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Virtual Reality Could Be Your Next Prescription – DesignNews

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Hospital inpatients could soon be given a different type of prescription to manage their acute and chronic pain a healthy dose of virtual reality (VR).

Speaking at the Pacific Design and Manufacturing show, Dr. Vartan Tashjian, an internist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, and Josh Sackman, president and co-founder of AppliedVR, a Los Angeles-based VR company, talked about their research into the patient care benefits of VR. Their recent work points to the potential of using VR as a viable alternative to drug-based treatments.

A hospital room is not for comfort. They're for suffering, and patients are trapped there, Tashjian told the audience. We thought what a wonderful thing it would be to bring VR to the bedside to take our patients to fantastic destinations.

Tashjian provided some anecdotal evidence in the form of a video of a sickle cell anemia patient, hospitalized for over 100 days, seeming to forget all about his condition when exposed to a VR experience (roaming a photorealistic nature environment). I've been practicing medicine for a couple of years and there's not much that I can do that provides relief to patient that rapidly and that profoundly, Tashjian said of the video.

But Cedars-Sinai and AppliedVRhave also done research to back up these claims. In a study outlined by Tashjian, a group of patients exposed to VR showed a larger reduction in pain, and were more likely to experience a reduction in pain than a control group that was exposed to television for the same amount of time.

The researchers asked patients to report their pain on a scale of one to 10 (10 being the highest). They were then asked to put on a Samsung Gear VR headset and explore a 360-degree animated nature environment for six minutes. The control group watched a natural channel on TV for six minutes.

At the end of the study 40% of the TV group reported a reduction in pain after the experience. By contrast 65% of the VR group reported pain reduction. People watching TV had a reduction in pain, but when you compare that to VR there's no competition, Tashjian said. VR has a very unique style of decreasing someone's pain.

The VR treatment also scored a low number-needed-to-treat (or NNT) of four. The NNT measures the of the impact of a drug or therapy by estimating the number of patients that need to be treated in order for one person to be impacted. For drugs like morphine the NNT is more like 50, Tashjian said.

He added that the experience doesn't have to be limited to computer-generated environments either. Thanks to devices like the Samsung Gear 360 camera, patients can also have real environments streamed to them in VR and even speak remotely with people.

He also cautioned that VR is not a one-size-fits-all solution. VR is not for everyone. Why? Because a lot of people come into the hospital that have headaches, nasea, vomiting, seizures, trauma

Allegheny County teachers see how to open world to classrooms with virtual reality – Tribune-Review

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Updated 20 minutes ago

While most teachers spent the day in the classroom, social studies teacher Doug Kirchner spent Friday traveling the world.

As Kirchner pulled up on the controls, he zoomed past the Christ the Redeemer statue towering above Rio de Janeiro. Moments before, he hovered over the streets of Florence and Rome.

It's kind of jarring at first, said Kirchner as he gazed at the landscape, his face obscured by a virtual reality headset. But it didn't take long for him to come up with ways he could use the virtual reality experience in his classes.

It would be cool if you had kids try and find landmarks, he said, still immersed in a virtual world.

Kirchner, who teaches in the Upper St. Clair School District, was among 24 social studies teachers from across Allegheny County who attended Friday's training event at the Allegheny Intermediate Unit in Homestead. The sessions introduced teachers to a range of virtual reality tools, from the low-end Google Cardboard to the high-end HTC Vive, that could be suitable for classroom use.

It was the first training session of its kind hosted by the intermediate unit. But Tyler Samstag, director of instructional innovation, said it was only the beginning. Future sessions will help teachers think critically about how to plan lessons around virtual reality activities and ensure the exercises have real educational value.

According to Samstag, the overarching goal of the training session was to push educators to consider how they could present material in a radically new fashion and engage students in new learning experiences. For example, students can travel anywhere in the world or even back in time without leaving the classroom.

But Samstag, whose background is in humanities and special education, pointed out that virtual reality tools also have the potential to support students with special needs. The multisensory nature of virtual reality, a fully immersive visual and aural experience, could help to engage students at a range of points on the autism spectrum by giving them a safe space to explore and experiment with different activities, he said.

Educators like Eric Weimerskirch, a sixth-grade teacher in the Elizabeth Forward School District, are excited to use virtual reality to introduce students to different cultures and religions.

This is a great tool for breaking stereotypes, Weimerskirch said.

Virtual reality exercises would allow students, who Weimerskirch said may not have the chance to leave their small towns, to visit new places and learn about people who are different from them.

You're very much on your own, but you can collaborate with the greater world, Linda Muller, continuing professional education specialist at the intermediate unit, said of the virtual reality experience.

Despite the excitement of being able to expose students to new places and experiences or to be able to meet each student's unique learning needs in new ways, Muller acknowledged many challenges remain to making virtual reality work in the classroom.

The biggest hurdle schools will face is acquiring the technology, she said. While Google Cardboard headsets cost around $8-$15 per device, each user also needs a smart phone equipped with applications to run virtual reality videos. High-end devices could cost several hundred dollars and must be used with a compatible computer. In addition, all of this requires internet access. Internet speed and safety restrictions could be obstacles in some districts.

Challenges aside, many teachers at Friday's training session were confident that their students would be on board with virtual reality activities. The next step, for teachers, is making sure that students are prepared to learn something along the way.

I think they would really get into it, said Angie Kennon, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Elizabeth Forward.

Kennon said that she felt like Godzilla as she explored Manhattan from above using a high-end HTC Vive device.

But before students put the headsets on and explore new cities, Kennon said, they must be equipped with the knowledge to get something out of the experience. She suggested giving students assignments that would allow them to explore a place or event through more traditional research first.

In addition to considering the practical challenges, some teachers, like Molly Chester, a high school social studies teacher in Avonworth School District, took a more philosophical approach to thinking about the role of technology in the classroom. She thinks that educators must also be prepared to talk to students about how tools like virtual reality could have both a positive and negative impact on relationships in the physical world.

How is it going to impact our real-world experience? Chester said.

Jamie Martines is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 724-850-2867 or jmartines@tribweb.com.

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Allegheny County teachers see how to open world to classrooms with virtual reality - Tribune-Review

Ringling showcase offers glimpse of virtual reality in Sarasota – Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Thomas Becnel Staff Writer @thomasbecnel

SARASOTA Charlotte Suhler moved inside a human heart, craning her neck for a better look at the virtual reality of throbbing valves and pulsing muscles.

That was wild, she said, smoothing her hair after taking off a headset. Not scary fascinating to see whats inside you.

Ron Fowler took a virtual tour of an operating room that felt like a glimpse of the future.

It felt like I was almost in it, you know what I mean?" he said. "I was almost there. I can see how close they are.

Stacy Prouty took a swing at a tennis ball without leaving the Roskamp Exhibition Hall at the Ringling College of Art and Design.

Oh wow, she said. Im not a video gamer, but theres a very emotional reaction. It was exhilarating.

On Thursday evening, Ringling College and the Gulf Coast Community Foundation presented a technology showcase called "Seeing the Future in Virtual Reality. A few hundred guests got their first look at what everyone kept calling VR.

They struggled to describe an experience that feels less like cinema and more like role playing.

Theres no amount of explaining it to someone, said Jim McCampbell, head of the Ringling computer animation program. They have to see it.

'Blow people's minds'

Guest speakers for the showcase included Scott Ross and Brett Leonard, entertainment executives who lead a new media company in California called Virtuosity VR.

Were the Hollywood guys, Ross joked.

He was serious, though, about the idea of change coming sooner rather than later in all facets of modern life. There are applications for virtual reality in every field science and medicine, business and commerce, education and entertainment.

