It’s a gloomy, rainy Sunday in downtown Portsmouth. I’m hanging out in a dark basement beneath a bookstore waiting to see a creepy Halloween music show for kids. Dozens of children dressed in their Halloween finest crowd the room. There are princesses and superheroes. An elephant finds a seat next to a dinosaur as the show is about to begin. (Editor's note: we highly recommend listening to this story.) Doctor Gasp is dressed in a long black cape with a white skeleton mask covering his face. Jack-o-lanterns cast orange light across a makeshift stage. He gives a lively performance, jumping and dancing while playing his guitar. The kids get up to dance along with him. Monster Mash is a crowd favorite of course. I sat down with Doctor Gasp after the show to find out who he is behind the mask. Dan Blakeslee is actually a folk singer for most of the year. When he first started writing Halloween music, he would play under his own name at his regular shows. “But then it got to be at the point

The Rev. Bernard Randall, an ordained Church of England chaplain, has taken legal action against Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby for blocking a disciplinary case against the Bishop of Derby who labeled him a safeguarding risk due to his traditional Christian views on gender identity..

It can costs kids and parents several hundred dollars to play a single sport in high school. Could there be big changes to the "pay-to-play" system in Ohio?

The head of the All-Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation, Irina Viner, announced that her athletes would no longer compete at international tournaments in a neutral status, TASS reports. According to Viner, until recently Russian athletes could only count on one place in victory at the Games. "What's the point of that? There's no flag, no anthem, no communication, no fans, but there's special uniforms and special music. It would be a shame if we go there. This would be very humiliating for Russia. Russian rhythmic gymnasts will not go there for certain. We will never again perform without the Russian flag and anthem," said Viner.

US President Joe Biden may take drastic actions before he resigns, Alexander Yakovenko, a member of the scientific council at the Security Council of the Russian Federation and former Russian Ambassador to the UK believes. "Biden and his administration are still in power as a lame duck. In December 2016, Barack Obama similarly decided to sharply aggravate relations with Russia by expelling 35 Russian diplomats. The same can be expected now, especially in Ukraine,” Yakovenko said. Trump will take up US foreign affairs before his inauguration while trying to push the current administration out of decision-making processes, Yakovenko suggested.

War correspondent Yevgeny Poddubny, who was injured in an attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region, was hospitalised in serious condition to a regional clinical hospital. In the morning of August 8, Poddubny was taken to the Sklifosovsky Institute of Emergency Medicine in Moscow, the Health Department said. After the attack, the journalist was immediately placed in the anti-shock department, given intensive therapy and then transferred to intensive care. Specialists from leading federal clinics make every effort to save the man's life.

Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the ceremony to launch the Chukotka nuclear icebreaker built at the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg. Putin participated from Moscow via video link. The footage shows the head of state giving the command "Launch cleared!" A bottle of champagne was traditionally smashed against the side of the vessel before launch. Three best workers of the Baltic Shipyard cut the detent that secured the ship to the land. The multi-ton vessel then slowly slid along the rails into the water.

British Business-to-Business (B2B) companies take on average 32 days to collect, collate and enrich all the necessary data for a new product launch, significantly impacting UK productivity and go-to-market times, according to research conducted by Akeneo, the Product Experience (PX) Company and leading provider of Product Information Management (PIM) solutions.

Centrers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that the more contagious subvariant BA.2 of omicron strain now makes up 72% of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. According to the data, the BA.2 is able to displace all other COVID-19 strains and its subvariants. Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Washington state, estimates that the displacement might happen in the next two weeks. According to different sources, the BA.2 is from 30% to 80% more contagious than the BA.1. A top WHO official, Maria Van Kerkhove, describes BA.2 as the most transmissible version of the virus so far. 

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Medical students will be allowed to take a leave of absence as long as the request is for personal reasons.   The education ministry revealed the decision on Tuesday after holding a closed-door meeting with the presidents of 40 universities that have medical schools.   Previously, medical students were ...

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To strengthen the global competitiveness of K-contents, eleven organizations will pool their resources to create a strategic fund worth approximately 600 billion won, or over 454 million U.S. dollars. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Ministry of Science and ICT announced Wednesday that ...

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Seabed geology data: stakeholder consultation  British Geological Survey

Investigation of the analyte soaking conditions on the crystalline sponge {[(ZnI2)3(tpt)2·x(solvent)]n} method using a statistical design of experiments model has provided fundamental insights into the influence of experimental variables. This approach focuses on a single analyte tested via 60 experiments (20 unique conditions) to identify the main effects for success and overall guest structure quality. This is employed as a basis for the development of a novel molecular structure grading system that enables the quantification of guest exchange quality.

Source: Streetwise Reports 10/22/2024

The growth of artificial intelligence, the need for more computer data centers, the eventual adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), and the need for more net-zero power means a renaissance in nuclear power is underway.

Just last month, Microsoft Corp. (MSFT:NASDAQ) announced a deal with Constellation Energy Group (CEG:NYSE) to restart and buy all of the power from one of the shut-down reactors at its infamous Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania and the Biden administration also announced a plan to restart the Palisades plant in Michigan.

"Biden has called for a tripling of U.S. nuclear power capacity to fuel energy demand that is accelerating in part due to expansion of power-hungry technologies like artificial intelligence and cloud computing," Valerie Volcovici wrote for Reuters on Oct. 8.

The administration also wants to develop small nuclear reactors (SMRs) for certain applications.

All of this is putting the metal needed to power nuclear energy, uranium, front and center. Prices for the element have started rising, with nuclear fuel trading at US$83.30 per pound last Thursday, a level not seen since 2007, according to a report by Daily Finland on Friday.

