Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurological condition that affects the nervous system. And while one of the main symptoms of the disease is tremors, there are several others that cause just as many issues. One of the most common complaints about PD patients is constipation. And while there are some new and innovative options in which to solve this problem, scientists aren’t convinced they’re ready to be used yet.

The main treatment in question is called Fecal microbiome transplantation (FMT). Another is the use of pre- and probiotics in order to restore a healthy microbial balance in the gut. 

FMT involves the transporting of liquid filtrate feces from that of a healthy individual to a PD patient via a nasoduodenal or nasogastric tube, colonoscope, or enema.  

“FMT is an interesting option for restoring the changes in the microbiome of PD patients,” says lead investigator on the study, Tues Van Laar, MD, Ph.D., Director of the Parkinson Expertise Center Groningen, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands. “It is an attractive technique because the administration is relatively simple and in general it has only a mild pattern of adverse effects.”  The problem is that as of yet, no rigorous clinical trials have been conducted, leaving many unanswered questions about the whole FMT treatment process. 

In regards to the pre- and probiotics, Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium administered over a 4-12 week period, has been proven to effectively treat constipation in PD patients. However, there is no solid data available regarding the potential side effects of these treatments when give to those with PD. 

Following successful prebiotic animal trials, the first human trial of FMT for PD patients is now in action at the University of Ghent in Belgium and is scheduled to be finished by the end of 2019. The trial consists of 40 PD patients, each of whom will receive follow up assessments quarterly. During these meetings, the patient’s PD symptoms will be assessed to see what improvement, if any, has been made.   

The investigators believe that there needs to be more clinical data available before allowing PD patients to undergo FMT treatment. There are various knowledge gaps that need to be filled first, including the optimal route of administration of FMT, the frequency or content of FMT, and what possible adverse side effects could occur as a result of FMT.  

“FMT is a black box with too many unanswered questions at the moment, also with respect to safety concerns,” advises Prof. van Laar. “FMT or the use of pro- and prebiotics might become standard treatments in selected subgroups of PD patients in the future, but there are no good data yet in the public domain to support their use in PD patients.” The team is hopeful that this review will spur others on to begin more in-depth research into this topic as opposed to starting the therapy without any solid clinical data.

Influence marketing is constantly developing, opening up more and more opportunities for companies to promote themselves on the market. The new trends make brands revise the practice of short-term cooperation and turn to build long-term relationships with marketers and key opinion leaders. So what to expect from marketing in the near future? What are the key trends that will define the success of your business? Take a look at the report not to miss out on important information.

1. 71% of Marketers Practice Strategic or Highly Strategic Influence Marketing

At the same time, companies allocate only 10% of the budget on the influence of marketing. Besides, 50% of managers spend less than $100,000 a year in this area. Obviously, marketers need to invest more in their strategies. If you do not know where to get start-up capital for your business, you can consider registering an account on the bitcoin otc platform. Have all the necessary information and support on how to do this better and faster on thejingstock.com. Get all the instruments and dashboards necessary for trading and keep a wary eye on market tendencies. 

Fortunately, 55% of surveyed marketers plan to spend more on influencer marketing next year. For those who already allocate more than $250,000 to the niche, this figure is even higher and reaches up to 67%. 

2. 67% of Marketers Want to Generate Leads Through Influence Marketing

In addition to strengthening brand awareness and reaching a new audience, most marketers (74%) also expect lead generation and increased conversion rates from influence marketing. KOL’s play an important role in the entire life cycle of the client and in all brand communications with the target audience. 

3. 80% of Marketers Report the Impact of Influencer Marketing on Content Strategy

Given the ROI assessment of brand relationships with KOL’s, the best option is to collaborate on content creation. Only in such a way, it is possible to achieve measurable and significant results. Compared to SMM and relationships with the media, influencer marketing is a leader.

4. 43% of Marketers Experiment with Influence Marketing

Many companies have just begun to develop influence marketing, so experiments are very popular at this stage. 28% of marketers chose the campaign format for influence marketing, while 24% implement ongoing programs. 

