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Software vulnerability disclosures by NSA will continue under Trump, officials say – CyberScoop

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

The disclosure processthat governs how and when federal agencies should tell tech firms about flawed computer code is in no immediate danger of termination under the Trump administration, current and former U.S. officials said.

Flawed code by its very nature offers vulnerabilities that can be targeted by hackers. Knowledge of these vulnerabilities especially those never publicly reported is valuable to a wide array of actors, including law enforcement and intelligence services. In the past the default hasbeen to err on the side of disclosure, even by the super-secretive National Security Agency, according to a comprehensive research reported conducted by Columbia University.For now, that isnt likely to change, saidNeil Jenkins, director of the Homeland Security Departments Enterprise Performance Management Office, or EPMO.

It is not within our national interest to build up a stockpile of vulnerabilities to hide behind and to use for intelligence or law enforcement purposes. We have to get those out to make sure that systems are secure, Jenkins told a room full of cybersecurity industry insiders while speaking on a panel at the 2017 RSA conference. But the process does recognize that there are some vulnerabilities that we need to keep, that we need to use for national security purposes.

In most cases, though, the government has incentive to report flawed code, U.S. officials say.

The process is still in use, it is in regular use, and we are having meetings about these things on a pretty regular basis. And I would say, as of right now, we are still in the mode of responsible disclosure under the current administration, Jenkins said at RSA.

Known as the Vulnerabilities Equities Process, or VEP, the guidelines were only recently made public. The government first began releasing limited information about the process during the Obama administration.

We made an agreement early on that we would err on the side of the defense of this nation and if we didnt put it out the capability, if it were ever found then we would put it out there. And we stuck to that. It makes your job harder, but it was the right thing for the country, former NSA Director Keith Alexander said in December during a University of Maryland event. We put out more than 90 plus percent of those things that we saw. Some people criticized it [the VEP] but nobody changed.

In the run-up to President Donald Trumps inauguration, however, some feared that a new White House would reverse courseand offer intelligence and law enforcement agencies greater leeway to keep vulnerabilities secret.

Where we are in 2017, if you look at the sort of arc of cyber policy today, coming out of the Trump campaign and then out of the then president-elects office, it was very offense-oriented, explained Rob Knake, a former director for cybersecurity on the National Security Council at the White House. So I think there was this sense that the gloves were coming off, that the [VEP] would be thrown out the window That was my fear.

But what we have seen since then I think is a growing recognition that we revived this policy, that this is a policy from the Bush administration, this started in 2008 and came out of the CNCI and one which [current White House homeland security adviser] Tom Bossert had a heavy hand in, said Knake.

Though the VEP offers renewed transparency in its current form over what has largely been a clandestine decision-making process, the panel of experts also agreed that more can be done.

Greater coordination and shared oversight, Knake explained, should be instituted between the multiple federal agencies that share a vested interest in either disclosure or keeping software flaws secret. Until today, each federal agencies has approached the VEP in a slightly different manner.

We agree that it is time for this process to be codified in law just to make sure that it continues, that there is are clear considerations around the risk and potential for operational use and for regular review of what youre not disclosing, said Heather West, a senior policy manager for Mozilla.

I think ultimately there could be a lot more transparency around [the VEP], one of the things we noticed as we have gone through and researched this process is that it works reasonable well and the government could build a lot of trust with industry; saying this is what we have and are doing. And then we can have this collaborative relationship that we dont normally have in the cybersecurity space, West said.

At the moment, there are no penalties in place for agencies or U.S. officials that decide to keep software vulnerabilities out of the VEP process.

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Software vulnerability disclosures by NSA will continue under Trump, officials say - CyberScoop

Kredo Tells OAN: Obama Officials Pushed Flynn Out As NSA – Washington Free Beacon

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

BY: Nick Bolger February 21, 2017 1:16 pm

Adam Kredo, senior writer for the Washington Free Beacon, appeared on One America News Network Monday to discuss the secret campaign to oust former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.

Kredo discussed his recent report with Liz Wheeler.The piece reports that Obama Administration holdovers waged a campaign of leaks to force Flynn's resignation.

"It is quite an accusation," Kredo said. "And from at least half a dozen sources both inside and outside of the White House that I spoke to, it happens to be a fact."

Obama's former Deputy National Security Advisor, Ben Rhodes, created a "pro-Iran echo chamber" and used his allies to create an echo chamber outside of the White House to combat Trump on foreign policy, Kredo explains.

Kredo reports that Flynn's resignation was forced in an attempt to keep hidden side deals surrounding the Iran nuclear deal.

Flynn resigned from his post on February 13 following reports that he had lied to Vice President Mike Pence over his contact with Russia.

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Kredo Tells OAN: Obama Officials Pushed Flynn Out As NSA - Washington Free Beacon

Fourth Amendment – The Advocates for Self-Government

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

This article was featured in our weekly newsletter, theLiberator Online. To receive it in your inbox,sign up here.

Last month actor Mark Hamill, an advocate of gun control, posted this tweet to his nearly one million followers:

Dont get me wrong, as a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment [sic]I believe in every Americans right to own a musket.

In doing so, Hamill was repeating an anti-gun argument thats frequently heard and is surprisingly widespread.

This argument says that the Second Amendment was written over two centuries ago, before todays modern firearms had been invented. Therefore, the Second Amendment only protects a right to keep and bear muskets and other primitive firearms common at the time.

You might think that this is a satirical remark, more snarky than a real argument.

Yet many opponents of the right to keep and bear arms actually intend this as a serious argument. Even those who use it half-jokingly often believe it makes a legitimate point.

For example, journalist Piers Morgan tweeted this in 2012:

The 2nd amendment was devised with muskets in mind, not high-powered handguns & assault rifles. Fact.

I could cite many more. Versions of this argument are circulating on the Internet.

How might libertarians effectively respond to this? One obvious way is to apply the same logic to other amendments.

The First Amendment, which defends freedom of speech and freedom of the press, was written before the Internet, television, radio, DVDs, cell phones and other forms of personal and mass communication.

Yet most Americans, especially liberals and progressives who favor gun control, certainly recognize that the First Amendment protects such modern communication as well.

No First Amendment activist would argue that a newspaper must be printed on 18th century technology to have First Amendment protection. What could be sillier?

Similarly, most reasonable people see that the Fourth Amendment protection of privacy clearly applies to modern technology such as cellphones, laptops, and so on.

In some circumstances, it may also be useful to point out that this issue has already been settled and quite forcefully by the Supreme Court.

In fact, in the landmark 2008 District of Columbia v. Heller decision, the Court declared this argument was bordering on the frivolous.

Wrote the Court:

Some have made the argument, bordering on the frivolous, that only those arms in existence in the 18th century are protected by the Second Amendment. We do not interpret constitutional rights that way. Just as the First Amendment protects modern forms of communications and the Fourth Amendment applies to modern forms of search the Second Amendment extends, prima facie, to all instruments that constitute bearable arms, even those that were not in existence at the time of the founding.

The Supreme Court drove the point home just last month in Caetano v. Massachusetts, which concerned a woman who carried a stun gun for self defense:

While stun guns were not in existence at the end of the 18th century, the same is true for the weapons most commonly used today for self-defense, namely, revolvers and semiautomatic pistols. Revolvers were virtually unknown until well into the 19th century, and semiautomatic pistols were not invented until near the end of that century. Electronic stun guns are no more exempt from the Second Amendments protections, simply because they were unknown to the First Congress, than electronic communications are exempt from the First Amendment, or electronic imaging devices are exempt from the Fourth Amendment.

These are powerful, even devastating, arguments from logic, history and authority that pretty much lay waste to the argument that the Second Amendment is limited to protecting our right to black powder muskets. But theres one more important point to make.

We should always remember our purpose as communicators. In most communications and conversations, we should seek to win others to our side, not just to win arguments.

So, rather than just responding with the powerful arguments above, take a moment first to listen to those making these arguments and try to uncover their genuine concerns. Are they worried about our society becoming more violent? Are they fearful of more children being victims of mass shootings? Are they advocates of nonviolence who have adopted an anti-gun position?

These are all legitimate, admirable, understandable concerns. Let your listeners know that you share their concerns (if you do) and then point out that there are libertarian answers solutions to all of them. By identifying and addressing the underlying concerns, you can try to win them to our side, or at least to a better and more sympathetic understanding of our views. Thats a lot better than merely winning an argument, but making a permanent enemy.

If the conversation allows it, you could go even further and point out that, to many libertarians, the right to keep and bear arms is rooted in the fundamental libertarian idea that people should be free to do anything they wish as long as they dont harm others. A conversation that reaches this level can be very rewarding.

There are specific communication methods you can use to respond in such effective ways, and I have compiled many of the best of them in my book How to Be a Super Communicator for Liberty: Successfully Sharing Libertarian Ideas.

Please check it out.

