The Journal News, a local newspaper out of Butler County, Ohio, recently reported on a new research project at the University of Cincinnati. Focusing on patients who have lost their hearing due to non-cancerous tumors, the project is studying how a combination of art therapy and robotic companions, in this case a puppy, can help people cope with the depression and isolation that often accompany problems in the brain.
On March 4th, WCPO reported about a new project at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Using pediatric patient data, researchers are employing the world's second-fastest supercomputer, located at Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee, to analyze and predict mental health outcomes for patients with depression and anxiety disorders, including those who suffer from thoughts of suicide.
Did you hear? Cincinnati Bell is changing its name. WCPO reports, "The big change comes six months after an Australian private-equity firm bought Cincinnati’s former phone company with the goal of rapidly expanding its fiber-optic networks in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) finally eased their masking guidelines, with the introduction of a new, color-based system for counties around the country. Each color code corresponds to a level of risk: green for low-risk counties, yellow for medium risk areas, and orange for those areas where COVID-19 infection rates are still comparatively high.
On February 21st, WCPO ran a story on a new app developed by undergraduates at Ohio State. Called the SOAR Initiative, the app offers users a safe way to report batches of illegal drugs laced with deadly ingredients, like fentanyl, without contacting the police directly.
Around Christmas of last year, Cincy Magazine published a story about a pilot program that the Kroger chain of grocery stores had unveiled in Centerville. The Centerville Kroger Marketplace began using drones to deliver grocery orders in July of 2021. The chief technology officer of Drone Express; a drone manufacturer out of Monroe, Ohio, which has partnered with Kroger; had this to say about the program: "'Autonomous drones have unlimited potential to improve everyday life, and our technology opens the way to safe, secure, environmentally friendly deliveries for Kroger customers,...The possibilities for customers are endless—we can enable Kroger customers to send chicken soup to a sick friend or get fast delivery of olive oil if they run out while cooking dinner.
Note: copy edits made 02/10/22 at 12:33 pm
In 2019, WCPO ran a story about a special event that took place just outside of the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal. Sponsored by Proctor & Gamble, the event drew female STEM students from schools around the tri-state to compete in a rocketry competition.
EDIT: The original version of this post stated that there had been no power outages in Texas at the time of publication. This was not accurate. We have changed the relevant lines to reflect the truth. We apologize if this caused any confusion.
-- 6:12 pm, 02/03/22
The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous winter weather warning for the Cincinnati area until 7:00 am on Friday, February 4th.
It's no secret that the last few years have been especially dire when it comes to cybercrime. Several large scale ransomware attacks, in which cyber criminals use advanced encryption to lock a person or organization out of their own data until they pay a ransom, have rocked the country.
Quick Announcement: We're changing gears today. Moving forward, we'll be focusing on general IT issues as they relate to the local Cincinnati, tri-state area. Stay tuned.
Marc Saltzman, in a special column for USA Today, recently explored different methods for getting rid of old hardware.