5. 48% of B2C Influence Marketing Programs Are Ongoing

Only 11% of B2B companies implement the same approach. Given the high appreciation of the content role in influencer marketing and the longer B2B closing cycle, one can expect this approach to grow in popularity in the future.

6. PR Strategy Plays an Important Role in Influence Marketing

There is a “competition” between marketing and PR. However, several departments within the organization can build relations with KOL’s at once. However, their effective management will require special automation tools.

7. 57% of Businesses Plan to Integrate Influencer Marketing Over the Next 3 Years Fully

Today, only 5% of marketers consider their content marketing programs integrated. In the next 3 years, the trend will intensify – more companies will start to integrate key opinion leaders into their business promotion.

A world-first has been recorded in the world of ultracold chemistry as Professor Kang-Kuen Ni creates the coldest chemical reaction ever. By forcing together two ultracold molecules, Ni managed to break and form the coldest bonds we’ve ever seen in the history of ultracold chemistry. 

Back in 2014, Ni and a colleague began constructing a new kind of apparatus that would enable the lowest ever temperature chemical reactions to take place. The problem was they were unsure their plans would work. But, they did. And, not only did they achieve performing the coldest reaction ever, they also managed to see it in full action. 

Capturing a chemical reaction is no easy feat. But, in temperatures of -500 nanokelvin molecules much slower, enabling Ni and her team to see exactly what was happening when two molecules meet to form two new ones. Understanding how chemical reactions work at this level could help the world evolve massively.

In Ni’s previous studies around ultracold reactions, she was only ever able to see the start of the reactions. “There was no direct measurement of what actually happened in these chemical reactions, “she said. But, now, it’s a whole different story. “Because the molecules are so cold,” says Ni, “now we kind of have a bottleneck effect.” And it’s this bottleneck effect that allows them to see what’s going on during the chemical reaction as bonds break and form. 

Next on the horizon for Ni and her team is to see how else they can use the ultracold test bed to learn. One thing it could be used for is to excite the reactants before the reaction to see what impact their heightened energy had. Or, they could even try and influence it as the reaction takes place by nudging one or more of the molecules. 

“With our controllability, this time window is long enough, we can probe,” said Ming-Guang Hu, a postdoctoral scholar in the Ni lab and first author on the paper. “Now, with this apparatus, we can think about this.”

While various studies have been carried out on the sun, none have gotten a closer look inside the sun’s corona than this. And, according to a group of University of Michigan researchers, what’s found inside is rather surprising. 

The U-M researchers play pivotal roles when it comes to NASA’s Parker Solar Probe mission. In August 2018, the spacecraft was launched in hopes to achieve the answers to these two fundamental questions:

• Why does the corona’s temperature increase the further you move from the surface?
• What causes the solar winds emanating from the corona to accelerate? 

Justin Kasper is a professor of climate and space sciences and engineering at U-M who is largely involved in the study. He believes that “these observations will fundamentally change our understanding of the sun and the solar wind and our ability to forecast space weather events.” The findings revealed that the impact the sun’s rotation has on solar wind is far greater than we realized. “To our great surprise, as we neared the sun, we’ve already detected large rotational flows 10 to 20 times greater than what standard models of the sun predict,” said Kasper. And while this information is exciting, it also means that we’re “missing something fundamental about the sun, and how the solar wind escapes”. 

The other part of the research mission, regarding the sun’s magnetic field, also bought equaling compelling results. Solar winds contain magnetic oscillations called “Alfven waves”. Previously these waves were believed to have been remnants of whatever the source of the heating was.

However, the Parker mission bought some unexpected results. “When you get closer to the sun, you start seeing these ‘rogue’ Alfven waves that have four times the energy than the regular waves around them,” explains Kasper. “They feature 300,000 mph velocity spikes that are so strong, they actually flip the direction of the magnetic field.”