I guarantee this will be the future, Ross said. Its a totally new and immersive medium that will change the world. We see opportunities that will blow peoples minds.

Local speakers included Jeff Hazelton, chief technology officer for the Sharecare Reality Lab in Sarasota. He talked about using virtual reality to explore the body in medical programs such as the Dr. Oz television program.

Were reaching a lot of people, he said. There are huge opportunities in virtual reality, and its happening right here in Sarasota."

Rust Bucket ride

Teddy Mundy offered people an airship ride through a virtual experience called Rust Bucket.

His senior project puts people at the controls of an airship they must pilot through a swamp. The best part is watching newcomers enter a virtual world for the first time.

Its really fun just seeing how people react and move, Mundy said. Until they take off the headset thats one of my favorite things and theyre like, Whoa!

Dale Strohl was one of the Ringling guests who took a Rust Bucket ride. He wasnt disappointed.

You could actually pilot the ship, he marveled. At first, I thought Id have problems with the controls, but I didnt. It felt like I was there.

Strohl cant wait to see what Hollywood will do with this dramatic new medium.

Its already a thing, he said. But its going to be a helluva thing.

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Ringling showcase offers glimpse of virtual reality in Sarasota - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

The Little Glass Boy – Hyperallergic

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Fred Valentine, The Little Glass Boy (2016), charcoal on disrupted paper, 22 x 32 inches

I often turn to drawing during tough times. It is less of a respite and more of a regroup. I have drawings that I work on over a number of years. This is one of them. My subjects need breath, blood, and DNA to be convincing. If they dont have it I put it them on a back burner. They lie in the flat file like a body on a slab at a cryonics lab. There will come a time. We will meet again.

I found that time on an early autumn morning during the final weeks of the campaign. The country was being hijacked by an evil and dangerous huckster. A sociopathic bully who wants to rob the country of its life and dreams was all anyone was talking about. Its the fragile, defenseless, and invisible ones who will take the hit and feel it first. They always do. That brings me to the backstory of this drawing.

Forty-five years ago I had attitude, a young mans swagger. I was a bit of a punk and usually ready for a fight. That made me a repeated target for the local police.

On one particular morning I arrived three hours late for Ed Colstons three hour class. Ed Colston had facial hair like Malcolm X; he wore kente cloth dashikis and very often sunglasses. He spoke in a gravelly voice just above a whisper. When I arrived the classroom was empty except for Mr. Colston. I was beginning to explain myself when he said, I know, I heard. I was arrested the night before but this time couldnt afford bail. I had to spend the night in jail and wait for an early morning court appearance. He appreciated the energy and pedal to the metal pace that I kept but was concerned about my recklessness, I suppose. He asked if he could show me something. We arrived at his studio and he pulled out a painting. It was the only painting that he showed me in a roomful of paintings. Its called Little Black Sambo with a Hard On for Life. he whispered in my ear. And then we left.

Over the years that painting has come to mean, among other things, strength and a sparkling yet bruised resilience. When Ed showed it to me that morning, it was one of the sweetest and most genuinely human gestures Ive ever been given.

Forty-five years ago was also a time of great divide and anger. I think about Ed and his Little Black Sambo often and I mean often. Because he understood. That is what caring people do. That is what he did and why he did it.

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The Little Glass Boy - Hyperallergic

Cannabis providers feel tension between clinical and alternative medicine – The Cannabist

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

The Cannabist

Cannabis providers feel tension between clinical and alternative medicine
The Cannabist
Now, Charles, CEO of PA Cannabis LLC, hopes to bring medical marijuana to Main Street via a dispensary that offers patients a holistic approach to health, private off-street parking and a comfortable ski-lodge-like atmosphere, smack in the middle of ...

Consumers at risk from drug ingredients in herbal food supplements – The Pharmaceutical Journal

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Source: Shutterstock.com

Consumers are unknowingly at risk from herbal supplements that can contain unlisted pharmacological ingredients.

Consumers are being put at risk from herbal supplements available over the counter that contain pharmacological ingredients not listed on the product label, according to research published in the Journal of the Association of Public Analysts[1] (2016;44:051-066). Unlisted ingredients included medications used to treat erectile dysfunction, stimulants and banned substances used in diet pills as well as unauthorised food ingredients.

A group of British food and biomolecular scientists with a special interest in food safety sought out evidence of illegal ingredients discovered in supplements by reviewing cases reported to the European Unions Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF), along with enforcement reports and recalls issued by the US Food and Drug Administration between 2009 and 2016.

When they considered the EU database, the researchers found that the most reported pharmacological ingredients in food supplements were: sildenafil (including analogues) (68 cases); sibutramine and derivatives (63); 1,3-dimethylamylamine (DMAA; 58) synephrine, phenethylamine and derivatives (37); yohimbine (30) and tadalafil (29).

When they examined the FDA database the findings were similar: sibutramine (16 cases); sulfoaildenafil (13); sildenafil (10); tadalafil (9); hydroxythiohomosildenafil (5) and dimethylsildenafil (3).

The researchers also found evidence of food supplements containing permitted food additives in excess of their limits, unauthorised food ingredients, unauthorised nutritionally-related compounds, excess vitamins and one case of the poison strychnine.

The researchers warn that their findings mean that consumers were unknowingly being put at risk.

Many people consume large quantities of food supplements without knowing the potential interactions with other supplements or drugs that they may be taking in parallel, the researchers say in their paper. Food supplements are regulated as foodstuffs and not with the same pre-sales rigour as medicines. Hence, the safety of food supplement consumption is often questionable.

Tadalafil and sildenafil are usually prescribed for the treatment of erectile dysfunction and if taken with other drugs that contain nitrates can lower blood pressure drastically. Yohimbine, used as an aphrodisiac, can cause bronchospasm and a lupus-like syndrome; the product can also increase blood pressure and induce anxiety, the researchers warn. And studies that have examined the effects of sibutramine have indicated that the drug could be associated with adverse effects such as panic attacks, memory impairments and psychotic episodes, they add.

The researchers go on to say that in order to protect consumer health, adequate methods to be able to analyse these illegal and potentially toxic products in food supplements need to be put in place.

They suggest that the first choice for screening food supplements for the top six pharmacological compounds discovered by their review, should be high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry (MS). They suggest that if nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry is available this could be an excellent first-line method of control for herbal food supplements.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the government body that regulates medicines, medical devices and blood components for transfusion in the UK, says that it is aware of the study. While food supplements are the responsibility of the Food Standards Agency, the MHRA investigates the sale and supply of undeclared pharmaceutical ingredients that may be added to food supplements.

An MHRA spokesperson comments; The Internet offers access to a vast number of websites offering a wide range of products marketed as slimming pills or male enhancement. Many make attractive claims and offer quick-fix solutions; others offer natural products. But natural doesnt always mean safe.

The reality is many of these pills will be untested. That means theres no way of knowing whats in them or what they might do to your health in the short term or long term. Chances are they simply will not work but they may contain potentially harmful ingredients. The consequences can be very serious.

The MHRA is running a #FakeMeds campaign that highlights some of the dangers around food supplements. Consumers can identify a legitimate supplier by looking for the distance selling logo, adds the spokesperson.

