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Sequencing Technology Adoption and the Power of Informatic 'Lock In'

Gabe Rudy, blogging at our 2 snps, has a really good introduction to sequencing technology and its history. It's worth the read, but I don't entirely agree with the reason given for why ABI SOLiD lost out to Illumina: Coming to market at the same time, but seeming to have just missed the wave, was the Applied Biosystems (ABI) SOLiD system of parallel sequencing by stepwise ligation. Similar to the Solexa technology of creating extremely high throughput short reads cheaply, SOLiD has the added advantage of reading two bases at a time with a florescent label. Because a single base pair…

A Question for Bob Herbert: What Do You Mean "We" Kemosabe?

Bob Herbert echoes the frustration many have felt with Republican New Jersey governor Chris Christie's decision to scuttle the plan to build a much-needed tunnel connecting New Jersey to New York City: The United States is not just losing its capacity to do great things. It's losing its soul. It's speeding down an increasingly rubble-strewn path to a region where being second rate is good enough. The railroad tunnel was the kind of infrastructure project that used to get done in the United States almost as a matter of routine. It was a big and expensive project, but the payoff would have been…

Mystery Bird: Say's Phoebe, Sayornis saya

tags: Say's Phoebe, Sayornis saya, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz [Mystery bird] Say's Phoebe, Sayornis saya, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow] Image: Richard Ditch, 2006 [larger view]. Date Time Original: 2006:12:27 13:35:48 Exposure Time: 1/319 F-Number: 8.00 ISO: 200 Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification. Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes: What a sweet, gentle little bird, perched alertly on a sunflower: attitude and habitat tell us we're looking at one of the open-country…

Birdbooker Report 99

tags: Birdbooker Report, bird books, animal books, natural history books, ecology books "How does one distinguish a truly civilized nation from an aggregation of barbarians? That is easy. A civilized country produces much good bird literature." --Edgar Kincaid The Birdbooker Report is a special weekly report of a wide variety of science, nature and behavior books that currently are, or soon will be available for purchase. This report is written by one of my Seattle birding pals and book collector, Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, and is edited by me and published here for your information and…

Meme: My Earth Day Resolutions

tags: Earth Day, earth-friendly resolutions, meme, environment, nature Mike at Questionable Authority has started a new meme in honor of Earth Day, listing our Earth Day Resolutions. Even though he's being a big dork by not tagging me with this meme, I have decided to contribute anyway. (I have to live up to my "pushy New Yorker" description since I am a Seattle transplant with something to prove.) Because I live in an apartment in Manhattan and my backyard consists solely of a shaded fire escape that is four floors above a concrete sidewalk, I thought my resolutions might be interesting…

Mystery Bird: American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus

tags: American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz [Mystery bird] American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus, photographed in Brazoria Wildlife Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow] Image: Joseph Kennedy, 10 March 2009 [larger view]. Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/500s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400 Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification. Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes: How much of a bird do you need to see to identify it? Depends: on the…

Moving Overseas, Part 2

Not much to report today except, as I expected, the USFWS has still not responded to my application for CITES permits for my birds. So as I predicted, I am panicking. Instead of going out for a beer or two tonight to relieve my stress, I am at home and now I am suffering intense foot cramps that have almost paralyzed my feet and make me want to scream. Is it time for some codeine-based pain relief or maybe just some alcohol? The moving company representative had to reschedule visiting my apartment to look at my things until Friday evening next week. It sounds like the company where he works…

NYPL Expands Hours: The Best News I've Heard All Month!

tags: NYC Life, NYPL, public services, public education, public libraries I just learned that ten branches of the New York Public Library (NYPL) are significantly lengthening their hours of public access -- a move that is being greeted with joy by students, unemployed job seekers and others who rely upon the NYPL for a safe, quiet and clean place to do research, study, and read, as well as to access to the internet, computers and printers for free, and of course, to borrow books, magazines, film and recordings, and to do who-knows-what-else. Starting TODAY, 14 September, ten NYPL branches…

Tomorrow Night: NYC Area Cricket Crawl

The cricket sang, And set the sun, And workmen finished, one by one, Their seam the day upon. The low grass loaded with the dew, The twilight stood as strangers do With hat in hand, polite and new, To stay as if, or go. A vastness, as a neighbor, came,-- A wisdom without face or name, A peace, as hemispheres at home,-- And so the night became. ~ Emily Dickinson This is the cutest event I've heard of for NYC: a night spent counting crickets and katydids. What: NYC Cricket Crawl (counting 7 species of crickets and katydids in NYC) Where: New York City area When: Friday, 11 September 2009 at 7:…

