed.

Sen. Laura Wakim Chapman, R-Ohio, told WSAZ that the bills aim is to ensure equal access to education for all children in the state, preventing people from moving out of state or homeschooling children who would otherwise attend school in West Virginia.

Many in the health care community have spoken out against the bill, however, saying it puts children unnecessarily at risk from preventable diseases that can cause serious and long-term health complications and even death.

WVU Medicine Childrens Hospital stands against Senate Bill 535, which attempts to allow non-medical exemptions for daycare and school vaccine administration, said Dr. Jeffrey Lancaster, pediatric hospitalist and associate chief medical officer at WVU Medicine Childrens.

We trust our elected officials to represent the needs and wants of West Virginians, and I hope that they really consider the negative health consequences for children if this bill passes, Lancaster said.

While the focus has been on SB 535, other bills currently in the legislature would also loosen the immunization requirements. These proposals include allowing private schools to choose whether or not to require immunizations, allowing medical exemptions at the request of any licensed physician without approval from the commissioner of the Bureau for Public Health, and leaving the decision entirely up to the discretion of parents.

Lancaster said the efficacy of West Virginias strong immunization requirements have helped keep the states children healthy, however.

In 2019, 31 states reported measles outbreaks, the most since 1994. Last year, Ohio had more than 80 confirmed cases of measles in unvaccinated children, including 36 who developed severe disease and had to be hospitalized. West Virginia, despite its long border with Ohio, had zero cases, Lancaster said.

Thats a testament to the efficacy of the vaccines, and also to the safety, he said.

Lancaster said that while COVID-19 vaccinations approved for emergency use in recent years have been understandably polarizing, the vaccines required for school are not new, and their effects have been thoroughly reviewed and studied.

There are stacks and stacks of research that attest to the safety and efficacy of the required school vaccines, and there are also stacks and stacks of evidence of the illnesses and sometimes deaths that these preventable diseases can cause, he said.

Rumors and reports of a link between vaccines and autism have also been researched and found to be unsubstantiated.

Autism can have very heartbreaking consequences for the development of a child. Were getting better at recognizing it, number one, and better at treating it, number two. With that concern, there has been repeated study after study trying to find ties between autism in vaccinated kids versus autism in unvaccinated kids, and there has not been any link shown. Its just more evidence that these vaccines are safe medically, theyre safe neurologically and theyre safe developmentally.

Based on his own experiences with patients and families, Lancaster said he does not believe a majority of West Virginians are in favor of a change to the existing vaccination requirements.

I am worried that this bill and this change in law is not with the approval of most West Virginians, and Im afraid this is happening under the nose of a lot of West Virginians. In our experience, the vast majority of parents of kids want to have their kids protected with these vaccines, and particularly the parents who want their kids to have protection with vaccination but those kids cant due to some medical illness are very appreciative of the fact that other kids are immunized, creating this herd immunity, which protects their children, Lancaster said.

Lancaster is not the only medical provider to speak out against the legislation.

In an op-ed, three pediatric physicians affiliated with the WVU School of Medicine said any non-medical exemptions would place our children, residents and communities at an unnecessary public health risk for dangerous, yet preventable, diseases and illnesses.

Harrison County Health Officer Dr. Nancy Joseph also recently spoke out against legislation targeting the immunization requirements at a meeting of the countys Board of Health.

Other states look at our state when they look at immunization rates and infectious disease in children. They use us to say, Look how great that is, she said. ... We have a whole generation of physicians that have ... never seen measles, that have never seen, sometimes, chickenpox. But theres a reason for that, and we dont want them to get that experience again.

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WVU Medicine Children's, medical experts speak out against bill that would loosen immunization requirements for schools, daycares - WV News

REACH Initiative to expand equity, diversity at Stanford School of … – Stanford Medical Center Report

Johnson is working as a clinical research coordinator for the Byers Eye Institute under Jeffrey Goldberg, MD, PhD, the Blumenkranz Smead Professor and a professor of ophthalmology, on a study looking at optic nerve regeneration. He said he cant decide on his favorite aspect of the program: the tight-knit scholar cohort or the research mentorship.

The mentors pull you up onto the mountaintop to survey the landscape of career options, and thats been one of the biggest impacts on my career so far, Johnson said. I wanted to go somewhere I felt wanted and where I felt I could be my authentic self. And I feel like Im getting that with REACH.

Operating in parallel with the postbaccalaureate program is the HBCU Visiting Student and Faculty Exchange Program, founded in 2017 by professor of medicine Abraham Verghese, MD. The program, now a part of REACH, pairs medical students and faculty from historically Black colleges and universities with Stanford Medicine collaborators.

Tylanna Baker, a visiting student from Morehouse School of Medicine, was among last summers cohort of REACH-HBCU scholars. In 2014, Bakers aunt, after avoiding medical care for years, died of complications from an enlarged heart. It moved Baker to enroll at the historically Black medical school, where she developed an interest in medical culture and the way doctors in different places approach medicine.

Baker found out about REACH through a Morehouse email listserv. She applied in January of 2022 and was accepted February 3, a date she said shell always remember.

Under the supervision of Baraka Floyd, MD, a clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, Baker conducted a review of practices to limit racial injustice, then used that information to provide recommendations to workers in pediatrics departments.

You get out of your comfort zone, get out of what youve been used to during your first year of medical school, Baker said about REACH. I like seeing different kinds of doctors, seeing different kinds of professions, being in a different environment and atmosphere.

Baker hopes to work in primary care to prevent simple health issues that, without treatment, can mean death.

Through REACH, Terrance Mayes, associate dean of equity and strategic initiatives and a leader of the REACH program, hopes to create a positive feedback loop between patients and medical professionals. By increasing access to health care for people of diverse backgrounds, health inequities will narrow, Mayes said.

Recently, the REACH Bioscience PhD Fellowship launched with a goal to increase access to academic career paths. While still in early stages, the program pays for the training of minority and first-generation students to pursue doctorate degrees. Over the next year, REACH will launch three additional programs, rounding out its mission to train a new generation of leaders who prioritize health equity, social justice and racial equity:

The MD-MS Program in Health Equity Research will pay for students to pursue a masters degree with a focus on health equity, alongside their medical degree.

To address social disparities at various community levels, the Scholarly Concentration in Health Equity and Social Justice Research will engage medical students in class and community project work.

