01.23.12 | Posted in 1 of Many | No Comments

A Wise investment in the nation’s health

By Thomas Sellers, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Scientists and medical researchers know that the tangible rewards of decades of government investment in solving major health problems is within our grasp, but the promise deserves recognition in the Republican presidential candidate debates.

In 2005, the draft sequence of the human genome was unraveled by an international collaboration at a cost of roughly $5 billion. Today, advances in technology have brought the costs down 5,000-fold to only $1,000. The discoveries of human disease enabled by these advances are simply breathtaking, and we are just now seeing that knowledge being transformed into wisdom, and more importantly, new treatments for dreaded diseases like cancer that will affect 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women in this country.

To realize this promise and potential requires research, yet sadly the dollars allocated to the National Institutes of Health are decreasing. Given the rising cost of health care, now more than ever we need to continue to invest in medical research to find new ways of managing disease in more effective and efficient ways.

Investment in medical research is also an investment in our region. At Moffitt Cancer Center, we are unraveling the myriad changes that underlie the transformation of a normal cell into a cancerous one. It’s clear that even cancers that look the same under the microscope can be very different entities that require different treatment strategies. Thus, we are now poised for the first time ever to pursue the goal of cancer therapy that is based on the right drug, for the right patient, at the right time – the first time.

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01.13.12 | Posted in 1 of Many | No Comments

Tim Tebow, a blast from the past

Here’s a blast from the past.  One of my many Tim Tebow posts from the ole’ Gator Grotto blog.

Unless you’ve been sleeping under water with your nostrils just above the surface, you know the Gators won the BCS Championship last week down in Miami.  And unless you’ve been sleeping under water you know that the famous quarterback from UF,  Tim Tebow, was the game’s MVP.

And unless you’ve been sleeping under water you know that Tim Tebow is an amazing young man who loves his family, cares about the people around him, cares even more about people who have not been as fortunate as him in their lives, and is a devout Christian.

The famous quarterback, Tim Tebow, has created quite a stir with the eye black that he wears under his eyes when he’s playing the game.  While eye black is the stuff athletes put under their eyes to reduce the reflections from the sun or other bright lights, Tebow has used eye black to proclaim his faith.

Throughout the season the famous quarterback, Tim Tebow,  has worn Phil 4:13 on his eye black.  If you didn’t already know, Phil 4:13 is a bible verse that states; I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

A new verse, John 3:16,  adorned the eye black during the BCS National Championship game in Miami last week and that has created a little controversy.  The passage states:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Head football coach, Urban Meyer, commented on Tebow’s eye black following the BCS game, though not specifically about the use of John 3:16:

“When my daughter texts me in the morning and quotes the Bible verse that he has underneath his eyes, that’s good for college football,” said Meyer. “That’s good for young people.”

Since the famous quarterback will be returning for another season in Gainesville, the Grouch is sure eye black and the Bible will come up a time or two again.  But as UF President Bernie Machen has stated in the past, “If you can’t have free and open discourse on a college campus, where else can you?”

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Passion Rules!

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01.09.12 | Posted in Updates | 1 Comment

A day in the life of Tim Tebow, circa 2009

Watching yesterday’s NFL Playoff game where Denver quarterback and Gator great Tim Tebow continued to amaze brought back fond memories of The Gator Nation branding campaign at the University of Florida.

While Tebow was not directly involved in the campaign itself, his success — on the field and off — helped draw attention to the university and helped propel the campaign into the stratosphere.  I may be a little prejudice here, but I believe that campaign is still the finest higher education branding campaign in the nation.  No tricks, no gimmicks, pure Gator.

Anyway, we produced a little video back in 2009 that featured “A day in the life of” theme.  Naturally, everyone thought it was a day in the life of Tim Tebow.  That video still exists and is just another example of how one person, even one as big as Tim Tebow, can be part of something even bigger and have fun while doing so.  Do you think Tebow is having fun today!

Take a look.  I think you’ll enjoy.  And Go Broncos!

A day in the life of . . . Tim Tebow. A day in the life of Tim Tebow

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Passion Rules!

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11.07.11 | Posted in 1 of Many | No Comments

CANCER RESEARCH CRITICAL TO FLORIDA

As Congress debates the fiscal 2012 appropriations and attempt to develop a long-term deficit reduction plan, members must deal with critical issues facing the nation. One issue is the support of biomedical research, which saves lives, improves quality of life and can serve as the foundation to improve the economy.  The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) provide leading academic and research institutions with the financial support necessary to build the infrastructure to conduct life saving medical science that potentially will affect all of our lives.

