A World We Dare to Imagine Part 3

Cancer Cloud Consortium

·         Mission

Our mission is to utilize the latest technologies, with an emphasis in cloud computing, to cure cancer. We want to bridge the gap between different organizations and create an inclusive environment that allows medical professionals to work together to cure cancer. We heavily emphasize providing solutions for all people, regardless of economic status, sexual orientation, and religious beliefs.

·         Why you are passionate about the work that your organization will do?

We have the opportunity to save millions of lives and treat one of the greatest medical mysteries. According to the World Health Organization, cancers are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with approximately 14 million new cases and 8.2 million cancer related deaths per year. Furthermore, it is expected that annual cancer cases will rise from 14 million new cases per year (based on 2012 date) to 22 new cases per year within the next 2 decades. I am passionate eliminating because I know individuals with cancer and know that everybody in their lifetime will know others that have cancer too.

·         What is unique about what your organization intends to do?

The emergence of machine learning, cloud computing, and DNA sequencing are allowing doctors have more data than ever before. Ultimately this data can be used to cure cancer. However, in the current day, data is not shared effectively. According to CIO Magazine, “huge cancer research centers are afraid to share their data for security reasons and the datasets are so big that you can’t send them anyplace in order to pool analytics.” Therefore, we will foster a secure environment that organizations feel comfortable working with. Furthermore, another hurdle for cancer researchers is that they need a place to store their data and tools to analyze enormous datasets. Because of this problem, we will work with technology companies to help cancer centers better understand tools and solutions they can implement. Once solutions and cures are discovered, we will shift our focus to provide cancer treatment throughout the world.

·         Why should Anima Mundi Development Partners support your organization?

We are inclusive, diverse, and strive to make the world a better place. Ultimately the Cancer Cloud Consortium will pave the way to cancers cures and change the current research environment. With innovation and solutions for everybody, we hope to have cancer cures within the next decade.

Works Cited

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs297/en/

http://www.cio.com/article/2974584/cloud-computing/can-cloud-collaboration-and-data-analytics-cure-cancer.html

Chung King Road Extra Post (Gallery Openings from February)

This is the post you must have been waiting anxiously for. Sleep heavy and easy tonight, as the time has finally come. This post will explain my experience on February 27, as I attended the art gallery openings on Chung King Road in LA’s Chinatown. This night was the first time I had been to Chinatown and also the first time I had been to an art gallery.

After reading about the event online and hearing Professor Hansen discuss it, I knew it would be crucial if to properly fuel myself for an intense experience. Therefore, I went to Yang Chow Chinese Restaurant to (attempt) to eat. However, the line was out the door, the wait was about two hours. If I had made a reservation, I could have avoided this most disappointing of experiences, yet I did not even think to make a reservation. At this point, I was hungry, cold, and embarrassed (you could say showing up to a restaurant that is full is not a baller way to start off a date.) Yet as determined as ever, I pulled out my iPhone and opened the always trusty Yelp app. With little time, I took a gamble and walked to the Plum Tree Inn, and was relieved when I was seated. After eating plates full of egg rolls, fried rice, orange chicken, and walnut shrimp, I was sufficiently full enough to venture to the art galleries.

As I approached the eerie alley, known as Chung King Road, I started to feel out of my element. From my perspective, it seemed like everybody knew everybody and people also seemed like they had a plan, unlike me, who wondered from exhibit to exhibit randomly. As I experienced each new piece of art and discovered how thought-provoking so many of the pieces are, I started to enjoy the experience more. Specifically, I thought the Emma Sulkowicz exhibit was unique and something that I had never experienced before. I found it interesting how she acted annoyed when you interacted with her.  The other galleries were less memorable than the gallery with Sulkowicz's art, yet I do remember there was a gallery that had dolls made of glue, tape, and popsicle sticks. I felt that the dolls were pretty distributing. On the other hand, I found the art on the bottom right and top of this post aesthetically interesting and awesome, so there were positives to this experience too.  

A World We Dare to Imagine Part 1

I think the first step in making the world a better place is acknowledging that each individual is a citizen of the world, not simply of their immediate surroundings, and taking responsibility to ultimately better the world.

