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EE brings gigabit mobile speeds to London – Alphr

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

London has some of the slowest 4G speeds in the country, according to the London Assembly, but if Qualcomm and EE have it their way, its about to receive a bit of a boost. At an event in Wembley Stadium, Qualcomm, EE and Sony have demonstrated for the first time in the capital city a live Gigabit 4G network connection.

Using a Sony Xperia XZ Premium hooked up to a laptop running Ooklas eponymous Speed Test app, Qualcomm demonstrated the phone achieving download speeds of up to 765Mbits/sec over the live network. Yep, you read that right: 765Mbits/sec (and no, that's not a typo). At the claimed top speed of 750MB/sec, this is 18 times faster than my home broadband connection and more than twice as fast as the the UKs speediest commercial fibre broadband according to EE.

Upload speeds are not nearly as rapid but, at a potential 110Mbits/sec, are still nothing to turn your nose up at. Thats 15 times the speed of my home broadband upload speed.

Impressive stuff, but this isnt the first time weve seen Qualcomm crowing over stonking cellular speeds. Back in January 2017, I witnessed the very first Gigabit 4G network debuted live in Sydney Australia, Australia. Since then, gigabit 4G (or LTE) technology has been implemented in 26 networks across 18 countries worldwide.

It's the first time Ive seen speeds like this running on a smartphone, however, and it's all the more impressive to see it demonstrated this close to home.

To get speeds like this, you need the right hardware and, right now, the number of handsets that can take full advantage are thin on the ground. Basically, you need a phone with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset and the Qualcomm X16 modem or a Samsung S8/S8 Plus with Exynos 8895; plus, the phone needs to have a 4x4 MIMO antenna array.

Only the Sony Xperia XZ Premium, the HTC U11 and the Samsung Galaxy S8 Pluscurrently meet these requirements; the OnePlus 5, which also has a Snapdragon 835 and an X16 modem inside, only has a 2x2 MIMO antenna array and its top speed is a slower 600Mbits/sec as a result.

As a happy coincidence, I happened to have all bar the HTC U11 in my bag when I attended the event and, at the risk of busting dramatically though my data limit, I set about testing the handsets in (slightly) less controlled conditions.

The results were eye-opening. My Sony XZ Premium reached 349Mbits/sec and my Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus topped out at 369Mbits/sec. Thats slower than the earlier, official test but bear in mind I was running these tests at the same time Qualcomm was running other demonstrations, including the streaming of two 4K Amazon Prime video streams simultaneously.

The OnePlus 5 was the most ponderous of the bunch, achieving only 68Mbits/sec, showing the benefit of 4x4 MIMO over its 2x2 MIMO antenna array.

Right now, gigabit 4G is as yet limited in scope in the UK. Theres the Wembley stadium installation, one at the Cardiff Millennium Stadium and coverage at London Tech City. But the technology will soon roll out to other areas, focusing on more densely populated areas such as London, Birmingham and Manchester.

EE says it predicts the rollout will closely follow the pattern for the rollout of its cat6 coverage, which is now offered at just shy of 3,000 sites. Wherever we have a dense population we will increase the spectral capacity to be able to meet the demand, said Tom Bennett, director of network services and devices at EE.

It may be some time before you can experience such speeds yourself, but thegood news is that when it does eventually reach your area, you may not need to pay a premium a to get it: gigabit 4G will be available to all EE customers on 4G Max plans.

VR Done Quick: How Virtual Reality Changes The Game For Speedrunning – UploadVR

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

A lot of people would classify VR speedrunning as a niche of a niche. The speedrunning community, while still growing, is rather small and the list of those willing to speedrun VR titles is even smaller. But despite that, some speedrunning VR owners are still out there gunning for the best time in their favorite games.

Its obvious that few developers and streamers have actually put thought into speedrunning VR titles since fundamental features that support the community arent there in most cases. You cant really interact with a Twitch chat when immersed in VR and there is no clear way to compare your run time against others in real-time. Those two features may seem insignificant, but they actually make speedrunning a more focused and community-oriented event.

And while providing a solution for those two issues will help immensely, speedrunning in VR still has two huge roadblocks standing in its way. The disconnect that happens when viewers are watching VR on a regular computer screen and the physicality of the platform make speedrunning a difficult task.

When Tristan Hodges from Fox Leap Games was developing his Mario 64 inspired platformer, Gem Hunter, he did so with speedrunners in mind. He implemented a timing overlay, so runners could compare their run with the top times while playing. And while the implemented features made runs easier, he couldnt minimize the disconnect viewers had when watching VR on a regular computer screen.

There is a disconnect between what someone sees in their headset in virtual reality, and what someone sees on a 2D screen, said Hodges. All the people watching dont have the same experience, it might even be nauseating for some.

Thats a different beast compared to traditional speed running, where there is no difference between what the streamer and viewer is seeing. The most popular speedrunners have thousands of viewers because they play games like Mario 64, Hodges said. Popular games that still give them that one-to-one connection with the streamer.

That isnt the case with VR gaming. With VR, youre experiencing your own reality, Hodges said. Its all around you. If there is a big zombie behind you, it feels like theres a big zombie behind you. The viewers wont get that, they only get what they see on a 2D plane.

A possible solution for this disconnect is a third person, drone-like view that plops viewers above the action, allowing them to see everything and removing them from the nauseating first person view, similar to what VREAL is aiming to do.

Like the VR spectating in DOTA 2, Hodges said. It throws players into this floating god mode where you literally get to be a giant watching over the map.

But the viewers arent the only ones having issues enjoying VR runs, the speedrunners themselves face a few big challenges that really prevent them from successfully completing new runs.

The main holdup is the increased difficulty that runners have to deal with in VR. With regular speed running you still have to do a lot with precision but its not as physical, said SuperhotVR speedrunner Ben Massey. Each movement is affecting the game drastically.

