ZDNET's key takeaways NixOS is an open-source operating system that is available to install and use for free.It offers several desktop environments to choose from, is as rock-solid as any OS on the market, and performs quite well.However, there's a fairly steep learning curve for installing non-free software. View now at Nixos Before we get into this review, I want to offer some information for new Linux users. If you're uncomfortable using the command line or diving down rabbit holes to figure out how to do something that should "just work out of the box," then NixOS is probably not for you.Also: This Linux distro can be used without installation (and it's totally free)However, that's not to say someone with minimal familiarity with the command line would fail with this distribution. For example, if you only need open-source software, NixOS could be a viable option. If, however, you need apps like Chrome, Slack, and Spotify, you might run into some frustration that will send you packing back to Ubuntu, Linux Mint, or Windows.With that said, let's get to what makes this distribution great.Not everyone wants an Ubuntu or Linux Mint distribution. I'm not saying those two operating systems aren't outstanding, but at some point, a Linux user might want something a bit more robust.I've tried nearly every Linux OS I've come across, from the ridiculously simple (Ubuntu) to the astoundingly complex (Gentoo) and everything in between. So when I find a Linux distribution that can challenge me, I jump at the chance to see what it can do.Such is the case with NixOS. This from-scratch Linux distribution isn't nearly as difficult as Gentoo, but it's not quite as user-friendly as Ubuntu. Where does that leave it? I'd say somewhere between Ubuntu and Arch Linux.Also: I found an iPhone and Mac browser that's faster, safer, and easier than SafariYou'll find two official versions of NixOS -- one with GNOME and one with Plasma Desktop. During the installation, you'll be offered the opportunity to install from a list of different desktop environments. For my testing, I choseDeepin Desktopbecause I'm a fan of its layout. So you might be asking: With so many easy-to-use desktop environments, why would NixOS be considered challenging for new users?First off, there's no GUI app store. That's right. With NixOS, you install packages via the command line. But don't worry, NixOS has something to help you out with that. Open your web browser and point it to search.nix.org. On that site, you can search for any piece of software you need to install, and it will give you the command to do just that. For example, to search for Slack, the install command is:nix-shell -p slackAh, but we then run into our first problem. You see, out of the box, NixOS is configured not to install non-free software without a bit of help. When you run the above command, you'll see in the output that there are two ways around this:a) To temporarily allow non-free packages, you can set a particular environment variable with the command: export NIXPKGS_ALLOW_UNFREE=1b) For `nixos-rebuild` set { nixpkgs.config.allowUnfree = true; } in /etc/nixos/configuration.nix.However, when I look in configuration.nix, the allowUnfree option is already set to true. What's the deal? Turns out, even though that option is global, you still have to create a config file in your home directory, specifically in ~/.config/nixpkgs. Oh, but wait, the nixpkgs directory doesn't exist, so you have to create it first.Also: The 5 best rolling release Linux distributions - and why you should be using oneHopefully, you're starting to see why, even with a user-friendly GUI, NixOS isn't a good choice for new users. It's a great choice if you have plenty of Linux experience, as it's as rock solid as Debian or Arch. And if you only want to use open-source (free) software, you won't have much in the way of problems (as long as you're comfortable with the command line).Beyond the installation of non-free software, what is NixOS like? It's a stable, efficient operating system that's also secure and includes nearly everything you need to get started (minus an office suite and email client). For those who need an office suite, you can install LibreOffice with:nix-shell -p libreofficeIf you need an email client, try:nix-shell -p thunderbirdThe final frustration I'll mention with this is that, even after successfully installing an app, you won't find it in the menu. Argh! I even had an instance where, after installing LibreOffice and logging out, it seemed LibreOffice vanished, and I had to install it again.Even then, I opened the app and tried adding it to the dock, only to discover it was an unrecognized application. The good news is that after a reboot, everything was exactly as it should have been. I'm just not used to rebooting after installing an application in Linux. Go figure. All it took was a reboot after installation and LibreOffice was in the desktop menu and ready to use. Jack Wallen\ZDNETFrustrations can mount quickly with NixOS. Those frustrations are, however, surmountable. It just takes time. And effort. And Google (or DuckDuckGo). That's why I recommend NixOS to Linux users who have a solid understanding of the basics.ZDNET's adviceUsually, when I do a review of a Linux distribution, I install it as a VirtualBox virtual machine, kick the tires, and delete the VM when I'm finished. However, with NixOS, I plan on keeping it around for a while so I can better learn the ins and outs of using this fascinating OS.If you're comfortable using the Linux command line and like a challenge, you should certainly give NixOS a try. Once you have everything up and running with this open-source operating system, it will not let you down.Open Source

While todays VLMs need time before they hit the road, the pace of innovation is relentless.