Citation: The Pharmaceutical Journal, PJ February 2017 online, online | DOI: 10.1211/PJ.2017.20202308

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Consumers at risk from drug ingredients in herbal food supplements - The Pharmaceutical Journal

Borderline products: Marketing food supplements in the UK following the glucosamine case – JD Supra (press release)

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

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Borderline products: Marketing food supplements in the UK following the glucosamine case - JD Supra (press release)

A Supplement Company Sued Over Research It Didn’t Like And Lost – Consumerist

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Unlike FDA-approved medications, makers of dietary supplements are not required to demonstrate that their products are safe or effective. That shouldnt stop independent researchers from doing their own tests to find out if a product works or is dangerous, but when one Harvard professor tried to do just that, supplement makers tried to shut him up..

STATnews has an in-depth profile of Dr. Pieter Cohen, a researcher and industry watchdog who has been digging into dietary supplements and so-called all natural ingredients for years.

That includes an amphetamine-like substance called beta-methylphenethylamine (BMPEA) that has been found to send blood pressure and heart rate soaring in dogs and cats, notes STAT, pointing out that the chemical has been linked to at least one stroke, and that Canadian officials have called BMPEA a serious health risk.

In 2014, Food and Drug Administration scientists found BMPEA in nine purportedly all-natural supplements instead of the Acacia rigidula plant listed on the label. However, the FDA stayed mum as to the products named or the manufacturers that made them.

That prompted Cohen and his colleagues to try to replicate those findings and publicize the specific brands using BMPEA. In the resulting study published in the scientific journal Drug Testing and Analysis in April 2015, his team says they chemically analyzed 21 popular supplements, made by various manufacturers, all labeled as containing Acacia rigidula. Eleven of those were positive for BMPEA, in some cases at potentially dangerous levels.

Consumers of Acacia rigidula supplements may be exposed to pharmacological dosages of an amphetamine isomer that lacks evidence of safety in humans, concluded the 2015 paper, noting that the data strongly suggested this BMPEA was not naturally occurring, but was being added to spike the final product.

The same month that report was released, the FDA issued warning letters to makers of dietary supplements, including a company called Hi-Tech, whose products had accounted for a majority of the supplements that tested positive for BMPEA in Cohens study.

BMPEA is a substance that does not meet the statutory definition of a dietary ingredient, the agency notes. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act defines a dietary ingredient as a vitamin; mineral; herb or other botanical; amino acid; dietary substance for use by man to supplement the diet by increasing the total dietary intake; or a concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract, or combination of the preceding substances. BMPEA is none of these, rendering misbranded any products that declare BMPEA as a dietary supplement.

A few days later, the FDA continued the crackdown, notifying the makers of products to stop sales.

On that same day, April 28, Hi-Tech filed a lawsuit [PDF] in U.S. District Court in the companys home state of Georgia against Cohen and the studys three co-authors for $200 million. Cohen says he didnt know he was being sued until he came across a report of the lawsuit in a supplement industry trade publication.

Hi-Techs owner and CEO Jared Wheat blamed Cohen for costing the company an immediate $14 million in lost business. Wheat says he received hundreds of supportive calls and emails in relation to the lawsuit, from people hoping that we were able to silence this guy.

A judge in Georgia dismissed that lawsuit in the spring of 2016, however, because Cohen didnt do any of his work in that state.

Nothing in Plaintiffs allegations would show that Defendant Cohen wrote the article or made any additional statements with the purpose of directing them at Hi-Tech, the Georgia Plaintiff, the judge wrote in that decision. The alleged offending article relates only to -methylphenylethylamine (BMPEA) and whether it is a substance that occurs naturally in Acacia rigidula.

Hi-Tech then refiled the lawsuit [PDF] in Massachusetts, dropping the studys co-authors as defendants and nixing the demand for $200 million in damages.

Last summer, a federal judge ruled that Hi-Tech had a 7th Amendment right to a jury trial. That required Cohen to turn over hundreds of pages of his notes, peer-review feedback, and his written correspondences with the journal, coauthors, and journalists.

At the trial, which started in October, Hi-Tech accused Cohen of ignoring fundamental canons and methods of scientific investigation, and of making allegedly false statements about BMPEA. The company maintained that the BMPEA in its products occurred naturally, counter to Cohens contentions.

In the end, the jury wasnt buying it. On Nov. 1, 2016 they ruled in Cohens favor, putting an end to this legal ordeal for the researcher.

He is now back to work: Days after he won the trial, he submitted a new study for publication, and has three new projects in motion this year. In his view, the arrival of the Trump administration means its more important than ever to hold the FDA responsible for enforcing the law.

My experience has really reinforced to me why it is so important to not only continue the research were doing but to be very aggressive about speaking out about it, Cohen says, adding that if one research paper could lead to an exhausting trial, it could have a chilling effect on others in his line of work.

Wheat, the CEO of Hi-Tech, hopes thats the case, he tells STAT.

I spent a lot of money, but hopefully it will deter others from going out there and making baseless allegations, Wheat said. His advice to other academics: Think twice and do better research, knowing you can get sued if you do this.

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A Supplement Company Sued Over Research It Didn't Like And Lost - Consumerist

Ava DuVernay’s Oscar-nominated ’13th’ documentary aims to unlock the truth – The Pasadena Star-News

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Ava DuVernay has been up until 12:30 a.m. shooting A Wrinkle in Time for Disney, but the director of Selma is enthused to finally talk about the Oscar-nominated documentary 13th.

The former publicist is the first woman of color to direct a live-action film with a production budget of more than $100 million. Last fall, she premiered her first television show, the well-received Queen Sugar, which aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network.

So DuVernay hasnt much time to discuss her powerful documentary released in October which is up for Oscar and BAFTA awards.

13th takes its title from the amendment that outlawed slavery in 1865, though with the caveat except as a punishment for a crime.

The documentary, available on Netflix, examines how that clause has led to a mass-incarceration system that disproportionately imprisons African-American men. In many of the for-profit institutions, inmates are then used as cheap labor, employed for pennies by major companies, creating a de facto form of slavery.

A note here: DuVernay and I were phone acquaintances in her PR days, although we never met. So it was a pleasure to finally meet her in person. What follows is an edited version of our conversation about 13, and what led her to do the film, including an emotional story from when she grew up in Compton.

Q Has the film been getting the response you were hoping for?

A I have been shocked. I really didnt think it would have this much attention, and I did not think that people react to it as emotionally as they have. It is an intimate topic. It is really about the way that we think about race in this country, regardless of who you are and how we engage with each other and what our belief system is. There are some things in this doc that challenge what we believed or even thought we knew. Its a little disconcerting when we realize what we dont know. I thought it would sit on Netflix as a resource for teachers. I really didnt think it would cross into a cultural zeitgeist kind of thing.

Q Are you getting response from legislators?

A Yes, as a teaching tool like Congressman John Lewis and Sen. Cory Booker. Those people are using it as an entry point to talk to their communities and constituents. I havent heard about any pushback from the other side. Havent heard anything from anyone on the right or any conservatives. Its been oddly quiet.

Q When you made this, it was before the presidential election and reforms were being pushed; now with President Trump in the White House, the film is more relevant than ever.

A Stock in private prisons shot up the day after his election. The executive orders that hes signing signal his intention to bolster policies and practices that favor those who profit off of the least of us. Prisons are clearly in the bulls-eye for this. The deregulation through executive is moving to a place that will undo a lot of work that has been done by a bipartisan coalition taking steps toward reform.

Q What can be done?

A Its important that people continue to assert what they believe. I believe in the power people have and the power in the protest. That isnt just pie in the sky stuff. Three years ago, the Black Lives matter movement was happening and people thought this is a moment, but there has been a concerted, concentrated effort with deliberate action that has not stopped since that day. The Civil Rights Movement at its height was over 10 years. In the two weeks of Trumps presidency, weve seen spontaneous protests at airports and huge numbers at the womens marches all around the country expressing their dissent. Its going to be more crucial now than ever to continue do that, and for artists to continue to promote that and do what we can to amplify it.