The Clinical Clerkship in Community Health of the Underserved will provide outpatient care for communities that traditionally lack access to health care.

REACH is transforming the way we deliver education and helping us train future leaders who will orient their work and their purpose around social justice and health equity, Mayes said.

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REACH Initiative to expand equity, diversity at Stanford School of ... - Stanford Medical Center Report

Gift From The Starr Foundation Brings Yale School of Medicine … – Yale School of Medicine

Yale University has announced a gift of $25 million from The Starr Foundation in support of financial aid at Yale School of Medicine. This major commitment from one of the nations largest private foundations, chaired by Maurice R. Hank Greenberg, is a significant step toward making Yales premier MD program more affordable for students with financial need. Mr. Greenberg also serves as Chairman and CEO of Starr Insurance Companies, a leading global insurance and investment organization.

In her announcement, Nancy J. Brown, MD, the Jean and David W. Wallace Dean of Yale School of Medicine, said, Reducing medical student debt enables exceptional candidates from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds to attend Yale School of Medicine and ensures that they have the financial support and freedom to pursue their education and future careers in medicine without financial burden.

I am deeply grateful for this new contribution from The Starr Foundation, said President Peter Salovey 86 PhD. Across the university, we have a goal to increase the scholarships we offer our students and to reduce the debt they carry upon graduation. Hank Greenberg and The Starr Foundation, by endowing scholarships in the School of Medicine, have enabled a permanent and significant expansion of the support we provide to our medical students.

A long-time benefactor of the university, The Starr Foundation has contributed widely to collections, international programs, and financial aid, and it has funded scholarships for Yale medical students for nearly three decades. The Yale School of Medicine attracts the worlds brightest candidates and prepares them for leadership in every area of medicine, Greenberg said. This new program will help to eliminate any concerns about funding the cost of medical school, so that these aspiring doctors can focus instead on their vital work to alleviate suffering and promote health for people everywhere.

It will empower our graduates to make careerdecisions based on their passions and desire to serve rather than on financial considerations.

Thanks to a fundraising challenge announced last year through the For Humanity campaign, the university will also make an equal and unrestricted contribution of $25 million to the medical schools general endowment to advance the deans priorities.

Each year, Yale School of Medicine enrolls roughly 104 students in its MD program. Of that number, more than half the class receives need-based financial aid, with an average scholarship award of $66,000. Even with this support, students must borrow to cover their costs.

With this gift, beginning with the 20232024 academic year, Yale medical students with demonstrated financial need will not be called upon to take out more than $10,000 in loans per year, enabling them to graduate with significantly lower debt than students at most medical schools across the country.

Dean Brown described the gift as a game changer: I want to thank The Starr Foundation for this landmark gift and for bringing the school significantly closer to our goal of debt-free education for students with demonstrated financial need. It will empower our graduates to make careerdecisions based on their passions and desire to serve rather than on financial considerations.

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Gift From The Starr Foundation Brings Yale School of Medicine ... - Yale School of Medicine

Medical microrobots in reproductive medicine from the bench to the … – Nature.com

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Medical microrobots in reproductive medicine from the bench to the ... - Nature.com

Shaking a Shared Delusion: Andrea Deyrup Combats Race-Based … – Duke University School of Medicine

A question from a medical student asking for clarification of racial disparities in hypertension launched a field-defining journey for Duke pathology professor Andrea Deyrup, MD, PhD.

Deyrup had been taught race-based associations with disease as a medical student at the University of Chicago and, like many physicians, had considered these epidemiologic data to be useful in the diagnosis and treatment of disease.

However, as Deyrup began looking at the science supporting these race-based associations she realized that the data were often misinterpreted and based on questionable science.

Shes building connections through presentations and a popular video series to end race-based medicine: Focusing primarily on race can lead to delay in diagnosis if a physician discounts a disease because it is uncommon in a particular population, said Deyrup.

My goals are to change the textbook narrative and, through a series of national presentations, to build a community that will support and nurture the change we need in medicine, she said.

Her approach has focused on structural change and individual outreach.

In preparation for her role as a co-editor for the 11th edition of Robbins Basic Pathology, one of the most widely used pathology textbooks worldwide, she analyzed the 10th edition the book to determine the extent of race-based content.

Deyrup found more than 35 diseases that were associated with race. She then dove deeply into the literature, examining the data and providing context for claims in the text.

Her compelling discoveries led to the presentation, Race in Robbins: Data or Distraction? delivered March 2021 for Duke Pathology Grand Rounds. The talk attracted a large local and national audience and resulted in subsequent invites from Harvard School of Medicine, Yale University, Memorial Sloan Kettering and other institutions.

She and Joseph Graves Jr., PhD, professor of evolutionary biology at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, have presented the material more than 50 times, including to Dukes departments of neurology, family medicine and community health, ophthalmology, pediatrics, radiology, and dermatology.

Dr. Deyrup has provided eye opening insight into the embedded racial misinformation that permeates clinical medicine and patient care, said Edward Buckley, MD, chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and vice dean for education at the Duke University School of Medicine.

Deyrup and Graves are working to remove race-based medicine from medical texts and board exams and to spread their message through a series of national and international presentations.

A common response that we get from attendees is shock and surprise that theyve never noticed this or thought about medicine and medical education in this way, Deyrup said.

Deyrup and Graves have begun many collaborations based on connections developed in their work, building a community of like-minded scientists to foster change.

Educating the educators is critical for systemic change, Deyrup said. Medical students and residents feel supported when they see our presentation, since they recognize the pervasiveness of systemic racism in medicine, but often feel vulnerable when questioning what they see.

In October 2021, Deyrup launched Pathology Central, a YouTube channel and website to share videos on race in medicine and content for medical students learning pathology.

Her motto is deeper understanding equals better medicine, and in each video she carefully dissects disease processes and links pathophysiology to patient care. Images used on the platform are of patients with multiple skin types.

One of her Race in Medicine videos has had a far-reaching impact on shifting the policy of the California Department of Public Health (CPDH). In a video, Deyrup tracks down the origin of the frequently cited statistic that 16% of people of African descent develop keloids, thick scarring after a skin injury, to a comment made at a dermatologic meeting 90 years ago.

In September 2022, a physician who had seen Deyrups video brought it to the attention of the CPDH, which had published recommendations against giving intradermal vaccinations for Mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) to individuals of African, Hispanic, and possibly Asian descent, due to an increased incidence of keloids up to 16%.