In the 40 years since the National Cancer Act was signed into law, impressive progress has been made. More than 12 million Americans are cancer survivors today because of the nation’s investment. Yet, as important as funding is to the research that will find the cures to diseases that affect Florida’s residents, Florida falls behind other states in attracting NIH federal dollars.

A recent article in the St. Petersburg Times quotes Mary Woolley, president and CEO of Research!America, discussing a survey showing the disparity in Florida’s population versus funding received from the National Institutes of Health.  The survey demonstrated that Floridians support education in the sciences and believe science careers to be important for the state economy. Without funding, however, Floridians will never realize these benefits.

At Moffitt Cancer Center, the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center based in Florida, we are determined to advance the cancer research that will save lives.  In spite of flat funding of the NCI and NIH by Congress, Moffitt Cancer Center has continued to grow.  In 1996, when Moffitt began investing in research, we received less than $10 million in grant funding.  Today, we have over $80 million in grant funding.  Moffitt has increased its NCI grant funding by more than 81 percent during the past five years, raising the cancer center to 22nd in the nation in NCI-funded institutions.

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10.05.11 | Posted in 1 of Many | No Comments

Steve Jobs, NC State, and the “new” iPad

When the iPad was introduced way back in 2010, we purchased a number of “tablets” for my staff at NC State University.  As a test, we worked with the library and turned a number of them over to our students and asked them to blog about the experience.

We sensed immediately that the new tablet was revolutionary and would change the way we think about personal computing . . .  forever.

Something Steve’s company has been doing since the beginning.

The ability to combine art and technology truly rocked the world and he seemed to embody disruptive innovation at every turn.

I never knew Steve Jobs, but I know Steve Jobs through the company and products he created.  That friendship will continue well into the future.  So long good buddy and thank you for everything you’ve done for me and those I love.

http://www.hiceschool.com/1-of-many/3149/

http://www.hiceschool.com/just-interesting/test-driving-the-ipad/

http://www.hiceschool.com/1-of-many/creativity-is-just-connecting-things/

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Passion Rules!

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09.15.11 | Posted in 1 of Many | 4 Comments

Dunkin’ – Own the entire Doughnut Nation!

Back in September 2005 we introduced the world to a new way to approach university marketing and The Gator Nation was born.  It was actually The University of Florida, The Foundation for The Gator Nation, but it’s The Gator Nation idea that has been really sticky.

So sticky that I can’t keep track of all the Nation’s that are popping up here and there.  There’s the NASCAR Nation, the FOX Sports Nation, ESPN Nation, Buckeye Nation, Tiger Nation, Nike Nation, Wolfpack Nation (ouch) and … well, I could go on for ever.

Now along comes Dunkin’ Doughnuts with the Dunkin’ Nation.  But if you’re gonna steal somebody’s nation, steal the whole thing.

Own the whole thing

Dunkin' Nation

I’d have called it the Doughnut Nation.  The goal, afer all, is to own the entire category.  The Dunkin’ Nation is kind of like owning the doughnut hole.  Does Krispy Kreme own the rest of the doughnut?

So Dunkin’ Doughnuts, , if you’re gonna own the category, own the entire category; The Doughnut Nation.

If you’re going to claim something, claim all of it.

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09.01.11 | Posted in 1 of Many | No Comments

Back in 2005 I was a social media trendsetter

Back in 2005 I was a trendsetter according to The Wall Street Journal.  Among the 5 percent of “adults” who were users of social media sites.

In fact, I think I was one of the first staff members at the University of Florida to join Facebook.  Then YouTube, then LinkedIn, then Twitter.  And dare I mention . . .  MySpace.

There was a lot of debate back then (the old days, eh) about social media.  Concern that we couldn’t protect the privacy of our students.  Concerns that we couldn’t protect the privacy of the university.  Concerns about goofing off at the office and frittering away the state’s time on the computer.  Lots of concerns.

Well, turns out today that  I’m just an ordinary Pop Monkey because, today, just about everybody uses social media; according to the Journal,  65 percent of adults  use social media.  But hey, I do use them all and I even have a blog.

Here’s an abriged version of the story from the Journal earlier this week.

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Passion Rules!

By Sarah E. Needleman

If your small business doesn’t yet have a Facebook page, LinkedIn profile or Twitter feed, a recent study may persuade you to finally join the social-media bandwagon.

