US Virgin Islands, Dominica And Guadeloupe Among Routes To Be Cut By Liat – VI Consortium (press release)

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ST. CROIX Liat, the Antigua-based Caribbean airline company announced on Tuesday that come March, its flights to and from the U.S. Virgin Islands will no longer be available, as well as flights between Guadeloupe and Dominica.

According to the company, the decision to suspend operation of the mentioned routes was made to achieve greater profitability and improve efficiency.

The St. Croix flights will stop on March 1, while the St. Thomas flights end March 14, according to Liat. The Dominica/Guadeloupe route will stop on March 2.

These moves are intended to help stabilize the airlines flight schedule and network, the company said.

The action follows a company-wide review of operations, with an end goal of ensuring that Liat only operate in commercially viable routes. Liat Chief Commercial Officer Lloyd Carswell said the change means more time added to schedules at airports throughout the region, while eliminating the underperforming routes.

While Liat left little hope for reinstating its St. Croix flights, Mr. Carswell said once the company makes up for its losses in the axed routes, it may consider flights to St. Thomas on a seasonal basis.

Liats next meeting with regional trade unions and the companys management happens on Friday. Among topics to be discussed is the airlines plan to reorganize routes of operation in its bid to maximize profits.

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Islands see population jumps and dips – Gulf Islands Driftwood

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By Gail Sjuberg on February 8, 2017

With the first batch of 2016 census data released today, population trends for the Gulf Islands are revealed.

On Salt Spring Island, the year-round population jumped to 10,557, up from 10,234 in 2011, for a 3.2 per cent increase. Thats a slower rate of growth than seen from 2006 to 2011, when the population grew by 6.2 per cent.

South Pender Island had the biggest growth spurt among the islands, adding 34 residents to hit the 235 mark for a 16.9 per cent hike.

Saturna Island took second spot in growth percentage, at 5.7 per cent, as its population reached 354, up from 335 in 2011.

North Penders population added 28 individuals to reach 2,067. That number represents a 1.6 per cent growth rate.

Galiano and Mayne islands both saw a drop in population, continuing a trend that began with the 2011 census.

The 2016 count found 1,044 residents on Galiano, down from 1,138 an 8.3 per cent drop. In 2006, the census counted 1,258 Galiano residents.

Mayne Islands year-round population is now pegged at 949, an 11.4 per cent reductionfrom the 2011 number of 1,071.

The Galiano-Mayne losses contrasted dramatically with the 2006 census, which recorded a 26 per cent growth rate between 2001 and 2006 on Mayne Island and 17.5 per cent on Galiano.

Posted in News | Tagged 2016 census, Galiano Island, Mayne Island, North Pender Island, Salt Spring Island, Saturna Island, South Pender Island |

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On health care, Republicans are lost without a map – MSNBC

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MSNBC
On health care, Republicans are lost without a map
MSNBC
Senate Republicans have not yet begun to work in earnest on a replacement plan for the Affordable Care Act, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said on Tuesday. It was a rare public admission of what has become obvious from the outside, as Republicans find both ...

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Beyond Patient Centered Healthcare – Huffington Post

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I co authored this article with my colleague from ACCESS Health Singapore, Denise Ong

"Patient centered care" is a term that has become ubiquitous in healthcare policy and strategy documents. Today chronic diseases such as diabetes prevail. Health and social needs of an aging population are typically complex and intertwined. Healthcare is becoming democratized. It is no wonder then that healthcare providers are compelled to consider and respect the needs and preferences of service users.

In Singapore, reforms are well underway to deliver more patient centered, integrated care. Chief among these are the reorganization of the healthcare system into Regional Health Systems and the establishment of the Agency for Integrated Care. Recognizing that prevention and management of chronic conditions needs to happen beyond the walls of medical settings, there are concerted efforts to promote healthy behaviors and self care within the community.

What is lacking from prevailing models of patient centered care are approaches that harness people's inherent strengths and that emphasize mutual support. Those who live with chronic conditions build up expertise in how to manage their health and navigate the care system. Their lived experience is a valuable resource that could be used to enhance the experience and outcomes for others with similar health conditions.

Yet the healthcare system is still dominated by a medical model. There continues to be an over reliance on health professionals. Services are not geared towards tapping on the wealth of experience of those outside traditional health domains or those without formal qualifications. This is despite the steep challenge of growing the healthcare workforce at a rate that will meet the needs of a rapidly aging population.

For people with a chronic condition like diabetes, self management often requires making major, long term lifestyle changes. The changes in behavior and formation of new habits occur outside the slivers of time that people spend in appointments with health professionals. They occur in homes, workplaces and communities, and are deeply influenced by social milieu.

As ACCESS Health International found in a focus group study conducted in Singapore last year, older adults with chronic conditions want more personalized and sustained support. While most people can recite the importance of eating well, moving more, and complying with medication, translating this into real, lasting action within the context of their everyday lives is where the challenge lies.

What came through strongly in the focus groups was the desire to interact with peers who have similar health conditions. People want to learn with and from each other, to share experiences and tips, and to feel socially and emotionally connected. There is a recognition that peers can provide influence and support in a way that professionals and family may not.

Evidence exists for the power of peer support. The approach has been shown to improve health and psychosocial outcomes for people living with long term conditions. It builds people's knowledge, skills and confidence to take control of their health. The reciprocal nature of peer support recognizes the value of people's lived experience, and brings wide reaching and mutual benefits to those involved. Among these is a sense of dignity and social connectedness; outcomes that are particularly important to and valued by older people.

The approach is by no means a new one in Singapore. Alexandra Health System's Wellness Kampungs support local residents to lead self directed activity groups that promote healthy living. Tsao Foundation has piloted and is supporting the roll out of self care training and peer monitoring for groups of older persons, as part of the Self Care on Health of Older Persons in Singapore (SCOPE) program. Singapore Association for Mental Health trains and employs Peer Support Specialists to assist people experiencing mental illness in the recovery process . However, peer support remains under valued and outside the mainstream of healthcare services.

By placing the focus on people - their experiences, perspectives, priorities, and relationships - peer support should be a fundamental component of patient centered care. By putting people with similar chronic conditions in the lead to support each other, peer support is a vital part of achieving a more sustainable healthcare system - one that is not just patient centered, but people powered.

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Surging Demand for Mental Health Care Jams College Services – Scientific American

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Colleges across the country are failing to keep up with a troublingspike in demand for mental health care leaving students stuck on waiting lists for weeks, unable to get help.

STAT surveyed dozens of universities about their mental health services. From major public institutions to small elite colleges, a striking pattern emerged: Students often have to wait weeks just for an initial intake exam to review their symptoms. The wait to see a psychiatrist who can prescribe or adjust medication often a part-time employee may be longer still.

Students on many campuses areso frustrated that they launched a petitionlast month demanding expanded services. They plan to send it to 20 topuniversities, including Harvard, Princeton, Yale, MIT, and Columbia, where seven students have died this school yearfrom suicide and suspected drug overdose.

Students are turned away every day from receiving the treatment they need, and multiple suicide attempts and deaths go virtually ignored each semester, the petition reads. More than 700 people have signed; many have left comments about their personal experiences trying to get counseling at college. Im signing because if a kid in crisis needs help they should not have to wait, one wrote.

STAT requested information from 98campuses across the country and received answers from 50 of those schools. Among the findings:

At Northwestern University, it can take up to three weeks to get a counseling appointment. At Washington University in St. Louis, the wait time runs nearly 13 days, on average, in the fall semester.

At the University of Washington in Seattle, delays in getting care are so routine, the wait time is posted online; its consistently hovered between two and three weeks in recent months. In Florida, where educators are pressing the state legislature for millions in new funding to hire counselors, the wait times at University of Florida campuses can stretch two weeks.

Smaller schools arent exempt, either: At Carleton College, a liberal arts campus in Northfield, Minn., the wait list can stretch up to10 days.

