DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ How to Respond to a Stranger in Mental Distress
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Dani Blum | Dana G. Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

If you are concerned for your safety, the best course of action is usually to leave the situation as soon as possible, said Schroeder Stribling, the president and chief executive of Mental Health America, a nonprofit group focused on advancing mental health. If you’re on the subway, for example, change cars, or get off and wait for the next train. Many cities have help lines and mobile crisis response teams that serve as an interface between the police and mental health providers and are trained to help people in acute distress. In New York City, for example, you can call 888-NYC-WELL to connect with mental health professionals. If you call 911, specify that you are calling about a mental health emergency and request a crisis intervention team if one is available, said Megan Rochford, the director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness HelpLine Operations.

The drug, donanemab, met all goals of the trial. "These are the strongest phase 3 data for an Alzheimer's treatment to date," said Maria Carrillo, chief science officer for the Alzheimer's Association. In the donanemab treatment group, Lilly said brain swelling, a known side effect of drugs of this type, occurred in 24% of the participants, with 6.1% experiencing symptoms. In the Leqembi Phase 3 trial, the drug was associated with brain swelling in nearly 13% of its study participants. It also said 47% of donanemab patients in the 18-month trial had no disease progression at 12 months, compared with 29% of the placebo group.

☆ This 44-year-old founder and CEO is stepping down to go on a 3-year religious mission. 'I feel such confidence that this is the right thing.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Davis Smith founded Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear company and certified B Corporation, in 2014. In July, he will step down as CEO to go on a 3-year religious mission in Brazil. Damien Huang, Cotopaxi's president who joined the company from Eddie Bauer, where he was CEO, will move into the role. "But I feel such confidence that this is the right thing." And we don't do that by isolating ourselves or saying, "We're better than you," or "You're not doing it right."

☆ America's broken housing market is making millennials and Gen Z lonelier
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Loneliness is a perceived lack of connection — the discrepancy between the social connection someone has and the connection they want. Holt-Lunstad's widely-cited research has found that loneliness and social isolation have health impacts comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. People who live in communities with more walkable neighborhoods, shared space, greenery, and diverse types of housing, feel more socially connected and less lonely. In her work, Peavey has come up with six design strategies for creating third spaces — places that aren't home, work, or school — to facilitate social connection. But neighborhoods need to be dense and walkable in order for people to easily access these places because cars and physical distance get in the way.

☆ State leaders targeting climate investing have quiet stakes in the fossil fuel industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Fitzpatrick is among a group of powerful Republican state leaders who have waged similar fights against environmentally conscious investing as they held personal investments in, or saw political support from, the fossil fuel industry. Some of the state officials have received campaign donations from fossil fuel companies or their executives. "He has never 'had private briefings tied back to the fossil fuel industry' nor does he personally direct or execute trades himself. Hegar co-signed an open letter in 2021 with other state financial officers that was addressed to the U.S. banking industry and defended the fossil fuel industry. He also co-signed the 2022 letter to Biden from a slate of other state financial officers defending the fossil fuel industry.

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHow silicon could enable cheaper EVs, electric flight and more powerful batteriesLithium-ion battery performance has reached a plateau in recent years, but a breakthrough in battery technology is about to change that. Using silicon instead of graphite, the commonly used material in battery anodes today, enables significantly higher energy density and faster charging. The new tech has attracted the attention of big players such as GM, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Airbus. CNBC spoke with Sila, Amprius and Group14 to learn how the new batteries will transform EVs and more.

☆ What the Boston Marathon Finish Line Means Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Talya Minsberg | Matthew Futterman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +14 min

The Boston Marathon is arguably the most elusive finish line of all, and not just anyone can cross it. In 2013, on a cool, partly sunny day, this ebullient scene was shattered when two bombs exploded near the finish line. On Monday, nearly 30,000 runners will journey, down and up and down, toward the finish line of the 127th Boston Marathon. Volunteer, runner I used to volunteer at the finish line, reading information about runners as they finished for the announcer. It means something so different crossing that finish line compared to other marathon majors.

☆ Can AI answer your money questions? We put chatbots to the test
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Chris Taylor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

NEW YORK, April 13 (Reuters) - Face it, we could all use a little help with our money. So who better to ask for personal finance advice than a couple of the most powerful chatbots on the planet? Each has far more processing power than, say, any individual personal finance writer (ahem). That in mind, we asked our AI assistants-slash-overlords these classic personal finance questions:What is one great business idea? I couldn’t leave our new AI friends without asking a deeper question about money and its role in our existence.

☆ 5 things the Supreme Court will take into account in medication abortion case
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Ariane De Vogue | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —As the Supreme Court prepares for yet another controversial abortion case to come its way, the justices will pore over District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling last week to block the government’s approval of the key medication abortion drug at issue. “There are serious questions on whether the Supreme Court is willing to endorse the district’s court’s very broad approach to those questions,” he said. As he often does, Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote separately last June to explain his thinking in voting to overturn Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court might also take issue with the relief that Kacsmaryk ordered. None other than the liberals on the Supreme Court who dissented in Dobbs.

