1,350 Comments

1. September 24, 2020 at 1:28 pm

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   Robot Takes Contact-Free Measurements of Patient Vital Signs
   https://www.medicaldesignbriefs.com/component/content/article/mdb/stories/blog/37750?utm_source=TB_Medical_News&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20200924&oly_enc_id=2460E0071134A8V

   During the current coronavirus pandemic, one of the riskiest parts of a healthcare worker’s job is assessing people who have symptoms of COVID-19. Researchers from MIT, Boston Dynamics, and Brigham and Women’s Hospital hope to reduce that risk by using robots to remotely measure patients’ vital signs.

   The robots, which are controlled by a handheld device, can also carry a tablet that allows doctors to ask patients about their symptoms without being in the same room. Using four cameras mounted on a dog-like robot developed by Boston Dynamics, the researchers have shown that they can measure skin temperature, breathing rate, pulse rate, and blood oxygen saturation in healthy patients, from a distance of 2 m. They are now making plans to test it in patients with COVID-19 symptoms.

   They use existing computer vision technologies that can measure temperature, breathing rate, pulse, and blood oxygen saturation, and worked to make them mobile.

   Reply
2. September 25, 2020 at 3:02 am

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   ‘Close to 100% accuracy’: Helsinki airport uses sniffer dogs to detect Covid
   Researchers running Helsinki pilot scheme say dogs can identify virus in seconds
   https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/24/close-to-100-accuracy-airport-enlists-sniffer-dogs-to-test-for-covid-19?CMP=share_btn_fb

   Four Covid-19 sniffer dogs have begun work at Helsinki airport in a state-funded pilot scheme that Finnish researchers hope will provide a cheap, fast and effective alternative method of testing people for the virus.

   A dog is capable of detecting the presence of the coronavirus within 10 seconds and the entire process takes less than a minute to complete, according to Anna Hielm-Björkman of the University of Helsinki, who is overseeing the trial.

   “It’s very promising,” said Hielm-Björkman. “If it works, it could prove a good screening method in other places” such as hospitals, care homes and at sporting and cultural events.

   If it indicates it has detected the virus – usually by yelping, pawing or lying down – the passenger is advised to take a free standard polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, using a nasal swab, to verify the dog’s verdict.

   In the university’s preliminary tests, dogs – which have been successfully used to detect diseases such as cancer and diabetes – were able to identify the virus with nearly 100% accuracy, even days before before a patient developed symptoms.

   needing only 10-100 molecules to detect the presence of the virus compared with the 18m needed by laboratory equipment.

   A Finnish organisation that specialises in training animals in scent detection, Wise Nose, is training a total of 16 dogs for the project, 10 of which are eventually expected to be able to work at the airport.

   Researchers in countries including Australia, France, Germany and Britain are reportedly working on similar projects but Finland is the first country in Europe to put dogs to work sniffing out the coronavirus. A similar trial started at Dubai international airport last month.

   Reply
3. September 25, 2020 at 7:42 am

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   Your smartphone may be able to guess whether you’ve been exposed to the COVID-19 virus, but will it invade your privacy while doing so?

   Contact Tracing Apps Struggle to Be Both Effective and Private
   https://spectrum.ieee.org/biomedical/devices/contact-tracing-apps-struggle-to-be-both-effective-and-private

   Reply
4. September 25, 2020 at 5:57 pm

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   Scientists and engineers are working on some novel techniques that might allow people to test themselves for COVID19 in minutes.

   Researchers Are Getting Close to a Here-and-Now COVID-19 Test
   https://spectrum.ieee.org/biomedical/diagnostics/researchers-are-getting-close-to-a-hereandnow-covid-19-test

   Reply
5. September 26, 2020 at 2:14 pm

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   NHS Test and Trace app security redux
   https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/blog-post/nhs-test-and-trace-app-security-redux

   NCSC Technical Director Dr Ian Levy and the NHS Test and Trace App acting CISO Stuart H explain how security and privacy have been approached in the new version of the app.

   Reply
6. September 27, 2020 at 9:09 am

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   The TeleMask covers are designed to eliminate the spread of germs, bacteria, influenza and Coronavirus from public telephones in schools, hospitals, clinics, offices, courthouses and incarceration facilities

   https://www.scansound.com/telemask-sanitary-disposable-telephone-covers-bag-of-189.html

   Reply
7. September 27, 2020 at 9:10 am

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   See that there are problems with the UK coronavirus tracking app. Any ideas what broke? I installed it on my phone but its not clear if its working.

   Coronavirus: NHS tracing app problem that left tens of thousands of tests unlogged has been fixed, government says
   https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-third-of-tests-in-england-not-linked-to-new-nhs-app-developers-suggest-12082178

   The issue had appeared to undermine the app, which warns people when they have come into contact with anyone who tests positive.

   A problem that prevented tens of thousands of people from logging the result of their coronavirus tests on the new NHS contact-tracing app has been fixed, according to a Department of Health spokesman.

   In a statement, they said: “Everyone who receives a positive test result can log their result on the app.

