A hopeful message will line the streets of Downtown Boise for the next few months.

After Boise woke up to the news in early December that someone vandalized the Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial with swastika stickers, Idahoans jumped to action. Amid the outpouring of support, the Downtown Boise Association donated funds to create 50 banners for downtown Anne Frank on them with a simple message: Love is everywhere.

[Micron says racist vandalism & home protests impact our longevity in Idaho; Gov. Little responds]

Our organization represents downtowns and our downtown is for everyone, Downtown Boise Association Executive Director Jennifer Hensley said. When (the vandalism) happened, we felt we needed to join in with the voices saying that really this area is full of love and everyone is welcome here.

This message came in response to the stickers, which said we are everywhere. The vandals stuck them in various places around the memorial, which is one of the few places in the world where the full United Nations Declaration of Human Rights is on display.Police have not announced any arrests in connection to the incident.

[Dozens of business leaders defiantly stand united against vandalism at Frank memorial, call for action]

The banners will be up in downtown Boise for the next few months.

Executive Director of the Wassmuth Center for Human Rights Dan Prinzing, which operates the memorial, said he was overjoyed when Hensleys organization approached him about creating the banners.

As folks see this message, as they read, we also want them to reflect on the message and think about how to put it into practice, he said. How do we live the message?

This one of several high-profile shows of support from Idahos business community since the vandalism. Micron Technology issued a statement condemning the act in a press conference with Boise Mayor Lauren McLean and Prinzing following the discovery of the stickers. Dozens of business leaders also signed a letter in mid-December in support of the memorial and Chobanis founder donated $20,000 to the Wassmuth Center.

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Love is Everywhere banners placed in Downtown Boise, ID - boisedev.com

But nursing homes and assisted living facilities closed to visitors last March, as outbreaks of COVID-19 sickened and killed hundreds of people in their facilities. It was months before they allowed even limited, distanced visits nothing like the one-on-one caregiving that Ferraro and others had done for their family members before the pandemic.

Our loved ones they cant tell us. My husband cant communicate with me anymore, Ferraro said. I call every day, if I can get through, and see if the CNA can bring the phone in and (he can) hear my voice. Hell babble but sometimes he wont say anything. Ill try to imagine how he is.

When Governor Gina M. Raimondo announced last month that the Health Department had agreed to allow nursing homes and assisted living facilities to permit certain relatives and close friends of patients to be essential caregivers, Ferraro and other families were hopeful. Theyd been pushing the Raimondo Administration and local legislators to enact something like the Essential Caregiver Program for Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities, similar to programs in other states.

But there was a caveat: The governor was leaving it up to nursing homes to decide whether they wanted to participate. We are not forcing this on any nursing home, Raimondo said on Dec. 18. Nursing homes have their hands full and we want to be supportive. However, its a path to allow family members to visit and take care of their loved ones.

To the frustration of families, very few have made it an option.

Charles Galligan, whose mother, Audrey, is at St. Elizabeths Manor in Bristol, calls the ongoing isolation of residents there inhumane. Theyre preserving their longevity and stripping their lives of meaning, he said.

Now, the families are hoping for some mercy from the General Assembly. The Senate Committee on Health and Human Services is holding a hearing on a bill at 4 p.m. Thursday that would give the governors recommendation some teeth. The legislation amends the Rights of Nursing Home Patients state law by adding a provision for essential caregivers during a declared emergency. The meeting will be televised by Capitol Television and livestreamed at http://www.rilegislature.gov/CapTV/Pages/default.asp.

The bill, sponsored by Cranston Senator Frank S. Lombardi, would require the Health Department to promulgate rules and regulations to designate essential caregivers for residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities during an emergency declaration.

Trish and Maria Tavarozzi, whose mother, Elena, is also at St. Elizabeths Home, said the families are invested in the care of their loved ones and eager to be trained, tested, and wear personal protective equipment to keep the residents safe. They believe that having family members as essential caregivers can relieve the burdens on overtaxed health care workers and relieve the isolation of the residents.

They are in prison for a crime they didnt commit, Maria Tavarozzi said.

However, Scott Fraser, president and CEO of the Rhode Island Health Care Association, which represents nursing homes in Rhode Island, said the essential caregiver program is an extra burden.

In theory, its a nice concept, but the timing with COVID outbreaks, preparing for visitations, and vaccines, its a lot to ask of our members, Fraser said.

First and foremost, the battle is to keep COVID out and treat those who have it, he added. And to be asked to put together an essential caregiver program at the same time that were getting permissions for the vaccine, thats a lot coming at our members at once.

As of Jan. 15, almost all of the nursing homes have been visited by vaccination teams at least once, according to the Health Department. The roll-out of the vaccination program at nursing homes has been dependent on the supply of COVID-19 vaccine received by the state.

Kathleen Heren, Rhode Islands longterm care ombudsman, said shes aware of one nursing home that has refused to take part in the essential caregiver program. Others may be hesitating out of safety concerns, she said.

I can understand. This is probably not the best time to roll it out, Heren said.

But the whole point of the essential caregivers legislation is to help nursing homes and patients during the pandemic, the families say. They are the only ones who can advocate for the care of their loved ones, and they feel like theyve been cast aside.

Its horrible. Its indescribable, said Ferraro. When your loved one gets a diagnosis of Alzheimers, you prepare for a certain journey and you prepare to see them through. And to have it ripped out from under us, I cant put it into words.

Amanda Milkovits can be reached at amanda.milkovits@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @AmandaMilkovits.

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Families hope bill will help them help loved ones living in nursing homes during the pandemic - The Boston Globe

Content strategy pivots have been a normal response in the wake of COVID-19. As physical marketing spend shifts to digital channels, brands are looking to sales enablement and demand generation. But theres another, more subtle shift underway in the B2B world. Brands have begun embracing more of a human touchand in some cases, a conversational tonein their content strategies. Here are some emerging examples that can help point the way toward a new approach to your brand voice and communications.

How have your brands communications evolved in response to COVID-19? If your answer is not much, it may be time to reassess. During a recent visit to the Harvard Business Review, I used up my free allotment of articles. A banner ad invited me to log in or subscribe with a pithy headline: We hate paywalls too.

It was such a sharp, incisive take on the common complaints B2B readers haveand yet it caught my attention for the fun tone as well.

What does a banner ad have to do with communicating in 2021 and beyond? The world has undergone a seismic shifta fact thats leading many brands to reassess how theyre communicating. As the Harvard Business Review (HBR) notes, presenting with empathy and transparency is key. That can mean moving away from traditional messaging and finding a more authentic take on the situation unfolding.

The nuances of brand voice are more delicate than ever, says HBR. Brands that use this time to be commercially exploitative will not fare well. Better to do as Guinness did in the period surrounding St. Patricks Day, when the company shifted its focus away from celebrations and pub gatherings and instead leaned into a message of longevity and wellbeing. In these moments, we dont have all the answers, and we need to acknowledge that. If you make pledges, even during uncertain times, you have to be able to deliver on what you say.

If youre looking for creative strategies to take your B2B brand to a new level, consider these approaches.

Adding a human touch to content strategies runs the gamut from very simple to complex. Take a moment to consider how your buyers experience may have changed. Theyve traded busy days in the office and long commutes for endless Zoom calls, working while educating home-schooled children, and navigating a world that is more logistically complex than it was a year ago. Simple, straightforward communication eliminates barriers and helps people find the information they need quickly and efficiently.

The Marketing Insider Group recommends three basic tactics that serve marketers well in any B2B communication:

Just taking these initial steps will help ensure that what you create is clear, easy to digest, and capable of delivering real value.

Brands struggle to forge meaningful connections when they only create generic content that doesnt address their consumers realities. As Forbes notes, several brands in the B2B world have taken the opportunity to deliver what customers needed. Consider shipping, which was suddenly upended by increased demand, illness-related employee shortages, product out-of-stocks, and much more.

Forbes offered up the example of FedEx, which created clear, concise, and relevant communications for customers: Shipping was thrown into disarray with COVID, and many supply chains are still adjusting. FedEx, known for being one of the most trusted B2B companies, created numerous resources for small business owners, including templates for COVID signage, shipping discounts and expert advice and best practices. The company moved beyond just shipping to provide resources and guidance for the many new challenges small businesses face.

With physical sales and marketing opportunities like industry events and trade shows put on hold, partner networks are pushing for revitalization. One of the most important services that companies deliver to partners is crafting clear, concise marketing campaigns that drive demand with their audiences. In the past few months, that work has trended toward simple and streamlined campaigns.

Some now-emerging trends include:

As McKinsey notes, building capabilities for turbulent times not only helps you not only thrive, but it helps you pivot when unexpected changes arise. The authors note that maintaining a strong customer experience in crisis requires rapid research to understand changing dynamics and new pain points as well as agile innovation to address them. In a digital-led world, brand voice plays an important role in winning and retaining customers.

Recently, I worked with a customer to select a newsletter provider. The list included top brands across the newsletter industry. But after a frustrating demo with a sales rep and challenges navigating different complex web pages, the client chose Mailchimp. Its a good service, but not necessarily the one I expected them to select. When the CMO shared her rationale, it made sense. I could immediately understand everything they did and offered. The language was simple and easy to navigate.

Building your brand voice can help you reach frustrated, busy B2B buyers who need solutions to urgent problemsand who have less time, patience, and other resources to wade through reams of jargon-laden copy to find what they need. Mailchimp, by simple virtue of the brands clear, clean, and accessible content strategy, won a customer whos now singing their praises and sending along other busy executives in search of digital solutions they can implement and scale quickly. Investing in your brand voice is a capability that can grow and streamline business performance in unexpected ways.

Finding your voice through the end of 2020 and planning ahead into 2021 raises an important question for brand marketers: Does your content strategy have a human touch? Dont forget that your buyer has a completely different set of needs, expectations, and business realities than when you crafted last years content strategy. Add a human touchwith humor, clarity, and real talkto stand out and build connections that draw prospective buyers into your sales funnel.

Eager for more insights like this? Sign up for The Content Standard today.

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Warm Up Your Content Strategy with a Human Touch - The Content Standard by Skyword

I love Champagne the way it smells, tastes, and bubbles up while Im enjoying a nice full glass. As we stride toward the time of year (and what a year) when Americans consume the most Champagne, there are decisions to be made, should we all be so lucky: namely, which bottle to pick?

Champagnes legacy of luxury and connection to upper-class marketing has created a worldwide industry distributing 300 million bottles in a typical year. Its also resulted in a good deal of confusion and opacity when it comes to choosing what to drink. The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated this reality, doing away with public tastings, wine bar shindigs, and the dreaded (but occasionally fruitful) inter-office exchange. Now, choosing what to accompany a Christmas dinner at home or a 2020 New Years Eve sendoff (also at home) can feel like a shot in the dark. My suggestion for ease of enjoyment? Start with a smart bottle from one of the great Champagne houses.

