• Ocean robots
A map of ocean currents would allow scientists to better predict climate changes, track the trajectory of an oil spill, or even pinpoint a downed aircraft. Until now, mapping currents seemed near-impossible because of the extensive fuel and equipment required for long, large-scale missions staffed by humans. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science have developed a swarm of marine robots that harness currents as an energy source, which will enable widespread ocean mapping and exploration.
• ‘Privacy policy’
True or false? When a website has a privacy policy, it means the site will not share your information with other websites or companies without your permission. The answer: False, but a majority of Americans think it is true, says a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication, as explained in a New York Times op-ed. “Privacy policies” detailing how companies will use information are in place because companies are, in fact, using the information. (EDITORS: Additional information)
• Diabetes in the elderly
More than 25 percent of Guatemala’s indigenous people, comprising 60 percent of the population, suffer from type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes. A new study from the University of Pennsylvania found that the driving force behind the epidemic is not obesity—most often associated with an increased risk of the disease elsewhere in the world—but aging. Understanding why this is the case will be the next step to fighting the epidemic. (EDITORS: Additional information)
• Gene therapy for blindness
Retinitis pigmentosa is a disease that causes progressively diminishing night and peripheral vision before blindness develops. To treat it, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have developed a gene therapy that effectively eliminates the abnormal copy of a light-sensing molecule and then restores it with a healthy copy of the protein. This knockdown-and-replacement approach preserves the retina’s light-sensing photoreceptor cells in affected dogs and offers promise for achieving the same results in humans.
• Disease indicators
The earlier the treatment for an incurable disease such as Parkinson’s the better the prognosis, and the key to early diagnosis is the identification of biomarkers. Biomarkers, such as proteins in the blood, not only help predict, diagnose and monitor disease but can also be used to see how well the body responds. Already, they are aiding the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and the treatment of cardiovascular disease. A researcher of the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine has published a slate of guidelines to shape the future of biomarker research and to broaden their impact even more.
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PVMNTS
Premieres Music Video for
"Chemical Trails"
On Atticus.tv
"PVMNTS' hooky, ultra-posi songs reflect male camaraderie, group therapy sessions, and an
emotional openness greatly exceeding that of theearly-2000s oeuvre they otherwise emulate." - Billboard
"Case in point, the daydreaming guitars exiting Chemical Trails provide a soft landing to
the crashing Travis Barker-like rhythms that precede them." - KERRANG!
"They're clearly all great guys, but seeing their ~fire~ dynamic together means there's great music
on the horizon, with debut EP Better Days dropping this Friday." - MTV
"It showcases PVMNTS darker side lyrically, while still being accompanied by
faster and heavier pop-punk instrumentals." - Substream Magazine
To Tour in Fall with WSTR, Hold Close + PCL
Tickets Available Now
August 30th, 2018 - LOS ANGELES, CA - The Los Angeles-based trio PVMNTS have continued to prove that they want to work hard and earn everything they get in the music world. Their latest video for "Chemical Trails" is no different. The video, premiering on Atticus.tv today, was completely created by the band who shared that "We've always wanted to do a music video shot and made completely by ourselves. So we did it. We're pretty proud." Check it out, here: https://atticus.tv/#/pvmnts-chemicaltrails/.
The track is a single from the trio's debut EP Better Days, which was released earlier this month. Heralding praise from outlets like Billboard, MTV, Kerrang!, Substream Magazine and more, as well as successful adds to Spotify playlists like New Punk Tracks, the EP is a collection of six songs that has seemed to solidify their place in the next generation of pop-punk. Produced by Kyle Black (New Found Glory, All Time Low, Senses Fail, State Champs), Better Days is the sound of a band unafraid to dig deep within themselves to tackle topics of depression, anxiety, death and self-doubt-offering a lyrical heft to match their musical bite.
PVMNTS recently announced they would be heading out with UK up-and-comers WSTR for a full US co-headlining tour, along with special guests Hold Close and PCL. The tour kicks off on October 14th in Los Angeles, CA and travels to cities like Dallas, Tampa, New York and Chicago before wrapping up in Sacramento, CA on November 18th. A full list of dates can be found below. Tickets are on sale now at https://www.pvmntsband.com/.