The physicality of virtual reality makes the precision required for runs that much harder to master. Its a lot harder to be precise because youre not getting all the information, Hodges said. In a 2D game you can see the environment around you, in Zelda you can see your character and which exact pixels youre standing on.

Its difficult to see the exact spot youre occupying in VR and how that might affect the run at any given time. So much of speedrunning is having a route perfected, all the way down to how each movement is placed. Youre using your whole body in VR even though youre usually just floating existence, Hodges said. You have hands, feet, but nothing in between.

You have to be far more careful, Massey said. There is so much room for error.

VR has a lot of obstacles to overcome before it becomes a popular platform for the speedrunning community. But before that happen itll need to have a bigger install base with games that people really love. People watch games that they care about, Massey said. And if they dont want to or cant afford it then they wont care.

The barrier of entry for VR hasnt gotten low enough for a lot of runners to jump on board, especially with the amount of games that people arent interested in speed running.

VR has a lot of games that are more experiences rather than actual games, like gun simulators instead of full-on FPSs, Massey said. Youre kind just playing around with those, they arent gonna be speedrun.

Even if VR doesnt grow into a worldwide phenomena, developers and runners who are already in the thick of it are confident that a space will get molded for speedrunning in a virtual space.

It all comes down to having a passion for speedrunning, and that comes from the same place, no matter what platform youre playing on. I found a game that I love and played it over and over again, grinding for hours to get the best time, Massey said. Once the games come, the community will follow.

If youre interested in learning more about the overall speedrunning community, then check out Games Done Quick. Games Done Quick is an annual fundraising initiative where gamers around the world speedrun their favorite games and viewers donate to charities and nonprofit organizations. This years sessions started this past weekend and are running all week until July 9th finale.

Tagged with: Games Done Quick, Speedrunning

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VR Done Quick: How Virtual Reality Changes The Game For Speedrunning - UploadVR

University of Chicago Medicine launching South Side asthma center for kids – Chicago Tribune

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

About 20 percent of kids on Chicago's South Side have asthma and those are just the children who've been diagnosed.

The actual percentage of South Side kids who have the lung disease but don't know it might be as high as 30 percent, said Brenda Battle, vice president of University of Chicago Medicine's Urban Health Initiative. That's far higher than the 10 percent who have asthma statewide, she said.

"You can't manage asthma in kids that don't know they have asthma," Battle said.

To that end, U. of C. Medicine recently announced a new initiative aimed at connecting more kids on the South Side with asthma care.

|At a call center expected to open in May, parents and others concerned about children's possible asthma symptoms will be able to talk with nurses or trained community health workers, who can direct families to appropriate doctors.

The initiative also will double the number of community health workers who focus on asthma, from three to six. Those individuals work with doctors to help families manage kids' asthma, such as by visiting homes to search for possible triggers and by providing ongoing education, Battle said.

Asthma may be more prevalent on the city's South Side because of air quality issues related to now-shuttered steel mills, more smoking in homes and ongoing gun violence that keeps kids trapped inside, Battle said..

"Kids are dying on the South Side of Chicago with asthma," Battle said. "Kids shouldn't be dying with asthma in 2017."

U. of C. Medicine is partnering with La Rabida Children's Hospital, the Friend Family Health Center, and St. Bernard Hospital and Health Care Center on the initiative, which is receiving initial funding of a $500,000 matching grant from the Chicago-based Coleman Foundation meant to encourage other donors, and $250,000 from an unnamed donor.

lschencker@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @lschencker

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University of Chicago Medicine launching South Side asthma center for kids - Chicago Tribune

Dementia risk dropping as people stay healthier and medicine improves – Telegraph.co.uk

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

The risk of developing dementia is getting smaller every year because of medical advances and people taking better care of their health,a major study hasfound.

Although the actual number of cases is rising as the British population increases and ages, for the average over 50, the chance of being diagnosed with diseases like Alzheimer's is falling by 2.7 per cent each year.

New research by University College London and the University of Liverpool suggests that around 700,000 people - 30,000 a year - will be spared dementia over the next two decades if progress continues as it has done since 2002.

At the start of the decade the chance of developing dementia for women was14.3 per 1000 people and 17in women.

But today the risk has fallen to 12.3 per 1000 for menand 14.2 for women largely because of health interventions to protect people against illness and improve overall well-being.

Dr Sara Ahmadi-Abhari, lead author from UCL said: "The decline in age-specific incidence of dementia is good news for both the individual and for the society.

"For the individual, dementia is shifted to later years is life. Forsociety, it means the growth in numbers of people living with dementia is not as large as once anticipated."

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Dementia risk dropping as people stay healthier and medicine improves - Telegraph.co.uk

Wilmington’s Brennan has medicine in her future – Lowell Sun

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Jade Brennan s Wilmington High School anatomy class was one of the reasons she became interested in the field of medicine. She will be taking a three-week trip to Ghana for a volunteer medical internship. Here, she is pictured dissecting a sheep eye. COURTESY PHOTO

WILMINGTON - The average high schooler may take time to enjoy their vacation during the summer months. Some get a seasonal job. Some do extracurricular activities.

But Wilmington's Jade Brennan is traveling to Ghana for three weeks in July to complete a volunteer medical internship through Projects

Abroad before entering her senior year. " I've always loved helping people," she said. " When I was younger I wanted to teach. We had this chalkboard paint on one side of the room. I'd sit my sister down and teach her and try to help her learn stuff."

But a lot has changed from Brennan's younger years to her teenage years. She was influenced by her high school anatomy and photography classes before making the decision to head overseas.

"Just seeing how all the systems worked together and separately, it was so cool," Brennan said of her anatomy class. " I'm actually interning for my teacher next year, so I'll get to help people learn the anatomy the way I learned it." But it was her photography class is was prompted her to put in her first application. The class was on the topic of photojournalism. During class presentations, Brennan got an unsettling feeling after seeing Kevin Carter's Pulitzer Prize winning photo of starving child in Sudan with a vulture in the background.

