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Category: Science

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: How China’s green transition is reshaping ethnic minority communities

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Reza Hasmath, Professor in Political Science, University of Alberta

    China has emerged as a global front-runner in the fight against climate change, with sweeping policies aimed at curbing environmental degradation and building a more sustainable future.

    Yet behind these green ambitions lies a more complicated human story. Ethnic minority communities — who make up roughly nine per cent of China’s total population and often inhabit ecologically sensitive regions like Tibet, Xinjiang, Yunnan and Inner Mongolia — are experiencing the transition in ways that involve significant trade-offs.

    Where they live, how they work and the cultural practices they depend on have all been shaped by state environmental policies, often without meaningful input or representation.

    My ongoing research examines the lesser seen consequences of China’s environmental agenda, focusing on how it affects the lives of ethnic minority communities across four critical dimensions: traditional livelihoods, internal migration, economic well-being and cultural identity.

    Disruptions to traditional livelihoods

    For centuries, many ethnic minorities in China have built their livelihoods around the land. Tibetan nomadic herders, Uyghur and Kazakh farmers and communities like the Yi, Qiang or Tu have long depended on agriculture, grazing and forest products not just for economic survival, but as a way of life deeply tied to ancestral customs and ecological knowledge.

    That fabric is now fraying. Climate change, rising temperatures and desertification have degraded pasturelands in Tibet and farmland in Xinjiang, undermining herding and agriculture.

    At the same time, state policies like the Grain for Green program, which converts farmland into forest to reduce erosion, have displaced upland farmers and restricted access to traditional lands.

    These disruptions are compounded by restrictions on small-scale logging and non-timber forest product collection. These practices have long sustained communities such as the Hani, Dai and Yi.

    Although these initiatives aim for environmental conservation, they often lack provisions for alternative livelihood options, rendering affected ethnic minority communities vulnerable to economic hardship.

    Internal migration

    As China’s environmental and development policies reshape rural regions, ethnic minority communities are increasingly affected by internal migration. Some ethnic minority families move voluntarily for work, while others are displaced by large-scale infrastructure or conservation projects.

    In Tibet, expanded rail and road networks have boosted trade, but contributed to the migration of herding communities. In Yunnan, dam construction has displaced villages inhabited by ethnic groups such as the Nu, Lisu, Hani and Bai, often with minimal consultation.

    Relocation into urban areas introduces new pressures: overcrowded infrastructure, limited services and increased competition for employment. These conditions can exacerbate the marginalization of ethnic minorities and heighten social tensions.

    The effects are especially stark in Xinjiang. Uyghur communities have been relocated to new urban zones where efforts framed as economic development often fracture social structures and push assimilation.

    Coupled with securitization measures, such transitions risk eroding cultural identity and deepening socio-economic disparities, particularly among ethnic minority women.

    Ultimately, internal migration fragments extended family networks, an essential characteristic for many ethnic minority cultures. Without inclusive planning, these relocations can entrench the very inequities that sustainability efforts seek to address.

    A double-edged economy

    Green transition policies promise new livelihoods through eco-tourism, conservation work and renewable energy sectors. For some communities, these transitions have created new pathways.

    Pilot programs in ecologically sensitive zones such as Qinghai have involved Tibetan herders as conservation workers, combining ecological protection with livelihood maintenance.

    These examples remain exceptions. Most affected communities lack training and access to green jobs. The Grain for Green program offers short-term land conversion subsidies, but little in the way of long-term retraining. As a result, some households plunge deeper into poverty after losing access to their farmland or pasture.

    Ironically, relocated families sometimes end up in low-paid construction jobs tied to the very projects that displaced them. This circular dependency — displaced by green projects, then employed in their construction — offers no route to upward mobility and deepens socio-economic marginalization.

    Cultural displacement

    Perhaps the most intangible impact of China’s green transition is cultural. In many ethnic minority communities, livelihoods are intertwined with the environment; rituals follow the seasons and sacred sites mark the land.

    Conservation bans and resettlement disrupt ancestral customs and erase mobility patterns, as seen with the sedentarization of Tibetan nomads.

    Eco-tourism campaigns and “heritage villages” try to preserve culture. However, they often turn it into a spectacle. Traditions become performances curated for tourists, while the deeper practices — language, inter-generational teaching and land-based rituals — fade.

    Well-meaning efforts to promote ethnic minority festivals in the name of boosting tourism have also sometimes led to the standardization of diverse traditions into single narratives, minimizing internal variation in customs and flattening community voices.

    A more inclusive green transition?

    There is no doubt that China’s climate ambition is transforming its economy and the daily lives of millions. From the Tibetan Plateau to the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang and across the vast grasslands of Inner Mongolia, environmental protection is impacting the people whose lives are rooted in these fragile ecosystems.

    Making this transition equitable means ensuring ethnic minorities shape, not merely receive, state policy. That includes integrating local ecological knowledge into conservation planning, providing long-term training for displaced populations and ensuring that relocation compensation reflects economic losses, as well as social and cultural costs.

    China frames its environmental vision through the concept of “ecological civilization,” a philosophy rooted in Confucian ideals and socialist principles that seeks to harmonize human development with nature. At its best, this model aspires to align economic growth with ecological balance.

    For ecological civilization to fulfil its promise, it must be inclusive and prioritize cultural rights alongside environmental goals. Environmental policymakers must recognize that sustainability is about both reducing emissions and preserving the dignity, heritage and agency of all communities.

    China’s green transition has the potential to be a global model. To lead by example, however, it must confront not only the climate crisis, but also the deeper challenge of inclusion.

    Reza Hasmath does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. How China’s green transition is reshaping ethnic minority communities – https://theconversation.com/how-chinas-green-transition-is-reshaping-ethnic-minority-communities-259793

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kaptur Applauds $650,000 in Research Awards to University of Toledo, Stresses Importance of Federal Funding

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09)

    Toledo, OH — Today, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09) announced two major research awards totaling $650,000 for the University of Toledo from the National Science Foundation (NSF). These investments are a testament to Northwest Ohio’s scientific leadership and a clear reminder of the critical role federal research funding plays in the future of American innovation, education, and security.

    “The University of Toledo continues to shine as a center of scientific excellence and innovation,” said Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09). “These awards are a powerful example of how federal research funding drives discovery, creates jobs, and gives students real opportunities here in Northwest Ohio. But we must be clear: if the Trump Administration fails to protect funding for science and innovation, we not only stall progress — we risk losing the talent, technology, and competitiveness that keep the innovative engine of our nation alive.”

    The two NSF awards include:

    •  $149,999 for research into fatigue-resistant aerospace-grade aluminum nanocomposites, led by Dr. Meysam Haghshenas. This work aims to improve safety and durability in critical sectors like aviation, space, and transportation.

    • $500,000 for the development of adaptive metal origami structures, spearheaded by Dr. Ala Qattawi, which has applications in robotics, defense systems, and biomedical devices.

    “This National Science Foundation project is an exciting convergence of two foundational research missions, where an equipment award from the U.S. Department of Defense provided the critical infrastructure that now empowers our fundamental investigations supported by the National Science Foundation,” said Dr. Meysam Haghshenas, an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical, Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering and the director of UToledo’s Failure, Fracture and Fatigue Laboratory. “It is a perfect example of how strategic investment in cutting-edge instrumentation can bridge agencies and catalyze fundamental scientific discovery at the core of national interest.”

    “I’m honored and excited to receive the National Science Foundation’s CAREER Award,” said Dr. Ala Qattawi, an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering. “This award will help propel our research into foldable metal structures inspired by origami by using advanced 3D printing and smart materials that respond to heat and other triggers. These adaptable geometries hold great promise for applications in aerospace, robotics and biomedical devices. Federal support through the NSF, along with growing interest from industry partners, is helping us build critical momentum in this area along with the ability to train and prepare future workforce in advanced materials manufacturing. I’m grateful for the opportunity to push the boundaries of what’s possible and to provide UToledo students with more exposure and experience in basic research and additive manufacturing.”

    Combined, these projects are projected to support dozens of undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and lab technicians over the next several years. The research also bolsters workforce development by integrating student-led research into university coursework, and by providing outreach opportunities in local K–12 classrooms — exposing young learners to high-tech, hands-on science before they reach college.

    # # #

    MIL OSI USA News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: A Statement from FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, M.D., M.P.H: 100 Days of Embracing Gold-Standard Science, Transparency and Common Sense

    Source: US Department of Health and Human Services – 3

    For Immediate Release:
    July 10, 2025
    Statement From:

    As I mark my hundredth day on the job at the FDA, I’m proud to celebrate the agency’s accomplishments in the bipartisan effort to Make America Healthy Again. I came here with big questions: Why does it take ten years for a drug to reach patients? How can we fix America’s  food supply so it is not filled with harmful chemicals and additives? Why are childhood chronic diseases so prevalent? We are taking bold action to address these big, obvious problems, and more, which have been staring at us for years.
    The FDA regulates products that account for 20% of all U.S. consumer spending, and our work impacts the lives of every American. Over the past 100 days, we’ve launched dozens of key initiatives across the full range of the FDA’s purview to help make food healthier for children and families, accelerate meaningful cures and treatments, and modernize the agency with transparency, gold-standard science and common sense. Highlights include:  
    Food – Healthier Food for Children

    Fixing America’s Food Supply

    Petroleum-based food dye removal – Took action to phase out petroleum-based synthetic food dyes from the U.S. food supply, which are linked to numerous health risks.
    Improving infant formula – Continued the work of Operation Stork Speed by hosting an expert roundtable on infant formula and exploring new ways to bring additional and healthier options without ingredients like seed oils, added sugars and heavy metals to market.
    Food chemical review – Initiated a robust, transparent review of chemicals currently in the food supply, such as BHT, BHA and ADA; and expedited the review of chemicals currently under review, such as phthalates, propylparaben and titanium dioxide.
    GRAS reform – Exploring rulemaking to require “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) submissions to FDA to stop industry’s long-standing practice of introducing ingredients into the food supply without FDA knowledge or oversight.
    Natural food dyes – Approved uses of three food colors derived from natural sources: Galdieria extract blue, butterfly pea flower extract and calcium phosphate, and initiated an accelerated the review of other natural alternatives.
    Began revising broken dietary guidelines – Launched the Nutrition Regulatory Science Program in partnership with NIH to better address highly relevant questions for Americans’ health, such as the impact of ultra-processed foods and the effect of certain food additives.
    Defining ultra-processed foods – Will launch FDA/USDA request for data and information to help develop a uniform definition of ultra-processed foods, and industry roundtable, paving the way for additional study and action.

    More Meaningful Cures, Treatments and Diagnostics

    Accelerating Cures  

    Reducing animal testing – Published a roadmap to transition away from animal testing for investigational new drug applications wherever possible and use more effective, human-relevant methods, such as organ-on-a-chip systems, advanced computer simulations, and pre-existing international data. Announced the intent to launch a pilot program in which select monoclonal antibody developers may pursue a primarily non-animal-based testing strategy, under close FDA consultation.
    Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program – Announced a pilot program to expedite drug review processes from 10-12 months to 1-2 months following submission of a final application addressing U.S. national priorities, such as tackling a major health crisis or unmet public health need, increasing domestic drug manufacturing, and delivering more innovative cures for the American people.
    Revised Covid-19 vaccine regulatory framework – Adopted a new evidence-based approach to Covid-19 booster approvals, replacing a one-size-fits-all regulatory framework and broad marketing authorizations with a risk-stratified approach that is already embraced by most doctors and parents. Updated labeling of mRNA shots to include new safety information about myocarditis and pericarditis.
    Addressed industry influence – Limited the circumstances where individuals employed at FDA-regulated companies, such as pharmaceutical companies, may serve as members of FDA advisory committees, where statutorily possible, to mitigate perceived conflicts of interest and strengthen integrity to the review process.
    CEO Listening Tour – Launched a six-city listening tour to meet directly with pharmaceutical and biotech executives, gathering honest feedback and big ideas to help the agency better accelerate cures and innovation.
    Cell and Gene therapy innovation – Engaged dozens of industry experts in a roundtable to shape actions that will ensure America leads at the forefront of innovation in this space.
    Removed restrictions on certain gene therapies – Removed REMS requirement for currently approved BCMA- and CD19-directed autologous chimeric antigen receptor CAR T cell immunotherapies, the first of many steps towards a more common-sense regulatory approach in this space.
    Diagnostics to empower healthy decisions – Cleared the first in vitro diagnostic device that tests blood to aid in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease.  Initiated process to remove regulations on Laboratory Developed Tests (LDTs).
    Extended-release drug labeling change – Revised labeling on extended-release stimulants for ADHD treatment, cautioning parents and providers about the risks of adverse reactions, including weight loss, when used by children under six.

    Administration – Gold-Standard Science & Common Sense

    Protecting American Consumers

    Combatting illegal vapes – In collaboration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, seized nearly $34 million worth of illegal, youth-appealing e-cigarette products originating in China.
    Protecting the microbiome from fluoride tablets – Initiated action to remove concentrated ingestible fluoride prescription drug products for children from the market, which were not FDA-approved and have been shown to alter the gut microbiome.
    Examining talc – Hosted an expert panel to review the latest evidence and discuss potential health risks associated with talc used in food, drugs and cosmetics.
    Unannounced foreign inspections – Expanded the use of unannounced foreign inspections where appropriate, holding domestic and international drug manufacturers to the same high standard.
    Holistic inspection policy review – Began comprehensive review of the agency’s policies and practices for foreign inspections (including policies related to travel accommodations), ensuring the FDA remains the gold standard for regulatory oversight.
    Protecting American’s biological samples – Initiated action to review and, where necessary, halt clinical trials which involve exporting Americans’ living cells and DNA to labs in hostile countries, such as China, for genetic engineering and subsequent infusion back into U.S. patients.
    Enhancing drug importation – Fought high prescription drug prices by working to streamline the process by which states can pursue importation of safe, effective and affordable drugs from Canada, without imposing additional risk to public health and safety.
    Cracking down on falsified data – Discovered that third-party testing companies in China were producing falsified or otherwise invalid data; acted swiftly to protect the integrity of the premarket application process and the medical device supply chain.
    Fighting “gas station heroin” –Issued warning letters against companies distributing and selling unlawful tianeptine products, warned health care professionals and the general public about the extensive adverse events associated with tianeptine use.
    FDA import alerts – Updated several import alerts – for certain dietary supplements, cheeses, seafood, fish products and more – to help prevent illegal and unauthorized products flooding the U.S. market and risking American’s safety and health.

    Unleashing AI and Big Data

    AI-assisted review – Completed a successful first AI-assisted scientific review pilot, demonstrating that internal AI tools can greatly reduce the time reviewers spend on mundane tasks or non-productive busywork.
    Equipping reviewers with internal AI tools – Launched Elsa, a generative AI tool designed to help all FDA employees – from scientific reviewers to investigators – work more efficiently. Elsa is just an initial step in the FDA’s larger plans to integrate AI into agency processes.
    Building a better adverse event reporting database – Launched a comprehensive effort to consolidate disparate adverse event reporting databases, which will enable far more effective post-market monitoring of drug products.

    Modernization and Radical Transparency

    Transparent communications – Created FDA Direct, a regular channel for communicating directly with the public through frequent, unscripted conversations with the FDA Commissioner about strategic updates and the thinking behind key agency decisions.
    Transparent agenda – In the Journal of the American Medical Association, provided a clear outline of FDA leadership’s priorities for modernizing and improving the agency in the months ahead.
    Transparent decision making – Began publishing, to the greatest extent possible, decision letters issued in response to applications for new drugs and biological products.