Upcoming PVMNTS Shows
On Tour with WSTR + Hold Close
* w/ PCL
October 14 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy *
October 16 - Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction *
October 17 - Mesa, AZ @ Nile Theatre - Underground *
October 19 - San Antonio, TX @ Alamo City Music Hall *
October 20 - Houston, TX @ Secret Group *
October 21 - Dallas, TX @ RBC *
October 23 - Pensacola, FL @ Vinyl Music Hall
October 25 - Jacksonville, FL @ 1904 Music Hall
October 26 - Tampa, FL @ Crowbar
October 28 - Atlanta, GA @ The Loft
October 30 - Columbia, SC @ New Brookland Tavern
November 1 - Virginia Beach, VA @ Shaka's Live
November 2 - Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
November 3 - Baltimore, MD @ Milk Boy
November 4 - New York, NY @ Gramercy Theater
November 6 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium (Upstairs)
November 7 - Lancaster, PA @ Chameleon Club
November 9 - St. Louis, MO @ Fubar
November 10 - Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
November 11 - Springfield, MO @ Outland, Ballroom
November 13 - Denver, CO @ Oriental Theater
November 14 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
November 16 - Seattle, WA @ Funhouse
November 17 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
November 18 - Sacramento, CA @ Holy Diver
Drawing from influences like Blink-182, The Story So Far, Taking Back Sunday and so many more major bands in this scene, PVMNTS is ready to take the lead of this next generation of pop-punk.
###
PVMNTS is Freddy Ramirez (vocals, guitar, bass), Tyler Posey (vocals, bass, guitar) and Nick Guzman (drums).
For more information on PVMNTS, please visit:
https://www.pvmntsband.com/
https://twitter.com/pvmntsband
https://www.facebook.com/pvmntsband/
https://www.instagram.com/pvmntsband/
Download Press Photo HERE (Credit Kyle Murphy)
Download Cover Art HERE
====================
Pryor Wild Horses Deserve to be Protected and Preserved
-Ginger Kathrens
The Bureau of Land Management in Billings plans to remove 17 young horses from a herd of 150 mustangs in the Pryor Mountains. I’m sure that doesn’t sound so drastic . . . but it is. It would permanently damage this unique Spanish Herd’s genetic health by eliminating genetic lines. And as Gus Cothran, the country’s most respected equine geneticist who has tracked the herd’s genetics since the early 1990s has said, genetics lost can never be recovered.
What does this really mean? It means the herd will be less likely to endure harsh weather and the unpredictable nature of living wild. By the time the physical changes are noticed (blindness, club footedness, lack of reproductive vigor) it is really too late.
The Pryor Herd has lived wild for hundreds years in their mountain stronghold. They are descended from the Crow Indian horses and have genetic markers that trace to the horses of the Spanish Conquistadors. They are a unique Spanish Colonial herd. Bottom line, they are irreplaceable.
Despite this, the BLM would only allow only one offspring to carry on a genetic line into the future. Yes, one horse. With the harsh environment of the Pryors, one animal is hardly enough to guarantee those genetics will continue. And, in the case of two year-old Quahneah, her genetics would be eradicated as she is the last of her line. Regardless, she is scheduled for removal.
So, does history count? Does genetic uniqueness count? The BLM obviously doesn’t think so. They aren’t listening to the Pryor Mustang Center in Lovell, Wyoming whose records go back to the late 1960s. The Center has long advised BLM and this year supplied a list of six young horses that could be removed without risking the genetic health of the herd. But, BLM is not listening. In fact, the Pryor Mustang Center has filed a complaint with the Interior Board of Land Appeals to try to prevent the 17-horse removal. It is the first time they have felt the need to do so. My organization filed a lawsuit to prevent the destruction of the herd.
The Pryor horses attract visitors from all over the world who spend money on flights, car rentals, gas, hotel rooms, groceries, restaurants and more.
The loss of this unique herd would be an economic blow for the area.
It has been my joy to film the horse herd since 1994 and to track the life of the palomino stallion, Cloud, for the PBS Nature series. Over the years I have stood atop the Pryors with visitors from around the country and the world. So often they have whispered to me: “This is the best day of my life.” I hope you will speak up for the horses so that future generations will have the thrill of seeing freedom in action as Spanish mustangs sweep across the broad meadows atop the Pryor Mountains.
-Ginger Kathrens
Executive Director/Producer
The Cloud Foundation
======================
No More Forgotten Wars: End US Support for Saudi Coalition War Crimes in Yemen
By Jared Keyel
830 words
If the US were to follow the rules of warfare written into US military law and treaties to which the US is a party, the US must immediately end its support for the Saudi Arabia-led war in Yemen. We should also marshal all of its diplomatic tools to end the conflict. Since 2015, Saudi Arabia, and allies such as the United Arab Emirates, have been waging a devastating war in support of the Government of Yemen against a Houthi insurgency. Amnesty International has called the conflict a “forgotten war” because its deadly consequences have failed to rise to the level of international crisis in media or government agendas. However, under former President Barack Obama and now Donald Trump, the US has been complicit in war crimes and the creation of a completely preventable humanitarian nightmare for the people of Yemen.