   Reply
8. September 28, 2020 at 1:13 pm

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   More Evidence That Widely Available Vitamin Reduces Risk Of Infection And Death From Covid-19
   https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/more-evidence-that-widely-available-vitamin-reduces-risk-of-infection-and-death-from-covid19/

   A new study has added to a growing body of evidence that vitamin D has a protective effect against Covid-19 in treating the disease and reducing the risk of death for patients.

   Having sufficient levels of vitamin D appeared to have a protective effect on patients. Those with a blood level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (a prehormone produced in the liver that doctors use to determine vitamin D levels) of at least 30 ng/mL had a significantly reduced chance of becoming unconscious, hypoxic, or dying. Their blood also indicated lower levels of C-reactive proteins (an inflammatory marker) and higher levels of the immune cell lymphocytes.

   Best Evidence Yet That Vitamin D Reduces Covid-19 Risk
   https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/best-evidence-yet-that-vitamin-d-reduces-covid-19-risk/

   Vitamin D deficiency has been proposed as a risk factor for Covid-19 almost since the pandemic’s start. Since vitamin D supplements are cheap and widely available, and sunlight is free, it would be fabulous news if this was true. However, despite many suggestive pieces of evidence, confirmation has been hard to find. A new study offers probably the best evidence yet that people with vitamin D deficiency are more likely to become infected, although it’s still not as conclusive as scientists would like.

   Reply
9. September 28, 2020 at 4:24 pm

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   Can AI and Automation Deliver a COVID-19 Antiviral While It Still Matters?
   https://spectrum.ieee.org/artificial-intelligence/medical-ai/can-ai-and-automation-deliver-a-covid19-antiviral-while-it-still-matters

   Reply
10. September 28, 2020 at 5:24 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    COVID-19 Apps Could Slow the Pandemic. Here’s Why They Still Haven’t Been Released.
    https://www.consumerreports.org/coronavirus/covid-19-contact-tracing-apps-could-slow-pandemic-but-delayed-release/

    Apple and Google this spring developed a system that enables states to build apps to alert people if they’ve been exposed to someone who tests positive for COVID-19.
    The first apps were expected by early June, but none have been released, and few are in development.
    Health officials are grappling with open questions as they develop apps, including how to define a risky encounter with someone carrying the virus.

    Reply
11. September 28, 2020 at 6:04 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Can thermal cameras help spot coronavirus?
    https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/health-52940951

    Reply
12. September 28, 2020 at 8:07 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    An affordable new test developed by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University can detect coronavirus antibodies in just seconds.

    This Inexpensive Test Can Detect Coronavirus Antibodies in Just Seconds
    https://www.hackster.io/news/this-inexpensive-test-can-detect-coronavirus-antibodies-in-just-seconds-52fcfa0c47cc

    An affordable new test developed by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University can detect coronavirus antibodies in just seconds.

    https://engineering.cmu.edu/news-events/news/2020/09/14-covid-rapid-test.html

    Reply
13. September 28, 2020 at 10:36 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Gene-smashing ultraviolet C wavelengths are dangerous to pathogens and humans alike. But used responsibly, and they might help stop the spread of COVID19.

    UV Light Might Keep the World Safe From the Coronavirus—and Whatever Comes Next
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/biomedical/devices/uv-light-might-keep-the-world-safe-from-the-coronavirusand-whatever-comes-next

    In cooler months, the air you breathe is cleansed of mold and bacteria in UV-sterilized heating units as well as blasted by UV fixtures in the office air ducts to eliminate viruses. In-room UV fixtures pointing at the ceiling disinfect the air, while other UV lights that turn on only when no one’s in the room zap pathogens on desks, keyboards, and high-touch surfaces in bathrooms and work spaces.

    The office, says PrescientX founder and CEO Barry Hunt, represents a possible future in which pandemics like COVID-19 are more commonplace—but in which germicidal ultraviolet light is one of the most potent weapons we have to face them down.

    For nearly a century and a half, scientists have been investigating ultraviolet light’s deadly effect on germs. In recent times, UV was deployed as a disinfectant against deadly coronavirus particles during the SARS outbreak in 2003. And as soon as the new coronavirus began spreading in earnest in China late last year, UV returned as a potentially powerful weapon to fight this new scourge. While antiviral drugs and vaccines concentrate on minimizing and repelling infections in the body, the ultraviolet systems being deployed focus on killing the virus in the environment, before it has a chance to infect anyone.

    Germicidal UV technology is now being used to sterilize air, surfaces, and personal protective equipment like N95 masks.

    “is overcoming the lack of…understanding about this technology.”

    the UV wavelengths that give you a suntan or a sunburn are called UV-A (with wavelengths between 400 and 315 nanometers) and UV-B (315 to 280 nm). Germicidal UV tech focuses on shorter, more energetic UV wavelengths, known as UV-C, which lie between 280 and 100 nm. The Earth’s ozone layer prevents virtually all UV-C light from reaching us. So microbes and viruses (and everything else, really) evolved for millions and billions of years without ever being exposed to these wavelengths.