Uranium prices are expected to move higher by the end of this quarter, when Trading Economics' global macro models and analyses forecast uranium to trade at US$84.15 per pound, Nuclear Newswire reported on Oct. 3. In another year, the site estimates that the metal will trade at US$91.80 per pound.

The Catalyst: Surging Demand

The engine driving the prices is a "fundamental global shortage" of uranium driven by surging demand, said Andre Leibenberg, chief executive officer of Yellow Cake, which is focused on providing exposure to uranium's spot price.

The demand is stemming not only from a growing recognition of nuclear power's role in the future energy mix, but also from its critical importance in supporting the AI boom and the development of data centers, he wrote in a company update last week, according to Mining Weekly.

According to the report, Liebenberg noted that the primary mine supply of 140 million pounds was significantly trailing behind global demand of more than 180 million pounds a year.

In the European Union, a "lack of clarity" about Russian uranium imports is holding back investment in new enrichment plants, according to Reuters.

Russia supplied more than 25% of European and American enriched uranium before the start of the Ukraine war in February 2022, the report said.

Since then, "the U.S. implemented a ban on imports of enriched uranium from Russia in August, with some exemptions, but in Europe, different countries have taken different approaches," muddying the waters.

Complicating matters is a hint in September that Russian President Vladimir Putin might embargo exports of the vital element to the west.

Citi, in a note to clients, said utilities have been stockpiling Russian uranium, but an embargo would make it "hard to replace" supplies of the metal in the next two years.

"Russia supplies close to 12% of U3O8 (known as yellow cake), 25% of UF6 (uranium hexafluoride) and 35% of EUP (enriched uranium product) to international markets," the bank said, according to Forbes. "While the largest share of these supplies goes to China and in supplying nuclear reactors that were built by Russia's Rosatom, we believe that at-risk supplies are exports to the U.S. or Western Europe."

The consequences of what could happen without more nuclear power can be seen in the U.K., where the number of reactors is shrinking. Four of five of them are expected to close in the next couple of years, which could "stretch the grid to the limit."

"As Britain's reactor fleet shrivels, the amount of nuclear capacity will fall from six gigawatts (GW) today to just 1.2 GW by 2028 or soon after," Jonathan Leake and Matt Oliver wrote for The Telegraph last week. "Along with rising demand from power-hungry data centers and technologies of the future, it will make it even harder to keep the lights on when wind and solar generation is low."

Small Nuclear Reactors (SMRs)

SMRs are another possible solution for some medium-sized energy needs. They have been operational for dozens of years in submarines and other long-distance ocean-going craft.

"They can be manufactured in factories and then rapidly erected on-site," Dominic Frisby wrote for his newsletter, The Flying Frisby, on Oct. 13. They are scalable, and that flexibility "aids manufacture, transportation, and installation while reducing construction time and costs."

A 440-megawatt (MW) SMR would produce about 3.5 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity per year, enough for 1.2 million homes, Frisby noted.

SMRs produce electricity that can easily be adjusted to meet the constant, everyday needs of the grid (baseload), and they can also ramp up or down to follow changes in demand throughout the day, the author wrote. They spin in sync with the grid, so they help keep everything stable.

"When they're running, they act like a steady hand, providing momentum that makes it easier to manage sudden changes in electricity supply or demand," he wrote.

'Bucket Loads of Power' Needed

All of this equates for a bright future for the metal, he said.

"Guess what? AI requires bucket loads of power," Frisby wrote. "That's why Microsoft recently agreed to pay Constellation Energy, the new owner of America's infamous nuclear power station, Three Mile Island, a sizeable premium for its energy. There is cheaper wind and solar power to be had in Pennsylvania, but it isn't as reliable as nuclear 24 hours a day. It's not just AI. The widespread political desire to rid ourselves of fossil fuels means the world needs electricity, and fast."

Chris Temple, publisher of The National Investor, recently noted that with the Three Mile Island deal, "uranium/nuclear power is BACK!"

"I've watched as the news has continued to point to uranium being in the early innings of this new bull market," Temple wrote. "Yet the markets have been yawning . . . until now."

What follows are several uranium explorers and producers that could benefit from this upswing for investors looking to take advantage.

Baselode Energy Corp.

Baselode Energy Corp. (FIND:TSX.V; BSENF:OTCQB) controls 100% of about 273,000 hectares for exploration in the Athabasca Basin area in northern Saskatchewan, Canada.[OWNERSHIP_CHART-10321]

The company said it discovered the ACKIO near-surface, high-grade uranium deposit in September 2021. ACKIO measures greater than 375 meters along strike, greater than 150 meters wide, and is comprised of at least 11 separate zones. Mineralization starts as shallow as 28 meters beneath the surface and continues down to about 300 meters depth beneath the surface, with the bulk of mineralization occurring in the upper 120 meters, Baselode said. ACKIO remains open to the west and south and along the Athabasca sandstone unconformity to the east and south.

Earlier this month, the company reported positive uranium assay results from three drill holes of its 2024 drill program at ACKIO.

Notably, drill hole AK24-119 intersected 0.28% U3O8 over 21.0 meters, including a high-grade section of 1.55% U3O8 over 1.5 meters at a depth of 141 meters. While drill hole AK24-118 returned 0.59% U3O8 over 8.5 meters, including 1.25% U3O8 over 1.5 meters at a depth of 153 meters.

"These results strengthen our confidence in ACKIO," Chief Executive Officer James Sykes said in a release. "It's remarkable that, just over three years after discovering ACKIO, we're still achieving better-than-expected grades and widths."

Baselode expects further assay results from the remaining 40 drill holes to be released after quality review and approval.

David Talbot, Managing Director at Red Cloud Securities, noted in a September 17 report that drilling at ACKIO "continued to expand the mineralized footprint at Pods 1, 6, and 7," highlighting that "thirteen holes reported composite intervals of anomalous radioactivity between 11m and 42m in thickness."

