linkstream2 microblog

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pima_people

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The Keli Akimel O’odham and the Onk Akimel O’odham have various environmentally based health issues related to the decline of their traditional economy and farming. They have the highest prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the world, much more than is observed in other U.S. populations. While they do not have a greater risk than other tribes, the Pima people have been the subject of intensive study of diabetes, in part because they form a homogeneous group.[13]

The general increased diabetes prevalence among Native Americans has been hypothesized as the result of the interaction of genetic predisposition (the thrifty phenotype or thrifty genotype), as suggested by anthropologist Robert Ferrell in 1984)[13] and a sudden shift in diet during the last century from traditional agricultural crops to processed foods, together with a decline in physical activity. For comparison, genetically similar O’odham in Mexico have only a slighter higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes than non-O’odham Mexicans.[14]

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study sponsored by NIH NIDDK

The Serial-Killer Detector
https://www.NewYorker.com/magazine/2017/11/27/the-serial-killer-detector Journalist finds subtle yet predictive crime patterns with the computer. Wonder if #DeepLearning would be helpful here? Probably not // #CrimeMap

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A former journalist, equipped with an algorithm and the largest collection of murder records in the country, finds patterns in crime. “}}

Mapping #AirPollution with new mobile sensors
https://www.EDF.org/airqualitymaps Quote: “Any business that relies on heavy-duty diesel trucks can pose a health risk to its neighbors.”

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“This is one of several spots that caught our interest: High levels of pollutants in an area that includes homes, and this playground, close to industrial warehouses. Any business that relies on heavy-duty diesel trucks can pose a health risk to its neighbors.”
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The Man Who Knows Whether Any Startup Will Live or Die
https://www.Wired.com/2015/01/growth-science Quote: “You can’t trust the model until you get all the intuition out of it.” Not sure I agree!

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“Swapping out your drafty old windows for new energy efficient ones could save you a bundle in the long-term, but not everyone wants to spend the time and money to retrofit their entire home or office building. Indow Windows offers inserts that can improve efficiency without the cost or hassle of replacing the windows entirely. “Some other startups have tried this, and some of the big guys are trying to respond, but there’s a lot more innovation required to pull this off than most people suspect,” Thurston says. “In a very short timeframe Indow has zoomed up to become the market leader.”

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His approach is based on turning various pieces of qualitative information—such as whether a company is a “first mover” or “fast follower” in a market—into quantitative data that he can plug into a spreadsheet. That requires a degree of human judgement, but this also requires a certain amount of rigor or consistency.

“You can’t trust the model until you get all the intuition out of it,” Thurston says. “The hard part of that is translating the qualification into yes or no questions,” he says. “How do you define the market? How do you define first mover?””

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http://ymm.yale.edu/autumn2017/features/feature/317720/

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Center co-director Mark B. Gerstein, Ph.D., the Albert L. Williams Professor of Biomedical Informatics, explains that succeeding with what researchers term “Big Data” requires “real thought about standards, the uniform collection of data, the distribution of samples, and the presentation and packaging of results.” After three years of planning, Gerstein and co-director Hongyu Zhao, Ph.D., a geneticist and the Ira V. Hiscock Professor of Biostatistics, have assembled a kind of central clearinghouse for research and development of these issues, particularly cloud computing and privacy, as well as for education and bridge-building collaboration on university, national, and international levels. “Our mission is really about connecting and coordinating the people and resources already here, and becoming a way to recruit the scientists we want to attract in the future for the Big Data initiatives we want to participate in,” says Gerstein. “We expect the center to have a very broad impact.” “}}