    I’m excited by what the talented FDA team have been able to achieve in 100 days by embracing gold-standard science, radical transparency and common sense. This is just the beginning. We’ll continue to introduce initiatives to modernize the agency, protect consumers, bring more meaningful cures, treatments and diagnostics to patients, and make healthier food available for children, using the best science and data to Make America Healthy Again.
    Related Information

    Related Information

    ###

    Boilerplate

    The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, radiation-emitting electronic products, and for regulating tobacco products.

    Content current as of:
    07/10/2025

    Follow FDA

    MIL OSI USA News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Russia: China ready to deepen cooperation with Egypt within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative – Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China /more details/

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    CAIRO, July 10 (Xinhua) — China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Egypt under the Belt and Road Initiative in areas including economy, trade, finance, manufacturing, new energy, science and technology, and cultural and humanitarian exchanges, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in Cairo on Thursday.

    As Li Qiang indicated during his meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, China is ready to encourage more competitive Chinese companies to invest in the Egyptian economy.

    Li Qiang conveyed cordial greetings from Chinese President Xi Jinping to A.F. al-Sisi, saying that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, China-Egypt relations have been developing rapidly in recent years.

    According to the Premier of the State Council, the Chinese side hopes to work with Egypt to take advantage of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries to develop traditional friendship, strengthen political mutual trust and continue to firmly support each other on issues affecting mutual core interests.

    China, Li Qiang continued, is willing to work with Egypt to continuously enrich the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership, promote new achievements of bilateral cooperation in various fields, and consistently move towards the goal of building a China-Egypt community with a shared future in the new era.

    According to Li Qiang, today’s international situation is characterized by growing turbulence and worsening chaos, in particular, this concerns protracted and intractable conflicts in West Asia and North Africa.

    The head of the Chinese government stressed that China is ready to maintain close communication with Egypt and facilitate a speedy end to hostilities in the Gaza Strip.

    The Chinese side is also willing to work with Egypt to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis, prevent the spread and escalation of the conflict, and make unremitting efforts for a comprehensive, fair and lasting settlement of the Palestinian issue, Li Qiang noted.

    He said China hopes to strengthen communication and coordination with Egypt in multilateral forums including the UN, BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to implement genuine multilateralism.

    Li Qiang added that China is willing to work with Egypt to promote the building of an equal and orderly multipolar world and an inclusive economic globalization that benefits everyone, and promote the sustainable and long-term development of China-Arab and China-Africa cooperation.

    A.F. al-Sisi asked Li Qiang to convey his sincere greetings and good wishes to Xi Jinping, pointing out that under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, China has achieved remarkable achievements in socio-economic development.

    China is a sincere friend of Egypt, and since the establishment of diplomatic relations, bilateral ties have consistently developed in a stable and successful manner, the Egyptian leader stated.

    In recent years, he particularly noted, Egypt and China, through joint efforts, have established a comprehensive strategic partnership, as a result of which bilateral ties have reached the highest level in history.

    A.F. al-Sisi assured that Egypt firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is ready to maintain close high-level exchanges with China, advance the joint construction of the Belt and Road, and deepen cooperation in areas such as economy, trade, investment, new energy, infrastructure and tourism.

    According to him, Egypt welcomes the entry of more Chinese enterprises into the Egyptian market and is ready to create favorable conditions for this.

    A.F. al-Sisi added that his country supports a number of global initiatives put forward by Xi Jinping and is willing to strengthen multilateral cooperation with China to promote peace and development around the world. –0–

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Russia: China Ready to Deepen Cooperation with Egypt under Belt and Road Initiative – Premier of State Council of China

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    CAIRO, July 10 (Xinhua) — China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Egypt under the Belt and Road Initiative in areas including economy, trade, finance, manufacturing, new energy, science and technology, and cultural and humanitarian exchanges, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in Cairo on Thursday.

    As Li Qiang indicated during his meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, China is ready to encourage more competitive Chinese companies to invest in the Egyptian economy.

    Li Qiang conveyed cordial greetings from Chinese President Xi Jinping to A.F. al-Sisi, saying that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, China-Egypt relations have been developing rapidly in recent years.

    According to the Premier of the State Council, the Chinese side hopes to work with Egypt to take advantage of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries to develop traditional friendship, strengthen political mutual trust and continue to firmly support each other on issues affecting mutual core interests.

    China, Li Qiang continued, is willing to work with Egypt to continuously enrich the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership, promote new achievements of bilateral cooperation in various fields, and consistently move towards the goal of building a China-Egypt community with a shared future in the new era.

    According to Li Qiang, today’s international situation is characterized by growing turbulence and worsening chaos, in particular, this concerns protracted and intractable conflicts in West Asia and North Africa.

    The head of the Chinese government stressed that China is ready to maintain close communication with Egypt and facilitate a speedy end to hostilities in the Gaza Strip.

    The Chinese side is also willing to work with Egypt to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis, prevent the spread and escalation of the conflict, and make unremitting efforts for a comprehensive, fair and lasting settlement of the Palestinian issue, Li Qiang noted.

    He said China hopes to strengthen communication and coordination with Egypt in multilateral forums including the UN, BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to implement genuine multilateralism.

    Li Qiang added that China is willing to work with Egypt to promote the building of an equitable and orderly multipolar world and an inclusive economic globalization that benefits everyone, and promote the sustainable and long-term development of China-Arab and China-Africa cooperation. –0–

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

    July 11, 2025

  • NITI Aayog unveils plan to boost state innovation ecosystem

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Thursday unveiled NITI Aayog’s roadmap to bolster State Science and Technology Councils, calling on States to align their research priorities with the Centre’s push to make India a knowledge-driven economy.

    Speaking at the launch event at NITI Aayog, Singh described science and technology as the country’s “key growth engine” that would steer India’s aim of becoming the world’s third-largest economy. He credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for overhauling India’s planning architecture by replacing the Planning Commission with NITI Aayog in 2014, calling it a shift towards long-term, evidence-based policymaking.

    The roadmap aims to create closer coordination between the Centre and States to unlock regional scientific talent and ensure grassroots-level impact of research. “State S&T Councils must become effective bridges between labs and communities,” Singh said, urging States to link up with industry to help start-ups scale and attract private investment.

    He underlined the Centre’s focus on public-private partnerships and called for reducing overdependence on government funding for innovation. “A mindset shift is crucial if we want to unlock innovation at scale,” he said.

    Singh also pointed to India’s recent scientific strides — from Chandrayaan-3 to indigenous vaccine development and gene therapy trials — as evidence of growing global credibility. Resident patent filings have jumped by over 50% and nearly two-thirds of India’s research output now comes from centrally funded institutions, he added.

    Describing the newly established Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) as a “game-changer”, Singh said it would bridge gaps between academia and industry through co-investment in research. He also highlighted the liberalisation of India’s space and nuclear sectors and called for the government to play the role of facilitator rather than controller.

    NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery said the roadmap was necessary for States to align with national development goals and drive sustainable innovation. Member V.K. Saraswat stressed the need to embed sustainability into research and strengthen state-level capacity building.

    Senior officials including CSIR Director General Dr. N Kalaiselvi, Earth Sciences Secretary Dr. M Ravichandran, and ANRF CEO Dr. Shivkumar Kalyanaraman were present at the launch.

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Trump’s budget cuts are adding to risk in life-threatening floods and emergencies

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Clodagh Harrington, Lecturer in American Politics, University College Cork

    Acclaimed author Michael Lewis wrote a book about the first Trump administration entitled The Fifth Risk, outlining the consequences when people who don’t understand how the government of a vast, complex and multifaceted nation works are put in charge of said government.

    The bestseller was more gripping and fascinating than any work of fiction. It outlined the realities that followed Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign promises to shrink the federal bureaucracy. In it, Lewis quotes lawyer Max Stier, who he describes as the American with the greatest understanding of how his nation’s government worked. Stier offers the truism that “the basic role of governments is to keep us safe.”

    You might deduce that this means those in charge during, and ahead of, emergencies should know what to do and how to do it. And, they have to want to do it. In the case of Trump term one, there was often evidence that some or all of these three elements were lacking. Evidently, planning for distant risk was not something that Trump and his team were interested in prioritising.

    Fast forward to July 2025, and US headlines are filled with images of devastating flash floods in which more than 100 Texans, many of them children, lost their lives. In Kerr County, outside of San Antonio, water levels of the Guadalupe River rose to what was considered a once in a “100-year catastrophe”. Nobody saw it coming, or at least not to the extent that it did. Despite official warnings, the result was one of the worst natural disasters ever faced by the state.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    Days earlier, Trump’s “big beautiful bill” was passed in the Senate with a tight 51:50 majority. Republican Texas senator Ted Cruz was among the supporters of a bill which will cut funding for the National Weather Service (NWS) by 6.7% in 2026. These come on the back of earlier resource reductions to the NWS and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA).

    Within days of the Texas floods, Democrats were calling for an investigation into whether previous budget cuts might have affected capacity for flood preparedness in Kerr County.



    Read more:
    How Donald Trump’s economic policies, including uncertainty around tariffs, are damaging the US economy

    For the bereaved, talk of culpability will hardly bring solace. And any immediate political blame game presents as unseemly in the middle of so much personal tragedy. But a New York Times article reported that “some experts say that staff shortages might have complicated forecasters’ ability to coordinate response”. Such speculative language does not offer clarity or reassurance, and even the often brash president has thus far refrained from finger pointing.

    Nonetheless, uncomfortable conversations are necessary, as it is clear that slashing federal funding does not serve the nation well. Trump already had budget cutting form, as his first-term efforts to slash NOAA and related programme funding demonstrated.

    In 2017, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was also targeted for staff and funding reductions. This came along with the appointment of EPA chiefs who appeared uninterested in prioritising the climate crisis. More recently, the controversial spending cuts agency the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), headed by Elon Musk, included NOAA in its sights.



    Read more:
    Why Texas Hill Country, where a devastating flood killed dozens, is one of the deadliest places in the US for flash flooding

    Yale University’s Center for Environmental Communication said that while there was no clear evidence that budget cuts had affected weather forecasting in the Texas case, Trump’s planned additional cuts would affect some of NOAA’s key flash flood forecast tools. This includes the Flash project, which improves accuracy, timing and specificity of warnings, such as those that occurred in Texas on July 4. It also said that the weather service had lost many of its most senior staff, which would increase the risks associated with weather-related tragedies.

    Flood water in Texas rose spectacularly fast causing dozens of deaths.

    Cuts and the climate

    Across the board, Doge has targeted other agencies that the public rely on in a crisis, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), where plans to reduce staffing by about 20% are currently coming into effect. With responsibility for managing natural and climate-fuelled disasters from hurricanes to floods, the agency has become busier in recent years as disasters have evolved from seasonal to perennial.

    Rob Moore, the director of flooding solutions at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an influential environmental body, argued that “America’s disaster safety net is unraveling.”

    There are likely to be more floods, and other nature-based catastrophes with multiple probable causes and features. While outright prevention may not always be possible, governmental risk and disaster management can help to preclude the devastation seen on July 4 in Texas.

    The problem with responding to long-term risk with short-term or inadequate solutions is that one day, an existential threat could arrive for which the US will not be ready. The danger may not even be as overwhelming as a global pandemic or nuclear threat. It could be as mundane as a local river overflowing. For those who lost their loved ones in Texas, there is nothing distant about their anguish.

    A country with the world’s largest economy does not have to cut federal bureaucracy corners. Wasting tax dollars is never a vote winner, but funding vital emergency services like Fema and the National Weather Service is a fundamental feature of an advanced democracy. As is investing in the technology and personnel to do all possible to predict flash floods. Trump would do well to remember this as he meets the bereaved in Kerr County.

    Clodagh Harrington does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Trump’s budget cuts are adding to risk in life-threatening floods and emergencies – https://theconversation.com/trumps-budget-cuts-are-adding-to-risk-in-life-threatening-floods-and-emergencies-260710

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Women’s Euro 2025: what players do to recover between matches — and how they prepare for their next game

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Paul Hough, Lecturer Sport & Exercise Physiology , University of Westminster

    Recovery starts for England’s Lionesses as soon as the match ends. Romain Biard/ Shutterstock

    As with many competitions, competitors in the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 tournament face a gruelling match schedule. There are typically only three or four days between matches during the group stage of international tournaments – with some teams even facing tighter turnarounds depending on scheduling.

    This congested fixture schedule places a significant physical demand on players, increases injury risk and makes it challenging to sustain peak physical performance. This is why recovery strategies are put into action from the moment the match ends so players are in peak condition for the next match.

    The first recovery strategy happens as soon as players arrive in the changing room. There will be a buffet-style food selection with plenty of carbohydrate and protein-based snacks to begin refuelling. Players also typically consume a “recovery” drink. This consists of carbohydrates to restore muscle glycogen (which our body uses for energy), and around 20-30 grams of protein to aid muscle repair.

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    Over the following days, players will follow a meticulously-planned diet with the correct balance of carbohydrates, protein, fats and nutrients (such as the polyphenols found in tart cherry juice) to support muscle repair and adaptation.

    Sweat loss during matches – particularly in summer tournaments – leads to significant dehydration. Players typically sweat around 1.5 litres or more during a match. Immediately after a match, players are given isotonic drinks to replace the water and electrolytes (specifically sodium) they’ve lost through sweating.

    To estimate fluid loss, players’ post-match weight is recorded to guide how much they should drink. A one kilogram reduction in body weight corresponds to roughly one litre of fluid lost through sweating. To re-hydrate, players drink around 1.5 litres per kilogram of weight lost.

    Physical recovery

    Some players might perform around 10-15 minutes of low-intensity aerobic activity immediately following the match – such as cycling. This light activity maintains blood flow to the muscles, which might reduce the feeling of muscle soreness in the following days, although the evidence for this is inconclusive.

    Players often use cold water immersion (ice baths) to reduce inflammation, swelling and muscle soreness. This involves standing or sitting in cold water (which is between 10–15°C) for around 10–15 minutes. Players may also take ice baths in the days between matches. Although there’s debate over whether ice baths speed up recovery, it remains a widely accepted practice in elite sport where rapid recovery is prioritised.

    Another option involves alternating between hot water (around 36°C) and cold water – a practice known as contrast water therapy. Contrast water therapy causes the blood vessels to constrict in the cold water, then dilate in the hot water. This practice may enhance blood flow, reduce swelling and decrease muscle soreness.

    Players often wear compression garments for several hours post-match and overnight. These garments enhance blood flow and reduce swelling. They’re also shown to reduce pain and muscle soreness.

    Recently, inflatable compression leg sleeves have become popular among athletes. These boots inflate and deflate cyclically to promote blood flow and lymphatic drainage. This works similar to a sports massage or contrast water therapy, helping clear inflammatory proteins from the body. This may reduce swelling and decrease the severity of muscle soreness.

    Sleep also plays a crucial role in a player’s physical and mental restoration between tournament matches. Players are encouraged to get eight to ten hours of quality sleep per night. Some players even take a 20-90 minute nap in the early afternoon to increase alertness, improve mood and potentially improve performance.

    Recovery will be tailored to each player.
    Jose Breton- Pics Action/ Shutterstock

    Good sleep hygiene can help players get a good night’s sleep even despite hectic tournament schedules. This involves ensuring their bedroom is cool and dark and minimising screen time before bed.

