Should young students study overseas early in their academic careers?

It has been said that fortune favours the bold, but when it comes to studying overseas, should young students be given the push to do so?

While it has become increasingly common for university students to study in a foreign country, some parents may be eager to send their children abroad early in their academic careers, during secondary or high school, for example, for various reasons.

This could be to give them a better education than what is currently offered in their home country, to broaden their worldview, give them a better chance of success and to enjoy the opportunities presented by their host country, among other things.

Meanwhile, some other perceived benefits of studying abroad at a younger age include helping students to develop their cultural awareness, pick up a new language, widen their worldview, learn to become adaptable to change and develop their resilience in the process.

However, not all children adapt to their surroundings to reap in the benefits of studying abroad quite so seamlessly. There are other considerations to think about, such as whether your child is sent abroad on his or her own, or with their family, which can affect how well they cope.

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University of Melbourne transitions into 'smart' campus

The University of Melbourne (UoM) has implemented a smart campus program, using data from Internet of Things (IoT) sensors with the goal of improving student experience and researcher outcomes.

Speaking at the Dell Boomi World Tour in Sydney on Tuesday, UoM solution architect Ganesh Krishnan said that in order to provide better learning opportunities, it was important to better use the data it had from other parts of the organisation to generate better use cases.

"We wanted to provide students with rich campus-based learning opportunities ... we need to take advantage of the various technologies that are being deployed across our campuses to provide better learning outcomes for the students and also open new research avenues," he said.

The challenge for UoM was creating a way for its systems and data collection points to talk to each other.

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ACC/AHA Issues Guidelines for Heart Health

Officials with the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American Heart Association (AHA) issued key recommendations in the 2019 Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease at its 68th Annual Scientific Session in New Orleans, Louisiana that emphasize adopting a heart healthy diet, engaging in exercise, avoiding tobacco, using aspirin sparingly, and managing known risk factors are among the recommendations.

The guideline is meant to provide strategies that can be used and tailored for those without a history of cardiovascular disease to stay heart healthy. It also emphasizes the need to identify and address personal or social barriers for doing so, such as income and education levels; cost concerns, lack of health insurance, access to healthy foods or safe places to exercise, and life stressors.

“The most important way to prevent cardiovascular disease, whether it’s a build-up of plaque in the arteries, heart attack, stroke, heart failure or issues with how the heart contracts and pumps blood to the rest of the body, is by adopting heart healthy habits and to do so over one’s lifetime,” Roger S. Blumenthal, MD, co-chair of the 2019 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, expained in a prepared statement about the recommendations. “More than 80% of all cardiovascular events are preventable through lifestyle changes, yet we often fall short in terms of implementing these strategies and controlling other risk factors.”

According to the guidelines, the first step to prevent cardiovascular disease is to assess one’s risk through communication with a practitioner or care team. The document synthesizes data and proven interventions to improve diet, exercise and other factors, and also discusses the challenges that may interfere with individuals’ ability to incorporate better lifestyle habits.

Some of the key lifestyle recommendations include:
Eating heart healthier to include more fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, whole grains, and fish, and limiting salt, saturated fats, fried foods, processed meat, and sweetened beverages.
Engaging in regular exercise for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercises such as brisk walking, swimming, dancing, or cycling each week. For people who are inactive, some activity is better than none and small, 10-minute bursts of activity throughout the day can add up for those with hectic schedules.
Aiming for and keeping a healthy weight for people who are overweight or obese, losing just 5% to 10% of their body weight (that would be 10-20 pounds for someone who weighs 200 pounds) can markedly cut their risk of heart disease, stroke and other health issues.
Avoiding tobacco by not smoking, vaping or breathing in smoke – 1 in 3 deaths from heart disease is attributable to smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke, so every effort to try to quit through counseling and/or approved cessation medications should be supported and tailored to each individual.
Limited aspirin use for healthy people. The guidelines recommend that aspirin should only rarely be used to help prevent heart attacks and stroke without known cardiovascular disease. Recent research suggests that the chance of bleeding, given the blood-thinning effect of aspirin, may be too high and the evidence of benefit—the number of heart attacks or strokes that are actually prevented—is not sufficient enough to make a daily aspirin worth taking for most adults in this setting.