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Fourth Amendment - The Advocates for Self-Government

Supreme Court considers parents’ rights after boy killed by agent across Mexican border – Washington Times

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

The Supreme Court struggled Tuesday to define limits to the Constitutions Fourth Amendment in a tragic case in which a U.S. Border Patrol agent fired his weapon and killed a 15-year-old boy on the Mexican side of the line.

Some of the justices feared that if they went too far, they could open the U.S. military to claims from victims of drone attacks in foreign countries. But the courts liberal wing worried that unless they gave the family its day in court, it had no recourse to punish rogue agents.

You have a very sympathetic case, Justice Stephen G. Breyer told the attorneys for the family of Sergio Hernandez, the boy killed in 2010 by the shot fired by agent Jesus Mesa Jr.

Mr. Mesa was cleared after a probe by the U.S. government, which said it could not establish that he violated Border Patrol policies.

The family says it wants justice in the courts. The only problem: Lower courts have ruled that since the boy was in Mexico, the Fourth Amendment protections dont apply in this case.

Robert C. Hilliard, the attorney for the Hernandez family, cast his case as a defense for other Mexicans who might find themselves in the same situation. He said there is an ongoing domestic routine law enforcement issue that needs to be solved.

Were here because the interaction of the Border Patrol in this area, the government has taken the position that on the border, the Constitution turns off if the deadly force goes across the border, he said.

He said there have been 10 instances in which the Border Patrol has fired from the U.S. into Mexico and killed someone.

Ahead of Tuesdays oral argument, some analysts said the case could give an indication of how the justices might rule on the extreme vetting executive order issued by President Trump. That order has been mostly blocked by federal courts, which ruled that potential visitors outside the U.S. and foreigners inside the U.S. illegally have constitutional rights that must be respected.

But the justices didnt stray far afield Tuesday. Instead, they debated whether they could draw a line that would allow the family to sue in this case but wouldnt open a whole category of lawsuits against U.S. troops who create collateral damage.

How do you analyze the case of a drone strike in Iraq where the plane is piloted from Nevada? Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. asked Mr. Hilliard.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg waved aside those concerns, saying thats a military operation that could be distinguished from a border encounter involving a federal law enforcement officer.

The chief justice did not seem swayed by the distinction, particularly in a tort claim against a federal employee.

The case could turn on the exact spot where the slaying occurred. The boy was shot in a culvert that is maintained by both the U.S. and Mexico though the ground where he fell is clearly on the Mexican side, the attorneys said.

Some of the courts liberal justices said that if the U.S. government has some authority over the territory, that could be a zone where Fourth Amendment protections against searches and seizures and in this case unlawful death would apply.

But Randolph J. Ortega, Mr. Mesas attorney, said the matter of the border cant be minimized.

Wars have been fought to establish borders. The border is very real, he said.

Mexico had asked for Mr. Mesa to be extradited to face charges there, but the U.S. government refused. The Mexican government then backed the familys lawsuit in court.

See more here:

Supreme Court considers parents' rights after boy killed by agent across Mexican border - Washington Times

Chiloquin settles First Amendment lawsuit – Herald and News

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

A freedom of speech lawsuit against the city of Chiloquin has been settled out of court and a motion to dismiss the suit was approved Friday.

Plaintiff Richard Twamley confirmed Monday his lawsuit against the city was resolved through a settlement agreed upon by both parties. Twamley said he found the terms of the settlement agreeable, but said specific details were under seal and wont be made public.

Twamley said he would need to contact his attorney before offering further comment.

Story continues below video

He sued Chiloquin and former Mayor Joe Hobbs Oct. 27, 2016, for an incident Dec. 15, 2015, during which Hobbs allegedly denied Twamley an opportunity to speak during public comment at a city council meeting. Twamley sought $1.7 million for the denial of his First Amendment rights as well as emotional distress.

According to the lawsuit, Twamley intended to speak to the council that night regarding a 2014 legal settlement between the city and the Chiloquin Rodeo Association, which Richard Twamley said occurred without proper authority. Twamley said his comments were ruled out of order by Hobbs and the plaintiff was not allowed to continue speaking on the topic.

At the beginning of council meetings in Chiloquin, a disclaimer is read saying officials will rule out of order comments of a discrediting nature, as well as personal attacks on officials and city personnel.

A response to Twamleys allegations was not filed in court by Chiloquin. A representative of City Hall could not be reached Monday for comment due to the federal holiday.

Twamley has been an outspoken critic of Chiloquin along with his wife, former Mayor Patricia Twamley, and Dennis Jefcoat, who acted as Patricia Twamleys adviser. In addition to letters to the editor printed in the Herald and News, the three each filed lawsuits against Chiloquin, though Patricia Twamleys suit was settled in the citys favor in 2014 and Jefcoats suit was dismissed for lack of evidence in 2016.

When asked Monday if he will continue to voice criticisms of the city, Richard Twamley said he would need to consult his attorney before responding to the question.

Chiloquin settles First Amendment lawsuit - Herald and News

Appeals Court Says Filming The Police Is Protected By The First Amendment – Techdirt

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

In news that will surprise no one, police officers decided they must do something about someone filming the police department building from across the street. That's where this Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decision begins: with a completely avoidable and completely unnecessary assertion of government power.

Phillip Turner was filming the police department. He was accosted by two officers (Grinalds and Dyess). Both demanded he provide them with identification. He refused to do so. The officers arrested him for "failure to identify," took his camera, and tossed him in the back of a squad car. Given the circumstances of the initial interaction, it's surprising the words "contempt of cop" weren't used on the official police report. From the opinion [PDF]:

Grinalds asked Turner, Hows it going, man? Got your ID with you? Turner continued videotaping, and Grinalds repeatedly asked Turner if he had any identification. Turner asked the officers whether he was being detained, and Grinalds responded that Turner was being detained for investigation and that the officers were concerned about who was walking around with a video camera. Turner asked for which crime he was being detained, and Grinalds replied, I didnt say you committed a crime. Grinalds elaborated, We have the right and authority to know whos walking around our facilities.

Grinalds again asked for Turners identification, and Turner asked Grinalds, What happens if I dont ID myself? Grinalds replied, Well cross that bridge when we come to it. Grinalds continued to request Turners identification, which Turner refused to provide. Grinalds and Dyess then suddenly and without warning handcuffed Turner and took his video camera from him, and Grinalds said, This is what happens when you dont ID yourself.

Turner asked to speak to their supervisor. Given that this happened right across the street from the department, Turner didn't have to wait very long. A supervisor arrived and came to at least one correct conclusion:

Lieutenant Driver identified himself as the commander. Driver asked Turner what he was doing, and Turner explained that he was taking pictures from the sidewalk across the street. Driver asked Turner for his ID, and Turner told the lieutenant that he did not have to identify himself because he had not been lawfully arrested and that he chose not to provide his identification. Driver responded, Youre right.

Texas police officers love to misread the state's "failure to identify" statute. It doesn't say what they think it does or what they want to believe it does. A former cop-turned-law student has a full explanation here, but suffice to say, cops cannot arrest someone for refusing to ID themselves -- at least not in Texas. The charge can be added after an arrest (if the refusal continues), but it can't be the impetus for an arrest.

After some discussion between the officers, Turner was released and his camera was given back. Turner filed a civil rights lawsuit. The lower court granted immunity to the officers on all allegations. The Fifth Circuit, however, refuses to go as far. And in doing so, it actually takes it upon itself to address an issue it easily could have avoided: whether the First Amendment covers the filming of public servants, specifically law enforcement officers.

First, the court asks whether the right to film police was "clearly established" at the time the incident took place (September 2015). It can't find anything that says it is.

At the time in question, neither the Supreme Court nor this court had determined whether First Amendment protection extends to the recording or filming of police. Although Turner insists, as some district courts in this circuit have concluded, that First Amendment protection extends to the video recording of police activity in light of general First Amendment principles, the Supreme Court has repeatedly instructed courts not to define clearly established law at a high level of generality: The general proposition, for example, that an unreasonable search or seizure violates the Fourth Amendment is of little help in determining whether the violative nature of particular conduct is clearly established. Thus, Turners reliance on decisions that clarified that [First Amendment] protections . . . extend[] to gathering information does not demonstrate whether the specific act at issue herevideo recording the police or a police stationwas clearly established.

The court doesn't leave it there, although it could have. The court notes that there's a circuit split on the issue, but just because the issue's far from decided doesn't mean courts have not recognized the right exists. It points to conclusions reached by the First and Eleventh Circuit Appeals Courts as evidence the right to film police has been acknowledged. Even so, there's not enough clarity on the issue to remove the officers' immunity.

We cannot say, however, that existing precedent . . . placed the . . .constitutional question beyond debate when Turner recorded the police station. Neither does it seem that the law so clearly and unambiguously prohibited [the officers] conduct that every reasonable official would understand that what he is doing violates [the law]. In light of the absence of controlling authority and the dearth of even persuasive authority, there was no clearly established First Amendment right to record the police at the time of Turners activities.