In his report, Talbot rated the stock as a Buy and further projected the potential for "8-10-12 million pounds of U3O8 at a grade of ~0.3% U3O8," which aligns with typical grades found in the southeastern part of the Athabasca Basin.

According to Refinitiv, Baselode has institutions holding 23.26% with Alps Advisors holding the bulk of it with 17.94%, followed by Vident Investment Advisory LLC at 2.97%. Management and Insiders hold 1.59%. The rest is retail.

The company has a market cap of CA$20.05 million, with 131.51 free float shares. It trades in the 52-week range between CA$0.10 and CA$0.61.

Uranium Energy Corp.

According to its website, Uranium Energy Corp. (UEC:NYSE AMERICAN) is America's "largest and fastest growing supplier of uranium."[OWNERSHIP_CHART-402]

The company said it is advancing the next generation of low-cost, environmentally friendly in-situ recovery (ISR) mining uranium projects in the United States and high-grade conventional projects in Canada. It has two production-ready ISR hub and spoke platforms in South Texas and Wyoming.

Additionally, Uranium Energy Corp. said it has diversified uranium holdings with one of the largest physical uranium portfolios of U.S. warehoused U3O8; a major equity stake in Uranium Royalty Corp., the only royalty company in the sector; and a Western Hemisphere pipeline of resource stage uranium projects.

Most recently, the company announced it was expanding its U.S. uranium production capacity by acquiring Rio Tinto Plc.'s Sweetwater Plant and a portfolio of Wyoming uranium assets.

On September 25, Temple of The National Investor noted that UEC was "upgraded back to Buy" following recent uranium market news. He pointed to UEC's acquisition of the Wyoming uranium assets as a catalyst, emphasizing that uranium is "in the early innings of this new bull market."

Jeff Clark of The Gold Advisor, in his September 26 update, called the acquisition a "significant move," noting that it consolidated a large portfolio of uranium assets under UEC's control, positioning the company for rapid growth. He also highlighted the company's strategic advantage with "53,000 additional acres for exploration," reinforcing UEC's potential to ramp up production.

According to Reuters, Uranium Energy has a market cap of US$3.48 billion and 411.41 million shares outstanding. It trades in a 52-week range of US$4.06 and US$8.66.

About 2% of UE is help by management and insiders, Reuters noted. The largest portion, 77.58%, is held by institutional investors. The rest is in retail.

Terra Clean Energy Corp.

Formerly Tisdale Clean Energy Corp., Terra Clean Energy Corp. (TCEC:CSE; TCEFF:OTC; T1KC:FSE), a Canadian-based uranium exploration and development company, is currently developing the South Falcon East uranium project, which holds a 6.96-million-pound inferred uranium resource within the Fraser Lakes Zone B uranium/thorium deposit, located in the Athabasca Basin region of Saskatchewan.[OWNERSHIP_CHART-10935]

Representing a portion of Skyharbour Resources Ltd.'s existing South Falcon Project, Terra Clean Energy's project covers approximately 12,464 hectares and lies 18 kilometers outside the Athabasca Basin, approximately 50 kilometers east of the Key Lake Mine.

Recently, the company announced a comprehensive exploration program set for Winter 2025 at its South Falcon East Uranium Project. The work will focus on extending the mineralized footprint at the Fraser Lakes B Uranium Deposit and includes about 2,000 meters of infill and step-out drilling designed to verify existing mineralized zones and identify additional targets.

In a release, Chief Executive Officer Alex Klenman described the initiative as "a unique setup for a Canadian microcap, offering multiple paths to significant value creation." This US$1.5 million project will involve TerraLogic Exploration Inc., operating out of SkyHarbour's McGowan Lake Camp with helicopter support.

According to Reuters, management and insiders hold 4.62% of Terra Clean Energy. Of those, Alex Klenman holds the most, with 4.37%.

Strategic Investors hold 12.03%, with Planet Ventures Inc holding the most at 7.40%. The rest is retail.

Terra Clean Energy has a market cap of CA$2.98 million and a 52-week range of CA$0.05 to CA$0.22.

North Shore Uranium Ltd.

North Shore Uranium Ltd. (NSU:TSX) said it is working to become a major force in exploration for economic uranium deposits at the eastern margin of the Athabasca Basin.[OWNERSHIP_CHART-10945]

The company said it is running exploration programs at its Falcon and West Bear properties and evaluating opportunities to complement its portfolio of uranium properties.

Falcon consists of 15 mineral claims, the company said. Four of them comprise 12,791 hectares and are 100%-owned by the company. The remaining 11 claims totaling 2,908 hectares are subject to an option agreement with Skyharbour Resources Ltd. Under the terms of the option agreement, North Shore has the option to earn up to 100% interest in the 11 claims by completing certain payments.

Earlier this month, the company announced details of its target generation efforts at its Falcon uranium project at the eastern margin of Saskatchewan's Athabasca Basin. The company said it has identified 36 uranium targets across three zones.

"We have a great pipeline of targets to choose from for our next drill program at Falcon," said President and Chief Executive Officer Brooke Clements. "Our Zone 2 has attracted the interest of uranium explorers in the past, and we believe there is potential to make a significant uranium discovery using new data and interpretation."

Earlier this month, North Shore announced it had received a Crown Land Work permit for the full 55,700-hectare Falcon project. Issued by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment, it authorizes the company to conduct mineral exploration activities, including prospecting and ground geophysics, trail and drill site clearing, line cutting, the drilling of up to 75 exploration drill holes, and the storage of drill core. The permit expires in July 2027.

Insiders and founding investors own approximately 45% of the issued and outstanding shares. Clements himself owns 3.6% or 1.33M shares, Director Doris Meyer has 2.11% or 0.78M shares, and Director James Arthur holds 1.58% or 0.58M shares. According to North Shore, 14.92M shares (40.5%) held by six founding investors are subject to a voluntary pooling agreement that restricts the disposition of these shares before October 19, 2026.

