Category Archives: Technology

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fluree, provider of an immutable semantic graph data platform, today announced a partnership with Ikigai Technologies to provide comprehensive off-chain data storage for Cardano metadata. The project, termed Logosphere is funded as a cohort project of Project Catalyst, Cardanos community fund allocated through public voting.

Cardano has become the sixth largest cryptocurrency with a market capitalization of more than $88 billion; however, the metadata is not easily accessible to users and other third parties without inspecting every transaction. Until now, no common standard exists for off-chain databases, making it difficult to review metadata for analytics and hindering cross-app data sharing.

Ikigais proposal centers around using Fluree to build a provable data-centric sidechain for dApps. Flurees immutable graph database has native support for W3C data standards, making it well-suited for this solution. Transaction metadata in Cardano will be expanded beyond the current 16kB limit, and Fluree will provide an API to allow anyone developing dApps to harness a means of storing extended metadata.

If the on-chain parts of Cardano are immutable, but the off-chain metadata is not, that creates a real trust problem, said Fluree Co-CEO and Co-Founder Brian Platz. Fluree and Ikigai Technologies will work together to build a sidechain with the ability to link and share data while ensuring the same degree of trust as the on-chain data.

Ikigai Technologies will build the project using Flurees technology, with a goal of launching the public sidechain in early 2022. Ikigai Technologies CEO Michael Yagi spent years as an engineer at Tableau Software, and other team members have built solutions for Amazon and Microsoft.

Dmitri Safine, CTO of Ikigai Technologies, who spent the last 3 years as a data engineer at Amazon, commented, Ive always been fascinated with graph databases and possibilities of building an ecosystem where data coming from different but related apps and domains can be shared and linked together to power data-centric dApps. While trying to figure out a data layer solution for Cardanos emerging dApp ecosystem, I landed on Brian Platzs ZDNet podcast about Fluree and got hooked. It turned out to be the start of this exciting journey.

The teams will collaborate on design with engineers from IOHK, one of the world's pre-eminent blockchain infrastructure research and engineering companies. To learn more, visit logosphere.io.

About Fluree

Founded in 2016 by Brian Platz and Flip Filipowski, Fluree PBC is headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Fluree is pioneering a data-first technology approach with its data management platform. For more information, follow Fluree on Twitter or LinkedIn, or visit flur.ee.

About Ikigai Technologies

Named after the Japanese word for one's reason for being, Ikigai Technologies is a blockchain technology company founded by Michael Yagi and 4 industry experts specializing in decentralized technologies. Ikigai Technologies leverages new technology stacks to build products that help others find their own Ikigai. For more information, follow Ikigai on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, or visit ikigaitech.org.

See original here:

Cardano Community Selects Fluree and Ikigai Technologies to Build Metadata Sidechain Solution, Project Logosphere - Business Wire

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., Sept. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) today convened an NCCN Policy Summit on The Impact of Technology on Cancer Care in 2021. The online program brought together experts and innovators who are using emerging technologies to improve the quality, efficiency, and accessibility of cancer care on both a national and local level.

"We recognize that there are tremendous opportunities in leveraging technology to close gaps in our health care system in order to provide better care, reduce physician burnout, and control costs for people with cancer," said Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, NCCN. "At the same time, we have to worry about unintentionally exacerbating existing problems and creating new areas of bias and inequity. We convened this summit to share diverse perspectives on both policy and practice for what can be done with technology, and more importantly, what should be done."

"The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Cancer Imaging Program (CIP) supports innovative research for discovery, technology development, and clinical translation of new imaging methods for people with cancer," said keynote speaker Janet Eary, MD, Associate Director, CIP. "Among many activities, CIP maintains a large imaging data archive as a public research resource, which promotes new imaging and data analyses that can be used to address issues in care delivery equity. The archive image datasets with their clinical metadata are collected from different populations so that researchers can apply innovative imaging research and data analysis approaches to these reference examples."

Dr. Eary also reported that "imaging research continues to develop innovative approaches that can be harnessed to address the needs of individuals and different populations of people with cancer."

Panelists examined some of the areas where technology holds the most potential for improving care, while also looking at areas of concern.

"Digital tools and technology are integrating into our daily lives," said Edmondo Robinson, MD, MBA, Senior Vice President, Chief Digital Officer, Moffitt Cancer Center. "Health policy is increasingly recognizing these opportunities, from telehealth to artificial intelligence and beyond; this has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In oncology, there is much more we can do to truly harness the power and potential of digital tools to prevent and cure cancer."

Beyond imaging, major topics of interest included:

The program also included several presentations highlighting a few recently-developed tools intended to improve the cancer journey for patients and caregivers.

