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Head to google.  Type in your job or major and add the word technology (example: realtor technology).  Then, go to the news tab.  Pick one of those articles and, providing the link here, discuss how your future job and work is affected by technology. Make sure you have a topic sentence and evidence from your chosen article.

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Forensic study is affected by technology by increasing availability to solve advanced crimes with newer technology that improves telecommunications, banking, and medicince. Technology within forensic study makes it easier to solve advanced crimes.

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https://hitconsultant.net/2021/08/04/how-health-it-is-helping-hospitals-achieve-faster-patient-transitions/#.YSzA9CjYrrc

The future of nursing will be affected by technology in the following areas. Many hospitals have increased the use of technology since the start of covid. Technology in each room helps providers print labels and be able to collect samples right then without waiting for the lab creating shorter diagnoses times. Many hospitals have started tracking equipment with bluetooth trackers as nurses spent up to 40 hours a month looking for equipment. These trackers also improve accurate OR times, patient discharge, and room turnover.

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The future in the medical field is always advancing and growing to new heights but with technology they can help with cancer and even genetic diseases. The article "Promoting Medical Technology Innovations" talks about a new project in Thailand, Genome sequencing. This could completely add to the genome project we use as a basis for our genetic research today. This could improve the knowledge we know about genetic diseases and help even cure some. Along with this they also plan to create a total digital healthcare solution, so with the use of technology, they plan to be able to share research and ideas to further the advancement of medical practices all over the world.

PROMOTING MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY INNOVATIONS (bangkokpost.com)

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PROMOTING MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY INNOVATIONS

Under its development target of becoming an international healthcare and medical hub by 2036, Thailand is currently aiming to reach the next level of medical and wellness services by promoting precision medicine for the treatment of more complex illnesses, such as cancer and genetic-related diseases.

The action plan focuses on improving R&D and skill training technology, with the local medical device industry also expected to benefit from the cutting-edge innovations and R&D facilities in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) which covers the three provinces of Chachoengsao, Chonburi and Rayong in the country's Eastern Region. As Thailand's pilot industry 4.0 special economic zone, the EEC provides support for all of the country's target high-tech industries with facilities that promote the whole R&D and innovation development process, including the Startup and Innovation Center, National Quality Infrastructure and Translational Research Infrastructure.

One project that is fundamental to this plan calls for the Public Health Ministry to establish the Thailand Genome Sequencing Center1 in the EEC as a facility to provide clinical services for patients from across Southeast Asia and beyond. The planned genome sequencing center2 will be located at Burapha University in Chonburi province, with the laboratory space occupying approximately 1,700 square metres. Genome sequencing of 50,000 Thais will be conducted at the lab and their DNA data will be used to build a genomics library under the supervision of the Health Systems Research Institute (HSRI)3. The first of its kind in ASEAN, the genomics library will utilise the database to enable more effective development of pharmaceutical and healthcare products.

Of the required investment budget of US$50 million, half is expected to be financed by the Thai government with the rest to come from local and foreign investors. Leading local hospitals and companies have shown interest in partnering with multinational companies to create a consortium to run the lab. The HSRI and EEC Office is in the process of implementing the bidding procedure.

The Excellence Center for Genomics and Precision Medicine at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital has provided assurances that it could support and strengthen the whole genome sequencing project. On top of that, the BOI and the EEC office have provided tax and non-tax incentives to foreign businesses and experts to work in the EEC.

Wangchan Valley, a smart city project in Rayong province is another supporting facility in the EEC. Developed as a base for research, development and innovation, Wangchan Valley's mission also includes operating the Kamnoetvidya Science Academy4 which offers world-class education in science, mathematics and technology through scholarships for students in years 10, 11 and 12, to prepare the talents required for the high-tech industries in the EEC and across the country.

In a related development, Thammasat University5 has confirmed its plan to develop a Total Digital Healthcare Solution at its Pattaya campus in Chonburi province. Aiming to enhance Thailand's competitiveness in becoming the regional medical hub, the facility will include excellence centres in medical services, digital hospitals, an integrated research centre and community-based healthcare solutions. Under the EECmd Vision 2024, the EEC aims to promote knowledge sharing and networking with local and international institutes to enhance the skills of healthcare researchers and personnel as well as to push forward innovation for precision medicine and medical devices.

With a focus on healthtech, state-owned Mahidol University has introduced Salaya Startup Town which houses a comprehensive ecosystem of lab and R&D space for engineering, biotechnology and healthcare technology. The project supports startups and technology incubation by providing working space for engineering innovations and advanced medical robotics as well as its Center for Biomedical and Robotics Technology6, HealthCare Logistics Big Data, UN Innovations Lab and Center of Logistics, Management and Healthcare Supply Chain.

In the capital city of Bangkok, around 20 medical academic institutions and research houses have signed an agreement to strengthen their collaboration on research and human clinical trials under the "Multicenter Medical Innovation Clinical Trial" project. The institutions which have formed a network called "the Yothi Medical Innovation District" have worked together on the development of medical devices such as a portable chest x-ray and its application for patients with non-communicable diseases.

1. https://www.boi.go.th/upload/content/EECGenomicen.pdf \

2. https://www.nstda.or.th/en/news/news-years- 2020/1057- genomic-medicine-in-thailand.html

3. https://www.hsri.or.th/en/people

4. https://www.kvis.ac.th/About_EN.aspx

5. https://pr.tu.ac.th/pattaya/e-book/index.html

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Under its development target of becoming an international healthcare and medical hub by 2036, Thailand is currently aiming to reach the next level of medical and wellness services by promoting precision medicine for the treatment of more complex illnesses, such as cancer and genetic-related diseases.

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Preparing for Nursing School? Get Ready for Tech—A Lot of It - Daily Nurse

Today nursing is being affected by technology in so many ways you'd think technology is taking over. They now have virtual stimulations for students to practice on but what if your a hands on learner the virtual stimulation wouldn't work for you. But as the article said going virtual was the only option as of now due to COVID and shortage on there clinical sites they was using before.

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For a nursing student who needs to practice labor and delivery skills on treating the dangerous condition of shoulder dystocia, opportunities can be rare. Unless, of course, you happen to have some of the latest "mixed reality" technology that allows you to practice as many times as you wish, threatening neither mother nor baby.

That mixed reality technology, embodied in Obstetric MR for Victoria from Gaumard Scientific, uses a mannequin combined with high-tech goggles and holographic imagery to tell the nursing student when he or she is performing the correct maneuvers to relieve shoulder dystocia - a condition during delivery when the baby's shoulder can become caught on the mother's pubic bone. With Obstetric MR for Victoria, the holographic imagery of the pelvis displayed in the student's googles lights up green when the student performs the maneuvers correctly.

"Nursing schools are spending more time with critical thinking skills," says James Archetto, Vice President of U.S. Sales at Gaumard, in an interview. "This is the beauty of high-fidelity simulation in that you can select one of these very sophisticated simulators to actually provide a complex scenario that a nurse may only experience once or twice in clinical practice. With that, now they can practice it over and over and over again, because it's important that they have that muscle memory that when we're in this critical situation, we know how to respond."

Simulation provides a variety of benefits, notes Archetto, referencing "The NCSBN National Simulation Study: A Longitudinal, Randomized, Controlled Study Replacing Clinical Hours with Simulation in Prelicensure Nursing Education." That study found substantial evidence that substituting high-quality simulation experiences for up to half of traditional clinical hours produces comparable end-of-program educational outcomes and new graduates that are ready for clinical practice.

First, notes Archetto, simulations allow students to practice low-frequency, high-risk scenarios repeatedly. Second, it helps avoid the problem of getting clinical time in a hospital. Third, it can provide cross-training for an unfamiliar clinical setting, such as med/surg nurses suddenly thrust into a critical care environment during COVID, he notes. "These are some key areas where simulation provides a substantial advantage and allows nurses to really gain competency in these areas," Archetto says.

Going Digital

As nursing students come into the new school year, they'll find that schools are emphasizing the use of technology such as virtual simulation in their programs. Virtual simulation represents a technology that will continue to grow, according to a recent survey conducted by Wolters Kluwer in collaboration with the National League for Nursing (NLN).

The study identified plans in nursing education for technology usage, adoption and investment during the next five years, notes a press release, as well as shedding light on the barriers and opportunities related to those initiatives. The study involved interviews in August 2020 followed by an online survey distributed in December 2020.

Some 91% of respondents currently use virtual simulation, according to the survey. Some 48% of respondents say they plan to invest more in virtual simulation during the next 2 years. Augmented reality and virtual reality are more distant.

The report notes that the shift to virtual learning had been happening well before the COVID pandemic. "The increased use of new technologies in education comes in response to a shortage of clinical sites and demonstrates a progressive approach to meeting the demand for practice-ready nurses who are prepared not just to pass licensure exams but also to deliver hands-on patient care," it says.
Other findings:
-Before the pandemic, 65% of classes were being conducted in brick-and-mortar classrooms, with 20% offering hybrid models (in-person/online) and 11% primarily online, notes the survey report. That model changed to online learning (73%), with another 22% offering hybrid models. What's more, 39% say their institutions plan to offer more courses online after the pandemic.

-Online learning, virtual simulation, adaptive quizzing, and video for skills training are among the technologies expected to reach full adoption by 2025.

-Learning environments will focus on secure exam delivery systems.

