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Panic-buying of protective N95 respirators is putting at risk the very research that aims to stop deadly pathogens. To adapt, some high-level biosafety labs are switching to reusable air-purifying hoods but these are far more expensive. We can be creative, says infectious-disease researcher Joan Nichols. But at the end of the day, we cannot do this work unless we’re protected properly. https://undark.org///covid-19-n95-mask-shortage-research/

Erika H. James has been named dean of the Wharton School, effective July 1. She is currently dean of Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. In making the announcement, President Amy Gutmann said James is a passionate and visible champion of the power of business and business education to positively transform communities locally, nationally, and globally. She is exceptionally well prepared to lead Wharton into the next exciting chapter of its storied history. https://penntoday.upenn.edu//erika-h-james-named-dean-penn

Americans need facts and sciencenot reassurance that all will be well. The presidential press conference on the coronavirus pandemic was, sadly, a disappointment, Arthur Caplan, a bioethicist at NYU Langone Health, says in a statement emailed to The Scientist. https://www.the-scientist.com//governments-mixed-messages-

A machine-learning approach has spotted powerful new types of antibiotic from a pool of more than 100 million molecules, including one that works against bacterial strains considered untreatable. This is the first time artificial intelligence has identified completely new kinds of antibiotic from scratch, without relying on any previous human assumptions. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00018-3

In 2005, research from the Shore Health System of Maryland ICU showed that the homeopathic remedy, Kali bichromicum (Kali-bi) reduced excessive mucus in seriously ill patients, lessened their time on ventilators, resulted in less respiratory complications, and shortened their stay in the ICU. In contrast, those in the control group who had not received the remedy took considerably longer to recover, with some returning to the ventilator after extubation because they struggled to breath something that had not been a problem for the homeopathic group. As a result, the hospital added the Kali-bi to their pharmacy. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15764779

The Indian government’s Ministry of AYUSH, which promotes alternative medicine systems in the country, released a health advisory on January 29 that advocates the use of homeopathy and traditional remedies, such as Indian systems of medicine, to ward off infections of the newly circulating 2019-nCoV coronavirus. This includes the use of a homeopathic preparation called Arsenicum album 30C. https://www.the-scientist.com//indian-authorities-propose-

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), one of the largest and most influential conservation organizations in the world, boasts a network of 15,000 scientific experts, some of whom have interests that run counter to wildlife conservation and may in fact promote the trade of endangered animals. https://www.the-scientist.com//corruption-and-conflicts-at

We use a component of the blood of the Horseshoe crab to test reagents and media for Endotoxin content. https://getpocket.com//the-last-days-of-the-blue-blood-har

On Thursday, the United States Department of Energy announced plans to build a cutting-edge nuclear physics research facility called the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) at New York’s Brookhaven National Laboratory. The EIC promises to keep America in the forefront of nuclear physics research and particle accelerator technology, critical components of overall U.S. leadership in science, U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette said in a press release. https://futurism.com/the-by/doe-new-york-particle-collider

A Chinese court has sentenced leading animal-cloning researcher Li Ning to 12 years in prison for embezzling millions in research funding. Li was one of several scientists at Chinese universities who were arrested in 2014 for misusing research grants. Li has denied stealing the money, and said that he had invested unused grant funding with the intention of supporting research in future years. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00051-2

Proton therapy leads to a significantly lower risk of side effects severe enough to lead to unplanned hospitalizations for cancer patients when compared with traditional radiation, while cure rates between the two groups are almost identical. The findings come from an expanded analysis of the largest review of its kind, performed by researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine. https://penntoday.upenn.edu//proton-therapy-lowers-risk-si

For the first time, altruistic behaviors have been seen in birds in a lab setting. African grey parrots will spontaneously help each other obtain food even when there is no obvious benefit to the helper. https://www.the-scientist.com//image-of-the-day--helpful-b

This old microscope has served us well for more than 25 years...