"I was sitting at the computer and after we finished the presentations I immediately went into an application for an internship and put it right in," she said.

Brennan said she also wanted to be a better pediatrician than the doctor she had. Later on, a friend recommended she look into the Projects Abroad program. Brennan did her research and began the application process, but at first, she wasn't taken seriously by many. Her father, Kevin Brennan, said he would have never expected this of his daughter. When she first brought the trip to his attention, her father gave her a list of questions to find answers to - like how much it would cost to get vaccines before heading to Ghana. It wasn't until she reported back to her dad with an estimate for the vaccines and told him she had already set up a GoFundMe campaign, that he knew she was serious.

"I'm proud of my daughter," he said. " I know she's going to feel better in herself. I think what she doesn't realize is how much it's going to make her grow up, which is a bummer is some ways for me as a father, but I'm also extremely proud."

A number of people, including teachers, have donated to her GoFundMe campaign, which has received nearly $ 1,000. Others have made donations to her directly to show their support. She has also contributed a great deal of her own money she has saved up in order to make the trip happen.

During her time in Ghana, Brennan will spend five days a week, five hours a day, volunteering. During her free time she will get to explore, will learn about the culture and will always be with a group.

"I just love learning new things. I want to get outside my comfort zone. Helping people, the good feeling that comes from that, is one of the main things I'm really excited for," she said, adding that she is also looking forward to being exposed to the culture and meeting new people.

Being away from home not only gives Brennan the opportunity to help others. She hopes the trip will allow her to reflect on herself and take a break from technology.

"I feel like people should focus more on themselves in a way that they can help others," she said. "I feel like people should step away from the technology and focus on more important things."

When Brennan returns from her trip, she will be looking to secure an internship in a hospital setting. During the upcoming school year she will be taking AP biology and honors physics. "I am looking toward working with kids, but I'm kind of leaning more toward a hospital ( setting)," she said. " I'm still not sure and I'm hoping this trip will set some more things in stone for me."

Her father has been satisfied with Project Abroad and recently got the itinerary for his daughter's trip. He's also comforted to be part of a closed Facebook group with members of parents and other students taking the trip.

"She's got two little sisters who adore her and are blown away by what she's doing as well," he said. " I can't wait to hear all her stories and just see who she becomes."

To donate to Jade Brennan's GoFundMe, visit https://www.gofundme.com/7hdszn-my-volunteer-trip-to-africa

Follow Kori Tuitt on Twitter @ KoriTuitt

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Wilmington's Brennan has medicine in her future - Lowell Sun

Weighing the Facts – Cornell Chronicle

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Dr. Sylvia Karasu and her husband both had fathers who were morbidly obese. The two men Dr. Karasus dad was an orthopaedic surgeon in the Philadelphia suburbs, her father-in-law a writer and diplomat in Turkey suffered serious medical consequences from their weight including adult-onset diabetes, chronic heart disease and hypertension. But Dr. Karasus father-in-law died at 56, while her dad lived to 91. That juxtaposition fascinated me, says Dr. Karasu, a clinical professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medicine. How is it possible that one condition can lead to those extremes in lifespan?

This question continues to drive much of Dr. Karasus work. In addition to running a private psychiatry practice with a focus on patients in the creative and entertainment fields in which she treats numerous people who struggle with disordered eating she writes about health and obesity from a vantage point thats quite different from that of an internist or endocrinologist. She doesnt conduct independent research on the condition, which affects 30 percent of Americans and is considered a worldwide pandemic. Instead, she pores over the hundreds of scientific articles that are published each month on obesity, thinks critically about what she reads, and then categorizes and distills the research findings. The results of this work include four articles in peer-reviewed journals and a regular column for psychologytoday.com, having published more than 75 blog posts and counting. My goal is to educate both the lay public and medical professionals on obesitys complexities, what I call the daunting science of weight control, Dr. Karasu says, so that they take a more nuanced rather than narrow view of this condition.

Dr. Sylvia Karasu. Photo by Glenn Jussen

Before starting her column, Dr. Karasu explored some of these complexities in a 2010 textbook for medical professionals, The Gravity of Weight: A Comprehensive Approach to Weight Loss and Maintenance, that she co-authored with her husband, Dr. T. Byram Karasu, the Silverman Professor and chairman of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center. (The couple also co-wrote the 2005 book The Art of Marriage Maintenance.) Since then, she has continued to parse research online, covering such topics as why fat shaming doesnt motivate people to slim down; how breastfeeding or being breastfed can impact weight; and why the popular paleo (for Paleolithic) diet is a sham, since most of the foods available to us today are vastly different from those eaten in Stone Age times.

In the articles she has published in peer-reviewed journals, including American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine and American Journal of Psychotherapy, Dr. Karasu has addressed such issues as the role of the mental health practitioner in weight loss and how experts define obesity in often conflicting and contradictory ways, depending on their background or academic specialty. Physicians see obesity as a medical issue, psychiatrists might see it as an addiction issue, and anthropologists see it as a disease of civilization, Dr. Karasu says. And it only gets more complicated, as some people think obesity is just body diversity and therefore natural, while others believe its caused by environmental factors; some think obesity is largely rooted in genetics, while others attribute it to vices like sloth and gluttony, Dr. Karasu says.

That connects back to the underlying reason why, Dr. Karasu believes, her father and father-in-law had such different outcomes: obesity is not one single condition. Theres as much variation when it comes to obese and overweight people as there is in the general population, Dr. Karasu says. Yet we tend to lump together everyone with a body mass index over 30.0, an arbitrary figure calculated by taking a persons weight in kilograms divided by their height in meters squared. When we do so, she says, we make false generalizations, unfairly stigmatize people, and oversimplify whats going on, which can make it more difficult to find solutions. Thats why shes advocating that medical professionals and society in general, adopt a new way of thinking about obesity. We should stop talking about it as if its one disorder or disease, Dr. Karasu says. It should be the obesities, plural.