    Preparing for the next match

    The day after a match, players will perform a recovery session incorporating some sort of light activity – such as cycling, dynamic movements in the swimming pool and foam rolling (a type of self-massage that uses a foam cylinder to apply pressure to different muscles).

    Although light activity does not accelerate muscle recovery, it can offer psychological benefits – such as reducing the feeling of muscle soreness and stiffness. Players may also undergo targeted physiotherapy and massage to reduce muscle soreness, increase mobility and ease pain.

    Recovery time varies between players and the level of fatigue they experience. Fatigue will be influenced by the player’s age and their match demands – with players who run a greater distance or perform more sprints and changes of direction typically taking more time to recover between matches.

    Players’ fatigue is monitored between matches using various methods – including GPS data, biochemical markers of inflammation and muscle damage, and wellness questionnaires. This data is used to individualise training and recovery.

    Players showing elevated fatigue might perform light technical drills, tactical walkthroughs of different plays and strategies the player might use on the field and mobility-focused gym work to maintain sharpness without causing more fatigue. Whereas players whose fatigue levels have returned to close to normal will resume normal training.

    Performing on the world stage with the weight of national pride brings intense pressure. Players must contend with media scrutiny coupled with the expectations of coaches and fans. These factors can disrupt sleep and trigger a biological stress response, which may impair recovery.

    So to help manage mental stress, teams schedule structured downtime, encouraging players to connect with family or engage in hobbies that promote mental recovery and psychological detachment from football. Sports psychologists may also support players during tournaments, providing mental skills training and helping players develop strategies to cope with stress and pressure.

    Paul Hough does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Women’s Euro 2025: what players do to recover between matches — and how they prepare for their next game – https://theconversation.com/womens-euro-2025-what-players-do-to-recover-between-matches-and-how-they-prepare-for-their-next-game-260248

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Over 1.6 million children live in families made poorer by the two-child limit on benefits – new data

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ruth Patrick, Professor in Social Policy, University of Glasgow

    New government statistics released today show the reach of the two-child limit. There are 1,665,540 children in England, Scotland and Wales living in households affected by the two-child limit, an increase of over 35,000 from the same time in 2024.

    The two-child limit restricts means-tested child benefits to the first two children in a household, subject to some exceptions.

    Its sister policy, the benefit cap, affects over 115,000 households, including 300,000 children. It routinely pushes families into deep poverty, far below the standard poverty line of 60% of median income.

    The benefit cap places a limit on the total amount a household can receive if no-one in the household earns a minimum amount, again subject to some exceptions linked to receipt of disability benefits.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    Over the past five years, we have been part of a team of academic researchers investigating the impact of both policies on families with three or more children. We’ve found that these policies drive up poverty, creating deprivation and hardship. This in turn causes sustained and severe harm to children and their families.

    The two-child limit and benefit cap leave many families living with extreme financial insecurity. They harm parental mental health, as mothers and fathers struggle to try and make an inadequate income stretch to meet the needs of their children.

    Parents are struggling to make their income go far enough.
    Odua Images/Shutterstock

    In addition, these policies do not fall evenly across the population when looking at ethnicity. Overall, 70% of the families affected by the two-child limit are white, as are 66% affected by the benefit cap. But our new analysis shows that children from an ethnic minority are up to three times as likely as white children to be affected by the two-child limit. They are also up to four times as likely to be affected by the benefit cap.

    Alongside administrative statistics, we have analysed household survey data, published today as a policy brief. We find that one in five children from Pakistani families and one in four children from Bangladeshi families are now affected by the two-child limit.

    Rising poverty

    Our analysis also indicates that these policies are contributing to very high and rising levels of poverty. We estimate that 66% of Bangladeshi children, 60% of Pakistani children, and nearly half (48%) of black children live in poverty. This compares to one in four (24%) white children living below the poverty line – still far too many.

    This new analysis provides us with better understanding of where the damage done by both policies is falling. It’s an important reminder of how the two-child limit and benefit cap directly conflict with ambitions not only to act on child poverty, but also to reduce systematic inequalities linked to ethnicity.

    Scrapping the two-child limit would give larger families access to benefits they currently miss out on – but it would not have any effect on smaller families living in poverty, so isn’t the only policy solution needed.

    Nonetheless, analysis by the Resolution Foundation has shown that getting rid of the two-child limit – which would cost £1.4 billion – is by far the most cost-effective way to reduce the number of children living in poverty. Spending £1.4 billion in other ways – for example by increasing benefits for all families – would make less difference to child poverty than if the two-child limit were ended.

    It’s also important to keep in mind the impact on the depth of poverty. Larger families tend to be living further below the poverty line. Scrapping the two-child limit will make a big difference in many households, even if they are not lifted out of poverty as a result.

    Labour came into government on a manifesto of “change”, and Keir Starmer has promised to be “laser-focused” in his commitment to drive down poverty.

    Labour have already said that they want to get rid of the two-child limit, arguing that they just need to find the money to do so. The government has established a child poverty taskforce, due to report in the autumn, and made a first concrete policy commitment with the extension of free school meals provision for families in England. But there is no alternative to serious action on social security benefits if significant progress is to be made.

    Ruth Patrick receives funding from a range of funders including Nuffield Foundation, AFFT, Trust for London, The Robertson Trust and the Centre for Impact on Urban Health. She is a member of The Labour Party.

    Kitty Stewart has received funding from the Nuffield Foundation and from LSE for the research reported in this article.

    – ref. Over 1.6 million children live in families made poorer by the two-child limit on benefits – new data – https://theconversation.com/over-1-6-million-children-live-in-families-made-poorer-by-the-two-child-limit-on-benefits-new-data-260449

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Child hospitalised as bird flu cases climb in Cambodia

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Divya Venkatesh, BBSRC Discovery Fellow, University of Oxford

    Tom…foto/Shutterstock.com

    Cambodia’s Ministry of Health recently confirmed the country’s twelfth human case of H5N1 avian influenza so far this year. The patient, a five-year-old boy from Kampot province, is currently in intensive care with severe respiratory symptoms.

    The announcement, on July 3, came just days after a 19-month-old child in neighbouring Takeo province died from the same virus.

    To date, there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission. But the steady increase in cases has renewed attention to the risks posed by H5N1. This highly pathogenic bird flu virus spreads rapidly among poultry and occasionally jumps to humans – often with deadly consequences.

    Since 2003, there have been at least 954 reported human infections globally, nearly half of them fatal, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Experts have long considered H5N1 a serious pandemic threat due to its high mortality rate and potential to evolve.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    The recent Cambodian cases are linked to the 2.3.2.1e lineage of H5N1 (previously known as 2.3.2.1c), a strain that has circulated for decades in poultry across Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. From 2005 to 2014, Cambodia saw sporadic but severe human infections – then almost a decade passed without new cases.

    That changed in 2023 when six human cases were reported. The numbers have since climbed: ten in 2024, and now 12 in the first half of 2025. Of these recent infections, at least 12 – about 43% – have been fatal. A troubling pattern is also emerging: seven of this year’s cases occurred in June alone, according to the WHO’s latest Disease Outbreak News update.

    Animal pandemic

    Globally, however, a different H5N1 lineage – 2.3.4.4b – has dominated in recent years. This strain sparked a devastating wave of avian outbreaks starting in 2021, sweeping across continents and decimating wild bird and poultry populations. It also spread to mammals, leading scientists to label it an “animal pandemic”.

    Although it no longer causes mass die-offs, 2.3.4.4b remains widespread and dangerous, particularly because of its capacity to infect mammals. It has been linked to about 70 human cases in the US alone, with only one death recorded so far, and is under investigation for suspected mammal-to-mammal transmission in species, including US dairy cattle and seals.

    Bird flu strain 2.3.4.4b is suspected of mammal-to-mammal transmission.
    BearFotos/Shutterstock

    Influenza viruses are notoriously prone to genetic reassortment – a process by which two or more strains infect the same host and exchange genetic material. These events can sometimes generate new, more transmissible or deadly variants. In April 2024, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization reported the emergence of a reassortant virus in Vietnam. This new strain combines surface proteins from the long-standing 2.3.2.1e virus with internal genes from the globally dominant 2.3.4.4b.

    Evidence suggests that this reassortant virus may be driving the rise in Cambodian human infections.

    A 2024 study, which has not yet undergone peer review, found that the new virus carries genetic markers that could enhance its ability to infect humans – although it is not yet considered human-adapted. According to the study’s authors, this reassortant form has become the predominant strain found in poultry across the region in recent years.

    So far, all confirmed human cases in Cambodia have been linked to direct contact with infected or dead poultry – often in small, rural backyards. This suggests that the country’s “one health” strategy, which aims to integrate human, animal and environmental health responses, is functioning as intended. Although some gaps clearly remain.

    Food safety and food security remain serious concerns across much of Cambodia and south-east Asia. Limited veterinary oversight, informal poultry markets, lack of compensation for poultry losses due to disease, and poor biosecurity may offer the virus opportunities to persist and evolve – and potentially reach more people.

    Since the COVID pandemic, advances in disease surveillance and reporting have made it easier to detect and confirm human infections, Dr Vijaykrishna Dhanasekaran, head of the Pathogen Evolution Lab at Hong Kong University, told me over email. However, he notes that surveillance remains heavily concentrated in urban areas and the commercial poultry sector, while rural settings and interactions with wild birds are poorly monitored.

    Expanding surveillance to these overlooked areas will be vital, he says, if the world hopes to better understand – and prepare for – the next potential influenza pandemic.

    Divya Venkatesh receives funding from BBSRC.

    – ref. Child hospitalised as bird flu cases climb in Cambodia – https://theconversation.com/child-hospitalised-as-bird-flu-cases-climb-in-cambodia-260565

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: Quantum Computing Emerging as a Transformative Technology with Potential Applications in Drone Technology

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALM BEACH, Fla., July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – Quantum computing uses the principles of quantum mechanics to process and manipulate information in ways that differ fundamentally from those used by classical computers while disrupting a growing number of applications and industries. This represents a revolutionary shift in computing. Quantum computers leverage phenomena such as superposition, entanglement, and quantum interference to perform complex calculations and solve problems that are currently intractable for classical computers. The quantum computing market is witnessing rapid growth and innovation, driven by advancements in quantum technology and increasing demand for powerful computing solutions. As businesses and research institutions seek to tackle complex computational problems beyond the capabilities of classical computers, the market for quantum computing is poised for significant expansion. Market trends indicate a surge in investment from both public and private sectors, with major technology companies, governments, and startups dedicating resources to quantum research and development. This influx of investment has fueled breakthroughs in quantum hardware, software, and algorithms, propelling the market forward. A report from Polaris Market Research said that the Quantum Computing Market size was valued at USD $1.187.92 Billion in 2023 and that the market is anticipated to grow from USD $1.410.65 Billion in 2024 to USD $5.714.80 Billion by 2032, exhibiting the CAGR of 19.1% during the forecast period. Active Companies in the markets today include ZenaTech, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZENA), IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCAT), Quantum Computing Inc. (NASDAQ: QUBT), AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc. (NYSE: UAVS).

    The report continued: “There is a growing market trend toward computational power to address real-world challenges in fields such as cryptography, drug discovery, materials science, and optimization. Quantum computing has the potential to solve intricate problems at an exponential rate compared to classical computing, opening up new avenues for scientific exploration and innovative solutions. The growing concerns about data security and encryption vulnerabilities have triggered a surge in interest for quantum-resistant cryptographic solutions, which has further fueled the demand for quantum computing capabilities. In a period of increasingly complex computational challenges across various industries, traditional computing methods often need help to meet the demands for processing power and speed required to address these issues effectively. Quantum computing offers a revolutionary approach to computing by leveraging the principles of quantum mechanics to perform computations at an unprecedented scale and speed. As demand for quantum computing grows across various industries, including drone operations, surveillance, pharmaceuticals, and cybersecurity, the system segment becomes increasingly vital in delivering comprehensive solutions tailored to meet diverse customer needs.”

    ZenaTech (NASDAQ:ZENA) Creates First Quantum Computing Prototype Enabling Disruptive AI Drone Speed and Precision for Future Commercial and US Defense Applications – ZenaTech, Inc. (FSE: 49Q) (BMV: ZENA) (“ZenaTech”), a business technology solution provider specializing in AI (Artificial Intelligence) drones, Drone as a Service (DaaS), Enterprise SaaS, and Quantum Computing solutions, today announces the successful development of its first quantum computing prototype consisting of a framework for the rapid analysis and processing of large datasets for its AI drone solutions. Using weather forecasting algorithms as part of its Clear Sky project as a test case, the company has created a precedent framework for real time analysis of massive amounts of data that can be captured through AI drone sensors while in the air.

    The Company envisions commercial applications ranging from highly efficient precision agriculture to predictive energy infrastructure inspections. Defense applications include enhancing real-time battlefield decision-making with faster and more precise threat detection, reconnaissance, and advance electronic warfare capabilities.

    “We’re not just building smarter drones, we’re building a quantum-intelligent edge where data becomes decisions in an instant, whether it’s a battlefield or a farm field,” said Shaun Passley, Ph.D., ZenaTech CEO. “We believe this quantum framework we are creating is just the beginning as we’ve now demonstrated it can use it for large datasets. We plan to keep expanding R&D capabilities, with the goal of growing our team of 6 to 25 over the coming months. The end goal is clear: accelerate time to market, reduce operational costs, and lead the industry as a true innovator,” added Dr. Passley.

    ZenaTech’s Clear Sky project is one of the company’s quantum computing R&D initiatives focused on weather forecasting that will use AI drones and drone fleets plus quantum to better predict localized weather for more accurate prediction of extreme weather events saving lives and reducing costs and destruction. The weather application and algorithms used for the prototype track and analyze multiple key atmospheric parameters such as temperature, humidity, wind, barometric pressure, and precipitation. Internal testing using historical open-source data has shown a high degree of accuracy with trusted weather platforms and actual data, validating both its accuracy and reliability.

    Quantum computing combined with AI-powered drone applications enables disruptive speed, precision, and autonomy by dramatically accelerating data analysis, optimizing complex decisions, and enhancing real-time responsiveness. In commercial sectors, this means drones can autonomously inspect vast energy grids or farmland, instantly analyze multispectral data, and adjust actions on the fly—leading to lower costs and higher productivity in agriculture, logistics, and infrastructure. In defense, the same capabilities empower autonomous surveillance drones to process sensor data and identify threats in real time, coordinate swarm or drone fleet movements, and dynamically adapt to changing battlefield conditions—all with minimal human input. This fusion of technologies allows drones to make faster, smarter decisions in unpredictable, data-intensive environments—reshaping what’s possible across industries.

    For weather forecasting, quantum computing can rapidly process and simulate complex atmospheric models by analyzing massive datasets from AI-enabled drones equipped with weather sensors, LiDAR, and imaging systems. This allows for highly accurate, real-time weather forecasting and microclimate prediction, improving response times for disaster management, aviation safety, and environmental monitoring.

    Quantum computing is a next-generation computing technology that uses the principles of quantum physics to process information exponentially faster than traditional computers, enabling it to solve highly complex problems that are otherwise unsolvable by even the most powerful classical computers of today. Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-zena/

    Other recent developments in the markets include:

    IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), a leading commercial quantum computing and networking company, recently extended its congratulations to the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI) on securing a multi-million dollar government award through the “Quantum Computing Service and Utilization System Construction Project.” This initiative marks a pivotal step toward establishing South Korea’s first National Quantum Computing Center of Excellence.

