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As the number of self-tracking health and fitness tools available to consumers continues to climb, a persistent question has been whether the data they collect might be useful to health researchers. Along with that: Are people who self-track comfortable sharing their data with researchers?

A new, must-read report from San Diego’s California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, explores these and other questions.

Based on a survey with hundreds of self-trackers, a majority — 57 percent — said one critical assurance they would need before agreeing to make their self-tracked, personal health data available to researchers was that their privacy would be protected. More than 90 percent also said it was important that their data remained anonymous. Respondents said they’d be more comfortable sharing data if they knew it was only going to be used for “public good” research.

One open-ended survey that the report’s researchers posed to self-trackers found that 13 percent of respondents specifically mentioned an aversion to commercial or profit-making use of their data, according to the report. One respondent wrote: “It depends who gets it. Research using these data will be instrumental in the future of personal predictive services, but also for that reason are likely to be exploited by marketers and the politically short-sighted. Thus I would like transparency for who has access to my data.”

A newly published Apple patent application that details ways to improve a wrist-based pedometer could represent another piece of evidence pointing to an iWatch.

The application, “Wrist Pedometer Step Detection,” came out of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today. This is part of the standard patent process toward issuance. It details ways to improve step detection when someone is wearing a pedometer on a wrist.

In the patent application’s implementation, the pedometer might be able to “automatically determine that the pedometer is being worn on a user’s wrist.”

Pedometers, the application points out, are often attached to a user’s trunk – on the waist or pants or shirt pocket. A commonly used algorithm to measures steps, however, doesn’t work as well when the pedometer is on a wrist, because the arm’s movement can interfere with the measurement of acceleration.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office just granted Apple a patent for a new kind of biometric sensor that, unlike other wearables we've seen so far, connects to you via your ear. The patent applies to a sensor that can be embedded in a pair of earbuds or headphones, which then hoovers up wearer data like heartbeat, body temperature, or even how much you're perspiring when you hit the gym.

How the sensor intends to do that, however, isn't explicitly outlined in the filing. AsAppleInsider first pointed out, U.S. patent #8,655,004 concerns a "sports monitoring system for headphones, earbuds and/or headsets" to be used "during exercise or sporting activities." Originally filed in 2007, the patent suggests Apple has apparently been experimenting with new ways to cull together biometric data for quite some time now.

more at http://www.fastcompany.com/3026567/tech-forecast/apple-patents-fitness-tracking-earbuds-that-can-read-your-heartbeat

LAPTOP-HF is designed to investigate a new way to help treat heart failure. Since many heart failure patients are frequently hospitalized and often feel poorly, the hope is that this system may help your doctor adjust your medications before you develop symptoms or require hospitalization.

This is accomplished by measuring pressure in the heart and then each day providing you with your physician’s updated recommended medications and dosages. These may change daily depending on your condition. This is very similar to how diabetics manage their glucose levels. -

See more at: http://www.kumed.com/heart-care/clinical-services/heart-care-clinical-trials/laptop-hf#sthash.EfEC2fvM.dpuf