If you’re gonna get sick, here’s the best city to get sick in
“Wherever the art of medicine is loved, there is also a love of humanity.” -- Hippocrates
Today’s itinerary:
BIOTECH ON THE RADAR
Best rated hospitals in the U.S.? They're in Cincinnati 
Photo by argusfoto is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0
Cincinnati has the best-rated hospitals in the nation, according to a new study.
The study was published last week by Psy.D. Programs, a social community for clinical psychologists around the world. Cincinnati was the highest-ranked city in the study with an average rating of 3.9 stars. Austin, TX, was a close No. 2 in the study, also receiving a 3.9. Indianapolis follows with a 3.8.
The report takes into account Medicare and Medicaid Services, which are used to create hospital quality rankings across the nation. These rankings were first created by the government in April 2015.
For this analysis, the study looked at the Overall Hospital Quality Star Ranking made most recently available in 2020. The data set examined almost 4,000 hospitals. Scoring was ranked from 1-5 stars.
Las Vegas ranked dead last. Nearly every hospital in Las Vegas attains a one-star rating. A shortage of doctors is attributed to its low score.
The detailed data set for the study, which includes 57 measures in categories such as patient experience, mortality, and safety of care, can be found here.
KC tech company helps screen the air for coronavirus Governments, hospitals and corporations around the world are calling upon a Missouri-based microbiology tech company to use its detection systems to help screen the air for the coronavirus.
The company, InnovaPrep, was founded in 2009 and specializes in the detection of viruses. It already had a range of products used to test the air before the outbreak of COVID-19, but sales have skyrocketed as the virus has spread around the globe. Chief executive David Alburty called the last couple of months “pretty wild” as orders poured in from distributors in China, where the virus first gained widespread recognition.
The technology is designed around the collection of air samples. It then concentrates them, filters them and sends them through a genetic testing device that transmits results to a smart phone or tablet with about 90 minutes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Defense have already purchased testing kits, and Alburty said the company is prepared to increase production by 10 times to meet the demand.
“It started in January when it was really hitting hard,” he told KSHB-TV, “and it has continued until now and is starting to pick up with our distributors in other places in the world, Europe especially now.”
St. Louis bioscience company earns $3M federal grant St. Louis startup VaxNewMO has been awarded a $3 million Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to help advance the development and commercialization of a vaccine for pneumococcus, which is responsible for diseases such as pneumonia and meningitis.
The company received training and support from BioGenerator's Grants-2-Business program. Grants-2-Business aims to bring federal money to St. Louis to help life science startups advance their research and attract additional investment.
VaxNewMO CEO and co-founder Christian Harding, PhD, said the funding will be used to “establish processing capabilities to manufacture the vaccines.” The company also plans to hire three more scientists to work in its lab inside the BioGenerator Labs facility, part of the Cortex Innovation Community.
FLYOVER U RESEARCH
U of L's Speed laser-focused on AI & Data Researchers at the J.B. Speed School of Engineering at the University of Louisville are focused on AI and data science. Dr. Jacek Zurada, the Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the school, who has been researching the neural networks technology (which has become the leading thread of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence) has been elected to serve as a 2020-21 Distinguished Lecturer for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Systems, Man and Cybernetics Society.
“The area we work in is very hot right now,” said Dr. Zurada. “Everyone is interested in these technological developments because they are revolutionizing today’s societies. We have great opportunities to be using voice and image recognition systems, machine translations, use recommendation systems – which are all products of AI."
Some of Speed’s projects in the area of AI and machine learning include:
FUNDING THE FUTURE
KC startup acquired by California company
Kansas City edutech startup Signal Kit, a mass notification services provider, has been acquired by California-based ParentSquare in an “undisclosed cash and equity deal.”
RTP optics tech startup closes on $5M
ImagineOptix, a startup based in Research Triangle Park, has raised $5 million in new capital. The company, which develops optics for AR and VR devices, is now seeking another $4 million.
Knopp Biosciences raises $1M in debt financing
Pittsburgh’s Knopp Biosciences, which is developing a drug to treat degenerative neurological disorders, has raised $1 million of convertible debt financing. The investor was not disclosed.
KC’s Tesseract closes $2M investment
Next-gen tech company Tesseract Ventures, based in Kansas City, has announced the closing of $2 million from local financial services company UMB Capital Corporation.
Indiana fiber optic provider plans to acquire Jaguar Communications
MetroNet Holdings, parent of Evansville fiber optic communications provider MetroNet, has announced plans to acquire Minnesota-based Jaguar Communications. The deal is expected to close in the next few months.
Raleigh medical device firm lands $22.3 million from investors Good news for people with gunky veins: A Raleigh medical device firm specializing in heart health has raised $22.3 million in funding from 10 investors. The company, Contego Medical, specializes in devices that target neurovascular, coronary and peripheral vascular diseases.
IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT
It's ... Name that Flyover city!
Useless information that is strangely fascinating.
Today we want to see if you can fill in the blanks with the correct city names in a few quotes.
Click here for today's answers.
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