Podcast appearances and mentions of John A Paulson

Season 3 of INM opens with Frank Doyle, Dean of Harvard University's John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). Frank takes us inside Harvard's efforts to cultivate interdisciplinary collaboration and to grow an engineering school within the “176-year-old startup.” With his inspiring vision for the future of problem solving, Frank challenges us to think bigger and bolder and to embrace the people around us as the key to unlocking our full potential. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Cherise is joined by William Paxson of David Brody Bond and Richard Maimon of KieranTimberlake. Will Paxson is a partner at Davis Brody Bond and leads the design of the firm's technologically complex academic projects, exploring innovations that encourage interdisciplinary collaboration and interaction. Richard Maimon is a partner at KieranTimberlake and collaborates across disciplines to achieve the integration and consensus needed to address some of architecture's most urgent issues.Richard and Will share insights into their work on the John A. Paulson Center at NYU in New York. The architectural team of Davis Brody Bond and KieranTimberlake worked with NYU on the new 735,000-square-foot mixed-use academic building.You can see the project here as you listen along.The building sets a new paradigm for multi-use facilities at NYU, optimizing interactions between diverse student groups and academic disciplines. The Paulson Center includes classrooms, informal study spaces, performing arts theaters, rehearsal and practice rooms, varsity sports facilities, a recreational gymnasium, and a café, as well as faculty and first-year student housing.This project had unique challenges and opportunities: strict zoning requirements,developing cohesive and clear circulation for such a diverse use of space,unique façade design that takes advantage of the 360-degree relationship to the community, and much more!If you enjoy this episode, visit arcat.com/podcast for more. If you're a frequent listener of Detailed, you might enjoy similar content at Gābl Media.

A MAJOR PHILANTHROPIST. John A. Paulson founded Paulson & Co., an investment management firm based in New York. In 2007 his multi-billion payoff shorting the overheated U.S. housing market made him a global industry superstar. He remains active in the markets.

(QuantumTechPod) Host Chris Bishop, today interviews Pri Narang, CTO and co-founder, Aliro Quantum, a Boston-based VC-backed startup working towards commercialization of quantum technologies. Aliro recently launched a series of products critical to the development of future quantum networks and scalable quantum information processing. Prineha Narang is also an Assistant Professor at the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University. Prior to joining the faculty, Prineha came to Harvard as a Ziff Fellow and worked as a Research Scholar in Condensed Matter Theory at the MIT Department of Physics. She received an M.S. and Ph.D. in Applied Physics from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). IQT hopes that our conversation with Pri Narang, CTO and co-founder, Aliro Quantum will make this an interesting, informative and worthwhile talk for you.

Genetic Engineering and Society Center GES Colloquium - Tuesdays 12-1PM (via Zoom) NC State University | http://go.ncsu.edu/ges-colloquium | GES Mediasite - See videos, full abstracts, speaker bios, and slides https://go.ncsu.edu/ges-mediasite | Twitter - https://twitter.com/GESCenterNCSU STS Roles in developing technologies of humility around gene drives Dr. Sam Weiss Evans, Senior Research Fellow at the Program on Science, Technology & Society, Harvard University Website | Twitter As different groups work out whether and how to pursue gene drive organisms, Sam Weiss Evans explores the ways STS researchers can enrich the attention to diverse perspectives, equity, vulnerability, and learning. Abstract In the development of gene drives, claimsr ecosystem-altering capabilities are often coupled with calls for research programs to engage with diverse groups. This talk explores the ways that STS researchers have helped shape the development of gene drives, drawing out the various roles they have had and how those roles have and have not advanced a research and policy agenda that favors attention to technologies of humility: contrasting framings, the distribution of benefits and harms, the capabilities of vulnerable populations to be heard and responded to, and the potential for institutionalized learning over time. Speaker Bio Dr. Sam Weiss Evans is a Lecturer and Research Associate at Harvard's John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, a Research Fellow in Harvard's Program on Science, Technology, and Society at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, a Research Affiliate in the Program on Emerging Technology at the Center for International Studies at MIT, and a Research Affiliate at the University of Cambridge's Centre for the Study of Existential Risk. Sam is worried that security is thought about too much by people who just think about security, and not enough by people who don't. How are decisions made about what areas of science and technology become objects of security concerns? How are decisions about whether something is a threat tied to our ways of managing, or ignoring, that [non-]threat? These are some of the questions Sam likes to ask. Other questions focus on the relationship between people like him—Science and Technology Studies researchers—and the people whom he works with and studies. What is the appropriate amount of critical distance to be able to see the context of an environment clearly while still being close enough to the action to have some influence on it? Sam loves trying out different answers to these questions and learning from them. He also loves learning from you. GES Center - Integrating scientific knowledge & diverse public values in shaping the futures of biotechnology. Find out more at https://ges-center-lectures-ncsu.pinecast.co