For centuries, power and money in the Champagne region have flowed through the big Champagne houses (sometimes called Grande Marques), many of which are household names: Veuve, Dom, Roederers rap-famous Cristal bottling, and so on. French luxury multinational LVMH typifies a modern take on this, formed in the 80s upon the merger of iconic French fashion label Louis Vuitton with Champagne house Moet & Chandon, which in the 1970s acquired the cognac producer Hennessey.

But the wines produced by these houses have been snubbed over the last decade by a certain kind of drinker, typically younger, relatively new to wine, and predisposed to drinking natural wines first and foremost. Ive been guilty of this very thing, having gravitated far more toward so-called grower Champagnes, humbler bottlings (in production scale, not necessarily price) in which the wines are produced by the estate that grows the grapes. By contrast, the bigger Champagne houses might source the fruit for the wines from dozens, or even hundreds of individual growers across the Champagne region, blending them together under the careful guidance of a chef de cave, a term that denotes the head winemaker and cellarmaster in charge of the whole operation.

Indie and natty they arent, but for pure drinking pleasure Im convinced many house Champagnes are due for a reappraisal by anyone who likes a good glass of something nice after all, marketing isnt the only reason these wines are enjoyed by millions. For a drinker easing themselves into the decision-making process, its helpful to start by focusing on a handful of firms and their entry-level offerings, typically described as non-vintage (NV), meaning that theyre made from grapes across multiple years of harvest (sometimes also denoted as reserve, depending on the house). These house Champagnes represent a broad range of prices, each one readily available in the U.S. market.

Suffice it to say that Champagne is not for everyone this year; such is the weight of the world we inhabit. At the same time, I think there is an understandable and very human impulse behind the desire to find comfort and celebration in the relative safety of a sturdy bottle. If youve got the means and bandwidth to think about enjoying a bottle of Champagne this holiday season, theres ample cause to say cheers. Heres to a little light in the darkness.

Its not possible to really engage with the world of Champagne houses without confronting the phenomenon of Yellow Label Veuve. Thanks to its near-total market saturation, Veuve overtook Moet in 2013 as the most widely consumed Champagne in North America. LVMH sells 1.5 million cases of Veuve each year across the brands various bottlings, and a cool 400,000 of these are sold to the United States, a considerable majority of which is Yellow Label. It is a global product, like Coca-Cola or Guinness beer.

Theres a good reason for that. This wine is made to a precise formula, unvarying from year to year and bottled with the inclusion of Veuves vast collection of reserve wines, blended into Yellow Label to ensure consistency. Yellow Label gets 10 grams per liter of dosage (which refers to the sugar added into Champagne at bottling to balance acidity and promote longevity), and is composed of grapes from more than 60 parcels across Champagne.

For the price, there may be more interesting wines on the market, but if your heart is set on Veuve, or its one of the few Champagnes available where you live, I certainly understand (especially if youve been pulled in by one of Veuves flashy seasonal boxes). There is no other wine that tastes quite like it. And about that price: Yellow Label Veuve can run close to $60 or as low as $39, depending on where and when you make your purchase. I recommend checking different shops (including grocery and big-box retail) in your area for pricing. Its the same stuff in the bottle, no matter where you buy it.

Budget Champagnes are often kind of disappointing, but for the price (as low as $33 at some retailers), the entry-level wines of Andr Clouet punch above their bracket. Clouets Brut Grand Reserve is 100 percent pinot noir sourced from vineyards surrounding the famed Champagne villages of Bouzy and Ambonnay. It receives just six grams of dosage.

In the glass, youll taste a drying, green plum malic acidity and unmistakable Champagne crispness. Theres red fruit here, as well as strawberry and Anjou pear, which makes sense you are drinking Champagne made entirely from red grapes, after all. A portion of the wines in this blend spend time in Sauternes barrels, a style of sweet white wine from Bordeaux, which imparts pleasant thoughts of honey and pie crust. If Christmas gatherings were a thing this year, it would make a fine party favor.

Many Champagne houses have cred that goes back 100 or even 200 years, and then there is Gosset, in business since 1584. Gosset is located in the village of Ay, and was family owned for more than 400 years until being sold in the early 90s to Renaud-Cointreau, whose portfolio of French products includes cognacs, liqueurs, and ratafia.

This is a really fine Champagne for the price, offering an approachable, aperitif-style drinking experience think Campari and jasmine tea balanced with crisp freshness and a whiff of chimney smoke. Traditionally Gosset was known for not allowing any malolactic fermentation in the winemaking process, but this began to change around a decade ago, specifically for the Excellence bottling, the houses entry-level cuvee. This promotes a softer, rounder experience, and results in a more accessible and easy-drinking wine. Around 30,000 cases are made each year, typically consisting of three parts pinot noir to two parts chardonnay, with a dash of meunier thrown in for weight, although this ratio changes between releases.

There is not a tremendous amount of hype or buzz around Gosset. Though owned by a conglomerate, Gossets marketing footprint and bottle design are decidedly measured understated, even. Think of that no-nonsense approach as a virtue, especially when backed up by a product of such high quality. More than perhaps any other wine in Champagne, Gosset is highly versatile and cruises effortlessly across whatever activities you have planned for the holiday season, particularly if they include television, Thai food, and a second glass.

I adore the house Pol Roger, a wine long synonymous with England thanks to a history of exporting wines in a brut style, with minimum dosage, favored by U.K. drinkers. The house is still family owned, now in its fifth generation of production, and proudly sports its association with Sir Winston Churchill, who was an eager ambassador for the brand and even named one of his racehorses after it.

I think the entry level Pol Roger, known as Reserve, is one of the most elegant and refined NV Champagnes you can buy at any price. Pol Roger, like Roederer, straddles the line between grower and house, with more than half of the wines it makes coming from the firms own 93 hectares of vineyards. Every bottle is riddled by hand (riddling is the process of carefully turning a bottle of Champagne to collect sediment in the neck), and the wine is made of equal parts pinot noir, pinot meunier, and chardonnay, undergoing malocatic fermentation and fermented entirely in stainless steel there are no barrels at Pol Roger. A quarter of the bottling is made from reserve wines, held back from proceeding vintages, and each bottle ages a full four years on the lees before release.

Understatement and finesse are the watchwords here, owing to Pol Rogers unusually long respite in the house cellar before public release. Both ripe and fresh, this wine balances deep red fruits with ginger zip and buttered toast. If I could only drink one house Champagne for the rest of my life, this would be it. Pair with binge-watching the latest season of The Crown, or, if thats already exhausted, The Great British Baking Show.

You might almost forget this was coming from a Champagne house; Jacquesson gives off big grower Champagne vibes, and feels more like the work of focused individuals the Chiquet brothers, who have overseen the house since the 1980s than some vast megacorp. Among wine writers, somms, and bottle shop owners, Jacquesson has a certain kind of wine geek cachet, for both the annual numbered releases and the houses limited-edition single-vineyard bottlings (lieu-dit), which are far more expensive.

For the year 2000 vintage, Jacquesson retired its NV Perfection Brut bottling in favor of an ever-changing numbered cuvee based on individual vintage years. The first release was 728; we are now up to 742, a wine built from the 2014 vintage made up of roughly 60 percent pinot noir and 40 percent chardonnay, receiving a scant 1.5 grams per liter of dosage.

At $70, give or take, the wine had better be awesome, and Jacquesson 742 definitely is. Theres a ton of richness in this wine, a kind of marzipan praline thing that reminds me of a Manhattan candied-street-nut vendor, but offset by a big splash of herbal tea: chamomile, dried carrot, and especially mint tea, like how they serve it at cafes in Europe, full up to the brim of the mug with hot water.

If youre giving Champagne as a gift this year, 742 would make an especially fine one. This wine can happily be drunk immediately, but it can also hang out for the next special occasion, or be forgotten by the recipient over the next several years its built to age and will only grow more complex and complete with time.

There is an undeniable mystique around Krug, one of the best-known wine labels on the planet, Champagne or otherwise. Though the house does offer a range of single-vineyard and single-year vintage wines, it is the non-vintage Grande Cuvee for which it is rightly famous. Make no mistake: This is not an entry-level wine, with prices starting at around $160, or $78 for the half-bottle. Each modern Krug comes marked with a Krug ID on the back of the label, which allows you to quickly look up what youre drinking and learn more about its composition. I recently tried a bottle from the 168th edition of Krug Grand Reserve, a blend of over 120 individual wines from more than 10 different years, per Krug ID. This particular release is a blend of dominant pinot noir (53 percent), alongside chardonnay (35 percent) and pinot meunier (13 percent).

In the glass, this wine is deeply structured and muscular, like drinking really good white Burgundy or classy California chardonnay. Wine lovers will go on and on about Krugs finesse, balance, depth, piquant measured sweetness, and long finish. More casual drinkers might be just as happy with a bottle half the price. For what its worth, I think Krug is better than Dom, better than Cristal even (the top-shelf Roederer bottling), and second only to the unscalable heights of Salon for the finest house Champagne in the world. There is no other wine thats like it. Im a Krug truther, especially if youre buying.

Jordan Michelman is a 2020 James Beard Award winner for journalism, and a 2020 Louis Roederer International Wine Writers Awards shortlist in the Emerging Wine Writer category.

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The Best Champagne to Buy in 2020 - Eater

Watching frontline health care workers and other volunteers receive their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, there is reason to believe after months of uncertainty that this pandemic will indeed end. The challenge now, though, is to keep ourselves safe until enough of us have been inoculated and possess protective immunity.

It will not be easy. As we write this, more than 21 million Americans have been diagnosed with the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, and more than 365,000 have died. Across the nation, hospital intensive care units are at or even beyond capacity. In California, state officials have ordered thousands of additional body bags and refrigerated storage units to serve as portable morgues. San Diego County escaped the worst of the summer COVID-19 surge, but the current situation is not good. Case and mortality rates in the county continue to rise, each day seemingly worse than the last. Our hospitals and health systems are stressed to the breaking point.

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But we are fortunate that the countys hospitals have a long history of close cooperation and coordination and that they have worked through these difficult times to provide and process lab tests, review predictions for hospital needs and revamp in-patient processes to effectively meet ever-increasing patient loads and needs.

