The CDC now says Covid-19 “does not spread easily” by touching surfaces or objects
The CDC has updated its transmission guidelines to reflect the organization’s belief that the coronavirus does not spread easily just from touching surfaces or objects. The guidelines are quick to note that while it is still possible, it is no longer considered one of the main ways the virus spreads.
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Anne Basting|TEDMED 2020
By incorporating art and creativity into elder care settings, gerontologist Anne Basting helps families reconnect with loved ones who have dementia. In this moving talk, she shares how asking “beautiful questions” — questions that don’t have a right or wrong answer — opens up a shared path of discovery, imagination and wonder. “If we can infuse creativity into care, caregivers can invite a partner into meaning-making,” Basting says. “In that moment, care, which is so often associated with loss, can become generative.”
This video was produced by TEDMED. TED’s editors featured it among our daily selections on the home page.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
by C.G. Jung, Gerhard Adler (Editor), R.F.C. Hull (Translator)
Aion: Researches into the Phenomenology of the Self , originally published in German in 1951, is one of the major works of Jung’s later years. The central theme of the volume is the symbolic representation of the psychic totality through the concept of the Self, whose traditional historical equivalent is the figure of Christ. Jung demonstrates his thesis by an investigation of the Allegoria Christi, especially the fish symbol, but also of Gnostic and alchemical symbolism, which he treats as phenomena of cultural assimilation. The first four chapters, on the ego, the shadow, and the anima and animus, provide a valuable summation of these key concepts in Jung’s system of psychology.
(Goodreads.com)
Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies.
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand, dare seize the fire?
And what shoulder, & what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain,
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp,
Dare its deadly terrors clasp!
When the stars threw down their spears
And water’d heaven with their tears:
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?
Tyger Tyger burning bright,
In the forests of the night:
What immortal hand or eye,
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
Kurtis Alexander May 19, 2020 Updated: May 20, 2020 (SFChronicle.com)
The disruption caused by the coronavirus has been so profound that it’s altered the trajectory of global warming.
Not since World War II — and perhaps never before — have the emissions of heat-trapping gases dropped as much around the planet as they have during the COVID-19 outbreak.
The latest and most detailed study yet on the pandemic’s impact on climate pollution, published Tuesday and authored by the research group Global Carbon Project chaired by Stanford University’s Rob Jackson, finds that the Earth will see up to a 7% decrease in carbon dioxide this year. The dip is five times the decline in emissions in 2009, when the recession choked the world’s economy, and double what it was in 1992, after the fall of the Soviet Union.
The paper’s findings mirror other reports that have similarly found sharp drops in greenhouse gases recently. The emerging research also is in agreement that the lull will likely be short-lived and, at best, buy time before the most devastating effects of climate change take hold. The lockdown that has halted factories, energy plants and automobiles during the pandemic is already lifting, and without deliberate action, carbon-intense activities are bound to resume.
“That’s the danger here,” said Jackson, a professor of earth system science and senior fellow at Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. “We’ve decreased emissions for the wrong reasons. Will they jump back up starting this fall, or could the virus allow us to rethink transportation and other parts of the economy?”
The answer to the question, say Jackson and others, may not be so straightforward. Greenhouse gases could rebound in some areas, and there could be lasting decreases in others.
Measuring heat-trapping gas emissions, for which carbon dioxide is a proxy, is not easy to do, especially in real time. The researchers at the Global Carbon Project analyzed daily economic activity in 69 countries from January through April and modeled the carbon pollution that likely resulted, then compared it to last year. The countries included have historically produced almost all of the world’s carbon dioxide.
The researchers found that China, the largest polluter, reduced emissions by nearly 24% on some days in mid-February. The United States, the second-largest polluter, cut emissions by nearly 32% for almost two weeks in mid-April. The European Union, including Great Britain, trimmed emissions by about 27% during the first week of April.
The dates of peak reductions varied in different parts of the globe because each locked down at a different time. The biggest cumulative drop in carbon dioxide was on April 7 and measured about 17%, according to the study.
While a variety of activity explains the declines, fewer people driving was the largest contributor worldwide. Less industrial pollution was also a big contributor.
Based on the observed drops in emissions, the researchers estimate that going forward, carbon dioxide will fall between 4% and 7% for the year worldwide, depending on how quickly countries end their lockdowns.
Jackson said the amount of the decline can be viewed as both considerable, given that it’s the largest ever seen, and humbling because it’s the minimum needed annually to put the planet on track to meet the Paris climate agreement — enough of a drop to prevent the global temperature from rising 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.
“We would need to do this every year,” he said.
The International Energy Agency recently projected an 8% dip in greenhouse gases for the year while the International Monetary Fund came up with an estimate closer to 6%. Both organizations said carbon pollution would likely rise again in 2021.
