SEE PAGE 2 for veteran’s day ceremony at a.e. arnold school
SEE PAGE 4 FOR study on cockroach cyborgs and sound MONDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2014 - NOVEMBER 23, 2014
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California’s leading example on climate change helped inspire US-China agreement by jennifer schlueter Last Wednesday, President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jingping have agreed on drastically fighting climate change by capping greenhouse gases. By 2025, the Unites States wants to cut its harmful emissions below 2005 levels to 26-28%, as AlterNet reports. Instead of only promising to decrease the rapid growth rate of its emissions, China now “has agreed to cap its output by 2030 or earlier if possible,” according to AlterNet. Even though China and the US have their different views on human rights, economics and politics, their leaders certainly agree about their obligations as the “world’s largest economies and greatest emitters of greenhouse gases,” as Obama titled them at a press conference. “We have special responsibility to lead the global effort against climate change. I am proud we can announce a historic agreement. I commend President Xi, his team and the Chinese government for their making to slow, peak and then reverse China’s carbon emissions.”
- Photo by Terry Miller
California, the most populous U.S. state, leads the nation with its Cap-and-Trade Program, making a huge effort to reduce greenhouse gases by,
for instance, charging businesses that produce pollutants. Governor Jerry Brown stands Please see page 4
Holiday Bazaar Start your holiday shopping early at the City of Cypress’ annual Holiday Bazaar. Experience a fun-filled day featuring 44 vendors with unique handmade and commercial items, entertainment and delicious food. The event will be held on Saturday, November 22nd from 9:00am until 3:00pm at the Cypress Community Center located at 5700 Orange Avenue. Admission to the event is free.
Start the day off with Breakfast With Santa, provided by Boy Scout Troop 660 from 8:00 to 11:00am. The breakfast features pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage, fruit, orange juice and coffee. Santa will be visiting from the North Pole for photos from 8:00 am – 2:00 pm, so don’t forget to bring your camera! Enjoy entertainment throughout the day starting with Keiki Hula at 10:30am and again at noon and then a perfor-
mance by Strong Dance Studio at 1:30pm. We are happy to announce that The Grilled Cheese Truck will be at the event from 11:00am to 2:00pm offering a variety of options for lunch. To satisfy your sweet tooth, visit Mrs. Claus’ Sweet Shoppe (offered by the Woman’s Club of Cypress) for a treat from 9:00am3:00pm. For more information please call the Cypress Community Center at (714) 229-6780.
VOLUME 1, NO. 21
New tech aims to improve communication between dogs and humans North Carolina State University researchers have developed a suite of technologies that can be used to enhance communication between dogs and humans, which has applications in everything from search and rescue to service dogs to training our pets. “We’ve developed a platform for computer-mediated communication between humans and dogs that opens the door to new avenues for interpreting dogs’ behavioral signals and sending them clear and unambiguous cues in return,” says Dr. David Roberts, an assistant professor of computer science at NC State and co-lead author of a paper on the work. “We have a fully functional prototype, but we’ll be refining the design as we explore more and more applications for the platform.” The platform itself is a harness that fits comfortably onto the dog, and which is equipped with a variety of technologies. “There are two types of communication technologies,” says Dr. Alper Bozkurt, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at NC State and co-lead author of a paper on the work. “One that allows us to communicate with the dogs, and one that allows them to communicate with us.” “Dogs communicate primarily through body language, and one of our challenges was to develop sensors that tell us about their behavior by observing their posture remotely,” Roberts says. “So we can determine when they’re sitting, standing, running, Please see page 2
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Updated resource to help Veteran’s Day ceremony school districts get at A.E. Arnold School Friday, November 7th, playing the Armed Forces families and communities A.E.OnArnold School held a spe- Medley and recognizing Vetcial flag raising ceremony in erans and military personnel involved in students’ honor of Veteran’s Day. Vet- in attendance. Guests were erans and current military per- also presented with cards and sonnel were invited to attend. letters from Arnold students, education Army Corporal Jeremy Sis- thanking them for their ser-
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today released updated guidance that assists districts in planning and implementing programs to increase parent participation in their child’s education and meet the requirements of the Local Control Funding Formula, which requires family engagement. The Family Engagement Framework: A Tool for California School Districts (PDF; 4MB) is a free publication available in both English and now Spanish (PDF; 4MB). “This is a tool districts can use to increase the participation of parents, family members, and community members in a child’s education,” Torlakson said. “Research has shown that high levels of parental and community involvement help students succeed in the classroom.” The Framework shows districts how to encourage parents to become more involved in their students’ education in many ways. This includes helping with homework, talking about the importance of col-
lege and careers, meeting with teachers, attending “Back to School Night,” visiting the parent resource center, volunteering, and serving on advisory committees, or attending the meetings. The Framework describes 18 principles that are essential for family and community involvement and describes a range of actions districts can take to implement these principles. It also gives districts methods for evaluating their progress in increasing family and community participation. The Framework, first issued in 2011, was revised by the California Department of Education in collaboration with the WestEd Center for Prevention & Early Intervention under a contract with Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation, with funding support from the Heising-Simons Foundation. Copies of the revised Framework will be distributed to all school districts in California and will also be posted on the CDE’s Parent/Family Web page.
neroz, from the 1st Battalion, 18th Cavalry Regiment, led the ceremony which included
vice. The event was organized and sponsored by the Arnold PTA.