-Over two-thirds (68%) of faculty say that they're not adequately trained in new technologies.
Three obstacles can hinder technology adoption, according to the report:

1. Concerns about who will fund technology - including students who resist paying for new technology.

2. Questions about the present tech infrastructure, both at the nursing program and outside the program's physical site.

3. Faculty who are reluctant to change their approach to teaching. Many of the more-senior faculty, who may have been planning to retire in 3 to 5 years, are opting to retire early rather than have to learn a completely new way to teach, the report notes.

However, adoption of new technology can help faculty in achieving the next stage of their career, from a BSN to an MSN to a PhD, according to Dr. Beverly Malone, President and CEO, NLN. Nursing programs, she notes, can extend opportunities to join faculty development and technology programs. Technology mentors who are available during regular and after-work hours can give important advice and mentoring to those who need it.

Urgent Need for Digital Learning Tools

The survey, notes Dr. Malone, in a press release, underscores the need for rapid, increased investment in digital learning tools. "The urgency is obvious with more than 80,000 qualified applicants turned away by U.S. nursing schools from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs in 2020 due to insufficient numbers of faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, clinical preceptors, and budget constraints."

Related Content

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Preparing for Nursing School? Get Ready for Tech-A Lot of It - Daily Nurse

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For a nursing student who needs to practice labor and delivery skills on treating the dangerous condition of shoulder dystocia, opportunities can be rare. Unless, of course, you happen to have some of the latest "mixed reality" technology that allows you to practice as many times as you wish, threatening neither mother nor baby.

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Technology has affected special education in a positive way. Technology helps students with special needs participate in school successfully. It has helped tremendously during the pandemic. Children with special needs need to be in school to not only develop academically but also socially and emotionally. With the use of technology, these students were able to learn from their teachers even if they couldn't be in a school setting. https://www.hillrag.com/2021/08/09/the-special-education-kids-are-not-alright/

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The COVID-19 pandemic has required school systems around the world to try to teach remotely, leading to a loss of academic learning, social skills, and emotional development in many students.

Serving children in need of special education services has proven to be an even greater challenge. Students with autism need work on their social development just as much as their academics. Specialized services such as occupational, physical, and speech therapies often involve touching the student to prompt movements. Behavior therapy can require constant redirection and provision of replacement behaviors that are very hard to do virtually.

All of these therapies involve specific supplies and equipment that are not readily accessible in most homes. Thus, in addition to academic losses, special needs students generally have had greatly reduced access to the types of services that allow them to approach the levels of their typically developing peers in these areas.

I spoke to several parents of students who attend a variety of public, charter and private schools, and private placements through OSSE (Office of State Superintendent of Education), all of whom expressed concern at the way students with special education needs are being handled. Students in DC public schools were both in general education classrooms, being educated with their neurotypical peers, and self-contained classrooms, where all the students have disabilities.

When asked to comment on how school has gone during the pandemic Margaret, the mother of a 10-year-old special education student in a charter school quipped, "The Hill Rag is a family paper so I'm not sure they could print what I have to say." When pushed she added, "The school year was awful - online speech and occupational therapy, deprioritizing special needs kids for return to in-person learning, very poor communication around [Extended School Year]."

Monica, a mother with a 15-year-old DCPS student with autism was also disheartened by the lack of in-person learning for special education students, saying that she "could not believe that children in self-contained classrooms with low numbers" could not be returned before 16 months. "The damage is staggering," she lamented. Her son needs continual behavioral feedback and verbal prompting to be able to perform at his highest level. There is no way even the best therapists and teachers can provide that kind of assistance remotely.

Another parent, Arthur, agrees, saying that the situation puts special needs students "at the mercy of negotiations between DCPS and the Union." The parents, who have a seven-year-old with autism in DCPS, were initially told that their son would be returning to school only to be told later that he would not, even though his typically developing classmates did. He finally did return part-time but is already delayed in his academic skills and, like most autistic children, needs constant work on his social and behavioral skills.

Even some schools designed specifically for special education with smaller class sizes and more opportunity for social distancing did not return to in-person learning until recently. Heather's 15-year-old son with autism is in a private placement through OSSE, but still he did not attend school from March 2020 through July 2021. Heather reports that "remote school was not good for him." She continues, "I am not as concerned about academic progress, but rather that kids with such disabilities need to practice behavioral skills, such as following rules, functioning in a group and with peers every day and that as a result of not being in school [her son] is severely out of practice."

"We survived only because of the great effort of our [behavior] therapists and our Medicaid advocate," remarks Sarah, mother of an eight-year-old with global disabilities in a self-contained classroom in DCPS. "While his school tried to concoct a morning meeting that would keep his interest, there was no way to build skills or do more than check in on a tablet."

Sarah makes the important point that there is no such thing as virtual learning or therapy when a student is non-verbal. It takes a certain amount of ability to communicate without assistive technology such as a handheld communication device to be able to teach and learn remotely.

Only one parent reported that school went smoothly during the pandemic. When Covid-19 first hit last March, 17-year-old Mark, a student at Fusion Academy in Northwest Washington, was "fortunate enough to move seamlessly from full-time, in-person school to Zoom."

His mother, Cynthia, credits that to the fact that Fusion Academy has a one-to-one student-to-teacher ratio. "Honestly, there was almost no impact on him because Zoom is not that much different from just being in class one-to-one," she continues. Because of the already socially distanced format of the school, they were able to return to in-person learning in September, so this year has been mostly normal for them. After having to homeschool her son due to physical disabilities and severe anxiety, Cynthia is relieved that he was able to attend school in-person and grateful that he will continue to do so in the fall.

All of the parents expressed great relief that it looks like all students will be returning to school full time and in person this summer or fall at the latest. Many special education students participate in a program called Extended School Year, which provides education and specialized services such as speech therapy over the summer to decrease learning losses during the break.

Monica's son will be attending a DCPS summer program, and she hopes that the return to school "will spur some regaining of the skill and learning loss." Sarah's son was able to return to school recently, and he is "thrilled to be back in school." Arthur notes that they saw "dramatic gains in socioemotional health and social skills" when their son returned to school this spring. Even though he only returned on a part-time schedule, he also started to make leaps in his reading skills as well. The parents "hope that the fall will be smooth and that our son will return to the routine and make more academic gains."

Jane, an occupational therapist, did her best with virtual learning and then part-time, in-person services with her students in DCPS, but she is eager to return to full-time, in-person school. "There were challenges with technology and with parents who were juggling multiple kids' schedules," she said. "Most of all, I just really enjoy being with the students and being able to work with them directly." She drove to her students' homes to deliver supplies to enable them to develop their skills, but it will be easier once she is back in a school with her supplies readily at hand.

The pandemic has created challenges for all of us and the impact will not quickly disappear, but for special education students, who are already by definition delayed or disabled in some way, this loss of progress could cause lifelong damage.
E.V. Downey is an educational consultant with Downey School Consulting, a camp director at Busy Bees Camps, a flute teacher at Music on the Hill, and a tutor and behavioral therapist. A graduate of Duke Ellington School of the Arts, she has raised her own two kids on Capitol Hill.

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the (special education) kids are not alright

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office of the state superintendent of education (osse)

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The (Special Education) Kids Are Not Alright

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The COVID-19 pandemic has required school systems around the world to try to teach remotely, leading to a loss of academic learning, social skills, and emotional development in many students. Serving children in need of special education services has proven to be an even greater challenge.

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Five Reasons Why Traditional Classrooms Can No Longer Keep Up with Growing Technology Today | Educational Technology and Mobile Learning (educatorstechnology.com)
The future of teaching relies on technology. Technology helps teachers and student through many things, such as a pandemic, which we have dealt with in the past year. It helps the student and teacher interact when they’re not in the classroom and speeds up the learning process

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Educational Technology and Mobile Learning

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It might have been long coming, but one fact is becoming quite clear. Traditional classrooms can no longer keep up with growing technology today. For example, one factor contributing to this trend is the fast-paced development of educational games for kids and online educational games for kids.

Still, many teaching concepts cling to traditional schooling. The opponents of the change point to the possibility that technology in the classroom could promote cheating. Possibly, but the facts that speak about the need to use modern technology in the classroom are more overwhelming.

Current trends and events give ample reasons this change is inevitable. Even before March 2020 and the Covid-19 pandemic, trends in modern technology showed the positive elements of its use in the classroom.

The exponential development of modern technology in the last decades did not do away with teachers. And it probably will not. It just gave them additional tools to reach their students and help them learn better.

Actually, according to a survey conducted by PBS Learning Media, 74 percent of teachers across the United States want to use technology in their classrooms.

Modern tech allows the teachers to experiment in pedagogy, and democratize the classroom. Educators state it expands and reinforces lesson content and motivates students to learn.

As the School of Education at Drexel University points out, "integration of technology in education simply refers to the use of technology to enhance the student learning experience."
Integrating modern technology in the classroom
Many educators and parents still fear that integrating technology in the classroom can be a financial burden. For school districts, schools and parents. Yet, as Drexel University (above) points out, students do not need their own tablets or laptops to succeed with technology.

"Smartphones, computers, and tablets are already an omnipresent element of everyday life for students and teachers alike. It's only natural that they explore technological devices in the classroom to create meaningful learning experiences for students of all ages. Integrating simple technologies such as PowerPoint, games, internet homework assignments, or online grading systems can be difference-makers in students' growth in the classroom."

Using modern technology can be beneficial for younger students. Teachers can use technology to build fundamental skills to prepare those students for future independent learning. Students can use interactive games to reinforce math, spelling, phonetic, and reading skills (Drexel University, above).

Such modern tech tools can at the same time help parents. They can use specialized educational online sites to "exercise fundamental skills beyond the walls of the classroom" (Drexel University).