In addition to its strong Health & Human Services Agency, San Diego County enjoys abundant public health expertise at San Diego State University, University of California San Diego and other local institutions. Experts at these institutions have been involved from the beginning in helping predict and map viral spread and supporting county contact tracing efforts, and they have offered guidance and services to other institutions, such as local school systems. The pandemic has strengthened and deepened these inter-institutional partnerships and called on us to find new ways to prioritize the needs and health of those most vulnerable.

But more can be done, and more could be better coordinated, including nationwide public health efforts to provide messaging aimed at reducing transmission through early diagnosis, case investigation and contact tracing. We offer some suggestions on how.

Efforts must shift to prioritizing the rapid identification of cases among those who have symptoms or have known exposures, so they can be isolated and treated if positive. The focus needs to be on making sure that those who have positive tests are quickly informed and appropriate actions taken to prevent further spread of the disease, with contact tracing performed only for cases with a high risk of spread to multiple individuals. Finally, but no less importantly, we must reimagine the public health messages about facial coverings and distancing so that they resonate in a time when we are grappling with frustration and fatigue.

Public health professionals at UCSDs Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science and the SDSU School of Public Health urgently call for a convening of stakeholders to discuss how we can pool and reallocate resources at institutions across San Diego County to meet the current crisis. We must prioritize our needs based on the most acute stresses to systems, institutions and communities. We must come together with tangible offers of available capacity to test, trace and treat our families, friends and neighbors and new, innovative ideas for effective prevention strategies and public health messaging that connects us all.

We can do this. UC San Diego alone has the capacity to conduct at least 10,000 COVID-19 tests per day. It conducts routine testing of thousands of on-campus students and staff every week and, under contract from the county, has traced thousands of COVID-19 contacts. Similarly, SDSU, which has developed exceptional skills in community health worker-led contact tracing and testing through its Communities Fighting COVID! program, could expand it to meet near-term needs throughout the region. Immediate efforts should be directed to reaching positive cases within 24 hours. This may require shifting of staffing priorities to ensure prompt containment of COVID-19. Our local universities have deep knowledge about public health messaging and communication, which could be leveraged to create new connections to populations at greatest risk.

It is critical that we identify and consider possibilities now before we find ourselves overwhelmed. Lets bring our strengths to a virtual table so that we those of us with the most protections and those of us with the least outlast these dark times and reach a brighter future of immunity.

Anderson is dean of the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity at UC San Diego and lives in Del Mar. Madanat is a distinguished professor of public health and interim vice president for research and innovation at SDSU. She lives in Sabre Springs.

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Commentary: Health experts and other San Diego leaders must unite to better coordinate pandemic response - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Anne Saker|The Columbus Dispatch

With the scheduled Tuesdayarrival of dozens of dry-ice coolers, Ohiowill deploy a new defense against the novel coronavirus vials of vaccine invented, tested and put into service in record time. Here's what we know about who is in line for the vaccines, as well as their distribution and storage.

For at least the first three weeks of availability, the Ohio Department of Health has directed that only people to be vaccinated are:

All vaccination will be voluntary since the vaccines are still considered experimental.

>>Read More: With flu season off to mild start, experts say 'twindemic' is less likely but still possible

It's not clear yet the order of vaccination after Phase 1A. The states are waiting for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is developing the guidance, to recommend who is next,but the Ohio Department of Health has a draft plan that lists priorities.

Phase 1B would vaccinate older adults living in congregate or overcrowded settingsand people at significantly higher risk for COVID-19 because they have underlying health conditions.

>> This story is being provided free as a service to our readers during the coronavirus pandemic.You can find more stories on the coronavirus here.Please consider supporting local journalism with a subscription.

Phase 2 is where the jockeying comes in. This expansion of vaccination would include:

Critical risk workers essential to society (e.g., health care and public health operations and human services operations) and at high risk of exposure. This phase would also include:

Phase 3 would cover young adults, children, workers in essential industries and occupations not included in phases 1 and 2. Phase 4 is everyone else.

Because the initial quantities of the vaccines will be limited, public health officials urge maintaining vigilance about mask-wearing, hand-washing and social distancing. It could be at least a year before enough people are vaccinated to ease the health safeguards.

The clinical research has shown that the vaccine candidates do not generate severeside effects two months after the second injection. The shots might come with temporary side effects such as fever and muscle pain,a signal that the vaccine successfully triggered an immune reaction for the virus to be blocked.

CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens and two other private companies will be delivering and administering the vaccinations to nursing homes.

>>Read More: Ohio announces plans for initial COVID-19 vaccine distribution; DeWine tours warehouse

What we dont know: Whos precisely is next in line for the vaccine. Unions for grocery workers and other organizations for essential workers are jostling for the chance.

What we won't know for quite a while: How long immunity from the vaccine will last. The vaccineswere invented, put through clinical trials and brought to market inside a year. We don't have enough information about the longevity of theireffects.

Ohio COVID-19 vaccines: What to know about Pfizer vaccine distribution

Ohio is preparing to receive its first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines in the coming weeks. Here's what you need to know.

What we know: Right now, the Pfizer vaccine is expected to get emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at any moment and another one from Moderna is expected to be authorized in the next few weeks.But, public health agencies and hospitals, with long experience in planning vaccination campaigns, didn't wait for FDA approval to get ready. The delivery systemis set up and ready to receive the doses.

The two leading candidate vaccineseach pack slightly different pieces of genetic material from the virus. When injected, the messenger RNA makes the human immune system familiar enough with the virus to fight it off.

The vaccines dont prevent infection. But they stop it from progressing into the disease COVID-19, which has killed at least 290,000 Americans, including more than 7,200 Ohioans.

The vaccines are taken in two doses, like the two-shot series for shingles. The coronavirus vaccines, because they carry genetic material, require super-cold temperatures from the factory to distribution. The vials are packed in dry-ice coolers, a huge boost to Cold Jet based in the Cincinnati suburb of Loveland. For more than 30 years, the company has built dry-ice makers, and in 2020, sales have exploded more than 200% over 2019, said spokeswoman Lauren McNutt. Strong demand is expected well into 2021.

The vaccine manufacturers are the New York giant Pfizer working with the German company BioNTech and the Cambridge, Massachusetts-basedfirm Moderna. Both companies ran Cincinnati test sites for the final clinical trials and Pfizer enrolled test subjects in Columbus. AstraZeneca, which is working on another promising COVID-19 vaccine, enrolled trial participants at Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center.

Last week, Gov. Mike DeWine announced the delivery schedule for Ohio.

On Tuesday, Pfizer delivers 9,750 doses to 10 Ohio hospitals, including Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital,and 88,725 doses to Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy across the state, which will supply nursing homes.

On Dec. 22, Pfizer delivers another 123,000 doses for nursing homes and staff. Moderna delivers 201,000 doses to 98 hospitals for health care workers caring for COVID-19 patients and 108 health departments for emergency medical service workers and other first responders.

>>Read More: After decade-long fight for a new heart, central Ohio man sees COVID as his next test

The next week, the exactdate is not certain, Pfizer delivers another 148,000 doses and Moderna another 89,000 for workers and patients in hospitals and nursing homes.

What we dont know: These delivery totals are for the whole state. Its not clear yet how the shipments will be further divided for each of Ohios 88 counties, a decision that rests with the Ohio Department of Health.

Federal and state authorities have not released information on vaccine shipments past the end of December.

What we know: The cold chain doesnt stop at delivery. Pfizers vaccine candidate must be shipped and stored at minus 94.Once transferred to refrigeration to thaw for injection, it must be used within five days. Modernas candidate must be shipped and stored at minus 4 but can be stored for six months. Once in refrigeration, it keeps for up to 30 days.

Ohio hospital officials say they have the storage capacity for their doses of vaccine.

When the statedecides on how to apportion the doses as they arrive at county facilities, local public health officials from other jurisdictions can collect their shares.

Columbus Public Health has been preparing for the vaccine for months, said spokeswoman Kelli Newman. The city health department bough additional cold storage units in anticipation of the vaccine and the possibility of unique storage needs, Newman said.

"We have them in place and we are ready to go," Newman said."Once we receive the vaccine, we will be ready to distribute it strategically and equitably, beginning with those most at risk for COVID-19 complications and those working on the front lines during the pandemic."

Likewise, Franklin County Public Health has also beefed up its cold storage options for vaccines, said spokeswoman Mitzi Kline. The county health department hasordered one commercial grade refrigerator, two commercial grade freezers and several portable freezers, Kline said.

What we dont know: The location of the vaccine distribution warehouses isn't being disclosedto protect people, equipment and the doses.

Dispatch reporter Max Filby contributed to this story.

@apsaker

asaker@enquirer.com

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As early as Tuesday, the coronavirus vaccine arrives. Who's first in line, and what we know about who's next - The Columbus Dispatch

Denver, CO, USA - December 11, 2020 - Author and CEO Jill Wright is celebrating more than the holidays this month. The bestselling author is featured in this month's issue of Thriving Women Magazine. The December issue is dedicated to longevity. Wright says that she is honored to have been selected to share her favorite ways to end 2020 in optimal health for an incredible new year to come.

"Living a long life well to enjoy this holiday season and many more begins in this moment now," explains Wright. "Small steps, little actions, done over time amplify to create your long and thriving life." Because of this, Wright is celebrating her feature by releasing her Codes of Longevity on Kindle Presale for 99 cents.

Codes of Longevity is packed full of practical and tactical solutions. This book is the bridge between science and the soul. Connecting the dots between lifespan, healthspan, and wellspan through epigenetics reveals how the pieces of a long life lived well all fit together for one's personalized longevity blueprint. Readers will learn how to achieve the most powerful age-defying results beginning today as they harness their potential to live limitlessly and be ageless.

Each chapter represents the foundational codes to longevity that, when leveraged, allows the reader to be ageless. To unlock their code, Wright has included a complete longevity blueprint assessment. This will give readers an immediate action plan of the opportunities available for them to take so they can flourish and thrive to 120 and beyond.

The book is available for presale online at https://amzn.to/3gcGwEX. Wright's feature in Thriving Women Magazine can be read for free, online, at https://bit.ly/2VGCBag.

About Jill Wright

Jill is affectionately known as the Queen of shine. She is a heart centered leader and CEO of Executive Shine and has been recognized by both Forbes and Harvard business review for transforming the culture of client based services. As a thought leader and best selling author, she shares her 33 years of experience by speaking and consulting to inspire other leaders to unleash the human potential within their organizations through the power of belief and authentic connection. Get her free gift, 7 secrets to Authentic Human Connection at http://www.Theshinegift.com.

