Category Archives: Vermont Stem Cells

What happens when you take cells from frog embryos and grow them into new organisms that were "evolved" by algorithms? You get something that researchers are calling the world's first "living machine."

Though the original stem cells came from frogs the African clawed frog, Xenopus laevis these so-called xenobots don't resemble any known amphibians. The tiny blobs measure only 0.04 inches (1 millimeter) wide and are made of living tissue that biologists assembled into bodies designed by computer models, according to a new study.

These mobile organisms can move independently and collectively, can self-heal wounds and survive for weeks at a time, and could potentially be used to transport medicines inside a patient's body, scientists recently reported.

Related: The 6 Strangest Robots Ever Created

"They're neither a traditional robot nor a known species of animal," study co-author Joshua Bongard, a computer scientist and robotics expert at the University of Vermont, said in a statement. "It's a new class of artifact: a living, programmable organism."

Algorithms shaped the evolution of the xenobots. They grew from skin and heart stem cells into tissue clumps of several hundred cells that moved in pulses generated by heart muscle tissue, said lead study author Sam Kriegman, a doctoral candidate studying evolutionary robotics in the University of Vermont's Department of Computer Science, in Burlington.

"There's no external control from a remote control or bioelectricity. This is an autonomous agent it's almost like a wind-up toy," Kriegman told Live Science.

Biologists fed a computer constraints for the autonomous xenobots, such as the maximum muscle power of their tissues, and how they might move through a watery environment. Then, the algorithm produced generations of the tiny organisms. The best-performing bots would "reproduce" inside the algorithm. And just as evolution works in the natural world, the least successful forms would be deleted by the computer program.

"Eventually, it was able to give us designs that actually were transferable to real cells. That was a breakthrough," Kriegman said.

The study authors then brought these designs to life, piecing stem cells together to form self-powered 3D shapes designed by the evolution algorithm. Skin cells held the xenobots together, and the beating of heart tissue in specific parts of their "bodies" propelled the 'bots through water in a petri dish for days, and even weeks at a stretch, without needing additional nutrients, according to the study. The 'bots were even able to repair significant damage, said Kriegman.

"We cut the living robot almost in half, and its cells automatically zippered its body back up," he said.

"We can imagine many useful applications of these living robots that other machines can't do," said study co-author Michael Levin, director of theCenter for Regenerative and Developmental Biologyat Tufts University in Massachusetts. These might include targeting toxic spills or radioactive contamination, collecting marine microplastics or even excavating plaque from human arteries, Levin said in a statement.

Creations that blur the line between robots and living organisms are popular subjects in science fiction; think of the killer machines in the "Terminator" movies or the replicants from the world of "Blade Runner." The prospect of so-called living robots and using technology to create living organisms understandably raises concerns for some, said Levin.

"That fear is not unreasonable," Levin said. "When we start to mess around with complex systems that we don't understand, we're going to get unintended consequences."

Nevertheless, building on simple organic forms like the xenobots could also lead to beneficial discoveries, he added.

"If humanity is going to survive into the future, we need to better understand how complex properties, somehow, emerge from simple rules," Levin said.

The findings were published online Jan. 13 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Originally published on Live Science.

Read more:
World's First 'Living Machine' Created Using Frog Cells and Artificial Intelligence - Livescience.com

For those unfamiliar, in the classic movie and on HBOs hit show Westworld there are androids that look, feel, and act just like humans. Scientists apparently want to make that really happen because they keep doing creepy things with artificial intelligence, implanting small human brains into animals, growing miniature human brains in a lab (which may be sentient and feel pain), and now, creating the worlds first living, self-healing robots made out of living cells.

They call these new robots xenobots (sounds like a type of Transformer, and in a way they are), which refers to the African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) whose stem cells the researchers used to build these miniature robots with assisatance from some evolutionary algorithms (which sounds like something straight out of Westworld).

This new breakthrough was chronicled by researchers from Tufts Universitys Allen Discovery Center and the University of Vermont in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The scientists claim that these xenobots are entirely new life-forms, so thats reassuring.

Theyre neither a traditional robot nor a known species of animal. Its a new class of artifact: a living, programmable organism, said Joshua Bongard of the University of Vermont, co-leader of the research, in a press release.

The new creatures were designed on a supercomputer at UVM and then assembled and tested by biologists at Tufts University. We can imagine many useful applications of these living robots that other machines cant do, says co-leader Michael Levin who directs the Center for Regenerative and Developmental Biology at Tufts, like searching out nasty compounds or radioactive contamination, gathering microplastic in the oceans, traveling in arteries to scrape out plaque.

