Debilitating diseases such as cancer and osteoarthritis could be identified and treated faster and more effectively, thanks to 1 of 6 projects benefiting from 32 million government funding.

As part of a keynote speech on research and development at London Tech Week 2020, the Science Minister Amanda Solloway will today (Monday 7 September) announce 6 new projects aimed at developing revolutionary new technological approaches that aim to transform care and treatments in the NHS by 2050, helping to improve peoples quality of life as they age.

InlightenUs, led by the University of Edinburgh, will receive 5.4 million to use a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and infra-red lasers to produce fast, high resolution 3D medical images, helping to identify diseases in patients more quickly.

Working with the universities of Nottingham and Southampton, the new research will initially be developed for use on hospital wards and GP surgeries, and by 2050 aims to scale up to walk through airport style X-Ray scanners, which will be able to pick up detailed images of structures often hidden within the human body that can reveal tumours.

Another of the 6 projects, emPOWER, will be led by researchers at the University of Bristol, and will receive 6 million to develop artificial robotic muscular assistance to help restore strength in people who have lost muscle capability. This could include patients who have suffered a stroke or are living with degenerative diseases such as sarcopenia and muscular dystrophy.

Using these highly targeted robotics will help overcome the limitations of current wearable assistive technology of regenerative medicine. Often, these technologies can be bulky and uncomfortable to wear, and can require 2 people to put on and take off. Users can also find the movements too slow. Through using robots, emPOWER will provide life changing benefits for sufferers, restoring their confidence, independence and quality of life, all while reducing the cost to the NHS.

Ahead of her keynote speech on R&D at London Tech Week, Science Minister Amanda Solloway said:

The pioneering projects we are backing today will help modernise healthcare, improving all of our lives now and into the future.

Todays announcement is part of our ambitious R&D Roadmap and underlines our commitment to back our incredible scientists and researchers and invest in ground-breaking research to keep the UK ahead in cutting-edge discoveries.

The funding is being delivered through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation, through the Transformative Healthcare Technologies for 2050 call.

As part of her speech, Minister Solloway will set out the governments ambitions for research to address significant issues such as advancing healthcare outcomes for patients and ensuring the UK is at the forefront of transformational technologies like artificial intelligence.

It follows the launch of the governments R&D Roadmap in July 2020 which detailed plans to make the UK the best place in the world for scientists and researchers to live and work, building on the governments commitment to increase R&D public spending to 22 billion per year by 2024 to 2025.

Innovation minister Lord Bethell said:

Throughout this global pandemic, the NHS has continued to be there for us all and to treat cancer patients and those living with chronic illness as a priority.

These pioneering new projects will help us further improve care for patients and make life easier for NHS staff, cementing the UKs status as a world leader in research and technology and ultimately saving thousands of lives.

EPSRC Executive Chair, Processor Dame Lynn Gladden, said:

The projects announced today will develop new approaches which could become routine in the NHS and community and home care in the coming decades.

Harnessing the latest technologies and the UKs world-leading expertise will allow us to deliver a step-change in how healthcare is delivered and benefit millions of people, emphasising the critical role the UKs R&D sector plays in improving the health of the nation.

Led by Imperial College London, it will receive 5.5 million to develop a Non-Invasive Single Neuron Electrical Monitoring technology, which when combined with AI will allow researchers to monitor the brain in a way never achieved before. This will help scientists gain a better understanding of neurological diseases such as Parkinsons and Alzheimers. Currently approaches to monitoring the brain are invasive and so this new method would enable new pharmacological and neurotechnology-based treatments to be developed which are far more effective than any current treatments.

Led by Edinburgh Napier University, it will receive 3.2 million, to develop hearing aids designed to autonomously adapt to the nature and quality of their surroundings. Currently only 40% of people who could benefit from hearing aids have them, while most current devices make only limited use of speech enhancement. These hearing aids would be able to adapt to the nature and quality of the visual and acoustic environment around them, resulting in greater intelligibility of noise and potentially reduced listening effort for the listener.

Led by the University of Glasgow, it will receive 5.5 million to develop a project which aims to create a home of the future, providing homeowners with feedback on their health and wellbeing. Bringing clinically approved sensors into the living environment will enable individuals, carers or healthcare professional to monitor blood flow, heart rate and even brain function, in the home. Monitoring physical and emotional well-being in the home will enable tailored programmes to be built for lifestyles improvement, as well as rehabilitation.

Led by Heriot-Watt University, in partnership with the universities of Bath and Edinburgh, it will receive 6.1 million to exploit new laser, optical fibre and imaging technologies, delivering therapy for bacterial diseases and viruses in confined regions of the body such as the lungs, catheters inserted into the body for prolonged periods and areas of the body that have been subject to surgical procedures. The platform will be able to cut out single cells leaving the cells around it undamaged in cancer surgery, aiming to offer a cure for currently unresectable tumours tumours that are too close to critical structures and cannot be cut away safely with current approaches.

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), in collaboration with the Medical Research Council, will shortly be inviting proposals for adventurous projects as part of the second phase of the Transformative Healthcare Technologies for 2050 call.

This call will target projects that that are guided by a longer-term vision to pursue new, high risk high reward ideas and develop thinking and approaches supported by the next generation of underpinning science, engineering and emerging technologies in the healthcare space. We seek and encourage adventurous ideas, new thinking and collaborations that have the potential to significantly improve healthcare delivery by 2050. Read further details.

Link:

Walk-through cancer diagnoses and robotics muscles among groundbreaking projects backed by government - GOV.UK

Sept. 1, 2020 12:23 UTC

New System Includes Titanium Plates with Streamlined Instrumentation and Updated Screw Offerings

MAHWAH, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Stryker Trauma & Extremities division today announced the launch of its AxSOS 3 Ankle Fusion System, an ankle fusion titanium plate system intended for the fusion of the tibio-talar joint.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200901005307/en/

Strykers Trauma & Extremities division today announced the launch of its AxSOS 3 Ankle Fusion System, an ankle fusion titanium plate system intended for the fusion of the tibio-talar joint. (Photo: Business Wire)

The AxSOS 3 Ankle Fusion System was developed using SOMA, Strykers proprietary orthopaedic design and development system that applies data from over 25,000 CT images of bones across different populations. As a result, these plates were designed to fit a range of patients with less customization.

The CP design utilized in Strykers forefoot and hindfoot plating systems served as the inspiration to take this technology into ankle fusions, said Keith Wapner, MD* at Penn Medicine, one of the design surgeons. As it relates to mechanical testing, Dr. Wapner said, Integrating the stability of plate fixation with the compression of the CP screw allows for a stable ankle fusion construct.

We combined Strykers CP technology from Anchorage 2 with the companys AxSOS 3 screw system and incorporated several additional instruments to assist with alignment and compression, said Michael Coughlin, MD* at UCSF Health, one of the design surgeons. The system is designed to provide surgeons with a dependable, user-friendly, intuitive technology option.

Additional information about AxSOS 3 Ti Ankle Fusion System can be found at: https://www.bit.ly/ANKLEFUSIONINFO

*Drs. Coughlin and Wapner are paid consultants of Stryker Orthopaedics.

About Stryker

Stryker is one of the worlds leading medical technology companies and, together with its customers, is driven to make healthcare better. The company offers innovative products and services in Orthopaedics, Medical and Surgical, and Neurotechnology and Spine that help improve patient and hospital outcomes. More information is available at http://www.stryker.com.

A surgeon must always rely on his or her own professional clinical judgment when deciding whether to use a particular product when treating a particular patient. Stryker does not dispense medical advice and recommends that surgeons be trained in the use of any particular product before using it in surgery.

The information presented is intended to demonstrate the breadth of Stryker's product offerings. A surgeon must always refer to the package insert, product label and/or instructions for use before using any of Stryker's products. Products may not be available in all markets because product availability is subject to the regulatory and/or medical practices in individual markets. Please contact your sales representative if you have questions about the availability of products in your area.

This is intended for US distribution only.

AXSOS-BL-3, 08-2020

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200901005307/en/

Read more from the original source:

Stryker's AxSOS 3 Ankle Fusion System Offers Innovative Plates That Are Designed to Fit a Range of Patients - BioSpace

NETANYA, Israel & TAMPA, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Neurolief, a medical neurotechnology innovator, today announces that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Device designation to the RelivionDP system, the first non-invasive multi-channel brain neuromodulation technology, for the treatment of major depression.

A wearable device, the RelivionDP system is designed as an adjunctive treatment to pharmaceutical management of major depressive disorder (MDD) in adults who have not achieved satisfactory improvement from antidepressant medications.

Gaining FDA recognition of our potential to substantially impact an area of unmet need bolsters our upcoming RelivionDP Major Depression pivotal study, and brings us one step closer to reaching people who desperately need this new treatment, said Chris Richardson, Neuroliefs Chairman. This categorization is a major milestone for Neurolief, and we hope to one day make a significant difference for patients suffering from depression.

Ninety percent of patients with major depressive disorder who had not sufficiently responded to previous pharmaceutical treatment showed improvement in depression rating when using RelivionDP, based on an open-label clinical study. In the same study, 37% of patients reached full remission from their depressive episodes. The study utilized the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS).

As we find ourselves in the midst of a large and growing global mental health crisis, more and more patients are in need of effective options that lack the short and long-term side effects we see with traditional treatments, said Linda Carpenter, MD, a Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior in the Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University. As per Dr. Carpenter, Based on its efficacy and safety profile, RelivionDP could be the answer for the approximately 40% of patients with depression who do not respond to standard medication and psychotherapy treatments. The fact that its also wearable, allows for a personalized level of treatment, and has remote monitoring capabilities makes this an extremely attractive option for patients with major depression.

The RelivionDP is a neurostimulation device similar to a simple headset that the patient places on their head to administer treatments in the comfort of their own home. It is designed to treat major depression by stimulating the release of neurotransmitters in the brainstem and modulating brain networks associated with control of mood. Utilizing three adaptive output channels, the device transfers mild electrical pulses to the brainstem via six branches of the occipital and trigeminal nerves which are responsible for sensation in the face, ears, and scalp. Part of a digital therapeutics platform, RelivionDP is used in tandem with its dedicated smartphone app and a cloud database to allow physicians to remotely monitor patients, analyze their data, and personalize treatments in ways which will enhance treatment outcomes.

The Breakthrough Devices Program was established by the FDA to provide patients and healthcare providers with timely access to transformative medical devices by speeding the development, assessment, and review of innovative medical devices.

About Neurolief

Dedicated to bringing relief to patients suffering from chronic neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders, Neurolief is creating a digital therapeutics platform of wearable clinically-proven neuromodulation solutions. This technology, which is made to be worn like a headset, is intended to offer highly-effective, safe treatment options that work with current pharmaceutical therapies or may provide an alternative to these therapies. It is designed to concurrently neuromodulate major neural pathways in the head, and thereby affect brain regions that are involved in control and modulation of mood and pain. Neuroliefs technology is currently being utilized for patients with major depression and migraine, and future indications may include insomnia, ADHD and additional chronic pain and neuropsychiatric disorders. The company is based in Israel, with US operations in Tampa, FL and is made up of highly experienced professionals with a proven track record in neurosciences, neuromodulation technology and the neurotech devices industry.

The rest is here:

Neurolief Awarded Breakthrough Device Designation from FDA for Wearable Technology to Address Major Depression - Business Wire

An investigation ofFacial RecognitionMarket has been given in the most recent report launched by MarketResearch.Biz that essentially focuses on the market trends, demand spectrum, and future prospects of this industry over the conjecture time frame. Moreover, the report gives a point by point statistical review in terms of trends outlining the geographical opportunities and contributions by prominent industry share contenders.

In addition, the report centers on giving thorough comprehensive analytical data on the local fragments, which incorporate North America, Asia-Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and the Rest of the World. Other than this, improvement plans and strategies, marketing terminologies, manufacturing protocols, current trends, dynamics of the market, and characterization have been clarified in brief in this Facial Recognition market report. The group of specialists and investigators displays the readers exact measurements and logical information in the report in a simple manner by methods for graphs, outlines, pie graphs, and other pictorial delineations.

For all-inclusive information: Download a FREE sample copy of Facial RecognitionMarket Report Study 2020-2029 athttps://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/request-sample

Topmost Prime Key Manufacturers of Facial Recognition Market Report-Aware Inc, NEC Corporation, Ayonix Corp., Cognitec Systems, Key Lemon S.A., nViso Sarl, Herta Security, Techno Brain, Neurotechnology, Daon Inc, Animetrics, 3M Company

How Does This Facial Recognition Market Insights Help?

Facial Recognition Market share (regional, product, end-user, application) both in terms of volume and revenue alongside CAGR

Key parameters which are driving this market and restraining its development

What all challenges manufacturers will face as well as new opportunities and threats faced by them

Find out about the market strategies that are being adopted by your competitors and leading organizations

To gain insightful analyses of the market and have a extensive comprehension of the Facial Recognition Market and its commercial landscape

Impact of Covid-19 in Facial Recognition Market:The utility-possessed section is for the most part being driven by increasing financial incentives and regulatory supports from the governments globally. The current utility-owned Facial Recognition are affected primarily by the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the projects in China, Germany, the US, and South Korea are delayed, and the companies are facing short-term operational issues due to supply chain constraints and lack of site access due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Asia-Pacific is anticipated is foreseen to get exceptionally influenced by the spread of the COVID-19 due to the effect of the pandemic in China, Japan, and India. China is the epic focus of this lethal disease.