Media ContactCompany Name: Vedette Global MediaContact Person: Angel TuccyEmail: Send EmailPhone: 720-257-9293Country: United StatesWebsite: http://vedetteglobalmedia.com

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Bestselling Author, Jill Wright, Celebrates Feature in Thriving Women Magazine With Presale of Codes of Longevity - Press Release - Digital Journal

With salons largely closed until this week, male grooming has been in freefall since the start of the spring lockdown. DIY haircuts have not been successful for all. Yet one Hollywood star has proved that even in a global pandemic, bad hair is not the great equaliser we hoped it would be.

George Clooney, the 59-year-old actor and human rights activist, has admitted to successfully cutting his own hair at home using a device called a Flowbee. My hairs really like straw, so its easy, he told CBS Sunday Morning.

According to Clooney, twice voted People magazines sexiest man alive, the $139.95 (103) contraption is so reliable he has been using it for more than 22 years and not simply during 2020. My haircuts take literally two minutes, he said, adding that its speed and efficiency had afforded him time to stain the garage doors, mop the floors and do much of the familys washing during lockdown in their Los Angeles home.

The Flowbee was a defining product of the 1980s infomercial boom in the US. It was designed in 1988 by Rick Hunts, a San Diego carpenter who was moved to invent the product after using his industrial vacuum cleaner to suck sawdust out of his hair. Hunts initially created and sold the gadget from his garage. But it was live demonstrations at a local county fair that edged him towards success, before global fame soon beckoned him, in the form of late-night TV demonstrations. By 2010, more than 2 million Americans had bought one.

In effect a pair of clippers with different length spacers and a suction tube, its longevity is partly down to theatrics according to various online tutorials, an up and down bouncing motion is best as well as positioning within popular culture. The Flowbee appeared in the cult 90s sitcoms Party of Five and Home Improvement, and was one of the many products parodied in the film Waynes World, where it was misnamed the suck cut. It helps too that the product is almost too ludicrous to forget.

Google searches for Flowbee took off following Clooneys weekend admission and the Flowbee website itself crashed. But while his endorsement will no doubt lend invaluable celebrity cachet to the brands image, largely unchanged since the 1980s, the Clooney effect is not in fact responsible for the products pandemic-era success.

As early as mid-March, the Flowbee had sold out on Walmarts website and on Amazon. It is not available in the UK and, according to Fortune magazine, Amazon says it doesnt know when the item will be back in stock. The UK saw a similar story when in April, John Lewis experienced a 200% increase in demand for clippers, and grooming tools from Philips and Remington sold out. All those products are, however, now available. According to its website, the Flowbee is not. Hunts, who demonstrates the model himself on the website, was not available for comment.

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Go with the Flowbee: George Clooney reveals how he cuts his hair - The Guardian

It's been more than 20 years since Jerry Seinfeld's eponymous television show, which ran for nine seasons, ended. But Seinfeld, 66, still works as a comic and made $51 million dollars in 2020, according to Forbes.

So to what does Seinfeld credit his creativity and career longevity? "Having a very cranky nature," he said during a recent episode of the podcast, "The Tim Ferriss Show."

While Seinfeld may have been partially joking, he does have a process. Here the tips that keep Seinfeld motivated and you can use them, too.

Seinfeld said the majority of his job requires writing, editing and developing jokes, often re-writing every word in a joke several times on a legal pad until it feels perfect. Indeed, "work time" can be incredibly frustrating and occupying, he said.

But that's the same drive that keeps Seinfeld working: "Success is the enemy of irritability and crankiness," he said. "Because now you have money, and you can remove the difficulties from your life and that's not good."

As someone who has made a lot of money, Seinfeld said, "the thing that did that really solve almost all of that issue is I got married," he said. Being married and having kids means that the material will "never run out," he said.

"If you're going to write, make yourself a writing session," or a determine a digestible time that you're going to use to write or work on something, Seinfeld said. For example, you could set an alarm for 30 minutes or 10 minutes, depending upon what you feel like you can handle.

"Don't just sit down with an open ended," he said, "that's a ridiculous torture to put on a human being's head."

When you have an end point in sight, it also creates a reward to strive for, Steinfeld said on the podcast. "If you have the guts and the balls to sit down and write, you need a reward at the other end of that session," he said.

To stay organized, Seinfeld said he has two phases of writing: "the free, play, creative phase, and then there is the polish and construction phase." He often sits down with "15 or 20 pages of stuff that's in various stages of development," plus a smaller notebook with random notes and ideas, he said.

An idea "is like an archery target 50 yards away," he told Ferriss. "I take out my bow and my arrow, and I go, let me see if I can hit that." On a good day, he said he'll write about half a page of a legal pad.

Seinfeld likes to spend "inordinate amounts of time refining and perfecting every single word" until he's ready to share his material.

In fact, Seinfeld said he has a rule that he won't show people his writing right away. "I will always wait 24 hours before I say anything to anyone about what I wrote," he said. That way, he can enjoy the satisfaction of having written something, without another person's opinion getting in the way.

Check out:Barack Obama: I am not well organized 3 ways he stays productive

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Jerry Seinfeld: Success is the enemy of irritability and crankiness how to stay productive and motivated - CNBC

Covid-19 sucked most of the oxygen out of science this year. But we still had brilliant wins.

The pandemic couldnt bring rockets or humans down: multiple missions blasted off to the red planet in the summer of Mars. Two astronauts launched to the International Space Stationand made it safely backin a game-changer for commercial space travel. NASA released dozens of findings on how space travel changes our bodies, paving the way to keep us healthy in orbitor one day, on Mars and beyond.

Back on Earth, scientists scoured mud ponds and fished out a teeny-tiny CRISPR enzyme that packs a massive punch for genome editing. AI and neuroscience became even more entwinedsometimes literally. Biological neurons got hooked up to two silicon-based artificial neurons, across multiple countries, into a fully-functional biohybrid neural network. Others tapped dopaminethe main messenger for the brains reward systemto unite electricity and chemical computing into a semi-living computer. While still largely a curiosity, these studies take brain-inspired computers to another level by seamlessly incorporating living neurons into AI hardware. Now imagine similar circuits inside the brainNeuralink sure is.

More abstractly, biological and artificial brains further fed into each other in our understandingand craftingof intelligence. This year, scientists found mini-computers in the input tree-like branches of neurons. Like entire neural networks, these cables were capable of performing complex logical calculations, suggesting our brain cells are far brainier than we previously thoughtsomething AI can learn from. On the flip side, a hotshot algorithm inspired by the brain called reinforcement learning pushed neuroscientists to re-examine how we respond to feedback as we learn. AI also helped build the most dynamic brain atlas to date, a living map that can continuously incorporate new data and capture individual differences.

As we leave 2020 behind, two main themes percolate in my mind, not just for what theyve accomplished, but as indicators of what lies ahead. These are the trends Ill be keeping my eyes on in the coming year.

Why we age is extremely complex. So are methods that try to prevent age-related diseases, or slow the aging process itself. This nth-dimensional complexity almost dictates that longevity research needs to self-segregate into lanes.

Take probing the biological mechanisms that drive aging. For example, our cells energy factory spews out bullet-like molecules that damage the cell. The genome becomes unstable. Cells turn zombie-like. Working stem cells vanish. Tissue regeneration suffers. Scientists often spend entire careers understanding one facet of a single hallmark of aging, or hunting for age-related genes. The lucky ones come up with ways to combat that one foefor example, senolytics, a family of drugs that wipe out zombie cells to protect against age-related diseases.

But aging hallmarks dont rear their heads in isolation. They work together. An increasing trend is to unveil the how of their interactions workcrosstalk, in science-speakwith hopes of multiple birds with one stone.

This year, longevity researchers crossed lanes.

One study, for example, took a stem cell playbook to rejuvenate eyesight in aged mice with vision loss. They focused on a prominent aging hallmark: epigenetics. Our DNA is dotted with thousands of chemical marks. As we age, these marks accumulate. Using gene therapy, the team introduced three superstar genes into the eyes of aged mice to revert those marks and reprogram cells to a younger state. Youve probably heard of those genes: theyre three of the four factors used to revert adult skin cells into a stem-cell-like state, or iPSCs (induced pluripotent stem cells). Resetting the epigenetic clock was so powerful it improved visual acuity in old mice, and the team has now licensed the tech to Life Biosciences in Boston to further develop for humans.

Another study combined three main puzzle pieces in agingzombie cells, inflammation, and malfunctioning mitochondriainto a full picture, with the surprise ending that senolytics has multiple anti-aging powers in cells. Talk about killing two birds with one stone. Finally, one team (which I was a part of) combined two promising approaches for brain rejuvenationexercise and young bloodto begin pushing the limits of reigniting faltering memory and cognition due to aging.

Longevity research has long been fragmented, but its starting to coalesce into a multidisciplinary field. These crossovers are just the start of a rising trajectory to combat the multi-headed Hydra thats aging. More will come.

If youre looking for a sign that AI is leaving the digital realm of Atari games and heading into the real world, this year was it.

In biotech, theres no doubt of AIs promise in drug discovery or medical diagnoses. In late 2019, a team used deep learning and generative modelssimilar to AlphaGo, the DeepMind algorithm that trounced humans at Go and wiped the Atari libraryto conjure over 30,000 new drug molecules, a feat chemists could only dream of. This year, the viral hurricane thats Covid-19 further unleashed AI-based drug discovery, such as screening existing drugs for candidates that may work against the virus, or newlydesigned chemicals to fight off SARS-CoV-2 infectionthe virus that causes Covid-19.

For now, we dont yet have an AI-designed drug on the market, an ultimate test for the technologys promise. However, although AI wasnt able to make a splash in our current pandemic battle, the scene is set for tackling the next oneand drug discovery as a whole.

In contrast, AI-based medical diagnosis had a resounding win. This year, the FDA approved a software that uses AI to provide real-time guidance for ultrasound imaging for the heart, essentially allowing those without specialized training to perform the test. The approval brings a total of 29 FDA-approved AI-based medical technologies to date. Even as the debate on trust, ethics, and responsibility for AI doctors cranked up in temperature, the Pandoras box has been opened.

Medicine aside, deep learning further honed its craft in a variety of fields. The neuroscience-AI marriage is one for the ages with no signs of fracture. Outside the brain, AI also gave synthetic biology a leg up by parsing the interactions between genes and genetic networksa mind-bending, enormously complex problem previously only achieved through trial and error. With help from AI, synthetic biologists can predict how changes to one gene in a cell could affect others, and in turn, the cells biochemistry and behavior. Bottom line: it makes designing new biological circuits, such as getting yeast to pump out green fuels or artificially hoppy beer, much easier.