After Deyrup and Graves met with a researcher from CPDH the race-based qualification was removed from the recommendation.

Over the time I have known Dr. Andrea Deyrup, she has shown great dedication and courage in taking on one of the biggest misconceptions in modern clinical practice, Graves said. That misconception is the idea that humans have biological races, and that medicine can be organized around supposed biological racial differences.

Another way that Deyrup is expanding her reach is through publications. In 2022, Graves and Deyrup authored two articles addressing race in medicine: a perspective piece in The New England Journal of Medicine titled Racial Biology & Medical Misconceptions, and, with two colleagues from the University of Chicago, a research piece in Academic Medicine examining race-based associations in the second edition of the American Academy of Pediatrics Textbook of Pediatric Care.

Since then, the American Academy of Pediatrics has committed to eliminating race-based medicine from its guidelines, teaching materials, and textbooks.

Listen to Duke pathologist Andrea Deyrup MD, PhD, in this episode of the Nature podcast "Racism in Health: the Harms of Biased Medicine," a production of the journal Nature and Scientific American.

There are still obstacles looming and much work to be done. As Deyrup sees it, the two main challenges are systemic racism and the slow pace of change in medicine.

Systemic racism is part of the fiber of medicine, woven with assumptions formed from a biological concept of race, Deyrup said.

Since few physicians have a background in evolutionary biology or in the biology of human variation, faulty experimental design and biased interpretation provide abundant data that can be used to support racialized medicine.

Its all part of a shared delusion, Deyrup said.

In thinking about next steps, Deyrup would like to connect with specialty boards and continue her work with the National Board of Medical Examiners to remove race-based medicine from their exams.

The reason students are learning this misinformation is because theyre tested on it, said Deyrup. If we can get these testing entities to recognize that race-based medicine is harmful and then remove it, that will eliminate the impetus for medical students to learn this material and for faculty to teach it.

While Deyrup and Graves emphasize that modern humans do not have biological races, socially defined race does exist and has a tremendous impact on health and longevity.

We must maintain focus on both the legacy and the ongoing influence of systemic racism on our patients and work to provide equitable, individualized care to each of them, Deyrup said.

Jamie Botta is communications strategist for the Department of Pathology at the Duke University School of Medicine.

Photo by Steve Conlon.

Main feature photo Andrea Deyrup, MD, PhD, is a professor of pathology at the Duke University School of Medicine.

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Shaking a Shared Delusion: Andrea Deyrup Combats Race-Based ... - Duke University School of Medicine

Third arrest made at cosmetic business in Jupiter – WPEC

Jupiter Police arrested 54-year-old Donna Shuman on multiple counts of practicing medicine without an active license. She's the owner of Aqua Laser Studio. Owner Jonathan Feinberg also faces multiple counts of practicing medicine without a license. Police also arrested Johnathan Lopez-Oramas, aka JLo, an employee. He faces multiple charges of practicing without an active license and battery. (WPEC)

Two cosmetic workers are accused of practicing medicine without a license in Jupiter.

Jupiter Police arrested 54-year-old Donna Shuman on multiple counts of practicing medicine without an active license. She's the owner of Aqua Laser Studio on Indiantown Road.

Police also arrested Johnathan Lopez-Oramas, aka JLo, an employee. He faces multiple charges of practicing without an active license and battery.

{p}Jupiter Police arrested 54-year-old Donna Shuman on multiple counts of practicing medicine without an active license. She's the owner of Aqua Laser Studio. Police also arrested Johnathan Lopez-Oramas, aka JLo, an employee. He faces multiple charges of practicing without an active license and battery. (PBSO){/p}

The arrests stem from a tip to the Florida Department of Health (FDOH) from a former employee who claimed Lopez-Oramas performed more than 50 injections for patients, from platelet rich plasma injections, neuromodulator injections of Botox, Dysport and Xeomin, and Hyaluronic Acid Dermal Fillers.

The witness, who worked for two months at the studio, told investigators that Lopez-Oramas was brought in specifically to do the injections because no one else at the business did them.

Investigators said a number of Google reviews for JLo showed he did an excellent job in giving Botox to patients. But police said it's against the law to give Botox and Fillers without a medical license.

See also:Man at wheel of Lyft driver's car named person of interest in death investigation

Police sent an undercover agent with the Department of Health to Aqua Laser Studio to confirm JLo performed Botox treatments at the facility. The undercover agent made an appointment for Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 4 p.m., to receive Botox injections. Police said the suspect prepped the undercover agent for an injections by wiping off her face and giving her ice on the injection sites. That's when police stepped in to arrest him.

Lopez-Oramas, or JLO, told investigators that Shuman hired him to do Botox and lip filler injections, and that she knew he didn't have a license. He admitted to giving injections to a number of patients and staff members. According to the report, JLo told police that his boss had once referenced another local spa that did the same thing.

Shuman told police she hired JLo, but when asked if she knew he didn't have a license, she appeared surprised. According to the arrest report, she said, "He doesn't have a license?"

Owner Jonathan Feinberg also faces multiple counts of practicing medicine without a license. (PBSO)

Police arrested a second owner of the facility, 22-year-old Jonathan Feinberg, on Wednesday on five counts of practicing medicine without a license. He is free on bond.

Donna Shuman, the owner ofAqua Laser Studio, sent this statement to CBS12:

Anyone with information about the suspects or business is asked to call police at 561-741-2410.

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Third arrest made at cosmetic business in Jupiter - WPEC

Music in Medicine: Therapeutic music is good for the heart, energy – Citrus County Chronicle

February is American Heart Month. Much of the medical community is focusing on heart health awareness. I thought it appropriate to talk about how the heart enters into effective therapeutic music.

On a recent visit to a hospice house, I must have triggered extra focus and energy by meditating before entering the room. Before arriving at the hospice, I had been involved in a very frustrating meeting which had my nerves on edge. I knew that was a very poor state in which to play therapeutic music. To be effective with the music, I need to be focused on the moment, focused outward not inward.

Being in the moment allows me to be open to whatever situation I may encounter in the patient room. Helpful, too, is thinking of something for which I am grateful, and embrace that thought.

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I entered the hospice room where an elderly man was lying on his back, unconscious, struggling to breathe. As a person nears the end of life, breathing becomes very irregular with long pauses. This condition is called Cheyne-Stokes. He was clearly in this stage.