Could these polarity-reversing velocity spikes be responsible for the corona getting hotter the further it gets from the sun? Only further research (and time) will tell.

Cancer is one of the world’s biggest killers and every day scientists are battling it out trying to find that desperately needed cure. And while most of this research is carried out in labs all across the world, some of Australia’s top scientists are taking it a little further – into space. This will be Australia’s first-ever space research mission that involves going to the International Space Station (ISS). While up there scientists will attempt to determine how some of the most aggressive cancer cells react when in zero-gravity.  

The hope is to replicate the results of a similar experiment carried out in a zero-gravity chamber on Earth built by a group of scientists at Australia’s University of Technology (UTS) School of Biomedical Engineering. The hope is to determine how microgravity affects breast, lung, nose, and ovarian cancers, which are some of the hardest to kill. Leading the study is researcher Dr. Joshua Chou of UTS. Dr. Chou and his team will work alongside German YURI in which to build the hardware to transport the cells into space. 

When cancer evolves it splits some of the body’s cells at an uncontrollable rate. The tissue is invaded and cells come together forming a solid tumor until a time when the cells are signaled to begin attacking the body. Unfortunately, no one knows when that will happen. “There must be a means by which cancer cells ‘feel’ and ‘sense’ each other in order to form a tumor,” says Dr. Chou. “We know the only way cancer cells sense their surroundings is through mechanical forces. And these forces only exist when there’s gravity.”

During testing in the UTS microgravity chamber around 80-90% of cells in those ‘hard-to-kill’ cancers were disabled either through death or because they were unable to cling on. Hence why the team is now ready and excited to be performing the experiment in space. “My hope is to confirm what we found in the lab and be able to identify new targets and introduce a drug that tricks the cancer cell into thinking it’s in space when it’s actually still on Earth,” says Chou. 

If successful, the drug could potentially improve existing cancer treatments enough to rid the disease once and for all. 

Photo by Drew Hays

Looking for a room to stay in Washington? Then look no further than Great Wolf Lodge Washington, a family-friendly resort that brings the best of Washington to your steps. Great Wolf Lodge offers a flat-screen TV and air conditioning in the rooms and it is easy to stay in touch during your stay as free Wi-Fi is accessible to guests.

Plus, guests can enjoy a pool and a lounge, which have made this a famous choice among travelers visiting Centralia. For guests with a vehicle, free parking is available. Washington is also home to King Agriculture Museum, a popular history museum that is not too far from Great Wolf Lodge. Surely you’ll enjoy your stay at Great Wolf Lodge as you experience everything Centralia has to offer.

Veterans Memorial Museum

The mission of the Veterans Memorial Museum is to honor and perpetuate the reminiscence of the servicemen and women who have served in our nation’s armed militaries through the history of our country during peacetime or war. The mission of the museum began over a decade ago with the goal of making sure that our veterans shall not be forgotten.

The museum contains a 9,000 square foot main corridor with 85 display cases and hundreds of displays glorifying veterans. The museum features a military history orientation library with thousands of volumes. There is also a gift shop and a “USO” where you can come and enjoy a cup of coffee and conversation with local veterans. For special circumstances, the museum has a modern 3,000 square foot Events Center available for reunions, conferences, meetings, and receptions.

George Washington Park

This two-acre park was created by public title during the original platting of the town in 1881 to serve as Centralia’s principal park square. The property is certain on the north and south by Main and Locust Streets and on the west and east by Silver and Pearl Streets. The maturely landscaped grounds also feature Centralia’s Carnegie Endowment Library and large wood summerhouse. The park is a widespread famous spot, particularly during special events such as Music in the Park, Veteran’s Memorial Walk, and other rituals.

Fort Borst Park

Three miles of entertaining trail at Centralia’s most conspicuous park have become well-utilized by locals, and it’s easy to see why. Two loops, the Sports Loop and the Lake Trail, make up the superior Borst Park loop of 2 miles that takes people past Borst Lake and the sports amenities. The Smooth Mile Loop, created in 2014, is precisely one mile, giving the flawless route to jog or walk and log a mile or a few.

