Monthly Archives: February 2017

How protein misfolding may kickstart chemical evolution – Phys.Org

Posted: February 28, 2017 at 6:22 am

February 27, 2017

Alzheimer's disease, and other neurodegenerative conditions involving abnormal folding of proteins, may help explain the emergence of lifeand how to create it.

Researchers at Emory University and Georgia Tech demonstrated this connection in two new papers published by Nature Chemistry: "Design of multi-phase dynamic chemical networks" and "Catalytic diversity in self-propagating peptide assemblies."

"In the first paper we showed that you can create tension between a chemical and physical system to give rise to more complex systems. And in the second paper, we showed that these complex systems can have remarkable and unexpected functions," says David Lynn, a systems chemist in Emory's Department of Chemistry who led the research. "The work was inspired by our current understanding of Darwinian selection of protein misfolding in neurodegenerative diseases."

The Lynn lab is exploring ways to potentially control and direct the processes of these proteinsknown as prionsadding to knowledge that might one day help to prevent disease, as well as open new realms of synthetic biology. For the current papers, Emory collaborated with the research group of Martha Grover, a professor in the Georgia Tech School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, to develop molecular models for the processes.

"Modeling requires us to formulate our hypotheses in the language of mathematics, and then we use the models to design further experiments to test the hypotheses," Grover says.

Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection is well-establishedorganisms adapt over time in response to environmental changes. But theories about how life emergesthe movement through a pre-Darwinian world to the Darwinian thresholdremain murkier.

The researchers started with single peptides and engineered in the capacity to spontaneously form small proteins, or short polymers. "These protein polymers can fold into a seemingly endless array of forms, and sometimes behave like origami," Lynn explains. "They can stack into assemblies that carry new functions, like prions that move from cell-to-cell, causing disease."

This protein misfolding provided the model for how physical changes could carry information with function, a critical component for evolution. To try to kickstart that evolution, the researchers engineered a chemical system of peptides and coupled it to the physical system of protein misfolding. The combination results in a system that generates step-by-step, progressive changes, through self-driven environmental changes.

"The folding events, or phase changes, drive the chemistry and the chemistry drives the replication of the protein molecules," Lynn says. "The simple system we designed requires only the initial intervention from us to achieve progressive growth in molecular order. The challenge now becomes the discovery of positive feedback mechanisms that allow the system to continue to grow."

Explore further: Provocative prions may protect yeast cells from stress

More information: Design of multi-phase dynamic chemical networks, Nature Chemistry, nature.com/articles/doi:10.1038/nchem.2737

Catalytic diversity in self-propagating peptide assemblies, Nature Chemistry, nature.com/articles/doi:10.1038/nchem.2738

Journal reference: Nature Chemistry

Provided by: Emory University

Prions have a notorious reputation. They cause neurodegenerative disease, namely mad cow/Creutzfeld-Jakob disease. And the way these protein particles propagategetting other proteins to join the pilecan seem insidious.

Nerve-damaging protein particles called prions have long been known to exist in mammals.

A team of scientists from the University of Alberta is examining compounds with anti-prion properties, which can alter the misfolding of proteins in rare but universally fatal prion diseases like Mad Cow and Creutzfeld-Jakob. ...

"When they are healthy, they look like tiny spheres; when they are malignant, they appear as cubes" stated Giuseppe Legname, principal investigator of the Prion Biology Laboratory at the Scuola Internazionale Superiore di ...

Emory University scientists have discovered that simple peptides can organize into bi-layer membranes. The finding suggests a "missing link" between the pre-biotic Earth's chemical inventory and the organizational scaffolding ...

It's a chicken and egg question. Where do the infectious protein particles called prions come from? Essentially clumps of misfolded proteins, prions cause neurodegenerative disorders, such as mad cow/Creutzfeld-Jakob disease, ...

The manufacture of cement, bricks, bathroom tiles and porcelain crockery normally requires a great deal of heat: a kiln is used to fire the ceramic materials at temperatures well in excess of 1,000C. Now, material scientists ...

New light on a key factor involved in diseases such as Parkinson's disease, gastric cancer and melanoma has been cast through latest University of Otago, New Zealand, research carried out in collaboration with Australian ...

A Washington State University research team has improved an important catalytic reaction commonly used in the oil and gas industries. The innovation could lead to dramatic energy savings and reduced pollution.

Manufacturing small proteins known as peptides is usually very time-consuming, which has slowed development of new peptide drugs for diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and bacterial infections.

Alzheimer's disease, and other neurodegenerative conditions involving abnormal folding of proteins, may help explain the emergence of lifeand how to create it.

