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Meet the Inexpensive Centrifuge That Only Costs 20-Cents

Megan Diane
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0
Meet the Inexpensive Centrifuge That Only Costs 20-Cents

Stanford bioengineers have invented an inexpensive blood centrifuge.

On Wednesday, Stanford bioengineers announced a 20-cent hand powered device that can centrifuge blood. The device has the capability of rotating up to 125,000 revolutions per minute and can separate blood plasma from red blood cells in 1.5 minutes, without ever needing electricity.

The study was published in the January issue of Nature Biomedical Engineering and the device works in the same way as spinning toys. Researchers looked at toys such as yo-yos and whirligigs. After two weeks, Stanford scientists used a whirligig and discovered it moved fast enough to centrifuge blood.

Assistant professor of bioengineering at Stanford and lead researcher in the study, Manu Prakash, announced in a statement that, “There are more than a billion people around the world who have no infrastructure, no roads, no electricity. I realized that if we wanted to solve a critical problem like malaria diagnosis, we needed to design a human-powered centrifuge that costs less than a cup of coffee.”

Prakash added that with their inexpensive “paperfuges”, the Stanford invented device can match centrifuges that cost between $1,000 to $5,000.

Centrifuges are crucial for detecting diseases including the highly contagious and even deadly illnesses such as malaria, HIV, and tuberculosis. Stanford researchers explain that this low-cost alternative allows for physicians to diagnose diseases in areas that do not have electricity. The device can also help those who cannot afford expensive centrifuges. That is good news for the 24.7 million people living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa.

How does a centrifuge work?

Centrifuge
Stanford bioengineers have invented an inexpensive blood centrifuge. (Image Credit: Akimov Igor / Shutterstock, Inc.)

Traditionally, a centrifuge is a device that rotates an object around a fixed point spinning in a circle. A centrifuge uses basic physics and moves denser particles towards the bottom and lighter parts to the top. With that being said, centrifuge rotors should not be touched while it is moving. In addition, the spinning motor must be balanced to avoid serious injury.

Study: How Stress Can Cause a Heart Attack

Brent Edward
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0
Study: How Stress Can Cause a Heart Attack

Researchers have discovered why stress is linked to heart attacks.

Earlier this month, scientists discovered alcohol abuse was linked to heart attacks. While other researchers later found a ‘local’ bar had health benefits, Harvard Medical School students published a study correlating stress to heart attacks.

A myocardial infarction or heart attack, is a cardiovascular event that has the possibility of killing someone. With more than three million U.S. cases every year, a heart attack happens when a blood clot blocks blood flow to the heart. Without enough blood, there is less oxygen causing tissue damage and even death. Some of the treatments following a heart attack include major lifestyle changes, including reducing stress. During a new landmark study by Harvard Medical School, researchers linked brain activity to heart attacks.

In the study published in The Lancet, Dr. Ahmed Tawakol, Amornia Ishai, and their team of researchers examined the brain; this team discovered how different parts of the brain affected the cardiovascular system.

Researchers examined nearly 300 patients in a longitudinal study. Researchers found activity in the brain’s amygdala lead to an increase in bone marrow activity, inflammation of arteries, and an increased risk of heart attacks.

Ultimately, Tawakol, and Ishai explained that this is the first study to link brain activity to cardiovascular disease. In addition, researchers found how the brain’s amygdala plays a part in cardiovascular disease events.

Stories regarding the brain’s amygdala has been in the news quiet frequently lately. Earlier this month, the amygdala made headlines after researchers predicted how long humans would survive if a zombie outbreak took place. Then, researchers found emotional experiences had an impact human memory. Finally, last December scientists discovered the way humans breathe can have an impact on memory and fear.

You Can Now Order Wingstop Wings with Amazon Alexa

Jonathan Antonio
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You Can Now Order Wingstop Wings with Amazon Alexa

On Tuesday, Wingstop announced that customers will be able to purchase wings with their Amazon Alexa device.

Launched 22 years ago, Wingstop has over 949 stores across the US, Mexico, and even the United Arab Emirates. The home of the Lemon Pepper wing restaurant revealed a new voice-activated ordering menu with Amazon Alexa. Starting this week, customers can order food by simply speaking commands into Amazon’s Alexa devices such as the incredibly popular Amazon Dot and Amazon Echo.

