All posts by medical

Human Behavior

Study links racism with signs of depression in Black teens – Science News for Students

Sadly, racial discrimination happens every day. Indeed,for some U.S. kids, its a five-times-a-day thing. Thats the finding of a smallsurvey of Black teens. Moreover, these kids showed worse signs of depression after two weeks ofsuch experiences. Mental-health researchers worry that over time, such ongoingracism will cause more and more emotional harm.

Devin English works at the Rutgers University Schoolof Public Health in Newark, N.J. As a psychologist, he studies human behavior,the mind and emotional health. He and other researchers wondered how commondifferent types of discrimination are for Black teens. They also wanted to see whetherracism affects teensmental health. To find out, he and some colleagues surveyed 101 Black students,aged 13 to 17, in Washington, D.C.

Team members first asked teens 20 questions aboutsigns of possible depression. For instance, did these kids have troublesleeping? Did they have trouble keeping their mind on what they were doing? Hadthey lost interest in some of their usual activities?

Then the team asked the teens to complete daily surveysfor two weeks. The 15 survey questions changed each day. In all, the surveysasked about more than 60 types of experiences that might indicate racism. Theseranged from physical assaults and bullying to insults andother nasty behaviors.

But the incidents didnt have to have been aimedat the teens directly. Racism experienced by a family member, neighbor orfriend can have broad impacts. This type of secondhand or vicarious experience can hurt kids as well. Teens also can face racism online.

Then there are smaller micro aggressions. These can be seemingly small slights orinsults. A store clerk might first help customers who came in after a Blackteen. Or a teacher might not bother to say a students name correctly. The personbehind the microaggression might not mean to give harm. But the student canstill sense the persons prejudice and feel hurt.

Weekly updates for inquiring minds of every age, delivered to your inbox

If a Black teen feels upset by racism, forexample, a White person might say, Get over it. That downplays the teensexperience and suggests it shouldnt hurt even if it truly does. Or, someonemight ask a person of color to speak for all members of his or her race orethnic group. That wrongly suggests that everyone in that group is alike.

Other microaggressions take the form of teasing.Some teens might say something they claim is being done in fun but isnt funat all to the targeted student. Teasing and other microaggressions make usfeel that were not normal and we dont belong, explains English atRutgers.

Teens in the new study completed 1,139 dailysurveys and reported 5,606 experiences of discrimination. That comes to anaverage of almost five events a day. The three most common forms were individualand vicarious online incidents and race-related offline teasing.

Researchers asked again about signs of depressionat the end of the study. After the two weeks, symptoms had worsened in studentswho experienced more frequent real-world (offline) discrimination. Targeted incidentsof racism online also made symptoms worse.

The worsening of symptoms was small but worrisome.This is over a two-week period for young people, English says. And ifdiscrimination is causing someone to feel worse about themselves over a short periodof time and thats happening over and over and over again you would expectthat its leading to things like more serious mental-health symptoms.

Those impacts will add up over time, Englishexpects. Its like a backpack that keeps getting more books, keys, pencils andother things tossed into it. Over time, if we dont have the resources and supportto help unload some of those things from the backpack, it becomes really,really heavy, he says. And eventually, he says, it starts to weigh us down.

His teams new study appears in theJanuary-February 2020 issue of Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.Future studies will test if similar results show up in other cities. We knowthat Black communities are extremely diverse, English notes.

I wish I could say the findings were a completesurprise to me. They werent, says Roxanne Donovan. Shes a psychologyprofessor at Kennesaw State University in Georgia. In a study seven years ago, hergroup surveyed Black women college students. Nearly all of them 96 percent said they faced racial microaggressions at least a few times per year.

What did surprise me was the high number ofevents that teens in the new study had to deal with, Donovan says. She applaudsthis studys method of asking teens for daily reports. She also commends thefocus on multiple types of discrimination.

Sadly, too many young people are treated badly becauseof their race. But, English stresses, its not about a problem with them. Rather,he says, society is the problem.

Teens can do something about racism. If a situation isnt dangerous, speak up and say how you feel. In anycase, talk with parents and other trusted people at school or in yourcommunity. Teens and families also can encourage schools to take a no-tolerancestance against racist actions, including teasing and bullying.

Teens who arent people of color can and should speakout against racism, Donovan and others say. These teens also can try to recognizeand curb their own biases. Think about what racial experiences have shaped howyou see yourself and others, English suggests. Also think about how you mayhave enjoyed some privileges based on your race. Its really important that weexplore that, he says, and that we are honest with ourselves.

If someone talks with you about an experience ofracial discrimination, theyre putting a lot of confidence in you, and theyretrusting you, English adds. Its really important to listen to that. Meanwhile,society still has a long way to go to fight racism.

Five discrimination experiences daily is fivetoo many, Donovan says. These teens deserve better from our society.

Continue reading here:
Study links racism with signs of depression in Black teens - Science News for Students

Human Behavior

ABA therapist is here to help kids with autism – KeysNews.com

ContributedShine Bright Therapy owner Jennifer Borr works withchildren who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

PLANTATION KEY Applied behavior analysis is a type of therapy focused on improving social, communication and learning skills through positive reinforcement. Shine Bright Therapy uses the science-based approach to help children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

ABA therapists are like scientists, said Shine Bright Therapy owner Jennifer Borr. ABA is the science of human behavior in a specific setting. If we can observe it and we can measure responses, we have the ability to act on it. We use reinforcement to increase behavior. We change the dimension of behaviors.

Borr, armed with a masters degree in science and a board-certification, has been helping children with autism for 16 years as the sole proprietor of her company. Shes now extending her services at her new Indian Mound office.

There is such a need for this service in the area, Borr said. Ive heard of parents having to drive their child up to Miami a few times a week. That in itself is a full-time job and can be prohibitive. If these kids arent getting the therapy that they need, then where does this leave them?

In 2018 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined that approximately 1 in 59 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, with boys being four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls. The developmental disorder impairs the ability to communicate and interact.

Applied behavior analysis and therapies are the most commonly used behavioral interventions for autism. All ABA therapy programs are individualized and may be at times intensive, according to Borr.

I help set goals with the whole family. We want everyone to be in a happy home, so this is a long-term and comprehensive approach. We focus on the childs parents, the childs school, the teachers and community so they can uphold what theyve learned from us, she said.

We are helpful with kids who have tantrums or may be engaging in aggressive behaviors toward themselves or toward others. Its likely there are communication problems and the child just isnt able to get their needs met. If the parents dont want to play the guessing game, thats where we come in.

