How the BRAIN Initiative is Changing Neuroscience
The Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, a large-scale, public-private research program launched in 2014, aims to be ambitious and transformative. Its overarching goal is to revolutionize our understanding of the human brain, driven by the development and application of breakthrough technologies. Such a bold vision requires changes in the practice of science, from grant writing to data sharing.
As we approach the halfway mark of this 10-year effort, we can evaluate how scientists are responding to this challenge.
Read my article in Neuroscience Quarterly: The BRAIN Initiative: Changing Neuroscience.
Health Care Chatbots
Chatbots are computer programs designed to carry on a dialogue with people, assisting them via text messages, applications, or instant messaging. Essentially, instead of having a conversation with a person, the user talks with a bot that’s powered by basic rules or artificial intelligence. Chatbots are already widely used to support, expedite, and improve processes in other industries and now the technology is gaining traction in health care, where it is helping patients and providers perform myriad tasks.
Read the whole story at IEEE Pulse: Health Care Chatbots Are Here to Help.
Natural Disasters and Public Health
2018 brought multiple, unprecedented natural disasters, including hurricanes, floods, and in the United States, the deadliest wildfire in California’s history. After the immediate emergency is over and the media attention wanes, communities must deal with the long process of recovering and rebuilding. Yet some of the greatest challenges that disaster victims face come not from the disaster itself but from long-term health problems stemming from the event. In the immediate aftermath, physical injuries and infections must be treated and controlled. Longer-term needs include mental and psychological assistance and reinstatement of the infrastructure of the health services system. While immediate casualty numbers are often cited following a natural disaster, it’s the insidious and long-lasting health effects that can hurt communities for years.
Read more at IEEE Pulse: Natural Disasters and Public Health.
Jammin' Bats to Keep Them Safe
Wind turbines are a valuable source of renewable energy, but they’reeco-unfriendly in one particular way: the giant spinning bladesfrequently kill birds and bats.
A new system that jams bats’ echolocation with ultrasound is showing promise in reducing fatalities at wind energy facilities. Researchers at Texas State University, in partnership with Bat Conservation International (BCI), found that the ultrasonic Bat Deterrent System developed by NRG Systems reduced overall bat fatalities at the Los Vientos Wind Energy Facility in Starr county, Texas, by 54 percent.
Read the whole story, my first for Mongabay: Jammin' at Wind Farms May Help Save Bats.
