Indiana libertarians hoping to revamp state liquor laws | WANE – WANE

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COLUMBUS, Ind. (WANE) As Indiana Democrats and Republicans get ready to study liquor laws, another party is hoping the debate will spark change heading into 2018.

This weekend, the Libertarian Party in Bartholomew and Johnson counties will host a Drink In at Rickers Gas Station in Columbus. Organizers hope the event will draw attention to whats happened to the gas company over the past couple of months.

In November, Rickers received a restaurant liquor license after it opened a made-to-order food section. Because of this, the gas station was able to sell cold beer carryout.

A lot of people are like, Howd they find a loophole, around that? Its a gas station, how are they selling cold beer, Columbus resident Dakota Kerns said.

But the excitement faded in April as Indiana lawmakers passed a bill to close the loophole. Rickers will be allowed to sell cold beer carryout until next year, but local Libertarian members dont think thats good enough.

The state government moved the goal post on this specific business, Bartholomew County Libertarian Party Vice Chair Clyde Myers said.

This is why the group is hosting the event inside the store.

Were just hoping everyone will come out and have a beer with us, and show their support for freedom of choice, Myers said.

Theres been a lot of attention on the states liquor laws this week, and not just because of this upcoming Drink In.

On Monday, the Indiana Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association released a study showing 70 percent of Hoosiers support cold beer sales, and another 65 percent want to see it sold on Sunday.

Numbers Myers said could give his county party a 2018 platform. Were hoping we can make them aware that most Hoosiers support freedom of choice, Myers said. That they support free, and fair and open competition.

State lawmakers said they are aware, which is why theyre conducting a study. Its expected to last a couple years.

Which could mean Myers might be having a lot more burritos and beer as he prepares to take a stand he never saw coming.

No, I did not, but Im all for it, Myers said. Its going to be a good time.

The county Libertarian event will take place at the Columbus gas station this Sunday at 3 p.m. As for state leaders, were expected to find out soon when theyll begin their two year study looking at liquor laws.

Nick is WANEs Indiana Chief Political Bureau reporter. Follow Nick Natario on Twitter at @NNatario.

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Indiana libertarians hoping to revamp state liquor laws | WANE - WANE

Tennessee vs. New York: A Tale of Tuition Reimbursement Programs – Being Libertarian

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The fight for free college (A.K.A the state subsidization of post-graduate education) has now come to the forefront of the 50 political battlegrounds known as state legislatures.

In 2017 alone two major states, Tennessee and New York, have passed into law their own version of tuition subsidization and they greatly vary in degree of their merits and fiscal responsibility.

Many libertarians will immediately shun the idea of supporting any such programs on principal alone. Yet, for practical reasons, we must come to terms with the shifting political climate in favor of such education policy, in order to make sure the most fiscally prudent and least government expansionist programs are adopted.

In other words, we must push for the states of America to act as Tennessee has and not as New York.

Lets start with the bad. First up will, of course, be New York. The Empire State will have a state budget deficit (this year, 2017) of approximately $3.5 billion. This new program is estimated to rack up an additional $163 million to the deficit per annum; which can of course only be funded through either more borrowing or more taxes, neither of which are highly palatable to libertarians.

The state is also being generous beyond its capacity (how easy is it to act in such a way when its not your own money) and making this program applicable to not only local community colleges or technical schools but also prestigious New York State universities; which flipping the bill for will only bloat the costs.

After all, the $163 million cost estimate was only a low-ball estimate (as some lawmakers pointed out), who knows to what level of fiscal incompetency the program could actually rise. But knowing New York, Id say its chances for failure are pretty high.

To be fair, the state places one major restriction on its tuition subsidization program by limiting it to middle class families.

Yet even this does very little in the means of restraint. By 2019, the program will apply to students in families with household incomes up to $120,000, yet the average median income in the state sits at nearly half that at $60,850. This means the limitations to the middle class are really nothing more than a marketing gimmick aimed at persuading the public that the program has fiscal restraint, where in actuality there is little to none.

Yet not all hope for stopping the further fiscal deterioration of the United States is lost. Some states, like Tennessee, are satisfying the popular demand for tuition subsidization without breaking the bank and with only marginal expansions to the state.

The tuition subsidization program recently made law in Tennessee would apply to all citizens who meet the requirements, none of which are income/needs based.

On the surface this may sound like open season for an explosion of new government spending, yet in reality the program is fiscally prudent.

This prudence is made clear through the program only being applicable to state community colleges and technical schools, institutions that already have sizably lower tuition rates than almost all state universities.

Its estimated to cost approximately $10 million per year.

Now, when adjusted for population size, the New York plan would actually cost less per-citizen than the Tennessee plan (assuming the costs of the New York plan dont skyrocket, which is highly unlikely) that is not what is actually important to take into consideration here however, the way the plans are paid for is.

In the New York plan, funding for the program would come out of the general fund of the state. Money allocated to it would not be limited except if capped by the state legislature (which seeing as New York State is a bastion of economic progressivism is highly unlikely).

Yet, the Tennessee plan specifically mandates that the new program be paid for via the proceeds of the state lottery fund, which is good for two reasons:

First, it will place a tangible cap; no more money could be allocated to the program (under current law) than is taken in by the state lottery.

Second, the program would neither increase state taxes nor create the need for more state borrowing.

A program that neither increases taxes or balloons borrowing, and has strict restraints on its applicability, is a program that, at least for all practical purposes, should be supported by conservatives, libertarians, and general government skeptics alike.

The fact is, as long as we live under a system of constitutional republican democracy, the desires of the general populace must be taken into consideration at some point and eventually addressed.

Right now the people want state subsidized tuition and it looks like (as of now) they are increasingly getting it.

Libertarians can either kick, scream, and dig in their heels at the unjustness and immorality of the system and be sidelined, as progressives push more and more New York style plans across the nation; or they can engage in pragmatic politics by supporting and advocating for a Tennessee style tuition subsidization program in states where such application of a program is viable.

This post was written by Bric Butler.

The views expressed here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect our views and opinions.

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Tennessee vs. New York: A Tale of Tuition Reimbursement Programs - Being Libertarian

The case for libertarianism in American politics – The Hill (blog)

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Libertarianism is not conservatism, nor is it an offshoot of conservatism, a subset, or even a relative of common extraction.

Conservatism, as such, is and must be anathema to libertarianism (at least libertarianism properly understood), because libertarian political philosophy is best understood as a radicalization of traditional liberalism.

While this formula is not perfect, both of its componentsradical and liberalsuggest the incompatibility of conservatism and libertarianism. The radical, going as she does to the root, hopes to provoke change at the deepest sub strata of society, motivated by the conviction that the political and economic status quo is fundamentally unjust.

Thus, by definition, libertarians cannot adopt a posture of deference to the past but must instead agitate for a revolution, albeit a peaceful one (libertarian Josiah Warrens The Peaceful Revolutionist is widely considered Americas first anarchist periodical).

If anything, then, the philosophy of liberty belongs on precisely the other side of the political spectrum assuming, that is, that we must submit to a confused, often unhelpful left-right spectrum squarely opposing the forces of reaction and conservatism.

At least a short consideration of intellectual history is necessary to the task of properly categorizing todays libertarianism.

Certain strands of aborning nineteenth-century socialism were very clearly related to, even outgrowths from, the Enlightenment liberalism that had sprung up in the previous two centuries.

The common heritage of socialism and classical liberalism is underappreciated today, in part because the salient features of the latter (among them free trade, individual rights, private property, and a government limited in both its role and size) are now associated with conservative, not liberal, thought.

Historian Larry Siedentop goes so far as to argue that [n]othing reduces the value of discussion about modern political thought more than the simplistic and misleading contrast between liberalism and socialism.

And, as Siedentop notes, many of the concepts and modes of argument long credited to socialism were in fact introduced by liberal thinkers, making the common contrast particularly unfair to liberalism.

For example, libertarians have been quick to call attention to the fact that early French liberals developed a pre-socialist (or perhaps proto-socialist) class theory, embedded in which was an argument for radical laissez-faire.

In Britain, the political economist Thomas Hodgskin similarly defied the crude contemporary contrast between socialism and liberalism.

Historian and Hodgskin biographer David Stack correctly argues that Hodgskin can be adequately understood purely as a radical, his ideas submitting a penetrating free-market attack on the use of legal privilege to attain wealth.

By the end of the century, liberalism had all but abandoned its earlier meaning, as a philosophy centered on the freedom of the individual from state oppression. It had embraced a new meaning, the state having taken on a new democratic spirit, as least in theory.

As Stack observes, Liberalism became the language of government, and sounded the death knell of radicalism. If liberalism did not always connote the growth of government, then neither did socialism, at least not necessarily.

In America, individualist anarchists like Benjamin Tucker explicitly identified themselves as socialists even as they advocated a perfectly free market, in which only force or fraud would be out of bounds.

Tucker spent much of his life arguing in the pages of his libertarian journal Liberty that the conduct of capitalists generally is condemned, not glorified, by genuine free-market principles.

The capitalist, for Tucker, was guilty of criminal invasion, of violating the central libertarian law against the use of aggression against the non-invasive individual. He worried that many of those employing what seemed libertarian-sounding language had actually become the mouthpieces of the capitalistic class. That class had achieved wealth and power not by competing for consumers hard-earned dollars, but by abolishing the free market, by using the coercive power of the state to artificially limit the range of competition.

Throughout the 20th century, some stalwart proponents of the peaceful, cosmopolitan order produced by free trade and respect for private property rights have continued to identify as liberals.

The economists Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich Hayek, with whom modern libertarianism is so often associated, were such committed liberals, dependably opposed to conservatism and, in Hayeks works, its propensity to reject well-substantiated new knowledge. As a philosophy of universal individual rights, libertarians contemplates a deep break with centuries-old orders of power and privilege, in which a handful of political and ecclesiastical authorities made the rules and reaped the rewards.

The lazily constructed straw-man version of libertarianism, which treats it as a subsidiary of conservatism, ignores both the tangled history of radical thought and the beliefs and representations of actual libertarians.

Because the dominance of todays corporate powerhouses rests largely on government privilege, and thus violencenot voluntary, mutually beneficial trade the anti-corporate rhetoric of progressives rings hollow; they emphasize wealth inequality and economic justice, yet they would expand the very power on which corporate abuses now rest.

American political history finds self-described progressives among the most reliable guardians of corporate welfare.

Libertarianism is a principled alternative to conservatism and progressivism, both of which, at base, represent authority against liberty.

David DAmato, an adjunct law professor at DePaul University, is a policy advisor at the Heartland Institute.

The views expressed by contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.

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Biology professor: Trump’s presidency will permanently alter human genetics – TheBlaze.com

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A biology professor at the University of Washington in Seattle believes the stress caused by President Donald Trumps time in office will lead to a permanent change in human genetics.

Peter Ward, a professor who works in the earth and space sciences department of UWs College of the Environment, offered his bizarre prediction to Gizmodo earlier this weekwhen the publication asked a handful of evolutionary biologists, Can superhuman mutants be living among us?

Ward argued that significant traumas like abuse or military combat cancause permanent change to the human genome. He went on to suggest Trumps presidency is akin to those traumas and will have an evolutionary consequence on humanity.

Were finding more and more that, for instance, people who have gone through combat, or women who have been abused when you have these horrendous episodes in life, it causes permanent change, which is then passed on to your kids, he said. These are actual genetic shifts that are taking place within people.

Those shifts, Ward contended, can cause huge evolutionary change.

He added: On a larger scale, the amount of stress that Americans are going through now, because of Trump there is going to be an evolutionary consequence.

Earlier in his statement, the professor also predicted the U.S. military willmanipulate genetics to create some sort of superhuman soldiers.

A soldier whos much harder to bleed to death, or a soldier that doesnt need to drink as much water, or doesnt need to eat for five or six days, or doesnt need to sleep any one of these things would be an enormous advantage in warfare, he said.

This isnt the first time Ward has raised eyebrows for his ideas.

In his 2009 book The Medea Hypothesis: Is Life on Earth Ultimately Self-Destructive? Wardargued that life on earth will cause its own destruction in order to save the planet.

He argued at the time, The Christian Science Monitor reported, that life will self-destruct prematurely, many years before the sun, which he believes will begin to expand in roughly one billion years, burns the biosphere away.

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Biology professor: Trump's presidency will permanently alter human genetics - TheBlaze.com

Colonizing Mars could spark new kind of super human species – AOL

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The human species has significantly evolved during the last two centuries. Our population on Earth has exploded from about one billion to over seven billion people. And we've even changed physically as more humans are taller now than ever before.

But despite all of the natural changes the human species has undergone here on earth, a bigger change looms - one that's light years away, literally.

Some of the biggest names in science and technology have been calling for the colonization of Mars, including visionaries like SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and physicist Stephen Hawking. They agree that populating other planets could ensure the survival of the human race when the Earth is rendered uninhabitable by a disaster.

RELATED: See photos of the surface of Mars

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Portions of the Martian surface shot by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter show many channels from 1 meter to 10 meters wide on a scarp in the Hellas impact basin, in this photograph taken January 14, 2011 and released by NASA March 9, 2011. Scientists have found the first evidence that briny water may flow on the surface of Mars during the planet's summer months, a paper published on Monday showed. Researchers found telltale fingerprints of salts that form only in the presence of water in narrow channels cut into cliff walls throughout the planet's equatorial region. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona/Handout FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

Dark, narrow, 100 meter-long streaks on Mars inferred to have been formed by contemporary flowing water are seen in an image produced by NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the University of Arizona. Scientists have found the first evidence that briny water may flow on the surface of Mars during the planet's summer months, a paper published on Monday showed. NASA/JPL/University of Arizona/Handout THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS

Dark narrow streaks called recurring slope lineae emanating out of the walls of Garni crater on Mars are seen in an image produced by NASA, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the University of Arizona. Scientists have found the first evidence that briny water may flow on the surface of Mars during the planet's summer months, a paper published on Monday showed. NASA/JPL/University of Arizona/Handout THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS

A circular depression on the surface of Mars is pictured in his image acquired on Jan. 5, 2015 by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), provided by NASA. The spacecraft has been orbiting Mars since March 2006 and completed its 40,000th orbit around Mars on Feb. 7, 2015. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Handout

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity's hole drilled into a rock target, "Cumberland," on Mars on May 19, 2013 is shown in this NASA photo. NASA?s Mars rover Curiosity has found carbon-containing compounds in samples drilled out of an ancient rock, the first definitive detection of organics on the surface of Earth?s neighbor planet, scientists said on Tuesday. REUTERS/NASA/Handout (OUTER SPACE - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is shown in this handout photo released to Reuters July 29, 2014. Opportunity has set a new off-Earth, off-road distance record, logging just over 25 miles (40 km) on the surface of the Red Planet to surpass the old benchmark set in 1973 by a Russian probe on the moon. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell Univ./Arizona State University/Handout (UNITED STATES - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

This image from the right Mast Camera (Mastcam) of NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows rough spherical features on the surface of the planet in an area called 'Yellowknife Bay' in this NASA handout released January 15, 2013. These features are interpreted as concretions, implying they formed in water that percolated through pores in the sediment. Spherical concretions have previously been discovered in other rocks on Mars. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Handout (OUTERSPACE - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

An image from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows the surface of the planet with inclined layering known as cross-bedding in an outcrop called "Shaler" on a scale of a few tenths of a meter, or decimeters (1 decimeter is nearly 4 inches) in this NASA handout released January 15, 2013. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Handout (OUTERSPACE - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

The surface of the planet Mars inside Gale's Crater is shown as NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drives toward a flat rock with pale veins that may hold clues to a wet history on the planet in this NASA handout photo released January 15, 2013. If the rock meets rover engineers' approval when Curiosity rolls up to it in coming days, it will become the first to be drilled for a sample during the Mars Science Laboratory mission. REUTERS/NASA/Handout (OUTERSPACE - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity appears as a bluish dot near the lower right corner of this enhanced-color view from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter taken on June 27, 2013 and released on July 24, 2013. The rover's tracks are visible extending from the landing site, "Bradbury Landing," in the left half of the scene. Two bright, relatively blue spots surrounded by darker patches are where the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft's landing jets cleared away reddish surface dust at the landing site. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona/Handout via Reuters (OUTER SPACE - Tags: ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

A rock outcrop called Link pops out from a Martian surface in this NASA handout image taken by the 100-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover September 2, 2012 and released September 27, 2012. Rounded gravel fragments, or clasts, up to a couple inches (few centimeters) in size are in a matrix of white material. The outcrop characteristics are consistent with a sedimentary conglomerate, or a rock that was formed by the deposition of water and is composed of many smaller rounded rocks cemented together. Scientists enhanced the color in this version to show the Martian scene as it would appear under the lighting conditions we have on Earth, which helps in analyzing the terrain. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Handout (UNITED STATES - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY) THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS

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In an effort to preserve humankind, scientists and engineers are rapidly developing the technology necessary for interplanetary travel to Mars. But that very journey to Mars, scientists say, would likely permanently change human biology, thus, creating a new species.

"As soon as you get into space, we've seen thousands of genes changing their structure. What we've seen now in the last couple years of study is that some of these genes return to their normal state when they return back to Earth, but there are still hundreds that are perturbed," Christopher Maison, an Associate Professor of Computational Genomics in Computational Biomedicine at Cornell University, said Thursday while speaking at the "Evolution Beyond Earth" program held at New York University.

"What people have noticed is actually within minutes of going into space you start to experience lots of changes," Ting Wu, molecular biologist and Genetics Professor at Harvard Medical School, who was also sitting alongside Maison on the panel, added in an interview with AOL News. A lot these changes occur on account of the human's physiological genetic response to space travel, Wu said, as the human body acclimates to the new environment.

SEE ALSO: This is what summer on the Red Planet looks like

Astronauts have faced a range of health impacts during extend periods of time in space, including bone loss, muscle atrophy, kidney stones, and eye problems. And, interestingly enough, when astronauts return to Earth, even when earthly environmental factors force them to then re-acclimate to their birth planet, they still never completely return to their original state prior to entering space.

But the story will change for those who don't return to Earth, more notably, the first group of humans that will colonize Mars.

"Within a few generations you would probably have a more extensive version of what humans would go through in the space station," Wu said, adding that by the second or third generation, we will begin to see alterations in genes as a result of these effects.

RELATED: Most iconic photos in space travel history

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Most iconic photos in space travel history

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Photograph of the far side of the moon taken by the luna 3 space probe on october 28, 1959. (Photo by: Sovfoto/UIG via Getty Images)

Earth Rise Viewed From The Moon, The First Photograph Of Earth Taken From The Vicinity Of The Moon, Captured By Lunar Orbiter 1, Aug, 23, 1966. (Photo By Encyclopaedia Britannica/UIG Via Getty Images)

UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 03: The American Scientists William Pickering, James Van Allen And Werner Von Braum (From Left To Right) Raising A Replica Of The Explorer Satellite During A Press Conference In Washington, In Which They Announced Its Being Put Into Orbit, On February 3, 1958. (Photo by Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)

Soviet cosmonaut yuri gagarin, first man in space, in the capsule of vostok 1, april 12, 1961. (Photo by: Sovfoto/UIG via Getty Images)

Astronaut Edward White in Extravehicular Activity, during the Gemini 4 mission, He spent 21 minutes, outside the capsule (June 3, 1965). (Photo by Photo12/UIG/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, USA - UNDATED: Large color photograph, 20 by 16 inches, of a nearly nose-on view of the Gemini 7 spacecraft as seen and photographed by Tom Stafford onboard Gemini 6. Part of Gemini 6 is seen in the foreground. INSCRIBED AND SIGNED: 'Gemini 6 & 7, Tom Stafford, Plt, 15 Dec 1965' and additionally signed by WALLY SCHIRRA with 'CDR.' Estimate: $1,000 - 1,500. When Bonhams had their first space sale last year it became the highest-grossing American space history auction ever. On 13th April 2010 Bonhams will be selling more incredible space lots. Timed to coincide with the anniversary of Apollo 13, the sale comprises almost 300 lots including flight plan sheets, emblems, medallions, hardware, models, lunar surface equipment, charts and photographs. Many items come directly from astronauts' own collections. (Photo by Bonhams / Barcroft Media / Getty Images)

(GERMANY OUT) Apollo 1 disaster: a tragedy struck the Apollo 1 mission when a fire inside the space capsule caused the death of all three astronauts (3 weeks before its planned launch) - the exterior of the burned space capsule (Photo by Astro-Graphs/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

376713 15: (FILE PHOTO) The Apollo 11 Saturn V space vehicle lifts off July 16, 1969 from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex in Florida. The space craft was injected into lunar orbit on July 19 with Astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. on board. The 30th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing mission is celebrated July 20, 1999. (Photo by NASA/Newsmakers)

NBC NEWS -- Apollo 11 Moon Landing -- Pictured: (l-r) Kinescope images of astronaut Commander Neil Armstrong taking the first steps on the moon during the Apollo 11 Space Mission's moon landing for the first time in history on July 21, 1969 (Photo by NBC NewsWire/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

UNSPECIFIED - CIRCA 1754: US Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, walking on the Moon July 20 1969. Taken during the first Lunar landing of the Apollo 11 space mission by NASA. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Getty Images)

Earth Day, first held April 22, 1970, is now celebrated every year by more than a billion people in 180 nations around the world. All work together for the common goal of preserving the Earth and leaving it a better place for the future. This photo of Earth is from 1972. (Photo by NASA/MCT/MCT via Getty Images)

Damaged Apollo 13 Service Module, The Severely Damaged Apollo 13 Service Module (Sm) As Photographed From The Lunar Module/Command Module, An Entire Panel On The Sm Was Blown Away By The Explosion Of An Oxygen Tank. (Photo By Encyclopaedia Britannica/UIG

UNITED STATES - MAY 13: Pioneer 11, launched by NASA on 6th April 1973, returned the first close-up pictures of the ringed planet Saturn. The results, although visually spectacular, were rather disappointing from a scientific point of view. The second largest planet in the Solar System, Saturn was first observed through a telescope by Galileo in 1610, but its rings were not identified until 1659, by Christiaan Huygens. It is a gas giant similar in atmospheric composition to Jupiter, and rotates very quickly, causing it to appear oblate (flattened at the poles). The rings are composed of ice and ice-coated dust and rock. Their origin and formation are not precisely understood, but it seems that tidal effects caused by some of Saturns moons play a role in maintaining their structure. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

UNITED STATES - APRIL 24: This spectacular view of Skylab, clearly showing the sun shield, was taken by the crew of Skylab 4, the last manned mission to the space station, as they returned home. Skylab 4 Astronauts Gerald Carr, Edward Gibson and William Pogue lived aboard Skylab from 16th November 1973 to 8th February 1974 setting what was then a world spaceflight endurance record of 84 days. Skylab was intended to have two solar panels to supply electrical power to the station, but when the station arrived in orbit in 1973, one was found to be missing, while the other had not deployed. The first crew to visit the station made a spacewalk and were able to deploy the panel, restoring power to Skylab. The absence of the missing panel can clearly be seen in this picture. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

21st July 1976: The first colour photograph taken on the surface of the planet Mars, by the Viking 1 probe. (Photo by MPI/Getty Images)

This dramatic view of Jupiter's Great Red Spot and its surroundings was obtained by Voyager 1 on Feb. 25, 1979. (Photo by: Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

UNITED STATES - JANUARY 13: The age of the Space Shuttle begins with the launch of Columbia on the STS-1 mission. Commander John Young and Pilot Robert Crippen were at the controls. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 29: Mission Specialist Bruce McCandless II is seen further away from the confines and safety of his ship than any previous astronaut has ever been. This space first was made possible by the Manned Manuevering Unit or MMU, a nitrogen jet propelled backpack. After a series of test maneuvers inside and above Challengers payload bay, McCandless went free-flying to a distance of 320 feet away from the Orbiter. This stunning orbital panorama view shows McCandless out there amongst the black and blue of Earth and space. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

IN SPACE: In this NASA handout, a view of nearly 10,000 galaxies are seen in a Hubble Telescope composite photograph released March 9, 2004. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF) photograph is a composite of a million one-second exposures and reveals galaxies from the time shortly after the big bang. (Photo by NASA/Getty Images)

Four images from New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were combined with color data from the Ralph instrument to create this sharper global view of Pluto. (The lower right edge of Pluto in this view currently lacks high-resolution color coverage.) The images, taken when the spacecraft was 280,000 miles (450,000 kilometers) away from Pluto, show features as small as 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometers). Thats twice the resolution of the single-image view captured on July 13 and revealed at the approximate time of New Horizons July 14 closest approach. (Photo viaNASA/JHUAPL/SwRI)

These dark, narrow, 100 meter-long streaks called recurring slope lineae flowing downhill on Mars are inferred to have been formed by contemporary flowing water. Recently, planetary scientists detected hydrated salts on these slopes at Hale crater, corroborating their original hypothesis that the streaks are indeed formed by liquid water. The blue color seen upslope of the dark streaks are thought not to be related to their formation, but instead are from the presence of the mineral pyroxene. The image is produced by draping an orthorectified (Infrared-Red-Blue/Green(IRB)) false color image (ESP_030570_1440) on a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of the same site produced by High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (University of Arizona). Vertical exaggeration is 1.5. (Photo byNASA/JPL/University of Arizona)

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"There is evidence now that an individual organism will be able to pick up on a response or a trait developed by its parent that will be inheritable for generations until the stimulus from which it was created disappears," Wu said.

And the idea of an organism passing down characteristics it has acquired in its lifetime to its offspring -- or Lamarckism -- has scientists speculating colonists on Mars could evolve into a kind of species after years of isolation on the red planet -- where sunlight and gravity are much weaker than on Earth and mutation-causing radiation is more intense, which may result in the bodies of Mars colonists to change entirely.

But, speciation is a long-term process that typically requires reproductive isolation for billions of years, Wu said. "I believe the evolution of a new species on another planet that would be broad enough and extensive to generate a group of people that represents a new species would take a lot longer than a couple generations."

More from AOL.com: Black hole event horizons are real, new evidence suggests Scientists discover scorching planet hotter than most stars Scientists perplexed by giant mystery hole found on Mars

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Colonizing Mars could spark new kind of super human species - AOL

Aggro fruit flies may hold genetic keys to human mental illness – Cosmos

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Fruit flies show some links between genetics and behaviour that are surprisingly similar to those in humans.

Susumu Nishinaga / Getty

Scientists are creeping closer to the genetic mechanisms that underpin schizophrenia and bipolar disorder through inducing aggression in fruit flies.

A team led by Liesbeth Zwarts of Belgiums University of Leuven are studying how altered levels of a protein associated with a gene thought to be linked to mental illness affects behaviour.

In humans, mutations of the gene known as PRODH, situated on chromosome 22, has been associated with the development of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and some other, rarer, neurological conditions. Its influence has been confirmed in mouse studies, but the precise mechanisms by which it works have remained little understood.

To try to throw some light on the subject, Zwarts and her colleagues looked at the role of an almost identical fruit fly gene, known as slgA.

In a previous study, in 2008, the team had established that neutralising slgA induced aggressive behaviour in fruit flies. Manipulating levels and different proteins expressed by the gene (known as isoforms) thus made for a promising avenue into understanding the functions that underpin the sort of aggression that often typifies mental illness in humans.

Reporting in the journal Disease Models and Mechanisms, the scientists reveal that although slgA is found throughout the fruit fly brain, only the slgA found in an area known as the lateral neurons ventral (LNv) produced aggression when manipulated.

The results suggest that particular behaviours maybe linked to protein components in specific cell types, and that disruption to the metabolism of those specific types may be what catalyses abnormal behaviour.

Interestingly, the lateral neurons ventral are also known to play a key role in regulating circadian rhythms, which determine the sleep/wake cycle in flies and humans both.

Disruption to circadian rhythms has previously been identified as a driver for neurological disorders. However, Zwarts and her colleagues established that changing the activity of the slgA gene did not affect the cells circadian regulation.

Thus, the lateral neurons ventral may affect mental health in at least two although separate ways.

The team plans to continue its investigation, using the fruit fly model to assist in determining why current treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders in humans dont always work.

Once we have demonstrated the direct relevance of our Drosophila models for psychiatric disorders, we aim to pursue drug screens, says team member Patrick Callaerts.

In that sense our work may contribute to defining alternative treatment options.

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Aggro fruit flies may hold genetic keys to human mental illness - Cosmos

Parliamentarian threatens deadly blow to GOP healthcare bill – The Hill

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The Senate parliamentarian has warned Republicans that a key provision in their healthcare reform bill related to abortion is unlikely to be allowed, raising a serious threat to the legislation.

The parliamentarian, Elizabeth MacDonough, has flagged language that would bar people from using new refundable tax credits for private insurance plans that cover abortion, according to Senate sources.

If Republicans are forced to strip the so-called Hyde language from the legislation, which essentially bars federal funds from being used to pay for abortions unless to save the life of a mother or in cases of rape and incest, it may doom the bill.

MacDonough declined to comment for this article.

Unless a workaround can be found, conservative senators and groups that advocate against abortion rights are likely to oppose the legislation.

Republicans control 52 seats in the Senate; they can afford only two defections and still pass the bill, assuming Democrats are united against it. Vice President would break a 50-50 tie.

Normally controversial legislation requires 60 votes to pass the Senate, but Republicans hope to pass the ObamaCare repeal-and-replace bill with a simple majority vote under a special budgetary process known as reconciliation.

The catch is that the legislation must pass a six-part test known as the Byrd Rule, and its up to the parliamentarian to advise whether legislative provisions meet its requirements.

The toughest requirement states that a provision cannot produce changes in government outlays or revenues that are merely incidental to the non-budgetary components of the provision.

In other words, a provision passed under reconciliation cannot be primarily oriented toward making policy change instead of impacting the budget. Arguably, attaching Hyde language to the refundable tax credits is designed more to shape abortion policy than affect how much money is spent to subsidize healthcare coverage.

The abortion language that conservatives want in the healthcare bill may run afoul of a precedent set in 1995, when then-Senate Parliamentarian Robert Dove ruled that an abortion provision affecting a state block grant program failed to meet reconciliation requirements, according to a source briefed on internal Senate discussions.

One GOP source identified the parliamentarians objection to the Hyde language along with Republican infighting over how to cap ObamaCares Medicaid expansion as two of the biggest obstacles to passing a bill.

A Republican senator confirmed that negotiators have wrestled with the procedural obstacle facing the anti-abortion language.

That has come up and there well could be a challenge, the lawmaker said.

The lawmaker, however, said that the problem is surmountable, arguing there are ways around it.

One possibility would be to change the form of assistance to low-income people by changing it from a refundable tax credit to a subsidy filtered through an already existing government program that restricts abortion services, such as the Federal Employee Health Benefits program or Medicaid.

A second Republican senator said discussions on the topic are ongoing.

GOP negotiators picked upthe pace of their discussions with the parliamentarian after the Congressional Budget Office released an updated score for the House-passed bill in late May.

President Trump is pushing the Senate to pass its version of the legislation byJuly 4.

If GOP leaders are forced to strip the Hyde language from the healthcare bill and cannot find an alternative way to seal off insurance tax credits or subsidies from abortion services, they would lose the support of anti-abortion rights groups, a devastating blow.

Weve made it clear in a lot of conversations and some letters that any GOP replacement plan has to be consistent with the principles of the Hyde Amendment, said David Christensen, vice president of government affairs at Family Research Council, a conservative group that promotes Christian values.

Abortion is not healthcare and the government should not be subsidizing elective abortion, he added.

Christensen predicted that activists would be up in arms if abortion services arent barred under the bill.

If the Byrd Rule were to be an obstacle to ensuring the GOP replacement plan in the Senate does not subsidize abortion, thats something that would be a serious problem for us and the pro-life community, he said.

Republican senators who are thought to be safe votes to support the GOP leaderships ObamaCare repeal and replace plan may suddenly shift to undecided or opposed.

Would that be a deal killer? Id have to think about it. Im inclined to think it would [be], said Sen. Jim InhofeJames InhofeSessions allies say he will weather Trumps wrath Ethiopia at tipping point as Congress mulls human rights bill Top GOP senators tell Trump to ditch Paris climate deal MORE (R-Okla.).

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin HatchOrrin HatchParliamentarian threatens deadly blow to GOP healthcare bill Price, Hatch contradict Mulvaney on Medicaid cuts No certainty on cost-sharing payments to insurers MORE (R-Utah), who has jurisdiction over the tax credits in the healthcare bill, acknowledged it could be tough to pass the bill without the anti-abortion language.

I think a lot of people do think thats essential, he said.

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Parliamentarian threatens deadly blow to GOP healthcare bill - The Hill

House GOP Leaders Schedule More Health Care Votes – Roll Call

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As the House waits on the Senate to come up with its version of a bill to partially repeal and replace the 2010 health care law, GOP leaders on Thursday announced the chamber would move some health care bills that are part of the third phase of its overhaul strategy.

The American Health Care Act (AHCA) that the House passed in May was meant to be one of three phases of the effort because of limitations Republicans face in moving the measure through the budget reconciliation process. That process has prevented Republicans from advancing policies they typically all agree on, like allowing insurers to sell across state lines, GOP leaders have argued.

The Senate is currently debating changes to the AHCA needed to get through the divisive politics of the upper chamber, where they can afford to lose the votes of only two of the 52 Republicans, in a scenario where Vice President Mike Pence would break a tie.

Speaker Paul D. Ryan declined to say how he prefers to deal with the measure if the Senate sends it back to the House with alterations.

Ill reserve judgment on whether we go to conference or not, the Wisconsin Republican said Thursday at his weekly press conference about the health care overhaul. I just want them to pass a bill. Im really not expecting massive changes because of the reconciliation rules.

The Senate, however, is reportedly considering dropping provisions that were key to securing needed votes in the House, like the ability of states to seek a waiver to opt out of community ratings regulations, which require insurance companies to offer the same prices to everyone, regardless of their health status.

With the limitations of reconciliation, Republicans said they would advance additional health care legislation in phase three of the effort. Phase two is made up of executive actions that Human and Human Services Secretary Tom Price is undertaking to tweak the current law.

The House has already advanced a few phase three measures, and next week theyll take up more of them, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Thursday.

Specifically, he named the Veterans Act, introduced by Texas Rep. Sam Johnson, the Broader Options for Americans Act, introduced by Ohio Rep. Pat Tiberi, and the Verifying First Act, introduced by Pennsylvania Rep. Lou Barletta.

These are bills that will take 60 votes [in the Senate], that have moved out of committee here, the California Republican said.

McCarthy also announced that the House on Tuesday will take up the Veterans Affairs Accountability Act. This will actually hold VA employees accountable, it will protect the whistleblowers and it will be better care for the veterans, he said.

Looming in the background while the House works on these other measures are a number of upcoming fiscal deadlines, including the need to deal with the debt limit by late summer or early fall and to fund the government past Sept. 30, the end of the current fiscal year.

Ryan said House Republicans continue to discuss their options on both matters and have not made any decisions. He dismissed criticism that Republicans are behind

We always knew we were going to have an abbreviated budget process in this first year, like we do with every new administration, Ryan said. So were trying to figure out whats the best way to deal with our appropriations process, our budget process given the ambition [of] tax reform and savings and the constricted timetable we have.

Several House Republicans have expressed interest, given that compressed timetable, in putting together a 12-bill omnibus measure from the start and passing it by August. However, some members believe that may even be too ambitious given that the Appropriations Committee has not marked up any of the 12 bills. The first markup is scheduled for Monday on a military and veterans affairs spending bill.

On the debt limit, GOP leaders have to wrestle with how to deal with member calls for spending cuts or other overhauls to the budget process to be considered along with any increase. That pressure comes alongside a call from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin for a clean debt limit free of other policy attachments, an approach Democrats have advocated for as well.

Asked if Republicans could, as a practical matter, assemble and enact a package of spending cuts with a debt limit increase by August, Ryan said, As a practical matter, the answer is 'yes,' that can be achieved. The question is, can we assemble the vote coalition and the ability to do that.

The speaker said hes not taking any options off the table in regards to the debt limit.

Were having that kind of conversation with our members about what is the best way to proceed and how can we address these fiscal deadlines we have -- budget caps needed to fix defense, debt limit, all of those things, Ryan said.

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Even amid Russia probe, many Democrats see health care as their real winner – CNN International

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But as the party ramps up its efforts to take control of the House and hold onto a spate of red-state Senate seats in the 2018 midterm elections, some operatives see all the Russia talk as a distraction from an even more potent campaign issue: Health care.

Even those following the Russia probe's twists and turns closely say the GOP's push to repeal the Affordable Care Act is easier to explain and matters more to moderates and working-class voters that Democrats need to win back.

"I would encourage all of our candidates to make sure that health care stays front and center of the election," said Guy Cecil, the chairman of the Democratic super PAC Priorities USA.

"The visceral, gut reaction that people have makes it more powerful than Russia," he said.

New polls out Wednesday showed that Americans are increasingly attuned to the Russia investigation -- and the fallout from Trump's decision to fire FBI Director James Comey because he wouldn't shut that investigation down.

Still, many Democrats acknowledged that it's much easier to craft a digital advertisement or a 30-second television spot based on the direct pocketbook impact of the House GOP's health care measure -- which the Senate is expected to address in the coming weeks -- than it is to explain the breakneck developments in the Russia investigation. And health care, unlike the Russia investigation, is free from concerns about the trustworthiness of Comey, who many Democrats still blame for Hillary Clinton's loss.

Voters, Cecil said, have "a gut understanding; it's a day-by-day understanding of the impact of health care. They understand what it means to have coverage. The fact that it affects something that is personal, that happens to them daily, makes it a very powerful issue."

No matter the outcome of the Russia investigation, "health care will be a cornerstone issue in 2018," said Markos Moulitsas, the founder and publisher of the liberal blog Daily Kos.

"It motivates the base like few other issues, and more and more, moderates are aligned with liberals," Moulitsas said. "It's a win-win."

In the backlash over the Republican health care efforts, many progressives see a new opportunity to counter -- if the party returns to power -- with a push for a national single-payer, or "Medicare for all," plan.

But Russia also gives progressives an opening to call for Trump's impeachment -- something the party's leaders on Capitol Hill have not yet done.

"Russia shows just how anti-democratic the Republican Party is, happy to let a foreign power intervene in our elections in the pursuit of power. It proves the dishonesty of Trump and his regime and his party. It proves their incompetence," Moulitsas said.

"But most importantly, it provides a real basis for impeachment. So the issue isn't 'what Trump did was bad, look!' but 'we have no option given what Trump did except impeachment,'" he said. "So 2018 will be about two things: impeach Trump, and let's get single-payer health care. And both those issues will mobilize the liberal base like nothing else, and neither should turn off moderate voters."

Zac Petkanas, who was immersed in the Russia investigation while leading the rapid response efforts of Clinton's campaign and then the Democratic National Committee before launching his own firm, said there are simple ways for Democratic candidates to make their case against Trump on Russia: A president who cheated the system and a congressional GOP unwilling to defend the country and hold him accountable.

"And that goes to the corruption that people already believe exists in Washington; that goes to the abuse of power that people see running rampant in this city," Petkanas said.

Still, he acknowledged, the Russia investigation doesn't pack the clear, personal impact of health care.

"When I'm talking to candidates," Petkanas said, "I tell them that they should be saying 'health care' five times for every time that they say the word 'Russia.'"

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Even amid Russia probe, many Democrats see health care as their real winner - CNN International

Are you skipping that doctor visit or pill you need? – CBS News

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With medical costs continuing to rise along with the uncertainty about the future of health insurance coverage, new research shows more Americans are going without the health care they need.

A survey released Wednesday from Bankrate.com found that one in four American families have not sought medical care because they couldn't afford it. Thirteen percent of respondents had no insurance, while the rest had a mix of employer-sponsored, individual and Medicaid coverage. The bulk of uninsured respondents were millennials. Younger, healthier people traditionally go without coverage.

However, "Even insured people found co-pays and deductibles far less affordable than they expected," said Robin Saks Frankel, credit card analyst at Bankrate.com

Two years ago, a Kaiser Family Foundation study found that only three in five households have enough set aside to meet an individual deductible of $1,200 or a family deductible of $2,400. Only about half of U.S. households had enough money to cover higher deductibles than those.

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President Obama's former economic adviser Austan Goolsbee joins CBSN to discuss the costs of the American Health Care Act, the GOP's replacement ...

Health care advocates and economists agree that forgoing health care can have devastating long-term consequences. It can mean patients get sicker and require even more expensive treatment when they end up in the emergency room. These types of unexpected medical bills can lead to a huge financial burden for the patient that could take years to pay off, said Frankel.

If you're struggling with medical costs or skipping the care you need, here are four strategies that may help make your health care more affordable.

Schedule your annual physical. If you have insurance, there's no reason to skip this important appointment. Under the Affordable Care Act, annual physicals are 100 percent covered. That means no co-pay, and your deductible doesn't have to be met beforehand. Spotting medical problems while they're small can prevent big problems (and bigger medical bills) down the road. If your physical yields some unwelcome results, you can talk to your doctor about the cost of future diagnostics and care. See the next item.

Don't be afraid to negotiate. If you're due for an expensive test, procedure or a series of doctor visits, be sure to ask about the price and your out-of-pocket costs ahead of time. You can research the costs at various labs and facilities in your area at websites such as Healthcare Bluebook. Then talk to your doctor or insurer about what you've found and how you can get a lower price. Separately, your doctor may offer payment plans or discounts for extended treatments. Be sure to ask.

Play Video

President Trump is pushing Republican senators to get on board with the legislation passed by the House to roll back Obamacare, but key Republica...

When you do receive a medical bill, review it carefully. Always make sure it's itemized, and check for errors. All health care providers use special billing codes, so mistakes can easily creep in. If you suspect you've been overcharged or mischarged for something, check with your provider and your insurer.

Pay less for prescription drugs. For many people, medication is the biggest health expense. Consider ordering regular, long-term medicines in bulk for lower prices. For less frequent medications, shop for the best prices in your area using comparison websites such as GoodRx. And always discuss any possible generic alternative with your doctor. Low-income patients should check with drug companies directly for any prescription relief programs they may offer, especially for expensive specialized drugs.

Sign up for your FSA or HSA. If your employer offers a Flexible Spending Account or Health Savings Account, be sure to take advantage. For an FSA, your contributions are made pretax, and the money can be used, among other things, for co-pays and health expenses before your deductible. HSAs are used if you have a qualifying high-deductible insurance plan. Contributions are also pretax, and no tax is paid when money is withdrawn for qualified medical expenses. Employers often contribute to workers' accounts as an incentive to get them to sign up for high-deductible health plans.

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Are you skipping that doctor visit or pill you need? - CBS News

With Breast Cancer, the Best Treatment May Be No Treatment – WIRED

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With Breast Cancer, the Best Treatment May Be No Treatment - WIRED

How genetic engineering could boost biofuel production in Africa and Latin America – Genetic Literacy Project

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Bioenergy production techniques that are already available could be used to supply up to 30 percent of the worlds energy by 2050, according to a 2015 report by The Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE), a global network of scientists from 24 countries that reviews scientific knowledge on the environment.

To find out why scientists are so optimistic about biofuel production in the developing world, SciDev.Net spoke with Glaucia Mendes Souza, researcher at the Chemistry Institute of the University of So Paulo.

Souza is also coordinator of the Bioenergy Research Program at the Brazilian research foundation FAPESP, and co-editor of the report.

What is the potential for expanding biofuel production in Latin America and Africa?

Huge! There are at least 500 million hectares of land available for biofuel production around the world. Much of that is in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa, and is currently being used for low-intensity grazing.

What are the main scientific and technological advances related to biofuel production in Brazil?

Thanks to the ethanol programme and research carried out by the private sector, as well as public research entities, Brazil has obtained genetically improved varieties of sugar cane and managed to increase its productivity from 49 tonnes per hectare in 1970 to 85 tons per hectare in 2010.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: Q&A: Boosting bioenergy in Africa and Latin America

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How genetic engineering could boost biofuel production in Africa and Latin America - Genetic Literacy Project

VBL Wins $2.5M Grant to Progress Pivotal-Stage Anticancer Gene Therapy – Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

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VBL Therapeutics won an ILS8.75 (approximately $2.5 million) grant from the Israel Innovation Authority to support continued clinical development of the firms lead Phase III-stage gene therapy ofranergene obadenovec (VB-111). The antiangiogenic candidate is being evaluated in a pivotal Phase III GLOBE study in patients with recurrent glioblastoma (rGBM) under an FDA Special Protocol Assessment. Phase II studies with VB-111 have previously been carried out in patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer and differentiated thyroid cancer indications.The gene therapy is administered as an IV infusion once every two months.

VBL says the grant will fund clinical trials and development activities for the 2017 calendar year. The continuous financial support for the VB-111 program is an important contribution to our ability to execute on our plans into 2019, as we prepare for the commercialization of VB-111 and establish our new manufacturing site, commented Dror Harats, M.D., CEO at VBL Therapeutics. We believe this nondilutive grant for the VB-111 program underscores the confidence that the Innovation Authority has in our technology and its potential for commercialization.

Vascular Biogenics Ltd., operating as VBL Therapeutics, is developing a portfolio of anticancer and anti-inflammatory programs based on its proprietary Vascular Targeting System (VTS) and lecinoxoidplatforms. VB-111 is an antiangiogenic, adenovirus 5 vector-based gene therapy developed using the VTS technology.

VBL is, in addition, developing a series of orally available, small-molecule lecinoxoid compounds that exhibit immune modulating anti-inflammatory properties for treating chronic immune-related conditions. An exploratory Phase II study with lead lecinoxoid candidate VB-201 indicated that the compound reduces vascular inflammation in atherosclerosis. DuringApril, VBL separately presented data from a retrospective analysis of Phase II studies indicating that oral administration of VB-201 reduces levels of liver enzymes. The firm said the data support the potential use of lecinoxoids for liver-related indications, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

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VBL Wins $2.5M Grant to Progress Pivotal-Stage Anticancer Gene Therapy - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

Breakthrough Gene Therapy Approach Raises Hopes For Patients With Blood Cancer – Wall Street Pit

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Multiple myeloma (also known as plasma cell myeloma) is a cancer of plasma cells, specifically, the kind of white blood cell that produces antibodies to help fight infection. Based on statistics from the National Cancer Institute, its currently one of the fastest growing cancer types the second for men and the third for women. In the U.S. alone, it is estimated that 30,280 new cases will be diagnosed this year, and 12,590 cases will turn out to be fatal.

Since the year 2000, a total of nine drugs have been approved as treatments for multiple myeloma. But the drugs cant be considered as cures because even with the treatment, only around 50% of patients live up to 5 years after being diagnosed with the disease. Thankfully, that might soon change.

A few days ago, at the American Society of Clinical Oncology conference held in Chicago, doctors reported about the success of a new treatment for multiple myeloma called CAR-T (short for Chimeric Antigen Receptor-T) therapy an individualized treatment that makes use of blood filtering and genetic reprogramming.

The process works by removing immune system cells called T cells from a patients blood, after which, the filtered blood is modified to contain a cancer-targeting gene, then re-injected into the patient to seek and destroy cancer cells. Its being called a living drug a one-time treatment designed to permanently alter cells that multiply in the body, turning those cells into an army of cancer-fighting cells.

In the clinical trial led by Dr. Wanhong Zhao associate director of hematology at The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xian Jiaotong University in Xian, China 33 out of 35 patients responded positively within two months of the treatment, with some patients responding as early as 10 days after the first injection (three separate injections were given in a span of more than a week).

So far, 19 of the patients are currently well beyond the timeframe needed for full efficacy assessment by the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) consensus. In other words, it is now reasonable to conclude if complete remission has been achieved in a patient or not. And the results are: 14 are now in complete remission, 4 have achieved very good partial remission, and 1 is in partial remission.

In terms of side effects, most experienced typical ones such as fever, low blood pressure and difficulty in breathing. Only 2 patients experienced severe side effects, though such were temporary and easily manageable.

As Dr. Zhao said: Although recent advances in chemotherapy have prolonged life expectancy in multiple myeloma, this cancer remains incurable. It appears that with this novel immunotherapy there may be a chance for cure in multiple myeloma, but we will need to follow patients much longer to confirm that.

Following the success of this small clinical trial, the researchers are now planning a bigger trial involving 100 patients. Early next year, they are also planning a similar run in the U.S.

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Breakthrough Gene Therapy Approach Raises Hopes For Patients With Blood Cancer - Wall Street Pit

News from the AAN Annual Meeting: Gene Therapy Found to Benefit Infants with SMA Type 1 in Open-Label Trial – LWW Journals

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Collins, Thomas R.

doi: 10.1097/01.NT.0000520852.35562.83

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In a new gene therapy trial, infants with spinal muscular atrophy survived longer without adverse events and achieved developmental milestones. Independent experts said the therapy should be studied and compared with the recently-approved drug, nusinersen.

BOSTON All 15 infants treated with gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy type 1 (SMA-1) survived past the age at which 75 percent of untreated infants typically die or need at least 16 hours a day of ventilation support, according to results of an open-label phase 1 trial reported here in April at the AAN Annual Meeting.

The event-free survival of the infants to at least 13.6 months shows the promise of the proprietary gene therapy known as AVXS-101, for Avexis, the Illinois-based manufacturer that funded the study.

The drug uses an adeno-associated virus 9 AAV9 to deliver a fully functioning survival motor neuron gene to the patient's cells.

Researchers also found that all nine infants born at least 20 months before the January data cut-off reached the 20-months' time point. All of the patients in the trial are alive, and only one has required 16 or more hours per day of ventilator support at 28.8 months, according to the researchers.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted the drug breakthrough therapy status, which will mean faster review, in July.

Jerry R. Mendell, MD, FAAN, the principal investigator of the current study, said SMA-1 is nearly always fatal for children. Dr. Mendell, who conducted the first gene therapy studies on the treatment and developed the neuromuscular gene therapy program at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, OH, noted that a 2014 study in Neurology, conducted to establish the natural history against which potential therapies could be measured, found that only 25 percent of children with SMA-1 survive without permanent ventilation beyond 13.5 months. And only 8 percent of untreated infants live beyond 20 months.

In the current study, 12 of the 15 children were given the high dose of the drug. All of these infants have reached at least one milestone, and most have achieved several milestones, such as bringing their hands to their mouths, head control, and sitting. Two children stand and walk independently, and eight can talk.

These are milestones that are essentially never achieved in untreated children, said Dr. Mendell, who reported he has no financial interest in the drug.

None of them ever learn to talk and as they approach their death march, they can no longer feed except by G-tube and they basically live in a vegetative state, he said. And all that has changed dramatically.

Dr. Mendell emphasized the importance of early treatment. The two best patients in our clinical trial were those who were treated very early, and they very rapidly reversed their course; they are now walking, he said. Many of the patients in the trial were treated early because they have a family history [for SMA] and were recognized prenatally. That is what facilitated the study and also what will make a difference in the long run.

He added: I'm hoping the results of this study will allow for newborn-screening for this disease. That will provide a pathway for early treatment.

Last year, the FDA approved the new SMA drug nusinersen, an antisense oligonucleotide therapy, which uses targeted RNA binding to boost production of a protein in which SMA patients are deficient. Dr. Mendell said it's possible that the two drugs could work well together, although this hasn't been evaluated yet.

What we all wonder about on the gene therapy side and on the oligonucleotide side is whether these treatments could be complementary, he said. We'll know the answer to that because some of our patients have requested opportunity to move to nusinersen.

He noted that is an option for patients after their two-year enrollment commitment is reached.

In a review of the abstract, Brent L. Fogel, MD, PhD, FAAN, associate professor of neurology and human genetics at the University of California, Los Angeles, said the results sound promising, and he agreed that the therapy should be compared with nusinersen.

Given the recent success of the FDA-approved antisense oligonucleotide therapies which increase production of SMN protein by altering the splicing of the endogenous SMN2 gene, rather than replacing the damaged SMN1 gene it would be important to compare the risk and benefit between the two approaches to determine the optimal treatment for patients with SMA, who previously had none at all, he said.

He said that other clinical questions remain, as well. It would be of key interest to know what cells the virus is targeting, the resulting gene expression initially and whether that is maintained, and if any side effects are observed as the patients are followed over time, Dr. Fogel said. This would have implications for similar future therapies in other neurogenetic disorders.

Kathryn J. Swoboda, MD, director of the neurogenetics program at the Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, who was a site leader in the multi-center trial on nusinersen, noted that the evidence of gene therapy's efficacy is limited in scope, at least for now.

It's a viral-derived vector, she said, referring to the AAV-9 used in the gene therapy trial. It's a common virus that people are ultimately exposed to so they produce antibodies with time. So the proof that it works is only in babies right now, she said

If you take a young baby with SMA, those are where the phenomenal results are. Even if you took a 9-month-old or an 8-month-old or a 7-month-old with a severe form of disease, it didn't do much, because by then they've already had devastating loss of motor neurons. So we don't know how this would be tolerated in older patients and adults, and we don't have the capacity to make enough virus to deliver it to those patients at this point, and so it's going to take some additional time to do those studies.

The approval of nusinersen could complicate the future of trials on gene therapy, she said.

You've already got an approved drug and how do you design those trials? Do you say they can't get a drug we know might help them? And what if the therapy for gene therapy doesn't work? A back-up plan to start the approved therapy later could mean it might to be too late to respond, she said.

I think there's a lot to think about from an ethical perspective.

News of new therapies for the disease has drawn tremendous demand for SMA treatment from around the world, she said.

We've gotten calls from parents of newborns, prenatal cases, all the way up to 70-year-old patients who want something because it's a progressive disease, she said. And even though it's slowly progressive after a certain point, you're still losing something continuously over time.... They don't even care if it's a major improvement. They just want to stay where they are.

Nonetheless, the path forward is not clear, she said.

Does this cure? Do we have a cure yet? No. We have a really promising set of therapies that are so above anything we've seen for neurodegeneration that it's tremendously exciting. But it doesn't mean that it makes it easy to figure out how to do this.

. AAN Annual Meeting Abstract CT.003: Mendell J, Al-Zaidy SA, Shell R, et al. AVXS-101 phase 1 gene therapy clinical trial in SMA type 1: Event free survival and achievement of developmental milestones. http://bit.ly/genetherapy-abstract.

. AAN Annual Meeting Abstract CCI.002: Kuntz N, Farwell W, Zhong ZJ, et al, on behalf of the ENDEAR Study Group. Nusinersen in infants diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA): Study design and initial interim efficacy and safety findings from the phase 3 international ENDEAR study. http://bit.ly/nusinersen-abstract

. Sign up for the video link to the plenary here: http://aan.informz.net/AAN/pages/17_AMOD_Form.

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News from the AAN Annual Meeting: Gene Therapy Found to Benefit Infants with SMA Type 1 in Open-Label Trial - LWW Journals

Nationwide Children’s spins out fourth gene therapy company this one is staying in Central Ohio – Columbus Business First

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Nationwide Children's spins out fourth gene therapy company this one is staying in Central Ohio
Columbus Business First
Nationwide Children's Hospital has spun out its fourth gene therapy startup to result from decades of research and millions in investment in manufacturing equipment and commercialization personnel.

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Elon Musk: The Rocket That Will Eventually Take Humans to the Moon Will Launch in 4 Months – Futurism

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In Brief In a tweet today, Elon Musk said that the highly anticipated Falcon Heavy launch would take place within the next few months. The rocket will transport the first space tourists, and it could take humanity farther in space than ever before.

Elon Musk is having a rather goodweek. He put on an excellent showing at Teslas annual shareholders meeting,and today, the news broke that Teslas stock price has surged. The company is listed on the Fortune 500 list for the first time ever. But of course, we cannot forget about another of Musks revolutionary outfits: SpaceX.

Musks space company has a number of milestone eventplanned for the coming months. Case in point, afew moments ago, a question from a Twitter user sparked an update from Musk on the companys plans to launch the Falcon Heavy, SpaceXs massive rocket that will one day take humans to the Moon.

In the tweet, Musk confirmedthat we will beseeing the rocket launch in just four months, at theend of the summer.

The Falcon Heavy will be the most powerful rocket in the world, capable of launching 54 metric tons (119,000 lb) of cargo and crew into space. The rocket will be used to boost the first space tourists to the Moon in a launch expected to take place in 2018. The entire journey is expected to take about six to seven days.

The Falcon Heavy will likely also play a role in preparing SpaceX for the highly anticipated first manned missions to Mars, set to happen by 2025.

We look forward to the upcoming launch and all the promise that its success will bring.

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Elon Musk: The Rocket That Will Eventually Take Humans to the Moon Will Launch in 4 Months - Futurism

Scientists Finally Witnessed a Phenomenon That Einstein Thought Impossible – Futurism

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In Brief Astronomers have observered a phenomenon known as gravitational microlensing in stars for the first time. Predicted by Einstein as part of his theory of general relativity, this could help measure the mass of distant stars using gravitational deflection. Celestial Warping

According to Einsteins general relativity theory, spacetime bends or gets distorted when it crosses a massive object due to its gravity. In the same manner, Einstein theorized that such a distortion also happens tolight from a distant star when it passes another star along a line of sight from Earth like a near stellar eclipse, so to speak. In this case, gravity should act as a magnifying lens by brightening and bending the light from the distant star, warping its apparent position.

Einstein, however, wasnt particularly confident about ever seeing such this gravitational deflection of starlight. In an article published in Sciencein 1936, he said that because stars are so distant from one another there is no hope of observing this phenomenon directly. An international team of researchers, however, have just proven Einstein wrong but also right by seeing a type of gravitational microlensing from a star other than the Sun.

The team, led by Kailash Sahu from the Space Telescope Science Institute, reported their findings in a new studypublished in the same journal.Einstein would be proud, Terry Oswalt saidin an interview with Wired. One of his key predictions has passed a very rigorous observational test.

Sahus team used the Hubble Space Telescope with its superior angular resolution to measure the shifts in a distant background stars apparent position around a nearby white dwarf star called Stein 2051 B as its light was deflected. The observations were made on eight dates in a two year period, between October 2013 and October 2015.

In the same way that a 1919 total solar eclipse provided the first observations of starlight curving and gave the initialconvincing proofs of Einsteins general theory of relativity, the new study confirms it anew. It also gave Sahus team a way to measure the mass of the foreground white dwarf star, which was previously unmeasurable.

The astrometric lensing approach used by Sahu et al. can be used equally well for any other nearby stars that happen to pass in front of background stars, Oswalt wrote in a perspective article in Science. In the coming era of truly massive sky surveys such as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, astronomers are bound to observe other similar events, despite their rarity.

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New Discovery of the Oldest Known Human Remains Will Change the Narrative of Human Evolution – Futurism

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In BriefScientists have just discovered the oldest human fossils inMorocco. This find alters the narrative of human origins and helpsfill in missing details in our evolution as a species. Rediscovering Ourselves

On Wednesday, scientists reported they had discovered the oldest known remains of Homo sapiens in Morocco.The bones and other remains are approximately 300,000 years old. This revelation provides new insights into the origins of humankind: a consequence of such findings would be that human beingsevolved earlier than had previously believed. The fossils also indicate that despite fundamental differences in the brains of modern humans and early Homo sapiens, our faces strongly resemble those of our early ancestors.

Until this remarkable find at Jebel Irhoud, the oldest human fossils only dated back 195,000 years. These new fossils make experts believe that our species evolved not in Eastern Africa (specifically near Ethiopia) where later fossils were found, but across the continent in Western Africa where modern Morocco is situated.

We did not evolve from a single cradle of mankind somewhere in East Africa, paleoanthropologist Phillipp Gunz, a co-author of the two new studies on the fossils, told The New York Times.

Before now, fossils found in different places made paleoanthropologists believe that Homo sapiens arose in East Africa and then moved across the continent. However, mysterious human fossils from other parts of Africa didnt seem to fit in with this story, and caused scientists to wonder where they fit into the Homo sapiens puzzle. The remains discovered in Morocco will helpsolve these mysteries, even as it suggests new questions for further research.

For example, the recent finds at Jebel Irhoud confirm that Homo sapiens had flatter faces, similar to ours today. National Museum in London paleoanthropologist Christopher Stringer speculates that the flattened faces of early Homo sapiens may be related to the advent of speech. We really are at very early stages of trying to explain these things, Dr. Stringer told theThe New York Times.

The larger, rounder brain of modern humans is a more recent development. Dr. Gunz indicates that the human brain may have evolved into a rounder shapeduring a later phase of human existence. Two areas of the brain in particular the cerebellum and the parietal lobe, both toward the back of the head seem to have adapted over thousands of years. That being said,scientists dont yet know how the rounder brain changed how humans think.

Flint blades from around the same time have been found elsewhere across Africa, and the Jebel Irhoud fossils suggest that they may have been made by early humans. Dr. Gunz and his team believe that is this is true: Homo sapiens may have evolved across the continent as a network of groups. The only way well ever know for sure and resolve other questions these findings may bring up will bethrough additional research, which will require adequate funding.

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New Discovery of the Oldest Known Human Remains Will Change the Narrative of Human Evolution - Futurism

Blazing a Trail: Hawaii Becomes the First US State to Commit to the Paris Climate Accords – Futurism

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In Brief The government of Hawaii signed two bills on Tuesday which formalizes its commitment to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. This comes after U.S. President Donald Trump decided to pull out of the climate deal.

Tuesday was a historic moment for Hawaii as it became the first state in the U.S. to make its stand on the Paris Climate Agreement formal. The Pacific state signed two bills to honor the climate deal after the federal governments decision to withdraw from it. In his statement during the signing of the two bills, Hawaii governor David Ige said that hes looking forward to working with other states to fight global climate change.

Governor Ige signed Senate Bill 559 which would ensure statewide support for Hawaiis green initiatives and to further theStates commitment to combat climate change by systematicallyreducing and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions through theenactment of principles that mirror many of the provisions adopted in the Paris Agreement.

The governor also signed House Bill 1578, which creates a task force to help keep Hawaiis soil and air clean. It would identify agricultural and aquacultural practices to improve soil health and promote carbon sequestration the capture and long-term storage of atmospheric carbon dioxide to mitigate climate change.

Hawaii isnt the only state that pledged to uphold the guidelines set by the Paris Agreement. Several governors and a dozen mayors across the U.S. have promised to do the same. The Hawaii State Legislature understands the importance of taking action, and I applaud its work this session to ensure that we continue to deliver the island Earth that we want to leave to our children, Ige said.

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Blazing a Trail: Hawaii Becomes the First US State to Commit to the Paris Climate Accords - Futurism