"We created the LLS Health Manager mobile app because we recognized the need for a tool that allows patients to track their daily health. Managing side effects is an important part of cancer care and by tracking medication, side effects, food and hydration, patients and their doctors can begin to identify patterns and develop strategies to help them do so," said Amanda LaRussa, Director, Patient Education & Web Content, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). "We also created a free coloring app called LLS Coloring for Kids designed to allow children to express their creativity while learning about blood cancer and its treatments. We felt it was important to offer kids a fun and encouraging platform to help them cope with the emotional challenges that come along with a cancer diagnosis." Both are available to download for free in the App Store or Google Play.

Additional quotes from speakers and presenters:

Laura Chavaree, LCSW, MSW, Head of Patient Engagement, Blue Note Therapeutics said: "The inevitable stress that accompanies a cancer diagnosis often leads to anxiety and depression. Unfortunately, cancer care teams have limited resources and time to provide psycho-social care and cancer-related distress can go under-treated or even unrecognized. Blue Note Therapeutics is committed to addressing this unmet need as we leverage clinically-validated, digital technology to provide greater access to the full suite of care for cancer-related distress available in top cancer centers. Collaborating closely with patient advisors, we are co-creating these exciting new tools and a future where clinicians are enabled through technology to extend their reach, giving patients the ability to better manage the emotional burden of cancer at home, on their own time."

James Hamrick, MD, MPH, Vice President, Clinical Oncology, Flatiron Health said: "Machine learning-based tools have the potential to improve patient care and safety through more efficient healthcare delivery. At Flatiron Health, we use machine learning to proactively identify patients who are at risk for an adverse clinical event and surface these insights directly in clinical workflows to help care teams better direct resources to patients that need them most. As part of this investment, we built a rigorous model monitoring an analytic solution to mitigatethe very real risk of reproducing real-world disparities in machine learning algorithms."

Kjel Johnson, PharmD, Vice President, Specialty Strategy and Client Solutions, CVS Caremark said: "A cancer diagnosis can be overwhelming. What makes it even harder is that the treatment journey is fraught with breakdowns from getting patients diagnosed in a timely manner to making sure they get on the most appropriate regimen for their specific diagnosis as quickly as possible. Using technology-enabled solutions can close these gaps and improve the overall quality of care."

"CVS Health has invested more than $100 millionin its digital infrastructure to help get patients on the right treatments faster, mitigate adverse events and prevent unnecessary admissions, to improve the overall quality and cost ofcare," Johnson added.

Additional speakers and presenters included:

Kim Agricola, Director, Digital Content, Cancer Support Community

Vanessa Cramer, Director of Policy, Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance

Jonathan Darer, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer, Medicalis, Medical Director of Clinical Decision Support, Principal Key Expert for Clinical Pathways and Decision Support, Siemens Healthineers

Tim Foley, MBA, Vice President, Oncology, Optum

Tufia Haddad, MD, Chair of Practice Innovation and Platform, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Medical Director of Care at Home, Center for Digital Health

Jocelyn Ulrich, MPH, Deputy Vice President, Medical Innovation Policy,The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)

The next policy summit will be the annual NCCN Patient Advocacy Summit, taking place on Tuesday, December 7, 2021. This year's NCCN Patient Advocacy Summit will focus on Advancements in Precision Medicine and Implications for Quality, Accessible, and Equitable Cancer Care. To register, visit NCCN.org/summits and join the conversation with the hashtag #NCCNPolicy.

About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) is a not-for-profit alliance of leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education. NCCN is dedicated to improving and facilitating quality, effective, efficient, and accessible cancer care so patients can live better lives. The NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) provide transparent, evidence-based, expert consensus recommendations for cancer treatment, prevention, and supportive services; they are the recognized standard for clinical direction and policy in cancer management and the most thorough and frequently-updated clinical practice guidelines available in any area of medicine. The NCCN Guidelines for Patients provide expert cancer treatment information to inform and empower patients and caregivers, through support from the NCCN Foundation. NCCN also advances continuing education, global initiatives, policy, and research collaboration and publication in oncology. Visit NCCN.org for more information and follow NCCN on Facebook @NCCNorg, Instagram @NCCNorg, and Twitter @NCCN.

Media Contact: Rachel Darwin 267-622-6624 [emailprotected]

SOURCE National Comprehensive Cancer Network

http://www.nccn.org

View post:

NCCN Policy Summit Explores the Promise and Challenges of New Technologies in Cancer Care - PRNewswire

Australias leading scientists and engineers have told the Morrison government the technologies needed to make significant cuts in greenhouse gas emissions already exist and the Coalition should immediately implement a national net zero policy.