Q How did you come to the project?

A I was an African American studies major at UCLA. We were encouraged to do a deep dive into the Constitution, and it has just kind of been putting together the pieces from there understanding there is a direct correlation between that clause and the mass incarceration that were experiencing now. At first, I hadnt done the research to connect the dots, but with some 2.3 million people behind bars it seemed there was something to that. So I began tracing and tracking it and really being able to get down to the kind of granular policies legislation signed that actually perpetuated it. It was important to break down the images of the war on drugs and what was perpetuated by the media. So the assignment for myself was to focus on prison for profit, the way that many companies are profiting on punishment.

Q You reached out to conservatives in the documentary, like Newt Gingrich.

A I know what I think, but it was important to reach out to Republicans and Democrats and liberals. I wanted this to be a conversation like a master class from people of all walks of life. Sometimes we learn from people who dont think anything like us.

Q Youve been pretty busy.

A These films are my children. I dont have kids, and Im not going to have kids. So this is what Im leaving behind. But for this film, I havent had a chance to go out there and beat the drum for it.

Q It seems like everyone in the black community Ive talked to feel connected to this film because of things that happened in their lives.

A Growing up in Compton, police aggression and issues of incarceration were all around. I have a very, very small family. So theres no one in my direct family involved, but when every black man you know has a police story, a lot of the people have been directly touched by it. I tell this story on this Netflix special I did with Oprah about my father being tackled in our backyard in Compton because the police were running through peoples backyards looking for someone else. My father was in the backyard watering the grass. Hes a very dignified man a beautiful, beautiful man. He was tackled to the ground like a criminal, handcuffed in front of his family, cursed at I saw all this berated and belittled because they thought he was a criminal. They had no respect for his property a man in his own backyard and they couldnt hear his protests. These are the kinds of incidences that many people of color in this country are scarred with, and so when I watch 13th, it has a particular vibe to it for me.

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Ava DuVernay's Oscar-nominated '13th' documentary aims to unlock the truth - The Pasadena Star-News

Can Russia project power while battered by economic woes … – MENAFN.COM

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

(MENAFN - Asia Times) As the United States foreign policy under new President Donald Trump is still faltering and China refrains from becoming a full global playmaker, Russia and its post-Soviet helmsman Vladimir Putin are apparently calling the shots in the world stage.

From the Baltic in Europe to the South China Sea in East Asia, a Russian diplomatic cobweb has in fact been spun across the Eurasian continent and its appendices in North Africa. Now, the question is whether Moscow will be able to handle this strategic over-extension, which entails the use of considerable resources, while its economy is in bad shape.

Many believe that the Kremlin's current transcontinental projection will not be halted by the country's economic problems; and this because Russia included in its Soviet configuration has always been an imperial power capable of facing up to structural economic weaknesses.

According to this vision, economic liabilities historically have never prevented the Russian bear from expanding its territorial boundaries to prop up the nation's internal security. In this equation, the Russian rulers would have successfully leveraged on the deeply-rooted patriotic sentiment of their people, who have showed a strong resilience to material shortages through the centuries.

So, encouraged by the perceived vulnerability of the US, which is linked to many factors, among them former President Barack Obama's decision to shift focus from Europe and the Middle East to Asia-Pacific, Donald Trump's shocking electoral triumph, a confused presidential transition and a turbulent start of tenure for the new US commander-in-chief, it is reasonable to expect that Russia will continue to move on many fronts, regardless of its economic woes.

Moscow's hunt for geopolitical influence is indeed remarkable, starting from its squabbling with the European Union (EU) and Northern Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Eastern Europe, where it has been supporting separatist rebel groups in eastern Ukraine after annexing Crimea in 2014. The Kremlin is also developing a robust military apparatus in the Baltic area and reactivating military capabilities in the Arctic region.

The post-Soviet space from the Caucasus to Central Asia obviously remains Russia's strategic backyard. Still, the Kremlin will insist on playing the kingmaker's role in the Syrian crisis while trying to extend its clout in the Middle East and North Africa. In this sense, Moscow is enhancing ties with Egypt, eying a possible part in the Libyan peace process and cautiously monitoring developments in the worn-torn Yemen.

Furthermore, the Russian diplomacy is reaching out to Afghanistan, where it is working to find a diplomatic solution to the current civil war, quite separately from Washington. To conclude, Russia has a visible presence in the Pacific region, where it still has to settle the age-old territorial row with Japan over the Kuril Islands; Moscow is also an important stakeholder in dealing with the North Korean nuclear threat, discreetly teams up with China on the South China Sea territorial disputes and has even promised naval help to the Philippines against piracy in the Sulu and Celebes seas.

Russia/Soviet Union found itself in a similar situation between 1974 and 1979, when it raised the stakes in the confrontation with the US. In the space of six years, in fact, the Kremlin displayed a wide-ranging foreign policy that led many to believe that it was going to win the Cold War. All of this as Washington was struggling with a deep political and identity crisis amid a climate of widespread cultural contestation, marked by President Richard Nixon's resignation due to the Watergate scandal and the country's defeat in the Vietnam War.

Moscow tried to profit from the American apparent disorientation during that period and launched its multi-pronged challenge. It backed communist guerrillas in Central America and sent military 'advisers' in Angola and Mozambique. In these two African countries, which had just gained independence from Portugal, the Russian troops supported along with Cuban soldiers the local Marxist armed formations in their efforts to seize power.

Then, Russian regular and irregular military personnel came to the rescue of Ethiopia as this was fighting the Ogaden War against Somalia. In addition, Moscow strengthened further its ties with the Baathist regime in Syria, buttressed the communist-leaning government in Southern Yemen, where it had naval facilities, and sustained Vietnam's occupation of Cambodia against the pro-Chinese Khmer Rouge regime. Lastly, the Soviet Red Army placed the icing on the cake by invading Afghanistan.

This far-flung foreign commitment proved to be largely unsustainable in the short-run. In the 1970s, the Soviet Union was in a critical economic situation, largely dependent on grain and technology supplies from the US, with a centralized and inefficient political system and a natural resource-based economy resembling an underdeveloped country's. A picture that has several similarities with the current health of the Russian economy, hit hard by years of budget deficit. Though a timid recovery is forecast in 2017, at the recent Gaidar Economic Forum, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warned the nation against the structural problems of Russia's economy, particularly its technological gap with developed countries, the dependence on commodity export at a time of low oil and gas prices and the excessive public role in the productive processes.

Thus, a hypertrophic foreign conduct, not backed up by a solid economy, contributed to the fall of the Soviet empire along with other geopolitical and cultural factors. If Russia wants to avoid this outcome and protract the 'Putinian Pax' for a while, it will have to eliminate this antinomy; or, at least, it will have to find creative alternatives. The idea of using money and propaganda to bolster the rise of anti-EU and anti-NATO populist movements in Europe could serve this purpose. Unless, like in the 1980s, the Western world comes out with new, effective antidotes to the Russian advance.

Share Tweet Linkedin Email Russia Donald Trump United States China Vladimir Putin NATO Emanuele Scimia Emanuele Scimia is a journalist and foreign policy analyst. He is a contributing writer to the South China Morning Post and the Jamestown Foundation's Eurasia Daily Monitor. In the past, his articles have also appeared in The National Interest, Deutsche Welle, World Politics Review, The Jerusalem Post and the EUobserver, among others. He has written for Asia Times since 2011.