Anne Machalinski

This story first appeared in Weill Cornell Medicine,Vol. 16. No. 2

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Weighing the Facts - Cornell Chronicle

Some Cubans choose dose of private medicine despite price – Miami Herald

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Miami Herald

Some Cubans choose dose of private medicine despite price
Miami Herald
For a dollar, Cuban podiatrist Serafin Barca will spend a half hour cutting the corns off a senior citizen's foot, or nearly an hour removing a stubborn wart. The 80-year-old is among the last private medical workers in communist Cuba, which prides ...

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Some Cubans choose dose of private medicine despite price - Miami Herald

Taking time off in medical school – Scope (blog)

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Like many of my classmates, I took the last year off from medical school. Some of us enrolled in different graduate programs to pursue a dual degree while others did a research year. The trend is becoming more common the proportion of students who take more than four years to graduate and the number in dual degree programs are at all-time highs.

Over the past few months, several students have asked me about my experience and whether I would recommend they do the same. While the short answer is, It depends, I think there are three questions worth thinking about while deciding whether towalk away from medical school for a year.

What do you want to get out of taking time off?

This first question sounds obvious but goes unanswered surprisingly often. Anecdotally, many people take time off because everyone else is doing it. A majority of Stanford med students take 5+ years to graduate, creating a social norm around taking an additional year.

Its important to pause and consider what exactly you want to achieve during this time. In my case, I wanted to develop new skills and obtain a degree that would serve my professional interests. Other commonly cited reasons include increasing competitiveness for residency or personal factors.

Of course, its possible to develop skills, build a competitive residency application, and more in the traditional four years of medical school. Most schools (including Stanford) also provide a substantial amount of elective time during the fourth year. We can use this time for the same type of personal development that many students prioritize during a year off. Its therefore helpful to articulate how you will be different at the end of your time off compared to when you started.

What is the best way to achieve your goals?

If youve decided that you have compelling reasons to take time off, the next question is how to achieve your goals. I think there are two critical decisions. The first is whether to do a degree program (e.g. MBA, MPH, etc.) or to work full-time (with work meaning research, an internship, or starting an organization, among other possibilities). A degree carries the advantage of formal teaching and would offer an additional credential. But at the same time, it requires you to spend a certain amount of time going to classes and doing homework and that time might be better spent elsewhere.

The second decision is whether you want to take just one year off or are willing to step away from med school for multiple years. This choice affects what options are available. For example, some degrees can be completed with one additional year of school while others require multiple (e.g. PhD, some Masters degrees). Similarly, some projects can be completed quickly while others have multi-year time horizons. All those considerations must be taken into account.

How will you stay connected to the medical school during your time away?

Finally, its important to reflect on the relationship you will have with medicine during your time off. In some cases, it is easy to stay engaged with the medical school many students doing clinical research work with the same physician mentors and continue to interact with patients on a regular basis. But students who leave the medical school environment (e.g. to do an MD/MBA, work in an external job, etc.) must think about how to stay connected, whether it is through ongoing research projects, a continuity clinic, or something else.

The ability to take time off and pursue other interests during medical school is a privilege. But before acting on it, students should give careful thought to how to make the most of the opportunity.

Stanford Medicine Unplugged is a forum for students to chronicle their experiences in medical school. The student-penned entries appear on Scope once a week; the entire blog series can be found in the Stanford Medicine Unpluggedcategory.

Akhilesh Pathipati is a fourth-year MD/MBA student at Stanford. He is interested in issues in health care delivery.

Photo by Pixabay

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Taking time off in medical school - Scope (blog)

Osteopathic Medical Schools Seek To Fill Rural Health Care Gap – KMUW

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Twenty-four-year-old Kalee Woody says that when she was growing up in Bronaugh, Missouri, she saw the small town slowly fading. Businesses closed, growth stagnated and residents had to drive to other places to see a doctor.

It is a town that, like many towns in rural areas of Missouri and other Midwest and Great Plains states, is recognized by the federal government as having a shortage of health care providers.

Now, Woody wants to help. She enrolled in medical school and will start classes in July at the just-opened Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences (KCUMB) campus in Joplin, Missouri, the first new medical school in the state in nearly half a century. Woody wants to serve someday in a rural community much like the one she grew up in where, as a doctor, shell also be seen as a pillar of the community.

They have so much contact with different people. They just get to know everyone, Woody says. Everyone knows them and, by association, they become a leader.

KCUMB is an osteopathic medical school, meaning that graduates emerge with a Doctorate of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) degree, rather than an M.D. degree. Osteopathic medical schools, whose numbers have doubled in the last 10 years, are in the middle of a push into smaller communities and some in the health care industry hope graduates could eventually help ease the current shortage of medical care in many rural areas.

Were going to have an opportunity to teach those students in a rural environment and show them how cool it really is to work there, says Darrin DAgostino, executive dean of KCUMB.

DAgostino says osteopathic schools take a more holistic approach than M.D. programs, which accounts for the high percentage of D.O.s 56 percent going into primary care instead of specialties, according to the American Osteopathic Association. Less than a quarter of new M.D.s go into primary care, according to researchers at George Washington University.

D.O.s are licensed in the same way M.D.s are and these days, the care provided by D.O.s and M.D.s is typically so similar that most patients wouldnt know the difference. But that hasnt always been the case.

At the root of osteopathic medicine is osteopathic manipulative treatment, a hands-on technique that looks like a cross between chiropractic manipulation and massage. There is evidence this can help treat some kinds of pain.