Most of the rest is with retail, as the institutional holdings are minor.

North Shore has 36.84M outstanding shares and currently has a market cap of CA$1.47 million. It has traded in the past 52 weeks between CA$0.04 and CA$0.30 per share.

Skyharbour Resources Ltd.

Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (SYH:TSX.V; SYHBF:OTCQX; SC1P:FSE) has an extensive portfolio of uranium exploration projects in Canada's Athabasca Basin, with 29 projects, 10 of which are drill-ready, covering over 1.4 million acres of mineral claims. In addition to being a high-grade uranium exploration company, Skyharbour utilizes a prospect generator strategy by bringing in partner companies to advance its secondary assets.[OWNERSHIP_CHART-6026]

In an updated research note on July 24, Analyst Sid Rajeev of Fundamental Research Corp. wrote that Skyharbour "owns one of the largest portfolios among uranium juniors in the Athabasca Basin."

"Given the highly vulnerable uranium supply chain, we anticipate continued consolidation within the sector," wrote Rajeev, who reiterated the firm's Buy rating and adjusted its fair value estimate from CA$1.16 to CA$1.21 per share. "Additionally, the rapidly growing demand for energy from the AI industry is likely to accelerate the adoption of nuclear power, which should, in turn, spotlight uranium juniors in the coming months."

Skyharbour acquired from Denison Mines, a large strategic shareholder of the company, a 100% interest in the Moore Uranium Project, which is located 15 kilometers east of Denison's Wheeler River project and 39 kilometers south of Cameco's McArthur River uranium mine. Moore is an advanced-stage uranium exploration property with high-grade uranium mineralization at the Maverick Zone, including highlight drill results of 6.0% U3O8 over 5.9 meters, including 20.8% U3O8 over 1.5 meters at a vertical depth of 265 meters.

Adjacent to the Moore Uranium Project is Skyharbour's Russell Lake Uranium Project optioned from Rio Tinto, which hosts historical high-grade drill intercepts over a large property area with robust exploration upside potential. The 73,294-ha Russell Lake Uranium Property is strategically located in the central core of the Eastern Athabasca Basin of northern Saskatchewan. Skyharbour has recently discovered high-grade uranium mineralization in a new zone at Russell and is carrying out an additional 7-8,000-meter drill campaign across both Russell and Moore.

Management, insiders, and close business associates own approximately 5% of Skyharbour.

According to Reuters, President and CEO Trimble owns 1.6%, and Director David Cates owns 0.70%.

Institutional, corporate, and strategic investors own approximately 55% of the company. Denison Mines owns 6.3%, Rio Tinto owns 2.0%, Extract Advisors LLC owns 9%, Alps Advisors Inc. owns 9.91%, Mirae Asset Global Investments (U.S.A) L.L.C. owns 6.29%, Sprott Asset Management L.P. owns 1.5%, and Incrementum AG owns 1.18%, Reuters reported.

There are 182.53 million shares outstanding with 178 million free float traded shares, while the company has a market cap of CA$89.44 million and trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.31 and CA$0.64.

ATHA Energy Corp.

Atha Energy Corp. (SASK:TSX.V; SASKF:OTCMKTS) is a Canadian mineral company engaged in the acquisition, exploration, and development of uranium assets with a portfolio including three 100%-owned post-discovery uranium projects (the Angilak Project located in Nunavut, and CMB Discoveries in Labrador hosting historical resource estimates of 43.3 million pounds and 14.5 million pounds U3O8 respectively, and the newly discovered basement-hosted GMZ high-grade uranium discovery located in the Athabasca Basin).[OWNERSHIP_CHART-11007]

In addition, the company said it holds the largest cumulative prospective exploration land package (more than 8.5 million acres) in two of the world's most prominent basins for uranium discoveries. ATHA also holds a 10% carried interest in key Athabasca Basin exploration projects operated by NexGen Energy Ltd. and IsoEnergy Ltd.

Technical Analyst Maund considers Atha Energy to be "THE top play in the uranium sector" and has an Immediate Strong Buy rating on it, he wrote in the previously mentioned Oct. 17 report.

The company's 3-, 13- and 26-month charts indicate its stock price had been in a bear market since trading began until September, when it had an upwave or preliminary breakout. This, along with other indicators, including positive accumulation-distribution convergence and high volume, suggest another upleg is expected soon, he said.

"Given the outlook for the uranium price and what Atha Energy has going for it, its stock is astoundingly cheap after its persistent downtrend this year," Maund wrote.

According to Refinitiv, 10 management and insiders own 16.44% of Atha Energy. The Top 5 are Timothy Young with 6.32%, Matthew Mason with 5.8%, Atha Chairman Michael Castanho with 1.16%, and Atha Director Sean Kallir with 0.9%.

Seven institutional investors together hold 9.38%. The Top 3 are Alps Advisors Inc. with 6.26%, Sprott Asset Management LP with 1.3%, and Vident Investment Advisory LLC with 0.8%.

The remaining 74.18% of Atha is in retail.

According to the company, it has 277.9M shares outstanding, 14M options, 4M restricted stock units/performance rights, and 10.2M warrants.

Reuters reports Atha's market cap is CA$208.42 million, and its 52-week range is CA$0.46−$1.42 per share.