    KISTI will lead the development and operation of a quantum computing service and research platform designed to support both academic and enterprise applications. KISTI has identified IonQ as the primary quantum technology provider for the project, alongside Megazone Cloud, one of South Korea’s leading cloud service and infrastructure providers.

    Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCAT), a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations, recently issued a statement of support for a series of executive orders from the White House that advance U.S. leadership in uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) and reinforce the resilience of America’s domestic industrial base.

    The executive actions are expected to remove regulatory barriers and modernize federal approval processes to prioritize U.S.-manufactured drones. Additional provisions include expanded detection and mitigation authority, and streamlined regulations to accelerate the deployment of UAS across federal and commercial sectors.

    Quantum Computing Inc. (NASDAQ: QUBT) recently announced the successful shipment of its first commercial entangled photon source to support research in quantum networking and secure communications. The order, placed by a leading research institution in South Korea, marks a milestone in QCi’s transition of proprietary quantum technologies from the lab to commercial markets.

    The product is a broadband, standalone entangled photon source built on Spontaneous Parametric Down-Conversion (SPDC) using a periodically-poled, bulk format lithium niobate (PPLN) structure. Designed for stability and compatibility, the source operates in the C-band telecommunication range and is compatible with current fiber optics infrastructure. It integrates seamlessly into research environments advancing quantum communication protocols.

    AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc. (NYSE: UAVS), a leading provider of advanced drone and aerial imaging solutions, recently announced the upcoming demonstration of AI-enabled autonomous Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) teaming, developed through a strategic partnership with an Israeli defense/technology firm. The system is designed for use in border security, surveillance, and intrusion detection missions and will showcase advanced autonomous capabilities with minimal human intervention while delivering real-time operational intelligence.

    The joint effort integrates AgEagle’s eBee VISION drones with partner-developed AI-powered mission planning and autonomous control tools, enabling the drones to operate as a cohesive, intelligent unit. The system leverages adaptive algorithms and decentralized decision-making within a “system of systems” architecture that dynamically adjusts to mission conditions in real time. This integration is expected to significantly enhance Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) effectiveness by delivering actionable data with increased speed and precision.

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    The MIL Network –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: Odin Stem Cells Becomes First Nationwide In Home Stem Cell Company Infused with Love Through Groundbreaking Partnership with The World’s Greatest Experiment

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MIAMI, July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In a bold move set to redefine the future of wellness, Odin Stem Cells has announced a transformative partnership with The World’s Greatest Experiment—a global initiative known for uplifting communities in poverty by teaching them to meditate and send love to people, products, and organizations around the world. With this alliance, Odin becomes the first stem cell company in the world whose treatments and clients receive daily love meditations from a global network of meditators, many of whom are rising out of extreme poverty through their participation.

    Odin Stem Cells, co-founded by Nico Seedsman, is a leading regenerative teli-health company specializing in cutting-edge stem cell therapies that support healing, recovery, and overall vitality. Known for their science-backed, non-invasive treatments aimed at reducing inflammation, accelerating repair, and improving quality of life, Odin serves clients ranging from athletes and chronic pain sufferers to those seeking anti-aging and cellular rejuvenation solutions. Now, thanks to this partnership, each treatment comes with something no other clinic in the world offers: love.

    Love as a New Dimension of Healing

    At the heart of this partnership lies a revolutionary idea: that love is medicine. Every Odin client and treatment now receives daily love meditations from trained meditators in The World’s Greatest Experiment. These are not ordinary sessions—they are soulful, focused intentions of well-being, sent by individuals whose lives are being transformed through this very act of giving.

    “Science and spirit have long lived in separate worlds, but we believe they belong together,” said Nico Seedsman. “With The World’s Greatest Experiment, we are pioneering a new frontier of wellness where advanced medicine is complemented by love, intention, and global consciousness.”

    Transforming Lives on Both Ends

    This collaboration isn’t just transforming how healing is delivered—it’s changing lives around the world. Participants in The World’s Greatest Experiment are individuals who were once trapped in cycles of poverty, now empowered through access to food, education, clean water, and shelter. In return, they meditate daily to send love to Odin clients and the greater collective.

    “These are people who once had no hope,” said Aidan, founder of The World’s Greatest Experiment. “Now they are practicing daily meditation, receiving an income, and realizing their purpose in the world—not just surviving, but spiritually thriving. And the love they send is changing lives in clinics and homes around the world.”

    This regenerative cycle of giving and receiving is more than charity. It is a new economic and energetic model, where consciousness becomes a currency—and where healing becomes multidimensional.

    A Call to Conscious Companies

    Odin’s partnership is not just a milestone—it’s a movement. The collaboration signals to other businesses that it’s possible—and powerful—to integrate love and human upliftment into their core offerings.

    “We hope Odin will be the first of many,” said Aidan. “Any product or service can be infused with love. Imagine a world where your coffee, your clothing, your skincare—everything you consume—is connected to a web of people sending it love and lifting themselves out of poverty in the process.”

    The Invitation

    Odin Stem Cells is already seeing a groundswell of interest—not just from clients curious about the added dimension of healing, but from wellness practitioners, researchers, and conscious entrepreneurs eager to participate in this energetic revolution.

    As this partnership unfolds, it serves as a beacon: a new paradigm of commerce, healing, and shared humanity.

    To learn more, visit www.odinstemcells.com and www.theworldsgreatestexperiment.com. Businesses interested in partnering to infuse love into their offerings are encouraged to reach out.

    Media Contacts
    The Worlds Greatest Experiment Inc
    Aidan Uttinger
    connect@twge.org

    Odin Stem Cells
    Lance Paul
    Lance@odinstemcells.com

    The MIL Network –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: The SBB Research Group Foundation Sponsors Renaissance Knights Chess Foundation

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Renaissance Knights Chess Foundation (RKCF) collaborated in a volunteer initiative alongside the SBB Research Group Foundation, which partners with local nonprofits through its Champion A Charity Program.

    Renaissance Knights’ mission is to harness the power of chess through intentional, comprehensive programs that promote cognitive growth, character development, mentorship, and community engagement—empowering youth with the skills, support, and opportunities they need for lifelong success.

    Sandeep Navalgund, a volunteer from the SBB Research Group Foundation, supported this mission by helping plan and volunteer at the 2025 Greater Chicago K-12 Chess Championship, hosted annually by RKCF. This year’s event took place on February 8th at McCormick Place and welcomed over 660 students from across the Midwest. The tournament aims to introduce students—particularly those from Title I low-income schools in Chicago Public Schools (CPS)—to the game of chess and the critical thinking, planning, and social-emotional skills it fosters.

    “It was wonderful to see so many students and families excited to participate, regardless of age or skill level,” said Navalgund. He emphasized the event’s significance, noting, “This is one of RKCF’s marquee events and plays a vital role in their mission to teach lifelong skills such as planning, persistence, and patience.”

    To learn more about Renaissance Knights Chess Foundation’s comprehensive youth programs, visit https://rknights.org.

    About the SBB Research Group Foundation

    The SBB Research Group Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that furthers the philanthropic mission of SBB Research Group LLC (SBBRG), a Chicago-based investment management firm led by Sam Barnett, Ph.D., and Matt Aven. The Foundation provides grants to support ambitious organizations solving unmet needs with thoughtful, long-term strategies. In addition, the Foundation sponsors the SBBRG STEM Scholarship, which supports students pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics degrees.

    Contact: Erin Noonan
    Organization: SBB Research Group Foundation
    Email: grants@sbbrg.org
    Address: 450 Skokie Blvd, Building 600, Northbrook, IL 60062 United States
    Phone: 1-847-656-1111

    Website: https://www.sbbrg.org

    The MIL Network –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: 10 July 2025 Departmental update WHO Academy and the City of Lyon: a strategic collaboration for global health

    Source: World Health Organisation

    In 2018, when the idea of establishing a global learning centre for health – what would become the WHO Academy – was under discussion between the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Government of France, they didn’t have to look far for its new home. Since the Middle Ages, Lyon has been a European capital for human, animal and environmental health. Doctors from across Europe came to study in Lyon, and it was the first centre of medical literature on the continent in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The city is even the home of the first veterinary school in Europe, opening in Lyon in 1761.

    In more recent times, Marcel Mérieux, a former assistant to Pasteur, opened one of the city’s first pharmaceutical research institutes in 1897, the beginnings of what would become the Lyon-Gerland Biodistrict. The city brings together over 2000 global public institutions, research centres and businesses focused on life sciences and health employing nearly 80 000 people, including the WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and a WHO office dedicated to health emergencies.

    “The City of Lyon has demonstrated exceptional leadership in public health, making it an ideal partner for the WHO Academy,” explains Dr David Atchoarena, Executive Director of the WHO Academy. “The local ecosystem provides a myriad of opportunities for collaboration and maximizing the impact of the WHO Academy’s initiatives. Together with the City of Lyon we are committed to advancing global health through innovative approaches that address the complex challenges of our time.”

    Meeting these challenges depends on a well-prepared, highly skilled global health and care workforce. The aim of the WHO Academy is to become a global hub for lifelong learning and to provide health and care workers, and decision-makers, in France and around the world, with access to the knowledge and competencies they need to meet current and future needs. The Academy has developed a comprehensive portfolio of courses across most health topics addressed by WHO and has three flagship programmes: Biomanufacturing, Healthy Cities and One Health.

    Leveraging the local ecosystem for innovative health solutions

    The partnership between the WHO Academy and the City of Lyon has already yielded numerous collaborative activities since the launch of the Academy in December 2024. The Academy is an observer to the Contrat Local de Santé 2022-2027, led by the City of Lyon and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regional Health Agency, to reduce health inequalities, improve access to care, promote prevention and integrate the One Health approach to health services in the region. In addition, the Academy acted as an observer to AGORA 2030, a participatory initiative accelerating climate action through collaboration among various city stakeholders.

    In April 2025, the Academy participated in the month-long ‘Explore your Health’ festival, most significantly by hosting a roundtable discussion on ‘Urban Planning through the One Health Lens’ at the WHO Academy campus, featuring experts in health, urbanism and research to discuss sustainable city development.

    Lyon is a committed member of the WHO French Healthy Cities Network, and the city’s municipal strategy aligns with the principles of the Academy’s Healthy Cities flagship: equity, participation, multisectoral governance and sustainability. Most recently the WHO Academy and the City of Lyon co-organized a two-day study visit and knowledge exchange for more than 50 mayors from the Korea Healthy Cities Partnership.

    In May, the Séminaire des directeurs meeting held at the Academy campus raised awareness among the 80 City of Lyon directors of public services about the importance of integrating a One Health approach into their work.

    “The City of Lyon is committed to addressing the key determinants of health, such as nutrition, housing, environmental health, access to care and physical activity for the citizens of Lyon, but also for people around the world,”  said Céline de Laurens, Lyon Deputy Mayor for Health, Prevention, and Environmental Health. “Being able to share our experiences, and hear from others like those in Korea, is critical to creating better health for all. This is why having the WHO Academy in Lyon is so important – it brings global experience to our doorstep and also amplifies our own lessons to the world.”

    Global cooperation supporting local solutions

    The collaboration between WHO and the City of Lyon is set to expand with several initiatives recently implemented or planned in the coming months. The city will begin contributing local case studies and examples of city-led innovation in health, environmental sustainability and social equity to the Healthy Cities and One Health flagship programmes. Plus, the Academy will soon start developing learning content for municipal leaders around the world, to be hosted on its online learning platform, based on Lyon’s experience in health-enabling urban planning, food systems and climate-responsive public health strategies.

    “With the establishment of the WHO Academy campus, the City of Lyon is poised to further its contributions to public health, fostering innovation and collaboration to address global health challenges,” noted Dr Atchoarena. “We couldn’t have asked for a better partner for the Academy, and working with the City of Lyon allows us to share a model for other global cities to follow.”

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Plenty of Water in Prairie Potholes

    Source: US Geological Survey

    Surface water in the prairie potholes is highly responsive to both air temperature and precipitation (Renton et al., 2105). In addition, a strong connection between groundwater and potholes is described as filling and subsequently spilling (Vanderhoof et al., 2016). When aquifers are full, surface water recedes slowly. Throughout the Dakotas, recent wet periods may be a part of natural variability that is likely to be repeated over longer time spans (Nustad et al., 2016; Ryberg et al., 2016; Liu and Schwartz, 2011). 

    Thirty-nine years of Annual NLCD land cover provide two good visual examples of prairie pothole flooding events: the Devils Lake area in northeastern North Dakota and Day County in northeastern South Dakota. Lakes, potholes and wetlands in those areas saw large increases in open water (Newsdakota.com, 2020). The James River, a tributary to the Missouri River that flows through Day County, also had recent flooding events (NASA, 2020).

    Right: This map shows open water in North Dakota and South Dakota from 1985 to 2023. The colors indicate whether the open water areas gained or lost water, fluctuated between gains and losses or remained unchanged during that time period. Areas of special interest to this article are Devils Lake in North Dakota and Waubay Lake and Bitter Lake in South Dakota.

    References:

    Auch, R.F., 2015. Chapter 7, northern glaciated plains ecoregion.In Status and Trends of Land Change in the Great Plains of the United States—1973 to 2000, Taylor, J.L., Acevedo, W., Auch, R.F., and Drummond, M.A. pp. 69-76. U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1794-B, Reston, Va. 

    Baulch, H.M., Elliott, J.A., Corderio, M.R.C., Flaten, D.N., Lobb, D.A., and Wilson, H.F., 2019. Soil and water management: opportunities to mitigate nutrient losses to surface waters in the Northern Great Plains. Environ. Rev. 27: 447–477.https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/er-2018-0101

    Blackwell, B.G., Smith, B.J., Kaufman, T.M., and Moos, T.S., 2020. Use of a restrictive regulation to manage walleyes in a new glacial lake in South Dakota. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 40:1202–1215.https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/nafm.10486

    Damschen, W.C., and Galloway, J.M., 2016, Water-surface elevation and discharge measurement data for the Red River of the North and its tributaries near Fargo, North Dakota, water years 2014–15: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2016–1139, 16 p., https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/ofr20161139

    Hoogestraat, G.K., and Stamm, J.F., 2015, Climate and streamflow characteristics for selected streamgages in eastern South Dakota, water years 1945–2013; U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5146, 35 p., with appendix, https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/sir20155146

    Johnston, C.A., 2013, Wetland Losses Due to Row Crop Expansion in the Dakota Prairie Pothole Region; Natural Resource Management Faculty Publications, 95.https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/nrm_pubs/95/  

    Liu, G. and Schwartz, F.W., 2011, An integrated observational and model-based analysis of the hydrologic response of prairie pothole systems to variability in climate; Water Resources Research, 47, W02504,https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2010WR009084

    NASA, 2020,https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/146515/relentless-floods  

    Newsdakota.com, 2020,https://www.newsdakota.com/2020/08/07/excess-water-continues-to-plague-prairie-pothole-region/   

    National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA), 2025, Climate at a Glance: National Time Series, published May 2025, accessed May 8, 2025, from https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/national/time-series 

    Nustad, R.A., Kolars, K.A., Vecchia, A.V., and Ryberg, K.R., 2016, 2011 Souris River flood—Will it happen again?; U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2016–3073, 4 p.,https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/fs20163073

    Renton, D.A., Mushet, D.M., and DeKeyser, E.S., 2015, Climate change and prairie pothole wetlands—Mitigating water-level and hydroperiod effects through upland management: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5004, 21 p.,https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/sir20155004  

    Ryberg, K.R., Vecchia, A.V., Akyüz, F.A., and Lin, W., 2016, Tree-ring-based estimates of long-term seasonal precipitation in the Souris River Region of Saskatchewan, North Dakota and Manitoba, Canadian Water Resources Journal / Revue canadienne des ressources hydriques, 41:3, 412-428, 17 p., https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07011784.2016.1164627  

    Shapley, M.D., Johnson, W.C., Engstrom, D.R., and Osterkamp, W.R., 2005, Late-Holocene flooding and drought in the Northern Great Plains, USA, reconstructed from tree rings, lake sediments and ancient shorelines. The Holocene, 15 (1): 29-41.