    That changed in 1901, with the invention of the mercury-vapor lamp. It produces a potent wavelength of UV-C light—254 nm—that has proved devastating for nearly any genetic material in its path, including that of a coronavirus or a human.

    Much of the trick to wielding germicidal UV light against the spread of disease lies in finding a way to keep people safe from that light.

    While UV-C light has been used successfully against germs for more than a century, it’s only recently that researchers have understood why it’s so successful. In DNA’s four-letter alphabet of nucleotides, thymine (T) and cytosine (C) are particularly susceptible to UV.

    The main hitch with UV-C light in the 254-nm range is that it penetrates human skin and eyes, leading to skin cancer and cataracts. So UV-C’s DNA-smashing effect means that any disinfecting device that uses it has to be designed to operate either when no one is in the room or in a self-contained space where humans can’t go.

    Researchers have been trying to balance the benefits and dangers of UV-C for decades.

    Germicidal UV in most commercial and industrial settings today still comes from mercury-vapor lamps, says PrescientX’s Hunt. These devices have a spectral peak at 254 nm.

    UV-C–emitting LEDs, made from alloys of aluminum nitride, are much newer and have a number of potential advantages over mercury lamps

    Most important, though, is UV-C LEDs’ theoretical potential for higher efficiency. That potential is as yet unrealized, however.

    Recent experience with UV-C light confirms what Wells found in the 1930s: Air disinfection with 254-nm UV light is “very effective,”

    Reply
14. September 29, 2020 at 12:12 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    https://www.aalto.fi/fi/uutiset/uusi-ohjelma-mallintaa-nopeasti-miten-virusta-kantavat-aerosolit-liikkuvat-sisailmassa?utm_medium=social_own&utm_source=facebook

    Reply
15. September 29, 2020 at 12:17 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happisaturaatio

    Reply
16. September 29, 2020 at 9:34 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Not all face masks are created equal.

    These Are The Best (And Worst) Face Masks To Help Prevent The Spread Of Covid-19
    https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/these-are-the-best-and-worst-face-masks-to-help-prevent-the-spread-of-covid-19/

    Perhaps unsurprisingly, the best face coverings were N95 masks (without valves), the hospital-grade type of masks used by frontline medical workers, followed by surgical masks, polypropylene masks, and cotton-polypropylene masks.

    Cloth face masks were shown to be fairly effective at blocking the droplets. However, bandanas and neck fleeces didn’t block the droplets much at all and barely performed better than no mask. In fact, the neck fleece seemed to disperse the largest droplets into a multitude of smaller droplets, which arguably means it’s worse than wearing no mask at all.

    The scientific debate around the effectiveness of face masks proved remarkably controversial. Ever-changing guidelines have sowed confusion among the public about the effectiveness of masks, but most experts now agree that face coverings play an important role in preventing the spread of Covid-19.

    As this new study shows, it’s perfectly clear that simply talking does spew out droplets into the surrounding environment, which could potentially be inhaled by a close bystander. While this does not go into the likelihood for an infected person to spread Covid-19, it’s known that respiratory droplets such as these can transmit respiratory viral infections, especially in poorly ventilated areas.

    “We confirmed that when people speak, small droplets get expelled, so disease can be spread by talking, without coughing or sneezing,”

    Physical Distancing And Face Masks Dramatically Cut The Risk Of Catching Covid-19, Huge Review Finds
    https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/physical-distancing-and-face-masks-dramatically-cut-the-risk-of-catching-covid19-huge-review-finds/

    Reply
17. September 29, 2020 at 9:42 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Engineers say they have developed sensors that act as canaries in a COVID mine, making it safer to return to offices and schools.

    Indoor Air-Quality Monitoring Can Allow Anxious Office Workers to Breathe Easier
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/telecom/wireless/indoor-airquality-monitoring-can-allow-anxious-office-workers-to-breathe-easier

    Generally speaking, masks are better than no masks, and outdoors is better than indoors, but short of remaining holed up somewhere with absolutely no contact with other humans, there’s always that chance of contracting COVID-19. One of the reasons I personally haven’t gone back to the office is because the uncertainty over whether the virus, exhaled by a coworker, is present in the air, doesn’t seem worth the novelty of actually being able to work at my desk again for the first time in months.

    Unfortunately, we can’t detect the virus directly, short of administering tests to people. There’s no sensor you can plug in and place on your desk that will detect virus nuclei hanging out in the air around you. What is possible, and might bring people some peace of mind, is installing IoT sensors in office buildings and schools to monitor air quality and ascertain how favorable the indoor environment is to COVID-19 transmission.

    One such monitoring solution has been developed by wireless tech company eleven-x and environmental engineering consultant Pinchin. The companies have created a real-time monitoring system that measures carbon dioxide levels, relative humidity, and particulate levels to assess the quality of indoor air.

    “COVID is the first time we’ve dealt with a source of environmental hazard that is the people themselves,”

    Again, because there’s no such thing as a sensor that can directly detect COVID-19 virus nuclei in an environment, the companies have resorted to measuring secondhand effects. The first measurement is carbon dioxide levels. he biggest contributor to CO2 in an indoor space is people exhaling. Higher levels in a room or building suggest more people, and past a certain level, means either there are too many people in the space or the air is not being vented properly. Indirectly, that carbon dioxide suggests that if someone was a carrier of the coronavirus, there’s a good chance there’s more virus nuclei in the air.

