NLM Musings from the Mezzanine
Innovations in Health Information from the Director of the National Library of Medicine
More than 10,000 rare diseases affect up to 400 million people worldwide, and those with rare diseases struggle for about six years on average before they receive an accurate diagnosis. But data-driven innovations are unlocking answers about rare diseases—as well as more common diseases—faster than ever before.
Right now, I am reading The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles. One quote that struck me the most is, “Libraries are lungs. Books the fresh air breathed in to keep the heart beating, to keep the brain imagining, to keep hope alive.”
On February 7, I had the honor of attending and speaking at a Celebration of Dr. Roger I. Glass in the Ruth Kirschstein Auditorium on the main NIH campus to pay tribute to my dear colleague, Dr. Roger Glass. Read more about how his work at the NIH Fogarty International Center advanced global health research.
In honor of Black History Month 2023, we are highlighting positive and protective factors that raise awareness of and show appreciation for the myriad cultural and community strengths that facilitate safe spaces, where the health of children and adolescents can be fortified and maintained.
Guest post by Andrew Wiley, Video Producer, NLM Office of Communications and Public Liaison (OCPL). NLM recently featured a video that highlights an exciting project funded through the NLM Extramural Programs Division. A team led by Quynh Nguyen, PhD, MSPH, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, used … Continue reading Can Computer Vision Models Help Us Picture Better Health Outcomes?
Guest post by Kathryn Funk, program manager for NLM’s PubMed Central. In 2020, I shared information about NLM’s launch of the NIH Preprint Pilot: A New Experiment for a New Era to explore how inclusion of preprints in our literature resources, PubMed Central (PMC) and PubMed, could accelerate the discoverability and maximize the impact of … Continue reading NIH Preprint Pilot Expands to Include Preprints Across NIH-Funded Research
Let’s meet Zhiyong Lu, PhD, a Senior Investigator for our National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Computational Biology Branch and member of the NLM Intramural Research Program. He is leading a team of research scientists to harness the power of machine learning and artificial intelligence (ML/AI) to advance the ways our products and services work—advancements … Continue reading Meet the NLM Investigators: Dr. Zhiyong Lu is Teaching Computers to Think Like Scientists
NIH’s Andrea Norris is an outstanding example of a visionary and leader in health information technology. She possesses deep technical knowledge, experience, creativity, and thoughtfulness. I had the good fortune to work closely with Andrea and considered her to be one of my closest colleagues here at NIH. In celebration of her more than 30 … Continue reading Dr. Andrea Norris to Retire, Leaving Legacy of Successful Innovation
Guest post by Dianne Babski, Associate Director for Library Operations, and Patrick Casey, NLM Building Engineer. This serves as a follow up to a previous blog post, (Re)Engineering the National Library of Medicine Building, from July 2021. In fall 2017, NLM engaged with NIH facilities management, architects, and historic preservation specialists to explore ways to … Continue reading Renovating and Rebuilding to Advance Our Future
When we launched this blog over six years ago, we selected the title NLM Musings from the Mezzanine to reflect that the thoughts and ideas originated in this beautiful place, situated on the upper story of the National Library of Medicine building on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland. I reflected on this inspirational place … Continue reading The NLM Mezzanine . . . A Space and a Place