Daily Business Report: Aug. 3, 2023
Can field sobriety tests identify drivers
under the influence of cannabis?
By Nicole Mlynaryk | UC San Diego
Road safety is a critical issue in an era of increasing cannabis legalization. Cannabis is known to impair reaction time, decision-making, coordination and perception—skills necessary for safe driving. In the last three years, California has seen a 62 percent increase in the number of fatal crashes involving drug-related impairment.
Unlike the association of blood alcohol concentrations with impairment, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) blood concentrations do not correlate with driving performance. Law enforcement officers instead rely on behavioral tests to determine a driver’s level of impairment. However, these field sobriety tests were primarily validated based on alcohol ingestion, so how useful they are in detecting cannabis impairment remains unclear.
In a study published Aug. 2 in JAMA Psychiatry, researchers at the University of California San Diego Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research performed a double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial to evaluate how accurate field sobriety tests are in identifying drivers under the influence of THC. The results showed that tests administered by law enforcement officers could differentiate between individuals who had consumed THC versus those who had not at certain time points. Still, the overall accuracy of the tests may be insufficient to denote THC impairment on their own.
Photo: Cannabis is the illicit drug most frequently found in the blood of drivers involved in motor vehicle crashes, including fatal ones. (Photo by Elsa Olofsson/Unsplash)
USS Mobile Bay to be decommissioned in San Diego
The cruiser USS Mobile Bay, which launched 22 Tomahawk cruise missiles during Operation Desert Storm and helped carry people to safety when Mt. Pinatubo erupted in the Philippines, will be decommissioned in San Diego on Aug. 10, ending the service life of one of the oldest ships in the Navy.
Mobile Bay will become the latest Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser to be sidelined by the Navy, which is phasing out the Cold War-era vessels in favor of the newer Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
The cruisers were designed for a 35-year service life. Mobile Bay was commissioned 36 years ago and initially operated out of Mayport, Fla. It later spent years based in Yokosuka, Japan, then moved to San Diego in 2000.
Bill preserving Pala Tribe land becomes law
Legislation sponsored by Congressman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) to place more than 700 acres of sacred land into tribal trust is now law after being signed by President Joe Biden. The Pala Band of Mission Indians Land Transfer Act of 2023(H.R. 423) incorporates 720 acres of ancestral land in San Diego County into the Pala Band of Mission Indians’ reservation, protecting the land from development and preserving historic sites for years to come.
The property includes the remaining portion of San Diego County’s Gregory Mountain that is not on the existing Pala reservation. In a 2019 testimony before the House of Representatives, Pala Band Chairman Robert Smith stated that the land was historically occupied by Native peoples and is a site of an ancestral village, rock art paintings, artifacts, and more culturally meaningful components.
National City industrial property sells for $20.33 million
CBRE arranged the sale of 131 West 33rd St. in National City to a Los Angeles-based private buyer undergoing a 1031 exchange for $20.33 million or $258 per-square-foot. The 78,699-square-foot industrial building is on 3.23 acres. The multi-tenant building, which is 97 percent occupied, features up to 20-foot clear height and has 26-grade level doors, three dock wells and three dock-high positions. The property was initially built in 1969 but has undergone two renovations, the most recent in 2019.
Matt Pourcho, Anthony DeLorenzo, Matt Harris and Bryan Johnson of CBRE’s Investment Properties represented the seller, UniLev, a privately held commercial real estate company, in the transaction. Mark Shaffer and Gary Stache of CBRE represented the private buyer in the transaction.
This sugar kills honebees — it could also help fight cancer
Research from Sanford Burnham Prebys and the Osaka International Cancer Institute has shed new light on the anti-cancer properties of mannose, a sugar that is crucial to many physiological processes in humans and is also known to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. The findings, published in the journal eLife, suggest that mannose could be a helpful secondary treatment for cancer.
“This sugar could give cancer an extra punch alongside other treatments,” says study co-author Hudson Freeze, director of the Human Genetics Program at Sanford Burnham Prebys. “And because mannose is found throughout the body naturally, it could improve cancer treatment without any undesirable side effects.”
Alliance for Genomic Discovery announces founding biopharma members
DNA sequencing leader Illumina Inc., in collaboration with Nashville Biosciences LLC, announced the five founding members of the Alliance for Genomic Discovery (AGD). The multiyear agreement aims to accelerate development of therapeutics through large-scale genomics and the establishment of a preeminent clinical genomic resource. Member organizations AbbVie, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, and Merck will co-fund the whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of 250,000 samples and have access to the resulting data for use in drug discovery and therapeutic development.
With the announcement, deCODE genetics, a wholly owned subsidiary of Amgen, will sequence the remaining samples for the Alliance.
Northrop Grumman successfully launches 19th supply mission to International Space Station
Northrop Grumman Corporation has successfully launched its 19th resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS) under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services-2 contract aboard the company’s Antares rocket. This launch commemorates 10 years of Northrop Grumman Cygnus missions.
• NG-19 is carrying over 8,200 pounds of equipment, science experiments and supplies to the crew on the ISS.
• The Cygnus spacecraft has delivered roughly 130,000 pounds of equipment and supplies to the crews aboard the ISS over the past decade.
• After ISS separation, Cygnus will host NASA’s Spacecraft Fire Safety Experiment (Saffire) to investigate how fires grow in microgravity. This will inform future human spaceflight design to ensure crew safety.
California’s winter waves may be increasing under climate change
By Alex Fox
A new study from UC San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography researcher emeritus Peter Bromirski uses nearly a century of data to show that the average heights of winter waves along the California coast have increased as climate change has heated up the planet.