POSTPONED: NYC Area Cricket Crawl

The cricket sang, And set the sun, And workmen finished, one by one, Their seam the day upon. The low grass loaded with the dew, The twilight stood as strangers do With hat in hand, polite and new, To stay as if, or go. A vastness, as a neighbor, came,-- A wisdom without face or name, A peace, as hemispheres at home,-- And so the night became. ~ Emily Dickinson This is the cutest event I've heard of for NYC: a night spent counting crickets and katydids. What: NYC Cricket Crawl (counting 7 species of crickets and katydids in NYC) Where: New York City area When: Friday, 11 September 2009 at 7:…

NYC Area Cricket Crawl

The cricket sang, And set the sun, And workmen finished, one by one, Their seam the day upon. The low grass loaded with the dew, The twilight stood as strangers do With hat in hand, polite and new, To stay as if, or go. A vastness, as a neighbor, came,-- A wisdom without face or name, A peace, as hemispheres at home,-- And so the night became. ~ Emily Dickinson This is the cutest event I've heard of for NYC: a night spent counting crickets and katydids. What: NYC Cricket Crawl (counting 7 species of crickets and katydids in NYC) Where: New York City area When: Friday, 11 September 2009 at 7:…

NYC Area Cricket Crawl

The cricket sang, And set the sun, And workmen finished, one by one, Their seam the day upon. The low grass loaded with the dew, The twilight stood as strangers do With hat in hand, polite and new, To stay as if, or go. A vastness, as a neighbor, came,-- A wisdom without face or name, A peace, as hemispheres at home,-- And so the night became. ~ Emily Dickinson This is the cutest event I've heard of for NYC: a night spent counting crickets and katydids. What: NYC Cricket Crawl (counting 7 species of crickets and katydids in NYC) Where: New York City area When: Friday, 11 September 2009 at 7:…

Ich Bin in Frankfurt am Main!

I have arrived! And I've already done some important things; Offended the saleslady at the mattress store. Oops! Met a bunch of government officials in Customs, veterinary services and fellow travelers who just plain love birds. They all were a helluva lot nicer than the authorities in the USA! Ordered alcoholic beverages in the German language (I'll leave it to you to guess what I ordered! and I will be updating this with the answer). Slept on the floor, AGAIN!! OUCH!! Our mattress arrives in 4 weeks (right before Christmas, woopie!) so this is going to make for a veeery long month…

Scientia Pro Publica: One Week from Today!

Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux). Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power) -- Sir Francis Bacon. Would you like to share your excellent writing about science, nature or medicine with the world? Now you can! There is a blog carnival that celebrates the best writing in the blogosphere about these topics and we are seeking submissions from you, the reading and writing public that you think are suitable for this blog carnival. Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) was just published recently. This edition is entitled Scientia Pro Publica -- 14th edition…

Birdbooker Report 68

tags: Birdbooker Report, bird books, animal books, natural history books, ecology books "How does one distinguish a truly civilized nation from an aggregation of barbarians? That is easy. A civilized country produces much good bird literature." --Edgar Kincaid The Birdbooker Report is a special weekly report of a wide variety of science, nature and behavior books that currently are, or soon will be available for purchase. This report is written by one of my Seattle birding pals and book collector, Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, and is edited by me and published here for your information and…

One Last Beer in Tallinn

tags: Old Town, Tallinn, Estonia, cities Grog. Photographed in Old Town, Tallinn, Estonia. Image: GrrlScientist, 22 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image) All hail to the mighty beer, brewed in the original style, using ingredients that approximate (as closely as possible) what was originally used. My beer had a distinct cinnamon flavor. As you can see below, the table was outdoors under a large tent, and entertainment included waiter watching, people watching and live music. Here, you can see the waiter adding some finishing touches to a few meals before serving them to hungry patrons.…

Bush policy not a joke but a gag

Why do all Bush Administration policies have Orwellian titles like the polluter written Clear Skies Act? Or this one: The AIDS Leadership Act. Of course it doesn't say what direction it is leading AIDS policies. You decide. If you are a non-profit and want government funding for anything, you have to pledge to oppose commercial sex work. Abridgement of your rights of free speech? At least two Federal Courts have said so, but the Bushies are appealing the decisions. Commercial sex workers (aka prostitutes, a rather imprecise term, as Congress and the Bush Administration are full of prostitutes…