A few weeks wait may not seem like much.After all, itoften takes that long, or longer, for adults to land a medical appointment with a specialist. But such wait timescan be brutal for college students who may be away from home for the first time, without a support network, and up against more academic and peer pressure than ever before. Every class, every meal, every partycan become a hurdle for students struggling with eating disorders, depression, and other issues.

Many counseling centers say that they are often overwhelmed during the most stressful times for students, such as midterms and finals. Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., for example, reports a wait time of up to a month during busy periods.

In most instances, STATs examination found, students who say that they are suicidal are seen at once, and suicide hotlines are available for after-hours emergencies. But some students are uncomfortable acknowledging an impulse to harm themselves, and thus get pushed to the end of the line,along with undergrads struggling with concernsranging from acute anxiety to gender identity issues.

Campus counselors are acutely aware that theyre leaving students stranded but say they dont have the resources to do better.

Youre making sure people are safe in the moment, said Ben Locke, who runs a national college counseling network and directs counseling services at Pennsylvania State University. But youre not treating the depression or the panic attacks or the eating disorders.

Constance Rodenbarger, now in her third year at Indiana University, first sought help at the counseling center in her second semester, as she struggled to deal with an abusive relationship on top of long-term depression. The next appointment was at least two weeks away.

I was just looking at that date on the calendar and thinking, If I can just make it one more day, but then it became just one more hour, and then one more minute, she said.

I just couldnt hang on.

The day before her appointment, on Nov. 17, 2014, she tried to kill herself.

Her roommate found her, and Rodenbarger was rushed to the hospital. She called the counseling center from the hospitalto say she wouldnt be able to make it in the next day.

When I called that day and said, I need to see someone, I needed to see someone, shesaid.

Indiana University now says itconnects with all students who seek counseling within two days. But that connection can involve simply setting up an appointment for up to three weeks away.

We, like centers across the country, are working on expanding our staff, said Nancy Stockton, the director of Indiana Universitys counseling center. We certainly need more clinicians.

Indiana University and several other large schools said they employ one counselor for roughly every 1,500 undergraduates. Thats at the high end of the range recommended by national experts.The numbers reported in an annual national survey are even more stark: In 2015, large campuses reported an average of one licensed mental health provider per 3,500 students.

When students do get in to campus counseling centers, most see therapists, social workers, or perhaps psychologists.

Just 6in 10 college counseling centers have a psychiatrist available, even part-time, to prescribe or adjust medications, according to theannualsurvey, conducted by the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors. Thats a serious mismatch, given that about one-quarter of college students who seek mental health services take psychotropic medications.

There are other hurdles, too. While many schools tout free counseling, they often cap that benefit. Students at Brown University, for instance, get seven free sessions a year. At Indiana University, students get just two free sessions and then pay $30 per visit.

And it can be hard for students to develop a consistent relationship with a therapist when so many college mental health providers work limited hours. Wellesley College, for example, has a counseling staff which includes six therapists but three of them are only on campus part-time.

While dozens of colleges provided STAT with detailed information about their mental health resources, the public relations staff at others, including Georgetown University, Dartmouth College, and Grinnell College, refused to provide information after repeated requests.

Others, such as Harvard and Yale, declined to provide specific staffing information. In some cases, such as with the US Merchant Marine Academy, media relations staff expressed discomfortabout being compared to other colleges.

Columbia University told STAT it employs the equivalent of 41 full-time counselors for just over 6,000 students, which would be an enviable staffing level, far better than most other schools its size.Columbiasaid its wait time varies, but did not provide a specific range. All enrollment numbers come from U.S. News and World Report.

Demand for counseling on college campuses has been rising steadily for several years.

And the latest data, released in January, show a recent spike in cases of students in acute crisis.

One in three students who sought counseling last year said theyd seriously consideredsuicide at some point in their lives, according to a report out last month from the Center for Collegiate Mental Health. Thats up from fewer than 1in 4students in 2010.

And those are just the students who admit theyre in crisis. Untold others dont know how to respond when an employeeat the counseling center asks if its an emergency. They maydownplay their situation, telling themselves others are in more dire condition or it must not be a true crisis if they have the presence of mind to ask for help.

Thats what happened to Adrienne Baer during the fall of 2015, in her junior year at the University of Maryland. Both her grandparents had recently died. So had a high school friend.

It was a lot to wrap my head around, she said. With a push from friends, she decided to call the counseling center. I didnt exactly have an education on what their resources were, but I got one, Baer said.

Baer said she was asked on the phone whether she was experiencing an emergency. She didnt know how to answer that: No one gave her a definition. So she said no and was shunted to the end of the waiting list. It would be two weeks before she could see a counselor.

She dashed off an angry email to the counseling center the minute she hung up the phone:

I am currently struggling with the issues I wanted to discuss with a therapist or counselor, but even I dont know how Ill be in 24 hours, let alone 2 weeks.

I dont know if all that constitutes an emergency or if I need to have a mental breakdown to be seen prior to a two week wait but I am seriously disappointed in the lack of availability in mental health resources.

That got their attention. She was given a quick appointment for an initial assessment. But for continuing care, Baer was put back on the waiting list. It would be five weeks before she could see a psychiatrist who could prescribe medication.

I had to wait. There was nothing I could do, said Baer, nowa senior. It was just a roller coaster that I couldnt control.

Sharon Kirkland-Gordon, director of the University of Marylands counseling center, said she knows her staff cant keep up with demand, though she said theyre working overtime to meet the needs of students.

Requests for appointments shot up 16 percent last year alone, she said.

Nationally, aboutsix in 10 undergradsseeking counseling are women, and 5 percent are international students.There are roughly an equal number of freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors.

Kirkland-Gordon has started to bring on part-time seasonal staff to help handle the workload. Manycampuses also usetherapists who are still in training work one-on-one with students, as long as they report to licensed counselors.

If we had a magic wand, I think youd probably hear the same thing from all of us counseling directors, said Kirkland-Gordon. Their wish list is simple:more resources.

No one is entirely sure why student demand for mental health services is rising; factors may include increased pressure from parents or peers on social media, or a difficult job market. Another possible reason: increased awareness about the risk of mental health conditions.

In the past decade, the federal government has given out tens of millions in grants to suicide prevention programs that raised awareness of risk factors. A generation of students trained by such programs is now in college and seeking help when they feel warning signs. But not every college got abump in funding to meet the surge in demand.

If you want a perfect recipe to generate reduced availability of treatment, that would be it, said Locke, of Penn State, who also serves as director of the Center for Collegiate Mental Health, a national network.

Locke notes that college health centers would never requirea student with strep throat to wait two weeks for an appointment. Yet thats whats happening to many students with anxiety, depression, and other serious mental health concerns. It puts the students academic career, and potentially their life, at risk, he said.

As for Baer, she said she made it through that stressful semester by leaning on friends at school and family back in Pennsylvania. She wonders what wouldve happened to an international student or to a freshman without a reliablesupport network.

I do feel like I fell through the cracks, she said, but I feel like I fell onto a safety net that other people might not have.

In an era when colleges are ranked by the number of their professors and the quality of their food or whether their gyms house rock-climbing walls it can be tough for the counseling centers to make a case for more resources.

Some turn to quick fixes, touting stress-busting programs like bringing in puppies for students to pet during midterms or handing out free cookies in the library during finals.

Othersare making a concerted effort to respond to the surging demand.

The wait times at Ohio State University were so alarming to Dr. Michael Drake a physician who stepped into the presidents office in 2014 that he hired more than a dozen new counselors. That pushed the schools ratio down to one provider for roughly every 1,100 undergraduates.

We were doing it to really smooth the pathway of success for students, Drake said. National data suggest the additional providers will help; 7in 10students who seek counseling say the mental health care improved their academic performance.

The University of California system moved to update counseling servicesin 2014, as wait lists grew and students with acute needs sought care. Ittook another year to get a dedicated funding stream to hire more counselors, in the form of increased student fees.