Connect with our Analyst to understand the CORONA Virus/COVID-19 impact and be smart in redefining Business Strategies @https://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/covid-19-impact

Overview of Facial Recognition market:

The report begins with a market overview and moves on to cover the growth prospects of the Facial Recognition market. A detailed segmentation analysis of the Facial Recognition market is available in the report. Facial Recognition industry comprehensive analysis also covers upstream raw materials, marketing channels, downstream client surveys, equipment, industry development trend, and proposals. Furthermore, a business overview, revenue share, and SWOT analysis of the leading players in the Facial Recognition market are available in the report.

Click on- >To Inquiry And Customization of Facial Recognition Market Report

Segmentation Assessment By technology, component, and application and regions:

By technology:

2D3DFacial analyticsBy component:

HardwareScannersCamerasHandheld DevicesIntegrated DevicesSoftwareBy application:

Homeland securityCriminal investigationID managementPhysical securityIntelligent signageWeb applicationBusiness intelligencePhoto indexing & sorting

The report offers an in-depth assessment of growth and other aspects of the market. Facial Recognition in major countries (regions), including:

> North America (United States, Canada and Mexico)

> Europe (Germany, France, United Kingdom, Russia and Italy)

> Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India, and Southeast Asia)

> South America (Brazil, Argentina, etc.)

> Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)

In this study, the years considered to estimate the market size of the Facial Recognition Market are as follows:

Base Year: 2019 | Estimated Year: 2020 | Forecast Year: 2020 to 2029

Facial Recognition industrial report not only offers hard to find facts about the trends and innovation driving the current and future of Facial Recognition business, but also provides insights into competitive development such as acquisition and mergers, joint ventures, product launches, and technology advancements.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The report begins with an executive summary, which includes the highlights of the Facial Recognition Industry Research Study.

Market Segmentation: This section provides a detailed analysis of the type and application segments of the Facial Recognition market and shows the progress of each segment with the help of easy-to-understand statistics and graphical presentations.

Regional Analysis: All major regions and countries are covered in the Facial Recognition Industry Report.

Market Dynamics: The report provides an insight into the dynamics of the Facial Recognition industry, including challenges, constraints, trends, opportunities, and drivers.

Competition: Here, the report provides company profiles of the top players competing in the Facial Recognition market.

Forecasts: This section is filled with global and regional forecasts, CAGR, and size estimates for the Facial Recognition market and its segments, and production, revenue, consumption, sales, and other forecasts.

Recommendations: The authors of the report have provided practical suggestions and reliable recommendations to help players achieve a position of strength in the Facial Recognition market.

Research Methodology: The report provides clear information about the research approach, tools and methodology, and data sources used for the Facial Recognition Industry Research Study.

>>>Read Out Complete TOC of Facial Recognition [emailprotected]https://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/#toc<<<

About Us

MarketResearch.biz is a global market research and consulting service provider specialized in offering a wide range of business solutions to their clients including market research reports, primary and secondary research, demand forecasting services, focus group analysis and other services. We understand that how data is important in todays competitive environment and thus, we have collaborated with industrys leading research providers who work continuously to meet the ever-growing demand for market research reports throughout the year.

Contact Us:

Mr. Benni Johnson ([emailprotected])

MarketResearch.Biz (Powered By Prudour Pvt. Ltd.)

420 Lexington Avenue, Suite 300

New York City, NY 10170,

United States

Website:https://marketresearch.biz

Share Your Questions Here For More Details On this Report or Customizations As Per Your Need:https://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/#request-for-customization

See the original post:

Global Projection 2020: Facial Recognition Market Exclusive Profitable Comprehensive Research Report with COVID-19 Impact Overview | Forecast 2029 -...

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Arctop Inc., a pioneer in the emerging field of neurotechnology, today announced the launch of Neuos Eureka, which uses state-of-the-art brain decoding technology to help professionals in entertainment and media get research-grade audience analytics through a simple, on-demand web platform.

With Neuos Eureka Pro, producers and content creators can select the content they wish to test, choose a diverse or niche audience through Arctops Global Tester Network, analyze test results and evaluate insights all on one integrated and intuitive platform. Arctops research analysts work closely with clients creative teams to understand the brain measurements generated by test screenings and apply the insights to optimize content for release.

With Neuos Eureka Lite, individual content creators including YouTubers and podcasters will be able to use the platforms unique remote video and digital testing capabilities to get a clearer view into their own audiences. Rather than clicks and impressions that give a limited understanding of human consciousness, Lite provides insights based on the brain responses of real audiences, empowering creators everywhere to develop content their fans love.

At Arctop, we have become the undisputed leader in audience brain decoding for the entertainment industry because of the caliber of insight our platform provides, said Arctops Co-Founder and CEO, Dan Furman. We are thrilled to launch Neuos Eureka Pro for professionals in entertainment and media as we see new technologies and software transform Hollywood.

Along with adding valuable feedback into the creative workflow, Neuos Eureka democratizes highly sophisticated neuroscientific tools that have been available to market leaders for audience testing for a long time but at premium cost. Ultimately, by enabling brain decoding to be done anywhere, anytime, we are opening a new frontier of audience understanding and brain-responsive entertainment, Furman continued.

Neuos Eureka Lite was designed specifically to help content creators tap into the powerful engine weve built for major studios, said Eitan Kay, Arctops Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer. This will allow potentially millions of individual creators to start appealing to their audiences more effectively and, in an increasingly competitive marketplace, attract more viewer attention.

Through Arctops Global Tester Network, clients have access to a consumer base, on a global scale, that tests content from the comfort of their homes, supporting an optimal and safe testing environment and eliminating the need for a live moderator or laboratory testing sessions. Audiences can be segmented by demographics to help content creators optimize their content to reach their intended audience.

Eureka is the ideal solution for content creators who want to deeply understand their audience, said Arctops Jewel Tarasova, Senior Research Analyst in Entertainment & Media. Neuroscientific data is objective and unbiased and provides more insights than traditional qualitative research methods, like focus groups or facial coding.

For more information on becoming a Neuos Eureka client, please visit https://neuos.io/.

ABOUT ARCTOP

Arctop is a pioneer in the neurotechnology industry. Arctops software analyzes brain signals from consumer headwear such as a hat or headband and produces an accurate measure of the mind in real-time. The technology can perform high-fidelity decoding of emotion, attention and memory processes reading the brain outside of laboratory settings, paving the way for integration with personal entertainment and education systems, voice assistants, telemedicine networks, IoT devices, mobile apps and more.

Arctops first product, Neuos Eureka, is an on-demand brain decoding software platform that provides research-grade audience insights to producers of video and gaming content. The Companys clients already include some of the largest global brands and studios, ranging from digital content creators and app developers to entertainment and media executives. Future Neuos releases include real-time APIs that provide enterprise, medical and consumer applications with objective measures of brain activity. For more information, please visit Arctop.com.

Read more here:

Arctop Launches New State-of-the-Art Brain Decoding Technology: Neuos Eureka - Business Wire

PIONEERING cyber geeks who receive brain implants to boost their intelligence could have their minds hacked by cyber crooks.

That's the shock claim made by cyber experts, who warn the sci-fi noggin modifications are a major security risk.

4

Several firms worldwide are working towards the creation of interfaces that link a computer to your brain to grant you super-intelligence.

California-based Neuralink, for instance, is bankrolled by billionaire Elon Musk and aims to have a workable prototype ready by May 2021.

Neuralink implants will be able to stream music directly into your brain and release hormones like serotonin on command, according to Musk.

Speaking to Zdnet, experts warned that brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) could be hijacked in order to "erase or disrupt" your skills or memories.

4

"BCIs have the potential to change the brain of the user," Javier Mnguez, cofounder of neurotechnology companyBitbrain, said.

"To preserve the physical and mental integrity of the user, BCI systems need to ensure that no unauthorized person can modify their functioning."

The first computer-brain interfaces are making their way to market, offering users the ability to control an app with their mind or keep a close eye on their stress levels.

The technology also has military applications, allowing soldiers to command or communicate with swarms of drones using their thoughts.

What is Neuralink?

Here's what you need to know...

However, the technology clearly poses serious security concerns.

Hacking into someone's thoughts or memories could become a new form of cyber attack used to spy on people or even gain an advantage on battlefields of the future.

Breaking into someone's brain threatens not only the makeup of their memories, but also the physical wellbeing of their grey matter.

"It's not only at the information level, it could also be the physical damage as well," Dr Sasitharan Balasubramaniam, an expert at the Waterford Institute of Technology, told ZDnet.

4

"Would [attacks] come in the form of just new information put into the brain?" he added.

"Or would it even go down to the level of damaging neurons that then leads to a rewiring process within the brain that then disrupts your thinking?"

To make BCIs safe, engineers will have to incorporate security technologies used by computers and smartphones today.

That could mean anything from encrypting data to antivirus protection software to keep out prying cyber criminals.

4

For the time being, BCIs remain in the realm of science fiction, with no company having produced a working model for people yet.

Tesla boss Musk recently claimed that Neuralink will have an early version of its brain implant ready by May 2021.

Speaking on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, the billionaire said the device could one day fix "anything that is wrong with the brain".

Musk wants his brain implants to stop humans being outpaced by artificial intelligence. The aim is to create a full brain interface within 25 years.

Revealed

PHONE MOANYour iPhone could be ruined FOREVER as 39C weather risks shutting down handsets

STING BY THE SEAUK heatwave brings JELLYFISH swarms to coasts spot the dangerous species

POLAR PUZZLEConspiracy nuts go wild after 'ice ship' found near Antarctica on Google Maps

OIL HELLMauritius oil spill so big it can be seen from SPACE as fuel pours into ocean

SEEING DOUBLEPackaging accidentally leaks SECOND 'cheap' new Xbox console coming this year

BACK TO BASICSJaw-dropping iPhone 12 concept video showcases mobile's 'retro' design

In other news, Elon Musk has plans to make his Starlink satellites "invisible to the naked eye".

Starlink satellites couldprovide 'ultra-fast internet'to the US and Canada later this year.

And, Elon Musk, Nasa and Tom Cruise want 'to shoot first movie in space using SpaceX rockets.

What are your thoughts on Neuralink? Let us know in the comments...

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Tech & Science team? Email us at tech@the-sun.co.uk

Link:

Brave users of Elon Musks Neuralink brain implants could be HACKED by crooks in future, cyber-experts sugge - The Sun

KALAMAZOO, Michigan, USA, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Stryker announced today that it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for an expanded indication of its Neuroform Atlas Stent System, becoming the first and only adjunctive stent approved for use in the posterior (back of the brain) circulation. Aneurysms in the posterior circulation rupture more frequently and are generally more difficult to treat. With the approval of the Neuroform Atlas adjunctive stent for the posterior circulation, long term treatment is more feasible.

Strykers Neuroform Atlas Stent System, which was granted an expanded indication, providing a new option for patients with aneurysms in the back of the brain.Already approved for use in the anterior circulation, the expanded indication was granted based on robust clinical trial evidence proving the safety and efficacy of the device. The combined patients from both the anterior and posterior cohorts totaled 298 patients, making it the largest study of its kind.

Ad StatisticsTimes Displayed: 1079433Times Visited: 9494

Special-Pricing Available on Medical Displays, Patient Monitors, Recorders, Printers, Media, Ultrasound Machines, and Cameras.This includes Top Brands such as SONY, BARCO, NDS, NEC, LG, EDAN, EIZO, ELO, FSN, PANASONIC, MITSUBISHI, OLYMPUS, & WIDE.

An estimated 6.5 million people in the United States have unruptured brain aneurysms with an average rupture rate of 1 every 18 minutes. Ruptured brain aneurysms are fatal in roughly 50% of cases.1

"Complete occlusion, or complete blocking of blood flow, is the gold standard in determining long term aneurysm healing," said Dr Brian Jankowitz, Director, Cerebrovascular Surgery at the Cooper Neurological Institute in Camden, New Jersey. "With the additional challenges that come with treating posterior circulation aneurysms, we never would have anticipated reaching occlusion rates that rival those found in the anterior circulation. Now with Neuroform Atlas, those same high rates are achievable."

"The results from the Atlas Posterior PMA trial demonstrate that physicians can now address the more difficult posterior circulation aneurysms, offering hope for better outcomes in that patient population," said Mark Paul, president of Stryker's Neurovascular division. "This expanded indication of Neuroform Atlas, as the first and only adjunctive stent for use in the posterior circulation, reflects our ongoing commitment to advancing stroke care for patients with cerebrovascular disease."

About Neuroform Atlas Stent SystemStryker's Neuroform Atlas Stent System is a self-expanding nitinol stent used in conjunction with metal coils to pack weakened blood vessel sacs called aneurysms within the brain. The stent is positioned across the aneurysm neck to hold metal coils in place and occlude the aneurysm.

The Neuroform Atlas Stent System is indicated for use with neurovascular embolization coils in the anterior and posterior circulation of the neurovasculature for the endovascular treatment of patients 18 years of age with saccular wide-necked (neck width 4 mm or a dome-to-neck ratio of < 2) intracranial aneurysms arising from a parent vessel with a diameter of 2.0 mm and 4.5 mm.

About StrykerStryker is one of the world's leading medical technology companies and, together with its customers, is driven to make healthcare better. The company offers innovative products and services in Orthopaedics, Medical and Surgical, and Neurotechnology and Spine that help improve patient and hospital outcomes.