DispatchHealth and Medically Home - two providers of advanced medical care at home have agreed to ... [+] merge, the companies announced Tuesday, March 18.gettyDispatchHealth and Medically Home - companies that work with health systems to provide hospital-level care at home have agreed to merge, the firms announced Tuesday.Financial terms of the definitive agreement werent disclosed though those involved said Boston-based Medically Home will become part of DispatchHealth, which is based in Denver, once the deal closes mid-year" 2025.The approaches of these two companies to bring high acuity care typically available in hospital settings to provide more healthcare into patient homes took on greater meaning during the Covid-19 pandemic as cases of the virus surged and patients looked for new safe and effective ways to get home-based care during the pandemic.Now more traditional players in healthcare are realizing more care in the home is not only better for patients, but better for taxpayers, employers, governments and others picking up the tab for care. The combined entity will extend care into the homes of patients across 50 major metropolitan areas in partnership with nearly 40 health systems, as well as most major health plans and value-based care entities, the companies said in their statement.This merger unlocks a future where high-acuity care at home is the new standard, said Dr. Mark Prather, DispatchHealths co-founder and executive chair of the board. Were combining decades of expertise to create a seamless, scalable model for hospital-level care at homebringing the right care to the right place at the right time for more people.Both companies say they are growing. Medically Home, founded in 2016, said the company has enabled hospital care at home for more than 54,000 patients across 20 healthcare systems since 2017. Medically Home investing partners include the Mayo Clinic, Kaiser Permanente and the Cleveland Clinic.Last year, Medical Home said it had more than 60% growth in in-patient admissions and fulfilled more than 205,000 physician orders for patients in a Medically Home-enabled hospital at home program.Meanwhile, DispatchHealth, which was founded in 2013, said it has treated more than 1.2 million people in more than 20 states resulting in 58% emergency room avoidance; 8.5% 30-day hospital readmission rate; 98% patient satisfaction rating; and an estimated $1.5 billion in medical cost savings.For many patients, the best hospital bed is the one at home, said Medically Home CEO Graham Barnes. By joining forces with DispatchHealth, were creating a stronger, more integrated model that will enable more patients, providers, and health systems to embrace high-acuity home-based care with confidence.

After seven years of work, the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) team has officially released GIMP 3.0, bringing a major update to the popular open-source image editor.A cornerstone of the latest release is the transition to the GTK3 graphical user interface library, replacing the outdated GTK2. This upgrade is said to enhance the applications performance and introduces a more contemporary and responsive user interface. GIMP 3.0 also introduces non-destructive editing capabilities for many commonly used filters. This feature allows users to preview changes in real-time directly on the canvas.Recommended VideosResponding to longstanding user requests, GIMP 3.0 now supports the selection of multiple layers simultaneously. This enhancement streamlines complex editing tasks, allowing users to move, transform, or apply effects to multiple layers at once. The update also brings significant improvements in text handling. Users can now style text with outlines, shadows, bevels, and more, all while retaining the ability to edit the text content, change fonts, and adjust sizes. This flexibility is particularly beneficial for designers aiming to create professional-quality text elements within their projects.Compatibility and performance have been further enhanced with the introduction of Wayland support on Linux systems. This allows for better integration with modern display servers, providing a smoother user experience. Additionally, GIMP 3.0 offers improved HiDPI support, delivering sharper visuals on high-resolution displays, and enhanced integration for Wacom tablets, benefiting digital artists who rely on precise input devices.GIMPThe plugin ecosystem has also seen substantial growth. GIMP 3.0 expands support to extensions written in Python 3, JavaScript, Lua, and Vala, providing developers with greater flexibility to enhance the applications functionality. With that, File format compatibility has been extended, allowing for the exchange of files with a broader range of applications. Notably, there is now support for BC7 DDS files and improved PSD export capabilities, making it easier for users to collaborate across different platforms and software. The GIMP development team has also placed a strong emphasis on color management.GIMP 3.0 is now accessible on GNU/Linux, macOS, and Windows, and can be downloaded directly from the official GIMP website. The GIMP development team also has plans to accelerate the release cycle for the 3.X series, with GIMP 3.2 expected within a year. The company says that their focus is on delivering updates more frequently, even if each version introduces fewer new features. This approach ensures users receive improvements and enhancements more quickly.

