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FDA issues warning letter to companies on dangerous, unapproved stem cell…
Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied HealthcareAfter 12 people were hospitalized for infections associated with unapproved stem cell treatments, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to Genetech, Inc. about the umbilical cord blood-derived cellular products distributed by Liveyon, LLC. The FDA warned Genetech for processing umbilical cord blood into unapproved human cellular products and for significant deviations from current good manufacturing practice (CGMP) and current good tissue practice (CGTP) requirements.
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Officer down! How do your state’s benefits compare?
Sandie Doptis and Jack Gaffigan Law Enforcement, Defense & SecurityWhen there is an officer down incident, kind-hearted nonprofit and departmental associations always attempt to provide financial assistance to the survivors of a line-of-duty death through fundraisers utilizing banks, radio shows and telemarketing. The funds dispersed to the surviving widows and children pale in light of the fact that the majority of the states provide special public safety death benefits and full four-year college scholarships within their respective university systems to all survivors. This article focuses solely on state death benefits, and in particular the one-time, lump-sum death benefit — if the state has one — payable to the survivors of an officer killed in the line of duty.
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Active shooter training for officers will be a key focus in 2019
Bambi Majumdar Law Enforcement, Defense & SecurityLaw enforcement officers across the country are undergoing intensive active shooter training sessions. With the unfortunate increase in violence in schools and public places, it is no surprise that these sessions will be a key focus for all law enforcement agencies in 2019. Recent active shooter incidents and their tragic consequences have been sobering learning experiences, but experts are using those experiences to create preventive programs. They have extracted and analyzed data from after-action reports and officers involved in the cases. The analytical reports are used to develop improved, faster and better ways for first responders to respond to an active shooter scene.
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Partial federal government shutdown ends but political impasse remains
Seth Sandronsky Civil & GovernmentLast Friday, President Trump signed a bill in effect through Feb. 15 that ends the 35-day partial federal government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history. What is likely to or could happen over the next three weeks as border security talks between the president, GOP and Democrats proceed? What are the prospects for a resumed shutdown if both sides fail to reach a compromise? We turn to Frank Knapp, head of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce. "The (4.8 million) contract federal workers will not get any back pay," he said in an email to MultiBriefs.
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‘Tuning in’ to people’s feelings, body language and voice…
Frank R. Myers Law Enforcement, Defense & SecurityI do not claim to be an expert, psychologist or therapy worker; however, I do believe I have a knack for "tuning in" to what people are projecting to me through their various mannerisms. With time and experience, anyone can fine tune their people "reading" capabilities through dealing with them on a day-to-day basis. This is especially true when your line of work is in the medical field. Over several years of being a crew member and then officer on an ALS (advanced life support) rescue unit with my former department, I could quickly determine what is real and what is not real.
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Want to hunt in the Western states next season? Apply for your tags soon
John McAdams Recreation & LeisureEven though deer season remains open in some parts of the country, it’s not too early to start planning for next hunting season. Specifically, application season is rapidly approaching for most of the Western states. So, if you'd like to hunt deer, elk, pronghorn, moose, mountain goat, or bighorn sheep next fall in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, or Wyoming, then pay close attention to the upcoming application deadlines to make sure you don't miss out on the chance to draw a tag.
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Airports encouraged to invest in anti-drone measures before the threats…
Matt Falcus Transportation Technology & AutomotiveFollowing the drone attacks at London Gatwick airport in December and the crippling closure of the airport to air traffic at one of the busiest periods of the year for air travel, airports are being encouraged to invest in developing measures to counter the threat before it can develop. The actions taken at Gatwick from Dec. 19-21 (and briefly at Heathrow on Jan. 8) followed the standard response when a drone or unmanned aerial vehicle enters the control zone of an active airport. The potentially catastrophic result of a collision between an aircraft and drone poses an unimaginable threat. In the case of Gatwick, it uncovered just how open airports are to this kind of attack and how ill-equipped they are to countering such an attack.
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How the partial government shutdown affects federal contractors and the…
Seth Sandronsky Civil & GovernmentAs the partial government shutdown drags on, federal contractors are living without paychecks. Further, they face the prospect of receiving no back pay when the stalemate ends, Sunny Blaylock opined in USA Today. David J. Berteau is president and CEO of the Professional Services Council, a trade group that represents federal contractors. On Jan. 8, he wrote an open letter to President Trump, noting "hundreds of thousands of employees support the government through contracts" and deserve pay for their labor.
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New spotlight cast on Florida’s felon voting rights amendment
Michelle R. Matisons Law Enforcement, Defense & SecurityIn last year's elections, the Florida GOP's choice for governor, Ron DeSantis, narrowly defeated Democratic contender Andrew Gillum, disappointing those seeking widespread progressive change in a state with notorious effects from climate change, police brutality, and election fraud politics. Despite the triumph in the governor’s race for conservatives, Amendment 4, a felon voting rights law, was passed by two-thirds of voters. Its passage means over 1.4 million people can now register to vote in a move that substantially delinks citizenship from criminal records. This is part of the larger national prison reform effort to correct mass incarceration’s multigenerational damages.
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Employing deep machine learning to fight crime
Bambi Majumdar Law Enforcement, Defense & SecurityDeep machine learning is becoming an intrinsic part of much of what we do. It is no surprise then that law enforcement is focused on leveraging deep machine learning in its work so that departments can gain vital intelligence faster. It is imperative that law enforcement officers apply these new technologies to solve crimes since criminals themselves are not shy of using them. Unlike traditional, linear machine learning algorithms, deep machine learning is hierarchical, which means it is based on increasing complexity and abstraction to process information.
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