After much trial and error using the Deep Green supercomputer cluster at UVMs Vermont Advanced Computing Core, the cells were assembled into body forms never seen in nature and began to work together.

These reconfigurable organisms were shown to be able move in a coherent fashion and explore their watery environment for days or weeks, powered by embryonic energy stores. Turned over, however, they failed, like beetles flipped on their backs.

Thats good. At least they found out the robots weaknesses right from the jump.

Wired reports

The brainless blobs end up behaving in ways that are downright spooky. They change their movement from time to time, so they will move in a particular way, then theyll change it, then theyll turn around and go back, says [Tufts University developmental biophysicist Michael Levin]. When they encounter other loose cells, theyll herd them into little piles. Slice a xenobot open and itll pull itself together again, la T-1000 from Terminator 2. Two xenobots might join together and scoot around as a happy couple. A xenobot with a hole in it can pick up and carry things.

CNN says they can walk and swim, survive for weeks without food, and work together in groups.

On the plus side (for humanity), these xenobots cant reproduce or evolve.

However, their lifespan can increase to several weeks in nutrient-rich environments. And although the supercomputer a powerful piece of artificial intelligence plays a big role in building these robots, its unlikely that the AI could have evil intentions.

At the moment though it is difficult to see how an AI could create harmful organisms any easier than a talented biologist with bad intentions could, said the researchers website.

Riiiight thats probably what Dr. Robert Ford thought too.

Related Artificial intelligence can now recreate videos people are watching by reading their minds Humans one day soon will emotionally bond, fall in love and marry robots, claims philosopher Massachussetts police secretly used robot dogs for three months so the countdown to the robot uprising has begun Boston Dynamics robots have figured out how to work together and I guess humanity had a pretty good run Oh hell no, now theres a robot that bleeds, breathes, pees, and has a pulse? Were all so f**ked Elon Musk is planning on having cyborgs living side-by-side with humans in the near future Robots can now solve a Rubiks Cube, one-handed, in their latest step towards becoming our new overlords New study says robots will soon be able to recognize human emotions, which will be very helpful when their uprising begins The Marines are turning to artificial intelligence to combat enemies most deadly weapons These more than 25 creepy ways robots are becoming more human spells doom for us all

Continued here:
Scientists Move Us One Step Closer To A Real-Life Westworld As They Create Robots From Living Cells - BroBible

Eleven American troops were wounded in Irans Jan. 8 missile attack on Iraqs al-Asad air base, U.S. defense and military officials confirmed to Defense Ones Kevin Baron on Thursday. This week, they were medically evacuated to U.S. military hospitals in Kuwait and Landstuhl, Germany, to be treated for traumatic brain injury and to undergo further evaluation, Baronreports.

While no U.S. service members were killed in the Jan. 8 Iranian attack on Al Asad Air base, several were treated for concussion symptoms from the blast and are still being assessed, Capt. Bill Urban, spox at U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Fla. said in a statement emailed to reporters after Barons report Thursday evening. As a standard procedure, all personnel in the vicinity of a blast are screened for traumatic brain injury, and if deemed appropriate, are transported to a higher level ofcare.

Flashback: No Americans were harmed in last nights attack by the Iranian regime, President Trump told the country in a live address on Jan.8.

Today, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei led Friday prayers in Tehran for the first time in eight years, AP reports. Khamenei used the rare occasion to call out American clowns who want to stick a poisoned dagger into the backs ofIranians.

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He also renewed his call for America to withdraw its forces from the Middle East, and said the Revolutionary Guard Corps protects oppressed nations across the region as fighters without borders. More from Reuters, here.

Eleven US Troops Were Injured in Jan. 8 Iran Missile Strike // Kevin Baron: The troops were medevaced this week to Germany and Kuwait to be treated for traumatic brain injury after experiencing concussionsymptoms.

US Army Cancels $45B Armored Vehicle Contest That Drew One Bid / Marcus Weisgerber: The service now plans to reboot its effort to replace the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, but with different biddingparameters.

Global Business Brief // Marcus Weisgerber: USN: send money; Changes coming to F-35 logistics; NGs new logo; andmore

The US Space Force Is Not a Joke // Marina Koren, The Atlantic: Its not all President Trump promised, but it existsnow.

Welcome to this Friday edition of The D Brief from Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston. If youre not already subscribed, you can do that here. On this day in 1917, the U.S. bought the Virgin Islands from Denmark for $25million.

