Monday, October 13, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Lec 9 | Special Topics in Supply Chain Management
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April 28th
Healthcare and Life Sciences Requirements for RFID Michael Rose, Johnson and Johnson Robert Celeste, EPCglobal Thomas Pizzuto, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Ted Ng, McKesson View the complete course at...
Healthcare and Life Sciences Requirements for RFID
Michael Rose, Johnson and Johnson
Robert Celeste, EPCglobal
Thomas Pizzuto, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals
Ted Ng, McKesson
View the complete course at: http://ocw.mit.edu/ESD-290S05
License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA
More information at http://ocw.mit.edu/terms
More courses at http://ocw.mit.edu
Category: Education
Friday, October 10, 2008
Understanding Embryonic Stem Cells
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Embryonic stem cells, or ES cells, are cells that can be isolated from early embryos, before they differentiate into specific types of cells. Because stem cells have the potential to generate fresh...
Nobel Prize for Medicine 2008
.
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Finaly, we heard the name of Luc Montagnier!!
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Finaly, we heard the name of Luc Montagnier!!
Nobel Prize Winner Muhammad Yunus
.
Glad that a muslim from a very poor country get recognized for who he is!!
Glad that a muslim from a very poor country get recognized for who he is!!
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Biotechnology, Healthcare and Life Sciences:
E-mail: msfilali@biotechclonicalconsulting.com
Amana BHTM’s strength is stems from its scientists, economists, public relations and alliances in the USA and in Europe for developing business opportunities for our clients. Amana BHTM’s combines basic biomedical science knowledge, industry understanding and transaction experience to bring practical, action-oriented business solutions to: Investors including VCs, Institutions and Banks. We are committed to support Research based Nano-/Biotech Companies, Pharmaceutical industry , Chemical Industry, Companies in Life Sciences, Diagnostics, Medical Device and Analytical Instrument and equipments.
Scientific and Technical Assistance:
- Assistance in conceptualizing, planning and realizing of new projects in the field of Biomedical and health Care.
- Strategic planning and process development based on six sigma and lean practices.
- Legal advising for trade and business rights (e.g. patentability of your inventions, ideas and creations or products. - - The accuracy and compliance of the methods, preparation of patent applications, support of employee’s inventions, evaluation of patents and trademarks, registration of trade marks, litigation) and survey of the company’s patent portfolio. Implementation of intelligence platforms of technology searches, technical or scientific searches and patent searches.
Business Financing:
Business Development in the Asian-Pacific Region:
- Based on in-depth industry knowledge and international business experience of Amana BHT management and an extensive network of our partners, we offer expert services in the Asian-Pacific Region, including:), licensing and acquisition opportunities with Asian Companies.
- Assistance in structuring, negotiating and closing of strategic partnerships with Asian Healthcare, Nano-/Biotech Companies.
E-mail: msfilali@biotechclonicalconsulting.com
Amana BHTM’s strength is stems from its scientists, economists, public relations and alliances in the USA and in Europe for developing business opportunities for our clients. Amana BHTM’s combines basic biomedical science knowledge, industry understanding and transaction experience to bring practical, action-oriented business solutions to: Investors including VCs, Institutions and Banks. We are committed to support Research based Nano-/Biotech Companies, Pharmaceutical industry , Chemical Industry, Companies in Life Sciences, Diagnostics, Medical Device and Analytical Instrument and equipments.
Scientific and Technical Assistance:
- Assistance in conceptualizing, planning and realizing of new projects in the field of Biomedical and health Care.
- Strategic planning and process development based on six sigma and lean practices.
- Legal advising for trade and business rights (e.g. patentability of your inventions, ideas and creations or products. - - The accuracy and compliance of the methods, preparation of patent applications, support of employee’s inventions, evaluation of patents and trademarks, registration of trade marks, litigation) and survey of the company’s patent portfolio. Implementation of intelligence platforms of technology searches, technical or scientific searches and patent searches.
Business Financing:
Business Development in the Asian-Pacific Region:
- Based on in-depth industry knowledge and international business experience of Amana BHT management and an extensive network of our partners, we offer expert services in the Asian-Pacific Region, including:), licensing and acquisition opportunities with Asian Companies.
- Assistance in structuring, negotiating and closing of strategic partnerships with Asian Healthcare, Nano-/Biotech Companies.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Stems Cells from Mature parents
Scientists have found a way to convert mature cells into an embryonic-like state that could eliminate an earlier method's risk of triggering cancer, potentially overcoming a big hurdle in the quest to develop new transplant therapies.
Though demonstrated only in mice so far, the result marks another key achievement in the fledgling science of cellular reprogramming. The hope is to create human, embryonic-like stem cells -- which can be turned into all the other tissue types of the body -- without using eggs or destroying embryos. That freshly derived tissue could then be transplanted into patients to treat various diseases.
Progress has been brisk. In 2006, Japanese researchers first showed that four genes inserted into the mature skin cell of a mouse were enough to return the cell to a primordial, embryonic-like state. Several groups of scientists have since achieved the same result with human cells.
More recent experiments have shown that fresh tissue derived in this manner can alleviate the symptoms of Parkinson's disease and sickle-cell anemia in mouse models. Earlier this month, scientists from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill showed that mature human skin cells could be reprogrammed into cells that produce insulin, the hormone used to treat diabetes.
However, those earlier experiments share a key limitation: The reprogramming genes have to be transported into the cell with the help of retroviruses. While such viruses are good at penetrating cells, they also integrate into the cellular DNA and can cause cancer or other unwanted genetic changes.
Now, there may be a way around that problem. In the latest mouse study, published in the journal Science, researchers show that by using a different kind of transport vehicle -- an adenovirus -- it is possible to avoid the permanent genetic damage seen in previous experiments.
"The adenovirus doesn't integrate permanently, so the cells aren't altered genetically," said Konrad Hochedlinger, geneticist at Harvard Stem Cell Institute in Cambridge, Mass., and lead author of the paper.
There is still a lot of work to be done. The same experiment has to be shown to work with human cells, and its efficiency has to be improved. Previous tests using retroviruses showed that only one in 1,000 adult cells got reprogrammed and turned into an embryonic-like cell. The latest experiment using adenovirus showed an even lower efficiency rate: Only one in 10,000 to one in 100,000 adult cells got reprogrammed.
While the latest advances have spurred a rush to improve the reprogramming technique, they have also given fresh ammunition to those who oppose research on human embryos, an alternative technique.
Earlier this week, the International Society for Stem Cell Research issued an "open letter" calling for the U.S. government to fund all avenues of research. The letter noted that while reprogramming had "captured the imagination" of scientists everywhere, research on human embryonic cells shouldn't be abandoned.
Write to Gautam Naik at gautam.naik@wsj.com
Though demonstrated only in mice so far, the result marks another key achievement in the fledgling science of cellular reprogramming. The hope is to create human, embryonic-like stem cells -- which can be turned into all the other tissue types of the body -- without using eggs or destroying embryos. That freshly derived tissue could then be transplanted into patients to treat various diseases.
Progress has been brisk. In 2006, Japanese researchers first showed that four genes inserted into the mature skin cell of a mouse were enough to return the cell to a primordial, embryonic-like state. Several groups of scientists have since achieved the same result with human cells.
More recent experiments have shown that fresh tissue derived in this manner can alleviate the symptoms of Parkinson's disease and sickle-cell anemia in mouse models. Earlier this month, scientists from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill showed that mature human skin cells could be reprogrammed into cells that produce insulin, the hormone used to treat diabetes.
However, those earlier experiments share a key limitation: The reprogramming genes have to be transported into the cell with the help of retroviruses. While such viruses are good at penetrating cells, they also integrate into the cellular DNA and can cause cancer or other unwanted genetic changes.
Now, there may be a way around that problem. In the latest mouse study, published in the journal Science, researchers show that by using a different kind of transport vehicle -- an adenovirus -- it is possible to avoid the permanent genetic damage seen in previous experiments.
"The adenovirus doesn't integrate permanently, so the cells aren't altered genetically," said Konrad Hochedlinger, geneticist at Harvard Stem Cell Institute in Cambridge, Mass., and lead author of the paper.
There is still a lot of work to be done. The same experiment has to be shown to work with human cells, and its efficiency has to be improved. Previous tests using retroviruses showed that only one in 1,000 adult cells got reprogrammed and turned into an embryonic-like cell. The latest experiment using adenovirus showed an even lower efficiency rate: Only one in 10,000 to one in 100,000 adult cells got reprogrammed.
While the latest advances have spurred a rush to improve the reprogramming technique, they have also given fresh ammunition to those who oppose research on human embryos, an alternative technique.
Earlier this week, the International Society for Stem Cell Research issued an "open letter" calling for the U.S. government to fund all avenues of research. The letter noted that while reprogramming had "captured the imagination" of scientists everywhere, research on human embryonic cells shouldn't be abandoned.
Write to Gautam Naik at gautam.naik@wsj.com
Negotiating a Bail-out Deal with DC??
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration and Congress closed in on a new compromise aimed at stabilizing U.S. financial markets, a move designed to assuage conservatives who one day earlier had staged a revolt against the controversial $700 billion project.
The potential compromise isn't yet final, and details could change. But as of Friday night it appears that the plan's central elements, as originally envisioned by the Treasury Department, remain intact.
Associated Press
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Dodd, center, standing with House Financial Services Committee Chairman Frank and Sen. Schumer.
Congressional leaders were planning for possible votes Sunday.
The renewed effort represents a remarkable turnaround from the fracas that engulfed Washington Thursday night. In a sign of the political tensions at play, an earlier compromise plan was thrown into disarray after a White House meeting of top leaders -- including the two presidential candidates -- descended into a shouting match.
Republican nominee Sen. John McCain had returned to Washington to attend bailout negotiations. But the interjection of the presidential campaign, and the resulting finger-pointing, upset the delicate balance that had been struck in negotiations between congressional Democrats and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.
"I would hope the two presidentials would go to the debate tonight and leave us alone to get our work done here," said Sen. Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, sounding exhausted on the Senate floor Friday morning.
Under the Bush plan, the Treasury Department would be able to buy $700 billion of toxic investments currently burdening many financial institutions. The hope is that doing so would encourage investors to recapitalize the struggling banks, and get the nation's bond markets working again.
It would also, however, put taxpayers on the hook for potential losses if the investments bought by the government didn't later recover some of their value.
House Republicans, antsy about the power granted to the Treasury under that original plan, wanted to replace it with one based on an insurance model: Banks would pay premiums into a pool of money that would then be used to cover losses on the bad assets in question.
Treasury officials had earlier told lawmakers the concept was unworkable, people familiar with the matter said. Indeed, officials there briefly considered it, but concluded it wouldn't be as effective in clearing the rot from banks' balance sheets.
The compromise being hammered out Friday night would graft the insurance concept onto the original Treasury plan, most likely as an option. That would satisfy the administration, which could chose not to use it, as well as conservative lawmakers, who can claim to have influenced the legislation.
The White House has already agreed to other Democratic demands for the bailout, including greater oversight of the plan, and pay curbs for executives at some companies that benefit from the bailout.
The administration also agreed to a commitment to help struggling homeowners. And it agreed for the $700 billion to be released in installments; $250 billion would be made available immediately.
As Friday unfolded, Democrats signaled a willingness to consider including some version of the insurance proposal. "Adding insurance as an option...that's never been an issue," said Rep. Barney Frank (D., Mass.), chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and a lead negotiator.
At a late-afternoon news conference, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sounded conciliatory, suggesting that Mr. Paulson should have "the latitude to accept any and all proposals," so long as they don't interfere with the core goals of the bailout plan.
The unexpected opposition from House Republicans on Thursday had thrown into chaos efforts to craft a rescue package for the financial markets. Democratic leaders of the House and Senate, after working with the Bush White House for several days on details, said they felt blindsided by the Republican move.
The face-off reflected years of tension between the Bush White House and House Republicans, and exposed the ideological differences within the Republican Party over the role of government in free markets.
President George W. Bush, who urged lawmakers to "rise to the occasion" Friday, has said his first instinct is to not intervene in the market. But he became convinced of the need after Mr. Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned that the financial crisis could spread to Main Street from Wall Street and throw the country into a deep recession.
Many Senate Republicans, including Bob Bennett of Utah and Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, have tried to be supportive of the White House's efforts to find common ground with Democrats. But conservatives who dominate the Republican Party's caucus in the House have been less amenable, particularly those disaffected with the Bush administration's sizable domestic spending and the realities of life as a minority party.
Rep. Tom Davis (R., Va.) said Republicans have felt like "bystanders" the past two years and wanted to be brought into the negotiations as full partners. Democrats "have got to come and meet us halfway," he said.
By midweek, it became clear that only a couple dozen of the 199 House Republicans were likely to support the plan in its existing form.
House Republicans say their alternative proposal would bring stability and new capital to the market. It would also remove regulatory barriers that they say block private investors from investing capital into ailing financial institutions.
"We were simply trying to come up with a constructive solution to break an impasse," said Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.), who outlined the plan to Sen. McCain in a meeting Thursday.
The struggle over the bailout bill represents one of the most dramatic congressional showdowns of recent years. In 1990, the Democratic House voted down a major deficit-reduction package backed by the administration of the first President Bush. The package was later brought back to the floor and approved, but only after changes that tilted the measure to the left.
A few years later, the Republican-controlled Congress balked at the Clinton administration's plans to help rescue Mexico's economy, forcing the administration to use other measures to achieve its goals.
At a closed-door meeting of House Republicans on Friday, House Minority Leader John Boehner and other party leaders received an ovation for having resisted pressure to support the Bush-backed package during a White House meeting the previous day.
Write to Greg Hitt at greg.hitt@wsj.com, Sarah Lueck at sarah.lueck@wsj.com and Deborah Solomon at deborah.solomon@wsj.com
The potential compromise isn't yet final, and details could change. But as of Friday night it appears that the plan's central elements, as originally envisioned by the Treasury Department, remain intact.
Associated Press
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Dodd, center, standing with House Financial Services Committee Chairman Frank and Sen. Schumer.
Congressional leaders were planning for possible votes Sunday.
The renewed effort represents a remarkable turnaround from the fracas that engulfed Washington Thursday night. In a sign of the political tensions at play, an earlier compromise plan was thrown into disarray after a White House meeting of top leaders -- including the two presidential candidates -- descended into a shouting match.
Republican nominee Sen. John McCain had returned to Washington to attend bailout negotiations. But the interjection of the presidential campaign, and the resulting finger-pointing, upset the delicate balance that had been struck in negotiations between congressional Democrats and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.