In an explicit response to the governments technology, not taxes approach to reducing emissions, the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering has released a position statement calling on the government to prioritise the immediate deployment of existing mature, low-carbon technologies which can make deep cuts to high-emitting sectors before 2030.

The academy has also urged the government to set a more ambitious emissions target for 2030 ahead of the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow, following calls by diplomats, scientists, business leaders, and backbench Coalition MPs Warren Entsch and Jason Falinski.

The academys president, Prof Hugh Bradlow, said the technologies we can use to actually make significant progress are here today.

We dont have to take risks and their economics are proven, he said. Its not a case of waiting for some miracle to happen. Its a case of getting on with it now.

Bradlow said setting a target of net zero emissions by 2050 as most business and industry groups, all the states and more than 100 national governments have was an unequivocal requirement that countries should meet.

Most countries are stepping up to recognise that requirement, and without that sort of commitment you dont take the actions that you need in order to get there, he said.

Sign up to receive the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Prof Renate Egan of the University of New South Wales, a member of the academys energy forum working group, said existing technologies including solar and wind power, energy storage, electric vehicles and energy efficiency for buildings could rapidly reduce emissions in the electricity, stationary energy and transport sectors.

Egan said electricity, which accounts for about a third of Australias emissions, was already on track to be 80% renewably generated by 2030. But she said while large emissions reductions could be achieved using existing technology, reaching net zero would require investment in new technologies such as clean hydrogen and greener processes for manufacturing aluminium and steel.

The Morrison government has emphasised the latter, promising to support five priority areas also including carbon capture and storage, and soil carbon under a low-emissions technology statement released last year.

It is under rising pressure to do more to reduce emissions in the short term. An Australian Conservation Foundation survey of 15,000 people released this week found a majority of people in every federal electorate believed the Morrison government should be doing more to tackle the climate crisis.

Entsch and Falinski both called for the 2030 emissions target to be increased beyond the governments six-year-old commitment of a 26-28% cut compared with 2005 levels. On Wednesday, Falinski tweeted that the government should commit to reaching net zero by 2050 and set a new stretch target for 2030. Entsch said he had been lobbying his senior colleagues to commit to stronger interim emissions reduction commitments.

But some Nationals MPs remain strongly opposed to greater climate action, and Morrison has resisted calls to join the US, European Union, UK, Japan and Canada in significantly increasing 2030 goals, and the more than 100 countries that have set a mid-century net zero target. He has promised a long-term emissions strategy before the Glasgow summit in November.

The treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, last week told Guardian Australia progress is being made behind closed doors within the government on climate change, but said he was very comfortable with the 2030 target.

Dr John Sderbaum, chair of the technology and engineering academys energy forum, said Australia needed a net zero policy and clear framework if the country was to have any sort of realistic hope of reaching net zero by 2050.

This is not anything controversial: state and territory governments, businesses, industry associations have already adopted such targets and are calling for them, he said. We have lost a lot of time. We could have been much further down the path if we had had a more planned and structured approach to reducing our emissions.

The opposition leader, Anthony Albanese, on Wednesday painted the climate crisis as one of the most significant security challenges of the 21st century, and accused the Morrison government of failing to rise to that reality.

A group of retired defence force personnel stressed this point in a report to be released on Thursday, saying government inaction on climate change meant it was failing in its duty to protect Australians.

The Australian Security Leaders Climate Group, which includes retired defence figures such as Admiral Chris Barrie, Air Vice-Marshal John Blackburn and Colonel Neil Greet, called on the government to change its approach to climate change as a matter of urgency.

Its report said the politicisation of climate change had paralysed government departments, and called on the public service to reestablish a frank and fearless voice on climate policy choices.

The capacity of the Australian Public Service (APS) to provide advice on climate issues has been diminished, it said.

Former APS personnel report experiences in which initiating new work on climate change could not be overtly identified as climate focused because that may lead to the project being closed down.

The group pointed to Australias catastrophic 2019-20 bushfires, when soldiers were mobilised to fire-ravaged regional areas. It called for the development of holistic policies to prepare for and prevent climate-related security risks, including protecting the countrys precarious global supply chains.

In an emergency [in which] supply chains are disrupted, domestic oil and petrol supplies would last only weeks and military capacity to move and fly would be compromised, it warned.

The latest assessment by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, published earlier this month, found emissions were already affecting weather and climate extremes in every region across the globe, contributing to an increase in heatwaves, heavier rainfall events and more intense droughts and tropical cyclones. In Australia, average temperatures above land have increased by about 1.4C since 1910.

See original here:

Get on with it: Australia already has low-carbon technology and Coalition should embrace it, scientists say - The Guardian

M&A

Known more for making acquisitions, private equity firm AE Industrial Partners is adding another way of searching for and partnering with companies whose technologies and business models present the potential to be transformative.