Update on "The Tripoli Six" campaign

An amazing thing is happening. There are now more than 60 70 80 posts about the travesty of the five nurses and a doctor imprisoned in Libya and under threat of death by firing squad (see our posts here and here and Declan Butler's running Connotea list). Thanks to the many of you that have taken a little time to contact your reps and the government of Libya and whoever else you think needs to know. Full list of contacts and links here . The number of posts is impressive and let me say how proud I am of science bloggers and especially my colleagues here at scienceblogs.com who have…

State Department to US citizens in Beirut: show us the money

If you are a US citizen unfortunate enough to get caught in a war zone, don't expect much from the US State Department. Or at least don't expect anything if you can't pay for it: A message to the American citizens in Lebanon: The Department of State continues to work with the Department of Defense on a plan to help American citizens depart Lebanon. As of the morning of July 15, we are looking at how we might transport Americans to Cyprus. Once in Cyprus, Americans can then board commercial aircraft for onward travel. Commercial airlines provide the safest and most efficient repatriation…

China: transparently opaque

The suspicion that China is not as open about disease outbreaks within its borders was not helped last week when a Research Correspondence in The New England Journal of Medicine from eight Chinese scientists reporting an early case of H5N1 infection was the subject of mysterious emails to the journal's editors asking it be withdrawn (see here and here). The source of the emails has not been established and the authors say they stand by their results. The whole affair was (or should be) an embarrassment to the Chinese authorities. The major problem in China, however, has not been the Health…

Prescription drug plan. A symptom that needs treating.

If you live in Europe, you probably like to complain about your national health care system. I have no doubt you have a lot to complain about. But you could live in the US, be over 65 and have to contend with the new government sponsored (but privately administered) prescription drug plan. Anne and her husband Dixie, both in their 70s, got frazzled trying to work their way through the maddening maze of George W's new prescription drug program, which compels seniors to choose among 1,400 competing drug-insurance schemes offered by 80 corporations. Each plan in this baffling "marketplace"…

An Integrated Approach

Below, Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka answers our final question. The cross disciplinary approaches I have seen working in my field are integrating population, health and environmental issues, where if done on their own as has been the traditional approach, less results are achieved than when combined. Integration appears to strengthen the social and environmental impact. We are already seeing the benefits of this in a non-profit and NGO that we founded called Conservation Through Public Health. For two years we have been implementing a community based family planning program with a community based…

Edward Einhorn on Funding for the Arts

Below, Edward Einhorn responds to the question: The boundaries of science are continually expanding as scientists become increasingly integral to finding solutions for larger social issues, such as poverty, conflict, financial crises, etc. On what specific issue/problem do you feel we need to bring the scientific lens to bear? As someone who works in the arts, I am going to examine this in a way I think is both narrow, in that it will deal directly with my field, and broad, in that I feel that the arts are often a forerunner in times of social change. The specific application I have in mind…

Palestinian and Israeli Chemists Meet in Malta

“Billions of dollars are being spent on weapons of mass destruction. A small fraction of that could go so far to engage more Israeli and Arab scientists in collaborative projects in order to create a critical mass that will bring about peace.” The speaker is Dr. Zafra Lerman, President of the Malta Conferences Foundation, which organizes conferences in nonaligned Malta for Israeli, Palestinian and Middle Eastern scientists. These bi-annual conferences, attended by researchers from Egypt to Saudi Arabia, focus such neutral topics as materials science, as well as common interests like water and…

Friday Fun: We Don't Need No Steenkin' Social Media Gurus

I chose this one more for the humourous title of the post since the content itself is very seriously intentioned. I almost see this as a double sequel to both the social media evilness post and to some of my recent ramblings on thought leadership. The post in question is We Don't Need No Steenkin' Social Media Gurus by York prof Robert Kozinets. After I had left the stage and assumed a position within the audience, beer in hand, a woman began talking to me in the crowd. Let's call her "Jennifer." Jennifer told me that she knew nothing about social media even a few weeks ago, but that her…