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Important Disclosures:

1. Skyharbour Resources Ltd. and Terra Clean Energy Corp. are billboard sponsors of Streetwise Reports and pay SWR a monthly sponsorship fee between US$4,000 and US$5,000. In addition, Terra Clean Energy has a consulting relationship with Street Smart an affiliate of Streetwise Reports. Street Smart Clients pay a monthly consulting fee between US$8,000 and US$20,000.
2. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of North Shore Uranium Ltd., Uranium Energy Corp., and Terra Clean Energy.
3. Steve Sobek wrote this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise Reports as an employee.
4. This article does not constitute investment advice and is not a solicitation for any investment. Streetwise Reports does not render general or specific investment advice and the information on Streetwise Reports should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her personal financial adviser and perform their own comprehensive investment research. By opening this page, each reader accepts and agrees to Streetwise Reports' terms of use and full legal disclaimer. Streetwise Reports does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company.

For additional disclosures, please click here.

( Companies Mentioned: SASK:TSX.V; SASKF:OTCMKTS, FIND:TSX.V; BSENF:OTCQB, NSU:TSX, SYH:TSX.V; SYHBF:OTCQX; SC1P:FSE, TCEC:CSE; TCEFF:OTC; T1KC:FSE, UEC:NYSE AMERICAN, )

Brad and George Takei, the new typical American married couple.; Credit: John Rabe/Grant Wood/Michael Uhlenkott

UPDATE: “Allegiance” will be performed Feb. 21-April 1, 2018, at the Aratani Theater at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center in downtown L.A.'s Little Tokyo.

ORIGINAL STORY: In an intimate interview, George Takei tells Off-Ramp host John Rabe about crafting the Japanese-American internment camp history into compelling Broadway musical theater. "Allegiance," with Takei, Lea Salonga and Telly Leung, played at the Longacre Theater.

George Takei and his husband Brad were putting their house in mothballs when I arrived for our interview in August. They'd already been spending a lot of time in New York because of George's recurring role on "The Howard Stern Show," but now, with the Broadway opening of "Allegiance" just a couple months away, they were preparing to move for as long as the musical brings in the crowds.

While Brad went off to deal with the mundane domestic tasks around the move, I sat with George in their living room to talk about turning one of America's most shameful episodes — the internment of some 120,000 loyal Japanese-Americans during World War II — into a musical that could make it on the Broadway stage.

George, you just sent an email to your fans with the subject line: "I've Waited 7 Years to Send You this Email. Seven years!" Inside, you wrote: "Few things are as difficult and complex as taking a show to ‪Broadway‬. It's both thrilling and terrifying." What was terrifying?

"The terrifying part is, you've poured your passion, your energy, your resources ...  you make all that investment in that project, and then you're hoping the seats are going to be filled.That 'what if' is terrifying. But in San Diego, we had a sold-out run and broke their 77-year record. But now we're going to Broadway, and that same fear is there. Will they come? What will the critics say? Because it's life or death."

It took a long time just to get a Broadway theater.

"It took a long time to get a theater.You think there are a lot of Broadway theaters, but there are even more productions that want those chunks of New York real estate. So we thought we'd get in line. But then the other discovery we made is that the theater owners have relationships with grizzled old producers who have brought them a vast fortune with enormous hits, and they can cut in line. They have a track record. And so, 'will we ever get a theater' became a big question. But we have this time now — let's use it creatively, productively."

So, Takei says, the team tweaked the show, removing parts that didn't work didn't advance the story, inserting numbers that worked better and kept the story moving. They doubled down on social media, building and proving demand in the show.

"We have a Shubert theater (the Longacre), and Bob Wankel is head guy there, and I remember pouring my heart out, telling the story of my parents, hoping that touches. And he was understanding, but I understood his problem, too. Everybody is trying to get a theater and he has to make a good business decision and was initially skeptical. An internment camp musical? But music has the power to make an anguished painful situation even more moving, even more powerful. It hits you in the heart."

Highlights from "Allegiance" at the Old Globe in San Diego

This is your Broadway debut, right? Are you petrified?

"Yes, yes. I've done a lot of stage work, and I've done a lot of public speaking, but it's Broadway, and I'm a debutante... at 78 years old! And it's the critics, too. The New York Times, Ben Brantley. That's who I'm going to be facing, and so it's both exciting and absolutely filling me with ecstasy, but what makes it ecstatic is the fear."

For much more of our interview with George Takei, listen to the audio by clicking the arrow in the player at the top of the page ... and hear George Takei and John Rabe's duet of "Tiny Bubbles."

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Reconstructions from the Daynès Studio in Paris depict a male Neanderthal (right) face to face with a human, Homo sapiens.; Credit: /Science Source

It's something that many of us reckon with: the sense that we're not quite as sharp as we once were.

I recently turned 42. Having lost my grandfather to Alzheimer's, and with my mom suffering from a similar neurodegenerative disease, I'm very aware of what pathologies might lurk beneath my cranium.

In the absence of a cure for Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, the most important interventions for upholding brain function are preventive — those that help maintain our most marvelous, mysterious organ.

Based on the science, I take fish oil and broil salmon. I exercise. I try to challenge my cortex to the unfamiliar.

As I wrote my recent book, A History of the Human Brain, which recounts the evolutionary tale of how our brain got here, I began to realize that so many of the same influences that shaped our brain evolution in the first place reflect the very measures we use to preserve our cognitive function today.

Being social, and highly communicative. Exploring creative pursuits. Eating a varied, omnivorous diet low in processed foods. Being physically active.

These traits and behaviors help retrace our past, and, I believe, were instrumental in why we remain on the planet today.

And they all were, at least in part, enabled by our brain.

Social smart alecks finish first

The human saga is riddled with extinctions.

By "human," I don't just mean Homo sapiens, the species we belong to, but any member of the genus Homo. We've gotten used to being the only human species on Earth, but in our not so distant past — probably a few hundred thousand years ago – there were at least nine of us running around.

There was Homo habilis, or the "handy man." And Homo erectus, the first "pitcher." The Denisovans roamed Asia, while the more well-known Neanderthals spread throughout Europe.