SOURCE Stryker

Read the original:

Stryker's Neuroform Atlas Stent System granted an expanded indication - DOTmed HealthCare Business News

Reports and Data has recently published an all-inclusive report titled Global 3D Reconstruction Technology Market. The report explores the 3D Reconstruction Technology market with reference to profit margins, value chain analysis, market entry strategies, recent developments, the business landscape of the 3D Reconstruction Technology market, and opportunities. Statistical data is obtained through SWOT and PESTEL analysis. The report also focuses on market estimation, size, and forecast from 2020 to 2027.

The report covers the current situation and economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The research further analyzes the present and future impact of COVID-19 on the overall market.

Get a sample of the 3D Reconstruction Technology market report @ https://www.reportsanddata.com/sample-enquiry-form/868

The research report analyzes the business landscape, profiles of key competitors, production capacity, product portfolios, production cost, market share, and growth driving factors through the forecast period. The 3D Reconstruction Technology report provides detailed data on key segments of the market and growth potential to provide a competitive advantage to the reader.

Major companies studied in this report include:

The 3D Reconstruction Technology report covers the following types:

Market segmentation based on applications:

Key geographical regions included in the report:

Request a discount on the report @ https://www.reportsanddata.com/discount-enquiry-form/868

Key Segments Covered in the 3D Reconstruction Technology Report:

The report offers strategic recommendations to new entrants and vendors to help them gain a robust footing in the industry. Additionally, the report discusses in detail the key geographical regions, market landscape, product value, revenue estimations, production supply and demand, and growth trends. Statistical analysis provides extensive investment feasibility analysis and investment return analysis.

To read more about the report @ https://www.reportsanddata.com/report-detail/3d-reconstruction-technology-market

Thank you for reading our report. The report can be customized as per requirement. Please get in touch with us for further inquiries and we will ensure you get the report best suited for your needs.

David is an Experience Business writer who regularly contributes to the blog, He specializes in manufacturing news

Read more from the original source:

Impact of Covid-19 on 3D Reconstruction Technology Market has Huge Growth in Industry | Neurotechnology, Vi3dim, Phenom-World - Levee Report

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) offer a direct link between the grey matter of our human brains and silicon and circuitry of computers. New technologies always bring with them new security threats, but with the human brain a single store of the most sensitive and private information it's possible to imagine, the security stakes couldn't be higher.

If we're soon to be plugging computers directly into our brains, how can we protect that connection from those who want to attack them?

The first wave of brain-computer interfaces are beginning to make their way onto the market, offering users a way of keeping tabs on theirstress levels, control apps, and monitor their emotions. BCI tech is also progressing outside the consumer area, with medical researchers using them to help those with spinal injuries to move paralysed limbs andrestore a lost sense of touch.

SEE: Managing AI and ML in the enterprise 2020: Tech leaders increase project development and implementation (TechRepublic Premium)

Ultimately, BCIs could offer a way of communicating thoughts a form of human-machine telepathy.

So why would someone want to hack a BCI?

Being able to read the thoughts or memories of a political leader, or a business executive, could be a huge coup for intelligence agencies trying to understand rival states, or for criminals looking to steal commercial secrets or for blackmail. There's a military angle too; the US is already looking at BCIs as a way of controlling fleets of drones or cyber defences far more effectively than is now possible being able to hack into those systems would create a huge advantage on the battlefield.

The consequences of an attack or data breach from a BCI could be an order of magnitude worse than other systems: leaked email logs are one thing, leaked thought logs are another. Similarly, the risks of ransomware become far greater if it's targeted at BCIs rather than corporate systems; making it impossible to use a PC or a server is one thing; locking up the connection between someone's brain and the wider world could be far worse.

BCIs could ultimately become an authentication mechanism in their own right: our patterns of brain activity are so unique they could ultimately be used as a way of permitting access to sensitive systems, which could make it worthwhile to try to copy them. "Attempts to trick such a biometric will likely be very difficult, because brainwaves are not visible (like other biometrics like a fingerprint, iris, etc.) and cannot be replicated by another person... without direct access to the person and their brain to record the person," researchers at Israel's Ben-Gurion University of the Negevwrote in a recent paper.

It's early days, but there are already some signs that security will be a key consideration. For example, researchers have already shown that BCIs could be used to get people todisclose information from their PIN numberstotheir religious convictions.

Some of the potential threats to BCIs will be carry-overs from other tech systems. Malware could cause problems with acquiring data from the brain, as well as sending signals from the device back to the cortex, either by altering or exfiltrating the data.

Man-in-the-middle attacks could also be recast for BCIs: attackers could either intercept the data being gathered from the headset and replace it with their own, or intercept the data being used to stimulate the user's brain and replace it with an alternative. Hackers could use methods like these to get BCI users to inadvertently give up sensitive information, or gather enough data to mimic the neural activity needed to log into work or personal accounts.

Other threats to BCI security will be unique to brain-computer interfaces. Researchershave identifiedmalicious external stimuli as one of the most potentially damaging attacks that could be used on BCIs: feeding in specially crafted stimuli to affect either the users or the BCI itself to try to get out certain information, showing users images to gather their reactions to them, for example. Other similar attacks could be carried out to hijack users' BCI systems, by feeding in fake versions of the neural inputs causing them to take unintended actions potentially turning BCIs into bots, for example.

Other attacks hinge on the introduction or removal of data from BCIs: introducing noise to diminish the signal-to-noise ratio, for example, and making the signal being received from the brain difficult or impossible to read. Similarly, attackers interfering with the noise cancellation of BCI systems which separates the useful brain signals from the general background fuzz could cause a denial of service: annoying if it's an entertainment system that's cracked, life-altering if it's a BCI that allows someone to walk or control a wheelchair, for example.

SEE: Scientists are using brain-computer connections to restore a lost sense of touch

Currently, while we know something about the effect of normal BCI use on the brain, we don't know how an attack on a BCI could, deliberately or inadvertently, damage the grey matter. A hijacked BCI causing disruption to the way a user's brain works sounds like a sci-fi plot, but it could certainly be possible.

"What type of damage will [an attack] do to the brain, will it erase your skills or disrupt your skills? What are the consequences would they come in the form of just new information put into the brain, or would it even go down to the level of damaging neurons that then leads to a rewiring process within the brain that then disrupts your thinking?" says Dr Sasitharan Balasubramaniam, director of research at the Waterford Institute of Technology's Telecommunication Software and Systems Group (TSSG). "It's not only at the information level, it could also be the physical damage as well," he says.

Brains of BCI users will change and adapt as they learn to use the system, in the same way as they would to fresh experiences or acquiring new skills in the course of normal life. However, BCIs' ability to cause neuroplasticity could bring with it a new level of risk. "BCIs have the potential to change the brain of the user (e.g. to facilitate motor or cognitive improvements to people with disabilities). To preserve the physical and mental integrity of the user, BCI systems need to ensure that no unauthorized person can modify their functioning," Javier Mnguez, cofounder and CSO of neurotechnology companyBitbrain, tells ZDNet.

So how can you protect such systems, particularly given the information they hold and the potentially disastrous effects? While BCIs themselves may still be relatively novel, the technologies needed to secure them likely won't be: anonymisers, security standards and protocols, antivirus, and encryption are all being suggested as means of staving off BCI attacks.

And, like any other technologies, brain-computer interfaces will need a multi-layered security approach to keep them safe, locking down each individual element of the BCI. "I don't think that the countermeasures would be individual solutions. Going forward, we need to integrate so many different things, from how signals are wirelessly sent to the interface that might be just outside the head, all the way to integrating that with the machine learning for determining whether it's the right or wrong pattern [a BCI is using], and then using that to actually deter the attacks," TSSG's Balasubramaniam says.

The level of risk in using BCIs also varies according to which type of system someone's using: a headset-based, no-invasive system will get a low-quality signal and will be easy for a user to switch off and block external communication; an invasive system, meanwhile, gathers high-quality signals direct from the brain's surface and requires surgery to disengage it fully.

"The more accurate and powerful a BCI is, the higher the risk could be," says Mnguez. A more comprehensive measurement of the brain will potentially contain more sensitive information and, therefore, requires more strict safety standards, as do devices that modify brain function. "This is especially relevant, because the target users of these systems are generally a vulnerable population, including patients with certain neurological disorders," he says.

SEE: Mind-controlled drones and robots: How thought-reading tech will change the face of warfare

What's more, many of the standards and principles of good tech security and data hygiene used in other systems can be brought across for use in BCIs: educating users, gathering only the minimum amount of data necessary for the system to work, locking down when, how and who can access the system, and so on. However, while the technology side of the equation may have good security precedents elsewhere, the unknown unknowns of the human brain could prove BCIs' greatest security challenge.

"In terms of the security of computational systems in general, this is a branch of science that is advanced enough and we probably have good enough understanding to know how to do the right thing from a technical perspective," says Tamara Bonaci, affiliate faculty member at the National Science Foundation's Center for Neurotechnology.

"What's probably a little more interesting and likely much harder is the question of, do we know enough about the brain and about the human body and electrophysiological signals. Something that may not mean very much today might be recognised as something that is revealing sensitive information about the person tomorrow," she warns.

However, the complexity of the human brain also brings good news for BCI security. Unlike other typically compromised systems like smartphones and tablets, BCIs aren't one size fits all: they require a lot of training to make them compatible with their individual user.

"That signal on the surface looks pretty much like white noise. It's very hard to discern any useful information there. You kind of have to zoom in on specific parts of the signal and know exactly what you're looking for," Bonaci says.

The rest is here:

Soon, your brain will be connected to a computer. Can we stop hackers breaking in? - ZDNet

KALAMAZOO, Michigan, USA, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Stryker announced today that it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for an expanded indication of its Neuroform Atlas Stent System, becoming the first and only adjunctive stent approved for use in the posterior (back of the brain) circulation. Aneurysms in the posterior circulation rupture more frequently and are generally more difficult to treat. With the approval of the Neuroform Atlas adjunctive stent for the posterior circulation, long term treatment is more feasible.

Already approved for use in the anterior circulation, the expanded indication was granted based on robust clinical trial evidence proving the safety and efficacy of the device. The combined patients from both the anterior and posterior cohorts totaled 298 patients, making it the largest study of its kind.

"The Atlas Posterior PMA trial data shows a compelling advancement in the treatment of wide-neck posterior aneurysms," said Dr. Sam Zaidat, Director of the Neuroscience and Stroke Center at Mercy Health System in Toledo, Ohio, and Co-Principal Investigator of the U.S. Neuroform Atlas investigational trial. "Posterior stent assisted coiling with Neuroform Atlas achieved an impressive high rate of complete occlusion in this very challenging location at 76.7%. Equally impressive was the 4.3% primary safety rate."

An estimated 6.5 million people in the United States have unruptured brain aneurysms with an average rupture rate of 1 every 18 minutes. Ruptured brain aneurysms are fatal in roughly 50% of cases.1

"Complete occlusion, or complete blocking of blood flow, is the gold standard in determining long term aneurysm healing," said DrBrian Jankowitz, Director, Cerebrovascular Surgery at the Cooper Neurological Institute in Camden, New Jersey. "With the additional challenges that come with treating posterior circulation aneurysms, we never would have anticipated reaching occlusion rates that rival those found in the anterior circulation. Now with Neuroform Atlas, those same high rates are achievable."

"The results from the Atlas Posterior PMA trial demonstrate that physicians can now address the more difficult posterior circulation aneurysms, offering hope for better outcomes in that patient population," said Mark Paul, president of Stryker's Neurovascular division. "This expanded indication of Neuroform Atlas, as the first and only adjunctive stent for use in the posterior circulation, reflects our ongoing commitment to advancing stroke care for patients with cerebrovascular disease."

About Neuroform Atlas Stent SystemStryker's Neuroform Atlas Stent System is a self-expanding nitinol stent used in conjunction with metal coils to pack weakened blood vessel sacs called aneurysms within the brain. The stent is positioned across the aneurysm neck to hold metal coils in place and occlude the aneurysm.

The Neuroform Atlas Stent System is indicated for use with neurovascular embolization coils in the anterior and posterior circulation of the neurovasculature for the endovascular treatment of patients 18 years of age with saccular wide-necked (neck width 4 mm or a dome-to-neck ratio of < 2) intracranial aneurysms arising from a parent vessel with a diameter of 2.0 mm and 4.5 mm.

About StrykerStryker is one of the world's leading medical technology companies and, together with its customers, is driven to make healthcare better. The company offers innovative products and services in Orthopaedics, Medical and Surgical, and Neurotechnology and Spine that help improve patient and hospital outcomes. More information is available at http://www.stryker.com.

Media contactKeri LadenGlobal Communications Managerkeri.laden@stryker.com

1. Brain Aneurysm Foundation Statistics.www.bafound.org

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/strykers-neuroform-atlas-stent-system-granted-an-expanded-indication-providing-a-new-option-for-patients-with-aneurysms-in-the-back-of-the-brain-301104508.html

SOURCE Stryker

Excerpt from:

Stryker's Neuroform Atlas Stent System granted an expanded indication, providing a new option for patients with aneurysms in the back of the brain -...

The recently published market study by MarketResearch.Biz highlights the current and future trends that are expected to influence the dynamics of the Facial Recognition Marketin the upcoming years. The report introspects the supply chain, cost structure, and recent developments pertaining to the Facial Recognition market in the report. Further, the micro and macro-economic factors that are likely to impact the growth of the Facial Recognition market are thoroughly studied in the presented market study.

Facial Recognition market report offers a detailed dashboard overview of leading companies encompassing their successful marketing strategies, market contribution, and ongoing improvements in both historic and present contexts.