It sounds New-Age-y, but the idea dates back to the days of the Old West.

In the late 1800s, a former Kansas state legislator and civil war surgeon, Andrew Taylor Still, decided to reconsider basic assumptions about medicine after he watched three of his children die from spinal meningitis.

The therapeutic options were very different than we have available to us right now, and he thought that the available system of medicine simply didnt work, says Joel Howell, an M.D. and professor of the history of medicine at the University of Michigan, who has written about Still and the practice he invented.

Still eventually founded the first osteopathic school in Kirksville, Missouri, in order to teach his kind of medicine, which was based on a very different understanding of the body and human health.

He set out to devise an alternative healing practice based on this notion that manipulation of the spine could improve blood flow and thus improve health by allowing the body to heal itself, Howell says.

Osteopathic manipulation is now just one of the techniques that D.O.s are taught to use, along with mainstream treatments.

A recent burst of new osteopathic medical schools is part of a decades-long effort to move osteopathic physicians into practice throughout the country. Many are in states like Arkansas, Colorado and Tennessee that have very small numbers of working D.O.s.

Howell says these newly minted physicians can probably help out a lot in medically underserved parts of those states, but they may have to do some public relations work first.

I think they should be prepared to explain what being a D.O. means, Howell says.

The bigger challenge may be acceptance from M.D.s, who still dominate medicine and make up the preponderance of doctors. Almost all of the most prestigious medical schools such as Harvard, Stanford and Johns Hopkins churn out M.D.s.

The general reception is that we ignore [osteopathic medicine,] Howell says. We dont know much about it; we dont do it. I think if pushed, most people would figure that for some kinds of illnesses, it doesnt do any harm, and it might well help.

Earlier in the summer, hundreds of curious Joplin residents turned out for the opening of the new KCUMB medical school. School and community leaders in this city of 51,000 in the southwestern corner of Missouri hope that in surrounding rural areas with a shortage of health care providers, patients wont care much about whether someones a D.O. or an M.D. just as long as theyre a doctor.

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Osteopathic Medical Schools Seek To Fill Rural Health Care Gap - KMUW

Brody to push ahead with plans to expand medical school class sizes – WNCT

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

GREENVILLE, N.C. (WNCT) Following the passage of the new state budget, Brody School of Medicine officials are encouraged by the emphasis state lawmakers are putting on expanding medical education in the state.

Brody will continue to receive $8 million a year to help cover the cost of training and teaching future doctors. But, that money doesnt cover the cost needed to fulfill one of the biggest future goals of the school expanding class sizes.

There are not enough physicians today to take care of our population, and that will only get worse in the years ahead, said Interim Dean Dr. Nicholas Benson.

Benson said the school remains committed to moving towards growing class sizes. This year, they will add one or two additional spots, bringing the total size up to 82 students.

That increase, that very minimal increase, is not going to be able to really make a positive impact on the healthcare of people across the state, Benson said.

To make that bigger impact, Benson said classes must be expanded much further. The goal for Brody is to have classes expand from the current 80 students a year, to 120 students.

Benson said he was encouraged to see the General Assembly set aside $1 million for UNCs Medical School to expand their current facility.

In order to expand Brodys class sizes, Benson said they would need to hire additional instructors, and also construct a new building, which would cost millions of dollars and take years to complete.

Another obstacle to overcome is the lack of residency and fellowship spots in the East.

Were lagging behind because were younger, said Dr. Herb Garrison, the Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education.

Whereas medical schools at Duke and UNC have between 750 and 1,000 residency and fellowship spots, Greenville only has around 400. Garrison said you cant bring on more students until you have a place for them to train following graduation.

He wants to expand the number of spots in the East for one simple reason.

Youre more likely to stay where you train, so thats why keeping them here is more likely, he said.

Improving access to care in the East is one of the big driving factors in wanting to expand in the first place. Garrison was excited that in the new budget, the General Assembly allotted money to expand residency programs in rural areas.

If you train in a rural areas for two years, you get to know the community and you become part of the community, youre more likely to stay in that community and thats what we really want to see, he said.

Rep. Greg Murphy (R-Pitt) said he requested and additional $2.5 million for Brody in the new budget to help cover planning cost for an expansion. However, that money was not put in to the finalized budget.

Benson said local fundraising efforts to start getting money in line for a new building have already begun. He hopes to continue receiving support from the state moving forward.

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Brody to push ahead with plans to expand medical school class sizes - WNCT

Liberty Tampa Bay Because life is too short to vote for …

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Bob White, Republican candidate for Florida governor, explains why he is running for Florida Governor Read more / comment

Liberty First Network

In the wake of the tragic Pulse Nightclub shooting and the Ft. Lauderdale Airport shooting, Senator Greg Steube filed several gun bills repealing state mandated gun free zones such as airports and college campuses for the 2017 session. The Orlando and Ft. Lauderdale shootings had something in common: They both occurred in places where private citizens were banned from carrying permitted concealed handguns. Our Colleges and Universities are Gun Free Zones and there is no one entry point with metal detectors and armed guards performing pat-downs and bag inspections. Colleges cannot guarantee safety and should not deprive people of the ability to protect themselves. Read more / comment

Melbourne, Florida Monday, July 3, 2017 Adam Putnam, Republican candidate for Florida governor, was purposefully misleading potential voters on Thursday when he hit the airwaves in the greater Tampa market claiming to be the only Republican in the race for Floridas governor. Read more / comment

Liberty Lobbyist, John Hallman of Liberty First has issued the following Action Alert regarding Senate Bill 130. SB 130 would weaken Floridas Stand Your Ground Law and threaten the Second Amendment rights of Florida citizens. We should not compromise on our Constitutional rights and allow the Florida Senate to legislate them away. Please use the action tools below to take action now and express your opposition to SB 130. Read more / comment

The other day someone asked Mark Bircher (candidate for US Congressional District 13) why military men have such a hard time adjusting to life in Washington. Mr. Bircher fairly rejected the premise, saying he did not see that military men did have difficulty, citing those such as Washington, Eisenhower, and Grant. There are others. Jackson, Taylor, Eisenhower, Truman, Kennedy, Carter, and both Bushs. In fact 31 out of 44 Presidents served (70%).