His family was in the room with him. The room was warm and comfortable, and had an aura of peace and respect. They invited me to play music.

The music I played was very slow, yet melodic enough that it wouldnt upset the mood of the family. The purpose of slow music was to allow the dying man time to process the music.

As the body begins to shut down, the brain slows down. (Or vice versa: As the brain slows, it slows the body). A fast tempo or a complicated rhythm would surely be difficult for his brain to process. My intention was to make his time easier, not harder. So very slow, simple music was called for.

The music had many long pauses as I synched the music to his breathing. After an exhalation, he had a very long pause. So long, I often wondered if there would be another. As I played for this gentleman, I felt a wave of energy from him. I knew that we had connected. My senses opened to him.

The existence of energetic communication has been researched in many studies. The energy that one can pick up from another person actually comes from the heart, not the brain. The energy is explained by the electromagnetic energy that is a constant in our environment and in our bodies.

Surprisingly, our hearts produce about 60 times the strength of magnetic emissions that the brain does.

So it makes sense if you want to have an energy connection with another person, center on your heart to make it happen. How do you do this?

To be able to receive the energy from another person, your nervous system needs to be calm and stabilized. If you are in chaos, the energy received from another person cannot be processed and acknowledged.

Center yourself. Think only positive thoughts. Think of something for which you are grateful and move that image into your heart. This is not intended to relax and calm you, but to organize your nervous system so it is poised to receive the energy communication.

When I follow my own advice, my music reaches better levels. With an energy connection, I am with the patient. I can play much more effectively.

If you wish to learn more about the energy communication sustained by the heart, visit the HeartMath Institute website at info@heartmath.org.

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Music in Medicine: Therapeutic music is good for the heart, energy - Citrus County Chronicle

Practicing Medicine Half a World Away | Lander College of Arts … – Touro University

Touro students in front of the Bangkok Ministry of Public Health (top) and at the Elephant Reserve (bottom)

Twenty-six students from Touros Lander College for Women (LCW) and Lander College of Arts & Sciences (LAS) debated these and other questions during a midwinter break trip to Bangkok, as part of a two-week course in bioethics. The three-credit course, Biomedical Cross-cultural Educational Program (BioCEP) provided the students with a first-hand look at a wide variety of hospitals and institutions to learn how culture can impact ethical decisions in medicine, dentistry and biology.

Accompanied by Dr. John Loike, a professor of biology and bioethics and the founder of BioCEP, the students were introduced to a number of compelling ethical questions, including when life begins; the nature and limits of informed consent; the treatment of so-called orphan diseases; and the use of deception in research. Having the students confront these issues in person, rather than in theory, was one of Dr. Loikes many objectives for the course.

Part of the experience is for the students to appreciate and respect the diverse cultural values in medicine and science, he said. Gaining an appreciation for this international diversity is critical for pre-med, pre-dent and pre-health students, and I wanted to instill in the students an appreciation and respect for the diverse cultural values people have in medicine and science.

Over the course of the two weeks, the group visited multiple hospitals and met with healthcare staff to gain a better understanding of people with whom they shared many professional interests, but have very different backgrounds, and who face challenges the American students hadnt encountered previously. Among those were the Yanhee Hospital for Health and Beauty, to witness some of the surgical innovations to enhance patients appearance and beauty, and the Hospital for Tropical Medicine, to learn about the ethical challenges in treating Dengue fever and malaria.

Naomi May, a senior at LCW, said she was fascinated by a lecture they heard at the King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital about cord blood, which is the blood left over in the placenta that contains hematopoietic stem cells.

These stem cells are so important, as they can be used to treat many serious diseases, even cancer, said May, who hopes to be a nurse in a delivery and labor unit.

Students also had the opportunity to hear from Thailands Ministry of Public Health about the ethical challenges in developing universal healthcare and about the difficulties in establishing clinics in rural areas of Thailand.

My thoughts before the trip were that patient autonomy was the most important tenet of medical ethics, and any decision made AMA [Against Medical Advice] must be due to their personal beliefs, said Shira Davis, a psychology major who is a senior at Touros Lander College for Women. Now I understand the pervasiveness of misinformation and lack of medical care that can lead to patients making such decisions.

Dr. Loike founded BioCEP to enable students to discuss, assess and reflect on the ethical questions they encountered in Thailand. The program was facilitated in conjunction with the Knowledge Exchange Institute, an organization that allows students abroad to gain practical experience and enhance their understanding of the world through cultural and social immersion. The Institute provided the group with a Thai representative, Marisa Chung Vinitketkumnuan, a former Buddhist monk, who joined the students on field trips and taught them about Thai culture.

Students stayed at hotels next to the five-story Chabad-Lubavitch of Bangkok Center, which provided meals for their two Shabbatot in Thailand and where they davened, joined by more than 500 Israeli tourists. Dr. Loike lectured the students each night on Chabads sky roof lounge overlooking the Bangkok landscape and they also heard meaningful shiurim about halachic challenges of living in Thailand from the Director of the Chabad House, Rabbi and Rebetzin Wilhelm.

Although the educational aspects of the program is its primary purpose, they still managed to squeeze a little fun into their time abroad. The highlights included the beautiful underground aquarium that housed a salt water lake containing sharks and sting rays, and an elephant reserve where they bathed elephants by hand. They also visited a Red Cross snake farm, where the head veterinarian showed them how king cobras are milked to develop anti-venom serum.

Before coming home, they met with 30 undergraduate students at Mahidol University to learn about innovative online science education, and to build cultural bridges with some of their Thai counterparts.

Never before had I felt the global connection of physicians and researchers as strongly as I did in Thailand, said sophomore Chana Birnbaum. Spending time in Bangkok broadened my understanding of both Thai culture and healthcare. Moreover, it demonstrated how insights and breakthroughs are shared across the world, for the sake of humanity.

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Practicing Medicine Half a World Away | Lander College of Arts ... - Touro University

Health care’s future with ChatGPT: Exploring the potential of AI in … – Kevin MD

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

In this episode, we are joined by Harvey Castro, a physician, health care consultant, and serial entrepreneur, to discuss the exciting potential of the generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) in the field of medicine and health care. ChatGPT is a type of artificial intelligence that can generate human-like text and has already gained 1 million users in under a week of being released.