    Todhunter, P.E. 2018, A volumetric water budget of Devils Lake (USA): non-stationary precipitation–runoff relationships in an amplifier terminal lake. Hydrological Sciences Journal, vol. 63 (9):1275–1291. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02626667.2018.1494385

    Todhunter, P.E., 2021, Hydrological basis of the Devils Lake, North Dakota (USA), terminal lake flood disaster. Nat Hazards 106, 2797–2824 (2021).https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11069-021-04567-2  

    USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center, 2022, Lake levels rise: U.S. Geological Survey Earthshots webpage, 2022, accessed online 6/26/2025, athttps://eros.usgs.gov/earthshots/lake-levels-rise  

    Vanderhoof, M.K., Alexander, L.C., and Todd, M.J., 2016a, Temporal and spatial patterns of wetland extent influence variability of surface water connectivity in the Prairie Pothole Region, United States; Landscape Ecology 31, 805–824 (2016). https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10980-015-0290-5

    Vanderhoof, M.K., and Alexander, L.C., 2016b, The Role of Lake Expansion in Altering the Wetland Landscape of the Prairie Pothole Region, United States; Wetlands 36 (Suppl 2), 309–321. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13157-015-0728-1

    Vanderhoof, M.K., Christensen, J.R. and Alexander, L.C., 2017, Patterns and drivers for wetland connections in the Prairie Pothole Region, United States; Wetlands Ecology and Management 25, 275–297. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11273-016-9516-9

    Vecchia, Aldo V., 2011, Simulation of the effects of Devils Lake outlet alternatives on future lake levels and water quality in the Sheyenne River and Red River of the North; 2011; SIR; 2011-5050.

    Wimberly, M.C., Janssen, L.L., Hennessy, D.A., Luri, M., Chowdhury, N.M., and Feng, H., 2017, Cropland expansion and grassland loss in the eastern Dakotas: New insights from a farm-level survey; Land Use Policy, Volume 63, Pages 160-173.

    MIL OSI USA News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: The AI therapist will see you now: Can chatbots really improve mental health?

    Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Pooja Shree Chettiar, Ph.D. Candidate in Medical Sciences, Texas A&M University

    Chatbot ‘therapists’ use artificial intelligence to mimic real-life therapeutic conversations. Pooja Shree Chettiar/ChatGPT, CC BY-SA

    Recently, I found myself pouring my heart out, not to a human, but to a chatbot named Wysa on my phone. It nodded – virtually – asked me how I was feeling and gently suggested trying breathing exercises.

    As a neuroscientist, I couldn’t help but wonder: Was I actually feeling better, or was I just being expertly redirected by a well-trained algorithm? Could a string of code really help calm a storm of emotions?

    Artificial intelligence-powered mental health tools are becoming increasingly popular – and increasingly persuasive. But beneath their soothing prompts lie important questions: How effective are these tools? What do we really know about how they work? And what are we giving up in exchange for convenience?

    Of course it’s an exciting moment for digital mental health. But understanding the trade-offs and limitations of AI-based care is crucial.

    Stand-in meditation and therapy apps and bots

    AI-based therapy is a relatively new player in the digital therapy field. But the U.S. mental health app market has been booming for the past few years, from apps with free tools that text you back to premium versions with an added feature that gives prompts for breathing exercises.

    Headspace and Calm are two of the most well-known meditation and mindfulness apps, offering guided meditations, bedtime stories and calming soundscapes to help users relax and sleep better. Talkspace and BetterHelp go a step further, offering actual licensed therapists via chat, video or voice. The apps Happify and Moodfit aim to boost mood and challenge negative thinking with game-based exercises.

    Somewhere in the middle are chatbot therapists like Wysa and Woebot, using AI to mimic real therapeutic conversations, often rooted in cognitive behavioral therapy. These apps typically offer free basic versions, with paid plans ranging from US$10 to $100 per month for more comprehensive features or access to licensed professionals.

    While not designed specifically for therapy, conversational tools like ChatGPT have sparked curiosity about AI’s emotional intelligence.

    Some users have turned to ChatGPT for mental health advice, with mixed outcomes, including a widely reported case in Belgium where a man died by suicide after months of conversations with a chatbot. Elsewhere, a father is seeking answers after his son was fatally shot by police, alleging that distressing conversations with an AI chatbot may have influenced his son’s mental state. These cases raise ethical questions about the role of AI in sensitive situations.

    Guided meditation apps were one of the first forms of digital therapy.
    IsiMS/E+ via Getty Images

    Where AI comes in

    Whether your brain is spiraling, sulking or just needs a nap, there’s a chatbot for that. But can AI really help your brain process complex emotions? Or are people just outsourcing stress to silicon-based support systems that sound empathetic?

    And how exactly does AI therapy work inside our brains?

    Most AI mental health apps promise some flavor of cognitive behavioral therapy, which is basically structured self-talk for your inner chaos. Think of it as Marie Kondo-ing, the Japanese tidying expert known for helping people keep only what “sparks joy.” You identify unhelpful thought patterns like “I’m a failure,” examine them, and decide whether they serve you or just create anxiety.

    But can a chatbot help you rewire your thoughts? Surprisingly, there’s science suggesting it’s possible. Studies have shown that digital forms of talk therapy can reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, especially for mild to moderate cases. In fact, Woebot has published peer-reviewed research showing reduced depressive symptoms in young adults after just two weeks of chatting.

    These apps are designed to simulate therapeutic interaction, offering empathy, asking guided questions and walking you through evidence-based tools. The goal is to help with decision-making and self-control, and to help calm the nervous system.

    The neuroscience behind cognitive behavioral therapy is solid: It’s about activating the brain’s executive control centers, helping us shift our attention, challenge automatic thoughts and regulate our emotions.

    The question is whether a chatbot can reliably replicate that, and whether our brains actually believe it.

    A user’s experience, and what it might mean for the brain

    “I had a rough week,” a friend told me recently. I asked her to try out a mental health chatbot for a few days. She told me the bot replied with an encouraging emoji and a prompt generated by its algorithm to try a calming strategy tailored to her mood. Then, to her surprise, it helped her sleep better by week’s end.

    As a neuroscientist, I couldn’t help but ask: Which neurons in her brain were kicking in to help her feel calm?

    This isn’t a one-off story. A growing number of user surveys and clinical trials suggest that cognitive behavioral therapy-based chatbot interactions can lead to short-term improvements in mood, focus and even sleep. In randomized studies, users of mental health apps have reported reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety – outcomes that closely align with how in-person cognitive behavioral therapy influences the brain.

    Several studies show that therapy chatbots can actually help people feel better. In one clinical trial, a chatbot called “Therabot” helped reduce depression and anxiety symptoms by nearly half – similar to what people experience with human therapists. Other research, including a review of over 80 studies, found that AI chatbots are especially helpful for improving mood, reducing stress and even helping people sleep better. In one study, a chatbot outperformed a self-help book in boosting mental health after just two weeks.

    While people often report feeling better after using these chatbots, scientists haven’t yet confirmed exactly what’s happening in the brain during those interactions. In other words, we know they work for many people, but we’re still learning how and why.

    AI chatbots don’t cost what a human therapist costs – and they’re available 24/7.

    Red flags and risks

    Apps like Wysa have earned FDA Breakthrough Device designation, a status that fast-tracks promising technologies for serious conditions, suggesting they may offer real clinical benefit. Woebot, similarly, runs randomized clinical trials showing improved depression and anxiety symptoms in new moms and college students.

    While many mental health apps boast labels like “clinically validated” or “FDA approved,” those claims are often unverified. A review of top apps found that most made bold claims, but fewer than 22% cited actual scientific studies to back them up.

    In addition, chatbots collect sensitive information about your mood metrics, triggers and personal stories. What if that data winds up in third-party hands such as advertisers, employers or hackers, a scenario that has occurred with genetic data? In a 2023 breach, nearly 7 million users of the DNA testing company 23andMe had their DNA and personal details exposed after hackers used previously leaked passwords to break into their accounts. Regulators later fined the company more than $2 million for failing to protect user data.

    Unlike clinicians, bots aren’t bound by counseling ethics or privacy laws regarding medical information. You might be getting a form of cognitive behavioral therapy, but you’re also feeding a database.

    And sure, bots can guide you through breathing exercises or prompt cognitive reappraisal, but when faced with emotional complexity or crisis, they’re often out of their depth. Human therapists tap into nuance, past trauma, empathy and live feedback loops. Can an algorithm say “I hear you” with genuine understanding? Neuroscience suggests that supportive human connection activates social brain networks that AI can’t reach.

    So while in mild to moderate cases bot-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy may offer short-term symptom relief, it’s important to be aware of their limitations. For the time being, pairing bots with human care – rather than replacing it – is the safest move.

    Pooja Shree Chettiar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. The AI therapist will see you now: Can chatbots really improve mental health? – https://theconversation.com/the-ai-therapist-will-see-you-now-can-chatbots-really-improve-mental-health-259360

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: How weather changes cause migraines – a neurologist explains the triggers and what you can do to ease the pain

    Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Danielle Wilhour, Assistant Professor of Neurology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

    Migraines can be debilitating – and frustrating when triggered by weather you can’t control. fizkes/iStock/Getty Images Plus

    “Is it just me, or is there a storm coming?”

    If you are one of the 39 million Americans in the U.S. living with migraines, there’s a good chance an intense headache will begin when the weather shifts.

    You aren’t alone. Studies find 30% to 50% of people with migraines identify some type of weather change as a trigger, making it the most commonly reported migraine source.

    Yet, it’s also one of the most puzzling.

    Some people are more sensitive to weather

    As a neurologist and headache specialist practicing in Colorado, a place with frequent weather shifts, patients often tell me that weather is one of their biggest migraine triggers. The results can disrupt work, school and social plans, and create a sense of helplessness.

    Doctors still don’t fully understand why some brains are more sensitive to environmental changes.

    What we do know is that people with migraines have especially sensitive nervous systems, and that certain environmental changes – like shifts in air pressure, temperature, humidity and air quality – can activate pathways in the brain that lead to pain.

    What’s going on in the brain during migraines? TEDx.

    Key ways weather can trigger migraines

    Weather triggers can vary from person to person, but there are a few common migraine culprits:

    Barometric pressure changes, or changes in atmospheric pressure, are among the most commonly cited triggers.

    When a storm system moves in, the air pressure drops. Some scientists believe this change may affect the pressure inside your head or how blood vessels in your brain dilate and constrict.

    One theory is that changes in barometric pressure may cause a small imbalance in the pressure between the inside of your skull and the outside environment. That might directly stimulate pain-sensitive nerves in the head, triggering inflammation and the start of a migraine.

    Others point to inflammation, the way the brain processes sensory input, and changes in serotonin levels – which play a key role in activating migraine.

    Temperature extremes, with very hot or very cold days, or sudden changes in temperature, can throw off the body’s internal balance. High humidity or rapid shifts in moisture levels can have a similar effect.

    Air pollutants like ozone and nitrogen dioxide can cause inflammation in the nerves that play a role in migraines.

    Bright sunlight can also be especially bothersome, likely due to heightened sensitivity to light and an overactive visual processing system in the brain.

    Lightning and strong winds may also be linked to migraine attacks in certain individuals.

    In short, weather changes can act as stressors on a brain that’s already wired to be more sensitive. The exact triggers and responses vary from person to person, but the research suggests that the interaction between weather and our biology plays a significant role for a subset of patients with migraines.

    Steps you can take to reduce the pain

    You can’t change the weather, but you can be proactive. Here are a few tips to help weather-proof your migraine routine:

    1. Track your migraines and watch the forecast: Use a migraine diary or app to track when attacks occur, along with weather conditions. Patterns may emerge, such as attacks a day before rain or during temperature changes, that will allow you to adjust your schedule or medication plan.

    2. Develop healthy eating, sleeping and exercise habits: Dehydration, poor sleep and skipped meals can magnify the effects of weather triggers, so keeping your body on an even keel helps reduce vulnerability. Regular exercise and a healthy diet can also help.

    3. Create a migraine-friendly environment: On days when the sun is harsh or the humidity is high, stay inside. Sunglasses, eye masks or even blue-light glasses can be helpful. Some people find that certain earplugs are able to reduce pressure changes felt in the middle ear.

    4. Try meditation, mindfulness techniques or biofeedback, which teaches people to moderate their physiological responses, such as muscle responses and breathing. These strategies can help your nervous system become less reactive over time, which can be especially helpful when dealing with uncontrollable triggers like weather.

    5. Consider pretreatment: If you know a storm is likely to trigger your migraines, you can keep rescue medications close by or even preemptively treat yourself during weather events.

    6. Look into preventive treatment: If weather triggers frequent migraines, talk to your health care provider about preventive treatments – medications, supplements or neuromodulation devices – which can be used on a regular basis to reduce migraine occurrence.

    The bigger picture

    It’s important to remember that while weather can be a trigger, it’s rarely the only one. Migraine is usually the result of a perfect storm of factors: genetic susceptibility, hormones, stress, sleep, food and, yes, the weather.

    That’s why identifying your personal triggers and building a plan, if necessary, with the support of a medical provider, can make a big difference in managing migraines.

    Weather-related migraine can be one of the most frustrating triggers because it feels completely out of your hands. However, with knowledge, tracking and the right treatment strategies, you can take back a sense of control.

    Danielle Wilhour does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. How weather changes cause migraines – a neurologist explains the triggers and what you can do to ease the pain – https://theconversation.com/how-weather-changes-cause-migraines-a-neurologist-explains-the-triggers-and-what-you-can-do-to-ease-the-pain-258899

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Why recycling solar panels is harder than you might think − an electrical engineer explains

    Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Anurag Srivastava, Professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University

    Broken and worn-out solar panels can be recycled, but it’s not easy. Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

    It’s hard work soaking up sunlight to generate clean electricity. After about 25 to 30 years, solar panels wear out. Over the years, heating and cooling cycles stress the materials. Small cracks develop, precipitation corrodes the frame and layers of materials can start to peel apart.

    In 2023, about 90% of old or faulty solar panels in the U.S. ended up in landfills. Millions of panels have been installed worldwide over the past few decades – and by about 2030, so many will be ready to retire that they could cover about 3,000 football fields.

    As an electrical engineer who has studied many aspects of renewable energy, recycling solar panels seems like a smart idea, but it’s complicated. Built to withstand years of wind and weather, solar panels are designed for strength and are not easy to break down.

    All of these solar panels will need to be disposed of one day – perhaps by being recycled.
    David McNew/Getty Images

    The cost conundrum

    Sending a solar panel to a landfill costs between US$1 and $5 in the U.S. But recycling it can cost three to four times as much, around $18. And the valuable materials inside solar panels, such as silver and copper, are in small amounts, so they’re worth about $10 to $12 – which makes recycling a money-losing prospect. Improvements in the recycling process may change the economics.