Shine Bright Therapy also helps in non-critical situations like if parents wish their children to become more independent.

Borr has been working with a child for the past seven years and takes him out to lunch every Wednesday.

He has to be accountable with his wallet, his money and for ordering his own meals. This is something he needs to practice so that he can be a little more independent in life, Borr said.

Early intervention with autism affords the best opportunity to support healthy development and deliver benefits across the lifespan, according to Autism Speaks.

Shine Bright Therapy is planning to offer speech and occupational therapy in the future.

I will eventually offer those so that well have a one-stop therapies shop. For now, Im focusing on ABA and am happy to be here and a part of the community, Borr said.

An evaluation with the parents is the initial step in signing up a child with Shine Bright Therapy.

Shine Bright Therapy is located at 89240 Overseas Highway, Suite 5. Office hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Most insurances are accepted. For more information, follow Shine Bright Therapy on Instagram, visit shinebrighttherapy.com or call the office at 305-854-2462.

tjava@keysnews.com

Read more from the original source:
ABA therapist is here to help kids with autism - KeysNews.com

Human Behavior

Data: All his best ever ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ moments – Film Daily

Never, in the history of pop culture, has a robot acted less like a robot than Data (Brent Spiner) from Star Trek: The Next Generation. We are including the entirety of all robots from television and film on this list, including R2-D2 from Star Wars, Number Six (Tricia Helfer) from SyFys Battlestar Galactica, and even the brave little toaster, from The Brave Little Toaster.

While Data opened every episode stressing his commitment to logic and reason, we have never seen a character embrace such a YOLO philosophy, outside of drunk frat boys in Southern Florida about to jump into a pool that has been drained for the season.

He lived like he died, like a trusty appliance that lasted way past its original warranty. In honor of this legend amongst men, here are all of his best moments from the best Star Trek show to ever air.

Measure of a Man is the episode you show to your friends to convince them that Star Trek is a great show. Like all great television, it takes place in a courtroom. It addresses themes of consent, slavery, artificial intelligence, and autonomy on a level that is rarely seen onscreen.

It all starts when cyberneticist Commander Bruce Maddox (Brian Brophy) comes snooping around the Enterprise. Maddox is after Datas positronic brain like the Wicked Witch of the West was after Dorothys ruby slippers, but Data rebuffs his request to study him out of concern it could be more dangerous than Maddox lets on.

This causes Maddox to turn to Starfleet to force him to comply with his request, out of the belief that Data has no autonomy as he is Starfleet property.

Obviously, Data was never going to lose this fight with his No. 1 boy Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) on his side, but it is a gripping hour of television that forces the viewer to consider at what point a machine with above-human intelligence could be considered human.

The greatest part of the episode comes from Maddox, rather than Data, when he refers to him as he rather than it. It establishes Data not just as a character, but as a man.

Star Trek: Generations is not a good movie. It has our favorite Star Trek characters from multiple franchises, but it would not even rank in the top 10 of our favorite franchise films (which is pretty bad when there are only 12 in total).

However.

Star Trek: Generations gets major points for a 22-second scene of Data in Ten Forward consuming alcohol. The robot truly speaks to the human condition in this one brief scene, as he tries alcohol for the first time.

Data: I hate this! It is revolting!Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg): More?Data: Please.

What we love about Data is his embrace of all of the human characteristics anyone else would feel nervous or embarrassed or ashamed about. He tries so hard to adopt human behaviors, without any of the emotions that go with them, and the end result is both hilarious and heartwarming.

In Season 6, Episode 5 Schisms, Data embraces the inner Literature and Classics major that resides within all of us to compose a poem to his cat Spot. Suffice to say, the rhyme and meter are technically perfect, but it bores most of the audience in Ten Forward to sleep. However, that is not an indictment of Datas poetry. That was the main macguffin of the episode.

We all know Noonian Soong (Brent Spiner) was a pervert.

It is a given. We knew Soong was a pervert even before we met him, even before we knew his name, even before we had a concept that Data was created by an outside source.

There was no need for Data to be fully functional, unless it was for pervert activities.

Which is exactly what Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby) used him for in Season 1, Episode 3 The Naked Now.

During the episode, the Enterprise was attempting to investigate the loss of the SS Tsiolkovsky. The ship had been observing the final days of a dying red supergiant and the entire crew was frozen in place in what looked like the last days of an orgy. They were drunk, they were horny, they were frozen in time as giant people popsicles and that same style of behavior soon infected the Enterprise crew.

Luckily, it turned out to just be complex water molecules accumulating carbon from the body in an imitation of drunkenness, and the A-plot was speedily resolved, but we are still haunted by Data being used as a mandroid version of Austin Powerss fembots.

In Season 2, Episode 6 The Schizoid Man, Data grows a beard. It really adds nothing to the plot or character or even the legacy of Star Trek, but we just love it and felt like adding it to the list.

Read more:
Data: All his best ever 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' moments - Film Daily

Human Behavior

Mood Food: 9 Foods That Can Really Boost Your Spirits – Healthline

When youre feeling down, it can be tempting to turn to food to lift your spirits. However, the sugary, high calorie treats that many people resort to have negative consequences of their own.

Thus, you may wonder whether any healthy foods can improve your mood.

Recently, research on the relationship between nutrition and mental health has been emerging. Yet, its important to note that mood can be influenced by many factors, such as stress, environment, poor sleep, genetics, mood disorders, and nutritional deficiencies (1, 2, 3).

Therefore, its difficult to accurately determine whether food can raise your spirits (4).

Nonetheless, certain foods have been shown to improve overall brain health and certain types of mood disorders.

Here are 9 healthy foods that may boost your mood.

Omega-3 fatty acids are a group of essential fats that you must obtain through your diet because your body cant produce them on its own.

Fatty fish like salmon and albacore tuna are rich in two types of omega-3s docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) that are linked to lower levels of depression (5, 6, 7).

Omega-3s contribute to the fluidity of your brains cell membrane and appear to play key roles in brain development and cell signaling (5, 6, 7).

While research is mixed, one review of clinical trials showed that in some studies, consuming omega-3s in the form of fish oil lower depression scores (8).

Although theres no standard dose, most experts agree that most adults should get at least 250500 mg of combined EPA and DHA per day (9).

Given that a 3.5-ounce (100-gram) serving of salmon provides 2,260 mg of EPA and DHA, eating this fish a few times per week is a great way to get these fats into your diet (10).

Fatty fish like salmon are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which may lower your risk of depression.

Chocolate is rich in many mood-boosting compounds.