For people with type 2 diabetes, which is one of the strongest risk factors for cardiovascular disease, there are new data that 2 classes of diabetes medications, which work to lower blood sugar levels, can also cut the risk of heart attack, stroke and related deaths.

The 2019 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease will simultaneously publish in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association’s journal Circulation.

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Key role of employability in choice of foreign university

International students from several Asian countries, including India and China, who are looking to choose a university abroad have become more focused on employment prospects in choosing a subject, university and the country of study abroad.

According to a new global comparison report on international student employment outcomes and international student satisfaction published by Australian-based student-university-alumni network platform Cturtle, which also produces international student satisfaction data and the International Alumni Job Network, students from eight Asian countries are prioritising career issues in choosing a university abroad.

“We are starting to see interesting trends that show how important employability is when it comes to recommending the country or recommending the university abroad to future students,” says Shane Dillon, co-founder and group CEO of Cturtle. Sea turtle is the nickname used in China for international students who return home after graduation.

“We get a lot of enquiries asking for international study advice based on employment. We hadn’t seen it before,” Dillon says.

More than 81% of some 10,000 students surveyed from China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam said they wanted to study abroad to improve career opportunities, or to pursue a specific career, according to Cturtle’s International Student Employment Outcomes and Satisfaction Report 2019.

“With the future of work so uncertain, a lot of students are picking a course which they think will give them a greater advantage once they enter the competitive employment stage,” notes Dillon.

“Five of the top 10 reasons that students and alumni recommend their university to others are related to employability and seven of the top 10 reasons for recommending the country are related to employability,” he says, adding that the job market “is now so competitive and there are more and more international students going through that system so that their uniqueness and competitive edge is dulling. Employability then becomes a really critical issue.”

Employability has also become important because of the large amounts invested in education abroad by international students.

Poor university response

However, “universities do not really respond to this,” Dillon says. Only four or five out of 10 international students were satisfied with their university’s career support, according to the survey findings, with lower satisfaction in Australia and the United Kingdom compared to the United States and Europe.

Universities in countries like the US, Australia and Canada are failing to help international students improve their employment prospects, concentrating mainly on employability for their local students rather than for international students, he adds.

“I see a huge gap. Our research has shown that four in five international students did not get access to internships” in the host country, Dillon says. In countries like the UK and Australia only 17% of international students had access to internship offerings. In Europe it was 37% of international students.

Students from Singapore, Hong Kong, India and Malaysia were most likely to participate in internship programmes as part of their studies abroad, with 83% of Singaporeans and 71% of Indians saying they had done so – an indication of the importance students place on such internships if offered.

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education conference allows teachers to learn from their peers

DAYTON, Ohio (WRGT/WKEF) - Wright State University hosted a free educational conference Saturday for educational leaders in the Miami Valley.

The Network for Educational Renewal Conference is an event that allowed teachers and other education professionals the chance to speak with each other, so they can learn how to better help their students.

Pre-K teachers through college professors were at the conference both presenting different material and learning from their peers.

"Hopefully they take something with them that they will be able to teach in their classroom." said Assistant Director Office of Partnerships and Field Experiences at Wright State Amy Elston.

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Tcl communications unveils its patented DragonHinge technology supporting the company's future flexible display mobility portfolio

 TCL Communication's newest innovations are making their global debut at Mobile World Congress 2019 with the showcase of the company's flexible display product portfolio in addition to announcing its all-new DragonHinge technology. With the support of the company's patented DragonHinge™ technology, TCL Communication is able to showcase for the first time a preview of the company's complete lineup of flexible panel mobile devices.

Using custom flexible AMOLED displays from TCL sister company, CSOT, these foldable mobile devices are supported by TCL Communication's proprietary DragonHinge™ technology which creates a mechanical housing for these devices, allowing them to fold and bend in support of a variety of use cases. This provides effortless and seamless movement, enabling the development of further flexible device designs which will make more advanced user experiences possible.

"Together with the support of our sister company, CSOT, we're showing that TCL can be an innovator and leader in the mobile device market of the future," said Peter Lee, General Manager, Global Sales and Marketing at TCL Communication. "When we look at the potential of our flexible device portfolio, we're obviously very excited about what we'll be bringing to market down the road. However, we're not in a race to be the first because we feel it is more responsible to take a patient, thoughtful approach to not only solve hardware challenges, but also work with our partners on software solutions to ensure we deliver a meaningful user experience."