The domain of Apple leaks is currently obsessed with the controversial iPhone 17 Pro design refresh, which could stir some heated debate with its massive camera hump. A lot of chatter is also focused on the svelte iPhone 17 Air. Yet, it seems there are a few other internal upgrades worth getting excited about. According to analyst Jeff Pu, Apple will equip all four iPhone 17 series models with an upgraded 24-megapixel front camera. So far, Apple has stuck with a 12-megapixel selfie snapper on its mainline iPhones. Moreover, the company hasnt ever deployed a 24-megapixel camera sensor, keeping its experiments limited to 12-megapixel and 48-megapixel units in the past few years. Recommended VideosThe research note by Pu, which was seen by MacRumors and 9to5Mac, doesnt go into details about the specifications or feature details of the new 24-megapixel front snapper on the iPhone 17 series. However, we can take an educated guess, based on what Apple accomplished when it switched from 12-megapixel to 48-megapixel rear cameras.AppleA 24-megapixel sensor will most likely default to pixel-binning for delivering pictures and videos at a lower resolution than the native pixel count. Pixel-binning essentially combines the light data collected by adjacent pixels, creating what is colloquially known as a super-pixel. Please enable Javascript to view this contentThe sum total of these efforts are pictures that are more detailed and with more realistic color rendering, especially in low-light scenarios. Depending on how the pixels are combined, the final image is usually a lower-resolution shot, but more pleasing to look at. For example, the iPhone 16 Pros 48-megapixel main camera does 4-in-1 pixel binning to produce 12-megapixel pictures, but you can still stick full-res 48-megapixel shots, too. Theres also an intermediary option to to get the best of both worlds with 24-megapixel clicks.With a 24-megapixel selfie camera coming into the picture, iPhone 17 buyers can expect improved selfies and better-quality video calls. Moreover, since there are more pixels to collect light data, Apple might leverage it to offer more advanced camera features, too.Low-light selfies, in particular, will draw a major benefit from a larger sensor. Moreover, when cropping and zooming in, the detail loss wont be as discernible as it is on smaller camera sensors. Additionally, the 24-megapixel sensor could also pave the way for finer background blur effects. In addition to an improved front camera, the iPhone 17 Pro is also expected to jump from a 12-megapixel zoom camera to a 48-megapixel telephoto sensor. Apple is also rumored to increase the RAM capacity, taking it up to 12GB, on the iPhone 17 Pro models. Editors Recommendations

AI hype propelled the stocks valuation during a weak iPhone cycle, making news of its Siri delay extra costly.