Its sugar may improve mood since its a quick source of fuel for your brain (11, 12).

Furthermore, it may release a cascade of feel-good compounds, such as caffeine, theobromine, and N-acylethanolamine a substance chemically similar to cannabinoids that has been linked to improved mood (11, 12).

However, some experts debate whether chocolate contains enough of these compounds to trigger a psychological response (11, 12).

Regardless, its high in health-promoting flavonoids, which have been shown to increase blood flow to your brain, reduce inflammation, and boost brain health, all of which may support mood regulation (11, 13).

Finally, chocolate has a high hedonic rating, meaning that its pleasurable taste, texture, and smell may also promote good mood (7, 8).

Because milk chocolate contains added ingredients like sugar and fat, its best to opt for dark chocolate which is higher in flavonoids and lower in added sugar. You should still stick to 12 small squares (of 70% or more cocoa solids) at a time since its a high calorie food.

Dark chocolate is rich in compounds that may increase feel-good chemicals in your brain.

Fermented foods, which include kimchi, yogurt, kefir, kombucha, and sauerkraut, may improve gut health and mood.

The fermentation process allows live bacteria to thrive in foods that are then able to convert sugars into alcohol and acids (14).

During this process, probiotics are created. These live microorganisms support the growth of healthy bacteria in your gut and may increase serotonin levels (15, 16).

Its important to note that not all fermented foods are significant sources of probiotics, such as in the case of beer, some breads, and wine, due to cooking and filtering.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that affects many facets of human behavior, such as mood, stress response, appetite, and sexual drive. Up to 90% of your bodys serotonin is produced by your gut microbiome, or the collection of healthy bacteria in your gut (15, 16, 17, 18).

In addition, the gut microbiome plays a role in brain health. Research is beginning to show a connection between healthy gut bacteria and lower rates of depression (16, 18, 19).

Still, more research is needed to understand how probiotics may regulate mood (18).

Since up to 90% of your bodys serotonin is produced in your gut, a healthy gut may correspond to a good mood. Fermented foods like kimchi, yogurt, kefir, kombucha, and sauerkraut are rich in probiotics that support gut health.

Bananas may help turn a frown upside down.

Theyre high in vitamin B6, which helps synthesize feel-good neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin (20).

Furthermore, one large banana (136 grams) provides 16 grams of sugar and 3.5 grams of fiber (21).

When paired with fiber, sugar is released slowly into your bloodstream, allowing for stable blood sugar levels and better mood control. Blood sugar levels that are too low may lead to irritability and mood swings (22).

Finally, this ubiquitous tropical fruit, especially when still showing green on the peel, is an excellent source of prebiotics, a type of fiber that helps feed healthy bacteria in your gut. A robust gut microbiome is associated with lower rates of mood disorders (23).

Bananas are a great source of natural sugar, vitamin B6, and prebiotic fiber, which work together to keep your blood sugar levels and mood stable.

Oats are a whole grain that can keep you in good spirits all morning. You can enjoy them in many forms, such as overnight oats, oatmeal, muesli, and granola.

Theyre an excellent source of fiber, providing 8 grams in a single raw cup (81 grams) (24).

Fiber helps slow your digestion of carbs, allowing for a gradual release of sugar into the bloodstream to keep your energy levels stable.

In one study, those who ate 1.56 grams of fiber at breakfast reported better mood and energy levels. This was attributed to more stable blood sugar levels, which is important for controlling mood swings and irritability (22, 25).

Although other sources of whole grains can have this effect, oats may be especially advantageous, as theyre also a great source of iron, with 1 raw cup (81 grams) boasting 19% of your daily needs (24).

Iron deficiency anemia, one of the most common nutrient deficiencies, is associated with low iron intake. Its symptoms include fatigue, sluggishness, and mood disorders (26, 27).

Some research suggests that people experience improvements in these symptoms after eating iron-rich foods or supplementing with iron, but more research is needed (28).

Oats provide fiber that can stabilize your blood sugar levels and boost your mood. Theyre also high in iron, which may improve mood symptoms in those with iron deficiency anemia.

Curiously, eating more fruits and vegetables is linked to lower rates of depression (29, 30).

Although the mechanism isnt clear, a diet rich in antioxidants may help manage inflammation associated with depression and other mood disorders (31).

Berries pack a wide range of antioxidants and phenolic compounds, which play a key role in combatting oxidative stress an imbalance of harmful compounds in your body (31).

Theyre particularly high in anthocyanins, a pigment that gives certain berries their purple-blue color. One study associated a diet rich in anthocyanins with a 39% lower risk of depression symptoms (32).

If you cant find them fresh, try buying frozen berries which are frozen at their peak ripeness to retain the maximum amount of antioxidants (33).

Berries are rich in disease-fighting anthocyanins, which may lower your risk of depression.

Nuts and seeds are high in plant-based proteins, healthy fats, and fiber.

Additionally, they provide tryptophan, an amino acid responsible for producing mood-boosting serotonin. Almonds, cashews, peanuts, and walnuts, as well as pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds, are excellent sources (34).

Moreover, nuts and seeds are a large component of both the MIND and Mediterranean diets, which may support a healthy brain. Each of these diets promotes fresh, whole foods and limits your intake of processed items (35, 36, 37, 38).

Whats more, a 10-year study in 15,980 people linked moderate nut intake to a 23% lower risk of depression (39).

Finally, certain nuts and seeds, such as Brazil nuts, almonds, and pine nuts, are good sources of zinc and selenium. Deficiency in these minerals, which are important for brain function, is associated with higher rates of depression although more research is needed (40).

Certain nuts and seeds are high in tryptophan, zinc, and selenium, which may support brain function and lower your risk of depression.

Coffee is the worlds most popular drink, and it may make the world a bit happier, too.

The caffeine in coffee prevents a naturally occurring compound called adenosine from attaching to brain receptors that promote tiredness, therefore increasing alertness and attention (41).

Moreover, it increases the release of mood-boosting neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and norepinephrine (42).

A study in 72 people found that both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee significantly improved mood compared with a placebo beverage, suggesting that coffee contains other compounds that influence mood (42).

Researchers attributed this boost in attitude to various phenolic compounds, such as chlorogenic acid. Still, more research is needed (42).

Coffee provides numerous compounds, including caffeine and chlorogenic acid, that may boost your mood. Research suggests that decaf coffee may even have an effect.

In addition to being high in fiber and plant-based protein, beans and lentils are full of feel-good nutrients.