AEI is doing that by investing in and taking on the management responsibility for HorizonX Ventures, the venture capital organization formerly run by Boeing.

Boeing, AEI and others are putting new capital commitments into what is now called AEI HorizonX, which currently has 40 investments in the portfolio.

Leading AEI HorizonX is Brian Schettler, who was senior managing director of what was once Boeing HorizonX. Schettlers new title is head of AEI HorizonX and partner at AEI, though the vast majority of his time and energy will be spent on the ventures side.

When I asked Schettler why AEI and Boeing signed up for this new arrangement, he spoke of it being a more integrated investment platform between the legacy private equity side and what happens in the venture organization.

Covering early stage to late stage really gave you, one, almost better visibility from a PE side of what the emerging tech was coming that could potentially disrupt your private equity portfolios, Schettler told me. Or being one step ahead of what new technologies you might want to embrace in those portfolio companies to make them more competitive.

Being integrated into AEI and having that access to capital can help take companies through the phases of technology maturation and then operational growth, Schettler said.

The newly-casted AEI HorizonX will include new investments in these major themes: mobility, space and connectivity, industrial technology, and enterprise digital solutions. A broader emphasis on sustainability including carbon footprint reductions underlies all of that.

Regarding the role of Boeing: the aerospace giant will give the ventures organization access to the Boeing Applied Innovation team, which then will act as a conduit for portfolio companies to connect with Boeings technical capabilities and talent.

That feeds into what both sides of an investment get after the agreement is signed and partnership is formed. Schettler said the AEI HorizonX team is looking to create pathways for technologies across the portfolio and facilitate collaboration across it between all employees ranging from technology fellows and engineers to senior executives.

So what are the qualitative factors AEI HorizonX looks at in a potential company to invest in? The organization uses its targeted areas as filters, though Schettler said those are also intended to be broad strokes to keep the aperture open.

Then there is how differentiated the technologies are from the rest, so one question Schettler said the team asks is how soon a competitor can catch up to the invention. Intellectual property protection practices are another set of criteria to ensure the technology is built to last on its own, Schettler said.

Enterprise digital solutions are one area that may fit the definition of the broad strokes AEI Horizon X has made for itself. That essentially means software to drive productivity enhancements into the supply chain and incorporate tech tools for artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data.

For aerospace and industrial applications, Schettler said that means driving better decision-making, better uptime, ability to deploy into a factory setting and better delivery rates.

Area number two of focus is the supply chain. Schettler called that ripe for further digital disruption regarding security and traceability, finding counterfeit parts and understanding carbon footprints.

One word of caution to close with: patience is a virtue of you are one of those companies looking to get in touch with AEI HorizonX. Schettler said the integration phase is ongoing and includes a revamp of the website to create an easier mechanism for engagement.

But Schettler also told me that should not curtail companies from reaching out: do so nonetheless as they respond to everybody. Connections are still to be had and more are to be made.

About the Author

Ross Wilkers is a senior staff writer for Washington Technology. He can be reached at rwilkers@washingtontechnology.com. Follow him on Twitter: @rosswilkers. Also connect with him on LinkedIn.

Read the original:

What's next for the Boeing-AEI investment partnership - Washington Technology

ACQUISITION

NOTE: This story first appeared on FCW.com.

What would you do with a billion dollars?

The Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) used to be one small way the federal government could help a few agencies push along their modernization projects with some extra support. But the fund has now taken on an new significance following a $1 billion investment in the American Rescue Plan, along with relaxed repayment guidelines and an aggressive cybersecurity agenda put forth by the White House.

With the new money and an unprecedented surge in proposals, questions arise about whether the board overseeing the TMF has been adequately organized and scaled to efficiently identify and implement projects capable of revolutionizing government technology.

Lane Becker, a former General Services Administration (GSA) official who helped stand up the TMF during its initial launch, said "the missing opportunity here is to think about how we spend money on technology in a new way."

The TMF board "could use the money to thoughtfully architect a structure that transforms the way we spend money on technology," Becker, who now leads the education non-profit Wikimedia, told FCW in a recent interview. "Or, we can take the billion dollars and do what we always do: Try to get rid of as much of it as possible, as fast as we possibly can, and shove projects through the door."

"My frustration is that the latter one is what appears to be happening," he added.

TMF proposals surge following $1 billion cash infusion

Prior to the $1 billion investment, the TMF funded 12 medium- and small-scale IT projects across seven agencies. Federal CIO Clare Martorana said at a May event that she expected to receive less than 100 "pretty robust" proposals ahead of a June deadline to begin priority reviews.