After the decline in emissions in 2009 of about 1.4%, the following year saw an increase of 5.1%.
The Global Carbon Project says there’s reason to think that at least some parts of the globe will try to prevent heat-trapping gases from bouncing back. Stimulus programs aimed at developing clean energy and new carbon-friendly ways of living adopted during the pandemic, such as working from home, could help limit emissions.
“Cities from Seattle to Milan are keeping roads closed to cars and letting them stay open to bikes and pedestrians even after the shelter-in-place,” Jackson said. “And maybe COVID-19 and stimulus funding will jump-start electric cars.”
The new paper was published in the journal Nature Climate Change.
Kurtis Alexander is a San Francsico Chronicle staff writer. Email: kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kurtisalexander
Follow Kurtis on:https://www.facebook.com/kurtis.alexander.92kurtisalexander
Kurtis Alexander is a general assignment reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle, frequently writing about water, wildfire, climate and the American West. His recent work has focused on the impacts of drought, the widening rural-urban divide and state and federal environmental policy.
Before joining the Chronicle, Alexander worked as a freelance writer and as a staff reporter for several media organizations, including The Fresno Bee and Bay Area News Group, writing about government, politics and the environment.
©2020 Hearst
HOW IS PLANET BORN
VICTOR TANGERMANN – May 20, 2020 (futurism.com)
Scientists may have caught the first-ever pictures of a planet being born around a young star, using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT).
The stunning images show swirls of dust and gas spiraling around the star system AB Aurigae, about 520 light-years, from Earth and the “twist,” where astronomers suspect a planet is forming.
According to an ESO statement, the research is likely the first direct evidence of a baby planet being born.
“Thousands of exoplanets have been identified so far, but little is known about how they form,” Anthony Boccaletti from the Observatoire de Paris in France and lead author of the study published in Astronomy & Astrophysics today said in the statement. “We need to observe very young systems to really capture the moment when planets form.”
Emmanuel Di Folco of the Astrophysics Laboratory of Bordeaux (LAB), France and co-author of the study, likened the circulating ripples to “the wake of a boat on a lake.”
The scientists believe the twist at the center of the image marks the spot where the baby planet could be forming.
A couple years ago, scientists managed to take images of spiral arms of gas surrounding a star that scientists believe were early evidence of planet formation — but the “twist” at the center adds something new to the story.
“The twist is expected from some theoretical models of planet formation, “Anne Dutrey, another co-author from the LAB, said in the statement. “It corresponds to the connection of two spirals — one winding inwards of the planet’s orbit, the other expanding outwards — which join at the planet location.”
The swirls allow gas and dust to collect — and allow planets to form and grow.
Scientists are hoping that a more powerful telescope will allow astronomers to get an even better look.
“We should be able to see directly and more precisely how the dynamics of the gas contributes to the formation of planets,” Boccaletti said.
READ MORE: ESO Telescope Sees Signs of Planet Birth [ESO]
More on planet formation: Beautiful Images Show Planets Starting to Form
CBC Radio · Posted: May 21, 2020 4:00 AM ET | Last Updated: 9 hours ago
British Columbia’s top doctor says that a second wave of COVID-19 caused by the novel coronavirus is inevitable in Canada, but that the lessons learned over the past few months will help inform future responses.
“The optimist in me would like to think that maybe it will go away, and the virus will mutate and won’t become worse,” said Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry in an interview with Matt Galloway, host of CBC Radio’s The Current.
“But you know what? We’ve never had a pandemic in recorded history that has not had a second wave.”
Henry, who was on the front lines of the country’s SARS outbreak from 2002 to 2003, has led B.C.’s response to the coronavirus outbreak. She has been praised for her response to the pandemic that successfully flattened the curve ahead of many other regions.
B.C. was the second province with a confirmed case of COVID-19, and with strict physical distancing measures, new infections and hospitalizations have steadily decreased.
On Tuesday, the province entered the second phase of its pandemic response with many businesses and public spaces, including restaurants and beaches reopening with restrictions.
“Now is our time to regroup, learn as much as we can over the coming weeks and months, and prepare,” Henry said.
WATCH | ‘We’re not going to get everything right,’ says Henry:
Dr. Bonnie Henry says there might be some confusion about Phase 2 of B.C.’s reopening and it will take some time and patience to iron out.. 1:25
As the country slowly reopens, Henry said that testing will continue to be crucial, particularly when the flu returns in the fall.
“We need to be able to understand the difference between influenza and COVID, and we’ll need to have testing in place to rapidly expand our testing if needed,” she said, adding that contact tracing for diagnosed cases will also play a role.
However, Henry pushed back at the idea of COVID-19 surveillance systems, such as those launched in China and Hong Kong, arguing they’re “probably not that helpful.”
“That one-on-one public health investigation is incredibly important, so if there [are] some applications that help us do that more efficiently, then that’s what we’re looking for.”
