This 22 April 2020 video from the USA says about itself:
How do barnacles survive environmental changes? Long-term work by a Brown University research team, with funding from the National Science Foundation, has confirmed that a central metabolic protein Mpi and the gene encoding the protein is what helps the barnacle survive extreme environmental changes.
Different versions of the Mpi enzyme are present at different levels, depending on where the barnacles have settled in the rocky shoreline. One form performs well under high stress, like on a hot day at low tide; the other form does better under low stress. This allows barnacles to survive and prosper in fluctuating extremes and has prepared them for success in an ever-changing environment.
Brazilian communists sneak ventilators into the country via Ethiopia
THE communist-run Brazilian state of Maranhao has brought much-needed ventilators from China via Ethiopia in a “war operation” against coronavirus.
Governor Flavio Dino bought more than 100 of the artificial respiration machines for the north-eastern state but, fearing that they would be confiscated en route by the United States or Brazil’s federal [Bolsonaro] government, he had them sent by sea to Ethiopia for onward shipment.
The shipment, which also included 200,000 masks, arrived last week in Sao Paolo, where, instead of passing through customs, it was immediately loaded onto a chartered plane to fly the 3,000 miles north to Maranhao.
This 18 April 2020 video is about a squid which beached alive on De Hors beach on Texel island in the Netherlands. Ecomare museum worker Erik Willebrands found the animal and put it back into the sea. It is not known whether the squid survived ultimately. Probably, it was a common squid.
Don’t miss the second trial: 32.7 km on a hilly course from Linaro to Sogliano al Rubicone, part of the route of the Corsa Rosa’s Stage 12, Cesenatico-Cesenatico (Nove Colli).
1. Gloria Rodriguez (Spain) 1.10.23
2. Elisa Longo Borghini + 5.25
3. Lucina Brand + 10.25
4. Katrine Aalerud + 11.10
5. Elena Cecchini + 11.36
6. Marta Cavalli + 27.23
7. Katia Ragusa same time
8. Lizbeth Yareli Salazar Vázquez same time
Mexican cyclist Lizbeth Yareli Salazar Vázquez had said that she did not expect to win, as it was a mountainous stage and she is not good at mountains, being a track specialist. Also, for her it was 2:30 in the night, Mexican time. However, she was very happy to participate, as the money raised will go to the Italian Red Cross to fight the coronavirus crisis.
This week, we’re talking about an animal that has three arms (kind of)! That’s the Geoffroy’s spider monkey, which uses its tail to get around in the trees. This animal is found in South America, and travels in large groups.
This 18 April 2022 Sky TV video from Britain says about itself:
UK set to reach 20,000 coronavirus deaths by next weekend
Analysis of recent UK #coronavirus figures shows that although the curve of coronavirus deaths is starting to flatten, the total will still reach 20,000 next week.
Today the government tested 21,389 people for COVID-19, far below their target of 100,000 per day by the end of this month.
Countries like Italy and France are carrying out many more tests than Great Britain.
Government told ‘no chance’ on the lifting of transport restrictions
Transport union RMT says Tories’ pipe-dream of ‘ramping-up of transport services’ on May 11 will ‘also ramp up the risk to workers and passengers’
GOVERNMENT pipe-dreams of starting to return public transport to normal on May 11 were dismissed by Britain’s biggest rail union today as having “zero chance”.
An RMT survey of thousands of transport staff reveals widespread failings to protect workers and passengers from coronavirus.
In the capital alone, 14 Transport for London workers have died after contracting Covid-19.
Care-home workers forced to move into workplaces 24-hours a day
Profiteering care provider told staff to sign forms committing to ‘remain on-site’ for no extra pay
PRIVATE care-home workers are having to abandon their families and move into their workplaces 24-hours a day, it was revealed today.
One profiteering private care provider has told staff to sign forms committing them to “pack supplies” and “remain on site” for unlimited periods with no extra pay, the GMB union said.
The union, which represents thousands of care-home workers, says some are being told they cannot leave their workplace unless another worker is available to take over.
London private renters need triple-lock protection warns Sadiq Khan
LONDON Mayor Sadiq Khan called on the government today to protect the three million private renters in the capital from eviction during and after the coronavirus crisis.
He said tenants should be protected through the introduction of a three-key policy.
More than two million Londoners live in privately rented housing, many of whom have little or no savings and may have had to stop working or reduce their hours due to the pandemic.
Starmer warns government is failing to test 10,000 people a day, in first PMQs as Labour leader
SIR KEIR STARMER used his first Prime Minister’s questions (PMQs) today to warn that the government would fail to keep its promise to test 100,000 people a day for Covid-19 by the end of April.
Just 18,206 tests were carried over 24 hours on Monday – but the government has repeatedly vowed to test 100,000 people a day by a week from now.
Mr Starmer, who was elected Labour leader earlier this month, questioned how that target would be met, pointing out that less than half of the currently claimed 41,398 daily testing capacity was being used.
Cancer cases are going undetected during coronavirus impacting chances of survival: here.
In US news and current events today, Dr. Karla Lorraine sent a grave warning to Georgia Governor Kemp on his decision to reopen the local economy. Listen to this doctor fighting COVID-19’s warning.
