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NASA to broadcast epic solar eclipse this summer from Charleston. And the views should be fantastic – Island Packet

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

NASA to broadcast epic solar eclipse this summer from Charleston. And the views should be fantastic
Island Packet
For the first time since 1970, the Lowcountry will witness a total solar eclipse, and NASA will share the experience with the world from Charleston's point of view. The space agency will livestream and broadcast the event from the College of Charleston ...
Charleston will have front-row seats during eclipse, and will be home base for NASAABC NEWS 4
NASA releases images of solar eclipse from space, announces live broadcastThe Space Reporter

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NASA to broadcast epic solar eclipse this summer from Charleston. And the views should be fantastic - Island Packet

NASA’s infrared and radar eyes in space cast on Tropical Storm Cindy – Phys.Org

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

June 22, 2017 On June 22 at 2:21 a.m. EDT (0621 UTC) GPM very little rainfall near Cindy's center of circulation but bands of moderate to heavy showers were seen moving into the states along the Gulf Coast. Storms over central Alabama were dropping rain at a rate of over 3.6 inches (91 mm) per hour. Credit: NASA/JAXA, Hal Pierce

NASA's Aqua satellite analyzed Tropical Storm Cindy in infrared light to identify areas of strongest storms and the Global Precipitation Measurement mission or GPM satellite found locations of heaviest rainfall as Cindy was making landfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast states.

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder or AIRS instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite looked at Tropical Depression Cindy in infrared light. The AIRS image was taken on June 21 at 19:53 UTC (3:53 p.m. EST) and showed some cloud top temperatures of thunderstorms near the center of circulation as cold as minus 63 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 53 degrees Celsius). NASA research has shown the storms with cloud tops that cold have the potential to generate heavy rainfall.

The infrared data was false-colored at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, where AIRS data is managed.

Cindy made landfall around 3 a.m. CDT in southwestern Louisiana. At that time, the National Hurricane Center or NHC said that Cindy was centered about 30 miles (45 km) west-southwest of Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Measuring Rainfall Rates from Space

The GPM core observatory satellite passed above as Tropical Storm Cindy was approaching the western Louisiana coast on June 22, 2017 at 2:21 a.m. EDT (0621 UTC). Cindy had maximum sustained winds of about 40 knots (46 mph) at that time. Rainfall derived from Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) measurements showed that there was very little rainfall near Cindy's center of circulation but bands of moderate to heavy showers were seen moving into the states along the Gulf Coast. GPM's Radar (DPR Ku Band) found that storms over central Alabama were dropping rain at a rate of over 3.6 inches (91 mm) per hour.

At NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, GPM radar (DPR Ku Band) data were used to show the 3-D structure of rainfall within Cindy's storm tops. GPM's radar revealed that a few storms within rain bands near New Orleans were reaching heights of over 7.2 miles (11.6 km). GPM's radar found that the heaviest downpours over Alabama were returning radar reflectivity values of over 51dBZ to the GPM satellite.

Cindy's Whereabouts on June 22

On June 22, NHC issued a Tropical Storm Warning from High Island, Texas to Morgan City, Louisiana.

At 8 a.m. EDT (1200 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Cindy was located near latitude 30.5 North, longitude 93.7 West. Cindy is moving toward the north near 12 mph (19 km/h), and a turn toward the north-northeast is expected later today, followed by a turn toward the northeast on Friday, June 23. Maximum sustained winds are near 40 mph (65 kph) with higher gusts. The estimated minimum central pressure is 994 millibars.

Rainfall is the Biggest Danger

The National Hurricane Center noted that rainfall is the biggest threat from Cindy as it continues to move inland. NHC said, "Cindy is expected to produce rain accumulations of 3 to 6 inches with isolated maximum amounts up to 12 inches over eastern Texas, western and central Louisiana, and southern and eastern Arkansas through Friday morning. Additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches with isolated maximum amounts of 8 inches over southern Mississippi, southern and central Alabama, and extreme western Florida Panhandle are expected through Friday morning. This rainfall could cause life-threatening flash flooding in these areas.

Rainfall is expected to begin and expand across parts of the Tennessee and Ohio valleys. Rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches with isolated maximum amounts of 4 inches are expected through Friday morning."

In addition to heavy rainfall, tropical storm force winds, storm surge and a few tornadoes are possible. The tornado threat extends through tonight, June 22, from the lower Mississippi and Tennessee Valley regions to the central Gulf Coast.

On the forecast track, Cindy will move into southeastern Arkansas early Friday, and into Tennessee later on Friday. NHC said Cindy is expected to continue weakening and should become a remnant low tonight.

Explore further: NASA sees Tropical Storm Cindy soaking the Gulf Coast

NASA's Aqua satellite captured an image of Tropical Storm Cindy after it formed and was already affecting the U.S. Gulf Coast states. Cindy continues to crawl toward land and Tropical Storm warnings are in effect for June ...

NASA's Global Precipitation Measurement mission or GPM core satellite passed over a developing low pressure area in the Gulf of Mexico and gathered two days of rainfall and storm height information. The disturbance could ...

Tropical Storm Merbok formed in the South China Sea west of the Philippines on June 11 and made landfall east of Hong Kong, China on June 12. NASA measured the rainfall rates within the tropical storm early in its short two ...

NASA's Aqua satellite analyzed Tropical Depression 2E in infrared, visible and microwave light as it began its landfall on June 1, bringing heavy rains to southern Mexico.

Satellite data showed heavy rain and high cloud tops in Tropical Cyclone Mora after the storm came ashore in Bangladesh.

Heavy rainfall is a big part of Tropical Depression 9, which is strengthening in the Gulf of Mexico. The Global Precipitation Measurement mission, or GPM, core satellite passed over the gulf in space and measured that rate ...

New research has revealed the causes of the UK's record rainfall and subsequent flooding during the 2013-14 winter.

Every year, severe weather endangers millions of people and causes billions of dollars in damage worldwide. But new research from Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) and AccuWeather has found ...

Dating back to the first century, scientists, philosophers and reporters have noted the occasional occurrence of "bright nights," when an unexplained glow in the night sky lets observers see distant mountains, read a newspaper ...

(Phys.org)A pair of researchers with the Natural History Museum of London and the University of Waikato have found that bacteria living in a part of Antarctica have not changed much over the past century. In their paper ...

A spectacular six-month Icelandic lava field eruption could provide the crucial key for scientists to unlock the role aerosols play in climate change, through their interactions with clouds.

In the popular children's story "Horton Hears a Who!" author Dr. Seuss tells of a gentle and protective elephant who stumbles upon a speck of dust that harbors a community of microscopic creatures called the Whos living the ...

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NASA's infrared and radar eyes in space cast on Tropical Storm Cindy - Phys.Org

NASA to Send Cornell Group’s Satellite Into Space – Cornell University The Cornell Daily Sun

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

Courtesy of Cornell CubeSat

Kyle Doyle, a doctoral student who helps lead the Cornell CubeSat group, holds the finished product: a spacecraft that NASA will send into space.

Cornells Cislunar Explorers has earned a chance to make history and over one million dollars with NASA.

The Cislunar Explorers developed a small satellite that was one of three winners in the semi-final round of NASAs Cube Quest Challenge. The teams prize-winning satellite will fly aboard the Space Launch System and into space in 2019.

Kyle Doyle, a doctoral student who helps lead the group, explained the NASA contest.

NASA has a rocket which is going to be launched in 2019. On this rocket, they have room for thirteen CubeSats [small satellites], and three of those spots are open to the general public via the CubeQuest challenge, he said.

The first leg of the CubeQuest challenge was the design competition. The top three designs, including ours, have been selected to fly on the rocket. The second leg of the CubeQuest challenge will happen in space, where NASA will award substantial sums of money if the CubeSats complete certain objectives, such as reaching lunar orbit, Doyle said.

