TED talk recommendations

I discovered TEDtalks maybe only a year ago when my friend linked me to a talk done by George Watsky, an extremely talented poetry slammer. After watching it, I became very intrigued with what TEDtalks was all about. I began marathoning video after video, talk after talk, and I came to love the idea. TED's catch phrase "ideas worth spreading" was so simple yet so encompassing of what TEDtalks are all about. Talk topics can range anywhere from sixth sense technology to how to tie shoes properly.

The great thing about TEDtalks is that no matter the topic of the talk, the viewer is always able to walk away having learned something. For me personally, even if the talk isn't about something relatable, I always feel inspired and mindblown afterwards. My personal favorite TEDtalks that I've watched so far is Terry Moore's "How to tie your shoes", Theo Jansen's "My creatures: a new form of life", and George Watsky's spoken word presentation.

3 Most Useful and 3 Most Useless Phone Innovations

Source of Article from CNN: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/02/28/tech/weird-mobile-world-congress/index.html?hpt=hp_bn6

As an owner of a smartphone myself, I understand the every day struggles of dealing with a dying phone battery, a battery-eating color screen display, and the fear of dropping my phone into the school's bathroom toilet. Reading this article, I have chosen the 3 best and the 3 worst improvements presented at this year's Mobile World Congress.

3 Best
1. The YotaPhone--the selling point of this phone is it's dual screen with the option of viewing a color or monochrome screen. The biggest battery eaters in smartphones today is the high resolution color screen. Having the option of viewing a battery-saving monochrome screen will definitely give me less panic attacks of when my phone will die during school.

2. Ford Sync AppLink--I love using Spotify as my every day music player so having Spotify linked with my car will make listening to music on the go so much more convenient. The voice control option will also make driving safer as I can just simply talk to my phone to change songs instead of taking my eyes off the road to search for songs.

3. Wysips Voltaic Display--I love the idea of a simple and cheap transparent film having the ability to charge your phone anywhere you go. The versatility of the film's function of being able to charge the phone in either sunlight or moonlight makes it incredibly convenient.

3 Worst
1. Fingerprint Security Lock--As ingenious and creative as the idea sounds, I can only imagine so many problems arising from a security lock like this. Some laptops utilize this technology and it is known for it to falter. For a gadget as important as a phone, I would prefer not to risk locking my phone for eternity  in case the fingerprint technology does have problems.

2. Paddle shopping--While the idea of it is very concise and useful-sounding, I just don't know of many people that do their online shopping through their phones, with the exception of buying apps. I doubt an app like this will garner much attention,

3. Sensirion temperature senors--While this idea may sound to be very convenient, I think it's useless if there are already weather apps available on the market. Instead of having to wait for the sensors to activate and take in information, it's just simply easier to use a weather app which will use internet to update, which is most likely faster.

The Up and Coming Future of Genetic Testing

From the discovery of penicillin to the hypothesized double-helix DNA model, medical science has made significant advances in the past century that has extended the average life span of the human being and saved countless lives. Cancerous tumors can be caught by the click of a button in their early stages, premature babies can live to be healthy, normal children, and sterile husbands can go through procedures to allow their wives to have children. Now in the 21^st century, research is being done to create tests and procedures that will dig deep into human DNA to reveal the probabilities individuals have to contracting certain diseases and even personality traits. Paired with ever-advancing modern technology, the genetics branch of medical science is making progress and will soon offer a revolutionary kind of procedure—one that will not only predict the predispositions of an individual’s body, but one that will also change the entire field of genetics and change the way how humans are able to live.

            On the 21^st of May 2008, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) was enacted under the Bush Administration. Geneticists around the country came together to push for the passing of this legislation to protect citizens from discrimination based on what their genetic information indicates. The act, according to the National Human Genome Research Institute, basically protects individuals “from discrimination in both health insurance and employment.”

Now, the question is, what can one’s genome, or the entire DNA in an organism including its genes, reveal about the human body other than simply providing original finger prints and indicating gender? According to Sam Rhine, genetics professor at Indiana University and speaker of Genetic Update Conferences, “the number and placement of polymorphism variants in the 3,000,000 DNA nucleotides” can predict whether an individual has a high chance for prostate cancer or is likely to have anger management issues.  

The name of this revolutionary project is the Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS). These GWAS tests utilize Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH) technology in the form of a two different glass chips. One, the DNA chip, probes for fragments and the presence of variants on an individual’s DNA. The other chip, the ‘Gene’ chip, contains 1.8 million genetic markers that will read an individual’s genes.  These chips have the ability to give percentage probabilities on how likely an individual is likely to succumb to depression, contract breast cancer, or if they will be optimistic individuals.

However, critics of the GWAS project and GINA argue that though geneticists may only have good intentions, the ethics surrounding these efforts are not to be ignored. Questions are being raised about who should have access to genetic testing results, how these tests should be evaluated for reliability and accuracy, or how the public should be educated in making decisions regarding these genetic tests. Many individuals also simply want to live life without the thought of percentages and probabilities of contracting Alzheimer’s disease or hypertension looming over their minds.

            Upon the completion and perfection of the GWAS project, researchers and doctors will soon be able to use the projects’ results to help treat patients as well as help patients to take steps towards preventing any of their body’s predispositions. These microchips hold the ability to change the way patients are treated. While critics may question the usefulness and validity of these tests, it is indisputable that more and more diseases may be prevented even before early symptoms and parents may be able to find out the personality of their unborn baby. Thanks to 21^st century technology, all these goals may be made possible within the next five years and will forever change the field of genetics and the way humans will be medically treated.

 Works Cited

Human Genome Project Information. U.S. Department of Energy Genome Programs. Web.

Mar. 2013

National Human Genome Research Institute. National Institutes of Health. Web. Mar. 2013

Rhine, Sam. “Genetics Update Conference.” Walter Payton College Preparatory School.

Chicago, IL. 28 February 2013.