Vernon County sees positive growth for construction: Town of Liberty sees biggest change – La Crosse Tribune

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

The town of Liberty underwent the largest percentage increase of new construction throughout Vernon County.

The 5.5 percent increase, measured between 2015 and 2016, was largely due to residential construction, said Martin Chapin, Libertys property assessor. The assessments are reported by the Department of Revenue and are used to determine appropriate tax rates.

Chapin said several homes were built during that time frame, adding to Libertys more than $1.6 million in new construction from 2015 to 2016. The towns overall property value was assessed at more than $29.4 million for 2015.

We have a couple areas where there are some new homes going in there, Chapin said, adding that more people are settling down year-round in Liberty, which tends to add property value as compared to seasonal residents.

Mostly it used to be summer cabins that were lower value.

Town Supervisor Adrian Amelse said he used to be a part-time resident but became a permanent resident several years ago.

Liberty is growing its residential numbers, Chapin said, in part because the municipalitys school districts Viroqua and Kickapoo are strong educational establishments, and that the townships Board of Supervisors works to keep the budgets tax rate low.

Access to employment, Chapin said, might also play into Libertys residential growth.

Its a short commute to Viroqua or to any other place, Chapin said.

Each year, individual properties in towns are assessed by real-estate professionals like Chapin to determine the towns new net construction value, which is then incorporated into an overall property-tax assessment for the county. These tax values are affected by new construction projects and by demolitions.

Viroqua came below the average of Vernons 33 municipalities with 0.75 percent increase.

The countys average was 1.38 percent growth.

Not all Vernon Countys 33 municipalities grew their overall value three municipalities lost some value and Chaseburg saw the biggest dip at -0.18 percent.

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Vernon County sees positive growth for construction: Town of Liberty sees biggest change - La Crosse Tribune

You Should Be Watching: ‘Liberty’ – Buffalo News

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

At a time when some worry about where America is going, its wise to learn more about where weve been. If you want a beautifully filmed look at the social and military origins of the United States, then binge-watch PBSs Liberty!

Title: Liberty!

Year it began: 1997

Where it can be seen: PBS, DVD

Whos in it: Philip Bosco, Peter Donaldson, Victor Garber, Edward Herrmann, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Mel Johnson, Jr., Terrence Mann, Jefferson Mays, Donna Murphy, Forrest Sawyer and Francie Swift

Typical episode length: 60 minutes

Number of episodes: 6

Brief plot description: Mixing dramatization of historical people and events with interviews with experts, Liberty! tells the social and political story of the American Revolution and the early United States.

Why its worth watching: This is an epic historical documentary that is both beautifully filmed and deeply informative. Liberty! is thorough in its presentation and family-friendly in its approach. Directed by Ellen Hovde and Muffie Meyer, Liberty! features well-paced and intelligently written episodes that are each introduced by Sawyer and narrated by Herrmann. The greatest strength of Liberty! is that it offers a balanced account of the revolutionary American history, giving us insight into the social and political background of a war that it very thoroughly narrates.

An excellent cast of actors brings historical individuals to vivid life, helping us feel the significance of events to both major players and ordinary folk. Particularly strong performances include Boscos wise and worldly Benjamin Franklin; Murphys engaging and insightful Abigail Adams; Donaldsons shrewd and pugnacious John Adams; and Manns delightfully pompous General Burgoyne. While Liberty! teaches us much about the most famous Founding Fathers, its fine actors also explore less commonly covered perspectives. Garbers John Dickinson makes clear how difficult declaring independence could be; Johnson conveys the experience of an African-American escaping slavery and joining the revolutionary fight; and Swifts Baroness von Riedesel helps us feel what it was like for those accompanying Hessian mercenaries. Of special note is Hoffmans fine performance as Joseph Plumb Martin, a soldier whose diaries reveal the experiences of regular soldiers throughout most of the war.

The dramatic interludes are enriched by illuminating interviews with noteworthy scholars of American history, including Jeremy Black, Pauline Maier, Margaret Washington and Gordon Wood. Liberty! includes an excellent score, along with historical folk melodies played by Yo-Yo Ma and Wynton Marsalis, among others.

Huntington Bank closing one Liberty branch – WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio – WFMJ

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Howland Police and the Trumbull County Coroner's Office are investigating after a body was found in an East Market Street motel Wednesday morning. The body found in one of the rooms inside the Capri Motel was in an advanced state of decomposition, according to investigators. Due to the odor and the presence of an unknown white substance in the room, Detectives used oxygen masks and tanks to allow them to breathe. Police believe they have identified the man, who they say was renting...

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Huntington Bank closing one Liberty branch - WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio - WFMJ

Empire 8, Liberty League create football ‘New York State Bowl Game’ – ithaca.com

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

ROCHESTER, NY - The Empire 8 Athletic Conference and the Liberty League Athletic Conference are proud to announce that they are partnering for a postseason football game between member institutions. The Inaugural New York State Bowl Game will involve the top team from each conference that is not selected for the NCAA Division III championship tournament.

On an annual basis, the top Liberty League team, which did not make NCAAs, will play the top E8 team, which did not make NCAAs. The host institution would alternate by year. In year one, the Liberty League rep will serve as host. The bowl game for 2017 is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 18.

This collaborative effort between the Empire 8 and Liberty League athletic conferences is yet another way for us to support the development of our scholar athletes, said Hartwick College President and outgoing Empire 8 President Margaret Drugovich. On behalf of the Presidents of the Empire 8 member colleges and universities, I applaud this initiative and thank Empire 8 Conference Commissioner Chuck Mitrano for taking the initiative to create this new platform for DIII football competition."