The Taliban say theyre open to a 10-day ceasefire in Afghanistan, provided the U.S. agrees to the deal, Reuters reports from Kabul and Peshawar. Little else is known just yet about the possible deal; and A U.S. State Department spokeswoman declined to comment and the Pentagon referred queries to the State Department. Read on, here.

Libyan Gen. Khalifa Haftar visited Greece today, two days before a peace conference in Berlin, AP reports from Athens. Its unclear precisely what Haftar is looking to achieve in Greece; but its worth noting that In November, Turkey and the Libyan government in Tripoli [Haftars ostensible enemy] signed a controversial maritime deal delineating a boundary between the two countries in the Mediterranean.That maritime deal would give Turkey and Libya access to an economic zone across the Mediterranean despite the objections of Greece, Egypt and Cyprus, which lie between the two geographically. All three countries have blasted the deal as being contrary to international law.Also attending talks in Berlin on Sunday: Haftars foe, Fayez al-Serraj, as well as the leaders of Russia, Turkey, Egypt and other nations that are not specified in a Reuters report this morning.In case youd lost track, Haftar is backed by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Sudanese and Chadian fighters, and most recently Russian mercenaries. France has also given some support, Reuters writes. On the other side, Turkey has rushed to Serrajs rescue by sending troops to balance out recent gains by Russian snipers. Hundreds of pro-Turkey fighters from Syrias war have also been deployed.One goal of the Berlin talks: To get Haftar to sign a ceasefire agreement referenced in a six-page draft communique seen by Reuters. A bit more, here.Related: Theres now bipartisan U.S. congressional pushback against SecDef Espers plan (NYTs) to drawdown American forces from Africa, Defense News reported Thursday. House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith, D-Wash., and ranking member Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, wrote a letter to Esper warning, A decrease in our investment now may result in the need for the United States to reinvest at many more times the cost down the road.This could be an early indication of the political capital Esper may have to spend in order to push through a series of ambitious reform efforts in the coming months. The critics include Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., as well as Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Chris Coons, D-Del. Read on, here.

Dont miss our latest Defense One Radio podcast all about Russian private military contractors like Wagner and why theyve expanded to countries all across Africa. Listen (or read the transcript) here.

Want to understand much of American foreign policy over the past decade? Well before Trump took office, Republicans leaned toward a primacy/dominate stance in international affairs, while Democrats leaned toward a cooperate/share model, University of Chicago Professor Paul Poast explained in a Twitter thread Thursday. Since Trump took office, that dominate-vs.-cooperate disparity has grown.One curious consideration: Both parties could claim to be supporting a view of America as an exceptional nation: Republicans in that Americans must embrace the US ability to dominate others; and Democrats in that Americans should embrace the US as Indispensable for ensuring international cooperation, Poast writes.The bottom line: There is a key difference between how Republicans and Democrats view what it means for the U.S. to engage the world. And that difference, in turn, goes a long way towards explaining US foreign policy. More reading on this topic here and here.

European governments accused Iran of violating the nuke deal after Trump threatened them if they didnt, the Washington Post reports and the German defense minister has since confirmed. The threat of a 25% tariff on European automobiles reportedly shocked British, French, and German officials, who had been leaning toward the move anyway, the Post says.Jeremy Shapiro, research director at the European Council on Foreign Relations: The tariff threat is a mafia-like tactic, and its not how relations between allies typically work. Read on, here.

How POTUS45 set the tone with his generals. New details from a meeting inside the Pentagon on July 20, 2017, reveal the chilling effect Trumps comments and hostility had on the nations military and national security leadership that day and in the months since, according to the Washington Posts Carol D. Leonnig and Philip Rucker.Among the things Trump told former SecDef Jim Mattis and former Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford in thatmeeting:

Feel free to read on, whether or not any of this surprises you about Teflon Don, here. Or wait for the book that all this is a part of, called, A Very Stable Genius, which will be publishedTuesday.

Saudi Arabia paid the U.S. about $500 million toward the cost of supporting troops deployed there, a Pentagon spokeswoman told CNN Thursday. The payment was made in December, and more may be on the way.Said Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich: Consistent with the Presidents guidance to increase partner burden-sharing, the Department of Defense has engaged Saudi Arabia on sharing the cost of these deployments, which support regional security and dissuade hostility and aggression. The Saudi government has agreed to help underwrite the cost of these activities and has made the first contributionDiscussions are ongoing to formalize a mechanism for future contributions that offset the cost of these deployments.Recall that last week Trump told Fox that Riyadh had deposited $1 billion in the bank. Asked about it earlier this week, Pentagon officials could only say that negotiations were ongoing.For the record: This is the first time this has happened since the Gulf War, CNN writes. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and other Gulf states paid $36 billion towards the costs of liberating Kuwait in 1991.BTW: France has deployed a radar system on the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia to beef up its allys defenses, Reuters reports today in a shorty.