The Renowned Players- Aware Inc, NEC Corporation, Ayonix Corp., Cognitec Systems, Key Lemon S.A., nViso Sarl, Herta Security, Techno Brain, Neurotechnology, Daon Inc, Animetrics, 3M Company

To Obtain All-Inclusive Information On Forecast Analysis Of Global Facial Recognition Market, Request A Free Pdf Sample Report Here:https://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/request-sample

Facial Recognition study is a perfect blend of qualitative and quantifiable information highlighting key market developments, industry, absolute opportunity assessment and competitors challenges in gap analysis and may be trending in the Facial Recognition market. The strategies followed by leading Facial Recognition market players which can reflect growth during the forecast period 2020-2029 is analyzed during this report. The past market development, opportunities, and market risks are covered during this study. the elemental Facial Recognition Market overview, development scope, market dynamics, growth challenges, and influencing factors are briefed.

Click Here To Download (Short Term & Long Term) Impact Analysis [PDF] : To Know What Is The Impact Of COVID 19 On Facial Recognition Market And How Market Will Grow In The Upcoming Period 2020-2029?

Segmentation Assessment-

The presented study ponders over the numerous segmentation of the Facial Recognition and offers a fair assessment of the supply-demand ratio of each segment.

By technology:

2D3DFacial analyticsBy component:

HardwareScannersCamerasHandheld DevicesIntegrated DevicesSoftwareBy application:

Homeland securityCriminal investigationID managementPhysical securityIntelligent signageWeb applicationBusiness intelligencePhoto indexing & sorting

The regional section of this Facial Recognition market report covers the investigation of various parameters such as production volume, revenue, export-import figures, profit margin, and local consumption in different regional markets. Regions that have been covered for this market:

1. North America (United States, Canada)

2. Europe (Germany, Spain, France, UK, Russia, and Italy)

3. Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, Australia, and South Korea)

4. Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, etc.)

5. The Middle East and Africa (GCC and South Africa)

In this study, the years considered to estimate the market size of the Facial Recognition are as follows:

Base Year: 2019 | Estimated Year: 2020 | Forecast Year: 2020 to 2029

Key Offerings of the Facial Recognition Industry Report

> Growth Drivers and Opportunities: Comprehensive investigation on growth-driving factors and opportunities for market players in different regional markets

>Recent Trends and Forecasts: Detailed assessment on the latest trends, technological developments, and forecasts for 10-year period.

>Segmental Analysis: Extensive analysis on each segment and factors differentiating the role of these segments in market revenue forecasts and growth rate analysis

>Regional Market Forecast: Thorough examination of each regional market to arm stakeholders with necessary information to take critical decisions

>Competitive Landscape: All-inclusive insights on both leading and emerging players vying for a slice of the Facial Recognition market

Any Query? Fill Free To Inquire Here. Well Put You On The Right Path:https://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/#inquiry

Table Of Contents :

Executive Summary

Market Overview

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020-2029

Porters Five Forces Analysis

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation

technology, component, and application and regions

Customer landscape

Overview

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Europe Market size and forecast 2020-2029

North America Market size and forecast 2020-2029

APAC Market size and forecast 2020-2029

South America Market size and forecast 2020-2029

MEA Market size and forecast 2020-2029

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

Market drivers

Volume driver Demand led growth

Volume driver Supply led growth

Volume driver External factors

Volume driver Demand shift in adjacent markets

Price driver Inflation

Price driver Shift from lower to higher-priced units

Market challenges

Market trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Aware, Inc.NEC CorporationAyonix Corp.Cognitec SystemsKey Lemon S.A.nViso SarlHerta SecurityTechno BrainNeurotechnologyDaon, Inc.Animetrics3M Company

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

....For Detailed InformationClick Here For Complete TOC

We are very grateful to you for reading our report. If you would like to find more details about the report or want to customize it, please contact us. If you have any specific requirements, please let us know and we will provide you with the report as you wish.

Motivations to Trust Our Business Insights

> Proven track history of delivering high-quality and insightful market studies

>Data gathered from credible sources including product managers, marketing executives, sales representatives and more

>Providing accurate insights for over ten industrial verticals

>Swift delivery of customized reports without any delays

>Up-to-date statistical surveying and analytical tools used to curate market reports

Share Your Questions Here For More Details On this Report or Customizations As Per Your Need:https://marketresearch.biz/report/facial-recognition-market/#request-for-customization

Contact Us:

Mr. Benni Johnson ([emailprotected])

MarketResearch.Biz (Powered By Prudour Pvt. Ltd.)

420 Lexington Avenue, Suite 300

New York City, NY 10170,

United States

Website:https://marketresearch.biz

See the rest here:

Demand for Facial Recognition Market to Experience a Significant Dip in 2020, Influenced by COVID-19 Pandemic 2020-2029 | Aware Inc, NEC Corporation -...

Young Scientist in The Laboratory

If the Covid-19 pandemic has reaffirmed anything about the human condition, its that connectivity matters. Neuroscientists have long understood that being linked to others, interacting with others, and building with others is vital to development, as well as mental, emotional, and physical well-being. But during this same turbulent period in human history weve also been tasked once again with confronting inequities in experiences and representation particularly racial divides around the world. And that includes the education we receive and the work we do.

Currently, Black Americans make up 13% of the population, but estimates by the National Center for Education Statistics of full-time faculty suggestless than 6% of faculty members are Black. And, according to theNational Science Foundation,for more than a decade only about 5% of the 50,000 students earning PhDs each year are Black. What this means is that in everyday situations Black scientists often find themselves to be the only Black person occupying the space they are in. Leaving many feeling isolated and noting they dont have mentors or peers with shared experiences.

So after seeing the way that social media was recently able to connect and network groups of people from all over through hashtag campaigns and efforts to share experiences and interests,a fourth year PhD student at the University of California, Irvine,Angeline Dukes,asked Twitter when they were going to have a Black in Neuro week. But she had no idea the response she would get. Within days a groupof neuroscientists, neuro-engineers, and science communicators mobilized, creating not a day, but an entire week (July 27th-August 2nd) to bring together, celebrate, amplify, and support Black voices in the brain space.

Co-organizer and Stanford postdoctoral fellow,BrielleFerguson, PhD pointed out that, We also cant ignore the social context all of these movements are responding to, were literally watching members of our community either be threatened with violence or being killed for being in spaces people dont think they belong. So, we as members of the Black community, and specifically Black people in neuro were so ready to counter that, and when Angeline tweeted out the call, the answer was a resounding yes from all 22 of us that became organizers, basically in unison.And the result has been beyond anything the organizers could have predicted even with all that brain power.

Beginning Monday,Black In Neurostarted celebrating a week of Black excellence in neuro-related fields. In a matter of days their Twitter account (@BlackInNeuro) has over 12,000 followers, and more than 2,000 people have attended live events. Not to mention that more than 60 individual and institutional donors have become official sponsors. But the most incredible part of all, is that this initiative and all its programming across sites came together in just three weeks proving how eager and passionate neuroscientists are to share their joy for science.

When asked what called her to action, Angeline Dukes said, Growingup, I thought all scientists were old, white men because that's what we see in the media. It is difficult to strive to be what you have never seen. Seeing and being mentored by brilliant Black female scientists at my undergraduate institution, Fisk University, inspired me to apply to graduate school. To this day, they are still a valuable part of my community and reassure me regularly that I belong in neuroscience.

Her sentiment was echoed by other co-organizers such asAshley Cunningham,a neuroscience PhD student at Mount Sinai who added For me, Black In Neuro week has been about redefiningwhat a neuroscientist looks like. We want to show current and future neuroscientists that we are making this space for them, where no one can dull their shine, their intelligence, or their existence. And thats exactly whatDanielle Nadin, a Masters student in Neuroscience at McGill University contends shes gotten from helping to organize. To put it lightly, Black In Neuro Week has changed my life.Its hard to explain the power of seeing people who look like you, and love learning about the brain as much as you do, after having gone for so long feeling as though you would always be the only Black person in the room.

Something else that has made this initiative meaningful is that its broken down barriers not only in terms of race, but also career maturity. Neuroscience is not a field known for cross-sector collaboration or strong partnerships between scientists. But this week undergraduate students, bench scientists, and tenured professors alike have offered up time to share stories, personal journeys, and offered to collaborate with those that they never knew existed.

Adnan Hirad, MD, PhD has been one of those already carving out his valuable time to do calls with younger scientists and aspiring scientists. What the organizers - mostly women - of the #BlackInNeuroWeek platform have done is invaluable. Im immensely grateful. It is already paying dividends in terms of mentoring, sharing ideas, networking and even potential collaborations. Equally important, is that younger students in college or even high school realize there are people that look like them, that are at all stages of the neuroscience knowledge pathway. And we want these younger students to know it is possible to become a neuroscientist, a doctor, or both at the same time. And we are ready to mentor them.

But in addition to building networks and confidence, as well as validating that one isnt alone, its also important to remember thatdiversity drives innovation. Brielle Ferguson reminds us dataconfirms thatdiverse scientists find novel discoveriesat higher rates than their peers - but are still less likely to be rewarded for them, in terms of accolades, and securing faculty positions.

#BlackInNeuro Zoom meeting with team organizers.

Thus, the need for diversity applies not only within our science communities on the human level but also between them. The brain is the most complex organ in the body and arguably the most complex object on earth. Its going to take many different creative minds to begin to unravel its mysteries.D'Angela Pritchett-Rowe,an NIH NAEP Fellow pointed out that, #BlackInNeuroWeek has been extremely validating for me as a Black woman, a neuroscientist, a musician, an artist, and a writer. Someone who is both analytical and creative. This week, especially Thursday #BlackNeuroArt day, showed me that there are so many different intersections of our identities and that none can exist without the other.

And the more connections, the more potential for collaborations of all kinds. Not just here in the U.S., but all over the world because many of the same issues are experienced by Black neuroscientists around the globe.De-Shaine Murray,a Neurotechnology doctoral student at Imperial College London points out, The power of peer support must also be stressed here, as seeing other Black neuroscientists who look like you, encounter the same hurdles as you and feel the same pressures of doing a PhD is rejuvenating, especially in the context of U.K. academia, which has a major diversity problem. But this opportunity has, completely reinvigorated my spirit as we have curated an intercontinental community of support, joy, and resources, saysGwenalle Thomas,a Neurobiology PhD Candidate at Duke University. As the only Black woman in my department, it's easy to feel isolated, especially when people's actions directly contradict their statements on diversity, inclusion, and equity.

But diversity doesn't end with discussions about race for Black In Neuro organizers, according toDr. Kaela S. Singleton, As a Black Queer woman, the beauty of #BlackInNeuroWeek was that it highlighted intersectionalities that are often forgotten in university diversity initiatives. Seeing the amplified voices of Black Disabled, Black Non-Binary, Black trans, Black lesbian/gay folks and Black Women in neuro is so necessary to creating inclusive, welcoming spaces. By being intersectional #BlackInNeuroWeek not only highlighted Blackness but also the beauty and complexity of Black identities in our field.

With three days to go, there is still more for the Black In Neuro team to accomplish. And with each passing day it becomes more evident that their efforts will certainly extend past the week itself. Not just for those in and around neuroscience, but for the patients they treat and research they conduct. "In all my years of organizing, I have never seen a more dedicated, efficient, and passionate group of people. I have no doubt that the accomplishments of #BlackinNeuro will have lasting impacts on our community for years to come, saysRackeb Tesfaye, aPhD Candidate and BlackInNeuro organizer.

When asked what the group envisionsgoing forward, Angeline says the group hopes to seeBlack people in neuro-related fields from all over the world connect with each other and be recognized. And further, that non-Black people will use the opportunity to connect with Black scientists and medical professionals, invite them for speaking engagements (preferablynot just to talk about 'diversity and inclusion'), nominate them for deserved awards, and recognize how their own research impacts the Black community.

For those looking for everything frommentorshiptofunding opportunitiesto network growth, resources are availableonlineand through the Black In Neuro social media accounts. And, please, continue to use the hashtags, share advice, share your journeys, open your networks, and connect with those in and around #BlackInNeuro so together, we can move science forward.

Read the rest here:

New #BlackInNeuro Campaign Connects Bright Minds From Around The World - Forbes

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the events industry had come to a grinding halt. In light of this crisis brought about by covid19 many aggregator platforms and institutes took to webinars to take stock of the unprecedented situation with the help of experts.

Ever since the crisis upended the dynamics of businesses across the world, many event companies pivoted their fundamental strategies to the digital world. Executed by 70 Event Media Group, MG Hector Pluss recent virtual launch set a benchmark in the domain of virtual events. With storyboarding, scripting, conceiving the virtual sets, scenarios; and digital assets, they breathed a new life into this digital launch.

Amid much fanfare and buzz, Indian School Of Media launched a series of fireside chats featuring the leaders of the industry with an aim to address the lockdown woes and concerns of the students community during covid times. For the first time, the 70 EMG founder and CEO Martin Da Costa graced the instagram live for a freewheeling virtual fireside chat to discuss the current crisis, the opportunities and the road ahead. Primarily meant for students, the first session drew an outpouring of fervour and participation from numerous attendees from all walks of life.

With more than two decades of event planning and management experience behind him, Martin is recognised as one of the pioneers of the festival, luxury events and experiential marketing industry in India. His company, Seventy Event Media Group (aka 70 EMG) is billed as the leading integrated event management agency. They have executed one of Indias top-notch events like India Bike Week, Kala Ghoda Festival, Ambani Wedding, Vogue Fashion Week and more.