Stacy Peterson, the Chief Information Officer for Wingstop, explained that the new partnership with Amazon Alexa allows for the company to stay committed to bring a “convenient, engaging, and cutting edge” experience.

“We are proud to be working with Amazon to enable Alexa ordering of Wingstop Combos, as well as re-orders and favorite orders, plus the ability to customize flavors, dips and sides – making ordering your favorite wings easier and more fun than ever before,” Peterson explained.

How does it work?

Amazon Alexa
ORLANDO, FL – December 30, 2016: Amazon Echo, the voice recognition streaming device from Amazon. Currently available in two colors, black and white for a list price of $179.99. (George W. Bailey / Shutterstock, Inc.)

All Amazon Alexa users have to do is use speech activated prompts such as “Alexa, ask Wingstop to order wings”; “Alexa, ask Wingstop to order favorite”; or “Alexa, ask Wingstop to order an 8 piece classic wing combo with lemon pepper, fries and ranch.” However, Alexa users must first enable the new feature via their Alexa app and then connect it to their Wingstop account.

Amazon Alexa

This new partnership with Amazon shows the continued relationship between Alexa and other industries. Earlier this month, ADT announced a partnership with Amazon to provide home security service. The new device will link Alexa to Echo and the Dot devices allowing for ADT customers to use voice-activated prompts to manage their home security.

Overall, Amazon Alexa is expanding. Ever since their holiday sales success that drove Alexa sales upwards of 900%, more and more companies are networking with the virtual-assistant software.

Nearly 50% of Sushi in Los Angeles is Mislabeled

Megan Diane
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0
Nearly 50% of Sushi in Los Angeles is Mislabeled

Los Angeles sushi restaurants are mislabeling fish, well at least according to a new UCLA study.

Researchers in UCLA and Loyola Marymount University published a new study examining the genetic types of the fish served at sushi restaurants. In the study, researchers visited over 20 sushi restaurants in Los Angeles from 2012 and 2015 and found 47% of all the sushi were inaccurately labeled. With that being said, researchers discovered that tuna was always labeled as tuna. However, halibut and red snapper were the most commonly mislabeled type of fish.

Researchers also found that this problem started spreading to grocery stores; UCLA scientists explained that this problem may not be the fault of the restaurants and grocery stores. Fish were mislabeled in the shipping process.

The study was published in the journal of ‘Conservation Biology’, researchers explain that mislabeling can be dangerous, especially towards pregnant women. For example, the species Olive Flounder has a high chance of having parasites. In fact, the ingestion of raw Olive Flounder causes food poisoning, which has increased in countries such as Japan, which could be a problem for expecting mothers.

In a statement, UCLA ecology and evolutionary biology professor Paul Barber, explained “Half of what we’re buying isn’t what we think it is.”

Barber added, “Fish fraud could be accidental, but I suspect that in some cases the mislabeling is very much intentional, though it’s hard to know where in the supply chain it begins. I suspected we would find some mislabeling, but I didn’t think it would be as high as we found in some species.”

The Federal Government has imposed stricter regulations regarding the labeling of fish. Via the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, fishing companies are required to accurately report the type of fish they are catching.

Analysts Like Alphabet’s Prospects Over Other FANGS

Reginald Edward
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0
Analysts Like Alphabet’s Prospects Over Other FANGS

James Cakmak an analyst at equity research firm Monness, Crespi, Hardt & Co. really likes Google parent company Alphabet. In fact, he told CNBC that he believes the company is likely to outperform other tech stocks including the much-vaunted FANG’s – i.e. Facebook, Amazon (or Apple), Netflix, and Google.

Part of the reason for this opinion is Alphabet’s current valuation of 10 times EBITDA which is lower than other companies in the sector.  For example, Amazon is currently trading at roughly 19 times EBITDA and Facebook is at 13 times.

This valuation might come as a surprise, but Mr. Cakmak contends part of the reason is Google’s focus on operational improvements over the past year.  Not only have these improvements helped to reorganize the company, but they have led to progress in optimizing user experience.  This has resulted in increased revenue from advertising.

Google Alphabet
MONTREAL, CANADA – FEBRUARY, 2016 – Alphabet Inc site under magnifying glass. Alphabet Inc. is a multinational conglomerate created in 2015 as the parent company of Google. (dennizn / Shutterstock, Inc.)

However, Alphabet’s status as a bargain is unlikely to last for long.  Shares of traded up .47 percent on Wednesday to close at $829.86.  While shares were trending down in after-hours trading, yesterday’s close represented a 90-day high and were marginally off the 52-week high of $835.74 which was reached in late October.

According to Mr. Cakmak, both Amazon and Facebook may face problems living up to investor expectations in the near term and he concluded that both stocks are slightly overpriced. As such, he kept a neutral rating for both.

Another factor which weighed on Mr. Cakmak’s expectations for Alphabet was the fact that its senior executives appear to have good relations with incoming President Donald Trump.  While this could be a double-edged sword, especially if the Trump administration gets caught up in scandal and intrigue, Mr. Cakmak believes this will give the company’s leaders a chance to influence tech-related policies with the new administration.

One such policy is the ‘Net Neutrality’. Whilst a reversal on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) stance would impact Google less than companies such as Netflix, the fact that YouTube is a major player in the streaming video space means that Google has a stake in the game.  As such, analysts believe it will lobby hard to ensure that ‘Net Neutrality’ remains the standard for managing internet traffic in the U.S. and elsewhere.

Another issue which Google executives hope to influence is immigration.  Similar to other tech companies, Google relies heavily on foreign-born scientist and engineers. In fact, Google co-founder, Sergey Brin, was born in the former Soviet Union.

As such, the company hope to maintain an immigration policy which will allow it to recruit the best-and-brightest minds from around the world.  This might run into conflict with a President Trump who has vowed to undo the H-1B visa program – also known as the ‘Genius Visa’.

One final issue would be repatriation of foreign profits. According to Moody’s, the company has more than $40 billion dollars offshore.  As such, any change in U.S. tax policy might give the company an opportunity to rethink its cash allocation strategy.

Looking for a New Job? Amazon Planning to Hire Over 100,000 New US Jobs

Reginald Edward
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0
Looking for a New Job? Amazon Planning to Hire Over 100,000 New US Jobs

Amazon announced on Thursday that the company plans to hire more than a 100,000 new jobs in the next year in the half. In a press release, Amazon explained that they are taking job creation seriously by creating 100,000 new full-time benefit jobs in the United States. Ultimately, the company explains that are going to raise their workforce from an existing 180,000 to 280,000 by mid-2018.

Amazon announced that they will soon begin posting jobs for a wide array experience levels. The job opportunities will vary in education, experience and skill levels. Amazon explains that they are going to be hiring new engineers, software developers, entry-level jobs, and on-the-job training programs.

Where will most of these jobs take place? Amazon will be hiring jobs near their new fulfillment centers. At this point in time, fulfillment centers are currently being constructed in Texas, California, Florida, and New Jersey. In addition, Amazon explained that they are working on making it easier for people to start their own business via Amazon’s Marketplace and Amazon Flex programs.

It’s not hard to tell that Amazon’s focus is innovation and invention. The company’s CEO, Jeff Bezos explained in a statement that at Amazon “innovation is one of our guiding principles.” Bezos added that, “These jobs are not just in our Seattle headquarters or in Silicon Valley—they’re in our customer service network, fulfillment centers and other facilities in local communities throughout the country.”

Bezos continued, “We plan to add another 100,000 new Amazonians across the company over the next 18 months as we open new fulfillment centers, and continue to invent in areas like cloud technology, machine learning, and advanced logistics.”

Also in the announcement, Amazon broke down how they created thousands of jobs in the US and how they plan to hire more employees in the next few months. Moreover, Amazon plans on training 10,000 active duty and military members in Amazon’s AWS cloud computing service.

But, Amazon is not just stopping there. The company also offers 20 weeks of paid leave, health care, competitive pay and tuition reimbursement programs.

This news of job creation comes after Amazon released several major innovation announcements including Amazon Go and Amazon’s drone delivery service. Amazon Go is by far the most disruptive innovation by the e-commerce giant. The company plans on building cashier-less stores. In addition, the company announced that they were able to deliver their first package via a drone. In turn, this could also eliminate the need for delivery drivers. Not to mention the company received a patent for floating warehouses, which could further disrupt the trucking industry.

Mammograms Linked to Cancer Overdiagnosis

Brent Edward
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0
Mammograms Linked to Cancer Overdiagnosis

A new study examining the benefits of mammograms have produced startling results.

One in eight women are going to develop breast cancer in their lifetime. To combat breast cancer, research has shown that breast cancer screening traditionally prevents the advancement of the disease. It is believed that breast cancer screening would make people feel better and live longer lives. But, a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine has many questioning the benefits of mammograms.

Denmark scientists examined the association between mammograms and the size of the detected tumors in order to determine how often physicians overdiagnosed their patients. After analyzing data from 1980 to 2010 and women between the ages of 35 to 84, researchers discovered that breast cancer screening did not reduce incidences of advanced cancer.

Ultimately, researchers assert mammograms screening did not lower incidences of advanced tumors nor did it lower the mortality rate associated with breast cancer.

Despite the results of the study, since 1990, the breast cancer mortality rate has dropped by 34%. However, African American women had the lowest survival rates of breast cancer in comparison to any other racial or ethnic group.

On Monday, a study published in the journal of Cancer found that Obamacare eliminated the costs and and expenses associated with preventative health care, including mammograms. Consequently, the number of mammograms increased under President Obama’s Affordable Healthcare Act. The lead author in the study, Dr. Gregory Cooper explained the removal of out-of-pocket costs made it easier for people to get preventative care.

With more than 200,000 cases in the United States every year, breast cancer traditionally affects women and in some rare instances affecting men. Symptoms include lumps, bloody discharge, and changes to the shape of the nipple or breast. But, new technology is being developed to detect cancers and other diseases. Last month, researchers revealed that they were able to detect 17 diseases by only examining someone’s breath and using AI sensors.

Facebook Releases New Plan to Combat Fake News

Jonathan Antonio
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0
Facebook Releases New Plan to Combat Fake News

In effort to combat fake news, Facebook has announced a new initiative, “The Facebook Journalism Project“.

On Wednesday, Facebook announced a new program to help disseminate real news and filter out fake news. The program features several different programs including development programs and training tools for both journalists and Facebook users.

In the 1,503 word blog post, Facebook’s Director of Product, Fidji Simo, explained that the company is focused on creating a healthy news atmosphere to allow for journalism to succeed. In their new initiative, Facebook plans on working with different news organizations to create tools to make people more informed in the new age of digital media.

Simo broke down a three point plan. The first plan consists of working with other news organizations. Simo explained that they are interested in partnering with journalists to build products that help news outlets. Facebook shares an example that includes using the social network’s ‘Instant Articles’ tool to share multiple news stories at one time and supporting news outlets that use subscription based revenue models. Another part of their collaborative effort includes focusing on assisting local news outlets.

Also, Facebook announced that they are working on helping their news partners monetize their videos by providing a live ad break in between regular videos.

Simo also explained that they will be using their hackathons to develop solutions to common problems people experience on the Facebook platform. Not to mention, during Facebook’s annual F8 conference, the company will be holding conferences on journalism and online publishing.

But, Facebook is not only working on collaborating with news organizations. The social media giant also explained that they will be providing online courses for journalists. The programs tailored for journalists include how news writers can utilize Facebook and Instagram to their advantage, how news outlets can connect and engage by using Facebook Live, and how to use Instant articles.

In addition, Facebook announced that their recently acquired platform, CrowdTangle is now free to their Facebook partners. CrowdTangle is a way for news outlets to find news content, compare how a news story is doing in comparison to other news outlets, as well as monitoring how a particular story is being shared online.

Simo also explained that they will also be informing Facebook users how to read the news. In an initiative called “Promoting news literacy” Facebook is going to release public service ads (PSAs) to help inform people how to think critically about the news they read.

Ultimately, Facebook explained that they are focused on ending fake news stories. In a previous report, the social media giant outlined a list of programs to stop the spread of fake news across the social network. In addition, the company partnered with fact-checking organizations to verify stories.