NO BENEFIT AND MORE DEATHS FROM TRUMP MIRACLE DRUG A malaria drug repeatedly touted by President Donald Trump for treating the coronavirus showed no benefit in a large analysis of its use in U.S. veterans hospitals. There were more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care, researchers reported. With 368 patients, the study is the largest look so far of hydroxychloroquine with or without the antibiotic azithromycin. [AP]
UNION FEDERATION WARNS AGAINST HASTY REOPENING The AFL-CIO union federation warned that workplaces were still far too dangerous to consider reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic, even as some governors are starting to lift restrictions in order to get businesses up and running again. Richard Trumka, the federation’s president, said there was still insufficient personal protective equipment and not enough testing to make worksites safe. He called for stronger legal protections for those who will have to refuse dangerous work as their employers begin to call them back. [HuffPost]
TEXAS LT. GOV.: THERE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS THAN LIVING Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) made the eyebrow-raising claim that “there are more important things than living” as part of his continued push to reopen the U.S. economy, despite warnings from public health experts. “We’re crushing the average worker,” Patrick told Fox News’ Tucker Carlson. “There are more important things than living, and that’s saving this country.” [HuffPost]
7 WISCONSIN CASES LINKED TO IN-PERSON VOTING At least seven people appear to have contracted the coronavirus through activities related to the April 7 election in Wisconsin. Six of the cases involve Milwaukee voters and one is a Milwaukee poll worker, city health officials said. [AP]
TRUMP’S LATEST EXCUSE FOR FAILURE: OBAMA The president, continuing to struggle defending his initial inaction on the coronavirus pandemic, has taken to attacking former President Barack Obama for failing to predict the disease and come up with a test for it. [HuffPost]
CDC WARNS AMERICANS OF ‘2ND WAVE’ THIS WINTER The director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned that a potential second wave of the coronavirus could be far more fatal than the current phase of the pandemic because it may overlap with the beginning of flu season this winter. Government leaders at all levels must use the months ahead to prepare for such a resurgence even as some states announce plans to resurrect their economies, CDC Director Robert Redfield told The Washington Post. [HuffPost]
MICHIGAN GOV.: TRUMP MESSAGING A GRAVE DANGER Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Trump’s plan to suspend immigration is distracting from efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and part of “inconsistent messages” that spread fear and put the public in “greater danger”. Trump’s pronouncements about freezing immigration are “scary” for immigrants, family members hoping to immigrate to the U.S., farmers who rely on seasonal migrant workers and Canadian nurses who work in Michigan, the Democratic governor said. [AP]
USA: This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Clean Air Act, which is responsible for dramatic improvements in air quality. Despite this, a new report from the American Lung Association finds nearly half of the nation’s population — 150 million people — lived with and breathed polluted air, placing their health and lives at risk. The 21st annual “State of the Air” report finds that climate change continues to make air pollution worse, with many western communities again experiencing record-breaking spikes in particle pollution due to wildfires. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of air pollution on lung health is of heightened concern: here.
This 20 April 2020 video from India says about itself:
A new species of green pit viper has been discovered in Arunachal Pradesh recently which was named Trimeresurus salazar.
It has been collected from the Pakke Tiger Reserve in Pakke-Kessang district in Arunachal Pradesh.
Trimeresurus Salazar – Green pit viper
Green pit viper is a common name for several venomous snakes and may refer to:
Trimeresurus albolabris (native to southeastern Asia from India to China and Indonesia)
Trimeresurus macrops (native to Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam)
Trimeresurus trigonocephalus (endemic to Sri Lanka)
And, now, newly discovered Trimeresurus salazar (Arunachal Pradesh)
The study’s authors explained that the name came from the “co-founder of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the founder of the House of Slytherin – Salazar Slytherin.”
“He was a Parselmouth that links him to serpents,” they said and suggested that the snake be commonly known as “Salazar’s pit viper.”
🐍Welcome to the House of #Slytherin: meet Salazar’s pit #viper – a #NewSpecies, discovered in Arunachal Pradesh India & named after the #parselmouth#wizard & Slytherin’s house founder.
For anyone needing a “Harry Potter” refresher, Salazar Slytherin was one of four founding members of the wizarding school. He was known for his rare ability to speak to snakes ― called “Parselmouth”.
In “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”, a Basilisk ― a giant, venomous serpent left beneath Hogwarts for hundreds of years by Slytherin ― terrorized students. Those who looked the creature directly in the eye would be killed; an indirect look would render the victims petrified.
Salazar’s pit viper was discovered during an expedition to the Himalayan biodiversity hotspot in India’s northern Arunachal Pradesh region. The scientists noted that the snake has a unique stripe ― orange to red in color ― on the body of males.
The snakes, like others in the Trimeresurus genus, are venomous. While it’s best to keep your distance, you can probably get away with looking them in the eye.
The official number of deaths in Britain due to COVID-19 is heading towards 20,000. A further 873 fatalities were announced yesterday, taking the official total to 17,382. This is just those who have died in hospital and does not include those who have died in residential care homes or at home. Due to the delay in recording and registering deaths of mainly elderly people, the latest figures relating to deaths outside hospital only go to April 10: here.
Kazakhstan: Hospital workers demand resignation of government official over spread of COVID-19. By David Levine, 22 April 2020. Hospital workers demanded that the city’s chief public health officer, who accused medical workers of being responsible for the spread of the virus, be removed from office.
Australia’s national cabinet continues back-to-work push. By Oscar Grenfell, 22 April 2020. State governments are moving ahead with an easing of restrictions, including through the reopening of schools, creating the conditions for major coronavirus outbreaks.
