Category: Feature

Detailing the Formation of Distant Solar Systems with NASA’s Webb Telescope

sarah JonasFeature

Forming solar systems are a bit unkempt—a profusion of gas and dust, and an array of molecules orbits a star that’s still gathering material. Over time, some of the dust bumps into one another, forming larger and larger particles until planets begin forming. Researchers know quite a bit about the outer regions of these planet-forming disks, but the inner areas, extending about as far as Saturn in our solar system, and the forming planets they may contain aren’t yet well studied. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s specialization in mid-infrared light, specifically its collection of data known as spectra, will help researchers model what’s going on at the centers of these systems with unprecedented detail.

Big Help for Small Businesses

sarah JonasFeature

2020 has been one of the most daunting years for California businesses. But as small business owners continue to push forward through economic challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, several allies across the state are there to help—many anchored at California State University campuses in the form of Small Business Development Centers (SBDC).

Memorial Hermann First in Houston to Administer COVID-19 Vaccine to Frontline Healthcare Workers

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Key Takeaways:
• Memorial Hermann is proud to be part of history in the making, as the first health systems across the country begin receiving and administering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to their frontline healthcare workers
• Memorial Hermann’s first vaccine was given to Robert Luckey, a nurse in the COVID ICU at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center
• To date, Memorial Hermann has treated more than 12,000 COVID-19 positive patients in its hospitals, more than any other health system in the Greater Houston area
• The system expects to receive 16,575 doses of the Pfizer vaccine in the first allotment, more than any other health system in the Greater Houston area
• It’s important that everyone continues practicing the three “W’s”: wearing a mask, watching social distance and washing hands frequently

One minute with Kate Sienkiewicz, LBNF Near Site Conventional Facilities project manager

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From working at the CIA to designing science facilities at Fermilab, Kate Sienkiewicz enjoys tackling complex problems. Currently, she oversees the team tasked with designing and building conventional facilities at the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility near site for the international Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment — all with the overarching goal of understanding the universe.

FAU Offers K-12 Teachers Free Course on Tips to Teach Online

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To address the many challenges of teaching online, FAU’s College of Education is offering a free eight-hour online certificate course for K-12 teachers to assist them with teaching online. This continuing education certificate course provides school districts timely assistance to enhance teachers’ e-learning skills and provides time-saving tips in lesson planning and effective student assessments for online teaching.

Advances in Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine Highlighted in New Regenerative Medicine Essentials Course Co-Located with 2021 World Stem Cell Summit

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Leaders in stem cell science and regenerative medicine will combine two separate courses into one in June 2021.

Artificial Intelligence Advances Showcased at the Virtual 2020 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting Could Help to Integrate This Technology Into Everyday Healthcare

sarah JonasFeature

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to revolutionize healthcare, but integrating AI-based techniques into routine medical practice has proven to be a significant challenge. A plenary session at the virtual 2020 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo will explore how one clinical lab overcame this challenge to implement a machine learning-based test, while a second session will take a big picture look at what machine learning is and how it could transform medicine.

Experts to Discuss the Essential Efforts of Clinical Laboratories to Fight the Opioid Epidemic at the 2020 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting

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The opioid epidemic has only gotten worse since the advent of COVID-19, with some areas in the U.S. reporting a 50% increase in drug overdoses due to the pandemic. With no end in sight to this public health crisis, scientific sessions during the virtual 2020 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo will highlight the integral role of clinical laboratories in efforts to manage it, as well as the latest drug tests needed to do so.

Bridging the Model-Data Divide for Elusive Clouds

sarah JonasFeature

Combining large-scale atmospheric models and observations is a long-standing challenge, in part because of the mismatch between different spatial and temporal scales. For example, shallow convective clouds are so small that typical atmospheric models cannot represent individual clouds. The Department of Energy’s Large-Eddy Simulation Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Symbiotic Simulation and Observation activity seeks to bridge these scale gaps.

NSU’s LifeLong Learning Institute Provides Seniors with Meaningful Virtual Socialization During COVID-19

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hen the COVID-19 pandemic brought the U.S. to a standstill, active seniors were suddenly shut in and lost the ability to socialize as they normally would. The impact to Nova Southeastern University’s (NSU) LifeLong Learning Institute (LLI) was immediate, with in-person classes and social gatherings suspended indefinitely.

LLI students virtually connected through Zoom participate in chair yoga this past spring.

Thus began Linda Maurice’s herculean effort to transition to Zoom classes to encourage the older adults who attend the LLI’s seminars to continue to have meaningful interactions, albeit at a virtual distance.

Scientists Say Farewell to Daya Bay Site, Proceed with Final Data Analysis

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The Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment collaboration – which made a precise measurement of an important neutrino property eight years ago, setting the stage for a new round of experiments and discoveries about these hard-to-study particles – has finished taking data. Though the experiment is formally shutting down, the collaboration will continue to analyze its complete dataset to improve upon the precision of findings based on earlier measurements.

Scientists look to meteorites for inspiration to achieve critical element-free permanent magnet

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The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Critical Materials Institute has developed a low-cost, high performance permanent magnet by drawing inspiration from an out-of-this-world source: iron-nickel alloys in meteorites. The magnet rivals widely used “Alnico” magnets in magnetic strength and has the potential to fill a strong demand for rare-earth- and cobalt-free magnets in the market.

Sandia to put nuclear waste storage canisters to the test

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Sandia National Laboratories is outfitting three 22.5-ton, 16.5-feet-long stainless-steel storage canisters with heaters and instrumentation to simulate nuclear waste so researchers can study their durability. The three canisters, which arrived in mid-November and have never contained any nuclear materials, will be used to study how much salt gathers on canisters over time. Sandia will also study the potential for cracks caused by salt- and stress-induced corrosion with additional canisters that will be delivered during the next stage of the project.

Am I Losing My Sense of Smell or Is It COVID-19

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Do I have COVID-19 or is it something else? Bobby Tajudeen, MD, director of rhinology, sinus surgery and skull base surgery at Rush University Medical Center explains the differences between common smell loss and smell loss as a COVID-19 symptom and when to see a specialist.

Focus on Healthy Vision with Six New Year’s Resolutions from Retina Specialists

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For many people, the new year means making New Year’s resolutions to improve health and wellness, such as losing weight or getting more sleep. Habits that help support retina health should be top priorities as well, according to the American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS).

Penn Medicine mRNA Vaccine Technology Pioneer and Health Policy Experts Join Together to Discuss COVID Vaccine Emergency Use Authorization Plans

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**All experts also available for interviews prior to event and EUA Advisory Committee Meetings**

**B-roll and lab photos of Drs. Weissman and Wherry shot this month, headshots of the others, and photos from Penn’s Moderna vaccine trial participants getting vaccinated, are available for use**

Henry Ford Health System is First in the U.S. to Perform Procedure Using CG-100 Device for Colorectal Cancer Patients

sarah JonasFeature

Henry Ford Health System is the first in the country to perform a procedure using the CG-100 intraluminal device, which is temporarily inserted into the gastrointestinal tract and designed to reduce diverting stoma rates, and the need for an ostomy bag, in patients undergoing gastrointestinal resection procedures due to colorectal cancer treatment.

This Anti-COVID Mask Breaks the Mold

sarah JonasFeature

To address PPE shortages during the pandemic, scientists at Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley are developing a rechargeable, reusable, anti-COVID N95 mask and a 3D-printable silicon-cast mask mold.