SecDef Esper and SecState Pompeo argue South Korea needs to pay up. Seoul can and should contribute more to its own national defense, Defense Secretary Mark Esper and State Secretary Mike Pompeo write in a Wall Street Journal op-ed.An alternate POV: There is zero negotiating value to the Secretaries of State and Defense writing in The WSJ that South Korea should pay more for defense, tweeted former State Department official Mintaro Oba. In fact, it harms the alliance and publicly raises the stakes so much its harder to get to an agreeablecompromise.

Control centers for U.S. drones are being built on Navy carriers, Capt. Chuck Ehnes, the Navys program manager for in-service aircraft carriers told the crowd at the Surface Navy Association on Thursday. According to SeaPower Magazine, Unmanned Aviation Warfare Centers (UAWCs) are being installed to operate the MQ-25A Stingray unmanned aerial tanker and any follow-on UAVs the Navy plans to operate from its aircraft carriers. Tiny bit more, here.

How do you drive away a pesky Chinese navy without escalating tensions? Indonesias recent actions present a fresh case study in pushing back against Beijings broad South China Sea claims, the Wall Street Journal reported this morning from Jakarta.The situation: In late December, several Chinese coast guard ships escorted more than three dozen Chinese fishing boats into the waters off Indonesias Natuna Islands China doesnt claim Indonesias Natuna Islands, near which the recent flare-up occurred, as its own, but says it has historical rights over a part of the surrounding waters that falls within an ill-defined nine-dash line Beijing has used to demarcate its claims.The latest developments played out last week when, during the standoff, Indonesian President Joko Widodo took a trip [to] the islands, where he met with local fishermen. At sea, the ships continued to crisscross and Indonesias military flew F-16s overhead. By the end of the week, on Saturday, the Chinese ships began moving northward, away from the area. The Indonesian navy shadowed them all the way out. Continue reading, here.Related: On Thursday, the BBC asked, Why are Chinese fishermen finding so many submarine spies? In that story, youll learn China is offering up to $72,000 for those who capture spy drones. That kind of money amounts to around 17 times the average disposable income inChina.

Now for something completely different: Blankets, canned tuna and faith in God how fleeing Venezuelans survive. The LA Times sent a reporter and a photographer on an incredible trip to the border of Colombia. The pictures and stories they brought back are worth a click this weekend, here.

And finally today: welcome, xenobots. Researchers at the University of Vermont and Tufts University programmed frog stem cells to develop into tiny blob-like organic robots that move with muscles and heal if damaged. These xenobots named for the species of frog that provided their cells are neither a traditional robot nor a known species of animal. Its a new class of artifact: a living, programmable organism, Joshua Bongard, one of the lead researchers at the University of Vermont, told CNN, here.

Have a safe weekend, everyone;and well see you again onMonday!

Go here to see the original:
US troops were injured in Iran's Jan. 8 attack; Army cancels $45B vehicle competition; Riyadh gives US $0.5B for ops; Navy adding drone controllers to...

I found last night's Democratic presidential debate to be profoundly depressing and downbeat, yet I struggle to explain why exactly. As a small-l libertarian who is unaffiliated with any party, my vote is up for grabs and I pay attention to these sorts of events out of more than just a sense of professional responsibility. There is plenty wrong with the country, on levels big and small, and politics canand shouldaddress some of that.

Yet listening to the candidates last night, I mostly didn't recognize the country they were describing. They live in a world where dark, shadowy forcesbillionaires, corporations, Russian operatives especiallyconspire with near-perfect success to make us all poorer and sadder, dumber and sicker, more alienated and hopeless. According to the candidates, nobody can afford the doctor, college, or child care. The whole planet may be baked in a decade because of fossil fuels, but we shouldn't really talk about expanding nuclear power or even using natural gas and fracking as a bridge fuel. Sexism, racism, homophobia, Islamophobia, police violence, and more are worse than ever.

Ironically, their collective inability to see little if anything positive in contemporary America mirrors that of the man they seek to remove from power. President Donald Trump's fixations are of course different but the net effect is the same: These are the end times unless I wield power.

