Tuesday, January 07, 2020

Sex tech is showcased at CES on a one-year trial after female founders say their products are about empowerment and wellness for women - something they claim has been overlooked in the 'male-dominated' event

  •  Sex tech is allowed to be displayed at CES on a one-year trial basis
  • This comes after female founders said there are a lot of inequalities at the event
  • Sex tech will be places in the health and wellness section of the Sands Expo
  • CES has come under fire over the years for being a 'male-dominated' event
  • Organizers have allowed  'booth babes,' fostering a 'boys' club' reputation 
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED: 
Sex tech will be grouped in the health and wellness section of the Sands Expo, an official, but secondary CES location, one geared toward startups.
Founders of these firms say their products are about empowerment for women, something they say has often been overlooked in tech. 

 Lora DiCarlo, a startup that spoke out against the inequalities after organizers revoked its award, will showcase its Osé robotic 'personal massager.' 
It's one of a dozen companies at the show focused on vibrators, lube dispensers and other sex tech products. 
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Sex tech will grace CES gadget show in Las Vegas this week after organizers endured scorn for revoking an innovation award to a sex device company led by a female founder. Pictured is the  Osé robotic 'personal massager' that is being showcased at CES this year
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Sex tech will grace CES gadget show in Las Vegas this week after organizers endured scorn for revoking an innovation award to a sex device company led by a female founder. Pictured is the  Osé robotic 'personal massager' that is being showcased at CES this year
The historically male-dominated tech trade show has received criticism in past years for having an all-male lineup of speakers and for previously allowing scantily clad 'booth babes,' fostering a 'boys' club' reputation. 
Besides allowing sex tech, CES organizers brought in an official 'equality partner,' The Female Quotient, to help ensure gender diversity.Share
The Female Quotient, which trains companies in equality practices, will hold a conference for women during the show, which formally opens Tuesday and runs through Friday.
'It´s been a process,' said Gary Shapiro, the head of the Consumer Technology Association, which puts on CES.
Lora DiCarlo, a startup that spoke out against the inequalities after organizers revoked its award, will showcase its Osé robotic 'personal massager.' (pictured) It's one of a dozen companies at the show focused on vibrators, lube dispensers and other sex tech products.
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Lora DiCarlo, a startup that spoke out against the inequalities after organizers revoked its award, will showcase its Osé robotic 'personal massager.' (pictured) It's one of a dozen companies at the show focused on vibrators, lube dispensers and other sex tech products.
It´s been a longer process for many sex tech companies to convince investors that they are part of a growing trend that has enough customers. 
Much of the push has come from the startups' female founders and from younger consumers who talk more openly about sexuality.
Sex tech has existed in some form for decades. 
But the gates really began to open in 2016, said Andrea Barrica, founder of sex education site O.school. 
That year, several other 'fem tech' companies made progress in areas such as menstruation and menopause.
 Those paved the way for sex tech to grow and get investors interested.
'Larger institutions are starting to take note, all the way from VC firms to large Fortune 100 companies,' said Barrica, who recently published the book 'Sextech Revolution: The Future of Sexual Wellness.' 
Large institutions like CES had no choice but to look at sex tech, she said.
The journey hasn't been easy. 
Much of the push has come from the startups' female founders and from younger consumers who talk more openly about sexuality. Pictured is Lioness, another sex tech at CES this year
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Much of the push has come from the startups' female founders and from younger consumers who talk more openly about sexuality. Pictured is Lioness, another sex tech at CES this year
Sex tech founders, many of them women, recount being turned down by dozens of investors. 
They faced decency arguments and entrenched corporate standards that equated them with porn.
But investors are becoming more receptive, said Cindy Gallop, a former advertising executive turned sex tech entrepreneur and founder of the website MakeLoveNotPorn.
'It´s entirely because of our refusal to allow the business world to put us down,' she said.
Founders insist that their devices - ranging from vibrators to lube dispensers to accessories - have effects outside the bedroom.
'Sexual health and wellness is health and wellness,' said Lora DiCarlo, CEO and founder of the company of the same name. 'It does way more than just pleasure. It´s immediately connected to stress relief, to better sleep to empowerment and confidence.'
DiCarlo´s Osé $290 device has gotten $3 million worth of advance sales, bolstered in part by the attention it received after CES organizers overturned a decision by an independent panel of judges to give the vibrator a prestigious Innovation Honoree Award in the robotics and drone category. 
The organizers, CTA, told the company it reserved the right to rescind awards for devices deemed 'immoral, obscene, indecent, profane or not in keeping with CTA´s image.'
DiCarlo and other female founders pushed back for banning them but allowing humanoid sex robots meant to serve men the previous year.
Female founders pushed back for banning them but allowing humanoid sex robots meant to serve men the previous year. Following criticism, CES organizers ultimately reinstated the award and apologized. OhMiBod (pictured) will be on display at the event this year
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Female founders pushed back for banning them but allowing humanoid sex robots meant to serve men the previous year. Following criticism, CES organizers ultimately reinstated the award and apologized. OhMiBod (pictured) will be on display at the event this year
Following criticism, CES organizers ultimately reinstated the award and apologized. 
A few months later, the show announced policy changes such as a dress code to prevent skimpy outfits and new 'Innovation for All' sessions with senior diversity officials.
Osé began shipping to customers this month. DiCarlo said the company is planning to new devices, including less expensive options.
Sex tech companies still face major barriers to growth.
Polly Rodriguez, CEO of sexual wellness company Unbound, said the company is profitable and customers are more open about buying products than they once were. But she said she still faces roadblocks advertising on social media, and many traditional investors snub the company.
'Things are better, but there´s just still this genuine fear of female sexuality more broadly within the institutional side of technology,' she said.
And while Gallop offered to speak at CES, conference organizers declined, saying sex tech was not a part of its conference programming.
How does the Lioness vibrator work and how is it different?