The Borst Park trails give easy access to numerous areas of the park, counting the Borst Dog Park, Demonstration Garden, and the historic Borst Home. As for the park itself, Fort Borst Park is a noticeable place and has recently become even more so with its use as part of the Northwest Sports Hub. Several ballfields at the park’s complex regularly host baseball and softball games through a diversity of administrations. Borst Lake is a general fishing spot for youngsters, and the Dog Park on site is a popular place for people to let their four-legged friends run free and spend some energy.

A few years ago, a Northern California Meetup group called Web and Interactive Media Professionals held a discussion on the new Docker platform. Many experts discussed how Docker would make a profound impact on the profession. Some people were skeptical, but the more experienced developers recognized that it would transform the industry. 

These predictions have clearly come to light. The market for Docker Technology is expected to reach $5 billion by 2023. The rate of adoption is likely to increase even further in the following years. 

Many people that are new to the IT profession are still trying to understand the appeal of Docker. The reality is that there are a number of major benefits. Some of the biggest reasons that Docker has become so popular are listed below.

Excellent compatibility with different add-ons

Most platforms have limited capabilities without add-ons and expand their range of features. Docker is no exception.

Docker makes it easy for developers to use a variety of add-ons to improve the range of features of the platform, such as Devops tools by Jfrog. This gives them far more opportunities to leverage the capabilities of this new technology. Open-source developers can create more tools for Docker. 

Small learning curve

Some development platforms have failed to take off, despite their tremendous versatility. The biggest issue is that they took months or years to master. Few developers were willing to invest that much time to learn the features of these types of platforms. Since they were not widely adopted, even the developers that would have otherwise been willing to invest the time and resources needed to learn them didn’t put in the effort. After all, nobody wants to learn a system that nobody else is using. They won’t have much job security understanding a technology that nobody else has adopted.

Docker, on the other hand, is much more widely used. The single biggest reason that it has been adopted more than most other new platforms is its very small learning curve. The features of this platform are extremely intuitive. There are also a number of excellent resources to help people master it.

Incredible scalability

One of the drawbacks of many other platforms is the incredible amount of computing resources needed. Developers often encounter a bottleneck when they are trying to compound resources and exponentially increase the number of data sets that they are using.

Docker is a better alternative for developers that are concerned about scalability. Docker containers are able to perform a massive amount of computations with minimal hardware resources.

This means that Docker is the ideal platform for developers working on projects that require multiple terabytes of data. They don’t have to face unacceptable project delays to acquire additional hardware. It also helps reduce the cost constraints of using Docker, which means that companies are able to invest in more resources to get the same amount of benefits from it. 

 Exceptional collaborative capabilities

Modern development projects require increasingly large teams. Developers are going to have far more difficult if they don’t use an interface that encourages collaboration.

The Docker framework is perfect for enabling collaboration between team members. They can seamlessly develop projects with few communication issues or snags.

Docker is incredibly popular for numerous reasons

Docker is a very sophisticated new form of technology. Developers are using it to create highly complex solutions with a fraction of the resources they previously needed. Savvy developers will develop a proficiency with Docker to maximize its potential. Developers that are knowledgeable about Docker are going to have a lot more job security as it becomes even more widely adopted. 

Photo by Austin Distel

Cybercrime is quickly becoming the number one threat that businesses face today. However, according to a report by KPMG, over half of SMEs do not think that cyber threats pose a danger to their businesses. This is alarming, given that over 60% of SMEs that experience a cyber breach do not recover.

Apart from internal risk, cyber threats pose a big threat to businesses due to noncompliance. It doesn’t matter if a company can weather the storm when their data is in the wrong hands; regulators are actively punishing those who mishandle customer data. This means big fines and penalties for companies operating in the United States, the EU, and other jurisdictions that have adopted data protection laws.

