Technology

The CDC just released a tool to track diseases throughout the world, and it uses a Google Maps interface. The bbgm blog is where I found out about this site. EpiSPIDER tracks reports of diseases from all over the globe and puts them on a user-friendly interface. It's a nice example of the power of the internet.

IBM is getting involved the modeling the spread of infectious diseases. They have just released a new version of open source modeling software, STEM. This could be great for researchers that a powerful company like IBM is releasing open source software to help them.

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am going to start blogging frequently on JeffsBench. The motivation behind this is to discuss the future of biomedical research with an emphasis on how technology can be used to improve the research enterprise. The theme will be Science 2.0.
I will also happily take contributions from anyone who has an idea they want to share or discuss. Please check out my first post, Science 2.0.

A proof-of-concept mini PCR machine was created that runs of AA batteries. It may not be great for lab experiments, but it could be useful for diagnostics.

A fascinating article about the acoustics of an ancient Greek amphitheater.

Here's a Nature article about a new online tool for data analysis. This article also brings up the point that scientists have not embraced the web as a tool for communication. Another article by the same author gets further into this point.

Cool paper in the latest issue of PNAS. They demonstrate site-specific knock-in of a gene in human cells. This would be really great if it works well.

Scientists from Wake Forest and Harvard say they have isolated a new type of stem cell from amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus and from the placenta, a discovery they believe could someday provide a ready means of repairing or replacing diseased organs in patients.