The team already has won $100,000 in prize money for the design competition, Doyle said. In space, if the teams satellite achieves lunar orbit, it could win up to $1.5 million.

If we are successful, we would be among the first private spacecraft to orbit the moon, he said.

The team is a part of Prof. Mason Pecks, mechanical and aerospace engineering, lab. Doyle explained how years of research in Prof. Pecks lab launched the satellites success.

The core technology is a water electrolysis propulsion thruster. We have been developing this technology at Cornell since 2009, he said.

He explained the water electrolysis propulsion system in more detail.

The idea behind this is that we have a small spacecraft about the size of a bread box, and we have some water on-board this spacecraft. When we zap the water with electricity, this causes the water molecules to split into hydrogen and oxygen gas, which is a very combustible mixture that can be used as rocket fuel, said Doyle.

This technology has significant potential uses, Doyle said.

I am excited about the possibility of refueling spacecraft using water. We have discovered that there is a lot of water and ice in solar system. You could really give spacecraft longer lifetimes by having them refuel in space with water, he said.

The navigation systems aboard the groups satellite are also unique, Doyle explained.

Most spacecraft navigate by radio triangulation. This is difficult for small spacecraft operating very far from Earth. With our new technology as an alternative, the spacecraft carries inexpensive cameras and uses them to take pictures of the Earth, the sun and the moon, then uses their relative locations to determine its own location, he said.

Amol Rajesh is a member of the Class of 2020 in the College of Arts and Sciences. He is a staff writer for the news department and can be reached at arajesh@cornellsun.com.

We are an independent, student newspaper. Help keep us reporting with a tax-deductible donation to the Cornell Sun Alumni Association, a non-profit dedicated to aiding The Sun.

NASA to Send Cornell Group's Satellite Into Space - Cornell University The Cornell Daily Sun

Breakthrough in Lightweight Steel Production Enables Control of Brittle Phases – ENGINEERING.com

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

Inside an annealing furnace. (Image courtesy of ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel.)

Alireza Rahnama, WMG research fellow, has developed a new processing route which allows low density steel-based alloys to be produced with maximum strength, whilst remaining durable and flexible something which has been largely impossible until now.

Two lightweight steels were tested -Fe-15Mn-10Al-0.8C-5NiandFe-15Mn-10Al-0.8C for their potential strength and ductility.

During production, two brittle phases can occur in these steels:kappa-carbide (k-carbide)andB2 intermetallic which make the steels hard but limits their ductility, making them difficult to roll.

Through simulation and experimentation, the WMG researchers found that at certain high annealing temperatures, these brittle phases can become much more controllable, allowing the steels to retain their ductility.

Between 900C to 1200C, thek-carbidephase can be removed from production, and theB2 intermetallicbrittle phase can become manageableforming in a disk-like, nano-sized morphology, as opposed to a coarser product which forms at lower temperatures.

Current processes for strengthening lightweight steels make them less flexibleand therefore less marketablebut thanks to Rahnamas research, this could become a problem of the past.

The breakthrough could also lead to a revolution in safer, greener, more fuel-efficient cars. Vehicles made of stronger and lighter materials are safer for drivers, emit less CO2 and consume less fuel - and more malleable steels will allow manufacturers to form car parts into desirable, streamlined shapes.

Alloys with higher strength and ductility could alleviate some of these concerns by reducing weight and improving energy efficiency. Lightweight steels are one of the candidates to address these concerns, said Rahnama.

Most metallurgical mechanisms for increasing strength lead to ductility loss, an effect referred to as the strength-ductility trade-off, he continued. This paper studies the kinetics and thermodynamics of microstructural evolution of lightweight steels through simulations and experiments and proposes a mechanism to achieve higher strength and larger ductility; a method that can be readily adopted by industry.

The research,Effect of Ni alloying on the microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of two duplex light-weight steels during different annealing temperatures: experiment and phase-field simulation is published inthe journal Acta Materialia.

For more materials news, learn about Making Bricks from Simulated Martian Soil.

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Breakthrough in Lightweight Steel Production Enables Control of Brittle Phases - ENGINEERING.com

Technology expert joins the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute’s center for cancer early detection – PR Newswire (press release)

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

"A leader steeped in technology is crucial for the growth of our early detection initiative," said Brian Druker, M.D., director of the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute. "Early detection is a nascent field, which requires us to extend the limits of what we think is possible. Dr. Heller brings a wealth of leadership, industry and technical experience to this vitally important role."

In addition to his academic experience, Heller previously served as chief technical officer at Nanogen, a company he co-founded with Sadik Esener, Ph.D., director of CEDAR. While at Nanogen, the two partners came up with the idea to use electro-kinetic devices to screen blood for early signs of cancer. Esener says Heller's in-depth expertise in sample preparation and point of care instrumentation, along with his seasoned mentorship abilities, will be advantageous to CEDAR.

"Dr. Heller is unique in that he's been highly successful in academia as well as the biomedical industry," said Esener. "Because he is at the forefront of technology, his inventions have been innovative and easily made the transition to the industry. A leader with this range of experience will be invaluable to our team."

Heller says he is looking forward to taking on one of the biggest unmet needs in cancer care today.

"Early detection is one of the biggest cancer challenges," said Heller. "There's an enormous amount of work going on in cancerresearch, therapeutics and diagnostics but not many people are focusing on early detection research. This is what drew me to OHSU. It's the right approach, the right team, the right time and there's excitement here that I haven't seen anywhere else."

To date, more than 20 people with expertise in engineering, cancer biology, informatics, and computer science have been recruited to the CEDAR team.

Esener and colleagues have outlined six key areas of focus for CEDAR, including:

The recruitment of Heller is made possible through OHSU's successful completion of the $1 billion Knight Cancer Challenge by Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny. Heller's recruitment signifies an important step in the Knight Cancer Institute's goal to recruit 20 to 30 top researchers and their teams.

Heller's official start date is July 3.

About the Knight Cancer Institute

The Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health & Science University is a pioneer in the field of precision cancer medicine. The institute's director, Brian Druker, M.D., helped prove it was possible to shut down just the cells that enable cancer to grow. This breakthrough has made once-fatal forms of the disease manageable and transformed how cancer is treated. The OHSU Knight Cancer Institute is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center between Sacramento and Seattle an honor earned only by the nation's top cancer centers. It is headquarters for one of the National Cancer Institute's largest research collaboratives, SWOG, in addition to offering the latest treatments and technologies as well as hundreds of research studies and clinical trials. For additional information on the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute visit http://www.ohsu.edu/xd/health/services/cancer or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

The biology of uterine fluid: How it informs the fetus of mom’s world – Medical Xpress

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

June 22, 2017 This figure shows a normal uterine fluid environment during embryo preimplantation. Credit: Zhang, Ying et al., Trends in Molecular Medicine 2017

A developing fetus bathes in a mixture of cellular secretions and proteins unique to its mother's uterus. Before fertilization, the pH of uterine fluid helps create a conducive environment for sperm migration, and afterward, its volume supports the embryo as it implants onto the wall of the uterus. Recent evidence suggests that uterine fluid may play another key role in embryonic development: communicating the mother's outside conditions to the fetus, so that the latter can prepare accordingly. A review of this research appears on June 22 in Trends in Molecular Medicine.

Studies in livestock, rodents, and humans have shown that information from a mother's environment (e.g., food availability, stress, and pollutant exposure) can leave epigenetic tags on the DNA of her fetus, potentially influencing the progression and long-term health of the developing embryo. Scientists have hypothesized that blood flow via the placenta might constitute one way the body communicates the mother's condition to the fetus, yet there is evidence that the fetus can react to changes such as those stemming from the mother's diet long before the establishment of the placenta.