    But for now, it’s even hard to reclaim the glass in solar panels. Many layers are glued together and need to be separated before they can be melted down for reuse. And if the separation is not precise enough, the glass that is recovered won’t be of high enough quality to use in making other solar panels or windows. It will be suitable only for lower-quality uses such as fill material in construction projects.

    Other panels, usually older ones, may contain small amounts of toxic metals such as lead or cadmium. It can be difficult to tell whether toxic materials are present, though. Even experts have trouble, in part because current tests, such as the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure, can give inaccurate results. Therefore, many companies that own large numbers of solar panels just assume their panels are hazardous waste, which increases costs for both disposal and recycling. Clearer labels would help people know what a solar panel contains and how to handle it.

    If someone wants to recycle a solar panel, and is willing to bear the cost, there aren’t many places in the U.S. that are willing to do it and are equipped to be safe about it.

    Recycling solar panels can involve detailed manual labor.
    AP Photo/Gregory Bull

    Designing for a new life

    Despite the Trump administration’s cuts to subsidies for solar projects, millions of solar panels are already in use in the U.S., and millions more are expected to be installed worldwide in the coming years. As a result, the solar industry is working on ways to minimize waste and repeatedly reuse materials.

    Some ideas include sending used solar panels that still work at least a bit to developing nations, or even reusing them within the U.S. But there are not clear rules or processes for connecting reused panels to the power grid, so reuse tends to happen in less common, off-grid situations rather than becoming widespread.

    Future solar panels could also be designed for easier recycling, using different construction methods and materials, and improved processing systems.

    Making panels last longer – perhaps as long as 50 years – using more durable materials, weather-resistant components, real-time monitoring of panel performance and predictive maintenance to replace parts before they wear out would reduce waste significantly.

    Building solar panels that are more easily disassembled into separate components made of different materials could also speed recycling. Components that fit together like Lego bricks – instead of using glue – or dissolvable sealants and adhesives could be parts of these designs.

    Improved recycling methods could also help. Right now, panels are often simply ground up, mixing all of their components’ materials together and requiring a complicated process to separate them out again for reuse. More advanced approaches can extract individual materials with high purity. For example, a process called salt etching can recover over 99% of silver and 98% of silicon, at purity levels that are appropriate for high-end reuse, potentially even in new solar panels, without using toxic acids. That method can also recover significant quantities of copper and lead for use in new products.

    Crushing solar panels can make different materials easier to recover from various components.
    AP Photo/Gregory Bull

    A shared journey

    Increasing the practice of recycling solar panels has more than just environmental benefits.

    Over the long term, recovering and reusing valuable materials may prove more cost-effective than continually buying new raw materials on the open market. That could lower costs for future solar panel installations. If they are fully reused, the value of these recoverable materials could reach over $15 billion globally by 2050.

    In addition, recycling panels and components reduces American reliance on materials imported from overseas, making solar power projects less vulnerable to global disruptions.

    Recycling also keeps toxic materials out of landfills. That can help ensure a shift to clean energy doesn’t create new or bigger environmental problems. Also, recycling solar panels emits far less carbon dioxide than manufacturing panels from raw materials.

    There are already some efforts underway to boost solar panel recycling. The Solar Energy Industries Association trade group is working to collect and share information about companies that recycle solar panels.

    Governments can provide tax breaks or other financial incentives for using recycled materials, or ban disposing of solar panels in landfills. California, Washington, New Jersey and North Carolina have enacted laws or are studying ways to manage solar panel waste, with some even requiring recycling or reuse.

    These efforts are important steps toward addressing the growing need for solar panel recycling and promoting a more sustainable solar industry.

    Anurag Srivastava receives funding from the US Department of Energy and National Science Foundation to work on renewable energy integration into the grid. He is an IEEE Fellow and member of the IEEE Power and Energy Society and CIGRE working groups.

    – ref. Why recycling solar panels is harder than you might think − an electrical engineer explains – https://theconversation.com/why-recycling-solar-panels-is-harder-than-you-might-think-an-electrical-engineer-explains-259115

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Large language models (LLMs) solve wargaming challenge

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Case study

    Large language models (LLMs) solve wargaming challenge

    Dstl and Frazer-Nash demonstrate how large language models (LLMs) can solve the challenge of getting through large amounts of wargaming data.

    The huge volume of outputs wargaming generates can often be unfathomable, even for the most experienced data processing team.

    The Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Frazer-Nash have produced detailed research demonstrating how large language models (LLMs) can solve this challenge.

    The LLMs can turn complex wargaming output data into easy to use, secure information that improves the scenario interrogation and analysis – simultaneously reducing the burden on the operator.

    What LLMs can do

    LLMs can:

    • summarise complex data through their text processing and generating capabilities
    • analyse and assess large data sets from a variety of sources faster than any manual approach (perfect for Command: Modern Operations (CMO) – a wargaming simulation platform that produces large volumes of complex data on completion of a given scenario)
    • provide more privacy and data control compared with online counterparts such as Chat GPT

    More on the research

    The 6-month Dstl funded research scrutinised whether an LLM could be used reliably and securely to interrogate the output of a CMO scenario – for example, a complex multi-domain engagement involving sea, air and land units. It helped the analyst understand the result of a battlefield scenario and the key factors that drove it much more easily.

    The research considered multiple technologies. This included combining Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) with a local LLM. RAG is a technique that improves the quality of LLM-generated responses, allowing use-case specific data in everyday formats such as PDF, CSV or XML so it can be easily included in the context for an LLM response.

    A set of possible use cases were provided and tested across 2 phases during the 6-month research, and a robust framework tool was created for quantifying the accuracy and reliability of the LLM-generated information. 

    Results

    The research showed that LLMs can helpfully interrogate and disseminate output information of complex wargaming scenarios, if used in the right way.

    Other positive outcomes of the research include:

    • strengthening the training benefits
    • reducing operator burden
    • improving resilience and preparedness

    The techniques can be developed flexibly around changing components. For instance, data types, tools, methodologies and evaluation metrics. This new approach can then evolve with ever-changing demands and challenges.

    Published research

    Access more of Dstl’s published research.

    AI and data science: defence science and technology capability

    Find out more about Dstl’s AI, data science and machine learning.

    Updates to this page

    Published 10 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

    July 11, 2025

  • NESTS launches multi-pronged initiatives with UNICEF, Tata Motors to boost education and employment for tribal youth

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    In a major push towards empowering tribal students, the National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, has unveiled a series of initiatives to enhance education, life skills, and employability for students studying in Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRSs) across the country.

    On July 9, NESTS signed landmark agreements with UNICEF India, Tata Motors Limited, and the Ex-Navodayan Foundation to roll out programmes that will support over 1.3 lakh tribal students in their academic and professional journeys.

    At the centre of these efforts is TALASH (Tribal Aptitude, Life Skills and Self-Esteem Hub), an innovative national platform launched in partnership with UNICEF. TALASH aims to strengthen both academic learning and personal development by helping students discover their strengths, build essential life skills, and plan clear career pathways.

    Through psychometric assessments inspired by NCERT’s ‘Tamanna’ initiative, students will receive individual Career Cards suggesting suitable career options based on their aptitudes. The platform will also provide career counselling, dedicated life skills modules, and resources for teachers to guide students effectively. The phased national rollout has already begun, with 189 teachers from 75 EMRSs trained to lead sessions in their schools. By the end of 2025, TALASH is expected to reach all EMRSs in 28 states and 8 union territories.

    Complementing this, NESTS has entered into a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with Tata Motors Limited to bridge the gap between classroom learning and industry-ready skills. Under this partnership, students passing out of Class 12 from EMRSs will be enrolled in Tata Motors’ Kaushalya Program — an ‘Earn & Learn’ initiative that combines a Diploma in Engineering with on-the-job training. Eligible students will be aged 18 to 23 and must have secured at least 60% marks in their Class 10 examinations.

    The program provides a monthly stipend, subsidised canteen and transport facilities, uniforms, safety equipment, insurance cover, and opportunities for high-performing students to pursue further technical studies such as B.Tech through tie-ups like BITS Pilani’s Work Integrated Learning Program. Placement support under a ‘One Trainee, One Job’ policy will ensure that trained graduates find employment within Tata Motors’ manufacturing and service locations nationwide.

    In a parallel move, NESTS has also signed a tripartite agreement with Tata Motors and the Ex-Navodayan Foundation to offer focused coaching for competitive exams like IIT-JEE and NEET. This initiative will include dedicated residential Centres of Excellence at Chankapur (Maharashtra) and Chintapalle (Andhra Pradesh), providing intensive in-person coaching for meritorious science stream students of Grades XI and XII. Additionally, online preparatory classes for Olympiad, NTSE, and KVPY exams will be made available to students from digitally equipped EMRSs, extending support to learners from Grade IX onwards.

    Together, these new measures are intended to close educational gaps, build confidence among tribal youth, and create a sustainable pipeline of skilled students ready to contribute to India’s development.

    According to Ajeet Kumar Srivastava, Commissioner, NESTS, these collaborations are “a testament to our commitment to providing tribal students with opportunities to realise their full potential. Through these initiatives, we aim to bridge gaps in education and empower the next generation of tribal leaders.”

    NESTS, under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, runs Eklavya Model Residential Schools nationwide to ensure quality education for tribal students. UNICEF India continues to partner with the government in advancing inclusive education, while Tata Motors and the Ex-Navodayan Foundation bring industry experience and academic expertise to strengthen outcomes for tribal youth.

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Dune patterns in California desert hold clues that help researchers map Mars’ shifting sands

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Lauren Berger, Ph.D. Student in Geology, Texas A&M University

    The author did some of her fieldwork at the Algodones Dunes in California. Ryan Ewing

    Our two-person team loaded the car with a GPS, a drone, notebooks, sample bags, a trowel and a flat spatula lovingly called a scoopula. Then we drove 30 minutes in our rented truck from Yuma, Arizona, to the Algodones Dunes, a sandy field bordering California, Arizona and Mexico. The day was sunny, with a strong breeze. Turning off the highway, we carefully headed onto a gravelly path that acted as our road.

    After making decent – if bumpy – progress, we pulled off onto the sand flats and drove slowly toward the dunes, worried we might get stuck in the sand. Having arrived on the outskirts of the Algodones, we stopped and loaded our backpacks, then set off into the desert on foot.

    The coarse- and fine-grained sand at the Algodones Dunes.
    Lauren Berger

    It was November 2022. As a graduate student at Texas A&M University, I was beginning part of my Ph.D. research with my adviser, geology professor Ryan Ewing. We were looking for coarse-grained sand ripples, which are patterned piles of sand shaped by wind. Sand ripples and sand dunes are types of aeolian bedforms, which are wind-created geologic features.

    Aeolian bedforms are common on Earth and across the solar system, including on Mars, Venus, Pluto, the Saturn moon Titan, the Neptune moon Triton, and Comet 67P. These geological features, among the first landforms observed by remote images of planetary surfaces, are robust indicators of a world’s wind patterns.

    Flying a drone at Algodones. Note the GPS on the tripod, and a GPS target on the ground, which was also a landing pad for the drone.
    Ryan Ewing

    Measuring sand patterns in person

    The shapes and patterns of aeolian bedforms can reveal the environmental conditions that created them.

    Two sizes of the same bedform, such as small dunes on top of big dunes, are called compound bedforms. I study compound bedforms at two scales – the meter- and centimeter-sized coarse-grained ripples at the dunes here on Earth, and the kilometer- and meter-sized dunes on Mars.

    At the Algodones, I measured the height of each large coarse-grained sand ripple and the distance between neighboring ripples. Then we flew our drone low and steady, above the ripples, to create high-resolution images. The drone data allows us to do further measurements on the ripples later, back at my desk.

    On that day, I learned an essential rule of fieldwork in the desert: Don’t forget a shovel. Otherwise, if your vehicle gets stuck, as ours did, you’ll have to dig it out by hand. Luckily for us, a dune buggy driver passing by helped us out and we were able to get back to Yuma in time for dinner.

    High-resolution drone images of the sand ripples at Algodones.
    Lauren Berger

    My introduction to Mars

    I first became interested in aeolian bedforms during my sophomore year of college, when I interned at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. My job was to view surface images of Mars and then map the sand ripples in the regions where Perseverance, the Mars rover, might land. I assessed the areas where ripples could be hazards – places where the rover could get stuck in the sand, the way our rental truck did in the Algodones.

    I mapped those sand ripples on Mars for two years. But while I mapped, I became fascinated with the patterns the ripples made.

    A potential compound dune on Mars.
    NASA/JPL-Caltech

    Now, as a graduate student and aspiring planetary geologist, my time is split between work in the field and at my computer, where I have stitched together the drone’s photographs of the Algodones to create a large image of the entire study area. I then look for compound dunes on the Martian surface in images taken by the Mars reconnaissance orbiter’s context camera.

    Scientists already know about Earth’s weather patterns, sand grain size and wind data. By measuring different parts of bedforms on both planets – such as their height, shape and spacing – I can compare the similarities and differences of the bedforms to find clues to the wind patterns, grains and atmosphere on Mars. Slowly but surely, as I listen to Studio Ghibli soundtracks, I’m creating the first database of compound dunes on Mars.

    Two dune fields on Mars, both inside an impact crater.
    NASA/JPL-Caltech

    Developing this database is essential to the proposed human mission to Mars. Dust storms are frequent, and some can encircle the entire planet. Understanding aeolian bedforms will help scientists know where to put bases so they don’t get buried by moving sand.

    It is wonderful to spend an afternoon ping-ponging all over a planet that’s 140 million miles from us, seeing gorgeous terrain while I try to answer questions about the compound dunes on Mars. How common are they? Where do they form? How do they compare to those on Earth? I hope to answer these questions as I work toward earning my Ph.D in geology.

    Lauren Berger receives funding from NASA FINESST. Lauren Berger would like to acknowledge the help of her mentors Dr. Ryan Ewing (NASA Johnson Space Center), Dr. Marion Nachon (Texas A&M University), and Dr. Julia Reece (Texas A&M University).

    – ref. Dune patterns in California desert hold clues that help researchers map Mars’ shifting sands – https://theconversation.com/dune-patterns-in-california-desert-hold-clues-that-help-researchers-map-mars-shifting-sands-251761

    MIL OSI Analysis –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: PMGC Holdings Inc. Completes Acquisition of Custom IT Packaging Company Pacific Sun Packaging with Over $2,000,000 in Combined Revenue for Fiscal Years 2023 and 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    • Serves over 300 Commercial Clients including Data Centers, Technology Manufacturers and Information Technology (IT) Service Providers.
    • Adds cash flow positive revenue, enhances PMGC’s exposure to U.S. semiconductor and artificial intelligence (“AI”) infrastructure growth, and marks the launch of its strategic acquisition program targeting U.S. businesses.

    NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PMGC Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: ELAB) (the “Company,” “PMGC,” “we,” or “us”), a diversified public holding company, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of Pacific Sun Packaging Inc. (“Pacific Sun”) a specialized custom IT packaging company based in San Clemente, California.

    About Pacific Sun Packaging Inc.

    Founded in 2011, Pacific Sun Packaging Inc. is a specialty packaging provider focused on high-precision, component-level packaging solutions for the electronics and information technology (“IT”) hardware industries. The company designs and supplies custom-engineered protective packaging for delicate components such as central processing units (CPUs), memory modules (DIMMs and SO-DIMMs), solid state drives (SSDs), hard disk drives (HDDs), and fiber-optic transceivers, serving customers across the semiconductor, data center, and networking equipment supply chains.