Raspberries, ellagic acid reveal benefits in two studies Oregon State University, October 1, 2021.    Articles that appeared recently in the Journal of Berry Research report that raspberries and compounds present in the fruit could help support healthy body mass and motor function, including balance, coordination and strength.   In one study, Neil Shay and colleagues at Oregon State University fed mice a high fat, high sugar diet plus one of the following: raspberry juice concentrate, raspberry puree concentrate, raspberry fruit powder, raspberry seed extract, ellagic acid (a polyphenol that occurs in a relatively high amount in raspberries), raspberry ketone, or a combination of raspberry ketone and ellagic acid. Additional groups of animals received a high fat, high sugar diet alone or a low fat diet.   While mice that received the high fat and sugar diet alone experienced a significant increase in body mass, the addition of raspberry juice concentrate, raspberry puree concentrate or ellagic acid plus raspberry ketone helped prevent this effect. Of note, mice that received raspberry juice concentrate experienced gains similar to those of animals given a low fat diet. "We hope that the findings from this study can help guide the design of future clinical trials," Dr Shay stated.   In another study, Barbara Shukitt-Hale, PhD, and her associates at Tufts University's Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging gave 19 month old rats a control diet or a diet enhanced with raspberry extract for 11 weeks. Psychomotor behavior was assessed during week 7 and cognitive testing was conducted during weeks 9-10.   Animals that received raspberry performed better on psychomotor coordination and balance, and had better muscle tone, strength and stamina than those that received a control diet. "These results may have important implications for healthy aging," stated Dr Shukitt-Hale. "While further research in humans is necessary, animal model studies are helpful in identifying deficits associated with normal aging."       Massage doesn't just make muscles feel better, it makes them heal faster and stronger Harvard University, October 6, 2021 Massage has been used to treat sore, injured muscles for more than 3,000 years, and today many athletes swear by massage guns to rehabilitate their bodies. But other than making people feel good, do these "mechanotherapies" actually improve healing after severe injury? According to a new study from researchers at Harvard's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), the answer is "yes." Using a custom-designed robotic system to deliver consistent and tunable compressive forces to mice's leg muscles, the team found that this mechanical loading (ML) rapidly clears immune cells called neutrophils out of severely injured muscle tissue. This process also removed inflammatory cytokinesreleased by neutrophils from the muscles, enhancing the process of muscle fiber regeneration. The research is published in Science Translational Medicine. "Lots of people have been trying to study the beneficial effects of massage and other mechanotherapies on the body, but up to this point it hadn't been done in a systematic, reproducible way. Our work shows a very clear connection between mechanical stimulation and immune function. This has promise for regenerating a wide variety of tissues including bone, tendon, hair, and skin, and can also be used in patients with diseases that prevent the use of drug-based interventions," said first author Bo Ri Seo, Ph.D., who is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the lab of Core Faculty member Dave Mooney, Ph.D. at the Wyss Institute and SEAS. Seo and her coauthors started exploring the effects of mechanotherapy on injured tissues in mice several years ago, and found that it doubled the rate of muscle regeneration and reduced tissue scarring over the course of two weeks. Excited by the idea that mechanical stimulation alone can foster regeneration and enhance muscle function, the team decided to probe more deeply into exactly how that process worked in the body, and to figure out what parameters would maximize healing. They teamed up with soft robotics experts in the Harvard Biodesign Lab, led by Wyss Associate Faculty member Conor Walsh, Ph.D., to create a small device that used sensors and actuators to monitor and control the force applied to the limb of a mouse. " The device we created allows us to precisely control parameters like the amount and frequency of force applied, enabling a much more systematic approach to understanding tissue healing than would be possible with a manual approach," said co-second author Christopher Payne, Ph.D., a former Postdoctoral Fellow at the Wyss Institute and the Harvard Biodesign Lab who is now a Robotics Engineer at Viam, Inc.  Once the device was ready, the team experimented with applying force to mice's leg muscles via a soft silicone tip and used ultrasound to get a look at what happened to the tissue in response. They observed that the muscles experienced a strain of between 10-40%, confirming that the tissues were experiencing mechanical force. They also used those ultrasound imaging data to develop and validate a computational model that could predict the amount of tissue strain under different loading forces. They then applied consistent, repeated force to injured muscles for 14 days. While both treated and untreated muscles displayed a reduction in the amount of damaged muscle fibers, the reduction was more pronounced and the cross-sectional area of the fibers was larger in the treated muscle, indicating that treatment had led to greater repair and strength recovery. The greater the force applied during treatment, the stronger the injured muscles became, confirming that mechanotherapy improves muscle recovery after injury. But how? Evicting neutrophils to enhance regeneration To answer that question, the scientists performed a detailed biological assessment, analyzing a wide range of inflammation-related factors called cytokines and chemokines in untreated vs. treated muscles. A subset of cytokines was dramatically lower in treated muscles after three days of mechanotherapy, and these cytokines are associated with the movement of immune cells called neutrophils, which play many roles in the inflammation process. Treated muscles also had fewer neutrophils in their tissue than untreated muscles, suggesting that the reduction in cytokines that attract them had caused the decrease in neutrophil infiltration. The team had a hunch that the force applied to the muscle by the mechanotherapy effectively squeezed the neutrophils and cytokines out of the injured tissue. They confirmed this theory by injecting fluorescent molecules into the muscles and observing that the movement of the molecules was more significant with force application, supporting the idea that it helped to flush out the muscle tissue. To pick apart what effect the neutrophils and their associated cytokines have on regenerating muscle fibers, the scientists performed in vitro studies in which they grew muscle progenitor cells (MPCs) in a medium in which neutrophils had previously been grown. They found that the number of MPCs increased, but the rate at which they differentiated (developed into other cell types) decreased, suggesting that neutrophil-secreted factors stimulate the growth of muscle cells, but the prolonged presence of those factors impairs the production of new muscle fibers. "Neutrophils are known to kill and clear out pathogens and damaged tissue, but in this study we identified their direct impacts on muscle progenitor cell behaviors," said co-second author Stephanie McNamara, a former Post-Graduate Fellow at the Wyss Institute who is now an M.D.-Ph.D. student at Harvard Medical School (HMS). "While the inflammatory response is important for regeneration in the initial stages of healing, it is equally important that inflammation is quickly resolved to enable the regenerative processes to run its full course." Seo and her colleagues then turned back to their in vivo model and analyzed the types of muscle fibers in the treated vs. untreated mice 14 days after injury. They found that type IIX fibers were prevalent in healthy muscle and treated muscle, but untreated injured muscle contained smaller numbers of type IIX fibers and increased numbers of type IIA fibers. This difference explained the enlarged fiber size and greater force production of treated muscles, as IIX fibers produce more force than IIA fibers. Finally, the team homed in on the optimal amount of time for neutrophil presence in injured muscle by depleting neutrophils in the mice on the third day after injury. The treated mice's muscles showed larger fiber size and greater strength recovery than those in untreated mice, confirming that while neutrophils are necessary in the earliest stages of injury recovery, getting them out of the injury site early leads to improved muscle regeneration. "These findings are remarkable because they indicate that we can influence the function of the body's immune system in a drug-free, non-invasive way," said Walsh, who is also the Paul A. Maeder Professor of Engineering and Applied Science at SEAS and whose group is experienced in developing wearable technology for diagnosing and treating disease. "This provides great motivation for the development of external, mechanical interventions to help accelerate and improve muscle and tissue healing that have the potential to be rapidly translated to the clinic." The team is continuing to investigate this line of research with multiple projects in the lab. They plan to validate this mechanotherpeutic approach in larger animals, with the goal of being able to test its efficacy on humans. They also hope to test it on different types of injuries, age-related muscle loss, and muscle performance enhancement. "The fields of mechanotherapy and immunotherapy rarely interact with each other, but this work is a testament to how crucial it is to consider both physical and biological elements when studying and working to improve human health," said Mooney, who is the corresponding author of the paper and the Robert P. Pinkas Family Professor of Bioengineering at SEAS. "The idea that mechanics influence cell and tissue function was ridiculed until the last few decades, and while scientists have made great strides in establishing acceptance of this fact, we still know very little about how that process actually works at the organ level. This research has revealed a previously unknown type of interplay between mechanobiology and immunology that is critical for muscle tissue healing, in addition to describing a new form of mechanotherapy that potentially could be as potent as chemical or gene therapies, but much simpler and less invasive," said Wyss Founding Director Don Ingber, M.D., Ph.D., who is also the Judah Folkman Professor of Vascular Biology at (HMS) and the Vascular Biology Program at Boston Children's Hospital, as well as Professor of Bioengineering at SEAS.   