"I would hope the two presidentials would go to the debate tonight and leave us alone to get our work done here," said Sen. Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, sounding exhausted on the Senate floor Friday morning.
Under the Bush plan, the Treasury Department would be able to buy $700 billion of toxic investments currently burdening many financial institutions. The hope is that doing so would encourage investors to recapitalize the struggling banks, and get the nation's bond markets working again.
It would also, however, put taxpayers on the hook for potential losses if the investments bought by the government didn't later recover some of their value.
House Republicans, antsy about the power granted to the Treasury under that original plan, wanted to replace it with one based on an insurance model: Banks would pay premiums into a pool of money that would then be used to cover losses on the bad assets in question.
Treasury officials had earlier told lawmakers the concept was unworkable, people familiar with the matter said. Indeed, officials there briefly considered it, but concluded it wouldn't be as effective in clearing the rot from banks' balance sheets.
The compromise being hammered out Friday night would graft the insurance concept onto the original Treasury plan, most likely as an option. That would satisfy the administration, which could chose not to use it, as well as conservative lawmakers, who can claim to have influenced the legislation.
The White House has already agreed to other Democratic demands for the bailout, including greater oversight of the plan, and pay curbs for executives at some companies that benefit from the bailout.
The administration also agreed to a commitment to help struggling homeowners. And it agreed for the $700 billion to be released in installments; $250 billion would be made available immediately.
As Friday unfolded, Democrats signaled a willingness to consider including some version of the insurance proposal. "Adding insurance as an option...that's never been an issue," said Rep. Barney Frank (D., Mass.), chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and a lead negotiator.
At a late-afternoon news conference, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sounded conciliatory, suggesting that Mr. Paulson should have "the latitude to accept any and all proposals," so long as they don't interfere with the core goals of the bailout plan.
The unexpected opposition from House Republicans on Thursday had thrown into chaos efforts to craft a rescue package for the financial markets. Democratic leaders of the House and Senate, after working with the Bush White House for several days on details, said they felt blindsided by the Republican move.
The face-off reflected years of tension between the Bush White House and House Republicans, and exposed the ideological differences within the Republican Party over the role of government in free markets.
President George W. Bush, who urged lawmakers to "rise to the occasion" Friday, has said his first instinct is to not intervene in the market. But he became convinced of the need after Mr. Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned that the financial crisis could spread to Main Street from Wall Street and throw the country into a deep recession.
Many Senate Republicans, including Bob Bennett of Utah and Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, have tried to be supportive of the White House's efforts to find common ground with Democrats. But conservatives who dominate the Republican Party's caucus in the House have been less amenable, particularly those disaffected with the Bush administration's sizable domestic spending and the realities of life as a minority party.
Rep. Tom Davis (R., Va.) said Republicans have felt like "bystanders" the past two years and wanted to be brought into the negotiations as full partners. Democrats "have got to come and meet us halfway," he said.
By midweek, it became clear that only a couple dozen of the 199 House Republicans were likely to support the plan in its existing form.
House Republicans say their alternative proposal would bring stability and new capital to the market. It would also remove regulatory barriers that they say block private investors from investing capital into ailing financial institutions.
"We were simply trying to come up with a constructive solution to break an impasse," said Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.), who outlined the plan to Sen. McCain in a meeting Thursday.
The struggle over the bailout bill represents one of the most dramatic congressional showdowns of recent years. In 1990, the Democratic House voted down a major deficit-reduction package backed by the administration of the first President Bush. The package was later brought back to the floor and approved, but only after changes that tilted the measure to the left.
A few years later, the Republican-controlled Congress balked at the Clinton administration's plans to help rescue Mexico's economy, forcing the administration to use other measures to achieve its goals.
At a closed-door meeting of House Republicans on Friday, House Minority Leader John Boehner and other party leaders received an ovation for having resisted pressure to support the Bush-backed package during a White House meeting the previous day.
Write to Greg Hitt at greg.hitt@wsj.com, Sarah Lueck at sarah.lueck@wsj.com and Deborah Solomon at deborah.solomon@wsj.com
Today's Top Story
Researchers develop safer method to create stem cells
U.S. scientists used an adenovirus to deliver four transformative genes -- Oct4, Sox2, Klf4 and c-Myc -- into ordinary mouse cells to produce induced pluripotent stem cells, which appear and behave like embyronic stem cells. Because the technique does not use retroviruses that may trigger tumors, it could lead to a safer way of testing cell treatments for sickle cell anemia, Parkinson's disease and other disorders, the study's lead author said. Yahoo!/Reuters (9/25) , The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) (9/25)
Bioengineered pigs could aid research on cystic fibrosis
U.S. scientists have genetically engineered piglets to have the same mutation that causes cystic fibrosis. Since pigs' lungs share many qualities with human lungs, the scientists hope to gain a better understanding of how the disease develops and how it can be treated in people. Reuters (9/25).
Calif. stem cell institute to devise appeal process for grant requests
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine's board was scheduled to meet Thursday to consider developing a unified appeal process that scientists can use to ask for reviews of denied grant applications. The board hopes to develop an appeals process that creates "some order from something that could become disorderly and unreasonable," said Alan Trounson, the institute's president. San Diego Union-Tribune (9/25)
Study: Flu vaccine delivered into lungs is more efficient, cost-effective
Australian researchers found that lower doses of a flu vaccine delivered directly into the lungs of sheep provided stronger immune response than the higher, standard injected dose. The finding suggests that lung delivery could provide improved protection and allow more people to have access to the vaccine because of lower doses, a researcher said. Reuters (9/25)
Performance Management: The Future of Medical Device Manufacturing
In the face of competition, regulation and customer demands, Medical Device manufacturers must confront operational challenges that impact the top and bottom line. Click Here for a free white paper and learn how the leading companies leverage their best of breed systems for optimal productivity.
Company & Financial News
Prices of costly specialty drugs continue to rise
Figures released by AARP show that the wholesale cost of specialty medicines, which are used to treat cancer and other complex diseases, went up last year by 8.7% -- three times the rate of U.S. inflation. The rising costs are "increasing the burden on people with chronic conditions who can least afford it," an AARP official said. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.
Ligand to acquire Pharmacopeia in stock deal
Ligand Pharmaceuticals announced that it will purchase biotech firm Pharmacopeia in a stock transaction worth as much as $70 million. The deal will help Ligand bolster its product pipeline and drug-discovery capabilities and is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2009. The Star-Ledger (Newark, N.J.) (9/26) , Reuters (9/24) , San Diego Business Journal (9/24).
UCB withdraws EU application for expanded use of Vimpat
The European Medicines Agency's negative review of Vimpat's use in diabetic neuropathic pain has prompted UCB to drop its EU application for the expanded use of the epilepsy treatment. A UCB spokeswoman said the Belgian drugmaker plans to conduct an additional clinical study "to further substantiate the magnitude" of Vimpat's effects in patients with diabetic neuropathic pain. Reuters (9/25)
Arca Biopharma reaches merger deal with Nuvelo.
Arca Biopharma is set to merge with Nuvelo under a deal that is expected to be finalized early next year. The move comes after the FDA agreed to review Arca's Gencaro, a treatment for heart failure. "This unique transaction offers us the financial resources, people and pipeline as we continue to build our company," Arca President and CEO Richard Brewer said. American City Business Journals/Denver (9/25)
Other News
Expert: Alabama companies must take advantage of BIO conference
American City Business Journals/Birmingham, Ala. (9/25)
Food & Agriculture.
Biotech cotton could mean surge in crop in India, official says
Cotton production in India is expected to go up by 4.8% in 2009, driven by the increased use of biotech crops and favorable climatic conditions, said the country's textiles commissioner, A.B. Joshi. High cotton yields could raise exports to countries such as China but further weaken prices, which have declined by 10% in New York this year. Bloomberg (9/25)
Industrial & Environmental.
PGE, Columbia Energy will feed algae with CO2 to make biofuel
Portland General Electric aims to generate biofuel by using carbon dioxide emissions from one of its facilities to grow algae in a collaborative effort with Columbia Energy Partners. The companies plan to use oil extracted from mature algae to make biodiesel and livestock feed. The Oregonian (Portland) (9/26)
--Franklin D. Roosevelt,
32nd U.S. president
Researchers develop safer method to create stem cells
U.S. scientists used an adenovirus to deliver four transformative genes -- Oct4, Sox2, Klf4 and c-Myc -- into ordinary mouse cells to produce induced pluripotent stem cells, which appear and behave like embyronic stem cells. Because the technique does not use retroviruses that may trigger tumors, it could lead to a safer way of testing cell treatments for sickle cell anemia, Parkinson's disease and other disorders, the study's lead author said. Yahoo!/Reuters (9/25) , The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) (9/25)
Bioengineered pigs could aid research on cystic fibrosis
U.S. scientists have genetically engineered piglets to have the same mutation that causes cystic fibrosis. Since pigs' lungs share many qualities with human lungs, the scientists hope to gain a better understanding of how the disease develops and how it can be treated in people. Reuters (9/25).
Calif. stem cell institute to devise appeal process for grant requests
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine's board was scheduled to meet Thursday to consider developing a unified appeal process that scientists can use to ask for reviews of denied grant applications. The board hopes to develop an appeals process that creates "some order from something that could become disorderly and unreasonable," said Alan Trounson, the institute's president. San Diego Union-Tribune (9/25)
Study: Flu vaccine delivered into lungs is more efficient, cost-effective
Australian researchers found that lower doses of a flu vaccine delivered directly into the lungs of sheep provided stronger immune response than the higher, standard injected dose. The finding suggests that lung delivery could provide improved protection and allow more people to have access to the vaccine because of lower doses, a researcher said. Reuters (9/25)
Performance Management: The Future of Medical Device Manufacturing
In the face of competition, regulation and customer demands, Medical Device manufacturers must confront operational challenges that impact the top and bottom line. Click Here for a free white paper and learn how the leading companies leverage their best of breed systems for optimal productivity.
Company & Financial News
Prices of costly specialty drugs continue to rise
Figures released by AARP show that the wholesale cost of specialty medicines, which are used to treat cancer and other complex diseases, went up last year by 8.7% -- three times the rate of U.S. inflation. The rising costs are "increasing the burden on people with chronic conditions who can least afford it," an AARP official said. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.
Ligand to acquire Pharmacopeia in stock deal
Ligand Pharmaceuticals announced that it will purchase biotech firm Pharmacopeia in a stock transaction worth as much as $70 million. The deal will help Ligand bolster its product pipeline and drug-discovery capabilities and is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2009. The Star-Ledger (Newark, N.J.) (9/26) , Reuters (9/24) , San Diego Business Journal (9/24).
UCB withdraws EU application for expanded use of Vimpat
The European Medicines Agency's negative review of Vimpat's use in diabetic neuropathic pain has prompted UCB to drop its EU application for the expanded use of the epilepsy treatment. A UCB spokeswoman said the Belgian drugmaker plans to conduct an additional clinical study "to further substantiate the magnitude" of Vimpat's effects in patients with diabetic neuropathic pain. Reuters (9/25)
Arca Biopharma reaches merger deal with Nuvelo.
Arca Biopharma is set to merge with Nuvelo under a deal that is expected to be finalized early next year. The move comes after the FDA agreed to review Arca's Gencaro, a treatment for heart failure. "This unique transaction offers us the financial resources, people and pipeline as we continue to build our company," Arca President and CEO Richard Brewer said. American City Business Journals/Denver (9/25)
Other News
Expert: Alabama companies must take advantage of BIO conference
American City Business Journals/Birmingham, Ala. (9/25)
Food & Agriculture.
Biotech cotton could mean surge in crop in India, official says
Cotton production in India is expected to go up by 4.8% in 2009, driven by the increased use of biotech crops and favorable climatic conditions, said the country's textiles commissioner, A.B. Joshi. High cotton yields could raise exports to countries such as China but further weaken prices, which have declined by 10% in New York this year. Bloomberg (9/25)
Industrial & Environmental.
PGE, Columbia Energy will feed algae with CO2 to make biofuel
Portland General Electric aims to generate biofuel by using carbon dioxide emissions from one of its facilities to grow algae in a collaborative effort with Columbia Energy Partners. The companies plan to use oil extracted from mature algae to make biodiesel and livestock feed. The Oregonian (Portland) (9/26)
--Franklin D. Roosevelt,
32nd U.S. president
Amana Biomedical and Health Technology Managment
Biotechnology, Healthcare and Life Sciences:
Amana BHTM’s strength is stems from its scientists, economists, public relations and alliances in the USA and in Europe for developing business opportunities for our clients. Amana BHTM’s combines basic biomedical science knowledge, industry understanding and transaction experience to bring practical, action-oriented business solutions to: Investors including VCs, Institutions and Banks. We are committed to support Research based Nano-/Biotech Companies, Pharmaceutical industry , Chemical Industry, Companies in Life Sciences, Diagnostics, Medical Device and Analytical Instrument and equipments.
Scientific and Technical Assistance:
- Assistance in conceptualizing, planning and realizing of new projects in the field of Biomedical and health -
- Strategic planning and process development based on six sigma and lean practices.
- Legal advising for trade and business rights (e.g. patentability of your inventions, ideas and creations or products. - - The accuracy and compliance of the methods, preparation of patent applications, support of employee’s inventions, evaluation of patents and trademarks, registration of trade marks, litigation) and survey of the company’s patent portfolio. Implementation of intelligence platforms of technology searches, technical or scientific searches and patent searches.
Business Financing:
Business Development in the Asian-Pacific Region:
- Based on in-depth industry knowledge and international business experience of Amana BHT management and an extensive network of our partners, we offer expert services in the Asian-Pacific Region, including:), licensing and acquisition opportunities with Asian Companies
- Assistance in structuring, negotiating and closing of strategic partnerships with Asian Healthcare, Nano-/Biotech Companies.
- Establishment of links and cooperation with scientific institutions, universities, technical bodies in the Asian- Pacific and Middle-East Regions.
Business Development:
- Market studies and survey of competitive market activities, development of product/market strategies.
- Evaluating and establishing international sales distribution concepts and assistance in efficiently entering and expanding in new markets.
- Drafting distribution-, agency-, technology transfer- and Joint Venture contracts, conducting international contract negotiations.
- Strategic Partnering and Product Introduction Services in the Asian-Pacific Region.