It seems like today’s world, although it is shrinking with the emergence of social media, is not changing for the better as quick as you might think because people aren’t using new technologies in the most socially responsible ways. If only there were ways to make people recognize that they can change the world – whether it be one person or countless people. When Novogratz writes “Today we are redefining the geography of community and accepting shared accountability for common human values” this underscores the idea that people have the power to inform themselves of current events in remote places of the world, through social media, and can spread word of these events. I believe that information is power and the act of spreading information can be powerful. It is mind-boggling to think that while the United States has been a relatively free society since its inception, and increasingly free over the past 60 years, that in some parts of the world there is still immense racism and sexism. However, the positive of these injustices in the 21^st century, is that we can inform people about them and ultimately create plans to combat injustice without having to be in the same physical room.

While there are many injustices and problems that need to be addressed in 2016, I am hopeful that the global community can come up with solutions. Specifically, we live in a time in which the world has never been more charitable and technology that exists is the most advanced in the history of (known) existence. We, as a people, have a unique opportunity to utilize the cloud, crowdsourcing, and other technological advancements to come up with comprehensive solutions that can change the world for all walks of life. My fear is that people, like myself, wait to try and make an impact. I personally think I can make an impact that can better the world and that my peers can too. We just need to get involved and begin the process.

Random Blog Post – Nutrition

Recently, I have taken an interest in better understanding nutrition. Specifically, I am curious about the relationship between the food you eat and the how it affects your overall health. While some people focus on nutrition to stay thin and look better, my interest has peaked because there is an immense amount of new information about how the food people eat significantly impact their ability to prevent disease and slow aging. There are a lot of myths about the diet a person should eat that I would like to discuss.

·      Organic food is the same as non-organic food

o   While it is true that both organic and conventional fruits and vegetables have the same macro-nutrients, organic produce has “phytonutrients” – which are natural chemicals which prevent disease and keep your body working properly. Some well known phytonutrients include: Carotenoids, Ellagic acid, Flavonoids, Resveratrol, Glucosinolates, and Phytoestrogens.

·      Eat anti-inflammatory foods

o   It is becoming increasingly clear that chronic inflammation is the root cause of many serious illnesses including heart disease, many cancers, and Alzheimer's disease. We all know inflammation on the surface of the body as local redness, heat, swelling and pain. It is the cornerstone of the body's healing response, bringing more nourishment and more immune activity to a site of injury or infection. But when inflammation persists or serves no purpose, it damages the body and causes illness. 

·      Whole food is much better than supplements

o   The best way to obtain all of your daily vitamins, minerals, and micronutrients is by eating a diet high in fresh foods with an abundance of fruits and vegetables. Supplements often do not have a complete spectrum of isotopes and do not have the correct concentration of a particular vitamin, which can be detrimental to the human body.

Genius of Money Post 3

Genius of Money Interview

John Bloom’s interview with Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai sheds light on investments not only as a mean of personal change, but societal transformation too. In June of 1977, Maathai decided to plant trees because of “World Environment Day.” At the time, Kenyan agriculture was mostly dominated by coffee and tea plants, and Maathai thought planting trees would be helpful because regular citizens could grow fruit and thus feed themselves, trees could be used for firewood, and also trees would help reverse soil erosion, which was common at the time. Gaining an understanding of social entrepreneurship, Wangari made the tree into a symbol: if you can plant a tree, you can change your life. Throughout her journey, Wangari has faced many obstacles, such as not having a license to assemble and government officials cutting down the trees she planted for personal use. Yet these struggles have been overcome and countless trees have been planted.

Overall, I find Maathai’s desire to plant trees in hopes of bettering her country inspiring. From my perspective, I wouldn’t think of the tree as a mechanism for changing an entire society. However, trees have allowed Kenyan people to become self-sufficient and have helped to better the environment too. A major takeaway I gather from this interview is how when a person individually invests, there can be a spillover effect that positively effects other people too. For instance, if I were to plant a tree, I would help fight soil erosion and help the environment, and thus help others that are dependent on the soil.