☆ These organizations are selling plastic offsets to help build recycling infrastructure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThese organizations are selling plastic offsets to help build recycling infrastructureFor-profit companies Plastic Bank and RePurpose Global are incentivizing plastic collection and recycling in developing nations, and selling plastic credits to consumer goods companies looking to offset new plastic production. But while developing recycling ecosystems in areas with poor waste management infrastructure is undeniably positive, some experts are concerned that the emerging plastic credits market could distract from the systemic changes that are needed to end plastic pollution.

☆ These organizations are trying to tackle plastic pollution and poverty at the same time
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

"All the plastic we've ever produced since the inception of the material is still here," said David Katz, CEO of Plastic Bank, a company that's trying to implement plastic recycling systems in developing nations. It's usually because it's not economically feasible to collect, clean and sort plastic waste — at least not in the U.S., where new plastic is cheaper. Asis Wijayanto and his wife Atmawati support themselves and their daughter by collecting plastic with Plastic Bank. Plastic creditsBut only about 20% of Plastic Bank's partners are actually buying recycled plastic for use in new products. The other 80% are buying plastic credits, meant to help offset their new plastic production by funding recycling efforts in the countries where Plastic Bank operates.

☆ Doctors Are Losing Their Calling
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Michael P.H. Stanley | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

BostonPhysician-trainees at Mass General Brigham are attempting to unionize. If they succeed, the union would be the largest of its kind in the country with more than 2,500 members, joining the estimated 15% of U.S. medical trainees who’ve assembled under the Committee of Interns and Residents in recent years. At the center of the doctors’ unionization efforts is a desire to reclaim their identity as service-driven providers and to fight for the autonomy and fair working conditions that they’ve lost as their profession becomes more commercialized and centralized.

☆ The IRS plans to tax some NFTs as collectibles — and the rich would pay up to 28% on profits
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Noam Galai | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty ImagesHow the IRS plans to tax NFTsNFT enthusiasm swelled in recent years along with the popularity of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin . An NFT offering a right to use or develop that virtual plot also generally isn't a collectible, the IRS said. Profit on those sales is taxed at ordinary income tax rates, which apply to wages, for example. (There are seven marginal tax rates, ranging from 10% up to 37%.) These tax rates are generally lower than ordinary income tax rates.

To deliver cargo to a customer's door, the P2 Zip hovers around 300 feet above ground level and dispatches a kind of mini-aircraft and container called the "droid." Setting up one of these docks takes about as much work as installing an electric vehicle charger, Rinaudo Cliffton said. Before developing the P2 Zip, Zipline had established logistics networks in Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Japan, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda already. It is operating some drone delivery networks in the US, in North Carolina, Arkansas and Utah -- but the P2 will help it expand that network. The droid component of the P2 Zip is designed to enter distribution centers through a small portal, where it's loaded up with goods for delivery.

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailZipline releases new drone designed for rapid home deliveriesZipline's new delivery drone is designed for rapid, at-home deliveries within a 10 mile radius. The company gained success with its initial model, first used to deliver blood to hospitals and clinics in Rwanda. Now, Zipline is trying to gain a greater foothold in the U.S., delivering food and medicine straight to customer's doorsteps. While companies like DroneUp, Wing, and Amazon Prime Air are also working in this space, Zipline hopes to be the first to scale drone delivery in the U.S.

The Food and Drug Administration made its assessment in briefing documents ahead of a meeting of the agency's external advisers on Thursday to discuss full approval to use Pfizer's oral pill for high-risk COVID-19 patients exhibiting mild to moderate symptoms. Paxlovid has been authorized for emergency use since late 2021, and a full approval is likely to allow Pfizer to expand its advertising campaign for the drug. Over 12 million courses have been delivered to pharmacies, and patients have used over 8 million courses of the treatment, according to Federal data. Paxlovid has shown reduction in risk of hospitalization or death by 86% in non-hospitalized, high-risk adult patients in Pfizer' study, which did not include vaccinated participants. Reporting by Leroy Leo and Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Eli Lilly Alzheimer's treatment solanezumab failed to slow disease progression
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Eli Lilly on Wednesday said it will halt development of its Alzheimer's treatment candidate solanezumab after the antibody failed to slow disease progression. The study enrolled more than 1,000 seniors who had normal memory and thinking function, but showed signs of brain plaque that is associated with Alzheimer's. Lilly said it did not have that data because donanemab cleared brain plaque quickly in many patients. "We remain confident in the of potential donanemab as a new treatment for people with early symptomatic Alzheimer's disease," Skovronsky said. The FDA approved Eisai's and Biogen's early Alzheimer's treatment Leqembi on an expedited basis in January.