These new initiatives highlights Facebook’s new program to make it easier for journalists to share news on the social network while, eliminating fake news from the platform.

In saying that, Facebook has been caught in the middle a censorship controversy. The UK newspaper The Guardian posted a story on how Facebook’s inability to remove suicide videos is problematic. Then in Thailand, Facebook is reportedly censoring content that the government does not like.

Taco Bell is Now Making Shells Out of Fried Chicken

Reginald Edward
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0
Taco Bell is Now Making Shells Out of Fried Chicken

Just when you thought Taco Bell’s innovative food ideas were over, the fast food giant announced on Wednesday that they will be revealing a taco shell made out of all-white crispy chicken. What is this new food invention called? The Naked Chicken Chalupa.

Last week, Taco Bell announced their 2017 plan to release healthier food options to their customers. Then on Wednesday, Taco Bell announced they are “clucking the trend of traditional fried chicken.”

Taco Bell’s Chief Marketing Officer, Marisa Thalberg, explained the details of the new Taco Bell taco in a statement filled with puns and metaphors. “Something this delicious yet different is bound to ruffle some feathers; some might even cluck their tongues at it,” Thalberg revealed.

“However, we feel confident that once our fans get a taste of the Naked Chicken Chalupa they are going to understand exactly why this is our next big, fun and craveable innovation, following in the footsteps of the Doritos Locos Tacos five years ago and the Quesalupa just last year,” Thalberg added.

What’s inside Taco Bell’s Naked Chicken Chalupa?

Naked Chicken Chalupa Taco Bell
Taco Bell will be revealing a taco shell made out of all-white crispy chicken (Image Credit: Taco Bell)

Taco Bell explains that the shell is made out of “four ounces of marinated, all-white-meat, antibiotic-free chicken kicked up with bold Mexican spices and seasoning, and is packed with fresh shredded lettuce, diced ripe tomatoes, cheddar cheese and creamy avocado ranch.”

The Naked Chicken Chalupa will cost $2.99 and will also be featured in Taco Bell’s $5 Box.

Taco Bell’s history of food innovation

It’s important to highlight the success of the Doritos Locos Tacos. After the announcement and release of their new product, Taco Bell sold approximately 1 million Doritos Locos Tacos every day. In addition, made over $1 billion sales. Taco Bell later called it their most successful product launch in their fast food history.

But, that did not last long. By 2014, the Doritos Locos Tacos effect started to wear off. A two year old Bloomberg report found that after each and every new type of Doritos Locos Tacos, the impact of a sales increase slowly waned to single digit numbers.

How will the new Taco Bell Naked Chicken Chalupa impact the company? We will have to wait and see. The company plans to release the fried chicken shell taco nationwide on January 26th.

Chicago High School Shuts Down After Norovirus Outbreak

Brent Edward
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0
Chicago High School Shuts Down After Norovirus Outbreak

A Chicago high school has closed down for several days after hundreds of students and several staff members became sick due to a presumed norovirus outbreak.

In a statement, the St. Charles District 303 explained, “While a clinical determination has yet to be made about the stomach virus that is going around, the symptoms are similar to norovirus, so, we are following the procedures regarding norovirus. We are now working to assist the Illinois Department of Public Health in their efforts to more clearly identify this virus.”

The school continued on by saying, “The CDC recommends that people with norovirus be symptom free for 48 hours before returning to normal activities. With that in mind, classes at St. Charles East High School are cancelled on Wednesday, January 11 and will resume on Thursday, January 12.”

The high school continued on by advising parents to keep their children at home on Wednesday and to not allow students around each other.

Despite the school closing, doors are expected to reopen on Thursday, January 12th with finals taking place next week Tuesday.

What is the norovirus?

According to the CDC, the norovirus is a contagious virus that can be transmitted through contaminated food or water. In addition, the virus can be transmitted to others by touching contaminated objects. The virus then attacks the stomachs causing abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

This is not the first time this virus has made the news. Last March, a Boston Chipotle store closed down after several employees tested positive for the norovirus. Unfortunately, for Chipotle the outbreak controversy has never fully escaped the company. In fact, a recent Huffington Post/YouGov Poll found only 36% of people surveyed found Chipotle was safe to eat.

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