Can Russia project power while battered by economic woes ... - MENAFN.COM

Automation can revitalize the US workforce – Fox News

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

In the face of growing workplace automation, a number of commentators have painted a grim future for American workers. But most human capital leaders see a much brighter future one where automation helps revitalize U.S. manufacturing and increases the demand for skilled workers.

According to global talent management firm Randstad Sourcerights survey of over 400 corporate HR leaders, automation and robotics are likely to have a positive impact on U.S. business growth in 2017, and will be one of the driving forces behind new hiring trends over the next several years.

Regardless of how you feel about robots, the move toward automation and artificial intelligence cannot be stopped. About 15 percent of global HR leaders say that robotics completely transformed their businesses in 2016, and more than double (31%) expect automation to have an even greater influence in 2017.

Rather than feeling threatened by this new technology, nearly two-thirds (65%) of the HR leaders we spoke with said they see artificial intelligence and robotics having a positive impact on their businesses over the next three to five years. Across all the major industry sectors surveyed, respondents were optimistic about technologys ability to reduce costs, improve quality and increase output.

It is easy to assume that these productivity gains are made at the expense of workers. In reality, this technology actually has increased demand for flexible, mobile workers with skills and agility that machines are not even close to matching. While 26 percent of those surveyed said their businesses increased the use of automation and robotics in 2016, over 34 percent said they hired extensively over the same period just to keep up with company growth.

In fact, the HR leaders we surveyed indicated that a scarcity of skilled workers was driving employment demands in certain areaslike marketing, sales and IT/technicalwhere robotics will likely never displace the advantage of human intelligence. Indeed, well over one-third of respondents anticipate hiring more workers in these areas over the next year.

But workers with the right combination of skills and experience are hard to come by. Many workers are structuring their work hours in ways that allow them to work many different jobs, across several geographical locations. As a result, more companies are rethinking their talent management to account for more short-term, offsite workers. Of the HR leaders we surveyed, more than two-thirds (66%) said they are considering moving toward a talent management model that would more easily integrate contingent workers. They see the shift toward flexible talent as a sound strategy that can help companies access a larger pool of talent, such as parents with young children and retirees who may not want a traditional 9-to-5 job.

For some commentators, the investment in automation and contingent employees signals an upheaval in the economy that will not benefit American workers. But that perspective may be short-sited. In fact, automation and robotics can make U.S. manufacturing more cost-competitive, while increasing the number of high-paying, skilled jobs available for humans. Instead of 50 foreign workers being paid rock bottom wages to complete a job by hand, the same job will be accomplished by one skilled U.S. worker running a robot and earning a middle-class salary. This combination of increased automation and a more mobile, contingent workforce can reduce manufacturing costs and make it easier for companies to build their factories in the U.S. The end result is a better educated, higher paid American workforce.

Change can be difficult. We are witnessing a major shift in the way business does business. But most HR leaders see technology as providing workers with new opportunities (and also with new priorities). These recent changes in workforce management need not be seen as the catastrophe some suggest. If Randstad Sourcerights 2017 Talent Trends Report is any indication, robots are far more likely to benefit American workers than replace them.

Rebecca Henderson is the CEO of Randstad Sourceright, one of the worlds leading human resources providers.

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Automation can revitalize the US workforce - Fox News

Automation Nightmare: Philosopher Warns We Are Creating a World Without Consciousness – Big Think

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Recently, a conference on artificial intelligence, tantalizingly titled Superintelligence: Science or Fiction?, was hosted by the Future of Life Institute, which works to promote optimistic visions of the future.

The conference offered a range of opinions on the subject from a variety of experts, including Elon Musk of Tesla Motors and SpaceX, futurist Ray Kurzweil, Demis Hassabis of MITs DeepMind, neuroscientist and author Sam Harris, philosopher Nick Bostrom, philosopher and cognitive scientist David Chalmers, Skype co-founder Jaan Tallinn, as well as computer scientists Stuart Russell and Bart Selman. The discussion was led by MIT cosmologist Max Tegmark.

The conversation's topics centered on the future benefits and risks of artificial superintelligence, with everyone generally agreeing that its only a matter of time before AI becomes paramount in our lives. Eventually, AI will surpass human intelligence, with the ensuing risks and transformations. And Elon Musk, for one, thinks its rather pointless to be concerned as we are already cyborgs, considering all the technological extensions of ourselves that we depend on a daily basis.

A worry for Australian philosopher and cognitive scientist David Chalmers is creating a world devoid of consciousness. He sees the discussion of future superintelligences often presume that eventually AIs will become conscious. But what if that kind of sci-fi possibility that we will create completely artificial humans is not going to come to fruition? Instead, we could be creating a world endowed with artificial intelligence but not actual consciousness.

David Chalmers speaking. Credit: Future of Life Institute.

Heres how Chalmers describes this vision (starting at 22:27 in Youtube video below):

For me, that raising the possibility of a massive failure mode in the future, the possibility that we create human or super human level AGI and we've got a whole world populated by super human level AGIs, none of whom is conscious. And that would be a world, could potentially be a world of great intelligence, no consciousness no subjective experience at all. Now, I think many many people, with a wide variety of views, take the view that basically subjective experience or consciousness is required in order to have any meaning or value in your life at all. So therefore, a world without consciousness could not possibly a positive outcome. maybe it wouldn't be a terribly negative outcome, it would just be a 0 outcome, and among the worst possible outcomes.

Chalmers is known for his work on the philosophy of mind and has delved particularly into the nature of consciousness. He famously formulated the idea of a hard problem of consciousness which he describes in his 1995 paper Facing up to the problem of consciousness as the question of why does the feeling which accompanies awareness of sensory information exist at all?"

His solution to this issue of an AI-run world without consciousness? Create a world of AIs with human-like consciousness:

I mean, one thing we ought to at least consider doing there is making, given that we don't understand consciousness, we don't have a complete theory of consciousness, maybe we can be most confident about consciousness when it's similar to the case that we know about the best, namely human human consciousness... So, therefore maybe there is an imperative to create human-like AGI in order that we can be maximally confident that there is going to be consciousness, says Chalmers (starting at 23:51).

By making it our clear goal to fully recreate ourselves in all of our human characteristics, we may be able to avoid a soulless world of machines becoming our destiny. A warning and an objective worth considering while we can. Yet it sounds from Chalmerss words that as we dont understand consciousness, perhaps this is a goal doomed to failure.

Please check out the excellent conference in full here:

Cover photo:

Robots ready to produce the new Mini Cooper are pictured during a tour of the BMW's plant at Cowley in Oxford, central England, on November 18, 2013. (Photo credit: ANDREW COWIE/AFP/Getty Images)

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Automation Nightmare: Philosopher Warns We Are Creating a World Without Consciousness - Big Think

Why Don’t We See More Automation in Federal Networks? – Nextgov

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

John Breeden II is an award-winning journalist and reviewer with over 20 years of experience covering technology and government. He is currently the CEO of theTech Writers Bureau,a group that creates technological thought leadership content for organizations of all sizes. Twitter: @LabGuys

Over the past few months, I was fortunate enough to be asked to evaluate several cutting-edge technologies designed to make government networks more secure. Some of these were more advanced than others, and a few were hindered by newer technologies like cloud computing. But they all showed a great deal of promise for the federal government if deployed correctly.

One of the most interesting possibilities is creating an event-driven architecture to add automation to the federal defensive arsenal. Given a single router can generate over 100,000 data points every few seconds, any network of any size quickly grows beyond the ability for even teams of humans to protect 100 percent effectively. There is just too much dataand not enough analysts.