Things start to back up like a traffic jam, said Gary Dunn, director of counseling and psychological services for the University of California, Santa Cruz. A lot can happen in four or five weeks during a quarter in college. It really wasnt OK to have that delay in place.

Students who have lived through mental health crises welcome more staff. But they also urge better training so that everyone on campus knows to treat mental health concerns as seriously, and with as much empathy, as a physical injury.

Nick, who asked that his last name not be used, was diagnosed with depression before college and had a difficult transition to his freshman year at Ithaca College in upstate New York. I had no idea how to cope with all of it and I floundered a bit, he said in an interview.

He sought help early on during orientation because he knew hed likely need it. But he said he was bounced between two counselors and had difficulty getting appointments that fit into his schedule. In the end, he had to pay for a private mental health specialist off campus.

Ithaca did not respond to requests for information on its mental health services, saying its counseling center staff was busy. At the time he sought care,Nick said there were just two counselors for the schools 7,000 students.

I was so badly handled. Not by any fault of their own, they were just woefully underprepared, he said.

This year, by contrast, he had to take time off for a surgery. Getting help with a physical injury was a breeze, he said.

The administration and professors have been much more understanding and willing to help when its something tangible and physical, he said, when the doctors can say, Heres whats wrong with you and heres how you can fix it.

Rodenbarger, the Indiana University student, is still feeling the echoes of her struggles to get mental health help on campus. Her suicide attempt cost her both her job and her off-campus apartment. The medication she was put on cost her a pilots license.

But she is recovering with the help of a mental health provider off campus. Shes easing off the medication. Shes on track to graduate in the summer of 2018 with two degrees, a fine arts degree in printmaking and another in astronautics.

Shes also excited to have seen the school expand its walk-in services for students in need of urgent mental health care. Its a step forward and she wants to see more like it.

Had I gotten help when I reached out for it, she said, it would never have gotten to the level that it did.

Republished with permission fromSTAT. This articleoriginally appearedon February 6, 2017

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Surging Demand for Mental Health Care Jams College Services - Scientific American

Nuance Boosts Bookings on Healthcare, Automotive Demand – Fox Business

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Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: NUAN) has built up considerable expertise in turning voice commands into recognizable actions, and the company is working hard at expanding the breadth of applications for its cutting-edge technology. Increasingly, Nuance has sought to make many different tasks easier, whether it's transcribing doctors' notes into electronic medical records or having automobile entertainment systems understand commands from drivers. Coming into Tuesday's fiscal first-quarter financial report, Nuance investors were prepared for slight declines in revenue and earnings per share, but the company managed to score a slight sales gain on big gains in new bookings.

Let's take a closer look at Nuance Communications to see how it did and what it sees ahead for its business in 2017 and beyond.

Image source: Nuance.

Nuance's fiscal first-quarter results were relatively close to what most of those following the stock had expected. Adjusted revenue climbed by less than 1% to $496 million, but that was still better than the consensus forecast for a decline to $490 million. On a GAAP basis, Nuance's net loss nearly doubled from year-ago levels, but after accounting for various extraordinary items, adjusted earnings of $0.35 per share matched up exactly with what most investors were looking to see.

Taking a closer look at Nuance's numbers, the figure that stands out the most was the 23% growth in net new bookings, which hit $380.3 million. Nuance attributed the increase to healthcare and mobile, and it specifically called out the Dragon Medical One platform and integrated clinical documentation solutions as driving the growth.

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From a segment perspective, the enterprise segment was the key driver of revenue growth, posting a 15% rise in organic sales for the segment. However, the rest of the company didn't share that success. The smaller imaging business had the worst results, seeing organic sales fall 15%. The key healthcare segment saw organic revenue decline 6% from year-ago levels, and the mobile division suffered a 5% drop.

Segment profits showed similar patterns. Enterprise was the only division to post growth in its segment bottom line, while minimal declines in profitability for healthcare and mobile paled in comparison to a one-third plunge in the imaging segment's adjusted profit.

Nuance has worked hard to boost recurring revenue, and its slow growth continued during the quarter. Recurring revenue made up 73% of adjusted sales during the quarter, up six percentage points from the fiscal first quarter of 2016. By contrast, perpetual product and licensing revenue saw its decrease accelerate, falling by nearly a third from the year-ago quarter.

CFO Dan Tempesta was straightforward in his description of the company's success. "Nuance delivered strong performance against our guidance in the first quarter," Tempesta said, "as we continued our execution and momentum across the business." The CFO pointed to "solid results" in bookings, sales, profit, and cash flow as signs of the progress that Nuance has made.

Nuance now thinks that it should be able to start seeing more impressive revenue gains. In Tempesta's words, "Last quarter's groundwork and a robust outlook for the second quarter place the company on track for our FY17 non-GAAP guidance with a return to organic revenue growth and continued strong cost discipline and profitability."

In particular, Nuance reiterated its guidance for the full 2017 fiscal year. Bookings should sustain growth of 2% to 6% compared to fiscal 2016, and organic growth in sales should amount to about 1% for the year. Recurring revenue should stay at its current level of around 72% to 73% of total revenue, which will be between $2.02 billion to $2.07 billion and produce adjusted earnings of $1.53 to $1.63 per share.

Fiscal second-quarter predictions from Nuance were very much in line with investor expectations. The company sees adjusted sales of $493 million to $507 million, producing adjusted earnings of $0.36 to $0.40 per share. The consensus forecast among those following the stock is at the midpoint of both ranges.

Perhaps as a result, Nuance investors didn't have a huge response to the news, with only the smallest of gains in after-hours trading following the announcement. If Nuance can continue to find its way into more breakthrough technologies going forward, then it will have a better chance at producing the growth that investors really want to see in the months and years to come.

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Penn Genetics Researcher Receives Grant From Pharmaceutical Consortium to Study Diabetic Kidney Disease – Newswise (press release)

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Newswise PHILADELPHIAKatalin Susztak, MD, PhD, an associate professor of Medicine and Genetics in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has received a $3 million grant from a consortium of pharmaceutical companies to identify genes and other characteristics that are signs of rapid decline in kidney function in patients with diabetic kidney disease.

This study, called TRIDENT (Transformative Research In DiabEtic NephropaThy) is the first such trial that will generate a multi-omics data set to pave the way for precision medicine treatment for diabetic kidney disease. Susztak and colleagues will collect, process, and study kidney biopsy tissue and harvest blood, urine, and genetic materials to generate multi-omics datasets. These will reveal molecular pathways and link them to biomarkers that characterize patients with rapid kidney-function decline compared to those with slower kidney-function decline. This analysis will help identify potential therapeutic targets for patients.

Members of the consortium -- Boehringer Ingelheim, GSK, and Regeneron -- will each contribute to the research strategy and implementation of the overall group in a precompetitive space. Each pharma member will be able to use the molecular networks identified by the consortium to continue individual company discovery efforts outside of the consortium, including developing drugs to interfere with the disease pathways.

One of the key hurdles in diabetic kidney disease research has been the lack of kidney tissue samples from patients with diabetes. Until now, only a few centers in the U.S. have performed biopsies on these patients. Additionally, animal and cell culture models do not fully mirror human versions of the disease, and human genetic studies to date have failed to identify consistent genetic variants associated with diabetic kidney disease.

Integrative analysis of the variables will help us paint a fuller and more accurate picture of the dynamics of the molecular systems that underlie this disease, said Susztak. This work is especially important now as the rate of diabetes prevalence in our country, and indeed the world, is continually accelerating.

Diabetic kidney disease is the most common cause of kidney disease in the United States; no new drugs have been registered for treating it since 2001. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the risk of death for adults with diabetes and kidney disease is 50 percent higher than those with diabetes alone. It reports that 29.1 million people, or 9.3 percent of the US population, have diabetes, 27.8 percent of whom are undiagnosed. An additional 86 million more than one out of three adulthave pre-diabetes. Nine out of ten of these adults do not know that they have pre-diabetes. The CDC also reports that medical costs for people with diabetes are twice as high as for people without diabetes. Other research shows that of the approximately 400 million people with type 2 diabetes worldwide, about half will have kidney disease.