Respective conference by-laws would be used to determine which participant earns the bid into the NYS Bowl Game. For example, if two or more teams are tied to serve as the league representative, the normal tie-breaking procedures of that league will determine which team earns the bid.

The New York State Bowl Game will be an exceptional event for institutions, student-athletes, football fans and our campus communities, said Commissioner Mitrano. Its the beginning of what will be an unrivaled football tradition between two of the best football conferences in the country.

There are many benefits to this relationship for both leagues with the biggest being a quality game on a member campus that will be well attended and provide a culminating experience for student-athletes and institutions.

"The Liberty League is pleased to partner with the Empire 8 to provide a postseason championship opportunity for our student-athletes, said Liberty League Commissioner Tracy King. This unique experience will provide our football student-athletes with a postseason experience that many of our student-athletes in other sports receive through conference tournament participation. We look forward to this great competitive opportunity.

NCAA rules permit a conference-sponsored postseason tournament one between teams that are not identified until the end of the preceding regular season not to exceed one contest for any one institution.

The Empire 8 football league consists of Cortland, Alfred, Brockport, Buffalo State, Hartwick, Morrisville State, St. John Fisher, and Alfred University. The Liberty League football schools are Hobart, Ithaca, Rochester, RPI, St. Lawrence, and Union. Ithaca moved from the Empire 8 to the Liberty League after last season.

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Empire 8, Liberty League create football 'New York State Bowl Game' - ithaca.com

GTA 5 Liberty City Mod Shuts Down – GameSpot

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

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Rockstar and its parent company Take-Two have been embroiled in controversy among Grand Theft Auto V players recently when they attempted to shut down a popular modding tool for the open-world title. While the two companies have since eased up on their initial crackdown, their strict modding policy has resulted in another upcoming mod being shut down.

The group behind the popular Grand Theft Auto modding tool OpenIV announced in a post on the GTA forums that it has had to cease work on its "Liberty City in GTA V" mod. The project would have allowed players to import the GTA IV setting, Liberty City, into the series' most recent title. However, the group explained that the project was in violation of Rockstar's modding policy and as a result had to be shut down. While the group didn't elaborate what the mod specifically violated, it may be due to the fact Rockstar's policy expressly forbids the "importation of other IP (including Rockstar IP) in the project."

OpenIV suffered a similar fate last month when Take-Two issued a cease and desist order against the modding tool. According to the company, the reason the tool was targeted was because it "enables recent malicious mods that allow harassment of players and interfere with the GTA Online experience for everybody." Soon after, however, Rockstar intervened on the mod's behalf and convinced Take-Two to back off on its decision, allowing development on OpenIV to continue with a focus on single-player mods. The publisher had previously suggested one of its main issues entailed mods that could impact GTA Online.

Take-Two's recent crackdown on mods has not been popular among fans. Following the initial shutdown of OpenIV, players flooded the GTA V's Steam page with a stream of negative reviews, tanking the game's review average, while a petition to save the tool garnered over 80,000 signatures. But while the Liberty City mod may be no more, the group behind the project has announced it intends to continue working on OpenIV "within the Rockstar modding policy."

GTA 5 Liberty City Mod Shuts Down - GameSpot

Liberty London Explores Its Dark Side With In-Store Summer Exhibition – WWD

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

A LEAP IN THE DARK: Liberty London has been exploring its dark side as part of a five week, in-store exhibition of contemporary art.

The Dark Side of Liberty, which officially opens July 6, takes inspiration from Londons subcultures and Pink Floyds exploration of the conflict and turbulence of the Seventies, to create an immersive experience complete with mixed media art installations and live music performances. It opens to the public later this week.

This year has been about reinstating Liberty London as the home of the artistic shopper, so we wanted to revisit our cultural roots and celebrate art and culture today. Liberty London has always had a dark side, a gothic English intelligence; we look for the unique, the weird and the wonderful in everything we do, said Liz Silvester, the stores head of creative, who worked on the project alongside curator Victor Benady.

Benady and Silvester recruited five creatives to interpret the theme through a range of installations featured across the department store, from its windows to the main atrium and its new mens department. Artists Jared Madere, Alex Morrison, Joris Van de Moortel and Julie Verhoeven, as well as the architect Satyajit Das have taken part in the project.

Van de Moortel, an artist and musician from Belgium, created his version of a recording studio as part of his installation, which is displayed in the stores windows. On July 5 for the preview, de Moortels recording studio will be taken over by experimental musicians Mauro Pawlowski and Carlo Adriani, who will put on a live psychedelic music performance for passersby.

Another store window will be transformed by the Canadian artist Morrison, who created a sculptural installation using Liberty prints.

Inside, the stores main atrium will feature a 12-meter comet sculpture by Madere, as well as a metallic pig sculpture by Das, which was designed to give the illusion that its breathing and references Pink Floyds Animals.

Benadysaid these installations aimed to celebrate the physical and the experiential, which are becoming more and more crucial for the future of retail.

In a post-digital world of drones and artificial intelligence, of social media and fake news, where the virtual is copied and commoditized, we believe that experience, physicality and materiality are the new currency.

The launch of the exhibition coincides with the opening of Libertys new mens department which will fully embrace the new projects eccentric spirit. Julie Verhoeven, who created an installation incorporating illustration and animation for the store, will also add her psychedelic drawings on murals in the new department.

The campaign is quite tech, geeky cool and the Liberty London man is very smart I needed to blow his mind a little, said Silvester, adding that her aim for the new space was to uncover its heritage and offer a mix of old and new. We have reintroduced that mix of antiques, print and tapestries to create a modern Liberty London home, where you can shop T-shirts, accessories and magazines all at the same time.