But the coup de grce against AI as an overhyped technology is DeepMinds decimation of a 50-year-long challenge in biology. With a performance that shocked experts, DeepMinds AlphaFold was able to predict a proteins 3D structure from its amino acid sequencethe individual components of a proteinmatching the current gold standard. As the workhorses of our bodies, proteins dictate life. AlphaFold, in a sense, solved a huge chunk of the biology of life, with implications for both drug discovery and synthetic biology.

One more scientific brilliance this year is the use of light in neuroscience and tissue engineering. One study, for example, used lasers to directly print a human ear-like structure under the skin of mice, without a single surgical cut. Another used light to incept smell in mice, artificially programming an entirely new, never-seen-in-nature perception of a scent directly into their brains. Yet another study combined lasers with virtual reality to dissect how our brains process space and navigation, mentally transporting a mouse to a virtual location linked to a reward. To cap it off, scientists found a new way to use light to control the brain through the skull without surgerythough as of now, youll still need gene therapy. Given the implications of unauthorized mind control, thats probably less of a bug and more of a feature.

Were nearing the frustratingly slow, but sure, dying gasp of Covid-19. The pandemic defined 2020, but science kept hustling along. I cant wait to share what might come in the next year with youmay it be revolutionary, potentially terrifying, utterly bizarre* or oddly heart-warming.

* For example, Why wild giant pandas frequently roll in horse manure. Yes thats the actual title of a study. Yes, its a great read. And yes, its hilarious but has a point.

Image Credit: Greyson Joralemon on Unsplash

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2020 in Neuroscience, Longevity, and AIand What's to Come - Singularity Hub

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine will expand a statewide program to prevent driving under the influence of alcohol, cannabis and prescription drugs. With funding from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the UC San Diego Training, Research and Education for Driving Safety Program (TREDS) provides education and resources to teach the public about the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs in an effort to keep our roadways safe.

In addition to alcohol, driving under the influence of cannabis and certain prescription or over-the-counter medications has rapidly become a serious traffic safety issue in the United States, especially during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Linda Hill, MD, MPH, program director of TREDS and professor of family medicine at University of California San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity.Photo Credit: UC San Diego Health Sciences

An NHTSA study conducted at five hospital trauma centers between March and July of 2020 found that nearly two-thirds of seriously or fatally injured road users tested positive for at least one active drug, including alcohol, cannabis or opioids. The number of drivers that tested positive for opioids or cannabis dramatically increased after mid-March compared to the previous six months.

Stress, anxiety and depression are serious mental health concerns during the pandemic, and some are turning to alcohol, drugs and opioids to manage their emotions and then getting behind the wheel, said Linda Hill, MD, MPH, program director of TREDS and professor of family medicine at University of California San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity. Collisions due to driving under the influence are 100 percent preventable. Our behavior profoundly influences our crash risk. We can reduce this risk by providing intervention strategies.

TREDS develops traffic safety education programs and conducts train-the-trainer workshops to prepare law enforcement and health professionals to teach classes to the public. The focus of this years program includes the following:Delivering virtual workshops on a monthly basis with the goal of training professionals in every county in California. This is a major expansion from previous years, said Hill. The workshops will feature curricula that address the topics of distracted driving, pedestrian safety, older road user safety and driving under the influence of alcohol, cannabis and medications.Linking organizations, groups and educational institutions with professionals in their communities who have received training to deliver these prevention programs.

Experts like Hill remind the public that the potency of todays cannabis has increased dramatically in recent years and affects each person differently. The peak effect for smoking THC is approximately 10 minutes after inhaling and can last four to eight hours. For edibles, the peak effect may occur up to two hours after ingesting and may last 10 hours or longer.

Impairing effects are based on the strength of THC, personal tolerance and mode of use, said Hill. It is critical that we continue to collaborate with those on the frontlines of road safety and the health professionals who see the tragic results of impaired driving in our emergency room settings, so we can have a unified message to our community to drive safely and sober, alcohol and drug free.

For more information, to request a training or locate a class instructor, contact TREDS at 858-534-8386 or treds@ucsd.edu.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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Program Expansion to Address Increase of Impaired Driving During Global COVID-19 Pandemic - UC San Diego Health

The lovely thing about the American Constitution is that it is based on the premise that all residents have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

And that is it.

It is left up to us on how to make that life and pursue that happiness in a way that affords others to do the same. It leaves lots of room for people to live different ways, and the differences in those ways has lead to a richly, unique American culture in which people have raised the standard of living higher than any time or place in the world. But a new wave of thought demonstrates the erosion of those freedoms, and the right to have differences although publicly touted are actually being denounced. Although The Citizen has chosen to just print letters to the editor from local residents or from people referencing something specific to Franklin County, a recent letter to the editor, from a resident of Woods Cross, Utah, illustrates these differences in thought:

Dear Editor,

The Intermountain states have returned to their original wild west status in this country. Apparently wanting to disaffiliate from statehood and revert to territorial status, these loosely-organized populations are once again proving to be ungovernable.

Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Wyoming and Nevada provide a friendly home-base to a nest of anti-intellectual, anti-law, fox-hole libertarians, shored up in their weekday beliefs by a hard dose of Sunday free agency theology.

Forming up a substantial minority in the area, these folks are anti-union, anti-public school, anti-science, anti-federal lands, anti-environment, anti-ERA, anti-gay, anti-bankruptcy, anti-civil government, and anti-law enforcement. Antipathy for traditional American society here goes down to the level of abhorrence of safety inspections on cars, and standard speed limits on freeways.

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The core states, extending north into Montana and the Dakotas, have now come out as anti-health and anti-human longevity. As long as the regions overburdened hospital census does not threaten service to the non-Covid sickly, the overall policy of the territory is to allow its older citizens to die off without substantial public health intervention.

Would someone please start the interview process for a sheriff or two to civilize this place?

Sincerely,

Kim Shinkoskey

Whether one agrees or not, its always good for one to know the thought process of those around them. As the saying goes:

Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions...

- Lao Tzu, 300 AD

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It's good to know how others think | Preston Citizen | hjnews.com - The Herald Journal

NEW YORK, Dec. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Capt. Franz Almeida has a practiced eagle's eye, honed over thousands of flight hours as a pilot. Junaid Mian, RPh, understands the challenges inherent to maintaining human health through the lens of work as a pharmacist. Both followed unique paths, which led them to angel investing. The two met at the NY chapter of the Harvard Business School.

Together they identified a yawning gap between space technology and biotechparticularly longevityverticals. They recognized that the world's economy is in the throes of change so radical that future generations will see the 21st century as a clear delineation marking a decidedly Earthbound humanity split from humanity that can freely live in and explore space.

The space economy explosion is happening, and there is no better time to invest than as early on as possible during that explosion. The latest estimates of the global space economy are well over $400 billion, and if growth continues to accelerate, many analyses point to a $1 trillion space economy just around the corner. The human longevity market is nearly as massive: A Merrill Lynch analysis revealed that the sector generates over $110 billion annually now and is growing to over $600 billion by 2025.

Without massive and ongoing investment and progress across both space technology and human longevity verticals, we will never be able to truly unlock the potential that our Solar System, and our galaxy, holds.

"A big part of why progress against aging used to be so slow was that so few experts on aging had an engineer's way of thinking. The convergence of those communities is making all the difference."

Aubrey de Grey, VP of New Technology Discovery at AgeX Therapeutics, Inc and Chief Science Officer of the SENS Research Foundation and Human Longevity advisor at SP8CEVC

And that's where Junaid Mian, RPh, and Capt. Franz Almeida comes in. The pair's varied perspectives have been a decisive match when it comes to examining the potential in merging investments across the space tech and human longevity verticals. Almeida and Mian are launching a new Rolling Fund in partnership with AngelList, with an exacting focus on solving the problem that is the future of humankind.

Under the umbrella of SP8CEVC, LPs will be able to gain exposure to deals to empower growing ventures in space technology and human longevity. Why these two rather specific categories? Simple: Moving to an economy based on the resources of our entire Solar System enables a much more substantial timeline for humanity's existence, and biotechnology work in longevity enables people to live and work in space.

The SP8CEVC partners who initially started with a traditional fund structure have chosen to use AngelList's rolling fund Reg 506(c) model to open up investment possibilities in these most critical verticals. As a series of quarterly pooled investment funds, SP8CEVC will give investors access to their deal flow quarterly on a subscription basis.

This new structure accelerates the pace of investing and, as a benefit, also helps promote innovation in those businesses.

The SP8CEVC team launched yesterday at TechCrunch Sessions: SPACE 2020. Investors and LPs interested in setting the pace for future advancement can have access to SP8CEVC's deal flow before anyone else here.

Media Contact:Franz Almeida917-287-5674 [emailprotected]

SOURCE SP8CEVC

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Introducing SP8CEVC: The World's First Space Technology and Human Longevity Focused Rolling Fund in Partnership with AngelList - PRNewswire

Is your hair thinning shaking your confidence? Is the thought Why dont I have normal hair density like others? Why dont I have hair like the way I used to 10 years back? playing in your mind? Then you should consider getting a non-surgical hair transplant with Infiniti hair club. Infiniti Hair Club has been providing hair solutions for both men & women. Their expert team & state-of-the-art technology helps in achieving an undetectable look. A detailed one-on-one consultation will help and guide you to make a more informed decision. So, first things first, we need to understand what a non-surgical hair transplant is?

A hair replacement or a non-surgical hair transplant is a technique of attaching a hair replacement system to the scalp. This hair system is made of 100% natural human hair and is customized to precisely match the density and colour of your hair. This hair system is then attached on your head and blended into your existing hair after a haircut. The entire process takes about 3-4 hours and it will get you looking young and fabulous as ever.

What makes this technique the most unique & beneficial, is its ease and comfort. Besides that, the treatment is more preferable as it provides immediate results. It is tailor-made to match your hair density, so there is no question of poking needles onto your scalp. It also needs no medications, no blood-shed, its pocket friendly and has no side effects.

The Lifespan of the Hair Systems:

Since each system is made using only natural human hair, their lifespan is about 6-12 months. Although this could vary according to the kind of system and the way you maintain it. Timely servicing plays a crucial role in increasing its longevity. A well-maintained system tends to last for a longer duration. Maintenance interval depends on a lot of factors namely: the type of hair system, your skin type, and the climatic conditions. The average time to service them is once in every 15 to 30 days.

Even if youre not a local resident, or have any travel plans, or cannot come in for a service, we have still got you covered. The specially designed service kit kit includes all the necessary products that are required to service & maintain your hair system, that too at your own time and convenience. An experienced technician is assigned to train you when you avail the kit. We aim to make sure that our customers enjoy wearing their hair system no matter where they are. The best feature of this system is that it does not alter your lifestyle. You can continue to do every kind of activity and enjoy your hair without the slightest worry. You can run on a treadmill, play your favourite sports, or even go for a swim. You can even go paragliding, scuba diving, you name it! All with the utmost ease.