Theyre an excellent source of B vitamins, which help improve mood by increasing levels of neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), all of which are important for regulating mood (43, 44, 45).

Furthermore, B vitamins play a key role in nerve signaling, which allows proper communication between nerve cells. Low levels of these vitamins, especially B12 and folate, have been linked to mood disorders, such as depression (45).

Finally, theyre a good source of zinc, magnesium, selenium, and non-heme iron, which may likewise elevate your spirits (43, 44, 45).

Beans and lentils are rich sources of mood-boosting nutrients, particularly B vitamins.

When feeling blue, you may crave calorie-rich, high sugar foods like ice cream or cookies to try to lift your spirits.

While this might give you a sugar rush, its unlikely to help you in the long term and may have negative consequences as well.

Instead, you should aim for wholesome foods that have been shown to not only boost your mood but also your overall health. Try out some of the foods above to kick-start your positivity routine.

Excerpt from:
Mood Food: 9 Foods That Can Really Boost Your Spirits - Healthline

Human Behavior

‘Gank Your Heart’: All the reasons we love Ji Xiang Kong – Film Daily

If youve started watching The Untamed, a Chinese BL drama available to stream on Netflix, its likely that youve contracted Wang Yibo Fever. The good news is, prior to filming The Untamed, the young actor had already completed several other acting projects. Fortunately for us, theyre available to watch through a variety of platforms in Western countries!

Naturally, we dived right in. Among our favorite Wang Yibo shows outside of The Untamed, is Gank Your Heart. A romantic comedy that leans on the side of drama, Gank Your Heart is the story of Ji Xiang Kong (Wang Yibo) & Qui Ying (Wang Zi Xuan). Hes a professional esports gamer & and shes an aspiring esports commentator. What could go wrong?

Plenty! The pair get off to a very rocky start, and its safe to say that this is definitely not one of these love at first sight kinds of stories, at least not for Ji Xiang Kong. Ji Xiang Kong is convinced that Qui Ying is trying to use her association with him for her own personal gain. Hes actually quite mean to her at the beginning of the series.

Initially, Ji Xiang Kong seems conceited & even a little vindictive, but his character development is impressive. Where his cockiness positions him as a bit of a jerk in the beginning, its really not long at all before Ji Xiang Kong will be metaphorically grabbing you by the neck as you ignite full-blown bingewatch mode.

So what is it about Ji Xiang Kong that will make you want to watch all 35 episodes of Gank Your Heart in one sitting? Come with us and fall in love with Ji Xiang Kong as we outline all the reasons why we stan!

Considering the hostile & aggressive nature in which his character starts out, its surprising to learn that Ji Xiang Kong is actually a hopeless romantic. There are many moments throughout the 35 episodes where Ji Xiang Kong made us go aww but our favorite moment happens towards the very end of their series and results in a very public declaration of his love for Qui Ying.

After all the drama that Qui Ying suffers at the hands of Ji Xiang Kongs ex-girlfriend, Mi Ya (Lu Yangyang), Ji Xiang Kong finally grows a pair and shows the entire world that he loves Qui Ying, not Mi Ya. Hes standing on the stage after a victorious win at the iConquer Championships & insists that Qui Ying come to the stage and share in his victory.

After everything he puts her through with Mi Ya, publicly acknowledging their relationship on stage in front of Mi Ya and everyone else who seems determined to bring them down is the least he can do. While he doesnt actually say that he loves her during this moment, his actions and his body language make that pretty clear.

This is just one moment on a long list of things Ji Xiang Kong does throughout the course of the series to woo Qui Ying. Lets not forget about the princess balloons he buys for her at Disneyland, or the fact that he zeros out the settlement amount between the two of them. Then there is the cake he organizes for her at the restaurant & the fireworks he took her to see because he knows she is dazzled by them.

Then finally, how he looks after her while shes drunk and completely out of control. He puts her in his bed in the privacy of his room, and he takes the couch in the communal room. This moment is particularly sweet as it is clear that he has feelings for her, even if he isnt able to articulate their depth and complexity just yet.

In episode 1, the Legends are in Vancouver competing in an international iConquer competition. The pressure is on the boys to bring the championship title back home to China with them. On the day of competition though, the teams captain Gu Fangs (Goa Tai Yu) hand is acting up. If he cant get it together, theyll most certainly lose. Ji Xiang Kong does everything he can to protect his captain.

Ji Xiang Kong suggests to their coach a change of tactic. While this might displease fans and be bad for their image, its definitely good for Gu Fung. He put his friends wellbeing, and whats best for the team before his own reputation. When Gu Fang finally leaves the team, Ji Xiang Kong pledges to bring home the Championship title for China if its the last thing he does.

The rest of the series is dedicated to watching Ji Xiang Jong go up against adversary after adversary as he attempts to uphold this promise. Hes shuffled between teams & his relationships are tested often before he forms his own team to finally carry out the task. However, he goes through a lot in the process.

Ji Xiang Kong was afforded many opportunities to put himself first, but he never does. Remember when Ji Xiang Kong sells his motorcycle to buy out Lin Yi Xuans (Ging Guan Sen) contract? What about when, while working with the second team he joins, Ji Xiang Kong has the opportunity to go back to his former team, but chooses to honor his current contract instead?

Then he is offered a role on the third most successful team in the world and he turns it down. He says, during this moment, that he wants to win the Championship for China. While he doesnt reiterate the exact words in this particular scene, its made clear throughout other episodes: he made a promise and he wont quit until he fulfills it.

Ji Xiang Kong is self-sacrificing in both the very best & worst ways. Just as things with Ji Xiang Kong & Qui Ying are getting off the ground, Ji Xiang Kongs ex-girlfriend rolls back into town after being gone for five years. Its clear from Mi Yas dramatic entrance that she was someone very important to him, that he never quite got over.

Mi Ya wants back into Ji Xiang Kongs life. She does a stand-up job of making sure that he, and everyone else around them, know it. Its clear hes impacted by her return, and although he stalls for a moment too long, he continues to pursue Qui Ying. It looks like Qui Ying is about to win the battle for Ji Xiang Kongs heart, too, when Mi Ya gets badly injured and Ji Xiang Kong rushes to her side.

Ji Xiang Kong makes Mi Ya his priority, because he feels like its the decent thing to do. He pays a price, though, and Qui Ying walks away from him and their relationship. Its clear Ji Xiang Kong is completely torn. Not a single part of him wants to lose Qui Ying, but he doesnt want to abandon a sick and injured person either. Especially when that person is someone he cared deeply about for a long time.