Unlike the staidness of platforms like Zoom and Jio Meet, Instagram ushered a fresh whiff of novelty and optimism for students who could communicate with him through live comments.

Having been tasked to conduct the session, I could see a range of comments. I decided to digress from the theme and read a few funny ones which compared him to the lead actor of the upcoming (delayed due to covid) James Bond movie to lighten things up. If I had to hazard a guess, Id say those students had perhaps read the name of his company backwards.

While some see him as an Ironman figure; to me, he bears a stronger resemblance to Granada Televisions Sherlock Holmes (played by Jeremy Brett) as our edifying session progressed. His cut-glass etonian accent, deductive reasoning, succinct answers and clever analysis of the current covid-19 crisis; all combined to rustle up that impression as I curiously asked questions like Doctor Watson; Holmes ultimate chronicler

Interestingly, Martin also has a deep affinity for the cinema and culture of India. For one, hes married to an Indian. As a matter of fact, his events journey started with Indias most revered superstar Amitabh Bachchan.

Notwithstanding his palpable english characteristics, he identifies as an Indian at heart. In a surprising admission, he vouchsafes that he might have already caught covid-19 and recovered from it. He adds in jest, Maybe I didnt get sick because we Indians are strong enough to handle it

The events business will have to come roaring back Martin Da Costa

In my opening question, I ask about whether it would be fair to say that he practically brought the culture of luxury events to India, he modestly answers: Theres a sense of that but lets not forget that luxury events in India have been happening for thousands of years. Mughal Courts were one of the richest and one of the most luxurious courts in the world. And India accounted for, at one point, 27 per cent of the worlds GDP. Back in the 90s, there wasnt really a culture of hiring an agency to do it. We kind of pioneered that, especially the weddings. Our first wedding was in Udaipur. We were the first company to do a private wedding on Jag Mandir

His response instantly reminds me of Shashi Tharoors iconic speech at Oxford union. Just two miles away from 221-B, Bakers Street, London (Sherlock Holmes abode) lies a neighbourhood called Hampstead where Martin was attending a party back in 1995. At that party, Martin was introduced to Mr Bachchan by a mutual friend; a meeting, which in retrospect marked his foray in India as the pioneer of luxury events.

Speaking about his journey, he recounts: Bizarrely, it started with Amitabh Bachchan.. Very Oddly..So I was 25 years old and I was working in a Sports Events Agency in London. And I was invited by a friend of mine to a house party in Hampstead. I met this very distinguished guy and his brother and his brothers wife. And it turned out to be Amitabh, Ajitabh and Ramola Bachchan. I remember it was 28th of August 1995. Within 24 hours, they offered me a job to come over to India and set up a Sports Marketing Agency

Martin worked there for a while before branching out to set up his own agency. He candidly shares that he began with artists management and slowly drifted into event management for Coco Cola, Pepsi etc.

As a young boy, I had briefly dabbled in the events industry and volunteered at India International Jewellery Show (co-incidentally executed by 70 EMG) to experience the nature of the job. The co-ordination and work culture had impressed me. When I ask him about the secret of their success, he reveals that it is all attributable to the discipline which is akin to special forces army units, sense of humour and their policy of not suffering fools gladly.

I find this Hologram technology really interesting as well. You can have Jimmy Hendricks doing a concert and he looks exactly real. You can have Jimmy Hendricks, ColdPlay and Lata Mangeshkar all on stage together and you can sit back and watch it Martin Da Costa

He elaborates further, You would have experienced some of it yourself at IIJS. One of the things that I do tell the people who join us for the first time. I say, it is a difficult job. It is a really time-consuming and sometimes exhausting job. But on the flip side of it, no day is ever the same and that is one of the lovely things about being in the events business. As far as 70 EMG is concerned, what I think probably makes us different; it may sound a bit cocky but we do kind of see ourselves as the special forces commando army unit; only in the sense that every special forces soldier has to go through a selection process; It is a very tough selection process. Very few make it through that selection process. There is a bit of a culture at 70 EMG of; not suffering fools gladly, in a sense that if you come in and youre not prepared to give your 100 per cent, you will be found out pretty quickly and in the nicest way, you will be asked to move on

The phrase not suffering fools gladly immediately reminds me of Holmes conversations with Watson, reaffirming my earlier assessment. As he expounds on the culture and work-ethic of 70 EMG, I cant help picturing him in a victorian overcoat and a deerstalker hat, smoking a calabash pipe against a fireplace.

Extolling the importance of having a sense of humour in tough situations, he shares: The essence of the events business is that you cannot get anything wrong. And the only way that is going to happen is if you plan really exhaustively and work really hard to make that plan come on. Also the most important thing is that we also have a sense of humour about who we are and what we do and the fun we can have doing it. Because it is that sense of humour that carries you through the tough times. The most important thing is look after each other and when its hot and dusty and youre awake for 48 hours on a hilltop in Goa for the India Bike Week with eighty thousand people and the biker going nuts and you see someone from 70 EMG walking past you, give him or her energy, give them love, get them up again because you will go through different phases during an event. Youre tired one moment, up next. And if everyone is giving energy to each other at the same time, then those ups and downs tend to level off. And we end up with the atmosphere that I think people enjoy

If Martins official twitter bio is anything to go by, he also describes himself as an occasional misanthrope; an attribute that qualifies him for the membership of Mycrofts Diogenes Club. However, in this session, he comes off rather convivial as he takes candid stabs at numerous questions.

I ask him to explain what an experiential event really means and he contextualises it by sharing: You would imagine there are hundreds of different types of events because everything from an Ambani wedding to the launch of LinkedIns latest e-commerce offering to a bunch of other business events. What they all have in common is that they have to be an experience hence the word experiential. It involves all five of your senses. One has to involve all five of your senses plus your brain plus your emotion. Its about weaving a story which you then illustrate with everything down to speeches and the visual treat

He adds, Well have the screens, the sets, the ambience, taste, food, drinks, touch; the tactile nature of the materials, seating etc. We go into, especially these days, obviously, incredible detail to get all of that right. So people are taken on a journey; its an experience. The objective is that people walk away from that experiential journey having learnt something; having enjoyed it, having connected with other people and having connected with the brand. Thats what were trying to push. The fact that they have enjoyed their time, their family and thats the objective of what were trying to do and of course it sometimes works and sometimes you screw it up. Sometimes you miss things out and the better you are; the more you plan ahead, more you think this through; the more experiential touch youre able to put together for the audience. And ultimately it is all about the audience; it is only about the audience. What they feel, see, hear and think about.. That is the importance of the whole experience

Gossip indeed is an integral part of human evolution. We developed as a human race because we gossip with each other. To think that gossip is going to go away is not an option Martin Da Costa

Touching upon the social distancing measures induced by the pandemic, he notes that humans are social animals essentially; which means we feel this urgent need to stand shoulder to shoulder. While clients are going to be very tempted to try and save money by doing virtual events because it does save a lot of money, there will come a time when one person will do a live event and journalists and people will be so bored of looking at their screens that they will flock to that event and it will get huge publicity and sell cars and the next guy will have to do that and the next will have to do that and the events business will have to come roaring back, he asserts.His dextrous analysis is both insightful reassuring to students who are studying the nuts and bolts of event management. Behind him, I see a huge library in his house. It is clear that like most CEOs on this planet, Martin is also an avid reader.

A habit Ive been endeavouring to develop for quite some time. I feel extraordinarily lucky that I had only recently pored over Sapiens: A Brief History Of Humankind, thank heavens, the chapters were fresh in my memory as he decides to ask me on live chat if I have read it. Martin points out that Yuval Noah Harari (the author of Sapiens) attributes much of the human progress and evolution to something as unexpected as gossip. Gossip indeed is an integral part of human evolution, he highlights.

Up until I had read the book, I had, to be honest, thought of it as an odious vice and a character flaw but with him reiterating its significance in the larger scheme of things, I feel a sense of acquittal and relief.

He continues, We developed as a human race because we gossip with each other. Oh Whats over the top of that tree? Is that food over there? Oh I dont know, how about we go there and have a look? To think that gossip is going to go away is not an option.

Making a strong case for the resumption of live events, he asserts, The problem with zoom is that we cant gossip. You and I are looking at each other; talking to each other. I can see a hundred and forty five people alone in their homes unable to sort of nudge each other and say Hes talking rubbish isnt he? I dont agree at all with what hes saying

He also discusses Joe Rogans podcast where Elon Musk had revealed he is working on a neurotechnology which could render human language obsolete in as few as five years.

I briefly get the impulse to ask him if he has read the Adventure Of Blue Carbuncle or Martin Amis but I decided against it in the interest of time.

Expanding upon the role of technology in the events sector, he notes: Yes it is going to change the way we work, it is going to change the way events are conventionally done. None of the technologies that are currently being used are new. Weve been using them forever. One of the things I find really interesting is VR which has not been exploited too much. And I find this Hologram technology really interesting as well. You can have Jimmy Hendricks doing a concert and he looks exactly real. You can have Jimmy Hendricks, ColdPlay and Lata Mangeshkar all on stage together and you can sit back and watch it

From fitness tips to life philosophies to advice on entrepreneurship, Martin cuts across every subject or query raised by the students, making the session insightful, inspiring and fun. He also advises students to up-skill during the lockdown period and make use of the time to hone their craft in whatever field they wish to excel.

In retrospect, his predictions are starting to come true as the world begins unlocking. It will be interesting to see what events would look like in the post-pandemic age.

See the rest here:

Indian School Of Media: 70 EMG Founder Martin Da Costa speaks about his journey and events in the post-covid age. - Animation Xpress

Face Recognition Market Research Report by Type (Artificial Neural Networks, Classical Face Recognition Algorithms, D?based Face Recognition, Face Descriptor?based Methods, and Video?based Recognition), by Computing (Cloud Computing and Edge Computing), by Vertical, by Application - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19

New York, July 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Face Recognition Market Research Report by Type, by Computing, by Vertical, by Application - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05940600/?utm_source=GNW

The Global Face Recognition Market is expected to grow from USD 3,546.56 Million in 2019 to USD 9,992.35 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 18.84%.

Market Segmentation & Coverage:This research report categorizes the Face Recognition to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:

"The Video?based Recognition is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period"

Based on Type, the Face Recognition Market studied across Artificial Neural Networks, Classical Face Recognition Algorithms, D?based Face Recognition, Face Descriptor?based Methods, and Video?based Recognition. The Classical Face Recognition Algorithms commanded the largest size in the Face Recognition Market in 2019. On the other hand, the Video?based Recognition is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

"The Edge Computing is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period"

Based on Computing, the Face Recognition Market studied across Cloud Computing and Edge Computing. The Cloud Computing commanded the largest size in the Face Recognition Market in 2019. On the other hand, the Edge Computing is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

"The Healthcare is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period"

Based on Vertical, the Face Recognition Market studied across Automotive & Transportation, BFSI, Education, Energy & Utilities, Government & Defense, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Consumer Goods & Retail, and Telecommunications & IT. The Government & Defense commanded the largest size in the Face Recognition Market in 2019. On the other hand, the Healthcare is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

"The Emotion Recognition is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period"

Based on Application, the Face Recognition Market studied across Access Control, Attendance Tracking & Monitoring, Emotion Recognition, Law Enforcement, Robotics, eLearning, Advertising, and Payment. The Law Enforcement commanded the largest size in the Face Recognition Market in 2019. On the other hand, the Emotion Recognition is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

"The Asia-Pacific is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period"

Based on Geography, the Face Recognition Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom. The Americas commanded the largest size in the Face Recognition Market in 2019. On the other hand, the Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

Company Usability Profiles:The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global Face Recognition Market including Animetrics, AnyVision, Aware, Inc., Ayonix Corporation, Clarifai, Cognitec Systems GmbH, Daon, DeepGlint, FaceFirst, Inc., Gemalto NV, id3 Technologies, IDEMIA, Innovatrics, Megvii, NEC Corporation, Neurotechnology, NVISO SA, SenseTime, StereoVision Imaging, Inc., Techno Brain Group, Visage Technologies, XJERA LABS, XRVision Pte. Ltd., Yitu Technology, and ZOLOZ CO., LTD..

FPNV Positioning Matrix:The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the Face Recognition Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.

Competitive Strategic Window:The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.

Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.

The report provides insights on the following pointers:1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments

The report answers questions such as:1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global Face Recognition Market?2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global Face Recognition Market during the forecast period?3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global Face Recognition Market?4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Face Recognition Market?5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Face Recognition Market?6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global Face Recognition Market?Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05940600/?utm_source=GNW

About ReportlinkerReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.

__________________________

Continued here:

Face Recognition Market Research Report by Type, by Computing, by Vertical, by Application - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19 -...

Stryker Corporation SYK reported second-quarter 2020 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 64 cents, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 62 cents by 3.2%. However, the bottom line plunged 67.7% year over year owing to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Michigan-based medical device company reported revenues of $2.76 billion, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5.3%. However, the top line declined 24.3% on a year-over-year basis and 23.5% at constant currency (cc).

Revenues in United States came in at $1.97 billion, down 27.1% year over year. International sales declined 16.4% to $798 million.

Orthopaedic: In the quarter under review, revenues in the segment totaled $894 million, down 29.8% year over year. The segments revenues declined 29.3% at cc. The downside can be attributed to weak performance at the Knees, Hips and Trauma and Extremities sub segments.

Stryker Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Stryker Corporation Quote

MedSurg: This segment reported sales of $1.32 billion, down 17.3% year over year. Sales at the segment decreased 16.4% at cc. Per management, the segment declined 29.3% organically in the reported quarter, owing to weak Instruments, Endoscopy and Medical performances.