But with the exception of Homo sapiens, they're all gone. And there's a good chance it was our fault.

Humans were never the fastest lot on the African plains, and far from the strongest. Cheetahs, leopards and lions held those distinctions. In our lineage, natural selection instead favored wits and wiliness.

Plenty of us became cat food, but those with a slight cognitive edge — especially Homo sapiens — lived on. In our ilk, smarts overcame strength and speed in enabling survival.

Ecology, climate, location and just sheer luck would've played important roles in who persisted or perished as well, as they do for most living beings. But the evolutionary pressure for more complex mental abilities would lead to a massive expansion in our brain's size and neurocircuitry that is surely the paramount reason we dominate the planet like no other species ever has.

Much of this "success," if you can call it that, was due to our social lives.

Primates are communal creatures. Our close monkey and ape cousins are incredibly interactive, grooming each other for hours a day to maintain bonds and relationships. Throw in a few hoots and hollers and you have a pretty complex community of communicating simians.

An active social life is now a known preserver of brain function.

Research shows that social isolation worsens cognitive decline (not to mention mental health, as many of us experienced this past year). Larger social networks and regular social activities are associated with mental preservation and slowed dementia progression.

Entwined in this new social life was an evolutionary pressure that favored innovation. Our eventual ability to generate completely novel thoughts and ideas, and to share those ideas, came to define our genus.

As we hunted and foraged together, and honed stones into hand axes, there was a collective creativity at work that gave us better weapons and tools that enabled more effective food sourcing, and, later, butchering and fire. Effectively sharing these innovations with our peers allowed information to spread faster than ever before - a seed for the larger communities and civilizations to come.

Challenging ourselves to new pursuits and mastering new skills can not only impress peers and ingratiate us to our group, but literally help preserve our brain. New hobbies. New conversations. Learning the banjo. Even playing certain video games and simply driving a new route home from work each day, as neuroscientist David Eagleman does, can keep our function high.

Whether it's honing ancient stone or taking up Sudoku, any pursuit novel and mentally challenging may help keep the neural circuits firing.

We really are what we eat

All the while, as we hunted and crafted in new and communal ways, we had to eat. And we did so with an uniquely adventurous palette.

Homo sapiens is among the most omnivorous species on the planet. Within reason we eat just about anything. Whether it's leaves, meat, fungus, or fruit, we don't discriminate. At some point, one of us even thought it might be a good idea to try the glistening, grey blobs that are oysters - and shellfish are, it turns out, among the healthiest foods for our brain.

The varied human diet is an integral part of our story. As was the near constant physicality required to source it.

On multiple occasions over the past 1 to 2 million years climate changes dried out the African landscape, forcing our ancestors out of the lush forest onto the dangerous, wide-open grasslands. As evolution pressured us to create and commune to help us survive, a diverse diet also supported our eventual global takeover.

Our arboreal past left us forever craving the dangling fruits of the forest, a supreme source of high-calorie sugars that ensured survival. Back then we didn't live long enough to suffer from Type 2 diabetes: if you encountered sweets, you ate them. And today we're stuck with a taste for cookies and candy that, given our longer lifespans, can take its toll on the body and brain.

But humans were just as amenable to dining on the bulbs, rhizomes and tubers of the savanna, especially once fire came along. We eventually became adept scavengers of meat and marrow, the spoils left behind by the big cats, who preferred more nutritive organ meat.

As our whittling improved we developed spears, and learned to trap and hunt the beasts of the plains ourselves. There is also evidence that we learned to access shellfish beds along the African coast and incorporate brain-healthy seafood into our diet.

Studying the health effects of the modern diet is tricky. Dietary studies are notoriously dubious, and often involve countless lifestyle variables that are hard to untangle.

Take blueberries. Multiple studies have linked their consumption with improved brain health. But, presumably, the berry-prone among us are also more likely to eat healthy all around, exercise, and make it to level 5 on their meditation app.

Which is why so many researchers, nutritionists, and nutritional psychiatrists now focus on dietary patterns, like those akin to Mediterranean culinary customs, rather than specific ingredients. Adhering to a Mediterranean diet is linked with preserved cognition; and multiple randomized-controlled trials suggest doing so can lower depression risk.

A similar diversity in our ancestral diet helped early humans endure an ever-shifting climate and times of scarcity. We evolved to subsist and thrive on a wide range of foods, in part because our clever brains allowed us access to them. In turn, a similarly-varied diet (minus submitting to our innate sugar craving of course) is among the best strategies to maintain brain health.

All of our hunting, and foraging, and running away from predators would have required intense physical exertion. This was certainly not unique to humans, but we can't ignore the fact that regular exercise is another effective means of preserving brain health.

Being active improves performance on mental tasks, and may help us better form memories. Long before the Peletons sold out, our brains relied on both mental and physical activity.

But overwhelmingly the evidence points to embracing a collection of lifestyle factors to keep our brain healthy, none of which existed in a Darwinian vacuum.

Finding food was as social an endeavor as it was mental and physical. Our creative brains harnessed information; gossiping, innovating, and cooking our spoils around the campfire.

Researchers are beginning to piece together the complex pathology behind the inevitable decline of the human brain, and despite a parade of failed clinical trials in dementia, there should be promising treatments ahead.

Until then, in thinking about preserving the conscious experience of our world and relationships — and living our longest, happiest lives — look to our past.

Bret Stetka is a writer based in New York and an editorial director at Medscape. His work has appeared in Wired, Scientific American, and on The Atlantic.com. His new book, A History of the Human Brain, is out from Timber/Workman Press. He's also on Twitter: @BretStetka.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Athletes compete during the cycling portion of the IRONMAN 70.3 Steelhead on June 27, 2021 in Benton Harbor, Michigan. ; Credit: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images for IRONMAN

Whether you’re new to running or you’ve finished your tenth triathlon, we want to hear from you about what motivates you and how that translates into pushing yourself physically. 