Lets get real: no one is #TeamMiYa in this situation. Ji Xiang Kongs acceptance of the terrible situation he finds himself in is both endearing and infuriating. When everyone around him seems to be engaging in bad human behavior just to get themselves ahead, Ji Xiang Kong lets the girl he loves go to serve another.

Its his downfall, because he ends up crushing Qui Ying in the process, but his intention is pure. Yet the strength of such an action takes is admirable and rare. This particular storyline of Gank Your Heart will incite quite a lot of emotion. We recommend stress balls, ice-cream, and chocolate to help you through this stressful part of the show!

One of the coolest things about Ji Xiang Kongs character is his innate ability to lead. His leadership skills are put on full display when he leaves legends and joins the rival team, VNG. His new teammates treat him badly but he works hard to build alliances where he can.

While he isnt able to win over absolutely everyone, he is able to put his own feelings about individuals aside and recognize the strengths they bring to the table. Although he meets many barriers to his success while he captains VNG, he is able to read his teammates and capitalize on their strengths. Something their former captain wasnt able to do.

After he is released from VNG, he goes on to form his own team, where his leadership skills clearly take the team to victory. He patiently waits to recruit just the right players. He makes sure that his recruits compliment each others skillsets, and he works hard to build a family his teammates want to buy into. He believes in them even when they dont believe in themselves.

He does all this with humble graciousness. It would be so easy for someone of Ji Xiang Kongs status & reputation to develop an arrogance about his abilities. He doesnt, though, and grows throughout the series with humility. As the final episode comes to a close, youll find yourself looking around for your very own version of Ji Xiang Kong.

The reality of the situation is, we came for Wang Yibo but we stayed for Ji Xiang Kong. He is so inspiring that hell even make you want to contemplate taking up gaming, if you dont already play! We dare you to watch this show and not fall stupidly in love with this character!

View post:
'Gank Your Heart': All the reasons we love Ji Xiang Kong - Film Daily

Human Behavior

The Motels’ Martha Davis on surviving the ’80s, the subconscious art of songwriting, and the tragic side of motherhood – Detroit Metro Times

Farm animals have a friend in Martha Davis. The 69-year-old Motels frontwoman lives on a 72-acre farm outside Portland, Oregon, where she cares for alpacas, a squad of dogs, and chickens, one of which, named Ruthie, has found refuge indoors to escape her natural sexual predators.

"Roosters are very rapey," Davis says. "So I brought her inside the house to give her a little hospice from being raped all the time."

Davis describes her home as a sanctuary and admits she's never actually seen all of her sprawling property, but envisions taking a machete this spring to clear out some of the overgrown brush and create a walking path. Despite having been raised in Berkeley, California, and, later, in Los Angeles, Davis says she's always been a bit of a "dirt" girl and says she spent a lot of time in her yard as a child exploring.

"I'm much more at home here than I ever was."

Home for Davis is also in the studio, something she says she would be dead without. Belonging has long since been a theme in the Motels' songwriting, as evidenced by the band's two most successful hits, 1982's "Only the Lonely" and 1983's "Suddenly Last Summer." The latter finds Davis living through the memory of a never-ending summer cut short. "It happened forever, for a short time/A place for a moment, an end to dream/Forever I loved you, forever it seemed," Davis sings in her bright tonality that's somewhere between a command and a whisper, surrounded by melancholic synths, and a dreamy bassline.

"They're old friends," she says of the hits. "They're wonderful. It was my birthday when we played Boston, and the crowd couldn't have been sweeter, and I swear to god they applauded for like five minutes. I was just standing there almost embarrassed. When a song gets to a point where it represents that much to people, it's breathtaking," she says. "However that song happens, [it evolves] and art keeps going even after it's made it turns into something else."

It's been 41 years since the Motels released their self-titled debut, which came as a result of years of missed opportunities, lineup changes, and lack of label interest as the band's previous incarnations, the Warfield Foxes and, later, as Angels of Mercy. The debut, or as Davis says, "the one without the hits," is her personal favorite, rivaling 2018's The Last Few Beautiful Days, Davis' vibrant and deeply personal return to the Motels and the first record since the death of her eldest daughter, Maria.

"The record became a story, and all the songs fit together in a way where it basically kind of mapped out what I saw as my life, you know, with my kids and trying to become this rock star and then trying to make it. It just, all of a sudden, became very, very, very personal. And and that's the beauty of art. It will take you on the journeys. I never tried to touch the steering wheel. I literally sit in the backseat [and] go, 'OK, where are we going?'" she says. "I don't know where it comes from. Like I picked up my guitar and I'm just sitting there and literally just started playing "Only the Lonely" like it had already been written. You have to get the fuck out of your own way."

The Last Few Beautiful Days, arguably the most cohesive and focused record in Davis' discography, confronts a number of hot topics, though through the lens of ambiguity and written as stories rather than protest songs. Inspired by human behavior and the turbulent world in which we live, the record is true to the Motels, particularly on "Lucky Stars," which could easily fit on the tracklisting for Careful, the Motels' sophomore release, which turns 40 this year. Though the record pans out to paint a sweeping portrait of a world in crisis, The Last Few Beautiful Days is also an examination of a mother, her daughters, and the cost of fame. The song "Criminal," Davis says, could be about a number of men, but is targeted at the suits of big pharma.

"My oldest daughter died of fentanyl overdose, and that was because she became addicted to oxy like everyone else," Davis says. "And so as far as I'm concerned, the medical industry or the pharmaceutical industry, they murdered my daughter, and I figure if you can draw one or two dots together they killed her. And there's absolutely no consequences. They don't even get a slap on the wrist."

The record's opener, "Punchline," addresses Davis' relationship with her youngest daughter, Patricia, with whom she is no longer in contact with. "I've basically lost both of my daughters," she says. "It breaks me."

When Davis was 15, she gave birth to Maria, and moved to Tampa, Florida, with her Air Force husband, a man Davis describes as being a stranger and the same man rumored to be the subject of the Motels' "Celia" ("He wasn't gonna kill you/He was just gonna fuck up your pretty face"). Soon after, she gave birth to her second child. And when Davis was about 20, her mother killed herself.

"Well, I was a mess. I was a mess at that time and there were a lot of reasons for that. I hadn't processed the death of my parents when that happened, I was trying to be a mom and I was a bad mom," Davis confesses. "And there was a lot that was going wrong. And it was going wrong because I was taken up in the whirlwind of wanting to be loved,"she says. "I mean, basically any artist most of us are insecure, most of us were very shy and awkward youngsters. That's why we scampered off to our rooms and grabbed our instruments and made our own world. That becomes easy picking for the dark side."

