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(credit: NASA/Flickr)

A government panel tasked with making recommendations for preventative medical treatments finalized its latest position on breast cancer screening Tuesday: Women with an average risk of the disease will have the best balance of benefits and harms if they get screened once every two years between age 50 and 74. For those aged 40 to 50, screening should be an individual choice based on health and personal values, the panel concluded.

The position by the panel—the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)—firms up the recommendation it made back in 2009, even though the panel took new data and advanced screening methods into account for its update. Still, the recommendation conflicts with those from other leading health organizations in the US and abroad, highlighting the uncertainty about screening’s benefits and the confusion women face as they manage their health.

In October, the American Cancer Society updated its recommendation. The society suggests that women with an average risk of the disease—that is, no additional risks such as genetic predisposition or breast tissue changes—are best served by getting annual exams starting at age 45 and then transitioning to screens every two years at age 55.

It took Microsoft three attempts to come up with a Surface concept that had broad appeal. With the combination of screen size, resolution, system flexibility, and performance, the Surface Pro 3 became a PC that worked for a lot of people. As a tablet, it was thinner and lighter and better to use handheld than any laptop, but its kickstand and magnetic keyboard meant that it offered much of the productivity that laptops boast.

Now that Microsoft has found a formula that works and demonstrated that it has some user appeal, we've seen a proliferation of similar devices from other manufacturers. The Spectre x2 is HP's consumer-oriented iteration of the concept: a 12-inch tablet with an integrated kickstand, a magnetically attached keyboard, an x86 processor, and a full desktop operating system.

Nailing the basics

For me, the most important parts of just about any computer are the parts you have to touch and look at; the keyboard, the touchpad, and the screen. These things have to be done right before I ever care about what's on the inside of the system, because if I hate using a computer, I don't really care about its speed.

The Falcon 9 first stage after successfully landing in Florida. (credit: SpaceX)

Less than a month after successfully flying the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket booster back to a landing site along the Florida coast, SpaceX plans to try a seaborne return. The attempt will come as early as Sunday, when SpaceX plans to launch the Jason-3 satellite into space for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

SpaceX has tried twice to land its spent rocket on a barge, in January and April of 2015, but failed in part due to the inherent instability of a sea-based platform. For this launch the company cannot attempt a ground-based landing because the rocket will blast off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, where it doesn't yet have an established landing site. SpaceX's Landing Zone 1 is located in Florida, near Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Still, the company would like to perfect sea-based landings. After a rocket launch, the first stage flies several hundred miles downrange, and must expend propellant to fly back to land. For launches that require a maximum amount of energy, such as sending larger payloads to geostationary orbit, there will not be enough fuel to fly back to land. Company founder, Elon Musk has also said the central core of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket, which remains under development, would probably need to be returned at sea.