    Pacific Sun’s solutions are built to meet the demanding durability, antistatic protection, and dimensional requirements of sensitive electronic parts during storage, shipping, and integration. Its products are widely used by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), distributors, and contract manufacturers requiring scalable, reliable, and technically compliant packaging options. Known for its engineering agility, fulfillment reliability, and component-specific packaging expertise, the company operates a lean, cash-generative model from its base in San Clemente, California.

    In fiscal years 2023 and 2024, Pacific Sun generated combined revenue of $2,151,418.

    Strategic Rationale

    The acquisition of Pacific Sun marks the first completed transaction in PMGC’s broader acquisition strategy, which targets businesses with consistent earnings, strong fundamentals, and scalable platforms. Pacific Sun operates in a specialized and growing segment of the packaging industry, supported by long-standing customer relationships, high service reliability, and deep expertise in meeting the complex needs of the technology supply chain. The company’s ability to deliver tailored, component-specific solutions with speed and consistency has made it a trusted partner to electronics and IT hardware providers navigating increased demand and supply chain complexity.

    PMGC plans to work closely with Pacific Sun’s existing leadership to identify and execute growth initiatives, including the buildout of a dedicated sales function, targeted marketing investments, and operational enhancements. With the right capital and strategic support, Pacific Sun is well-positioned to expand its commercial footprint and serve a broader range of customers in the growing electronics and logistics ecosystem.

    “Pacific Sun Packaging represents everything we look for in a foundational operating platform: consistent profitability, customer loyalty, and strategic exposure to macro tailwinds,” said Graydon Bensler, Chief Executive Officer of PMGC Holdings Inc, managed through GB Capital Ltd. “As semiconductor, electronics manufacturing, and AI data centers increasingly move back onshore, and demand for servers, memory, and IT components continues to grow, we believe this business is well-positioned to scale with America’s advanced manufacturing revival, and we are excited to help meet that demand.”

    Industry Outlook

    The U.S. market for custom IT and electronics packaging is poised for multi-year growth. According to industry data:

    • The North American electronics packaging market exceeded $8 billion in 2023.1
    • Demand is driven by the cloud, data center, and AI hardware boom, with memory modules and optical networking components requiring high-spec packaging solutions.
    • The CHIPS and Science Act is incentivizing domestic production, increasing demand for U.S.-based packaging partners.
    • E-commerce growth and stricter sustainability regulations are reshaping packaging needs—rewarding suppliers that offer recyclable, efficient, and customizable designs.

    PMGC acquired 100% of the issued and outstanding shares of Pacific Sun for $1,148,000 in cash, with an additional $250,000 earnout contingent on the company achieving $1,145,915 in revenue over the 12-month period following closing.

    About PMGC Holdings Inc.

    PMGC Holdings Inc. is a diversified holding company that manages and grows its portfolio through strategic acquisitions, investments, and development across various industries. We are committed to exploring opportunities in multiple sectors to maximize growth and value. For more information, please visit https://www.pmgcholdings.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Statements contained in this press release regarding matters that are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Words such as “believes,” “expects,” “plans,” “potential,” “would” and “future” or similar expressions such as “look forward” are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy, activities of regulators and future regulations and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that such expectations will turn out to be correct, and the Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. These and other risks are described more fully in PMGC’s filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on March 28, 2025, and its other documents subsequently filed with or furnished to the SEC. Investors and security holders are urged to read these documents free of charge on the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date on which they were made. Except to the extent required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update such statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.

    Investor Relations Contact:

    IR@pmgcholdings.com

    1North America Consumer Electronics Packaging Market Report – Industry Trends and Forecast to 2031 | Data Bridge Market Research

    The MIL Network –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: Ingersoll Rand Celebrates a Landmark Year in Sustainability and Growth in 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    DAVIDSON, N.C., July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE: IR), a global leader in mission-critical flow creation and life science and industrial solutions, proudly announces its most impactful year yet in sustainability, innovation, and operational excellence. The company’s 2024 sustainability report, “Enabling Growth: Leading Sustainably with purpose,” highlights transformative progress and responsible business practices.

    Key highlights include:

    Sustainability leadership recognized globally

    • Ranked in the top 1% of the industry in the 2024 S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment for the third consecutive year.
    • Named to the “A List” by CDP in the environmental stewardship and the supplier engagement leadership categories for the second year in a row.
    • Validated by the Science Based Targets initiative SBTi for Scope 1, 2, and 3 near-term and net-zero targets aligned to 1.5oC.1

    Environmental impact and operational excellence

    • Achieved 61% progress towards our SBTi validated Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goal of 42%.
    • Surpassed water reduction goal (-17%) with a 38% absolute reduction.
    • Achieved 74% progress toward our zero waste to landfill goal, which targets more than 50% of sites achieving zero waste to landfill.

    People-first culture and safety excellence

    • Achieved a total recordable incident rate (TRIR) of 0.54, 72% better than the industry average.2
    • Granted equity to approximately 3,900 employees through the company’s Ownership Works program. Since May 2017, more than 25,000 employees have received equity grants.
    • Maintained an employee engagement index score of 81, placing Ingersoll Rand in the top 10% of manufacturing companies.3

    “2024 was a milestone year for Ingersoll Rand,” said Vicente Reynal, chairman and chief executive officer of Ingersoll Rand. “We proved that sustainability and growth are not only compatible but mutually reinforcing. Our commitment to sustainable innovation is accelerating value to customers, improving operational efficiency, expanding market opportunities, and delivering long-term value for shareholders.”

    Visit investors.irco.com to read the full 2024 Sustainability Report.

    1 Details on Ingersoll Rand’s validated targets are available on the SBTi dashboard: https://sciencebasedtargets.org/companies-taking-action#dashboard.
    2Per the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics 2023 incidence rates of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses by industry and case types data set.
    3Employee Engagement Survey from third-party provider Glint, which administers the survey and provides comparable employee engagement survey figures.

    About Ingersoll Rand Inc.
    Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE:IR), driven by an entrepreneurial spirit and ownership mindset, is dedicated to Making Life Better for our employees, customers, shareholders, and planet. Customers lean on us for exceptional performance and durability in mission-critical flow creation and life science and industrial solutions. Supported by over 80+ respected brands, our products and services excel in the most complex and harsh conditions. Our employees develop customers for life through their daily commitment to expertise, productivity, and efficiency. Visit irco.com for more information.

    Forward-Looking Statements
    This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements related to Ingersoll Rand Inc.’s (the “Company” or “Ingersoll Rand”) expectations regarding the performance of its business, its financial results, its liquidity and capital resources and other non-historical statements. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “outlook,” “target,” “endeavor,” “seek,” “predict,” “intend,” “strategy,” “plan,” “may,” “could,” “should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “on track to,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” “guidance” or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than historical facts are forward-looking statements.

    These forward-looking statements are based on Ingersoll Rand’s current expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from these current expectations. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated or anticipated by such forward-looking statements. The inclusion of such statements should not be regarded as a representation that such plans, estimates, or expectations will be achieved. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such plans, estimates or expectations include, among others, (1) adverse impact on our operations and financial performance due to natural disaster, catastrophe, global pandemics (including COVID-19), geopolitical tensions, cyber events, or other events outside of our control; (2) unexpected costs, charges, or expenses resulting from completed and proposed business combinations; (3) uncertainty of the expected financial performance of the Company; (4) failure to realize the anticipated benefits of completed and proposed business combinations; (5) the ability of the Company to implement its business strategy; (6) difficulties and delays in achieving revenue and cost synergies; (7) inability of the Company to retain and hire key personnel; (8) evolving legal, regulatory, and tax regimes; (9) changes in general economic and/or industry specific conditions; (10) actions by third parties, including government agencies; and (11) other risk factors detailed in Ingersoll Rand’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), as such factors may be updated from time to time in its periodic filings with the SEC, which are available on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. The foregoing list of important factors is not exclusive.

    Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. Ingersoll Rand undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or development, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of these forward-looking statements.

    Contacts:
    Investor Relations:
    Matthew.Fort@irco.com 

    Media:
    Sara.Hassell@irco.com 

    The MIL Network –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI China: China eyes deeper Belt and Road cooperation with Egypt — premier

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Cairo, Egypt, July 10, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

    CAIRO, July 10 — Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here on Thursday that China is willing to strengthen Belt and Road cooperation with Egypt in such areas as economy, trade, finance, manufacturing, new energy, science and technology, and cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

    During his meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Li also said that China is willing to encourage more capable Chinese enterprises to invest in Egypt.

    Li conveyed to Sisi cordial greetings from Chinese President Xi Jinping, saying that China-Egypt relations have flourished in recent years under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state.

    The Chinese side, Li said, is ready to work with Egypt to take the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries next year as an opportunity to carry forward the traditional friendship, consolidate political mutual trust, and continue to firmly support each other on issues concerning each other’s core interests.

    China is also willing to join Egypt to continue to enrich the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership, push for more achievements in cooperation in various fields between the two nations, and keep moving forward to the goal of building a China-Egypt community with a shared future in the new era.

    The international landscape is marked by mounting turbulence and escalating disorder, with prolonged and unresolved conflicts particularly afflicting the West Asian and North African regions, Li said.

    China stands ready to maintain close communication with Egypt and promote an early ceasefire in Gaza, Li said.

    The Chinese side is also ready to join Egypt in alleviating the humanitarian crisis, preventing the spillover and escalation of the conflict, and making unremitting efforts for a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Palestinian issue, said the Chinese premier.

    He said China is willing to work with Egypt to enhance communication and coordination within multilateral platforms including the United Nations, BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and practice true multilateralism.

    Li added that China will work with Egypt to promote an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, and push for the steady and long-term development of China-Arab and China-Africa cooperation.

    Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Cairo, Egypt, July 10, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

    MIL OSI China News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: World-First Gene Editing Trial for Rare Genetic Disease at UConn Health

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    In a global first, UConn Health, in collaboration with Connecticut Children’s, has dosed a patient in a groundbreaking clinical trial testing gene editing technology to treat glycogen storage disease type 1a (GSD1a), a rare inherited metabolic disorder, marking the third “first-in-human” trial for GSD1a conducted by this research team.

    This clinical trial is evaluating a therapy that uses permanent gene editing, one of the most novel technologies in modern medicine. Instead of delivering a missing gene, this approach edits a single letter of DNA directly inside the patient’s liver cells, thereby correcting the genetic error at its source.

    “This therapy marks a groundbreaking achievement for the treatment of GSD and similar rare diseases,” said Juan C. Salazar, MD, Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the UConn School of Medicine and Physician-in-Chief at Connecticut Children’s. “This milestone represents a beacon of hope for patients and their families worldwide, showcasing out commitment to advancing healthcare and saving lives.”

    GSD is a metabolic disorder caused by an enzyme deficiency where the liver fails to break down glycogen into glucose, causing the body’s blood sugar levels to drop. The disorder is devastating, causing potential damage to kidneys and liver along with other serious side effects, including death.

    The trial is being led by Rebecca Riba-Wolman, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist in the Department of Pediatrics and a physician-scientist at both the Connecticut Children’s Research Institute and UConn Health. She serves as the principal investigator for the study, with Karen Loechner, MD, Ph.D., and Malaya Mount, MS, RD serving as sub-investigators.

    “This is truly a next-generation therapy,” says Riba-Wolman. “What makes this especially exciting is that this technology allows us to make a permanent edit in the liver cells of patients with GSD1a. If it works, it could last a lifetime.” Though in its earliest phase, the potential of this technology extends far beyond a single disorder. “Liver cells are one of the most accessible organs for genetic treatments, so while this is a treatment for GSD1a, it is also a stepping-stone,” Riba-Wolman explains. “What we are learning here could be applied to other diseases in the future.”

    The therapy is based on nucleotide editing and is part of the cutting-edge field born out of the precision technique of CRISPR-Cas genetic editing technology, which earned the Nobel Prize in 2020. The trial corrects a single nucleotide (one of the DNA “letters” A, G, C, or T) that is the basis for the most common mutation causing GSD1a. This targeted approach could allow for lifelong correction of the underlying disease. To date, there exists only one FDA-approved gene editing treatment in the world – for sickle cell disease.

    The trial has generated excitement among researchers and patients alike. Many families with GSD1a have followed the progress of the gene editing mouse studies that laid the foundation for this moment. For them, this trial represents the real possibility of a long-awaited breakthrough. “This is not just a clinical study. It is a hopeful step forward for a community that has been waiting years for new treatment options,” says Riba-Wolman.

    While the first trial participant was from out of state, UConn Health and Connecticut Children’s have built a robust local and regional GSD1a community, supported by a dedicated clinical team that includes physicians, nurses, study coordinators, research dietician and others, many of whom played a critical role in preparing for this first infusion.

    “This kind of clinical research requires an enormous amount of collaboration,” says Riba-Wolman. “I cannot say enough about the commitment of UConn Health to our research. From nursing leadership to pharmacy to respiratory therapy, everyone came together to make this possible.”

    Though results may not be fully appreciated for several years, this historic milestone underscores the growing reputation of UConn Health and Connecticut Children’s as leaders in rare disease research and gene-based therapies.

    “We have now been involved in three first-in-human trials for GSD1a, and this one is the most ambitious yet,” says Riba-Wolman. “It is incredible to think how far the science has come, and to be part of that here at UConn Health and Connecticut Children’s is something really special.”

    In partnership with Beam Therapeutics, this trial builds on decades-long leadership in GSD1a research, and it is expected to help shape the future of treatment not just for this rare condition, but for all genetic diseases.

    We’d like to acknowledge the significant contributions of the dedicated research team, including Shaylee King, administrative director of the Department of Pediatrics; study coordinators Vi Nguyen and Shila Bhandari from the Department of Pediatrics, and Julieta Bonvin Sallago from CT Children’s; as well as research nurses Stephanie Ruggiero, Travis Healy, Love Joy Tacadena Melendez, Osob Yusuf, Darby Lamontagne, and Amber Barry, all from the Department of Pediatrics.

    If you or a loved one have GSDIa and are interested in learning more about this trial as well as other Clinical Trials for GSDIa, please contact pediatricclinicaltrials@uchc.edu for more information.

    MIL OSI USA News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: For Restoring Biodiversity Look for Help from the Humble, World-building Muskrat

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    In his speech for the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR) this past spring, keynote speaker Rodney Butler ’99 (BUS), Chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, told an abbreviated version of the Indigenous creation story of Skywoman. 

    “When the world was covered in water, Skywoman fell from an opening in the Skyworld and landed on the back of a giant turtle. Skywoman enlisted the help of many animals to dive deep to retrieve soil from the depths of the ocean in an effort to create land. Many animals attempted to grab the soil, but it was the unlikely muskrat, who was both humble and courageous, that was able to return the soil and place it on the back of the great turtle. As the mud is placed on the turtle’s back, it grows and expands, eventually forming the continents and life-sustaining world we know today.” 

    Butler spoke of how the story emphasizes the importance of working together and that we are all better when we work and learn together. There is also great strength in partnering Indigenous knowledge with science to build a sustainable future. 

    Associate Professor Beth Lawrence has a joint appointment with the Center for Environmental Science and Engineering and the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment in CAHNR, and her work adds to the time-honored appreciation of the courageous and humble muskrat. In research published in Freshwater Science, Lawrence and collaborators, including project lead Shane Lishawa and Andrew Monks from Loyola University, and Danielle Fegan and Eric Clark, who are biologists with the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, describe how muskrats engineer more biologically diverse marsh ecosystems. 