But being relentlessly negative is no way to unseat an incumbent president, even one as temperamental and divisive as Trump (this is the guy who invoked "American carnage" in his first inaugural and says he's been treated worse as president than good, old, shot-in-the-head Abe Lincoln). At least, it's no way to win my vote and, I suspect, the votes of the 41 percent who consider themselves independent. As CNN's Van Jones (a Democrat) put it, the level of "vitriol was very dispiriting. Tonight was dispiriting. Democrats are going to have to do better than what we saw tonight. There was nothing I saw tonight that would be able to take Donald Trump out."

As it happens, just a day before last night's debate, researchers from Tufts University and the University of Vermont announced the creationof what they're calling "xenobots,"the "world's first living, self-healing robots created from frog stem cells" that "could be used to clean up radioactive waste, collect microplastics in the oceans, carry medicine inside human bodies, or even travel into our arteries to scrape out plaque." Holy hell, it's like Fantastic Voyage, but without the high-grade Cold War hysteria! In profound ways, this sort of invention typifies life in the 21st century: a moment when we take life-enhancing technology for granted, surround ourselves with hot and cold streaming media that was unimaginable even a few decades ago, and, for the first time in human history, "half the world is now middle class or wealthier."

Even in a moment when military tensions are idling warm, opioids are still taking a toll, and the federal government has racked up a trillion-dollar deficit, this is a hell of a time to be alive. Forests are expanding, the amount of "stuff" we consume on a per-capita basis peaked around 2000, and infant mortality rates continue to decline, leading writer Matt Ridley to declare the 10 years that just concluded "the best decade in human history." The U.S. economy has been growing without interruption for over a decade, wage parity between women and men is growing, and the percentage of high school grads immediately attending college is at a historically high level. About "three in four adultsand the overwhelming majority of poor childrenlive better off than their parents after taking the rising cost of living into account," writes economist Scott Winship.

None of that made it onto the stage at last night's Democratic presidential debate, and unless it does, why would enough people vote for a Democrat to take over the country? I'm not talking about some sort of phony, upbeat, Panglossian messagethe electoral equivalent of telling a woman on the street that she should smile. But if you're promising (threatening might be the better term) major transformations of the economy, health care industry, education system, and more, having a positive vision of the future rather than a punitive one seems to be a prerequisite. Yet with the possible exception of Andrew Yang, the long shot candidate who didn't make the cutoff to appear last night anyway, all of the remaining Democrats talk more about settling scores than about creating a richer, smarter, more innovative world.

About a year ago, Trump spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), shortly after progressive Democrats unveiled the Green New Deal, a set of programs whose sponsors promised would radically transform many aspects of American life. Sensing an advantage, Trump uncorked a two-hour stemwinder that was by turns mean, nasty, funny, and, above all, optimistic about the future. I prophesied then that he might win the 2020 election because "Trump is becoming sunnier and sunnier while the Democrats are painting contemporary America as a late-capitalist hellhole riven by growing racial, ethnic, and other tensions." The president has since retreated back to his darkness and will likely stay there, especially as impeachment proceedings get underway.

But as incumbent, Trump merely has to hold onto office while his challengers need to vault into power. If last night's rhetoric is any indication, the Democrats might have one more thing to be depressed about after election day. More importantly for the rest of us, we will still be without a major political party that can paint a positive vision for the country. And voters like me will still be searching for presidential candidates for whom we can vote.

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The Democratic Debates Are Downers. That's a Big Problem for All of Us. - Reason

July 15-18, 2019Hosted by the University of Vermont, Burlington, VT

This bi-annual invitational event draws top researchers in the field, and their trainees, from around the globe. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss recent research, explore opportunities for new collaborations, and identify the most important needs and priorities for future programs in stem cell, cell therapy, and bioengineering approaches to explore lung biology and/or prevent and treat lung diseases.

Active participation by all participants is important for a conference of this size. Therefore, if you have never attended before and would like to attend without submitting an abstract, please tell us how you heard about the conference and the name of the lab with which you are associated (or simply why you would like to attend) so we can pass this information along to the course directors for their consideration. Your inquiry is welcome. Please email theconference assistant.

Oral Presentation Travel Awards will be awarded to Junior Investigators and Trainees whose abstracts are selected through a blinded review process. Each of the top nine abstracts will be selected for oral presentation to the conference. Included among these awards will be the John W. Walsh Memorial Travel Scholarship, as well as two awards for women-minority-those with disability. The oral presentation/travel awards will cover the conference fee and will provide a bursary to use toward travel and housing arrangements.

In addition to the oral awards, two additional abstracts will be awarded Poster Presentation Awards based on the presentation at the conference, and registration fees will be reimbursed.

All submissions for travel award consideration must be submitted by April 30, 2019 via an online abstract submission form.

