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Penn Engineers Develop $2 Portable Zika Test

CLICK HERE - Analytical Chemistry - Instrument-Free Point-of-Care Molecular Detection of Zika Virus

news.upenn.edu - June 29, 2016

University of Pennsylvania engineers have developed a rapid, low-cost genetic test for the Zika virus. The $2 testing device, about the size of a soda can, does not require electricity or technical expertise to use. A patient would simply provide a saliva sample. Color-changing dye turns blue when the genetic assay detects the presence of the virus.

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FACT SHEET: Obama Administration Announces Federal and Private Sector Actions on Scaling Renewable Energy and Storage with Smart Markets

submitted by Gordian Raacke

CLICK HERE - White House Council of Economic Advisors - Incorporating Renewables into the Grid: Expanding Opportunities for Smart Markets and Energy Storage (40 page .PDF report)

whitehouse.gov - June 16, 2016

. . The Administration is announcing new executive actions and 33 state and private sector commitments that will accelerate the grid integration of renewable energy and storage.  Together, these announcements are expected to result in at least 1.3 gigawatts of additional storage procurement or deployment in the next five years. .

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Vertical 'Pinkhouses:' The Future Of Urban Farming?

      

This "pinkhouse" at Caliber Biotherapeutics in Bryan, Texas, grows 2.2 million plants under the glow of blue and red LEDs.  Courtesy of Caliber Therapeutics

npr.org - by Michaeleen Doucleff - May 21, 2013

The future of vertical farming . . . lies not in city skyscrapers, but rather in large warehouses located in the suburbs, where real estate and electricity are cheaper.

And oh, yeah, instead of being traditional greenhouses lit by fluorescent lamps . . . these plant factories will probably be "pinkhouses," glowing magenta from the mix of blue and red LEDs.

Vertical farmers can lower the energy bill . . . by giving plants only the wavelengths of light they need the most: the blue and red.

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Mayor: Why My Texas Town Ditched Fossil Fuel

      

Cattle graze beneath turbines at the Penascal Wind Power Project in Kenedy County, Texas. Officials in Georgetown, Texas announced that the city will transition from fossil-fuel generated electricity to power solely produced using renewable energy by 2017.  Business Wire

Dale Ross is the Mayor of Georgetown, Texas. - 100% renewable energy made good business sense

time.com - by Dale Ross - March 27, 2015

Georgetown is a city of 54,000 just north of Austin known for beautiful Victorian-era architecture around our historic courthouse square. Founded in 1848, we are home to Southwestern University, a small liberal arts college.

The City of Georgetown recently announced that our municipal electric utility will move to 100 percent renewable energy sources by 2017. That probably caught some folks by surprise.

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2 new ebola vaccines pass important early test, researchers say

NEW YORK TIMES   by Denis Grady                                                                 April 9. 2015

Two  new Ebola vaccines have passed an important test, protecting monkeys against the strain of the virus responsible for the current deadly outbreak, researchers reported on Wednesday. Only one dose was needed, and there were no apparent side effects..

Thomas W. Geisbert, an Ebola expert at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, in his office. Credit Michael Stravato for The New York Times

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Efforts are Underway for a Community-Owned Grocery Store in Port Arthur, Texas

12 News

12newsnow.com - by Angel San Juan - March 20, 2015

PORT ARTHUR - The neighborhood surrounding Gilham Circle was once a thriving part of Port Arthur, but Hurricane Rita dealt it a severe blow.

But a decade later, Cuevas Peacock, a young community activist, and his group PRO-ACT, which stands for promoting action in our communities and towns are hoping to breathe new life into the area, starting with a grocery store.

Peacock says the hurricane caused a decline in population, and that decline led to a departure of businesses, specifically grocery stores.

Most of the people who stayed in the neighborhood are elderly, and the nearest full-service grocery store is not within walking distance.

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Exclusive: take a first look at the next generation ebola-protection suit

QUARTZ  by Grace Dobush                                         March 13, 2015

AUSTIN, Texas—Perhaps the most surprising and important product debuting at SXSW Interactive this year is a personal protective equipment (PPE) prototype for health care workers dealing with Ebola, a tangible result of the U.S. government adapting the culture of innovation and design thinking so key in the startup world.

A team from the U.S. Agency for International Development demonstrated the traditional Ebola suit and the new suit in a preview for Quartz....

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UT nasal spray vaccine for Ebola effective in monkeys

By Todd Ackerman                                                                           Nov. 5, 2014

... researchers at the University of Texas-Austin have developed a nasal spray vaccine that has protected monkeys against the deadly Ebola virus even a year after immunization.

The vaccine, a genetically engineered cold virus containing a tiny portion of Ebola DNA, saved 100 percent of monkeys who got a single spray through the nose in a new UT study. Injecting the vaccine only saved the lives of about 50 percent.

 
 
 Maria Croyle, a professor of pharmaceutics and the study's principal investigator, said an inhaled Ebola vaccine is more attractive because it would be cheaper and safer than needle-delivered vaccines.

"The main advantage is the long-lasting protection after a single inhaled dose," Maria Croyle, a  professor of pharmaceutics and the study's principal investigator, said in a statement. "This is important since the longevity of other vaccines for Ebola (hasn't been) fully evaluated....

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CDC Chief Announces New Shift In Ebola Protocols

WASHINGTON--The  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leader Dr. Tom Frieden announced changes to the U.S. response to Ebola and the guidance federal agencies are giving to state and local governments.

The new protocol stops short of the mandatory 21-day quarantines that some states have begun requiring. Instead, Frieden said, it relies on individual assessment and close monitoring. He also detailed several categories of risk among both airline passengers and the medical volunteers who he said have been doing "heroic work" in West Africa.

"High risk" individuals, Frieden said, include those who have cared for an Ebola patient and were accidentally poked by a needle or lacked protective gear. Those people, Frieden said, should isolate themselves in their homes and avoid all forms of mass transit and large gatherings.

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Staff in Texas Ebola Case Is Asked to Avoid Public Spaces

NEW YORK TIMES                                

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