The report comes after weeks of heated speculation about Russian warships steaming for Syria and Russian weapons deliveries for the beleaguered government of Syrian President Bashar Assad, a longtime Kremlin ally.
Moscow and Washington clashed heatedly last week about a supposed delivery of Russian attack helicopters to Syria. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton contended that the helicopters would “escalate the conflict quite dramatically.”
Russia said any weaponry being sold to Syria was designed against external threats and could not be deployed against rebels. Russia said no new helicopters were being sent to Syria, but that “scheduled repairs of hardware that was supplied to Syria many years ago” had been carried out.
Assad’s government has been accused of brutally repressing the 15-month-old rebellion. Assad says his nation is battling “terrorists” and a “foreign conspiracy.”
Every three years, the Federal Reserve takes a break from abstract studies filled with hieroglyphics to ask Americans that simple question. It’s called the Survey of Consumer Finance, and its latest report makes one thing clear: The American middle class is sick as a dog.
The report, which covers the year 2010, is painstakingly detailed. I combed through the tables and pulled out data for those in the 40th to 59th income percentiles — call it middle-class America.
What it shows probably won’t surprise you — I think most of us are numb to bad news — but as one analyst put it, this is “the most important story in America” right now.
Ready?
Let’s start with real (inflation-adjusted) incomes:
Source: Federal Reserve.
From 1989 to 2010, the U.S. economy grew by 66% (measured by real GDP). But real incomes for middle-class Americans essentially stagnated during that time, from $41,000 in 1989 to $43,000 in 2010. Things had looked better earlier in the 2000s, but most income gains that took place in the 1990s were wiped out in the last few years. For the 1998-2010 period, the economy as a whole grew by about 28%, but middle-class family income was unchanged. In his book The Great Divergence, Timothy Noah adds stark detail: “From 1980 to 2005, 80 percent of the total increase in Americans’ income went to the top 1%.”
The story for real middle-class family net worths is even bleaker:
Source: Federal Reserve.
There’s your American dream, folks. Two decades of prosperity when real GDP grew from $7.8 trillion to $13 trillion, and the net worth of middle-class American families went… down by 7%. Pundits these days ask in worry if we’re facing a lost decade. Most Americans have already been through two (and counting).
Not surprisingly, the housing bust is responsible for most of the decline in net worths. Many of those wounds came about through greed and temptation — households borrowing more than they could ever afford, buying a second home to flip, zero-interest mortgages… you know the story. The takeaway from that is that the housing-driven net-worth gains from 2001 to 2007 were fictitious, meaning the 2010 figures in this chart are probably the most realistic of the last decade. The temporary rise, not the sudden decline, is the outlier here.
And how are families doing rebuilding their net worths? Awful. This chart shows the percentage of middle-income families who reported they could save anything in the previous year:
Boeing reports that Sojitz Corporation, a global trading company headquartered in Tokyo, has entered into an agreement with Boeing’s Information Solutions division for advanced network assessment.
The contract is Boeing’s first international cybersecurity agreement and highlights the company’s commitment to growing its cybersecurity business in Asia.
The value of the contract is not being disclosed.
“Boeing recognizes the significant level of trust placed in us with this award by Sojitz Corporation,” said Bryan Palma, vice president of the Secure Infrastructure Group in Boeing Information Solutions.
“Expanding our longstanding relationship into network security reinforces the priority of cybersecurity in the Japanese market.”
“Sojitz is making major investments to strengthen our network infrastructure and requiring more integrated solutions to manage the security of these assets,” said Ken Kuribayashi, Sojitz Aerospace Department general manager.
“This agreement allows Sojitz to take advantage of Boeing’s extensive cybersecurity expertise by providing the tools and integrated solutions needed to improve our situational awareness and response capabilities.”
Gatewood Galbraith is featured in this 2-part presentation that points to the importance of introducing hemp back into the industrial world to create products, jobs and revenues. More importantly, this world would no longer depend on fossil fuels.
Musical Artists Featured – These segments are packed with amazing music and I thought it would be fun to let who is featured be a surprise as you listen and take
Time 4 Hemp!
