The Chakra Products Blog.: 04/29/19

Monday 29 April 2019

US one of only eight countries where child and adolescent health improved but maternal mortality worsened since 1990

The United States is one of only eight countries in the world where decreases in child and adolescent mortality over a 27-year period haven't also been matched by reductions in maternal mortality, according to a new scientific study.

* This article was originally published here

Study: Mindfulness may help decrease stress in caregivers of veterans

Mindfulness therapy may be an effective way of mitigating the stress experienced by spouses and other informal caregivers for military veterans, a new study by researchers at the University of Illinois suggests.

* This article was originally published here

A daunting task begins: Reducing lobster gear to save whales

Fishing managers on the East Coast began the daunting process Monday of implementing new restrictions on lobster fishing that are designed to protect a vanishing species of whale.

* This article was originally published here

'Pedigree is not destiny' when it comes to scholarly success

What matters more to a scientist's career success: where they currently work, or where they got their Ph.D.? It's a question a team of researchers teases apart in a new paper published in PNAS. Their analysis calls into question a common assumption underlying academia: that a researcher's productivity reflects their scientific skill, which is reflected in the prestige of their doctoral training.

* This article was originally published here

Using a printed adversarial patch to fool an AI system

A trio of researchers at the University of KU Leuven in Belgium has found that it is possible to confuse an AI system by printing a certain picture and holding it against their body as the AI system tries to identify them as a human being. Simen Thys, Wiebe Van Ranst and Toon Goedemé have written a paper describing their efforts and have uploaded it to the arXiv preprint server. They have also posted a video on YouTube showing what they accomplished.

* This article was originally published here

Computer scientists design way to close 'backdoors' in AI-based security systems

It sounds like a plot out of a spy novel, with a touch of cyberpunk: An agent approaches a secure location, protected by a facial recognition system, accessible only to a head of state or CEO. Flashing an unusually shaped earring, the agent tricks the system into thinking they're that VIP, opening the door and exposing the secrets inside. The key—an undetectable "sleeper cell" was placed inside the AI behind the security system months or years earlier to grant access to anyone wearing the specified jewelry.

* This article was originally published here

Research suggests strategy for more equitable Medicare reimbursement

Those who were enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid were sicker, had more cognitive impairments and difficulty functioning, and needed more social support than those who were not enrolled in both government programs, Saint Louis University research found. These patients also had significantly higher healthcare costs.

* This article was originally published here

Demand growing for CV specialists trained to treat heart disease in cancer patients

The number of cardiologists trained in cardio-oncology, or the treatment of cardiovascular disease in patients treated for cancer, does not currently meet the needs of this rapidly growing population. A review paper published today in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology examines the efforts of the cardio-oncology community to provide the education and training needed to deliver high-quality cardiovascular care to cancer patients and survivors.

* This article was originally published here

New device paves the way to 3-D-printed organs, food

More than 113,000 people are currently on the national transplant list. And with a shortage of donors, this means that about 20 people will die every day while waiting for an organ, according to the U.S. Department of Health.

* This article was originally published here

Are buyers willing to forgo quality in locally grown produce?

West Coast farms produce more than 90 percent of the broccoli consumed in the United States. With production mainly in California, and concentrated in Monterey County, this creates a food security issue, especially in light of California droughts in recent years, and long supply chains to the East Coast, according to Phillip Coles, professor of practice in management at Lehigh.

* This article was originally published here

New 3-D printed microscope promising for medical diagnostics in developing countries

Researchers have used 3-D printing to make an inexpensive and portable high-resolution microscope that is small and robust enough to use in the field or at the bedside. The high-resolution 3-D images provided by the instrument could potentially be used to detect diabetes, sickle cell disease, malaria and other diseases.

* This article was originally published here

Researchers develop secure method for sending sensitive personal data from wearable tech

Smart watches. Pacemakers. Internet-connected glasses. These are devices designed to make life easier. And yet, all this wearable technology can be hacked. The devices send personal health information to your smartphone over the airways, so anyone with the know-how could scoop it up and steal it. But now, researchers at Northeastern have a better, more secure idea: Send data through your body.

* This article was originally published here

New research helps visualise sentiment and stance in social media

How can you find and make sense of opinions and emotions in the vast amount of texts in social media? Kostiantyn Kucher's research helps visualise for instance public opinions on political issues in tweets over time. In the future, analysis and visualisation of sentiment and stance could contribute to such tasks as detection of hate speech and fake news.

* This article was originally published here

A drug for autism? Potential treatment for Pitt-Hopkins syndrome offers clues

In 2019, geeks are cool, and the idea that they might be on the autism spectrum is celebrated. Nowhere is this truer than in Silicon Valley, one of the few places in America where social quirkiness and laser focus attention to detail are more often rewarded than criticized. Often lauded as an example of a success story in autism circles, renowned scientist Temple Grandin, once told a California newspaper, "Half of Silicon Valley's got mild autism, they just avoid the labels."

* This article was originally published here

Fast, efficient and durable artificial synapse developed

The brain's capacity for simultaneously learning and memorizing large amounts of information while requiring little energy has inspired an entire field to pursue brain-like – or neuromorphic – computers. Researchers at Stanford University and Sandia National Laboratories previously developed one portion of such a computer: a device that acts as an artificial synapse, mimicking the way neurons communicate in the brain.

* This article was originally published here

Placental function linked to brain injuries associated with autism

Allopregnanolone (ALLO), a hormone made by the placenta late in pregnancy, is such a potent neurosteroid that disrupting its steady supply to the developing fetus can leave it vulnerable to brain injuries associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to Children's research presented during the Pediatric Academic Societies 2019 Annual Meeting.

* This article was originally published here

An army of microrobots can wipe out dental plaque

visit to the dentist typically involves time-consuming and sometimes unpleasant scraping with mechanical tools to remove plaque from teeth. What if, instead, a dentist could deploy a small army of tiny robots to precisely and non-invasively remove that buildup?

* This article was originally published here