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Attackers know this, and use all that data as cover to remain undetected once they breach a network. That is why the latest Mandiant M-Trends 2016 Report found most organizations were breached for 146 days before the successful attack was discovered. The government is no exception to this rule.

Automation could be the answer, reducing the time from detection to remediation from months to seconds. The basic concept is simple enough. It uses the power of the network itself to counter threats, making it a machine versus machine affair. Thats not unlike the classic "WarGames" movie, where a young Matthew Broderick gets the WOPR computer to play itself in a game to teach it futility.

The concept of automation in cybersecurity can be broken down into three basic levels. At the first and most-basic level is human-driven automation. A human operator needs to do something, like check a series of network devices for compliance issues, so they activate a script to do the heavy lifting. This can cut down on operator workload and help with odorous chores like patch management, but doesnt improve breach response times.

At the second level, which makes the most sense for federal agencies, there is event-driven automation. At level two, humans teach computers their various processes. If a computer goes down, they open a trouble ticket, or if a virus is detected, they wipe the system and restore the core operating system.

Humans set those event triggers and program what responses to automatically take. Then, they can remove themselves from the loop, though they can also keep a hand in things, such as having a computer notify a supervisor about a particularly dangerous trigger.

Computers are never actually doing anything beyond what they are taught, but can respond to security events at machine speed, automating the remediation of many threats, especially low-level ones, and freeing up analysts to work on larger projects or trickier situations.

The final level is almost science fiction at this point, though there have been glimpses of what could one day be possible in things like IBMs Watson and Googles AlphaGo software. At that level, computers still respond to events, but also program their own triggers and responses, possibility making processes even more efficient than the original human-driven plan.

So why dont we see more automation in federal networks, even at level two?

The answer is to get there requires both hardware and software. The software is available, but you also really need to have event-driven hardware in your network to take advantage of all of automations benefits. That is ready too, but installing it piece by piece could be a slow process. In an event-driven network, devices should be built so they can interface with one another to open the doorway to true automation. Specifically, they should all have:

Once the hardware is in place, and several companies do offer automation-ready gear, the triggers and responses can be programmed to help fight cybersecurity threats at machine speed. The computers can do everything an analyst does without getting tired,hungry or bored.

Beyond just cybersecurity, having an event-driven architecture in place also opens new efficiencies. Automation can, for example, be used in data centers for the automatic provisioning of software-defined networks based on customer needs, establishing micro-segments or automating the application of services by applying service-chaining.

There are some impressive capabilities in this field, but the first benefits of automation for most agencies will most certainly be in cybersecurity. Especially now with a critical shortage of analysts and the government not hiring anyone new, technologies like automation need to be quickly deployed before agencies start to get steamrolled under the next wave of advanced attacks.

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Why Don't We See More Automation in Federal Networks? - Nextgov

Improving Behavior Through Automation of Vehicle Systems – School Transportation News (blog)

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

When we learn of, or experience a school bus accident with passenger injuries, we all sit back and ask what caused it, how can we prevent it from happening again, and what now?

The resulting outcome of the accident investigation shows us that most all crashes are often the result of operational or behavioral failure. As regulators converge on the details of the accident, we eventually learn what contributed to the failure in behavior and the severity of the accident. It may have resulted from an equipment related issue, or a lack of defined and implemented safety management practices, or maintenance practice, or driver training, or lack of refresher training, or driver road supervision monitoring, or driver error. The list goes on.

From the investigative final report, we learn what we can do to help prevent such an accident from happening again.

We would all agree that the most critical element of a safely operated school bus is driver behavior. Most operators focus on safety and behavior management by developing a rigorous driver refresher training program with up-to-date training material that compliments the initial classroom and behind-the-wheel training a new driver receives. Also, having all training supported by a record monitoring system to ensure 100-percent driver compliance. However, we still have accidents.

We are in a new period of technological aides that could form the basis for fully automated, not autonomous, driver assist in school buses. Modern automotive driver assistance systems help drivers reach their destination in a safer, more relaxed manner. They keep the vehicle in the lane, maintain stability within the laws of physics, regulate speed and distance from other vehicles, warn of traffic jams, detect objects within a 360-degree area around the vehicle. They can even, if required, automatically initiate full braking to help prevent severe rear collisions.

The technical basis for fully automated driving assist has already been formed by the introduction of the following driver assist technologies: Antilock braking systems (ABS 1978); Traction Control System (TSC 1986); Parking Aid (1993); Electronic stability control (ESP 1996); Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC 2000); Parking Assist (2008); predictive emergency braking system (2010); Lane keeping support (2012); Traffic jam assist (2015), and; Remote park assist (2015); Some but not all are available to the school bus industry.

As the automotive industry continues to develop these automated technologies and include them in the passenger vehicles we buy, I wonder how long will it take the school bus industry to begin to introduce the additional proven driver aides that no doubt would contribute to behavior modification and safety. Granted, much of the automated technology is new, so new that the regulators have had to agree on how to classify it.

A classification system based on six different levels (ranging from driver assistance to fully automated systems) was published in 2014 by SAE International, formerly known as the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). This classification system is based on the amount of driver intervention and attentiveness required, rather than the vehicle capabilities, although these are veryclosely related. In the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released in 2013 a formal classification system. NHTSA abandoned this system when it adopted the SAE standard last September.

As we begin the New Year, our school bus supplier industry is most likely planning to solicit ideas for the next generation of school buses. By collectively gathering their customers and dealers as advisory groups, ideas will be debated that begin with the customers input as well as the dealers, these ideas then end at the equipment manufacturers engineering department. It is they who ultimately study the viability of an idea.

Just think if we could help driver behavior through the Level 2 automation of control over severe rear end collisions, roll overs, and danger zone incidents, just to name a few!

Pudlewski is STNs technical editor with more than 40 years of experience in the school bus industry. He is the retired vice president of fleet operations, procurement and maintenance for Laidlaw and is a member of the National School Transportation Association Hall of Fame.

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Improving Behavior Through Automation of Vehicle Systems - School Transportation News (blog)

Pope Francis on death penalty – Philippine Star

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

The use of capital punishment, is one of the most controversial issue in the criminal justice system all over the world. On December 1, 2016, the United Nations released a report on use of capital punishment among the 195 members of the UN.

The UN report states the following:

54 countries retain the death penalty in law and practice;

32 countries have abolished the death penalty de facto, namely according to Amnesty International, they have not executed anyone during the last 10 years and are believed to have a policy or established practice of not carrying out executions;

6 countries have abolished the death penalty but retain it for exceptional or special circumstances such as crimes committed during wartime;

103 countries have abolished it for all crimes.

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Among the developed countries of the world, four countries continue to have capital punishment United States, Japan, Singapore and Taiwan. China is the worlds most active death penalty country. The UN report states that there were more than 1,000 executions in China in 2014. Islamic countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran have also very high numbers of executions.

Europe has the strongest position against the death penalty. The abolition of the death penalty is a pre condition to joining the European Union. The number of countries abolishing the death penalty have increased in the last decade. The latest countries to abolish the death penalty were Latvia (2012), Madagascar (2012), Fiji (2015), Suriname ( 2015), Republic of the Congo (2015), Nauru (2016) Guinea (2016) and Mongolia (2016). South Korea has declared a moratorium on the death penalty.

The Philippines abolished the death penalty in 2006. However, the government has now introduced a bill in Congress that will restore the death penalty.

Pope Francis has been calling for a worldwide abolition of the death penalty. He said: I appeal to the consciences of those who govern to reach an international consensus to abolish the death penalty.. The commandment Thou shalt not kill has absolute value and applies to both the innocent and the guilty.