"When we look at the practical application of flexible display and foldable mobile devices, there are really three challenges that need to be overcome: the flexible AMOLED display itself, a durable mechanical housing, and of course the software that can seamlessly adapt to these new form factors," said Shane Lee, General Manager, Global Product Center at TCL Communication. "Through TCL's vertical integration with CSOT, we have conquered many of the challenges that come with flexible displays; and now with the announcement of DragonHinge™, we're able to show the world how we'll overcome the mechanical housing challenges that must be solved in order to support these new foldable form factors. We now have a hardware solution to build from, freeing us up to tackle the unique software experiences this new technology enables, and how it all ties in to the larger connected ecosystem as we prepare to launch our first foldable device next year."

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How far technology have come since the last ‘smart border’ failed?

Whether existing surveillance technologies are advanced enough to create a “smart border” remains an open question, even though a spending bill recently presented to President Donald Trump allocates $100 million for its construction. The smart border is an updated version of an old idea: a virtual fence of cameras and sensors along the line between the United States and Mexico. As soon as the suggestion gained traction, activists quickly, and rightly, pointed out that the idea violates the civil liberties of people near the border by essentially keeping them under constant surveillance. But another question is important, too: is this technology even advanced enough to work, or is it all just vaporware?

REALLY GOOD AT DETECTING LOST COWS AND JACKRABBITS AND EVEN IN SOME CASES TUMBLEWEED 

It’s a surprisingly difficult question to answer, given that Customs and Border Protection itself doesn’t have good metrics for what “works” or not. A March 2018 report from the Government Accountability Office concluded that CBP has not adequately developed metrics to determine whether the data it collects from surveillance is helpful. (At the time, CBP agreed with the GAO conclusion and said it planned to develop metrics by January 2019, but so far has not released them.) “I’ve been told that the technologies are not effective, but it’s a little bit like gossip,” says Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, a political scientist at George Mason University who studies border security. “There’s no official way to assess the effectiveness of the technology. There’s no transparency.”

Though CBP itself doesn’t have a clear system for measuring effectiveness, other sources suggest that the promised surveillance tech was mostly vaporware back in 2006, when then-President George W. Bush ordered the construction of a smart border called Security Border Initiative Network (SBINet). SBINet was supposed to consist of cameras, radar towers, ground sensors, and drones along 2,000 miles of the southern border. (All this data would be monitored at a command center.) Five years and $1 billion later, the never-completed project was killed due to high costs, bad management, and ineffectiveness.

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American University Students Hand Out Hand-Warmers to People in Cold

As bitterly cold weather descended on the D.C. area, Carly Holencik and Kendall Malinchock, two students at American University, jumped into action Wednesday afternoon.

They recognized that cold weather conditions affect everyone - including homeless people on the street.

Bundled up, the two hit the streets of northwest Washington to hand out hand-warmers to people who needed them, including to a man at the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue NW and River Road NW in Tenleytown.

"We know how cold we are out here and I can't imagine staying out here for a very long time," Holencik said.

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Length of one's lifespan may soon be predicted, all thanks to DNA

Analysing the DNA may help predict whether a person will live longer or die sooner than average, according to a study.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh in the UK analysed the combined effect of genetic variations that influence lifespan to produce a scoring system.
People who score in the top 10 per cent of the population might expect to live up to five years longer than those who score in the lowest 10 per cent, they said.

The findings, published in the journal eLife, also revealed fresh insights into diseases and the biological mechanisms involved in ageing.
"If we take 100 people at birth, or later, and use our lifespan score to divide them into ten groups, the top group will live five years longer than the bottom on average," said Peter Joshi from the University of Edinburgh's Usher Institute.

The researchers looked at genetic data from more than half a million people alongside records of their parents' lifespan.

Some 12 areas of the human genome were pinpointed as having a significant impact on lifespan, including five sites that have not been reported before, according to the study.
The DNA sites with the greatest impact on overall lifespan were those that have previously been linked to fatal illnesses, including heart disease and smoking-related conditions, researchers said.