This is where the opinion gets interesting. While many judges would leave a trickier, somewhat tangential issue open and unanswered, the Fifth Circuit Appeals Court decides it's time for it to set some precedent.

We conclude that First Amendment principles, controlling authority, and persuasive precedent demonstrate that a First Amendment right to record the police does exist, subject only to reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions.

[...]

To be sure, [s]peech is an essential mechanism of democracy, for it is the means to hold officials accountable to the people. The right of citizens to inquire, to hear, to speak, and to use information to reach consensus is a precondition to enlightened self-government and a necessary means to protect it. Filming the police contributes to the publics ability to hold the police accountable, ensure that police officers are not abusing their power, and make informed decisions about police policy. Filming the police also frequently helps officers; for example, a citizens recording might corroborate a probable cause finding or might even exonerate an officer charged with wrongdoing.

In the Fifth Circuit -- joining the First and Eleventh Circuits -- the First Amendment right to film police has been asserted. Unfortunately, the issue still remains mostly unsettled, and there's currently nothing in front of the Supreme Court that would set national precedent. Unfortunately, the decision doesn't help Turner with his First Amendment claim, but it will help others going forward.

The court also reverses immunity on one of Turner's Fourth Amendment claims. While it finds the officers were justified in questioning him, they went too far when they arrested him. First, as pointed out above, the "failure to identify" law can't be used to predicate an arrest. And, after questioning him, the officers still had nothing approaching the probable cause they needed to make a warrantless arrest. Even though Turner was detained in the back of the squad car for only a short period of time, the fact that he was obviously not free to go makes it an arrest under the Fourth Amendment.

Strangely, the dissent, written by Judge Edith Brown, claims the Appeals Court has no business setting precedent. In her opinion, the nation's second-highest courts should stand idly by and wait for the Supreme Court to do the work.

The majority asserts, unconnected to the particular facts and unnecessary to the disposition of this case, that a First Amendment right to record the police does exist, subject only to reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions. The majority derives this general right to film the police from First Amendment principles, controlling authority, and persuasive precedent. But the Supreme Court has repeatedly reversed attempts to define clearly established law at such a high level of generality. White, 137 S. Ct. at 552.

The judge narrowly defines Turner's filming to ensure it would never fall under this supposedly "broad" definition of the right. She says the Appeals Court defines the protection as covering "filming police." But Turner wasn't doing that.

To the extent there is any consensus of persuasive authority, those cases focus only on the narrow issue of whether there is a First Amendment right to film the police carrying out their duties in public. E.g., Glik v. Cunniffe, 655 F.3d 78, 82 (1st Cir. 2011). Turner did not allege that he filmed police officers conducting their public duties, but rather that he filmed a police station.

Somehow, filming police officers as they enter and exit a public building is not "filming police carrying out their duties in public." Remarkably, Judge Brown says there may be "reasonable" security concerns that could Constitutionally prevent Turner's actions.

The majority does not determine that the officers here violated Turners First Amendment rightsperhaps because it would be reasonable for security reasons to restrict individuals from filming police officers entering and leaving a police station.

If police officers are entering and exiting a building from doors clearly viewable by the public from a public area, the officers obviously aren't that concerned about their "security." If so, they would use an entrance/exit members of the public can't see or don't have access to. If the Fourth Amendment doesn't protect the privacy of citizens in public areas, the same public areas can't be given a heightened privacy protection that only covers public servants.

Unsurprisingly, Judge Brown thinks Turner's involuntary stay in the back of a squad car could reasonably be viewed as Turner just hanging out there waiting to speak to a supervisor:

Because Turner himself requested a supervisor, a reasonable police officer in that situation could believe that waiting for the supervisor to arrive at the scene did not transform Turners detention into a de facto arrest. At the very least, Officers Grinalds and Dyess did not act objectively unreasonably in waiting for the requested supervisorespecially because Lieutenant Driver had to come from the Fort Worth Police Station across the street.

Except that most people "waiting for a supervisor" don't do so while:

a.) handcuffed

b.) sitting in the back of a locked squad car

The length of the detention doesn't matter. And it was ultimately the supervisor's arrival that sprung Turner. If not for the arrival of the supervisor -- who immediately recognized Turner couldn't be arrested for refusing to ID himself -- Turner would undoubtedly have spent an even longer period being detained, if not taken into the PD and processed.

The good news for Turner is that his sole remaining Fourth Amendment claims -- the wrongful arrest -- lives on. But the bigger win -- the First Amendment protections confirmation -- helps everyone else but him.

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Appeals Court Says Filming The Police Is Protected By The First Amendment - Techdirt

Top 5 Cryptocurrencies With a Unique Business Model – The Merkle

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

In the world of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, innovation is one of the key factors to success. Various companies and teams are using these disruptive technologies to come up with creative business models. Below are a few companies that have caught peoples attention over the past few years. Rest assured more of these projects will come to fruition moving forward.

Decentralizing the concept of cloud storage sounds quite intriguing. Storj aims to achieve this goal and provide cheap bandwidth and storage solutions for everyone in the world. Users can also make money by renting their hard drive space to other Storj users. Everyone in the community becomes part of the cloud, removing the need for centralized servers altogether.

Decentralization is key in the cryptocurrency and blockchain world. The MaidSafe team aims to decentralize the internet as we know it. Users are able to store private data, host websites, and share public data on the SAFE network. Similarly to Storj, MaidSafe relies on unused hard drive space. However, users can also rent out unused processing power and data connections to others. There is no intermediary involved in the process, nor anypermissions required.

Prediction markets are gaining momentum as of late. There is a certain appeal to predict the outcome of real-world events, rather than just focus on sports or politics. Through prediction markets such as Augur, it is possible for anyone in the world to create a bet on whatever life situation they choose. It is not a gambling opportunity in the traditional sense, albeit there are financial stakes involved.

What makes prediction markets so appealing is how they harness the wisdom of the crowd. Instead of relying on industry experts. Everyones opinion is collected to provide valuable insights into how specific situations may evolve over time. Considering how this entire approach is decentralized as well, there is no reason not to give prediction markets a try.

One of the primary selling points of Ethereum is its smart contract technology. Creating digital agreements between parties that self-execute is a significant development in the world of blockchain technology. Although companies are working to bring smart contract technology to bitcoin, Ethereum is the go-to solution for this concept right now. Smart contracts can change virtually every business model we know today and its only a matter of time until this shift happens.

It has to be said, Steemit is taking content creation and monetization to a whole new level. The platform allows anyone to create and share any type of content they like. Users who upvote these creations will allow the creator to earn money in the form of cryptocurrency. Quite a few people have made thousands of dollars from the Steemit platform already. Getting paid to create content by the people who like your creations, rather than advertisers, is the way forward, that much is certain.

If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.

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Top 5 Cryptocurrencies With a Unique Business Model - The Merkle

Bitcoin prices touch fresh 3-year high – MarketWatch

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

The price of a single bitcoin leapt to its highest level in more than three years on Tuesday, as traders bought up coins in anticipation of the Securities and Exchange Commissions ruling on a proposed bitcoin exchange-traded fund.

One bitcoin US:BTCUSD went for as much as $1,105.48 on Tuesday, its highest level since December 2013, according to data from Coin Market Cap.

Both Amith B. Nirgunarthy, director of marketing & HNW Partnerships at Bitcoin IRA, and Chris Dannen, a founding partner at Iterative Instinct, a small New York-based private-equity fund that trades crypto-assets, said investors are attempting to so-called front-run the SECs decision on the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust ETF. Front-running refers to buying an asset with the expectation of a larger buyer, or group of buyers, expected to come to push prices higher.

In this case, the SEC is expected to deliver its final decision on the trust by March 11. Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, who were famously portrayed by actor Armie Hammer in the hit movie The Social Network, first filed for creation of the ETF back in 2013. If approved, it will trade on the BATS exchange and could support prices of bitcoin.

This is probably front-running for a potential Winklevoss ETF, Nirgunarthy said.

To be sure, even if the Winklevoss ETF isnt approved, a Japanese law that introduces a regulatory framework for bitcoin is set to take effect in April, potentially leading to an influx of institutional money from that country, Dannen said.

There will be a lot of fresh fish out there next month, either way the [SEC] decision goes, Dannen said.

Read: And 2016s best-performing commodity isbitcoin?

Read: Path to Bitcoin ETF still uncertain but may be easier under Trump

Read: Bitcoin hits milestone of $1,000 as 2017 begins

Competition to launch what would be the first exchange-traded bitcoin fund has intensified in recent months. Back in January, Grayscale, the creator of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust GBTC, +2.78% filed to list shares of the trust on the New York Stock Exchange. It presently trades over the counter, with a large premium over its relative net-asset value in bitcoin. In January, the SEC delayed its decision on a third fund, the SolidX Bitcoin Trust, which would also trade on the NYSE.

