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3 Ways Sales Is Changing With Artificial Intelligence – Small Business Trends
Technology is the great equalizer. In every industry and in nearly every department, technology is and should be central to performance and achievement capacity. Of course, the frontiers of technology constantly change. The assembly line modernized the means of production in the early 1900s, the telephone revolutionized communication, computers changed nearly everything in the 1980s, and today the frontier of technology is big data and artificial intelligence (A.I.).
Much has been made of those two trends in the last year. Every company under the sun has made bold claims about how much data they can capture and utilize. Then there were the data purists who said data had to be cleared of noise and be converted into smart data. The rules of good data have even been turned into an alliteration: Volume, Velocity, Variety, Veracity, and Value. On top of data came A.I., the much heralded next wave of technological progress.
A.I. captures a unique place in the public consciousness because we have been told both to fear it and to hope for it to save us from the tedium of work. But for all of the talk about what A.I. can do, very little has been made of what it is doing right now. There are many hundreds of products out there that purport to leverage A.I. for various tasks, but few of them live up to the future world that we read about in the news.
But there is one specific department where A.I. is operating to its futuristic potential by accomplishing one simple goal: leveling the playing field. That department is sales and the products that are available leverage A.I. to become prescriptive sales tools.
These are three ways that Prescriptive Sales is changing the industry:
Prescriptive Sales tools function like a regular customer relationship management (CRM) platform except that it is tracking and analyzing millions of events and identifying areas for improvement. Uzi Shmilovici, a thought leader in Prescriptive Sales technology and the CEO of Base CRM, says this technology gives sales professionals data-driven feedback for constant improvement.
Artificial intelligence programs can scan through millions of events to find patterns and correlations that we just would not notice on a day to day basis, explains Shmilovici. So it might notice a correlation between sending a specific pitch deck to prospective clients before calling them results in better conversions. Or it might notice that sending a weekly follow up email can yield results up to 8 weeks after initial contact. These are small practices that a sales professional might miss but that can increase performance over time.
The effect is to give sales professionals a second brain, one that crunches numbers and identifies patterns without needing any assistance. This has the potential to make every salesperson in the office a top performer, not just those with the best instincts. In that way, A.I. is leveling the playing field.
Growing a company is a chess match. There are a million strategies at play, but at the end of the day, cash is king, and you do not want to find yourself without it. But how do you grow your sales without hiring sales personnel? One way is to sell more with the team you have, and that is the future of Prescriptive Sales.
There is a litany of statistics available about how badly the average sales office performs. By any metric, there is room for growth. One study found that 63% of sales professionals fail to meet their personal quotas. So when we talk about there being room for growth without hiring new personnel, that is the space we are talking about.
Prescriptive Sales is designed to make it easier for salespeople to exceed their quotas. When a whole sales office uses the platform, the A.I. analyzes performance across individual experiences, meaning the program takes notes on how the top performing individuals work and shares it with the rest of the team. That cross-pollination of best practices makes up for numerous shortcomings in talent.
Don Schuerman, CTO of Pegasystems writes, Using AI to correlate data and uncover trends is great, but data is made valuable only when you can take action on it.
It is hard to overemphasize the importance of this leap forward. Todays CRM platforms are broadly flat, meaning they describe what is and what is likely to be, but not what can be. In that way, todays CRM platforms are Descriptive rather than Prescriptive.
Transitioning to Prescriptive Sales technology opens up new worlds of business opportunities. Suddenly executives are not handcuffed to best, middle, and worst case projections for annual revenue; instead they can paint a path toward concrete results and understand what it will take to achieve them.
That shift in thinking will have impacts on management and business strategy beyond what we can speculate about here. Of course, the best executives have always looked at what can be and worked toward that end, but now they have incredibly powerful tools at their disposal to get there.
The impact of A.I. on sales today is significant enough to qualify as a top-tier competitive advantage, asserts Shmilovici. Every CRM company is actively working to release their own Prescriptive Sales platform for that reason. This is the wave of the future. By combining Prescriptive Sales technology with a talented sales force, companies will be able to achieve growth at a much quicker pace. This technology could potentially become the future of sales and marketing.
AI Photo via Shutterstock
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3 Ways Sales Is Changing With Artificial Intelligence - Small Business Trends
Tinder May Incorporate Artificial Intelligence to Help You Get Some – Maxim
Meet your digital wingman.
(Photo: mapodile/Getty Images)
At the recentStartup Grind Global conference inCalifornia, Tinder CEO and Founder Sean Rad said the future of the popular dating app may involveartificialintelligence. And that future may come much sooner than anticipated.
Rad said that in the next five years, Tinder's millions of global users may be able to ask Siri to find them dates, which would then prompt AI to track down possible matches nearby.
"In five years time, Tinder might be so good, you might be like 'Hey [Apple voice assistant] Siri, what's happening tonight?'And Tinder might pop up and say 'There's someone down the street you might be attracted to. She's also attracted to you. She's free tomorrow night. We know you both like the same band, and it's playing - would you like us to buy you tickets?' and you have a match."
If it sounds like some sort of far-flung premise of a Black Mirror episode, that's because it pretty much is. Even Rad admits, "It's a little scary" despite the obvious convenience of the process.
But Tinder is eyeing even furtherfuturistic dating disruption. Rad added that the dating app was taking stock of"augmented reality," which overlays digital images onto the real world as you walk around (think Pokemon Go). Rad proposes that Tinder could use AR to let users know who is single or taken when walking into a room, which is really, really similar to an episode of Black Mirror.