By July, Martorana told Congress the board had received 108 proposals from 43 agencies, totaling $2.1 billion in requests for funding. The board has continued to receive additional proposals since then, while accepting projects on a rolling basis and releasing key guidance for agencies hoping to gain more clarity around the process.

To cope with the surge in proposals, Martorana and other top board members began meeting multiple days a week to review projects ranging across four main priorities: modernizing high-priority systems, cybersecurity, public-facing digital services and cross-government services. The board also announced it was adding several alternative members after an influx in proposals following the relaxed repayment guidelines.

"The board and the [program management office] are adjusting, and we're scaling very quickly to meet the demand of proposals as they're coming in," Deputy Federal CIO Maria Roat said at MITRE's Center for Data-Driven Policy event in June. "We need to make sure that we maintain the quality, the governance and the rigor that made all of the prior awarded projects successful."

In an April letter sent to GSA and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the House Oversight and Reform Committee pressed both agencies to develop a plan to address how the program management office (PMO) supporting the TMF "will be scaled appropriately to handle the volume of project proposals from agencies."

Government Operations Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who signed onto the letter along with four of his colleagues, told FCW he wanted to learn how the Biden administration was planning to "increase the capacity of both the TMF Board and program management office in order to accommodate the influx of agency proposals for TMF funds."

GSA did not answer questions about how many staffers worked within the PMO, but a spokesperson told FCW the office was "actively adding additional staff members from within the agency" and "looking at options including detailees from across the government for surge and expertise support."

"The Technology Modernization Fund Program Management Office continues to scale to meet the needs of the TMF including the $1 billion provided in the American Rescue Plan," a GSA spokesperson told FCW in an emailed statement. "During the budget formulation process, budget requests are developed with information known at that time. GSA will continue to scale the PMO to support the full needs of the TMF."

Congress first allocated $100 million to the revolving fund in fiscal year 2018, followed by annual investments of $25 million over the next two years. Officials said the initial approach to building the fund allowed the board to begin putting in place efficient and rigorous oversight procedures, all while ensuring the several modernization projects it supported were successful and that loans were being repaid on time.

However, strict repayment requirements made applying to the TMF less enticing for many agencies, as lawmakers called for relaxed repayment guidelines and increased funding to help move along government-wide cybersecurity and modernization efforts.

Those calls were answered earlier this year when the new administration included a $1 billion investment for the TMF in the American Rescue Plan, and relaxed repayment guidelines were announced for projects addressing critical cybersecurity and modernization issues. After decades of underinvestment in IT across government agencies, the TMF became a symbol of hope for a consistent and increased cybersecurity investment -- and even a federal cloud modernization moonshot.

But questions still remained over how projects would be chosen and whether top board members had enough support from the PMO to focus on oversight rather than identification and testing. Another former GSA official who asked not to be identified also expressed concerns over whether the agency had appropriately scaled the PMO to cope with the surge in proposals following new investments and relaxed repayment guidelines.

That official said the Trump administration previously treated the TMF as "a risk to be managed, rather than an opportunity to be embraced," housing the PMO under the deputy administrator instead of within the Technology Transformation Service (TTS) offices, where some of the GSA's top talent resides.

Still, many observers continue to support a slower approach to scaling up the TMF board and PMO now that the fund has transformed into a much larger entity.

The most successful pattern for government modernization efforts have included hands-on involvement from senior-level staff, followed by effective scaling based on lessons from numerous cycles of learning and iteration, according to Rohan Bhobe, CEO and co-founder of the digital services firm Nava Public Benefit Corporation, who played a significant role in fixing the Healthcare.gov website following its botched rollout.

"Unsuccessful modernizations typically have a shape where they're trying to do everything at once, they spin up hard and fast, so you get a lot of new people in at the same time you're trying to build an organization," Bhobe said. "If instead you can have a more gradual, glide-path to successful outcomes, those have been much more consistently successful for the type of work and type of complexity these modernization projects have to deal with."

"You don't want to scale something that doesn't work, but it's important that Congress asks for a plan," he added.

GSA's 10x Program is one the agency could potentially model while considering how to scale up the PMO and TMF board, Bhobe suggested. Initially created in 2015 and launched in 2018, the program was established to fund innovative ideas from civil servants across the federal government and slowly expanded into the larger entity it is today.

The 10x program "created an environment in which people were comfortable taking risks," Becker said, noting how GSA allowed for projects the program was funding to fail in order to learn from those pitfalls.

Dave Wennergren, CEO of the American Council for Technology and Industry Advisory Council (ACT-IAC), said "it seems likely to me that more people will be needed" within the PMO to support the dramatic increase in funding, which he added "will represent a significantly increased pace of project review and approval."