- Amana BHTM cooperates with leading Sales and Marketing Organizations to offer to European Healthcare,
Nano-/Biotech Companies tailor made business solutions to expand business through sales, marketing & distribution in the Asian-Pacific Region.
Pre-marketing:
- analyze market feasibility of the products.
- Market Analysis: Desk research to gather quantitative.
- Market Research: Exploratory research to gather.
- qualitative and quantitative information from medical practitioners.
- Advice on regulatory affairs and strategy.
- Establishing a marketing plan.
- contracts for total supply chain and management, contract marketing & sales service
- survey of the performance of the appointed local distributor
- When necessary, local product training
Business Plan Consulting:
Aman BHTM assists HealthCare, Nano-/Biotech and Lifestyle Companies to develop investor-grade business plans for a successful capital or strategic transaction. We support our clients through the creation of top-notch business plans, due diligence analysis, business and scientific background checks, and benefit/risk evaluations.
Human Resource Consulting:
Amana helps to develop and keep the HR program of start-ups and midsize enterprises in line with their corporate direction. We provide HR strategic vision, cost-effective HR infrastructure, and pragmatic advice across all critical areas of human resource management, and guide organizations strategically through any stage of growth. We also take over ad interim tasks, and management mandates in small and medium-sized enterprises.
Amana Biomedical and Health Technology Management
Dedication Creativity Excellence !!! Dedication Creativity Excellence !!!
Amana BHTM’s strength is stems from its scientists, economists, public relations and alliances in the USA and in Europe for developing business opportunities for our clients. Amana BHTM’s combines basic biomedical science knowledge, industry understanding and transaction experience to bring practical, action-oriented business solutions to: Investors including VCs, Institutions and Banks. We are committed to support Research based Nano-/Biotech Companies, Pharmaceutical industry , Chemical Industry, Companies in Life Sciences, Diagnostics, Medical Device and Analytical Instrument and equipments.
Scientific and Technical Assistance:
- Assistance in conceptualizing, planning and realizing of new projects in the field of Biomedical and health -
- Strategic planning and process development based on six sigma and lean practices.
- Legal advising for trade and business rights (e.g. patentability of your inventions, ideas and creations or products. - - The accuracy and compliance of the methods, preparation of patent applications, support of employee’s inventions, evaluation of patents and trademarks, registration of trade marks, litigation) and survey of the company’s patent portfolio. Implementation of intelligence platforms of technology searches, technical or scientific searches and patent searches.
Business Financing:
Business Development in the Asian-Pacific Region:
- Based on in-depth industry knowledge and international business experience of Amana BHT management and an extensive network of our partners, we offer expert services in the Asian-Pacific Region, including:), licensing and acquisition opportunities with Asian Companies
- Assistance in structuring, negotiating and closing of strategic partnerships with Asian Healthcare, Nano-/Biotech Companies.
- Establishment of links and cooperation with scientific institutions, universities, technical bodies in the Asian- Pacific and Middle-East Regions.
Business Development:
- Market studies and survey of competitive market activities, development of product/market strategies.
- Evaluating and establishing international sales distribution concepts and assistance in efficiently entering and expanding in new markets.
- Drafting distribution-, agency-, technology transfer- and Joint Venture contracts, conducting international contract negotiations.
- Strategic Partnering and Product Introduction Services in the Asian-Pacific Region.
- Amana BHTM cooperates with leading Sales and Marketing Organizations to offer to European Healthcare,
Nano-/Biotech Companies tailor made business solutions to expand business through sales, marketing & distribution in the Asian-Pacific Region.
Pre-marketing:
- analyze market feasibility of the products.
- Market Analysis: Desk research to gather quantitative.
- Market Research: Exploratory research to gather.
- qualitative and quantitative information from medical practitioners.
- Advice on regulatory affairs and strategy.
- Establishing a marketing plan.
- contracts for total supply chain and management, contract marketing & sales service
- survey of the performance of the appointed local distributor
- When necessary, local product training
Business Plan Consulting:
Aman BHTM assists HealthCare, Nano-/Biotech and Lifestyle Companies to develop investor-grade business plans for a successful capital or strategic transaction. We support our clients through the creation of top-notch business plans, due diligence analysis, business and scientific background checks, and benefit/risk evaluations.
Human Resource Consulting:
Amana helps to develop and keep the HR program of start-ups and midsize enterprises in line with their corporate direction. We provide HR strategic vision, cost-effective HR infrastructure, and pragmatic advice across all critical areas of human resource management, and guide organizations strategically through any stage of growth. We also take over ad interim tasks, and management mandates in small and medium-sized enterprises.
Amana Biomedical and Health Technology Management
Dedication Creativity Excellence !!! Dedication Creativity Excellence !!!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Biomedical Research SERVICES
Microbiology Support
Data Analysis and Evaluation
Organizational Management
Biostatistics and Computing
Logistic Support
Document Writing
Training and Support
Software Expertise
SWOT analysis
Strategic Marketing
Software Development
Project Management
Engineering
Recruiting and HR
Risk Management
QC and Compliance
FEMCA
Method Development
SIX SIGMA AND LEAN
Data Analysis and Evaluation
Organizational Management
Biostatistics and Computing
Logistic Support
Document Writing
Training and Support
Software Expertise
SWOT analysis
Strategic Marketing
Software Development
Project Management
Engineering
Recruiting and HR
Risk Management
QC and Compliance
FEMCA
Method Development
SIX SIGMA AND LEAN
Monday, September 22, 2008
Biomedical Research Videos
Bright Minds. Produced by Rex Barnett. Atlanta: History on Video, 2001.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: Three African-American students, interviewed at the Student National Medical Association's annual conference in Atlanta in April, 2001, comment on their preparation for and experiences during medical training, and share advice on succeeding in medical school. J. Nadine Gracia, President of the Student National Medical Association, the oldest and largest student organization for minority students in the United States, emphasizes the importance of mentorship to the future of minority medical education.
Careers in Medicine: Physician. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 1998.
Audience Level: Grades 9-12
Description: This video offers high school students interested in medicine a good overview of the profession, based on vignettes and short interviews of medical school students, instructors, and those working in the field both in clinical and academic settings. Those interviewed discuss what it takes to succeed in medicine, ways to gain practical volunteer experience in the health fields, strategies for finding mentors and for obtaining course planning advice, the current atmosphere of recruiting for minorities and women, how to find funding for a medical education, what medical school is like, and the criteria for evaluating medical school applicants. The emphasis of this video is on the planning needed to prepare for medical school and the self-discipline needed to succeed once in medical school.
Making the Grade: From Med School to Internship. Part of the "Hopkins 24/7: Inside America's Best Hospital System" series. Produced by ABC News. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 2001.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine students from the first year to the fourth year comment on various aspects of their medical training, from their anticipation of the first day in the anatomy laboratory and being directly responsible for patient care, to their anxieties about future internships and coping with the real world burdens of the health care system. This video is similar in format to the first of the Harvard Medical School series (So You Want to Be a Doctor?) that follows seven students over a period of fourteen years, but does not have the same level of intimacy or depth. Overall, this is an attractive, well-made, and enjoyable video that will give prospective medical students a insider's perspective on the rigors of medical training.
Making of a Doctor. Written, produced, and directed by Michael Barnes. A NOVA production by the WGBH/Boston Science Unit. Boston: WGBH Educational Foundation, 1995.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: This is the second installation in a three-part series that follows seven Harvard Medical School students over a period of fourteen years, from their medical school training to the beginnings of their professional careers. The first hour of this video is designed so that viewers who have not seen So You Want to be a Doctor will get a coherent narrative, thus basically reiterating many of the key scenes from part one. After showing scenes from medical school graduation, the second hour goes on to follow these newly minted MDs as they continue in their individual directions in internship and residency programs. This second video, like its predecessor, is marked by clear and well-paced narration, a sense of drama, and overall excellence in storytelling and video quality. As in the first, the sense of intimacy is well captured. Highly recommended for high school and college audiences.
So You Want to Be a Doctor? Written, produced, and directed by Michael Barnes. A NOVA production by the WGBH/Boston Science Unit. Boston: WGBH Educational Foundation, 1991. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 1991.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: Narrated by actor Neil Patrick Harris, star of the TV series Doogie Howser, M.D., this is the first of three videos in a series that follows seven Harvard Medical School students over a period of fourteen years. This video covers the four years of medical school and takes its audience into the many firsts of young doctors in training, among them the first cadaver dissection, the first patient exam, and the first death. Scenes from the lives of the seven students reveal the hardships, rewards, and drama of this test of endurance. The students and their parents, partners, and teachers speak intimately about the impact of medical school on these students. This is an excellent video that provides a fascinating and personal view of medical training, while balancing a dramatic narrative with integrity.
Survivor MD. Written, produced, and directed by Michael Barnes. A NOVA production by the WGBH/Boston Science Unit. Boston: WGBH Educational Founation, 2001.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: This video wraps up the three-part documentary series that follows seven Harvard Medical School students over the course of fourteen years. Like the second video in the series, Survivor MD includes significant footage from the first, allowing new viewers to get acquainted with the background. This video concentrates mainly on the early careers of the seven characters.
Women Are Pathologists. National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, and National Institutes of Health Office of Science Education. Bethesda: National Institutes of Health, 1999.
Audience Level: Grades 6-9
Description: In the first fictional section of this two-part video, a teenage girl learns about the field of pathology as she deals with the discovery of her sister's cervical cancer. In the second half of the video, three pathologists, Deborah Powell (asurgical pathologist), Maria Merino (an academic pathologist), and Mary Case (a clinical pathologist) give overviews of their roles within this medical specialty and the rewards and challenges of their positions. With an introduction by Victoria Powell, who plays Dr. Amanda Bentley on the TV series Diagnosis Murder, this is an engaging video that skillfully combines story and teaching. This video is part of a three-video series titled Women are Scientists, produced by the National Institutes of Health, and is available for free online by ordering at http://Science-Education.nih.gov.
Women Are Researchers. National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, National Institutes of Health Office of Science Education and Association of Women Surgeons. Bethesda: National Institutes of Health, 2000.
Audience Level: Grades 5-7
Description: With an introduction by Gates McFadden, from the TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation, this entertaining and vibrant video features short vignettes organized around questions posed by the young hostess of this show. Viewers are given a short history of women in medicine and a research problem involving the hypothesis that "science is fun." Three researchers in different settings, Terry Young, Connie Noguchi, and Judith Pachciarz talk about overcoming gender, ethnic, and physical barriers to achieve success in their profession. Their discussion ranges from their passion for research and balancing personal and professional lives, to giving valuable advice to young women (grades 5 to 7), to planning for a biomedical research career. This video is part of a three-video series titled Women are Scientists, produced by the National Institutes of Health, and is available for free online by ordering at http://Science-Education.nih.gov.
Women Are Surgeons. National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, National Institutes of Health Office of Science Education, and Association of Women Surgeons. Bethesda: National Institutes of Health, 1998.
Audience Level: Grades 5-7
Description: This video introduces young women to the professional and personal lives of three women surgeons, thoracic surgeon Victoria Stevens, cardiac surgeon Rosalyn Sterling-Scott, and trauma surgeon Yvette LaClaustra. Women are Surgeons features a series of short scenes showing the real life drama of these women at work. Various young adults pose questions of interest to them, such as, "How do you make time for life outside of work?" and "How do you deal with stress?" which the three surgeons take turns answering. With an introduction by Christine Lahti, Emmy Award winning actress from Chicago Hope, this video provides a lively and appealing way of encouraging young women grades 5 to 7 to pursue careers in surgery. This video is part of a three-video series titled Women are Scientists, produced by the National Institutes of Health, and is available for free online by ordering at http://Science-Education.nih.gov.
Women in Medicine. A production of Dartmouth/Hitchcock Medical Center. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 1993.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: This informative video starts with scenes from a 1930s newsreel, Men of Medicine, as a contrast to its own discussion about the likely changes that will occur as women continue to contribute to the field of medicine. Some of the questions and issues raised are the emerging changes in research and patient care, with women contributing widely to medicine and the possibility of women bringing new skills into the profession. Various physicians and educators comment on the lives of medical women and their impact on this field.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: Three African-American students, interviewed at the Student National Medical Association's annual conference in Atlanta in April, 2001, comment on their preparation for and experiences during medical training, and share advice on succeeding in medical school. J. Nadine Gracia, President of the Student National Medical Association, the oldest and largest student organization for minority students in the United States, emphasizes the importance of mentorship to the future of minority medical education.
Careers in Medicine: Physician. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 1998.
Audience Level: Grades 9-12
Description: This video offers high school students interested in medicine a good overview of the profession, based on vignettes and short interviews of medical school students, instructors, and those working in the field both in clinical and academic settings. Those interviewed discuss what it takes to succeed in medicine, ways to gain practical volunteer experience in the health fields, strategies for finding mentors and for obtaining course planning advice, the current atmosphere of recruiting for minorities and women, how to find funding for a medical education, what medical school is like, and the criteria for evaluating medical school applicants. The emphasis of this video is on the planning needed to prepare for medical school and the self-discipline needed to succeed once in medical school.
Making the Grade: From Med School to Internship. Part of the "Hopkins 24/7: Inside America's Best Hospital System" series. Produced by ABC News. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 2001.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine students from the first year to the fourth year comment on various aspects of their medical training, from their anticipation of the first day in the anatomy laboratory and being directly responsible for patient care, to their anxieties about future internships and coping with the real world burdens of the health care system. This video is similar in format to the first of the Harvard Medical School series (So You Want to Be a Doctor?) that follows seven students over a period of fourteen years, but does not have the same level of intimacy or depth. Overall, this is an attractive, well-made, and enjoyable video that will give prospective medical students a insider's perspective on the rigors of medical training.
Making of a Doctor. Written, produced, and directed by Michael Barnes. A NOVA production by the WGBH/Boston Science Unit. Boston: WGBH Educational Foundation, 1995.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: This is the second installation in a three-part series that follows seven Harvard Medical School students over a period of fourteen years, from their medical school training to the beginnings of their professional careers. The first hour of this video is designed so that viewers who have not seen So You Want to be a Doctor will get a coherent narrative, thus basically reiterating many of the key scenes from part one. After showing scenes from medical school graduation, the second hour goes on to follow these newly minted MDs as they continue in their individual directions in internship and residency programs. This second video, like its predecessor, is marked by clear and well-paced narration, a sense of drama, and overall excellence in storytelling and video quality. As in the first, the sense of intimacy is well captured. Highly recommended for high school and college audiences.
