The Fourth Wave: Digital Health Update ⋅ Paul Sonnier ⋅ Mar 20, 2018 ⋅ #318

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The Fourth Wave: Digital Health Update ⋅ Paul Sonnier ⋅ Mar 20, 2018 ⋅ #318

Dear Group,

The Fourth Wave: Digital Health Newsletter for Mar 16

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The Fourth Wave: Digital Health Newsletter for Mar 16

The world’s largest farmer-to-farmer digital network, Wefarm, has secured $5 million in additional seed funding (pun alert!). The investment was led by Silicon-Valley based True Ventures, with participation from Niklas Zennström (Skype and Atomico founder), Matt Mullenweg (WordPress founder), Bryan Meehan (Blue Bottle Coffee CEO), the Norrsken Foundation, LocalGlobe, and Accelerated Digital Ventures (ADV).

As Matt Hopkins reports in AgriBusiness Global, more than 500 million small-scale farmers “produce over 70% of the world’s food and spend over $400 billion on farm inputs and other services, annually. Yet, they are often ignored by the global markets, services, and leaders creating solutions to agricultural problems. Wefarm enables the world’s small-scale farmers—many of whom live in remote areas without access to the internet—to connect with one another to solve problems, share ideas, and spread innovation. Wefarm solves a very simple problem for these farmers: where to get help. With the world’s population projected to grow from 7 to 9 billion by 2050 and climate change showing no signs of abatement, alleviating pressures on the global food supply chain is paramount.” WeFarm’s website points out that “With 90% of smallholder farmers now able to access a basic mobile phone, Wefarm’s goal is to connect millions of farmers around the world to the information they require. We think that everyone on the planet deserves equal access to information.”

Following a more than two-year long investigation, Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of blood-testing company Theranos, has been charged with fraud by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Comission (SEC). In a settlement with the SEC, Holmes paid a $500,000 penalty, agreed to a ban on being an officer or director in a public company for 10 years, and surrendered voting control of the company.

LIVING AND SOCIETY

A new smart chair by Herman Miller nudges you to get up off your you know what. It also integrates with their smart desk and companion app.

Apple has launched a new Families page that puts all its parental tools in one place. This is in response to shareholders, who reportedly “want Apple to address a ‘growing public health crisis’ of smartphone addiction in young people.”

Writing in Nieman Lab, Christine Schmidt references a report by the Tow Center for Digital Journalism to highlight how to make VR content that actually helps readers empathize and take action.

A savvy computer scientist used an algorithm to see how often New York City’s bike lanes are blocked by delivery trucks and idling autos. The results showed that approximately 850 vehicles blocked one bike lane during 10 days and another 1,000 blocked the bus lane.

A biohacker in Sydney, Australia was fined$220 after surgically implanting the chip from a travel card into his hand. The reason? He couldn’t display the card. While Meow-Ludo Disco Gamma Meow-Meow (yes, that’s his real name as reported) was able to pay for his trip, when an inspector was unable to see the Opal card he was charged for failing to produce it.

HEALTHCARE

A new op-ed by Jared Kushner, senior adviser to President Trump, and Seema Verma, administrator of the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), argues for “progress in digital health care data.” According to Kushner and Verma: “Health innovation is accelerating at a striking pace. In the past year, we have seen advances in treatments that could not have been imagined a generation ago. Yet while technology is changing every area of our lives, we continue to lack control of our most coveted information: Our health data. And as the costs of health care continue to rise, Americans are demanding this control so that they may make the best decisions based on the value and quality of their care.”

A response from former U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra can be found here.

WEARABLE TECH

A recent post by Graham Bower at Cult of Mac focuses on using the Apple Watch Series 3’s altimeter to, as Graham puts it: “Take your running to new heights.” Hmmm, the seed funding for WeFarm and now this? It must be pun week! Graham also points out that you can use Strava’s Fitness AR app to get a picture of the more-accurate run map enabled by the alitmeter sensor.

Fitbit’s CFO recently shared some interesting (or humorous, depending on your perspective) comments about the Apple Watch: “I have yet to meet anyone who owns an Apple Watch who’s passionate about the product.” The Apple Watch is reportedly both the world’s most popular smartwatch and the best-selling wearable, ahead of Fitbit. Plus it has a customer satisfaction rate over 90%. Perhaps Fitbit’s CFO only meets the less-than 10% of users who are not satisfied with the Watch?

GENOMICS

Humor: “Genetic Mystery: Spending A Year In Space Has Left Astronaut Scott Kelly With A Much Funnier Way Of Saying ‘Check, Please!’ Than His Identical Twin Brother” Read the Clickhole ‘story’, here.

Real story: “No, space did not permanently alter 7 percent of Scott Kelly’s DNA” Compared to his twin brother Mark, Scott’s gut bacteria (part of one’s microbiome) changed significantly while he was in space. As for the genetic changes, those were in the lengths of Scott’s telomeres, the protective caps on the ends of his DNA strands. However, his time in space did not permenantly alter his DNA, even though the expression of those genes did shift.

The gene editing business sector appears to be volatile. When Feng Zhang’s CRISPR company Arbor Biotechnologies came out of stealth this week, the stock of another company, CRISPR Therapeutics, experienced a market sell-off and its share price slipped 10%. More background on Arbor Biotechnologies can be found here.

INNOVATION

A new MIT-developed body-on-a-chip device strings together 10 model human organs containing cells that can live for up to 4 weeks. The new device could help researchers see how different types of tissue respond to drugs and, in some cases, avoid the need for lab animals.‬

M&A

L’Oreal is buying ModiFace, a Toronto, Canada-based firm that specializes in artificial intelligence and augmented reality technology. This is the first tech acquisition in L’Oreal’s 109-year history. According to Lubomira Rochet, chief digital officer at L’Oreal, ModiFace’s engineers, researchers, and scientists will help L’Oreal develop additional apps and in-store services. ModiFace’s tech scans a person’s face and makes suggestions for skin-care products based on wrinkles, pores, hydration levels, and pigmentation.

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Copyright © 2018 Paul Sonnier, Story of Digital Health

Paul Sonnier
Author ⋅ Speaker ⋅ Technologist ⋅ Social Entrepreneur
Book: The Fourth Wave: Digital Health
Founder, Digital Health group on LinkedIn
Creator, Story of Digital Health
Twitter: @Paul_Sonnier
San Diego, CA, USA

 

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