The new space will introduce 20 new mens ready-to-wearand accessories collections, as well as a T-shirt gallery which will offer opportunities for exclusive collaborations.

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Liberty London Explores Its Dark Side With In-Store Summer Exhibition - WWD

Libertarian Takeover: More Lawmakers Are Ditching The Major Parties – IVN News

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Getting elected as a third-party candidate is no easy feat in the United States.

In fact, the deck is so stacked against alternative candidates courtesy of gerrymandered voting districts that favor one of the major parties, ballot access laws that make it impossible for third parties to gain momentum with each passing election cycle, or public debates that only invite Democrats and Republicans to participate that it is practically impossible.

But the Libertarian Party has created a model to bypass this hurdle, and it is working out swimmingly for them at the moment. Since the 2016 election, an increasing number of elected legislators have switched their official party affiliation from one of the major parties to Libertarian.

ALSO READ:The 2016 Elections Biggest Winner: Gary Johnson and The Libertarian Party?

It all started with Nebraska State Senator Laura Ebke. Ebke, an elected Republican, became increasingly disenfranchised with the trajectory of her party.

I got frustrated with some of my colleagues who dont recognize civil liberties and dont seem to agree with getting government out of peoples business, she told the Omaha World-Herald.

To demonstrate her frustration, Ebke made the bold move in June 2016: she swapped the R next to her name with an L.

I got frustrated with some of my colleagues who dont recognize civil liberties and dont seem to agree with getting government out of peoples business.

Ebke was the first of many disenfranchised legislators to jettison one of the major parties in favor of the third largest party in the United States.

In the last year, Libertarian Party representation in state legislatures quadrupled. (Bear in mind that there are over 7,000 seats in all state upper and lower houses combined; Libertarians occupy 4 of them. Sadly, this is still more than any other minor party in the United States.)

Owning up to its libertarian motto of live free or die, New Hampshire has become the trendsetter for this mass exodus from mainstream parties to the LP. In the past year, three sitting legislators Reps. Caleb Q. Dyer, Joseph Stallcop, and Brandon Phinney switched their affiliations. Phinney and Dyer were former Republicans, and Stallcop a Democrat.

I was not elected to do the bidding of a political party at the expense of my principles, stated Phinney, who was the most recent to convert.

Establishment partisan politics do nothing to protect the rights of people, but instead only serve to prop up and expand government with arcane plans to irresponsibly spend our money and enact burdensome regulations on businesses, small and large alike. N.H. State Rep. Joseph Stallcop (L)

With a growing caucus and improved access to legislation, the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire is poised to enact legislation that reflect the party platform of limited government and strengthened civil liberties, ranging from the abolition of the death penalty to the legalization of recreational marijuana.

So have Libertarians discovered a back door entrance into mainstream politics? The jury is still out if this is a sustainable strategy.

Undoubtedly, the strategy doesnt entail campaigning as one party and then switching parties after the election. Such a bait and switch will only harm the brand.

I dont suggest that people run for office with the purpose of changing parties if theyre elected, Ebke comments in an email interview. If you run with the intention of doing that, I doubt that youre going to get elected in any race of significance.

Ebke suggests the better strategy for the LP is to keep its eyes open for legislators (and other officials) who seem to be libertarian leaning. She suggests that US RepsJustin Amash and Thomas Massie are both prime examples of elected Republicans who might be prime targets for such a conversion on the national level.

If candidates remain true to the core principles that got them elected in the first place, they can easily make the case that partisan politics are secondaryespecially when those politics are tied to the toxic partisanship of Washington D.C.

Whether or not this strategy is effective will be realized during re-election season. These third party candidates now face a series of new challenges running outside of the mainstream parties. Making the switch to a smaller party means decreased access to the major party funds often needed for re-election.

Ebke is in the midst of fundraising for her re-election, and is thriving on small donations from grassroots donors, since financial support for candidates from her party is minimal. She encourages supporters donors, voters, and state party leaders to be prepared and committed to backing and helping this group of legislators.

And let me be clear helping a candidate is not just about being an internet warrior, Ebke adds. Its about knocking on doors, walking in parades, donating money, and phone banking. If the Party politically abandons those who move in their direction, people will quit moving that way.

The Libertarian Party is often perceived to be an ideologically-driven organization. However, with the nomination of candidates like Gary Johnson and Bill Weld, who often strayed away from party orthodoxy, the ideology that once founded the party appears less rigid, attracting more independent and unaffiliated voters than previous elections.

If the Party politically abandons those who move in their direction, people will quit moving that way.

A party that is successful will be a big tent, adds Ebke. If the Libertarian Party can be tolerant of those who are generally libertarian-minded, but might not agree on every detail, I think its got great potential for growth.

Keeping an open ear to disaffected partisans, who share a common ground on various issues, is the first step in a meaningful and persuasive conversation one in whichall third parties should engage.

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Libertarian Takeover: More Lawmakers Are Ditching The Major Parties - IVN News

Libertarian Party of Cuba Experiences Further Tyranny – Being Libertarian

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Being Libertarian

Libertarian Party of Cuba Experiences Further Tyranny
Being Libertarian
The Libertarian Party of Cuba has continued to experience state tyranny from the Castro regime simply for having formed a party of liberty-minded dissidents. Less than a month after their initial detainment, members of the Libertarian Party of Cuba ...

Libertarian Party of Cuba Experiences Further Tyranny - Being Libertarian

Sonoma County Cannot Shoot Straight – Being Libertarian

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Danzig

Being Libertarian

Sonoma County Cannot Shoot Straight
Being Libertarian
As libertarians, we undoubtedly find ourselves in opposition to government regulations of all kinds, especially when dealing with guns. However, a special piece of information makes this stipulation especially objectionable within the context of Sonoma ...

Sonoma County Cannot Shoot Straight - Being Libertarian

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