So You Want to Be a Doctor? Written, produced, and directed by Michael Barnes. A NOVA production by the WGBH/Boston Science Unit. Boston: WGBH Educational Foundation, 1991. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 1991.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: Narrated by actor Neil Patrick Harris, star of the TV series Doogie Howser, M.D., this is the first of three videos in a series that follows seven Harvard Medical School students over a period of fourteen years. This video covers the four years of medical school and takes its audience into the many firsts of young doctors in training, among them the first cadaver dissection, the first patient exam, and the first death. Scenes from the lives of the seven students reveal the hardships, rewards, and drama of this test of endurance. The students and their parents, partners, and teachers speak intimately about the impact of medical school on these students. This is an excellent video that provides a fascinating and personal view of medical training, while balancing a dramatic narrative with integrity.
Survivor MD. Written, produced, and directed by Michael Barnes. A NOVA production by the WGBH/Boston Science Unit. Boston: WGBH Educational Founation, 2001.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: This video wraps up the three-part documentary series that follows seven Harvard Medical School students over the course of fourteen years. Like the second video in the series, Survivor MD includes significant footage from the first, allowing new viewers to get acquainted with the background. This video concentrates mainly on the early careers of the seven characters.
Women Are Pathologists. National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, and National Institutes of Health Office of Science Education. Bethesda: National Institutes of Health, 1999.
Audience Level: Grades 6-9
Description: In the first fictional section of this two-part video, a teenage girl learns about the field of pathology as she deals with the discovery of her sister's cervical cancer. In the second half of the video, three pathologists, Deborah Powell (asurgical pathologist), Maria Merino (an academic pathologist), and Mary Case (a clinical pathologist) give overviews of their roles within this medical specialty and the rewards and challenges of their positions. With an introduction by Victoria Powell, who plays Dr. Amanda Bentley on the TV series Diagnosis Murder, this is an engaging video that skillfully combines story and teaching. This video is part of a three-video series titled Women are Scientists, produced by the National Institutes of Health, and is available for free online by ordering at http://Science-Education.nih.gov.
Women Are Researchers. National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, National Institutes of Health Office of Science Education and Association of Women Surgeons. Bethesda: National Institutes of Health, 2000.
Audience Level: Grades 5-7
Description: With an introduction by Gates McFadden, from the TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation, this entertaining and vibrant video features short vignettes organized around questions posed by the young hostess of this show. Viewers are given a short history of women in medicine and a research problem involving the hypothesis that "science is fun." Three researchers in different settings, Terry Young, Connie Noguchi, and Judith Pachciarz talk about overcoming gender, ethnic, and physical barriers to achieve success in their profession. Their discussion ranges from their passion for research and balancing personal and professional lives, to giving valuable advice to young women (grades 5 to 7), to planning for a biomedical research career. This video is part of a three-video series titled Women are Scientists, produced by the National Institutes of Health, and is available for free online by ordering at http://Science-Education.nih.gov.
Women Are Surgeons. National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, National Institutes of Health Office of Science Education, and Association of Women Surgeons. Bethesda: National Institutes of Health, 1998.
Audience Level: Grades 5-7
Description: This video introduces young women to the professional and personal lives of three women surgeons, thoracic surgeon Victoria Stevens, cardiac surgeon Rosalyn Sterling-Scott, and trauma surgeon Yvette LaClaustra. Women are Surgeons features a series of short scenes showing the real life drama of these women at work. Various young adults pose questions of interest to them, such as, "How do you make time for life outside of work?" and "How do you deal with stress?" which the three surgeons take turns answering. With an introduction by Christine Lahti, Emmy Award winning actress from Chicago Hope, this video provides a lively and appealing way of encouraging young women grades 5 to 7 to pursue careers in surgery. This video is part of a three-video series titled Women are Scientists, produced by the National Institutes of Health, and is available for free online by ordering at http://Science-Education.nih.gov.
Women in Medicine. A production of Dartmouth/Hitchcock Medical Center. Princeton: Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 1993.
Audience Level: Grades 10 and above
Description: This informative video starts with scenes from a 1930s newsreel, Men of Medicine, as a contrast to its own discussion about the likely changes that will occur as women continue to contribute to the field of medicine. Some of the questions and issues raised are the emerging changes in research and patient care, with women contributing widely to medicine and the possibility of women bringing new skills into the profession. Various physicians and educators comment on the lives of medical women and their impact on this field.
Biomedical Research Bibiography
Abram, Ruth, ed. Send Us a Lady Physician: Women Doctors in America, 1835-1920. New York: Norton, 1985.
Apple, Rima, ed. Women, Health, and Medicine in America: A Historical Handbook. New York: Garland, 1990.
Bickel, Janet. Women in Medicine. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2000.
Bickel, Janet, and Delese Wear, eds. Educating for Professionalism: Creating a Culture of Humanism in Medical Education. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2000.
Bleier, Ruth, ed. Feminist Approaches to Science. New York: Pergamon Press, 1986.
Bleier, Ruth. Gender and Science: A Critique of Biology and its Theories on Women. New York: Pergamon Press, 1984.
Bonner, Thomas Neville. To the Ends of the Earth: Women's Search for Education in Medicine. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1992.
Borst, Charlotte. Catching Babies: The Professionalization of Childbirth 1870-1920. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1995.
Bowman, Marjorie and Deborah I. Allen. Stress and Women Physicians. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1985.
Bowman, Marjorie, Erica Frank, and Deborah Allen. Women in Medicine: Career and Life Management. rev. ed. of Stress and Women Physicians. New York: Springer-Verlag, 2002.
Campbell, Margaret A. [Mary Howell]. Why Would a Girl Go Into Medicine? Medical Education in the United States: A Guide for Women. Old Westbury, NY: The Feminist Press, 1973.
Candib, Lucy. Medicine and the Family. New York: Basic Books, 1995.
Cassell, Joan. The Woman in the Surgeon's Body. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997.
Chaff, Sandra, Ruth Haimbach, Carol Fenichel, and Nina Woodside, eds. Women in Medicine: a Bibliography of the Literature on Women Physicians. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1977.
Chen, Eliza Lo, ed. This Side of Doctoring: Reflections from Women in Medicine. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2002.
Conley, Frances K. Walking Out On the Boys. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998.
Dawson, Patricia L. Forged by the Knife: The Experience of Surgical Residency from the Perspective of a Woman of Color. Seattle: Open Hand Publications, 1999.
Dickstein, Leah J. and Carol C. Nadelson, ed. Women Physicians in Leadership Roles. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press, 1986.
Drachman, Virginia. Hospital with a Heart: Women Doctors and the Paradox of Separatism at the New England Hospital 1862-1969. Ithaca: Cornell UniversityPress, 1984.
Furst, Lilian R., ed. Women Physicians and Healers: Climbing a Long Hill. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 1998.
Glazer, Penina M. and Miriam Slater.Unequal Colleagues: The Entry of Women into the Professions 1890-1940. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1987.
Hine, Darlene Clark, Elsa Barkley Brown, and Rosalyn Terborg-Penn, eds. Black women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. 2 Vols. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1994.
Hurd-Mead, Kate Campbell. A History of Women in Medicine: From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century. Boston: Milford House, 1973.
Hornstein, Gail A. To Redeem One Person is to Redeem the World: The Life of Frieda Fromm-Reichman. New York: Free Press, 2000.
Klass, Perri. A Not Entirely Benign Procedure: Four Years as a Medical Student. New York: Putnam, 1987.
Klass, Perri. Baby Doctor: A Pediatrician's Training. New York: Random House, 1992.
Klass, Perri. Taking Care of Your Own: Parenthood and the Medical Mind. Knoxville, TN: Whittle Direct Books, 1992.
Klass, Perri. Love and Modern Medicine: Stories. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2001.
Klass, Perri. Other Women's Children. New York: Random House, 1990.
Ko, Kathryn. The Survival Bible for Women in Medicine. New York: Parthenon Publishing Group, 1998.
Leavitt, Judith Walzer. Women and Health in America. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999.
Lightfoot, Sarah Lawrence. Balm in Gilead: Journey of a Healer. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., 1988.
Lopate, Carol. Women in Medicine. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1968.
Lorber, Judith. Women Physicians: Career, Status and Power. New York: Tavistock Publications, 1984.
Lovejoy, Esther Pohl. Certain Samaritans. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1927.
Lovejoy, Esther Pohl. Women Physicians and Surgeons. Livington, NY: Livingston Press, 1939.
Lovejoy, Esther Pohl. Women Physicians of the World. New York: Macmillan, 1957.
Moldow, Gloria M. Women Doctors in Gilded-Age Washington: Race, Gender, and Professionalism. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1987.
Morantz-Sanchez, Regina Markell, Sympathy and Science: Women Physicians in American Medicine. New York: Oxford University Press, 1985.
Morantz-Sanchez, Regina Markell. Conduct Unbecoming a Woman: Medicine on Trial in Turn-of-the-Century Brooklyn. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Morantz-Sanchez, Regina Markell, Cynthia Stodola Pomerleau and Carol Hanson Finichel, eds. In Her Own Words: Oral Histories of Women Physicians. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1982.
More, Ellen S. Restoring the Balance: Women Physicians and the Profession of Medicine, 1850-1995. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1999.
More, Ellen S. Maureen A. Milligan, ed., The Empathic Practitioner: Empathy, Gender, and Medicine. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1994.
Notable American Women 1607-1950. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971.
Notable American Women: The Modern Period.Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1980.
Peitzman, Stephen J. A New and Untried Course: Women's Medical College and Medical College of Pennsylvania 1850-1998. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2000.
Perrone, Bobette, and H. Henrietta Stockel and Victoria Krueger. Medicine, Curanderas, and Women Doctors. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1989.
Remen, Rachel Naomi. Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal. New York: Riverhead Books, 1996.
Remen, Rachel Naomi. My Grandfather's Blessings: Stories of Strenth, Refuge and Belonging. New York: Riverhead Books, 2000.
Sicherman, Barbara. Alice Hamilton, A Life in Letters. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1984.
Smith, Susan L. Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995.
Stepansky, Paul E. compiler & ed. The Memoirs of Margaret S. Mahler. New York: Free Press, 1988; London: Collier Macmillan, 1988.
Tong, Benson. Susan LaFlesche Picotte: Omaha Indian Leader and Reformer. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1999.
Truax, Rhoda. The Doctors Jacobi. Boston: Little, Brown, 1952.
Vietor, Agnes C, ed. A Woman's Quest: The Life of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.D. New York: Arno Press, 1972.
Walsh, Mary Roth. "Doctors Wanted: No Women Need Apply": Sexual Barriers in the Medical Profession, 1835-1975. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977.
Wear, Delese, ed. Women in Medical Education: An Anthology of Experience. New York: State University of New York Press, 1996.
Wells, Susan. Out of the Dead House: Nineteenth-Century Women Physicians and the Writing of Medicine. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin, 2001.
Apple, Rima, ed. Women, Health, and Medicine in America: A Historical Handbook. New York: Garland, 1990.
Bickel, Janet. Women in Medicine. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2000.
Bickel, Janet, and Delese Wear, eds. Educating for Professionalism: Creating a Culture of Humanism in Medical Education. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2000.
Bleier, Ruth, ed. Feminist Approaches to Science. New York: Pergamon Press, 1986.
Bleier, Ruth. Gender and Science: A Critique of Biology and its Theories on Women. New York: Pergamon Press, 1984.
Bonner, Thomas Neville. To the Ends of the Earth: Women's Search for Education in Medicine. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1992.
Borst, Charlotte. Catching Babies: The Professionalization of Childbirth 1870-1920. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1995.
Bowman, Marjorie and Deborah I. Allen. Stress and Women Physicians. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1985.
Bowman, Marjorie, Erica Frank, and Deborah Allen. Women in Medicine: Career and Life Management. rev. ed. of Stress and Women Physicians. New York: Springer-Verlag, 2002.
Campbell, Margaret A. [Mary Howell]. Why Would a Girl Go Into Medicine? Medical Education in the United States: A Guide for Women. Old Westbury, NY: The Feminist Press, 1973.
Candib, Lucy. Medicine and the Family. New York: Basic Books, 1995.
Cassell, Joan. The Woman in the Surgeon's Body. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997.
Chaff, Sandra, Ruth Haimbach, Carol Fenichel, and Nina Woodside, eds. Women in Medicine: a Bibliography of the Literature on Women Physicians. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1977.
Chen, Eliza Lo, ed. This Side of Doctoring: Reflections from Women in Medicine. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2002.
Conley, Frances K. Walking Out On the Boys. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998.
Dawson, Patricia L. Forged by the Knife: The Experience of Surgical Residency from the Perspective of a Woman of Color. Seattle: Open Hand Publications, 1999.
Dickstein, Leah J. and Carol C. Nadelson, ed. Women Physicians in Leadership Roles. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press, 1986.
Drachman, Virginia. Hospital with a Heart: Women Doctors and the Paradox of Separatism at the New England Hospital 1862-1969. Ithaca: Cornell UniversityPress, 1984.
Furst, Lilian R., ed. Women Physicians and Healers: Climbing a Long Hill. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 1998.
Glazer, Penina M. and Miriam Slater.Unequal Colleagues: The Entry of Women into the Professions 1890-1940. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1987.
Hine, Darlene Clark, Elsa Barkley Brown, and Rosalyn Terborg-Penn, eds. Black women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. 2 Vols. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1994.
Hurd-Mead, Kate Campbell. A History of Women in Medicine: From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century. Boston: Milford House, 1973.
Hornstein, Gail A. To Redeem One Person is to Redeem the World: The Life of Frieda Fromm-Reichman. New York: Free Press, 2000.
Klass, Perri. A Not Entirely Benign Procedure: Four Years as a Medical Student. New York: Putnam, 1987.
Klass, Perri. Baby Doctor: A Pediatrician's Training. New York: Random House, 1992.
Klass, Perri. Taking Care of Your Own: Parenthood and the Medical Mind. Knoxville, TN: Whittle Direct Books, 1992.
Klass, Perri. Love and Modern Medicine: Stories. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2001.
Klass, Perri. Other Women's Children. New York: Random House, 1990.
Ko, Kathryn. The Survival Bible for Women in Medicine. New York: Parthenon Publishing Group, 1998.
Leavitt, Judith Walzer. Women and Health in America. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999.
Lightfoot, Sarah Lawrence. Balm in Gilead: Journey of a Healer. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., 1988.
Lopate, Carol. Women in Medicine. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1968.
Lorber, Judith. Women Physicians: Career, Status and Power. New York: Tavistock Publications, 1984.