Reasons to use modern tech in the classroom

When the pandemic set in, and remote learning became the norm at least temporarily, the use of modern technology in the current classroom became almost an imperative. But for many educators and parents, one question remains open. What does modern tech bring along?
Here is a brief list of five main reasons modern technology is overtaking the traditional classroom:
Modern tech and its use in the classroom is yet to grow

Modern tech brings improved pupil/teacher interaction. The number of new tech tools can stimulate real-time teacher interaction with their students. This is particularly the case with kindergarten/elementary school students where the use of online or other educational games for kids brings excellent results.

The teaching efficiency increases. For example, the days of chalk and chalkboards are more or less gone. Teachers can now use efficient tools to create new and import existing lessons and make them more accessible to students.

Students are more inspired to learn. While traditional textbooks will not go away (yet), students are now more receptive to tech advances such as augmented reality, virtual reality, gamification, and 3D printers.

Grading students has become more efficient and personalized. In the traditional classrooms, teachers spend hours marking students, often having to do that during their free time. With recent developments in grading tools, they can do it quickly and easily. They also can grade and collate responses in real-time, during the class itself.

Students can learn more during the class hour. With new technology, schools can now enable students to watch lectures outside the classroom. They can then complete corresponding tasks during school hours. Teachers can then better help with answering questions.

The number of modern tech resources that enhance and augment learning is now almost countless but is yet to grow. These enhance education and make learning both more fun and effective.

While most of the current educators did their studies through traditional classroom methods, current students are digital natives. Technology has become part of their lives, even at the earliest age. They are not only more adept at using it, but it has also become an essential part of their life. That is why using modern technology is a basic skill they need as early as their kindergarten days.

Educators who are already using modern technology in the classroom speak of its benefits. Those include reinforcing lesson content and motivating students to learn. They also now have a better option to reach students with different learning styles.

Using educational games in this process, for example, becomes a necessity. These educational games expand teaching capabilities and keep the students interested and motivated. Something like Prodigy Math becomes more than just a fun game but an essential learning tool.

All this means that the days of the traditional classroom are on the way out. The classroom is now transforming into a modern tech educational powerhouse. With that process, everybody gains - students, educators, as well as parents.

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Five Reasons Why Traditional Classrooms Can No Longer Keep Up with Growing Technology Today

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It might have been long coming, but one fact is becoming quite clear. Traditional classrooms can no longer keep up with growing technology today. For example, one factor contributing to this trend is the fast-paced development of educational games for kids and online educational games for kids.

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The future of veterinary technology is affected by technology because it allows vet facilities to send x-rays, ultrasounds and ECG studies to other specialists all over the country. Many times it is used to obtain a second opinion of another specialist. Vet Tech’s have to use technology for an MRI, ultrasounds, x-rays and other stuff. There are some skills they use such as organization, communication, empathy, etc.

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The future of electrical systems technology will be affected by technology because it’s part of the everyday job. Technology in the past decade has increased rapidly because of the increase electricians have seen a raise in work.
https://rh.gatech.edu/features/12-emerging-technologies-may-help-power-future

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Research Horizons

The world human population is already more than 7 billion - a number that could exceed 11 billion by 2100, according to projections from the United Nations. This rising populace, coupled with environmental challenges, puts even greater pressure on already strained energy resources. Granted, there's no silver bullet, but Georgia Tech researchers are developing a broad range of technologies to make power more abundant, efficient, and eco-friendly.

This feature provides a quick look at a dozen unusual projects that could go beyond traditional energy technologies to help power everything from tiny sensors to homes and businesses.

Na-TECC: Worth Its Salt

Shannon Yee, an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, is developing a technology that leverages the isothermal expansion of sodium and solar heat to directly generate electricity. Affectionately known as "Na-TECC" (an acronym that combines the chemical symbol for sodium with initials from "Thermo-Electro-Chemical Converter" and also rhymes with "GaTech"), this unique conversion engine has no moving parts.

A quick rundown in geek speak: Electricity is generated from solar heat by thermally driving a sodium redox reaction on opposite sides of a solid electrolyte. The resulting positive electrical charges pass through the solid electrolyte due to an electrochemical potential produced by a pressure gradient, while the electrons travel through an external load where electric power is extracted. Bottom line, this new process results in improved efficiency and less heat leaking out, explained Yee.

The goal is to reach heat-to-electricity conversion efficiency of more than 45 percent - a substantial increase when compared to 20 percent efficiency for a car engine and 30 percent for most sources on the electric grid.

The technology could be used for distributed energy applications. "A Na-TECC engine could sit in your backyard and use heat from the sun to power an entire house," Yee said. "It can also be used with other heat sources such as natural gas, biomass, and nuclear to directly produce electricity without boiling water and spinning turbines."

Funded by the Department of Energy's (DOE) SunShot Program, the research is being conducted in collaboration with Ceramatec Inc.

"A Na-TECC engine could sit in your backyard and use heat from the sun to power an entire house," said Shannon Yee, Assistant Professor, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering.
Photo: Fitrah Hamid

New Breed of Betavoltaics

In another project, Yee's group is using nuclear waste to produce electricity - minus the reactor and sans moving parts.

Funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and working in collaboration with Stanford University, the researchers have developed a technology that is similar to photovoltaic devices with one big exception: Instead of using photons from the sun, it uses high-energy electrons emitted from nuclear byproducts.

Betavoltaic technology has been around since the 1950s, but researchers have focused on tritium or nickel-63 as beta emitters. "Our idea was to revisit the technology from a radiation transport perspective and use strontium-90, a prevalent isotope in nuclear waste," Yee said.

Strontium-90 is unique because it emits two high-energy electrons during its decay process. What's more, strontium-90's energy spectrum aligns well with design architecture already used in crystalline silicon solar cells, so it could yield highly efficient conversion devices.

In lab-scale tests with electron beam sources, the researchers have been achieving power conversion efficiencies of between 4 and 18 percent. With continued improvements, Yee believes the betavoltaic devices could ultimately generate about one watt of power continuously for 30 years - which would be 40,000 times more energy dense than current lithium ion batteries. Initial applications include military equipment that requires low-power energy for long periods of time or powering devices in remote locations where changing batteries is problematic.

Flexible Generators

Yee's group is also pioneering the use of polymers in thermoelectric generators (TEGs).

Solid-state devices that directly convert heat to electricity without moving parts, TEGs are typically made from inorganic semiconductors. Yet polymers are attractive materials due to their flexibility and low thermal conductivity. These qualities enable clever designs for high-performance devices that can operate without active cooling, which would dramatically reduce production costs.

The researchers have developed P- and N-type semiconducting polymers with high performing ZT values (an efficiency metric for thermoelectric materials). "We'd like to get to ZT values of 0.5, and we're currently around 0.1, so we're not far off," Yee said.

In one project funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the team has developed a radial TEG that can be wrapped around any hot water pipe to generate electricity from waste heat. Such generators could be used to power light sources or wireless sensor networks that monitor environmental or physical conditions, including temperature and air quality.

"Thermoelectrics are still limited to niche applications, but they could displace batteries in some situations," Yee said. "And the great thing about polymers, we can literally paint or spray material that will generate electricity."

This opens opportunities in wearable devices, including clothing or jewelry that could act as a personal thermostat and send a hot or cold pulse to your body. Granted, this can be done now with inorganic thermoelectrics, but this technology results in bulky ceramic shapes, Yee said. "Plastics and polymers would enable more comfortable, stylish options."

Although not suitable for grid-scale application, such devices could provide significant savings, he added.

Recycling Radio Waves

Researchers led by Manos Tentzeris have developed an electromagnetic energy harvester that can collect enough ambient energy from the radio frequency (RF) spectrum to operate devices for the Internet of Things (IoT), smart skin and smart city sensors, and wearable electronics.

Harvesting radio waves is not brand new, but previous efforts have been limited to short-range systems located within meters of the energy source, explained Tentzeris, a professor in Georgia Tech's School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. His team is the first to demonstrate long-range energy harvesting as far as seven miles from a source.

The researchers unveiled their technology in 2012, harvesting tens of microwatts from a single UHF television channel. Since then, they've dramatically increased capabilities to collect energy from multiple TV channels, Wi-Fi, cellular, and handheld electronic devices, enabling the system to harvest power in the order of milliwatts. Hallmarks of the technology include:

Ultra-wideband antennas that can receive a variety of signals in different frequency ranges.

Unique charge pumps that optimize charging for arbitrary loads and ambient RF power levels.

Antennas and circuitry, 3-D inkjet-printed on paper, plastic, fabric, or organic materials, that are flexible enough to wrap around any surface. (The technology uses principles from origami paper-folding to create "smart" shape-changing complex structures that reconfigure themselves in response to incoming electromagnetic signals.)

The researchers have recently adapted the harvester to work with other energy-harvesting devices, creating an intelligent system that probes the environment and chooses the best source of ambient energy to collect. What's more, it combines different forms of energy, such as kinetic and solar, or electromagnetic and vibration.

Although some work remains to scale the printing process, commercialization of the National Science Foundation-supported research could happen within two years.

Pickin' Up Good Vibrations

In another energy harvesting approach, researchers in Georgia Tech's School of Mechanical Engineering are making advances with piezoelectric energy - converting mechanical strain from ambient vibrations into electricity.

Scientists have been exploring this field for more than a decade, but technologies haven't been widely commercialized because piezoelectric harvesting is very case and application dependent, explained Alper Erturk, an assistant professor of acoustics and dynamics who leads Georgia Tech's Smart Structures and Dynamical Systems Laboratory.