In addition to abstracts not selected for an award, Poster Presentation consideration will be given to abstracts submitted by any registrant who submits an abstract by May 31, 2019.

For more details about submitting an abstract, see the Awards and Abstracts page.

Due to popular request, we will repeat an expanded hands-on session scheduled from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm on Monday, July 15, along with a new track for professional skills. The two workshop sessions will run in separate tracks and are geared primarily toward trainees and junior investigators, but all investigators are welcome to attend.

Track 1: Practical/Theoretical Course on State-of-the-Art Methods in Stem Cells, Cell Therapies and Bioengineering will explore the latest techniques for lung regenerative studies, including considerations for single-cell sequencing, 4D microscopy and virtual reality exploration of complex data sets.

Track 2: Professional Skills Course will develop scientific communication skills in the form of presentations, elevator pitches, and communicating with the public.

For more information, see our Pre-Conference Workshop page.

The 2019 conference will again feature an elevator pitch competition where interested Junior Investigators and Trainees are invited to present a one-minute synopsis of their research. This competition will be judged during Session III on Tuesday, July 16. The top two elevator pitches will receive reimbursement of conference fees. For more information, see our Elevator Pitch page.

We have discounted room rates available for conference registrants at both the Hotel Vermont and the Courtyard Burlington Harbor Hotel, near the waterfront in downtown Burlington, Vermont. Registrants for the conference should contact hotels directly or book online. Room rate discounts expire on Friday, June 14, 2019.

For hotel phone numbers and online-reservation links, see the Lodging Information page.

Cancellation Policy: If your plans change and you need to cancel your registration, please do so by contacting us in writing at least 21 days prior to the start of the meeting (by June 24, 2019). You will receive a full refund minus a $200 cancellation fee. Regrettably, cancellations received fewer than 21 days prior to the commencement of the conference are not eligible for a refund. Substitutions can be processed at no charge. Finally, if you cannot attend the entire conference for any reason, we will not be able to prorate your registration fee.

Continued here:
Stem Cell - Lung Biology | College of Medicine ...

21stannual Women Can Do STEM & Trades ConferenceOctober 17, 2019Vermont Technical College, Randolph Center, Vt

2018 program bookWomen Can Do is a one-day career immersion experience for 9-12th grade girls from across Vermont. It features dozens of hands-on workshops and action stations highlighting careers in the skilled trades and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields.

Hands-on workshops are led mostly by women professionals in the skilled trades or science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. At Women Can Do, girls may operate an excavator, weld, climb a fire ladder, build a robot, design a 3D model, create an online game, wield a chainsaw, extract DNA from cells, or change a tire. More than 35 workshopshighlight careers in architecture and engineering, computer programming, green energy, natural resources, public safety and health, communications, trades, and other non-traditional careers for women.

An amazing, well-run and valuable opportunity for young women to "see" what their choices can be for the future and to understand how they can create their own vision for their future. Excellent!

Volunteer, Women Can Do

I am powerful and independent and I will be successful!

Student, Women Can Do

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Women Can Do - Women & Girls in STEM | Women Empowerment

Present and Future of Stem Cell Therapy in Vermont

Cord blood banking near Vermont is a significant and comparatively little-known means of getting stem cells to treat a broad range of ailments. This post looks at the possible gains and what it's, how it works. It's targeted at future parents who would like to find out more. Here is a post that is insightful into the current state of play and its possibility for the future.

Stem cell banking freezes the blood from the umbilical cords of your infant for possible future use against disorders grown by your family. This blood source can already successfully treats many serious medical conditions. It's really worth assessing the possible advantages if you live in the Vermont area.

bone marrow remains the most common source for gathering stem cells in Vermont to date. The downside to bone marrow transplants s that they can extremely invasive and complex and may even result in constant uncomfortableness for the donors. Embryos are also a solution for stem cells but tend to be a massively controversial issue in Vermont , which leaves umbilical cord blood stem cell therapy. Its the safest and least invasive form of stem cell therapy.

Extensive studies near Vermont have showed that stem cell therapy from umbilical cord blood stem cells has countless advantages over the genes of circulatory blood and marrow derived genes and bone marrow. Although currently bone marrow is ahead of umbilical cord blood for certain specific diseases and procedures, it is often agreed that favor is slowly weighing in more on the side of cord blood.