Lovejoy, Esther Pohl. Certain Samaritans. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1927.
Lovejoy, Esther Pohl. Women Physicians and Surgeons. Livington, NY: Livingston Press, 1939.
Lovejoy, Esther Pohl. Women Physicians of the World. New York: Macmillan, 1957.
Moldow, Gloria M. Women Doctors in Gilded-Age Washington: Race, Gender, and Professionalism. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1987.
Morantz-Sanchez, Regina Markell, Sympathy and Science: Women Physicians in American Medicine. New York: Oxford University Press, 1985.
Morantz-Sanchez, Regina Markell. Conduct Unbecoming a Woman: Medicine on Trial in Turn-of-the-Century Brooklyn. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Morantz-Sanchez, Regina Markell, Cynthia Stodola Pomerleau and Carol Hanson Finichel, eds. In Her Own Words: Oral Histories of Women Physicians. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1982.
More, Ellen S. Restoring the Balance: Women Physicians and the Profession of Medicine, 1850-1995. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1999.
More, Ellen S. Maureen A. Milligan, ed., The Empathic Practitioner: Empathy, Gender, and Medicine. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1994.
Notable American Women 1607-1950. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971.
Notable American Women: The Modern Period.Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1980.
Peitzman, Stephen J. A New and Untried Course: Women's Medical College and Medical College of Pennsylvania 1850-1998. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2000.
Perrone, Bobette, and H. Henrietta Stockel and Victoria Krueger. Medicine, Curanderas, and Women Doctors. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1989.
Remen, Rachel Naomi. Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal. New York: Riverhead Books, 1996.
Remen, Rachel Naomi. My Grandfather's Blessings: Stories of Strenth, Refuge and Belonging. New York: Riverhead Books, 2000.
Sicherman, Barbara. Alice Hamilton, A Life in Letters. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1984.
Smith, Susan L. Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995.
Stepansky, Paul E. compiler & ed. The Memoirs of Margaret S. Mahler. New York: Free Press, 1988; London: Collier Macmillan, 1988.
Tong, Benson. Susan LaFlesche Picotte: Omaha Indian Leader and Reformer. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1999.
Truax, Rhoda. The Doctors Jacobi. Boston: Little, Brown, 1952.
Vietor, Agnes C, ed. A Woman's Quest: The Life of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.D. New York: Arno Press, 1972.
Walsh, Mary Roth. "Doctors Wanted: No Women Need Apply": Sexual Barriers in the Medical Profession, 1835-1975. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977.
Wear, Delese, ed. Women in Medical Education: An Anthology of Experience. New York: State University of New York Press, 1996.
Wells, Susan. Out of the Dead House: Nineteenth-Century Women Physicians and the Writing of Medicine. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin, 2001.
Suggested Medicine by NIH: Tomorrow medicine-Books
Baldwin, Joyce. To Heal the Heart of a Child: Helen Taussig, M.D. New York: Walker and Company, 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Helen Taussig
Bel Monte, Kathryn I. African-American Heroes & Heroines: 150 True Stories of African-American Heroism. Illustrated by Kathryn I. Bel Monte. Hollywood: Lifetime Books, Inc., 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 6-8
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Crumpler, Mae Jemison
Bolden, Tonya. And Not Afraid to Dare: The Stories of Ten African-American Women. New York: Scholastic Press, 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison
Bortstein, Larry. After Olympic Glory: The Lives of Ten Outstanding Medalists. New York: Frederick Warne, 1978.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Tenley Albright
Bowman, Kathleen. New Women in Medicine. Mankato: Creative Educational Society, Inc., 1976.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Mary Calderone, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
Brew, Lydia E. The Story of Edith Irby Jones, M.D. N.p., 1986.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Edith Irby Jones
Brown, Jordan. Elizabeth Blackwell. American Women of Achievement. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1989.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Brown, Marion Marsh. Homeward the Arrow's Flight. Nashville: Abingdon, 1980.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Susan Picotte
Butts, Ellen R., and Joyce R. Schwartz. May Chinn: The Best Medicine. New York: W.H. Freeman and Company, 1995.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: May Chinn
Campbell, Robin. Florence Sabin: Scientist. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1995.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Clapp, Patricia. Dr. Elizabeth: A Biography of the First Woman Doctor. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., 1974.
Reading Level: Grades 7-12
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Cox, Clinton. African American Healers. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Crumpler, M. Jocelyn Elders, Justina Ford, Deborah Prothrow-Stith
Curtis, Robert H. Medicine: Great Lives. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1993.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell, Helen Taussig
Dunnahoo, Terry. Emily Dunning: A Portrait. Chicago: Reilly & Lee Books, 1970.
Reading Level:Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Emily Barringer
Epps, Charles H. Jr., Davis G. Johnson, and Audrey L. Vaughan. African-American Medical Pioneers. Rockville: Betz Publishing Company, 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 7-10
Featured Physicians: Helen Dickens, Roselyn Epps, Gertrude Hunter, Renee Jenkins, Audrey Manley, Vivian Pinn, Deborah Prothrow-Stith, M. Jeanne Spurlock
Ferris, Jeri. Native American Doctor: The Story of Susan La Flesche Picotte. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 1991.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Susan Picotte
Garza, Hedda. Women in Medicine. New York: Franklin Watts, 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 11 and above
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell, Emily Blackwell, Rebecca Cole, Rebecca Crumpler, Matilda Evans, Vanessa Gamble, Alice Hamilton, Catherine Howell, Mary Jacobi, Halle Johnson, Ann Preston, Florence Sabin, Helen Taussig, Mary Walker, Marie Zakrzewska
Glimm, Adele. Elizabeth Blackwell: First Woman Doctor of Modern Times. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 3-7
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Greene, Carol. Elizabeth Blackwell: First Woman Doctor. Chicago: Childrens Press, Inc., 1991.
Reading Level: Grades 1-3
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Hansen, Joyce. Women of Hope: African Americans Who Made a Difference. Foreword by Moe Foner. New York: Scholastic Press, 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 4 and above
Featured Physicians: Alexa Canady, Mae Jemison
Hasday, Judy L. Extraordinary Women Athletes. New York: Childrens Press, 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Tenley Albright
Hayden, Robert C. 11 African-American Doctors. Frederick: Twenty-First Century Books, 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Jane Wright
Henry, Joanne Landers. Elizabeth Blackwell: Girl Doctor. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1996.
Reading Level: Grades 2-5
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Hume, Ruth Fox. Great Women of Medicine. New York: Random House, 1964.
Reading Level: Grades 7-12
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell, Alice Hamilton, Mary Jacobi, Florence Sabin
Hunter, Shaun. Leaders in Medicine. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Featured Physicians: Dorothy Andersen, Virginia Apgar, S. Josephine Baker, Gerti Cori, Alice Hamilton, Mae Jemison, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, Antonia Novello, Helen Taussig, Florence Sabin
Jemison, Mae C. Find Where the Wind Goes: Moments From My Life. New York: Scholastic Press, 2001.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison
Kaye, Judith. The Life of Florence Sabin. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1993.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Kent, Jacqueline C. Women in Medicine. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, Inc., 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Virginia Apgar, Elizabeth Blackwell, Dorothy Brown, May Chinn, Alma Morani, Susan Picotte, Helen Taussig, Mary Walker
Klass, Perri. A Not Entirely Benign Procedure: Four Years As a Medical Student. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1987.
Reading Level: Grades 10 and above
Featured Physicians: Perri Klass
Kline, Nancy. Elizabeth Blackwell: A Doctor's Triumph. Berkeley: Conari Press, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Krapp, Kristine, ed. Notable Black American Scientists. Detroit: Gale, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 10-12
Featured Physicians: Dorothy Brown, Rebecca Cole, Rebecca Crumpler, M. Jocelyn Elders, Matilda Evans, Dorothy Ferebee, Mae Jemison, Halle Johnson, Edith Irby Jones, Margaret Lawrence, M. Jeanne Spurlock, Jane Wright
Kronstadt, Janet. Florence Sabin: Medical Researcher. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1990.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Lindrop, Laurie. Scientists and Doctors. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison, Susan Love, Helen Taussig
Lyman, Darryl. Great African American Women. New York: Gramercy Books, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 7-12
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison
McClure, Judy. Healers and Researchers: Physicians, Biologists, Social Scientists. Austin: Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers, 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Maude Abott, Hattie Alexander, Dorothy Andersen, Virginia Apgar, S. Josephine Baker, Elizabeth Blackwell, Emily Blackwell, May Chinn, Rebecca Cole, Gerti Cori, M. Jocelyn Elders, Alice Hamilton, Mary Jacobi, Mae Jemison, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Susan Picotte, Dorothy Mendenhall, Rosa Minoka-Hill, Antonia Novello, Ann Preston, Florence Sabin, Helen Taussig, Bertha Van Hoosen, Mary Walker, Anna Williams, Jane Wright, Marie Zakrzewska
McKissack, Patricia, and Frederick McKissack. African-American Scientists. Brookfield: The Millbrook Press, 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Cole, Rebecca Crumpler, Mae Jemison
McLenighan, Valjean. Women and Science. Milwaukee: Raintree Publishers, 1979.
Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Featured Physicians: Alice Hamilton, Florence Sabin
McPherson, Stephanie Sammartino. The Workers' Detective: A Story About Dr. Alice Hamilton. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: Alice Hamilton
Morey, Janet Nomura, and Wendy Dunn. Famous Hispanic Americans. New York: Cobblehill Books, 1996.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Antonia Novello
Noble, Iris. The First Woman Ambulance Surgeon. New York: Julian Messner, Inc., 1962.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Emily Barringer
Phelan, Mary Kay. Probing the Unknown: The Story of Dr. Florence Sabin. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1969.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Potter, Joan, and Constance Claytor. African Americans Who Were First. New York: Cobblehill Books, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Crumpler, Mae Jemison
Ptacek, Greg. Champion for Children's Health. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: S. Josephine Baker
Ranahan, Demerris C. Medicine. Minneapolis: Dillon Press, Inc., 1981.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Virginia Apgar, Adele Hofmann, Olga Jonasson, Elizabeth Blackwell, Mary Jacobi, Alice Hamilton, Susan Picotte, Helen Taussig, Jane Wright, Marie Zakrzewska
Redberg, Rita F., and Judith Love Cohen. You Can Be a Woman Cardiologist. Culver City: Cascade Press, Inc., 1996.
Reading Level: Grades 2-4
Featured Physicians: Rita Redberg
Sabin, Francene. Elizabeth Blackwell: The First Woman Doctor. Mahwah: Troll Associates, 1982.
Reading Level: Grades 2-4
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Schleichert, Elizabeth. The Life of Elizabeth Blackwell. Frederick: Twenty-First Century Books, 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Sinnott, Susan. Extraordinary Hispanic Americans. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1991.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Antonia Novello
Steelsmith, Shari. Elizabeth Blackwell: The Story of the First Woman Doctor. Seattle: Parenting Press, Inc., 1987.
Reading Level: Grades K-3
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Stille, Darlene R. Extraordinary Women of Medicine. New York: Children's Press, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 5-9
Featured Physicians: Hattie Alexander, Dorothy Andersen, S. Josephine Baker, Elizabeth Blackwell, Emily Blackwell, Emeline Cleveland, Alice Hamilton, Bernadine Healy, Mary Jacobi, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Elise L'Esperance, Hannah Longshore, Esther Lovejoy, Anita McGee, Rosa Minoka-Hill, Antonia Novello, Susan Picotte, Ann Preston, Helen Taussig, Bertha Van Hoosen, Mary Walker, Jane Wright, Marie Zakrzewska
Stille, Darlene R. Extraordinary Women Scientists. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1995.
Reading Level: Grades 5-9
Featured Physicians: Gerti Cori, Mae Jemison, Florence Sabin
Sullivan, Otha Richard. African American Inventors. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Jane Wright
Vare, Ethlie Ann, and Greg Ptacek. Women Inventors & Their Discoveries. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, Inc., 1993.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: S. Josephine Baker
Verheyden-Hilliard, Mary Ellen. Scientist and Physician: Judith Pachciarz. Bethesda: The Equity Institute, 1988.
Reading Level: Grades 2-3
Featured Physicians: Judith Pachchiarz
Wilkerson, J. L. A Doctor to Her People: Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte. Kansas City: Acorn Books, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: Susan Picotte
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Helen Taussig
Bel Monte, Kathryn I. African-American Heroes & Heroines: 150 True Stories of African-American Heroism. Illustrated by Kathryn I. Bel Monte. Hollywood: Lifetime Books, Inc., 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 6-8
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Crumpler, Mae Jemison
Bolden, Tonya. And Not Afraid to Dare: The Stories of Ten African-American Women. New York: Scholastic Press, 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison
Bortstein, Larry. After Olympic Glory: The Lives of Ten Outstanding Medalists. New York: Frederick Warne, 1978.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Tenley Albright
Bowman, Kathleen. New Women in Medicine. Mankato: Creative Educational Society, Inc., 1976.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Mary Calderone, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
Brew, Lydia E. The Story of Edith Irby Jones, M.D. N.p., 1986.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Edith Irby Jones
Brown, Jordan. Elizabeth Blackwell. American Women of Achievement. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1989.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Brown, Marion Marsh. Homeward the Arrow's Flight. Nashville: Abingdon, 1980.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Susan Picotte
Butts, Ellen R., and Joyce R. Schwartz. May Chinn: The Best Medicine. New York: W.H. Freeman and Company, 1995.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: May Chinn
Campbell, Robin. Florence Sabin: Scientist. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1995.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Clapp, Patricia. Dr. Elizabeth: A Biography of the First Woman Doctor. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., 1974.
Reading Level: Grades 7-12
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Cox, Clinton. African American Healers. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Crumpler, M. Jocelyn Elders, Justina Ford, Deborah Prothrow-Stith
Curtis, Robert H. Medicine: Great Lives. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1993.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell, Helen Taussig
Dunnahoo, Terry. Emily Dunning: A Portrait. Chicago: Reilly & Lee Books, 1970.