Current piezoelectric energy harvesters rely on linear resonance behavior, and to maximize electrical power, the excitation frequency of ambient sources must match the resonance frequency of the harvester. "Even a slight mismatch results in drastically reduced power output, and there are numerous scenarios where that happens," Erturk said.

In response, Erturk's group has been pioneering nonlinear dynamic designs and sophisticated computations to develop wideband piezoelectric energy harvesters that operate over a broad range of frequencies. In fact, one of their recent designs, an M-shaped harvester, can achieve milliwatt level output even for tiny milli-g level vibration inputs - a 660 percent increase in frequency bandwidth compared to linear counterparts. "The nonlinear harvesters also have secondary resonance behavior," Erturk said, "which could enable frequency up-conversion in MEMS harvesters that suffer from device resonance being higher than ambient vibration frequencies."

Although electrical output from vibration energy harvesters is small, it is still enough to power wireless sensors for structural health monitoring in bridges or aircraft, wearable electronics, or even medical implants. "Piezoelectric harvesting could eliminate the hassle of replacing batteries in many low-power devices - providing cleaner power, greater convenience, and meaningful savings over time," Erturk said.

Power Rubbed the Right Way

Triboelectricity enables production of an electrical charge from friction caused by two different materials coming into contact. Although known for centuries, the phenomenon has been largely ignored as an energy source because of its unpredictability.

Yet researchers led by Zhong Lin Wang, a Regents Professor in Georgia Tech's School of Materials Science and Engineering, have created novel triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) that combine the triboelectric effect and electrostatic induction. By harvesting random mechanical energy, these generators can continuously operate small electronic devices.

The first TENG debuted in 2012. Powered by foot tapping, it generated enough alternating current to power banks of LEDs. Since then the researchers have been pushing the envelope on their technology and have developed a self-charging system that not only converts alternating current to direct current but also features a power management unit that adapts to the variability in human movement.

Behind these recent milestones is a two-stage design: First the TENG charges a small capacitor. Then energy is transferred to a final storage device (a larger capacitor or battery) that matches the impedance of the generator's output and provides appropriate voltage and constant output. Five seconds of palm tapping generates enough current to operate a wireless car door lock.

"The power management circuit is key to boosting efficiency," said Simiao Niu, a graduate student and lead author on a paper recently published in the journal Nature Communications. "Without the circuit, charging efficiency is below 1 percent, but with it we've been able to demonstrate efficiencies of 60 percent."

"This really broadens the number of possible applications," Wang said, pointing to temperature sensors, heart rate monitors, pedometers, watches, scientific calculators, and RF wireless transmitters.

Although the self-powered system was initially developed to capture human biomechanical energy, the researchers have created four different modes to convert other ambient sources of mechanical energy, such as ocean waves, wind blowing, keyboard strokes, and tire rotation.

"The triboelectric system really broadens the number of possible applications," said Zhong Lin Wang, Regents Professor, School of Materials Science and Engineering.
Photo: Rob Felt

Optical Rectenna

Researchers led by Baratunde Cola, an associate professor in Georgia Tech's School of Mechanical Engineering, have developed the first known optical rectenna - a technology that could be more efficient than today's solar cells and less expensive.

Rectennas, which are part antenna and part rectifier, convert electromagnetic energy into direct electrical current. The basic idea has been around since the 1960s, but Cola's team makes it possible with nanoscale fabrication techniques and different physics. "Instead of converting particles of light, which is what solar cells do, we're converting waves of light," he explained.

Key to this technology are antennas small enough to match the wavelength of light (about one micron) and a super-fast diode - achieved in part by building the antenna on one of the metals in the diode. Cola describes the process:

Carbon nanotubes are grown vertically off a substrate.

Using atomic layer deposition, the nanotubes are coated with aluminum oxide to serve as an insulator.

Extremely thin layers of calcium and aluminum metals are placed on top to act as an anode.

As light hits the carbon nanotubes, a charge moves through the rectifier, which switches on and off to create a small direct current. The metal-insulator-metal-diode structure is fast enough to open and close at a rate of 1 quadrillion times per second.

From a performance perspective, the devices currently operate just under 1 percent efficiency. Yet because theory matches lab experiments, Cola hopes to increase broad-spectrum efficiency to 40 percent (which compares to 20 percent efficiency for silicon solar cells). Other important benefits: The optical rectenna works at high temperatures, and mass production should be inexpensive. The technology also can be tuned to different frequencies, so the rectenna can be used as a detector or in energy harvesting.

The researchers are now focused on lowering contact resistance and growing the nanotubes on flexible substrates for applications that require bending. The work has been supported by DARPA, the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center, and the Army Research Office.

Pulp Energy

Although fossil-fuel emissions may be the poster child for global warming, there is also growing concern over environmental harm from discarded electronics.

Researchers at Georgia Tech's Center for Organic Photonics and Electronics (COPE) and Renewable Bioproducts Institute are developing paper-based electronics - organic solar cells, organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), and organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) - fabricated on cellulose-based substrates that can be recycled easily.

Use of paper for substrates has generated considerable buzz among researchers, but its high porosity and surface roughness pose challenges. Today's organic electronic components use very thin carbon-based semiconductor layers - about 1,000 times thinner than the average human hair. "Because they are so thin, you need nearly atomically flat substrates where the surface is down to a nanometer," explained Bernard Kippelen, director of COPE and a professor in Georgia Tech's School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

To address this, Kippelen's team is using cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), a type of wooden wunderkind material, to develop new semiconductor devices, demonstrating that CNCs are a viable alternative to traditional plastic substrates - while offering new environmental benefits. Devices made on these substrates can be easily dissolved in water, allowing semiconducting materials and metal layers to be filtered and recycled.

Applications will depend on economics and performance. For CNC-based solar cells, the researchers have achieved power conversion efficiencies of 4 percent. Efficiencies could be increased to 10 percent but would require more expensive materials, Kippelen said. So instead of paper-based solar farms becoming the norm, he predicts low-power applications, such as computer covers and mousepads, for CNC-based solar cells.

Cellulose-based OLEDs, which have performance comparable with current devices, show greater potential for market adoption. "The trend in flat-panel displays is larger size and higher resolution," Kippelen said. "Glass substrates, however, pose manufacturing and transportation problems because of their rigidity and breakability. And plastic has problems at the end-of-product lifecycle."

Yet with the low cost and flexibility of paper-based OLEDs, flat panel displays could be the size of a wall.

Fuel from the Sky

In another intriguing project, researchers led by Peter Loutzenhiser are leveraging solar energy to reverse the combustion process and produce synthesis gas (mixtures of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and small amounts of carbon dioxide), which can be converted into fuels such as kerosene and gasoline.

"Instead of using fossil resources to create fuel, we are using the byproducts of combustion (water and carbon dioxide) to re-energize the system with the sun," explained Loutzenhiser, an assistant professor at Georgia Tech's School of Mechanical Engineering.

The researchers are studying a two-step process using metal oxides that can split water and carbon dioxide. The first step, which occurs between 1100 and 1800 degrees Celsius, thermally reduces or "pulls off" oxygen from the metal oxide material. Then at temperatures of about 300 to 900 degrees Celsius, either water or carbon dioxide is introduced in the second step. These lower temperatures are favorable for re-oxidation, which enables the metal oxide to take back oxygen from either the water or carbon dioxide, resulting in hydrogen or carbon monoxide. "The two steps are important - otherwise the oxygen would recombine with either the carbon monoxide or hydrogen, resulting in the release of heat that would then be lost," Loutzenhiser said.

The researchers have demonstrated that the technology works with zinc oxide, but they are searching for materials that can speed up the reactions and reduce the temperature of the first step. "You want something that can reduce at the lowest possible temperature in the high-temp stage and is capable of taking the oxygen from the carbon dioxide or the water vapor in the second step," Loutzenhiser explained.

Recently, the group achieved promising results with mixed ionic electronic conducting materials. Now they are trying to tune these materials to break apart either the CO2 molecules or the water vapor molecules at lower temperatures.

If commercialized, the technology could transform desert areas into fuel farms, Loutzenhiser said: "Instead of pulling fuel out of the ground, we could pull carbon dioxide from the air and use the sun to convert it with water into a long-term storage medium that could be shipped and used around the world without changes to transportation infrastructure."

Hello Graphene Supercaps, Good-bye Batteries?

Used in everything from military applications to elevators and cars, supercapacitors are attractive sources for clean energy because they quickly charge and discharge and have long cycling lives. But there's one big drawback: low energy density.

"Today's supercapacitors have only one-tenth the energy density of lithium-ion batteries," pointed out Meilin Liu, a Regents Professor in Georgia Tech's School of Materials Science and Engineering. "For the device to give you the same electrical energy, the device would have to be much bigger."

Working with C.P. Wong, another Regents Professor, Liu is developing graphene-based supercapacitors that offer significantly increased energy density while maintaining high power and long operational life. The research is funded by ARPA-E.

Graphene is a two-dimensional material that conducts electricity better than copper and is both lighter than steel and 100 times stronger. Yet graphene has a tendency to stack together and form graphite. To prevent this, the researchers place molecular spacers between the graphene sheets, creating a 3-D porous structure that demonstrates a capacitance of 400 Faradays per gram - four times higher than current supercaps.

The researchers have also improved capacitance by dispersing transition metal compounds into the graphene-based structure.