Last Wednesday, Google made a somewhat surprising announcement. It launched a version of its AI model, Gemini, that can do things not just in the digital realm of chatbots and internet search but out here in the physical world, via robots. Gemini Robotics fuses the power of large language models with spatial reasoning, allowing you to tell a robotic arm to do something like put the grapes in the clear glass bowl. These commands get filtered by the LLM, which identifies intentions from what youre saying and then breaks them down into commands that the robot can carry out. For more details about how it all works, read the full story from my colleague Scott Mulligan. You might be wondering if this means your home or workplace might one day be filled with robots you can bark orders at. More on that soon. But first, where did this come from? Google has not made big waves in the world of robotics so far. Alphabet acquired some robotics startups over the past decade, but in 2023 it shut down a unit working on robots to solve practical tasks like cleaning up trash. Despite that, the companys move to bring AI into the physical world via robots is following the exact precedent set by other companies in the past two years (something that, I must humbly point out, MIT Technology Review has long seen coming). In short, two trends are converging from opposite directions: Robotics companies are increasingly leveraging AI, and AI giants are now building robots.new effort to build humanoid robots this year. In October, the chip giant Nvidia declared the next wave of artificial intelligence to be physical AI. There are lots of ways to incorporate AI into robots, starting with improving how they are trained to do tasks. But using large language models to give instructions, as Google has done, is particularly interesting. Its not the first. The robotics startup Figure went viral a year ago for a video in which humans gave instructions to a humanoid on how to put dishes away. Around the same time, a startup spun off from OpenAI, called Covariant, built something similar for robotic arms in warehouses. I saw a demo where you could give the robot instructions via images, text, or video to do things like move the tennis balls from this bin to that one. Covariant was acquired by Amazon just five months later. When you see such demos, you cant help but wonder: When are these robots going to come to our workplaces? What about our homes? If Figures plans offer a clue, the answer to the first question is soon. The company announced on Saturday that it is building a high-volume manufacturing facility set to manufacture 12,000 humanoid robots per year. But training and testing robots, especially to ensure theyre safe in places where they work near humans, still takes a long time. For example, Figures rival Agility Robotics claims its the only company in the US with paying customers for its humanoids. But industry safety standards for humanoids working alongside people aren't fully formed yet, so the company's robots have to work in separate areas. This is why, despite recent progress, our homes will be the last frontier. Compared with factory floors, our homes are chaotic and unpredictable. Everyones crammed into relatively close quarters. Even impressive AI models like Gemini Robotics will still need to go through lots of tests both in the real world and in simulation, just like self-driving cars. This testing might happen in warehouses, hotels, and hospitals, where the robots may still receive help from remote human operators. It will take a long time before theyre given the privilege of putting away our dishes. This story originally appeared in The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter on AI. To get stories like this in your inbox first,sign up here.

2025-03-18T10:04:46Z Read in app First Lady Michelle Obama greets Hannah August in the Blue Room of the White House. Chuck Kennedy/The White House This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? Hannah August started her career in 2006 working up the ranks in the Senate press office. She worked in the Department of Justice and as press secretary to former First Lady Michelle Obama. August left her job in the White House for better work-life balance in the private sector.This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Hannah August, a communications consultant and former White House employee. Business Insider has verified her employment. The following has been edited for length and clarity.I got my first job in 2006 working up the ranks in the US Senate press office. A mentor hired me as his deputy at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and then I was hired as the press secretary for the Department of Justice at the beginning of the Obama administration. While there, I collaborated with the White House, which later recruited me as the President's regional communications director in 2010.After six months, I became the First Lady's press secretary. I'd studied international relations, but most of my experience came from learning on the job from mentors. My work with President Obama focused on economics. Working for the First Lady, I engaged more with consumer-focused media, like TV shows, magazines, and children's programming. My main remit was "Let's Move," an initiative tackling obesity, as well as events at the White House, such as the Easter Egg Roll, state dinners, and music events.Long hours and high pressure burned me outWhen the government is working well, which I think it often does, federal workers can see their contributions are directly impacting people. I enjoyed making positive changes and every day was different.That said, the hours were