During the past few years, several new biomarkers have been identified that can potentially identify patients at risk for rapid loss of kidney function. For example, blood and urinary levels of the protein Kidney Injury Molecule-1 (KIM-1) and tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 and 2 levels can identify patients with rapidly declining renal function. While these markers are generating increased interest, critical questions remain, Susztak said.

These questions, which Susztak and her collaborators will seek to answer through the study, include:

Is rapid decline in kidney function a genetic tendency, the result of environmental factors, or a combination of both? What are the molecular pathways that cause rapid kidney function decline? How do the new biomarkers match up with molecular changes in the kidney or genetic predisposition? Are there additional biomarkers associated with fast and slow progression of kidney decline?

To help answer these questions, Susztak and colleagues will recruit and follow a cohort of 300 patients from 12 U.S. and Canadian clinical sites who have type 1 or type 2 diabetes and undergone a clinically indicated kidney biopsy.

Raymond Townsend, MD, director of the Hypertension Program and a professor of Medicine will direct the data coordinating center, Matthew B. Palmer, MD, PhD, an assistant professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, will run the pathology core, and Jonathan J. Hogan, MD, clinical director of the Penn Glomerular Disease Center and an assistant professor of Medicine is the site principal investigator.

Editors note: Dr. Susztak has consulted previously for GSK and has received research support from Boehringer Ingelheim for a projects unrelated to TRIDENT.

Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $5.3 billion enterprise. The Perelman School of Medicine has been ranked among the top five medical schools in the United States for the past 18 years, according to U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $373 million awarded in the 2015 fiscal year. The University of Pennsylvania Health System's patient care facilities include: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center -- which are recognized as one of the nation's top "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S. News & World Report -- Chester County Hospital; Lancaster General Health; Penn Wissahickon Hospice; and Pennsylvania Hospital -- the nation's first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional affiliated inpatient care facilities and services throughout the Philadelphia region include Chestnut Hill Hospital and Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a partnership between Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network and Penn Medicine. Penn Medicine is committed to improving lives and health through a variety of community-based programs and activities. In fiscal year 2015, Penn Medicine provided $253.3 million to benefit our community.

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Penn Genetics Researcher Receives Grant From Pharmaceutical Consortium to Study Diabetic Kidney Disease - Newswise (press release)

15 School of Medicine researchers named CZ Biohub investigators – Stanford Medical Center Report

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Fifteen faculty members from the School of Medicine are among the 47 investigators announced today by the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub.

The CZ Biohub is an independent nonprofit medical research organization that has the goal of harnessing the power of science, technology and human capacity to cure, prevent or manage all disease. It is funded through a $600 million commitment by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which was created by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan, MD.

The investigators were selected from the three institutions participating in the CZ Biohub: Stanford, UC-San Francisco and UC-Berkeley. Each of the investigators will be given a five-year appointment and up to $1.5 million for research in their respective areas of expertise. More than 700 researchers applied for the funding; the selections were made by an international panel of 60 scientists and engineers.

The investigators include both senior researchers and up-and-coming faculty.

The 47 CZ Biohub investigators were introducing today are quite literally inventing the future of life science research, said Stephen Quake, PhD, co-president of CZ Biohub and professor of bioengineering and applied physics at Stanford. The CZ Biohub is distinguished by our emphasis on technology and engineering, and our researchers are inventing tools to accelerate science for the good of humanity.

We are honored to have so many of our scientists selected to pursuetheirinnovative and ambitious projectsat the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub,said Lloyd Minor, MD, dean of the School of Medicine. If past is prologue, givingsuch inventivethinkersthe freedom to conduct fundamental research will result in trulyoutstanding discoveries, moving us toward a future wherewe can both cure and preventwhat today seems incurable and unpredictable.

The 15 medical school faculty members are:

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15 School of Medicine researchers named CZ Biohub investigators - Stanford Medical Center Report

The Cuban hustle: Doctors drive cabs and work abroad to make up for meager pay – STAT

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H

AVANA He knew as a child that he wanted to be a doctor, like his father. He went to medical school, became a general surgeon and ultimately a heart specialist. He practiced at Cubas premier cardiovascular hospital, performed heart transplants, and published articles in medical journals.

For this, Roberto Mejides earned a typical doctors salary: about $40 a month.

It wasnt nearly enough, even with the free housing and health care available to Cubans, to support his extended family. So in 2014, Mejides left them behind, moving to Ecuador to earn up to $8,000 a month working at two clinics and performing surgeries.

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Its a common story here, where waiters, cabdrivers, and tour guides can make 10 to 20 times the government wages of doctors and nurses thanks to tips from tourists.

Doctors are like slaves for our society, said Sandra, an art student and photographers assistant who makes more than her mother, a physician. Its not fair to study for so many years and be so underpaid.

Cuba is waging an organized, intrusive war on Zika. Its working

Cuba is proud of its government-run health care system and its skilled doctors. But even with a raise two years ago, the highest paid doctors make $67 a month, while nurses top out at $40. That leaves many feeling demoralized and searching for ways to improve their lives.

Some enter the private economy by renting rooms to tourists, driving cabs, or treating private patients, quasi-legally, on the side. Thousands of others accept two-year government assignments to work as doctors abroad, collecting higher salaries for themselves and earning billions for the state, which helps keep the stagnant economy afloat. In fact, health workers are Cubas largest source of foreign exchange.

A few doctors, like Mejides, arrange foreign employment on their own, putting at risk their future ability to return to a government job in the health system back home.

Its hard to migrate and be alone, Mejides said in Spanish, during a video phone call from Ecuador toa reporter visiting Havana in October. Its stressful. I am in the wrong place. I should be with my family in my country, working and being rewarded properly.

Still, with his Ecuador earnings, he was able to buy his wife, two daughters, and two stepdaughters a $23,000 apartment in Havana, and he sends them $300 to $500 a month.

While doctors back in Cuba grumble about their low pay, they usually find ways to make do.

Sandras mother, Nadia, a genetics researcher, earns about as much as she pays a cleaning woman to maintain her three-bedroom Havana apartment. Whenever she can, she rents one of those rooms to tourists for $40 a night, making more in two nights than she does from her monthly earnings as a doctor. She asked that her full name not be used to avoid any problems with the government.

The rental income allows Nadia to have a modestly comfortable life and to be able to buy fruits and vegetables at farmers markets. But a restaurant meal is a rare treat, and traveling abroad is impossible.

Still, she loves her work and the intellectual challenge of her research into genetic diseases. She said many Cuban doctors are committed and provide excellent service, in part because of the ways they have learned to overcome shortages of equipment and technology.

We dont have all the electronic tools, so we have to learn to do things other ways, to diagnose just by external examination, she said, over a dinner of fish and rum at her apartment.

Shed like to earn more money, of course, and she understands why so many doctors, including many she knows, have chosen to leave Cuba.

Im not ambitious for money, she said. I get rent from visitors, and I get to live in Cuba. I have a nice house, and Im happy with what I have. But Im not a millionaire.

Trumps election threatens medical cooperation between US and Cuba

Cecilia, a 60-year-old former nurse who also asked that her full name not be used, spent 25 years working in government hospitals and clinics. To adapt to the shortages, she learned to make inventos medicos medical inventions using a chair or bench to raise the back of a patients bed, for example, or cutting the tip off an intravenous line to fashion an oxygen feed to a patients nose.

But she became disillusioned by the chronic shortages and the stress she saw in both her patients and colleagues.

The material scarcity is so overwhelming that it keeps people from dedicating all the passion, love, and brain power that they should to their patients in need, she said, sitting in a rocking chair in her third-floor Havana apartment. I was the one who had to face the patients and tell them we dont have the drug that you need. It was very common. And I didnt want to do that any more.