Graphene alone can only produce a capacitance of about 400 Faradays per gram of material. In contrast, transition metal compounds have higher energy density (2,000 to 3,000 Faradays per gram), but poor electronic connectivity, which slows down the flow of electrons required for charging and discharging. Yet by combining the metal compounds with the 3-D porous graphene, which scores high marks for connectivity, the researchers have achieved capacitance of about 1,500 Faradays per gram while maintaining superior cycling.

The researchers are also improving energy density by broadening voltage using two different electrode materials (one positive and one negative). "Each redox material has its own operating window of potential, and we optimize the nanostructure to achieve their highest energy density," Liu explained.

With these new developments, the researchers are approaching supercaps that can be as small as batteries, but charged and discharged faster and cycled for much longer, Liu said.

"This new breed of supercaps could replace batteries, providing cleaner, safer, and more robust power for many applications, from portable electronics to electric vehicles and smart grids."
"This new breed of supercaps could replace batteries," said Meilin Liu, Regents Professor, School of Materials Science and Engineering.
Photo: Fitrah Hamid

Monolithic Microscale Heat Pumps

Proving that good things come in small packages, researchers led by Srinivas Garimella have developed a novel textbook-sized cooling system that operates on waste heat rather than electricity.

The underlying technology has been used in very large-scale installations, such as hospitals and university campuses, explained Garimella, a professor in Georgia Tech's School of Mechanical Engineering. Yet his team takes the science to a new level by working at the micro scale and creating a self-contained unit.

How it works: Extremely small passages are etched into thin sheets of metal with different areas representing different components. Working fluids flow in the same order as they would in a larger system, albeit in one space. The minimization of plumbing inlets and outlets translates into greater compactness - and lower price tags.

Other advantages:

No synthetic refrigerants are used, and less fluid is required, which further lowers costs and increases safety.

No compressor is needed and there are few moving parts, decreasing noise and increasing reliability.

Modular design allows units to be configured to generate anywhere from a few watts to tens of kilowatts of cooling or heating.

Since unveiling a proof-of-concept unit in 2009, the researchers have developed heat pumps with cooling capacities of one and two refrigerant tons. (Capacity of current residential units ranges from one to four refrigerant tons.) Efficiency has been substantially improved, and fabrication techniques have also been improved to enable mass production.

"Although initial cost to consumers might be higher than traditional heat pumps, lifecycle costs should be comparable because of lower operating costs," Garimella said, noting that field tests are slated for late this year, and the technology might be ready for commercialization by 2017.

The researchers have also adapted the technology to provide cooling using waste heat from diesel-driven generators at military bases, where ambient temperatures are extremely high. "Not only is diesel fuel very expensive to transport, there are also risks to humans in delivering the fuel," Garimella said. "Using the energy in the diesel fuel to the fullest extent by providing power as well as cooling through these units, without consuming additional prime energy, will lower overall costs and increase personnel safety."

The research has been supported by ARPA-E, Department of Energy, U.S. Army, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Georgia Research Alliance, and Atlanta Gas Light.

Next-gen Power Plants

Researchers in Georgia Tech's School of Mechanical Engineering are working on major makeovers for power plants, introducing innovations that range from revamped power cycles to new infrastructure materials.

In one project, steam is being replaced with supercritical carbon dioxide (SCCO ²) as the working fluid to operate turbines and produce electricity.

SCCO2 results when carbon dioxide is subjected to pressure above 7.4 megapascals and temperatures above 31 degrees Celsius. This magical state, somewhere between a liquid and a gas, provides high fluid density, thermal conductivity, and heat capacity.

SCCO2 is currently used in environmentally friendly dry cleaning and coffee decaffeination. In energy applications, its high density and compressibility would enable generators to extract more power from turbines, explained Devesh Ranjan, an associate professor of fluid mechanics. "Equipment could be made from top-notch materials, yet dramatically smaller, which would reduce production costs."

"Because the heat transfer coefficient is very high with SCCO2, you can do dry cooling in an arid environment," said Devesh Ranjan, Associate Professor, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering.
Photo: Gary Meek
Another plus: the unique cooling properties of SCCO2. "Most power plants are near a lake or river because they need lots of water to cool them," Ranjan said. "Because the heat transfer coefficient is very high with SCCO2, you can do dry cooling in an arid environment such as the desert, which is best for solar collection."

Using SCCO2 in concentrated solar plants could push thermal efficiencies from 45 to 60 percent, enough to be competitive with fossil fuel, said Asegun Henry, an assistant professor of heat transfer, combustion, and energy systems. "Yet this requires higher operating temperatures - 800 degrees Celsius compared to current temperatures below 600 degrees - and current heat exchangers literally can't take the pressure."

To resolve this, Henry and Ranjan are working with Purdue University researchers to develop a new breed of heat exchanger that can withstand extremely high temperatures and pressures, a project supported by DOE SunShot funding.

Ken Sandhage, a former Georgia Tech professor now at Purdue's School of Material Engineering, has developed a process for inexpensively fabricating a high-temperature composite material into complicated 3-D shapes.

In addition to making solar power more competitive, the heat exchangers could also be used with SCCO2 to boost efficiency in fossil fuel power plants. "More efficiency means less carbon dioxide emissions per kilowatt produced," Henry said.
T.J. Becker is a freelance writer based in Michigan. She writes about business and technology issues.

Georgia Tech researchers are working on technologies and policies to make the vision of self-driving cars a safe and viable reality.

The more powerful our devices get, the more heat they generate. Georgia Tech researchers are finding ways to take the heat off.

Tech's regional engineers, who live and work in the areas they serve, are taking the Institute's manufacturing expertise to companies around the state.

A generator-level model suggests that most fossil fuel power plants could complete normal lifespans and still close by 2035.

Machine learning is helping accelerate the development of highly tunable materials known as metal-organic frameworks.

Flexible large-area organic photodiodes can now compete in performance with conventional silicon photodiode technology.

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12 Emerging Technologies that May Help Power the Future | Research Horizons | Georgia Tech's Research News

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The world human population is already more than 7 billion - a number that could exceed 11 billion by 2100, according to projections from the United Nations. This rising populace, coupled with environmental challenges, puts even greater pressure on already strained energy resources.

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Serena Beri invented a soft robot to help maintain consistent images for cardiovascular ultrasounds. The robot has six locomotive legs and a octagonal base. This robot could minimize variability. https://today.uconn.edu/2021/08/students-soft-robot-invention-could-improve-ultrasounds/#

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Ultrasound imaging requires a steady hand, consistent pressure, and a stationary patient, but people are bumpy, twitchy and unpredictable. UConn undergraduate Serena Beri '22 (CLAS) believes a robot can help.

Beri, a biological sciences major, has patented a soft robotic holder for ultrasound transducer.

While job-shadowing with a cardiologist, Beri saw that it was difficult to get consistent images while taking echocardiograms, which are basically ultrasounds of the heart. It takes skill, dexterity, and a certain degree of strength to do well. She tried it and found the equipment tricky to use.

"It's finicky! The slightest movement could lose the image. I thought there might be a better way," Beri says. Even experienced ultrasound technicians can find it difficult and are prone to repetitive motion injuries of their hands, wrists, shoulders and back, according to the Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography.

Beri had been on a robotics team in high school. She thought of a soft robot with an octagonal base and spider like-frame, with several linear actuatable arms and locomotive legs to move the transducer. This could then help automate the process and minimize variability. An additional benefit would be the ability to take an image without actually touching the patient, taking strain off the ultrasound tech. It might even be able to strap onto a person and get images while they are in motion.

She told the cardiologist and other mentors about her idea. The mentors said it sounded interesting and encouraged her to talk to a patent attorney. So she did.

"We discussed the process, and it actually sounded like something I could do," Beri says. Her patent for an ultrasound transducer holder was filed in May 2018 and recently granted. She is also a STEM Scholar, a member of the honors community, and is currently working on a service project for UConn's BOLD Women's Leadership Network. She aims to create an online tool to connect professional women with undergraduates looking for mentors in science, technology, and engineering fields.

In her spare time, she continues to work on her prototype. When she's satisfied with the product, she'll start demonstrating it at medical technology conferences. Which is a perfect place to meet professionals in her field who might join her leadership network. And after that? She's interested in pursuing a career in medicine.

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Student's Soft Robot Invention Could Improve Ultrasounds - UConn Today

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Ultrasound imaging requires a steady hand, consistent pressure, and a stationary patient, but people are bumpy, twitchy and unpredictable. UConn undergraduate Serena Beri '22 (CLAS) believes a robot can help. Beri, a biological sciences major, has patented a soft robotic holder for ultrasound transducer.

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Pediatric Oncology is affected by technology by killing cancer cells with high radiation. This may help kill cancer twice as fast and speed up the process. Many people use different kinds of technology to detect and kill cancer mainly using radiation or chemo. https://www.oncozine.com/a-more-targeted-approach-in-pediatric-cancer-therapy/

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"Fundamentally, there is a huge difference between the treatment of childhood and adult cancers and any novel treatment developed for pediatric oncology needs to recognize that," starts Timothy Triche, M.D., Ph.D., Co-Director of the Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) Center for Personalized Medicine Program, in an edited interview for The Onco'Zine Brief, which will air later in 2021.

"Cancer therapies are largely not developed for children and those developed for adult cancers impact children very differently, especially with respect to both short- and long-term toxicity. New approaches are long overdue and urgently needed. Yet, by developing cancer therapy optimized for children, adults will surely benefit too, as they did at the dawn of cancer chemotherapy itself, where some of the first cures reported in childhood leukemia later translated to adults."

