WTF

Can 2020 Get Any Worse? (si)

/ SupremeCmdr / Leave a comment

Until now, there had been only one confirmed case of Chapare virus, an Ebola-like illness that turned up in the rural Bolivian province of Chapare in 2004 and then disappeared. But in 2019, at least five more people caught the bug, according to research now made public. The virus spread from person to person through bodily fluids in a region near Bolivia’s capital city of La Paz, killing three people. There are no active outbreaks of Chapare in 2020, and even in the event of further outbreaks the virus would be unlikely to cause a pandemic, according to virus experts.

There are reasons to be concerned about the news, however. Three of the five confirmed patients from the 2019 outbreak were health care workers, according to a CDC statement; a “young medical resident,” an ambulance medic and a gastroenterologist all contracted Chapare after contact with bodily fluids from infected patients. Two of them died.

Deadly hemorrhagic fever in Bolivia can spread between people — https://www.livescience.com/chapare-virus-human-transmission.htm

In my next life I want to come back as an Infectious Disease specialist.

U.S. Election Discussion Thread — Climate Etc.

/ SupremeCmdr / 2 Comments

by Judith Curry No words. The only thing crazier than the U.S. election is this morning’s hurricane forecast. I have no words re the election.  For a diversion, here is my hurricane forecast for Eta. Summary:  current: TERRIBLE.  forecast: CRAZY Latest from NHC (7 am EST): 145 mph max sustained winds, min pressure 936 mb, […]

U.S. election discussion thread — Climate Etc.

I am re-posting this article by Judith Curry. Yes, the headline is somewhat misleading but I’m glad I clicked and read her post. There’s another hurricane coming.

Admit it. We all need a diversion from the election.

The Beginning of the End

/ SupremeCmdr / 1 Comment

Airlines want more from the government printing press.

American Airlines was also the airline that blew, incinerated, wasted, and trashed more than any other airline on share buybacks. Buybacks ceased in the second quarter, but from 2013 through Q1 2020, American Airlines incinerated $13.1 billion in cash on share buybacks. That cash would now come in very handy. 2013 was also the year Mr. Parker became CEO of American Airlines. Delta blew, wasted, and incinerated $11.7 billion in cash on share buybacks over the period; Southwest Airlines, $10.9 billion (starting in 2012); and United $8.9 billion. In total, the big four airlines blew, wasted, and incinerated $44.6 billion in cash on share buybacks from 2012 through Q1 2020, and now the airlines want an additional $25 billion bailout, for a total of $50 billion, much of it in forms of grants, from taxpayers (data via YCharts)

Facing Crappiest Recovery Ever, Airlines Demand New $25-Billion Bailout, for $50 Billion Total, after Having Burned $45 Billion on Share Buybacks — https://wolfstreet.com/2020/09/28/facing-crappiest-recovery-ever-airlines-demand-new-25-billion-bailout-for-50-billion-total-after-having-burned-45-billion-on-share-buybacks/

Just. Say. NO.

CDC Clusterf*ck!

/ SupremeCmdr / 1 Comment

At issue are a set of guidelines released on Monday that say that people without symptoms who have come into contact with someone with Covid-19 do not necessarily need to be tested. Earlier, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had said that “testing was recommended” for the same group.

The modified guidelines sparked a significant backlash. The absence of evidence supporting the change puzzled public health experts. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that the guidelines would not be adopted in California; in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo called them “indefensible.” And Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told reporters that he was undergoing surgery when the guidelines were approved last week — contradicting Brett Giroir, the assistant secretary for health, who said Fauci and others on the task force had approved the final version.

CDC director attempts to clarify controversial Covid-19 testing guidelines https://www.statnews.com/2020/08/27/redfield-clarify-controversial-testing-guidelines/?utm_campaign=rss

CDC attempts to explain guidelines they never developed. Dr. Fauci didn’t sign off on the new guidelines. Hmm…

Why Do Some People Weather Coronavirus Infection Unscathed?

/ SupremeCmdr / 4 Comments

According to various estimates, between 20 and 45 percent of the people who get Covid-19 — and possibly more, according to a recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — sail through a coronavirus infection without realizing they ever had it. No fever or chills. No loss of smell or taste. No breathing difficulties. They don’t feel a thing.

Cite this: Emily Laber-Warren. Why Do Some People Weather Coronavirus Infection Unscathed? – Medscape – Aug 25, 2020. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/936288?src=rss#vp_1

How Some People Pass the Time While Waiting for Covid-19 Test Results

/ SupremeCmdr / 1 Comment

With long testing delays in other states, some learn they tested positive after starting vacations in Maine.

The proportion of COVID-19 tests from out-of-staters that are coming back positive in Maine has increased throughout July, with nonresidents now testing positive in Maine at a rate more than four times that of residents. Though the numbers are small – about 2.8 positive tests a day – they account for over 11 percent of recent new cases in the state.

Bar Harbor hospital sounds warning on undetected COVID-infected visitors

HT – https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/

We are doomed.

14 Guys Eat Pizza in the Name of Science

/ SupremeCmdr / 2 Comments

A pizza study.

You can’t make this stuff up.

…young, healthy men (aged 22 — 37) who volunteered for the trial consumed almost twice as much pizza when pushing beyond their usual limits, doubling their calorie intake, yet, remarkably, managed to keep the amount of nutrients in the bloodstream within normal range.

 Pizza study shows body copes surprisingly well with one-off calorie indulgence

Journal reference and link

Aaron Hengist, Robert M. Edinburgh, Russell G. Davies, Jean-Philippe Walhin, Jariya Buniam, Lewis J. James, Peter J. Rogers, Javier T. Gonzalez, James A. Betts. Physiological responses to maximal eating in men. British Journal of Nutrition, 2020; 124 (4): 407 DOI: 10.1017/S0007114520001270

Covid-19 Research 07.12.20

/ SupremeCmdr / 4 Comments

Although COVID-19 is most well known for causing substantial respiratory pathology, it can also result in several extrapulmonary manifestations. These conditions include thrombotic complications, myocardial dysfunction and arrhythmia, acute coronary syndromes, acute kidney injury, gastrointestinal symptoms, hepatocellular injury, hyperglycemia and ketosis, neurologic illnesses, ocular symptoms, and dermatologic complications.

Gupta, A., Madhavan, M.V., Sehgal, K. et al. Extrapulmonary manifestations of COVID-19. Nat Med (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-020-0968-3

Extrapulmonary manifestations of COVID-19

I do a fair amount of reading and research on this virus.  This review article is highly scientific and clinical.  If you choose to read this article I am not to blame if you never leave your house again for the next few years.