Doctors and nurses have the best intentions, but they face so many obstacles, there are so many things on their mind, she added. The doctor might be treating a patient but they are actually thinking: When I get home, at God knows what time, what am I going to feed my kid?

She quit nursing in the early 2000s and later began to pursue her passion, doing hands-on alternative medicine that combines techniques of massage, kinesiology, magnetic therapy, and so-called floral therapy, which uses extracts of flowers and herbs as healing agents.

Her work with private clients, who come to her apartment, is permitted under a license for massage, the only form of healing work included on a list of government-approved private services and businesses. Working three days a week, she earns almost $120 a month if all my appointments show up, she said. I use to make that in six months working at the hospital.

In the years after Fidel Castro seized power in 1959, Cuba invested heavily in education and science, training tens of thousands of doctors, nurses, and scientists. As a result, Cuba, a country of 11.2 million people, today has 90,000 doctors, the most per capita in the world.

About 25,000 of these doctors, along with 30,000 Cuban nurses and other health professionals, are working in 67 countries around the world. They earn about $8.2 billion in revenue for the government, according to a recent article in Granma, the official paper of the Cuban Communist Party.

The bulk of the doctors, about 20,000, are in Brazil and Venezuela. Over the last three years they provided treatment to 60 million Brazilians, mostly the rural poor, said Cristin Morales Fuhrimann, the Pan American Health Organizations representative in Havana.

Cuba receives about $5,000 a month per doctor from Brazil, pays each doctor about $1,200, and banks the rest, said John Kirk, a professor of Latin American studies at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, who has researched Cubas program of medical missions. Most of the doctors shares are deposited in their Cuban bank accounts, requiring them to return home to collect it.

Cuba has too many doctors, so their main source of hard currency is to rent out medical services, Kirk said.

Once close allies of Havana, Brazil and Venezuela have been engulfed in political and economic crises that will cause them to reduce their use of Cuban doctors in the coming years.

That may lead Cuba to redeploy some doctors to other parts of the world, including the Middle East. In Qatar, an oil-rich emirate about as far from Cuba geographically and culturally as any place in the world, the so-called Cuban Hospital is fully staffed by 400 Cuban doctors, nurses, and technicians.

Cubas dispatch of doctors not only generates revenue, it is also an exercise in soft power that allows the country to spread its influence around the globe.

Its a major contribution to the health of the world, said Morales. They made a big difference in fighting Ebola in Africa, in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew in Haiti.

Some Cuban doctors working overseas have defected to the United States, aided by a policy launched during the administration of George W. Bush that permitted Cuban medical personnel to go to the US with their spouses and children. In its last weeks in office, the Obama administration announced it was ending the program.

Since the Cuban Medical Professional Parole Program began in 2006, more than 9,000 medical professionals and their family members were approved for admission to the US. In the past four years, the number of entrants spiked, reaching almost 2,000 for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.

The Cuban government and the Pan American Health Organization protested the policy as a form of poaching that undermined Cubas health system and impeded newfound cooperation between the US and Cuba. In a statement, Obama acknowledged that the program risks harming the Cuban people.

Cuban doctors are in demand internationally because they come cheap, are well-trained, and work in a public health system that is highly organized and well-run. In Cuba, primary care clinics are available in every neighborhood. Specialists in cancer, immunology, genetic medicine, and cardiovascular disease staff the hospitals. Life expectancy rates, which two generations ago were at Third World levels, are today roughly equal to those in the United States.

Facing bleak odds, cancer patients chase one last chance in Cuba

But the absence of so many doctors also provokes complaints from patients, who say it keeps them from getting the best care. They also grouse that they have to bring their own food and bedsheets, wait for appointments or medications and provide gifts to doctors to ensure good treatment.

When the 61-year-old father of Concepcion, a young Cuban professional, was diagnosed with prostate cancer last summer, she used personal connections to enable her father to see a specialist promptly.

Concepcion, who asked that her full name not be used to avoid reprisals or damage to her professional standing, also provided daily gifts of food, cosmetics, and sometimes cash to doctors, nurses, and technicians while her father was hospitalized for a month in Holguin, a city in eastern Cuba.

Doctors are used to receiving gifts, she said. You give the gift and the attention starts getting better. If you stop and the attention goes down, you go back to handing out gifts. You feel sorry for the doctors because they work really hard under bad conditions and you always feel like theyre not being rewarded.

She estimated she spent about $500 on gifts and food, an amount she said would have doubled had he been hospitalized in pricier Havana.

Jose dos Santos, a Cuban journalist who needs regular treatment for his diabetes, said the care he receives is excellent. Bringing gifts to doctors has become a habit because we know that the job doctors do needs to be better rewarded, he said. We dont produce oil, he added, but we produce talent, and it makes sense that that talent is acknowledged and rewarded.

In December, Roberto Mejides moved again, this time to Merida, Mexico, where he plans to work for the next four years. His income will be roughly the same as in Ecuador, but now hes just 90 minutes by air from Havana. He hopes to bring his family to join him in the coming months,

My hopes have always been the same, to work honestly and to provide my family with an adequate life, he said. Someday, he added, he wants to return to Cuba: Its my country, my homeland.

Rob Waters can be reached at robwaters@pacbell.net Follow Rob on Twitter @robwaters001

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The Cuban hustle: Doctors drive cabs and work abroad to make up for meager pay - STAT

Genetic defects in tooth enamel conducive to development of caries – Medical Xpress

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February 7, 2017 Credit:

Bacteria are not the sole cause of caries; tooth resistance also plays an instrumental role. Researchers from the University of Zurich demonstrate that mutated genes lead to defects in the tooth enamel and can therefore encourage the development of caries.

Why do some people develop caries even though they always brush their teeth carefully while others are less stringent regarding dental hygiene yet do not have any holes? Ultimately, both have bacteria on the surface of their teeth which can attack the enamel. Enamel forms via the mineralization of specific enamel proteins. If the outer layer of the teeth is defective, tooth decay can strike.

Researchers from the University of Zurich have now pinpointed a gene complex for the first time that is responsible for the formation of tooth enamel. Two teams from the Centre of Dental Medicine and the Institute of Molecular Life Sciences used mice with varying mutations of the enamel proteins involved in the so-called Wnt signaling pathway. Thanks to this transmission route, human and animal cells respond to external signals and specifically activate selected genes in the cell nucleus. The signaling pathway is essential for embryonal development and also plays a pivotal role in the development of cancer or physical malformations.

Mutations in proteins trigger defective tooth enamel

"All mice with mutations in these proteins exhibit teeth with enamel defects," explains Pierfrancesco Pagella, one of the study's two first authors. "Therefore, we demonstrated that there is a direct link between mutations in the genetic blueprints for these proteins and the development of tooth enamel defects." This genetic discovery goes a long way towards improving our understanding of the production of tooth enamel.

The team of researchers was the first in the world to use modern genetic, molecular and biochemical methods to study tooth enamel defects in detail. "We discovered that three particular proteins involved in the Wnt signaling pathway aren't just involved in the development of severe illnesses, but also in the qualitative refinement of highly developed tissue," says co-first author Claudio Cant from the molecular biologist research group lead by Prof. Konrad Basler. "If the signal transmission isn't working properly, the structure of the tooth enamel can change."

Increased risk of caries with defective tooth enamel

The hardness and composition of the tooth enamel can affect the progression of caries. "We revealed that tooth decay isn't just linked to bacteria, but also the tooth's resistance," says Thimios Mitsiadis, Professor of Oral Biology at the Center of Dental Medicine. Bacteria and their toxic products can easily penetrate enamel with a less stable structure, which leads to carious lesions, even if oral hygiene is maintained.

Understanding the molecular-biological connections of tooth enamel development and the impact of mutations that lead to enamel defects opens up new possibilities for the prevention of caries. "New products that hinder the progress of tooth caries in the event of defective tooth enamel will enable us to improve the dental health of patients considerably," adds Mitsiadis.