Improving communication between dogs and humans Continued from page 1
etc., even when they’re out of sight – a harness-mounted computer the size of a deck of cards transmits those data wirelessly. “At the same time, we’ve incorporated speakers and vibrating motors, called haptics, into the harness, which enable us to communicate with the dogs.” “We developed software to collect, interpret and communicate those data, and to translate human requests into signals on the harness,” says Rita Brugarolas, an NC State Ph.D. student and co-author of the paper. The technology also includes physiological sensors that monitor things like heart rate and body temperature. The sensors not only track a dog’s physical wellbeing, but can offer information on a dog’s emotional state, such as whether it is excited or stressed. These technologies form the core of the platform, but it can be customized with additional devices depending on the specific application. “For example, for search and rescue, we’ve added environmental sensors that can detect hazards such as gas leaks, as well as a camera and microphone for collecting additional information,” Bozkurt says. “We’re also very interested in addressing stress in working dogs, such as guide dogs for the blind,” says Sean Mealin, an NC State Ph.D. student and co-author of the paper. “We’re reliant on
the physiological and behavioral sensors to give us a picture of the dog’s mental and emotional state. “This can help handlers identify and mitigate stress for the dogs, improving the length and quality of a dog’s life,” Mealin adds. “It’s an important issue. Particularly because guide dogs are bred and trained not to display signs of stress in their behavior.” In addition to disaster response research, the research team has already done work that uses the platform to assist in dog training. They are now in the early stages of miniaturizing the technologies and improving the physiological sensors for use in animal shelters and hospitals. “This platform is an amazing tool, and we’re excited about using it to improve the bond between dogs and their humans,” says Dr. Barbara Sherman, a clinical professor of animal behavior at the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine and co-author of the paper. The paper, “Towards Cyber-Enhanced Working Dogs for Search and Rescue,” is published online in IEEE Intelligent Systems. The paper was co-authored by NC State Ph.D. students John Majikes and Robert Loftin, and by former NC State Ph.D. student Dr. Pu Yang. The work was supported by the National Science Foundation under Cyber Physical System Program grant number 1329738.
NOVEMBER 17, 2014 - NOVEMBER 23, 2014 | 3
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Aethlon Medical announces undetectable Ebola virus in patient treated with Hemopurifier® therapy Aethlon Medical, Inc. (OTCBB:AEMD), the pioneer in developing targeted therapeutic devices to address infectious disease and cancer, announced recently that officials at Frankfurt University Hospital have reported undetectable virus in an ebola patient previously disclosed to have received Hemopurifier® therapy. In an article entitled: “Ugandan Doctor Cured of Ebola in Germany,” The Wall Street Journal has reported that hospital officials indicated the patient is no longer infected with ebola virus and is heading toward a full recovery. The Aethlon Hemopurifier® is a first-in-class bio-filtration device that targets the rapid elimination of viruses and immunosuppressive proteins from the circulatory system of infected individuals. At present, no antiviral therapy or vaccine has proven to be effective against Ebola virus infection in humans. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 5,000 deaths have been attributed to the current ebola virus epidemic. The patient at Frankfurt University Hospital was administered Hemopurifier® therapy through special approval from The Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (Bundesinstitut fur Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte, BfArM), an independent federal higher authority within the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Health of Germany. “It is truly wonderful that the patient, who was reported to be suffering from multiple organ failure, is now recovering from ebola infection,” stated Aethlon founder and CEO, Jim Joyce. “In the coming days, we will disclose the venue of a public presentation that will report treatment data including the quantification of viral load reduction and viruses captured by our Hemopurifier during the treatment of this patient.” In the care of ebola-infected individuals, the Hemopurifier targets two unmet medical needs: the rapid elimination of circulating viruses to inhibit continued progeny virus replication and the direct
targeting of shed glycoproteins that overwhelm the host immune response. The device can be deployed for use within the global infrastructure of dialysis and CRRT machines already located in hospitals and clinics. Aethlon further disclosed that it is preparing to initiate U.S. clinical studies of Hemopurifier therapy based on the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) that was previously submitted by the Company. The study will contribute safety data to advance the device as a broad-spectrum countermeasure against pandemic threats, including ebola and chronic viral pathogens such as HIV