Davis reflects on her mother's influence, recalling the times her mother read from Henry Miller books and the revelations Davis had after finding her mother's diary following her death. While her dad urged Davis to go back to school or pursue secretary training, she found inspiration in her late mother's unfulfilled dreams of being an author, an artist.

"I could feel that she just wanted to be an artist, but she'd write, Oh I have to go to the PTA and this, that, and the other, and I saw her frustration, which possibly killed her, that she didn't do what her heart wanted her to do," Davis recalls. "So I sat my kids down when they were very tiny and I said, 'I don't know how this is going to work, but I'm going to try to be a musician, this is going to be hard.' And I tried, and it worked sort of. I mean, my oldest daughter, I was very much in tune with her for the last five years of her life. She'd go, 'Mom we're making our own Grey Gardens here.' She was hilarious and she was beautiful and I miss her so much. I miss them both so much."

The Last Few Beautiful Days marked a turning point for the Motels. It was the first record released on Davis' label, Remarkable Records, a decision that has allotted the singer the freedom she requires to create without some of the luxuries of label support, like paid studio time and tour stipends. She admits to couch surfing to save money when she travels and refers to her farm as a "money grabber," but with the financial struggle comes yet another record, titled Escape From Planet Earth, a double album composed of new and old material that is already written and mostly recorded. Davis credits her career's sustainability to one thing: peaking and not maintaining that level of fame.

"I'm really glad that my career didn't stay on that trajectory," she says, "because I don't think there is anything more detrimental to humans than fame I really don't. I mean, it's beautiful, it's glorious, all my bills are taken care of. But at the height of it, I mean, I got so removed from reality, you know, in terms of, like, day to day ... how regular people live, and that's a bad bubble to be in. Your feet are definitely not on the ground, and your sense of empathy gets screwed with. It's a very happening place to be there's limo rides and there's champagne and drugs and all that stuff that's really crazy. There's so many pitfalls."

Davis admits to not really paying any attention to pop radio, name-dropping Taylor Swift like a curse word. She much prefers NPR and classical music, yet she can't help but catch the undeniable influence of the Motels and other artists of the era/genre in passing. She finds it flattering, but thinks derivative contemporary artists may have missed the point.

"The one thing that we wanted more than anything else in the world was not to sound like anyone else. No two bands sounded the same. Everybody wanted to look different. It was all about individuality," she says of the '80s.

"And so when I hear bands copying these things, I'm like, that wasn't the point. The point was to be as different as you can from anything," she says. "Blondie didn't sound like Chrissie [Hynde], you know? I call it the '80s wont-go-awaytees. And they won't they don't seem to."

The Motels will perform wsg Bow Wow Wow at 6 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 9 at the Machine Shop; 3539 S. Dort Hwy., Flint; 810-715-2650; themachineshop.info. Tickets are $29+.

Get our top picks for the best events in Detroit every Thursday morning. Sign up for our events newsletter.

Read the original here:
The Motels' Martha Davis on surviving the '80s, the subconscious art of songwriting, and the tragic side of motherhood - Detroit Metro Times

Human Behavior

Scientists document collapse of the white-lipped peccary – WSU News

PULLMAN, Wash. White-lipped peccaries have declined by as much as 87% to 90% from their historical range in Central America, signaling a population collapse of a key species in the region, according to a study published recently in the journal Biological Conservation. The research was conducted by a team of 50 scientists from 30 organizations including Washington State University, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and El Colegio de Frontera Sur.

A pig-like animal that is an important food source for large animal predators and humans alike, the white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari)also plays a critical ecological role by dispersing seeds and creating water holes that benefit other animals. The study found that current IUCN estimates underestimated the population decline. The study results are a 63% drop from the current IUCN range estimates for the region.

White-lipped peccary populations are in more of a critical condition than previously thought, said lead author Dan Thornton of Washington State University. While these results are sobering, they also offer a roadmap on how to conserve this iconic, ecologically important species.

The researchers say that human influence and loss of forest cover are the primary causes of the decline, and that peccaries now remain in increasingly threatened pockets of forest mostly found along transboundary areas. Outside of transboundary landscapes, remaining populations were generally scattered and isolated.

Due to their social behavior and anti-predatory defense of grouping together when threatened, white-lipped peccaries are highly sensitive to hunting. Their large area needs and reliance on widely dispersed fruit and water sources also makes this species highly vulnerable to forest loss and fragmentation.

The study found that the largest contiguous blocks of habitat for white-lipped peccaries occur in several major transboundary reserves. This includes the Maya Forest of Guatemala, Mexico and Belize, the Moskitia Forest complex of Honduras and Nicaragua, the Indio Maiz and Tortuguero National Park complex of Nicaragua and Costa Rica, and the Darien/Los Katios National Park complex between Panama and Colombia.

Although population estimates for white-lipped peccaries are difficult to calculate precisely, experts estimated that these same transboundary areas likely harbor the highest populations of remaining peccaries. For example, the entire Maya Forest, in Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala, hosts the largest white-lipped peccary population stronghold in Mesoamerica, with an estimated population of around 5000 individuals. The remote forests in the bi-national Moskitia, spanning Nicaragua and Honduras, may harbor around 3000 white-lipped peccaries.

Of particular concern to the plight of white-lipped peccaries in Mesoamerica is the status of the Maya Forest of Guatemala, Mexico, and Belize, the Moskitia Forest of Honduras and Nicaragua, and the Darien Forest in Panama and Colombia, all of which are under particularly grave threat from human activities. For example, in the past 15years, wildlands (those areas with limited human influence) have been reduced by 30 percent in the Rio Platano/Bosawas complex and by 25 percent in the Maya Forest. Ninety percent of recent deforestation is due to cattle ranching, and these two forests are at imminent risk of losing their contiguity due to expansion of both sugar cane and cattle ranching.

Based on this study, we believe that the white-lipped peccary should be uplisted to a higher category of threat in Mesoamerica from Vulnerable to Endangered in the IUCN Red List. We cannot afford to lose such an interesting species that has a unique social behavior of moving in large cohesive groups in a way that we still do not totally understand said co-author Dr. Rafael Reyna of ECOSUR in Mexico and WCS Associate Researcher.

Mesoamericas 5 Great Forests, spanning from Mexico to Colombia, and covering an area three times the size of Switzerland, are the most critical bastions for peccaries and other wildlife, and also provide services such as carbon sequestration, clean water, and food security to five million people. WCS is part of an alliance of countries, NGOs, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities committed to protect these remaining areas.