Neurotechnology and Spine: Sales in the segment amounted to $546 million, down 29.6% year over year and 28.9% at cc. Organically, the segment witnessed a decline of 29.9%. Per management, the downside was can be attributed to a slowdown in procedures in the second quarter in all the neurotech product lines.

In the second quarter, adjusted gross profit totaled $1.58 billion, down 34.1% from the year-ago quarter. Adjusted gross margin was 57.3%, down 850 basis points (bps).

Adjusted operating income amounted to $345 million, down 63.5% from the prior-year quarter. Adjusted operating margin was 12.5%, down 1340 bps.

Story continues

Cash and cash equivalents came in at $6.54 billion, up 50.8% from the year-end 2019.

Cumulative net cash provided by operating activities in the second quarter were $1.21 billion, reflecting an increase of 46.4% from the year-ago period.

Due to the continued uncertainty surrounding the magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the uncertain timing of global recovery and economic normalization, the company is unable to project the overall impact on its operations and financial results. Consequently, the company hasnt provided third-quarter or full-year 2020 organic sales or earnings outlook.

Stryker exited second-quarter 2020 on a strong note, with both earnings and revenues surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate. However, the company witnessed weak performance across its segments. Decline in international sales was also a dampener.

Moreover, Stryker continues to grapple with pricing pressure. Stiff competition in the MedTech space also remains a concern. Further, contraction in both gross and operating margins in the reported quarter remains a headwind.

Although the second quarter results were negatively affected by the pandemic, the company remains committed to continued advancement of its new product pipelines. Per management, the company is poised to capitalize on the broader resumption of deferrable surgeries.

Stryker currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. TMO, PerkinElmer, Inc. PKI and West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. WST, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Thermo Fisher reported second-quarter 2020 adjusted EPS of $3.89, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 45.7%. Revenues of $6.92 billion outpaced the consensus mark by 0.1%.

PerkinElmer reported second-quarter 2020 adjusted EPS of $1.57, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 68.8%. Revenues of $811.7 million outpaced the consensus mark by 1.3%.

West Pharmaceuticals reported second-quarter 2020 adjusted EPS of $1.25, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 91 cents. Revenues of $527.2 million surpassed the consensus estimate by 6.9%.

Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana.

Ignited by new referendums and legislation, this industry is expected to blast from an already robust $6.7 billion to $20.2 billion in 2021. Early investors stand to make a killing, but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look.

See the pot trades we're targeting>>

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free reportStryker Corporation (SYK) : Free Stock Analysis ReportPerkinElmer, Inc. (PKI) : Free Stock Analysis ReportThermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) : Free Stock Analysis ReportWest Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (WST) : Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment Research

Read more here:

Stryker (SYK) Q2 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates - Yahoo! Voices

Its incredibly difficult to make big money shorting stocks. You need a strong conviction in your bets. You need to have a firm belief that something is cooking in the company that most people overlook or choose to ignore. Those shorting stocks during theCOVID-19 pandemichave made more than $50 billion in profits.

Here we take a look at the top shorts of each year between 2013 and 2020. The list is based on data fromActivist Insight Shorts. Josh Black of Activist Insight has given double credit where two short sellers were first and second on the same idea, though their campaign returns might be slightly different.

Short selling is when you bet against astockand profit when it falls. Short sellers borrow shares from investors and then sell them at market price. They expect the stock to decline by a specified future date (the expiration date). If/when the stock tumbles, the short seller buys it back at ridiculously low prices to return to theinvestorfrom whom they had borrowed. The short seller pockets the difference. But sometimes shorting backfires when the stock in question skyrockets.

These are the top shorts between 2013 and 2020 (so far):

Want more short ideas? Check out our upcoming virtual conference with top shortsellers on August 11th.

Short seller The Street Sweeperreleasedan explosive report on Miller Energy Resources in 2011, questioning its accounting practices. The East Tennessee-based oil and gas exploration company slammed the report. Miller CEO Scott Boruff said The Street Sweeper was using deceptive and manipulative tactics to bring down the stock. The Street Sweeper announced in December 2013 that it was shorting Miller Energy. The campaign return stood at a staggering 99.92%. TheSecurities and Exchange Commission(SEC) found that Miller and its executives had "violated the federal securities laws by materially overstating the value of certain oil and gas assets acquired in Alaska on its financial statements."

Apptigo was a technology company engaged in the design and development of smartphone apps. It was the company behind the SCORE match-making app. Short seller GeoInvesting (FG Alpha Management) accused that the company's leadership was engaged in pumping up the stock around the same time Apptigo was hailed as "The #1 Mobile App Tech Stock of 2014." GeoInvesting's short bet gave 99.96% in campaign returns.

Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Adeptus operates free-standing emergency rooms. Short seller Long-Short Value announced in September 2015 that it was shorting the stock. By early 2016, Adeptus had thehighestshort interest among the US-listedstocks. The healthcare companyfiled for Chapter 11 bankruptcyin 2017 amid soaring debt and falling demand. Adeptusemergedfrom the bankruptcy a few months later after completing its financial restructuring. The campaign returned a handsome 98.87%.

Tech Pro Technology is a Hong Kong-based manufacturer of LED lighting products and accessories. In June 2016, GeoInvesting announced that it was shorting the stock. GeoInvesting said at theSohn Conference Hong Kongthat the stock was "grossly overvalued" and "detached from the reality." A little over a month later, Glaucus Research Group announced that it was also shorting Tech Pro Technology. Both short sellers generated about 96.3% in campaign returns.

New York-based Helios and Matheson was a data analytics company. It acquired a controlling stake in MoviePass, a movie subscription service, in 2017. MoviePass was burning cash at an unprecedented pace. The Street Sweeper announced in September 2017 that it was shorting Helios and Matheson. Its shares fell from $38 in October 2017 to $0.21 in July 2018. The company said in January 2020 that it wouldfile for Chapter 7 bankruptcyand liquidate its assets.

Orchids Paper Products is a manufacturer of consumer tissue products. In 2012, Forbes magazine named it among "America's Best Small Companies." The company started facing financial challenges in 2016 due to rising input costs and increasing competition. But the CEO's compensation remainedmuch higherthan the industry average. White Diamond Research announced in December 2018 that it was shorting the stock with 100% downside target. The campaignreturned 99.7%.

Story continues

Helius is a neurotechnology company focused on neurological wellness. In January 2019, White Diamond Researchpublished an articleon Seeking Alpha claiming Helius' only product was an "ineffective device." The short seller also alleged that Helius Medical's founders had "a history of questionable marketing practices." White Diamond evensent a letterto the USFDA, urging them to reject the company's marketing application for the PoNS device. The campaign returned 94.93%.

Luckin Coffee Inc. was hailed as the Starbucks of China. Its growth rate had shocked the Wall Street. In January 2020, Muddy Waters Researchpublished a scathing reportsaying Luckin Coffee was a "broken business" engaged in an accounting fraud. Just days later, J Capital Research confirmed that it was also shorting the stock. When Muddy Waters and J Capital both are shorting a stock, you wouldn't want to be on the other side of the table. After its fraudulent accounting practices came to light, the Chinese company fired its CEO and COO, and Nasdaq halted the trading of its shares.

Want more short ideas? Check out our upcoming virtual conference with top shortsellers on August 11th.

Video: Top 5 Stocks Among Hedge Funds

At Insider Monkey we scour multiple sources to uncover the next great investment idea. We go through lists like the 10most profitable companiesin the world to pick the best large-cap stocks to buy. Even though we recommend positions in only a tiny fraction of the companies we analyze, we check out as many stocks as we can. We read hedge fund investor letters and listen to stock pitches at hedge fund conferences. If you want to find out the best healthcare stock to buy right now, you can watch our latesthedge fund manager interview here. You can subscribe to our free enewsletter below to receive our stories in your inbox:

See the article here:

Top Shorts In The Last Eight Years That Paid Off Big Time - Yahoo Finance

Stryker Corporation SYK is scheduled to release second-quarter 2020 results on Jul 30, after the closing bell. In the last reported quarter, the company delivered earnings surprise of 8.9%. Further, it beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 3.2%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter earnings per share is pegged at 62 cents, indicating a decline of 68.7% from the year-ago quarter.

The same for revenues stands at $2.63 billion, suggesting a fall of 28.1% from the prior-year quarter.

Strykers MedSurg segment comprises surgical instruments plus endoscopic and emergency medical equipment. It has three subsegments Endoscopy, Instruments and Medical. Unlike first-quarter 2020, which had witnessed partial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the second quarter bore the brunt of it. This resulted in the deferral of elective and non-critical procedures.

Consequently, impact of the pandemic is likely to have weighed on the aforementioned subsegments, which in turn might get reflected on MedSurg units second-quarter performance. In fact, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the segments second-quarter revenues stands at $1.36 billion, suggesting a decline of 15.8% from the year-ago reported figure.

Stryker Corporation price-eps-surprise | Stryker Corporation Quote

Weak performing Knee and Hips sub segment is likely to have weighed on the companys Orthopaedic segment in the second quarter. In fact, the consensus mark for the segments second-quarter revenues stands at $703 million, indicating a plunge of 44.8% prior-year quarter.

With respect to Neurotechnology & Spine segment, weak performance by the NeuroTech and Interventional Spine businesses might have impacted the companys second-quarter performance. For the upcoming quarterly announcement, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the segments sales stands at $564 million, suggesting a decline of 25.8% from the year-ago quarter.

Nonetheless, sustained strong demand for Mako TKA (Total Knee Arthoplasty) platform or cementless knee and other 3D printed products is anticipated to get reflected in the segments second-quarter performance.

During fourth-quarter 2019, the company acquired Mobius Imaging a leader in point-of-care imaging technology and its sister company Cardan Robotics in an all-cash transaction for $370 million upfront and up to $130 million of contingent payments related to development and commercial milestones. This transaction is likely to have aided Stryker Spine foray into the intra-operative Imaging segment apart from aligning with the companys implant and navigation offering. We expect this development to have positively impacted the companys second-quarter performance.

However, unfavorable pricing may have affected Strykers second-quarter performance. Moreover, high debt might have put pressure on the margins.

Story continues

Per our proven model, the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat. This is not the case here as you will see.

Earnings ESP: Stryker has an Earnings ESP of -12.58%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Stryker carries a Zacks Rank #3.

Here are some medical stocks worth considering as these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.

Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation IART has an Earnings ESP of +20.69% and a Zacks Rank of 2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Exact Sciences Corporation EXAS has an Earnings ESP of +6.69% and a Zacks Rank of 2.

Hologic, Inc. HOLX has an Earnings ESP of +14.56% and a Zacks Rank of 3.

In addition to the stocks discussed above, would you like to know about our 10 finest buy-and-hold tickers for the entirety of 2020?

Last year's 2019 Zacks Top 10 Stocks portfolio returned gains as high as +102.7%. Now a brand-new portfolio has been handpicked from over 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank. Dont miss your chance to get in on these long-term buys.

Access Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2020 today >>

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free reportStryker Corporation (SYK) : Free Stock Analysis ReportHologic, Inc. (HOLX) : Free Stock Analysis ReportIntegra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation (IART) : Free Stock Analysis ReportExact Sciences Corporation (EXAS) : Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.

See the original post here:

Stryker (SYK) to Report Q2 Earnings: What's in the Cards? - Yahoo Finance

AUGUST 2, 2020

I.

THERE IS THE idea of a physical human to human encounter.

As a being together.

The image is one of a shared experience of time a time constituted by the act of committing to one another, to an encounter.

Of inhabiting, together, a space where bodies meet, where talking and laughing and crying is a haptic experience. Where one breathes the same air, smells the same smells.

An experience the body can remember sensorially long after.

Reaching out and touching. Shared surfaces. Breathing, talking, anything really.[1]

Can this kind of encounter happen through machines or machine interfaces? Zoom, Facebook, Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, Skype, Microsoft Teams, and many more.

Can it happen with a machine?

Traditionally, the answer to both questions is no.

No, it cannot really happen by way of a machine interface because too much is lost.

And no, one cannot have a true encounter with machines.

II.

In times of COVID-19, we spend more of our life online in networks than ever before.

What is the effect of this life lived on screen on what it is to be human?

We have more Zoom meetings, surf longer on Instagram, spend more time on Facebook and Twitter than ever before.

What is the transformation of the human brought about by life lived on screens and how to bring this transformation into focus?

As a site of philosophical change and as an opportunity for philosophers, artists, and technologists to come together and give shape?

What are the philosophical and poetic and political stakes and opportunities of this, of our moment in time?

III.

The migration of human activity to technological platforms began long before COVID-19.

The reference, here, is particularly to the emergence in the early 2000s of interactive, often user-generated content, and the emergence of network companies.

The classic examples here are companies like Google (Google mastered microtargeting), Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Google, Microsoft (Skype and Team), and now also Zoom.

This matters for two reasons.

The first is that the material infrastructural conditions of possibility for how we now spend much of our time has been laid long before the present: satellites, high-speed fiber-optic cables between cities and underneath the ocean, file sharing systems in massive computer farms that host servers, AI algorithms that work through enormous amounts of data quickly to find patterns and calculate preferences, etc.

The second reason is that the material infrastructure that makes life lived on screen possible is inseparably related to platform capitalism. Platform capitalism consists (mostly but not exclusively) of companies that make money by offering free services such as search or posting images or messaging but that collect and harvest user data in order to either sell it to other platform companies or, more often, to sell it to advertising companies (who then devise microtargeting strategies, that is, they deliver ads to specific audiences).