With the potential for a second wave, Henry said B.C. is already considering what measures may return — without delivering another blow to the economy.
“What I hope we can do is create a level of safety so that we can get our economy going, our schools going, work going — but not to the level that we were in December [before the virus],” she said.
“We’ll be looking at what were the measures that worked best to prevent transmission, and if we start to see increases in COVID, those are the things that we can put in place rather than the blanket shut everything down as we did before.”
The most effective measures will be tested as the provincial economy reopens, and starting on June 1, students can voluntarily return to classrooms.
“We want to make sure that there’s not a long period of time where [students] don’t have that direct contact, but we need to do it in a way that’s safe,” Henry said.
While schools have remained open throughout the pandemic for some students, including children of essential workers, they will now be open to all.
In-person attendance is voluntary, and schools will have to follow rigorous cleaning procedures and health guidelines. 2:06
When they reopen next month class sizes will be small, and students will stay with one teacher for the full day.
Several provinces have already announced plans to keep students at home until at least the fall. Henry said that B.C.’s blueprint for schools is what students across the country might expect for the next school year.
“We’ll be learning from the experience that we have in June to make sure that we have things that are working both for the staff and the educators … as well as the students and the family,” she said.
Changes to other sectors, including elder care, will be further off, however.
Long-term care homes, which have faced outbreaks across the country, remain off limits to residents’ relatives in the province.
“As soon as we think it’s safe, we will be allowing family members in, but it won’t be in the same way,” she said. “We won’t be able to have those group experiences right now and probably for a number of weeks or months.”
When asked whether the pandemic would lead to a reckoning for how elder care is handled in this country, Henry said that it has highlighted “challenges” that public health has “recognized for a long time.” She included annual influenza outbreaks and a precarious workforce among the difficulties.
“All of these highlight the vulnerabilities that something like a virus can cause when it gets into a care home and we don’t have those essential pieces in place that support people,” she said.
“I’m hopeful that we will redo how we think about providing care in seniors’ homes.”
Henry said that while the federal government’s role in long-term care needs to be “worked out,” there is “a justification for making seniors’ care — particularly in the long-term care homes that we have — making that part of our whole health-care system.”
Throughout the pandemic, Henry has encouraged British Columbians to “be kind, be calm and be safe.”
“It may sound corny, but I do believe that kindness and support and working together is what will get us through this, particularly things that last as long as an outbreak like this,” she said.
WATCH | Henry concerned for families and health workers affected by coronavirus:
Watch
Dr. Bonnie Henry is concerned for families and health workers affected by the coronavirus.
A return to pre-COVID-19 life remains a long way off, she said, telling Galloway “the types of contact, the things that we did in December,” could remain off limits until a vaccine is developed.
But Henry is hopeful that some of the positive changes that have come out of the pandemic will stick around well beyond COVID-19.
“There’s new ways of approaching things … the fact that we need to clean our hands regularly and the fact that we need to respect people’s safe distance, particularly if we’re feeling unwell ourselves … and how do we support people to be able to stay home from work if they’re sick?” she said.
“Those are things that I hope won’t change.”
Written by Jason Vermes. Produced by Idella Sturino and John Chipman.
Marah J. Hardt|TEDxMileHigh
The ocean plays host to a peculiar party of wild, marine sex life that’s perhaps quirkier (and kinkier) than you can fathom. But is human behavior interrupting these raunchy reproductive acts? Take a deep dive with marine biologist Marah J. Hardt to discover what exactly goes down under the sea — and why your own wellness depends on the healthy sex lives of fish.
This talk was presented to a local audience at TEDxMileHigh, an independent event. TED’s editors chose to feature it for you.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Issued on: 17/05/2020 – France24.com
Text by:NEWS WIRES
Madagascar on Sunday announced the first death of a patient suffering from the novel coronavirus, nearly two months after it was first detected in the country.
The 57-year-old hospital worker died on Saturday and had underlying diabetes and high blood pressure before he was infected, an official from the anti-coronavirus task team said.
“It is with great sadness that we have to share with all our compatriots, that there is an individual, aged 57, who died from Covid-19,” professor Hanta Vololontiana said on public television.
He was a car park attendant at a hospital in the eastern city of Toamasina.
The Indian Ocean island which has reported 304 cases has hit the headlines over a home-grown herbal concoction that President Andry Rajoelina claims can cure people infected with the virus.
Exclusive: Madagascar’s president defends controversial homegrown Covid-19 cure
Several African countries have ordered or expressed interest in the purported remedy, which is known as Covid-Organics.
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The tonic drink is derived from artemisia — a plant with proven efficacy in malaria treatment — and other indigenous herbs.
But the World Health Organization has warned against “adopting a product that has not been taken through tests to see its efficacy”.
(AFP)