Reading Level:Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Emily Barringer
Epps, Charles H. Jr., Davis G. Johnson, and Audrey L. Vaughan. African-American Medical Pioneers. Rockville: Betz Publishing Company, 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 7-10
Featured Physicians: Helen Dickens, Roselyn Epps, Gertrude Hunter, Renee Jenkins, Audrey Manley, Vivian Pinn, Deborah Prothrow-Stith, M. Jeanne Spurlock
Ferris, Jeri. Native American Doctor: The Story of Susan La Flesche Picotte. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 1991.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Susan Picotte
Garza, Hedda. Women in Medicine. New York: Franklin Watts, 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 11 and above
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell, Emily Blackwell, Rebecca Cole, Rebecca Crumpler, Matilda Evans, Vanessa Gamble, Alice Hamilton, Catherine Howell, Mary Jacobi, Halle Johnson, Ann Preston, Florence Sabin, Helen Taussig, Mary Walker, Marie Zakrzewska
Glimm, Adele. Elizabeth Blackwell: First Woman Doctor of Modern Times. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 3-7
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Greene, Carol. Elizabeth Blackwell: First Woman Doctor. Chicago: Childrens Press, Inc., 1991.
Reading Level: Grades 1-3
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Hansen, Joyce. Women of Hope: African Americans Who Made a Difference. Foreword by Moe Foner. New York: Scholastic Press, 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 4 and above
Featured Physicians: Alexa Canady, Mae Jemison
Hasday, Judy L. Extraordinary Women Athletes. New York: Childrens Press, 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Tenley Albright
Hayden, Robert C. 11 African-American Doctors. Frederick: Twenty-First Century Books, 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Jane Wright
Henry, Joanne Landers. Elizabeth Blackwell: Girl Doctor. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1996.
Reading Level: Grades 2-5
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Hume, Ruth Fox. Great Women of Medicine. New York: Random House, 1964.
Reading Level: Grades 7-12
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell, Alice Hamilton, Mary Jacobi, Florence Sabin
Hunter, Shaun. Leaders in Medicine. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Featured Physicians: Dorothy Andersen, Virginia Apgar, S. Josephine Baker, Gerti Cori, Alice Hamilton, Mae Jemison, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, Antonia Novello, Helen Taussig, Florence Sabin
Jemison, Mae C. Find Where the Wind Goes: Moments From My Life. New York: Scholastic Press, 2001.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison
Kaye, Judith. The Life of Florence Sabin. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1993.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Kent, Jacqueline C. Women in Medicine. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, Inc., 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Virginia Apgar, Elizabeth Blackwell, Dorothy Brown, May Chinn, Alma Morani, Susan Picotte, Helen Taussig, Mary Walker
Klass, Perri. A Not Entirely Benign Procedure: Four Years As a Medical Student. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1987.
Reading Level: Grades 10 and above
Featured Physicians: Perri Klass
Kline, Nancy. Elizabeth Blackwell: A Doctor's Triumph. Berkeley: Conari Press, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Krapp, Kristine, ed. Notable Black American Scientists. Detroit: Gale, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 10-12
Featured Physicians: Dorothy Brown, Rebecca Cole, Rebecca Crumpler, M. Jocelyn Elders, Matilda Evans, Dorothy Ferebee, Mae Jemison, Halle Johnson, Edith Irby Jones, Margaret Lawrence, M. Jeanne Spurlock, Jane Wright
Kronstadt, Janet. Florence Sabin: Medical Researcher. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1990.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Lindrop, Laurie. Scientists and Doctors. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison, Susan Love, Helen Taussig
Lyman, Darryl. Great African American Women. New York: Gramercy Books, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 7-12
Featured Physicians: Mae Jemison
McClure, Judy. Healers and Researchers: Physicians, Biologists, Social Scientists. Austin: Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers, 2000.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Maude Abott, Hattie Alexander, Dorothy Andersen, Virginia Apgar, S. Josephine Baker, Elizabeth Blackwell, Emily Blackwell, May Chinn, Rebecca Cole, Gerti Cori, M. Jocelyn Elders, Alice Hamilton, Mary Jacobi, Mae Jemison, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Susan Picotte, Dorothy Mendenhall, Rosa Minoka-Hill, Antonia Novello, Ann Preston, Florence Sabin, Helen Taussig, Bertha Van Hoosen, Mary Walker, Anna Williams, Jane Wright, Marie Zakrzewska
McKissack, Patricia, and Frederick McKissack. African-American Scientists. Brookfield: The Millbrook Press, 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Cole, Rebecca Crumpler, Mae Jemison
McLenighan, Valjean. Women and Science. Milwaukee: Raintree Publishers, 1979.
Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Featured Physicians: Alice Hamilton, Florence Sabin
McPherson, Stephanie Sammartino. The Workers' Detective: A Story About Dr. Alice Hamilton. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: Alice Hamilton
Morey, Janet Nomura, and Wendy Dunn. Famous Hispanic Americans. New York: Cobblehill Books, 1996.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Antonia Novello
Noble, Iris. The First Woman Ambulance Surgeon. New York: Julian Messner, Inc., 1962.
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
Featured Physicians: Emily Barringer
Phelan, Mary Kay. Probing the Unknown: The Story of Dr. Florence Sabin. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1969.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Florence Sabin
Potter, Joan, and Constance Claytor. African Americans Who Were First. New York: Cobblehill Books, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Rebecca Crumpler, Mae Jemison
Ptacek, Greg. Champion for Children's Health. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 1994.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: S. Josephine Baker
Ranahan, Demerris C. Medicine. Minneapolis: Dillon Press, Inc., 1981.
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Featured Physicians: Virginia Apgar, Adele Hofmann, Olga Jonasson, Elizabeth Blackwell, Mary Jacobi, Alice Hamilton, Susan Picotte, Helen Taussig, Jane Wright, Marie Zakrzewska
Redberg, Rita F., and Judith Love Cohen. You Can Be a Woman Cardiologist. Culver City: Cascade Press, Inc., 1996.
Reading Level: Grades 2-4
Featured Physicians: Rita Redberg
Sabin, Francene. Elizabeth Blackwell: The First Woman Doctor. Mahwah: Troll Associates, 1982.
Reading Level: Grades 2-4
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Schleichert, Elizabeth. The Life of Elizabeth Blackwell. Frederick: Twenty-First Century Books, 1992.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Sinnott, Susan. Extraordinary Hispanic Americans. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1991.
Reading Level: Grades 4-6
Featured Physicians: Antonia Novello
Steelsmith, Shari. Elizabeth Blackwell: The Story of the First Woman Doctor. Seattle: Parenting Press, Inc., 1987.
Reading Level: Grades K-3
Featured Physicians: Elizabeth Blackwell
Stille, Darlene R. Extraordinary Women of Medicine. New York: Children's Press, 1997.
Reading Level: Grades 5-9
Featured Physicians: Hattie Alexander, Dorothy Andersen, S. Josephine Baker, Elizabeth Blackwell, Emily Blackwell, Emeline Cleveland, Alice Hamilton, Bernadine Healy, Mary Jacobi, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Elise L'Esperance, Hannah Longshore, Esther Lovejoy, Anita McGee, Rosa Minoka-Hill, Antonia Novello, Susan Picotte, Ann Preston, Helen Taussig, Bertha Van Hoosen, Mary Walker, Jane Wright, Marie Zakrzewska
Stille, Darlene R. Extraordinary Women Scientists. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1995.
Reading Level: Grades 5-9
Featured Physicians: Gerti Cori, Mae Jemison, Florence Sabin
Sullivan, Otha Richard. African American Inventors. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998.
Reading Level: Grades 5-7
Featured Physicians: Jane Wright
Vare, Ethlie Ann, and Greg Ptacek. Women Inventors & Their Discoveries. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, Inc., 1993.
Reading Level: Grades 4-7
Featured Physicians: S. Josephine Baker
Verheyden-Hilliard, Mary Ellen. Scientist and Physician: Judith Pachciarz. Bethesda: The Equity Institute, 1988.
Reading Level: Grades 2-3
Featured Physicians: Judith Pachchiarz
Wilkerson, J. L. A Doctor to Her People: Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte. Kansas City: Acorn Books, 1999.
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Featured Physicians: Susan Picotte
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Healthcare costs
September 11, 2008
The main problem
Robert Samuelson (Washington Post, 9/9/08) (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/09/AR2008090902520_pf.html) hit it on the head when he wrote: “The central health-care problem is not improving coverage. It's controlling costs.” However, he devotes the rest of his article to talking about health insurance costs, not healthcare costs. He fails to look beyond the cost of health insurance and assumes that healthcare services are fixed cost items, not amenable to competition or efficiency efforts. This, of course, is not true. Healthcare is a service (with occasional products), and greater efficiency is possible, if there is demand for it. But like most things in life, it won’t happen by accident.
Samuelson quotes Gary Burtless of the Brookings Institution who “ recently discovered this astonishing data: on average, annual health spending per person -- from all private and government sources -- is equal for the poorest and the richest Americans. In 2003, it was $4,477 for the poorest fifth and $4,451 for the richest.” This suggests that covering the currently uninsured won’t change the cost equation much, if at all. An interesting thought. The uninsured are not always destitute and do, in fact, pay some of their healthcare expenses. The insurance “hidden tax” finances some of this care, and many communities have funds to compensate hospitals for care of the uninsured.
Discussions of cost savings in healthcare generally posit a reduction in “unnecessary care” as the primary cost-saving mechanism. While this may be effective, that is by no means certain, and any gains would require several years to materialize. On the other hand, if providers were forced to compete for patients on the basis of price, the cost of individual healthcare services would fall. Providers would learn to become more efficient in order to offer the same service at a lower price. If, for example, Medicare were to take bids for total hip replacement surgery and allow only one institution every 50 miles, that procedure would suddenly become less expensive. Patients would not have to fly to Bangkok or Singapore to obtain affordable orthopedic surgery.
A recent Health Affairs blog (http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/09/10/medical-homes-and-medical-home-runs/) by Arnold Milstein talks about “Medical Homes” as the mechanism to reduce total per capita health spending, primarily by reducing the utilization of healthcare services. He expresses concern that Medical Homes will cost more but fail to produce savings to offset their cost. He studied four primary care practices that did function as “hospitalization prevention organizations” because they tried. It’s not clear that the patients involved were better off, but their insurers certainly were. This is a complex subject, and lots of details would be required for any judgment. Generally speaking, patients are better off staying out of hospitals. However, this should not be done merely to save money.
Interesting times.
Posted by Dr. Robert Burney at 09:18 PM
The main problem
Robert Samuelson (Washington Post, 9/9/08) (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/09/AR2008090902520_pf.html) hit it on the head when he wrote: “The central health-care problem is not improving coverage. It's controlling costs.” However, he devotes the rest of his article to talking about health insurance costs, not healthcare costs. He fails to look beyond the cost of health insurance and assumes that healthcare services are fixed cost items, not amenable to competition or efficiency efforts. This, of course, is not true. Healthcare is a service (with occasional products), and greater efficiency is possible, if there is demand for it. But like most things in life, it won’t happen by accident.
Samuelson quotes Gary Burtless of the Brookings Institution who “ recently discovered this astonishing data: on average, annual health spending per person -- from all private and government sources -- is equal for the poorest and the richest Americans. In 2003, it was $4,477 for the poorest fifth and $4,451 for the richest.” This suggests that covering the currently uninsured won’t change the cost equation much, if at all. An interesting thought. The uninsured are not always destitute and do, in fact, pay some of their healthcare expenses. The insurance “hidden tax” finances some of this care, and many communities have funds to compensate hospitals for care of the uninsured.
Discussions of cost savings in healthcare generally posit a reduction in “unnecessary care” as the primary cost-saving mechanism. While this may be effective, that is by no means certain, and any gains would require several years to materialize. On the other hand, if providers were forced to compete for patients on the basis of price, the cost of individual healthcare services would fall. Providers would learn to become more efficient in order to offer the same service at a lower price. If, for example, Medicare were to take bids for total hip replacement surgery and allow only one institution every 50 miles, that procedure would suddenly become less expensive. Patients would not have to fly to Bangkok or Singapore to obtain affordable orthopedic surgery.
A recent Health Affairs blog (http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/09/10/medical-homes-and-medical-home-runs/) by Arnold Milstein talks about “Medical Homes” as the mechanism to reduce total per capita health spending, primarily by reducing the utilization of healthcare services. He expresses concern that Medical Homes will cost more but fail to produce savings to offset their cost. He studied four primary care practices that did function as “hospitalization prevention organizations” because they tried. It’s not clear that the patients involved were better off, but their insurers certainly were. This is a complex subject, and lots of details would be required for any judgment. Generally speaking, patients are better off staying out of hospitals. However, this should not be done merely to save money.
Interesting times.
Posted by Dr. Robert Burney at 09:18 PM
Friday, August 1, 2008
Internet II: Rebooting America Michael S. Malone, 09.10.01
Getting real and getting it right.The biggest economic boom in history is bearing down on us. It's heresy to say such things these days. Most of the world is hunkered down, just trying to survive the fallout. Companies are still laying off people. The economic indicators are still pointing in every direction. So announcing another great era of prosperity risks public humiliation. But the fact is that all the signs of a massive turnaround are in place. It will be across the board, from chips to wireless to information technology to a Great Global Grid, providing a wealth of opportunities for entrepreneurs, consumers, and investors. It will come in the form of universal broadband access, unlimited network server availability, global virtual malls, real-time enterprise computing. It's the firstborn offspring of the Internet, only it will be sleeker, smarter, and more agile and obedient than its predecessor. For now, let's call it Internet II, or the ultranet, or meganet. Potentially it could eclipse the unprecedented economic expansion from 1992 to 1999. That's the good news. The bad news is that such a boom will place a burden on America's infrastructure that it currently cannot bear. Without the money and political will to carry the load, the new boom could be strangled in its first months by a shortage of electricity, roads, and runways. Both prospects, the good and the bad, will come with enormous costs and demand considerable sacrifices. Before events sweep out of our control, we have just a few months to make some very important decisions. To understand the coming boom, we need to look at the technology landscape and identify the forces converging to ignite it. The first of these forces, one that underlies the rest, is the return of the high tech business cycle. For 30 years before the 1990s, the semiconductor industry, mirrored by the electronics industry as a whole, rode a roller coaster of boom and bust. The 1990s, with a nearly eight-year run of continuous expansion, appeared to obliterate this cycle. In fact, the cycle was still there--chips and PCs suffered a downturn between 1996 and 1998--but it was camouflaged by the early and unexpected arrival of the e-commerce boom. The latter was so huge that it filled the trough, leaving many--including some of the industry's keenest analysts--convinced that the traditional business cycle was obsolete and that the tech bubble could expand indefinitely. We all know better now. The cycle reasserted itself with a vengeance, and we are still reeling. But if the business cycle is back on track, that also means that the bottom is near and the next upturn is just months away. And the next peak? In 2004 or 2005.