The study, published Tuesday in the Journal of Geophysical Research – Oceans, achieved its
extraordinarily long time series by using seismic records dating back to 1931 to infer wave height, a unique but accepted method first developed by Bromirski in 1999. The results, made more robust by their 90 years of statistical power, join a growing body of research that
suggests storm activity in the North Pacific Ocean has increased under climate change.
If global warming accelerates, growing winter wave heights could have significant implications for flooding and erosion along California’s coast, which is already threatened by accelerating sea-level rise.
2023 Small Business Saturday Forum & Expo
The San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce will present the Small Business Saturday Forum & Expo on Tuesday, Sept. 19, from 9 to 11 a.m. in Procopio Tower’s Multi-Purpose Room at 525 B St. in Downtown San Diego. The forum and expo is a one-day event providing a unique opportunity for networking, knowledge sharing, and showcasing local small businesses’ products and services. The event is open to both chamber members and the public. The event is free, but registration is required.
Clearpoint Agency to manage PR for Nonaste
SAN DIEGO — Clearpoint Agency, a pubic relations firm, is providing PR services to Nonaste, pronounced “No Nasty,” the maker of high-performance laundry detertents, odor-eliminating sprays, and sweat-proof premium car seat protectors. Clearpoint Agency is working to raise awareness for Nonaste through public relations strategies, partner programs and earned media, and is in planning stages for various creative marcom campaigns.
Helix Water District selects Black & Veatch for electric vehicle charging project
SAN DIEGO — Black & Veatch, a global leader in critical infrastructure solutions, has been selected by Helix Water District to perform design and engineering services for the district’s electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure project. Black & Veatch will provide design of all infrastructure for the Helix Water District’s new EV charging stations at its operations center, which will include more than 70 chargers. The project supports the district’s addition of electric-powered light, medium and heavy-duty fleet vehicles and equipment.
Dalrada’s Genefic launches new company
SAN DIEGO — Dalrada Financial Corporation, a problem-solving innovator that takes on complex, multi-disciplinary challenges in health care, climate technology, clean energy, and precision manufacturing, announced that its health care division, Genefic, is launching a new company, Achieve Weight-Loss and Wellness, to provide entrepreneurs with a blueprint for creating their own successful health clinics that offer a popular and effective weight loss treatment.
Medical Marijuana division completes acquisition of KZI
SAN DIEGO — Medical Marijuana Inc. announced that its network marketing division, Kannaway, has completed an Asset Purchase Agreement with eXfuse, LLC, dba KZ1, a Japan- based network marketing company. The KZ1 acquisition will increase the sales force of the company’s Kannaway division in Japan by approximately 1,450 individuals and the company believes the increased sales force will greatly benefit Kannaway’s ramp up in the Japanese market. KZ1’s premium product “Focus,” containing Nootropics, which helps support cognitive function, has been well received in the Japanese market.
Altium LLC announces collaboration with SiliconExpert
SAN DIEGO — Altium LLC, a global leader in electronics design systems, announced its integration collaboration with SiliconExpert, a leading provider of electronic component data and parts management software. This integration empowers engineers, procurement professionals, and other stakeholders using Altium 365, an electronics development platform, with direct access to comprehensive, real-time component data whenever it is needed during the design and product lifecycle. With SiliconExpert’s data on over a billion electronic parts, Altium 365 users can soon access even more detailed component information than they have had before.
Cubic’s automated fare collection system adopted in Oregon
SAN DIEGO — San Diego’s Cubic Transportation Systems announced at the APTAtech Conference the much-anticipated launch of its Umo platform as the new automated fare collection system for the Salem Area Mass Transit District (SAMTD). Based in the state capital of Oregon, the transit district is locally known as Cherriots. Umo will bring a host of cutting-edge features, including account-based ticketing, contactless payment options and fare capping to transit riders in the Mid-Willamete Valley.
Biosero appoints Rob Harkness as chief technology officer
SAN DIEGO — Biosero Inc., developer of laboratory automation solutions to orchestrate scientific discoveries, announced the promotion of Rob Harkness to the position of chief technology officer. Harkness previously served as the company’s managing director for the European Union and United Kingdom. Harkness has more than 20 years of experience in delivering laboratory automation solutions. He joined Biosero in 2020, initially as director of customer success for the EU and UK, working with customers and partners to help them achieve their scientific goals.
Chosen Foods appoints Douglas MacFarlane as CEO
SAN DIEGO— Chosen Foods announced that Douglas MacFarlane has joined the company as chief executive officer. MacFarlane has a strong track record of driving growth and transformation in leadership positions at renowned consumer brands. He previously served as CEO of SmartSweets and Voortman Bakery, as well as in various leadership roles at The Clorox Company. He joins a management team that includes Chief Growth Officer Jason Moraff and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer Jim Mancuso, who together bring several years of experience from leading consumer brands.
Christian Kurth promoted to principal at JMI Equity
SAN DIEGO — JMI Equity announced the promotion of Christian Kurth to principal of the company. Kurth, based in San Diego, sources and evaluates JMI’s investment opportunities with a focus in the digital health space. His investment experience includes TimelyCare, Jane Software, and Canto. Prior to joining JMI in 2015, Kurth was an investment banking analyst in the technology group at Wells Fargo. He received a BS in Accounting and Business Administration from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.
Scott Brown joins Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties
SAN DIEGO — In a move signifying his belief in the company’s values and brand reputation, Scott Brown has joined Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties to work as the director of agent growth & development and an expanded role as a co-director of the BHHSCP Commercial Division. As a sales manager of Compass, Brown was integral to its national expansion. Brown will be working alongside BHHSCP’s senior leadership to help grow its footprint, and to provide exceptional insight and support to its 2,500 agents.