Workers from Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife remove marine organisms in order to prevent invasive species from a derelict Japanese dock that washed up on Agate Beach. Credit: OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center.
When debris from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan began making its way toward the West Coast of the United States, there were fears of possible radiation and chemical contamination as well as costly cleanup. But a floating dock that unexpectedly washed ashore in Newport this week and has been traced back to the Japanese disaster has brought with it a completely different threat – invasive species.
Scientists at Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center said the cement float contains about 13 pounds of organisms per square foot. Already they have gathered samples of 4-6 species of barnacles, starfish, urchins, anemones, amphipods, worms, mussels, limpets, snails, solitary tunicates and algae – and there are dozens of species overall.
“This float is an island unlike any transoceanic debris we have ever seen,” said John Chapman, an OSU marine invasive species specialist. “Drifting boats lack such dense fouling communities, and few of these species are already on this coast. Nearly all of the species we’ve looked at were established on the float before the tsunami; few came after it was at sea.”
Chapman said it was “mind-boggling” how these organisms survived their trek across the Pacific Ocean. The low productivity of open-ocean waters should have starved at least some of the organisms, he said.
“It is as if the float drifted over here by hugging the coasts, but that is of course impossible,” Chapman said. “Life on the open ocean, while drifting, may be more gentle for these organisms than we initially suspected. Invertebrates can survive for months without food and the most abundant algae species may not have had the normal compliment of herbivores. Still, it is surprising.”
Jessica Miller, an Oregon State University marine ecologist, said that a brown algae (Undaria pinnatifida), commonly called wakame, was present across most of the dock – and plainly stood out when she examined it in the fading evening light. She said the algae is native to the western Pacific Ocean in Asia, and has invaded several regions including southern California. The species identification was confirmed by OSU phycologist Gayle Hansen.
“To my knowledge it has not been reported north of Monterey, Calif., so this is something we need to watch out for,” Miller said.
Miller said the plan developed by the state through the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Oregon State Parks is to scrape the dock and to bag all of the biological material to minimize potential spread of non-native species. But there is no way of telling if any of the organisms that hitchhiked aboard the float from Japan have already disembarked in nearshore waters.
“We have no evidence so far that anything from this float has established on our shores,” said Chapman. “That will take time. However, we are vulnerable. One new introduced species is discovered in Yaquina Bay, only two miles away, every year. We hope that none of these species we are finding on this float will be among the new discoveries in years to come.”
The possibilities are many, according to Miller.
“Among the organisms we found are small shore crabs similar to our Hemigrapsus that look like the same genus, but may be a different species,” Miller said. “There were also one or more species of oysters and small clam chitons, as well as limpets, small snails, numerous mussels, a sea star, and an assortment of worms.”
Invasive marine species are a problem on the West Coast, where they usually are introduced via ballast water from ships. OSU’s Chapman is well aware of the issue; for several years he has studied a parasitic isopod called Griffen’s isopod that has infested mud shrimp in estuaries from California to Vancouver Island, decimating their populations.
In 2010, an aggressive invasive tunicate was found in Winchester Bay and Coos Bay along the southern Oregon coast. Known as Didemnum vexillum, the tunicate is on the state’s most dangerous species list and is both an ecological and economic threat because of its ability to spread and choke out native marine communities, according to OSU’s Sam Chan, who chairs the Oregon Invasive Species Council.
It is difficult to assess how much of a threat the organisms on the newly arrived float may present, the researchers say. As future debris arrives, it may carry additional species, they point out. However, this dock may be unique in that it represents debris that has been submerged in Japan and had a well-developed subtidal community. This may be relatively rare, given the amount of debris that entered the ocean, the researchers say.
“Floating objects from near Sendai can drift around that coast for a while before getting into the Kuroshio current and then getting transported to the eastern Pacific,” Chapman said. The researchers hope to secure funding to go to Japan and sample similar floats and compare the biological life on them with that on the transoceanic dock.
The scientists say the arrival of the dock is also a sobering reminder of the tragedy that occurred last year, which cost thousands of lives.
“We have to remember that this dock, and the organisms that arrived on it, are here as a result of a great human tragedy,” Miller said. “We respect that and have profound sympathy for those who have suffered, and are still suffering.”