In an address a year ago, Pope Francis said that there was now a growing opposition to the death penalty even for the legitimate defense of society because there now exists other ways to efficiently repress crimes without definitively denying the person who committed it the possibility of rehabilitating themselves.

In a visit to a prison in Mexico, Pope Francis also called for better prison conditions saying: All Christians and men of good will are called on to work not only for the abolition of the death penalty, but also to improve prison conditions so that they respect the human dignity of people who have been deprived of their freedom.

In another address to the world conference against the death penalty in Oslo, Norway, Pope Francis again said: Indeed, nowadays the death penalty is unacceptable however, grave the crime of the convicted person. It is an offense to the inviolability of life and to the dignity of the human person; it likewise contradicts Gods plan for individuals and society, and is merciful justice...It does not render justice to victims, but instead fosters vengeance.

It is clear that Pope Francis believes there is no moral justification in Catholic teaching that would justify capital punishment. This active opposition to the death penalty is actually a recent development in Church teaching that seems to have begun only half a century ago from the time of Pope John XXIII.

The growing movement in the Catholic world to abolish the death penalty took a major step in January 1999, when St. John Paul II publicly appealed for a global consensus to end the death penalty because he believed it was both cruel and unnecessary. His successor, Pope Benedict XVI made a similar appeal in November 2011. However, Pope Francis has made the strongest argument for abolishing capital punishment based on convictions of faith.

In his address to the US Congress on September 14, 2014 he quoted the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you..this rule points us in a clear direction...[it] reminds us of our responsibility to protect and defend human life at every stage of its development.

He also told the members of the US Congress that ...this conviction has led me from the beginning of my ministry to advocate at different levels for the global abolition of the death penalty. I am convinced that this way is the best, since every life is sacred, every human person is endowed with an inalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes.

The International Commission Against Death Penalty believe that the risk of executing innocent people will always exist no matter how developed a justice system is. It then states that unlike prison sentences, the death penalty is irreversible and irreparable. The Commission also argues that the arbitrary application of the death penalty cannot be ruled and will be used in a disproportionate manner against the poor and favour the rich who can afford to hire the best and most expensive lawyers. There is the argument that the death penalty does not deter crime effectively. According to a recent United Nations report ...there is no conclusive evidence of the deterrent value of the death penalty.

Pope Francis clearly believes that that punishment should never rule out any hope for rehabilitation. He said: ...I also offer encouragement to all those who are convinced that a just and necessary punishment must never exclude the dimension of hope and the goal of rehabilitation.

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Pope Francis on death penalty - Philippine Star

Italy sets up fast-track asylum courts for migrants – The Local Italy

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

A rescue operation by the crew of the Topaz Responder, a rescue ship run by Maltese NGO "Moas" and the Italian Red Cross, in November 2016 off the Libyan coast. File photo: Andreas Solaro/AFP

The Italian government on Friday created 14 fast-track asylum appeal courts in a bid to speed up decisions on deporting migrants with no right to stay in the country.

This latest sign of Italy moving to a tougher approach to deter further migrant arrivals, was approved by decree at a cabinet meeting on Friday.

It comes into force immediately but has to be approved by parliament inside two months.

Around half a million migrants have arrived in Italy in the last three years, most of them Africans who were rescued from overcrowded boats in the Mediterranean after setting off from Libya on vessels operated by people smugglers.

Registered asylum requests rose from 23,620 in 2013 to 123,482 last year and the average time taken to study them has risen from 167 to 268 days.

"The complexity of the migratory phenomenon is also increasing with people arriving from very different countries," Justice Minister Andrea Orlando said after the cabinet meeting.

"We are talking about life-defining decisions, we don't want to leave people in limbo," he added.

The government is also recruiting 250 additional specialists to speed up the work of the commissions which carry out the first assessment of asylum requests.

Around 60 percent of those end with a decision to deny the applicant the right to remain in Italy.

The new courts will be designed to ensure people in this case have their appeals heard much quicker and that a binding decision is made at that stage.

As things stand, rejected asylum seekers can generally mount two appeals in a lengthy process that overturns the original denial in an estimated 70 percent of cases.

"These will be specialised judges with detailed knowledge of migration issues," Orlando said, denying the abolition of a second appeal involved lowering standards of legal protection.

The UN refugee agency welcomed the strengthening of the asylum commissions but voiced reservations about the new courts.

"There will have to be a very thorough examination of individual cases. If it is impossible to appeal, the first hearing has to be as good as possible with the emphasis on quality rather than speed," a spokeswoman said.

Orlando vowed the commissions would become more reliable and consistent in their decisions thanks to the new recruits and the recording of all discussions becoming compulsory.

Friday's initiative follows recent moves by the government to make it easier for migrants awaiting decisions on their fate to do voluntary work that will help them integrate into Italian society.

Italy has also recently agreed to help train Libya's coastguard to better police its coastal waters to reduce the number of boats leaving the country, and to help its former colony with the running of centres to house migrants pending their repatriation to their home countries.

On Friday, the government announced the creation of around 20 permanent repatriation centres capable of housing a total of 1,600 people pending deportation.

Italy sets up fast-track asylum courts for migrants - The Local Italy

L’Anse Creuse Community Action Coalition Hosts 16 Annual Dialogue Day – Patch.com

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Patch.com

L'Anse Creuse Community Action Coalition Hosts 16 Annual Dialogue Day
Patch.com
Following a large group session, students break into smaller groups to discuss preselected topics including Personal Empowerment, Bullying, Healthy Teen Relationships, and Drug Use/Abuse. Trinity Lutheran Church is located at 39900 Harper Avenue.

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Making Sure Our Longer Lives Are Healthy Ones – Forbes

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

Forbes

Making Sure Our Longer Lives Are Healthy Ones
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We have unprecedented opportunities to redefine the aging experience through prevention, through more coordinated, person-centered care that respects the uniqueness of aging and through personal empowerment to take greater responsibility for our ...

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Making Sure Our Longer Lives Are Healthy Ones - Forbes

This Technology Could Be a Game-Changer for the Marijuana Industry – Fox Business

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

The marijuana industry is scorching hot right now, and it's no wonder that investors are seemingly champing at the bit to get their hands on a company, or series of companies, with strong double-digit growth potential.

According to cannabis research firm ArcView, the legal marijuana market could grow by roughly 30% per year through the end of the decade. Investment firm Cowen & Co. shares a somewhat similar sentiment, forecasting growth from $6 billion in legal pot sales in 2016 to $50 billion by 2026. That's good for a compound annual growth rate of better than 23%. You'd struggle as an investor to find an industry that could consistently grow its sales for an average of 23%+plus each year for a decade.

Image source: Getty Images.

One reason why cannabis is exploding is the major shift in consumer sentiment toward the substance. National pollster Gallup found that 60% of respondents in its 2016 survey wanted to see weed legalized nationally. Comparatively, just 25% of respondents shared the same opinion in 1995, the year before California became the first state to pass a compassionate use medical cannabis law.

The aforementioned dollar figures are also an allure for businesses, investors, and governments alike. After raking in $135 million in tax and licensing revenue in 2015 on $996.2 million in legal marijuana sales, Colorado, which was one of the first two states (along with Washington) to legalize recreational pot in 2012, wound up surpassing the $1.1 billion legal-weed sales mark through the first 10 months of 2016.

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Long story short, the state probably earned well in excess of $135 million in additional revenue last year. Furthermore, with the passage of Prop 64 in California, $1 billion in new tax revenue stands to be generated annually once retail sales commence.