Vitamin E could help protect older men from pneumonia University of Helsinki (Finland), October 7 2021.    An article that appeared in Clinical Interventions in Aging reported a protective role for vitamin E against pneumonia in older men.   For the current investigation, Dr Harri Hemilä of the University of Helsinki, Finland analyzed data from the Alpha-Tocopherol Beta-Carotene (ATBC) Cancer Prevention Study conducted in Finland. The trial included 29,133 men between the ages of 50 to 69 years who smoked at least five cigarettes daily upon enrollment. Participants received alpha tocopherol (vitamin E), beta carotene, both supplements, or a placebo for five to eight years.   The current study was limited to 7,469 ATBC participants who started smoking at age 21 or older. Among this group, supplementation with vitamin E was associated with a 35% lower risk of developing pneumonia in comparison with those who did not receive the vitamin.  Light smokers who engaged in leisure time exercise had a 69% lower risk compared with unsupplemented members of this subgroup. The risk in this subgroup of developing pneumonia by age 74 was 12.9%.   Among the one-third of the current study's population who quit smoking for a median period of two years, there was a 72% lower risk of pneumonia in association with vitamin E supplementation. In this group, exercisers who received vitamin E experienced an 81% lower pneumonia risk.   Dr Hemilä observed that the benefit for vitamin E in this study was strongest for older subjects—a group at higher risk of pneumonia.   "The current analysis of individual-level data suggests that trials on vitamin E and pneumonia on nonsmoking elderly males are warranted," he concluded.       Toxic fatty acids to blame for brain cell death after injury New York University, October 7, 2021 Cells that normally nourish healthy brain cells called neurons release toxic fatty acids after neurons are damaged, a new study in rodents shows. This phenomenon is likely the driving factor behind most, if not all, diseases that affect brain function, as well as the natural breakdown of brain cells seen in aging, researchers say. Previous research has pointed to astrocytes—a star-shaped glial cell of the central nervous system—as the culprits behind cell death seen in Parkinson's disease and dementia, among other neurodegenerative diseases. While many experts believed that these cells released a neuron-killing molecule to "clear away" damaged brain cells, the identity of this toxin has until now remained a mystery. Led by researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, the new investigation provides what they say is the first evidence that tissue damage prompts astrocytes to produce two kinds of fats, long-chain saturated free fatty acids and phosphatidylcholines. These fats then trigger cell death in damaged neurons, the electrically active cells that send messages throughout nerve tissue. Publishing Oct. 6 in the journal Nature, the study also showed that when researchers blocked fatty acid formation in mice, 75 percent of neurons survived compared with 10 percent when the fatty acids were allowed to form. The researchers' earlier work showed that brain cells continued to function when shielded from astrocyte attacks.  "Our findings show that the toxic fatty acids produced by astrocytes play a critical role in brain cell death and provide a promising new target for treating, and perhaps even preventing, many neurodegenerative diseases," says study co-senior author Shane Liddelow, Ph.D. Liddelow, an assistant professor in the Department of Neuroscience and Physiology at NYU Langone Health, adds that targeting these fats instead of the cells that produce them may be a safer approach to treating neurodegenerative diseasesbecause astrocytes feed nerve cells and clear away their waste. Stopping them from working altogether could interfere with healthy brain function. Although it remains unclear why astrocytes produce these toxins, it is possible they evolved to destroy damaged cells before they can harm their neighbors, says Liddelow. He notes that while healthy cells are not harmed by the toxins, neurons become susceptible to the damaging effects when they are injured, mutated, or infected by prions, the contagious, misfolded proteins that play a major role in mad cow disease and similar illnesses. Perhaps in chronic diseases like dementia, this otherwise helpful process goes off track and becomes a problem, the study authors say. For the investigation, researchers analyzed the molecules released by astrocytes collected from rodents. They also genetically engineered some groups of mice to prevent the normal production of the toxic fats and looked to see whether neuron death occurred after an acute injury. "Our results provide what is likely the most detailed molecular map to date of how tissue damage leads to brain cell death, enabling researchers to better understand why neurons die in all kinds of diseases," says Liddelow, also an assistant professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at NYU Langone. Liddelow cautions that while the findings are promising, the genetic techniques used to block the enzyme that produces toxic fatty acids in mice are not ready for use in humans. As a result, the researchers next plan is to explore safe and effective ways to interfere with the release of the toxins in human patients. Liddelow and his colleagues had previously shown these neurotoxic astrocytes in the brains of patients with Parkinson's, Huntington's disease, and multiple sclerosis, among other diseases.   Clinical trial for nicotinamide riboside: Vitamin safely boosts levels of important cell metabolite linked to multiple health benefits University of Iowa Health Care, October 3, 2021   In the first controlled clinical trial of nicotinamide riboside (NR), a newly discovered form of Vitamin B3, researchers have shown that the compound is safe for humans and increases levels of a cell metabolite that is critical for cellular energy production and protection against stress and DNA damage.   Studies in mice have shown that boosting the levels of this cell metabolite -- known as NAD+ -- can produce multiple health benefits, including resistance to weight gain, improved control of blood sugar and cholesterol, reduced nerve damage, and longer lifespan. Levels of NAD+ diminish with age, and it has been suggested that loss of this metabolite may play a role in age-related health decline.   These findings in animal studies have spurred people to take commercially available NR supplements designed to boost NAD+. However, these over-the-counter supplements have not undergone clinical trials to see if they work in people.   The new research, reported in the journal Nature Communications, was led by Charles Brenner, PhD, professor and Roy J. Carver Chair of Biochemistry at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine in collaboration with colleagues at Queens University Belfast and ChromaDex Corp. (NASDAQ: CDXC), which supplied the NR used in the trial. Brenner is a consultant for ChromaDex. He also is co-founder and Chief Scientific Adviser of ProHealthspan, which sells NR supplements under the trade name Tru NIAGEN®.   The human trial involved six men and six women, all healthy. Each participant received single oral doses of 100 mg, 300 mg, or 1,000 mg of NR in a different sequence with a seven-day gap between doses. After each dose, blood and urine samples were collected and analyzed by Brenner's lab to measure various NAD+ metabolites in a process called metabolomics. The trial showed that the NR vitamin increased NAD+ metabolism by amounts directly related to the dose, and there were no serious side effects with any of the doses.   "This trial shows that oral NR safely boosts human NAD+ metabolism," Brenner says. "We are excited because everything we are learning from animal systems indicates that the effectiveness of NR depends on preserving and/or boosting NAD+ and related compounds in the face of metabolic stresses. Because the levels of supplementation in mice that produce beneficial effects are achievable in people, it appears than health benefits of NR will be translatable to humans safely."   The next step will be to study the effect of longer duration NR supplementation on NAD+ metabolism in healthy adults, but Brenner also has plans to test the effects of NR in people with diseases and health conditions, including elevated cholesterol, obesity and diabetes, and people at risk for chemotherapeutic peripheral neuropathy.   Prior to the formal clinical trial, Brenner conducted a pilot human study -- on himself. In 2004, he had discovered that NR is a natural product found in milk and that there is pathway to convert NR to NAD+ in people. More than a decade of research on NR metabolic pathways and health effects in mice and rats had convinced him that NR supplementation had real promise to improve human health and wellness. After consulting with UI's institutional review board, he conducted an experiment in which he took 1 gram of NR once a day for seven days, and his team analyzed blood and urine samples using mass spectrometry. The experiment showed that Brenner's blood NAD+ increased by about 2.7 times. In addition, though he reported immediate sensitivity to flushing with the related compound niacin, he did not experience any side effects taking NR.   The biggest surprise from his metabolomic analysis was an increase in a metabolite called NAAD, which was multiplied by 45 times, from trace levels to amounts in the micromolar range that were easily detectable.   "While this was unexpected, I thought it might be useful," Brenner says. "NAD+ is an abundant metabolite and it is sometimes hard to see the needle move on levels of abundant metabolites. But when you can look at a low-abundance metabolite that goes from undetectable to easily detectable, there is a great signal to noise ratio, meaning that NAAD levels could be a useful biomarker for tracking increases in NAD+ in human trials."   Brenner notes this was a case of bidirectional translational science; having learned something from the initial human experiment, his team was able to return to laboratory mice to explore the unexpected NAAD finding in more detail.   Brenner's mouse study showed that NAAD is formed from NR and confirmed that NAAD levels are a strong biomarker for increased NAD+ metabolism. The experiments also revealed more detail about NAD+ metabolic pathways.   