We will explore the limitations of ChatGPT, including the quality of the responses that depend on the quality of the prompts entered and the accuracy of the data used to train the AI. However, despite these limitations, we will also examine the many potential uses of ChatGPT in health care, including personalized treatment plans.

Harvey will discuss the importance of accurate and up-to-date data and the need for measures to protect patient privacy and medical data security.

The potential for ChatGPT in health care is vast, and this podcast will give you a glimpse into the future.

Harvey Castrois a physician, health care consultant, and serial entrepreneur with extensive experience in the health care industry. He can be reached on his website,harveycastromd.info, Twitter@HarveycastroMD,Facebook,Instagram, andYouTube. He is the author ofChatGPT and Healthcare: The Key To The New Future of MedicineandSuccess Reinvention.

He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, Revolutionizing medicine: How ChatGPT is changing the way we think about health care.

The Podcast by KevinMD is brought to you by the Nuance Dragon Ambient eXperience.

With so many demands on their time, physicians today report record levels of burnout. Burnout is caused by many factors, one of which is clinical documentation. Studies indicate physicians spend two hours documenting care for every hour spent with patients.

At Nuance, we are committed to helping physicians do what you love care for patients and spend less time on clinical documentation. The Nuance Dragon Ambient eXperience, or DAX for short, is an AI-powered, ambient clinical intelligence solution that automatically captures patient encounters securely and accurately at the point of care. Physicians who use DAX have reported a 50 percent decrease in documentation time and a 70 percent reduction in feelings of burnout, and 83 percent of patients say their physician is more personable and conversational.

Rediscover the joy of medicine with clinical documentation that writes itself, all within the EHR.

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Health care's future with ChatGPT: Exploring the potential of AI in ... - Kevin MD

Azzi & Ostas Latest Couture Collection Is Futuristic For A World Ready To Live On Mars – Forbes

Couture collection: Philarmonie Astrale.Photo Credit: Azzi & Osta

Azzi & Ostas spring-summer 2023 collection takes a turn to the planet Mars in a theme called Philarmonie Astrale. If you know the Lebanese duo, they are known for unveiling very unique themed collections, though usually based on a destination location or film theme like 007. With elaborate and shapely silhouettes that fit in line with the goings on of Mars, its a unique, original and trendsetting collection, one where the duo master couture craftsmen romanticize technology by creating for this imaginary cosmic opera.

The theme came from the fascination of how the world is making plans to live in space, as if it is in the near future, says House founders George Azzi and Assaad Osta. With passengers already booked for a trip to Mars and hotels planned to be built in space, the whole idea feels inevitable and actually real. Not Mars specifically, but the one-hundred humans from earth living on Mars is one of the most ambitious space projects in the near future. So, if we imagine life on Mars becoming reality, then fashion and art on Mars will follow.

So, what would Mars couture fashion look like? Azzi and Osta answer this. Its a place of mutant dresses, with romantic, futuristic, organic, and geometric silhouettes. Looks are large and flamboyant with long draping velvet fabric that contrasts to translucent organza that complements a gown. Their use of silk, satin, crystal mesh, and embroidered tulle are on short gowns, tailored dresses, and military inspired shoulders. The duo also incorporates 3D embroidery that create silvery and tactile surfaces that are reminiscent to waves on the moon.

The color palette includes toxic greens, ultra-violet and infra-roses of aurora borealis thats seen in the polar lights. Pink, coral, fluorescent yellow, absinthe green, cosmic blue, deep black, and flashes of gold and silver are etched in the sartorial story that the duo is trying to tell through color.

One might think they were inspired by surrealism, but Azzi and Osta insist not. The work of Surrealist artists was not an inspiration for this specific theme, more as Space itself, the colors, the galaxies, the endless shapes and colors of Nebula is more than sufficient in terms of Surrealism, they say.

Since the woman wearing the collection is going to a cosmic opera, opera gloves are an important part of the looks. One by one, flying vehicles drop the guests on the red carpet. A lineup of huge artists will play Music from Earth, the titles of the Golden Disc launched into the universe by the Voyager probes in 1977, as a testimony to Earth's culture, explain the collection notes.

Its a collection meant for red carpets, a trend that was poignant during the recent Haute Couture Week. Designers this season have gone for the elaborate and the romantic, yet daring. Philarmonie Astrale is a romantic approach to space and futurism, its saying that a romantic will be a romantic anywhere and anytime. The woman wearing this collection is first and foremost a daring woman, eager to make and entrance and turn heads. Shes filled with mystery and surprises like space itself, yet equally romantic and poetic, like a walk under a starry night, says the duo.

From European Riviera coasts, 1950s photography, the canals of Amsterdam, espionage, and now cosmic operas. What will Azzi & Osta dream up next?

With a background in International Politics and having worked for a few years in Washington, DC, I have found myself in a totally different arena- fashion, style, travel, and cultures. I have developed an eye for couture craftsmanship, as well as learning how to put intricate and detailed collections into words.

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Azzi & Ostas Latest Couture Collection Is Futuristic For A World Ready To Live On Mars - Forbes

Ubisoft Turns to 3D Printing to Create Futuristic Costumes in Just Dance 2023 – 3Dnatives

For over 14 years, Just Dance, a game that (as the name suggests) has been designed to get you dancing, has amazed users. Starting on the Wii all the way back in 2009, this year Ubisoft released the 14th version of the game which can be played on a number of different consoles including Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S. But more consoles is not the only way that the game has changed. For this latest version, Ubisoft, the game creator, turned to 3D printing to help create futuristic fashion pieces for use in-game.

Ubisoft is one of the biggest gaming companies out of there. Some of their most famous games include the Assassins Creed series, Far Cry, Rabbids and more. And of course Just Dance is also one of their most popular offerings. In the game, users use a motion detecting device in order to follow along with a coach that is dancing on the screen, trying to get as close to the actual movement as possible. These coaches are faceless and virtual, but they do tend to have one thing in common: incredible costumes. It is here that Ubisoft has turned to 3D printing.

Ubisoft used 3D printing and laser cutting to create the intricate costume for Night Swan

As mentioned, the coaches in Just Dance are known for their extravagant and beautiful costumes. But contrary to what you may believe, these cannot just be made on screen. In fact, in order to get the correct movements for the game, Ubisoft needs to have actual dancers perform the movements in front of a green screen. These are then animated in the game itself. However, this means that the dancers also need to be wearing the same clothing as their characters, no matter how intricate they may be.