Test Tube Future

My introduction to bioethics came with the issue of in vitro fertilization. I was a student at UC Santa Barbara, designing my own major in science journalism, talking with scientists, reading every science-related news item I could find, and just beginning to gain a conceptual grasp of where the cutting edge was in different fields of science and medicine. One thing was clear--an area that was moving faster than most was reproductive and regenerative medicine. And, if you were paying attention, you realized that cloning, embryonic stem cell research, preimplantation genetic diagnosis,…

Best Science Books 2015: NBC News 12 Notable Tech and Science Books of 2015

As you all have no doubt noticed over the years, I love highlighting the best science books every year via the various end of year lists that newspapers, web sites, etc. publish. I've done it so far in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. And here we are in 2015! As in previous years, my definition of "science books" is pretty inclusive, including books on technology, engineering, nature, the environment, science policy, history & philosophy of science, geek culture and whatever else seems to be relevant in my opinion. Today's list is NBC News 12 Notable Tech and Science Books of…

Best Science Books 2014: Wired

As you all have no doubt noticed over the years, I love highlighting the best science books every year via the various end of year lists that newspapers, web sites, etc. publish. I've done it so far in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. And here we are in 2014! As in previous years, my definition of "science books" is pretty inclusive, including books on technology, engineering, nature, the environment, science policy, history & philosophy of science, geek culture and whatever else seems to be relevant in my opinion. Today's list is Wired: The Best Science Books We Read in 2014.…

Best Science Books 2014: Brain Pickings

As you all have no doubt noticed over the years, I love highlighting the best science books every year via the various end of year lists that newspapers, web sites, etc. publish. I've done it so far in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. And here we are in 2014! As in previous years, my definition of "science books" is pretty inclusive, including books on technology, engineering, nature, the environment, science policy, history & philosophy of science, geek culture and whatever else seems to be relevant in my opinion. Today's list is Brain Pickings The Best Science Books of 2014. The…

Reading Diary: The Extreme Life of the Sea by Stephen R. Palumbi and Anthony R. Palumbi

Extremophiles are fun! Basically, they're the biggest, smallest, hardiest and definitely the oddest bunch of beasties to be found anywhere on this planet. The Palumbi father and son team -- one scientist and one writer -- bring us this fun little book on the extremophiles of the sea. And literally, the book covers all the various sea creatures from the oldest to the smallest, to the ones that live in scalding hot conditions to those that live in the coldest conditions, so cold that the blood of normal creatures would freeze. We see the ones with the craziest migration patterns, the oddest…

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world...

The latest report from the National Climatic Data Center reminds us that the planet is continuing to warm as expected. Most of the attention will be afforded to the global picture, for good reason: The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for May 2010 was 0.69°C (1.24°F) above the 20th century average of 14.8°C (58.6°F). This is the warmest such value on record since 1880. Those of us living in the U.S. Southeast are sweltering through a record-breaking heat wave, so there will be much nodding of heads. Of course, regional weather isn't the point. So it's useful to…

ScienceDebate 2012 | Obama, Romney Answer Top American Science Questions – Tomorrows Table

The Top American Science Questions: 2012 "Whenever the people are well-informed," Thomas Jefferson wrote, "they can be trusted with their own government." Science now affects every aspect of life and is an increasingly important topic in national policymaking. ScienceDebate.org invited thousands of scientists, engineers and concerned citizens to submit what they felt were the the most important science questions facing the nation that the candidates for president should be debating on the campaign trail. ScienceDebate then worked with the leading US science and engineering organizations…

Food Dystopia

Last year, I attended a Food Symposium at the Mountainfilm festival in Telluride. Many of the speakers offered a simple solution to feeding the world in the face of a population that is expected to grow to 9.2 billion by the year 2050: Eat local. But how much impact will the "locavore" movement really have on sustainable food production? Not much, says James McWIlliams in his latest book "Just Food". "Eating local is not, in and of itself, a viable answer to sustainable food production on a global level." "We should not delude ourselves into thinking that the relatively easy decision to…

Are We Alone In The Universe? Explore Answers With Nifty Fifty Speaker and Noted SETI Astronomer, Dan Werthimer

The ‘Nifty Fifty (times 4)’, a program of Science Spark, presented by InfoComm International, are a group of 200 noted science and engineering professionals who will fan out across the Washington, D.C. area in the 2014-2015 school year to speak about their work and careers at various middle and high schools.  Meet Nifty Fifty Speaker Dr. Dan Werthimer The great debate continues: Are we the only intelligent life in the universe? We know that popular science fiction often portrays our Milky Way Galaxy as teeming with advanced civilizations engaged in interstellar communication, commerce, and…