The New Form of Cyber Attacks

In today’s connected world, criminals recognize the importance of data to businesses. Attackers are coming up with new and sophisticated ways of infiltrating businesses, and are holding their data at ransom.

From ransomware to remote access, phishing to social engineering, businesses need to be on guard now more than ever. Even older attack methods like DDOS and cross-site scripting are getting more sophisticated.

Why Take Cyber Protection Seriously

Companies are losing trillions of dollars each year as a result of data breaches and other cyberattacks.

The Online Trust Alliance (OTA) reported that businesses lost over $45 billion to cyber attacks in 2018. Accenture reports an expected 72% jump in the cost of cybercrime over the next five years.

These losses represent actual money lost to cybercriminals, as well as those spent in settling fines and penalties by regulatory bodies. To be safe, businesses need effective data protection and compliance management systems in place.

Here are some ways of protecting your data from cybercriminals and other threats in 2020 and beyond.

1. Install Antivirus Solutions and Firewalls

Not many SMEs take cybersecurity seriously. Studies show that most businesses don’t invest in enterprise-level antivirus products or robust firewall solutions.

Having an up-to-date antivirus solution is a business’s first line of defense against common online threats. Today’s antivirus products are sophisticated and can detect and prevent advanced malicious programs. Antivirus software can flag malicious devices and files, prevent users from accessing infected web links, protect your network, and quarantine all malware detected in your systems.

An active firewall is like a perimeter fence that keeps threats at bay before they reach your local network. Robust firewalls have active and passive network and device monitoring modules that stop cyber threats on their tracks.

Firewall rules can be set to prevent insiders from accessing critical data storage assets or high-risk websites. Using an enterprise-level firewall solution is essential for businesses looking to protect their data.

2. Active Threat Monitoring and Identification

Part of the data protection process is being able to detect threats early enough and stopping them. This can be done using various monitoring tools, implementing strong access policies and logging systems, among other measures.

Install commercial network monitoring tools to detect threats before they are executed. Some of these tools come embedded in antivirus and firewall systems.

3. Use VPNs and Encryption

Most businesses today work with remote teams. These teams may need to access data in the company’s internal systems, such as CRMs and ERPs, remotely. Remote access is also the favorite attack method used by cybercriminals. If you require any form of remote access for your business systems, use virtual private networks (VPNs).

A VPN offers end to end data encryption, thus keeping would-be attackers from performing MIM (man in the middle attacks). Encrypted data going through a VPN is almost impossible to crack.

Internal encryption of databases and files should also be considered since most attackers look for loosely secured data.

4. 2FA And Continuous Authentication

With increased computing power, criminals are finding it easier to crack passwords. Therefore, relying on passwords alone is not good enough for data protection. New and sophisticated authentication systems such as 2FA, biometric access, and AI-powered continuous authentication systems can add an extra layer of protection.

Also, implementing robust password policies for your organization, such as mandatory password changes after a predetermined duration, can help to reduce the risk of data breaches.

5. Training and Awareness

There is a need for non-technical staff members to understand the data protection policies of your organization and how they affect them. This way, the staff will know how to identify and prevent social engineering attacks. IT staff should also keep abreast with happenings in the cybersecurity landscape, as they are your first line of defense.

Cyberattacks targeting small and medium-sized enterprises are becoming more common. It’s time for every business to take a proactive approach to data protection. If recent events are to go by, more companies will be at the receiving end of regulatory fines due to non-compliance. Will your firm be among them?

As enterprise networks evolve, the need for a secure WAN increases. In the past, sensitive data storage and processing was primarily performed on an organization’s internal network. As a result, it was easy to defend these resources behind the secure network perimeter.

With the growth of mobile and cloud computing, how organization’s networks are structured has changed dramatically. Now, a great deal of sensitive and valuable data is processed and stored in the cloud, on infrastructure outside of the organization’s direct control. Users no longer solely access this data from inside the corporate network, as the use of mobile devices for business grows.

