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New Research: Crisis of Confidence over COVID-19 Could Delay Economic Recovery for a Decade

Wednesday, April 29, 2020 - 11:45

Working Paper from Columbia Business School Quantifies Impact of “Belief Scarring” on Economic Recovery, Finds Crisis Could Result in over 180% loss of annual GDP




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New Research: Entrepreneurship, New Business Creation are Critical to COVID-19 Economic Recovery

Tuesday, May 5, 2020 - 09:00

Working Paper from Columbia Business School Emphasizes the Need to Accelerate New Businesses, Not Just Protect Existing Ones, to Restore the U.S. Economy




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Clinical implications of chromatin accessibility in human cancers

(Impact Journals LLC) Volume 11, Issue 18 of @Oncotarget Clinical implications of chromatin accessibility assessed by ATAC-seq profiling in human cancers especially in a large patient cohort is largely unknown.




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New therapeutic targets for infertility and cancer revealed

(Center for Genomic Regulation) An analysis of 13,000 tumours highlights two previously overlooked genes as potential new therapeutic targets for cancer treatment. Researchers also identify potential new therapeutic targets for male infertility. Both findings are the result of the most comprehensive evolutionary analysis of RNA modification proteins to date, published today in the journal Genome Biology.




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Androgen-deprivation treatments for prostate cancer could protect men from COVID-19

(European Society for Medical Oncology) A study of 4,532 men in the Veneto region of Italy has found that those who were being treated for prostate cancer with androgen-deprivation therapies (ADT) were less likely to develop the coronavirus COVID-19 and, if they were infected, the disease was less severe. The study is published in Annals of Oncology.




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Cancer survivors' experiences with financial toxicity

(Wiley) A recent Psycho-Oncology analysis of published studies found that few cancer survivors received financial information support from healthcare facilities during their initial treatment, even though cancer-related financial toxicity has multiple impacts on survivors' health and quality of life.




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Indicators of cancer may also be markers of heart failure

(Wiley) Heart failure and cancer are conditions with a number of shared characteristics. A new study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine found that in patients with heart failure, several known tumor markers can also be indicators of heart failure severity and progression.




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New rules for the physical basis of cellular organelle composition

(Princeton University, Engineering School) New findings about critical cellular structures have upended common assumptions about their formation and composition and provided new insight how molecular machines are built in living cells.




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Fighting autoimmunity and cancer: The nutritional key

(Luxembourg Institute of Health) Scientists at the Department of Infection and Immunity of the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) revealed a novel mechanism through which the immune system controls autoimmunity and cancer. In the special focus of the researchers were regulatory T cells -- a type of white blood cells that act as a brake on the immune system.




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Killing 'sleeper cells' may enhance breast cancer therapy

(Walter and Eliza Hall Institute) The anti-cancer medicine venetoclax could improve the current therapy for estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer - the most common form of breast cancer in Australia - according to preclinical studies led by Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers. The promising preclinical results for this 'triple therapy' have underpinned a phase 1 clinical trial in Melbourne, Australia, that is combining venetoclax with hormone therapy and CDK4/6 inhibitors in patients with ER+ breast cancer.




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Comparing opioid-related deaths among cancer survivors, general population

(JAMA Network) Death certificate data were used to compare the rate of opioid-related deaths in the US among cancer survivors with that of the general population from 2006 through 2016. Whether opioid-associated deaths in cancer survivors, who are often prescribed opioids for cancer-related pain, are rising at the same rate as in the general population is unknown.




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Palliative care for patients with cancer in COVID-19 era

(JAMA Network) The considerations and challenges affecting the palliative care specialty and delivery of palliative care in the COVID-19 era, as well as potential solutions, are discussed in this Viewpoint.




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Cancer and COVID-19: Facing the 'C words'

(JAMA Network) This essay discusses similarities between a doctor's experiences with diagnoses of cancer and COVID-19.




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Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, Meteorological Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (2020-2035), Meteorological Plan, China Meteorological Administration

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government welcomes the promulgation of the Meteorological Development Plan ...