Thus, Ubisoft decided that 3D printing would be ideal to help them create the outfit of the villain of Just Dance 2023, Night Swan. In order to reflect the fact that Night Swan was a powerful villain, the designers decided that the costume needed to be equally elaborate, landing on a long, flowing overcoat and body suit covered in 300 independently movable, hand-placed feathers. This was then created by combining additive manufacturing and laser cutting.

For Just Dance 2021, Ubisoft turned to 3D printing to create a futuristic prosthetic for one of the dancers

Moreover, this was actually not the first time that Ubisoft turned to 3D printing. In Just Dance 2021, the team used the technologies to create a 3D printed prosthetic and chest plate to give a retro-futuristic feel. Costume Designer and Character Lead Benjamin Jouffret does not specify which 3D technology was used in either case, but we know it uses polymers, notably softer ones for Night Swan since hard materials would have hurt the dancer. Furthermore, given the look of the costumes, it could have easily down with some kind of photopolymerization method like SLA or material jetting. Indeed these two processes are often popular for pieces that must look beautiful, for example in the movie industry, so it would come as no surprise that they may have been adopted for video games as well.

Joffret concludes, Its been a huge opportunity to work with 3D-printing techniques because we can create an outfit with a lot of detailed elements that makes the finished product look and perform in a really high-quality way. Additionally, once we decide on a final shape and material for the 3D-printed objects, we can change the way the computer renders them. For example, we can make the objects appear like theyre made of metal or plastic on-camera, in order to fit with our initial vision. You can find out more on Ubisofts website HERE.

What do you think of Ubisofts use of 3D printing for Just Dance 2021 and 2023? Let us know in a comment below or on ourLinkedIn,Facebook, andTwitterpages! Dont forget to sign up for our free weeklyNewsletter here, the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox! You can also find all our videos on ourYouTubechannel.

*All Photo Credits: Ubisoft

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Ubisoft Turns to 3D Printing to Create Futuristic Costumes in Just Dance 2023 - 3Dnatives

L&T positions tech arm to develop futuristic projects – BusinessLine

Having merged L&T Infotech and Mindtree into a single IT services company, L&T is shaping up its other tech arm L&T Technology Services (LTTS) to take up futuristic projects, including driverless cars.

Autonomous car is a classic example of work that companies like LTTS will be engaged in. They will work on the dashboard of the car. LTTS enables technology and gadgets to become intelligent and sophisticated in terms of their processing capabilities and embedded functionalities, Shankar Raman, Whole-time Director and CFO, L&T, told businessline.

The company, incorporated in 2012, focuses on technology development in mobility, telecommunication and healthcare space, and is present in over 30 countries. LTTS provides product, manufacturing and operation engineering solutions and engineering consultancy.

Other Indian companies are also working on bringing autonomous cars and future mobility technology to the country. Tata Motors is working with its subsidiary JLR to construct the architecture that supports future technologies, including bringing level-two autonomous cars and connected cars to India.

While L&T Infotech and Mindtree have been merged, the conglomerate has no such plans for LTTS.

LTI and Mindtree were into IT services, whose consumers are chief information officers of various companies, but LTTS is an engineering-based company and its customers are the key technology officers. In simple terms, there are features on mobile phones which enable us to sidestep tedious processes, including voice recognition and autocorrect, done by embedded software. The software and the engineering behind it is what the technology does. While large IT companies have it embedded in their mainstream business, we have chosen to keep LTTS a niche, specialised engineering service company, added Raman.

L&T is also adopting digital technologies to future proof its businesses. From using new platforms based on AI for its construction business to connecting 11,000 equipment being used at various project sites for providing real-time visibility into the operations of these machines,the company is transforming its own operations.

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L&T positions tech arm to develop futuristic projects - BusinessLine

ChatGPT – Wikipedia

Artificial-intelligence chatbot developed by OpenAI

ChatGPT (Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer)[2] is a chatbot developed by OpenAI and launched in November 2022. It is built on top of OpenAI's GPT-3 family of large language models and has been fine-tuned (an approach to transfer learning)[3] using both supervised and reinforcement learning techniques.

ChatGPT was launched as a prototype on November 30, 2022, and quickly garnered attention for its detailed responses and articulate answers across many domains of knowledge. Its uneven factual accuracy, however, was identified as a significant drawback.[4] Following the release of ChatGPT, OpenAI's valuation was estimated at US$29billion.[5]

ChatGPTa generative pre-trained transformer (GPT)was fine-tuned on top of GPT-3.5 using supervised learning as well as reinforcement learning.[6] Both approaches used human trainers to improve the model's performance. In the case of supervised learning, the model was provided with conversations in which the trainers played both sides: the user and the AI assistant. In the reinforcement step, human trainers first ranked responses that the model had created in a previous conversation. These rankings were used to create 'reward models' that the model was further fine-tuned on using several iterations of Proximal Policy Optimization (PPO).[7][8] Proximal Policy Optimization algorithms present a cost-effective benefit to trust region policy optimization algorithms; they negate many of the computationally expensive operations with faster performance.[9][10] The models were trained in collaboration with Microsoft on their Azure supercomputing infrastructure.

In addition, OpenAI continues to gather data from ChatGPT users that could be used to further train and fine-tune ChatGPT. Users are allowed to upvote or downvote the responses they receive from ChatGPT; upon upvoting or downvoting, they can also fill out a text field with additional feedback.[11][12]

Although the core function of a chatbot is to mimic a human conversationalist, ChatGPT is versatile. For example, it can write and debug computer programs,[13] compose music, teleplays, fairy tales, and student essays; answer test questions (sometimes, depending on the test, at a level above the average human test-taker);[14] write poetry and song lyrics;[15] emulate a Linux system; simulate an entire chat room; play games like tic-tac-toe; and simulate an ATM.[16] ChatGPT's training data includes man pages and information about Internet phenomena and programming languages, such as bulletin board systems and the Python programming language.[16]

In comparison to its predecessor, InstructGPT, ChatGPT attempts to reduce harmful and deceitful responses.[17] In one example, whereas InstructGPT accepts the premise of the prompt "Tell me about when Christopher Columbus came to the U.S. in 2015" as being truthful, ChatGPT acknowledges the counterfactual nature of the question and frames its answer as a hypothetical consideration of what might happen if Columbus came to the U.S. in 2015, using information about the voyages of Christopher Columbus and facts about the modern world including modern perceptions of Columbus' actions.[7]