Director of the NIH, Dr. Francis Collins Delivers at X-STEM

On April 24, 2014, an exclusive group of visionaries presented to over 4,000 students at the USA Science & Engineering Festival's inaugural X-STEM Symposium sponsored by Northrop Grumman Foundation and MedImmune. The all day event included interactive presentations and workshops with some of the top scientists and engineers in the country. Geneticist and Physician Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health, captivated crowds with his journey to the NIH. Watch his presentation below:  http://youtu.be/o214CyMbJ2c?list=PLFxuEWfG5k6F2dH21LFhUCD7jYcLOLm4C After being…

The Trouble With Teacher's Pet

Nobody likes being told they're dumb. But being praised up and down for one's intelligence carries its own price, according to research by Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck and her research team. In the current issue of New York Magazine, writer Po Bronson summarizes Dweck's work, which indicates that children who are frequently told that they are smart give up more easily, become risk-averse, and grow overly concerned with "image maintenance." Bronson describes Dweck's methods: Dweck sent four female research assistants into New York fifth-grade classrooms. The researchers would take a…

Good Science Writing: Clear, Engaging Words That Make Us Want to 'Take a Peek Behind the Curtain'

Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer Natalie Angier has spent her entire career translating complex scientific research information into engaging, stimulating prose that the average person can understand. In fact, says Marcela Valdes of Publisher's Weekly: "She is the kind of woman you wish you'd had beside you in high school chemistry--tiny, ferociously intelligent, she'd eye you over a boiling beaker and explain exactly what the experiment was all about." Simplicity, clarity, passion, vivid imagery, combined with an uncompromising respect for scientific accuracy are the hallmarks of…

Science Cheerleaders and Mom's Night out for Science!

Thanks for helping us get the word out about the USA Science and Engineering Festival! Meet the Science Cheerleaders at the USA Science and Engineering Festival By James These professional cheerleaders-turned-scientists and engineers challenge stereotypes while helping to inspire young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and math. At the USA Science and Engineering Festival, October 23-24 in D.C., these women will perform science-themed routines for thousands of people, conduct a free cheer clinic, and meet the public, sign their Science Cheerleader cards, and…

Shout out to Promethean Planet!

Promethean Planet is also using social media like I was discussing in a recent post about how YOU can help the science festival. They also tweet about the festival regularly @planet_tweets if you want to follow them. Thanks Promethean Planet for helping promote the festival and the Kavli Video contest Check out one of their most recent promotions of the Kavli Video Contest on their Website: Science is fun! New festival and video contest USA Science & Engineering Festival As educators, we are constantly encouraging our students to "think outside the box" and "test out their theories," but…

Speak out for the Tripoli Six, before it's too late

I don't write about politics very often nor do I intend to do so in the future. But, time is running out for the Tripoli Six. Imprisoned in 1999, five nurses and one doctor were tortured until they confessed to a horrific crime; infecting over 400 children with the virus that causes AIDS. They later protested that they were innocent and the scientific data backed them up. Now, they may be executed for a crime they didn't commit. I know some of you are thinking, "What does this have to do with me?" Nature magazine, reminds us what can happen when we fail to speak up on another's behalf, in…

Digital Biology Friday: Seeing in 3D with Cn3D

Why do I love Cn3D? Let me count the ways. What does Cn3D do? (Hint: say "Cn3D" out loud). Seriously, Cn3D is a program that draws lovely pictures of molecular structures by using experimental data from techniques like X-ray crystallography and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Surprisingly (to some), and in contrast to many bioinformatics programs, Cn3D is really easy and fun to use. Have you ever used programs like MS Office? Using Cn3D is at least 10 times easier. An added benefit is that you don't have to try and find old copies of Netscape or other bits of obsolete software…

My picks from ScienceDaily

Effects Of New Sleep Medication Appear Unlikely To Have Potential For Abuse Or Cognitive Impairment: In a study of 14 adults with histories of sedative abuse, the newly approved sleep medication ramelteon does not appear to have effects that indicate potential for abuse or motor or cognitive impairment, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Mathematics Provides Answer To Airport Security Puzzle: High flyers will enjoy faster and safer travel in the future, thanks to mathematicians at the University of Manchester and…

That's one Cool Prof!