Without Mesoamericas five great forests, the white-lipped peccary will almost certainly go extinct in the region, with cascading impacts on forests, other wildlife, and people said study co-author Jeremy Radachowsky, Director of WCSs Mesoamerica and Caribbean Program. We must all work together to protect these incredibly important forests.

CONTACT: Sara Zaske, WSU News and Media Relations, 509-335-4846, sara.zaske@wsu.edu

Top right photo by Apolinar Basora

Continued here:
Scientists document collapse of the white-lipped peccary - WSU News

Immunology

FDA just approved the first treatment for peanut allergies – The Daily Briefing

FDA on Friday approved Aimmune TherapeuticsPalforzia, the first-ever treatment for life-threatening peanut allergies.

Infographic: 6 ways your pharmacist can save the day

Theincidenceof peanut allergies in children in the United States has increased by 21% since 2010, according to theAmerican College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology. The latest estimates suggest about 2% to 5% of U.S. children have a peanut allergy.

There's a significant debate among providers about how to prevent or treat peanut allergies. Recent guidelines have recommended parents begin feeding their children peanuts at a young age to help their immune systems learn how to tolerate peanuts.

Researchers and some providers have tested a similar approach, known as oral immunotherapy, on kids who already have developed a peanut allergy. The technique involves slowly introducing children to small amounts of peanutsbut according to The Atlantic, many providers view such experiments as risky.

Palforzia is a capsule that contains small amounts of peanut powder.

For the treatment, doctors prescribe and administer a small dose of the drug, which can be mix with applesauce or another food. After the initial dose, patients must take the drug daily with doctors increasing the dose 11 times over several months until the patient is ingesting the equivalent of about one peanut. Doctors must administer each dosage increase, and if the patient tolerates the increase they may continue that dosage at home.

Researchers employed by Aimmune in 2018 published clinicaltrialresults in theNew England Journal of Medicineshowing that after a one-year period, two-thirds of children taking the treatment could safely consume two peanuts in a controlled setting, compared to 4% of patients who did not take Palforzia, according to the Associated Press.

FDA on Friday approved Palforzia, making it the first drug to receive FDA approval to treat life-threatening peanut allergies. The goal of the treatment is to reduce the risk of a life-threatening allergic reaction, not to make it so that individuals with peanut allergies can regularly eat peanuts. Aimmune CMO Daniel Adelman said Palforzia is only "intended to desensitize patients to peanut protein. So while they still must practice avoidance, it can mitigate allergic reactions after accidental consumption."

The drug is approved for children ages four to 17 who have a confirmed diagnosis of peanut allergy. According to FDA, "Those who take Palforzia must continue to avoid peanuts in their diets."

Researchers assessed the effectiveness of Palforzia in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study that enrolled about 500 people who were allergic to peanuts. Researchers found 67.2% of participants who took Palforzia recipients tolerated a 600 mg dose of peanut protein after six months, compared to 4.0% of participants who received the placebo.

Researchers assessed safety using two double-blind, placebo-controlled studies in about 700 people with peanut allergies. Researchers found the most common side effects were abdominal pain, nausea vomiting, tingling in the mouth, itching (including in the mouth and ears), cough, runny nose, throat irritation and tightness, hives, wheezing and shortness of breath, and anaphylaxis. The risk of anaphylaxis is why FDA required patients to take the initial dose and the increased dosages in the presence of a doctor.

The medication will cost $890 per month, but Aimmune said it will offer an assistance program that will reduce the patient's share of the cost to as low as $20 for some patients.

Some providers said the drug could be a "big deal" for patients who live in constant fear of making contact with peanuts.

Subhadra Siegel, chief of pediatric allergy and immunology at New York Medical College, said, "The thought of relieving that anxiety and being able to eat in a restaurant without worry. These are huge debilitating things for families with food allergies."

Two separate surveys found that allergists favor Palforzia as a treatment for patients with peanut allergies, with analysts predicting the drug will make about $52 million in 2020 and as much as $830 million in 2023.

Given the drug would be the first ever to treat life-threatening peanut allergies, Aimmune projects that Palforzia's annual sales could exceed $1 billion.

However, some experts said the new drug is simply an overpriced version of peanut flour, which can be sold as a dietary supplement at a much lower cost.

A study by the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review found that there was no sufficient evidence that using Palforzia would be more effective than avoiding peanuts or another oral immunotherapy.

But Thomas Casalechief medical adviser atFood Allergy Research & Education(FARE), a nonprofit advocacy and lobbying group that helped create Aimmuneargued that, even though supplement manufacturers can offer cheaper versions of peanut flour, having an FDA-approved version makes the treatment safer and more accessible to patients.

Still setting aside price, the drug raises other concerns.

While researchers in an Aimmune clinical trial found that patients showed greater tolerance of peanuts in a clinical setting, outside of the laboratory they actually experienced more serious allergic events. According to The Atlantic, 14% of those receiving the peanut powder pill reported a severe allergic reaction during the study period, compared with just 3% in the placebo group. Ameta-analysispublished inThe Lancetconfirmed the risk.

Jeff Tice, a physician and health policy analyst at the University of California at San Francisco who examined the product, said, "This is just what we're trying to preventhaving to get taken to the ER sort of outcome." He added, "The trials clearly demonstrated desensitization [to peanuts], but apparently at the cost of more harm, and no clear evidence of long-term benefit" (Hamblin,The Atlantic, 9/13/19; Johnson, Washington Post, 1/31; Loftus, Wall Street Journal, 1/31; FDA release, 1/31; Feurstein, STAT+, 2/3).

Here is the original post:
FDA just approved the first treatment for peanut allergies - The Daily Briefing

Immunology

State-of-the-art cancer care at a university level close to home – Freeport Journal-Standard

Yesterday, Feb. 4, was World Cancer Day, an international call to action established in 2000 at the World Summit Against Cancer for the New Millennium in Paris. The day isnt an attempt to raise awareness of any certain type of cancer, but instead the fight that thousands of people and their health care teams are fighting, every day.

We at the Leonard C. Ferguson Cancer Center at FHN Memorial Hospital in Freeport are proud to be part of that fight. In just the past few years, our talented team of professionals has cared for patients fighting 20 different types of cancer, right here on our Freeport campus.

Our medical oncologist-hematologist Arshad Shaikh, MD, offers our patients treatments that are on the front line of immunology, which gives a patients own immune system the power to fight certain cancer cells.