Resurgent trading volume in China, which was, until recently, bitcoins largest market, has also helped to support the price, Nirgunarthy said.

Since the beginning of the year, Chinas largest bitcoin exchanges have imposed new transaction fees and halted customer withdrawals while they upgrade their antimoney laundering systems. These decisions, undertaken in response to stepped-up scrutiny from the Peoples Bank of China, initially caused trading volume in the country to plummet.

The bitcoin price more than doubled in 2016 as Chinese investors sought ways to protect their wealth from a depreciating yuan. Crackdowns on cash in India and Venezuela also helped support the digital currencys ascent, Dannen said.

Spencer Bogart, a bitcoin analyst at Needham & Co., doubts the SEC will approve a bitcoin ETF. However, if it does, it could lead to as much as $300 million in institutional money entering the bitcoin market during the first week alone.

This would likely have an outsize impact on the price of a single coin, he said.

Excerpt from:

Bitcoin prices touch fresh 3-year high - MarketWatch

If You Traded Bitcoin, You Should Report Capital Gains To The IRS – Forbes

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

Forbes

If You Traded Bitcoin, You Should Report Capital Gains To The IRS
Forbes
Whether it's legal or not under CFTC regulations, the IRS requires American resident taxpayers to report Bitcoin trading income and losses worldwide on U.S. ...
BitCoin For Weed Could Revolutionize The Entire Industry - Green ...Green Rush Daily
Bitcoin Plus – The new up and comer of ... - Digital JournalDigital Journal

all 4 news articles »

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If You Traded Bitcoin, You Should Report Capital Gains To The IRS - Forbes

Tigers top Comets – Waupaca County News

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

February 21, 2017

Waupaca Middle School eighth-grader Fletcher Ceizyk performs with the Waupaca High School band Feb. 14 during a boys' basketball game at the high school. Greg Seubert Photo

By Greg Seubert

The three-point shot was clicking for the Wrightstown boys basketball team.

The Tigers hit 13 of them including 10 in the first half alone Feb. 22 in a 73-62 North Eastern Conference win over Waupaca.

Meanwhile, the Comets also fell to Freedom 70-51 Feb. 16 and wrapped up nonconference play Feb. 14 with a 73-57 loss to Merrill.

Wrightstown 73, Waupaca 62 A 13-0 run that included three threes from Tyler Theunis helped Wrightstown take a 42-26 halftime lead.

The Comets trailed by as many as 21 points in the first half and but cut the deficit to nine twice in the games final three minutes, but never got any closer.

Justin Vaughn finished with six of Waupacas 10 threes and finished with a game-high 20 points. Ryan Dayton and Brandon Wanty also finished in double figures for Waupaca with 17 and 12 points, respectively.

James Hansen led four Wrightstown players in double figures with 16 points.

It was a little frustrating because in the first half, we didnt defend the way we needed to, coach Matt Bredesen said. They made a lot of shots.

Stephen Johnson shoots a free throw for Waupaca during the Comets 70-51 loss to Freedom Feb. 16. Greg Seubert Photo

Freedom 70, Waupaca 51 Freedom took a 42-25 lead into the locker room at halftime and didnt let the Comets get any closer than 17 points in the second half. The Irish also had a 37-22 advantage in rebounds.

Wanty led Waupaca with 12 points, while Vaughn added 11 and Logan Bunge finished with 10. Charlie Jadin led Freedom with 17 points.

I think its the lack of defensive intensity at times that bites us the most, Bredesen said. Weve been consistently scoring high-50s to 60 points every game. We just have to maintain our defensive intensity. We have times when our defensive intensity is good, but they got 10 quick points after halftime on us.

Its always been my philosophy that you have to play harder on the defensive end than you do on the offensive end, he added. Getting us to do that this year, next year, the year after is very important.

Merrill 73, Waupaca 57 Vaughn led the Comets with 18 points and hit five threes in a loss to the Bluejays.

Merrill led 34-28 at halftime and outscored Waupaca 39-29 in the second half.

Bunge had a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Wanty chipped in with 12 points. Zach Mootz led Merrill with 22 points.

Waupaca will wrap up the regular season Thursday, Feb. 23, at Denmark before hitting the road for the first round of the WIAA state tournament.

The Comets are seeded 11th in their Division 2 bracket and will head to Hortonville at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28, for a matchup with the sixth-seeded Polar Bears. The winner of that game will travel to Minocqua Friday, March 3, for a 7 p.m. regional semifinal game with third-seeded Lakeland.

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Tigers top Comets - Waupaca County News

Depression puts psoriasis patients at significantly greater risk of psoriatic arthritis – Medical Xpress

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

February 22, 2017

Psoriasis is a lifelong disease that is associated with significant cosmetic and physical disability and puts patients at increased risk for many major medical disorders. A multidisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Calgary, Canada, have found that psoriasis patients who developed depression were at a 37% greater risk of subsequently developing psoriatic arthritis, compared with psoriasis patients who did not develop depression. Their findings are published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology.

Psoriasis is a long-lasting inflammatory skin disease characterized by red, itchy, and scaly patches of skin. Approximately 8.5% of psoriasis patients have psoriatic arthritis, which is characterized by psoriasis plus inflammation of and around the joints.

"For many years, the rheumatology and dermatology communities have been trying to understand which patients with psoriasis go on to develop psoriatic arthritis and how we might detect it earlier in the disease course," explained senior investigator Cheryl Barnabe, MD, MSc, of the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health and the O'Brien Institute for Public Health, Cumming School of Medicine, at the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Depression is common among patients with psoriasis. Based on recent laboratory work demonstrating that major depressive disorder is associated with increased systemic inflammation, the team of researchers hypothesized that psoriasis patients who develop depression are at increased risk of subsequently developing psoriatic arthritis.

Investigators used The Health Improvement Network (THIN), a primary care medical records database in the United Kingdom, to identify over 70,000 patients with a new diagnosis of psoriasis. Through follow-up records, they identified individuals who subsequently developed depression and those who developed psoriatic arthritis. Patients were followed for up to 25 years or until they developed psoriatic arthritis.

Statistical analysis showed that patients with psoriasis who developed major depressive disorder were at 37% greater risk of subsequently developing psoriatic arthritis compared with patients who did not develop depression, even after accounting for numerous other factors such as age and use of alcohol.

The study highlights the need for physicians to manage patients with psoriasis to identify and address depression. This could include rapid, effective treatment of psoriasis and psychosocial management of the cosmetic burden of psoriasis. The study also draws into question the biological mechanisms by which depression increases the risk for developing psoriatic arthritis. These mechanisms may include altered systemic inflammation as a consequence of depression, or even the role of lifestyle behaviors such as physical activity or nutrition, which are typically worsened by depression, and which may place an individual at risk for psoriatic arthritis.

"There is a tendency to think of depression as a purely 'psychological' or 'emotional' issue, but it also has physical effects and changes in inflammatory and immune markers have been reported in depressed people," commented Scott Patten, MD, PhD, the O'Brien Institute for Public Health, Hotchkiss Brain Institute and Mathison Centre for Mental Health Research and Education, Cumming School of Medicine. "Depression may be a risk factor for a variety of chronic conditions and this research is an example of how big data approaches can identify these associations."

Laurie Parsons, MD, of the Cumming School of Medicine, added: "It is evident to physicians who treat patients with psoriasis, that there is a significant psychological and social burden associated with this disease, which is reflected in an increase in the rates of depression. This study brings us a little closer to understanding the role of chronic inflammation as a systemic player in both the physical and psychological manifestations of psoriasis and underscores the need for closer attention to symptoms of depression in this group of patients."

"This study raises important questions on the role of systemic inflammation, which is also elevated in depression, in driving a disease phenotype, which needs to be confirmed in clinical cohorts," concluded Dr Barnabe.

Explore further: Higher risk for depression with psoriasis

More information: "Depression Is Associated with an Increased Risk of Psoriatic Arthritis among Patients with Psoriasis: A Population-Based Study," by Ryan T. Lewinson, PhD, Isabelle A. Vallerand, PhD, Mark W. Lowerison, MSc, Laurie M. Parsons, MD, Alexandra D. Frolkis, PhD, Gilaad G. Kaplan, MD, MPH, Andrew G.M. Bulloch, PhD, Mark G. Swain, MD, MSc, Scott B. Patten, MD, PhD, and Cheryl Barnabe, MD, MSc, Journal of Investigative Dermatology, volume 137, issue 4 (April 2017) dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jid.2016.11.032

(HealthDay)There is an increased risk of depression among women with psoriasis, according to a study published online July 17 in the British Journal of Dermatology.

(HealthDay)Gastric bypass, but not gastric banding, is associated with reduced risk of psoriasis, progression to severe psoriasis, and psoriatic arthritis, according to a study published online Dec. 21 in JAMA Surgery.