'Hip Happy Prof' teaches over MySpace, bosses protest: N.C. State Professor Tom Hoban is offering Sociology 395-M, "Social Movements for Social Change," on the popular social networking site that claims to have 100 million active users worldwide. But administrators say it's the wrong space for teaching a university course. Hoban says he received approval over the summer from his department head to teach via MySpace. But last week, Katie Perry, senior vice provost for academic affairs, told Hoban to move the course to university servers. Hoban has refused. "N.C. State's distance education is…

Cultural confusion: white papers vs. peer review

One of the greatest shocks when I started working in industry was the realization that the peer-reviewed paper, the most valuable form of currency in the academic world, was valued so little. In academics, there is a well-established reward system for getting your work published in peer-reviewed journals. Whether or you not get hired, get money to do research, get to keep your job (i.e. get tenure), all depend on depend on your ability to get papers written and accepted by your peers. (Community colleges are an exception to this, there it's your teaching abilities that matter, not your…

Spoiled food recall

Another food recall, although this one is for spoilage: Kraft Foods voluntarily recalled their Knudsen cottage cheese in seven states, but told consumers not to worry: the affected cheese isn't making people sick, it just doesn't taste right. The cartons affected include nonfat, low fat and small curd cottage cheese, and low fat cottage cheese with pineapple bearing a "sell-by" date of Aug. 31 or earlier, company spokeswoman Elisabeth Wenner said Thursday. The cheese, processed at a plant in Tulare, was spoiling before that date. Eating it wouldn't make consumers sick, but it might taste bad…

Memorial Day: who are The Fallen?

Memorial Day in the United States, a day to remember 'The Fallen,' those who have died in the service of their country, their community, their families. Historically and by tradition The Fallen have been soldiers. But why? There are so many more. Firefighters, police, social workers, nurses, doctors, "ordinary" working people who have died on the job in the service of their country, community and families. About 100 years ago steelworker Andrew Kovaly, a Slovak immigrant -- I don't know (or care) if he was "legal" (can a person ever be "illegal"?) -- was working in the hellish mills of…

Lab accident at bioweapons facility

Lab accidents happen. Usually they happen because the technician, student or senior scientist thinks he or she is working with something safe. But they happen even if everyone knows there is dangerous stuff around. Like in a bioweapons laboratory. And when that happens, you don't want to publicize it. Even if you are required to: An aerosol chamber mishap at Texas A&M University in February 2006 caused a researcher to be infected with the bioweapons agent brucella. Texas A&M University then violated federal law by not reporting the brucellosis case to the Centers for Disease Control (…

Foot baths and fever scanners in The Philippines

Like Indonesia, the Philippines is an archipelago, comprising some 7000 islands of varying size. It is also close to Indonesia, which lies just to the south across the Sulu Sea. Indonesia has more bird flu deaths than any country in the world and the disease is endemic in poultry all over that huge country. But so far, The Philippines has reported no H5N1 in poultry or humans. The fact that The Philippines has reported no bird flu is remarkable. Maybe too remarkable. Here's the map indicating the human cases in Indonesia, as kept up to date by a cadre of dedicated FluWikians, here. The…

Carnival Roundup

Next Teaching Carnival (higher ed) will be on or after June 16th, 2006 on Raining Cats and Dogma. First Mendel's Garden (genetics) will be on June 18th, 2006 on The force that through.... Next Pediatric Grand Rounds will be on June 18th, 2006, on Unintelligent Design. Next Carnival of the Green (sustainability, environment, conservation) will be on June 19th, 2006 on Savvy Vegetarian. Next Carnival of Bad History (misuse and abuse of history) will be on June 20, 2006 on Frog In A Well[thanks to Jonathan Dresner for updating me on this] Next Grand Rounds (medicine) will be on June 20th on…

Swine flu produces a good settlement for hospitals and workers

It's being described as a "dramatic settlement" that will set a pattern for the nation. Let's hope so, because the agreement reached yesterday by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC) and hospital player Catholic Healthcare West (CHW) sounds like just what the doctor ordered. It covers 32 CHW facilities in California and Nevada, where CNA/NNOC represents 13,000 registered nurses. Some details: A centerpiece of the agreement is the creation of a new system-wide emergency task force, comprised of CNA/NNOC RNs and hospital representatives following…