In order to generate data, these companies have been busy finding ways long before COVID-19 to migrate human activity online.

Or, perhaps more accurately: They have been busy creating new forms of human activity suited to life online surfing, search, texting, sexting, browsing, FaceTiming, YouTubing, binge watching, etc.

AR and VR especially via Facebook and Oculus may soon be an additional element of life on screen.

And COVID-19?

Well, for most platform companies, the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and the shelter-at-home orders have been a massive boost: screen time has increased dramatically and so has their capacity to generate and mine data.

That is, COVID-19 has been a consolidation and even an expansion event for platform capitalism.

The contrast to older forms of capitalism, especially to industrial manufacturing, couldnt be sharper.

The question thus emerges whether or not we are currently seeing a powerful acceleration of a shift from earlier forms of capitalism toward a new, still-nascent form called platform capitalism.

A shift from a mode of production focused on the industrial production of goods by labor to another one that is about users, data, and AI?

What are the philosophical, poetic, and political dimension of this shift?

IV.

In my observation, platform companies have made dominant a form of relationality networks that runs diagonal to the usual, place-based socialities of the nation (usually framed in terms of belonging and non-belonging, inclusion and exclusion of a people imagined in territorial and ethnic or racial terms).

In fact, I think it is no exaggeration to argue that networks have given rise to a new structure and experience of reality that is radically different from and even incommensurable with the structure and experience of reality that defined societies.

I offer a simple juxtaposition to illustrate my point.

Societies, usually, have three main features.

First, they are organized hierarchically. That is, they typically have a few powerful individuals at the top, while the vast majority of individuals assemble at the bottom.

Second, they are organized vertically, by which I mean that they accommodate an often vast diversity of opinions and points of views.

Third, societies are usually held together by a national sentiment and, most importantly, by a national communication or media system. The form this media system almost always takes is mass communication, where the few communicate to the many. What they communicate is information information people may vehemently disagree about, but the baseline of this disagreement is that people agree about the things that they disagree about. Mass communication assures that people have a shared sense of reality.

Networks defy all three of those features.

First, if societies are hierarchical and vertical, then networks are flat and horizontal: networks tend to be self-assemblies of people with similar views and inclinations.

Second, while societies are contained by national territories, networks tend to be global and cut across national boundaries: another way of saying this is that while societies are place-specific units, networks are non-place-specific units.

And third, if in society the few communicate with the many and what they communicate is information, then in networks the many communicate directly unfiltered with the many, and what they communicate is not information but affective (emotional) intensity.

It strikes me as uncontroversial that today more and more humans live in networks and that networks, ultimately, defy the logic of society.

Indeed, the rise of networks has created a situation in which, counter to what the moderns thought, society and the social are not timeless ontological categories that define the human.

On the contrary, they are recent and transitory concepts that have no universal validity for all of humanity or all of human history.

Of course, societas is an ancient concept. However, up until the late 18th century, a societas was a legal and not a national or territorial concept; it referred to those who held legal rights vis--vis the monarch.

Things only changed in the years predating the French Revolution when the argument emerged that the people and not the aristocrats and the grand bourgeoisie who held legal rights vis--vis the king should be the society constitutive of the political entity called France.

The early nation-states, which emerged in the context of the first Industrial Revolution and at a time when several cholera epidemics ravaged Europe, found themselves confronted with the need to know their societies, to know how many people lived on their territory, how many were born, how many died, how many got sick and of what; they had to know how many married and how many divorced.

As political existence and the biological vitality of the national society were understood to be connected, states began to conduct massive surveys to understand how they could reform and advance their societies.

Over time between the 1830s and the 1890s this gave rise to what one could call the logic of the social: the idea that the truth about humans is that they are born in societies and that society will shape them and even determine them. The truth about humans is that they are social, in the sense of societal being: tell me in which segment you were born, and I tell you who you are likely to marry, how many kids you we will have, what your job will be, what you are likely to die of.

The social was discovered as the true ontological ground of the human.

To this day, most normative theories of the human call them anthropology: from Marx via the Frankfurt School to Pierre Bourdieu are based on the idea that society is the true ontological ground of the human.

All our modern political institutions are based on society.

If it is true that networks defy the logic of society, then the social sciences, simply because they take the social for granted as the true logic of the human, will fail to bring the human into view.

What we need, then, is a shift from social anthropology (an anthropology that grounds in the concept of the social) to a network anthropology: a multifaceted study of how networks give rise to humans.

V.

The difference between networks and societies which appears to map onto the difference between platform and industrial capitalism is related to the changing relation between humans and machines brought about by recent advances in AI, specifically in machine learning.

One can say that machine learning technologies are beginning to liberate machines from the narrow industrial concept of what a machine is and that this liberation may have far-reaching consequences for what it means to have an encounter.

Traditionally, there were unbridgeable differences between human and machines.

Partly, because humans have intelligence reason while machines are reducible to mechanism.

Partly because machines have no life, no quality of their own. They are reducible to the engineers who invented them and hence mere tools.

The implication, often, is that there is no will, no interference, no freedom, no opening.

But machine learning and neurotechnology make us reconsider these boundaries between organisms and machines, between humans and mechanisms.

First, the success of artificial neural nets or the basic continuity between neural and mechanical processes suggests that the distinction between the natural and the artificial may perhaps matter much less than we thought.

Second, the emergence of deep learning architectures has led to machines with a mind of their own: they have an agency that is not reducible to the intent of or the program written by the engineer.

The exemplary reference here is a 2016 game of Go, played by a deep learning system named AlphaGo (built by DeepMind, a London-based, Google-owned AI company) against Lee Sedol, an 18-time world champion. Toward the end of Game Two in a Best of Five series, AlphaGo opted for a move move 37 that was highly unusual.

DeepMind later announced that AlphaGo had calculated the odds that an expert human player would have made the same move at 1 in 10,000.

It played the move anyway: as if it judged that a nonhuman move would be better in this case.

Fan Hui, the three-time European Go champion, remarked: Its not a human move. So beautiful. So beautiful.

Wired wrote shortly after the game was over: Move 37 showed that AlphaGo wasnt just regurgitating years of programming or cranking through a brute-force predictive algorithm. It was the moment AlphaGo proved it[s] [] ability to play a beautiful game not just like a person but in a way no person could.[2]

Traditionally, a program that doesnt conform to the intentionality of the engineer was considered faulty. However, contemporary machine learning systems are built to defy to exceed the mind of the engineer: it is expected that the machine brings something to a game, a conversation, a question that the engineers did not and could not possibly provide it with (something nonhuman).

These developments one could call them the liberation of machines from the human or at least from the concept of the machine that up until recently defined the human imagination of what a machine could be are related to the rise of networks.

They are related insofar as in networks, relationality once a human to human prerogative may no longer be limited to human to human encounters anymore.

What effects will the liberation of machines which is constitutive of networks as much as of machines have on what it is to be human?

Or on what it is to be in relation?

VI.

As I see it, what is needed now are philosophical investigations of the new technology that is being built.

Not studies in terms of society, as this would ultimately imply holding on to the old concept of the human as social being.

Nor studies in terms of the human, if that means the defense of the human against the machine.

But rather, collaborative studies conducted jointly by philosophers and artists in collaboration with technologists of how networks and machine learning are challenging old and enabling new, yet to be explored concepts of living together.

All by itself, COVID-19 has little to do with these most far-reaching philosophical transformations brought about by networks and by machine learning.

And yet, COVID-19 brings this transformation into view with sharper clarity than ever before and has led to circumstances due to which this new and different world might come faster than we anticipated.

What will it mean to be together with a machine?

To address this question, we may need a whole new vocabulary of encounters and relations.

[1] From Lauren Lee McCarthy, Later Date, 2020, https://vimeo.com/416588466/bb8762077d.

[2] Cade Metz, What the AI Behind AlphaGo Can Teach Us About Being Human, Wired, May 19, 2016, https://www.wired.com/2016/05/google-alpha-go-ai.

Image Credit: Stills from Lauren Lee McCarthy,Later Date, 2020

Tobias Rees isthe founding Director of the Berggruen Institutes Transformations of the Human Program. He also serves as Reid Hoffman Professor of Humanities at the New School for Social Research and is a Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research.

Excerpt from:

Life Lived On Screen: Philosophical, Poetic, and Political Observations - lareviewofbooks

Q2 2020 Stryker Corp Earnings Call

KALAMAZOO Jul 31, 2020 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of Stryker Corp earnings conference call or presentation Thursday, July 30, 2020 at 8:30:00pm GMT

TEXT version of Transcript

================================================================================

Corporate Participants

================================================================================

* Glenn S. Boehnlein

Stryker Corporation - VP & CFO

* Kevin A. Lobo

Stryker Corporation - Chairman & CEO

* Preston Wells

Stryker Corporation - VP of IR

================================================================================

Conference Call Participants

================================================================================

* David Ryan Lewis

Morgan Stanley, Research Division - MD

* Frederick Allen Wise

Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, Research Division - MD & Senior Equity Research Analyst

* Joanne Karen Wuensch

Citigroup Inc., Research Division - MD

* Joshua Thomas Jennings

Cowen and Company, LLC, Research Division - MD & Senior Research Analyst

* Kaila Paige Krum

SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc., Research Division - Research Analyst

* Kristen Marie Stewart

Barclays Bank PLC, Research Division - Research Analyst

* Kyle William Rose

Canaccord Genuity Corp., Research Division - Senior Analyst

* Lawrence H. Biegelsen

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Research Division - Senior Medical Device Equity Research Analyst

* Matthew Stephan Miksic

Crdit Suisse AG, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst

* Patrick J. Bartoski

Piper Sandler & Co., Research Division - Research Analyst

* Richard S. Newitter

SVB Leerink LLC, Research Division - MD of Medical Supplies & Devices and Senior Research Analyst

* Robert Adam Hopkins

BofA Merrill Lynch, Research Division - MD of Equity Research

* Robert Justin Marcus

JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division - Analyst

* Ryan Benjamin Zimmerman

BTIG, LLC, Research Division - MD & Medical Technology Analyst

Story continues

* Vijay Muniyappa Kumar

Evercore ISI Institutional Equities, Research Division - MD

* Xuyang Li

UBS Investment Bank, Research Division - Equity Research Analyst of Medical Supplies & Devices

================================================================================

Presentation

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Operator [1]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Welcome to the Second Quarter 2020 Stryker Earnings Call. My name is Michelle, and I will be your operator for today's call. (Operator Instructions) This conference call is being recorded for replay purposes.

Before we begin, I would like to remind you that the discussions during this conference call will include forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are discussed in the company's most recent filings with the SEC.

Also, the discussions will include certain non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures can be found in today's press release that is an exhibit to Stryker's current report on Form 8-K filed today with the SEC.

I will now turn the call over to Mr. Kevin Lobo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. You may proceed, sir.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kevin A. Lobo, Stryker Corporation - Chairman & CEO [2]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Welcome to Stryker's second quarter earnings call. Joining me today are Glenn Boehnlein, Stryker's CFO; and Preston Wells, Vice President of Investor Relations. For today's call, I'll provide opening comments, followed by Preston with some perspectives on the recovery trends across our diverse businesses. Glenn will then provide additional details regarding our quarterly results before opening the call to Q&A.

As we begin today's call, I would like to start by thanking all our employees for their continued commitment to ensuring the safety of their colleagues, their families and our customers. I am very pleased with the resiliency of our organization, which has maintained high employee engagement and customer connections through the pandemic: from our sales forces, who have remained present and essential to the doctors and caregivers they support; to our manufacturing teams that have worked around the clock to optimize supply with ever-changing demand; and across our workforce, most of whom continue to collaborate virtually. The Stryker spirit remains alive and well.

Our second quarter sales declined organically by 24%, reflecting the impacts of COVID-19 across all geographies and the majority of our product lines. The results reflect progressive improvement in overall sales through the quarter but do vary by region. The sequential improvement can be tied to the initial cancellation and subsequent gradual return of elective procedures during the quarter.

As mentioned in our first quarter call, we took aggressive steps early on to ensure the safety of our employees and customers while managing discretionary spending across our P&L in response to the slowdown in sales. Our cost containment measures included significant reductions in travel and meetings, a slowdown in hiring and salary reductions across senior leaders. In addition, we made other efforts to focus on cash conservation, including the idling of select product lines and facilities across our network starting in May. These actions, combined with our sales performance resulted in adjusted earnings per share of $0.64, a decline of nearly 68% versus the prior year.

As we look at the quarter, the low point in sales occurred in April and then improved sequentially through the end of June. As a reminder, implants and disposables represent about 75% of our sales and small capital represents 16%. Small capital generally mirrors the performance and trends of implants and disposable. The largest improvements within the quarter were in hips, knees, spine, trauma, sports medicine and Neurotechnology, reflecting the resumption of elective procedures and the gradual opening of previously locked down communities and geographies.

With respect to our large capital businesses, medical capital and Mako were standouts, both posting strong growth for the quarter. Our Mako robotic technology remains in high demand with our customers despite any financial constraints resulting from the pandemic. By geography, Japan and Canada performed well, while Europe, China and Australia showed progressive improvement through the quarter. In contrast, Latin America and India continued to be weaker as the impacts of COVID-19 remain more widespread in those regions. In Q3, we expect the recovery to continue, but do not expect it to be linear while local governments deal with varying degrees of resurgences.