On August 28, 2018, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights released a report detailing the brutal conduct of the war. As of June 2018, at least 6,475 civilians had been killed and more than 10,000 injured in the conflict. The report notes the “real figure is likely to be significantly higher.” While evidence “strongly suggests” that all parties to the conflict have violated international law, the report is clear that Saudi-led coalition airstrikes are responsible for the largest numbers of civilian deaths and injuries. Moreover, there is significant evidence that the Saudi-led coalition has repeatedly bombed civilian neighborhoods, medical facilities, markets, weddings, funerals, and even a school bus full of children. Intentionally attacking civilians is a war crime.
The United States has provided targeting support, intelligence, and mid-air refueling to Saudi fighter jets, enabling its continued bombardment. The US has also sold billions of dollars of sophisticated weaponry to Saudi Arabia, including cluster bombs, a weapon banned by UN treaty and outlawed by the majority of countries in the world. America’s actions have been lethal for Yemeni civilians. In the most recent example, news outlets reported in August 2018 that US-manufactured bombs killed 40 children, and others, in a single Saudi strike on a school bus. No matter how it is portrayed in media or by government representatives, aerial warfare is not clean and it is not precise.
On the ground, the situation is dire. The UN reports that arbitrary detention and torture in prisons controlled by UAE-affiliated forces is widespread, and government security forces have made a “common practice” of abduction and rape of women in order to extort money from victims’ families. In the careful language of human rights reporting, the UN states that there are “reasonable grounds” to believe that Saudi Arabia, UAE, and the government of Yemen have committed war crimes including rape and torture.Saudi Arabia and its allies have also blockaded Yemen by air and sea, preventing food and lifesaving medical supplies from entering the country. As a result, 8.4 million Yemenis were on the brink of famine as of April 2018. The collapse of healthcare infrastructure caused by the blockade has led to the largest series of cholera epidemics in modern history, affecting more than one million people.
The conditions in Yemen are unbearable and entirely man-made. Saudi Arabia and its allies, including the United States, are causing massive suffering for millions of civilians. In March, US Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) introduced a bill that would have ended US support for the war. The bill was defeated 55-44 with 10 Democrats joining the Republican majority. Before the vote, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stated that withdrawing US support would increase the risk to civilians. This argument strains credulity given that it is Saudi Arabia and its allies that are causing the majority of casualties. Furthermore, if McConnell were concerned about civilian safety, he would push congress and the Trump Administration to bring conflicting parties to a negotiating table.
Pursuing peaceful negotiations to end the conflict is an important diplomatic effort the United States should take immediately. It must also end its support for states and groups committing war crimes. The preponderance of evidence suggests Saudi Arabia is regularly violating the laws of war, and the US is complicit as long as it continues to enable Saudi actions. It must stop refueling Saudi jets and providing targeting intelligence. Crucially, the United States should initiate, and pressure other governments to support, an arms embargo on warring parties. At minimum, it must immediately suspend all weapons sales to Saudi Arabia. Finally, if US leaders claim to care about civilians in Yemen, they should drastically increase humanitarian aid for Yemenis whose suffering they have caused and the United States must reopen its refugee resettlement program to displaced Yemenis.
From 2015 to late 2016, the Obama Administration did not push for this moderate set of diplomatic initiatives and Trump is even less likely to take these actions. It is therefore incumbent upon Americans to call and write to their elected representatives to pressure them to end our support for the decimation of Yemen. If Americans care about human rights and international law, the bare minimum we can do is stop abetting war crimes against the people of Yemen.
-end-
Jared Keyel, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is a Ph.D. candidate at Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs, researching refugee resettlement in the United States.
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Yours for a nonviolent future,
Tom H. Hastings, Ed.D.
Director, PeaceVoice Program
Oregon Peace Institute
503 744 9787
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author, latest book, A New Era of Nonviolence
https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/a-new-era-of-nonviolence/
Assistant Professor
Co-Coordinator, Conflict Resolution BA/BS & minor programs
PSU Conflict Resolution Department
MCB131
Portland OR 97201
503 725 9173
http://www.pdx.edu/conflict-resolution/tom-hastings
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://hastingsnonviolence.blogspot.com/
Whitefeather Peace House
3315 N Russet Portland OR 97217
peace education notification list sign-up:
https://lists.riseup.net/www/info/peacejusticeportland
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