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FIRST THE GOOD NEWS 
HPV vaccination rates surge by 80% over five years in the US - but less than a quarter of young adults have completed the shot regimen

 Seven years after the HPV vaccine, Gardasil, was approved, just 22.1% of adults between 18 and 26 started their shot regimen 

 The vaccine protects against seven strains of human papillomavirus and the reproductive, genital and throat cancers they cause 

 By 2018, the number of men getting one or more doses of the vaccine had tripled, and more half of women between 18 and 2016 had started the shots

 By NATALIE RAHHAL ACTING US HEALTH EDITOR FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 16:05 EST, 7 January 2020 | UPDATED: 21:36 EST, 7 January 2020

Over the course of the last five years, the number of Americans starting the vaccination regimen against HPV has surged by more than 80 percent, according to new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) figures. 

 It's an encouraging trend - but less than a quarter of people between ages 18 and 26 get the both doses, meaning they are not fully protected against human papillomavirus. 

 HPV is an exceedingly common STI and it can cause cancers of the cervix, vulva, vagina, penis, anus and throat. 

 In an effort to stem rising rates of these cancers, the CDC now recommends that everyone start their shots at age 11 or 12, and anyone up to 26 who may not have gotten their second dose. It's approved for people up to 45 as well. 

 But health officials are watching vaccination rates closely, as adoption has been relatively slow.  

 Overall, the number of Americans getting at least one dose of the HPV vaccine has increased by 80 percent since 2013, with rates tripling among men and rising to over 50% of women

 Overall, the number of Americans getting at least one dose of the HPV vaccine has increased by 80 percent since 2013, with rates tripling among men and rising to over 50% of women 

 Each year, 14 million Americans are infected with HPV. 

 About 80 percent of people who are sexually active will contract HPV at some point in their lives. 

 The majority (70 percent) of cervical cancers are caused by strains 16 and 18 of HPV. 

  And each year, some 44,000 people are diagnosed with cancers linked to these or other HPV strains. 

 Gardasil, the two-dose preventive shot approved in 2006, protects against both HPV 16 and 18, as well as five other strains. 

 Initially, the vaccine was only approved to be administered in two sequential doses for only females between ages nine and 26. 


 Study reveals just ONE dose of the HPV vaccine could be as...

There was some hesitancy surrounding the vaccine at first, mostly because it was new. 

 But its debut was also shortly followed by the rise in anti-vaccine and vaccine-hesitant sentiments in the US.  