Getting real and getting it right.The biggest economic boom in history is bearing down on us. It's heresy to say such things these days. Most of the world is hunkered down, just trying to survive the fallout. Companies are still laying off people. The economic indicators are still pointing in every direction. So announcing another great era of prosperity risks public humiliation. But the fact is that all the signs of a massive turnaround are in place. It will be across the board, from chips to wireless to information technology to a Great Global Grid, providing a wealth of opportunities for entrepreneurs, consumers, and investors. It will come in the form of universal broadband access, unlimited network server availability, global virtual malls, real-time enterprise computing. It's the firstborn offspring of the Internet, only it will be sleeker, smarter, and more agile and obedient than its predecessor. For now, let's call it Internet II, or the ultranet, or meganet. Potentially it could eclipse the unprecedented economic expansion from 1992 to 1999. That's the good news. The bad news is that such a boom will place a burden on America's infrastructure that it currently cannot bear. Without the money and political will to carry the load, the new boom could be strangled in its first months by a shortage of electricity, roads, and runways. Both prospects, the good and the bad, will come with enormous costs and demand considerable sacrifices. Before events sweep out of our control, we have just a few months to make some very important decisions. To understand the coming boom, we need to look at the technology landscape and identify the forces converging to ignite it. The first of these forces, one that underlies the rest, is the return of the high tech business cycle. For 30 years before the 1990s, the semiconductor industry, mirrored by the electronics industry as a whole, rode a roller coaster of boom and bust. The 1990s, with a nearly eight-year run of continuous expansion, appeared to obliterate this cycle. In fact, the cycle was still there--chips and PCs suffered a downturn between 1996 and 1998--but it was camouflaged by the early and unexpected arrival of the e-commerce boom. The latter was so huge that it filled the trough, leaving many--including some of the industry's keenest analysts--convinced that the traditional business cycle was obsolete and that the tech bubble could expand indefinitely. We all know better now. The cycle reasserted itself with a vengeance, and we are still reeling. But if the business cycle is back on track, that also means that the bottom is near and the next upturn is just months away. And the next peak? In 2004 or 2005.
Friday, July 11, 2008
RFID Application Market
RFID Application Market
Many public and private sector organizations are already using or planning to use, RFID technology. Because the technology basically turns an inert object into one capable of communicating, the potential for use is enormous. Possible uses include:
• SCM (monitoring and controlling the flow of goods from raw materials through to finished product, from manufacturer to consumer).
• Product Integrity (ensuring that products e.g., pharmaceuticals are authentic and have not been altered in any way).
• Warranty Services (marking durable goods with a tag incorporating a product registration code to facilitate warranty services).
• ID, Travel, and Ticketing (providing a means to verify the identity of the traveler and to ensure that the documents are genuine)
• Baggage Tracking (monitoring and controlling the movement of baggage from check-in to loading on an airplane).
• Patient Care and Management (providing a means to rapidly and accurately verify information concerning patient allergies, prescription history, etc. to prevent surgical errors). (Source: “RFID Technology”, Office of Privacy Commissioner of Canada) ©
The global RFID industry is being driven by factors such as automation (reduction in the need for human intervention), increased competitiveness, and lower RFID infrastructure costs. Moreover, corporate funding and governmental support are fuelling the adoption of this technology globally. However, security concerns are still hovering over this industry. IT administrators worldwide face the surmountable challenge of preventing the RFID systems from security breaches and virus attacks. Analysts believe that RFID technology has yet not reached the level of maturity required to protect enterprises’ confidential details. We believe that companies planning to implement the RFID technology should carefully assess the associated security risks and potential threats that might arise as a result of its implementation.
The RFID industry in 2007 showed a revived interest in applications and technologies that are already established. In 2007, RFID technology received a lot more mainstream media coverage than in the previous years. Real-time location system (RTLS) technology received stronger adoption and enthusiasm within the industry. RTLS technology was adopted by hospitals and industrial asset tracking applications. Moreover, 2007 also saw the launch of Microsoft’s first major IT infrastructure product with native RFID support. BizTalk Server 2006 R2 launched last year, slated to be shipped in 2007, was Microsoft’s first product to ship with RFID support. Another key highlight of 2007 is the US State Department’s rollout of “e-passports” containing RFID chips. However, security issues have somewhat withheld its uptake among US consumers.
RFID is being touted as a very useful resource for small-and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Government mandates and the wide range of benefits that RFID technology brings to enterprises have spurred wider RFID adoption among SMBs in both the public and private sectors. SMBs that need to track agricultural products and livestock are increasingly rolling out RFID systems. Smaller businesses that operate as a part of a larger organization’s supply chain, such as auto parts and pharmaceuticals product manufacturers, are adding to the first wave of RFID adoption. However, high implementation costs and concerns over the realization of actual benefits are hindering RFID adoption among SMBs. We believe that the development of open standards for RFID, as well as their integration with larger system platforms, will further pave the way for RFID adoption among SMBs.
As RFID is not just a plug and play technology, each RFID deployment is unique, and there are different variables that can contribute either to its success or failure. RFID systems are very complex to install and integrate because the information has to be collected from various locations and be transferred and processed accordingly. It has been observed that IT professionals generally do not posses the requisite skills needed for the implementation of RFID solutions. We therefore believe that enterprises should carefully select the broad base of expertise required for successful implementation.
Many public and private sector organizations are already using or planning to use, RFID technology. Because the technology basically turns an inert object into one capable of communicating, the potential for use is enormous. Possible uses include:
• SCM (monitoring and controlling the flow of goods from raw materials through to finished product, from manufacturer to consumer).
• Product Integrity (ensuring that products e.g., pharmaceuticals are authentic and have not been altered in any way).
• Warranty Services (marking durable goods with a tag incorporating a product registration code to facilitate warranty services).
• ID, Travel, and Ticketing (providing a means to verify the identity of the traveler and to ensure that the documents are genuine)
• Baggage Tracking (monitoring and controlling the movement of baggage from check-in to loading on an airplane).
• Patient Care and Management (providing a means to rapidly and accurately verify information concerning patient allergies, prescription history, etc. to prevent surgical errors). (Source: “RFID Technology”, Office of Privacy Commissioner of Canada) ©
The global RFID industry is being driven by factors such as automation (reduction in the need for human intervention), increased competitiveness, and lower RFID infrastructure costs. Moreover, corporate funding and governmental support are fuelling the adoption of this technology globally. However, security concerns are still hovering over this industry. IT administrators worldwide face the surmountable challenge of preventing the RFID systems from security breaches and virus attacks. Analysts believe that RFID technology has yet not reached the level of maturity required to protect enterprises’ confidential details. We believe that companies planning to implement the RFID technology should carefully assess the associated security risks and potential threats that might arise as a result of its implementation.
The RFID industry in 2007 showed a revived interest in applications and technologies that are already established. In 2007, RFID technology received a lot more mainstream media coverage than in the previous years. Real-time location system (RTLS) technology received stronger adoption and enthusiasm within the industry. RTLS technology was adopted by hospitals and industrial asset tracking applications. Moreover, 2007 also saw the launch of Microsoft’s first major IT infrastructure product with native RFID support. BizTalk Server 2006 R2 launched last year, slated to be shipped in 2007, was Microsoft’s first product to ship with RFID support. Another key highlight of 2007 is the US State Department’s rollout of “e-passports” containing RFID chips. However, security issues have somewhat withheld its uptake among US consumers.
RFID is being touted as a very useful resource for small-and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Government mandates and the wide range of benefits that RFID technology brings to enterprises have spurred wider RFID adoption among SMBs in both the public and private sectors. SMBs that need to track agricultural products and livestock are increasingly rolling out RFID systems. Smaller businesses that operate as a part of a larger organization’s supply chain, such as auto parts and pharmaceuticals product manufacturers, are adding to the first wave of RFID adoption. However, high implementation costs and concerns over the realization of actual benefits are hindering RFID adoption among SMBs. We believe that the development of open standards for RFID, as well as their integration with larger system platforms, will further pave the way for RFID adoption among SMBs.
As RFID is not just a plug and play technology, each RFID deployment is unique, and there are different variables that can contribute either to its success or failure. RFID systems are very complex to install and integrate because the information has to be collected from various locations and be transferred and processed accordingly. It has been observed that IT professionals generally do not posses the requisite skills needed for the implementation of RFID solutions. We therefore believe that enterprises should carefully select the broad base of expertise required for successful implementation.
Utility of RFID in Health Care and Life Science Industry:
Utility of RFID in Health Care and Life Science Industry:
The Healthcare and Life Sciences (HLS) industry faces business challenges unlike those of other industries. While continuing to ensure that safe and effective drugs are available to patients and consumers, the industry is adapting to significant and far reaching changes. Business models, product mixes, and trading partner relationships are all being impacted by dynamic regulatory, economic, scientific, and demographic forces.
The HLS supply chain relies on many players to deliver critical products to the end consumer. The supply chain for HLS includes several players in addition to manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. Other dispensing sources (such as hospitals), return logistics providers, product/compound sourcing, laboratories and clinical trial environments all play a part in development and distribution of drugs.
The increasing complexity of the supply chain is driving the need to capture, manage, share and act on whole new classes of supply chain information.
MS FILALI
The Healthcare and Life Sciences (HLS) industry faces business challenges unlike those of other industries. While continuing to ensure that safe and effective drugs are available to patients and consumers, the industry is adapting to significant and far reaching changes. Business models, product mixes, and trading partner relationships are all being impacted by dynamic regulatory, economic, scientific, and demographic forces.
The HLS supply chain relies on many players to deliver critical products to the end consumer. The supply chain for HLS includes several players in addition to manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. Other dispensing sources (such as hospitals), return logistics providers, product/compound sourcing, laboratories and clinical trial environments all play a part in development and distribution of drugs.
The increasing complexity of the supply chain is driving the need to capture, manage, share and act on whole new classes of supply chain information.
MS FILALI
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Freedom of Speech and social networking
By ANICK JESDANUN, AP Internet Writer Sun Jul 6, 2:17 PM ET
NEW YORK - Rant all you want in a public park. A police officer generally won't eject you for your remarks alone, however unpopular or provocative.
ADVERTISEMENT
Say it on the Internet, and you'll find that free speech and other constitutional rights are anything but guaranteed.
Companies in charge of seemingly public spaces online wipe out content that's controversial but otherwise legal. Service providers write their own rules for users worldwide and set foreign policy when they cooperate with regimes like China. They serve as prosecutor, judge and jury in handling disputes behind closed doors.
The governmental role that companies play online is taking on greater importance as their services — from online hangouts to virtual repositories of photos and video — become more central to public discourse around the world. It's a fallout of the Internet's market-driven growth, but possible remedies, including government regulation, can be worse than the symptoms.
Dutch photographer Maarten Dors met the limits of free speech at Yahoo Inc.'s photo-sharing service, Flickr, when he posted an image of an early-adolescent boy with disheveled hair and a ragged T-shirt, staring blankly with a lit cigarette in his mouth.
Without prior notice, Yahoo deleted the photo on grounds it violated an unwritten ban on depicting children smoking. Dors eventually convinced a Yahoo manager that — far from promoting smoking — the photo had value as a statement on poverty and street life in Romania. Yet another employee deleted it again a few months later.
"I never thought of it as a photo of a smoking kid," Dors said. "It was just of a kid in Romania and how his life is. You can never make a serious documentary if you always have to think about what Flickr will delete."
There may be legitimate reasons to take action, such as to stop spam, security threats, copyright infringement and child pornography, but many cases aren't clear-cut, and balancing competing needs can get thorny.
"We often get caught in the middle between a rock and a hard place," said Christine Jones, general counsel with service provider GoDaddy.com Inc. "We're obviously sensitive to the freedoms we have, particularly in this country, to speak our mind, (yet) we want to be good corporate citizens and make the Internet a better and safer place."
In Dors' case, the law is fully with Yahoo. Its terms of service, similar to those of other service providers, gives Yahoo "sole discretion to pre-screen, refuse or remove any content." Service providers aren't required to police content, but they aren't prohibited from doing so.
While mindful of free speech and other rights, Yahoo and other companies say they must craft and enforce guidelines that go beyond legal requirements to protect their brands and foster safe, enjoyable communities — ones where minors may be roaming.
Guidelines help "engender a positive community experience," one to which users will want to return, said Anne Toth, Yahoo's vice president for policy.
Dors ultimately got his photo restored a second time, and Yahoo has apologized, acknowledging its community managers went too far.
Heather Champ, community director for Flickr, said the company crafts policies based on feedback from users and trains employees to weigh disputes fairly and consistently, though mistakes can happen.
"We're humans," she said. "We're pretty transparent when we make mistakes. We have a record of being good about stepping up and fessing up."
But that underscores another consequence of having online commons controlled by private corporations. Rules aren't always clear, enforcement is inconsistent, and users can find content removed or accounts terminated without a hearing. Appeals are solely at the service provider's discretion.
Users get caught in the crossfire as hundreds of individual service representatives apply their own interpretations of corporate policies, sometimes imposing personal agendas or misreading guidelines.
To wit: Verizon Wireless barred an abortion-rights group from obtaining a "short code" for conducting text-messaging campaigns, while LiveJournal suspended legitimate blogs on fiction and crime victims in a crackdown on pedophilia. Two lines criticizing President Bush disappeared from AT&T Inc.'s webcast of a Pearl Jam concert. All three decisions were reversed only after senior executives intervened amid complaints.
Inconsistencies and mysteries behind decisions lead to perceptions that content is being stricken merely for being unpopular.
"As we move more of our communications into social networks, how are we limiting ourselves if we can't see alternative points of view, if we can't see the things that offend us?" asked Fred Stutzman, a University of North Carolina researcher who tracks online communities.
First Amendment protections generally do not extend to private property in the physical world, allowing a shopping mall to legally kick out a customer wearing a T-shirt with a picture of a smoking child.
With online services becoming greater conduits than shopping malls for public communications, however, some advocacy groups believe the federal government needs to guarantee open access to speech. That, of course, could also invite meddling by the government, the way broadcasters now face indecency and other restrictions that are criticized as vague.
Others believe companies shouldn't police content at all, and if they do, they should at least make clearer the rules and the mechanisms for appeal.
"Vagueness does not inspire the confidence of people and leaves room for gaming the system by outside groups," said Lauren Weinstein, a veteran computer scientist and Internet activist. "When the rules are clear and the grievance procedures are clear, then people know what they are working with and they at least have a starting point in urging changes in those rules."
