Early on an unusually blustery day in June, Kevin Esvelt climbed aboard a ferry at Woods Hole, bound for Nantucket Island. Esvelt, an assistant professor of biological engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was on his way to present to local health officials a plan for ridding the island of one of its most persistent problems: Lyme disease. He had been up for much of the night working on his slides, and the fatigue showed. He had misaligned the buttons on his gray pin-striped shirt, and the rings around his deep-blue eyes made him look like a sandy-haired raccoon. Esvelt, who is thirty-four, directs the "sculpting evolution" group at M.I.T., where he and his colleagues are attempting to design molecular tools capable of fundamentally altering the natural world. If the residents of Nantucket agree, Esvelt intends to use those tools to rewrite the DNA of white-footed mice to make them immune to the bacteria that cause Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. He and his team would breed the mice in the laboratory and then, as an initial experiment, release them on an uninhabited island. If the number of infected ticks begins to plummet, he would seek permission to repeat the process on Nantucket and on nearby Martha's Vineyard. More than a quarter of Nantucket's residents have been infected with Lyme, which has become one of the most rapidly spreading diseases in the United States. The illness is often accompanied by a red bull's-eye rash, along with fever and chills. When the disease is caught early enough, it can be cured in most cases with a single course of antibiotics. For many people, though, pain and neurological symptoms can persist for years. In communities throughout the Northeast, the fear of ticks has changed the nature of summer itself--few parents these days would permit a child to run barefoot through the grass or wander blithely into the woods. "What if we could wave our hands and make this problem go away?" Esvelt asked the two dozen officials and members of the public who had assembled at the island's police station for his presentation. He explained that white-footed mice are the principal reservoir of Lyme disease, which they pass, through ticks, to humans.

In March of 2016, a twenty-seven-year-old Syrian refugee named Rakan Ghebar began discussing his mental health with a counsellor. Ghebar, who has lived in Beirut since 2014, lost a number of family members to the civil war in Syria and struggles with persistent nervous anxiety. Before he fled his native country, he studied English literature at Damascus University; now, in Lebanon, he works as the vice-principal at a school for displaced Syrian children, many of whom suffer from the same difficulties as he does. When Ghebar asked the counsellor for advice, he was told to try to focus intently on the present. By devoting all of his energy to whatever he was doing, the counsellor said, no matter how trivial, he could learn to direct his attention away from his fears and worries.

REVOLVING DOOR -- "Trump appoints his business attorney to manage international negotiations," by CNN's Elise Labott and Teddy Schleifer: "Jason Greenblatt, the executive vice president and chief legal officer for Trump's business empire, will take on the title of special representative for international negotiations. A source familiar with the appointment told CNN that Greenblatt will primarily will be working on Israel-Palestinian peace process, the American relationship with Cuba and trade agreements."

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FILE - In this Nov. 19, 2016, file photo, Mark Zuckerberg, chairman and CEO of Facebook, speaks at the CEO summit during the annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Lima, Peru. Zuckerberg unveiled his new artificial intelligence assistant named "Jarvis" in a Facebook post on Dec. 19, 2016. FILE - In this Nov. 19, 2016, file photo, Mark Zuckerberg, chairman and CEO of Facebook, speaks at the CEO summit during the annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Lima, Peru.

Microsoft India is launching a research group that will leverage artificial intelligence to deliver large-scale eye care in collaboration with Hyderabad-based L V Prasad Eye Institute. The Microsoft Intelligent Network for Eyecare (MINE) will work with a consortium of research and technology institutions around the world, including the University of Miami, Federal University of Sao Paulo and Australia's Brien Holden Vision Institute. The idea is similar to Google DeepMind's project, which targets the UK and works with their National Health Services to use artificial intelligence to detect and treat blindness-causing eye diseases. India is a logical jumping-off point for the project, as it is home to some 55 million of the world's 285 million people living with vision impairment. Using Microsoft's cloud platform technology Cortana Intelligence Suite, MINE will collaborate and work from datasets of patients around the world to develop machine learning predictive models for vision impairment and eye disease, with the ultimate goal of eliminating avoidable blindness and scaling worldwide delivery of eye care services.

Is it too soon to do reviews and forecasts for the New Year? I noticed another contributor to SA has offered a forecast for Palo Alto (NYSE:PANW) and its prospective performance for the coming year. Several brokerage analysts have offered their evaluation of the year ahead for IBM (NYSE:IBM). The old year is passing at a frightful pace, and it means that all valuation metrics need to be adjusted for the year ahead. One of the interesting things about IBM is that its headline metrics are not expected to change much in 2017, with earnings expected to rise and revenues expected to show marginal shrinkage, how much credence should investors place in the consensus? How should investors look at prospects for IBM's dividend? How should investors value a company without growth, or will there be growth in the future? Of course, I do not hold all the answers. But I think as 2017 approaches, it might be worthwhile for me to express my point of view about what to expect going forward. I think that IBM is most likely to miss and/or guide down for a variety of reasons that I outline in the foregoing article.

Sex robots should be used in old people's homes and to help rehabilitate sex offenders, says expert Sex robots should be put into old people's homes and to rehabilitate sex offenders, an expert has claim. Dr Kate Devlin also suggests they should be given to people with learning disabilities to help them fulfil certain needs. Sex robots should be put into old people's homes to help them fulfil certain needs, an expert has said. Experts are muling over whether robots could be used to help prevent sex offending. But Dr Devlin is unsure whether the technology would deter sex offenders or encourage them.

New record set for the world's fastest BED with motorised mattress clocking 84mph on a race track Engineers were commissioned by a hotel booking site to build a motorised bed British racing diver Tom Onslow-Cole, 29, took the piece of furniture for a spin He broke the Guinness World Record for the World's Fastest Bed at 83.8mph He broke the Guinness World Record for the World's Fastest Bed at 83.8mph British racing diver Tom Onslow-Cole, 29, took the piece of furniture for a spin and broke the Guinness World Record for the World's Fastest Bed, clocking 84mph The do's and don'ts of après-ski revealed (including why... Aviation expert reveals how to travel in luxury on a... The do's and don'ts of après-ski revealed (including why... Aviation expert reveals how to travel in luxury on a... Crossing the finish line: Adjudicators clocked it whooshing forwards at 83.8 mph A wheely great sleep: Onslow-Cole said his speedy snooze was an'unforgettable experience'. He added: 'I hope it'll stand the test of time – it'll take some beating!' Woman goes on racist rant while waiting in line at J.C. Penney Black blues musician explores racism by befriending the KKK A young thug is filmed fly kicking a lady in the back Dramatic moment man removed from flight for'speaking Arabic' GRAPHIC: Robber is left writhing on the pavement after shot out Syrian police injured after girl blows herself up inside station Male guests in a Chinese wedding flock to harass a bridesmaid Angela Rye shares video of her invasive ordeal with TSA agent Body cam footage shows moments before two Georgia cops are shot Boeing cargo plane overshoots runway before crashing in Colombia Shocking video shows a Texas mother hitting her daughter Adorable moment puppy excitedly unwraps Christmas present Woman goes on racist rant while waiting in line at J.C. Penney Dramatic moment man removed from flight for'speaking Arabic' Is resting your head on a BOX the best way to sleep on a... Shocking pictures reveal how some of the most picturesque... Choose the right seat, alter your watch and drink alcohol:... Fascinating images capture the... Should you be worried about flying in the snow? When photographers were asked to submit their best holiday... 'Is this a real picture?