"This suggests the involvement of uterine fluid as the communication medium to transfer information between the maternal environment and the floating embryo," says senior author En-Kui Duan, a reproductive biologist at the Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. "The preimplantation period is a critical time for programming offspring health, and thus, expecting mothers should keep a good diet and good mood, and stay away from harmful chemicals during this critical window."

While there is much to be learned about how mother-fetus communication takes place, the theory is that information in extracellular vesicles (molecular packages that move from cell to cell) within uterine fluid and tissue deliver their cargo, including microRNAs and amino acids, to the fetus. These molecules may be tagging fetal cell DNA in ways that alter which genes are being expressed, and thus can contribute to "programming" how the embryo and/or placenta develop. Consequently, researchers are interested in learning which specific maternal environmental exposures and/or behaviors could change the composition of molecules transported via the uterine fluid to the fetus.

For example, mouse studies have shown that a low-protein maternal diet can reduce the level of certain amino acids in uterine fluid and affect gene expression of nutrition- transport-related genes. While these changes might prevent malnutrition in the developing embryo, once grown, the mouse offspring are more predisposed to heart disease when compared to animals on a regular diet.

Hongmei Wang, co-senior author of this paper, speculates that uterine fluid could someday be used to analyze or even manipulate what signals are being received by a fetus. "For now, uterine fluid collection is not a standard biomarker, yet many studies have revealed its potential role for non-invasive analysis, and we also see great potential in it," she says. "One, it can be screened by using ultrasound recording coupled with computational/biomechanical analysis; and two, uterine fluid can also be collected during an endometrial examination."

Explore further: Female diet alters the nutrient composition of fluid in the womb

More information: Trends in Molecular Medicine, Zhang, Ying et al.: "Uterine Fluid in Pregnancy: A Biological and Clinical Outlook." http://www.cell.com/trends/molecular-medicine/fulltext/S1471-4914(17)30080-1 , DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2017.05.002

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Cesarean delivery is the most common inpatient surgical procedure in the United States, with 1.4 million c-sections performed each year. Opioids, most commonly oxycodone, are the standard pain medications prescribed to women ...

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The biology of uterine fluid: How it informs the fetus of mom's world - Medical Xpress

Tiny nanoparticles offer significant potential in detecting/treating disease new review of work on exosomes – Phys.Org

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

June 22, 2017 Exosomes can be produced by cells (left), altered before production or after purification (middle), and made in the laboratory (right) depending on their final use. Credit: Dr Marta I. Oliveira, INL, Portugal

Tiny nanoparticles offer significant potential in detecting and treating disease - new review

Exosomes - tiny biological nanoparticles which transfer information between cells - offer significant potential in detecting and treating disease, the most comprehensive overview so far of research in the field has concluded.

Areas which could benefit include cancer treatment and regenerative medicine, say Dr Steven Conlan from Swansea University, Dr Mauro Ferrari of Houston Methodist Research Institute in Texas, and Dr Ins Mendes Pinto from the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory in Portugal. Their commissioned paper, Exosomes as Reconfigurable Therapeutic Systems, is published today by Cell Press in Trends in Molecular Medicine.

Exosomes are particles produced by all cells in the body and are from 30-130 nanometres in size - a nanometre is one-billionth of a metre. They act as biological signalling systems, communicating between cells, carrying proteins, lipids, DNA and RNA. They drive biological processes, from modulating gene expression to transmitting information through breast milk.

Though discovered in 1983, the full potential of exosomes is only gradually being revealed. The researchers show that the nanoparticles' possible medical benefits fall into three broad categories:

One of the most useful properties of exosomes is that they are able to cross barriers such as the plasma membrane of cells, or the blood/brain barrier. This makes them well-suited to delivering therapeutic molecules in a very targeted way.

The potential benefits of exosomes can be seen in the wide range of research projects - cited in the paper - already either completed or under way, in areas such as:

The team caution that there is more to do before research into exosomes translates into new techniques and treatments. Side-effects need to be considered, and a standardised approach to isolating, characterising and storing exosomes will need to be developed.

Researchers will also need to ensure that the properties of exosomes do not end up causing harm: for example they can transfer drug resistance and pacify the immune system.

Nevertheless, the potential is very clear, with the team describing exosomes as "increasingly promising".

Professor Steve Conlan of Swansea University Medical School, one of the authors of the paper, said:

"Our survey of research into exosomes shows clearly that they offer enormous potential as a basis for detecting and treating disease.

Further studies are necessary to turn this research into clinical outcomes, but researchers and funders should be very encouraged by our findings. Our own research in Swansea is investigating the use of exosomes and exosome-like synthetic nanoparticles in combatting ovarian and endometrial cancer.

Progress in this field depends on partnership. As the authorship of our own paper illustrates, researchers in different countries are increasingly working together in nanohealth. Swansea University has wider links with Houston and Portuguese based researchers in the field.

It's also important to build partnerships outside academia, in particular with government and companies in this fast-growing sector."

Explore further: New approach for the capture of tumor-derived exosomes from a prostate cancer cell line

More information: R. Steven Conlan et al. Exosomes as Reconfigurable Therapeutic Systems, Trends in Molecular Medicine (2017). DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2017.05.003

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Tiny nanoparticles offer significant potential in detecting and treating disease - new review

Nanotechnologists from Rice University and China's Tianjin University have used 3-D laser printing to fabricate centimeter-sized objects of atomically thin graphene.

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Tiny nanoparticles offer significant potential in detecting/treating disease new review of work on exosomes - Phys.Org

Tempus and University of Chicago Medicine Collaborate on Pancreatic Cancer Research Project – GlobeNewswire (press release)

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

June 22, 2017 10:30 ET | Source: Tempus

CHICAGO, June 22, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tempus, a technology company focused on helping doctors personalize cancer care by collecting, sorting and analyzing clinical and molecular data, and pancreatic cancer specialists at the University of Chicago Medicine, announce a new collaboration aimed at accelerating the pace of discovery and, over time, improving treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. It has a five-year survival rate of just nine percent. Lack of effective treatments and early detection methods contribute to this grim prognosis. Personalized approaches to match a patients genomic information to therapies have led to improvements in treatment of other cancer types. None of the genetic mutations commonly seen in pancreatic cancer, however, have druggable targets.

As part of the research collaboration, Tempus will work directly with a team of researchers and clinicians from the Chicago Pancreatic Cancer Initiative (CPCI), led by Ralph Weichselbaum, MD, professor and chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Chicago. The CPCI has collected genomic data, biospecimens and clinical information from more than 300 patients with pancreatic cancer. Tempus will compile this data with their existing robust database to apply machine learning and advanced bioinformatics to analyze them. Tempus will also produce additional genomic data using their platform.

The goal is to help cancer specialists and research teams uncover novel patterns in clinical and molecular data, in order to better predict how patients will respond to treatment.

The University of Chicago and Tempus share a commitment to accelerate pancreatic cancer research and identify treatments that can improve the lives of those diagnosed, said Weichselbaum. We are optimistic that this collaboration can make a difference in the lives of those diagnosed and treated for pancreatic cancer.

A tremendous amount of work and effort across hospital systems, academic institutions and research consortia has been done to help improve the odds of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and yet the outlook is still grim for those battling the disease, said Eric Lefkofsky, Co-founder and CEO at Tempus. We are pleased to support the team at the University of Chicago by bringing technology and analytics to our common quest for improved patient outcomes.

The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center, which includes CPCI investigators, is one of only 48 Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the U.S. designated by the National Cancer Institute.

In 2016, the University of Chicago Medicine was selected as a Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN) Precision Promise Consortium site. Under the leadership of oncologist and CPCI investigator, Hedy Kindler, MD, professor of medicine and medical director of the gastrointestinal oncology and the mesothelioma programs at the University, the program will advance clinical trial options for pancreatic cancer patients.

Tempus and the University of Chicago Medicine are currently involved in another research project focusing on improving outcomes for breast cancer patients.