    The IoT system also measures relative humidity.

    ASHRAE’s guidelines [PDF] suggest that a space’s relative humidity should hover between 40 and 60 percent. More or less than that, Shearer explains, and it’s easier for the virus to be picked up by the tissue of the lungs.

    A joint sensor measures carbon dioxide levels and relative humidity. A separate sensor measures the level of 2.5-micrometer particles in the air. 2.5 microns (or PM 2.5) is an established particulate size threshold in air quality measuring. And as circumstances would have it, it’s also slightly smaller than the size of a virus nucleus, which about 3 µm. They’re still close enough in size that a high level of 2.5-µm particles in the air means there’s a greater chance that there’s potentially some COVID-19 nuclei in the space.

    Typically, indoor air quality tests are done in-person, maybe once or twice a year, with measuring equipment brought into the building. Shearer believes that the desire to reopen buildings, despite the specter of COVID-19 outbreaks, will trigger a sea change for real-time air monitoring.

    It has to be stressed again that the monitoring system developed by eleven-x and Pinchin is not a “yes or no” style system. “We’re in discussions about creating an index,” says Shearer, “but it probably won’t ever be that simple.” Shifting regional guidelines, and the evolving understanding about how COVID-19 is transmitted will make it essentially impossible to create a hard-and-fast index for what qualities of indoor air are explicitly dangerous with respect to the virus.

    Instead, like social distancing and mask wearing recommendations, the measurements are intended to give general guidelines to help people avoid unhealthy situations. What’s more, the sensors will notify building occupants should indoor conditions change from likely safe to likely problematic. It’s another way to make people feel safe if they have to return to work or school.

    Reply
18. September 30, 2020 at 7:33 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    There’s a lot of confusion out there, so is what you need to know.

    How The Coronavirus Spreads Through The Air: 5 Essential Reads
    https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/how-the-coronavirus-spreads-through-the-air-5-essential-reads/

    Reply
19. September 30, 2020 at 12:30 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Runic’s Chip Solution in the Fight Against Covid-19
    https://www.eetimes.com/runics-chip-solution-in-the-fight-against-covid-19/

    Covid-19 popped up and spread too quickly for humans to respond effectively. Its impact has swept the world and its damage will be remembered for years to come. Several months after its outbreak, the pandemic is still not under control and continues to spread widely.

    Runic Technology, a chip design company integrated with R&D, production, and sales, has become the related items’ top 2 supplier for China’s medical equipment. The chips are used in handheld infrared thermometers and blood oximeters for pandemic surveillance and virus testing.

    The pandemic is still going on, and there is no reliable vaccine or other effective eradication measure. The war against Covid-19 is under way and needs various industries’ cooperation, including the IC chip industry. During this time fighting against the pandemic, Runic has earned a high reputation with same as world-class IC producer’s high performance and good functionality, but with quicker results, lower price, and more flexible lead time. We are willing to provide our support and service to old and new partners from all over the world

    http://www.run-ic.com/

    Reply
20. September 30, 2020 at 12:43 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    FDA Will Allow At-Home Administration of Capsule Endoscope During COVID-19
    https://www.mddionline.com/covid-19/fda-will-allow-home-administration-capsule-endoscope-during-covid-19?ADTRK=InformaMarkets&elq_mid=14503&elq_cid=876648

    FDA will apply enforcement discretion to allow at-home administration of CapsoVision’s CapsoCam Plus small bowel capsule endoscope during the COVID-19 pandemic for patients who are eligible for at-home administration.

    Reply
21. September 30, 2020 at 6:12 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2020/09/30/boschilta-entista-nopeampi-koronatesteri/

    Reply
22. September 30, 2020 at 6:31 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Making a coronavirus vaccine in months instead of years is the grandest medical quest of our lifetime. And researchers are relying on AI like never before.

    What AI Can–and Can’t–Do in the Race for a Coronavirus Vaccine
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/artificial-intelligence/medical-ai/what-ai-can-and-cant-do-in-the-race-for-a-coronavirus-vaccine

    Reply
23. September 30, 2020 at 6:41 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Covid-19 sniffer dogs start work at Helsinki Airport
    https://newsnowfinland.fi/domestic/covid-19-sniffer-dogs-start-work-at-helsinki-airport

    A team of ten specially-trained canines are part of the new experiment, and in training they’ve already proved to be much more accurate than conventional coronavirus tests.

    It’s part of the City of Vantaa’s efforts to test new ways to reduce the spread of the virus, with the canine coronavirus detectors able to smell the virus with almost 100% accuracy during tests conducted by the University of Helsinki.

    Passengers won’t come into direct contact with the dogs at the airport. Instead the dogs will work in a separate booth, and passengers will wipe their skin with a swab and drop it into a cup, which is given to the dog for sniffing.