long, and the stress levels were high. The biggest stress was a feeling of needing to be perfect because any mistake would be amplified. Having a huge spotlight on everything I did was a lot of pressure. I was on a plane at least once a week, and it was crazy busy.After five years in the administration, including nearly three with the First Lady, the payoff stopped feeling worth it. I was burned out and tired. I wanted better work-life balance and less pressure. There were White House lifers, but plenty of people left the administration after a couple of terms to go into the private sector. I considered a total pivot, but the 2016 election refocused meThere's no singular approach to making the switch. I didn't have a specific job in mind, but I wanted meaningful work, balance, and to stay in D.C. I cast a wide net, met with many people, and had countless coffees.My role at National Geographic Kids came from a past collaboration while at the White House, I helped organize a Guinness World Record attempt with them. It was for the most people doing jumping jacks. When they were crafting a lead marketing role for kids and family products, my experience made me a natural fit. There was no job posting, but conversations led to interviews and the role.I'd always wanted to work at National Geographic, but after two years, I realized the culture was too slow. I took a year to explore my passions studying interior design, directing a play, shadowing a real estate developer, and training my dog as a therapy dog.I was considering a total career shift, but Trump's 2016 election refocused me on using my skills for good. I became director of communications at an NGO for global gender equality, and two years later, I founded my communications firm, Jellyfish Strategies.I missed the energy and life of government, but you couldn't pay me to go backWhen I switched to the private sector, I was surprised there was often more bureaucracy than in government. There's sometimes a misconception of government as a place where nothing gets done, with millions of files and forms to make anything move. There's always room for improvement, but from my experience, it was effective and smooth.No one in government does it for the money. Overall, my salary has increased since leaving government work. I was also surprised that even though I left the government for a better work-life balance, I missed the energy of politics. I still find working with my clients exciting, but I'm just working with a different vibe in general. I have a six-year-old.My advice to federal workers It's a tough time for folks who have been cut adrift from their federal roles. Being pushed out is disheartening, but know that many appreciate your work.In terms of the way I viewed and narrativized my move out for the White House, Mrs. Obama gave me great career advice: at different life stages, you'll need different things challenge, stability, balance, or money. Sometimes, just focus on the next job and go from there. Your needs will evolve, so stay open to change.Another mentor, Maria Cristina "MC" Gonzlez Noguera, worked at Estee Lauder before joining the First Lady's team. She had to learn how her skills applied to government. She told me that many of the skills I had developed were transferable to the private sector, but the people hiring me may not see that instantly. You really have to spell it out.For example, managing "executive communications" wasn't a term I used in the government, but that was part of my role for the Attorney General and First Lady. MC helped me tweak my rsum to match corporate language.Networking is invaluable, both with people you know directly and mutual connections. There were lists of Obama alumni, and I imagine now networks are being set up for federal workers who are out of a job. Be sure to follow up strategically don't hound people, but check in occasionally to stay on their radar.Be open to geography moves. There are lots of people in D.C. suddenly out of a government job, and not enough industry to absorb them. Definitely explore potential moves to other places if you can. If the private sector isn't for you, consider local government work, which can do a lot of good and help you continue giving back to the country. I hope that lots of people do consider that shift.

2025-03-18T09:37:01Z Read in app The author is pregnant for a second time at 40. Courtesy of Jackie Buddie This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? I had my first kid when I was 38, and I didn't feel the identity shift most parents talk about.Now, I'm pregnant again at 40; when I first saw the pregnancy test, I almost didn't believe it.Most days, I still feel like I'm discovering who I am.At first, I thought it was a joke. "When was the last time you took a test?" my husband wanted to know, as if I could remember. Besides, it didn't matter, because I was sure I wasn't pregnant. But five minutes later, I handed him a positive pink strip and asked, "What is this?" Of course, I knew what it was, and within days, the doctors had confirmed it: 40 years old and 14 weeks pregnant with my second.Maybe it's the elder millennial in me, but I've always had a lot of expectations about the milestones I'd hit as I got older. College, job, travel, marriage, house, book, baby wasn't I supposed to have it all checked off by my mid-30s? At the very least, by then I should know who I was with some certainty. Yet here I am, still waiting.When I was 36, we decided to start trying for kidsIn reality, becoming an adult proved not to be the definitive experience I'd anticipated. I recall taking stock of myself at 36 holes in my leggings, hot dogs in the fridge, floor stacked with books I'd never