(HealthDay)The incidence of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is 2.7 cases per 100 psoriasis patients, with risk factors including severe psoriasis phenotype and low level of education, according to a study published in the April ...

The chronic inflammatory skin condition psoriasis was associated with the risk of major depression, although the risk was unrelated to the severity of the disorder, according to an article published online by JAMA Dermatology.

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Those experiencing psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis are at higher risk for major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and cardiovascular death, according to a multi-institutional study led byPenn ...

A research team led by scientists from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) has carefully scrutinized the immune cells from patients with rheumatoid arthritis, revealing a striking new subset of T-cells that collaborate with ...

Combining a drug for rheumatoid arthritis with one that targets the chikungunya virus can eliminate the signs of chikungunya arthritis in mice in the disease's earliest stage, according to researchers at Washington University ...

About one million Americans each year undergo total knee or hip replacements, but complications bring as many as 1 in 12 back to the hospital and result in higher use of post-acute services within 90 days.

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(HealthDay)Everybody believes running can leave you sore and swollen, right? Well, a new study suggests running might actually reduce inflammation in joints.

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Depression puts psoriasis patients at significantly greater risk of psoriatic arthritis - Medical Xpress

Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (VRX): Will Psoriasis Drug Siliq Turn The Tide For The Giant? – Smarter Analyst

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX) has analysts on the fence after clearing a big hurdle: a big FDA win for its psoriasis drug brodalumab (brand name Siliq). Nonetheless,perspectives vary even across the middle of the road. There are cases made for a greater level of warinesson the risk vs. reward prospects facing Valeant, just as there are those that see the tides could turn over to confidence at any moment.

From the standpoint of Canaccord analyst Neil Maruoka, while FDA approval for the biotech giants psoriasis drug is positive, the drug that boasts a competitive efficacy profile without being contraindicated in patients also stands a risk of limited market opportunity. Why? One predominant reason: The black box warning with restrictive labeling for suicidality.

Therefore, the analyst reiterates a Hold rating on VRX with a price target of $19, which represents a 19% increase from where the shares last closed.

As we had expected following the 14-4 positive vote from the FDA Advisory Committee in July, the FDA has approved Valeants brodalumab [] However, due to concerns about suicidality associated with brodalumab, the labeling will include a black box warning and the drug will only be available through a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) program. While restrictive labeling was expected, we believe that the boxed warning and REMS requirement are likely to limit the potential for the drug. Nonetheless, we expect that brodalumab will eventually become a modest growth driver within Valeants dermatology franchise. [] Given Valeants elevated leverage, lower growth, and higher risk profile, we believe that a discount to the specialty pharma peer group is warranted, Maruoka opines.

However, even amid lingering safety concerns, the analyst ultimately recognizes that the drugs strong efficacy hints at potential. Looking ahead, Maruoka predicts the drugs peak sales could circle $250 million and [] will eventually become a revenue driver for Valeant following its expected launch in the second half of the year.

As usual, we recommend taking analyst notes with a grain of salt. According to TipRanks, Neil Maruoka is ranked #4,289 out of 4,459 analysts. Maruoka has a 35% success rate and forfeits 7.6% in his yearly returns. When suggesting VRX, Maruoka loses 29.8% in average profits on the stock.

After Siliq won by a significant margin in a positive advisory panel vote, Rodman & Renshaw analyst Ram Selvaraju believes the drugs approval was widely anticipated, as well as was the black box warning for suicide ideation. Yet, the analyst deems the psoriasis drug vastly undervalued.

For now, though optimistic, Selvaraju remains sidelined on VRXs overall unsettled picture, reiterating a Neutral rating on shares of VRX with a $23 price target, which represents a 44% increase from where the stock is currently trading.

However, we believe that the market overall continues to underrate Siliq and its potential in the psoriasis domain, as the prevailing opinion appears to be that the drug is lagging agents like Stelara (ustekinumab), sold by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ; not rated), Cosentyx (secukinumab), from Novartis AG (NVS; not rated), and Taltz (ixekizumab), from Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY; not rated), while the safety profile of the drug may deter broader use. However, we would point investors to the extremely low incidence of suicide in the brodalumab pivotal trialssix such cases occurred and the fact that patients suffering from psoriasis are known to suffer from heightened depression anyway. Furthermore, we believe that there is a case to be made for brodalumab as a best-in-class drug from an efficacy standpoint, since it handily beat Stelara in a head-to-head setting, Selvaraju asserts, also highlighting recent asset sales as another advantage weighing in Valeants favor.

Though presently the analyst veers to the side of caution, he notes that with the encouraging FDA green light for Siliqu, should the biotech giant turn over a fourth-quarter beat with better guidance for 2017, he could very well see fit to shift to a bullish perspective.

According to TipRanks, which measures analysts and bloggers success rate based on how their calls perform, Ram Selvaraju is ranked #4,144 out of 4,459 analysts. Selvaraju has a 38% success rate and faces a loss of 2.8% in his annual returns. However, when recommending VRX, Selvaraju gains 9.7% in average profits on the stock.

TipRanks analytics demonstrate VRX as a Hold. Out of 10 analysts polled by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 10% are bearish on the stock, 60% remain sidelined, and 30% are bearish on the stock. With a return potential of nearly 6%, the stocks consensus target price stands at $16.78.

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Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (VRX): Will Psoriasis Drug Siliq Turn The Tide For The Giant? - Smarter Analyst

Habtoor Grand Resort wins top honors at 2016 World Travel Awards … – Benzinga

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

Dubai resort named 'World's Leading MICE Resort' at prestigious global travel and tourism event

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES--(Marketwired - Feb 21, 2017) - The five-star Habtoor Grand Resort, an Autograph Collection property, was recently named the "World's Leading MICE Resort" award at the World Travel Awards at Olhuveli Beach & Spa Resort in The Maldives.

"MICE" stands for "Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions." The World Travel Awards have been dubbed the "Oscars" of the travel industry by The Wall Street Journal and are selected by travel and tourism professionals worldwide. This accolade recognizes the commitment to excellence which the hotel strives to uphold and demonstrate within the international and local MICE market.

The honor marks the second 2016 global travel distinction for the Dubai resort. General Manager Fredrik Reinisch explained how the Habtoor Grand Resort and its unique combination of features continue to garner industry accolades.

"Habtoor Grand Resort, Autograph Collection, is situated in a great location right in the hype of some of Dubai's biggest attractions," Reinisch explained. "The feature to our hotel's success is that we offer our guests the best of both worlds by being located on the beach overlooking the Arabian Gulf as well as a short walk to city life. The hotel's extensive venue spaces and vast lawn areas provide the perfect backdrop for MICE-related events."

It is easy to see why Habtoor Grand Resort, Autograph Collection would be nominated for such a remarkable title. The beach resort Dubai features 446 spacious guest rooms, 120 of which are twin-based accommodations, catering to the direct interest of MICE travelers. These comfortable rooms overlook the marina docks and Palm Jumeirah, offering full or partial sea views, as well as a partial view of the breathtaking cityscape, which comes to life at dusk. The resort also features 15 restaurants that offer a variety of dishes and cultural culinary delights that will satisfy the most discerning of palates.

Upon arrival or departure, guests are invited to relax and unwind in the property's travelers lounge, a luxurious common area ideal for MICE guests whose travel arrangements do not coincide with the daily check-in and out procedures.

The Jumeirah Beach resort's Al Andalus ballroom accommodates up to 1,000 guests, with five additional breakout rooms ideal for training and exhibitions. The hotel also boasts two lush beachside lawns that accommodate up to 3,000 guests, perfect for MICE team building events and beach activities. What's more, the hotel's personal teambuilding designers will narrate a series of educational team events tailored to each company's needs. After a day of events and meetings, recreational amenities include four tennis courts, two squash courts, five relaxing spa and treatment rooms, a club-quality fitness center and three swimming pools (one with water slides for families).

"The team at Habtoor Grand Resort is proud and honored to have received this tremendous recognition," Reinisch concluded. "We look forward to working towards making this prestigious award an ongoing tradition for the Habtoor Grand Resort, Autograph Collection's achievement portfolio."

About Habtoor Grand Resort, Autograph Collection

Discover luxury without limits at the Habtoor Grand Resort, Autograph Collection. Boasting spacious, stunningly decorated hotel rooms and suites, a selection of five-star resources and incomparable placement on Dubai's picturesque Jumeirah Beach, the property surrounds guests with contemporary comfort. Each of the Habtoor Grand Resort's 446 rooms are brimming with premier amenities such as flat-screen TVs, designer bedding, a mini-bar, free Wi-Fi and panoramic views of the beach. Additional resort amenities include a state-of-the-art spa, impressive array of exquisite on-site dining options, three sparkling pools and a fully-equipped fitness center. Meeting and social event planners will appreciate the property's more than 42,000 square feet of versatile, sophisticated indoor and outdoor event space, as well as first-rate planning and catering. Conveniently located on a private beach near Dubai Marina and Jumeirah Beach Residence, the Habtoor Grand Resort is committed to providing guests with a five-star stay.