Guests: 

Mark Remy, longtime runner and writer in Portland, Oregon; creator of humor website dumbrunner.com; he is the author of many books, including The Runner's Rule Book: Everything a Runner Needs to Know--And Then Some (Runner's World) (Rodale Books, 2009)

Sharon McNary, infrastructure correspondent at KPCC; she finished her 11th Ironman Race last week at Coeur d’Alene; she tweets @KPCCsharon

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Source: Streetwise Reports 11/05/2024

Treatment.com AI Inc. (TRUE:CSE; TREIF:OTCMKTS; 939:FRA) has announced the release of its newly updated Medical Education Suite (MES). This release aligns with the company's active participation in a major symposium focused on AI assessment in medical education. The Symposium, hosted by the University of Minnesota Medical School,  drew thought leaders and representatives from over 50 medical schools and national education organizations across the United States and internationally.

The updated MES has been designed to leverage Treatment's proprietary Global Library of Medicine (GLM) to help reduce the administration overhead and associated time and costs for medical schools in running key exams, such as the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). Additionally, this updated version of the MES includes "easy to use" features to further support students in their clinical assessment training and exam preparation. This OSCE exam is seen as a critical evaluation used globally to assess the practical skills of medical students. It is now employed in more than 80 countries, with between 200,000 to 300,000 students participating annually.¹

The MES incorporates various AI-driven features, such as automated case generation for OSCE exams, scripts for simulated patients, and instant scoring with personalized feedback. The Suite also introduces new tools, including AI Patient, which supports students preparing for medical exams, and expanded OSCE case packages, which are expected to grow to a library of 100 cases by the end of Q4 2024. Additionally, the AI Prep Tool offers both non-guided and guided exam-simulated modes, assisting students in honing their clinical reasoning.

Kevin Peterson, MD, MPH, Treatment's Chief Medical Officer, delivered a keynote at the Symposium, joining an impressive lineup that includes presenters from Mayo Clinic and the University of Alberta. The company highlights that this Symposium is a crucial opportunity to demonstrate its MES and showcase its growing influence in the field of medical education.

CEO Dr. Essam Hamza emphasized the significance of this event, stating in the press release, "We are excited to showcase our updated medical education software suite at this landmark Symposium. The opportunity to have a positive impact on the medical training of students and, in turn, introduce them to our range of proprietary AI tools is an important inflection point in the company's commercialization timeline."

AI in Healthcare

On October 10, Microsoft emphasized the importance of multimodal AI models for a comprehensive assessment of patient health. The report highlighted the growing importance of using AI to analyze complex, multimodal health data, such as medical imaging, genomics, and clinical records. The integration of these data sources has enabled more precise diagnostics and treatment planning, illustrating the sector's move toward comprehensive AI applications. The healthcare industry has faced challenges like the need for large-scale, integrated datasets and significant computational resources, but advancements have begun to bridge these gaps. Microsoft noted that these developments would help unlock new insights and improve patient care by accelerating innovation and enhancing clinical decision-making across the sector.

On November 4, Forbes reported that AI-powered healthcare tools were no longer merely experimental but were instead delivering real value across the industry. Examples included enhanced diagnostic accuracy through AI algorithms, like those developed by Google Cloud Healthcare, and improved administrative processes through platforms like Cedar's AI-powered billing system. Forbes noted that these developments were reshaping patient care and reducing administrative burdens, offering measurable benefits.

Also, on November 4, Tech Target highlighted the optimism among healthcare professionals regarding generative AI's potential to alleviate administrative burdens. Over 90% of healthcare workers surveyed expressed confidence in generative AI's ability to simplify tasks like prior authorizations and nurse handoff reports. Aashima Gupta from Google Cloud shared insights on these tools' transformative capabilities, while Tony Farah from Highmark Health cited an 85% reduction in provider administrative costs after automating prior authorizations. Helen Waters from Meditech added, "We believe that gen AI and AI overall is transforming how healthcare professionals access and use information to make powerful decisions confidently," reflecting the positive impact of AI tools on healthcare workflows and decision-making.

Company Catalysts

Treatment.com AI Inc. continues to evolve its medical education platform, incorporating advanced AI technologies that could help revolutionize medical education and training. The company is leveraging its Global Library of Medicine, which offers over 10,000 medical reviews and covers more than 1,000 diseases and associated symptoms. These AI-driven tools aim to enhance clinical decision-making while reducing administrative burdens for healthcare institutions.

The updated MES is projected to impact medical training through its comprehensive and AI-enhanced features, as outlined in Treatment's investor presentation. The presentation details the significant market potential, with the AI healthcare market expected to grow from US$11 billion in 2021 to US$187 billion by 2030, according to Statista. In addition to Treatment's announced new functionality, the company has already begun work on further solutions such as AI Doctor in a Pocket and audio/video analysis tools for clinical scoring and diagnostics. The goal of this expanded portfolio is to position the company to help expedite its aggressive growth plans over the next year.

Analysis of Treatment.com AI

Ownership and Share Structure

According to Sedi.ca, insiders own approximately 8% of Treatment.com AI. Retail investors own the remaining 92%. 

The company has 48.99 million outstanding common shares and has 41.3 million free float traded shares.

As of November 4, the market cap is approximately CA$31.35 million. Over the past 52 weeks, the company traded between CA$0.355 and CA$1.11 per share.

