Public health
Medical crowdfunding's dark side | Health Affairs
Ninety percent of medical crowdfunding campaigns don't achieve their goals. It also sometimes encourages "quackery in the field of stem cells."
E-cigarette maker Juul boosts lobbying amid scrutiny | The Hill
Juul spent $560,000 on lobbying from July through the end of September, up from the $210,000 it spent on lobbying in the second quarter of the year. The lobbying is in response to potential vape regulations.
Technology
Amazon and NIH to link biomedical data and researchers | Forbes
NIH is partnering with Amazon Web Services for its Science and Technology Research Infrastructure for Discovery, Experimentation, and Sustainability (STRIDES) Initiative, through which the organization wants to use cloud computing for research.
Medical devices
CRISPR toolmaker Synthego raises $110M Series C led by Peter Thiel's VC fund | Medcity News
Sythego will use the funding to develop its two gene-editing product lines.
In other news
Battling dementia, Sandra Day O'Connor leaves public life with plea for bipartisanship | The New York Timesl
In a letter, O'Connor, who was the first women to serve on the Supreme Court, called for "putting country and the common good above party and self-interest, and holding our key governmental institutions accountable."