    The dogs involved in the research had previously been trained to detect breast cancer and prostate cancer based on scent profiles

    In the University’s tests, researchers found the dogs were able to identify someone with coronavirus even before they began showing any clinical symptoms, and even before a normal test would come back with a positive result.

    In Finland scent dogs are regularly trained to identify mould in buildings, but are also used to sniff out cockroaches, bed bugs or other insect infestations. However, there is increasing awareness of their unique skills in clinical settings as well, where they’re being trained to identify the precursors for patients with chronic pain, and alert them in advance when they need to take medication.

    Reply
24. September 30, 2020 at 7:27 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    This could be why men are more susceptible to severe infection.

    Covid-19 May Cause The Drop In Testosterone Levels Seen In Men
    https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/covid19-may-cause-the-drop-in-testosterone-levels-seen-in-men/

    Men that are hospitalized with Covid-19 appear to experience a significant drop in testosterone levels after falling sick. This could be an important piece of the puzzle in explaining why men tend to fare worse against severe Covid-19 infection compared to women. It’s not the first time decreased testosterone levels have been linked to Covid-19, but it is the first time researchers claim it’s been shown Covid-19 may cause depletion.

    Reporting in the peer-reviewed journal The Aging Male, researchers in Turkey found that male patients’ testosterone levels “significantly decreased” while they were sick compared to pre-Covid levels, and the severity of the testosterone decrease was tightly linked to an increased chance of ending up in an intensive care unit (ICU).

    Reply
25. October 1, 2020 at 4:50 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Everyone knows of the 1918 Spanish flu, but the three flu pandemics since then have slipped down the memory hole. Too bad: There’s much to learn from them.

    https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-history/heroic-failures/pandemic-memories-and-mortalities

    Reply
26. October 1, 2020 at 7:12 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Wastewater treatment teams searching for COVID-19
    Researchers are sifting through raw sewage in wastewater treatment facilities for traces of COVID-19 to find out how it spreads.
    https://www.controleng.com/articles/wastewater-treatment-teams-searching-for-covid-19/?oly_enc_id=0462E3054934E2U

    Reply
27. October 1, 2020 at 7:13 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Redesigned mask offers greater protection, comfort for user
    A mask that combines barrier filtration material with a stretchable fabric for greater protection and comfort has been designed by Georgia Tech researchers.
    https://www.controleng.com/articles/redesigned-mask-offers-greater-protection-comfort-for-user/?oly_enc_id=0462E3054934E2U

    Reply
28. October 1, 2020 at 10:29 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Here’s how robots are helping us fight this pandemic—and how they might be able to assist with the next one.

    How Robots Became Essential Workers in the COVID-19 Response
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/robotics/medical-robots/how-robots-became-essential-workers-in-the-covid19-response

    As the coronavirus emergency exploded into a full-blown pandemic in early 2020, forcing countless businesses to shutter, robot-making companies found themselves in an unusual situation: Many saw a surge in orders. Robots don’t need masks, can be easily disinfected, and, of course, they don’t get sick.

    An army of automatons has since been deployed all over the world to help with the crisis: They are monitoring patients, sanitizing hospitals, making deliveries, and helping frontline medical workers reduce their exposure to the virus. Not all robots operate autonomously—many, in fact, require direct human supervision, and most are limited to simple, repetitive tasks. But robot makers say the experience they’ve gained during this trial-by-fire deployment will make their future machines smarter and more capable. These photos illustrate how robots are helping us fight this pandemic—and how they might be able to assist with the next one.

    Reply
29. October 1, 2020 at 10:44 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Never would have thought this time last year that choir practice would be dangerous.

    This Video Shows Just How Easily COVID-19 Could Spread When People Sing Together
    https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/this-video-shows-just-how-easily-covid-19-could-spread-when-people-sing-together/

    In New South Wales, for example, choral singing is banned and there are no-singing rules at weddings and nightclubs.

    Now our new study, which included filming droplets and aerosols emitted when someone sings, shows how singing might be an infection risk. This is especially if many people sing together, in a poorly ventilated room.

    What we did and what we found

    We took high-speed video of a person singing a major scale, as do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do (seen below, without audio). We then tracked the emissions of droplets and aerosols.

    We found certain notes, such as “do” and “fa”, generated more aerosols than others. We also found the direction of emissions changed with different consonants.

    Infection control guidelines assume respiratory droplets settle rapidly within one to two metres of the person emitting them.

    However, most droplets we observed appeared not to settle rapidly, and tended to follow the ambient airflow.

    Therefore, without adequate ventilation, these droplets may persist in aerosol clouds.

    These observations may partially explain the higher infection rates of COVID-19 during group singing, even when people singing appear well.

    Reply
30. October 1, 2020 at 12:38 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Tiedämme jo sangen hyvin, miten ja missä koronavirus leviää. Nyt pitäisi päättää, että miten haluamme estää tuon leviämisen ja kenen vastuulla se on, Tuomas Aivelo kirjoittaa blogissaan.

    https://www.tiede.fi/blogit/kaiken-takana-loinen/pitaa-oppia-elamaan-viruksen-kanssa?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=td_vk_autopostboost&utm_content=Facebook_Mobile_Feed

    Viimeisten kuukausien slogan on ollut, että pitää oppia elämään koronaviruksen kanssa. Jos vaihtoehto on, että kuollaan koronaviruksen kanssa, niin epäilemättä se on ihan järkevä tavoite.