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Habtoor Grand Resort wins top honors at 2016 World Travel Awards ... - Benzinga

What you need to know about World Travel Market Africa 2017 – News24

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

2017-02-21 19:00 - Unathi Nkanjeni

Cape Town - The World Trade Market (WTM) Africa willtake place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) from Wednesday, 19 to Friday, 21 April 2017.

WTM Africa is one of six shows in the WTM portfolio, with other exhibitions taking place in London, So Paulo, Dubai, Penang and Cannes. These expos place the focus on regional products and services while giving them a global reach that will boost the industry, and as such are the perfect platforms to exhibit African businesses to the world

According to WTM Africa,theshow is todiscover the latest travel trends, products and businesses at this incredible networking opportunity that sees thousands of travel industry professionals congregate in the Mother City.

Inviting stakeholders in the South African tourism industry to meet travel operators from around the world in order to create business relationships, launch products, enter new markets, promote brands, conduct market research, showcase destinations and interact with media professionals.

SEE: Drop Drop! The new mobile app that helps you save water

The show will host around 5 000 travel and tourism professionals, alongside 550 exhibitors, attending this leading global business-to-business expo that will showcase the inbound and outbound travel markets from over 45 countries.

Attendees will get a chance toaccess unique business opportunities and top quality contacts from around the world. Through pre-scheduled appointments and on-site networking, guests can drive their commercial success with all-year-round connections and updates on industry news, developments and technologies.

Want to be part of World Travel Market 2017, here'swhat you need to know:

Event info

Date: 19 Apr 2017 - 21 Apr 2017

Time: 10:00 - 18:00

Venue: Cape Town International Convention Centre

Location: Convention Square | 1 Lower Long Street | Cape Town

Price: No cost

Phone: +27 (0)11 549 8300

Email: wtmafrica.helpline@thebereed.co.za

Armchair Traveler: Alton’s Hayner Library offers opportunity to ‘travel’ world – Alton Telegraph

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

Penny Noble of Hayner Library, left, administers the Armchair Traveler series, which will feature Geet Vanaik, who is originally from India, on Monday, Feb. 27. Both are wearing decorate bindis on their foreheads.

Vicki Bennington|For The Telegraph

Armchair Traveler will be presented Monday, Feb. 27, in Hayner Librarys performance room at Alton Square Mall, featuring Geet Vanaik, who will display dresses and accessories from India, along with a presentation and Indian food.

Vicki Bennington|For The Telegraph

Let the good times roll in Alton

Celebrate Mardi Gras in Alton. You dont need to travel to New Orleans or Soulard to observe the festivities.

New Orleans-style jazz will fill the Ahlemeyer Auditorium in the Trimpe Building at Lewis and Clark Community College at 6:30 p.m. on Fat Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Sponsored by Hayner Public Library and LCCC, the event will Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler (let the good times roll), featuring Bud Shultz and the You Cant Beat Experience Jazz Band with its program, Fat Tuesday Celebration.. Yankee Style.

Band leader and clarinetist Bud Shultz is joined by trumpet player Don James, trombonist Jim Sawyer, pianist Bob Picker, drummer Ken Link and bassist George Koprivica for the show.

The auditorium will be decorated and set up cabaret style with round tables of 10. Soft drinks and light refreshments are on hand. If you dont have beads .no worries. There will be plenty at the celebration, as well as parasols for the parades youll be invited to join several times during the evening.

In the South, Mardi Gras is the closing of the period of time called Carnival and is the last fling before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. Parties and parades abound in the Gulf Coast, beginning in January. Groups of party lovers, known as Krewes decorate floats and organize festivities.

Youll hear tunes like Bourbon Street Parade, Thats A Plenty and When the Saints Go Marching In, hymns like Just A Closer Walk With Thee and Precious Lord Take My Hand, and more contemporary music like Georgia On My Mind and Crazy.

Admission is free, but reservations are recommended. Call 800-613-3163.

Two times a year, the Hayner Public Library District gives people the chance to virtually visit another country.

Whether you are planning to visit or want to discover the intimate details of another culture while sitting comfortably in the librarys local performance room the program offers insights and sometimes, lesser known facts and practices, divulged by a person who is truly in the know.

Penny Noble, who administers the ongoing series for Hayner, said that she recruits speakers who were born in another country from the richly diverse Riverbend and St. Louis metropolitan area.

The program helps give people who cant afford to travel, or who are unable to travel, a chance to really delve into a specific culture, Noble said. Some people who are interested in visiting a specific country or are trying to decide where to visit, come to find out more details too.

Geet Vanaik, originally from India, will present a talk and digital presentation on her native country Monday, Feb. 27, and she plans to bring along some of the intricate handmade and beaded gowns, jewelry and other accoutrements that are part of her birth culture.

Vanaik first came to the United States in the late 1990s when she was in the fourth grade, staying with her grandmother in St. Louis for a year. She returned to India, but came back to the U.S. two years later when her parents immigrated to the Alton area.

Fast forward a few years and Vanaik started school at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She earned a bachelors degree in biology and a masters in biotechnology management. She went to work in the biotech industry in Nebraska for awhile.

But she came back to SIUE where she has now worked for several years, currently in the Office of International Affairs as the lead immigration coordinator, which she said suits her perfectly.

There, Vanaik has found her true passion helping others who come into the country as immigrants. She is currently pursuing her degree in higher education administration at Maryville University.

A large percentage of international students at SIUE are of Indian decent. Vanaik speaks four dialects and has been fluent in English since her grade school years, when English fluency was a requirement.

I think it helps with my job for me to have a background of a different culture because it helps the students feel comfortable, and Ive been through a lot of it myself, Vanaik said. And meeting people from so many different countries, you have a whole new perspective on a lot of things.

Her primary role is to ensure that international students have the services and support they need to adjust, become successful and live a happy life in the U.S.

And shes no stranger to public speaking either, often presenting programs about India to various classes at a number of universities.

I love to talk about India, she said.

During the Hayner presentation, she will also talk a little about the various religions in India where many are Hindu; some practice Buddhism or Jainism, and others, like Vanaik, are Sikh.

I like to increase awareness about religion and different perceptions and beliefs, she said.

Several of Vanaiks family members still live in India. Consequently, she travels back and forth about twice a year.

Included in her presentation will be photographs from her December trip to her homeland, when she visited the Taj Mahal and other locations, taking lots of pictures that shes eager to share. She also plans to provide a taste of Indian music and dancing.

I also want to touch on Indian movies and Bollywood, and its popularity, she said.

And she will contrast and compare different customs, food and clothing from the north as versus the southern part of the country.

Bindis are a fashionable adhesive jewel that Indian girls wear on their foreheads.

Traditionally, red is an indication that you are married, Vanaik said. The bindi has many different meanings, often rooted in religious beliefs, but Vanaik said in modern society, women often wear them when they want to dress up or as a fashion accessory, not necessarily on a daily basis, and not always making a specific statement. She will also present a demonstration on tucking and folding a sari.

It takes time and care, and some of my family members still wear them every day, Vanaik said, though she herself tends to wear more westernized clothing.

But I love to wear the handmade Indian dresses, too. They are so beautifully made, she said.

Pami and Steve Singh, who own Taj India Cuisine in Edwardsville, will provide Indian cuisine from the north and the south that attendees can sample during the program.

The Republic of India is the seventh largest country in size, but the second most populous, with more than 1.2 billion people.

SIUE embraces cultural diversity, and Vanaik said the university holds an annual India night in April, complete with Indian dancing and food open to the public.

Armchair Traveler, now in its second year, previously featured Ireland and Cuba, both drawing large crowds. Vanaiks India program will be presented at 6 p.m., Monday, Feb. 27 in Hayner Librarys performance room at Alton Square Mall. Admission to the program is free. To register, call 800-613-3163. Seating is limited to 100.

http://thetelegraph.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_HaynerArmchairtravelerpenneyandgeet2836.jpgPenny Noble of Hayner Library, left, administers the Armchair Traveler series, which will feature Geet Vanaik, who is originally from India, on Monday, Feb. 27. Both are wearing decorate bindis on their foreheads. Vicki Bennington|For The Telegraph

http://thetelegraph.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_HaynerGeetVanaik2821.jpgArmchair Traveler will be presented Monday, Feb. 27, in Hayner Librarys performance room at Alton Square Mall, featuring Geet Vanaik, who will display dresses and accessories from India, along with a presentation and Indian food. Vicki Bennington|For The Telegraph

http://thetelegraph.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_MardiGrasBudShultz.jpgFor The Telegraph

Let the good times roll in Alton

Celebrate Mardi Gras in Alton. You dont need to travel to New Orleans or Soulard to observe the festivities.