"IT Modernization is still a crucial issue, with many agencies still spending the vast majority of their IT budgets sustaining aging legacy infrastructure and systems rather than implementing new, digital-age solutions," Wennergren toldFCW. "The government should be applauded for rapidly requesting and reviewing new project proposals, but I do think that some process changes may be needed, both to accelerate and streamline the process for identifying, approving and implementing projects and also to consider a combination of 'push/pull,' considering some directed projects in addition to calls for proposals."

Whether the TMF is able to fund transformative projects while remaining a sustainable entity at current operating capacity remains to be seen. Last month, the White House urged Congress to dramatically increase the $50 million it proposed for the fund during the fiscal 2022 appropriations process. The administration previously requested $500 million.

About the Author

Chris Riotta is a staff writer at FCW covering government procurement and technology policy. Chris joined FCW after covering U.S. politics for three years at The Independent. He earned his master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where he served as 2021 class president.

See the article here:

Where does the TMF Board go from here? - Washington Technology

By Stuart Foster, Contributing Writer

MARLBOROUGH The Marlborough United Brethren Masonic Lodge awarded the citys public school systems Technology Specialist Team with its Masonic Teacher of the Year award at a ceremony on Aug. 18.

The Technology Specialist Team, whose four members are Jacqueline Carter-Halbrooks, Chris Henry, Nancy Marrese and Jennifer Smith, were awarded for their role in teaching the school systems teachers how to best incorporate technology in their instruction.

Outlined against a dark, gray COVID-19 pandemic cloud, Marlboroughs four instructional technology specialists took on the challenge of an upcoming crusade, said Tom Plati, the director of Institutional Technology at Marlborough Public Schools.

Plati said that the members of the team regularly worked together to facilitate professional development workshops. They successfully swept away the doubts and technophobia of teachers in the Marlborough school system, he said.

Plati credited the Technology Specialist Team with pulling the districts school system forward during a year that was extremely challenging due to the necessity of remote learning because of COVID-19.

Personally, I have been in the field of instructional technology education over 35 years, said Plati. Never in all this time in this technology field have I been associated with such an exemplary group of educators.

Smith thanked the Masons for the award and said that the team was extremely honored to be the first team recognized as Marlboroughs Teacher of the Year.

She added that her team always works together to make their work more enjoyable and meaningful and thanked her team members.

Together, we are each others biggest cheerleaders and we are each others most supportive friends, Smith said.

Carter-Halbrooks thanked the teams family members, while Henry acknowledged the support of the community and staff of the Marlborough school system, as well as the Marlborough Information Technology department.

Marrese thanked Plati on behalf of the group, saying that Plati assembled the group after seeing creativity, leadership and a passion for teaching and learning in the teams members.

He has supported us, encouraged us, taught us, and always believed in us, Marrese said.

As the Technology Specialist Team won the award, Kate Olsen, a fourth-grade teacher at Jaworek Elementary School was also a finalist for it.

Stephanie Richardson, a new fourth-grade teacher at Jaworek who nominated Olsen, wrote in her nomination letter that Olsen had been very helpful in her transition to Jaworek and described her as extremely dedicated to her students.

Richardson used an example of how Olsen supported a student this year who required movement breaks, which were less available due to the pandemic. Richardson said that Olsen got the student a floor pedal bike to use as a substitute for the breaks.

Kate puts 150 percent effort into ensuring her students have what they always need, Richardson said. She goes out of her way to make sure all of her students receive the best possible education.

Marlborough Mayor Arthur Vigeant thanked the Masonic Lodge for continuing this tradition of honoring educators. He further thanked the Technology Specialist Team and Olsen.

I cant thank you enough for all you do for all our kids, Vigeant said.

Go here to see the original:

Marlborough Technology Specialist Team recognized at Teacher of the Year ceremony - Community Advocate

BROKEN ARROW, Okla. An investment company has announced plans to build a 60,000 square foot medical center in Broken Arrow.

The Vincent Medical Campus will be built near Florence and Elm. The building will use modern technology to alleviate germs and resist the spread of bacteria, including COVID-19. That technology includes anti-microbial lights and building materials.

The group also plans to use solar panels and geothermal energy to make it one of the most energy-efficient buildings in Oklahoma.

Kevin Cox is the leader of 7315 Investments. He says his group realized the need for modern medical facilities that could reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Technology must be leveraged whenever possible to make patients and their physical providers comfortable meeting in person. This is 2021, and its time we leverage what we know to bring normalcy back to the doctor-patient relationship. We believe this is the time, and this location in Broken Arrow is the place to do it, said Cox.

Construction is expected to begin soon.