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Cool Met Stuff, composition of air, main gases, climate change, global warming, carbon dioxide concentration, fraction, atmosphere

Do you know which main gases are contained in the composition of air? Under climate change and global warming, carbon dioxide ...




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Cool Met Stuff, rainstorms, Hong Kong, summer, loss of property, casualties, reviews, extreme torrential rain

Every summer, rainstorms occur in Hong Kong occasionally, leading to loss of property or even casualties.




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A hydrological model leads to advances in the creation of a world water map

(University of Córdoba) The University of Cordoba participated in the first shaping of a hydrological model on a basin scale as a global model to advance in world hydrological predictions.




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Simulations forecast nationwide increase in human exposure to extreme climate events

(DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) Using ORNL's now-decommissioned Titan supercomputer, a team of researchers estimated the combined consequences of many different extreme climate events at the county level, a unique approach that provided unprecedented regional and national climate projections that identified the areas most likely to face climate-related challenges.




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Considering how many firms can meet pollutant standards can spur green tech development

(Carnegie Mellon University) A new study developed a model of regulation in which the probability of a stricter standard being enacted increased with the proportion of firms in an industry that could meet the standard. The study found that regulations that consider the proportion of firms that can meet the new standard can motivate the development of a new green technology more effectively than regulations that do not consider this factor.




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NIH clinical trial tests remdesivir plus anti-inflammatory drug baricitinib for COVID-19

(NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) A randomized, controlled clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of a treatment regimen of the investigational antiviral remdesivir plus the anti-inflammatory drug baricitinib for COVID-19 has begun. The trial is now enrolling hospitalized adults with COVID-19 in the United States. The trial is expected to open at approximately 100 US and international sites. Investigators currently anticipate enrolling more than 1,000 participants. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is sponsoring the trial.




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CT scan database of 1000 sets was created for teaching AI to diagnose COVID-19

(Moscow Research and Practical Clinical Center for Diagnostics and Telemedicine Technologies) Researchers of the Moscow Diagnostics and Telemedicine Center collected a dataset that includes more than a thousand sets of chest CT scans of patients with imaging finding of COVID-19. As of today, it is the largest completely anonymized database of CT studies, which has no analogues in Russia or in the world. It is available for download and can be used for developing services based on artificial intelligence technologies.




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Diminished returns of educational attainment on heart disease among black Americans

(Bentham Science Publishers) Using a nationally representative sample, the researchers explored racial/ethnic variation in the link between educational attainment and heart disease among American adults.




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How nonprofits can boost donations using the marketing mix

(American Marketing Association) Nonprofits may better meet their missions by learning to effectively employ the entirety of the marketing mix to attract individuals to available donation opportunities.




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Which operations can restart first? New guide could help hospitals decide

(Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan) Now, as hospitals across the country start to return to doing non-emergency operations that keep their beds full and their books balanced, they need to think carefully about what resources each of those procedures will need as the pandemic continues. A new guide could help them prioritize and plan. Created by poring over seven years' worth of data from 17 common operations in dozens of hospitals, it's available for free for any hospital to use.




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Understanding the diversity of cancer evolution based on computational simulation

(The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo) Understanding the principles of cancer evolution is important in designing a therapeutic strategy. A research group at The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo (IMSUT) announced a new simulation model that describes various modes of cancer evolution in a unified manner.




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Civil engineering Professor Sharon Di wins NSF CAREER Award

(Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science) Sharon Di, assistant professor of civil engineering and engineering mechanics, has won a National Science Foundation CAREER Award for her work in the nascent field of autonomous vehicles and shared mobility transportation, areas rapidly being transformed by emerging communications and sensing technologies.




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Hidden symmetry found in chemical kinetic equations

(Rice University) Rice University researchers have discovered a hidden symmetry in the chemical kinetic equations scientists have long used to model and study many of the chemical processes essential for life.