Unlike most chatbots, ChatGPT remembers previous prompts given to it in the same conversation; journalists have suggested that this will allow ChatGPT to be used as a personalized therapist.[2] To prevent offensive outputs from being presented to and produced from ChatGPT, queries are filtered through OpenAI's company-wide moderation API,[18][19] and potentially racist or sexist prompts are dismissed.[7][2]

ChatGPT suffers from multiple limitations. OpenAI acknowledged that ChatGPT "sometimes writes plausible-sounding but incorrect or nonsensical answers".[7] This behavior is common to large language models and is called artificial intelligence hallucination.[20] The reward model of ChatGPT, designed around human oversight, can be over-optimized and thus hinder performance, otherwise known as Goodhart's law.[21] ChatGPT has limited knowledge of events that occurred after 2021. According to the BBC, as of December 2022, ChatGPT is not allowed to "express political opinions or engage in political activism".[22] Yet, research suggests that ChatGPT exhibits a pro-environmental, left-libertarian orientation when prompted to take a stance on political statements from two established voting advice applications.[23] In training ChatGPT, human reviewers preferred longer answers, irrespective of actual comprehension or factual content.[7] Training data also suffers from algorithmic bias, which may be revealed when ChatGPT responds to prompts including descriptors of people. In one instance, ChatGPT generated a rap indicating that women and scientists of color were inferior to white and male scientists.[24][25]

ChatGPT was launched on November 30, 2022, by San Franciscobased OpenAI, the creator of DALLE 2 and Whisper AI. The service was launched as initially free to the public, with plans to monetize the service later.[26] By December 4, OpenAI estimated ChatGPT already had over one million users.[11] In January 2023, ChatGPT reached over 100 million users, making it the fastest growing consumer application to date.[27] CNBC wrote on December 15, 2022, that the service "still goes down from time to time".[28] The service works best in English, but is also able to function in some other languages, to varying degrees of success.[15] Unlike some other recent high-profile advances in AI, as of December 2022, there is no sign of an official peer-reviewed technical paper about ChatGPT.[29]

According to OpenAI guest researcher Scott Aaronson, OpenAI is working on a tool to attempt to digitally watermark its text generation systems to combat bad actors using their services for academic plagiarism or spam.[30][31] The company says that this tool, called "AI classifier for indicating AI-written text",[32] will "likely yield a lot of false positives and negatives, sometimes with great confidence." An example cited in The Atlantic magazine showed that "when given the first lines of the Book of Genesis, the software concluded that it was likely to be AI-generated."[33]

The New York Times reported in December 2022 that it has been "rumored" that the next version of the AI, GPT-4, will be launched sometime in 2023.[2] In February 2023, OpenAI began accepting registrations from United States customers for a premium service, ChatGPT Plus, to cost$20 a month.[34] OpenAI is planning to release a ChatGPT Professional Plan that costs$42 per month, and the free plan is available when demand is low.

ChatGPT was met in December 2022 with some positive reviews; Kevin Roose of The New York Times labeled it "the best artificial intelligence chatbot ever released to the general public".[2] Samantha Lock of The Guardian newspaper noted that it was able to generate "impressively detailed" and "human-like" text.[35] Technology writer Dan Gillmor used ChatGPT on a student assignment, and found its generated text was on par with what a good student would deliver and opined that "academia has some very serious issues to confront".[36] Alex Kantrowitz of Slate magazine lauded ChatGPT's pushback to questions related to Nazi Germany, including the statement that Adolf Hitler built highways in Germany, which was met with information regarding Nazi Germany's use of forced labor.[37]

In The Atlantic magazine's "Breakthroughs of the Year" for 2022, Derek Thompson included ChatGPT as part of "the generative-AI eruption" that "may change our mind about how we work, how we think, and what human creativity really is".[38]

Kelsey Piper of the Vox website wrote that "ChatGPT is the general public's first hands-on introduction to how powerful modern AI has gotten, and as a result, many of us are [stunned]" and that ChatGPT is "smart enough to be useful despite its flaws".[39] Paul Graham of YCombinator tweeted that "The striking thing about the reaction to ChatGPT is not just the number of people who are blown away by it, but who they are. These are not people who get excited by every shiny new thing. Clearly, something big is happening."[40] Elon Musk wrote that "ChatGPT is scary good. We are not far from dangerously strong AI".[39] Musk paused OpenAI's access to a Twitter database pending a better understanding of OpenAI's plans, stating that "OpenAI was started as open source and nonprofit. Neither is still true."[41][42] Musk had co-founded OpenAI in 2015, in part to address existential risk from artificial intelligence, but had resigned in 2018.[42]

In December 2022, Google internally expressed alarm at the unexpected strength of ChatGPT and the newly discovered potential of large language models to disrupt the search engine business, and CEO Sundar Pichai "upended" and reassigned teams within multiple departments to aid in its artificial intelligence products, according to a report in The New York Times.[43] The Information website reported on January 3, 2023, that Microsoft Bing was planning to add optional ChatGPT functionality into its public search engine, possibly around March 2023.[44][45] According to CNBC reports, Google employees are intensively testing a chatbot called "Apprentice Bard", and Google is preparing to use this "apprentice" to compete with ChatGPT.[46]

Stuart Cobbe, a chartered accountant in England and Wales, decided to test ChatGPT by entering questions from a sample exam paper on the ICAEW website and then entering its answers back into the online test. ChatGPT scored 42percent, which, while below the 55percent pass mark, was considered a reasonable attempt.[47]

Writing in Inside Higher Ed professor Steven Mintz states that he "consider[s] ChatGPT ... an ally, not an adversary." He went on to say that he felt the AI could assist educational goals by doing such things as making reference lists, generating "first drafts", solving equations, debugging, and tutoring. In the same piece, he also writes:[48]

I'm well aware of ChatGPT's limitations. That it's unhelpful on topics with fewer than 10,000 citations. That factual references are sometimes false. That its ability to cite sources accurately is very limited. That the strength of its responses diminishes rapidly after only a couple of paragraphs. That ChatGPT lacks ethics and can't currently rank sites for reliability, quality, or trustworthiness.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was quoted in The New York Times as saying that AI's "benefits for humankind could be 'so unbelievably good that it's hard for me to even imagine.' (He has also said that in a worst-case scenario, A.I. could kill us all.)"[49]