In particular, the researchers compared the ability of all three NAD+ precursor vitamins -- NR, niacin, and nicotinamide -- to boost NAD+ metabolism and stimulate the activity of certain enzymes, which have been linked to longevity and healthbenefits. The study showed for the first time that oral NR is superior to nicotinamide, which is better than niacin in terms of the total amount of NAD+ produced at an equivalent dose. NR was also the best of the three in stimulating the activity of sirtuin enzymes. However, in this case, NR was the best at stimulating sirtuin-like activities, followed by niacin, followed by nicotinamide.   The information from the mouse study subsequently helped Brenner's team design the formal clinical trial. In addition to showing that NR boosts NAD+ in humans without adverse effects, the trial confirmed that NAAD is a highly sensitive biomarker of NAD+ supplementation in people.   "Now that we have demonstrated safety in this small clinical trial, we are in a position to find out if the health benefits that we have seen in animals can be reproduced in people," says Brenner, who also is co-director of the Obesity Research and Education Initiative, professor of internal medicine, and a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center at the UI.   Protecting the ozone layer is delivering vast health benefits Montreal Protocol will spare Americans from 443 million skin cancer cases National Center for Atmospheric Research, October 7, 2021 An international agreement to protect the ozone layer is expected to prevent 443 million cases of skin cancer and 63 million cataract cases for people born in the United States through the end of this century, according to new research. The research team, by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), ICF Consulting, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), focused on the far-reaching impacts of a landmark 1987 treaty known as the Montreal Protocol and later amendments that substantially strengthened it. The agreement phased out the use of chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) that destroy ozone in the stratosphere. Stratospheric ozone shields the planet from harmful levels of the Sun's ultraviolet (UV) radiation, protecting life on Earth. To measure the long-term effects of the Montreal Protocol, the scientists developed a computer modeling approach that enabled them to look to both the past and the future by simulating the treaty's impact on Americans born between 1890 and 2100. The modeling revealed the treaty's effect on stratospheric ozone, the associated reductions in ultraviolet radiation, and the resulting health benefits.  In addition to the number of skin cancer and cataract cases that were avoided, the study also showed that the treaty, as most recently amended, will prevent approximately 2.3 million skin cancer deaths in the U.S. “It's very encouraging,” said NCAR scientist Julia Lee-Taylor, a co-author of the study. “It shows that, given the will, the nations of the world can come together to solve global environmental problems.” The study, funded by the EPA, was published in ACS Earth and Space Chemistry. NCAR is sponsored by the National Science Foundation. Mounting concerns over the ozone layer Scientists in the 1970s began highlighting the threat to the ozone layer when they found that CFCs, used as refrigerants and in other applications, release chlorine atoms in the stratosphere that set off chemical reactions that destroy ozone. Concerns mounted the following decade with the discovery of an Antarctic ozone hole. The loss of stratospheric ozone would be catastrophic, as high levels of UV radiation have been linked to certain types of skin cancer, cataracts, and immunological disorders. The ozone layer also protects terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, as well as agriculture. Policy makers responded to the threat with the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, in which nations agreed to curtail the use of certain ozone-destroying substances. Subsequent amendments strengthened the treaty by expanding the list of ozone-destroying substances (such as halons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons, or HCFCs) and accelerating the timeline for phasing out their use. The amendments were based on Input from the scientific community, including a number of NCAR scientists, that were summarized in quadrennial Ozone Assessment reports. To quantify the impacts of the treaty, the research team built a model known as the Atmospheric and Health Effects Framework. This model, which draws on various data sources about ozone, public health, and population demographics, consists of five computational steps. These simulate past and future emissions of ozone-destroying substances, the impacts of those substances on stratospheric ozone, the resulting changes in ground-level UV radiation, the U.S. population's exposure to UV radiation, and the incidence and mortality of health effects resulting from the exposure. The results showed UV radiation levels returning to 1980 levels by the mid-2040s under the amended treaty. In contrast, UV levels would have continued to increase throughout this century if the treaty had not been amended, and they would have soared far higher without any treaty at all.  Even with the amendments, the simulations show excess cases of cataracts and various types of skin cancer beginning to occur with the onset of ozone depletion and peaking decades later as the population exposed to the highest UV levels ages. Those born between 1900 and 2040 experience heightened cases of skin cancer and cataracts, with the worst health outcomes affecting those born between about 1950 and 2000. However, the health impacts would have been far more severe without the treaty, with cases of skin cancer and cataracts rising at an increasingly rapid rate through the century.  “We peeled away from disaster,” Lee-Taylor said. “What is eye popping is what would have happened by the end of this century if not for the Montreal Protocol. By 2080, the amount of UV has tripled. After that, our calculations for the health impacts start to break down because we're getting so far into conditions that have never been seen before.” The research team also found that more than half the treaty's health benefits could be traced to the later amendments rather than the original 1987 Montreal Protocol. Overall, the treaty prevented more than 99% of potential health impacts that would have otherwise occurred from ozone destruction. This showed the importance of the treaty's flexibility in adjusting to evolving scientific knowledge, the authors said. The researchers focused on the U.S. because of ready access to health data and population projections. Lee-Taylor said that the specific health outcomes in other countries may vary, but the overall trends would be similar. “The treaty had broad global benefits,” she said.     What is Boron? The trace mineral boron provides profound anti-cancer effects, in addition to maintaining stronger bones. Life Extension, September 2021 Boron is a trace mineral found in the earth's crust and in water. Its importance in human health has been underestimated. Boron has been shown to have actions against specific types of malignancies, such as: Cervical cancer: The country Turkey has an extremely low incidence of cervical cancer, and scientists partially attribute this to its boron-rich soil.1 When comparing women who live in boron-rich regions versus boron-poor regions of Turkey, not a single woman living in the boron-rich regions had any indication of cervical cancer.2(The mean dietary intake of boron for women in this group was 8.41 mg/day.)  Boron interferes with the life cycle of the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is a contributing factor in approximately 95% of all cervical cancers.1  Considering that HPV viruses are increasingly implicated in head and neck cancers,3,4 supplementation with this ultra-low-cost mineral could have significant benefits in protecting against this malignancy that is increasing in prevalence. Lung cancer: A study conducted at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center between 1995 and 2005 found that increased boron intake was associated with a lower risk of lung cancer in postmenopausal women who were taking hormone replacement therapy. Prostate cancer: Studies point to boron's ability to inhibit the growth and spread of prostate cancer cells.  In one study, when mice were exposed to boric acid, their tumors shrank by as much as 38%.6 One analysis found that increased dietary boron intake was associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer.7 Several human and animal studies have confirmed the important connection between boron and bone health. Boron prevents calcium loss,8 while also alleviating the bone problems associated with magnesium and vitamin D deficiency.9 All of these nutrients help maintain bone density. A study in female rats revealed the harmful effects a deficiency in boron has on bones, including:10 Decreased bone volume fraction, a measure of bone strength, Decreased thickness of the bone's spongy inner layer, and Decreased maximum force needed to break the femur. And in a study of post-menopausal women, supplementation with3 mg of boron per day prevented calcium loss and bone demineralization by reducing urinary excretion of both calcium and magnesium.8 In addition to its bone and anti-cancer benefits, there are nine additional reasons boron is an important trace mineral vital for health and longevity. It has been shown to:1 Greatly improve wound healing, Beneficially impact the body's use of estrogen, testosterone, and vitamin D, Boost magnesium absorption, Reduce levels of inflammatory biomarkers, such as high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), Raise levels of antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, and glutathione peroxidase, Protect against pesticide-induced oxidative stress and heavy-metal toxicity, Improve the brain's electrical activity, which may explain its benefits for cognitive performance, and short-term memory in the elderly, Influence the formation and activity of key biomolecules, such as S-adenosyl methionine (SAM-e) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), and Potentially help ameliorate the adverse effects of traditional chemotherapeutic agents. Because the amount of boron varies in the soil, based on geographical location, obtaining enough boron through diet alone can be difficult. Supplementing with low-cost boron is an effective way to maintain adequate levels of this overlooked micronutrient.