"You can imagine how, with augmented reality, that experience could happen in the room, in real time," Rad said. "The impact is profound as these devices get closer to your senses, to your eyes, to your experiences."
And here we were thinking that Tinder adding video was a breakthrough...
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Tinder May Incorporate Artificial Intelligence to Help You Get Some - Maxim
There are two kinds of AI, and the difference is important – Popular Science
Todays artificial intelligence is certainly formidable. It can beat world champions at intricate games like chess and Go, or dominate at Jeopardy!. It can interpret heaps of data for us, guide driverless cars, respond to spoken commands, and track down the answers to your internet search queries.
And as artificial intelligence becomes more sophisticated, there will be fewer and fewer jobs that robots cant take care ofor so Elon Musk recently speculated. He suggested that we might have to give our own brains a boost to stay competitive in an AI-saturated job market.
But if AI does steal your job, it wont be because scientists have built a brain better than yours. At least, not across the board. Most of the advances in artificial intelligence have been focused on solving particular kinds of problems. This narrow artificial intelligence is great at specific tasks like recommending songs on Pandora or analyzing how safe your driving habits are. However, the kind of general artificial intelligence that would simulate a person is a long ways off.
At the very beginning of AI there was a lot of discussion about more general approaches to AI, with aspirations to create systemsthat would work on many different problems, says John Laird, a computer scientist at the University of Michigan. Over the last 50 years the evolution has been towards specialization.
Still, researchers are honing AIs skills in complex tasks like understanding language and adapting to changing conditions. The really exciting thing is that computer algorithms are getting smarter in more general ways, says David Hanson, founder and CEO of Hanson Robotics in Hong Kong, who builds incredibly lifelike robots.
And there have always been people interested in how these aspects of AI might fit together. They want to know: How do you create systems that have the capabilities that we normally associate with humans? Laird says.
So why dont we have general AI yet?
There isn't a single, agreed-upon definition for general artificial intelligence. Philosophers will argue whether General AI needs to have a real consciousness or whether a simulation of it suffices," Jonathan Matus, founder and CEO of Zendrive, which is based in San Francisco and analyzes driving data collected from smartphone sensors, said in an email.
But, in essence, General intelligence is what people do, says Oren Etzioni, CEO of the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Seattle, Washington. We dont have a computer that can function with the capabilities of a six year old, or even a three year old, and so were very far from general intelligence.
Such an AI would be able to accumulate knowledge and use it to solve different kinds of problems. I think the most powerful concept of general intelligence is that its adaptive, Hanson says. If you learn, for example, how to tie your shoes, you could apply it to other sorts of knots in other applications. If you have an intelligence that knows how to have a conversation with you, it can also know what it means to go to the store and buy a carton of milk.
General AI would need to have background knowledge about the world as well as common sense, Laird says. Pose it a new problem, its able to sort of work its way through it, and it also has a memory of what its been exposed to.
Scientists have designed AI that can answer an array of questions with projects like IBMs Watson, which defeated two former Jeopardy! champions in 2011. It had to have a lot of general capabilities in order to do that, Laird says.
Today, there are many different Watsons, each tweaked to perform services such as diagnosing medical problems, helping businesspeople run meetings, and making trailers for movies about super-smart AI. Still, Its not fully adaptive in the humanlike way, so it really doesnt match human capabilities, Hanson says.
Were still figuring out the recipe for general intelligence. One of the problems we have is actually defining what all these capabilities are and then asking, how can you integrate them together seamlessly to produce coherent behavior? Laird says.
And for now, AI is facing something of a paradox. Things that are so hard for people, like playing championship-level Go and poker have turned out to be relatively easy for the machines, Etzioni says. Yet at the same time, the things that are easiest for a personlike making sense of what they see in front of them, speaking in their mother tonguethe machines really struggle with.
The strategies that help prepare an AI system to play chess or Go are less helpful in the real world, which does not operate within the strict rules of a game. Youve got Deep Blue that can play chess really well, youve got AlphaGo that can play Go, but you cant walk up to either of them and say, ok were going to play tic-tac-toe, Laird says. There are these kinds of learning that are not youre not able to do just with narrow AI.
What about things like Siri and Alexa?
A huge challenge is designing AI that can figure out what we mean when we speak. Understanding of natural language is what sometimes is called AI complete, meaning if you can really do that, you can probably solve artificial intelligence, Etzioni says.
Were making progress with virtual assistants such as Siri and Alexa. Theres a long way to go on those systems, but theyre starting to have to deal with more of that generality, Laird says. Still, he says, once you ask a question, and then you ask it another question, and another question, its not like youre developing a shared understanding of what youre talking about.
In other words, they can't hold up their end of a conversation. They dont really understand what you say, the meaning of it, Etzioni says. Theres no dialogue, theres really no background knowledge and as a resultthe systems misunderstanding of what we say is often downright comical.
Extracting the full meaning of informal sentences is tremendously difficult for AI. Every word matters, as does word order and the context in which the sentence is spoken. There are a lot of challenges in how to go from language to an internal representation of the problem that the system can then use to solve a problem, Laird says.
To help AI handle natural language better, Etzioni and his colleagues are putting them through their paces with standardized tests like the SAT. I really think of it as an IQ test for the machine, Etzioni says. And guess what? The machine doesnt do very well.
In his view, exam questions are a more revealing measure of machine intelligence than the Turing Test, which chatbots often pass by resorting to trickery.