In the months since its release, ChatGPT has been met with widespread criticism from educators, journalists, artists, ethicists, academics, and public advocates. James Vincent of The Verge website saw the viral success of ChatGPT as evidence that artificial intelligence had gone mainstream.[8] Journalists have commented on ChatGPT's tendency to "hallucinate."[50] Mike Pearl of the online technology blog Mashable tested ChatGPT with multiple questions. In one example, he asked ChatGPT for "the largest country in Central America that isn't Mexico." ChatGPT responded with Guatemala, when the answer is instead Nicaragua.[51] When CNBC asked ChatGPT for the lyrics to "The Ballad of Dwight Fry," ChatGPT supplied invented lyrics rather than the actual lyrics.[28] Researchers cited by The Verge compared ChatGPT to a "stochastic parrot",[52] as did Professor Anton Van Den Hengel of the Australian Institute for Machine Learning.[53]

In December 2022, the question and answer website Stack Overflow banned the use of ChatGPT for generating answers to questions, citing the factually ambiguous nature of ChatGPT's responses.[4] In January 2023, the International Conference on Machine Learning banned any undocumented use of ChatGPT or other large language models to generate any text in submitted papers.[54]

Economist Tyler Cowen expressed concerns regarding its effects on democracy, citing its ability to produce automated comments, which could affect the decision process for new regulations.[55] An editor at The Guardian, a British newspaper, questioned whether any content found on the Internet after ChatGPT's release "can be truly trusted" and called for government regulation.[56]

In January 2023, after being sent a song written by ChatGPT in the style of Nick Cave,[57] the songwriter himself responded on The Red Hand Files[58] (and was later quoted in The Guardian) saying the act of writing a song is "a blood and guts business ... that requires something of me to initiate the new and fresh idea. It requires my humanness." He went on to say "With all the love and respect in the world, this song is bullshit, a grotesque mockery of what it is to be human, and, well, I don't much like it."[57][59]

In 2023, Australian MP Julian Hill advised the national parliament that the growth of AI could cause "mass destruction". During his speech, which was partly written by the program, he warned that it could result in cheating, job losses, discrimination, disinformation, and uncontrollable military applications.[60]

Check Point Research and others noted that ChatGPT was capable of writing phishing emails and malware, especially when combined with OpenAI Codex.[61] OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote that advancing software could pose "(for example) a huge cybersecurity risk" and also continued to predict "we could get to real AGI (artificial general intelligence) in the next decade, so we have to take the risk of that extremely seriously". Altman argued that, while ChatGPT is "obviously not close to AGI", one should "trust the exponential. Flat looking backwards, vertical looking forwards."[11]

ChatGPT can write introduction and abstract sections of scientific articles, which raises ethical questions.[62] Several papers have already listed ChatGPT as co-author.[63]

In The Atlantic magazine, Stephen Marche noted that its effect on academia and especially application essays is yet to be understood.[64] California high school teacher and author Daniel Herman wrote that ChatGPT would usher in "the end of high school English".[65] In the Nature journal, Chris Stokel-Walker pointed out that teachers should be concerned about students using ChatGPT to outsource their writing, but that education providers will adapt to enhance critical thinking or reasoning.[66] Emma Bowman with NPR wrote of the danger of students plagiarizing through an AI tool that may output biased or nonsensical text with an authoritative tone: "There are still many cases where you ask it a question and it'll give you a very impressive-sounding answer that's just dead wrong."[67]

Joanna Stern with The Wall Street Journal described cheating in American high school English with the tool by submitting a generated essay.[68] Professor Darren Hick of Furman University described noticing ChatGPT's "style" in a paper submitted by a student. An online GPT detector claimed the paper was 99.9 percent likely to be computer-generated, but Hick had no hard proof. However, the student in question confessed to using GPT when confronted, and as a consequence failed the course.[69] Hick suggested a policy of giving an ad-hoc individual oral exam on the paper topic if a student is strongly suspected of submitting an AI-generated paper.[70] Edward Tian, a senior undergraduate student at Princeton University, created a program, named "GPTZero," that determines how much of a text is AI-generated,[71] lending itself to being used to detect if an essay is human written to combat academic plagiarism.[72][73]

As of January 4, 2023[update], the New York City Department of Education has restricted access to ChatGPT from its public school internet and devices.[74][75]

In a blinded test, ChatGPT was judged to have passed graduate-level exams at the University of Minnesota at the level of a C+student and at Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a BtoB- grade.[76]

It was revealed by a TIME magazine investigation that to build a safety system against toxic content (e.g. sexual abuse, violence, racism, sexism, etc...), OpenAI used outsourced Kenyan workers earning less than $2per hour to label toxic content. These labels were used to train a model to detect such content in the future. The outsourced laborers were exposed to such toxic and dangerous content that they described the experience as "torture".[77] OpenAIs outsourcing partner was Sama, a training-data company based in San Francisco, California.

ChatGPT attempts to reject prompts that may violate its content policy. However, some users managed to jailbreak ChatGPT by using various prompt engineering techniques to bypass these restrictions in early December 2022 and successfully tricked ChatGPT into giving instructions for how to create a Molotov cocktail or a nuclear bomb, or into generating arguments in the style of a neo-Nazi.[78] A Toronto Star reporter had uneven personal success in getting ChatGPT to make inflammatory statements shortly after launch: ChatGPT was tricked to endorse the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, but even when asked to play along with a fictional scenario, ChatGPT balked at generating arguments for why Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was guilty of treason.[79][80]

The advent of ChatGPT and its introduction to the wider public increased interest and competition in the space. In February 2023, Google began introducing an experimental service called "Bard" which is based on its LaMDA AI program. Bard generates text responses to questions asked based on information gathered from the web. Google CEO Sundar Pichai described how this technology would be integrated into existing search capabilities and said some aspects of the technology would be open to outside developers.[81]

The Chinese search engine firm Baidu announced in February 2023 that they would be launching a ChatGPT-style service called "Wenxin Yiyan" in Chinese or "ERNIE Bot" in English sometime in March 2023. The service is based upon the language model developed by Baidu in 2019.[82]

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ChatGPT - Wikipedia