News blues
An unpleasant fact of life that is also the fundamental reason for this blog’s current focus on the Covid pandemic: climate change, over-development, and shrinking wilderness mean many new viruses (and pandemics?) in our future…Over the next fifty years, thousands of new viruses will spread among animal species as a result of climate change and that — in turn — is likely to increase the risk of infectious diseases making the leap from animals to humans. Also, this process may already be underway.Read more >>
This alarming finding emerges from a new modelling study published in the journal Nature. An abstract of the study — which is titled Climate change increases cross-species viral transmission risk — explains the findings saying that “At least 10,000 virus species have the capacity to infect humans, but at present, the vast majority are circulating silently in wild mammals.”
***
A remembrance of those who lived and died with Covid >> (4:35 mins)
***
On war…
Ukraine – photo essay >>Healthy planet, anyone?
Did warming play a role in deadly South African floods? Yes, says a team of researchers. They found (yet again!) that climate change sharply increases the chances of repeats of last month’s catastrophic rains in eastern South Africa.The heavy rains that caused catastrophic flooding in South Africa in mid-April were made twice as likely to occur by climate change….Read more >>
An analysis of the flooding, which killed more than 400 people in Durban and surrounding areas in the eastern part of the country, found that the intense two-day storm that caused it had a 1-in-20 chance of occurring in any given year. If the world had not warmed as a result of human-caused emissions of greenhouse gases, the study found, the chances would have been half that, 1 in 40.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch…
Three days of formal work in a formal workplace – a hospital – and I’m both exhausted and struck with TGIS syndrome (Thank God it’s Saturday).The good news? My office is on the 8th floor of a 10-story building. Each time I leave the office, I gravitate towards the stairwell to walk the stairs rather than ride the elevator/lift. Well, so far, I walk 8 floors down and 4 floors up as I build physical capacity.
Next week’s goal? Walk 8 floors up - at least once. Week after? Walk all 8 floors at least once per day.
Leg muscles slowly waking up to their new reality: concentrated locomotion.
Today, I may also push leg muscles to locomote a bicycle. Big day ahead!
***
Tonight, a blood moon rising. Pray the cloud cover dissipates enough to view over the Bay Area: Sunrise: 5:59am
Sunset: 8:11pm
KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 6:36am
Sunset: 5:15pm
Sunset: 8:11pm
KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 6:36am
Sunset: 5:15pm
No comments:
Post a Comment