read. Perhaps I wasn't, in fact, on the precipice of my big creative break. I still hadn't seen or done half the things I wanted to in life, and my sense of self was fuzzy at best. The question, "What do you do?" made my stomach flip (work a 9-to-5?), but then so did making the simplest decisions. (God forbid my husband ask what I wanted to do about dinner.)Up until then, for both of us, kids had always been a curious possibility. As we saw it, having children would obviously change things, but our lives would be complete either way. Still, as I approached 40, it was time to have that conversation. Not because I suddenly felt sure, or ready. Rather, I knew I couldn't keep waiting to "find myself" while my biological clock was busy ticking. This was one decision that was being made for me.And so, with that, we pulled the plug on birth control, just to see. Over two years later, I had my son at 38. He was miraculous a tiny, mewling thing with curled fists, slow-blinking eyes, and a wisp of hair. And just like that, we made space. For late nights pumping under the glow of a muted TV, for milk-soaked burp cloths souring in the laundry, and for wildly overcomplicated wake-window calculations. Our day-to-day had transformed dramatically but that was to be expected. What did surprise me? How much I stayed the same.I didn't feel 'changed' by becoming a parentDespite what so many parents claim, I can't say I experienced a profound shift in my identity. The way I love my son tender and trepidatious, full of wonder and worry is quintessentially me. Minute to minute, I still have no clue what I'm doing (should we wake him? feed him again? hold him that way?), and I have no clearer idea who I am now (a mom? really?) than I did before the baby came.When my son started day care this January, I felt a glimmer of hope, like I could finally return to the business of figuring out who I'm supposed to be. But now, pregnant with number two at 40, I couldn't help but feel like the window for self-discovery was closing.Trying to process it all, I lay in bed at night, moving my hand around my belly, wide-eyed that there could be more life inside me. But wasn't that just it? I do have more to give and to do. And if I was still me after the first baby, the same would be true after number two.It dawned on me then that perhaps knowing yourself isn't a milestone to hit. It's a continuous process, shaped by all our circumstances family, health, community, love, death. When and if I had children was never the issue. It was, and has always been, this multi-generational myth that we are defined by what we've achieved and when. The truth is, we are always evolving. At least, that's the lesson I'm learning from my kids. And maybe that's all growing up really is.

One of Americas worst measles outbreaks in recent years continues to spread, with 292 reported cases in western Texas and eastern New Mexico as of March 17. A nearby Oklahoma county has confirmed its first case, which officials believed to be linked to the outbreaks epicenter in Gaines County, Texas. Two people have so far died from measles infections since the outbreak began in late January.The actual number of cases is likely higher than the official count, based on reports from doctors who are treating patients as well as statistical analysis (two deaths would suggest thousands of cases, based on the measles mortality rate of roughly 1 in 1,000 infections). Officials fear the viruss spread could persist into the spring and summer travel seasons, allowing the virus to reach other parts of the country; more cases and deaths could follow. The outbreak has now exceeded the total number of reported measles cases in the US last year, which itself had already represented an increase from 2023. Measles vaccination rates in most US states have fallen below the 95 percent threshold scientists consider necessary to control the disease, and those rates have continued to drop. The Texas emergency appears to have begun in an insular religious community with high vaccination exemption rates; 14 percent of all children in Gaines County have exemptions.The nations health leadership, meanwhile, is undermining the best defense against measles. While US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has paid lip service to the value of vaccines, he has also pitched alternative treatments unsupported by medical science. Hes also launching new government investigations into the long-debunked theory linking autism and vaccines investigations seem designed to erode public trust in the measles shots safety at the very moment it is most needed.Whats happening right now could only be the beginning. The more the US strays from the public health playbook that helped the country to reach official measles elimination in 2000, the more outbreaks will likely occur and the bigger theyll be. We may be entering a new era when this once-dormant virus is again an active threat to peoples health. Heres what you can do to protect yourself and your family. You really, really dont want to get measlesMost Americans have been lucky enough to live in a world without measles, a disease that globally still kills over 100,000 people, most of them young children. Its risks, therefore, have become largely hypothetical. But for the unvaccinated, those risks are real. Measles is a formidable and extremely contagious virus. It is dangerous during the initial infection, which can lead to high fever and the signature measles rash, while some patients will go on to develop pneumonia or encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain, both of which can be deadly. Measles has a fatality rate of 0.1 percent, but an estimated 20 percent of cases