GTOAT- The Greatest Trade of All TimeOn today's episode we have one of the best if not the best hedge fund manager of all time, John A. Paulson. And today we reveal how he pulled off his Big Short during the 2008 financial crisis. Paulson leads Paulson & Co., a New York-based investment management firm he founded in 1994 and turned his hedge fund into a family office in 2020. He has been called "one of the most prominent names in high finance" and "a man who made one of the biggest fortunes in Wall Street history."Paulson executed the greatest trade of all time, making $20 Billion off one trade. He was the 100th richest person in the world in 2016 with a net worth of $9.7 Billion. In 2010, he set another hedge fund record by making $5 billion in one year. He was one of the first people to predict The Great Recession in 2004. Mr. Paulson has only done 5 public interviews in his career. This is the ONLY PUBLIC interview about his Big Short. Paulson is also known for his philanthropy. He donated $400 million to Harvard University back in 2015 (largest donation in school history), and around $2.5 Billion to other charitable causes. Such as  Between 2009 and 2011 Paulson made several charitable donations, including $15 million to the Center for Responsible Lending, $20 million to New York University Stern School of Business (auditorium now named after Paulson), $5 million to the Southampton Hospital on Long Island, $15 million to build a children's hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and £2.5 million to the London School of Economics for the John A. Paulson Chair in European Political Economy. In October 2012, Paulson donated $100 million to the Central Park Conservancy, the nonprofit organization that maintains New York City's Central Park. And he has put half of his wealth into the Paulson Foundation. Today we will talk about how he got into finance, the basics of hedge funds, merger arbitrage, long/short strategy, how he predicated the fall of the mortgage market, his Big Short, his advice for everyone in the world, how he executed his trade, CDOs, credit default swaps, mortgage backed securities, assets under management used to make his Big Short, risk/return trade off, why he made the trade during a prosperous housing market, his UK and US Stock shorts, his philanthropy career, and more.Follow the podcast on Instagram @The_finanze_podcast for live updates on new episodes. You can check out our Youtube Channel at The FinanZe Podcast.Join our email list by emailing us at the.FinanZe.podcast@gmail.comIf you enjoy listening to our episodes and are learning then we'd be extremely grateful if you gave us a 5 star rating on Apple Podcasts.Enjoy the episode with one of the greats.