About Tempus: Tempus is a technology company that is building the worlds largest library of molecular and clinical data and an operating system to make that data accessible and useful. We enable physicians to deliver personalized cancer care for patients through our interactive analytical and machine learning platform. We provide genomic sequencing services and analyze molecular and therapeutic data to empower physicians to make real-time, data-driven decisions. Our goal is for each patient to benefit from the treatment of others who came before by providing physicians with tools that learn as we gather more data. For more information, visit tempus.com and follow us on Facebook (Tempus Labs) and Twitter (@TempusLabs). For more information on Eric Lefkofsky, visit lefkofsky.com.

About the University of Chicago Medicine: The University of Chicago Medicine & Biological Sciences is one of the nations leading academic medical institutions. It comprises the Pritzker School of Medicine, a top U.S. medical school; the University of Chicago Biomedical Sciences Division; and the University of Chicago Medical Center. Twelve Nobel Prize winners in physiology or medicine have been affiliated with the University of Chicago Medicine.

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Tempus and University of Chicago Medicine Collaborate on Pancreatic Cancer Research Project - GlobeNewswire (press release)

Biofilmsthe eradication has begun – Phys.org – Phys.Org

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

June 22, 2017 The fungus Aspergillus fumigatus (in red) produces a sticky sugar molecule (in green) to make a biofilm that is important for its virulence. It covers the fungus and allows it to stick to surfaces and tissues, making it difficult to remove and treat patients. Researchers developed a new innovative technique aimed at destroying biofilms. Credit: Brendan Snarr, McGill University Health Centre

Have you ever heard of biofilms? They are slimy, glue-like membranes that are produced by microbes, like bacteria and fungi, in order to colonize surfaces. They can grow on animal and plant tissues, and even inside the human body on medical devices such as catheters, heart valves, or artificial hips. Biofilms protect microbes from the body's immune system and increase their resistance to antibiotics. They represent one of the biggest threats to patients in hospital settings. But there is good news - a research team led by the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) and The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) has developed a novel enzyme technology that prevents the formation of biofilms and can also break them down.

This finding, recently published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), creates a promising avenue for the development of innovative strategies to treat a wide variety of diseases and hospital-acquired infections like pneumonia, bloodstream and urinary tract infection. Biofilm-associated infections are responsible for thousands of deaths across North America every year. They are hard to eradicate because they secrete a matrix made of sugar molecules which form a kind of armour that acts as a physical and chemical barrier, preventing antibiotics from reaching their target sites within microbes.

"We were able to use the microbe's own tools against them to attack and destroy the sugar molecules that hold the biofilm together," says the study's co-principal investigator, Dr. Don Sheppard, director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the MUHC and scientist from the Infectious Diseases and Immunity in Global Health Program at the RI-MUHC. "Rather than trying to develop new individual 'bullets' that target single microbes we are attacking the biofilm that protects those microbes by literally tearing down the walls to expose the microbes living behind them. It's a completely new and novel strategy to tackle this issue."

This work is the result of a four-year successful collaboration between Dr. Sheppard's team and scientists in the laboratory of Dr. P. Lynne Howell, senior scientist in the Molecular Medicine program at SickKids. They have been working to combat biofilms for several years, focusing on two of the most common organisms responsible for lung infections: a bacterium called Pseudomonas aeruginosa and a fungus called Aspergillus fumigatus. Infections with these organisms in patients with chronic lung diseases like cystic fibrosis represent an enormous challenge in medical therapy.

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While studying machinery that these organisms use to make their biofilms, the scientists discovered enzymes that cut up the sugar molecules, which glue biofilms together. "Microbes use these enzymes to move sugar molecules around and cut them into pieces in order to build and remodel the biofilm matrix," says Dr. Sheppard, who is also a professor in the departments of Medicine and Microbiology and Immunology at McGill University. The researchers found a way to use these enzymes to degrade the sugar armour, exposing the microbe to antibiotics and host defenses.

"We made these enzymes into a biofilm destroying machine that we can use outside the microbe where the sugar molecules are found," explains co-first study author Brendan Snarr, a PhD student in Dr. Sheppard's laboratory. "These enzymes chew away all of the sugar molecules in their path and don't stop until the matrix is destroyed."

"Previous attempts to deal with biofilms have had only limited success, mostly in preventing biofilm formation. These enzymes are the first strategy that has ever been effective in eradicating mature biofilms, and that work in mouse models of infection," adds Dr. Sheppard.

"When we took the enzymes from bacteria and applied them to the fungi, we found that they worked in the same way on the fungi biofilm; which was surprising," says the study's co-principal investigator, Dr. P. Lynne Howell, who is also a professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Toronto. "What's key is that this approach could be a universal way of being able to leverage the microbes' own systems for degrading biofilms. This has bigger implications across many microbes, diseases and infections."

"Over 70 percent of hospital-acquired infections are actually associated with biofilms and we simply lack tools to treat them!" states Dr. Sheppard. According to both lead scientists, the potential of this novel therapy is enormous and they hope to commercialize it in the coming years.

Explore further: Scientists uncover interactions between bacteria that infect the lungs in cystic fibrosis

More information: Microbial glycoside hydrolases as antibiofilm agents with cross-kingdom activity, biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/03/04/113696

Substances produced by a harmful bacterium in the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients may enhance the growth of other bacteria that, in turn, inhibit the harmful bacterium's biofilm, according to new research published in PLOS ...

(Phys.org)A team of researchers from the U.S. and Canada has identified two enzymes that have proven able to break down bacterial biofilms, allowing antibacterial agents to more effectively kill their targets. In their ...

Microbial biofilmsdense, sticky mats of bacteria that are hard to treat and can lead to dangerous infectionsoften form in medical equipment, such as flexible plastic tubing used in catheters or in tubes used to help ...

Many infectious pathogens are difficult to treat because they develop into biofilms, layers of metabolically active but slowly growing bacteria embedded in a protective layer of slime, which are inherently more resistant ...

Scientists from the National Institutes of Health have discovered how catheter-related bacterial infection develops and disseminates to become a potentially life-threatening condition. The study, which included research on ...

Biofilms are communities of bacteria that adhere to a surface and are nearly impossible to eradicate when they are pathogenic, or disease-causing. Fortunately, a discovery from the laboratories of Lauren Bakaletz, PhD, and ...

The evolution of the amniotic eggcomplete with membrane and shellwas key to vertebrates leaving the oceans and colonizing the land and air. Now, 360 million years later, bird eggs come in all shapes and sizes, from ...

Amid the incredible diversity of living things on our planet, there is a common theme. Organisms need to acquire new genes, or change the functions of existing genes, in order to adapt and survive.

Scientists are providing the clearest view yet of an intact bacterial microcompartment, revealing at atomic-level resolution the structure and assembly of the organelle's protein shell.

Honeybees may not need key brain structures known as mushroom bodies in order to learn complex associations between odors and rewards, according to new research published in PLOS Computational Biology.

Specialized cells in the gut sense potentially noxious chemicals and trigger electrical impulses in nearby nerve fibers, according to a new study led by UC San Francisco scientists. "These cells are sensors, like a window ...

Duke researchers have discovered a unique repair mechanism in the developing backbone of zebrafish that could give insight into why spinal discs of longer-lived organisms like humans degenerate with age.

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Great find. And because these enzymes are used by the bacteria, they can not so easily become resistant to them. Or somehow develop ways to stop them from working.

Getting 'black gunk' out of the soap & softener dispensers in our laundry machine is a real battle. At least I can take out their tray, dunk it in bleach and scrub unto clean. The gunk in the duct beyond has resisted anything that won't corrode the equipment or gas the operator...

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Biofilmsthe eradication has begun - Phys.org - Phys.Org

ViveX Demo Day Batch 2 Featured 26 VR And AR Companies – UploadVR

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

Today at an event in San Francisco HTC hosted a Vive X Demo Day for its second batch of funded company demos. The event featured 26 different companies ranging from game developers, enterprise applications, ease-of-use convenience tools, and a litany of other projects.