An example of blood stem cell therapy in the Vermont area would be the use of stem cells for conditions such as leukemia, lymphomas, immune deficiencies, sickle cell anemia and certain cancers, all of which have proven to be deadly. On the other hand, the use of ones own stem cells to help with certain ailments may not be advisable. When ones own stem cells are used to treat something such as leukemia, it wont be effective because the stem cells will completely take over and replace the afflicted cells that caused the disease in the first place. However, if the patient has a sibling that donated stem cells then they may be a good enough match to hopefully offset the disease. It seems almost certain that the stem cell therapy industry will continue to grow in Vermont.

The future looks bright for stem cell therapy by cord blood cells in Vermont, despite the minority status of transfusions in the world. It is strongly believed by scientists that ones own individual cord blood will or could at some point be beneficial in the successful treatments of cancer. The reason behind this is because most adult-style cancers arent solely derived from genetics, whereas pediatric cancers are.

Researchers around Vermont are also discovering ways to manipulate the gene that is leukemia so that in the future it may be a possibility that your own blood could cure your cancer, thus making umbilical cord blood banking for future stem cell therapy even more valuable than it already is. There are even animal stem cell therapy experiments that are pushing the boundaries of conventional stem cell therapy and could ultimately mean that stem cells could cure spinal problems, strokes, heart failure and even diabetes.

The possibilities of stem cell therapy in Vermont are truly limitless just as all gene-related cures. Its even possible that neurological diseases and motor function disorders could tackled and cured with cord blood stem cell therapy. Other targeted possibilities on the list of stem cell therapy include Alzheimers and Parkinsons disease.

At this point in time public cord blood banks receive a small amount of umbilical cord blood for use in stem cell therapy and research. The reason for this is that many people are opting to store their umbilical cord blood privately which essentially insures their family against debilitating, deadly illnesses. Even though the amount of people storing cord blood for stem cell therapy, the more diseases that become treatable with stem cells, the amount of people that harvest theirs in Vermont will skyrocket.

Whether you decide to store umbilical cord blood publically or privately there is usually a limited amount of stem cells in a unit of stored umbilical cord blood, which means that the amount of cord blood available is only really effective for treating someone up to a certain age. Processes to increase the amount of stem cells in a single unit of cord blood are being tested with clinical trials near Vermont.

More:
Stem Cell Therapy Vermont - Cordblood Search Tools

Dr. Esti Bakty is a naturopathic physician with a special interest in pain management and naturopathic oncology. She has spent the past few years in clinical training with patients, educating and motivating them to participate more actively in their health. She combines a blended approach to supporting the mental and physical well-being of her patients.

Due to a severe car accident, Esti gained enthusiasm for minimizing her own pain with naturopathic medicine. She then went on to complete the four-year medical program at Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine. During that time her mother was diagnosed with cancer. Under guidance of her mentor, she began treating her mother adjunctively with oncologists, which led to amazing results.

Since completing her formal education, she has enriched her approach to treatment through education including weight loss, chronic illness, fatigue, oncology, nutrition, arthritis, fibromyalgia, acupuncture, chronic pain, and general wellness. In addition, to her training in naturopathic primary care medicine, she has completed advanced training in sports medicine and natural pain management using the Hemwell-Hackett Prolotherapy technique (otherwise known as regenerative injection therapy).

Individualized care is at the cornerstone of her practice and patients receive truly specialized treatments with Dr. Bakty. Taking time to know and treat the whole person, rather than only symptoms, allows for care to be longer lasting and more effective. There is also an emphasis is put on education, so individuals and families can make lasting changes to their health and lives.

Dan Sweeney was born and raised in Vermont, between Chittenden and Addison county. He has traveled around New England, from Maine to upstate New York Opening Distributorships for nearly the last 10 years. Ultimately, he opened two locations of his own in Maine and New York.

Dan is no stranger to modern medicine, he has gone through more than 10 surgeries over the years, because of a motor vehicle accident. He identifies with the struggles of surgeries and medications that offer little or no benefit, but with high risks.

Dan now dedicates his time to Stem Cell Centers and helping patients with stem cell therapy.

I hate to see people going through the same struggles, with little to no hope of recovery.

My Brother was born with Leukemia in the 1980s. He had a bone marrow transplant, and by the age of 4 he was cured.

Brigit Frazier has been in the pharmaceutical business for the past 12 years. A few years ago, she received a personal training certification. During this time, Brigit made some healthy life changes, and was so excited to get the opportunity to work for a company that isn't all about medication.

In Brigits free time she is all about her children and grandchildren. When she is not with them, you can find her hiking or just spending time with nature and enjoying the beauty our planet has to offer. Living life to its fullest!

I LOVE the idea of taking stem cells from the human body and using them to help people with many physical ailments. I can't wait to see how this company changes lives!