and Hepatitis C (HCV). To date, Hemopurifier therapy has been successfully administered in approximately one hundred treatment experiences in health compromised HIV and HCV infected individuals. These studies were conducted at the Apollo Hospital, Fortis Hospital, Sigma New Life Hospital, and the Medanta Medicity Institute, all located in India. In vitro validation studies that demonstrated the ability of the Hemopurifier to capture Zaire and other strains of ebola virus were conducted by researchers at the United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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Cockroach cyborgs use microphones to detect, trace sounds North Carolina State University researchers have developed technology that allows cyborg cockroaches, or biobots, to pick up sounds with small microphones and seek out the source of the sound. The technology is designed to help emergency personnel find and rescue survivors in the aftermath of a disaster. The researchers have also developed technology that can be used as an “invisible fence” to keep the biobots in the disaster area. “In a collapsed building, sound is the best way to find survivors,” says Dr. Alper Bozkurt, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at NC State and senior author of two papers on the work. The biobots are equipped with electronic backpacks that control the cockroach’s movements. Bozkurt’s research team has created two types of customized backpacks using microphones. One type of biobot has a single microphone that can
capture relatively high-resolution sound from any direction to be wirelessly transmitted to first responders. The second type of biobot is equipped with an array of three directional microphones to detect the direction of the sound. The research team has also developed algorithms that analyze the sound from the microphone array to localize the source of the sound and steer the biobot in that direction. The system worked well during laboratory testing. Video of a laboratory test of the microphone array system is available at http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=oJXEPcv-FMw. “The goal is to use the biobots with high-resolution microphones to differentiate between sounds that matter – like people calling for help – from sounds that don’t matter – like a leaking pipe,” Bozkurt says. “Once we’ve identified sounds that matter, we can use the biobots equipped with microphone arrays to zero in on where those sounds are com-
ing from.” A research team led by Dr. Edgar Lobaton has previously shown that biobots can be used to map a disaster area. Funded by National Science Foundation CyberPhysical Systems Program, the long-term goal is for Bozkurt and Lobaton to merge their research efforts to both map disaster areas and pinpoint survivors. The researchers are already working with collaborator Dr. Mihail Sichitiu to develop the next generation of biobot networking and localization technology. Bozkurt’s team also recently demonstrated technology that creates an invisible fence for keeping biobots in a defined area. This is significant because it can be used to keep biobots at a disaster site, and to keep the biobots within range of each other so that they can be used as a reliable mobile wireless network. This technology could also be used to steer biobots to light sources, so that the miniaturized solar panels on biobot
backpacks can be recharged. Video of the invisible fence technology in practice can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=mWGAKd7_fAM. A paper on the microphone sensor research, “Acoustic Sensors for Biobotic Search and Rescue,” was presented Nov. 5 at the IEEE Sensors 2014 conference in Valencia, Spain. Lead author of the paper is Eric Whitmire, a former undergraduate at NC State. The paper was co-authored by Tahmid Latif, a Ph.D. student at NC State, and Bozkurt. The paper on the invisible fence for biobots, “Towards Fenceless Boundaries for Solar Powered Insect Biobots,” was presented Aug. 28 at the 36th Annual International IEEE EMBS Conference in Chicago, Illinois. Latif was the lead author. Co-authors include Tristan Novak, a graduate student at NC State, Whitmire and Bozkurt. The research was supported by the National Science Foundation under grant number 1239243.
California's leading example on climate change helped inspire US-China agreement Continued from page 1
fully behind the program and said in an interview with The Associated Press that ““California has the most integrated response and strategy to deal with climate change of any political jurisdiction in the world.” He added: “What happens here doesn’t stay here, it goes all around the globe.”
California currently aims at reducing “emissions of heattrapping gases to 1990 levels by 2020,” according to the Huffington Post; and Brown will continue push for even lower levels by 2030. Additionally, companies producing gasoline and other fuels will be charged starting 2015, which most likely
calls for higher prices for consumers, says the website. KPCC quotes California Air Resources Board spokesman Stanley Young: “I think California has shown the leadership, and in essence it has set the stage for the kind of nation-to-nation agreement that we’ve seen today.” By signing agreements with “China’s Ministry of Commerce, the National Ministry of Environmental Protection, the provinces of Jiangsu and Guangdong, and the Beijing Ministry of Environmental Protection,” Brown has brought his state and the U.S. closer (KPCC). Furthermore, The California Air Resources Board and the Shenzhen province share data about climate research and emission prevention methods, according to KPCC. While decreasing its green-
house gases, California’s economy has rather grown than suffered, which is important to note, tells David Pettit, a lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council who has worked in China, the KPCC. “That’s one of the talks I give when I go over there, about how we’ve dealt with a lot of these pollution issues while the economy has pretty much grown in a linear straight line since the 40s,” Pettit says. “And that seems to be impressive to people who hear it.” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti supports California’s efforts against pollution and said in a statement that he “will work with [the] local green tech, scientific and investment communities to see how we can play a leading role to achieve them and, in doing so, catalyze L.A. jobs and industry.”