Top Chinese scientists flee Boston area as Harvard, MIT fall in rankings ; Silicon Valley also hit
Tag: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Are the Epstein Files being kept hidden because of Ghislaine Maxwell’s Scientology connections?
Lawmakers pressure Bondi to release Epstein ‘client list’
Donald Trump, Pam Bondi, and Ghislaine Maxwell have links to Scientology.
Related:
Scientology sitting pretty as Trump names Pam Bondi his pick for Attorney General
Read More »[2014] Israel’s Iron Dome Isn’t Working: A Weapons Expert’s Warning
“We’re not trying to bash Iron Dome,” says weapons scientist Richard Lloyd, author of a research paper that calls into question the effectiveness of Israel’s now famous rocket-defense system. “We’re trying to help Iron Dome. The way to help Iron Dome is to identify some of its problems.”
Representatives for the Israel Defense Forces claim that Iron Dome has been about 90 percent effective in knocking down Hamas missiles fired from Gaza. Lloyd and a handful of other outside experts, including Theodore Postol of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have been challenging the IDF’s assertions on Iron Dome’s success rate since at least 2012.
Israel’s Iron Dome Isn’t Working: A Weapons Expert’s Warning
Theodore Postal has been on Daniel Davis’ show recently.
H/T: PFYT2
The Man Behind Trump’s VP Pick: It’s Worse Than You Think
While J.D. Vance has his own controversies, his close connection to billionaire Peter Thiel, who is poised to have unprecedented influence in a new Trump administration, should deeply unsettle every American who cares about freedom, privacy and reining in the surveillance state.
H/T: The Most Revolutionary Act
Related:
After rumors about death, Noam Chomsky is discharged from hospital in Brazil
On Tuesday (18), posts about the intellectual’s alleged death spread in the press and on social media
After rumors about death, Noam Chomsky is discharged from hospital in Brazil
Previously:
Linguist and activist Noam Chomsky hospitalized in his wife’s native country of Brazil after stroke
Linguist and activist Noam Chomsky hospitalized in his wife’s native country of Brazil after stroke
The 95-year-old famed linguist has not been seen in public since June last year
Noam Chomsky, 95, recovering in hospital in his wife’s native country of Brazil after stroke
Psychedelic Drugs Are Rushing Towards Approval for Therapy. Here’s What’s Next
Psychedelic Drugs Are Rushing Towards Approval for Therapy. Here’s What’s Next
Yet one glaring problem remains. Despite promising clinical results, no one knows exactly how psychedelic drugs work in the brain. Examining their actions on brain cells isn’t just an academic curiosity. It could give rise to variants that maintain antidepressant properties without the high. And because hallucinogens substantially alter our perception [management?!] of the world, they could be powerful tools for investigating the neurobiology behind consciousness.
…
This year, scientists found another common theme—psychedelics seem to “reset” the brain to a more youthful state, at least in mice. Like humans, mice have an adolescent critical period, during which their brains are highly malleable and can easily rewire neural circuits, but the window closes after adulthood.
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An earlier study showed that MDMA reopens the critical window in adult mice, so that they change their “personality.” Mice raised alone are often introverted and prefer to keep to themselves in adulthood. A dose of MDMA increased their willingness to snuggle with other mice—essentially, they learned to associate socializing with happiness, concluded the study.
It’s not that surprising. MDMA is well-known to promote empathy and bonding. The new study, by the same team, extended their early results to four psychedelics that don’t trigger fuzzy feelings—LSD, ketamine, psilocybin, and ibogaine. Similar to MDMA, adult mice raised alone changed their usual preference for solitude when treated with any of the drugs. Because habits are hard to change in adulthood—for mice and men—the drugs may have reopened the critical period, allowing the brain to more easily rewire neural connections based on new experiences.
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These are just early results. But psychedelic research is gaining a new ally—artificial intelligence. Algorithms that predict protein structure, combined with rational drug design, could generate psychedelics that retain their psychiatric benefits without the high.
H/T: The Most Revolutionary Act
Related:
Psychoanalytic roots of CIA psychoprofiling/pseudoscience
Meaghan thought psychedelic therapy could help her PTSD. Instead it was the start of a nightmare
Why is the American right suddenly so interested in psychedelic drugs
What if a Pill Can Change Your Politics or Religious Beliefs? (archived)
Do Psychedelic Trips Change Your Political Views? (archived)
[2022] The Dark History of Medicare Privatization
Medicare Advantage was supposed to be a money-saver. It’s now become a costly, unaccountable cash cow for private insurance companies that is swallowing traditional Medicare.
The Dark History of Medicare Privatization
Related:
Medicare goes “woke”?! 😉
CMS Unveils ACO REACH: What you Need to Know
The Geo Direct Contracting model is scrapped, and ACO REACH is replacing GPDC…
A new incentive will help to address health equity.
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
Blue Cross and Blue Shield insurance companies are licensees, independent of the association and traditionally of each other, offering insurance plans within defined regions under one or both of the association’s brands. Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers offer some form of health insurance coverage in every U.S. state. They also act as administrators of Medicare in many states or regions of the U.S.
Former Venezuelan Coup Plotter, Greedo, Hired By Florida College to Speak on ‘Defending Democracy’ + More
Juan Guaido was hired by Florida International University (FIU) to give a series of talks and mentor students. Guaido launched a coup attempt in Venezuela in 2019 but failed to gain any significant support within the country.
Former Venezuelan Coup Plotter Hired By Florida College to Speak on ‘Defending Democracy’
Related:
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó is teaching at FIU. But it’s only for a while
In April 2023, Guaidó said Colombian authorities threatened to turn him over to Maduro after entering the country for a forum about the Venezuelan crisis. The Biden administration helped Guaidó leave Colombia and come to Miami.
Jamil Mahuad** [Fulbright Program, Harvard Kennedy School], president of Ecuador from 1998 to 2000.
Robin S. Bernstein*** [American University School of International Service, George Washington University School of Business]
Miomir Žužul [Harvard Kennedy School]
Read More »SMART ePANTS: Is the CIA in Your Underwear?
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is throwing $22 million in taxpayer money at developing clothing that records audio, video, and location data.
U.S. Spy Agency Dreams of All-Seeing “SMART ePANTS”
Related:
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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