Sixty-five percent of all U.S. adults now use social-networking sites, up from 61% a year ago and just 5% in 2005, reports Pew Research Center. The findings are based on telephone interviews conducted in April and May by Princeton Survey Research Associates International.

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08.24.11 | Posted in 1 of Many | 1 Comment

Creativity is just connecting things

Steve Jobs described creativity and the creative process better than anyone.

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things. And the reason they were able to do that was that they’ve had more experiences or they have thought more about their experiences than other people.

“Unfortunately, that’s too rare a commodity. A lot of people in our industry haven’t had very diverse experiences. So they don’t have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions without a broad perspective on the problem. The broader one’s understanding of the human experience, the better design we will have.” [Wired, February 1996]

Everybody’s doing it; We fulfill dreams, get moving, The Gator Nation.  All just connecting the dots.  And yes, I’ve felt guilty because I couldn’t explain how ideas happened.

Sometimes they — the connection between the dots — were right there, staring you in the face.  Other times it took research and discussion, but inevitably, the solution just arrived.  Or did it emerge.  Or did it just magically appear.  I like the magic.

Working to understand the dots at Moffitt.  While the dots are different, they are starting to align. And here, it’s really all about passion.  Dots with passion. I love that.

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Passion Rules!

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08.04.11 | Posted in Just Interesting | No Comments

Governor visits Moffitt

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/content/gov-rick-scott-talks-investors-state-funding-moffitt-cancer-center-officials

Gov. Rick Scott talks investors, state funding with Moffitt Cancer Center officials Rep. James Grant, R-Tampa, joined Gov. Rick Scott on a tour of the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa on Thursday. If you remember, House Speaker Dean Cannon yanked Grant from a leadership post during the 2011 session after he broke ranks with party leadership and voted against a sweep of a $50 million Biomedical Trust Fund funded by a cigarette sales tax. . The sweep would have cost Moffitt $10 million. In a compromise with the Senate, the final budget left $25 million in the fund, and Moffitt received $5 million, half of its previous year’s allotment.

Scott seemed genuinely surprised when Moffitt CEO Bill Dalton, while visiting a Moffitt research lab,  told the governor how much state funding the center has lost.

“You mean the Legislature cut your funding by 50 percent?” he asked.

At the end of the tour, Scott said he wanted to better understand the funding issues, describing Moffitt as a tremendous asset for the state, because of the lives the center saves and the jobs it creates.

“It’s clearly important that we make sure Moffitt gets adequate funding,” he said. “I’ve got to understand what makes sense, because so far no one’s come to my office and said, ‘Gosh, I think you ought to cut something. They always come to me with ideas for spending more money. And taxpayers, in contrast, don’t want me to spend more money.”

Scott asked numerous questions of Dalton and Cathy Kerzner, CEO of M2Gen, one of several companies created by Moffitt to apply research findings to patient care. He seemed particularly interested in how aggressively the two were seeking outside investors, and what type of equity they would be willing to give investors. He advised them to never give up too much control, and talked about striking a balance between pressure from investors to produce results and taking care to run a company well.

He told Kerzner: “I have plenty of friends who are interested in investing in these things.”

Later, Kerzner said: “If he doesn’t think I’m going to call him, he’s crazy. He offered twice.”

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07.19.11 | Posted in 1 of Many | No Comments

A bit much for moi

When I worked at Bombardier some time ago, we produced all literature and video materials for Sea-Doo watercraft in English and French.  Bombardier is a French Canadian company so it made sense, even though sales in Quebec were only a handful.

But today, Quelle horreur! French-Canadians Michel and Lynda Thibodeau were awarded roughly $12,500 after suing Air Canada because the airline’s flight attendant failed to address them in their mother tongue as legally required, the Canadian Press reports.

The Thibodeau’s lawsuit was based largely on being unable to find an agent who spoke French and a baggage announcement that was made only in English when they were traveling from Ottawa to the United States. The couple was seeking $500,000 Canadian in damages.

The carrier, it should be noted, must communicate in both English and French when there is demand.

An important note: Mr. Thibodeau speaks English fluently.

Thibodeau has a history of being litigious. He sued an Ottawa bus company in 2002 because the bus driver said “Hello” not “Bonjour.”

It would be easy to chalk this up to one Quebecois being a jerk, but there are actually political groups that cheered the Thibodeau’s victory in court.

It really is a different world up there.

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Passion des règles!

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