Our R&D programs continue to proceed despite logistical challenges caused by the pandemic, and we spent at a healthy rate in the quarter. We are actively engaging with our customers while ensuring that our product supply is in a strong position to capitalize as procedures resume. However, given the fluid nature of the situation, we are not providing Q3 or full year guidance. We are proceeding with the integration efforts regarding the right medical transaction. We are working cooperatively with the regulators to obtain the necessary approvals for the transaction, including, as previously announced, proposing to divest our STAR total ankle replacement product. This process is well underway, and the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority recently announced that it will consider our proposed undertakings in lieu of a Phase II investigation. We continue to expect to close the transaction around the end of Q3 or beginning of Q4.

Please note, beyond this update, we will not be taking any questions regarding Wright Medical or the pending transaction on today's call. This has been the most unique situation that most of us have ever experienced. While we have been impacted financially as a result of the government shutdowns and deferrals of elective procedures, this time has also allowed us opportunities to reevaluate and develop new ways to work and collaborate across our diverse group of businesses. We are prepared to emerge from the pandemic as stronger, more efficient company. I remain confident in our people, our culture and our ability to partner with our customers to meet the needs of the many patients they serve.

And now over to Preston.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Preston Wells, Stryker Corporation - VP of IR [3]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks, Kevin. My comments today will focus on providing additional insight into the current environment and how certain countries and products performed during the quarter.

We saw progressive improvement in sales throughout the quarter, with April being the low point. The improving trends were primarily driven by the resumption of elective procedures. That momentum is continuing into Q3 as July is trending better than June. We estimate that approximately 40% to 50% of our total global revenue includes procedures that are considered elective or more accurately can be, in many cases, deferred for a period of time. This primarily includes hips and knees, extremities, spine, sports medicine and our ENT business. Geographically, elective procedure recovery varied depending on the government actions and severity of the pandemic.

In addition to the U.S., countries like China, Australia and Germany have also shown month-to-month improvements as elective procedures returned during the quarter, reaching approximately 85% to 90% of pre-COVID levels. The U.K., India and Latin America lagged during the quarter, at less than 50% of pre-COVID levels, as the pandemic continues to spread in these countries.

During the quarter, we saw strong demand for our large capital products, specifically beds and stretchers within our Medical division and ongoing high demand for our Mako robotic technology. In the second quarter, we were very pleased with the Mako installations in the U.S., including increased sales to ASCs and competitive accounts. We continue to see a growing percentage of both hip and knee replacement surgeries being performed with the Mako robot. As it relates to knees, there is an ongoing shift towards cementless. We also launched a new software upgrade for the Mako Hip program that includes features which improve the overall ease of use. Our leadership in orthopedic robotics, a strong order book, and a solid innovation pipeline positions us well to see continued above-market growth in joint replacement.

While we have made meaningful reductions in many discretionary spend items, our investment in R&D remains robust, as does our healthy cadence of new product introductions. During the first half of the year, we are pleased with the customer feedback and results from several new products, some of which include Spine's (inaudible) system, Mini Frag cleaning in Trauma and Neurovascular Vecta 71 and 74 intermediate catheters. These and other launches will contribute to our performance for the rest of the year and position us well for the future.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a slowdown in elective procedures, it has also placed increased emphasis on the safety of health care providers and their patients. Over the years, we have built an extensive portfolio within our MedSurg businesses, addressing many of the challenges our customers face, with a focus on accident and infection prevention and caregiver safety. This includes products like our patient hygiene and disinfecting products, personal protective equipment, waste management and smoke evacuation devices along with the LUCAS chest compression system which delivers high-quality automated CPR, while reducing the proximity of the caregiver to the patient.

With the ongoing threat of COVID-19 infections, the Department of Defense identified automated compression devices, such as the LUCAS device, as the best practice for delivery of CPR. Demand for these products grew during the quarter in response to these increased safety concerns. We will continue to leverage our diverse portfolio to address changing trends and meet the expectations of our customers, caregivers and patients.

With that, I will now turn the call over to Glenn.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Glenn S. Boehnlein, Stryker Corporation - VP & CFO [4]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks, Preston. Today, I will focus my comments on our second quarter financial results, related drivers and liquidity matters. Our detailed financial results have been provided in today's press release.

Our organic sales decline was 24% in the quarter. These results included a decline in the U.S. of 24 -- 27.4% and an international decline of 14.5%. As a reminder, this quarter included the same number of selling days as compared to Q2 2019. Pricing in the quarter was unfavorable 0.2% from the prior year quarter, and foreign currency had an unfavorable 0.8% impact on sales. During the quarter, our growth was significantly negatively impacted by reductions in elective surgeries, the effects of shelter-in-place orders across many geographies and the pause in hospital capital spending as the medical community navigates this pandemic.

Throughout the quarter, we saw progressive improvement in the expansion of elective surgeries across many geographies which resulted in significant variability in our sales. On an overall basis, our sales decline ranged from minus 36% in April to minus 10% in June.

Our adjusted quarterly EPS of $0.64 represents a decline of 67.7% from Q2 2019. The foreign currency impact on second quarter EPS was minimal. Certain other factors resulted in disproportionately negative impacts on EPS, including the loss of higher-margin sales and a loss of leverage related to manufacturing and operational fixed costs. These were partially offset by our strong focus on disciplined cost control within the quarter.

I will now provide some brief comments on segment sales. Orthopaedics had constant currency and organic sales decline of 29.3%. This included a U.S. decline of 28.8%. We saw declines across our hip, knee and trauma businesses. We also saw very strong growth in our Mako business somewhat offset by declines in bone cement. Internationally, Orthopaedics had an organic decline of 30.4%, which reflects the downturn in elective procedures across most geographies.

MedSurg had constant currency decline of 16.4% and an organic sales decline of 17%, which included a 22.2% decline in the U.S.

Instruments had U.S. organic sales decline of 38%, driven by power tools, waste management and SurgiCount. This was partially offset by increases in Instruments' PPE products, namely our Flyte helmet and other protective products. As a reminder, Instruments also had a very high comparable in Q2 2019 with 19% growth.

Endoscopy had U.S. organic sales decline of 34.1%. This reflects a slowdown in its video, general surgery, communications and sports medicine businesses.

The Medical division had U.S. organic growth of 5.4%, reflecting strong demand across its bed and emergency care businesses, resulting from demand tied to COVID-19, which was offset by declines in Sage related to less patient flow.

Internationally, MedSurg had organic sales growth of 4.6%, reflecting strong demand for medical products in Australia, Canada, Europe and emerging markets.

Neurotechnology and Spine had a constant currency decline of 28.9% and an organic decline of 29.9%. Our U.S. Neurotech business posted a constant currency decline of 36.4% and a 37.5% organic decline for the quarter. This reflects a slowdown in procedures in the quarter related to all our Neurotech businesses. The decline was most pronounced in our ENT, neurosurgical and CMF businesses.

Internationally, neurotechnology and spine had an organic decline of 13%, reflecting slowdowns in Europe, Canada and emerging markets, which was offset by a solid performance in our neurovascular business.

Now I will discuss operating metrics in the quarter. Our adjusted gross margin of 57.3% was unfavorable 850 basis points from the prior year quarter. Compared to the prior year, gross margin was unfavorably impacted by fixed cost absorption and business mix. The fixed cost absorption was significant and related to certain costs associated with idle manufacturing that normally would be capitalized into inventory.

During Q2, we operated at 60% of normal capacity and the related unabsorbed costs diluted our margin by approximately 400 basis points. We anticipate Q3 will be at an average capacity of approximately 85%. Unabsorbed costs will continue to impact our margin until our manufacturing is operating at normal levels. Adjusted R&D spending was 7.6% of sales.

Our adjusted SG&A was 37.1% of sales, which was 360 basis points unfavorable to the prior year quarter. Compared to the prior year, SG&A was unfavorably impacted by business mix and deleveraging of selling and marketing costs, partially offset by operating expense savings actions taken during the quarter.

In summary, for the quarter, our adjusted operating margin was 12.5% of sales. The measures we enacted in March, covering most of our discretionary spending, including curtailments in hiring, travel, meetings and consulting as well as the idling of certain manufacturing lines and facilities, including furloughing the related workers continued throughout the second quarter.

Related to other income and expense as compared to prior year quarter, we saw a decline in investment income earned on deposits and interest expense increases related to increases in our debt outstanding. Our second quarter had an adjusted effective tax rate of 14.4%.

Originally posted here:

Edited Transcript of SYK.N earnings conference call or presentation 30-Jul-20 8:30pm GMT - Yahoo Finance

The Facial Recognition market research encompasses an exhaustive analysis of the market outlook, framework, and socio-economic impacts. The report covers the accurate investigation of the market size, share, product footprint, revenue, and progress rate. Driven by primary and secondary researches, the Facial Recognition market study offers reliable and authentic projections regarding the technical jargon. All the players running in the global Facial Recognition market are elaborated thoroughly in the Facial Recognition industry report on the basis of proprietary technologies, distribution channels, industrial penetration, manufacturing processes, and revenue. In addition, the report examines R&D developments, legal policies, and strategies defining the competitiveness of the Facial Recognition market players. The report on the Facial Recognition market provides a birds eye view of the current proceeding within the Facial Recognition market. Further, the report also takes into account the impact of the novel COVID-19 pandemic on the Facial Recognition market and offers a clear assessment of the projected market fluctuations during the forecast period.

Leading Companies Reviewed in the Report are:

NEC Corporation, Aware, Inc., Ayonix Corporation, Cognitec Systems GmbH, Gemalto NV, Animetrics, Daon, Id3 Technologies, Idemia, Innovatrics, Megvii, Neurotechnology, NVISO SA, StereoVision Imaging, Inc., Techno Brain Group, etc.

Get Exclusive Sample of Report on Facial Recognition market is available @https://www.adroitmarketresearch.com/contacts/request-sample/908

Competition AnalysisIn the competitive analysis section of the report, leading as well as prominent players of the global Facial Recognition market are broadly studied on the basis of key factors. The report offers comprehensive analysis and accurate statistics on sales by the player for the period 2015-2020. It also offers detailed analysis supported by reliable statistics on price and revenue (global level) by player for the period 2015-2020.

On the whole, the report proves to be an effective tool that players can use to gain a competitive edge over their competitors and ensure lasting success in the global Facial Recognition market. All of the findings, data, and information provided in the report are validated and revalidated with the help of trustworthy sources. The analysts who have authored the report took a unique and industry-best research and analysis approach for an in-depth study of the global Facial Recognition market.

Quick Read Table of Contents of this Report @https://www.adroitmarketresearch.com/industry-reports/facial-recognition-market

Global Facial Recognition Market is segmented based by type, application and region.

Based on Type, the market has been segmented into:

by Technology (2D facial recognition, 3D facial recognition, facial analytics recognition), Application, End User (BFSI, media & entertainment, telecom & IT, Government & Defense, Healthcare, Retail & E-commerce)

Based on application, the market has been segmented into:

By Application, End User (BFSI, media & entertainment, telecom & IT, Government & Defense, Healthcare, Retail & E-commerce)

Objectives of the Facial Recognition Market Study: To define, describe, and analyze the global Facial Recognition market based on oil type, product type, ship type, and region To forecast and analyze the Facial Recognition market size (in terms of value and volume) and submarkets in 5 regions, namely, APAC, Europe, North America, Central & South America, and the Middle East & Africa To forecast and analyze the Facial Recognition market at country-level for each region To strategically analyze each submarket with respect to individual growth trends and their contribution to the global Facial Recognition market To analyze opportunities in the market for stakeholders by identifying high growth segments of the global Facial Recognition market To identify trends and factors driving or inhibiting the growth of the market and submarkets To analyze competitive developments, such as expansions and new product launches, in the global Facial Recognition market To strategically profile key market players and comprehensively analyze their growth strategies The Facial Recognition market research focuses on the market structure and various factors (positive and negative) affecting the growth of the market. The study encloses a precise evaluation of the Facial Recognition market, including growth rate, current scenario, and volume inflation prospects, on the basis of DROT and Porters Five Forces analyses. In addition, the Facial Recognition market study provides reliable and authentic projections regarding the technical jargon.

After reading the Facial Recognition market report, readers can: Identify the factors affecting the Facial Recognition market growth drivers, restraints, opportunities and trends. Examine the Y-o-Y growth of the global Facial Recognition market. Analyze trends impacting the demand prospect for the Facial Recognition in various regions. Recognize different tactics leveraged by players of the global Facial Recognition market. Identify the Facial Recognition market impact on various industries.

Do You Have Any Query Or Specific Requirement? Ask to Our Industry[emailprotected]https://www.adroitmarketresearch.com/contacts/enquiry-before-buying/908

About Us :

Adroit Market Research is an India-based business analytics and consulting company. Our target audience is a wide range of corporations, manufacturing companies, product/technology development institutions and industry associations that require understanding of a markets size, key trends, participants and future outlook of an industry. We intend to become our clients knowledge partner and provide them with valuable market insights to help create opportunities that increase their revenues. We follow a code Explore, Learn and Transform. At our core, we are curious people who love to identify and understand industry patterns, create an insightful study around our findings and churn out money-making roadmaps.

Contact Us :

Ryan JohnsonAccount Manager Global3131 McKinney Ave Ste 600, Dallas,TX 75204, U.S.APhone No.: USA: +1 972-362 -8199 / +91 9665341414

See original here:

Facial Recognition Market 2020, Industry Overview by Current-Status, Advancements, Top Trends, Challenges, Investment, Strong Development and Forecast...