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AI -- a new tool for cardiac diagnostics

(Uppsala University) Artificial intelligence (AI) may be an aid to interpreting ECG results, helping healthcare staff to diagnose diseases that affect the heart. Researchers at Uppsala University and heart specialists in Brazil have developed an AI that automatically diagnoses atrial fibrillation and five other common ECG abnormalities just as well as a cardiologist. The study has been published in Nature Communications.




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SFU epidemiologist awarded Genome B.C. grant to develop COVID-19 statistical tool

(Simon Fraser University) SFU professor Caroline Colijn’s research and data modelling to map the spread of COVID-19 in British Columbia has helped her procure funding from Genome B.C., a non-profit research organization that leads genomics innovation on Canada’s West Coast.




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Free use of Kudos Pro to help researchers keep communicating during pandemic disruption

(Kudos Innovations Ltd) Kudos helps researchers maximize reach and visibility of research by opening up Kudos Pro. The platform helps showcase work to a range of target audiences, supporting researchers in fields where conferences have been cancelled -- and those with COVID-19-relevant work that needs rapid communication. Over 2,000 researchers have already signed up.




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Effect of face-aging app on skin cancer protection behavior

(JAMA Network) This randomized clinical trial looked at the effect of a face-aging mobile app on daily sunscreen use and other skin protection among teens in Brazil. Selfies of students were altered to show UV effects on their future faces and shown to their class, accompanied by information about sun protection. Reducing UV exposure in children and adolescents is important because of the increased risk of skin cancer with cumulative UV exposure and sunburns early in life.




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Rutgers' Greg Moore elected to National Academy of Sciences

(Rutgers University) Rutgers Professor Gregory W. Moore, a renowned physicist who seeks a unified understanding of the basic forces and fundamental particles in the universe, has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences.




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Fly ash geopolymer concrete: Significantly enhanced resistance to extreme alkali attack

(University of Johannesburg) Fly ash generated by coal-fired power stations is a global environmental headache, creating groundwater and air pollution from vast landfills and ash dams. The waste product can be repurposed into geopolymer concrete, such as precast heat-cured structural elements for buildings. However, a critical durability problem has been low resistance to extreme alkali attack. UJ researchers found that high temperature heat-treatment at 200 degrees Celsius can halve this harmful mechanism in fly ash geopolymer concretes.




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Carbon footprint hotspots: Mapping China's export-driven emissions

(University of Michigan) The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted just how reliant the United States and other countries are on Chinese manufacturing, with widespread shortages of protective medical gear produced there.




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Archaeologists verify Florida's Mound Key as location of elusive Spanish fort

(Florida Museum of Natural History) Florida and Georgia archaeologists have discovered the location of Fort San Antón de Carlos, home of one of the first Jesuit missions in North America. The Spanish fort was built in 1566 in the capital of the Calusa, the most powerful Native American tribe in the region, on present-day Mound Key in the center of Estero Bay on Florida's Gulf Coast.




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Examining heart extractions in ancient Mesoamerica

(University of Chicago Press Journals) A recent study confirms that Mesoamerican priests ripped the hearts out of their still-living victims in three different ways. New forensic evidence, historic witness accounts and native representations now show that the most common form of native heart extraction was from beneath the rib cage, second was forceful chest penetration between two ribs and at mid-chest level between the nipples, and thirdly, a mid-chest opening of one single blow, extracting the heart from the front.




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Marooned on Mesozoic Madagascar

(Stony Brook University) In evolutionary terms, islands are the stuff of weirdness. It is on islands where animals evolve in isolation, often for millions of years, with different food sources, competitors, predators, and parasites...indeed, different everything compared to mainland species. As a result, they develop into different shapes and sizes and evolve into new species that, given enough time, spawn yet more new species.




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The story of three African slaves during Spanish colonialism, as told by their bones

(Cell Press) In a study appearing April 30 in the journal Current Biology, scientists tell the story of three 16th century African slaves identified from a mass burial site in Mexico City. Using a combination of genetic, osteological, and isotope analyses, the scientists determined from where in Africa they were likely captured, the physical hardships they experienced as slaves, and what novel pathogens they may have carried with them across the Atlantic.