To engage in a sophisticated dialogue, to do complex question and answering, its not enough to just work with the rudiments of language, Etzioni says. It ties into your background knowledge, it ties into your ability to draw conclusions.
Lets say youre taking a test and find yourself faced with the question: what happens if you move a plant into a dark room? Youll need an understanding of language to decipher the question, scientific knowledge to inform you what photosynthesis is, and a bit of common sensethe ability to realize that if light is necessary for photosynthesis, a plant wont thrive when placed in a shady area.
Its not enough to know what photosynthesis is very formally, you have to be able to apply that knowledge to the real world, Etzioni says.
Will general AI think like us?
Researchers have gained a lot of ground with AI by using what we know about how the human brain. Learning a lot about how humans work from psychology and neuroscience is a good way to help direct the research, Laird says.
One promising approach to AI, called deep learning, is inspired by the architecture of neurons in the human brain. Its deep neural networks gather human amounts of data and sniff out patterns. This allows it to make predictions or distinctions, like whether someone uttered a P or a B, or if a picture features a cat or a dog.
These are all things that the machines are exceptionally good at, and [they] probably have developed superhuman patter recognition abilities, Etzioni says. But thats only a small part of what is general intelligence.
Ultimately, how humans think is grounded in the feelings within our bodies, and influenced by things like our hormones and physical sensations. Its going to be a long time before we can create an effective simulation of all of that, Hanson says.
We might one day build AI that is inspired by how humans think, but does not work the same way. After all, we didnt need to make airplanes flap their wings. Instead we built airplanes that fly, but they do that using very different technology, Etzioni says.
Still, we might want to keep some especially humanoid featureslike emotion. People run the world, so having AI that understand and gets along with people can be very, very useful, says Hanson, who is trying to design empathetic robots that care about people. He considers emotion to be an integral part of what goes into general intelligence.
Plus, the more humanoid a general AI is designed to be, the easier it will be to tell how well it works. If we create an alien intelligence thats really unlike humans, we dont know exactly what hallmarks for general intelligence to look for, Hanson says. Theres a bigger concern for me which is that, if its alien are we going to trust it? Is it going to trust us? Are we going to have a good relationship with it?
When will it get here?
So, how will we use general AI? We already have targeted AI to solve specific problems. But general AI could help us solve them better and faster, and tackle problems that are complex and call for many types of skills. The systems that we have today are far less sophisticated than we could imagine, Etzioni says. If we truly had general AI we would be saving lives left and right.
The Allen Institute has designed a search engine for scientists called Semantic Scholar. The kind of search we do, even with the targeted AI we put in, is nowhere near what scientists need, Etzioni says. Imagine a scientist helperthat helps our scientists solve humanitys thorniest problems, whether its climate change or cancer or superbugs.
Or it could give strategic advice to governments, Matus says. It could also be used to plan and execute super complex projects, like a mission to Mars, a political campaign, or a hostile takeover of a public company."
People could also benefit from general AI in their everyday lives. It could assist elderly or disabled people, improve customer service, or tutor us. When it comes to a learning assistant, it could understand your learning weaknesses and find your strengths to help you step up and plan a program for improving your capabilities, Hanson says. I see it helping people realize their dreams.
But all this is a long way off. Were so far away fromeven six-year-old level of intelligence, let alone full general human intelligence, let alone super-intelligence, Etzioni says. He surveyed other leaders in the field of AI, and found that most of them believed super-intelligent AI was 25 years or more away. Most scientists agree that human-level intelligence is beyond the foreseeable horizon, he says.
General artificial intelligence does raise a few concerns, although machines run amok probably wont be one of them. Im not so worried about super-intelligence and Terminator scenarios, frankly I think those are quite farfetched, Etzioni says. But Im definitely worried about the impact on jobs and unemployment, and this is already happening with the targeted systems.
And like any tool, general artificial intelligence could be misused. Such technologies have the potential for tremendous destabilizing effects in the hands of any government, research organization or company, Matus says. This simply means that we need to be clever in designing policy and systems that will keep stability and give humans alternative sources of income and occupation. People are pondering solutions like universal basic income to cope with narrow AI's potential to displace workers.
Ultimately, researchers want to beef up artificial intelligence with more general skills so it can better serve humans. Were not going to see general AI initially to be anything like I, Robot. Its going to be things like Siri and stuff like that, which will augment and help people, Laird says. My hope is that its really going be something that makes you a better person, as opposed to competes with you.
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There are two kinds of AI, and the difference is important - Popular Science
UW CSE announces the Guestrin Endowed Professorship in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning – UW Today
Engineering | Honors and awards | News releases | Research | Technology | UW Today blog
February 23, 2017
Carlos Guestrin in the Paul G. Allen Center for Computer Science & Engineering at the UW.Dennis Wise/ University of Washington
University of Washington Computer Science & Engineering announced today the establishment of the Guestrin Endowed Professorship in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. This $1 million endowment will further enhance UW CSEs ability to recruit and retain the worlds most outstanding faculty members in these burgeoning areas.
The professorship is named for Carlos Guestrin, a leading expert in the machine learning field, who joined the UW CSE faculty in 2012 as the Amazon Professor of Machine Learning. Guestrin works on the machine learning team at Apple and joined Apple when it acquired the company he founded, Seattle-based Turi, Inc. Guestrin is widely recognized for creating the high-performance, highly-scalable machine learning technology first embodied in his open-source project GraphLab.