The issues in pediatric oncology - a still overlooked sector?
According to Triche, pediatric tumors often result from inherited genetic 'errors' or sporadic acquired single cancer-causing events, rather than from a multitude of mutations associated with lifelong exposure to environmental factors like smoke, carcinogens, radiation, and other known cancer-causing exposures.

Childhood cancers, such as neuroblastoma, Wilms tumor or nephroblastoma, medulloblastomas, rhabdomyosarcomas, and retinoblastoma, are rarely seen in adult patients. Other common types of pediatric cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma, and brain tumors occur in adults as well.

"The cause [of cancer in adults] is very different," Triche says "due to factors including a lifetime of exposure to alcohol, tobacco, radiation, asbestos...and other environmental factors... or simply as a result of genetic 'bad luck' like defects in genes that repair damaged DNA like BRCA1 and 2. This difference between the development of childhood cancer and cancer in adults necessitates a different approach to designing and optimizing novel treatment options for pediatric cancer."

Over the last 50 years, Triche explains, major advances in the understanding of the biology of certain childhood cancers coupled with nationwide clinical trials sponsored by the National Cancer Institute has led to improved treatments and better overall survival, but a number of specific, more aggressive, cancers have not benefited from these advances. As a result, cancer remains the leading cause of disease-related death in children and adolescents.

Childhood cancers originate differently than adult cancers, with fewer actionable targets, where mutated genes induce dysregulated growth. This dysregulated growth and invasive cell behavior can now be targeted with agents developed in the past few decades. "We can now define specific genetic defects and identify [actionable] targets in childhood cancer, and yet, approved therapeutics have not been developed, Triche explained.

Triche argues that the development of 'personalized' therapies in challenging adult cancers like breast and colon cancer has advanced far more than in pediatric oncology. "The lack of targeted treatment agents in pediatric cancer means that precision or personalized medicine approach in children is not yet feasible and therefore, oncologists continue to mostly rely on standard chemotherapy often developed over 50 years ago. While chemotherapy has resulted in dramatically increased survival, the treatment often leads to both acute and long-term adverse effects, including cardiovascular events, chronic illness, and secondary malignancies, with an overall diminished health-related quality of life".

Pointing to the relatively small number of children diagnosed with cancer, Triche says: "Childhood cancers represent approximately 1% of all new cancers diagnosed in the United States, and maybe another 2% of patients over 15 years of age, the Adolescent and Young Adult, or AYA, population who develop 'pediatric' cancers," Triche added.

"That's only 3% of the total cancer patient pool, but with so few patients suffering from a variety of rare cancers, it gets little attention. "Conducting clinical trials in children is also still much more complex", Triche observed. "Therefore, sadly, for both economic and practical reasons we generally only see new cancer drugs for the treatment of children that have been developed for adults and adventitiously are effective in children, like the new class of NTRK inhibitors, developed for adult cancer but also very effective in selected pediatric cancers."

Pediatric drug innovation
This is despite a number of very helpful federal initiatives to develop drugs for childhood cancers. The Federal Government has led the way with several support programs and some of these, like the recently renewed RACE act, are designed to FastTrack pediatric drug innovation and reward the companies who develop such treatments," Triche says.

Triche added "while the 'blockbuster model' has served the pharmaceutical industry well for adult disease, that approach does not work in the development of effective precision medicine approaches that involve novel, often expensive, technology for small patient cohorts." Triche believes that this ongoing focus on targeted therapies will ultimately benefit pediatric drug development as well if only because some of the "new" markets for the treatment of adult cancers target smaller adult cancer patient populations than those for some childhood cancers, thus encouraging drug development for pediatric cancers as well.

Can we target and treat better now?
Chemotherapeutic approaches have nonetheless dramatically improved the survival of children with leukemia, lymphoma, neuroblastoma, Wilms tumor, some brain tumors, retinoblastoma, and most sarcomas. However, despite this success, the development of treatment-related dose-limiting toxicities (DLT) in normal, healthy tissues, even at sub-curative therapeutic doses, limits the clinical utility and efficacy of most cytotoxic therapy.

Triche and his collaborators are trying to solve this problem.

"It's not that chemotherapy does not work..." he explained, "But we often can't give enough to cure the patient without unacceptable damage to essential normal tissues like bone marrow, heart, kidney, and liver in the process. So how do we give more drugs to the tumor cells and less to 'everything else', thereby averting DLT? We have been exploring the use of nanotechnology, where we package drugs in a nanoparticle that targets or preferentially binds to and is taken up by tumor cells, thereby delivering the drug where it is intended while limiting off-target toxicity. The basic approach has been explored and tried before in many liposomal formulations, but there have always been challenges, like finding a tumor-specific target, or stability limitations, or toxicity related to specific formulations."

Targeted Nanospheres
However, a promising and flexible approach is being developed with Targeted Nanospheres (TNS), a proprietary nanoparticle formulation designed to obviate these issues. Triche is the Chief Medical Officer and co-founder of NanoValent Pharmaceuticals (Bozeman, Montana), a small and privately held company born out of a collaboration between Triche, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, and a veteran lipid chemist, Jon Nagy, Ph.D. [1] They have created a range of TNS based products that incorporate existing cancer drugs as a 'payload' into patented, highly optimized Hybrid Polymerized Liposomal Nanoparticles (HPLN), that are targeted by monoclonal antibodies affixed to the outside of the HPLN, thus forming the TNS.[2]

"As each HPLN is able to be loaded with significant quantities of drug payload we have in effect enabled a safe and 'super ADC' (antibody-drug conjugate)," Triche suggests, "designed specifically for pediatric cancers, but also applicable to adult cancer as well". How then does the TNS work? "We already have untargeted nanoparticles that show enhanced permeability and retention in the tumor, referred to as passive targeting, as we see with successful untargeted larger nanoparticles like Abraxane and Doxil. But by using antibodies bound to the outside of the nanoparticle we create a targeted nanoparticle that binds to tumor cells expressing that antigen, enabling active targeting of the TNS to specific tumors. For leukemia, CD19 antibody is effective. For Ewing sarcoma and glioblastoma multiforme, CD99 is particularly effective. For a broad variety of cancers, B7H3 appears to be a useful and widespread tumor antigen. If nanoparticles bind to tumor cells more than any normal tissue, you get enhanced drug delivery to tumors while limiting exposure of normal tissue resulting in reduced toxicity."

Triche continues "NanoValent's TNS achieve significantly greater drug delivery to tumor than untargeted nanoparticles or conventional liposomal nanoparticles. However, in addition to targeting, TNS therapeutics have apparently favorable pharmacokinetic properties as the patented HPLN lipid formulation stabilizes the nanoparticle while enabling prolonged biodistribution, tumor retention, and controlled drug release".

Preclinical development
The company's lead and proof of concept investigational compound, NV103, targets CD99, a cell surface glycoprotein involved in cell migration, T-cell adhesion, and transmembrane protein transport, expressed in selected tumors. "CD99 is overexpressed on Ewing sarcoma (ES) cells and is considered to be a reliable target for binding of our targeted nanoparticles. It is also present on glioblastoma cells and over 40 other tumors, making it an attractive target for our targeted drug development program," Triche explains.

NV103 uses 'encapsulated' irinotecan, a camptothecin analogue that has, over the last decade, also become an important therapeutic agent for the treatment of pediatric sarcomas such as ES. However, dose-limiting toxicity has limited the effective use of the drug. "Using our platform technology," Triche explains, "we can 'package' irinotecan in a CD99-TNS and deliver as much as 100-fold more drug-to-tumor than normal tissue, thereby reducing or eliminating dose-limiting toxicity and increasing efficacy." [3]

Preclinical studies confirm the safety and efficacy of NanoValent's TNS drug-candidates. Results from xenograft murine models of human ES treated with NV103 demonstrated the agent effectively eliminated the tumor xenografts with no detectable off-target toxicity. Further, the ED ₅₀ of NV103 was 10 to 40-fold less than free irinotecan or untargeted nanoparticles. These studies are consistent with earlier findings from several in vitro studies demonstrating that NV103 was a potent anti-tumor formulation.[3]

" We have also demonstrated that "rescue" dose intensification with NV103 can overcome relative chemoresistance, something that is never seen with free irinotecan, due to DLT," added Triche.

Customized delivery and targeting for still emerging drugs?
Triche notes that while the company's platform technology may sound like 'just another nanoparticle', it is actually an advanced and innovative nanoparticle technology with unique properties, notably dramatically enhanced drug delivery to tumor cells with limited exposure of normal tissues to the drug, a property that is not seen with other, untargeted formulations. "While the technology may borrow from earlier developments, concepts, and principles, we have significantly advanced this technology by focusing on a unique combination of factors leading to a novel nanosphere technology. By doing so, we find that TNS effectively compete with or surpass existing formulations, including antibody-drug conjugates, liposomal drug formulations, and other nanoparticle technologies," Triche concludes. And he notes, TNS technology is very flexible. "Not only can we encapsulate and deliver a variety of small molecule therapeutic agents, including other cytotoxics like doxorubicin, we can also deliver nucleic acids including silencing RNAs, anti-sense oligonucleotides, and CRISPR/Cas9 RNP therapies, and we can target them with a variety of affinity agents, from antibodies to aptamers. We also discovered that TNS effectively cross the blood-brain barrier. As a result, we are conducting a very promising pilot program in glioblastoma that could potentially lead to the treatment of neurological diseases beyond cancer."