It's not enough to design new drugs. For drugs to be effective, they have to be delivered safely and intact to affected areas of the body. And drug delivery, much like drug design, is an immensely complex task. Cutting-edge ...

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How protein misfolding may kickstart chemical evolution - Phys.Org

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Starbucks Is Closing Its Evolution Fresh Juice Chain – Grub Street – Grub Street

Posted: at 6:22 am

Dont worry these guys are sticking around. Photo: Stephen Brashear/Getty Images

Starbucks is finally pulling the plug on its attempt to clone Liquiteria. The ill-fated Evolution Fresh stores were part of the coffee chains plot to dominate the juicing craze; it bought that brand in 2011 from the Naked Juice creator, and by 2012 was building cafs where juice partners served cold-pressed, organic ginger and kale elixirs, plus a selection of healthy fare like wraps, grain bowls, and customizable salads. But they never caught on; the number of stores stalled before it even reached a half-dozen, all of them in the Seattle area or San Francisco. The remaining two are near downtown Seattle, and Seattle Met notes theyll both be closed by June.

Most Starbucks-goers are familiar with the Evolution Fresh bottles the chain stocks in cafs cold cases, though. Those debuted nationwide around the same time as the hapless juice-store concept, and their run was much more successful. The company not only plans to keep on selling them at supermarkets and cafs but its also about to expand the line to include four new superfoods flavors with ber-trendy ingredients like coconut milk and turmeric.

Peter Pan, Old Traditional Polish Cuisine, and more.

The chains future with cold-pressed sweet greens will live on in the supermarket bottles.

One reviewer called it horrifying and said his toothbrush even turned bright pink.

It technically owns the brand.

La Buvette, a beloved Parisian wine bar, is popping up in New York for one night only.

Totenko Co.s stocks jumped following a major mating announcement.

He slathered a $54 New York strip in ketchup.

Add to the already lengthy rsum.

He dined at the too cool Italian restaurant with Malia.

The problem starts way before food hits grocery stores or your plate.

So-called alcosynth would solve a lot of other problems associated with traditional booze, too.

A five-course dinner at the James Beard House.

Its like the Frappuccino version of Nutella.

The whole car now smells like freshly baked bread, and I reach inside and tear off the heel.

Although theres at least one other way to free birds from pain, injury, and disease.

Two former friends say the brothers stole ideas, threatened physical violence, and hoarded profits.

Find out where to eat in our weekly ranking of the citys most important restaurants.

A third of Americans are dining out less often than they were three months ago.

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Boston Dynamics Officially Unveils Its Wheel-Leg Robot: "Best of Both Worlds" – IEEE Spectrum

Posted: at 6:21 am

Image: Boston Dynamics via YouTube Boston Dynamics' Handle is a humanoid robot on wheels, and it's amazing.

When Boston Dynamics introduced its massively upgraded Atlaslast year, we said the robot coulddo things weve never seen other robots doing before, making it one of the most advanced humanoids in existence. But now, after seeing the video that Boston Dynamics just released to officially unveil itsnewest creation, Handle, a sort of Atlas on wheels,well just say it again: Handle cando things weve never seen other robots doing before, making it one of the most advanced humanoids in existence.

Wheels are a great invention,Marc Raibert, founder and president of Boston Dynamics, tells IEEE Spectrum, adding that Handle, which uses a wheel-leg hybrid system,can have the best of both worlds.

You probably saw footageof Handle a few weeks ago, when Raibert gave a talk in California and someone filmed the screen with a phone and posted it on YouTube. When we asked Boston Dynamics about the leaked video, the company saiditwasnt ready to discuss the new robot and suggested that we wait. Now, finally, we have more details about Handle, and Raibert even answered a few of our questions on why and how they built the robot.

Boston Dynamicssays Handle is an R&D robot, so although it can perform a number of useful tasks, like carrying 45-kilogram crates, it probably wont be commercially availableanytime soon. Handle has a range of24 kilometers on a battery charge, which is much more than what it would be able to cover with traditional bipedal robot locomotion. Using wheels also helps reduce thenumber of degrees of freedom,and the company says Handle is significantlyless complex than some of the quadruped and biped robots that precededit.

Indeed, this kind of multi-modal locomotion is highly effective. In a much more limited capacity, its what helped DRC-HUBO win the DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals: Being able to use both wheels and legs helps your robot efficiently adapt to different situations, trading the ability to traverse rough terrain for speed (and stability, which legged robots can have trouble with)and back again whenever necessary, just like you would as a human with a pair of rollerblades.

Teaching bipeds to move like this seems like an idea with a lot of potential, especially if Boston Dynamics can develop a generalized controller that allows robots with regular legs to take advantage of wheelsimagine the next generation of Atlasbeing equipped with an integrated pair of roller shoes likeHeelys. Were not sure if thats part of the companys plans, but hereswhat Raibert told us about Handle and his teams experience using wheels after famously building so many legged robots.

IEEE Spectrum:How did the idea to build a wheeled robot come about, and how long did it take to build it?

Marc Raibert:Weve had the idea for building a robot that combined legs with wheels for a long time, but never had the opportunity to explore it.We started last summer and had something working in about six months. We accelerated the project by using components for power, arms, and upper body that were originally designed for Atlas.

Were you able to reuse or adapt any of the bioinspired control strategies youve used so successfully in legged robots?

Much of the control used in Handle leverages our teams experience with the quadruped and biped robots.The software is not exactly the same, but the balance and dynamic control principles have a lot in common and share the same physics-based roots.

Is Handles upper body an Atlas torso, or a completely new design? And isthe robot all electric or does it use hydraulics?

Yes, it uses Atlas torso and a slightly modified version of Atlas arms. [For power we use] electric power (batteries), but both electric and hydraulic actuation.

How do you and your team feel about working with wheels after working on legged designs for so long?

Wheels are a great invention. But wheels work best on flat surfaces and legs can go anywhere. By combining wheels and legs, Handle can have the best of both worlds.

IEEE Spectrum's award-winning robotics blog, featuring news, articles, and videos on robots, humanoids, drones, automation, artificial intelligence, and more. Contact us:e.guizzo@ieee.org

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Stamford girl headed to robotics finals – The Advocate

Posted: at 6:21 am

By Nelson Oliveira, Stamford Advocate

Photo: Contributed / The Harvey School

Harvey School student Wendy Lichtenberg, of Stamford.

Harvey School student Wendy Lichtenberg, of Stamford.

Harvey School students Wendy Lichtenberg, of Stamford, and Clayton Collum during a February match of the VEX IQ Challenge state-qualifier competition at East Rockaway High School on Long Island.

Harvey School students Wendy Lichtenberg, of Stamford, and Clayton Collum during a February match of the VEX IQ Challenge state-qualifier competition at East Rockaway High School on Long Island.

Stamford girl headed to robotics finals

Stamford resident Wendy Lichtenberg, a seventh-grader at the Harvey School in Katonah, N.Y., will compete in a statewide robotics tournament this weekend.

She and her sixth-grade partner, Clayton Collum, placed eighth out of 40 teams in the final match of the VEX IQ Challenge state-qualifier competition earlier this month at East Rockaway High School on Long Island.

The pair will compete Saturday in the New York state tournament in Massapequa.

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Young women gear up for FIRST Robotics Competition – Swinburne University of Technology

Posted: at 6:21 am

Swinburne has opened its state-of-the-art Factory of the Future to a team of young women set to compete in an international robotics competition.

Comprised of 17 students from Melbourne high schools, the girls-only RoboCats spent six weeks at Swinburnes Hawthorn campus programming and building a50kg robot for the FIRST Robotics Competition.

Led by mentors Dr Therese Keane, Deputy Chair of Education at Swinburne, and Swinburne alumni Milorad Cerovac, the team will compete in the South Pacific Regional at the Sydney Olympic Park in March.

The theme for this years competition is Steamworks, with teams challenged to launch a large airship via the collection, transportation, and depositing of plastic gears and balls.

Dr Keane, who co-founded the team with Mr Cerovac in 2015, says the event is an opportunity to introduce young women to disciplines in which women are traditionally underrepresented.

The interesting thing is that many of the girls do not see this as maths, science, technology or engineering, they see it as a fun activity where they have the chance to build a robot and make friends.

In 2016, the RoboCats were one of three all-girl teams at the South Pacific competition, and the only one from Victoria.

Its fantastic to see the girls starting conversations about gender diversity, Dr Keane says.

The RoboCats are sponsored by the Swinburne Innovation Precinct, with additional support from the Faculty of Health, Arts and Design, the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology, BAE Systems, Ford Australia, Rockwell Automation, Salesforce, Ivetech and Boeing.

They also had a team of mentors that included Swinburne Senior Electrical Technician Antonio Lione and Swinburne Bachelor of Engineering (Robotics and Mechatronics) (Hons)/Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) graduate Devon Boyd.

We had more support than ever this year and it has made a huge difference, Dr Keane says.

The girls loved the whole experience of being on campus and being able to use all of the facilities.

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Mitchell Middle School robotics team earns ticket to World Championship – Daily Republic

Posted: at 6:21 am

Mitchell Middle School team "Robot Pandas" placed fifth overall Saturday at the state robotics competition at the Nordby Trades Center on the Mitchell Technical Institute campus. The fifth-place finish wasn't enough to send the team to the World Championship, but the team was given the Excellence Award for the middle school division, which grants the team a golden ticket to the World Championship April 19-25 in Louisville, Kentucky.

Prior to this, the Mitchell teams will participate in the U.S. Open Robotics Championships April 4-8 in Council Bluffs, Iowa, with more than 200 teams from around the country.

Results of the other four Mitchell teams are as follows: Kcreation placed 28th; Bolt ranked 14th; Mechatron placed 19th; and System Overlords took 22nd. Thirty-one teams from across the state competed in Saturday's competition.

The tournament champions were the Vermillion Area Robotics Club and Stevens High School. Stevens High School also earned the sportsmanship and judge's choice awards, while the Vermillion Area Robotics Club received the design award. Both teams qualified for the World Championship.

Harrisburg Schools received the excellence award for high school teams, also qualifying for the World Championship.

This year's "game" which is back-and-forth type challenge requires the students operating the robots to move game pieces, such as cubes and other objects over a fence. This could be done by tossing the objects over the fence, or underneath.

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Mitchell Middle School robotics team earns ticket to World Championship - Daily Republic

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Drone Startup Lily Robotics Files Chapter 11 – CFO

Posted: at 6:21 am

The company was unable to find enough financing to go into production and is now seeking a buyer for its technology.

Camera drone startup Lily Robotics filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday so it can conduct an orderly sale of its technology and pay refunds to customers.

The company netted 61,450 pre-orders for its drone cameras, generating about $38.4 million, according to court papers. But it announced last month that it had been unable to find enough financing to go into production.

As TechCrunch reports, Lily was one of the first autonomous AI-assisted camera drones ever announced, and was supposed to revolutionize the personal cameradrone industry. But in the time it took Lilyto ship, others drones like Hover hit the market, and DJI developedautonomous flight modes forthe Phantom and Inspire (and now Mavic),arguably the three best drones on the market.

In a bankruptcy court filing, Chief Restructuring Officer Curtis Solsvig said Lily was hoping for a competitive auction after already receiving indications of interest for its primary asset the intellectual property related to its flying drone with a waterproof camera from potential buyers.

The company is seeking a speedy sale process to avoid the potential loss of value to the [intellectual property] if it goes stale, Solsvig added.

Lily, which was founded in 2013 by two University of California, Berkeley, students, attracted investors including venture capitalists Spark Capital and SV Angel and celebrities Steve Aoki and Joe Montana.

The first drone shipment date had been scheduled for February 2016, but court papers say the high demand forced Lily to postpone deliveries until later in 2016. By the end of the year, it said the financial market had dried up, leaving the company to explore strategic alternatives such as a sale.

Lily said it has lined up a $3 million bankruptcy loan, subject to court approval, from Spark Capital.

Access to post-petition financing is necessary to enhance the debtors liquidity, provide necessary capital during the pendency of this Chapter 11 case, and provide customers, employees, and other interested parties confidence that the debtor has sufficient resources available to organize a successful sale process and be able to refund customers in an orderly manner, the company said.

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Getting all steamed up about Robotics – BayToday

Posted: at 6:21 am

George Flumerfelt admits he was floored when he first watched a Robotics event in North Bay.

The CEO and President of the Redpath group initiallythought Robotics was only for nerds and intellects.

He doesnt think that anymore.

In fact,now the head of the mining contracting and engineering firm believes robotic teams may be developing future engineers.

Thats why Flumerfelt is a Platinum Sponsor for theFIRST Robotics district event that will take place at Nipissing University from April 6th to 8th.

We like to do things that benefit the youth in our community where its possible, said Flumerfelt.

In our business - mining contractors and engineers - there is a fairly high technology component to what we do and people who could have a future with our company or the mining industry in general so its a natural sponsorship for us.

Organizers of the event held a media launch Monday morning just in time for the competition season to start.

Three northeastern Ontario teams were at the launch at Nipissing University includingFIRST Team 4069 from Lo-Ellen Robotics in Sudbury, FIRST Team 4152, Hoya Robotics out of Huntsville, and the host FIRST Team 1305, Ice Cubed out of North Bay.

The North Bay team has been gearing up the competitive season as they have been working on their new robot since January 7th.

This years competition theme is about steampunk, which is a genre of science fiction that has a historical setting and typically features steam-powered machinery rather than advanced technology.

Disney is involved withFIRST Robotics now and they are promoting the games and making them really colourful and fun and playful, stated organizer Nancy Dewar-Stenning.

So they have played up on the steampunk thing thats going on right now, so Steamworks is the name of the game and thats what they do. Theres an airship, its a complex game and its a lot of fun.

Ice Cubed team member Jessica Kelso is excited for the competitive season to begin.

Today is a day to celebrate the build season is over and competition season is beginning so hopefully we are ready, she said.

Kelso is also pumped knowing the big sponsors may be looking at future engineers during robotics competition.

A lot of our sponsors in general are just people who are involved in our team event so they get so excited about it and its just a giant gym full of nerds but nerds about all different things, she said.

The North Bay team will take part in its first robotics competition of the 2017 in Oshawa this weekend.

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UK Robotics Research Gets 17.3m Pledge – ISBuzz News

Posted: at 6:21 am

Followingnews thatUK robotics researchwill get a 17.3m pledge from government,Paul Canberra vice president EMEA at BMC Softwarecommented below on the need for a shift in debate when it comes to robotics in the workplace.

PaulCant, Vice President EMEA at BMC Software:

It is clear that robotics, automation and artificial intelligence are set to change many aspects of the traditional workplace, as this weekends pledge from the UK government reveals. As with any industrial revolution in history, we need to remember that whilst some jobs will be lost, new ones will be created if employers take tangible steps now to upskill their workforce and create a culture of innovation. It is encouraging to think that if a greater education onroboticscan be implemented at university level, then many of the scaremongering headlines we are seeing in the press can be muted.

From a workplace perspective, the true mark of responsive leadership today is in offering the training and a new workplace culture that can prepare people for the digital shift. Our recent research conducted with Opinion Life reveals that 88% of employees surveyed globally, feel that this responsibility lies firmly with their employer. Creating an environment where new innovations, skills and ideas can flourish will be the key for ensuing that humans and robotics can work side by side in the future.

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How to file your social security appeal online – KARE

Posted: at 6:21 am

moneytips.com , KSDK 8:35 AM. CST February 27, 2017

Was your Social Security claim denied by the Social Security Administration (SSA)? It is your right to appeal the decision, and now you have an even easier method of doing so. As of December 10, 2016, the SSA allows you to file an appeal online for both medical and non-medical issues to dispute adverse actions or denials of a claim. (Non-medical appeals cover issues such as disputes over Medicare premium rates and cases of overpayment.)

The online appeals process extends to recipients living outside the US. Prior to the online process, appeal options were limited and often impractical for those in other countries.

The SSA online appeal site walks you through the appeal process in a user-friendly fashion. The initial menu allows you to choose between medical decisions or non-medical decisions, as well as allowing you to resume a medical appeal that you had already started.

Before you begin the online appeal process, make sure that you have the necessary supporting documents (forms, medical reports, written statements, and legal documents) to process your appeal. Further information on required documents may be found on the SSA website.

Generally, supporting documents may be uploaded through the website, so make sure you have all of your documents in a suitable electronic form for uploading. However, SSA only accepts original or certified copies of some documents; those will need to be mailed into the SSA (or brought into the SSA office if you prefer but in that case why bother with an online appeal?).

SSA estimates that medical appeals should take from 40 to 60 minutes assuming a suitable Internet connection. Non-medical appeals should take less time, approximately 25 minutes.

The online site for non-medical appeals saves answers automatically as you proceed through the process, but you cannot exit the application and come back to complete it later. The medical appeal site also saves answers automatically, but it does allow you to take a break and return to an appeal that has been saved in progress.

The SSA will contact you if there are any questions or updates regarding your appeal. If you have a personal appointed representative for your SSA claim, make sure that his or her contact information is also included with your submitted information.

You can check the status of your appeal from the submissions page at any time. A simple click of a button will direct you to My Social Security, where you can log in to your personal page (or create one if you do not already have one established).

Keep in mind that the same time limits apply to online submissions as they do to other methods. Generally, you have sixty days from the date of receipt of the letter that informs you about the decision. The SSA assumes that you received the letter within five days of the date on the letter. If you received it later than five days beyond the letter date, keep that limitation in mind.

For any other questions regarding the general appeal process, refer to the Social Security Publication "Your Right To Question The Decision Made On Your Claim".

You still have the traditional options of appealing by phone or in person at your nearest Social Security Administration office, if you prefer. We hope you don't have to dispute a Social Security claim at all, but if you do, at least you have choices on the method to use.

Read our article on what you need to get the Social Security benefits you deserve to learn more about the four levels of appeal and the supporting documents you need to submit for your case to be re-evaluated.

This article was provided by our partners at moneytips.com.

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