The enormity of these legal sales figures would probably attract most investors to the retail side of the equation, including dispensaries or marijuana-infused products, such as drinks or foods. Unfortunately, this can be a tightly regulated and highly competitive space filled with a bounty of smaller-run companies. Investing in the retail aspect of marijuana simply isn't appealing at the moment, especially with a number of inherent disadvantages still in play for the industry.

Image source: GW Pharmaceuticals.

With so few marijuana stocks trading on reputable exchanges (e.g., NYSE or Nasdaq), investors might also be attracted to the largest pot stock of the bunch, GW Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: GWPH). GW Pharmaceuticals has discovered more than five dozen cannabinoids from the cannabis plant, and it's testing these cannabinoids in a variety of ailments.

Arguably the most intriguing product GW Phamaceuticals has in its pipeline is Epidiolex, an experimental drug that yielded positive late-stage results in treating two types of childhood-onset epilepsy. Still, GW Pharmaceuticals appears to be at least three years away from profitability, and thus remains an unattractive option for investors.

On the other hand, marijuana breathalyzer devices could be an area of intrigue years down the road for investors.

The idea behind the marijuana breathalyzer is simple: it provides law enforcement with a way to protect our roads and drivers. Individuals who've consumed too much alcohol may be impaired behind the wheel, which is why police officers have alcohol breathalyzers, along with standard field sobriety tests, to determine the level of driver intoxication if alcohol is suspected.

Image source: Getty Images.

What law enforcement doesn't have at the moment is a device that tells them, with any accuracy, whether a driver is under the influence of marijuana. What makes things even trickier is that tetrahydrocannibinol, or THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis, can stick around in the bloodstream for 30 days, meaning blood tests done at a police station, for instance, could turn up a positive result even if the individual hasn't used marijuana in days or even weeks.

Marijuana breathalyzers would seek to separate and identify THC molecules in a subject's breath so that a law enforcement officer can determine if 1) the individual has used marijuana recently and 2) perhaps some level of intoxication.

Currently, the breathalyzer market for law enforcement has an estimated value that's north of $500 million. Assuming additional states legalize recreational marijuana, this market value could rise even more.

However, there's a pretty big catch that could make or break this innovative technology.

Image source: Getty Images.

When it comes to deciphering driver impairment with alcohol, there's a pretty clear line in the sand for law enforcement to follow. If a driver blows a 0.08% blood alcohol content or higher, he or she is legally impaired, and possibly subject to arrest. Even a driver that blows below a 0.08% can be charged with driving under the influence. The point here is that there's a point of reference for law enforcement.

When it comes to measuring THC content, there's no point of reference or study that suggests what level of THC in the body is considered dangerous. Making matters more complicated, the only way a "safe" level could likely be determined is through a lot of federally funded testing.

Mind you, the schedule 1 status of marijuana at the federal level makes running clinical studies on pot extremely difficult. In other words, there's this repeating cycle of needing more evidence to set up a series of guidelines that law enforcement can follow, but this evidence is unable to be attained due to the restrictive nature of the federal government's view of marijuana.

If law enforcement agencies don't have a consistent way of determining whether a driver is impaired, then getting marijuana breathalyzer technology offer the ground could be difficult.

It may also be worth mentioning that there are only a small handful of marijuana breathalyzer developers at the moment, and they're penny stocks that trade on the over-the-counter exchanges, which are inherently risky and dangerous investments.

Image source: Getty Images.

Companies that trade on the OTC exchange, which has admittedly done a good job of improving reporting standards in recent years, may have a few shortcomings. For example, listing standards on OTC exchanges still aren't considered as tough as being listed on the NYSE or Nasdaq, meaning getting accurate and up-to-date information may not always be easy.

For that matter, many OTC penny stocks are usually avoided by mutual funds and hedge funds. This can lead to high levels of volatility, which can be unsettling for investors who aren't aware of the risks.

While the risks can't be ignored, marijuana breathalyzer technology has the potential to be a game-changer. And, rest assured, if a legitimate non-OTC company working on this technology appears, we'll be sure to report on it.

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This Technology Could Be a Game-Changer for the Marijuana Industry - Fox Business

Technology identifying fastest checkout lanes comes to metro – KCCI Des Moines

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danzig

DES MOINES, Iowa

The Valley West Hy-Vee store in West Des Moines introduced new technology this week to help its customers choose the quickest checkout lane.

With the new Feloh system, shoppers can look for the green light indicating the line has one person in it, at most.

I hate guessing how long each line is going to take and committing to a certain line, and then regretting not picking the other lane, shopper Nola Morris said.

But customers wont need a birds-eye view anymore to spot the fastest-moving lane.

We have sensors above every register that are detecting how many people, how many carts, how many items are in each line, said Jacob Richards, founder of the Omaha-based company IndaFlow.

The light turns yellow, then orange as the checkout wait grows longer.

If we start seeing light indicators turning yellow or orange, that is our cue to starting calling up help, store director Brian Bieker said. Sometimes, it might be making sure we get a bagger on that check lane.

A small sensor mounted on the ceiling above each register takes all the guesswork out of the equation.

You can definitely tell which lane is open and which lane is not open because before, you couldnt really tell, shopper Liann Mork said.

Its so great. You dont have to think or count how many groceries that the person in front of you has, Morris said.

Feloh uses object recognition technology, similar to the technology used for Googles self-driving car, to track customers and wait times, which managers then use to help schedule cashiers more efficiently.

Creating conveniences for our customers is of the utmost importance, and that includes providing shorter checkout wait times, said Jen Kopriva, district vice president of Hy-Vees north-central region, in a statement. We are excited to debut this technology in the Des Moines market with a goal of moving our customers through checkout faster so they can continue with their day.

The Valley West Hy-Vee is the only store in the metro using Feloh. Hy-Vee locations in Omaha, Nebraska and Council Bluffs are expected to start using the new checkout lights later this month.

WEBVTT You don't need a birds eye view any more to spot the quickest check out lane. NOLA MORRIS 20:21 I HATEGUESSING HOW LONG EACH LINE ISGOING TO TAKE AND COMMITTING TO A CERTAIN LINE AND THEN REGRETTING NOT PICKING THE OTHERLINE. Valley West HyVee can that for you with its new Feloh system. JACOB RICHARDS/INDAF LOW 1:50 WEHAVE SENSORS ABOVE EVERYREGISTER THAT ARE DETECTING HOW MANY PEOPLE, HOW MANY CARTS, HOWMANY ITEMS ARE IN EACH LINE AND THEN WE USE A GREEN, YELLOW AND ORANGE LIGHT TO SHOW CUSTOMERSWHICH LINE IS SHORTEST. Customers should look for the green light... That means there is one person in line at most.19:02 OH RED LIGHT OVER THERE The light turns yellow then orange as the check out waitgrows.BRIAN BIEKER/HYVEE 7:35 IF WE START SEEING LIGHT INDICATORS TURNING YELLOW OR ORANGE THAT OUR CUE TO START CALLING UP HELP. SOMETIMES IT MIGHT BE WEGET A BAGGER ON THAT CHECK LANE.This little sensor mounted on the ceiling, above everyregister, takes all the guess work out of the equationLIANN24:35 YOU CAN DEFINITELY TELL WHICH ONE IS OPEN BECAUBEFORE YOU COULDN'T REALLY TELL NOLA 20:38 ITS SO GREAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO THINK OR COUNT HOWMANY GROCERIES THAT THE PERSONIN FRONT OF YOU HAS. Feloh uses object recognition technology,similar to google's self- driving car, to track customers and wait times. And managers canuse that information to helpschedule cashiers moreefficiently. 18:46 THANK YOU,

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Technology identifying fastest checkout lanes comes to metro - KCCI Des Moines

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