At Apple, Guestrin is helping establish a new Seattle hub for artificial intelligence and machine learning research and development, as well as strengthening ties between Apple and UW researchers.
Appleincorporates machine learning across our products and services, and education has been a part ofApples DNA from the very beginning. said Johny Srouji, senior vice president of Hardware Technologies at Apple.
Seattle and UW are near and dear to my heart, and it was incredibly important to me and our team that we continue supporting this world-class institution and the amazing talent coming out of the CSE program, said Guestrin. We look forward to strong collaboration betweenApple, CSE and the broader AI and machine learning community for many years to come.
For more information, contact Ed Lazowska, Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science & Engineering at lazowska@cs.washington.edu or Guestrin at guestrin@cs.washington.edu.
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Aerospace Can Make America Great Again – Gilmer Mirror
SpaceX just launched ten Iridium Communications satellites into low-Earth orbit. These satellites will beam phone and data service to tens of thousands of Americans who live or work in areas too remote for regular coverage.
Until recently, blasting bus-sized satellites into space using rockets that can be reused belonged in the realm of science fiction. Now, such activities seem routine.
Policymakers should take note. Americans are set to reap the benefits of aerospace firms' race to tame the Final Frontier -- and the industry's investments in manufacturing will create new jobs and wealth in the United States, not just shuffle around current jobs by moving around government dollars.
Since its inception, the aerospace industry has produced technologies that improve Americans' quality of life. NASA helped invent memory foam, scratch-resistant glasses, insulin pumps and hundreds of other products we use every day.
Now, private companies are driving aerospace innovation. Thanks to satellite Internet firms, airplane passengers can enjoy Wi-Fi while cruising at 30,000 feet. That has made flying more enjoyable -- and far more productive. The technology also makes it possible for Americans in remote areas to access high-speed Internet.
Satellite internet has yet to reach its full potential. The satellite "internet of things" market is expected to grow nearly 20 percent each year through 2022. Improved connectivity -- made possible by new satellites -- will improve the efficiency of a wide range of appliances, not just computers and smartphones.
Launching new satellites to support this increased connectivity would have been far too expensive a few years ago. But today, thanks to California-based SpaceX and Washington-based Blue Origin's advances in rocket manufacturing, the cost of launches has plummeted. The Air Force is showing interest in ultra-low cost access to space, where reusable launch technologies stimulate tactical innovation in space operations.
Next-generation rockets have even made space-based businesses look viable.
Made in Space, a California startup, recently sent a 3D printer to the International Space Station, laying the groundwork for manufacturing in zero gravity. The firm plans to produce optical fiber in space, which would eliminate the microscopic imperfections caused by gravity. This high quality fiber could revolutionize everything from medical devices to telecommunications.
Aerospace firms aren't just spurring technological progress; they're supporting millions of jobs. America's aerospace sector employs over 1.2 million people and indirectly supports an additional 3.2 million jobs.
These jobs are helping to replace losses we've seen in the broader manufacturing sector. While the number of overall American manufacturing jobs dropped 22 percent from 2002 to 2012, jobs in the aerospace industry grew 7 percent. Aerospace exports also generated a trade surplus of over $80 billion in 2015 -- the highest in the manufacturing sector.
Aerospace companies are even leading the charge to revitalize the manufacturing workforce.
Firms are designing their own educational programs, often at community colleges, to train workers. Northrop Grumman, for instance, has partnered with Antelope Valley College in Lancaster, California to create a sixteen-week vocational program in aircraft manufacturing. The firm recruits many of the students upon graduation. Such public-private partnerships could serve as a model for manufacturers in other sectors.
Private aerospace companies are strengthening the labor force and pouring billions of dollars into new technologies that will improve Americans lives. That's a reason to cheer every liftoff.
Rebecca Grant, Ph.D., is president of IRIS Independent Research, a public-policy research organization, and director of the Washington Security Forum. She is the former director of the General Billy Mitchell Institute for Airpower Studies at the Air Force Association.
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Trump Talk Rattles Aerospace Industry, Up and Down Supply Chain – New York Times
New York Times | Trump Talk Rattles Aerospace Industry, Up and Down Supply Chain New York Times Workers in the SmartCells factory in Chehalis, Wash., this month. The company makes rubber mats for Boeing workers. SmartCells has already diversified, sensing potential trouble in the aerospace industry. Credit Evan McGlinn for The New York Times. |
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Trump Talk Rattles Aerospace Industry, Up and Down Supply Chain - New York Times
Hollywood Camera Gets Makeover for Science, Aerospace, Defense … – R & D Magazine
A high-speed cameraoriginally designed for movie production is now moving from Los Angeles to the laboratory.
Vision Research recently introduced the Phantom Flex4K-GS, a high-speed digital video camera designed specifically for the science, aerospace and defense industries. The camerawhich boasts a 35mm, 9.4-megapixel sensor and global shutteris an updated version of the Flex4K, a full-featured digital cinema camera popular in the film industry.
The biggest differences between the original Flex4K and the Flex4K-GS is its shutter. The original cinema model, which came out in 2014, only has a progressive scan shutter, also known as a rolling shutter, which isnt ideal for science and defense applications. While rolling shutter cameras typically achieve higher dynamic range and lower noise, the way the electronic shutter integrates can create motion artifacts, making high precision measurements impossible. The Flex4K-GS has the ability to switch between global and rolling shutter modes to take advantage of both scenarios.
The customers that wanted to use it as a scientific instrument werent able to use it with a rolling shutter because this makes it so the top and the bottom of the frame are actually being recorded at slightly different times, said Vision Research product manager Toni Lucatorto, in an interview with R&D Magazine. The global shutter records every single pixel at exactly the same moment in time. This makes it more reliable for people that use the cameras with measurement software.
This capability is also important in aerospace applications, as it prevents motion artifacts with propellers, motors and other rotating objects and ensures timing precision throughout the entirety of each frame.
The 4K resolution, a design feature from the original cinema camera, is also helpful for those in the aerospace and defense market, said Lucatorto.
These customers are primarily looking for cameras that will do overview shots of rocket launches, including those in space shuttle development and ballistics, she said. The camera is positioned far away from the subject with a long lens and the user wants as much resolution as possible. The 4K gets them really nice crisp images and they can position the camera far away and still get really good detail on the subject.
Also critical in the defense industry is the cameras ability to operate in extreme temperatures. Its isolated electronics and thermal design allow for operation in environments within the temperature range of -20C to 50C.
There are also many applications for this camera in the science market, said Lucatorto. One industry where she feels it will be particularly useful is microscopy.
If the camera is attached to microscopes and optics that allow you to really get super macro type-shots, the more resolution the better, she said. You can actually resolve things that you would not be able to with a lower-resolution camera.
The cameras high resolution does require tradeoffs regarding frame rate. At its full 4096 x 2304 resolution the camera can capture 938 frames per second (fps). At 4K 4096 x 2160 the frame rate goes up to 1,000 fps and at 2K resolution the camera can capture 1900 fps. The minimum exposure is five microseconds. This frame rate is slower than other high-speed cameras with lower resolutions.
The Flex 4K doesnt go as fast as some of our other models, but our science and defense customers are generally more concerned about the resolution than the frame rate, said Lucatorto. They need more than a typical camera can do, but they dont need the 100,000 frames that some of our other cameras can do.
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Hollywood Camera Gets Makeover for Science, Aerospace, Defense ... - R & D Magazine
India clears major air defense deal with Israel Aerospace Industries – Jerusalem Post Israel News
IAI successfully tests MRSAM Air and Missile Defense System. (photo credit:COURTESY IAI)
The Indian government has cleared a $2.5 billion deal for its army to buy a medium-range surface-to-air missile defense system from Israel Aerospace Industries, another step toward signing the contract, Indian media reported on Thursday.
The MR-SAM system, jointly developed by Indias Defense Research and Development Organization in collaboration with Israel Aircraft Industry, is a land-based configuration of the long-range surface-to-air missile (LRSAM) or Barak-8 naval air defense system.
India will use it to replace their countrys aging air defenses.
The missiles are capable of shooting down enemy aircraft at a range of 50-70 kilometers.
Each MR-SAM system includes a command and control system, tracking radar, missiles and mobile launcher systems. Missiles can be fired in single or ripple firing modes from a vertical position, launched in canister configuration. The launcher holds eight canistered missiles in two stacks. A radio frequency seeker can identify a target as friendly or belonging to an enemy.
According to India Today, the Indian Army will induct over five regiments of the MR-SAM missile, which will have around 40 firing units and over 200 missiles of the system.
Delivery of the first system will begin within 72 months of signing the contract and be deployed for operations by 2023.
Following successful tests of the system in July, Israel Aerospace Industries president and CEO Joseph Weiss said, The joint development and the extensive cooperation between the industries in both countries is a testimonial to the strong partnership between the two nations. IAI is proud to lead this impressive cooperation and is highly obligated to its continuing success.
India was the worlds largest importer of major arms from 2012 through 2016, accounting for 13% of global total far greater than regional rivals China and Pakistan, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
Over the last five years, defense trade between the two countries has averaged more than $1b. annually.
This year, Israel and India are celebrating 25 years of bilateral diplomatic ties. To highlight the growing bilateral relationship, Narendra Modi is expected to become the first Indian prime minister to visit Jerusalem on a trip planned for this summer.
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India clears major air defense deal with Israel Aerospace Industries - Jerusalem Post Israel News
DART Aerospace Starts the New Year with its Presence at HAI Heli-Expo 2017 – AviationPros.com
DART is proud to announce their presence yet again at the world's largest helicopter trade show and exposition, the HAI Heli-Expo Show 2017 that will be held in Dallas, Texas from March 7th to 9th.
DARTS 2017 BOOTH
This year, DART will be featuring an impressive fully-mounted booth, where its team of experts will have the pleasure to present the new and upcoming 2017 products.
Our main priority at HAI will be to follow up with our projects and meet with our clients. The show is a great opportunity to catch up and have all the right players in the same room. We are looking forward to announce and close important deals especially after last years successful outcome. No doubt last year was a great show, we expect an even better one this year, explains Alain Madore, newly appointed President and CEO of DART Aerospace.
DART Aerospace will be exhibiting at the show for all three days, therefore come by BOOTH #8540 to discover how DART Aerospace can help you find the right products for the right mission.
Even better, here are 5 reasons why visiting the DART booth is not-to-be-missed!
1. DART will showcase its 2016 success stories
2. Get the chance to check out their new and improved AW139 specialty equipment
3. Take the opportunity to ask your technical questions to the team of experts
4. See how much they care about their clients
5. Network with colleagues and industry professionals
DART Aerospace is continuously striving to better serve its customers and its team is looking forward to meeting you all at the HAI Heli-Expo 2017 Show.
ABOUT DART AEROSPACE
DART Aerospace is "Mission Ready". A privately held aerospace company, we provide industry-leading design, manufacturing and market-certified solutions for the helicopter and aerospace industry. With an impressive line-up of over 700 STC's and 5,000 products, DART offers a comprehensive portfolio of: aftermarket products, accessories, spare parts and tools for civil and military operators, all major rotorcraft OEMs, completion centers and MR&O facilities. DART's key products include: flotation systems, landing gears, interior and exterior accessories, cargo expansion, external loads, cable cutters and filters. All this, in addition to extensive engineering capabilities and manufacturing centers delivering fast time-to-market solutions with superior customer support in over 120 countries worldwide.
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DART Aerospace Starts the New Year with its Presence at HAI Heli-Expo 2017 - AviationPros.com
Microbiology and Infection Prevention and Control for Nursing … – Nursing Times
Title: Microbiology and Infection Prevention and Control for Nursing Students
Author: Deborah Ward
Publisher: Sage
Reviewer: Anne Duell, ward sister, Birmingham Community NHS Trust
This book part of the transforming nursing practice collection, which supports students learning the importance of adhering to the NMC standards and Essential Skills Cluster. It is a book that is exceptionally user friendly while providing clear evidence of applying evidence theory to nursing practice. It covers a wide range of infections, which students and nurses may encounter in both community and in-patient practice; while including more recent bugs such as Ebola. The readers are guided into how to obtain appropriate specimens and utilising guidance from sources such as public health.
One of the clear highlights of this books is it is both up to date and relevant. It is user friendly while encouraging its readers to undertake further research and learning to consolidate the information they have gleaned from this book. Another point is that the author goes back to basics to remind us of what constitutes an infection, and the differences between what a bacteria is as well as viruses, different fungi and parasites. Also a highlight is the importance stressed about whose responsibility it is to manage different elements of infection management and control.
One of the most evident strength of this book is its use of the NMC standards to support learning in relation to competencies that students are meant to have grasped and understood through their training to then support them as a registered nurse. The authors in a sentiment manner remind students that they must have a certain level of knowledge to deliver safe and effective care when encountering patients with various infections, under appropriate supervision in accordance with their level of progression through their nurse training (and know who to contact for additional support for both patient and their own knowledge and on going learning). A further positive in this series of books is the authors inclusion of activities and questions to aid learning and understanding and case studies.
The only weakness to this book is the limitations the reader puts on themselves to enhance their learning.
This book should certainly be read by all nursing students regardless of where their nursing placements are. The reason for this is clear as whenever we encounter patients we are potentially encountering infections which require further assessment to ensure appropriate treatment. I would even say that this book is good for mentors to read and nursing staff who may be returning to practice or want to refresh their basic knowledge around infection prevention and control.
microbiology
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Microbiology and Infection Prevention and Control for Nursing ... - Nursing Times
National Academy Calls for Public Input on Human Genetic … – WCAI – WCAI
New recommendations for human genome editing
Given how controversial genetically modified corn is, it's no wonder that the prospect of genetically modifying humans pushes a lot of people's buttons. But we already have gene therapies, and new technologies are making it faster, safer, and less expensive to modify the human genome in a range of ways. That has the science community and policymakers scrambling to set responsible guidelines for the use of genome editing.
In 2015, the International Summit on Human Gene Editing recommended holding off until the methods could be shown safe and effective, and until there was some public consensus about their use. Last week, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine released recommendations that suggested at least some of those criteria had been met.
The bottom line, according to report co-chair Richard Hynes of M.I.T., is this:
In all cases, the panel recommended public input on the appropriate uses of genome editing. But there remain enormous questions - what that public engagement should look like, how consensus might be defined or achieved, and how public opinion would translate into federal - or even international - policy.
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National Academy Calls for Public Input on Human Genetic ... - WCAI - WCAI
Proceed with caution on genetic engineering – The Straits Times
Last week, an international panel of scientists and ethicists concluded that changing heritable aspects in human genes would be permissible under certain conditions, going further than any previous mainstream group in endorsing the long-term aim of producing gene-edited babies ("Gene-edited babies: From red light to orange... and then green?"; Feb 20).
The most straightforward and unique advantage of genetic engineering is that it prevents the inheritance of devastating genetic diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, beta thalassemia or Huntington's disease.
It could also be used to modify genes to lower the risk of contracting diseases like HIV/AIDS.
However, it may be impossible to draw a line between using this technology for "therapy" and using it for "enhancement".
On practical grounds, genetic enhancement procedures could potentially lead to the widening of the rich-poor divide in society, as the wealthy would be able to engineer smarter, healthier and more attractive children, thus giving them even greater advantages in life.
From an ethical point of view, it is important to consider whether parents or medical professionals have the inherent right to alter a baby before it has been born.
As scientists focus on accomplishments and whether a thing can be done, they must also stop to ask if it should be done.
A baby cannot consent to having his body altered. Genetically engineering a child would be a violation of his fundamental right to bodily integrity.
Another ethical issue to consider would be the loss of individuality in a society that prides itself on conformity. This could open the door to eugenics.
It would be wise to exercise caution on this issue. As scientists focus on accomplishments and whether a thing can be done, they must also stop to ask if it should be done.
International scientific bodies should not only implement stringent regulations on genetic engineering practices, but also engage actively and effectively with politicians and the public to ensure a sturdy legal framework.
Denise Lee Hui Jean (Ms)
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Proceed with caution on genetic engineering - The Straits Times
Switched-on DNA: Sparking nano-electronic applications … – Science Daily
Science Daily | Switched-on DNA: Sparking nano-electronic applications ... Science Daily DNA, the stuff of life, may very well also pack quite the jolt for engineers trying to advance the development of tiny, low-cost electronic devices. Much like flipping ... Tiny DNA-Based Machines Let Scientists Peer into Chemical ... Scientists Create Active Controllable Electronic DNA Switch | GEN |
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Switched-on DNA: Sparking nano-electronic applications ... - Science Daily
Can Trump resist the power of behavioral science's dark side? – Monitor
Bumble bees are surprisingly innovative – Science Magazine
Bumble bees are surprisingly quick innovators.
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By Virginia MorellFeb. 23, 2017 , 2:00 PM
Bumble bees may have small brains, but that doesnt mean theyre not inventive. A new study shows that the insects can innovate to solve complex problems, quickly figuring out a better way to get a sugar reward. Such mental flexibility may help bees overcome human-caused changes to their environment.
Its a cool study, and both the authors and the bees deserve credit for their innovativeness, says Dhruba Naug, a behavioral ecologist at Colorado State University in Fort Collins.
Bumble bees have already proven themselves remarkable animals. They possess complex navigational skills, rudimentary culture, and emotions. They can even use tools: Scientists have shown that the insects can learn to pull a stringand so get a sugary rewardby watching another bee perform the task. Although bees dont pull strings in the wild, they do sometimes pull or push aside flower petals and parts that may resemble strings.
That made us wonder if bees could learn to do something with an object they had never encountered in their evolutionary history, says Olli Loukola, a behavioral ecologist at Queen Mary University of London, an author on the string work.
So in the new study, Loukola and colleagues made the bees forage for sugar water by moving a small, yellow ball to a specific target (as in the video above)something far removed from what the insects do in the wild. The scientists first trained the bees to know that the ball had to be in a target location in order to yield sugar water. Then each insect was shown three yellow balls placed at varying distances from the target. Some bees watched a previously trained bee move the farthest ball to the target and get a reward. Other bees watched a ghosta magnet beneath the platformmove the farthest ball. And a third group didnt see a demonstration; they simply found the ball already at the target with the reward.
In separate tests, each bee was subsequently challenged to move one of the three balls to the target within five minutes. The 10 bumble bees that watched a sister perform the task were the most successful, the scientists report today in Science. They also solved the task faster than those that watched the ghost or didnt see a demonstration. Some of the latter bees solved the task entirely on their own.
The bees quickly figured out a better way to move the ball, too. Although those that watched the demonstrator initially pushed the ball to the target, in subsequent trials, they walked backwardand pulled the ballan unexpected and innovative change, the scientists say.
The bees also displayed inventivenesswhen deciding which ball to move. Although the demonstrator bees always moved the farthest ball (because the others were glued in place), most of the observer bees chose instead to move the ball that was closest to the target. When the researchers replaced the yellow ball that was closest to the target with a black ball, most of the bees moved it for the rewardshowing that they understood the general principle of the task: Move a ball to the center, not move only a yellow ball.
These bees solved the problem more effectively, and showed that they could generalize the solution to new situations, says Anne Leonard, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Nevada in Reno, who was not involved in the study.
This flexibility could help bumble bees in the wild, which face widespread population declines. It suggests that bees may be able to respond quickly to novel problems that arise in their environment, such as the introduction of new flowering plants and the loss of familiar ones, says Daniel Papaj, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Most importantly for the studys researchers, It puts the final nail in the coffin of the idea that small brains constrain insects cognitive abilities, says co-author Lars Chittka, a behavioral ecologist also at Queen Mary University of London. Theres more going on beneath that exoskeleton than we think.
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Stem Cell Therapy Halts Multiple Sclerosis – Anti Aging News
Posted on Feb. 23, 2017, 6 a.m. in Stem Cell Research Immune System Stem Cell
Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation halted progression of Multiple Sclerosis for 5 years in 46% of patients.
Recent research indicates that the transplant of autologous hematopoietic stem cells (AHSCT) is an excellent treatment for multiple sclerosis. It has been determined that the procedure stops disease progression for half a decade in nearly 50 percent of multiple sclerosis patients.
About the Study
The study was spearheaded by Dr. Paolo Muraro from the Imperial College London's Department of Medicine. Dr. Muraro and his colleagues revealed their findings through JAMA Neurology. These results were released on the heels of a separate study that found the success of a similar treatment in patients suffering from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Dr. Muraro and his research team are quick to point out that additional trials are necessary to gauge the efficacy and safety of AHSCT. It is important to note that some patients perished within the first 100 days of treatment.
About AHSCT
AHSCT involves the harvesting of a patient's own stem cells. The patient is subjected to a powerful dose of chemotherapy to destroy any diseased cells. The next step is the return of harvested stem cells to the patient's blood. The goal is to restart the production of normal blood cells.
In layman's terms, AHSCT is best understood as a resetting of the body's immune system. Though it was already known that this style of treatment resets the immune system and poses certain risks, the length of its benefits was not fully understood. We now have a better picture of these benefits. AHSCT Results
The research team studied data from over two dozen treatment centers in 13 countries. They pinpointed 281 patients who suffered from multiple sclerosis and underwent AHSCT from 1995 to 2006. Exactly 78 percent of these patients had a progressive form of multiple sclerosis. The team made use of the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) to analyze patients' survival after five years of treatment as well as improvements in their multiple sclerosis symptoms. A whopping 46 percent of these patients enjoyed zero disease progression in the five years following treatment. Those with RRMS, characterized by flare-ups (inflammatory attacks) and periods of remission enjoyed the optimal outcomes.
An amazing 73 percent of these patients did not endure worsening of symptoms in the 5 years following AHSCT. Some patients also experienced minor improvements in their multiple sclerosis symptoms following AHSCT. Those with progressive multiple sclerosis enjoyed a rise in EDSS score by 0.14 in the year after treatment. Those with RRMS experienced an EDSS score increase of 0.76. Those of a younger age, minimal immunotherapies before AHSCT and a comparably lower EDSS score also displayed improved outcomes with AHSCT. Treatment Risk
The findings described above clearly show promise for the AHSCT use in individuals who suffer from multiple sclerosis. The research team would like to make it perfectly clear that some patients died in the 100 days following AHSCT. Exactly eight patients perished in this time period. It is assumed that the deaths were related to treatment. AHSCT makes use of aggressive chemotherapy that significantly weakens the immune system and spikes one's risk for infection. Since multiple sclerosis is not a disease that is immediately life-threatening, the risk of death posed by AHSCT must be weighed by all multiple sclerosis patients.
What's next Dr. Muraro is adamant that a follow-up study must be performed that includes a group of multiple sclerosis patients who have not received AHSCT. It is clear that additional studies are required to accurately gauge the efficacy and safety of AHSCT. Ideally, a massive randomized controlled trial of AHSCT will be performed in the coming months.
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Stem Cell Therapy Halts Multiple Sclerosis - Anti Aging News
Testosterone gel shows no benefit for older men's memories – Shelbyville Daily Union
CHICAGO (AP) Testosterone treatment did not improve older men's memory or mental function in the latest results from landmark government research that challenges the anti-aging claims of popular supplements.
While testosterone use for one year appeared to strengthen bones and reduce anemia, it also showed signs of worsening artery disease and questions remain about other potential risks. The researchers said more studies are needed to determine long-term effects the kind of research the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has already asked supplement makers to conduct.
"I don't think anybody would interpret these results as saying, 'Wow, this is a fountain of youth, this is a magical anti-aging potion,'" said study co-author Susan Ellenberg, a University of Pennsylvania researcher.
The results are from the final four studies in a seven-part project mostly funded by the National Institute on Aging, involving nearly 800 U.S. men aged 65 and older with low testosterone levels. The goal was to see if rubbing testosterone gel on the skin daily for a year could treat problems linked with low levels of the male hormone, which declines with age. Half the men in each group used the real thing and half used fake gel.
Results published a year ago from the same research linked testosterone with mostly modest improvement in sexual performance, walking strength and mood.
The key new findings:
Testosterone had no effect on memory or mental function, based on tests given before, halfway and at the end of treatment to nearly 500 men with age-related memory decline.
Among almost 140 men who underwent heart artery imaging tests to see if the hormone slowed progression of plaque, those who used testosterone had more plaque buildup and narrower arteries after a year than the fake gel group. Those changes could signal increased chances for heart attacks although none occurred in the study. Men in this sub-study were already more vulnerable for heart problems because of conditions including artery disease, obesity and high blood pressure.
Among about 200 men given bone imaging tests before and at the end of treatment, those on testosterone showed increases in bone density and strength, especially in the spine, while minimal changes were found in the group that used fake gel. The improvement was similar to bone changes seen with treatment for osteoporosis, although most men studied did not have that bone-thinning condition, which can lead to fractures.
Among 126 men with anemia, a fatigue-linked condition involving inadequate red blood cells, those on testosterone showed substantial improvement. By the study's end, anemia had vanished in almost 60 percent of men on testosterone compared with 22 percent of the fake gel group. The hormone group also reported having more energy. "The overall health benefits, however, remain to be determined," the researchers said.
The studies were published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association and JAMA Internal Medicine. AbbVie Pharmaceuticals provided its gel for the study and helped pay for the research but had no other role in the study.
The research was not designed to look at risks and does not apply to younger men or those with normal levels of testosterone, said study leader Dr. Peter Snyder, a University of Pennsylvania hormone specialist. It's also not known if other forms of testosterone supplements would have similar effects in older men with low levels.
Prescription testosterone products including gel are approved only for men with low levels of the hormones caused by various medical conditions. Benefits and risks are unknown in men whose levels are low due only to aging, the FDA says. The agency requires testosterone labels to include possible risks for heart attacks and strokes, based on some previous studies.
A separate study published Tuesday in JAMA Internal Medicine found that men using prescription testosterone gel, patches or injections had fewer heart attacks and strokes during about three years of follow-up than non-users. But this was only observational data in men aged 40 and up, not rigorous research testing the hormone against a placebo.
Clarifying testosterone's effects on heart problems, fractures and age-related disability will require larger, longer studies, said Dr. Evan Hadley of the National Institute on Aging. He said decisions about whether to use testosterone should take into account men's individual risks for conditions the hormone could affect.
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Testosterone gel shows no benefit for older men's memories - Shelbyville Daily Union
Baltimore's InSilico Medicine raises $10M – Baltimore Business Journal
Baltimore Business Journal | Baltimore's InSilico Medicine raises $10M Baltimore Business Journal InSilico Medicine has raised $10 million from six investors, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. InSilico collects and analyzes genetic codes to make drug discoveries for aging and age-related diseases. The company uses ... |
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Baltimore's InSilico Medicine raises $10M - Baltimore Business Journal