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Scientists achieve the first stable simulations of DNA crystals

A study by researchers at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine has been the first to achieve stable simulations of DNA crystals…

Since the birth of structural biology, x-ray crystallography has been the most widely used technique to determine the three-dimensional structure of biomolecules—the chemical compounds found in living organisms. In this regard, knowledge of the interactions between the biomolecules with their crystal environment and the molecular forces that stabilise the crystals would serve to optimise this technique.

A study by researchers at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) has been the first to achieve stable simulations of DNA crystals. This accomplishment has allowed the scientists to explain the importance of the chemical additives used experimentally to achieve suitable crystallisation conditions and stable crystals in the laboratory.

“The first to benefit from this study is the community of biophysicists and computational physicists/chemists, who now have a reference and clear protocols through which to achieve stable simulations of DNA crystals,” says Pablo D. Dans, a postdoctoral researcher at IRB Barcelona.

Led by Modesto Orozco, head of the Molecular Modelling and Bioinformatics lab, the study presents the most detailed atomic description of the properties of DNA crystals to date.

“In the long term, the simulation of several crystals obtained in a range of experimental conditions should allow us to anticipate and predict the effect of a given chemical additive, thus serving to guide crystallographers in their experiments and considerably reducing the cost and time needed to obtain the crystals,” remarks Modesto Orozco, whose lab is an international reference in bimolecular computation and simulation.

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Patients at Swedish American hospital surprised by visit

ROCKFORD, Ill. - It was a special day for heart patients at Swedish American Hospital as children ages 3-5 visited today.

The children came over from the Ryan Jury Child Development Center. They were able to visit with Santa and tell him what they wanted for Christmas.

The children performed a skit and sang songs for the patients.

Carol Mittel, the Director of the daycare said, "It's a celebration of the holiday season and brings everyone, all of the families and our children together. It's just a wonderful event for everybody."

The Ryan Jury Learning Center at Swedes is named for 23-month-old Ryan Jury, who died of cancer in 1986. His family started a memorial fund which supports children's services at the hospital.

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Cost of Key medicines Leave Hospitals Scrambling

Major hospital groups on Tuesday highlighted the challenges created by both frequent shortages of critical products, including saline and injectable opioids, and rising prices for medicines, including decades-old generic drugs.

The American Hospital Association (AHA), the Federation of American Hospitals (FAH), and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) issued a new report prepared by NORC.

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American University Tells Faculty to Disregard 'Quality' of Writing When Grading

A seminar at American University in February will instruct faculty members to disregard a student’s “quality” of writing when grading their papers.

According to a report from The College Fix, an upcoming seminar at American University will ask professors to disregard a student’s “quality” of writing when grading their assignments. The seminar, which will be conducted by University of Washington-Tacoma Professor Asao Inoue, will include a variety of lectures that will encourage professors to disregard the quality of writing from students.

One event will encourage professors to recognize “white language supremacy” is perpetuated by standard grading practices.

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Some Students Think American University’s Multicultural Room Isn’t ‘Identity-Based’ Enough

American University maintains a "Hub for Organizing Multiculturalism and Equity"—HOME, for short—where students of all backgrounds "can just come and be," according to Fanta Aw, AU's vice president of campus life and inclusive excellence.

But for some activist students, HOME is a little too  inclusive.

"HOME doesn't provide people with a sense of security, with a sense of belonging, when everyone from all types of affinity groups can be there," student Othniel Malcolm Andrew Harris told The Eagle.

Some students want the university to provide housing specifically for black students, evidently so that they can avoid living with people who don't look like them. These students are dissatisfied with American's approach, which has been to consolidate all diversity-related issues under a sole administrative office: the Center for Diversity and Inclusion. And the Center is apparently in no mood to placate them.

"One of the first things we have to recognize is that the University doesn't have any space for anything at the moment," Rafael Cestero, Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Student Government, told The Eagle. "Because we go to AU, if we give space to one minority group, every single other minority group is going to be marching outside of MGC," he added, speaking in unusually blunt terms for a campus diversity czar.

Bluntness aside, I think the administration is quite right to rebuff student demands for what are essentially segregated spaces. Universities should be consciously breaking down barriers between people, not erecting new ones. The goal should be to make the rest of the campus more like HOME.