    Monissa maissa on opittu elämään viruksen kanssa, ja monia maita, joissa se ei ole onnistunut niin hyvin. Yhdysvallat ja Brasilia ovat epäonnistuneet poliittisen johdon puutteen vuoksi. Britannian ja Espanjan epäonnistuminen vaikuttaa johtuvan jatkuvasta tempoilusta.

    Ruotsi oppi sangen brutaalilla tavalla: vaikuttaa siltä, että Ruotsin rajoitukset koronaviruksen leviämisen estämiselle olivat täysin toimivat ja sopivat, ne olisi pitänyt vain aloittaa kuukautta aiemmin. Kuukauden myöhästyminen johti kuolleisuuteen ja sairastavuuteen, jota voisi kuvailla verilöylyksi. Saksassa, Singaporessa ja Etelä-Koreassa on opittu toimimaan testauksen ja jäljityksen yhteispelillä, Uudessa-Seelannissa ja Vietnamissa on opittu elämään ilman virusta.

    ”Nyanssi kuoli joskus maaliskuussa”, kansanterveystutkija Julia Marcus kuvaili ensimmäisiä reaktioita, kun koronaviruksen leviämistä estettiin keväällä. Marcus tarkoitti tällä, että yhteiskuntien sulut olivat laajoja – joillain alueilla oli käytännössä käytössä ulkonaliikkumiskielto. Rajoitusten laajuus oli ymmärrettävää ja pääsääntöisesti tarpeenkin, koska ei tiedetty kuinka hyvin virus leviää ja kuinka laajalle se oli levinnyt.

    Nyt tiedämme paljon enemmän ympäristöistä, joissa virus leviää. Koska virusta on tarkemman tiedon avulla helpompi hallita, viranomaiset ympäri maailman ovat säätämässä rajoitteitaan tarkemmiksi.

    Koronaviruksen osalta on sekä suuria eroja siinä miten tartuntariskit jakautuvat että kenelle tartunta on vaarallinen. Ulkotiloissa tarttumisriskit ovat hyvin pieniä, mutta ahtaissa sisätiloissa joissa huudetaan tai hengitetään raskaasti taas suuria. Vakavan taudin ja kuolleisuuden riskin nousee tiukasti vanhemmissa ikäryhmissä.

    Rajoituksista on paljolti luovuttu ja jäljellä olevat rajoituksetkin ovat tällä hetkellä melko pehmeitä: suosituksia säilyttää etäisyyksiä ja tapahtumanjärjestäjille kohdistuvia velvoitteita. Käytännössä viruksen torjunnassa vastuuta siis siirretään yksilölle: viruksen torjunnassa on nyt kyse yksilöiden käytöksestä. Merkittävä tekijä on kattava testaus ja tartunnanjäljitys, joka pyrkii määräämään altistuneet karanteeniin ennen kuin virus mahdollisesti leviää eteen – kunhan ihmiset käyvät testeissä ja muistavat kontaktinsa.

    Vastuun siirtäminen kansalaisille tietenkin vaatii sitä, että kansalaiset osaavat toimia järkevästi. Onneksi tartuntatauteihin liittyvästä kansanterveysviestinnästä tiedetään hyvin paljon!

    Pidättyväisyyden sijaan pyritään minimoimaan haittoja. Oikea ratkaisu ei ole opiskelijatapahtumien peruminen, vaan niiden järjestäminen uudella tavoin: ulkona, etäisyyksin, pienemmissä ryhmissä tai muuten turvallisemmin. Jos karaoke on ihmiselle tärkeintä mitä maailmasta löytyy, karaokebaarissa käymistä ei voi jättää pois elämästä. Tällöin on tärkeää huomioida tämän aiheuttamat riskit muussa elämässä: karaokea ei kannata käydä Helsingin yössä laulamassa muutamaa päivää ennen kuin käy tapaamassa iäkkäitä sukulaisia.

    Toiseksi, häpeä ei ole toimiva viestintäkeino. Jos ihmiset valittavat, että eivät halua käyttää kasvomaskeja, koska silmälasit huurtuvat, oikea ratkaisu ei ole kutsua näitä ihmisiä vastuuttomiksi. Tällöin kannattaa kertoa, miten kasvomaskia pitää käyttää lasien kanssa

    Suomalaiset eivät yleisestikään ottaen ole erityisen innokkaita kasvomaskien käyttäjiä. Tällöin pitää kuunnella ihmisten kasvomaskien käyttöön liittyviä huolia ja reagoida niihin. Ihmiset kuitenkin ovat yhteisvastuullisia, joten kasvomaskien käytössä olennaisin viesti on, että ne eivät vain suojaa käyttäjäänsä, vaan ne suojaavat kaikkia.