    The researchers study cattail-dominated marshes and strategies to create more varied, or heterogeneous, ecosystems using methods like mechanical harvesting or by applying herbicides. While out on field research, Lawrence says they made an intriguing observation.

    “We noticed in some years that muskrats were doing naturally what we were doing with our aquatic weed whackers and gas-powered equipment. We thought that maybe we should investigate how muskrats alter cattail and associated species,” says Lawrence. 

    The project focused on a marsh that connects the St. Mary’s River outlet of Lake Superior to Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. In vast marshes like this one, the non-native cattail species Typha can take over and make acres of marshland look similar to cornfields in terms of the lack of diversity, says Lawrence. These kinds of monocultures do not support biologically diverse ecosystems. 

    “It homogenizes the wetland, and is not an ideal habitat for birds, macro-invertebrates, fish, and native plants, so over the last 15 years we’ve been interested in how we can manage these invaded cattail marshes of the Great Lakes,” Lawrence says. 

    The researchers have tried a variety of methods to control the cattails, but they are most interested in using mechanical means, rather than chemical control measures. 

    “Cutting the cattail at different intensities and frequencies can reduce its abundance and promote native diversity and also open up habitat that creates heterogeneity in these monotypes. This promotes species diversity overall, and improves habitat for native fish and bird communities,” says Lawrence. 

    Muskrats are semi-aquatic rodents that naturally harvest cattails by cutting them below the water level. This is important because the stems of the plant act almost like a snorkel to provide oxygen to the roots. Cutting stems below the water essentially drowns the cattail by severing the connection between the oxygen-rich atmosphere and the anoxic sediment common to wetlands. The muskrats use the cattails to build their lodges, and the process creates openings that give other plant species a chance to grow. 

    “These important aquatic rodents transform habitats in many ways that some communities, like the Native Americans, have appreciated for 1000s of years, and Western science is just now discovering that importance.” (Adobe Stock)

    Using drones and aerial photography, the researchers identified several lodges and openings where they sampled the vegetation and water quality parameters. They also harvested cattails via mechanical methods or with herbicides to create muskrat disturbance analogs (MDAs) to simulate the muskrat openings. They compared these data with data collected from adjacent non-muskrat-impacted areas.  

    “Then we monitored the vegetation and water quality parameters for two growing seasons after that. We found there was greater biodiversity with the muskrat disturbances and the MDA treatments,” says Lawrence. 

    The muskrats and the MDA methods reduced the presence of the cattails as well as another invasive plant called European frogbit (Hydrocharis), therefore they helped promote more heterogenous communities and the authors note that efforts to increase muskrat populations should be taken as a management strategy in areas where these two invasive plant species dominate. 

    “Restoring biodiversity is critical to our future. Climate change is happening rapidly, and we’re rolling the dice. Maintaining and protecting a diversity of species is important because we don’t know which species will survive or thrive in different climate scenarios,” says Lawrence. “I think of Aldo Leopold’s quote about how an intelligent tinkerer always keeps all the parts. We want to keep all of the parts of the planet because we don’t know exactly what the future is going to look like.” 

    Lawrence also has projects focusing on beavers, which are also vital ecosystem engineers. Like muskrats, beavers transform habitats and act as keystone species that play an important role in creating wetland habitats, 

    “These important aquatic rodents transform habitats in many ways that some communities, like the Native Americans, have appreciated for 1000s of years, and Western science is just now discovering that importance. Beavers are resurging on the landscape after being almost extirpated in New England due to hunting. They were reintroduced after being essentially extinct in Connecticut about 200 years ago and then reintroduced about 100 years ago. Now, their populations are exploding, and they’re transforming our landscape again.”  

    Lawrence also reflects on the significance of teamwork in this project:

    “I think science takes a team. Our relationship with the tribe and across institutions is a big part of the importance of this paper and this project. It was a really satisfying project, both in terms of the relationships that have developed over the years, but also how we’ve gained a lot of insights by studying the system over decades.” 

    MIL OSI USA News –

    July 11, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: OTC Markets Group Welcomes Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc. to OTCQX

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM), operator of regulated markets for trading 12,000 U.S. and international securities, today announced Reckitt Benckiser Group plc (“Reckitt”) (LSE: RKT; OTCQX: RBGLY, RBGPF), the company behind some of the world’s best-loved consumer health and hygiene brands, has qualified to trade on the OTCQX® Best Market. Reckitt upgraded to OTCQX from the Pink® market.

    Reckitt begins trading today on OTCQX under the symbols “RBGLY” and “RBGPF.” U.S. investors can find current financial disclosure and Real-Time Level 2 quotes for the company on www.otcmarkets.com.

    Upgrading to the OTCQX Market is an important step for companies seeking to provide transparent trading for their U.S. investors. For companies listed on a qualified international exchange, streamlined market standards enable them to utilize their home market reporting to make their information available in the U.S. To qualify for OTCQX, companies must meet high financial standards, follow best practice corporate governance and demonstrate compliance with applicable securities laws.

    “We are honored to announce the inclusion of Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc. on the OTCQX Market,” stated Jason Paltrowitz, Executive Vice President of Corporate Services at OTC Markets Group. “This important milestone represents a notable accomplishment for the company and underscores the strengthening relationship between European capital markets and U.S. investors in pursuit of diversified investment opportunities.”

    About Reckitt

    We make the products people trust to care for the ones they love. We are home to some of the world’s best-loved consumer health and hygiene brands, including Dettol, Durex, Finish, Gaviscon, Harpic, Lysol, Mucinex, Nurofen, Strepsils, Vanish and Veet. Consumers are at the heart of everything we do. By creating innovative, science-backed solutions, we support people every day to live healthier lives.

    Reckitt exists to protect, heal and nurture in the pursuit of a cleaner, healthier world. This commitment goes beyond the products we make. Through our actions, we expand access to healthcare, education and economic opportunities. We support the planet by reducing waste, conserving resources and driving sustainable innovation.

    We believe good health starts at home. With every action we take, we strive to make our consumers’ lives easier, cleaner and healthier, to strengthen communities and to create a more sustainable future.

    Find out more or get in touch with us at www.reckitt.com.

    About OTC Markets Group Inc.

    OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM) operates regulated markets for trading 12,000 U.S. and international securities. Our data-driven disclosure standards form the foundation of our public markets: OTCQX® Best Market, OTCQB® Venture Market, OTCID™ Basic Market and Pink Limited Market.

    Our OTC Link® Alternative Trading Systems (ATSs) provide critical market infrastructure that broker-dealers rely on to facilitate trading. Our innovative model offers companies more efficient access to the U.S. financial markets.

    OTC Link ATS, OTC Link ECN, OTC Link NQB, and MOON ATS are each SEC regulated ATS, operated by OTC Link LLC, a FINRA and SEC registered broker-dealer, member SIPC. To learn more about how we create better informed and more efficient markets, visit
    www.otcmarkets.com.

    Subscribe to the OTC Markets RSS Feed

    Media Contact:
    OTC Markets Group Inc., +1 (212) 896-4428, media@otcmarkets.com

    The MIL Network –

    July 10, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: FS views I&T facilities in Seoul

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    Financial Secretary Paul Chan today concluded his visit to Seoul by touring leading Korean innovation and technology (I&T) enterprise NAVER and Seoul’s Digital Media City.

    NAVER engages in diverse fields such as electronic payments, e-commerce, fintech, information technology, cloud services, AI and robotics.

    Mr Chan was briefed by the company’s management and research and development (R&D) heads on its development journey, technological innovations, application scenarios and future business directions.

    He also had in-depth exchanges with them, and watched a demonstration of NAVER’s AI and robotics applications.

    The Financial Secretary noted that Hong Kong is also making great strides in developing its AI sector and is actively enhancing the related infrastructure. Institutions such as the Hong Kong Science & Technology Parks and Cyberport are working to build a more vibrant I&T ecosystem.

    He highlighted that under the “one country, two systems” principle, Hong Kong, being an international financial centre, offers a comprehensive range of fundraising options and a robust legal system that safeguards data and intellectual property rights.

    Mr Chan welcomed NAVER to collaborate with Hong Kong partners in R&D and business development, and to leverage Hong Kong as a fundraising platform to support its international expansion.

    The finance chief also visited Seoul’s Digital Media City where he met the management team to learn more about the project’s development history and future plans, and toured an exhibition showcasing how extended reality technology is being used to support urban development.

    A project led by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Digital Media City is home to numerous companies in digital media, film and entertainment, gaming and animation, information technology and more.

    In addition, Mr Chan paid a courtesy call on Chinese Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Dai Bing, to brief him on Hong Kong’s latest social and economic developments as well as the recent trends in its economic and trade relations with Korea.

    They also exchanged views on the global geopolitical and economic landscape, regional trade co-operation and the development of China-Korea relations.

    Mr Chan will depart for Hong Kong in the evening.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

    July 10, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: FS views I&T facilities in Seoul

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    Financial Secretary Paul Chan today concluded his visit to Seoul by touring leading Korean innovation and technology (I&T) enterprise NAVER and Seoul’s Digital Media City.

    NAVER engages in diverse fields such as electronic payments, e-commerce, fintech, information technology, cloud services, AI and robotics.

    Mr Chan was briefed by the company’s management and research and development (R&D) heads on its development journey, technological innovations, application scenarios and future business directions.

    He also had in-depth exchanges with them, and watched a demonstration of NAVER’s AI and robotics applications.

    The Financial Secretary noted that Hong Kong is also making great strides in developing its AI sector and is actively enhancing the related infrastructure. Institutions such as the Hong Kong Science & Technology Parks and Cyberport are working to build a more vibrant I&T ecosystem.

    He highlighted that under the “one country, two systems” principle, Hong Kong, being an international financial centre, offers a comprehensive range of fundraising options and a robust legal system that safeguards data and intellectual property rights.

    Mr Chan welcomed NAVER to collaborate with Hong Kong partners in R&D and business development, and to leverage Hong Kong as a fundraising platform to support its international expansion.

    The finance chief also visited Seoul’s Digital Media City where he met the management team to learn more about the project’s development history and future plans, and toured an exhibition showcasing how extended reality technology is being used to support urban development.

    A project led by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Digital Media City is home to numerous companies in digital media, film and entertainment, gaming and animation, information technology and more.

    In addition, Mr Chan paid a courtesy call on Chinese Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Dai Bing, to brief him on Hong Kong’s latest social and economic developments as well as the recent trends in its economic and trade relations with Korea.

    They also exchanged views on the global geopolitical and economic landscape, regional trade co-operation and the development of China-Korea relations.

    Mr Chan will depart for Hong Kong in the evening.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

    July 10, 2025

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: expert reaction to the latest heatwave

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    July 10, 2025

    Scientists react to the latest heat wave in the UK. 

    On buildings:

    Anni Feng, built environment expert at the Institution of Engineering and Technology said:

    “When it’s really hot outside, many of us feel uncomfortable indoors too. That’s not just because of the building itself, but also because of what’s around it.

    “Think of it like this: buildings don’t stand alone. The materials used in roads and nearby buildings can trap heat, making the whole area hotter. This extra heat can make people try to cool things down with fans or turn up air conditioning units.

    “But if too many people do that at once, the local energy system might struggle to keep up. That can lead to problems like cooling systems not working properly, which could even affect things like computers and other equipment inside buildings.

    “When considering how we adapt for hotter temperatures, we should ask the questions like what this might mean for surrounding buildings, the environment and people in the communities – both short term and long term – and are they contributing positively to the future we aspire to create?” 

    On infrastructure:

    John Lawrence, Chair of the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s Railway Technical Network said:

    “Heat is a significant issue for the railway, affecting infrastructure and trains alike. The management of it is a cross-industry whole year exercise fitting into the seasonal preparation activities done by maintenance teams and planners across the network. The most noticeable areas affected by heat are also the ones causing the most significant disruption. Ambient temperature and solar gain combine to create very high temperatures at track level and in equipment location cases trackside. Track buckles and dewirements are the most significant thing that keep engineers up at night – even with the amount of focus, investment and improvements made in recent years, situations still arise where rails buckle in the heat. This can lead to potential derailment risks and overhead lines can sag and snag on the pantographs of trains leading to train movements stopping or being rerouted for a significant period of time.

    “There are also hidden failures, too. Much equipment on the railway can suffer heat stress, with signalling control, power supplies and telecoms systems trackside particularly affected, switch-creep caused by rail expansion at points can affect detection and stop trains being routed across them, so where the passenger may see signalling failure, this could very well be caused by overtemperature somewhere on the network. Lineside fires can also be a problem, maybe caused by discarded rubbish, sparks from steam locomotives or maintenance trains, causing significant disruption, whether they arise on the infrastructure or even in a lineside neighbour’s premises.

    “Managing these issues is costly and time consuming and with the greater prevalence of high temperatures, it is becoming more of a hazard over time. You may notice rails being painted white to reflect solar gain at specific risk points on the network, improved tensioning equipment on overhead line gantries to managed dynamic tension, fresh ballast dropped to hold rails in position and rail joints lubricated to enable expansion.

    “What you may not see as a passenger, however, is the hidden technology and processes monitoring condition and taking action to provide early warning of failure. Such as, short, medium and long-term weather reporting to give planners a chance to react. Rail stressing to maintain equal tension for expansion and contraction. Vision systems monitoring pantograph contact, yellow trains on the network monitoring dynamic track stability, critical rail temperature sensors providing warning of danger or signalling systems and points being monitored for a range of defects that can affect operation. You might also be surprised to find thermal imaging drones and helicopters monitoring equipment for overheating and visual inspection and defect correction taking place overnight.

    “Temperature management is a huge issue for the railway and the focus of much research, development and activity across the season. But with the changing climate, it is an ever-present issue for the day-to-day operation of the railway.”

     

    Dr John Easton, an executive panel member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s Railway Technical Network, said:

    “One of the key ways that networks prevent tracks from overheating is by painting them white.  This can reduce the track temperature by 5°C and reduces signalling failures which lead to significant disruption. 

    “This technique is also used in countries where high temperatures are more commonplace, such as Italy, where engineers often paint the inside faces of the rails white to reflect the sunlight and lower the risk of buckling.”

     

    On weather and climate:

    Prof Gareth Phoenix, Professor of Plant and Global Change Ecology in the School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield, said:

    “With climate change, we are already experiencing hotter and drier summers in the UK, and this trend will continue. Events that we once might have thought of as extreme will start to feel more normal. One of the main problems is that although the amount of rainfall the UK gets over a whole year is expected to stay roughly the same, we are getting more of that rain in winter and less in summer. So, we can expect more droughts, like we are experiencing at the moment, and wetter winters with more flooding – something people will also see they are experiencing more of.

    “Droughts, heatwaves and heavy rainfall are also linked. Warm air holds more moisture, allowing it to build up for longer, which creates bigger gaps between rainfall events and can contribute to drought. But then when it does rain, it can rain a lot more heavily. Also, evaporation from the ground is the Earth’s way of sweating – it helps keep the ground cool. But if there is less moisture in the ground, there can be less evaporation and, consequently, less of a cooling effect, adding to the heatwave.”

    All our previous output on this subject can be seen at this weblink: https://www.sciencemediacentre.org/?s=heatwave&cat=

    Declared interests

    Anni Feng: “No conflicts of interest”

    John Lawrence: “No conflicts of interest”

    For all other experts, no reply to our request for DOIs was received.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

    July 10, 2025
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