Vincent Medical Center (Weidnerd)

2021 Cox Media Group

Read the original:

New medical facility coming to Broken Arrow, will feature modern technology - KOKI FOX 23

BHUBANESWAR, India--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tetrasoft, a leading global information technology and consulting services company, today opened a state-of-the-art Technology Innovation Hub (TIH) in Bhubaneswar, India, expanding its digital transformation capabilities across a range of digital technologies to drive delivery excellence and customer experiences for global enterprise clients.

Expected to hire over 100 highly-skilled digital experts initially, the hub will feature an Insurance Innovation Lab (IIL) which will capitalise on the growing demand and augment its capabilities, offering an immersive environment for clients to collaborate and co-innovate across Insurance industry covering Core platform modernization, intelligent process automation, big data analytics and cloud to drive operational efficiencies, and boost client experiences faster while reducing the costs.

The solutions will dwell on Core Insurance Products like Duckcreek and next generation technologies like digital analytics, Cloud enablement, DevOps, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and cognitive computing. Focused on building next generation products and intelligent platforms for its global enterprise customers, the company is in hyper growth mode and would be looking for aggressive ramp ups of both lateral and young engineers who are looking to accept their next growth challenge.

Enterprise clients are under stress grappling with seismic technology shifts, to score a competitive edge. At Tetrasoft, we are passionate about helping our clients predict, prepare, and thrive navigating disruptive changes by applying advanced innovations to shape the future, said Rama S Eyunni, Chief Executive Officer, Tetrasoft Inc. Our Technology Innovation Hub in Bhubaneswar will help cross-pollinate ideas and innovations from around the world, enable our clients to scale their technology investments, boost business outcomes, and create new opportunities for local talent.

With a digital-first approach to accelerate transforming the way businesses interact in the market by leveraging business, data, and insights, the lab will leverage a large pool of digital talent, domain experts, industry innovators, proven methodologies, state-of-the-art technologies, and an agile business approach to enable clients harness future technologies. Staffing for the new jobs created in the Hub will be sourced locally, in partnership with local academic institutions and the ecosystem to build a strong pipeline for talent and innovation.

We are excited to open our new office in a high-skill location like Bhubaneswar which will focus on developing core digital solutions for a range of industries with an initial focus on Insurance. Bhubaneswar has a talent pool with deep expertise in digital platforms and integration skills, said Surya Thammiraju, EVP & Chief Technology Officer, Tetrasoft Inc.

The Lab will enable clients to develop and scale technologies for the new age digital economy and accelerate value creation through enterprise-wide, game-changing innovations.

Bhubaneswar is an excellent destination in expanding our Global delivery operations with a focus on Insurance. The office will focus on core delivery of projects, building solutions at our Insurance Innovation Lab (IIL) and nurturing talent at the Tetra Academy at Bhubaneswar (TAB), said Anil Venuganti, VP & Global Delivery Head.

The Innovation Hub will also be focusing on digital services and will be integral to bring together capabilities needed to ideate, prototype, build and scale disruptive solutions for clients across geographies and industries, and tap the rich talent pool and innovation ecosystem spread across the globe where it operates.

The hub will empower global clients to accelerate next-generation, digital transformation, driven by world-class collaborative innovation and co-creation to deliver superior experiences, introduce personalized products, reduce costs, boost efficiency & growth, faster and smarter, said Sujeet Parida, Practice Head Insurance Products who joined the company last year to strengthen the insurance offerings.

As a global leading information technology and consulting services company, Tetrasoft strives to harness the power of the explosion of data, mobility, emergence of cloud-based business platforms, hyper automation, transforming ways of working, connected devices, and cloud integration to help customers transcend across digital generations.

About Tetrasoft

Tetrasoft is a global digital services company, focused on delivering innovation and digital services to leading enterprise clients. The companys strategies transform the way businesses interact in the market by leveraging business, data, and customer behavioural insights. With a digital-first approach, the company helps its clients stay ahead by using the best-in-class agile and lean methodologies. With a strong focus on insurance, healthcare, and manufacturing, Tetrasoft specializes in developing commercial products and solutions using disruptive technology across data engineering, customer experience, intelligent automation, cloud platforms and enablement, mobile applications, quality engineering and cyber security service lines.

http://www.tetrasoft.us

Visit link:

Tetrasoft Opens Advanced Technology Innovation Hub in Bhubaneswar, to Hire 100 Plus Digital Talent - Business Wire

A member of the Lycoming County Career and Technology Center superintendents advisory committee visited the Homeland Security Consortium in the Muncy Area Volunteer Fire Hall earlier this week to hear the perspectives of those who would like to see homeland security curriculum brought to the CTC.