Explore further: Hair proteins are important in tooth enamel structure

More information: C. Cant, P. Pagella, T. D. Shajiei, D. Zimmerli, T. Valenta, G. Hausmann, K. Basler and T. A. Mitsiadis. A cytoplasmic role of Wnt--catenin transcriptional cofactors in tooth enamel formation. Science Signaling. February 7, 2017. DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.aah4598

Tooth decay is one of the most common chronic diseases worldwide. While oral hygiene and dietary choices promote tooth decay, genetics are also a factor in cavity formation.

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Being struck by Cupid's arrow can be good for your teeth.

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For decades, research has suggested a link between oral health and inflammatory diseases affecting the entire bodyin particular, heart attacks and strokes.

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Gene Therapy to Restore Hearing – Anti Aging News

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Posted on Feb. 8, 2017, 6 a.m. in Gene Therapy Sensory

Harvard Medical School scientists have perfected a form of gene therapy that has enabled genetically deaf mice to hear sounds as quiet as a whisper.

Harvard Medical School scientists have perfected gene therapy to the point that it can restore hearing. Their research and experiments have shown that the hearing of genetically deaf mice can be restored to the point that they hear noises at 25 decibels. This decibel level is equivalent to that of a soft whisper.

The Nuances of Gene Therapy for Improved Hearing

Harvard's gene therapy researchers state the most important aspect of their gene therapy breakthrough is a vector they created known as "Anc80". This vector brings a therapeutic gene to the cells within the cochlea's outer ear that are quite difficult to access. These outer hair cells boost sound, empowering inner hair cells to transmit a much more powerful communication to the brain. Gwenalle Gloc of Boston Children's Hospital's Department of Otolaryngology and F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, states the new system functions quite well by rescuing vestibular and auditory function to a degree that was not previously achieved in medical history. Research Details

Harvard's research team includes scientists employed by Massachusetts Eye and Ear. The group tested its gene therapy technique on mice with Usher Syndrome. This is a genetic disease that harms hearing as well as vision. Humans who are saddled with this disease are afflicted with a gene mutation that makes the protein harmonin ineffective. As a result, the hair cells responsible for accepting auditory signals and transmitting them to the brain are rendered useless.

The research team tapped into the power of its new vector to transmit an improved version of the gene, referred to as Ush1c, directly into the ear. It didn't take long for the ear's outer and inner hair cells to generate effective harmonin. Subsequent hearing tests conducted on mice proved that animals born deaf could hear. Some of these mice could even pick up on uber-soft auditory signals just like their normal peers.

The Magic of Gene Therapy

The scientific community is abuzz over gene therapy. Some believe gene therapy will ultimately prove to be the cure for deafness. It was only two years ago when scientists and investigators from Harvard and the University of Michigan's Hearing Research Institute found that the hearing-associated protein, NT3, can be stimulated through gene therapy. Additional approaches are geared toward stimulating the regeneration of hair cells within the ear. As an example, Harvard researchers have found that drugs referred to as Notch inhibitors can spur existing ear cells to transition into hair cells that improve hearing in mice.

The Harvard team reports its latest success with gene therapy made use of a similar technique that heightened hearing in 2015. However, these researchers now believe their newly generated vector will restore an even higher level of auditory ability. They also noted that the Ush1c gene applied to deaf mice served to heighten their balance. Mice with Usher Syndrome typically suffer from such poor balance. The Future of Gene Therapy

The future looks quite bright for those who suffer from hearing deficiencies. The research described above is fantastic news for those who suffer from hearing loss. It is possible that gene therapy will eventually supplant cochlear implants that are currently used to improve hearing in young patients. Though Cochlear implants have served patients quite well, there is still room for improvement.

Patients would like to hear an extended range of frequencies and the direction of a sound's source. They would also like to be able to differentiate between the auditory nuances of background noise, voices, music etc. The added benefit of heightened physical balance will serve to enhance Usher Syndrome patients' balance and mobility.

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Gene Therapy to Restore Hearing - Anti Aging News

Cellino wins Startup Challenge with pitch for photonics gene therapy – Optics.org

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08Feb2017

IC Touch and Lumedica take second and third in new-product pitch contest at SPIE Photonics West 2017.

Marinna Madrid, Chief Scientific Officer, made the pitch for the Harvard team. Cellino has developed laser-activated nanodevices to efficiently and effectively deliver novel gene therapies to cells, to cure viral or genetic diseases such as leukemia and HIV that affect the blood.

She told optics.org that one of the first projects her company will be tackling in 2017 using Cellinos therapeutic system will be the treatment of HIV in mice.

Second-placed Zeev Zalevsky, Bar Ilan University and IC Touch CTO and founder, pitched his companys device that allows blind or visually impaired people to see by translation of visual information captured by a camera to spatial tactile stimulation of the cornea.

Adam Wax, President and Chief Scientist at third-placed Lumedica, pitched Lumedica's OQ EyeScope, accessible and affordable medical imaging technology.

Other finalists in the competition were:

Jenoptik sponsored the cash prizes including $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place, and $2,500 for third place. The first-place winner also received $5,000 worth of products from Edmund Optics.

The breadth and business potential of the finalists was really impressive said Jay Kumler, President of Jenoptik Optical Systems, after the final round of pitches on February 1st. All of the finalists should be congratulated on the exciting companies that they have launched. SPIE President Glenn Boreman added, These entrepreneurs are doing the hard work of bringing these technologies out of the lab so they can benefit the public.

During the semi-final competition earlier in the week, Rick Schwerdtfeger, Director of the NSF SBIR/STTR Photonics Division, presented travel awards to Luis Moutinho of the Universidade de Aveiro and NU-RISE, and Madrid and colleague Nabiha Saklayen of Harvard and Cellino.

Moutinho made a pitch in the semi-finals for NU-RISEs technology for controlling radiological doses for breast and prostate cancer treatment.

Finals judges were: Jason Eichenholz, Open Photonics, Inc.; Marc Himel, Jenoptik Optical Systems; Andreas Popp, Trumpf; Jenny Rooke, 5 Prime Ventures; Samuel Sadoulet, Edmund Optics; and Homan Yuen, NewGen Capital.

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Cellino wins Startup Challenge with pitch for photonics gene therapy - Optics.org

Gene therapy’s latest benefit: New skin – Daily Democrat

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Small sheets of healthy skin are being grown from scratch at a Stanford University lab, proof that gene therapy can help heal a rare disease that causes great human suffering.

The precious skin represents growing hope for patients who suffer from the incurable blistering disease epidermolysis bullosa and acceleration of the once-beleaguered field of gene therapy, which strives to cure disease by inserting missing genes into sick cells.

It is pink and healthy. Its tougher. It doesnt blister, said patient and research volunteer Monique Roeder, 33, of Cedar City, Utah, who has received grafts of corrected skin cells, each about the size of an iPhone 5, to cover wounds on her arms.

More than 10,000 human diseases are caused by a single gene defect, and epidermolysis bullosa is among the most devastating. Patients lack a critical protein that binds the layers of skin together. Without this protein, the skin tears apart, causing severe pain, infection, disfigurement and in many cases, early death from an aggressive form of skin cancer.

The corrected skin is part of a pipeline of potential gene therapies at Stanfords new Center for Definitive and Curative Medicine, announced last week.

The center, a new joint initiative of Stanford Healthcare, Stanford Childrens Health and the Stanford School of Medicine, is designed to accelerate cellular therapies at the universitys state-of-the-art manufacturing facility on Palo Altos California Avenue. Simultaneously, it is aiming to bring cures to patients faster than before and boost the financial value of Stanfords discoveries before theyre licensed out to biotech companies.

With trials such as these, we are entering a new era in medicine, said Dr. Lloyd B. Minor, dean of the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Gene therapy was dealt a major setback in 1999 when Jesse Gelsinger, an Arizona teenager with a genetic liver disease, had a fatal reaction to the virus that scientists had used to insert a corrective gene.