New Orleans-style jazz will fill the Ahlemeyer Auditorium in the Trimpe Building at Lewis and Clark Community College at 6:30 p.m. on Fat Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Band leader and clarinetist Bud Shultz is joined by trumpet player Don James, trombonist Jim Sawyer, pianist Bob Picker, drummer Ken Link and bassist George Koprivica for the show.

Admission is free, but reservations are recommended. Call 800-613-3163.

Reach writer Vicki Bennington at [emailprotected] or Twitter @vicben1.

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Armchair Traveler: Alton's Hayner Library offers opportunity to 'travel' world - Alton Telegraph

China’s new supercomputer to be 10 times faster – The Hindu

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

China has started to build a new-generation supercomputer that is expected to be 10 times faster than the current world champion, a media report said.

This year, China is aiming for breakthroughs in high-performance processors and other key technologies to build the worlds first prototype exascale supercomputer, the Tianhe-3, said Meng Xiangfei, the director of application at the National Super Computer Tianjin Centre, on Monday.

The prototype is expected to be completed by 2018, the China Daily reported.

Its computing power is on the next level, cementing China as the world leader in supercomputer hardware, Meng said.

It would be available for public use and help us tackle some of the worlds toughest scientific challenges with greater speed, precision and scope, he added.

Tianhe-3 will be made entirely in China, from processors to operating system. It will be stationed in Tianjin and fully operational by 2020, earlier than the US plan for its exascale supercomputer, he said.

Tianhe-1, Chinas first quadrillion-level supercomputer developed in 2009, is now working at full capacity, undertaking more than 1,400 assignments each day, solving problems from stars to cells.

The exascale supercomputer will be able to analyse smog distribution on a national level, while current models can only handle a district, the daily said. Tianhe-3 also could simulate earthquakes and epidemic outbreaks in more detail, allowing swifter and more effective government responses, Meng said.The new machine also will be able to analyse gene sequence and protein structures in unprecedented scale and speed. That may lead to new discoveries and more potent medicine, he said.IANS

Exascale means it will be capable of making a quintillion (1 followed by 18 zeros) calculations per second. That is at least 10 times faster than the worlds current speed champ, the Sunway TaihuLight, Chinas first supercomputer to use domestically designed processors. That computer has a peak speed of 125 quadrillion

(1 followed by 15 zeros) calculations per second.

Google Rolls Out GPU Cloud Service – TOP500 News

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

The largest Internet company on the planet has made GPU computing available in its public cloud. Google announced this week that it has added the NVIDIA Tesla K80 to its cloud offering, with more graphics processor options on the way. The search giant follows Amazon, Microsoft and others into the GPU rental business.

According to a blog posted Tuesday, a user can attach up to four K80 boards, each of which houses two Kepler-generation GK210 GPUs and a total of 24GB of GDDR5 memory. The K80 delivers 2.9 teraflops of double precision performance or 8.73 teraflops of single precision performance, the latter of which is the more relevant metric for deep learning applications. Since were talking about a utility computing environment here, a user may choose to rent just a single GPU (half a K80 board) for their application.

The initial service is mainly aimed at AI customers, but other HPC users should take note as well. Although Google has singled out deep learning as a key application category, the company is also targeting other high performance computing applications, including, computational chemistry, seismic analysis, fluid dynamics, molecular modeling, genomics, computational finance, physics simulations, high performance data analysis, video rendering, and visualization

Googles interest in positioning its GPU offering to deep learning is partially the result of the in-house expertise and software the company has built in this area over the last several years. The new cloud-based GPU instance have been integrated with Googles Cloud Machine Learning (Cloud ML), a set of tools for building and managing deep learning codes. Cloud ML uses the TensorFlow deep learning framework, another Google invention, but which is now maintained as an open source project. Cloud ML helps users employ multiple GPUs in a distributed manner so that the applications can be scaled up, the idea being to speed execution.

The Tesla K80 instance is initially available as a public beta release in the Eastern US, Eastern Asia and Western Europe. Initial pricing is $0.70 per GPU/hour in the US, and $0.77 elsewhere. However, that doesnt include any host processors or memory. Depending on what you want, that can add as little as $0.05 per hour (for one core and 3.75 GB of memory), all the way up to more than $2 per hour (for 32 cores and 208 GB of memory). For a more reasonable configuration, say four host cores and 15 GB of memory, an additional $0.20 per hour would be charged.

That would make it roughly equivalent to the GPU instance pricing on Amazon EC2 and Microsoft Azure, which include a handful of CPU cores and memory by default. Both of those companies, which announced GPU instances for their respective clouds in Q4 2016, have set their pricing at $0.90 per GPU/hour. For users willing to make a three-year commitment, Amazon will cut the cost to $0.425 per GPU/hour via its reserved instance pricing.

IBMs SoftLayer cloud also has a number of GPU options, but they rent out complete servers rather than individual graphics processors. A server with a dual-GPU Tesla K80, two eight-core Intel Xeon CPUs, 128 GB of RAM, and a couple of 800GB SSDs will cost $5.30/hour. Other K80 server configurations are available for longer terms, starting at $1,359/month.

At this point, HPC cloud specialist Nimbix has what is probably the best pricing for renting GPU cycles. Theyre offering a K80-equipped server so two GPUs with four host cores and 32 GB of main memory for $1.06/hour. Thats substantially less expensive than any others cloud providers mentioned, assuming your application can utilize more than a single GPU. Nimbix is also the only cloud provider that currently offers a Tesla P100 server configuration, although that will cost you $4.95 per hour.

Even though the initial GPU offering from Google is confined to the Tesla K80 board, the company is promising NVIDIA Tesla P100 and AMD FirePro configuration are coming soon. The specific AMD device is likely to be the FirePro S9300 x2, a dual-GPU board that offers up to 13.9 teraflops of single precision performance. When Google previewed its accelerator rollout last November, it implied the FirePro S9300 x2 would be aimed at cloud customers interested in GPU-based remote workstations. The P100 is NVIDIAs flagship Tesla GPU, delivering 5.3 or 10.6 teraflops of double or single precision performance, respectively.

At this point, Google is in third place in the fast-growing public cloud space, trailing Amazon and Microsoft, in that order. Adding a GPU option is not likely to change that, but it does illustrate that graphics processor-based acceleration is continuing to spread across the IT datacenter landscape. Whereas once GPU acceleration was confined to HPC, with the advent of hyperscale-based machine learning, it quickly became standard equipment for hyperscale web companies involved in training neural networks. Now that more enterprise customers are looking to mine their own data for machine learning purpose, the GPU is getting additional attention. And for traditional HPC, many of the more popular software packages have already been ported to GPUs.

This all might be good news for Google, but its even better news for NVIDIA, and to a lesser extent AMD, which still stands to benefit from the GPU computing boom despite the companys less cohesive strategy. NVIDIA just announced a record revenue of 6.9 billion for fiscal 2017, driven, in part, by the Tesla datacenter business. That can only get better as GPU availability in the cloud becomes more widespread.

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Google Rolls Out GPU Cloud Service - TOP500 News

Opinion: Oregon patients should beware of stem cell therapy fraud – Portland Business Journal

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

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Feb 21, 2017, 12:02pm PST

David Russo Guest columnist

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Dr. David Russo is a physiatrist and pain management specialist at Columbia Pain more

Patients in Oregon seeking accurate information about stem cell therapy have few reliable sources to guide them. It can be hard to separate scientific facts from science fiction.

Query Dr. Google and youll find a slew of clinics and a broad range of practitioners proffering miracle cures for everything from asthma to wrinkles. On the Internet, it seems that everything is curable for the right price.

Dr. David Russo is a physiatrist and pain management specialist at Columbia Pain more

And stem cell science does offer the tremendous promise to help us understand and treat a range of diseases, injuries and other health-related conditions. For example, one long-established use of blood stem cells is to treat diseases of the blood and regrow bone marrow after certain kinds of cancer treatment.

To submit a guest column on a health care-related topic, please contact Elizabeth Hayes at ehayes@bizjournals.com

Another application can be seen in the use of stem cells for tissue grafts to treat diseases or injury to the bone, cartilage, tendon, skin, and even the surface of the eye. In fact, several clinical trials involving stem cells are underway for many other conditions, and researchers continue to explore new avenues for using stem cells in medicine.

Nonetheless, some practitioners rush results from this developing science into their exam rooms. Hearings conducted last year by FDA on the use of human cells, tissues, and cellular and tissue-based products (HCT/Ps) considered very narrow circumstances for using these products. Final guidance is pending, but the legitimate medical use of HCT/Ps depends upon meeting specific criteria to muster regulatory approval.