    Kolmanneksi, pakko on huono työkalu. On kyse sitten kasvomaskeista tai rokotteista, pakko on yleensä äärimmäinen toimenpide, joka nostaa paljon vastustusta. Pääsääntöisesti ihmiset toimivat järkevästi, jos heillä on siihen tarvittavat tiedot ja mahdollisuudet.

    Neljänneksi, olennaista on matalan kynnyksen virustestaaminen. Virustestauksen keskeisyys on tuotava aina esiin viestinnässä. Testauksen on oltava ilmaista ja helposti lähestyttävää siten, että ihmiset voivat hyvin helposti käydä testissä.

    Viidenneksi, viesti pitää kohdistaa keskeisille yleisöille. Koronavirustartunnan suhteen suuremmassa vaarassa ovat ikäihmiset, maahanmuuttajayhteisöt ja esimerkiksi asunnottomat. Nämä ovat myös samoja yhteisöjä, joiden elämään pandemian seuraukset, kuten kiireettömien hoitojen perumiset ja majoitusten sulkemiset, vaikuttavat eniten. Toisaalta tällä hetkellä Suomen koronavirustartunnat leviävät lähinnä nuorten ikäluokkien keskuudessa. Nämä puolestaan taas vaativat kohdennettua viestintään.

    Sävelet ovat selkeät: hallituksen päätöksillä on siirrytty laajoista rajoituksista kohdennetumpiin ja yksilöiden vastuulla on entistä enemmän viruksen leviämisen estäminen. Tällöin pitäisi olla tarjolla riittävästi tietoa ihmisille, että miten tuota henkilökohtaista valtaa voidaan käyttää vastuullisesti.

    Paikallinen tartuntatautitilanne on nykyään hyvin viestitty.

    Leviämisympäristöihin liittyvä viestintä on sen sijaan lähes olematonta. Suomalaisista tartunnoista ei ole julkaistu aineistoja, jotka kertoisivat missä riskit ovat suurempia kuin muualla. Näissä joudumme turvautumaan muissa maissa tehtyihin arvioihin. Anekdotaalisista tarinoista tiedämme, että jääkiekkoharjoitukset ja –ottelut, baarit ja mökkibileet ovat levittäneet virusta. Nämä osuvat yhteen muiden maiden havaintojen kanssa, että ahtaat sisätilat ovat suurimpia riskejä.

    Paikallinen viestintä on toiminut jollain paikoin hyvin: Kuhmossa alkaneet tartuntaketjut saatiin pysäytettyä nopean ja päättäväisen sekä selkeän viestinnän ansiosta.

    Huonona esimerkkinä puolestaan toimii tämänhetkiset maskisuositukset, jotka ovat sekavia: THL antaa neljä eriasteista maskisuositusta, mutta kertoo ainoastaan millä alueilla on voimassa joku kolmesta suosituksesta. Paikallisten viranomaisten pitäisi puolestaan viestiä siitä, että mikä suositus on voimassa missäkin. Paikalliset viranomaiset puolestaan kertovat, että toimitaan THL:n ohjeiden mukaan. Kun yritin selvittää, että mikä on tämänhetkinen suositus Helsingissä, en voi sanoa löytäväni selkeää ohjeistusta, että mikä suositus tällä hetkellä on.

    Keskeinen ongelma koronavirusviestinnässä on, että korkeimman riskin tartuntapaikat ovat myös taloudellisesti merkittäviä. Poliitikon tai virkamiehen on vaikea sanoa, että tartuntariski on suuri yökerhossa, koska se johtaa suoraan siihen, että yökerhoyrittäjälle tulee vähemmän asiakkaita.

    Lopputuloksena virkamiesten viestintä vaikuttaa epäreilulta

    Vastuu on vaikea asia. Lähtökohtaisesti tartuntataudit ovat epätasa-arvoisia: Joillain on parempi mahdollisuus suojautua niiltä kuin toisilla. Jotkut saavat vakavamman taudin kuin toiset. Joidenkin on helpompi hakeutua hoitoon kuin toisten. Jollei tätä huomioida, vastuun siirtäminen kansalaisille on samalla terveydellisen epätasa-arvon kasvattamista.

    Reply
31. October 1, 2020 at 12:40 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Check earlier pandemics
    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_flu
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu

    Reply
32. October 1, 2020 at 2:21 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    TikTok Famous Flight Attendant Reveals 13 Airline And Hotel Hacks You Need To Know
    http://on.forbes.com/6184GLrCr

    Reply
33. October 1, 2020 at 3:09 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    The COVID-19 pandemic has rallied technologists and scientists in a way that few other calamities ever have. Their work will save countless lives for decades to come.

    Here’s How We Prepare for the Next Pandemic
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/biomedical/devices/heres-how-we-prepare-for-the-next-pandemic

    When the Spanish flu pandemic swept across the globe in 1918, it ravaged a population with essentially no technological countermeasures. There were no diagnostic tests, no mechanical ventilators, and no antiviral or widely available anti-inflammatory medications other than aspirin. The first inactivated-virus vaccines would not become available until 1936. An estimated 50 million people died.