But current trials are safer, more precise and build on better basic understanding. Stanford is also using gene therapy to target other diseases, such as sickle cell anemia and beta thalassemia, a blood disorder that reduces the production of hemoglobin.

There are several diseases that are miserable and worthy of gene therapy approaches, said associate professor of dermatology Dr. Jean Tang, who co-led the trial with Dr. Peter Marinkovich. But epidermolysis bullosa, she said, is one of the worst of the worst.

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It took nearly 20 years for Stanford researchers to bring this gene therapy to Roeder and her fellow patients.

It is very satisfying to be able to finally give patients something that can help them, said Marinkovich. In some cases, wounds that had not healed for five years were successfully healed with the gene therapy.

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Gene therapy's latest benefit: New skin - Daily Democrat

Futurist to Give Winthrop Rockefeller Distinguished Lecture at U of A – University of Arkansas Newswire

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Sheryl Connelly.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. Sheryl Connelly, the in-house futurist at Ford Motor Company, will deliver the Winthrop Rockefeller Distinguished Lecture at the University of Arkansas at 7p.m. Friday, March 3 in the Faulkner Performing Arts Center.

The event is free and open to the public; free tickets are available at the door only, and seating is limited.

Connelly is known for her ability to recognize consumer and lifestyle trends, identifying changes in customer attitudes and behavioral patterns that directly impact business strategy.

She was twice named one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business," by Fast Company and was listed among TechWeeks "Top 100 Innovators."

She will speak on how developing a futurist mindset and big picture perspective can help business innovate and remain relevant in a constantly evolving world.

This event is co-sponsored by the University of Arkansas Distinguished Lectures Committee, Office of Student Activities, and the Division of Student Affairs.

The Winthrop Rockefeller Distinguished Lectures program was established in 1972 by friends of Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller. It assists faculty at five campuses of the University of Arkansas System in obtaining outstanding visiting lecturers to communicate ideas that stimulate public discussion, intellectual debate and cultural advancement. Past speakers in the series at the Fayetteville campus include Jonathan Kozol, W.S. Merwin, Billy Collins, Isabel Allende, Buzz Aldrin, Howard Zinn, Daniel Janzen, Lee Lynd, and Rigoberta Menchu.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.

Editor-selected comments will be published below. No abusive material, personal attacks, profanity, spam or material of a similar nature will be considered for publication.

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The Futurist: The right mindset for digital marketing – Marketing Interactive

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Advertising and marketing have been consistently evolving, innovating and improving. New ideas, strategies, tools and choices of media are consistently being bloomed at a rapid pace especially when it comes to digital. Gone are the days where mere impressions or social media likes determine the very success of a digital campaign. In other words, popularity and awareness does not translate to revenue actual conversion does.

Very often, digital has been misperceived as an entirely new platform that generates magical instant results and is much superior compared with traditional media (thats up for debate). Many marketers neglected marketing fundamentals entirely by adopting irrelevant digital trends and clichs, just because competitors and other brands seemed successful doing it. At the end of the day, digital is just another media, but a rather modern and advanced one which consists of tools that traditional media would like to have but it is still media.

By neglecting marketing fundamentals, along with the core value of what their respective brand represents, mimicking winning trends just to drive unprofi table responses will only dilute the overall brand experience in the long run and obviously, it will only contribute to low sales conversion rates. Instead, starting off with the right mindset is a great start to realise actual goals and identify specifi c responsibility for each digital media to refl ect the overall integrated marketing mix.

Regardless of the traditional push strategy or search marketings direct response pull strategy, each media must be pathed to be consistent and seamless across the entire consumer journey. The biggest mistake would be implementing standalone digital campaigns that are not consistent with offl ine campaigns, just to target audiences within the digital market share. This is a misconception that the digital target audiences much differs with the offline audiences. There are over 21 million internet users in Malaysia, 81% of which access the internet via smartphones daily these are the very same audiences that access both offl ine and online media. In other words, they are the same group of people!

We all call it the digital era, but I call it the transparent era. In digital, every possible customer interaction, response and conversion are well recorded. For internet marketing agencies like us? There is nowhere to hide data and fi gures will never lie. With the adoption of a data-driven focus, it enhances marketers commitment in delivering fi gures-based performances which translates to tangible results revenue.

From a performance marketing point of view, marketers that are able to identify actual cost per-lead (CPL) and cost-per-acquisition (CPA) have the edge to signifi cantly reduce marketing costs and realigned investments into profi table marketing efforts conversion optimisation (CRO). The right critical marketing decisions will result in effi ciency and effectiveness, and it will subside the overall dependency of cost reductions in other internal departments manufacturing, R&D, HR, logistics, etc. In a holistic sense, it will greatly position the importance and impact of marketing.

As we progress towards 2017, we tend to hunger for the latest digital offerings to stay competitive, and in the hope that implementing new innovations will bring drastic improvements. With such a constant shift of digital objectives, are we really meeting our goals? Its best to take a wider view of past campaigns and optimise it to its fullest potential.

Digital rarely does mistakes, but humans do who knows what we have missed? After all, digital is not a sprint, its an effort-driven marathon just like traditional marketing.

The author of this article is Joseph Ting, CEO, Locus-T Online.

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Trend analyst and futurist to share industry predictions – Queensland Country Life

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A TREND analyst and futurist is headed to Toowoomba to speak at a national conference and share his predictions for the future of the region.

Principal of McCrindle Research, Mark McCrindle, has appeared widely on television shows as a media commentator, thought leader and social researcher.

Our approach is to use demographic modelling and data in an area to predict changes from national down to local levels, Mr McCrindle said.

As the workforce ages and the next generation transitions, Gen Y and Gen Z will comprise more than half of the workforce.

Mr McCrindle is one of the speakers at the three-day national Toowoomba Transport and Logistics Symposium where road, rail and air freight capabilities will be highlighted.

The event, hosted by Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise for the second time will see speakers from across Australia assess the challenges and opportunities ahead.

It will be held from February 27 to March 3.

Mr McCrindle said a growing demand for logistics solutions in the region made it ideal to develop as a key infrastructure hub thanks to ambitious projects like the Toowoomba Enterprise Hub.

The TSBE Development Status Report highlights $13billion of investment spend in the region, a strong indicator of future success across industry.

What will drive the logistics and freight industries in the Darling Downs and wider region is demand from population growth as well as the infrastructure development, he said.

The next round of data from the Census is due this year and will absolutely give Australia a sense of where its going. Its the densification of cities and new logistical challenges that are driving opportunity.

Mr McCrindle sighted Toowoomba as one of the lifestyle cities and hub for industry and innovation thanks to its location and connectivity.

The density of capital cities has hit a tipping point where Aussies are looking for alternatives and Toowoomba offers that, he said.

Mr McCrindle said the region was re-inventing itself after the construction phase of mining moved to the operational phase across the Surat Basin, with agriculture pushing the need for freight services and pathways.

The Toowoomba region has the supply-chain businesses and opportunities to value-add to existing industry as well as innovation thanks to the training facilities and university.

Speakers from road, rail and air will share the podium at the symposium to offer advice and industry information for 2017.

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Trend analyst and futurist to share industry predictions - Queensland Country Life

Futurism and Fascism | History Today

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It is particularly appropriate to re-examine the relationship between the rise of Fascism and the literary and artistic movement called Futurism, because in the last decade Futurism has once again been in the news. In 1986 the Italian car manufacturing giant FIAT together with an American high-tech conglomerate sponsored the largest and most comprehensive exhibition on Futurism ever mounted.

The renovated Palazzo Grassi in Venice groaned under the weight of 300 paintings and 1,200 other works, including a magnificent Bugatti automobile, all purportedly related to Futurism and its 'influence'.

So massive was this exhibition that the catalogue was said to weigh as much as a bomb. Henry Kissinger, the Aga Khan, Mme. Pompidou and other assorted luminaries came to see the show, as well as to lunch on such Futurist recipes as orange rice and lobster with green zabaglione sauce. Avoided were the more radical dishes to be found in Filippo Marinetti's 1931 Futurist cookbook, such as salami immersed in a bath hot black coffee flavoured with eau-de-Cologne or, for dessert, fresh pineapple with sardines.