Distinguished Speaker Seminar - Friday 18th June 2021, with Susan Murphy, Professor of Statistics and Computer Science, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Reinforcement Learning provides an attractive suite of online learning methods for personalizing interventions in a Digital Health. However after a reinforcement learning algorithm has been run in a clinical study, how do we assess whether personalization occurred? We might find users for whom it appears that the algorithm has indeed learned in which contexts the user is more responsive to a particular intervention. But could this have happened completely by chance? We discuss some first approaches to addressing these questions.

Hank welcomes David Keith (Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Physics, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School) to Straight Talk to discuss his physics background, how he would define the climate challenge, climate diplomacy and addressing the global governance problem, what is needed to truly achieve carbon neutrality, solar geoengineering, and the next technologies in the energy industry. David Keith: https://keith.seas.harvard.edu/people/david-keith

Here at Chronicle, we take our food very seriously.  So seriously in fact, we turned to a scientist to discuss how to order the perfect takeout and how to refresh the leftovers in your fridge.  Dr. Pia Sorensen, a Senior Preceptor at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied sciences, sits down to talk about food  on a molecular level.   This episode was produced by Diana Pinzon and Ellen Fleming. Ellen also edits the podcast. Chronicle's managing editor is Julie Mehegan and our Executive Producer is Nneka Nwosu Faison.   You can find us @Chronicle5 on all social media and of course nightly at 7:30 pm on WCVB-TV Channel 5 in Boston.

Bio: Robert Wood is the Charles River Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences in the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, an Associate Faculty member of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, and a National Geographic Explorer. Prof. Wood completed his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley. He is founder of the Harvard Microrobotics Lab which leverages expertise in microfabrication for the development of biologically-inspired robots with feature sizes on the micrometer to centimeter scale. He is the winner of multiple awards for his work including the DARPA Young Faculty Award, NSF Career Award, ONR Young Investigator Award, Air Force Young Investigator Award, Technology Review’s TR35, and multiple best paper awards. In 2010 Wood received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from President Obama for his work in microrobotics. In 2012 he was selected for the Alan T. Waterman award, the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious early career award. In 2014 he was named one of National Geographic’s “Emerging Explorers”. Wood’s group is also dedicated to STEM education by using novel robots to motivate young students to pursue careers in science and engineering.

Peggy and Vijay Janapa Reddi, associate professor John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard, talk about TinyML. He talks about key differences and how on small devices you will have small vocabulary, which will allow for diversity. They also discuss: Applications, like toothbrushes and smart cars, and the opportunities for the future. Areas where we can use TinyML to make the world a better place. Security and how to not open up the flood gates with TinyML. harvard.edu (12.08.20 - #698) IoT, Internet of Things, Peggy Smedley, artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, digital transformation, cybersecurity, blockchain, 5G cloud, sustainability, future of work, podcast

Have you ever wondered what Astronauts snack on? Is it any good? Do they get to pick what they eat? Grab a snack of your own and learn all about the evolution of Space Food! Music from filmmusic.io "Tyrant" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) License: CC BY (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Henna's Sources: Briardo Llorente CSIRO Synthetic Biology Future Science Fellow. “How to Grow Crops on Mars If We Are to Live on the Red Planet.” The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2019, theconversation.com/how-to-grow-crops-on-mars-if-we-are-to-live-on-the-red-planet-99943. Dunbar, Brian. “Human Needs: Sustaining Life During Exploration.” NASA, NASA, www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/everydaylife/jamestown-needs-fs.html. “FRIDGE.” BioServe Space Technologies, 25 Sept. 2020, www.colorado.edu/center/bioserve/fridge. Gibson, Eleanor. “Scientists Develop ‘Greenhouse Shields’ to Grow Food on Mars.” Dezeen, 16 July 2019, www.dezeen.com/2019/07/16/harvard-university-scientists-develop-greenhouse-shields-growing-food-on-mars/. Leah Burrows | Press contact. “A Material Way to Make Mars Habitable.” A Material Way to Make Mars Habitable | Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 15 July 2019, www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2019/07/material-way-make-mars-habitable. Mankarious, Sarah-Grace. “Floating Food: The History of Eating in Space.” CNN, Cable News Network, 19 July 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/07/19/world/apollo-space-food-history-scn/index.html. Mars, Kelli. “Space Station 20th: Food on ISS.” NASA, NASA, 14 Aug. 2020, www.nasa.gov/feature/space-station-20th-food-on-iss. Reppenhagen, Author: Cory. “A Refrigerator from CU Boulder Could Change the Future of Astronaut Food.” KUSA.com, 7 Oct. 2020, www.9news.com/article/tech/science/astronauts-to-receive-first-space-fridge-from-cu-boulder/73-c4148d0b-8f59-4b6c-873b-9b8b13356bb3. Sharp, Tim. “What Is the Temperature on Mars?” Space.com, Space, 30 Nov. 2017, www.space.com/16907-what-is-the-temperature-of-mars.html. Wild, Flint. “Eating in Space.” NASA, NASA, 8 June 2015, www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/stem-on-station/ditl_eating. Anna's Sources: Bschroeder. “Space Food.” Space Foundation Discovery Center, www.discoverspace.org/exhibit/space-food/. “Food in Space.” Food in Space | National Air and Space Museum, airandspace.si.edu/exhibitions/apollo-to-the-moon/online/astronaut-life/food-in-space.cfm. “Gordon Cooper.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Cooper. “John Glenn.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Glenn. Lane, Helen W, and Daniel L Feeback. “History of Nutrition in Space Flight.” Nutrition, vol. 18, no. 10, 2002, pp. 797–804., doi:10.1016/s0899-9007(02)00946-2. Mankarious, Sarah-Grace. “Floating Food: The History of Eating in Space.” CNN, Cable News Network, 19 July 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/07/19/world/apollo-space-food-history-scn/index.html. “Space Food.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_food. Stepanova, Anastasia. “How Russian Space Food Has Evolved over the Years.” Russia Beyond, 24 June 2018, www.rbth.com/russian-kitchen/328572-russian-space-food-evolution. Watson, Stephanie. “How Space Food Works.” HowStuffWorks Science, HowStuffWorks, 27 Jan. 2020, science.howstuffworks.com/space-food1.htm. “Yuri Gagarin.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuri_Gagarin.