But Marjorie Heins, director of the Free Expression Policy Project, questions whether the private sector is equipped to handle such matters at all. She said written rules mean little when service representatives applying them "tend to be tone-deaf. They don't see context."
At least when a court order or other governmental action is involved, "there's more of a guarantee of due process protections," said Robin Gross, executive director of the civil-liberties group IP Justice. With a private company, users' rights are limited to the service provider's contractual terms of services.
Jonathan Zittrain, a Harvard professor who recently published a book on threats to the Internet's openness, said parties unhappy with sensitive materials online are increasingly aware they can simply pressure service providers and other intermediaries.
"Going after individuals can be difficult. They can be hard to find. They can be hard to sue," Zittrain said. "Intermediaries still have a calculus where if a particular Web site is causing a lot of trouble ... it may not be worth it to them."
Unable to stop purveyors of child pornography directly, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo recently persuaded three major access providers to disable online newsgroups that distribute such images. But rather than cut off those specific newsgroups, all three decided to reduce administrative hassles by also disabling thousands of legitimate groups devoted to TV shows, the New York Mets and other topics.
Gordon Lyon, who runs a site that archives e-mail postings on security, found his domain name suddenly deactivated because one entry contained MySpace passwords obtained by hackers.
He said MySpace went directly to domain provider GoDaddy, which effectively shut down his entire site, rather than contact him to remove the one posting or replace passwords with asterisks. GoDaddy justified such drastic measures, saying that waiting to reach Lyon would have unnecessarily exposed MySpace passwords, including those to profiles of children.
Meanwhile, in response to complaints it would not specify, Network Solutions LLC decided to suspend a Web hosting account that Dutch filmmaker Geert Wilders was using to promote a movie that criticizes the Quran — before the movie was even posted and without the company finding any actual violation of its rules.
Service providers say unhappy customers can always go elsewhere, but choice is often limited.
Many leading services, particularly online hangouts like Facebook and News Corp.'s MySpace or media-sharing sites such as Flickr and Google Inc.'s YouTube, have acquired a cachet that cannot be replicated. To evict a user from an online community would be like banishing that person to the outskirts of town.
Other sites "don't have the critical mass. No one would see it," said Scott Kerr, a member of the gay punk band Kids on TV, which found its profile mysteriously deleted from MySpace last year. "People know that MySpace is the biggest site that contains music."
MySpace denies engaging in any censorship and says profiles removed are generally in response to complaints of spam and other abuses. GoDaddy also defends its commitment to speech, saying account suspensions are a last resort.
Few service providers actively review content before it gets posted and usually take action only in response to complaints.
In that sense, Flickr, YouTube and other sites consider their reviews "checks and balances" against any community mob directed at unpopular speech — YouTube has pointedly refused to delete many video clips tied to Muslim extremists, for instance, because they didn't specifically contain violence or hate speech.
Still, should these sites even make such rules? And how can they ensure the guidelines are consistently enforced?
YouTube has policies against showing people "getting hurt, attacked or humiliated," banning even clips OK for TV news shows, but how is YouTube to know whether a video clip shows real violence or actors portraying it? Either way, showing the video is legal and may provoke useful discussions on brutality.
"Balancing these interests raises very tough issues," YouTube acknowledged in a statement.
Unwilling to play the role of arbiter, the group-messaging service Twitter has resisted pressure to tighten its rules.
"What counts as name-calling? What counts as making fun of someone in a way that's good-natured?" said Jason Goldman, Twitter's director of program management. "There are sites that do employ teams of people that
do that investigation ... but we feel that's a job we wouldn't do well."
Other sites are trying to be more transparent in their decisions.
Online auctioneer eBay Inc., for instance, has elaborated on its policies over the years, to the extent that sellers can drill down to where they can ship hatching eggs (U.S. addresses only) and what items related to natural disasters are permissible (they must have "substantial social, artistic or political value"). Hypothetical examples accompany each policy.
LiveJournal has recently eased restrictions on blogging. The new harassment clause, for instance, expressly lets members state negative feelings or opinions about another, and parodies of public figures are now permitted despite a ban on impersonation. Restrictions on nudity specifically exempt non-sexualized art and breast feeding.
The site took the unusual step of soliciting community feedback and setting up an advisory board with prominent Internet scholars such as Danah Boyd and Lawrence Lessig and two user representatives elected in May.
The effort comes just a year after a crackdown on pedophilia backfired. LiveJournal suspended hundreds of blogs that dealt with child abuse and sexual violence, only to find many were actually fictional works or discussions meant to protect children. The company's chief executive issued a public apology.
Community backlash can restrain service providers, but as Internet companies continue to consolidate and Internet users spend more time using vendor-controlled platforms such as mobile devices or social-networking sites, the community's power to demand free speech and other rights diminishes.
Weinstein, the veteran computer scientist, said that as people congregate at fewer places, "if you're knocked off one of those, in a lot of ways you don't exist."
NEW YORK - Rant all you want in a public park. A police officer generally won't eject you for your remarks alone, however unpopular or provocative.
ADVERTISEMENT
Say it on the Internet, and you'll find that free speech and other constitutional rights are anything but guaranteed.
Companies in charge of seemingly public spaces online wipe out content that's controversial but otherwise legal. Service providers write their own rules for users worldwide and set foreign policy when they cooperate with regimes like China. They serve as prosecutor, judge and jury in handling disputes behind closed doors.
The governmental role that companies play online is taking on greater importance as their services — from online hangouts to virtual repositories of photos and video — become more central to public discourse around the world. It's a fallout of the Internet's market-driven growth, but possible remedies, including government regulation, can be worse than the symptoms.
Dutch photographer Maarten Dors met the limits of free speech at Yahoo Inc.'s photo-sharing service, Flickr, when he posted an image of an early-adolescent boy with disheveled hair and a ragged T-shirt, staring blankly with a lit cigarette in his mouth.
Without prior notice, Yahoo deleted the photo on grounds it violated an unwritten ban on depicting children smoking. Dors eventually convinced a Yahoo manager that — far from promoting smoking — the photo had value as a statement on poverty and street life in Romania. Yet another employee deleted it again a few months later.
"I never thought of it as a photo of a smoking kid," Dors said. "It was just of a kid in Romania and how his life is. You can never make a serious documentary if you always have to think about what Flickr will delete."
There may be legitimate reasons to take action, such as to stop spam, security threats, copyright infringement and child pornography, but many cases aren't clear-cut, and balancing competing needs can get thorny.
"We often get caught in the middle between a rock and a hard place," said Christine Jones, general counsel with service provider GoDaddy.com Inc. "We're obviously sensitive to the freedoms we have, particularly in this country, to speak our mind, (yet) we want to be good corporate citizens and make the Internet a better and safer place."
In Dors' case, the law is fully with Yahoo. Its terms of service, similar to those of other service providers, gives Yahoo "sole discretion to pre-screen, refuse or remove any content." Service providers aren't required to police content, but they aren't prohibited from doing so.
While mindful of free speech and other rights, Yahoo and other companies say they must craft and enforce guidelines that go beyond legal requirements to protect their brands and foster safe, enjoyable communities — ones where minors may be roaming.
Guidelines help "engender a positive community experience," one to which users will want to return, said Anne Toth, Yahoo's vice president for policy.
Dors ultimately got his photo restored a second time, and Yahoo has apologized, acknowledging its community managers went too far.
Heather Champ, community director for Flickr, said the company crafts policies based on feedback from users and trains employees to weigh disputes fairly and consistently, though mistakes can happen.
"We're humans," she said. "We're pretty transparent when we make mistakes. We have a record of being good about stepping up and fessing up."
But that underscores another consequence of having online commons controlled by private corporations. Rules aren't always clear, enforcement is inconsistent, and users can find content removed or accounts terminated without a hearing. Appeals are solely at the service provider's discretion.
Users get caught in the crossfire as hundreds of individual service representatives apply their own interpretations of corporate policies, sometimes imposing personal agendas or misreading guidelines.
To wit: Verizon Wireless barred an abortion-rights group from obtaining a "short code" for conducting text-messaging campaigns, while LiveJournal suspended legitimate blogs on fiction and crime victims in a crackdown on pedophilia. Two lines criticizing President Bush disappeared from AT&T Inc.'s webcast of a Pearl Jam concert. All three decisions were reversed only after senior executives intervened amid complaints.
Inconsistencies and mysteries behind decisions lead to perceptions that content is being stricken merely for being unpopular.
"As we move more of our communications into social networks, how are we limiting ourselves if we can't see alternative points of view, if we can't see the things that offend us?" asked Fred Stutzman, a University of North Carolina researcher who tracks online communities.
First Amendment protections generally do not extend to private property in the physical world, allowing a shopping mall to legally kick out a customer wearing a T-shirt with a picture of a smoking child.
With online services becoming greater conduits than shopping malls for public communications, however, some advocacy groups believe the federal government needs to guarantee open access to speech. That, of course, could also invite meddling by the government, the way broadcasters now face indecency and other restrictions that are criticized as vague.
Others believe companies shouldn't police content at all, and if they do, they should at least make clearer the rules and the mechanisms for appeal.
"Vagueness does not inspire the confidence of people and leaves room for gaming the system by outside groups," said Lauren Weinstein, a veteran computer scientist and Internet activist. "When the rules are clear and the grievance procedures are clear, then people know what they are working with and they at least have a starting point in urging changes in those rules."
But Marjorie Heins, director of the Free Expression Policy Project, questions whether the private sector is equipped to handle such matters at all. She said written rules mean little when service representatives applying them "tend to be tone-deaf. They don't see context."
At least when a court order or other governmental action is involved, "there's more of a guarantee of due process protections," said Robin Gross, executive director of the civil-liberties group IP Justice. With a private company, users' rights are limited to the service provider's contractual terms of services.
Jonathan Zittrain, a Harvard professor who recently published a book on threats to the Internet's openness, said parties unhappy with sensitive materials online are increasingly aware they can simply pressure service providers and other intermediaries.
"Going after individuals can be difficult. They can be hard to find. They can be hard to sue," Zittrain said. "Intermediaries still have a calculus where if a particular Web site is causing a lot of trouble ... it may not be worth it to them."
Unable to stop purveyors of child pornography directly, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo recently persuaded three major access providers to disable online newsgroups that distribute such images. But rather than cut off those specific newsgroups, all three decided to reduce administrative hassles by also disabling thousands of legitimate groups devoted to TV shows, the New York Mets and other topics.
Gordon Lyon, who runs a site that archives e-mail postings on security, found his domain name suddenly deactivated because one entry contained MySpace passwords obtained by hackers.
He said MySpace went directly to domain provider GoDaddy, which effectively shut down his entire site, rather than contact him to remove the one posting or replace passwords with asterisks. GoDaddy justified such drastic measures, saying that waiting to reach Lyon would have unnecessarily exposed MySpace passwords, including those to profiles of children.
Meanwhile, in response to complaints it would not specify, Network Solutions LLC decided to suspend a Web hosting account that Dutch filmmaker Geert Wilders was using to promote a movie that criticizes the Quran — before the movie was even posted and without the company finding any actual violation of its rules.
Service providers say unhappy customers can always go elsewhere, but choice is often limited.
Many leading services, particularly online hangouts like Facebook and News Corp.'s MySpace or media-sharing sites such as Flickr and Google Inc.'s YouTube, have acquired a cachet that cannot be replicated. To evict a user from an online community would be like banishing that person to the outskirts of town.
Other sites "don't have the critical mass. No one would see it," said Scott Kerr, a member of the gay punk band Kids on TV, which found its profile mysteriously deleted from MySpace last year. "People know that MySpace is the biggest site that contains music."
MySpace denies engaging in any censorship and says profiles removed are generally in response to complaints of spam and other abuses. GoDaddy also defends its commitment to speech, saying account suspensions are a last resort.
Few service providers actively review content before it gets posted and usually take action only in response to complaints.
In that sense, Flickr, YouTube and other sites consider their reviews "checks and balances" against any community mob directed at unpopular speech — YouTube has pointedly refused to delete many video clips tied to Muslim extremists, for instance, because they didn't specifically contain violence or hate speech.
Still, should these sites even make such rules? And how can they ensure the guidelines are consistently enforced?
YouTube has policies against showing people "getting hurt, attacked or humiliated," banning even clips OK for TV news shows, but how is YouTube to know whether a video clip shows real violence or actors portraying it? Either way, showing the video is legal and may provoke useful discussions on brutality.
"Balancing these interests raises very tough issues," YouTube acknowledged in a statement.
Unwilling to play the role of arbiter, the group-messaging service Twitter has resisted pressure to tighten its rules.
"What counts as name-calling? What counts as making fun of someone in a way that's good-natured?" said Jason Goldman, Twitter's director of program management. "There are sites that do employ teams of people that
do that investigation ... but we feel that's a job we wouldn't do well."
Other sites are trying to be more transparent in their decisions.
Online auctioneer eBay Inc., for instance, has elaborated on its policies over the years, to the extent that sellers can drill down to where they can ship hatching eggs (U.S. addresses only) and what items related to natural disasters are permissible (they must have "substantial social, artistic or political value"). Hypothetical examples accompany each policy.
LiveJournal has recently eased restrictions on blogging. The new harassment clause, for instance, expressly lets members state negative feelings or opinions about another, and parodies of public figures are now permitted despite a ban on impersonation. Restrictions on nudity specifically exempt non-sexualized art and breast feeding.
The site took the unusual step of soliciting community feedback and setting up an advisory board with prominent Internet scholars such as Danah Boyd and Lawrence Lessig and two user representatives elected in May.
The effort comes just a year after a crackdown on pedophilia backfired. LiveJournal suspended hundreds of blogs that dealt with child abuse and sexual violence, only to find many were actually fictional works or discussions meant to protect children. The company's chief executive issued a public apology.
Community backlash can restrain service providers, but as Internet companies continue to consolidate and Internet users spend more time using vendor-controlled platforms such as mobile devices or social-networking sites, the community's power to demand free speech and other rights diminishes.
Weinstein, the veteran computer scientist, said that as people congregate at fewer places, "if you're knocked off one of those, in a lot of ways you don't exist."
Friday, July 4, 2008
An Interview with Alex Tropsha
Professor Alex Tropsha discusses bioinformatics as a tool to linking molecular structure and function, which in turn is used to create models for physiology and disease. He declares he is an information scientist. Tropsha's lab has created a set of tools such as Motif Threader, SNAPP, and MuSE contained within the Protein Structure Workbench.
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