It has taken six years of traveling to all seven continents to pull together the footage featured in this amazing short film by Sean White, an award-winning photographer and film-maker with credits with the likes of National Geographic Channel, Discovery Channel, History Television, PBS, Sports Illustrated, and more.
White writes, “Terra Sacra Time Lapses is a short film featuring remote landscapes and ancient monuments from around the globe. These images were photographed during my assignments and personal travels between 2006-2012. I’ve combined my favourite shots from these trips into non-narrative film that touches on a theme close to my heart: Sacred Earth.”
According to Matador Network, White wants to create a feature-length version of this film: “I would love to revisit many of the locations in this film and other powerful sacred sites around the world to create a feature-length “Terra Sacra”. The film would combine real-time, slow-motion, and motion control time lapse imagery – all in stereoscopic 3D. If you are an angel investor, potential sponsor, broadcaster, distributor or someone deeply passionate who would would like to get involved, please don’t hesitate to contact me.”
We highly hope that if you’re one of the folks listed above, you please please contact him. We would love a feature-length Terra Sacra!!
A PhD student at The University of Western Australia is working on an ambitious project. Julia Reisser, who has studied sea turtles for the last nine years, wants to create the first map that shows distribution of floating marine plastics in Australian waters. That map will be overlapped with information about pathways of sea turtle hatchlings, and hopefully will shed light on where the most dangerous areas for growing sea turtles may exist.
“The early life of sea turtles occurs at the ocean’s surface, where there’s an increasing amount of floating plastics that are proving fatal to hatchlings,” PhD student Julia Reisser says in an article from University of Western Australia. “My work is identifying the places contributing most to the increase in plastics in Australia’s oceans and how this links to sea turtle life cycles.”
The problem of plastic pollution in our oceans cannot be understated. Many marine species mistake the plastic for food, which can be lethal. As you can see, a bit of floating plastic could look a lot like these jellyfish a Green sea turtle is munching on:
Mistaking plastics for food has devastating consequences, causing internal damage or starvation:
The idea of creating a map of floating plastic is exciting, but also extremely challenging. One of the biggest issues behind marine plastic pollution is that it is extremely hard to quantify and understand because the ocean is so vast and forever moving, carrying plastics with it. Luckily, though, researchers like Reisser are not giving up, and her research could mean a lot of saving sea turtles. Six of the seven sea turtle species on earth are listed as threatened or endangered, so the more we can do to help hatchlings reach adulthood, the better.
When Danish author Karen Blixen penned her autobiography “Out of Africa”, she wrote of the fierce leopards and lions that prowled the coffee estate she farmed at the foot of Kenya’s Ngong hills.
Today, that farm is a leafy upmarket suburb of the rapidly growing capital Nairobi, swallowed up by breakneck urbanisation that has turned a century-old colonial railway yard into a traffic-clogged major city.
But the sharp toothed big cats have remained, finding themselves under growing pressure as one of Africa’s fastest growing cities creeps onto ancient migration routes and hunting grounds.
“There have been no attacks on humans — only dogs — but as the encroachment increases the probability of attacks grows,” said Francis Gakuya, chief vet for Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), as captured lion cubs growled in the background.
Pacing in a cage at the KWS headquarters in Nairobi, four orphaned cubs hiss and snarl at vets taking care of them — then give a surprisingly powerful roar for a two-month-old baby already the size of a small dog.
Wildlife rangers were forced to shoot dead the cubs’ mother after it was spotted in Nairobi’s Karen suburb and it charged before it could be darted. The cubs are now being looked after.
But it is not the only recent case. Conservationists warn of the growing likelihood of closer interaction between wildlife and humans if development is not managed in a sustainable manner.
Another lioness captured last month later escaped back into the park, a 117 square kilometre (45 square mile) wilderness where buffalo and rhino roam just seven kilometres (four miles) from the bustling high-rise city centre.
Wildlife officials have issued warnings to residents near the park to call them “should they see another lion in their area as it is possible more than one lion had strayed from the park.”
Traps are set out when a big cat is reported but the wily lions have so far avoided the baited cages – sparking concern in residents, fearful at night when guard dogs howl that a lion could be hunting in the back yard.
“Lions can hide invisible in the long grass so it’s frightening they could be around waiting to pounce,” said Mary Okello, who lives close to where recent lions were caught.
Visit the park and one is rewarded by the bizarre sight of long-necked giraffes running through wide plains of yellow grass with the gleaming skyscrapers of Nairobi’s business district rising in the distance.
– ‘The lion loses out’ –
Although fenced in on the city side — some bars even have terraces where one can view animals over a cold drink — the park is open-sided elsewhere else to allow the annual wildlife migration in search of grazing.
Zebra and wildebeest in the park migrate from the protected Nairobi national park through informal wildlife corridors, areas where pastoralist herders graze their cattle. But Kenya’s population is quickly growing.
The land is under threat from increasing urbanisation and more intensive agriculture, and the routes used by migrating herds in search of fresh grass — and the carnivores that follow for fresh meat — are growing narrower.
“Some can’t find their way through, and they get stranded,” said Nicholas Oguge, President of the Ecological Society for Eastern Africa.
“There is an urgent need for an effective land policy…without establishing formal wildlife corridors, Nairobi National Park will become like an island, a large contained zoo,” added Oguge, a professor at the University of Nairobi.
The situation has changed dramatically in recent decades. In the 1970s residents used to report roaming herds of wildebeest several hundred thousand strong. Today, in comparison, there are just a relative handful of wildebeest left.
Conservationists say wildlife protection is a low priority for city officials struggling with multiple challenges in a grossly unequal capital of some 3.5 million people with overstretched basic services and infrastructure.
In Nairobi, lavish villas rub shoulders with squalid slums and cramped high rise apartments.
“Nairobi National Park is a microcosm of what is happening elsewhere,” said Luke Hunter, president of the wild cat conservation group Panthera, noting that lions have lost over 80 percent of their historic lands across Africa.
“In protected areas lions do well… but outside they are getting hammered.”
Kenyan wildlife officials and other conservation groups are working to support the establishment of a wildlife corridor, including mapping the key routes, but it is no easy matter, said Paul Mbugua, KWS assistant director.
“It would be good to have corridors in place, but we have a challenge as all the land to the south of Nairobi is owned by somebody,” Mbugua said.
Land in Kenya is both increasingly expensive and a highly political issue.
Kenya plunged into violence after disputed 2007 elections, with land grievances a key contributing factor to the explosion of brutal killings, and demarcating protected corridors is harder than simply drawing lines on a map.
Lion attacks on livestock are reported, but there have been no recent attacks on humans in Nairobi, experts say, but contact will grow as the city expands.
“Lions respect and fear people and try to get out of the way,” added Hunter.
“But with development in areas important to lions, people and lions will mix more and more… and an individual lion can be incredibly dangerous. In that mix, inevitably it is the lion that loses out.”
(Reuters) – A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Japan early on Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, but there were no immediate reports of damage.
USGS put the quake 115 km (72 miles) southeast of Morioka on Japan’s Pacific coast, and 31 km deep.
The Japan Meteorological Agency put it at magnitude 6.1, and slightly deeper at 40 km (25 miles).
The quake was rated only 4 on Japan’s seven-point seismic scale, suggesting that no significant damage was expected, and no tsunami warning was issued.
Bukittingi, W Sumatra, June 17 (ANTARA) – Mount Marapi in West Sumatra province spewed volcanic ash up to 500 meters into the sky on Sunday morning.
“The volcano spewed volcanic ash for about 10 minutes starting at around 08.30 a.m.,” Mubarak, who lived on the slope of the volcano said on Sunday.
“The volcanic ash fell on around the volcano`s slope,” he said.
Before spewing volcanic ash, the 2,891-meter high volcano released white thick smoke as high as 50 meters from its crater, he said.
Since its alert status was raised on August 3, 2011, the volcano had spewed white smoke and volcanic ash almost everyday, he said.
The Bukittinggi Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG) still maintains the volcano`s alert status at the second highest alert level.
“PVMBG still recommends keeping the volcano at the second highest alert status and declaring it off-limits to anyone climbing within 3 km of its peak,” PVMBG officer Warseno said.
The volcano has spewed thick smoke and volcanic ash almost every day since it began showing signs of increased activity on August 3, 2011.
Mt Marapi is one of the active volcanoes in West Sumatra. It sent out sulfuric volcanic ash 1,000 meters into the sky on August 3 last year. The ash fell onto a number of areas, such as Agam, Tanahdatar, Padangpariaman, and Padangpanjang.
The volcano last erupted in 2005.
When inactive, the mountains adjacent to Mt Singgalang and Mt Tandikek have always been a destination for climbers from within and outside West Sumatra. Also, every New Years, it is always crowded with mountain climbers. (ANTARA)
Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano is showing more signs of activity. Nighttime footage from a permanent camera set up near the volcano showed it was belching out incandescent rocks and smoke. The National Center for Disaster Prevention has registered 68 exhalations of gas vapor and ash of medium intensity coming from the volcano in the last 24 hours. The volcano can also bee seen spewing ash in daytime footage. The volcanic mountain sits roughly halfway between Mexico City and Puebla with some 25 million people living within a 60-mile radius. Popo, as it is commonly known, has erupted small amounts of ash almost daily since activity began in 1994. Officials have not ordered any evacuations.
Volcano Activity in Mexico on Saturday, 16 June, 2012 at 17:39 (05:39 PM) UTC.
Authorities are evacuating about 150 homes in eastern San Diego County as firefighters battle a wind-driven wildfire that has destroyed one structure. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection says the fire began Sunday afternoon in a rural area northeast of Campo and near the Golden Acorn Casino. It has consumed 200 acres of brush. Capt. Daryll Pina said the fire has destroyed one structure, but he hasn’t been able to confirm what it was. Officials shut down the road to the casino and patrons are being urged to stay inside. Meanwhile, a 2,200-acre wildfire that erupted Saturday in a remote area of Riverside County is 70 percent contained. Authorities say they expect full containment of the blaze burning between Beaumont and San Jacinto Monday morning.
Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 05:02 (05:02 AM) UTC.
Base data
EDIS Number:
WF-20120618-35476-USA
Event type:
Forest / Wild Fire
Date/Time:
Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 05:02 (05:02 AM) UTC
Last update:
—
Cause of event:
Damage level:
Minor
Geographic information
Continent:
North-America
Country:
USA
County / State:
State of
Area:
Near the Golden Acorn Casino
City:
Coordinate:
N 32° 36.455, W 116° 28.184
Number of affected people / Humanities loss
Foreign people:
Affected is unknown.
Dead person(s):
—
Injured person(s):
—
Missing person(s):
—
Evacuated person(s):
—
Affected person(s):
—
Today
Forest / Wild Fire
USA
State of California, [Between Beaumont and San Jacinto, Riverside County]
Crews continue to battle a wildfire that has burned at least 2,200 acres of brush in a remote area of Riverside County. Fire department spokeswoman Jody Hagemann says Sunday that the blaze, burning steep terrain between Beaumont and San Jacinto, is not threatening any homes. At least 445 firefighters aided by five air tankers and five water-dropping helicopters have contained about 30 percent of the fire. The fire was reported Saturday afternoon. Winds moving at up to 20 mph helped the flames spread to 2,000 acres in five hours. Hagemann says the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:50 (03:50 AM) UTC.
Base data
EDIS Number:
WF-20120618-35474-USA
Event type:
Forest / Wild Fire
Date/Time:
Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:50 (03:50 AM) UTC
Last update:
—
Cause of event:
Damage level:
Minor
Geographic information
Continent:
North-America
Country:
USA
County / State:
State of California
Area:
Between Beaumont and San Jacinto, Riverside County
The fire burning behind Lake George in Park County is now 200 acres, and it is 0% contained. According to a park ranger for the Pike National Forest, the 11 mile canyon has been evacuated. That is between 150 and 200 homes. Everyone else in that area is under pre-evacuation orders. That means they must be ready to evacuate at a moment’s notice. County road 96 and 92 at Highway 24 are both shut down right now. That fire started around noon on the Indian Paintbrush Ranch. We’ve heard several reports from witnesses who say they saw someone fire shots, and that may have hit a propane tank causing an explosion. But, Park Rangers say they are still investigating what caused this fire. Among the evacuees, about 500 campers with Camp Alexander. They were at 11 mile canyon. The Camp Director tells us they are all safely out of the fire’s reach. Those campers are from all over Colorado, and out of state. They will have to stay the night at Woodland Park High School and/or Middle School. There are more than 40 firefighters fighting this fire, and witnesses say they have also seen drops from helicopters.
Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:15 (03:15 AM) UTC.
A fire aided by strong winds has burned several houses near the town of Keratea, 30 miles south of Athens, authorities said. Two firefighters have been injured, one with extensive burns, but no civilian casualties have been reported. The blaze started on Saturday afternoon on dried grass, apparently as the result of an accident and was spreading fast, engulfing four isolated houses on the outskirts of the towns of Keratea and Palea Fokaia and threatening others. Because of the high winds, two firefighting planes sent to help put out the fire were unable to operate and replaced by one helicopter and four newer planes, according to a statement by the fire brigade. It said 74 firefighting vehicles were operating on the ground. Firefighters called the situation “hellish” and said the fire will not stop until it reaches the sea, about three miles south-west. An old people’s home was evacuated and its 42 residents moved to a nearby resort, authorities said. At least three smaller fires were burning near Athens late on Saturday afternoon. One, in the district of Pallini, just east of the capital, started in dry grass and was threatening an ice cream factory. Vans outside the factory went up in flames. Two other fires broke out in the north-west and south-east corners of the southern Greek Peloponnese peninsula, requiring dozens of fire vehicles to rush to the scenes. The blazes were being fought one day before Greeks vote in a national election that could determine whether their indebted nation stays in the euro or leaves in chaos. The prevailing weather in Greece has been hot and dry recently and although temperatures have decreased somewhat, winds have picked up, leading authorities to issue warnings just hours before the fire broke out.
Forest / Wild Fire in Greece on Sunday, 17 June, 2012 at 05:06 (05:06 AM) UTC.
CHEYENNE WY
HANFORD CA
RIVERTON WY
PHOENIX AZ
LAS VEGAS NV
SALT LAKE CITY UT
RENO NV
PUEBLO CO
GRAND JUNCTION CO
DENVER CO
ELKO NV
FAIRBANKS AK
FLAGSTAFF AZ
POCATELLO ID
BOISE ID
***********************************************************************************************************
Nearly 30 people were cut off early Sunday by a mudslide caused by the torrential rains in central and southern Chile, police said. The mudslide occurred in Farellones, located a few kilometers (miles) from Santiago, the Carabineros militarized police force said. Snow and heavy rain caused the emergency situation at kilometer 4 in Farellones on the road to a ski resort, police said, adding that all the residents who were cut off are in good condition. Avalanches, meanwhile, destroyed an unoccupied vehicle in San Jose de Maipo, a city outside Santiago in the lower part of the Andes. Heavy snow has kept the Los Libertadores border crossing, which links the Chilean city of Los Andes to the Argentine city of Mendoza, closed, police said. Several ports remain closed as a precaution due to bad weather, but the weather service said the rain should ease Sunday night. The rains caused power outages and flooding in the Santiago metropolitan area, which is home to 6.4 million people, the national emergency management office said.
Landslide in Chile on Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:47 (03:47 AM) UTC.
Fifteen cases of Scrub Typhus infection, a communicable disease commonly found in southeast Asia and Japan, have been reported from various parts of the district. First reported from Malabar region in the state in 2006, the medical officials say that it is very difficult to know its symptoms mainly because in the initial stage it appears like a common fever. The disease which spreads through mite bite can be diagnosed only through blood test. “Scrub Typhus has been reported in Kozhikode, Kannur, Malappuram, Wayanad and Palakkad,” said M K Appunny, additional district medical officer. “If detected at an early stage then it can be cured by administering drug Doxycycline, used to treat Leptospirosis. But if the patient approaches doctor at a late stage then the chances of organ failure and death are high,” he said. The health department had organized a regional-level workshop for doctors from the six districts of Malabar at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital recently. The workshop imparted awareness classes for the medical fraternity including district medical officers and health staff to ensure early diagnosis of diseases. The Kozhikode wing of the Indian Medical Association, which started its campaign ‘no more fever deaths’, has started conducting awareness classes about the disease with the help of residential associations in the district. Elaborating the symptoms, K T Mohanan, public health programme officer, said the disease used to be found only in people living in the forest areas. Sore skin and bite mark on body are the major signs to identify the disease. Symptoms include acute fever, cold and joint pain.