To date Vive X has funded over 60 different companies with over $100 million and aims to continue its expansion into Israel soon in addition to locations in the U.S., China, and more.

Make sure to check back tomorrow and later this week for more details, impressions, and thoughts on the companies that demoed. Below weve included summaries of each company featured at the Vive X Demo Day:

cognitiveVR Provides 3D spatial analytics and user feedback tools for VR/AR, enabling organizations to quickly and easily display analytics on their users sessions and collect deep metrics on user behavior and feedback.

Construct Studio A bilingual independent studio dedicated to creating interactive narrative experiences for VR. Construct has recently created their first interactive VR narrative The Price of Freedom, based on the real events of CIA mind control program Project MK Ultra.

HyperfairVR A SaaS web-based social VR solution for enterprises. It allows businesses to self-build and easily customize their own branded VR environment, and quickly publish to multiple platforms to engage with customers and employees in VR via avatars.

Limitless A cloud-based platform which aims to make it easier to create VR content. Using the Limitless VR Creative Environment, creators can animate characters directly in VR using motion controls, simplifying the animation process for newcomers and professionals alike.

Mindesk Creators ofthe first immersive interface for commercial CAD software in the world. With Mindesk, engineers, architects and designers can build their models naturally in VR, while collaborating in real time in the cloud.

Realiteer Develops and distributes immersive and evidence-based programs in cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), which has been clinically shown to treat substance abuse, anxiety, and depression. It is working closely with world-class academic researchers to design and build these programs.

The Rogue Initiative A new VR and Digital Media content studio, creating AAA cinematic interactive entertainment. The Rogue Initiative collaborates with established Hollywood talent to co-create and co-own new intellectual property in VR that can be further developed into various franchises.

Subdream A social VR gaming studio founded by serial gaming entrepreneur Jikhan Jung. Subdream plans on releasing quality multiplayer games that can be played at VR arcades and at home.

Vertebrae A native advertising platform for VR and AR. The headset-agnostic tech stack connects advertisers with developers and publishers to deliver immersive, native VR/AR/360 video advertising experiences.

Hexa A company thats changing the way we experience our planet by making it easy to create and scale 3D content. Hexa automatically converts 2D photos into 3D assets and enable online retailers to create virtual equivalents of their collections and display them online.

OVAs StellarX The best tool out there for non-programmers to develop their own VR environments in VR through simple grab-and-drop creation.

Invrse Reality This company aims to fuse physical and virtual reality. Our unique interface design and touch input will bring meaningful user experiences to your fingertips.

PlusOne An AR + AI startup creating interactive intelligent human holograms which can be used by enterprises to train their employees to interact more effectively with customers.

Multiverse A world-class VR studio founded by game industry veterans from places like Wevr, Disney, Riot, Ubisoft, Com2us, and CJ E&M. Multiverse is poised to create industry-defining content and help bring VR to the masses. Multiverses previous game, Reveries: Dream Flight, is one of the highest-rated VR games worldwide, and a top selling title on the Oculus Store.

Red Accent A game creator with a strong track record developing games for console, PC and mobile. Red Accent is currently working on sports and adventure titles and is based out of Shanghai and San Francisco.

Byond A cloud-based VR publishing platform empowering brands, media companies and agencies to create their own personalized interactive universe in VR. Using Byonds tools, VR applications can be easily created and published across all platforms.

Aurora AR A company with thegoal to be the leader in augmented reality glass optics and device design. Our first product is an 135 degree field of view augmented reality glass which works under daylight, and is cost-effective for consumers.

BrokenColors This company builds and integrates head-based sensing technologies that bring the users gaze, facial expressions, and mindsets into the virtual world. Our sensing technologies are creating a more immersive experience for VR users.

bHaptics This company enables users to enjoy VR with visual, auditory, and haptic feedback. Our distinguished haptic devices and haptic authoring software are the ideal solution for conveniently adding appropriate haptic feedback to various VR content.

SoccerDream A VR football (soccer) training technology that helps clubs and academies make their players smarter, and keep them highly motivated, just as the worlds top clubs do.

Opaque Space A premier developer of consumer and simulation VR experiences. Opaque Space is developing the acclaimed VR game Earthlight and collaborating with NASA to develop VR training tools for the next generation of astronauts.

Snobal This company builds VR Tools for businesses. Snobals tools empower organizations to easily create, manage and analyze their virtual reality environments, whether for design, collaboration or stakeholder engagement.

Memora A global leading 360 degree camera manufacturer which provides a new way to communicate and archive moments in 360VR and AI.

Xikaku Develops AR technology for applications in industrial and medical fields. Our first product, the X-Visor, is an analysis and visualization system allowing factory personnel do precise and efficient machine inspection using an overlay of real-time sensor data. Our systems provide a platform to dramatically enhance the capabilities and skills of human resources in mission critical applications.

Appnori Inc. A sports-focused VR game development company, developing games such as baseball and table tennis, which can be enjoyed by all users regardless of age.

VRANI Company intends to provide VRs fantastic experiences to users by focusing on interactive VR characters. Through four core playing experiences, Easy-Play, Extreme-Play, Interactive-Play and Multi-Play, we create fun and easy casual VR content.

Tagged with: Demo Day, htc, ViveX

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The Most Suitable Connection for Your Business – BusinessZone (blog)

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

We all know that no matter whatbusiness services you are looking for, you must keep the exact requirements of your business in mind even when picking an Internet connection for your business.

Here are a few things you must consider:

Its important to note that most internet connections download files/data much faster than uploading them. Thats because most of the day to day activities on the Internet (which include video streaming, loading of web pages etc.) involve downloading of data. The low upload speed can cause serious issues for businesses that use Internet connection primarily for uploading data. These include tasks like loading data to the weekly or daily business reports, backing up information to the cloud and so on.

A standard connection that promises to offer a maximum speed of 50 Mbps is unlikely to allow you upload at that speed; 50 Mbps would be the maximum download speed you will be enjoying when using that connection. Upload speed offered by the same connection would never be able to match that speed.

If your business connectivity is required primarily for uploading data, you would require symmetrical bandwidth, which is provided by use of Ethernet solutions. Symmetrical bandwidth would allow you to enjoy same upload and download speeds.

Internet connection types commonly used by businesses

ADSL Broadband - This is possibly the most cost effective option you would come across when looking for a suitable Internet connection for your business. This connection type is available in almost every area and offers bonded solutions that would allow you to enjoy high speeds. Another feature thats worth a mention is ADSLs impressive latency. However, the option wouldnt suit you if you are looking for a connection offering fast upload speed.

Fiber broadband - This is a great option if you have a small office and a handful of employees. It would offer you a download speed of as high as 80 Mbps. However, fiber broadband is an expensive option if you have low bandwidth requirements.

Leased lines - This one is surely rated among the best possible network connectivity your business can have. With a leased line, you will enjoy dedicated and high-speed Internet connection that would be completely private. It would offer you 99.9 percent up-time and symmetrical bandwidth. The only thing you will have to remember before picking this option is that it would cost you significantly more money that ADSL. Also, you must also be careful about cable theft.

Wireless (3G & 4G where possible) - As a result of being wireless, this connectivity option would allow you to use the Internet on the go. A business WiFI has several benefits and it might be the most popular internet connection business opt in. WiFi allows you to connect your device, or devices, and let you roam free through the office. Considering that BYOD trend is increasing over the globe, it would explain the increased demand for wireless business solutions.

The other benefits of this option include high availability in metropolitan locations and easy deployment. Also, you can get hold of some truly low-cost packages when using this connectivity type. However, you should check the efficacy of the connection well before picking it for business connectivity as its latency or performance is often variable.

Why opting for managed network services would be a good decision?

Heres how managed network services can help your business

By controlling operating expenses of the entire IT network- A managed service would reduce operational, hardware, service, maintenance, infrastructure, and software costs. Also, all these costs would be controlled better and become more predictable.

By maintaining network and preventing network issues proactively- The managed network service provider would free you up for focusing on the primary goals of your business. These service providers ensure that their clients can use high-performance networks boasting high flexibility and speed. They even possess the infrastructure required for supporting faster upgrades and implementations. A Managed network service provider would carry out preventive and proactive maintenance checks on a regular basis and keep making improvements to the network.

By offering more comprehensive network security- With managed network services, your business will be enjoying a higher level of security for your entire data and voice network. Your business would be protected from spam, intrusions, viruses, malware, as well as inappropriate content.

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Form Review: VR Puzzling At Its Transformative Best – UploadVR

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

Making puzzles in VR better is, in itself, a conundrum. While coming under enemy fire might be all the more intense and caring for characters is easier, solving a rubiks cube inside a headset isnt exactly a more definitive gaming experience. Putting piece A into slot B isnt quite the revelation in VR that you might hope; you need to make something that truly stands apart from the years of puzzlers that have lined the path to this new medium. The genre needs its own Portal.

Form doesnt just run with that idea; it bends it, remoulds it, makes it bigger, lighter, more dramatic.

Set in an Alaskan research facility, this excellent debut from Charm Games casts you as Dr. Devin Eli, a physicist studying a strange supernatural artifact named The Obelisk. Though the game starts out in a cold laboratory, your environment soon morphs into the impossibly surreal and ever-changing landscape of your own mind, a place where your thoughts appear as comic book-like bubbles that you grab and throw away and puzzles present themselves in the most majestic and curious of ways.

Youll need to get used to the games sheer unpredictability. Forms puzzles usually boil down to simple and relatively easy tasks, but they come at you in fascinating ways. Small shapes hover in front of you before bleeding out into hulking tapestriesat the very touch of a finger, unexpectedly glorious sounds emit from the slightest movements, and dazzling light displays reward your successes. It is, quite literally, a transformative experience in which the smallest of actions has the most dramatic of effects upon your world.

Theres a real joy to just existing in Forms universein this way. Charm has done an excellent job realising something thats enriched by putting a headset on, concocting an uncanny atmosphere that really feels like youre exploring a strange new alien world.

It has architecture that you simply wont understand but nevertheless feels evolved and precious, as if youre there to preserve it just as much as you are to use it. Its soundtrack is fuzzy and revelatory, pushing a sense of pioneering discovery right the way through. You feel like the starry-eyed movie characters that have just uncovered lost civilizations or made contact with beings from another planet.

That tone carries through to the puzzles. Pretty much every challenge in Form starts with you picking up a strange alien artefact and wondering exactly what the heck it is. Indentations in panels reveal them to be tools with specific uses, and buttons and levers promise unexpected consequences with every interaction.

As I said, youll usually boil them down to simple challenges, many of which youve seen before. Memory-based sequences and object rearrangement isnt exactly groundbreaking, but its the sense of picking something ancient and prestigious up and interacting with it that carries the experience. Better yet, they all fit neatly inside the limitations of VR; the game is a standing experience that avoids even the slightest chance of breaking your immersion. Theres no walking around or ducking down, keeping you rooted to the spot means you never risk that trance-breaking wire tug or have to fiddle with your headset as it shifts around your face.

That said there are some highlights. Theres a great puzzle in which a web of holographic shapes must be correctly aligned in front of you, and certain lights reveal hidden objects essential for progression. Theres nothing here that will leave you stumped, certainly not for more than a few minutes, but the delivery makes it all a joy to solve.

What a shame, then, that its over all too quickly. I beat Form in less than an hour, and its credits rolled long before Id seen them coming. The short and sweet experience means nothing outstays its welcome, but it also feels like theres plenty more to explore here. Short VR experiences are quickly becoming the norm and thats fine, but the games pacing never suggested to me that I was nearing the end of my journey.

Form is a little too short and lacking in challenge for it to be considered a true classic, but it stands tall as a VR puzzler unlike any other. Theres an understanding of this new medium here that few developers have been able to demonstrate over the past year. Its atmosphere is dense and engaging and its puzzles capture a strong sense of discovery, resulting in a brilliant blend of gameplay and experience. The flood of VR puzzle games could learn a lot from the foundations that Charm Games has laid here.

Form is available now for $19.99. Check out these official review guidelines to find out more about our process.

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Form Review: VR Puzzling At Its Transformative Best - UploadVR

In a first for US academic medical center, Stanford Medicine hires chief physician wellness officer – Stanford Medical Center Report

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

An individual organization that is committed to this at the highest level of leadership and that invests in well-designed interventions can move the needle and run counter to the national trend of physician distress and burnout.

I think most health care leaders now realize this is a threat to their organization, but there is also uncertainty that they can do anything effective to address it, Shanafelt said. They say, Its a national epidemic, what can we do? My experience has shown that an individual organization that is committed to this at the highest level of leadership and that invests in well-designed interventions can move the needle and run counter to the national trend of physician distress and burnout. I hope that the Stanford WellMD Center becomes a paragon that other medical centers want to emulate.

Shanafelt said he first became interested in the issue while a senior resident at the University of Washington. While leading a team of young physicians whom he described as dedicated and altruistic, he observed that some responded to the needs of their patients in a way that seemed out of character. He decided to study the experience of residency training and published a pioneering study in 2001 showing that burnout among residents was impacting the quality of the care they delivered. The widely publicized study became a lightning rod, he said, opening up a national dialogue on the issue.

It became clear that we had identified a big problem that needed a methodologic and consistent approach to studying and defining it and to testing interventions and trying to move the needle, he said.

He went on to the Mayo Clinic as a hematology and oncology fellow and joined the faculty there in 2005. In 2008, he became director of the Department of Medicine Program on Physician Well-Being and launched an effort to address physician distress through programs promoting physician autonomy, efficiency, collegiality and a sense of community. While many were focused on strategies to make individual physicians more resilient, Shanafelt and his team focused on systems, the practice environment, organizational culture, and leadership. As a result, the absolute burnout rates among Mayo physicians declined 7 percent over two years, despite an 11 percent rise in the rate among physicians nationally using identical metrics, surveys showed. A more recent assessment found the burnout rate among Mayo physicians was about two-thirds that of physicians nationally.

Shanafelt will work in collaboration with his new colleagues at Stanford in building on its innovative WellMD Center, which was established in 2016. The center has engaged more than 200 physicians through programs focusing on peer support, stress reduction and ways to cultivate compassion and resilience, as well as a literature and a dinner series in which physicians explore the challenges and rewards of being a doctor. The center also aims to relieve some of the burden on physicians by improving efficiency and simplifying workplace systems, such as electronic medical records.

In October, the center will host the first American Conference on Physician Health, in San Francisco, co-sponsored by the American Medical Association and the Mayo Clinic.

Bryan Bohman, MD, the centers interim director, said the WellMD team has worked closely with Shanafelt over the past year on projects of mutual interest.

All of us at the center have been struck by Taits collaborative nature, his integrity, his warmth, his generosity of spirit and his work ethic, said Bohman, chief medical officer for Stanfords University Healthcare Alliance. Both at Mayo and nationally in the physician wellness community Tait is seen as an inspiring and strong leader.We couldnt be happier that he will be guiding our future wellness work at Stanford.

David Entwistle, president and CEO of Stanford Health Care, and Christopher Dawes, president and CEO of Packard Childrens Hospital and Stanford Childrens Health, both expressed strong support for Shanafelts appointment as the leader of Stanford Medicines wellness effort.

In addition to his work in physician well-being, Shanafelt is an international expert in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia. He is directing multiple clinical trials testing new treatments for this disease, is the principal investigator for several grants from the National Institutes of Health and is a member of the Leukemia Steering Committee of the National Cancer Institute. He said he plans to continue his work on leukemia at Stanford, devoting about 30 percent of his time to clinical research and the care of patients with the disease.