Is This Hair System Another Type of Wig?

Absolutely not! A wig is easily noticeable, while a hair system perfectly blends with your hair. It is also customized to match the texture of your hair and looks undeniably like your own hair.

What Would Something Like This Cost?

Our replacement system is the most cost-efficient option out there. They are relatively much more affordable than any kind of surgical treatment while also providing seamless, easy, and comfortable results.

What Does the CEO of Infiniti Hair Club Have to Say?

Alka Verma says, In todays fast-moving world, we have individuals as young as 15 years come to us for hair loss issues. While on one hand, I feel really sad that they have to face such trauma, sometimes at a really early age in life, but on the other hand, I look at the bright side and feel grateful that with our hair replacement systems I can replace their trauma with confidence and happiness. Hair loss happens for many reasons; the majority of the cases are related to stress, diet, hereditary, and a lot of other reasons. Whatever the reason may be, the solution is simple. Yes, you guessed it right. Its our hair replacement systems, she adds, Come in with no hair and walk out with a head full of hair, in a matter of a few hours. For more information and booking consultation, visit http://www.infinitihairclub.com

Disclaimer: This is a company press release. No HT journalist is involved in creation of this content.

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Meet the new experts of non-surgical hair transplant - Alka Verma and her salon - Infiniti Hair C... - Hindustan Times

A recent study unveils a potential new connection between iron levels and longevity.

The study, which appeared in the journalNature Communications, pooled data from three large human genetic studies, "reaching an unprecedented sample of more than a million people," the lead study author and data analyst Paul Timmers, from the University of Edinburgh in the UK, tellsEat This, Not That!

"Using genetics, we found multiple lines of evidence indicating poor control of blood iron levels is causally linked to a shorter lifespan and fewer years lived in good health." (Related: The One Vitamin Doctors Are Urging Everyone to Take Right Now.)

After examining the DNA of individuals who lived long and healthy lives versus those who experienced age-related diseases and even death early in life, the researchers were able to pinpoint 10 regions of the genome that were related to three key measures of aging: lifespan, years lived free of disease (healthspan), and living to old age (longevity). Two such regions, LDLR and FOXO3, were explicitly found to influence the expression of genes that help the body metabolize iron, which is what led the researchers to hypothesize that iron levels could play a role in aging.

Senior study author Joris Deelen, PhD, who studies the biology of aging at the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing in Germany explains that "genetic variation in these regions seems to be the most important for healthy iron metabolism. Genes influenced by genetic variation in the other eight regions are not directly linked to iron metabolism."

Essentially, those with high iron levels may have an increased risk of dying younger.

"It is well-known that a deficit in iron can cause poor health, but we showed, for the first time, that for most people a small reduction in blood ironfrom their current levelsis likely beneficial to their health," says Deelen. "Iron metabolism and healthy aging were not linked before."

The researchers discovered that genetic predisposition to higher iron levels is what's associated with a reduced lifespan, which is largely out of your control.

"We found that DNA variations, which elevate your iron levels in the blood (from birth), also increase your likelihood of getting age-related diseases and dying," says Timmers.

So, this doesn't mean you should never eat red meat or remove other iron-rich foods from your diet altogether, however, it may encourage you to become more conscious of what your iron levels are.

"People tend to lose their ability to regulate iron levels as they get older, so regularly checking your iron levels could be important to maintain optimal health into old age," says Timmers.

Of course, further research is needed because it isn't clear on what would be considered an optimal iron level in the blood. In fact, it could vary from person to person.

"Further clinical studies are needed to determine the precise mechanisms by which iron metabolism is linked to healthy aging," Deelen adds.

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Too Much of This Mineral May Shorten Your Life, Study Finds | Eat This Not That - Eat This, Not That

THE relentless pursuit of the elixir of youth has spurred anti-ageing research in attempts to achieve the triple goals of life extension, namely, the triumvirate of healthy lifespan, rejuvenation and longevity.

Sirtuins are a family of cellular enzymes that are powered by a chemical compound called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD). They play an important role in preventing diseases and even reversing some aspects of ageing.

Studies have shown that increased sirtuin activity in mammals has been associated with a delayed onset of age-related diseases and increased longevity.

Increased sirtuin activity appears to inhibit nerve degeneration and reduces the development of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases (such as diabetes mellitus and abnormal lipid levels).

Hence, if sirtuin activity can be increased using compounds that can boost its activity (STACs or Sirtuin Activating Compounds), the use of STACs can potentially help a person stay healthy longer, even if longevity is not affected.

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Resveratrol

Resveratrol is a natural plant phenol STAC found in the skin of red grapes and other fruits such as blueberries and cranberries. Contrary to common belief, red wine contains very little of it. Resveratrol has been shown to have life-extending properties in studies on lower-order species such as yeast and nematodes, but this effect has marginal reliability in higher-order species. Nevertheless, it has been shown to have potentially beneficial effects.

Before you start taking large doses of resveratrol, you may be surprised to know that it is a Janus-faced compound. Low dietary doses may suffice to elicit the biological responses required to optimise the body's defence mechanisms against incipient disease. But at high doses, it behaves in a contrarian manner.

At low doses, resveratrol induces responses that overlap with the female hormone oestradiol. Low-dose effects seen in animal and human studies include beneficial metabolic effects such as more efficient glucose reduction in diabetics, reducing the development of obesity and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, protecting against arterial degeneration, delaying development of neurodegeneration, and improving motor and cognitive functions.

At high doses, resveratrol has an anti-oestrogen effect which suggests that it may reduce the risk of oestrogen-dependent cancers. This Janus-faced hormetic effects of resveratrol may partly explain the French paradox, where there is a reduced incidence of cardiovascular diseases and certain types of cancer in some populations despite their consumption of high-fat diets.

NAD

NAD is an important molecule that is essential for over 500 enzyme reactions in the body which impact metabolism, ageing, cell death, DNA repair, and gene expression. Hence, NAD plays a pivotal role in human health span and longevity and is a necessary substrate for sirtuin enzymatic activity.

In mammalian cells, NAD is mainly generated by the conversion of nicotinamide (a soluble form of Vitamin B3) into nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) followed by its combination with another molecule to form NAD. There is also another precursor, nicotinamide riboside (NR), that is converted by enzymes to NMN in the cells. As this pathway is safe and also the most efficient route for production of NAD, NMN or NR supplementation has been used to increase NAD levels.

Animal studies have shown that NMN supplementation can ameliorate the age-related reduction in NAD production in cells and improve the body's cardiovascular response to ageing. Age-related decrease in arterial elasticity means that the aorta is less able to expand and buffer the increased blood pressure generated each time the heart pumps. With ageing, the production of a pressure-bearing protein, type 1 collagen, in the arterial wall increases, whereas the main protein responsible for the structural integrity and elastic properties of the arterial wall, elastin, decreases. Studies in mice have shown that NMN supplementation was able to reduce stiffness in large arteries by reversing the accumulation of type 1 collagen in arterial walls and improving elastin content.

From the age of 40 years onwards, there is a gradual decline in perfusion of the body tissues resulting in gradual deterioration in body function towards the last decades of life. A consequence of this is cognitive decline.

Optimal brain function is dependent on adequate oxygen and nutrient delivery via minute brain blood vessels (cerebral microvascular circulation). This modulation of brain blood flow in response to increased brain activity is impaired with age, contributing to age-related cognitive impairment. Studies in aged mice given NMN have demonstrated an improvement in the modulation of cerebral microvascular circulation. Animal studies have also shown that NMN can prevent age-related cognitive decline by reducing cell death in areas of the brain that control short- and long-term memory.

Use of NMN was also associated with decrease in the neurodegenerative changes seen in Alzheimer's disease and age-related retinal changes. This age-related decrease in the production of new vessels and a gradual decrease of blood vessels in the microcirculation also result in reduction in muscle mass and diminishing exercise capacity with age. Mice given NMN were able to demonstrate an increase in the production of new vessels in the muscle and an increase in density of small vessels, thereby improving exercise capacity.

Caloric restriction

Caloric restriction (CR) which involves calorie reduction without causing malnutrition, has been associated with an increase in lifespan in some animal studies. In these studies, dietary CR was associated with increased lifespan and reduced disease incidence, especially cancers. However, some studies did not show benefit and, in some mouse strains, CR was associated with shortened lifespan.

Observational studies on humans who have practised extreme CR over many years showed low levels of risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Similarly, a human study on CR, the CALERIE study, found that CR participants had lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol.

The study was too short to examine the impact of CR on lifespan. The current conclusion from the National Institute of Aging in the United States is that there is not enough evidence to recommend CR as a therapeutic measure for life extension. Although CR was associated with lower risk factors for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, caution is urged as in a study using mouse lemurs on prolonged CR, MRI studies showed that there was more widespread age-related grey matter atrophy in CR animals while only a few regions in the brain showed atrophy in those not on CR.

Life extension

Globally, heart disease and stroke are the two main causes of death in most high-middle and high-income countries. Hence, the first cardinal principle in life extension is to control the risk factors such as blood pressure elevation, cholesterol elevation, sugar elevation and smoking.

The second principle is to have a healthy lifestyle such as keeping the weight within the healthy range and exercising regularly. Both physical exercise and dietary CR result in a significant increase in NAD production and increase sirtuin activity. CR may be an option as part of a weight-reduction regime to keep the weight optimal.

The third principle is to see your doctor regularly to control risk factors.

Finally, among the supplement options, scientific studies favour the use of low-dose resveratrol or NMN as they may potentially provide many health benefits via increased sirtuin activity, although more studies will be required to understand their efficacy in human life extension.

Read more:
Life extension health, rejuvenation and longevity - The Business Times

Twitter CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey gestures while interacting with students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in New Delhi on November 12, 2018.

Prakash Singh | AFP | Getty Images

As the year comes to a close, Wall Street is watching for a possible Santa Claus Rally. Historically, stocks tend to rise during the last five trading sessions of the calendar year, with this rally continuing until the second trading day of the new year.

Since 1969, the S&P 500 has gained 1.3% on average over this seven-day trading period, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac.

There are some stocks investors may want to pick up for 2021 before they close their books on the year. Finding compelling investment opportunities isn't easy. One strategy is to follow the moves of the analysts who consistently get it right. TipRanks analyst forecasting service attempts to find the best-performing analysts on Wall Street, or the analysts with the highest success rate and average return per rating.