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Stem Cell Centers - Williston > Stem Cell Centers

This bi-annual invitational event draws top researchers in the field, and their trainees, from around the globe. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss current research, explore opportunities for new collaborations, and identify the most important needs and priorities for future progress in stem cell, cell therapy, and bioengineering approaches to explore lung biology and/or prevent and treat lung disease.

Although this conference is by invitation only, if you would like to attend, please tell us how you heard about the conference and the name of the lab with which you are associated (or why you would like to attend) so we can pass this information along to the course directors for their consideration. Your inquiry is welcome. Please email the conference assistant: michele.morin@med.uvm.edu.

Due to popular request, we will repeat an expanded hands-on session scheduled during the day on Monday, July 24th designed to provide opportunities for all investigators and trainees to learn up-to-date techniques relevant for lung stem cell, cell therapy, and bioengineering work. Please see Workshop link on the right side toolbar for more information.

Earn academic credit while attending the conference by enrolling in the new UVM Larner College of Medicine course in regenerative medicine. To learn more: CLICK HERE.

Nine Oral Presentation Travel Awards reserved for junior faculty and trainees will be selected through a blinded abstract review process. Trainees applying for a Travel Award, including the women-minority-disabled travel award, should submit a poster abstract by May 1, 2017.

Please use the standard ATS format for abstract presentation. Recommended poster size is 3' x 5'; poster boards and pushpins will be available at the poster session. Thematic poster sessions will happen at specific times during the conference. Please refer to the agenda for specific information. A Sample Abstract is available for review.

John W. Walsh was the creator and leader of several successful businesses when he became a co-founder of the Alpha-1 Foundation in 1995.

He served for more than 20 years as the Foundation's president and CEO, dedicating the rest of his life to seeking new treatments and ultimately a cure for Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency.He became known as the leading voice internationally for the Alpha-1 community, as a tireless advocate for research, clinical care, and legislation to benefit people with the lung and liver diseases related to Alpha-1.

The pulmonary community mourns his passing.

As a long-term supporter of the Vermont Stem Cell Conference, we are honored to announce a travel scholarship in John's name.Funded by the Alpha-1 Foundation, the travel award will support participation in the conference of a promising young investigator, trainee or junior faculty through a competitive abstract application.

All participants are strongly encouraged to present a poster describing current research. Abstracts must be submitted by June 1, 2017 to be included in the conference booklet.

Two poster awards will be decided based on a competitive scoring process at the conference. These awardees will receive a reimbursement of conference fees.

A new feature of the 2017 conference is a one-minute elevator pitch competition where interested trainees are invited to present a one-minute synopsis of their work. This will be judged during the competition during Session IV on Wednesday, July 26. The trainees with the top two elevator pitches will receive a reimbursement of conference fees.

A variety of lodging is available. Please note that the room blocks sometimes fill quickly; we encourage you to make your reservation as soon as possible to ensure your preferred location. The discounted Sheraton room rates expire on June 30. Please see Lodging link on the right side toolbar for more information.

Please review the "General Participant Information" for further details.

Please CLICK HERE to register for the conference.

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Stem Cells Conference - Continuing Medical Education ...

It only takes a spark . . .

I like science because youget to use your own brain.Junior, Whittier Elementary School

I like the strawberry DNA experiment because it's something you can do at home and it demonstrates how and what cells do.Simone, Clopper Mill Elementary School

I like science more than playing outside!Kinza, Sugarland Elementary School

These are the voices of just a few of the thousands of students who have been inspired by RESET, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit that delivers enriching and engaging science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) activities to Pre-Kindergarten through 8th-grade students.

RESET (Raising Excitement for Science, Engineering and Technology) uses hands-on experiments, inquiry-based classroom activities, and complementary field trips to introduce childrenmany of them from under-resourced communities and schoolsto the joys of science. We do this through our wonderful volunteersscientists and engineers who are eager to share what they know with children who may have never met a scientist before or who have limited understanding of STEM careers.

RESET was founded in 1988 and incorporated in 1995 in Washington, DC, serving children throughout the metro area, including Northern Virginia and Maryland. RESET is also exploring program replication in other areas of the country, and has initiated pilot projects in Burlington, Vermont and Wilmington, Delaware.

RESET works closely with our volunteers to match them with the right schools, teachers, and programs, and we provide excellent training, mentoring, and curriculum resources to assist them in their work with students. We want volunteering for RESET to be as gratifying for our volunteersas it is for the eager young learners they serve.Find out more.

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Volunteer Scientists in DC-metro schools | Reset Online