In a first for US academic medical center, Stanford Medicine hires chief physician wellness officer - Stanford Medical Center Report

Air Force Medicine: Anytime, anywhere in the world – Air Force Link

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

SILVER SPRING, MD. --

SILVER SPRING, MD. (AFNS) -- The U.S. Air Force Medical Service assures that the service deploys a medically-fit force and educates airmen to become medical professionals, according to Chief Master Sgt. David J. Little, the Office of the Air Force Surgeon General Chief of medical operations and research.

"My purpose is to highlight the Air Force Medical Service - how we take care of our airmen, make sure we have them in the right place at the right time, with the right, appropriate training to take care of that downrange mission," he said. "We operationally support the Air Force, and we do so by being lighter, leaner and faster."

Little assists with ensuring a quality, cost-effective, preventive-based health care continuum for 2.6 million beneficiaries worldwide. His responsibilities include policy execution for 44,000 personnel and 75 medical treatment facilities, with a budget of more than $6.4 billion.

Air Force medical operations operate 24/7, anywhere in the world; nearly 800 Air Force medics are deployed to 22 countries. One C-17 Globemaster III can accommodate a Health Response Team of 40 medics, and wherever they land, patients may be treated within as little as 15 minutes. An emergency room and intensive care unit can be set up and ready for patients in less than six hours.

"It's a tribute to what we can do in a lean, faster, more efficient and effective manner," Little said. "Based on the population at risk, we can increase that. The HRT can handle from zero up to about 5,000 individuals."

In an aeromedical evacuation, three technicians and two flight nurses treat up to 50 patients in a contingency situation. critical care air transport and tactical critical care evacuation teams move thousands of ICU-level patients. An ER doctor and a cardiology-respiratory technician accompany a CCAT, so patients can be stabilized in flight. A TCCET team flight includes a surgeon and nurse anesthetist.

Training and education are crucial. Global health engagement in the Air Force began in the early 2000s as an international health specialist program. Airmen gain their knowledge and skills at the Air Force-Navy's Defense Institute of Medical Operations at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio. The Defense Department and State Department deploy mobile training teams, provided by DIMO, to share more than 35 courses with other nations, including disaster preparedness, public health and infectious diseases, and trauma casualty care.

"Sixty-five officers and enlisted go out and train other nations on how to take care of patients in a contingency or war-time environment," he said.

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Air Force Medicine: Anytime, anywhere in the world - Air Force Link

How to respond when medicine’s culture causes moral distress – American Medical Association (blog)

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

What happens when students and clinicians feel a conflict between their deeply held values and the demands of an event unfolding before themand feel powerless to intervene? Research about this set of experiences, first documented years ago in nurses asmoral distress, has evolved in important ways and has now been prominently explored in other health professions ethics literatures.

However, there has been less attention to moral distress among medical students and resident physiciansdespite the fact that they are particularly vulnerable to moral distress given the hierarchical nature of their training.

This months AMA Journal of Ethicsdistinguishes different types of moral distress and considers how clinicians, organizations, and educators can identify and acknowledge moral distress and respond with care for patients and for each other.

Take a moment to consider this question: A student is distressed when her resident asks her to perform a lumbar puncture on a reluctant patient. How should she respond?

Give your answer and find responses to this question in theJune issueof theAMA Journal of Ethics,which explores moral distress and medicine.

Articles include:

How Should Integrity Preservation and Professional Growth Be Balanced during Trainees Professionalization?Experiences of moral distress are not uncommon for medical trainees, who are still in the process of forming their professional identities. This article examines how health professions-training programs can incorporate case-based ethics education sessions to identify and alleviate trainees moral distress, especially in cases where the beliefs that give rise to moral distress may be underdeveloped.

What Is the Role of Ethics Consultation in the Moral Habitability of Health Care Environments? Ethics consultation has traditionally focused on the provision of expert guidance to health professionals when challenging quandaries arise in clinical cases. This article contends that ethics consultation, more broadly conceived, can be a major asset in ensuring that ethical practice is meaningfully supported, that moral distress is mitigated, and that the organizational environment is morally habitable.

Strategies for Promoting High-Quality Care and Personal Resilience in Palliative Care. Palliative care clinicians are faced with ever-expanding pressures, which can make it difficult to fulfill their duties to self and others and can lead to moral distress. This article highlights recommendations related to two promising pathways for supporting palliative care clinicians: improving systemic palliative-care delivery and strategies to promote ethical practice environments and individual resilience.

Culture and Moral Distress: Whats the Connection and Why Does It Matter? Culture is the learned behavior shared among members of a group and from generation to generation within that group. In health care work, references to culture may also function as code for ethical uncertainty or moral distress concerning patients, families or populations. This article analyzes how culture can be a factor in patient-care situations that produce moral distress and addresses common situations where culture can mask more complex problems concerning family dynamics or implicit bias.

In the journals June podcast, Elizabeth Epstein, MD, discusses practical steps that can be implemented to alleviate moral distress, using her home.

The journals editorial focus is on commentaries and articles that offer practical advice and insights for medical students and physicians.Submit a manuscriptfor publication. The journal alsoinvitesoriginal photographs, graphics, cartoons, drawings and paintings that explore the ethical dimensions of health or health care.

The Conley Art of Medicine and Ethics Essay contests for medical students, residents, and fellows is now open through Sept. 25, with $3,000 prizes for winning entries and up to two $1,000 honorable mentions.

Upcoming issues of theAMA Journal of Ethicswill focus on quality of life in Dementia and iatrogenesis in pediatrics.Sign upto receive email alerts when new issues are published.

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How to respond when medicine's culture causes moral distress - American Medical Association (blog)

Liberty split games on the road, head home for Pride – Amsterdam News

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

It was lose one and win one for the New York Liberty on their recent road trip. The Libertys four-game winning streak was snapped by the Connecticut Sun, 96-76.

We didnt really have our best effort tonight, said Liberty coach Bill Laimbeer after the loss. We have been pushing hard, being shorthanded, and tonight we kind of hit a wall a little bit and didnt have the energy necessary. They are feeling good about themselves and we knew it would be a hard game if we didnt put forth the effort.

The Liberty then headed to Texas to take on the Dallas Wings. It was a close encounter of the toughest kind, but the Liberty managed to force overtime, prevailing 102-93. Four Liberty players scored in double figures, including Shavonte Zellous with a season-high 28 points. It was Zellous sixth consecutive game in double figures.

Our defense made stops down the stretch, said Laimbeer. Zellous was really key offensive-wise in the second half for us. Really attacked, facilitated a lot. But I think our stopswe had a lot of blocked shots in the second half, and got the rebounds.

The Liberty has not played a game since Dallas and has had time to get some rest and focused practice. The team is still without Epiphanny Prince and Kia Vaughn, and replacement guard Lindsay Allen continues to make her case that she belongs in the WNBA with strong minutes in both road games.

June is Gay Pride month, and the Liberty is showing decisive support for the LGBT community. Friday night, the Liberty look to turn the tables on the Connecticut Sun as New York celebrates Pride Night at Madison Square Garden. Then Sunday, for the first time in team history, the Liberty will have a float in the Gay Pride Parade. The players and coaches will be joined by team executives, members of the Torch Patrol and Timeless Torches as well as select fans.

Love is love; Im all about that, said Zellous. I give credit to the WNBA, New York Liberty and everybody around the league to bring this. Giving a Pride month, it just shows us as a league supporting important causes, and this is a big cause. Im very excited for the parade.

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Liberty split games on the road, head home for Pride - Amsterdam News

Demolition begins at Penn Plaza site in East Liberty – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Demolition begins at Penn Plaza site in East Liberty
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Demolition has begun at the remaining Penn Plaza apartments in East Liberty, the site of a long-running dispute between the city and a developer that has grown into a flashpoint for broader issues of affordable housing in Pittsburgh. A group of ...

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Demolition begins at Penn Plaza site in East Liberty - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Clarksville’s Independence Day event July 3 at Liberty Park – Clarksville Now

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW)Clarksvilles annual Independence Day Celebration is Monday, July 3 at Liberty Park. The event is free. Liberty Park will open at 5 p.m. with activities and music beginning at 6:30 p.m. Seating is available throughout the park and in front of the music stage on the Great Lawn of the Wilma Rudolph Event Center.

Headliner, Full Circle, will perform classic rock hits from the 1960s and 1970s. Activities will include sack races, Patriotic Balloon Pop and the Most Patriotic Person contest. Prizes will be awarded. Refreshments will be available from D&B Concessions, Rolling Ridge Mart, Big City Dogs, Kona Ice Music City, and Doxies Pizza. The evening will conclude with fireworks beginning at 9:30 p.m.

Parking is available inside the park for vehicles with handicap license plates and placards. Marina users must have approved vehicle tags or a temporary pass. Boats with trailers will be allowed to access the boat ramp parking area until 4 p.m. or until the parking area has been filled. No boats will be allowed to exit the parking area from 8 p.m. until the park is empty.

Zinc Plant Road and the Zinc Plant Bridge will be closed to traffic from 9:15 to 10 p.m. for fireworks. Guests should plan for delays on Riverside Drive and Hwy 48-13 before and after the event.

Liberty Park Grill will be open from 11 a.m. until 10:30 p.m. on July 3. Beginning at 4 p.m., guests can pay a fee of $20 to park at the restaurant. Each paying vehicle will receive a $20 voucher for Liberty Park Grill for use only on July 3.

Satellite parking will be in Downtown Clarksville and at the CMCSS Facilities Building (formerly Jostens) at 1312 Highway 48/13. CTS bus service will shuttle guests, free of charge from both locations will begin at 4 p.m. Downtown parking is free after 5 p.m.

Shuttles will continue until 9:15 p.m. At the conclusion of the fireworks, CTS buses displaying their destination lot will return guests to parking areas, with the last bus departing Liberty Park at 11 p.m.

Clarksville Police officers will be stationed at major intersections around Liberty Park and Riverside Drive beginning at 6 p.m. and continuing after the event. Pedestrians walking to the park are encouraged to cross only at these intersections. Liberty Park will close at sunset on Sunday, July 2 to prepare for the Independence Day Celebration and will reopen for general use at sunrise on Tuesday, July 4, 2017.

SAFETY RULES IN LIBERTY PARK: 1. No solicitation. 2. No pets allowed during event. Clearly marked service animals are permitted. 3. No drugs or alcoholic beverages. 4. No fighting or foul language. 5. No personal fireworks. 6. No personal grills. 7. No weapons. 8. No drones.

Related: Nashville July 4th features country star Chris Young and massive fireworks

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Clarksville's Independence Day event July 3 at Liberty Park - Clarksville Now

Waldo County deputies apprehend New Hampshire juvenile runaways in Liberty – PenBayPilot.com

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

LIBERTY On June 16, 2017, the Waldo County Regional Dispatch Center received a complaint regarding two juveniles who had run away from a school in New Hampshire, and had subsequently stolen a vehicle from a neighboring town. Cpl. Greg Jones and Deputy Wiley McVety were assigned the complaint and told that it was believed that the two male juveniles had made their way to a residence on Mary Ordway Road in Liberty, which was owned by a relative of one of them.

Jones and McVety responded to the residence, located both of juveniles and coordinated their return to authorities in New Hampshire.

Three days later, on June 19, the Waldo County Sheriff's Office was contacted by officers of the Farmington Maine Police Department. Deputy Jonathan Shaw was advised that one of the male juveniles had again run away from New Hampshire, and was now a suspect in numerous motor vehicle thefts, including in the town of Farmington.

That same day, Jones again responded to the residence on Mary Ordway Road in Liberty and when he arrived, the 14-year-old juvenile was present but ran into the woods. Deputies searched into the night and started again on the morning on June 20 to locate the male juvenile without success.

Later that afternoon, around 3 p.m. the Sheriff's Office received a report that a camp on Stevens Pond appeared to have been damaged and entered. Deputy Shaw responded and once at the scene determined that the camp had just been vacated and based on evidence at the scene, believed the male juvenile being sought was responsible for the burglary and criminal mischief at the camp.

Deputies converged on the area of the camp, and Belfast Police Officer Travis Spencer and his K9 Dex were called to assist in tracking the 14-year-old. Shaw, McVety and Spencer tracked the suspect for nearly two hours before finally apprehending him.

During the subsequent investigation it was determined that the juvenile male had broken into at least three separate camps, stealing various items and causing damage to each of the camps. The juvenile was subsequently transported to Mountain View Juvenile Detention Center in Charleston, Maine.

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Waldo County deputies apprehend New Hampshire juvenile runaways in Liberty - PenBayPilot.com

Even Sex Offenders Have Constitutional Rights – Cato Institute (blog)

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Danzig

On Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that a North Carolina preventing sex offenders from accessing social media and other websites without any attempt to tailor restrictions to potential contact with minors violated the First Amendment. But restrictions on the freedom of speech arent the only unconstitutional deprivations sex offenders face.

In 1994, Minnesota passed what has become arguably the most aggressive and restrictive sex-offender civil-commitment statute in the country. The Minnesota Sex Offender Program (MSOP) provides for the indefinite civil commitment of sexually dangerous individuals, over and beyond whatever criminal sentence they may have already completed.

And while there is technically a system in place whereby committed individuals can petition for release or a loosening of their restrictions, in the more than 20 years that the MSOP has existed, only one person has ever been fully discharged (someone in the program for offenses committed as a minor, and he was only discharged after a court challenge). As Craig Bolte, one person committed in the MSOP, has testified, there is a distinct feeling that the only way to get out is to die.

The Supreme Court has held that states have the authority to commit individuals against their will outside the traditional criminal justice context, but only for the purpose of keeping genuinely dangerous people off the streets while undergoing rehabilitative treatment. Punishment and deterrence are legitimate goals exclusively of the criminal justice system, so any deprivation of liberty for either of those two purposes must follow only from that system, with all the procedural protections our Constitution requires.

What sets Minnesotas program apart from other schemes that have been upheld is that it doesnt provide for any sort of periodic assessment to determine who does or doesnt meet the requirements for discharge. By the states own admission, hundreds of civilly committed individuals have never received an assessment of their risk to the public, and hundreds more have received assessments only sporadically.

The MSOP is aware that at least some of the people in its custody satisfy statutory-discharge criteria, yet has taken no steps to determine who they are, let alone begin discharge proceedings. For these reasons, Kevin Karsjens and other similarly committed individuals have brought a federal class action challenging the MSOP as an irrational violation of their right to freedom from bodily restriction. They prevailed in the trial court, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit reversed, stating that the plaintiffs have no liberty interest in freedom from physical restraintnot that their liberty interest must be balanced against the states interest in protecting the public from violence, but that for sex offenders, that liberty interest simply does not exist.

The plaintiffs now seek Supreme Court review. Cato, joined by the Reason Foundation, has filed an amicus brief in support of the committed individuals. The lack of periodic risk assessment and the punitive nature of the states policies represent an unconstitutional attempt to exact effectively criminal penalties on individuals who have not been provided the full procedural protections of criminal law.

The high court should intervene and repair the damage done by the unfettered confinement of sex offenders and restore the appropriate level of constitutional scrutiny to serious deprivations of liberty.

The Supreme Court will decide whether to take upKarsjens v. Piper when it returns from its summer recess.

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Even Sex Offenders Have Constitutional Rights - Cato Institute (blog)

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