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American University hosts free courses to help furloughed workers

Vicki Wilkins of American University in Washington, D.C. had an idea: add more students to their classrooms during the partial government shutdown.

“To give them a chance while furloughed to get some new skills, take a workshop get some networking in,” Wilkins says.

The idea was to offer 12 free classes for those whose paychecks have been on hiatus since late last year.

Classes include subjects like “Building Your Brand” and “Mindfulness in the Workplace.”

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American University of Sharjah announces 100% scholarships

Sheikh Sultan was briefed on a number of educational, scientific, academic, financial and research developments and progress for the university. 
He also endorsed 100 per cent merit-based scholarships for highly qualified undergraduate students as part of the university's new sustainable five-year plan.
The Sharjah Ruler reviewed and approved resolutions, including the approval of the audited Consolidated Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended 2017/2018.
KPMG issued an unqualified audit opinion and complimented the university's exemplary accounting and budgetary strategy.

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Important Breakthroughs in Medicine and Progress on Mars

One of the most striking aspects of scientific and technological developments of 2018 has been the emergence of China as an outright leader – in areas ranging from genetic engineering to space missions. More widely, science continued its internationalizing trend, with smaller players such as the UAE and KSA participating in major endeavors (satellites and space probes), alongside the US, Europe, Russia, India, Japan, and others. In space, Mars was the main area of progress, while in science, many of the most important advances were made in the field of medicine. But of course, there were a number of noteworthy and intriguing developments in other fields of science and technology.

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Nursing Students Part of Historical Moment for University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences

On December 14 the inaugural cohort of the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program graduated from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (USAHS). Seven graduates from the cohort attended the USAHS December Commencement ceremony in San Marcos, California; among the graduating class was Subash Adhikari (Oklahoma City, OK), Stephanie Carpenter (Charlottesville, VA), Donielle Ferriman (Carlsbad, CA), Deborah Lewis (Moreno Valley, CA), Patrick Mayorga (Carlsbad, CA), Allyson Roeda (Lubbock, TX) and Valera Wahlers (Carlsbad, CA).
The MSN at University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences is an online program, giving students the choice of four nurse specializations that offer optional campus-based experiences and provides students access to nursing faculty members who are nurse leaders in practice and education. The program gives students 24/7 access to online courses and learning resources, providing the flexibility to fit within the busy schedule working nurses must manage. The eight students in the first MSN cohort attended class from throughout the U.S.
At a special dinner held the evening prior to the commencement ceremony, MSN graduates and their guests were invited to a celebratory dinner with USAHS leaders in honor of the historical moment for the university. Dr. Melanie Logue, Senior Family Nurse Practitioner Program Coordinator, raised a toast to the graduates.

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Students and Faculty at American University Call for “Minority Only” Spaces

Students and faculty are calling for “minority only” spaces at American University (AU) in Washington, D.C. Supporters of the proposed spaces believe that they will somehow foster diversity on the campus following a year of racial tensions.

Diversity through exclusion: The strategy seems antithetical to itself, but then again, so does much of leftist thought.

An incident first reported in May of 2017, in which bananas with racist messages written on them were found hanging from trees on the campus, triggered the alleged racial tension which is said to exist on the campus.

In response to the incident, American University created the Hub for Organizing Multiculturalism and Equity (HOME), which is meant to be a place where students of any ethnic or racial background “can just come and be,” according to Fanta Ay, the vice-president of campus life and inclusive excellence.

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The 50 most underrated colleges in America

Whether a student is more inclined to learn about artificial intelligence or take up photography, several factors play a role in choosing the right college.

Business Insider has compiled a ranking of the top 50 underrated colleges nationwide by considering two factors: reputation and future earnings. We figured that schools with mediocre or obscure reputations but whose students made high salaries would be underrated.

To determine our ranking, we combined the mutually exclusive sets of Best Universities and Best Liberal Arts Colleges from The US News & World Report's annual college ranking. We pulled data on median earnings for students from each school who were working and not enrolled ten years after starting at the college from the US Department of Education's College Scorecard. You can read the full methodology here.

The Missouri University of Science & Technology took the No. 1 spot. The campus has an atmosphere students described as a less stereotypical Big Bang Theory episode, according to The Princeton Review.

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