☆ The medical 'heroes' who help save the lives of kidney-dialysis patients when massive storms hit the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

One in 500 Americans is on kidney dialysis. The hurricane meant that she could not get kidney dialysis for seven days. Like many dialysis patients, Brigham needed treatment every three days to replace the function of normal kidneys. Dialysis patients need their blood cleared through this procedure. We take other providers' patients, we take hospital patients, they take ours, we share supplies, we share generators, we share water," Dittrich said.

☆ The Great Salt Lake in Utah is disappearing, leaving behind a toxic bowl of dust and potentially one of the greatest environmental disasters in US history
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Scientists have warned that the Great Salt Lake in Utah could disappear within five years. "Great Salt Lake is facing unprecedented danger. When clouds of dust roll into Salt Lake City, they can make the air toxic. The Great Salt Lake is used for recreation, natural resource extraction, and brine shrimp fishing, a multimillion-dollar industry. Agriculture is the largest user of water in the Great Salt Lake watershed, accounting for 85%, according to the Utah Rivers Council.

☆ Elon Musk said he had to 'save Twitter from bankruptcy.' Here's what would happen if it filed for Chapter 11.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Elon Musk has floated bankruptcy as a possibility for Twitter, but had said costs are "under control." Twitter reportedly has roughly $13 billion in debt from a group of banks, with $1 billion annual interest payments. Companies can use Chapter 11 to slash debt, but it could give lenders control over its future. He tweeted earlier this month that his goal was "to save Twitter from bankruptcy," as his handling of the social media platform's finances has also come under scrutiny. In a Chapter 11 reorganization, parties like secured lenders and other creditors have leverage to demand leadership changes as a condition of approving a plan to exit bankruptcy.

Feb 15 (Reuters) - Emergent BioSolutions Inc's (EBS.N) over-the-counter version of opioid overdose reversing drug received unanimous support from U.S. Food and Drug Administration's panel of advisers, sending shares of the contract drugmaker up nearly 16% after market. The vote puts the naloxone-based treatment Narcan on track to potentially become the first opioid overdose drug to be sold OTC nationwide. Naloxone rapidly reverses or blocks the effects of an overdose, restoring normal respiration. However, most panelists emphasized that OTC use of the nasal spray was safe and proposed ways to improve its labeling, to avoid using the drug wrong. Signage is seen outside of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) headquarters in White Oak, Maryland, U.S., August 29, 2020.

☆ Why our electronics aren't really conflict-free
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Jeniece Pettitt | Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWhy there are still conflict minerals in our electronicsThe minerals tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold are found in most consumer electronics, and are mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which contains an estimated $24 trillion in untapped mineral resources. Yet the DRC remains one of the poorest and most dangerous countries in the world, and mining these metals can help fund armed conflict in the region. Despite international attention and widespread regulations, it's still hard to know exactly where our minerals are coming from.

☆ How conflict minerals make it into our phones
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

All of these minerals are found in our electronics and all are considered conflict minerals, due to their potential origin in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In a smartphone, for example, tin is used to solder metal components together, while tantalum is used in capacitors, which store electrical energy. Tungsten is used in the components that make a phone vibrate, and gold is used in circuit board connectors. But consumers still can't be sure if the minerals in their electronics are fully conflict-free, or if the mines where they originated are dangerous, environmentally destructive, or use child labor. So while companies like Apple, Microsoft, Intel and Tesla put out extensive reports on conflict minerals every year, usually stating that there is no reason to believe the minerals they source help to support armed groups, corruption and instability at mine sites means there are no guarantees.

A provision in the Inflation Reduction Act that allows Medicare to negotiate prices on the costliest prescription drugs each year will likely save the U.S. billions of dollars — as long as the drug industry doesn't interfere, according to a study published Friday in JAMA Health Forum. They identified 40 drugs that would have been selected by Medicare for drug pricing negotiation under the Inflation Reduction Act's provision. The researchers simulated negotiated prices by using a so-called ceiling price, which is at least 25% off the average price drug manufacturers charge to nongovernment entities, like private health insurance providers. The researchers found that the Medicare drug negotiation provision would have saved the U.S. $26.5 billion, or 5% of all drug spending, during those three years. It plans to release a list of the first 10 drugs it will target for drug pricing negotiation by September.

☆ How AI is detecting heart attack risk and aiming to outsmart America’s No. 1 killer
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Kerima Greene | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Cleerly founder and CEO James Min, a cardiologist, started the company to find a better way to assess heart health, by applying AI to the problem. Heart disease is the nation's No. CNBC: What are indirect markers of heart disease? Min: Many emergency department visits for heart attacks are preventable if risk factors for heart disease are identified in advance. Using millions of annotated CCTA images, Cleerly algorithms quantify and characterize atherosclerosis and its features.

Search resuls for: "Brigham"

25 mentions found