require hospitalization. The disease is particularly threatening to kids, especially young infants, as well as pregnant women and people who are immunocompromised.Some vaccine skeptics, including RFK Jr., downplay the risk of measles. It used to be, when I was a kid, that everybody got measles. And the measles gave you lifetime protection against measles infection, he said recently on Fox News. But measles was and is not some harmless disease: Between 400 to 500 children died annually from measles in the US in the decade before a vaccine was introduced in 1963. From 1968 to 2016, there were about 550 measles deaths total in the US, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Until the recent deaths in the Texas outbreak, it had been 10 years since a single measles death had been recorded in the US. Even those who do survive a measles infection can face long-term health consequences, particularly for those in high-risk groups. Some of those infected in the current outbreak may be dealing with the fallout for years.Measles can cause whats known as immunity amnesia. The virus can wipe out more than half a persons preexisting antibodies that protect them against other pathogens, which can leave them more vulnerable to other diseases for years after their infection. In rare cases, measles can lead to fatal brain swelling years after the initial infection. Patients can also suffer hearing loss from ear infections experienced during their illness, while those who develop acute encephalitis can suffer permanent neurological damage.What you can do to protect yourself from measlesVaccination remains the best defense against measles: Two doses of the MMR vaccine given to protect against measles, mumps, and rubella is 97 percent effective at preventing a measles infection (and therefore spread). It is perhaps the most effective vaccine we have for any disease, and any risks from the vaccine are astonishingly low compared to the dangers of measles itself.In this new world where youre more likely to see a measles outbreak in your community, people should consider taking steps to protect their health or that of their loved ones. Heres what you can do. Parents, if you have young childrenthe group most at risk from measles talk to your pediatrician about vaccination. The usual schedule is one shot around age 1 and another shot around age 5, but there is some flexibility. The CDC already advises that infants as young as 6 months can receive one dose if they are traveling internationally, and the recommended age for the second dose ranges from 4 to 6 years old. Several leading public health experts, including former CDC director Rochelle Walensky, wrote in a recent JAMA op-ed that the recommendations should be updated to advise one shot for infants traveling in the US to areas with higher risk of exposure.Reports of vaccinated people getting sick in Texas have at the same time raised questions about how protected vaccinated people actually are. As good as it is, 97 percent effectiveness isnt 100 percent, and it is possible to be vaccinated and still get sick. For a small percentage of people, the vaccine simply doesnt produce immunity. It is also possible that immunity could wane over time, but that was previously not an issue because high vaccination rates had snuffed out the viruss spread.In part because there may not be a lot of excess vaccine supply, the priority should be vaccinating those people who do not have any protection at all: those very young children and the people who werent vaccinated as kids. Pregnant women should not receive the vaccine, but women planning to become pregnant could talk to their doctor about a booster shot; likewise, people with immune conditions should talk with their doctor before getting an additional dose, as the vaccines live virus could present a risk depending on their level of immunodeficiency. Those in high-risk groups may want to take additional precautions, such as wearing masks, if there are reports of measles infections in their immediate area. (That doesnt just mean the areas of the current outbreak isolated infections have also been found in California and Maryland in people who recently traveled internationally.)For other people who have already been vaccinated but are worried about transmission, it may be reasonable to consider a booster shot. But there are some important steps you should take first. First, check your vaccination records if you can find them. If you received two doses as a child, you very likely had a successful immune response; only three in 100 people dont. If you received one dose as was generally the case before 1989 youre probably still good, but it is a little more likely that you never developed immunity, according to Aaron Milstone, an infectious disease pediatrician at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.Either way, the next step would be to talk to your doctor. (As always, with anything regarding your health.) They can administer a titer test that measures the measles antibodies in your body. If theyre still present great, you should be good. If theyre not, you may want to ask your doctor about getting an additional measles shot. The risks should be kept in context: If youre not near a confirmed measles case, your personal risk remains negligible. If youre vaccinated and have antibodies, you are very likely protected from the virus regardless.But they can not be ignored either. Milstone said he and his fellow infectious disease doctors could not believe it when they heard the news in February of a childs death from measles in the United States of America. You hope people dont have to die for others to take this seriously, Milstone said.See More: