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Growing Potatoes on Mars Could Actually Work, Says NASA-Backed Experiment – ScienceAlert

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

In the 2015 blockbuster movie The Martian, a fictional botanist-turned-astronaut gets stranded on Mars, forcing himto "science the shit" out of his dire situation.

Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon) survives by fertilising Martian soil with his faeces, slicing up potatoes, and planting the cuttings in the soil. This eventually grows him enough food to last hundreds of days.

Growing potatoes and other food on Mars is not just a sci-fi curiosity. Now, a NASA-backed"Potatoes on Mars" experimentis showing that Watney's fictional feat might actually be possible.

NASA has eyed a crewed mission to the red planet for decades - and Congress even passed a bill that implores the space agency toreach the Red Planet by 2033. The agency is also exploring ideas of aMartian colony.

To that end, scientists at NASA and the International Potato Centre (CIP) in Lima, Peru, built a tuber-growing experiment that recreates the extreme conditions on the surface of Mars.

Everything happens inside a rocket-launchable box called a CubeSat. The CubeSat is rigged with pumps, water hoses, LED lights, and instruments to emulate Mars-like temperatures, night-and-day light cycles, gases, and air pressure.

In February 2017, researchers dumped practically lifeless soil from Peru's Pampas de la Joya desert inside, planted a tuber in it, sealed up the box, and began filming to see what happened.

"Preliminary results are positive," according toa CIP press release- which is to saya potato plant grewin inhospitable desert soil under Mars-like conditions.

"If the crops can tolerate the extreme conditions that we are exposing them to in our CubeSat, they have a good chance to grow on Mars," Julio Valdivia-Silva, a NASA researcher at the University of Engineering and Technology in Lima, said in the release.

"We will do several rounds of experiments to find out which potato varieties do best,'" he said."We want to know what the minimum conditions are that a potato needs to survive."

Would this actually work on Mars?

The experiment doesn't provide the ironclad proof a would-be Martian potato farmer needs.

For one, the soil did not actually from Mars. Though it was arid and inhospitable, it probably still had microbes that may have helped the potato plant's growth.

The experiment also used potato cuttings instead of seeds. That's an issue because making potatoes last on a months- or years-long journey may require heating under pressure (called thermostabilisation) or a blast of radiation.

This damages the cells of a potato, "making it hard to grow plants from cuttings", Keith Cowing, the founder of NASAWatch, told Business Insider ina tweet.

However, several other experiments have shown it may be possible to grow food in Martian soil andin even-more-inhospitable moon dust, called regolith.

Bruce Bugbee, a botanist and NASA scientist at Utah State University,told Tech Insider in 2015that there's no reason why growing potatoes or other food crops in Martian soil wouldn't work.

(He did, however, take issue with Watney mixing his faeces into the soil, which he said may be "toxic to the plants".)

The CIP, NASA, and other institutions are now looking to see how several varieties of potatoes perform in the Mars-like CubeSat box, including special varieties they have bred to withstand harsh conditions.

Aside from helping astronaut farmers of the future, the work also stands to benefit humans on Earth.

"The results indicate that our efforts to breed varieties with high potential for strengthening food security in areas that are affected, or will be affected by climate change, are working," Walter Amoros, a potato breeder at CIP, said in the organisation's release.

You can watch the experiment's potato sprout in the time-lapse videoon YouTubeor below:

This article was originally published by Business Insider.

NASA: Orion Spacecraft Parachutes Tested At US Army Yuma Proving Ground – SpaceCoastDaily.com

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

By NASA // March 10, 2017

Engineers successfully tested the parachutes for NASAs Orion spacecraft at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona Wednesday, March 8. (NASA Image)

(NASA) Engineers successfully tested the parachutes for NASAs Orion spacecraft at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona Wednesday, March 8.

This was the second test in a series of eight that will certify Orions parachutes for human spaceflight.

The test, which dropped an Orion engineering model from a C-17 aircraft at 25,000 feet, simulated the descent astronauts might experience if they have to abort a mission after liftoff.

Orion, which will launch atop NASAs Space Launch System rocket from the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is built to take astronauts farther into the solar system than ever before.

The spacecraft will carry crew to space, provide emergency abort capabilities, sustain the crew during their mission and provide safe re-entry through Earths atmosphere.

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NASA: Orion Spacecraft Parachutes Tested At US Army Yuma Proving Ground - SpaceCoastDaily.com

NASA, Google Expeditions Celebrate Women in STEM With Virtual Tour – T.H.E. Journal

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Virtual Reality

Antja Chambers, life support systems branch project manager at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, takes viewers on a tour of her work space. Image Credit: NASA.

To celebrate International Womens Day Wednesday and Womens History Month in March, NASA and Google Expeditions have teamed up to launch a series of virtual experiences that bring students into the careers of seven women working in STEM.

The Modern Figures series offers classrooms a three-dimensional glimpse into the kinds of workspaces used by materials scientists, launch directors, software engineers, and other STEM experts, according to prepared statement. The VR tours are part of the Modern Figures program, which gets its inspiration from the 20th Century Fox film Hidden Figures.

Workspaces include:

These are the first NASA-themed career tours available via the free Google Expeditions mobile app, according to the news release.

Further information can be found on NASAs Modern Figures site.

About the Author

Sri Ravipati is Web producer for THE Journal and Campus Technology. She can be reached at sravipati@1105media.com.

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NASA, Google Expeditions Celebrate Women in STEM With Virtual Tour - T.H.E. Journal

5 Natural Allergy Remedies that Work – Care2.com

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Its almost that time of year again when spring breaks forth in all her glory. Thats great news for those of us suffering from too much time indoors during the winter months, but it may leave allergy sufferers panickingor running for their antihistamine drugs, decongestants and allergy shots.

Before you pop those pills, spray your nose, or get that injection, you might want to consider some of the natural options that help with allergies. Here are some of my preferred foods and remedies:

Papaya Enzymespapaya contains a natural enzyme known as papain that has natural anti-inflammatory properties. As such, it helps alleviate inflammation linked to sinus and nasal swelling, as well as addressing many of the symptoms of allergies, hay fever and excessive catarrh buildup. It works on the root causes of allergies, so be patient: it may take some time with papain to see the results. While the fruit is helpful, for best results supplement with papain enzymes on an empty stomach. When there is no food for the enzyme to break down it goes to work to reduce inflammation. Choose a product that contains 250mg of papain. Take two capsules three times daily for a month prior to and during allergy season.

QuercetinA natural antioxidant found in foods like apples, berries, cabbage, cauliflower, nuts, onions and tea, this nutrient has been found to have potent anti-inflammatory and antihistamine properties, making it a great choice to reduce the effects of pollens and other allergens. In a study published in the medical journal In Vivo, researchers explored the mechanism by which quercetin supplements worked on people suffering from allergy-related nasal congestion. They found that the nutrient reduced the bodys production of a protein linked to airway inflammation. Take 400mg of quercetin twice daily.

Green TeaGreen tea is known as one of the best superfoods for many conditions and is also beneficial for allergies. Thats because it contains a potent antioxidant known as epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) that can impact allergies on a cellular level by reducing inflammation. You dont have to remember EGCG to benefit however; simply drink more green tea. Even if youre not a huge fan, try drinking it iced with a little stevia to sweeten and a squeeze of lemon for a delicious and refreshing iced green tea.

Perilla FrutescensThis little-known herb is part of the mint family and has been explored as an all-natural, herbal remedy for allergies. In a study in Experimental Biology and Medicine, researchers found that perilla and one of its active ingredients known as rosmarinic acid significantly reduced inflammatory reactions such as nasal and sinus congestion, and eye irritation. Other research in the International Journal of Molecular Medicine found that the herb was also effective at alleviating allergy-related skin conditions. The effective dose of perilla differs from product to product and depends on whether the seeds or leaves are used, or whether the remedy is an extract of a specific compound or crushed, dried leaves. Follow package directions since the products can have a wide range of potency. A typical tincture (alcohol extract) dose is thirty drops three times daily. Ideally, start a month prior to your primary allergy season and continue throughout the season.

ButterburKnown as Petasites hybridus, this shrub grows in wet, marshy parts of North America, Asia and Europe. Multiple studies show its effectiveness in the treatment of allergies. Because the raw plant contains chemicals known as pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PA) that can be harmful, be sure to choose a product that is PA-free. It should indicate this status on the label. Follow package instructions for dose.

Of course, if you have life-threatening allergies, you should seek emergency medical help. And, dont discontinue any prescription drugs without first consulting your physician.

Related:Dont Believe in Herbal Medicine? 10 Things to Change Your MindThe 5 Best Herbs to Soothe Your NervesShould You Actually Starve a Fever?

Dr. Michelle Schoffro Cook, PhD, DNM is the publisher of the free e-news Worlds Healthiest News, president of PureFood BC, and an international best-selling and 20-time published book author whose works include: Allergy-Proof Your Life: Natural Remedies for Allergies that Work!

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Originally posted here:

5 Natural Allergy Remedies that Work - Care2.com

Functionalism (philosophy of mind) – Wikipedia

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Functionalism is a theory of the mind in contemporary philosophy, developed largely as an alternative to both the identity theory of mind and behaviorism. Its core idea is that mental states (beliefs, desires, being in pain, etc.) are constituted solely by their functional role that is, they have causal relations to other mental states, numerous sensory inputs, and behavioral outputs.[1] Functionalism is a theoretical level between the physical implementation and behavioral output.[2] Therefore, it is different from its predecessors of Cartesian dualism (advocating independent mental and physical substances) and Skinnerian behaviorism and physicalism (declaring only physical substances) because it is only concerned with the effective functions of the brain, through its organization or its "software programs".

Since mental states are identified by a functional role, they are said to be realized on multiple levels; in other words, they are able to be manifested in various systems, even perhaps computers, so long as the system performs the appropriate functions. While computers are physical devices with electronic substrate that perform computations on inputs to give outputs, so brains are physical devices with neural substrate that perform computations on inputs which produce behaviors.

An important part of some accounts of functionalism is the idea of multiple realizability. Since, according to standard functionalist theories, mental states are the corresponding functional role, mental states can be sufficiently explained without taking into account the underlying physical medium (e.g. the brain, neurons, etc.) that realizes such states; one need only take into account the higher-level functions in the cognitive system. Since mental states are not limited to a particular medium, they can be realized in multiple ways, including, theoretically, within non-biological systems, such as computers. In other words, a silicon-based machine could, in principle, have the same sort of mental life that a human being has, provided that its cognitive system realized the proper functional roles. Thus, mental states are individuated much like a valve; a valve can be made of plastic or metal or whatever material, as long as it performs the proper function (say, controlling the flow of liquid through a tube by blocking and unblocking its pathway).

However, there have been some functionalist theories that combine with the identity theory of mind, which deny multiple realizability. Such Functional Specification Theories (FSTs) (Levin, 3.4), as they are called, were most notably developed by David Lewis[3] and David Malet Armstrong.[4] According to FSTs, mental states are the particular "realizers" of the functional role, not the functional role itself. The mental state of belief, for example, just is whatever brain or neurological process that realizes the appropriate belief function. Thus, unlike standard versions of functionalism (often called Functional State Identity Theories), FSTs do not allow for the multiple realizability of mental states, because the fact that mental states are realized by brain states is essential. What often drives this view is the belief that if we were to encounter an alien race with a cognitive system composed of significantly different material from humans' (e.g., silicon-based) but performed the same functions as human mental states (e.g., they tend to yell "Yowzas!" when poked with sharp objects, etc.) then we would say that their type of mental state is perhaps similar to ours, but too different to say it's the same. For some, this may be a disadvantage to FSTs. Indeed, one of Hilary Putnam's[5][6] arguments for his version of functionalism relied on the intuition that such alien creatures would have the same mental states as humans do, and that the multiple realizability of standard functionalism makes it a better theory of mind.

The broad position of "functionalism" can be articulated in many different varieties. The first formulation of a functionalist theory of mind was put forth by Hilary Putnam.[5][6] This formulation, which is now called machine-state functionalism, or just machine functionalism, was inspired by the analogies which Putnam and others noted between the mind and the theoretical "machines" or computers capable of computing any given algorithm which were developed by Alan Turing (called Turing machines).

In non-technical terms, a Turing machine can be visualized as an indefinitely and infinitely long tape divided into rectangles (the memory) with a box-shaped scanning device that sits over and scans one component of the memory at a time. Each unit is either blank (B) or has a 1 written on it. These are the inputs to the machine. The possible outputs are:

An extremely simple example of a Turing machine which writes out the sequence '111' after scanning three blank squares and then stops as specified by the following machine table:

This table states that if the machine is in state one and scans a blank square (B), it will print a 1 and remain in state one. If it is in state one and reads a 1, it will move one square to the right and also go into state two. If it is in state two and reads a B, it will print a 1 and stay in state two. If it is in state two and reads a 1, it will move one square to the right and go into state three. If it is in state three and reads a B, it prints a 1 and remains in state three. Finally, if it is in state three and reads a 1, then it will stay in state three.

The essential point to consider here is the nature of the states of the Turing machine. Each state can be defined exclusively in terms of its relations to the other states as well as inputs and outputs. State one, for example, is simply the state in which the machine, if it reads a B, writes a 1 and stays in that state, and in which, if it reads a 1, it moves one square to the right and goes into a different state. This is the functional definition of state one; it is its causal role in the overall system. The details of how it accomplishes what it accomplishes and of its material constitution are completely irrelevant.

According to machine-state functionalism, the nature of a mental state is just like the nature of the automaton states described above. Just as state one simply is the state in which, given an input B, such and such happens, so being in pain is the state which disposes one to cry "ouch", become distracted, wonder what the cause is, and so forth.

A second form of functionalism is based on the rejection of behaviorist theories in psychology and their replacement with empirical cognitive models of the mind. This view is most closely associated with Jerry Fodor and Zenon Pylyshyn and has been labeled psychofunctionalism.

The fundamental idea of psychofunctionalism is that psychology is an irreducibly complex science and that the terms that we use to describe the entities and properties of the mind in our best psychological theories cannot be redefined in terms of simple behavioral dispositions, and further, that such a redefinition would not be desirable or salient were it achievable. Psychofunctionalists view psychology as employing the same sorts of irreducibly teleological or purposive explanations as the biological sciences. Thus, for example, the function or role of the heart is to pump blood, that of the kidney is to filter it and to maintain certain chemical balances and so onthis is what accounts for the purposes of scientific explanation and taxonomy. There may be an infinite variety of physical realizations for all of the mechanisms, but what is important is only their role in the overall biological theory. In an analogous manner, the role of mental states, such as belief and desire, is determined by the functional or causal role that is designated for them within our best scientific psychological theory. If some mental state which is postulated by folk psychology (e.g. hysteria) is determined not to have any fundamental role in cognitive psychological explanation, then that particular state may be considered not to exist . On the other hand, if it turns out that there are states which theoretical cognitive psychology posits as necessary for explanation of human behavior but which are not foreseen by ordinary folk psychological language, then these entities or states exist.

A third form of functionalism is concerned with the meanings of theoretical terms in general. This view is most closely associated with David Lewis and is often referred to as analytic functionalism or conceptual functionalism. The basic idea of analytic functionalism is that theoretical terms are implicitly defined by the theories in whose formulation they occur and not by intrinsic properties of the phonemes they comprise. In the case of ordinary language terms, such as "belief", "desire", or "hunger", the idea is that such terms get their meanings from our common-sense "folk psychological" theories about them, but that such conceptualizations are not sufficient to withstand the rigor imposed by materialistic theories of reality and causality. Such terms are subject to conceptual analyses which take something like the following form:

For example, the state of pain is caused by sitting on a tack and causes loud cries, and higher order mental states of anger and resentment directed at the careless person who left a tack lying around. These sorts of functional definitions in terms of causal roles are claimed to be analytic and a priori truths about the submental states and the (largely fictitious) propositional attitudes they describe. Hence, its proponents are known as analytic or conceptual functionalists. The essential difference between analytic and psychofunctionalism is that the latter emphasizes the importance of laboratory observation and experimentation in the determination of which mental state terms and concepts are genuine and which functional identifications may be considered to be genuinely contingent and a posteriori identities. The former, on the other hand, claims that such identities are necessary and not subject to empirical scientific investigation.

Homuncular functionalism was developed largely by Daniel Dennett and has been advocated by William Lycan. It arose in response to the challenges that Ned Block's China Brain (a.k.a. Chinese nation) and John Searle's Chinese room thought experiments presented for the more traditional forms of functionalism (see below under "Criticism"). In attempting to overcome the conceptual difficulties that arose from the idea of a nation full of Chinese people wired together, each person working as a single neuron to produce in the wired-together whole the functional mental states of an individual mind, many functionalists simply bit the bullet, so to speak, and argued that such a Chinese nation would indeed possess all of the qualitative and intentional properties of a mind; i.e. it would become a sort of systemic or collective mind with propositional attitudes and other mental characteristics. Whatever the worth of this latter hypothesis, it was immediately objected that it entailed an unacceptable sort of mind-mind supervenience: the systemic mind which somehow emerged at the higher-level must necessarily supervene on the individual minds of each individual member of the Chinese nation, to stick to Block's formulation. But this would seem to put into serious doubt, if not directly contradict, the fundamental idea of the supervenience thesis: there can be no change in the mental realm without some change in the underlying physical substratum. This can be easily seen if we label the set of mental facts that occur at the higher-level M1 and the set of mental facts that occur at the lower-level M2. Given the transitivity of supervenience, if M1 supervenes on M2, and M2 supervenes on P (physical base), then M1 and M2 both supervene on P, even though they are (allegedly) totally different sets of mental facts.

Since mind-mind supervenience seemed to have become acceptable in functionalist circles, it seemed to some that the only way to resolve the puzzle was to postulate the existence of an entire hierarchical series of mind levels (analogous to homunculi) which became less and less sophisticated in terms of functional organization and physical composition all the way down to the level of the physico-mechanical neuron or group of neurons. The homunculi at each level, on this view, have authentic mental properties but become simpler and less intelligent as one works one's way down the hierarchy.

Mechanistic functionalism, originally formulated and defended by Gualtiero Piccinini[7] and Carl Gillett[8][9] independently, augments previous functionalist accounts of mental states by maintaining that any psychological explanation must be rendered in mechanistic terms. That is, instead of mental states receiving a purely functional explanation in terms of their relations to other mental states, like those listed above, functions are seen as playing only a partthe other part being played by structures of the explanation of a given mental state.

A mechanistic explanation[10] involves decomposing a given system, in this case a mental system, into its component physical parts, their activities or functions, and their combined organizational relations.[7] On this account the mind remains a functional system, but one that is understood mechanistically. This account remains a sort of functionalism because functional relations are still essential to mental states, but it is mechanistic because the functional relations are always manifestations of concrete structuresalbeit structures understood at a certain level of abstraction. Functions are individuated and explained either in terms of the contributions they make to the given system[11] or in teleological terms. If the functions are understood in teleological terms, then they may be characterized either etiologically or non-etiologically.[12]

Mechanistic functionalism leads functionalism away from the traditional functionalist autonomy of psychology from neuroscience and towards integrating psychology and neuroscience.[13] By providing an applicable framework for merging traditional psychological models with neurological data, mechanistic functionalism may be understood as reconciling the functionalist theory of mind with neurological accounts of how the brain actually works. This is due to the fact that mechanistic explanations of function attempt to provide an account of how functional states (mental states) are physically realized through neurological mechanisms.

There is much confusion about the sort of relationship that is claimed to exist (or not exist) between the general thesis of functionalism and physicalism. It has often been claimed that functionalism somehow "disproves" or falsifies physicalism tout court (i.e. without further explanation or description). On the other hand, most philosophers of mind who are functionalists claim to be physicalistsindeed, some of them, such as David Lewis, have claimed to be strict reductionist-type physicalists.

Functionalism is fundamentally what Ned Block has called a broadly metaphysical thesis as opposed to a narrowly ontological one. That is, functionalism is not so much concerned with what there is than with what it is that characterizes a certain type of mental state, e.g. pain, as the type of state that it is. Previous attempts to answer the mind-body problem have all tried to resolve it by answering both questions: dualism says there are two substances and that mental states are characterized by their immateriality; behaviorism claimed that there was one substance and that mental states were behavioral disposition; physicalism asserted the existence of just one substance and characterized the mental states as physical states (as in "pain = C-fiber firings").

On this understanding, type physicalism can be seen as incompatible with functionalism, since it claims that what characterizes mental states (e.g. pain) is that they are physical in nature, while functionalism says that what characterizes pain is its functional/causal role and its relationship with yelling "ouch", etc. However, any weaker sort of physicalism which makes the simple ontological claim that everything that exists is made up of physical matter is perfectly compatible with functionalism. Moreover, most functionalists who are physicalists require that the properties that are quantified over in functional definitions be physical properties. Hence, they are physicalists, even though the general thesis of functionalism itself does not commit them to being so.

In the case of David Lewis, there is a distinction in the concepts of "having pain" (a rigid designator true of the same things in all possible worlds) and just "pain" (a non-rigid designator). Pain, for Lewis, stands for something like the definite description "the state with the causal role x". The referent of the description in humans is a type of brain state to be determined by science. The referent among silicon-based life forms is something else. The referent of the description among angels is some immaterial, non-physical state. For Lewis, therefore, local type-physical reductions are possible and compatible with conceptual functionalism. (See also Lewis's mad pain and Martian pain.) There seems to be some confusion between types and tokens that needs to be cleared up in the functionalist analysis.

Ned Block[14] argues against the functionalist proposal of multiple realizability, where hardware implementation is irrelevant because only the functional level is important. The "China brain" or "Chinese nation" thought experiment involves supposing that the entire nation of China systematically organizes itself to operate just like a brain, with each individual acting as a neuron. According to functionalism, so long as the people are performing the proper functional roles, with the proper causal relations between inputs and outputs, the system will be a real mind, with mental states, consciousness, and so on. However, Block argues, this is patently absurd, so there must be something wrong with the thesis of functionalism since it would allow this to be a legitimate description of a mind.

Some functionalists believe China would have qualia but that due to the size it is impossible to imagine China being conscious.[15] Indeed, it may be the case that we are constrained by our theory of mind[16] and will never be able to understand what Chinese-nation consciousness is like. Therefore, if functionalism is true either qualia will exist across all hardware or will not exist at all but are illusory.[17]

The Chinese room argument by John Searle[18] is a direct attack on the claim that thought can be represented as a set of functions. The thought experiment asserts that it is possible to mimic intelligent action without any interpretation or understanding through the use of a purely functional system. In short, Searle describes a person who only speaks English who is in a room with only Chinese symbols in baskets and a rule book in English for moving the symbols around. The person is then ordered by people outside of the room to follow the rule book for sending certain symbols out of the room when given certain symbols. Further suppose that the people outside of the room are Chinese speakers and are communicating with the person inside via the Chinese symbols. According to Searle, it would be absurd to claim that the English speaker inside knows Chinese simply based on these syntactic processes. This thought experiment attempts to show that systems which operate merely on syntactic processes (inputs and outputs, based on algorithms) cannot realize any semantics (meaning) or intentionality (aboutness). Thus, Searle attacks the idea that thought can be equated with following a set of syntactic rules; that is, functionalism is an insufficient theory of the mind.

As noted above, in connection with Block's Chinese nation, many functionalists responded to Searle's thought experiment by suggesting that there was a form of mental activity going on at a higher level than the man in the Chinese room could comprehend (the so-called "system reply"); that is, the system does know Chinese. Of course, Searle responds that there is nothing more than syntax going on at the higher-level as well, so this reply is subject to the same initial problems. Furthermore, Searle suggests the man in the room could simply memorize the rules and symbol relations. Again, though he would convincingly mimic communication, he would be aware only of the symbols and rules, not of the meaning behind them.

Another main criticism of functionalism is the inverted spectrum or inverted qualia scenario, most specifically proposed as an objection to functionalism by Ned Block.[14][19] This thought experiment involves supposing that there is a person, call her Jane, that is born with a condition which makes her see the opposite spectrum of light that is normally perceived. Unlike normal people, Jane sees the color violet as yellow, orange as blue, and so forth. So, suppose, for example, that you and Jane are looking at the same orange. While you perceive the fruit as colored orange, Jane sees it as colored blue. However, when asked what color the piece of fruit is, both you and Jane will report "orange". In fact, one can see that all of your behavioral as well as functional relations to colors will be the same. Jane will, for example, properly obey traffic signs just as any other person would, even though this involves the color perception. Therefore, the argument goes, since there can be two people who are functionally identical, yet have different mental states (differing in their qualitative or phenomenological aspects), functionalism is not robust enough to explain individual differences in qualia.[20]

David Chalmers tries to show[21] that even though mental content cannot be fully accounted for in functional terms, there is nevertheless a nomological correlation between mental states and functional states in this world. A silicon-based robot, for example, whose functional profile matched our own, would have to be fully conscious. His argument for this claim takes the form of a reductio ad absurdum. The general idea is that since it would be very unlikely for a conscious human being to experience a change in its qualia which it utterly fails to notice, mental content and functional profile appear to be inextricably bound together, at least in the human case. If the subject's qualia were to change, we would expect the subject to notice, and therefore his functional profile to follow suit. A similar argument is applied to the notion of absent qualia. In this case, Chalmers argues that it would be very unlikely for a subject to experience a fading of his qualia which he fails to notice and respond to. This, coupled with the independent assertion that a conscious being's functional profile just could be maintained, irrespective of its experiential state, leads to the conclusion that the subject of these experiments would remain fully conscious. The problem with this argument, however, as Brian G. Crabb (2005) has observed, is that it begs the central question: How could Chalmers know that functional profile can be preserved, for example while the conscious subject's brain is being supplanted with a silicon substitute, unless he already assumes that the subject's possibly changing qualia would not be a determining factor? And while changing or fading qualia in a conscious subject might force changes in its functional profile, this tells us nothing about the case of a permanently inverted or unconscious robot. A subject with inverted qualia from birth would have nothing to notice or adjust to. Similarly, an unconscious functional simulacrum of ourselves (a zombie) would have no experiential changes to notice or adjust to. Consequently, Crabb argues, Chalmers' "fading qualia" and "dancing qualia" arguments fail to establish that cases of permanently inverted or absent qualia are nomologically impossible.

A related critique of the inverted spectrum argument is that it assumes that mental states (differing in their qualitative or phenomenological aspects) can be independent of the functional relations in the brain. Thus, it begs the question of functional mental states: its assumption denies the possibility of functionalism itself, without offering any independent justification for doing so. (Functionalism says that mental states are produced by the functional relations in the brain.) This same type of problemthat there is no argument, just an antithetical assumption at their basecan also be said of both the Chinese room and the Chinese nation arguments. Notice, however, that Crabb's response to Chalmers does not commit this fallacy: His point is the more restricted observation that even if inverted or absent qualia turn out to be nomologically impossible, and it is perfectly possible that we might subsequently discover this fact by other means, Chalmers' argument fails to demonstrate that they are impossible.

The Twin Earth thought experiment, introduced by Hilary Putnam,[22] is responsible for one of the main arguments used against functionalism, although it was originally intended as an argument against semantic internalism. The thought experiment is simple and runs as follows. Imagine a Twin Earth which is identical to Earth in every way but one: water does not have the chemical structure HO, but rather some other structure, say XYZ. It is critical, however, to note that XYZ on Twin Earth is still called "water" and exhibits all the same macro-level properties that HO exhibits on Earth (i.e., XYZ is also a clear drinkable liquid that is in lakes, rivers, and so on). Since these worlds are identical in every way except in the underlying chemical structure of water, you and your Twin Earth doppelgnger see exactly the same things, meet exactly the same people, have exactly the same jobs, behave exactly the same way, and so on. In other words, since you share the same inputs, outputs, and relations between other mental states, you are functional duplicates. So, for example, you both believe that water is wet. However, the content of your mental state of believing that water is wet differs from your duplicate's because your belief is of HO, while your duplicate's is of XYZ. Therefore, so the argument goes, since two people can be functionally identical, yet have different mental states, functionalism cannot sufficiently account for all mental states.

Most defenders of functionalism initially responded to this argument by attempting to maintain a sharp distinction between internal and external content. The internal contents of propositional attitudes, for example, would consist exclusively in those aspects of them which have no relation with the external world and which bear the necessary functional/causal properties that allow for relations with other internal mental states. Since no one has yet been able to formulate a clear basis or justification for the existence of such a distinction in mental contents, however, this idea has generally been abandoned in favor of externalist causal theories of mental contents (also known as informational semantics). Such a position is represented, for example, by Jerry Fodor's account of an "asymmetric causal theory" of mental content. This view simply entails the modification of functionalism to include within its scope a very broad interpretation of input and outputs to include the objects that are the causes of mental representations in the external world.

The twin earth argument hinges on the assumption that experience with an imitation water would cause a different mental state than experience with natural water. However, since no one would notice the difference between the two waters, this assumption is likely false. Further, this basic assumption is directly antithetical to functionalism; and, thereby, the twin earth argument does not constitute a genuine argument: as this assumption entails a flat denial of functionalism itself (which would say that the two waters would not produce different mental states, because the functional relationships would remain unchanged).

Another common criticism of functionalism is that it implies a radical form of semantic holism. Block and Fodor[19] referred to this as the damn/darn problem. The difference between saying "damn" or "darn" when one smashes one's finger with a hammer can be mentally significant. But since these outputs are, according to functionalism, related to many (if not all) internal mental states, two people who experience the same pain and react with different outputs must share little (perhaps nothing) in common in any of their mental states. But this is counter-intuitive; it seems clear that two people share something significant in their mental states of being in pain if they both smash their finger with a hammer, whether or not they utter the same word when they cry out in pain.

Another possible solution to this problem is to adopt a moderate (or molecularist) form of holism. But even if this succeeds in the case of pain, in the case of beliefs and meaning, it faces the difficulty of formulating a distinction between relevant and non-relevant contents (which can be difficult to do without invoking an analytic-synthetic distinction, as many seek to avoid).

According to Ned Block, if functionalism is to avoid the chauvinism of type-physicalism, it becomes overly liberal in "ascribing mental properties to things that do not in fact have them".[14] As an example, he proposes that the economy of Bolivia might be organized such that the economic states, inputs, and outputs would be isomorphic to a person under some bizarre mapping from mental to economic variables.[14]

Hilary Putnam,[23]John Searle,[24] and others[25][26] have offered further arguments that functionalism is trivial, i.e. that the internal structures functionalism tries to discuss turn out to be present everywhere, so that either functionalism turns out to reduce to behaviorism, or to complete triviality and therefore a form of panpsychism. These arguments typically use the assumption that physics leads to a progression of unique states, and that functionalist realization is present whenever there is a mapping from the proposed set of mental states to physical states of the system. Given that the states of a physical system are always at least slightly unique, such a mapping will always exist, so any system is a mind. Formulations of functionalism which stipulate absolute requirements on interaction with external objects (external to the functional account, meaning not defined functionally) are reduced to behaviorism instead of absolute triviality, because the input-output behavior is still required.

Peter Godfrey-Smith has argued further[27] that such formulations can still be reduced to triviality if they accept a somewhat innocent-seeming additional assumption. The assumption is that adding a transducer layer, that is, an input-output system, to an object should not change whether that object has mental states. The transducer layer is restricted to producing behavior according to a simple mapping, such as a lookup table, from inputs to actions on the system, and from the state of the system to outputs. However, since the system will be in unique states at each moment and at each possible input, such a mapping will always exist so there will be a transducer layer which will produce whatever physical behavior is desired.

Godfrey-Smith believes that these problems can be addressed using causality, but that it may be necessary to posit a continuum between objects being minds and not being minds rather than an absolute distinction. Furthermore, constraining the mappings seems to require either consideration of the external behavior as in behaviorism, or discussion of the internal structure of the realization as in identity theory; and though multiple realizability does not seem to be lost, the functionalist claim of the autonomy of high-level functional description becomes questionable.[27]

The general theory of adaptive biological systems, named practopoiesis (meaning creation of actions), has been used to derive a theory that explains mental operations as an adaptive process. Much like species adapt through evolution and an organism adapts through development, the theory of anapoiesis (meaning re-creation) proposes that a thought is a process of adaptation to the immediate environment. This is performed by fast physiological machinery that can operate within a few 100s of milliseconds and relies on the mechanisms of neural adaptation. A key difference between anapoietic approach and the functional approach is that for anapoietic process much of the information needed for the mental operations is located outside the organism. If mental operations are an adaptive process, they do not juggle symbols internally (like a computer) but make guesses of what changes should be made to the nervous system and then test them against the environment.

The mechanisms of anapoiesis offer a solution to the problem of the Chinese Room posed by John Searle.

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Functionalism (philosophy of mind) - Wikipedia

Cam Site Launches iTunes-Like Marketplace Of Oral Sex For Women – AskMen

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Trending News: Good Enough To Make A Porn Star Orgasm? Now You Can Find Out Long Story Short

A cam site has launched an iTunes-like digital marketplace where you can upload clips of cunnilingus through yoursmartphone. When the simulated oral sex is uploaded, anyone can download the experience to their vibrators and get their O-face on.

Are you a cunning linguist (to borrow the name of the rap group)? Are you as good as a porn star? Well, now you can find out with a new service from the wild and pervy brains over at CamSoda.

The cam site has just launched O-cast, which is similar to their recently released 'iTunes for Blowjobs,'but for women to experience. You simplydownload the O-Cast app from their site and give the screen your best 'ABCs' or whatever. Yes, literally lick the screen (you might want to give your phone an old wipedown for germs).

Then, just upload your best licks to the site where women can choose and download their favorite tongue dance to a teledildonics sex toy (it only works with the Lovense Lush Bluetooth egg vibrator).

You better be good, though, because your magic tongue will be competing with cam girls, porn stars and other average Janes/Joes through the digital marketplace. To make things even more competitive, keep in mind that if the porn stars are uploading, chances are they might want to try it out for themselves.

CamSoda says it'slaunching the service in conjunction International Women's Month and will make all downloads free for March in honor of the lovely ladies out there. After that, each cunnilingus download will be a buck.

Man, cam sites sure changing the future of sex.

Do women really want to get off to some stranger's tongue?

As many as 68% of women fake orgasms, according to a recent survey.

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Cam Site Launches iTunes-Like Marketplace Of Oral Sex For Women - AskMen

Jio Giga Fiber Broadband Expands Beta Testing With 100Mbps Connection & 100GB FUP – Indiatimes.com

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

While the cellular 4G VoLTE Jio party has gone past the 100 million subscriber mark under six months and has unveiled monthly paid plans under the Jio Prime Membership scheme, Reliance Jio is now aggressively expanding its fiber-to-the-home Gigabit broadband service.

Even as Mukesh Ambani took to the stage and delivered a seismic shock to Indias communication landscape with its Jio 4G launch in September last year, one of the slides during his hour-long presentation also touched upon Jio Giga Fiber broadband deployments later in the future. The promise of that future is now upon us.

Reuters

As early as January signs of Reliance Jio making inroads in the countrys broadband market with a fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network dubbed as Giga Fiber broadband started offering free services until March 31, with a 100 Mbps data speed in select residential areas of Chennai, Pune and Mumbai regions.

According to an ET report, there are only about 18 million home broadband connections in India, which is an abysmally low number compared to the nations cellular Internet penetration, and its only natural that both the top telcos in this space, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio, are trying to expand their footprint -- but not without stiff competition from local rivals such as Hathway, Spectranet, Tikona and Nextra Teleservices, all around the country.

With that in mind, Reliance Jio seems to be in aggressive expansion mode, right now, conducting pilot and beta testing programs by actually wiring up homes, apartment complexes and housing societies in Mumbai, New Mumbai, Pune and Chennai. Currently, Reliance Jios offering residents free 1Gbps connection at 100Mbps speed and 100GB monthly FUP or download limit.

According to India Today, one of the residential buildings where Reliance Giga Fiber is being tested out of is the home of Rushabh Vora, in Walkeshwar, Mumbai, whos reporting Jio Gigabit Fiber speeds as following -- 94.99 Mbps download, 79.99 Mbps upload, and 6 milliseconds ping as tested through Speedtest.net while pinging a local Mumbai server.

Digit is reporting one of their team members based out of Tardeo, Mumbai, whos piloting the Jio Giga Fiber home broadband connection at 100Mbps speed and monthly FUP of 100GB for the next three months. As reported by Digit, the Jio agents who visited their colleagues home didnt give him a list of the company plans to choose from. Seemingly they charged him Rs. 4000, as a security deposit for the Jio Gigabit router, on a refundable basis should he choose to opt out of the service at the end of the free three month trial period.

Digit.in

Amazing speed, isnt it? Movies will download within minutes, if not seconds, and buffer will never be an issue! But what happens when all that FUP is consumed? No need to worry, the service wont disconnect completely as the Reliance Jio broadband service's speed will throttle down to 1Mbps -- still allowing you to connect and surf the Web.

Just hope and pray that Reliance Jio Giga Fiber comes to your town or city soon, they actually have a target of lighting up Jio Giga Fiber in at least 100 cities in India within 2017 itself. Also, according to sources close to the matter, readers are strongly urged to not get fooled by alleged Jio Giga Fiber broadband plans doing the rounds on the Web, as theyre all fake according to a Jio spokesperson. Once Jios Giga Fiber testing phase gets over, the company will move step one closer towards commercial launch of the service, during which time the final Jio Giga Fiber plan will be released, according to a source privy to the information.

Milaap

CRITICSUNION

SocialDaft!

BOLLYWOODUNION

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Jio Giga Fiber Broadband Expands Beta Testing With 100Mbps Connection & 100GB FUP - Indiatimes.com

Sprint Testing Its Gigabit LTE With Prototype Phone From Motorola – Droid Life (press release) (blog)

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Home Share this Story

5G and Gigabit LTE, while not exactly the same thing depending on whose marketing department you ask, is coming. Maybe not tomorrow and maybenot until late2017 or beyond, but its definitely coming. Recently shown off by Sprint at a small event in New Orleans, the company is currently working with a prototype Snapdragon-powered Motorola device to bring Gigabit LTE to customers.

The Gigabit LTE is based on44 MIMO, 256-QAM, and three-carrier aggregation to deliver speeds in the 600Mbps range, but that was also during a high traffic NBA game at theSmoothie King arena. As you can see in the header image, the prototype Motorola device was able to reach 612Mbps down, but only a laughable 7.83Mbps upload. This low upload is likely do to the immaturity of the network tech, but once Sprint has the kinks worked out, its sure to be much higher.

Now, as for that Motorola device, lets call it what it is. This isprototype hardware with internal components that Moto has likely loaned to Sprint while they work with the Snapdragon 835 platform. Its not ahuge mystery.However, with that said, we are approaching a timeframe whenMoto leaks would begin to happen, and Moto has stated it would be on more carriers in 2017. All good things to keep in mind.

All we can say is, bring on the gigabit speeds and more 2017 flagships! Our bodies are ready.

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Sprint Testing Its Gigabit LTE With Prototype Phone From Motorola - Droid Life (press release) (blog)

Major Hospitals are Offering Alternative Therapies. Is This Medicine … – Big Think

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

You check in at the hospital for chronic back pain. The doctor asks you to follow her past the MRI machines and operating room to a recently converted yoga studio. An unrolled mat awaits. En route you peek your head into an adjacent treatment room to watch an acupuncturist needling a patient. Rows of IV drips and homeopathic remedies line the shelves.

This not uncommon scene plays out in many small centers across the nation. Yet as Stat News reports, some of the countrys top hospitals and institutions are offering the same modalities, to mixed reviews. Staff and administrators claim to be listening to patient desires. Critics state this is not good medicine.

Part of the problem is that the numerous therapeutic modalities existing outside of the purview of Western medicine are lumped together into the ambiguous alternative therapies.' Yoga and meditation, for example, have been clinically studied over the last few decades, showing promising results for pain relief, anxiety, and cognitive functioning. Homeopathy and energy healing, however, have at best been shown to be no better than the placebo response.

When dealing with the common cold, using an ineffective or unproven therapy such as a homeopathic proving is largely benignthe placebo response might prove helpful in such circumstances. But this trend is more insidious, Stat reports. The spa-like wellness centers are branding their own forms of mysticism, offering questionable treatments for cancer, heart disease, and chronic pain.

Duke even markets a pediatric program that suggests on its website that alternative medicine, including detoxification programs and botanical medicines, can help children with conditions ranging from autism to asthma to ADHD.

Separating wheat from chaff is challenging in the modern medical environment. Our emotions and perceptions really do play a role in healing, a major criticism of the cold mechanisms of Western medicine. One 1984 study found that the view from your hospital room influences healing time; more recent research suggests that hospital gardens are effective in speeding recovery. This makes sense as our environment always affects our nervous and immune systems. Being in a calm, peaceful space or gazing at a mountain lifts our mood, which aids healing.

The trend toward offering mineral and vitamin IV drips, by contrast, appears to be a money grab. Excess vitamins have detrimental effects. The notion that more is better is provably false. One IV drip purporting to attack and shorten illness features high doses of Vitamin C, zinc, and lysine, all of which create GI problems at high doses. It costs $175 an hour. For ten dollars less you can get a fat burner containing L-carnitine. Side effects of this amino acid include diarrhea, seizures, and vomiting, as well as causing your breath, sweat, and urine to have a fishy odor.

Not everyone experiences such side effects, nor are elevated doses of vitamins and minerals for short durations necessary harmful. Theyre even therapeutic under certain circumstances. Ordering a boost without credible supervision because you read a wellness blog claiming it helps shed visceral fat, though, does not honor the Hippocratic oath. It merely drains your wallet while putting you at risk of potential side effects.

Acupuncture is another common menu item. The system is based on unproven meridian channels and roughly four hundred points along the body. Research on its efficacy is mixed, with many studies finding it no more effective than placebo. But as interest grows, more research is being conducted. A recent study published in Brain found traditional points effective in treating long-term pain associated with carpal tunnel syndrome.

Some research states that adenosine might be the therapeutic mechanism behind acupuncture. Studies investigating electroacupuncutre, like the one published in Brain, are different from the style originating in Traditional Chinese Medicine, as an electric current is passed between pairs of needles. Add to this the time spent relaxing on a table listening to ambient music and its challenging to know what exact mechanisms are at play. That said, if a technique is shown to work, hospitals and clinics have a duty to offer it to patients. It should not be discredited if there is positive evidence in certain situations.

Perhaps the biggest challenge in this whole movement is egos. Doctors, nurses, researchers, and clinicians stand their ground. With insurance in disarray even major institutions are struggling to find revenue streams. One clinician at UCLA, also a licensed acupuncturist that formerly worked in integrative medicine at Cedars, told me,

The world of Western medicine is extremely territorial. Physicians, nursing, all positions in the paradigm fight vigorously to hold their ground and protect scope of practice. It's very difficult to generate revenue for an IMG [integrative medical group] in the hospital setting, which is why a lot of them fail. Billing proves problematic.

Hopefully one day our notion of medicine will expand beyond invasive surgical techniques and pharmaceuticals and embrace modalities that are less expensive with fewer side effects. We should welcome major institutions integrating such therapies into their programs.

Yet when this movement is fueled by popular demand and not credible science we run into the same problems patients encounter when enduring pharmaceutical cocktails, overpriced treatments, and rushed doctors. Since before the days of Hippocrates medicine has been as much a work of art as science. Trendy vitamin drips and energy healing might bring in revenue but do not honor the oath each professional is bound to. Throw down a meditation cushion to help forge a mind-body connection, but leave homeopathic bee venom behind.

Derek's next book,Whole Motion: Training Your Brain and Body For Optimal Health, will be published on 7/4/17 by Carrel/Skyhorse Publishing. He is based in Los Angeles. Stay in touch onFacebookandTwitter.

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Major Hospitals are Offering Alternative Therapies. Is This Medicine ... - Big Think

Women turning to Chinese medicine: study – SBS

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Many Australian women are turning to Chinese medicine to treat chronic medical conditions, and doctors are concerned.

The younger the woman is the more likely they are to bypass the local GP and turn to 'complimentary' medicine, new research has found.

A longitudinal study of 17 thousand participants found in just one year acupuncture was used by around 1 in 10 women aged 34-39 years and around 1 in 16 women aged 62-67 years.

Women with arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome and endometriosis were more likely to use Chinese medicine and acupuncture, according to the University of Technology, Sydney study.

It also found the older women who consulted an acupuncturist were more likely to have low iron levels, anxiety disorder and depression, while those who were married or in a de facto relationship were less likely to use Chinese medicine compared to their single counterparts.

Those with private health insurance were 1.65 times more likely to use the treatment compared to those without.

"This research is important in providing a first examination of the prevalence and predictors of acupuncture and Chinese medicine use amongst women in Australia," co-author Professor Jon Adams said.

Dr Tony Bartone, Vice President of the Australian Medical Association, says the study findings are concerning because it confirms anecdotal information that large numbers of Australians are choosing Chinese medicine for "hard-to-treat" medical conditions.

"It is more concerning that younger people and those with private health insurance are more likely to seek these treatments without the advice of their family doctor," Dr Bartone told AAP.

Chinese herbal medicine has a long history of use, dating back thousands of years and it continues to be used in many countries as the first and primary treatment of choice.

It traditionally involves the use of raw herbs boiled in water for a period of time, which is then consumed as a liquid tea.

There are also a range of other options for taking herbal medicine are also available.

Dr Bartone says patients should always consult their GP first because there is little evidence supporting the efficacy of Chinese medicine.

He agrees with the authors of the UTS study that much more significant research is needed on the use of alternative medicines and to find out why they are becoming so popular.

"Acupuncture has been shown that it may have a role in a narrow range of conditions," Dr Bartone acknowledged.

"However, the credible scientific studies throughout the world have failed to demonstrate robust reliable evidence that these modalities have a role to play, if any, in the management of the conditions highlighted in the study.

Dr Bartone also proposed that private health insurers only fund benefits for evidence-based treatments.

New medical school to offer new ways to learn – Buffalo Business First

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

New medical school to offer new ways to learn
Buffalo Business First
As vice chair for education and senior associate dean for medical curriculum, Dr. Alan Lesse plays a major role in the University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences. He works with everyone from first-year medical students to ...

Mini medical school lecture series starts Wednesday at IU School of Medicine – South Bend Tribune

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

SOUTH BEND Diabetes, the importance of sleep and health treatment advances will be among topics discussed during a series of public health lectures starting Wednesday at Indiana University School of Medicine-South Bend.

All the lectures, which are free and open to the public, will be in the auditorium of the medical school, 1234 N. Notre Dame Ave.

The Mini Medical School lectures will start at 6 p.m. on consecutive Wednesdays. Here are the topics and dates:

Wednesday: "Everything You Wanted to Know about Sleep (But Were too Tired to Ask)," Gary Fromm, M.D., medical director of Memorial Sleep Disorder Center.

March 22: "Living Well: Quality of Life Considerations at Life's End," Mark Murray, president and CEO, Center for Hospice Care, and Mark Sandock, M.D., of St. Joseph Regional Medical Center and Michiana Life Wishes Coalition.

March 29: "Indianas Precision Health Initiative," Anantha Shekhar, M.D., dean for translational research and director of Indiana Clinical & Translational Sciences Institute, IU School of Medicine.

April 5: "The Evolving Landscape of Joint Replacement," Mark Klaassen, M.D., Elkhart orthopedic surgeon.

April 12: "The Future Is Here: Emerging Trends in Cancer Therapy," Rafat Ansari, M.D., and Jose Bufill, M.D., of Michiana Hematology Oncology.

April 19: "Thriving with Diabetes," Ebonee Davis, M.D., internal medicine physician, South Bend Clinic.

The lecture series is sponsored by the Medical Education Foundation, the citizens advisory group of IU School of Medicine-South Bend.

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Mini medical school lecture series starts Wednesday at IU School of Medicine - South Bend Tribune

Beloved Harvard Medical School Library Therapy Dog Missing – CBS Boston / WBZ

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

March 9, 2017 11:40 AM

BOSTON (CBS) Abeloved dog at Harvard Medical School is missing.

Cooper is a 9-year-old Shih Tzu who has worked as a therapy dog at the schoolslibrary in the Longwood medical area.

He disappeared from an enclosed back yard in Belmont last week.

I hope and pray that they find him and all these efforts do not go in vain, Dr. Venkatesan Renugopalakrishnan, a professor at the medical school, told WBZ NewsRadio 1030s Ben Parker.

Along with putting up posters and handing out flyers, family and friends have been using social media to alert people about Cooper.

Cooper works two days a week at the Countway Library, spending time with doctors, students and workers.

He was part of our family. People would come by and they would play with Cooper. I would take him out for a walk. Just last Tuesday, we went out for a walk. Hes part of our community, Countway Library employee Erica Nosike said.

Cooper is black and white and weighs about 15 pounds.

He brought a lot of pleasure to us. We really miss him, Dr. Renugopalakrishnan said.

He cheers you up, hes definitely got a personality, said Amber LaFountain. Its just sad when hes not here.

A reward is being offered for his return.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030s Ben Parker reports

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Beloved Harvard Medical School Library Therapy Dog Missing - CBS Boston / WBZ

Ga.-PCOM students credit Eagle Scouting with medical school … – Gwinnettdailypost.com

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Several students studying osteopathic medicine in Suwanee may have come from around the country, but their school is not the only thing they have in common. At least eight of them are Eagle Scouts.

The students, all enrolled at the Georgia campus of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, recently gathered to attend the Northeast Georgia Council of the Boy Scouts of Americas American Values Dinner along with Chief Campus Officer Bryan Ginn. The dinner featured a local scouting report and address by Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle.

Several of the students said scouting gave them a glimpse into the hard work, life-saving practices and being prepared for emergencies for the profession theyre preparing to enter. Not to mention how to prioritize tasks.

Medical school is certainly the most demanding task Ive ever agreed to, but scouting and my Eagle Scout project in particular taught me that some of the best rewards and achievements come through working hard and persevering through difficult tasks, said second-year student Coston Rowe of Gadsden, Ala. The schoolwork is hard and seemingly endless sometimes, but I know that because of scouting, I will be equipped to help my future patients on a daily basis and provide for my family in an exciting and fulfilling way.

Rowe said his Eagle Scout project was to renovate a local neighborhood tennis and basketball court, including repairing or replacing the surface.

Along with other requirements, in order to advance from Life Scout to Eagle Scout, you must initiate, plan, manage and carry out a service project directed to benefit the local community it is up to you to plan, recruit help for, and execute this project, Rowe said. There were many times within that year that I just wanted to call it quits and not worry about the logistics anymore. But with the encouragement and help of my dad, my scout masters, and my other family and friends, I persevered and finished the project one year and one week after the first day of labor.

First-year student Brant Barron of Thomaston said he learned how to stick to something in scouting, and hes applied it in medical school.

Scouting introduced me to the practice of applying constant effort to reach increasingly more difficult goals. Many challenges presented in Boy Scouts let me experience situations where my personal strengths, mental preparedness and adaptability that I normally depended on would be exhausted, Barron said. I learned that only the faith to persevere could guide me to the tasks completion.

Investigation continues into illness linked to coffee machine at medical school – Yale News

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

Yale School of Medicine Dean Dr. Robert Alpern sent the following message to the schools community members on March 7:

As you may be aware, on Tuesday, Feb. 28, four members of the Yale School of Medicine community became ill after drinking from a single-service, pod style coffee machine located at an office area at 333 Cedar St. and were monitored at Yale New Haven Hospital. All have returned to work. Yale Police, the New Haven Fire Department, the State Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, and the Yale Environmental Health and Safety team responded and initiated an investigation.

I am writing to update you on their progress and our continued efforts. Today we learned that an independent laboratory test on items removed from the area indicated the presence of sodium azide, a substance commonly found in laboratories and used as a preservative. The single-serve coffee machine was not connected to a water source and the area was evaluated and declared to be safe by Yale Environmental Health and Safety. The Yale Police Department is continuing its investigation, in collaboration with local, state, and federal law enforcement.

At the same time, we are reviewing security and safety procedures with our public safety team. Out of an abundance of caution, you should be aware that the symptoms of exposure to sodium azide are dizziness, headache, nausea and vomiting, rapid breathing, and rapid heart rate.

In the event you experience these symptoms, please contact Yale Health Acute Care at (203) 432-0123.

Anyone with any information regarding this incident, should contact the Yale Police Department at (203) 432-4400. We will keep you updated but caution that gathering complete information will take some time. As always, the safety and security of the Yale community is our utmost priority.

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Investigation continues into illness linked to coffee machine at medical school - Yale News

Med School Professors Worried About Federal Budget | News | The … – Harvard Crimson

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

As Congress begins formulating a new budget, some professors and researchers at Harvard Medical School are concerned about potential cuts in federal funding.

While Harvard as a whole received almost $600 million from the federal government in 2016, 69.9 percent of that came from the National Institutes of Health, and Medical School professors say that federal research funding is particularly important for their work. Federal funding for research at Harvard has steadily declined since 2009, leading University President Drew G. Faust to cite the NIH as a major focus of concern during a visit to Washington D.C. in February.

NIHs funds in research grants allow investigators to pursue interesting and novel ideas with a lot of academic freedom and intellectual freedom, said Medical School and pediatrics professor Kenneth D. Mandl. Its a very well-designed system to promote high quality medical research.

Mandl said while he doesnt expect any tectonic shifts in research funding, he thinks there are certain research agencies such as the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute whose very existence may be in question with the new budget.

If we see those agencies diminished, we would see less research thats evaluative of the healthcare system itself, Mandl said.

Aaron S. Kesselheim 96, a Medical School professor who studies drug approval and drug development laws, said that the potential decreases in funding, combined with inflation, is worrying.

Unfortunately, it may drive some smart people out of the field and out of academia because there just isnt as much funding available to go around, Kesselheim said.

Kesselheim said that most transformative drugs that have been approved by the United States in the last 25 years have had direct origins in publicly funded research.

The kind of therapeutic innovation that is most likely to move the needle clinically comes from these publicly funded origins, Kesselheim said.

Mandl also noted that in the past two years, requirements for receiving NIH funding have also increased, resulting in a more competitive process for grant-seekers and a push for diversification of funding sources. He said he expects that trend to continue in the future.

John N. Campbell, a researcher at the Medical School, said that potential budget cuts made him nervous. Last year, Campbell catalogued 50 distinct brain cell types associated with appetite using a relatively expensive technique called gene expression profiling.

Funding is a worthwhile investment because we learn things we cant find out in any other way, Campbell said. The progress being made now in terms of understanding how the brain works will lead to breakthrough after breakthrough for medicine.

I think we are all a bit nervous about [potential budget cuts], but were staying optimistic and investment in science is always a priority, Campbell said.

Campbell said that in the event of budget cuts, researchers would most likely seek alternative sources of funding through non-profit organizations. Otherwise, Campbell said, the scope of research projects could be reduced.

Beyond the Medical School, professors across Harvard are worried about cuts in research funding despite a record fiscal year. In February, humanities professors expressed concern about the potential cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Environmental studies professors also expect to be affected by potential budget cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Staff writer Alexis J. Ross can be reached at alexis.ross@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @aross125.

Staff writer William L. Wang can be reached at william.wang@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @wlwang20.

Despite Record Year, Research Funding Remains 'Huge Challenge'

Meet Your (Possible) 2017 Virginia Libertarian Candidate for Governor – Blue Virginia (press release) (blog)

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

According to VPAP, it looks like theres going to be a Libertarian candidate (named Jason Carrier) for governor of Virginia, assuming of course that hes able to make the ballot (not an easy matter in Virginia). Heres some of what he has to say on his Facebook page. To put it mildly, hes not a fan of liberals, progressives, Democratsall of whom he seems to think are socialists, which he also believes are identical to National Socialists, whichyeah, dont ask.

If we are tired of how the government taxes us, spies on us, restricts our liberty, it is up to regular Americans (Farmer, Truck Drivers, Veterans, IT nerds) to run for office.

So for those of you who dont know, I am running for Governor of Virginia as the Libertarian candidate. The party asked and I said yes. I have never been a politician and I am going to need all the help I can get. This means volunteers and fund raising, etc. The first step is getting 10,000 names ballot petition. If you are interested in helping please let me know. I will be setting up website, and other items I hope this week. If you are interested in helping please PM me. If you have any questions about the LP party where we stand on issues ask them here, I will do my best to answer them.

As a Libertarian I support withholding all federal funds from all states they should stand on there own as much as possible and reject all federal mandates not in the constitution

I keep hearing people refer to Trump as Orange Hitler. I dont understand this label. Hitler was a socialist Trump is into Cronyism. Hitler build camps to keep people in Germany, Trump says he wants to throw people out. Although deportations are down. Hitler passed Universal Health Care, Trump says ObamaCare will be repelled, although he has not done it yet. Hitler passed 100% Gun registration and bans for people that were unstable, Trump says he supports the second amendment. Hitler believed in free education, Trumps says pay your own way. Hitler wanted to tax the rich to pay for social programs, Trumps say 15% flat tax. Hell based on the analysis of the Nazis party platform, Hitler would be head of the Democratic National Community. Just saying these are fact. Call Trump and asshole if you want, but Hitler is a bit of a stretch

I was talking today about the Federal land grabs out west, specifically Utah and Nevada. It is like the government is trying to round it citizen up put them into reservations where they have to buy water, food, shelter, and medical from them. It just seems wrong to me.

This meme is funny but historically inaccurate Nazis were socialists people rioting and burning books are socialists same shit different time

I going to post this and I am sure it is going to piss off my fellow Libertarians. I saw Trump signed an executive order that for every new regulation passed two had to be taken away. This is pretty awesome. So could he be the Libertarian president we were hoping for? Internet trolling done now to work

So ODU just released a study that shows Clinton got at least 800,000 votes from non citizen can we now get voter ID laws. I dont want Republicans to cheat either. Libertarians please feel free to cheat as much as we need to

Love me some Ron Paul

I am not a Trump supporter, but if you are attacking black performers for reaching across the aisle and calling them every racist slur in the book, you are an asshole. I heard what people called Steve Harvey, it is not acceptable.

If they lived in reality they would not advocate Socalism. It has failed for 100 years, and killed 200 million people, but lets give it one more try, with the most technically advanced military in the world, what could go wrong

Nazis were national Socalist party of Germany, same as USSR. I dont know why we dont teach this

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Meet Your (Possible) 2017 Virginia Libertarian Candidate for Governor - Blue Virginia (press release) (blog)

Why Israel Matters – Being Libertarian

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

A famous political commentator once compared getting a consensus among libertarians to herding cats, he wasnt wrong.

Those who identify as libertarians range from the classical liberals (in the mold of our Founding Fathers) to those libertines who simply wish for marijuana and maybe a few other recreational drugs to be legalized (you know who you are).

However, there are some commonalities among libertarians. For instance, libertarians tend to fall within the isolationist range of the foreign policy spectrum. There really arent many who identify as libertarians, who believe that the United States should be the world police; the ones who need to solve every crisis or topple every corrupt regime out there. There is a big world outside of the United States and, while I am certainly not advocating policing the world, I would like to draw attention to our relationship with one country Israel and why that relationship is important.

1. Israel is our ally. Normally, a country like ours treats their allies well and their enemies very cautiously, but this policy flew out the window during the two terms of President Obama.

President Obama took office, returned a gift (a bust of Winston Churchill) from our closest ally, Great Britain, and gave Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu the cold shoulder; going so far as to allow (by our silence) the United Nations to pass a sanction against Israel something no previous president would have ever allowed.

All this happened while he was touring the world and apologizing for Americas sins while giving the red carpet treatment to those who hate us (like the Iranian mullahs).

Granted, the UN Security Council has a closer resemblance to the Star Wars bar scene than a serious, powerful organization; but it is still something that would never have been allowed before.

Israel is a valuable ally in the middle east and has supplied us with valuable intelligence in our fight to protect our country from more terrorist attacks.

2. Israel is a stable democracy. Israel is the only stable democracy in a region ruled by tyrants or militants.

While I dont think it is Americas place to dictate policy to other countries, it is smart to support like-minded countries. Yes, Israel is a bit too socialist for me, but its an absolute paradise compared to the rest of the region.

Judaism is obviously the majority religion of that country, but unlike the other countries in the region, Israel allows those of minority religions (like Christians) to worship freely, without fear of punishment or death. Im sure the Coptic Christians in Egypt would have appreciated that freedom, or the Yazidis in Iraq after ISIS took over.

Israel is also not ruled by a dictator, but by a deliberative body of a multi-housed government. Its stability is welcoming to investors and businesses, all to the enrichment of its people.

3. Israel is hated by our enemies, both foreign and domestic. We have common enemies whether we like it or not. Islamic terrorists hate us because of who we are infidels!

To them, Israel is the little Satan and the United States is the great Satan.

Unfortunately for Israel, they are surrounded by those who use the catch phrase Jews to the sea more often than Americans say bless you to someone who sneezes and their enemies mean it!

The threat isnt going away on its own either, no matter how much we try to ignore or appease those who would do us harm.

As for domestic enemies, those in the United States who wish for the demise of our country for ideological reasons (that it was founded by racists, guilty of sexism, and rich by stealing the resources of the world, etc.) also dislike Israel for the same reasons. To them, Israelis are the oppressors; stealing the land and resources of the poor, downtrodden Arabs. And theyre probably guilty of bigotry and homophobia as well.

While there is plenty of room for discussion about how much support we should give to Israel (financial support, weapons, intelligence, or simply having their back with the UN), the relationship between our countries is definitely something that we should be watching. This alliance is in the best interest of the United States.

* Christine Luc is a chiropractor, small business owner, and mother who loves to rant about the size and scope of government. She loves this website as it has given her a chance to put her ranting tendencies to constructive use.

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Equialt plans to bulldoze, replace some rundown Davis Islands rentals – Tampabay.com (blog)

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

DAVIS ISLANDS There are weeds growing out of the overhang above the front door. An upstairs window is left open. The gutters are covered with streaks of black dirt.

The green, grime-covered house has been vacant for months, but seemingly neglected for years.

Yet there it is on Davis Islands, the community of about 5,500 people just across the water from downtown Tampa and on Davis Boulevard even, the main drag with bars, restaurants, cafes and small shops. Davis Islands is home to Tampa General Hospital doctors, lawyers, Derek Jeter and for one glorious stint in 2016, Beyonc.

The median price of a single-family home sold on the island during the last six months approached $1 million.

But many of the smaller rental units remain in poor shape. So one island resident, Brian Davison, collected $3.95 million from investors on the West Coast and bought five multifamily homes the one on Davis Boulevard, three in the 200 block of Columbia Drive, and one on Bahama Circle.

His company, Equialt, will bulldoze, replace and rent out as one- and two-bedroom "modern Key West"-style units of roughly the same size.

"All the development has stayed out of the center of the islands," Davison said. His company has been operating in the area for several years, buying and reselling hundreds of Tampa Bay homes, townhomes and condos at auction after people failed to pay taxes on them.

A community where everyone seems to know each other, Davis Islands has seen local opposition to new developments, especially when it comes to zoning adjustments.

"Some people are dead-opposed to anybody doing anything," said homeowner Stephen Stanley, former president of the Davis Island Civic Association and still an active member. Stanley agreed with Davison that some smaller multifamily rental houses have fallen into disrepair but said he would be opposed to replacing them with larger buildings.

"There's already a lot of traffic now compared to where it was," Stanley said. "If they're not doing more units and they're doing bigger units they may want to go higher so you've got an issue in height, making it more of a canyon effect. The charm of (Davis Islands) isn't high-rise."

The company has no renderings of what the new construction will look like, Davison said. Current tenants may be offered buyouts or will remain through their lease terms.

Asked if this would price some lower-income families off the island, he said the units will still be affordable.

"We're capped by the market," he said, with an average rent of $1,200 to $1,400. Units in some of the older buildings are renting for closer to $900 for a one-bedroom but they lack central air, washer and dryer units.

"The tenants deserve better," said senior portfolio manager Tony Kelly. Still, Kelly said, the company has "no intention of creating $2,000 or $2,500 rentals."

Contact Alli Knothe at aknothe@tampabay.com. Follow @KnotheA.

Equialt plans to bulldoze, replace some rundown Davis Islands rentals 03/10/17 [Last modified: Thursday, March 9, 2017 3:32pm] Photo reprints | Article reprints

A Guide to Visiting California’s Channel Islands – Travel+Leisure

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Danzig

California isn't short on natural beauty. Beyond its iconic coastline, the Golden State is home to 28 parks and sites managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Stretching from San Diego nearly to the Oregon border, these protected settings range from the remote desert of Death Valley to Yosemite's vast wilderness and the ancient volcanic features of Lava Beds National Monument. What's more, California's parks include two World Heritage Sites and nine wild and scenic rivers, and are home to 92 threatened and endangered species.

Yet the Channel Islands, located between Santa Barbara and Ventura, still stand out. Among the youngest national parks, this marine sanctuary was established in 1980 and includes five islands and the six nautical miles surrounding each. It's also one of the least-visited national parksin part because visitors must travel there by boat or small planeand remained largely undisturbed for centuries. As a result, the park is a prime example of the coastal Mediterranean ecosystem, found in just five places on earth. In fact, 145 species inhabiting the Channel Islands are found nowhere else.

Thinking about visiting one of California's national parks? In the Channel Islands, these experiences can make your trip.

The magic of the Channel Islands is found on and in the water: kayaking, swimming, surfing, and some of the world's most incredible snorkeling and diving are all possible. For the most options, head to Santa Cruz Island, which has more habitat diversity than any other island in the park. Scorpion Beach, on the eastern shore, offers clear, swimmable waters, and sprawling kelp forests where divers and snorkelers can spot feeding dolphins, porpoises, and whales. You can even dive into underwater caves and caverns, some reached by kayak and teeming with colorful sea creatures. Conditions shift, so heading out with a park-authorized guide is recommended.

Trails wind through each of the Channel Islands and the year-round Mediterranean climate makes the park a hiker's dream. That said, terrain and weather conditions do vary from island to island. If you're up for a challenge, head to San Miguel Island, a former bombing range where high winds can combine with rugged, canyon terrain. Gentler slopes are found on Anacapa, the nearest island to the mainland, where you can visit a lighthouse built in 1932, and follow the moderate climb to Inspiration Point for views to Santa Cruz Island.

Anemones, sea stars, and periwinkles are just a sampling of what you might uncover in one of the park's incredible tide pools. The islands were undisturbed for thousands of years, allowing for some truly peculiar species (just look at the chitons) to make their homes in these fragile spaces between land and sea. Frenchy's Cove, only reachable by boat on Middle Anacapa, is one of the best.

For bigger eye candy, keep your eyes peeled for gray, blue, and humpback whales wherever you are in the park, or join a whale watching expedition departing from Santa Barbara, Oxnard, or Ventura harbors. California sea lions and harbor seals are also regular Channel Islands visitors, but Point Bennett on San Miguel Islandreached by a ranger-guided 15-mile hike in the summeris the best place to spot rare species like Guadalupe fur seals and Stellar sea lions.

Pitch a tent on any of the five islands year-round, and wait for the crashing waves to lull you to sleep. Or, to experience California as the Chumash Indians did, gear up for backcountry beach camping along the 55-mile coastline of Santa Rosa Island, available from mid-August through December. While you're there, hike along the flat Coastal Road to see the island's unique Torrey pine subspecies (one of the rarest pines anywhere in the world). Just be sure to come prepared with snacks and supplies, as there are no stores or equipment rentals in the park. Water is only available at campsites on Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz Islands.

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