Biohazard name:
Scrub Typhus
Biohazard level:
3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:
Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
Symptoms:
Status:
confirmed
Epidemic Hazard in India on Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:16 (03:16 AM) UTC.
Base data
EDIS Number:
EH-20120618-35472-IND
Event type:
Epidemic Hazard
Date/Time:
Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:16 (03:16 AM) UTC
Last update:
—
Cause of event:
Damage level:
Unknown
Geographic information
Continent:
Asia
Country:
India
County / State:
State of Kerala
Area:
Kozhikode, Kannur, Malappuram, Wayanad and Palakkad
The Idaho State Department of Agriculture says two Idaho goats have tested positive for Q fever. Q fever is a contagious bacteria that affects, sheep, goats and cattle, and it can be spread to humans. This is not the first case in the state, but this is the first outbreak on record in Idaho. The ISDA is trying to keep it from spreading to more animals, or humans. “The Department of Agriculture received confirmation that two goats in the state had tested positive for Coxiela burnetii,” said Doctor Scott Leibsle of the Idaho State Department of Agriculture. Coxiela burnetii is the organism that causes Q fever. “When we got the confirmation of the positive, we notified the owner of the goats and we immediately put the goats under quarantine,” said Leibsle. They caught the disease in a state screening. “You often don’t know your animal is sick until they abort their pregnancy, and typically, livestock don’t show any symptoms other than losing their pregnancy.” That’s also the time when it’s easiest to get and spread the bacteria. “The greatest risk for humans contracting the disease is the producers and people that handle livestock on a daily basis,” Leibsle said.
Biohazard name:
Q Fever (Coxiela burnetii)
Biohazard level:
3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:
Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
Symptoms:
Status:
confirmed
Biological Hazard in USA on Monday, 18 June, 2012 at 03:52 (03:52 AM) UTC.
The southern part of Tumon Bay was closed off to the public after reports of wasp jellyfish making their way into the area. Department of Parks and Recreation Director Pete Calvo said they shut down the beach areas between Hilton Resort and Spa, Gov. Joseph Flores Memorial Beach Park and the Pacific Islands Club. The beach areas from PIC up north toward the Westin hotel are not affected. “We had five incidents of encounters. A couple of tourists who were injured had some vinegar applied to their stings. It was not serious. But we don’t want anyone who may be allergic to this type of sting to be exposed,” he said. The five cases were confirmed to have occurred at Gov. Joseph Flores Memorial Beach Park. The creatures are believed to have entered when it was high tide, Calvo said. Lifeguards continue to monitor the beach and Calvo said they would conduct an assessment to determine if they could open the affected beach area. “If we find that the jellyfish have not moved on, then we’ll close the areas again. But we’ll play it by ear,” he said. Wasp jellyfish, also referred to as box jellyfish, carry venom known to cause serious pain to people. Once the tentacles come in contact with human skin, they tend to stick. Removing them while the creature is alive is not recommended, due to the potential for a release of more toxins. If the sting is not treated right away, it can leave a scar.
Biohazard name:
Wasp jellyfish
Biohazard level:
0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:
This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:
Biological Hazard in Guam on Sunday, 17 June, 2012 at 16:32 (04:32 PM) UTC.