http://ymm.yale.edu/autumn2017/features/feature/317720/
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Center co-director Mark B. Gerstein, Ph.D., the Albert L. Williams Professor of Biomedical Informatics, explains that succeeding with what researchers term “Big Data” requires “real thought about standards, the uniform collection of data, the distribution of samples, and the presentation and packaging of results.” After three years of planning, Gerstein and co-director Hongyu Zhao, Ph.D., a geneticist and the Ira V. Hiscock Professor of Biostatistics, have assembled a kind of central clearinghouse for research and development of these issues, particularly cloud computing and privacy, as well as for education and bridge-building collaboration on university, national, and international levels. “Our mission is really about connecting and coordinating the people and resources already here, and becoming a way to recruit the scientists we want to attract in the future for the Big Data initiatives we want to participate in,” says Gerstein. “We expect the center to have a very broad impact.”
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Tokyo Is Preparing for Floods ‘Beyond Anything We’ve Seen’
https://www.NYTimes.com/2017/10/06/climate/tokyo-floods.html Quote: “Extreme rainfall, along with the potential for destructive
earthquakes & tsunamis, make Tokyo…the riskiest metropolitan area in the world.”

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“Extreme rainfall, along with the potential for destructive
earthquakes and tsunamis, make Tokyo and the neighboring port city of Yokohama the riskiest metropolitan area in the world, according to a 2014 study of natural disaster risks by the Swiss Re reinsurance firm.

In late 2015, heavy typhoon rains wreaked havoc across greater Tokyo, forcing a record 670 million cubic feet of water into the underground facility, known as the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel. It took four days for the site’s four large pumps — powered by engines similar to those used in a Boeing 737 jet — to clear the deluge.

“Tokyo faces dangers on all sides,” said Nobuyuki Tsuchiya, an anti-flooding expert and the former head of civil engineering for Tokyo’s flood-prone Edogawa ward. “It’s difficult to say that it’s doing enough.””
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Choose the Right Clothes Wear loose, lightweight, warm clothes in layers. Trapped air insulates. Remove layers to avoid perspiration and subsequent chill. Outer garments should be tightly woven, water repellent, and hooded. Wear a hat. Half of your body heat loss can occur from the head. Cover your mouth to protect your lungs from extreme cold. Mittens, snug at the wrist, are better than gloves. Try to stay dry. Wear sturdy waterproof and slip resistant boots or shoes. You will spend a lot of time outside walking to and from your classes or your lab and wearing warm gear is key to your safety and comfort. Understand the Hazards  Wind Chill: How wind and cold feel on exposed skin (this is not the actual temperature). As the wind increases, heat is carried away from your body at an accelerated rate, driving down your body temperature.
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http://ehs.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/Safety-Bulletins/nov2017.pdf

Winds of change
https://www.Economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21580446-revolution-taking-place-how-visualise-information-winds-change Good quotes on #InfoGraphics: “Visualization is a continuous spectrum that stretches from statistical graphics to #dataart” + “Data journalism, the idea is that reporters must interrogate both people & databases…to get their information.”

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For that is what data-visualisations are: a blend of the aesthetic and informational. Having one without the other means producing something that is less useful and enjoyable than it might be, argues Nathan Yau, a statistician who runs a blog called FlowingData.com. Visualisation is a whole new medium, he writes in his new book, “Data Points”. It is a “continuous spectrum that stretches from statistical graphics to data art”.
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“Data Points” is a useful primer for those who need to produce infographics. But for those who merely want to appreciate them, two other books fit the bill, both by Guardian journalists.

In recent years the London-based daily newspaper has promoted a new area called “data journalism”. The idea is that reporters must interrogate both people and databases in order to get their
information. Simon Rogers’s “Facts Are Sacred” is a review of the past few years’ worth of this data journalism on the paper’s website. It brings together some of its best projects and explains how they were done.
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The Future of DNA Seq.
http://www.Nature.com/news/the-future-of-dna-sequencing-1.22787 Apps v Tech. QT: “Platforms for…#sequencing have changed dramatically…Yet the trajectories of other technologies…Internet, digital
photography…suggest…real disrupters will be the resulting applications, not the new tech”

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Killer applications –
Over the years, the platforms for DNA sequencing have changed dramatically (see ”). Yet the trajectories of other technologies for which there is a seemingly insatiable demand — smartphones, the Internet, digital photography — suggest that the real disrupters will be the resulting applications, not the new technologies.

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