 In 2013, seven years after Gardasil's approval, 22.1 percent of Americans between ages 18 and 26 had gotten one or more dose of the vaccine, according to the new CDC data. 

 Although by 2013, approval had been expanded to men, vaccination rates were five times as high among women than men. Nearly 37 percent of women got at least the first dose of the shot, while just 7.7 percent of men did. 

 By 2018, more than half (53.6 percent) of women had initiated vaccination, as had 27 percent of men. 

 However, the odds that a patient of either sex completes the shot regimen remain low. 

 In 2013, 25.7 percent of women and a dismal two percent of men got the recommended number of shots (which is either two or three, depending on age). 

 Americans have improved their followup, it seems, as 35.3 percent of women got all their necessary HPV shots in 2018, as did nine percent of men. 

 Vaccination rates are highest among white Americans, about 42 percent of whom have ever had any HPV vaccination. 

 Rates are similar - 36.7 and 36.1 percent - among black and Hispanic Americans, respectively.  

 Overall, the research team found, encouragingly, that vaccination rates have tripled among men, for whom the shots weren't approved until later. 

 And while the rise has plateaued somewhat, the CDC's data suggests that more women continue to get vaccinated against HPV each year, cause for hope that the rise in associated cancers might plateau, too.   
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MORE BAD NEWS FROM AUSTRALIA

One of Australia's biggest pet companies announces it has gone BROKE owing workers and creditors half a million dollars

  • Auspet & Vet shut up shop on December 20, after more than two decades 
  • The company still owes thousands of dollars to major Australian pet brands, 
  • Their website remains live but the company's phone numbers are disconnected
By LOUISE AYLING FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED: 
One of Australia's biggest pet supply companies has gone broke, leaving workers and creditors up to half a million dollars short.
Auspet & Vet shut up shop on December 20 after more than two decades as the nation's leading supplier of aquarium, pet, equine, rural and garden supplies. 
When the company folded many involved were still owed a total of half a million dollars, according to the Courier Mail. 
Auspet & Vet - one of Australia's biggest pet supply companies - has gone broke after more than two decades supplying aquarium, pet, equine, rural and garden supplies (stock image)
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Auspet & Vet - one of Australia's biggest pet supply companies - has gone broke after more than two decades supplying aquarium, pet, equine, rural and garden supplies (stock image)
The company was wound up late last year and placed into liquidation, with Leon Lee of Morton's Solvency Accountants appointed as liquidator. 
While the business's registered office is in Brisbane, the warehouse is located in Adelaide.
According to the Courier Mail the 52 creditors include Australian Pet Brands, Masterpets Australia and Petworkx. 
They are each owed tens of thousands of dollars.
The Daily Mail Australia reached out to the company for contact, but the listed numbers on its website had been disconnected.
Staff and creditors are now out of pocket since the business was put into liquidation (stock image)
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Staff and creditors are now out of pocket since the business was put into liquidation (stock image)

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They've gone Harry Potty: London's Natural History Museum puts fake Hogwarts-world Erumpent horn and dragon skull on display as if they are real alongside more earthly exhibits