The evolution of the enterprise network has driven a range of digital transformation initiatives, like the adoption of software-defined WAN (SD-WAN). SD-WAN allows organizations to optimize the use of their network infrastructure, and SD-WAN security compares favorably to traditional networks built using multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) or Internet-based VPNs.

However, deploying a secure SD-WAN system is only half of the solution to network security. Securing the modern WAN requires the ability to limit the access of even authorized users within the network. Implementing a software-defined perimeter (SDP) is a crucial step in accomplishing this.

Shortcomings of Traditional WAN Security

Many organizations take a perimeter-focused approach to securing their WAN. This security model is based on the assumption that anyone inside the network has a legitimate right to be there, and that the main security task is ensuring that unauthorized parties cannot get inside. This is accomplished by deploying a robust set of cybersecurity monitoring and defensive solutions at the network perimeter.

However, this security model is incorrect for multiple reasons. First, the concept of the network perimeter no longer applies to the modern enterprise WAN. Currently, 91% of organizations are using public cloud deployments, meaning that systems “inside” the organization’s WAN are hosted on infrastructure owned by a cloud service provider (CSP).

Another issue with the perimeter-focused model for WAN security is that authorized users are often entrusted with access to all resources on the WAN. Since 94% of organizations give external parties (like vendors and subcontractors) accounts on their networks, this opens up these organizations to attack by malicious insiders or external threats who gain access via the breached network of an external partner.

SDP Security Benefits

A software-defined perimeter is a solution for enforcing need-to-know within the enterprise WAN. In most cases, authorized network users do not require complete access to all of the resources on the enterprise WAN, and allowing unnecessary access can result in data breaches or other security incidents through employee negligence or malice.

An SDP takes an identity-centric approach to managing access to assets within the enterprise WAN. With SDP, each user receives individual access to requested resources after having their identity and authorization verified. This creates a “zero trust” network architecture, where users may not even be aware of the existence of, let alone be able to access, assets for which they do not have authorization. 

This provides the organization with several security benefits.

• Granular Access Control

The “all or nothing” access provided to users under a perimeter-focused security model does not meet the business needs of the modern enterprise. The majority of users on the enterprise WAN only have a legitimate need to access a small portion of the organization’s resources. The design of SDP makes it easy to control user access to assets based upon authorization and need to know.

An SDP built on top of an SD-WAN with integrated security can leverage the capabilities of the SD-WAN to provide optimized, secure access to corporate assets. For example, the use of the deep packet inspection (DPI) capabilities built into the next-generation firewall (NGFW) of an SD-WAN system with security integration can be used to provide continuous protection of traffic both pre and post authentication.

• Cloud and Mobile Protection

One of the major shortcomings of traditional WAN networking, and even appliance-based SD-WAN, is an inability to provide both high network performance and enterprise-grade network security for cloud and mobile devices.

As organizations increasingly leverage cloud and mobile for business purposes, a growing percentage of enterprise network traffic is flowing over transport links outside of their control. When the enterprise’s public cloud is accessible over the public Internet, rerouting traffic between it and devices outside of the network to perform traffic inspection at the headquarters network creates unacceptable network latency and performance impacts.

On the other hand, if traffic is not routed through the organization’s security infrastructure, devices do not receive the benefits of these devices. These same issues exist with SDP point products as they also must make tradeoffs between security and performance for cloud and mobile users.

Achieving high-performance, secure WAN networking requires cloud-based SD-WAN, where point-of-presence (PoPs) with integrated security functionality can be distributed geographically in the cloud and connected with high-performance network links. SDP built on cloud-based SD-WAN infrastructure has the visibility needed to inspect all traffic in the enterprise WAN, providing comprehensive access control that includes cloud and mobile environments.

Securing the Enterprise WAN with SDP

As enterprise networks evolve, the importance of securing the enterprise WAN only grows. With sensitive data and processing being performed in the cloud and on mobile devices, organizations need the ability to control access within these environments. A software defined perimeter is the solution, offering identity-based access control based upon need-to-know.

Photo by Markus Spiske