Here are the best-performing analysts' five favorite stocks right now:

Top J.P. Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth just joined the Twitter bulls, upgrading the rating to Buy on December 16. Along with the call, the five-star analyst bumped up the price target from $52 to $65, with the new target suggesting 16% upside potential.

Anmuth explains that his price target is based on roughly 30x his 2022 EBITDA estimate, and also translates to approximately 9.5x his 2022 revenue estimate. Although this reflects a premium to advertising and social media peers like Google and Facebook, he believes it is "justified given a depressed EBITDA base and improving momentum in the business beyond 2020."

"We believe Twitter is uniquely positioned as the real-time broadcast and communications network, making it complementary to all other forms of media, including TV," Anmuth commented.

Additionally, Twitter is likely to benefit from the shift toward mobile and video given that the ad product and platform are continuing to improve, in Anmuth's opinion.

That being said, for the analyst to be even more optimistic about the company, he argues "better advertising execution, including diversification toward DR and performance-based, is critical."

Based on his 72% success rate and 32.1% average return per rating, Anmuth scores the #29 spot on TipRanks' ranking.

For RBC Capital's Scot Ciccarelli, Costco is a top pick in the retail space. On December 14, he maintained a Buy rating as well as a $439 price target (20% upside potential).

According to Ciccarelli, "Costco just keeps doing it what it does best," which is delivering strong sales growth and good margin performance. In its most recent quarter, the company posted comp growth of 17.1%, enabling it to generate strong leverage in fiscal Q1 2021, in the analyst's opinion. E-commerce sales surged 86% and now account for roughly 7% of total sales.

Even though U.S. comps moderated, Ciccarelli argues "this modest deceleration seemed to be driven by pull forward activity and more aggressive Black Friday promotions starting as early as late-October from some competitors." On top of this, gross margins reached 13.3% thanks to efficiency gains, labor productivity and significantly lower product spoilage in fresh foods.

What's more, Ciccarelli points out that Costco has the strongest buying power in the retail space because it concentrates all of its scale on a small group of SKUs, while its bigger competitors spread their buying power across millions of SKUs. Additionally, he thinks it has the lowest markup in the industry.

"We believe this combination creates extremely compelling value for their members. As a result, while Costco has indeed benefitted from accelerated shopping activity as more consumer dollars are directed towards goods rather than services/experiences (what we call the Retail Lift), we believe Costco is extremely well positioned regardless of broader economic trends in 2021," Ciccarelli opined.

Currently tracking a 76% success rate and a 20.6% average return per rating, Ciccarelli ranks among the top 52 analysts on TipRanks' list.

Following MKS Instruments' analyst day, Benchmark's Mark Miller is even more optimistic about its long-term growth prospects. To this end, he lifted his price target from $150 to $175 (17% upside potential), as well as reiterated a Buy rating on December 14.

According to Miller, management painted a very "upbeat picture," with the team expecting the semiconductor business growth to surpass wafer fab equipment spending by 200 basis points between 2020-2025 and its Advanced Products business to grow at GDP plus 300 basis points. Additionally, the company anticipates non-GAAP gross margins of 50%.

"We see upside coming next year in the Advanced Products group lead by improved laser demand due to a rebound in global manufacturing and growth from the E&S segment," Miller stated.

On top of this, the data storage segment is likely to benefit from the ramp of 5G phones as they require more memory content, in Miller's opinion. "Next gen devices require more transistors and higher bit densities. Higher aspect ratios, which require more rf power, have enabled MKS to gain share in the WFE market lead by rf etch applications such as hard mask removal," the analyst explained. In just the first nine months of 2020, MKSI's power solutions business has grown 110% year-over-year.

Miller argues that all of this puts MKSI on a path to achieve higher earnings in FY21. He bumped up his non-GAAP EPS estimate from $8.40 on sales of $2.47 billion to $8.82 on similar sales.

A 71% success rate and 25.8% average return per rating support Miller's #45 ranking.

NeoGenomics is a cancer diagnostics and pharmaceutical services company that works to better patient care by providing improved diagnoses and helping pharmaceutical companies launch cutting-edge therapies based on precision genetics.

The company, last week, received a nod of approval from BTIG, with analyst Mark Massaro initiating coverage with a Buy rating and the Street high price target of $60 (12% upside potential).

"We view NEO as the leading high-growth reference lab focused in oncology offering comprehensive cancer diagnostic tests and pharma services for pathologists, oncologists, academic medical centers, and pharma companies," Massaro noted.

To back this up, the five-star analyst points out that NEO has the broadest cancer diagnostic testing portfolio in the U.S., with it also boasting a "strong track record of acquiring and integrating market-leading lab companies over the years." This includes the acquisitions of Clarient, Genoptix and the oncology assets of Human Longevity, which were purchased at average revenue multiples of 2.5x revenue, compared to the average industry takeout multiples of 6.5x.

Massaro added, "We are positive on NEO's May 2020 partnership and ownership stake in liquid biopsy company Inivata, as NEO looks to expand its footprint in the high-value liquid biopsy and minimal residual disease (MRD) testing space. We think NEO will likely announce additional deals from here, and we regard NEO as a 'onestop oncology shop' as it leverages a leadership position in the pathology and oncology channel."

Massaro's stellar track record is evidenced by his 66% success rate and 28.2% average return per rating.

Wall Street's 6th best-performing analyst, Brian Fitzgerald, of Wells Fargo, believes the negative investor reaction following game developer Zynga's Q3 earnings results was "overdone," with the stock now appearing "inexpensive relative to growth." With this in mind, he upgraded the rating from Hold to Buy on December 15. In addition, he kept the price target at $12.50, implying 26% upside potential.

"We think shares of ZNGA present a favorable risk/reward in light of a new, more detailed strategic vision of organic growth, which CEO Gibeau recently articulated. This prompted us to reimagine what ZNGA will look like a few years down the road," Fitzgerald stated.

Putting it simply, the analyst likes what he's seeing. He envisions a vertically integrated ad network which, when combined with Rollic's games, could move the hyper-casual audience into the ZNGA network for monetization through ads and in-app purchases, while reducing UA costs. Additionally, its portfolio is now diverse enough to provide several options to allocate advertising spend on genres and regions with the best ROI, which could create a "less volatile recurring revenue stream," in Fitzgerald's opinion.

What's more, Fitzgerald sees "expansion of ZNGA's TAM beyond mobile by taking key franchises cross-platform in a cost-effective manner due to enhancements in game engine technology."

"We think FY21E FCF yield of over 5% limits the risk of underperformance as mgmt. has a successful track record of allocating capital into a TAM growing ~10%/year; moreover, management's commentary on December 9 suggests ZNGA's Q4 is still on track for double digit organic year-over-year growth," Fitzgerald added.

The Wells Fargo analyst boasts an impressive 83% success rate and 43% average return per rating.

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Top Wall Street analysts recommend these buys before 2020 comes to a close - CNBC

I am in my early 80s and have lived long enough to experience a lot and always have been able to manage difficult times. As we continue through this current climate, I need a lift. What can you offer? C.N.

Dear C.N

Thank you for your question. Heres one possible antidote: humor.

In 2017, HBO presented a documentary entitled If Youre Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast that confronted stereotypes about life after age 90. In the film, Carl Reiner has a conversation with several of his friends from show business, challenging what it means to really live in your 90s.

Reiner, the legendary comedian, director and screenwriter, offers himself as Exhibit A at age 95. (Reiner passed away in June 2020 at age 98.) He spoke with other legendary comedians: Filmmaker and funnyman Mel Brooks, age 90; TV icon Norman Lear, age 95; and beloved performer Dick van Dyke age 91.

Comedy is part of these mens work. Humor can be used as a teaching tool, although it is unlikely that is the intention of these notables. Yet, here are some messages we can extract from these talented funny men. The quotes are from the HBO documentary.

Carl Reiner celebrates humor. Reiner had a running quip about being in his nineties. Every morning, I pick up my newspaper, get the obituary section and see if Im listed, he said. If Im not, I have my breakfast.

What we know: A sense of humor is related to longevity. Adults with an average sense of humor live longer than those who dont find humor in life, according to researchers. Benefits include decreased blood pressure while laughter boosts the immune system by decreasing the stress hormone cortisol and minimizing inflammation.

Norman Lear talks about culture and flexibility. I think the culture stereotypes everything, said Lear. Because Im 93, Im supposed to behave in a certain way. The fact I can touch my toes shouldnt be so amazing to people.

What we know: Society seems to have some unrealistic expectations about ones age and respective appearance, activities and capabilities. Not to be overlooked is Lears ability to touch his toes, demonstrating flexibility typically achieved with physical activity. Such activity improves our ability to perform daily physical activities, improves our range of motion and increases our sense of balance, helping us avoid falling and injuries.

Dick Van Dyke suggests dance and song. For a long and good life, Van Dyke suggests that you sing, dance and laugh everyday. Without knowing his daily routine, we do know in 2018 Van Dyke played the older cantankerous banker, Mr. Dawes in the movie Mary Poppins Returns. He not only danced and sang but jumped on a desk, did a tap dance number and jumped down with a spring and a bounce. Dancing has been found to have results comparable to formal exercise improving emotional, psychological and physical well-being. And its fun!

Mel Brooks promotes outrageous humor. During the HBO show, Brooks stood up and told the crowd, Ladies and gentlemen, the greatest cat sound in the world, as he broke out into the loudest yowl. As the audience howled, he said, What the hell do you want? Youre not paying a penny here.

Reiner refers to him as the funniest human being in the world. Age and outrageous are terms typically not paired together., but there is a book entitled, Be an Outrageous Older Woman by Ruth Harriet Jacobs. Sometimes outrage is needed to get attention.

At the time of this HBO program, all four men continued to work at a craft and art they loved. And herein lies a message. Having a sense of purpose is a lifesaver; humor is a healer helping us keep a perspective. And laughing is healthy. So, think about ways to do something you love to do, keep your sense of humor, have a good laugh and even do a little dance while taking a break from the news.

Thank you, C.N., for your good question. To watch the HBO documentary, see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zv_aRiiBmA.

Next week, well identify four women in their 90s, doing what they love to do with a message to all of us. Be safe, well and kind to yourself and others.

Note: A week before Reiner died, he said the following in an interview, Ive always got something Im doing and improving.