Reference
[1] Garcia D. NanoValent Receives Patent for Novel Targeted Polymerized Nanoparticles. Onco'Zine.

The editorial team of Onco'Zine and The Onco'Zine Brief consists of an Editor-in-Chief, Deputy Editors, and Consulting Editors. Members of the editorial team are chosen based on their demonstrated expertise in one or more areas of oncology or hematology and their active engagement in research.

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A more Targeted Approach in Pediatric Cancer Therapy? - Onco'Zine

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"Fundamentally, there is a huge difference between the treatment of childhood and adult cancers and any novel treatment developed for pediatric oncology needs to recognize that," starts Timothy Triche, M.D., Ph.D., Co-Director of the Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) Center for Personalized Medicine Program, in an edited interview for The Onco'Zine Brief, which will air later in 2021.

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HVAC technology is always going to be needed because people are always going to need cold or warm air and it's said that the HVAC its going to go more of a economically friendly. They are trying to go a more  solutions and geothermal heat pumps are becoming more cost-effective options. HVAC technicians are using new software such as Energy Gauge that can help contractors save time and customers save money.

5 New HVAC Technology & Innovations Changing the Industry in 2020 | Housecall Pro

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New technology, such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality, are changing the heating and air conditioning industry in every way. To keep up, HVAC professionals need to understand how customers are using this new technology to monitor their energy usage and plan equipment maintenance. Here are five technology trends that are impacting HVAC companies.
Our top-5 HVAC technologies & innovations
1. New sustainable homes use alternative heating and cooling options
Additional examples of eco-friendly HVAC innovations include:
Energy Analysis Software:
Before making any installations, HVAC technicians are using new software such as
Energy Gauge
that can help contractors save time and customers save money. These software programs help project the best energy- and cost-efficient systems for a given space. They can also provide you with a cost/benefit analysis for energy improvement measures for existing systems, so that you can inform your customers which improvements upfront can save them the most money later on.Energy analysis software could lead to HVAC innovation on a larger scale, as well. Engineers and architects could use such a platform to find appropriate equipment for their design, project a building's lifetime energy consumption, and consider the implementation of non-HVAC techniques (such as reflective roofing).

Sensor-Enhanced Vents:
One of the latest HVAC technologies that are changing the industry is offered by the company

. It enables homeowners to digitally control the climate in every room of their home through a convenient app with the use of smart sensors that gather and transmit climate data in every room. The information is sent to the Ecovent Smart Hub which then coordinates with each vent, telling it to open or close, in order to direct airflow.

Ice-Powered Air Conditioning
:

is a company based out of Glendale, CA who's introducing new HVAC technology to the market. Their product, Ice Bear, is an air conditioning unit that's powered by ice; it freezes 450 gallons of water in a tank overnight during the "Ice Charging" mode. When switched to "Ice Cooling" mode during the day, it provides cool air conditioning for up to 6 hours, after which point the A/C reverts back to the building's conventional unit. When it's used in conduction with standard units, the Ice Bear reduces total net energy consumption.

Dual Fuel Heat Pump:
This HVAC technology solves the dramatic temperature differences between rooms that results in inefficient heating and cooling. Installation is quick and easy-taking roughly 15 minutes to complete-and offers greater comfort with 30% more savings on energy.
ARS Rescue Rooter points out
This HVAC technology combines an electric heat pump and full-sized gas furnace into one package. As

, this heating system can be a great choice for homeowners who live in regions of the country with low electricity rates and moderate climates that rarely drop below freezing. Most of the time, when temperatures are above 35-degrees, the electric heat pump will warm the home. However, at sub-freezing temperatures, the pump will switch to gas in order to more efficiently warm the home.

2. Smart thermostats connect to home monitoring services
Integrate smart thermostats with other home systems
Be sure to educate your customers about the new and exciting ways they can use the latest HVAC technology throughout their entire home.
Smart HVAC systems
3. Smart systems increase preventive maintenance

are predicting when maintenance is needed before there's a real issue. This new technology trend can change your relationship with your customers from someone they call in an emergency to someone they reach out to for regularly scheduled check-ups.
Gain insight into equipment such as:
New HVAC technologies which use an Internet of Things (IoT) system are embedded with sensors, software, and connectivity that enables the HVAC system to exchange data with other connected devices. IoT systems improve preventative maintenance by sensing data on air quality and equipment status. New and affordable Internet of Things HVAC technology makes it significantly easier to gain insight across a range of equipment.

Even slight deviations from a manufacturer's specification can lead to a large increase in energy consumption. The HVAC innovations with remote monitoring and diagnostics minimize power waste by ensuring units operate at their peak efficiency. HVAC professionals can begin to monitor energy usage, suggest maintenance, and offer personalized suggestions for ways to reduce energy consumption and improve energy efficiency.

4. Customers expect tech-savvy services and technicians
Housecall Pro features
This works out well for the 78 percent of service professionals already using mobile apps on the job, which are available within the

. According to the same study, 92 percent of technicians reported that their productivity increased using mobile technology.

5. Virtual reality (VR) training for HVAC professionals
Tauris Tech
Virtual reality HVAC technology is becoming a cost-effective way to train new employees or current staff training on new equipment or working on advanced certifications. For instance, Tauris McBride, founder of
training simulator on Youtube
, uses VR training to prepare his students for the New York City Refrigeration license exam. Check out his

.

Using virtual simulators, you can walk technicians through the installation and troubleshooting of new equipment, and larger groups can train at once with less equipment needed. Attendees use virtual components online before migrating to real, physical materials which helps reduce both the risk and cost of training.
Housecall Pro HVAC software
Equipment and business software will continue to evolve as new HVAC technology gains momentum. But with it comes new opportunities for improved professional training and customer service.

helps business owners keep up with technology with unique automated payment and service agreement features. Online booking, streamlined dispatching and simplified invoicing improve your workflow so you can worry less about details, freeing your focus to expand your business with the latest HVAC technologies.

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5 New HVAC Technology & Innovations Changing the Industry in 2020 | Housecall Pro

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New technology, such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality, are changing the heating and air conditioning industry in every way. To keep up, HVAC professionals need to understand how customers are using this new technology to monitor their energy usage and plan equipment maintenance. Here are five technology trends that are impacting HVAC companies.

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In the world of law enforcement, technology increases the productivity of the safety of officers and agencies. Technology improved the communications between officers and dispatches with advancing radios and computers. With using technology , officers has an advantage of faster response times. Technology in law enforcement is used to the advantage of officers effectively doing their jobs.

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Technology has not had a game-changing impact on policing in terms of dramatically altering the philosophies and strategies used for preventing crime, responding to crime, or improving public safety.

Technology in law enforcement and corrections was supposed to change our world. The thought was that an array of technological strategies would reduce crime and make the lives of criminal justice personnel easier.

From my own experiences, that simply hasn't happened.

RTI International and the Police Executive Research Forum was funded by the National Institute of Justice to examine the types of technology that U.S. law enforcement agencies (LEAs) are acquiring and implementing, and the degree to which the use of technology is linked to strategy development and larger organizational change within police organizations, National Institute of Justice.

The report is summarized below.

Like many in criminal justice, I can't watch crime-related television shows. They offer endless examples of computerization where an investigator (with endless time) almost instantly discovers data on the most intricate of details about a suspect's life. The findings are never wrong; they are never incomplete.

The portrayal of immediate access to accurate records is often fiction.

Drones aren't following stolen or speeding cars or responding to violent incidents. Less than lethal technologies aren't. Paperwork via computers remains slow and cumbersome. Predictive technologies are filled with false positives.

What really drives me crazy are the endless articles suggesting that law enforcement agencies are acquiring technologies that will spy on your cell phone data, crack your social media accounts and access every part of your digital life. While there is no doubt that these technologies exist, they are rarely employed by the average law enforcement agency.

Technology means people are available to collect and analyze evidence and data, share it, and to come to reasonable conclusions. That's a lot harder than most people think even if we had all the people we need.

I wrote an article suggesting that police and parole and probation agents staff a command center where the majority of released prison inmates would be on GPS surveillance. Research indicates that GPS tracking of offenders may be the most promising strategy we have to reduce violations of offenders while sending fewer back to prison.

At the same time, we are aware that when offenders recidivate, they do so fairly soon after release, thus placing them at or near crime scenes would be an immense help to law enforcement. It could also prevent crimes from happening based on access to official and social media records (i.e., an offender seeking revenge for the shooting of his cousin by breaking his GPS imposed curfew and examining his social media accounts).

While this is an evidence-based approach that will, in all likelihood reduce crime and returns to prison, no one has the resources to implement a combined 24-365 law enforcement-parole and probation command center and even if they did, the data points from that number of offenders being on GPS could overwhelm the capacity of the system to process all the information.

The bottom line of technology? It's very labor intensive for it to be effective.

We can't keep up with the current systems we have in place via the Texas mass shooting (he illegally purchased firearms) and the fact that millions of records are not entered into criminal justice databases.

And don't get me started on rape kits sitting on the desks of evidence rooms going unanalyzed or the unprocessed crime scenes because they are not priority cases.

In my mind, technology in law enforcement and corrections is in its infancy. Yes, we have car and body-mounted cameras but storage and retrieval can be almost insurmountable. Yes, we have license plate readers; do we have sufficient personnel to follow-up? Yes, we predict where the next string of robberies will occur, but we can do that without a computer. Yes, we use social media, but so does every 14 year old.

We have DNA databases plus the ability to take and analyze fingerprints via computers and match them to unsolved crimes or warrants. But that depends on fingerprints taken and warrants entered into NCIC.