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Tesla Just Shattered a World Record – Futurism

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In Brief

Tesla has just beaten another record. This time, the companys new Model S P100D has shattered the Motor Trend all-time world record for acceleration with its ability to go from 0 to 97 km/h(0 to 60 mph) in 2.28 seconds. A tweet from Tesla CEO Elon Musk cites the time at 2.27 seconds after rounding down from 2.275507139 seconds.

This will certainly be welcome news for those who enjoy the power of traditional muscle cars but also valuethe various environmental advantagesof electric vehicles. The speed comes as a benefit of a user-activated upgrade called Ludicrous mode, which greatly increases the vehicles performance, but not without extra wear and tear on the motor, gearbox, and battery.

Tesla is showing through its various innovations that it is, in many ways, the future. From theirself-driving cars to Powerpack stations that ease dependence on fossil fuels, the companys strength is clearly its eye toward the future. However, its nice to see them flex some musclewith regards to the standards of the past as well.

This announcement comes on the heels of another, less record-breaking announcement that the company ischanging its name from Tesla Motors Inc. to simply Tesla Inc.

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Tesla Just Shattered a World Record - Futurism

A New Method of Reversible Male Birth Control Passed a Major Test – Futurism

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In Brief

Right now, birth control options for men are limited to physical prophylactics (condoms) or surgery (a vasectomy), and there hasnt been a major update in male contraception in more than 100 years. Last year, trials for a hormonal optionbegan, but they had to be stopped early due to some unforeseen adverse side effects. Now, a new option is making its way through the required steps toward approval for widespread use, and it is reported to be completely reversible and much less invasive than a vasectomy.

Vasalgel is a one-time injection that has been shown to control sperm counts in monkeys. In fact, several of the treated monkeys were unable to get female monkeys pregnant for up to two years after the injection. The injection places a polymer gel in the tube through which sperm travels, the vas deferens, blocking sperm from joining the other bodily fluids that make up a mans ejaculate. No adverse reactions were reported in either the testing done on rabbits or the monkeys.

The cost and potential complications of male or female surgicalmethods of birth control limit their availability worldwide. Condoms can be expensive given that they are only designed for a single use. Thats not even considering their relatively high rate of failure, from 15 to 20 percent.The not-for-profit company behind Vasalgel plans on marketing the product with an international pricing structure to maximize the potential of universal affordability for all men. This means it could play a huge part in the lives of people all around the globe.

Giving people more choices when it comes to birth control actually benefits us all. According to an article in The Atlantic, couples who experience unintended pregnancy and unplanned childbirth are more likely to have depression and anxiety while adults who plan their children tend to be happier. These findings come from a group of studies compiled by the Guttmacher Institute. And the benefits dont stop at better mental health.

There are also clear economic benefits to greater control over reproduction. According toMartha Bailey, a University of Michigan professor of economics, Cheaper and more reliable contraception allows parents to delay childbearing, to invest in their own human capital, and have children when their incomes are higher. This kind of choice also allows for healthier individuals and families as poverty can be tied to higher rates of illness.

The product still has a few more regulatoryhoops to jump through even before it can be submitted for approval to bodies such as the FDA. Still, any news regarding male-centered methods of birth control are worth noting, especially when they seem as promising as this one. The Parsemus Foundations original estimates of availability by 2018 may have been a lofty goal, but Vasagel is well on its way.

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A New Method of Reversible Male Birth Control Passed a Major Test - Futurism

Freedom can’t hold off Spartans in overtime loss – Appleton Post Crescent

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See game highlights of Luxemburg-Casco's girls' basketball win over Freedom Tuesday night at Fteedom High School. Feb. 7, 2017

Freedoms Morgan Witt, center, is defended by Luxemburg-Cascos Carli Kollross, left, and Jenna Jorgensen during a North Eastern Conference girls basketball game Tuesday in Freedom.(Photo: Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)Buy Photo

FREEDOM - Few leads are safe when Cassie Schiltz is wearing an opposing uniform and in shooting rhythm.

Thats the painful lesson the Freedom Irish learned Tuesday night.

Schiltz, Luxemburg Cascos highly skilled sophomore, scorched the Irish for 40 points to trigger an inspired Spartans comeback in a 77-71 North Eastern Conference girls basketball overtime win.

It was a devastating loss for the Irish, who dropped into second place in the conference behind 14-1 Wrightstown. Freedom (16-3, 13-2) led by as many as 12 points in the second half and was up by seven heading into the final two minutes of regulation.

However, the stellar play of Schiltz and teammate Jenna Jorgensen along with the absence of Freedom starting point guard Jada Helms, who left the game with a wrist injury with six minutes remaining proved to be too much for the Irish to overcome.

Helms was injured following a collision with a driving Schiltz.

We were up by seven and in a double bonus, said Freedom coach Mike Vander Loop. If we handle the ball a little bit, we win. Jada is our point guard and our top perimeter defender, so losing her hurt. It could be either a fractured wrist or a strained wrist, so right now her injury is our biggest concern.

With Helms on the bench, the third-place Spartans (16-3, 12-3) scored the final seven points in regulation five by Schiltz to wipe out a 64-57 Freedom lead and send the game into overtime tied 64-64.

Luxemburg-Casco seized control in the extra period, opening overtime with eight straight points to complete a 15-0 run and take a 72-64 lead.

A 3-pointer by Brooke Garrett and two free throws by Makenna Haase helped Freedom close the gap to 74-71, but Schiltz sealed the Spartans win with four straight free throws to complete her extraordinary night.

The 5-foot-11 Schiltz, who is considered a legitimate Division I prospect, drained seven 3-pointers and also made plays off the dribble.

The thing with her is that shes so strong from the outside, but when you go step out a little tight on her, she gets to the basket, said Vander Loop. Shes a multi-faceted player, she can hurt you from both the inside and outside.

The 40-point outburst marked a career high for Schiltz, who scored 39 points in another game this season. She entered the contest averaging 21.0 points per game.

I dont know, I wasnt very hot in warmups, said Schiltz. I only made a couple shots. And then in the game, I hit a couple shots and I guess I was just feeling it.

Schiltzs monster game, along with the Spartans impressive comeback, overshadowed a huge night by Haase, who poured in 30 points. Garrett, a junior, added 18 for Freedom.

Jorgensen, who is also a sophomore, gave the Irish additional trouble, scoring 23 points.

Jenna and I have been playing together since we were little, said Schiltz. She stepped up tonight. Everyone stepped up tonight. Were a never-give-up kind of team. This win was huge for us.

With Haase scoring 16 first-half points, Freedom led 38-27 at the intermission and pushed its lead to 48-26 on a Garrett 3-pointer with 12 minutes left. But Schiltz drilled three consecutive 3-pointers to drive the Spartans back and Luxemburg-Casco outplayed the Irish down the stretch.

Give Luxemburg-Casco a lot of credit, said Vander Loop. They made big shots. And it wasnt just Schiltz. Jorgensen hit some big shots, too.

Luxemburg-Casco

27

37 13

77

Freedom

38

26 7

71

Luxemburg-Casco: Jorgensen 23, Tebon 2, Schiltz 40, Bukouricz 6, Dorner 6. Totals 27 14-17 77. Three-pointers: Schiltz 7, Jorgensen 2. Fouls: 18. Fouled out: Dorner.

Freedom: Garrett 18, Peters 5, M. Haase 30, T. Haase 3, Kempen 6, Witt 3, Evers 6. Totals 25 16-23 71. Three-pointers: Garrett 4, Peters. Fouls: 15.

Tim Froberg: 920-993-7183 or tfroberg@postcrescent.com; on Twitter @twfroberg

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Freedom can't hold off Spartans in overtime loss - Appleton Post Crescent