Global trend-watcher Vikram Mansharamani advises planners to consult experts when necessary, but take responsibility for the big decisions. At a time of such unpredictability, disruption and risk, it is hard for even the most experienced meeting planner to feel confident when making major decisions about when or whether to hold their next event, or what form it should take. To help explore how planners can make these choices, Vikram Mansharamani, a lecturer at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and author of the just-released Think for Yourself: Restoring Common Sense in an Age of Experts and Artificial Intelligence, as well as Boombustology: Spotting Financial Bubbles Before They Burst, offers his insights. He spoke previously at Northstar Meetings Group’s SMU International at the end of February, just as the threat of the coronavirus was beginning to be understood. At that time, he told the audience of meeting planners and supplier, “This is a turbulent time, but there's always been turbulence. That’s not the issue. The issue is how you think about it." While things have changed significantly since then, that statement still seems to holds true. “We need to keep experts on tap but not on top,” he explains. “We should be using expert input to decide a path forward for ourselves, but we are responsible for understanding the big-picture story, we are responsible for understanding the context of our decisions.”  Here, Mansharamani walks listeners through decision-making strategies and describes why at this time when nobody has all the answers, planners ultimately must make big decisions themselves.

The hosts interview a panel of distinguished guests, including life sciences entrepreneur and investor Alexis Borisy, Finale Doshi-Velez of Harvard University's John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and Pardis Sabeti of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

Professor Robert Stavins interviews David Keith, Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Physics at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and Professor of Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, considered one of the world's leading scholars on solar geoengineering.

Can robots ever learn to feel? Our ability to perform delicate tasks, like giving a gentle hug or picking a piece of fruit, is something that robots can't yet mimic.Ryan Truby, an alum of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences has created bioinspired soft robots that can squish, stretch, and feel their way around the world - and they have the potential to change how we understand robotics.Full TranscriptThe Veritalk Team:Host/Producer: Anna Fisher-PinkertSound Designer: Ian CossLogo: Emily CrowellExecutive Producer: Ann HallSpecial thanks to Ryan Truby and Jennifer Lewis. Ryan Truby’s research is supported by the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, National Science Foundation through the Harvard MRSEC, the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and the Schmidt Science Fellows program, in partnership with the Rhodes Trust.

Harvard researchers have created a new depth sensor inspired by the eyes of a jumping spider. It could soon be in everything from microbotics to wearable devices. The tiny arachnids have incredible depth perception, which enables them to attack prey with great accuracy. Researchers from the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have created a device that combines a multifunctional, flat metalens with an algorithm to measure depth in a single shot.Current depth sensors rely on cameras or laser dots to measure and map depth. Humans have stereo vision, which means that we use information from both of our eyes to determine depth. Jumping spiders are much more efficient. If a jumping spider looks at a fruit fly with one of its principal eyes, the fly will appear sharper in one retina's image and blurrier in another. This change in blur tells the spider how far away the fly is.In computer vision, the calculation is referred to as depth from defocus, but until now, it has only been possible with large and slow cameras. The new metalens captures images and produces a depth map using a computer vision algorithm. The color on the depth map represents object distance. The closer and farther objects are colored red and blue, respectively.While this could lead to more powerful wearables and microbotics, let's hope that the new advances include robotic jumping spiders.

A research team has designed a new portable exosuit that could soon help people walk and run. You know what, it's just nice to report a new exoskeleton that doesn't have a tail. You wear the hip exosuit on your waist and thighs with the actuation system attached to your lower back. The system uses an algorithm to predict when you're going to switch from running to walking, or vice versa, by analyzing how your center of mass is moving. That way, it doesn’t give you too much of a boost when your walking. According to the researchers, the new suit is lightweight and uses a cable actuation system that applies force from the waist belt, and thigh wraps to generate torque that works in concert with the gluteal muscles.The device weighs a little more than 11 pounds, but most of the weight which is around your trunk.In initial tests, the exosuit reduced metabolic rates in walkers by 9.3 percent and in runners by 4 percent. In subsequent experiments, it helped users more efficiently walk uphill walking, run at various speeds, and traverse multiple terrains. The hip exosuit was actually developed as part of DARPA’s former Warrior Web program and is the result of years of soft exosuit R&D. The team previously developed a multi-joint exosuit that was licensed by ReWalk Robotics. In April 2018, the previous suit was used by a paralyzed man to complete a marathon. The team includes researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), the University of Nebraska Omaha, and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. Their work was recently published in Science Robotics. Next, the team will try to make an even smaller, lighter, and quieter version of the robotic shorts.