Our radiation oncology team, led by Bobby Koneru, MD, and Gary Shultz, DO, from the Paramount Oncology Group in Dubuque, provides our patients state-of-the-art treatments usually only available in university hospitals. Volumetric Modulated ARC Therapy (VMAT) also called Smart Arc or RapidArc radiation therapy allows our experts to more precisely target cancer cells for treatment, leaving surrounding healthy tissue unharmed.

Though patients dont usually see him at the center, our team includes surgical oncologist Spyridon Theodorakis, MD, FACS. He served fellowships in surgical oncology at Tulane University in New Orleans and at Roswell Park Memorial Hospital in Buffalo, New York, and has made it possible for breast cancer patients to consult and have reconstruction surgery in the same place as their lumpectomy or mastectomy, right here at FHN.

Our center is more than high-tech, though: From the moment a patient walks in our door, were part of his or her team. Our outstanding staff genuinely cares about our patients, and were honored to take time to get to know them and their needs.

Perhaps most importantly, we understand that being diagnosed with cancer is a big, frightening deal. Thats why we offer a three-day guarantee: Youll have a follow-up appointment within three business days of your referral. In addition, you may contact us, even if you arent a regular FHN patient.

When you are diagnosed with cancer, you want a top-notch team of experts working on your treatment as soon as possible. At the Leonard C. Ferguson Cancer Center at FHN Memorial Hospital in Freeport, youve got just that. Call us at 815-599-7000 to get your team together.

Julie Nampel MSN, RN, is the director of the Leonard C. Ferguson Cancer Center at FHN Memorial Hospital in Freeport.

See more here:
State-of-the-art cancer care at a university level close to home - Freeport Journal-Standard

Immunology

Illuminating The Intersection Of Art, Science And Technology – KPBS

An ambitious new exhibition at San Diego Art Institute paired local artists with cutting-edge research scientists to create revelatory works ofart

Photo by Bhavna Mehta

Above: A close up of "Fault Lines," a new installation by Bhavna Mehta at San Diego Art Institute.

Decades of scientific progress will converge with the work of dozens of San Diego artists in a major new group show, "Illumination," at San Diego Art Institute (SDAI) in Balboa Park.

One component of the exhibition paired 16 San Diego artists with local scientists studying in a field of interest to the artist. Scientists like Zbigniew Mikulski from the La Jolla Institute of Immunology, Lu-Lin Jiang from Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, Krishna Vadodaria from the Salk Institute, Ben Frable from Scripps Institute of Oceanography and more.

The artists spent time in the lab with their matched scientists, furthering their knowledge of a particular research project and developing a piece of work that reflected the science itself, the interactions with the research or researchers or anything that sprung from the collaboration.

When curator Chi Essary asked San Diego-based paper artist and sculptor Bhavna Mehta to participate and to pitch a topic she'd like to work with, Mehta took a gamble: Pitch something too specific. Mehta, who was stricken with polio as a child, selected contagious diseases of the spinal cord, assuming that the idea was too narrow, and it would be unlikely that the project would find a willing scientist for a pairing. It was a last-ditch effort of steering her work away from something she hadn't yet tackled as an artist: her own spine.

"It was a true dread," she said about making art about her own body. "It's not that I've been avoiding it, it's just that I haven't found the language to do it."

Essary, however, delivered. Mehta visited Dr. Samuel Pfaff at the Salk Institute's Gene Expression Laboratory, which specifically studies motor neurons and diseases of the spinal cord. "I have a real deep personal connection with the Salk Institute," Mehta said. Researchers from the lab also visited Mehta's studio to learn more about her work.

One revelation for Mehta throughout the process was the fundamental intersections of art and science: the value of questions and the pursuit of the unexpected.

"I don't make a lot of art expecting something, because I think you're always disappointed," she said, and felt similarity with the scientists. "You're willing to be surprised by what you find."

Mehta's piece, a massive installation called "Fault Lines," uses hundreds of small paper cut forms and pins to create a cross section of her spinal cord.

The spinal cord is like a superhighway of activity and information, with motor neurons sending messages through the entire body and controlling activity, sensation and what Mehta described as "the involuntary dance of organs." These elements are represented by gray, white, yellow, vivid orange and purple shapes, pinned directly to the wall in 3-dimensional relief. These are the specific tiny things that polio ravages, blown up to 200 times their size.

"It's always going to be painful for me," Mehta said, about the process of creating this piece and understanding her own history. "But the purpose of art is not to show but to discover."

Another impactful pairing in the project was that of scientists Zbigniew Mikulski ("Dr. Z") and Dr. Sara McArdle with filmmaker Cy Kuckenbaker.

"It was very much like giving a little kid a video game joystick for the first time," Kuckenbaker said. With access to one of the La Jolla Institute of Immunology's microscopes over the course of three extended visits to the lab, he began to understand the magnitude of the information stored in each cell in the human body.

Kuckenbaker's project includes a video installation, but strikingly, he also printed out all of the data included in a single chromosome, one of the smallest: chromosome 22. "It took five days to print," he said.

Each page is a combination of base pairs represented by the letters GCAT in sequences for 10,000 pages, or 5,000 sheets of paper. That's just for one chromosome. Each cell contains a whopping 46 of these chromosomes including the copies, and the human body contains trillions of cells. For Kuckenbacker, creating a tangible work of art from these quantifiable but astronomic facts is a way of understanding and relating something unfathomable.

The pages are bound into a book that, when set on the floor, reaches about knee height. For Kuckenbaker, it shows the "extraordinary efficiency in nature."

To round out the show, SDAI invited 10 more local artists to show pieces. These artists all routinely create work that deals with technology, climate, global health or other scientifically relevant themes, including Yasmine Kasem, and Los Angeles-based Young Joon Kwak, who created a bright pink twisted neon sculpture for the exhibition.

The exhibition opens Saturday, Feb. 8 with an opening reception, and runs through May 3 at SDAI in Balboa Park. Admission is free to San Diego Art Institute for the entirety of 2020.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified base pairs. The story has been updated to reflect the change.

KPBS' daily news podcast covering local politics, education, health, environment, the border and more. New episodes are ready weekday mornings so you can listen on your morning commute.

Julia Dixon Evans Arts Calendar Editor and Producer

I write the weekly KPBS Arts newsletter and edit and produce the KPBS Arts calendar. I am interested in getting San Diegans engaged with the diversity of art and culture made by the creative people who live here.

To view PDF documents, Download Acrobat Reader.

Follow this link:
Illuminating The Intersection Of Art, Science And Technology - KPBS