¹Source bodies including: https://www.aamc.org/; https://www.uems.eu/; https://www.nmc.org.in/; Education – GMC (gmc-uk.org)

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Important Disclosures:

1. Treatment.com AI has a consulting relationship with Street Smart an affiliate of Streetwise Reports. Street Smart Clients pay a monthly consulting fee between US$8,000 and US$20,000.
2. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Treatment.com AI.
3. James Guttman wrote this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise Reports as an employee.
4. This article does not constitute investment advice and is not a solicitation for any investment. Streetwise Reports does not render general or specific investment advice and the information on Streetwise Reports should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her personal financial adviser and perform their own comprehensive investment research. By opening this page, each reader accepts and agrees to Streetwise Reports' terms of use and full legal disclaimer. Streetwise Reports does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company.
5. This article does not constitute medical advice. Officers, employees and contributors to Streetwise Reports are not licensed medical professionals. Readers should always contact their healthcare professionals for medical advice.

For additional disclosures, please click here.

* Disclosure for the quote from the Clive Maund article published on [Date]

1. For the quoted article (published on [Date]), the Company has paid Street Smart, an affiliate of Streetwise Reports, between US$1,500 and US$2,500.
2. Author Certification and Compensation: [Clive Maund of clivemaund.com] is being compensated as an independent contractor by Street Smart, an affiliate of Streetwise Reports, for writing the article quoted. Maund received his UK Technical Analysts’ Diploma in 1989. The recommendations and opinions expressed in the article accurately reflect the personal, independent, and objective views of the author regarding any and all of the designated securities discussed. No part of the compensation received by the author was, is, or will be directly or indirectly related to the specific recommendations or views expressed

Clivemaund.com Disclosures

The quoted article represents the opinion and analysis of Mr. Maund, based on data available to him, at the time of writing. Mr. Maund's opinions are his own, and are not a recommendation or an offer to buy or sell securities. As trading and investing in any financial markets may involve serious risk of loss, Mr. Maund recommends that you consult with a qualified investment advisor, one licensed by appropriate regulatory agencies in your legal jurisdiction and do your own due diligence and research when making any kind of a transaction with financial ramifications. Although a qualified and experienced stock market analyst, Clive Maund is not a Registered Securities Advisor. Therefore Mr. Maund's opinions on the market and stocks cannot be only be construed as a recommendation or solicitation to buy and sell securities.

¹Source bodies including: https://www.aamc.org/; https://www.uems.eu/; https://www.nmc.org.in/; Education – GMC (gmc-uk.org)

( Companies Mentioned: TRUE:CSE; TREIF:OTCMKTS;939:FRA, )

The growth of artificial intelligence, the need for more computer data centers, the eventual adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), and the need for more net-zero power means nuclear power, and the uranium needed to fuel it, is seeing a resurgence. Here are some options to make the situation work for your portfolio.

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Most U.S. colleges and universities are struggling to adjust to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Historically Black Colleges and Universities — known as HBCUs — are facing their own unique challenges.

After more than a year of isolation, remote school, and disrupted routines, how can schools support students’ mental health and development? Read what youth have to say about how they’re doing, and what they need as they return to the classroom.

As the omicron variant of the coronavirus sweeps through the U.S. and other parts of the world — and with the possibility of emerging new variants looming — building confidence in vaccines has become even more important. How can knowledge from the social sciences inform effective communication around vaccines?

Science academies from the G-7 nations issued statements urging their governments to take action on four global challenges — developing antiviral drugs to prepare for future pandemics, speeding progress on decarbonization, protecting the oceans and sea ice, and implementing a One Health approach to zoonotic disease and antimicrobial resistance.

Registration is now open for the Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing, to be held March 6-8, 2023, in London. The three-day summit is being organized by the Royal Society and U.K. Academy of Medical Sciences, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Medicine, and the World Academy of Sciences.

Last month, Meta, which owns Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram, failed to reach a deal with the Italian society of authors and publishers SIAE, to renew copyright licenses.

In an interview with the BBC last month, CEO Elon Musk said he had fired more than 6,000 people since taking over Twitter.

Users get a Twitter-like microblogging experience, according to screenshots provided to media, suggesting that Meta Platforms has been gearing up to directly challenge the platform after Musk's tumultuous ownership has resulted in a series of unpopular changes that have turned off users and advertisers.

In order to take on the professional social networking platform LinkedIn, Twitter appears to be working on a job posting feature that will allow verified organisations to post job listings on their profiles

Tropical Cyclone Hermine was just a swirl of clouds with no rainfall off the coast of southeastern Massachusetts on Thursday, Sept. 8. Just two days earlier, the GPM satellite saw that Hermine was still generating some rainfall.

read more

A young US-returned robotic engineer is making waves with his experiments in agriculture.

Ameren signed a supply deal with a data center with a power capacity of 250 megawatt (MW). It has also received expansion commitments and executed new contracts for more 85 MW of additional load for smaller data centers and other industries across Missouri and Illinois.

Digital euro enthusiasts say it will complement cash and ensure the ECB does not leave a gap that could be filled by private, usually non-European, players and other central banks. Critics question the need for a digital euro and banks warn of major risks, while the ECB's own study found the public was concerned over payment privacy.

There’s a growing phenomenon in CIOs’ lives, and it’s called Shadow IT: other departments like finance and marketing bypassing the IT department and buying their own technology.

Google's head of research, Yossi Matias, emphasizes the enduring importance of coding skills in an AI-driven world. While acknowledging AI's growing role in software development, Matias argues that basic coding knowledge is crucial for understanding and leveraging AI's potential. He compares coding to math, suggesting that both are fundamental for navigating an increasingly tech-reliant society.

OpenAI took the internet by storm as its AI chatbot ChatGPT wowed people with its ability to formulate detailed and human-like answers on a wide range of subjects in a few seconds.

For weight maintenance, the common belief is that calories in should equal calories out. For weight loss, calories in should be less than calories out. Sounds simple, right?

Snack of almonds vs. a high-carbohydrate snack food resulted in a lower blood glucose response and fewer calories consumed over the course of the day.