Saurabh Mhatre talks about the simplicity behind deployable systems, the chaos of taking pictures, mindful photography, material science, social media, productivity tools, and more. Saurabh grew up and studied architecture in Mumbai. He holds a Master in Design Studies with a focus on technology from the Harvard Graduate School of Design, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he currently explores how flat deployable mechanisms can morph into three-dimensional shapes with minimal actuation, to enable ephemeral uses of mundane items and facilitate their storage and shipment, as part of his research at the Material Processes and Systems (MaP+S) Group. He enjoys working with people from different disciplines, ranging from biological engineering to material science, and works across multiple material scales, from the nano-scale of medical devices to large form-factor of deployable shelters. Saurabh also shares with us his love for photography, how he interacts with social media, and what productivity tools help him keep track of his work. You can find Saurabh on Facebook, his photos at @sm8928 on Instagram, and his most recent work at saurabhmhatre.com. Episode notes The Material Processes and Systems (MaP+S) Group, led by Professor Martin Bechthold, is a research unit that promotes the understanding, development and deployment of innovative technologies for buildings. [2:00] The Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) is the engineering school within Harvard University's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering and applied sciences. [2:35] The Wyss (pronounced /viːs/ "veese") Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering is a cross-disciplinary research institute at Harvard University which focuses on developing new bioinspired materials and devices for applications in healthcare, manufacturing, robotics, energy, and sustainable architecture. Saurabh's current research on deployable mechanisms at different scales, flat objects that can morph into three-dimensional shapes with minimal actuation. [06:10] What other projects would you like to work on if you had the time? [12:45] Are there new materials or mechanisms (widely known in research labs in Cambridge) that will hit the market in the next years? [13:23] Masala Chai is Saurabh's morning to-go drink. [17:08] Differences between living in Mumbai and living in Cambridge. [18:45] "The way photography for me started." [21:35] Adobe Lightroom is a photography editing desktop app part of Saurabh's editing workflow. [22:45] Evernote is a note-taking app. [31:45] Toggl is a time-tracking tool. [33:08] Digital toolbox. [36:10] Visualizing Architecture by Alex Hogrefe. [36:24] Contact staff and flow arts. [40:05] Meditation, reiki, and art of living. [40:40] The Secret Life of Walter Mitty's soundtrack by Jose González, who is also the singer of Junip. [45:45] Submit your questions and I'll try to answer them in future episodes. I'd love to hear from you. If you enjoy the show, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds and really helps. Show notes, transcripts, and past episodes at gettingsimple.com/podcast. Theme song Sleep by Steve Combs under CC BY 4.0. Follow Nono Twitter.com/nonoesp Instagram.com/nonoesp Facebook.com/nonomartinezalonso YouTube.com/nonomartinezalonso

Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences have developed a simple device that mimics complex birdsongs.

Harry Lewis, Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard University, John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences encouraged Fellows to wrestle with the question of how to balance the benefits and drawbacks of internet anonymity.

Michael McElroy, Gilbert Butler Professor of Environmental Studies at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, argues that the United States must move towards a zero-carbon future, replacing its reliance on fossil fuels with a combination of wind, solar, hydroelectric and nuclear power. Such a transition would not only help address climate change and improve air quality but also reduce the cost of electricity and transportation and create millions of jobs in the U.S. We spoke with McElroy about the book, why climate change is a political issue in the U.S. and the impact President-elect Donald Trump may have on the future of energy and climate.

Dr. Kyle Vining is a dentist-scientist from Brookline, MA. He is a Fellow at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, where he is completing his Ph.D. with Professor David Mooney. Kyle practices general dentistry at a multi-specialty private group practice in Brookline, MA.   Kyle’s research goal is to discover new insights about biology and improve ways to treat disease by investigating how materials interface with biology. Kyle and his colleague Adam Celiz from the University of Nottingham recently won a prize at the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Emerging Technologies Competition in London, UK for their dental material technology that may one day lead to regenerative treatments in restorative dentistry. They are developing a therapeutic dental biomaterial that can be placed in contact with vital pulp tissues to stimulate native dental stem cells to regenerate or repair dentin.   Kyle was also recently awarded a K08 Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund his Ph.D. thesis on how the mechanical properties of tissue affect stem cells’ ability to suppress the immune system. Prior to working in the Boston area, Kyle completed his Doctor of Dental Surgery training with High Distinction from the University of Minnesota, as well as a one-year research fellowship in the NIH Medical Research Scholars Program. http://mooneylab.seas.harvard.edu/people/kyle-vining   www.brookline-dental.com

Soft robots do a lot of things well but they’re not exactly known for their speed. The artificial muscles that move soft robots, called actuators, tend to rely on hydraulics or pneumatics, which are slow to respond and difficult to store. Dielectric elastomers could offer an alternative to pneumatic actuators but they currently require complex and inefficient circuitry to deliver high voltage as well as rigid components to maintain their form— both of which defeat the purpose of a soft robot. Now, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have developed a dielectric elastomer with a broad range of motion that requires relatively low voltage and no rigid components. Read the full article here

Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the University of California Santa Barbara, and Washington University in St. Louis have shown for the first time how neurons in the SCN are connected to each other, shedding light on this vital area of the brain. Understanding this structure — and how it responds to disruption — is important for tackling illnesses like diabetes and posttraumatic stress disorder. The scientists have also found that disruption to these rhythms such as shifts in work schedules or blue light exposure at night can negatively impact overall health. Read more about the research here: https://www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2016/05/mapping-circuit-of-our-internal-clock

Curved lenses, like those in cameras or telescopes, are stacked in order to reduce distortions and resolve a clear image — that's why telephoto lenses are so long and high-powered microscopes so big. But what if you could replace those stacks with a single flat — or planar — lens? Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have demonstrated the first planar lens that works with high efficiency within the visible spectrum of light — covering the whole range of colors from red to blue. The lens can resolve nanoscale features separated by distances smaller than the wavelength of light by using an ultra-thin array of tiny waveguides, known as a metasurface, which bends light as it passes through. This lens could replace stacks of lenses in everything from cell phones to cameras, microscopes and telescopes. Learn more about it here

Morning Prayers service with speaker Jelani Nelson, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, on Saturday, November 21, 2015.