  • Natural History Museum exhibit to show fictional beasts inspired by JK Rowling
  • Fantastic Beasts: The Wonder of Nature will feature creatures from Harry Potter 
  • Natural, mythical and wizarding world animals such as dragons will be included
  • Wizarding specimens will include an Erumpent horn from the Harry Potter films
  • A giant oarfish, the world's longest bony fish, will feature from the real world
By EMMA POWELL SHOWBUSINESS CORRESPONDENT FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED: 
It is a hugely popular attraction with parents wanting to teach their children about science and the living world - and an important research institution in its own right.
But now the Natural History Museum is turning its attention to the origins of Harry Potter author JK Rowling's fictional creatures, such as the Niffler and the Demiguise.
A new paid-for exhibition at the London museum, called Fantastic Beasts: The Wonder of Nature, will showcase 'creatures from the natural, mythical and the wizarding world' to explore how legends and stories have been inspired by the real world.
Wizarding world specimens will include an Erumpent horn from the Harry Potter films, and the dragon skull from Professor Lupin's classroom.
Roberto Portela Miguez and Efstratia Verveniotou, scientists at the Natural History Museum, collect an Erumpent horn from the Harry Potter films for the Natural History Museum's major new exhibition 'Fantastic Beasts: The Wonder of Nature', which will open spring 2020
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Roberto Portela Miguez and Efstratia Verveniotou, scientists at the Natural History Museum, collect an Erumpent horn from the Harry Potter films for the Natural History Museum's major new exhibition 'Fantastic Beasts: The Wonder of Nature', which will open spring 2020
The new exhibition at the Natural History Museum (pictured), inspired by the Harry Potter books and films, will showcase creatures from the natural, mythical and the wizarding world
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The new exhibition at the Natural History Museum (pictured), inspired by the Harry Potter books and films, will showcase creatures from the natural, mythical and the wizarding world
A mythical Erumpent from the film 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'. The horn from the fictional creature will be showcased at the Natural History Museum
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A mythical Erumpent from the film 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'. The horn from the fictional creature will be showcased at the Natural History Museum
Meanwhile, a giant oarfish, the world's longest bony fish, which is thought to be the inspiration for mythical sea serpents, will feature from the real world.
Visitors will be able to 'compare the camouflage tactics of a jaguar to that of the wizarding world's Demiguise and the mating rituals of the peacock spider to the wizarding world's Erumpent'.
The exhibition will also feature in an accompanying new BBC One documentary presented by Stephen Fry, to 'show how closely real world animals, mythological creatures and wizarding world beasts are intertwined'.
Fry, who narrated the Harry Potter audio books, said: 'I could not be more delighted to be a part of this magnificent opportunity for us Muggles to show the wizarding world that the fantastic beasts in our world are more than a match for theirs.'
'We hope to be able to bring you closer than you've ever been to some of the most spectacular and extraordinary creatures ever seen.'
The exhibition will feature the character Newt Scamander, created by Rowling who wants to better understand and protect wildlife.
The fictional Erumpent is a large grey African beast with great power from the wizarding world. Weighing up to a tonne, the Erumpent may be mistaken for a rhinoceros at a distance, according to Newt Scamander from Fantastic Beasts
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The fictional Erumpent is a large grey African beast with great power from the wizarding world. Weighing up to a tonne, the Erumpent may be mistaken for a rhinoceros at a distance, according to Newt Scamander from Fantastic Beasts
Scientists Roberto Portela Miguez and Efstratia Verveniotou
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Roberto Portela Miguez and Efstratia Verveniotou with an Erumpent horn
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BBC director of content Charlotte Moore said it was 'a delight to bring the natural world and wizarding world together' in the programme, which will feature a Wizarding world Erumpent horn (left and right)
BBC director of content Charlotte Moore said it was 'a delight to bring the natural world and wizarding world together' in the programme, given the working title Fantastic Beasts: A Natural History.
The exhibition will feature scenes from the Fantastic Beasts films and footage from the BBC Natural History Unit.
Clare Matterson, the museum's executive director of engagement, said: 'Bringing characters from the wizarding world together with some of the most fantastic creatures from the natural world will produce a captivating experience that will show how the natural world has inspired legends and stories that have enthralled generations.
'It will be impossible to leave without wanting to learn more about the wonders of our planet and how we can all better protect it.'
Roberto Portela Miguez and Efstratia Verveniotou holding an Erumpent horn. The exhibition is designed to 'show how closely real world animals, mythological creatures and wizarding world beasts are intertwined'
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Roberto Portela Miguez and Efstratia Verveniotou holding an Erumpent horn. The exhibition is designed to 'show how closely real world animals, mythological creatures and wizarding world beasts are intertwined'
The exhibition - developed in partnership with Warner Bros, which runs the Harry Potter Studio Tour near Watford, Hertfordshire - will open at the museum in spring 2020. It will run for seven months before embarking on an international tour.
Tickets for the event will be allocated by time to avoid over-crowding. If a huge success, fans of the fantastical could expect to see more exhibitions of a similar vein in the future.
Daniel Radcliffe played boy wizard Harry Potter in the franchise while Eddie Redmayne took the lead as Newt Scamander in Fantastic Beasts.
In 2018 Forbes reported the wizarding world has raked in $8.64 (£6.58) billion at the box office worldwide.
The third film in the Fantastic Beasts franchise is slated for release in 2021

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