I believe that, someday, we will be as sophisticated as the TV shows make us out to be.

But that will mean that we have a fully structured corps of technologists who can take endless mounds of data, find the needle in a haystack, and provide firm direction. That will also mean that we have the personnel available who can follow up on those leads while simultaneously provide the patrol and response functions normally found in any law enforcement or correctional agency.

It also means that we have the personnel to enter warrants and to update criminal records as the offender progresses through the criminal justice system.

So civil libertarians, you can sleep easily. We're not the National Security Agency or the CIA. We're not even close.

From the standpoint of technology, I'm not sure we are on an even keel with most offenders with encrypted e-mail, the dark web, and smartphones that can't be unlocked.

Twenty-five percent of Americans state that they or another member of their household had data stolen from their computers. Another sixteen percent say that they or their household were victims of identity theft in the last twelve months, Gallup. That outstrips all other forms of crime.

Are we in criminal justice ready to assist them?

Findings from the Report (slightly edited and rearranged for readability)

Technology and policing have been interconnected for decades, dating back to the advent of the telephone, the automobile, and the two-way radio. Today, technology seems to be advancing at an ever-accelerating pace, as seen through the propagation of mobile and wireless technology, high-powered computing, visual and audio technology, advanced analytics, and other technological advancements.

Many departments are implementing these and other technologies to increase efficiency and to improve outcomes, especially in times of diminished resources and enhanced public attention to and scrutiny of law enforcement tactics and outcomes. However, much remains unknown about the prevalence and utility of technology among the nation's law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and the factors that influence its selection and implementation.

To address these issues, we need to build the knowledge base of why and how police select, implement and integrate new technology; how that technology is being used; and whether new technology improves policing in a meaningful way for both the agency and the community. RTI International (RTI) and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) were funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to examine more closely the types of technology that U.S.

LEAs are acquiring and implementing, and the degree to which the use of technology is linked to strategy development and larger organizational change within policing organizations. Three objectives were specifically examined.

The first objective was the prevalence of police technology on a nationally representative level; the second objective examined a group of selected high-technology implementer and mixed-technology implementer agencies.

The combined findings from the national- and site-level data were used to develop the final objective: a research-based framework to guide police agencies in future selection, implementation, and use of technology.
Methodology
This project was conducted in three phases.

First, an expert panel was convened to identify key policing technology and to ensure that the survey captured critical indicators of technology performance. Second, a nationally representative survey was administered to more than 1,200 state and local LEAs. The survey explored policing strategies and activities, and technology acquisition, use, and challenges. Results from this survey were used to identify agencies that would be well suited for the final research phase: in-depth site visits. Site-visit locations were stratified so that visits were conducted with both municipal and sheriff agencies of various sizes (small, medium, and large) and experiences with technology.
Key Findings
The following sections summarize key findings from the study and their implications.
Technology prevalence
Today's state and local LEAs are heavily involved in technology. Ninety-six percent had implemented one or more of the 18 core technologies of interest, most commonly car cameras (70% of agencies), information-sharing platforms (68%), and social media (68%).

One-third of agencies had body-worn cameras (BWCs), geographic information system technology (GIS), cell phone tracking software, or investigative case management software.

Notable among large agencies (250 or more sworn officers) was the prevalence of analytical and visual-based technology. About 81% of large agencies reported using GIS (compared with 31% overall) and 70% were using license plate readers (LPRs; compared with 20% overall).

Use of predictive analytics software was reported by 28% of large agencies.
Technologies expected to increase in use
Results demonstrate that technology use is expected to increase not only among the largest agencies but across most U.S. LEAs. The technologies expected to increase most sharply were predictive analytics software (15% of all agencies and 22% of large agencies have plans to obtain and use within 2 years), BWCs (15% and 17%, respectively), and in-car electronic ticketing (11% and 38%, respectively).

Also notable were the intentions to acquire next-generation 9-1-1 (14% and 11%, respectively) or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones) (7% and 9%, respectively).
Links between policing strategies and technological adoption
Nationally, we found little relationship between the policing strategies that agencies most closely adhere to and the number of technologies used. The exception was zero-tolerance policing; greater emphasis on zero-tolerance was associated with less technology use. However, among large agencies (250 or more officers), there were stronger connections between strategy and technology adoption.

Agencies aligned most closely with community policing, intelligence-led policing, or hot-spot policing philosophies implemented and used more technology. In contrast, agencies that emphasized professional policing, problem-oriented policing, or zero tolerance policing implemented and used less technology.
Policing activities and strategies and technology selection
Nationally, LEAs are generally not making technology decisions based on their dominant policing philosophies. An exception were agencies that emphasized community policing which were more likely to use social media. In addition, agencies that emphasized predictive policing were more likely to use LPRs than those that did not.

Among large agencies, however, we found stronger connections between the policing philosophies agencies adopt and the technology choices they make. Agencies that emphasized hot-spot policing were more likely to have used BWCs. The use of GIS was positively associated with community policing, hot-spot policing, and offender targeting. LPR and social media use was positively associated with community policing and hot-spot policing.
Agency decision-making regarding technology acquisition and implementation
As a whole, our findings demonstrate that law enforcement technology adoption is often ad hoc and not based on longer-term planning.

The tendency to purchase technology without a clear, strategic plan can result in limited integration within the agency and a failure to recognize the primary or secondary benefits of the technology. These factors can lead to disillusionment and a lack of continued funding for maintaining or updating particular types of technology.

Impact of technology on policing activities. Perhaps not surprisingly automated records management systems (RMS) and computer-aided dispatch (CAD) were the technology credited with having the greatest impact on police agencies nationwide. This technology is central for carrying out the most fundamental professional policing activities, responding to calls for service and information management.

The RMS/CAD technology is also crucial for generating the data that other activities and technology applications rely on, such as GIS, hot-spot policing, and other location-based activities. Because of its highly flexible nature, GIS was reported to have the greatest impact on identifying and analyzing crime and disorder problems. Social media and data mining were both considered to successfully impact an agency's ability to generate intelligence from the community (intelligence-based policing).

Among the agencies that identified tracking officer conduct as a key activity, the use of BWCs was seen as more critical than the use of car-mounted cameras.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Technology can produce various positive outcomes relative to improvements in policing practices and the establishment of trust and legitimacy with communities. The President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing (2015) summarizes these points and acknowledges that technology is changing at an increasingly rapid pace.

As the rate of technology adoption accelerates it becomes increasingly important for police agencies to consider how they select and implement technology and what strategic objectives these technologies will help them achieve.

Overall, our study found that technology is having a positive impact on U.S. law enforcement agencies in terms of increasing efficiency, providing communication, enhancing information-sharing practices, and improving informational and analytical capacities. As highlighted above, some of these impacts are greatest for particular types of technology.

Yet, the findings also demonstrate that, as a whole, technology has not had a game-changing impact on policing in terms of dramatically altering the philosophies and strategies used for preventing crime, responding to crime, or improving public safety.

Based on our finding, we determined that the adoption and impact of technology within an agency are often conditional upon three general types of factors: community, agency, and technology.

Community factors may include local community priorities, state laws, or national sentiment (e.g., the push for BWC use after a high-profile incident). At the agency level, organizational climate will influence how technology is approached and integrated into the department.

Finally, the factors intrinsic to the technology itself will influence success and adoption. For example, a certain technology may be more successful when it more closely parallels successful technology in the market (e.g., predictive analytics software can be seen as a natural extension of GIS use).

The following summarizes recommendations for developing a more successful national model for technology implementation in today's law enforcement community. Evidence-based research is needed in policing technology. Our research suggests that there needs to be greater emphasis on evidence-based, informed decision-making about new technology.

Strategic planning should include technology considerations. The strategic planning process appears to be severely overlooked in many agencies despite being integral to the success or failure of a technology.

Decision makers and technology experts should better collaborate on technology decisions. Many technologies are not broadly deployed in an agency, which can result in diverse problems in terms of buy-in and organizational impact.

Past experience with technology contributes to future behavior. Each agency and its community context are unique and there is often heavy emphasis placed on each agency's own historical performance of technology identification, acquisition, and implementation.

Strategic planning and pre-implementation should be emphasized when an agency planning to obtain a new technology.

Plans should be specific to an agency's mission or preferred policing strategy, with clearly outlined goals. Specific personnel and knowledge requirements to reach those goals should be incorporated into the strategic plan.

Agencies should consider how to quantify success, while concurrently working with researchers who can evaluate the effectiveness of both processes and outcomes. Not only will this help agencies understand what needs to be changed but it will also inform the field of policing on how to increase sustainability and maximize the effects of their technology use.
Leonard Adam Sipes, Jr. - Thirty-five years of speaking for national and state criminal justice agencies. Interviewed multiple times by every national news outlet. Former Senior Specialist for Crime Prevention for the Department of Justice's clearinghouse. Former Director of Information Services, National Crime Prevention Council. Post-Masters' Certificate of Advanced Study-Johns Hopkins University.

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Technology has not had a game-changing impact on policing in terms of dramatically altering the philosophies and strategies used for preventing crime, responding to crime, or improving public safety. Technology in law enforcement and corrections was supposed to change our world.

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Pyston, a fork/alternative to the Python programming language has gotten support from the developers of Anaconda, another widespread alternative to Python. This support will further accelerate the development of Pyston. The developer of Pyston intends to add more support to different hardware platforms so it can be usable on a lot more devices. The programming language is also compatible with Python, meaning Python code can run in Pyston.