Recently a sampling crew found blue-green algae blooming in Sodus Bay. “I don’t think anybody wanted to go in the water anyway because it was like pea soup,” boater Bruce Arrabito said. Boaters like Arrabito remember summers like 2010. That’s when slimy algae covered the bay, some of it was toxic to people and animals. It’s a sight boater, Joyce Ebmeyer worries she’ll see again. “This is just the beginning stages, Ebmeyer said. “It was blue everywhere; it will probably get the same way.” Ebmeyer claims the algae from 2010 made her friend sick. “My friend had a reaction to it when she was here two years ago and she was wheezing and could hardly breath and a friend of hers had an asthma attack,” Ebmeyer said. Some marinas have strategically placed bubblers near the docks where blue algae form. Algae need hot, dry conditions, and calm water. The idea is to use these bubblers to prevent algae from forming. But that can’t rid the water of what’s already there. To do that, Ed Leroux of the group, Save Our Sodus says they’re looking at using Hydrogen Peroxide. “It’s worked exceptionally well in the Netherlands,” Leroux said. “It stops the algae bloom dead in its tracks.” That may be able to flush out this nuisance for good. Leroux says his organization has received several grants to take on projects to control and rid of the algae. It’s not known if the blooms in the bay are toxic. The results from samples taken Friday will be available sometime Monday.
Biohazard name:
Blue-Green (cyanobacteria) Algae bloom
Biohazard level:
0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:
This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:
Biological Hazard in USA on Sunday, 17 June, 2012 at 05:11 (05:11 AM) UTC.
Protest … women rally against the reactors reopening. Photo: AP
TOKYO: The approval by the Prime Minister, Yoshihiko Noda, for reactors to be restarted, ending Japan’s month-long freeze on nuclear power, has met with a mixed response, signalling damage to his political support.
Two reactors at Kansai Electric Power’s Ohi nuclear plant can be operated safely, Mr Noda said on Saturday after meeting three cabinet ministers who share approval authority.
The utility, which serves the $1 trillion economy of Japan’s second-biggest urban region, said it would immediately begin work to start one reactor.
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Japan is reopening nuclear plants that provided about 30 per cent of its energy before being shut after the March 2011 meltdowns at Tokyo Electric Power’s Fukushima station.
The decision followed a day after a deal was made with opposition parties to abandon some campaign pledges in return for agreement to double the nation’s consumption tax. Majorities in public opinion polls oppose both the restarts and the tax increase.
Local governments in areas where other nuclear power plants are located voiced support for the government’s decision and hope that reactors at their nuclear plants would also be reactivated.
”The government should restart the reactors as quickly as possible on its own responsibility,” a local official said.
But other local government heads reiterated their demands that the government make more efforts to secure the safety of nuclear plants.
More than 70 per cent of respondents to a Mainichi newspaper poll published on June 4 objected to a speedy restart of the reactors in Ohi. In a separate poll released June 5 by the Pew Research Centre, 70 per cent of Japanese said the country should reduce its reliance on nuclear energy and 52 per cent feared they or their families may have been exposed to radiation.
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Taking party leaders’ statements at face value, it appeared that a coalition would be hard for New Democracy leader Antonis Samaris to form, because Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras said he would refuse to join a government, and Pasok leader Evangelos Venizelos said he wouldn’t join if Tsipras didn’t. But observers were betting that Venizelos would eventually either join a government headed by New Democracy or at least give it a vote of confidence. “A lot of people interpret it [Venizelos' statement] as posturing,” says Ioannides. Francesco Daveri, an economist at the University of Parma in Italy, said, “This seems to be a definite improvement compared to the last election.”
“New Democracy will have some heavy negotiating to do with Pasok if a government is to be formed in the next few days,” Charles Diebel of Lloyds TSB Bank said in a note on Sunday. “Clearly the tone adopted by Pasok is to do with internal politics as they try to avoid being marginalized in the new Greek political landscape.”
“We dodged a bullet, for now, if these results hold up,” wrote Wells Fargo (WFC) economist John Silvia.
Economides predicts that the troika—the European Commission, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund—will make some concessions to Greece as a reward to the nation for pulling back from outright confrontation, and as a way to give the choked economy some breathing room. He expects Greece will receive more government funds for infrastructure, and extra time to balance its budget—perhaps three or four years instead of one or two.
Whether such concessions will ultimately be enough to rescue Greece and keep it as a member in good standing of the single currency is another question. But for the moment, at least, a sudden and uncontrolled “Grexit” is a less immediate threat.
Protest … women rally against the reactors reopening. Photo: AP