To wit, the use of adipose (fat) derived HCT/Ps for almost any purpose except cushioning or supporting other tissue could be tantamount to the illegal manufacturing of a drug and commission of a federal crime. Outside of exceptions related to scientific research, growing or modifying the function of HCT/Ps requires regulatory approval and a license from FDA before being used in humans.

Still, some unscrupulous doctors and clinics choose to thumb their nose at guidance and use HCT/Ps in unconventional ways that may place patients in harms way. Often these doctors and clinics fool patients into thinking they are involved in legitimate scientific studies or are otherwise exempt from federal law.

While I know enough not to be fooled by technical gobbledy-gook and sly legal double-speak, the average patient or physician does not. Notwithstanding certain kinds of autologous (taken from and replaced into the same patient) tissue products have well-established and evolving uses in medical practice, patients should still be wary of outlandish claims and promises.

In other words, autologous blood products, platelets, bone marrow and other tissue grafts may be useful and even medically necessary in some circumstances for optimal wound care, injury repair, or tissue healing. They could even spare patients the need for more invasive treatments. This is powerful technology in the armamentarium of a comprehensively trained physician.

However, practitioners and other parties who do not fully understand the science and current limitations may misuse these HCT/Ps or simply extort them for profit.

Oregons policymakers and licensing boards should partition qualified professionals using legitimate HCT/Ps away from the dubious purveyors of miracle cures who prey on vulnerable, chronically ill or seriously injured patients.

While this might be easier said than done, I suggest starting from first principles nearly everyone can agree on: Primum non nocere. First do no harm.

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Opinion: Oregon patients should beware of stem cell therapy fraud - Portland Business Journal

Stem cell therapy being used for osteoarthritis – WNDU 16 – WNDU-TV

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis in the US, affecting nearly twenty-seven million adults. It is currently an incurable disease in which the joints deteriorate. Now, a therapy that has been used in eye surgery and to heal the skin of burn victims is being used for the first time in knees and this new form of treatment involves stem cells from amniotic fluid.

As a professional photographer, climbing up step ladders and walking down stairs are part of the daily grind for 65-year-old Linda Schwartz.

"Theres constant activity; youre moving the whole time, really," said Schwartz.

But the pain of osteoarthritis in both of her knees was making all that activity a little harder.

"Tried cortisone shots. I had, um, something called Euflexxa. I was sent to physical therapy twice. I mean, I did try acupuncture in my knees. But it didnt really seem to make a difference," said Schwartz.

"Its like the rubber on the tire. So as you start to lose the rubber in your tire and the rim hits the road, thats what happens when you have bone on bone arthritis and youve lost all the cartilage in your knee," said dr. Adam Yanke, an orthopedic surgeon at rush university medical center.

Orthopedic surgeon Adam Yanke enrolled Schwartz in an experimental new therapy that involved injecting amniotic fluid that contained stem cells donated by healthy mothers into the knees of osteoarthritis patients.

"Between the two of those theyre a potent anti-inflammatory and they also have growth factors that help promote healing or healthy growth of tissue," said Dr. Yanke.

It was by far the most effective pain treatment that Schwartz has tried and, unlike cortisone shots, there are no side effects. The pain relief has so far lasted up to a year.

"It was a very gradual feeling of its a little bit better, its a little bit better, and then realizing, wow, its really pretty good," said Schwartz.

The one drawback is this therapy is not for patients whose arthritis is so bad it requires knee replacement surgery. Even though its still in the experimental stage, Dr. Yanke offers the stem cell treatment to his patients, but at a cost of 2200 dollars a shot, it is not yet covered by insurance.

TOPIC: Heart Attack: Slashing Door-To-Balloon Times REPORT: MB #4218

BACKGROUND: A heart attack is an event that occurs when the blood flow that transmits oxygen to the heart is severely reduced or stopped completely. One reason for this blood flow to become reduced is because of the blockage of an artery due to fat, cholesterol or plaque. About every 43 seconds, a person in America suffers from a heart attack. The most common symptoms of a heart attack are the following: * Chest discomfort, including uncomfortable pressure, squeezing or pain in the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and later comes back. * Discomfort in other areas of the body, including pain in the arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach. * Shortness of breath. * Cold sweat, nausea and lightheadedness The most common symptom in men is chest pain, whereas women are more likely to experience shortness of breath, vomiting and pain in other parts of the body.

(Source: http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HeartAttack/AboutHeartAttacks/About-Heart-Attacks_UCM_002038_Article.jsp)

ACTING FAST: Heart attacks are very delicate events, and in order to overcome them it is important to act fast. If you think you are suffering from a heart attack it is important to call 911 immediately in order to be treated as soon as possible in a hospital with treatments like balloon angioplasty, clot-dissolving drugs, surgery and/or a combination of all of the above.

(Source: http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HeartAttack/TreatmentofaHeartAttack/Treatment-of-a-Heart-Attack_UCM_002042_Article.jsp)

DOOR-TO-BALLOON: In order to save lives it is not only important that the patient acts fast, but the hospital does as well; every minute matters. Normally, severe heart attacks like a STEMI are treated with a door-to-balloon protocol. Door-to-balloon is the time that elapses from when a patient enters the door of the hospital to the time blood flow is circulating to heart again. The American College of Cardiology suggests that this time should be 90 minutes or less. In order for these times to be achieved it is important that everyone involved is working consistently and together; this includes doctors, nurses, paramedics, and pharmacists. There is a checklist these professionals have to follow and the data of each patient is posted daily. The Cleveland Clinic has been able to cut the door-to-balloon time almost in half. Thirty-five percent of their patients have had door-to-balloon times of 45 minutes or less and others were able to be treated in only 21 minutes. Researchers will soon publish the results of how their protocol reduces the overall time and how it is specifically impacting death rates.

(Source: Dr. Travis Gullet & https://consultqd.clevelandclinic.org/2016/05/streamlined-stemi-protocol-slashes-door-balloon-times/)

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS REPORT, PLEASE CONTACT: Andrea Pacetti pacetta@ccf.org

Stem cell therapy being used for osteoarthritis - WNDU 16 - WNDU-TV

Stem cell therapy adds pep to pets – Salina Journal (subscription)

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Danzig

COLUMBUS For the past year, Dr. Todd Paczosa has been practicing what he calls the future of medicine.

The veterinarian treats his four-legged patients through stem cell therapy.

Im not anti-antibiotic, anti-medicine. I just believe that even in the future of cancer treatment that it is going to come down to your body healing itself, Paczosa said.

The process involves removing fatty tissue from a patient, extracting stem cells, then injecting the cells back into the animal's joints to promote healing.

Paczosa said he researched the treatment for about a decade before deciding to offer it at Redstone Veterinary Hospital in Columbus.

Our body is full of cells that heal. You get cut, your body heals. What we are doing is taking those cells, waking them up and saying, Hey, lets go to work, he said.

Since he started offering stem cell therapy last March, 17 dogs, horses and cattle have used the treatment. One of those patients is Butch, a 9-year-old schnauzer owned by Marge Biester of Columbus that was suffering from a strained ligament and achy joints.

He was really hurting. I had to do something for him, Biester said, adding that Butch wasnt putting much weight on his back leg when he walked.

The treatment was done in January. Butch was put under anesthesia to retrieve the fat tissue. Using equipment in-house, the stem cells were extracted and injected back into the dog that same day.

Paczosa, who has been a veterinarian for 23 years, said the entire process can be done in a day.

Biester noticed results in about two weeks.Butch wasnt doing his three-legged walk anymore and began acting like a more-active, younger version of himself.

Im amazed at how quickly he recovered, she said.

Paczosa said all of the animals he has treated so far have shown improvement.

One of these days, we will have one that doesnt work. Thats just medicine, but we havent had one yet, he said.

The possibility of the stem cell therapy not working can be a turnoff for some pet owners who might find it difficult to spend $1,900 to $2,400 for the treatment at Redstone. If it does work, Paczosa said the therapy is less expensive in the long run than putting an animal on medication for extended periods of time to ease the pain from arthritis.

Other pluses, he said, are that the regenerative therapy isnt as invasive as surgery and anti-rejection drugs don't have to be used since the cells come from the same animal.More than one joint can also be treated at a time and it can eliminate the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

The biggest risks are putting the animal under anesthesia and infection of the surgical site where the fatty tissue is removed, typically from the shoulder area or abdomen.

Stem cell therapy is practiced at a few hundred veterinary clinics in the country. Redstone works with the animal stem cell company MediVet Biologics and uses that companys in-house technology.

Paczosa said owners have come from other states to use the therapy at his Columbus clinic.

Initial results from the procedure lasts about two years. An option to bank stem cells from a pet is available. A portion of what is taken can be stored in a lab and used again in the future.

For Paczosa's patients, results have been quick and ongoing.

Most owners have seen a dramatic improvement in two weeks. Our first patient is still seeing improvements, he said.

Stem cell therapy adds pep to pets - Salina Journal (subscription)

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