Helen Dennis is a nationally recognized leader on issues of aging, employment and the new retirement with academic, corporate and nonprofit experience. Contact Helen with your questions and comments at Helendenn@gmail.com. Visit Helen at HelenMdennis.com and follow her on facebook.com/SuccessfulagingCommunity

Read more here:
These entertainers in their 90s offer suggestions for good health and a long life - East Bay Times

WISeCoin, the Innovative Tokenized Service of WISeKey, Authenticates People, Products and Machines Using Blockchain and AI

WISeKey allows Connected Electric Cars to Pay with WISeCoin Cryptocurrencies at Autonomous Electric Charging Stations

ZUG, Switzerland December 21, 2020 WISeKey International Holding (WISeKey, SIX: WIHN, NASDAQ: WKEY), a leading cybersecurity IoT company, today announced that its WISeCoin IoT solution enables secure people-to-people, people-to-machines and machines-to-machines digital communications using blockchain and AI technologies.

WISeKey combines its blockchain technology, with extensive experience in digital identities and PKI, and expertise with secure microcontrollers, to create a tokenized service offering, the WISeCoin utility token. WISeCoin provides an innovative way to verify connected objects wanting to interact with one another. Through this unique service offering, WISeCoin AG, a Special Purpose vehicle created by WISeKey to build the infrastructure for secure intra-object interactions and transactions, aims at becoming the ubiquitous industry solution for facilitating secure IoT interactions.

The solutions provided by WISeCoin AG allows any person, object or machine to exchange information or value in a trusted manner while significantly reducing the risk of malicious cyber threats, frauds and hacks. WISeCoins are however not a means of payment, but a service offering. It is enabled through the token which is stored in a digital wallet and entitles the holder to the service offering of the WISeCoin. The token is indifferent to the wallet provider and can be incorporated into any ERC-20 compatible wallet.

The WISeCoin Validation Service uses AI provided by HIRO (via the certificates validation authority) to analyze the digital certificate of different actors and recognize and trust the identity of other parties they are interacting with. To do this, WISeCoin token gives its token holders (stored on digital wallets) access to the WISeKey Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), which provides the verification service in order to mitigate malicious actors and hackers from compromising interactions.

Objects send the validation authority the third partys public key and the digital certificate for validation. WISeKey checks that the corresponding public key holds a valid WISeCoin and if so, the identity is verified. In order to get the verification, the object making the request needs to hold at least 1 WISeCoin in its wallet, which is valid for 12 months or 100 requests. WISeCoin AG can, over time, adjust the number of tokens required to get verified, the longevity of the token and entitled verifications per token. The WISeCoin Validation Service is used for the verification of the validity of digital identity of the object in real time, thus ensuring secure use of digital identities for authentication of an object connected to the Internet and the activation of attributes such as digital signing, transactions, or sending WISeCoin Machine to Machine Cryptocurrency technology allows connected cars to pay with WISeCoin at the Electric Charging Stations, completing the transaction without using credit cards or any other traditional payment. Connected car owners can charge their cars and pay by transferring WISeCoins via NFC technology, from their car wallet to the electric charging station.

WISeKey is already providing the integration of WISeKey IoT and PKI in the manufacturers connected car solutions allowing them to authenticate legitimate car components and enabling owners to securely interact with the cars smart features. The fact that the electric car includes a WISeKey digital certificate stored on a WISeKey microchip acting as a secure hardware module it allows to send securely the WISeCoins required to execute the payment transaction between the electric car and the electric charger without any intermediaries or paying any transactional fees.

WISeCoin also includes an unforgeable digital identification for the ecar and echarger, securing both. Virtually all new cars on the market today include electronic technologies that could pose vulnerabilities to hacking or privacy intrusions if data security is not addressed. For example, smart cars without cybersecurity protection technology could allow hackers to gain remote access by exploiting vulnerabilities in their ecosystem of connected components and online services. As the number of cars connected to the Internet is growing quickly smart car manufactures are working to identify and reduce potential hacking vulnerabilities in their vehicles.

About WISeKey

WISeKey (NASDAQ: WKEY; SIX Swiss Exchange: WIHN, NASDAQ: WKEY) is a leading global cybersecurity company currently deploying large scale digital identity ecosystems for people and objects using Blockchain, AI and IoT respecting the Human as the Fulcrum of the Internet. WISeKey microprocessors secure the pervasive computing shaping todays Internet of Everything. WISeKey IoT has an install base of over 1.5 billion microchips in virtually all IoT sectors (connected cars, smart cities, drones, agricultural sensors, anti-counterfeiting, smart lighting, servers, computers, mobile phones, crypto tokens etc.). WISeKey is uniquely positioned to be at the edge of IoT as our semiconductors produce a huge amount of Big Data that, when analyzed with Artificial Intelligence (AI), can help industrial applications to predict the failure of their equipment before it happens.Our technology is Trusted by the OISTE/WISeKeys Swiss based cryptographic Root of Trust (RoT) provides secure authentication and identification, in both physical and virtual environments, for the Internet of Things, Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence. The WISeKey RoT serves as a common trust anchor to ensure the integrity of online transactions among objects and between objects and people. For more information, visitwww.wisekey.com.

Press and investor contacts:

Disclaimer:

This communication expressly or implicitly contains certain forward-looking statements concerning WISeKey International Holding Ltd and its business. Such statements involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of WISeKey International Holding Ltd to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. WISeKey International Holding Ltd is providing this communication as of this date and does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, and it does not constitute an offering prospectus within the meaning of the Swiss Financial Services Act (FinSA), the FinSAs predecessor legislation or advertising within the meaning of the FinSA, or within the meaning of any other securities regulation. Investors must rely on their own evaluation of WISeKey and its securities, including the merits and risks involved. Nothing contained herein is, or shall be relied on as, a promise or representation as to the future performance of WISeKey.

The securities offered will not be, and have not been, registered under the United States of America Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States of America, absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of said Act.

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WISeCoin, the Innovative Tokenized Service of WISeKey, Authenticates People, Products and Machines Using Blockchain and AI - GlobeNewswire

The healthcare industry accounts for 8.5% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and toxic air pollutants. ... [+]

Exposure to high levels of air pollution can cause a variety of health issues, ranging from mild irritation of the throat to heart problems, and can even lead topremature death. One major source of this health hazard is healthcare. Globally, the healthcare industry accounts for about 4.5% of greenhouse gas emissions and toxic air pollutants, a large enough emissions profile to rival most countries. "If it was on a list of nations, it would be the fifth country in the world," said Sonia Roschnik, international climate policy director for Health Care Without Harm.

In the U.S., healthcare accounts for an even great proportion of emissions. A recentanalysis inHealth Affairs shows that healthcare organizations and the medical supply chain are responsible for about 8.5% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants. This figure rose by 6% between 2010 and 2018. The authors estimate that in 2018 alone, this pollution led to the loss of 388,000 disability-adjusted life-years, the cumulative number of years of life lost due to illness, disability or early death from the pollution.

The healthcare industry, while it's meant to promote longevity and wellbeing, threatens health by emitting harmful carbon-dioxide-trapping gases and air pollutants. "I feel conflicted as a health care provider because every time I'm providing care, I'm causing harm someplace else," said Jodi Sherman, associate professor of anesthesiology and epidemiology at Yale University and senior author of theHealth Affairsanalysis.

Sherman and her colleagues used health expenditure data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and emissions data from the Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks to estimate healthcare emissions both at the national and state level. The researchers input the data into an internationally standardized model that estimates the emissions associated with spending in different economic sectors. Using these results, the researchers determined the emissions released by the healthcare industry and which parts of the industry were the biggest polluters.

"We've shown that the health sector in the US is responsible for 8.5% of our nation's greenhouse gas emissions and similar fractions of toxic air pollutants," said Sherman. The medical supply chain accounted for about 82% of healthcare emissions, purchased energy accounted for 11% and healthcare operations accounted for 7%.

This pollution came at a high cost to human health. Using their emissions data and methods commonly used to calculate disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) from greenhouse gases and air pollution, Sherman and her colleagues estimated that healthcare emissions resulted in the loss of between 244,000-531,000 DALYs, with a median of 388,000 DALYs. "We're similar in magnitude to deaths due to preventable medical errors," said Sherman.

But when a 1999 landmark report published by the Institute of Medicine revealed the magnitude of deaths from preventable medical errors, it sparked public outcry and led to the formation of the government Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Sherman said that the same hasn't happened for healthcare emissions. "Nobody [in power] is paying attention to this issue."

But the harms stemming from pollution can be prevented. In the U.S., some healthcare systems have taken it upon themselves to reduce their carbon footprint. Sherman's institution for example, Yale-New Haven Health, has stopped using a non-essential, environmentally harmful inhaled anesthetic, desflurane.

"Inhaled anesthetics are very potent greenhouse gases. They're released directly off of facility rooftops and vented to the outdoor atmosphere," said Sherman. "The [United Kingdom's] National Health Services estimated that [on average] 5% of an entire facility's footprint is coming from inhaled anesthetics."

Another target is the medical supply chain. "One of the three biggest categories contributing to the problem of healthcare pollution is medical devices and supplies," said Sherman. Not only does the manufacture and transportation of supplies emit pollutants, but single-use items like gloves and masks create waste, and could be used more efficiently.

"The PPE, the masks we've used in this pandemic, if they were designed to be reusable and low carbon, you could make a huge difference," said Roschnik.

Sherman also stressed that however successful individual facilities or even larger systems are at greening their operations, unified systemic change is needed. A step toward that is mandating that organizations report their emissions. Some U.S. healthcare systems voluntarily report their environmental impacts, but thats the exception rather than the rule. Mandated reporting could incentivize hospitals to track their impact, and the U.S. already has the framework for it.

"If we mandate reporting through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid [Services] existing infrastructure, that may be the quickest way to leverage transition of the healthcare system in the U.S. to net zero," she said. "This is a call to the new administration to seriously look at the opportunity to help us help the health care sector reduce its emissions through this existing quality performance framework."

This kind of systemic change is already happening elsewhere. The U.K. has already done this and is the only place in the world with nationally mandated health system carbon accounting.

"We'd been working for a long time to look at the carbon footprint of the health sector and trying to identify what the hotspots are and what to do about it," said Roschnik. "We got to the point where we really felt [sustainability] needed to be integrated into everything you do, so that's why we launched the Greener NHS [initiative]." Roschnik helped launched the initiative which aims to bring the health system to net zero carbon emissions by 2040.

To get to net zero, the initiative outlines steps to reduce NHS emissions, like ensuring suppliers are committed to net zero emissions, developing the first zero-emission ambulances and constructing 'net zero hospitals.' "We've spent years working through what interventions will contribute how much," said Roschnik.

The benefits of cleaning up healthcare won't stop at clinics or medical suppliers. "The healthcare industry intersects with most other parts of the global economy. If we can transform this industry it's going to have ripple effects," said Sherman. "And it's part of our social mission."

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Healthcare Organizations Are Polluting The Air And Harming Public Health, But That Can Change - Forbes