Long COVID

Where is the study using PAXLOVID to treat Long COVID? Seriously! PAXLOVID is an antiviral. A very good antiviral. Try it on other viruses, eventually even HIV. But, Long COVID might have at least a treatment if not a cure. I will keep my fingers crossed.

January 23, 2024

By Dr. Sanchari Sinha Dutta, PhD

...The persistent presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA (click here) was observed in the blood of long COVID patients for over two years after recovering from acute viral infection. The researchers also identified antisense SARS-CoV-2 and FYN RNA levels as independent predictors of long-COVID status with more than 90% specificity and sensitivity.

Importantly, the current study is the first of its kind to provide a candidate two-gene blood biomarker that can be used clinically to diagnose long-COVID patients.

The EV revolution will improve highway noise pollution along with particulates in the air. How much? Depends on the number of EVs in use.

November 28, 2023

By Robert Walton

...U.S. consumers (click here) purchasing new light-duty cars or trucks are increasingly considering electric vehicles, which are on pace to make up 9% of sales this year according to data from EV Hub, a tracker run by Atlas Public Policy. EVs, including plug-in hybrids, accounted for 7.3% sales in 2022.

Combined U.S. sales of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery-electric vehicles reached 17.7% of new light-duty vehicle sales in the third quarter, according to the Energy Information Administration. Experts say the figure illustrates growing consumer interest in the range of benefits provided by EVs and other efficient vehicles.

Despite a spate of news articles lamenting slower EV uptake, observers say the data may not bear out that narrative as supply chain shortages are alleviated. “I don’t see sales lagging at all,” said Joel Levin, executive director of Plug In America....

It would make Pittsburgh happy.

MIT has found economically viable means to implement carbon capture from the oceans.

Acidification of the oceans is a huge and ongoing problem. To reverse this process means to bring about a stream of carbon capture that may very well return function to ocean waters and Earth's troposphere. CO2 will continue to enter the ocean environment, but, it is a better storage facility than the gaseous layers of Earth. If this process can be commercially viable it should be pursued, especially in areas of the ocean where acidification is already a problem, ie; Northwest USA waters. It will return function to the fisheries.

As the CO2 is removed from the oceans in carbon capture to make diamonds or other solid carbon products that WILL NEVER ENTER THE ATMOSPHERE AGAIN, more CO2 from the atmosphere will enter the ocean and the cycle will continue. The acidification will be reduced, but, will need to be maintained in a commercially viable process.

This discovery is from the scientists at MIT.

Energy & Environmental Science
01 May 2023, Issue 5

Asymmetric chloride-mediated electrochemical process for CO2 removal 

from oceanwater

By Seoni Kim, Michael P. Nitzsche, Simon B. Rufer, Jack R. Lake,

Kripa K. Varanasi and T. Alan Hatton

Current studies on CO2 removal (click here) from oceanwater have used bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BPMED), although the high cost of bipolar membranes might impede the commercialization of the process, and some of these architectures even present risks of toxic redox-couples leaking into the oceanwater. We propose a new approach based solely on electrochemical modulation of the pH to initially release the CO2 and then to alkalize the treated water before it is returned to the ocean. This approach (i) does not require expensive membranes or addition of chemicals, (ii) is easy to deploy, (iii) does not lead to formation of byproducts or secondary streams, and (iv) requires a lower energy input (122 kJ mol−1) than do other approaches, to the best of our knowledge. In addition, a preliminary technoeconomic analysis which suggests that this ocean capture system can be economically feasible.

US National Intelligence is not surprised by any events occurring to undermine American confidence in their elections.

It is just that the events today were known to exist and were being nurtured by enemies of the USA. Avril is an interesting person as well as a magnificent intelligence director.

What is interesting to me is that the National Threat Assessment (click here) does not discuss terrorist organizations, their structure and/or their leadership; either alive or dead. I find that odd. Terrorism is referred to when sovereign authorities, like Iran, are involved. 

April 14, 2021

Yesterday, (click here) Avril Haines took the oath of office to serve as Director of National Intelligence. DNI Haines is the first woman to lead the U.S. Intelligence Community.

Remarks (click here) as prepared for delivery by The Honorable Avril Haines Director of National Intelligence

...The US Senate (click here) has approved Joe Biden’s nomination of Avril Haines, making her the first woman to be director of national intelligence, and the first of the president’s picks to be approved.
The vote was 84-10, with all the “no” votes coming from Republicans.
Both Democrats and leading Republicans issued statements praising the nominee. Among Republicans voting against Haines were senators reputed to have party leadership ambitions; Ted Cruz of Texas and Josh Hawley of Missouri.... (You call that leadership?)

...Moscow will continue to employ a variety of tactics to undermine U.S. influence and erode Western alliances. While Russia does not want a conflict with the United States, Russian officials have long believed that Washington is seeking to weaken Russia and Moscow will use a range of tools to pursue its objectives, including mercenary operations, assassinations, and arms sales. It will also employ, as we have reported, new weapons and cyber capabilities to threaten the United States and its allies, and seeks to use malign influence campaigns, including in the context of U.S. elections, to undermine our global standing, sow discord, and influence U.S. decision-making. Russia is becoming increasingly adept at leveraging its technological prowess to develop asymmetric options in both the military and cyber spheres in order to give itself the ability to push back and force the United States to accommodate Russia’s interests. 

Turning to Iran, Tehran is seeking to project power in neighboring states, deflect international pressure, and minimize threats to regime stability. Iraq will be a key battleground for Iranian influence in the coming year, but Tehran will also continue to pursue a permanent military presence in Syria, destabilize Yemen, and threaten Israel. For its part, North Korea may take aggressive and potentially destabilizing actions to reshape its security environment and will seek to drive wedges between the United States and its allies. These efforts could include the resumption of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missile testing. 

When it comes to transnational threats, the assessment focuses on key issues that intersect with the state-actor threats I just outlined, starting with COVID-19....

Title 42

It is my understanding Title 42 (click here) has ended. Another name for Title 42 is Expulsion. The extremists of the Republican Party are mourning this law because it allowed border agents to immediately send southern border crossers back to Mexico. There was a reason for Title 42 and it had nothing to do with immigration.

Title 42 was a public health law that allowed the USA government at the federal level to prevent anyone from entering any border of this country due to the global pandemic. Why people would want to come to the U.S.A. during the pandemic is anyone’s guess because this country under the Trump presidency had the highest numbers of dead and diseased than ANY other country globally.

So, Title 42 is ending because the pandemic is over for the USA with the Trump legacy of more than 1.1 million dead USA citizens including the elderly and children. 

By the way, the Rwanda genocide killed approximately 800,000 Tutsis including the elderly and children. 

Title 42 cannot be invoked anymore because there is no longer a public health crisis and to continue it would be specifically targeting South Americans and Mexicans and that would be a racist law.