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African skeletons from early colonial Mexico tell the story of first-generation slaves

(Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History) Three 16th-century skeletons from a mass burial in Mexico City highlight the role of the transatlantic slave trade in introducing and disseminating new pathogens to the Americas. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History and Escuela Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico analyzed skeletal features, genetic data and isotopes to explore the life history of three enslaved Africans and explore the wide-ranging impacts of massive forced migration.




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Infectious disease modeling study casts doubt on impact of Justinianic plague

(University of Maryland) Many historians have claimed the Justinianic Plague (c. 541-750 CE) killed half of the population of Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire. New historical research and mathematical modeling challenge the death rate and severity of this first plague pandemic, named for Emperor Justinian I.




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Demographic expansion of several Amazonian archaeological cultures by computer simulation

(Universitat Pompeu Fabra - Barcelona) Expansions by groups of humans were common during prehistoric times, after the adoption of agriculture. Among other factors, this is due to population growth of farmers which was greater than of that hunter-gatherers. We can find one example of this during the Neolithic period, when farming was introduced to Europe by migrations from the Middle East.




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Arctic Edmontosaurus lives again -- a new look at the 'caribou of the Cretaceous'

(Perot Museum of Nature and Science) Published in PLOS ONE today, a study by an international team from the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas and Hokkaido University in Japan further explores the proliferation of the most commonly occurring duck-billed dinosaur of the ancient Arctic as the genus Edmontosaurus. The findings reinforce that the hadrosaurs -- dubbed 'caribou of the Cretaceous' -- had a geographical distribution of approximately 60 degrees of latitude, spanning the North American West from Alaska to Colorado.




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Mats made from nanofibers linked to a red wine chemical could help prevent oxidation

(Texas A&M University) Spoiling foods, souring wine and worsening wounds have a common culprit -- a process called oxidation. Although the ill effects of these chemical reactions can be curtailed by antioxidants, creating a sturdy platform capable of providing prolonged antioxidant activity is an ongoing challenge.




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Cannibalism helps invading invertebrates survive severe conditions

(University of Southern Denmark) Investing in the future: Researchers show how cannibalism among the invasive comb jelly enables adults to survive severe conditions at the edge of their ecological range with implications for the use and evolutionary origins of cannibalism.




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A review on phytochemistry, pharmacological action, ethanobotanical uses and nutritional potential

(Bentham Science Publishers) This comprehensive review presented by researchers from K.S. Rangasamy College of Arts and Science, Tiruchengode, Tamil-Nadu, India, gives readers a brief overview of phytoconstituents, nutritional values and medicinal properties of the plant.




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Global trade in soy has major implications for the climate

(University of Bonn) The extent to which Brazilian soy production and trade contribute to climate change depends largely on the location where soybeans are grown. This is shown by a recent study conducted by the University of Bonn together with partners from Spain, Belgium and Sweden. In some municipalities, CO2 emissions resulting from the export of soybean and derivatives are more than 200 times higher than in others.




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QUT researchers to head to Antarctica in preservation efforts

(Queensland University of Technology) Robots that fly, swim and drive are being designed and built by internationally renowned Australian scientists from QUT.




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Ocean acidification prediction now possible years in advance

(University of Colorado at Boulder) CU Boulder researchers have developed a method that could enable scientists to accurately forecast ocean acidity up to five years in advance. This would enable fisheries and communities that depend on seafood negatively affected by ocean acidification to adapt to changing conditions in real time, improving economic and food security in the next few decades.




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Shrinking snowcaps fuel harmful algal blooms in Arabian Sea

(Earth Institute at Columbia University) A uniquely resilient organism all but unheard of in the Arabian Sea 20 years ago has been proliferating and spreading at an alarming pace. New research describes how the continued loss of snow over the Himalayan-Tibetan Plateau region is fueling the expansion of this destructive algal bloom.




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Study: Climate change has been influencing where tropical cyclones rage

(NOAA Headquarters) While the global average number of tropical cyclones each year has not budged from 86 over the last four decades, climate change has been influencing the locations of where these deadly storms occur, according to new NOAA-led research published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.