Mike Pawlik, the East Lycoming School District superintendent and member of the superintendents advisory committee, heard from the assembled fire chiefs, municipal leaders and Melanie Bertin, who heads up Williamsport Area School Districts program.

The consortium, which is made up of fire departments and municipal leaders from around the east end of the county, is attempting to bring a homeland security program comprised of firefighter, emergency medicine and law enforcement/corrections programs to local high school students.

The goal is to increase the spirit of voluntarism with local fire departments as well as teach practical skills students can graduate with and use to further their own careers.

We certainly understand there is a desperate need for young blood coming up, Pawlik said.

Youre looking at some of the young ones. We are the young ones anymore, Todd Winder, Clinton Township fire chief, said.

Dan Knapp, the president of Muncy Area Firefighter, said a lack of opportunities to speak to kids at school prevents fire departments from recruiting as well as other clubs and activities.

Pawlick said finding applicants to a potential position created for these courses may pose some challenge to the CTC. However, Delaney suggested Bertin may know of others who would be interested.

I know of 12 other people who applied. Directors in the prison system, instructors for volunteer firefighting, some retired state police officers, Bertin said.

Bertin said the children in her program, which was started three years ago, are looking for purpose; they enjoyed the bonds they formed with EMTs in the back of the ambulance, so they did not leave after high school.

The kids in our school are the most articulate, thoughtful and concerned individuals. They talk about their community and the future, Pawlik said. What theyre searching for is a good place to put their effort. Most kids want to make a difference someway, somehow in others lives.

Pawlik said he would share the information with the other board members.

The Lycoming County Career and Technology Center is made up of Montoursville, Muncy, Warrior Run, Loyalsock and East Lycoming School Districts, and also accepted students tuitioned in by Benton School District.

Jerry McLaughlin is the superintendent of record for the CTC.

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

Read more from the original source:

Lycoming County Career and Technology Center to consider adding homeland security courses by local consortium - Williamsport Sun-Gazette

ABUJA - Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei says it wants to train up to3million African youths to work with cutting-edge digital technology such as artificial intelligence. Already, Nigerian students who took part in a Huawei-sponsoredinformation and communications technology (ICT)competition say the benefits, including possible job placements with the company, are enormous. But experts warn there could be potential negative impacts of China's growing tech influence in Africa.

Computerengineering finalist MuhammadMaihajais settograduatefrom the Ahmadu Bello University in Nigerias Kaduna state in November.

In 2019, he was part of a team of six from the school who represented Nigeria at theglobalHuawei ICT competition in Shenzhen, China, where they finished in third place.

Huawei introduced the competition to Africa in 2014 to identify and nurture highly skilled ICT professionals what the company says ispart of its expanding talent search in Africa's tech sector that has benefited some 2,000 African students likeMaihaja.

We have been exposed to devices and technologies we've never experienced before. As normal university students,we would not have experienced what we did experience in the competition.So,I'll say ... this has made me much more ICT inclined, so to say,Maihaja said.

Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can download this video to view it offline.

The competition evaluates students' competence in network and cloud technology.Maihajaand his team's success in 2019 was a rare achievement for an Africanteam, letalone a first-time participant.

The feat inspired many other students like HamzaAtaborwho tried out for the next edition in 2020. He and the other Nigerian students this time won the competition.

I was inspired by, you know, when they talked about their stories, how they won the competition,and alsowhen they were given their prizes and everything.I just felt,OK,this is something to actually makeasacrifice for,Atabor said.

Students likeMaihajaandAtaborare meeting Huawei's setobjective,but critics say the company is only a fragment of China's fast-paced dominance in Africa's technology landscape.

Huawei reportedly accounts for more than 70%of the continent's telecommunications network.

Mohammed Bashir Muazu, a professor of computer engineering at Ahmadu Bello University,says it's no surprise China is gaining traction in Africa.

Seeing the level of technological developments in China, I think what is actually happening is inevitable,Muazu said.

Concerns about China's presence in Africa grew in 2019 after U.S. newspaper,The Wall Street Journal, reported that Huawei had helped Ugandan and Zambian authorities spy onpoliticalopponents.

Huawei denied the accusations and declined an interview on the matter.

But ICT expert Samuel Adekola says China could use its competitive advantage for selfish gains.

It's really dangerous.I cannot quantify how much they could do, but whoever has data, you can do a lot of things. You have a lot of information about a group of people, the nation,Adekola said.

As long asChina continues toinvest inAfrica, students likeMaihajaandAtaborwill learn valuable skills, even though experts say Africa may have to pay a price for relying too heavily on foreign companies.

Read more from the original source:

Some Nigerian-based Experts Warn of China's Growing Influence in African Technology - Voice of America