    Today, a best-case scenario predicts 1.3 million fatalities from COVID-19 in 2020, according to projections by Imperial College London, and rapidly declining numbers after that. That in a world with 7.8 billion people—more than four times as many as in 1918. Many factors have lessened mortality this time, including better implementation of social-distancing measures. But technology is also a primary bulwark.

    Since January of this year, roughly US $50 billion has been spent in the United States alone to ramp up testing, diagnosis, modeling, treatment, vaccine creation, and other tech-based responses, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. The massive efforts have energized medical, technical, and scientific establishments in a way that hardly anything else has in the past half century. And they will leave a legacy of protection that will far outlast COVID-19.

    In the current crisis, though, it hasn’t been technology that separated the winners and losers. Taking stock of the world’s responses so far, two elements set apart the nations that have successfully battled the coronavirus: foresight and a painstakingly systematic approach.

    In other countries, most notably the United States, officials initially downplayed the impending disaster, losing precious time. The U.S. government did not act quickly to muster supplies, nor did it promulgate a coherent plan of action.

    The best that can be said about this dismal episode is that it was a hard lesson about how tragic the consequences of incompetence can be. We can only hope that the lesson was learned well, because there will be another pandemic. There will always be another pandemic. There will always be pathogens that mutate

    In the early months of the crisis, the world became obsessed with the models that forecast the future spread of the disease.

    In the development of both vaccines and antiviral drugs, researchers have committed to timelines that would have seemed like fantasies a year ago.

    Beyond Big Pharma, engineers are throwing their energies into a host of new technologies that could make a difference in the war we’re waging now and in those to come. For example, this pandemic is the first to be fought with robots alongside humans on the front lines. In hospitals, robots are checking on patients and delivering medical supplies; elsewhere, they’re carting groceries and other goods to people in places where a trip to the store can be fraught with risk. They’re even swabbing patients for COVID-19 tests

    “This pandemic is the first to be fought with robots alongside humans on the front lines.”

    Transportation officials are also starting to deploy UV-C systems to sanitize the interiors of passenger aircraft and subway cars, and medical facilities are using them to sterilize personal protective equipment. The favored wavelength is around 254 nanometers, which destroys the virus by shredding its RNA. The problem is, such UV-C light can also damage human tissues and DNA. So, as Mark Anderson reports in “The Ultraviolet Offense,” researchers are readying a new generation of so-called far-UV sterilizers that use light at 222 nm, which is supposedly less harmful to human beings.

    When compared with successful responses in Korea, Singapore, and other Asian countries, two notable failures in the United States become clear: testing and contact tracing. For too long, testing was too scarce and too inaccurate in the United States.

    Digital contact tracing, too, could be an enormously powerful weapon, as Jeremy Hsu reports in “The Dilemma of Contact-Tracing Apps.” But it’s a tricky one to deploy.

    It has been 102 years since the ­Spanish flu taught us just how bad a global pandemic can be. But almost nobody expects that long of an interval until the next big one. Nearly all major infectious outbreaks today are caused by “zoonotic transfer,” when a pathogen jumps from an animal to human beings. And a variety of unrelated factors, including the loss of natural habitats due to deforestation and the rapid growth of livestock farming to feed industrializing economies, is stressing animal populations and putting them into more frequent contact with people.

    Reply
34. October 1, 2020 at 4:51 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Rethinking Covid-19 Test Sensitivity — A Strategy for Containment
    https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2025631?source=nejmfacebook&medium=organic-social

    It’s time to change how we think about the sensitivity of testing for Covid-19. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the scientific community are currently almost exclusively focused on test sensitivity, a measure of how well an individual assay can detect viral protein or RNA molecules. Critically, this measure neglects the context of how the test is being used. Yet when it comes to the broad screening the United States so desperately needs, context is fundamental. The key question is not how well molecules can be detected in a single sample but how effectively infections can be detected in a population by the repeated use of a given test as part of an overall testing strategy — the sensitivity of the testing regimen.

    Reply
35. October 1, 2020 at 10:03 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    This Overlooked Variable Is the Key to the Pandemic
    https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/09/k-overlooked-variable-driving-pandemic/616548/?utm_medium=tr_social&utm_campaign=site_visitor.unpaid.engagement&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1601571370

    There’s something strange about this coronavirus pandemic. Even after months of extensive research by the global scientific community, many questions remain open.

    Reply
36. October 2, 2020 at 4:33 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Researchers have created a respiratory moisture sensor fast enough to keep up with people’s breathing, which could lead to better masks and other personal protective equipment in the fight against Covid-19

    Tracking Respiratory Droplets on The Fly
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/new-sensors-detect-respiratory-droplets-escaping-through-masks

    Covid-19 spreads via droplets expelled from an infected person’s lungs, so determining how the release of moisture is affected by different masks is an important step towards better protective gear. Now, using a new technique in 3D printing, University of Cambridge researchers have created tiny, freestanding, conducting fibers they claim can detect respiratory moisture more effectively than anything currently on the market.

    The researchers demonstrated the fiber sensors by testing the amount of breath moisture that leaks through face coverings. They attached their fiber array to the outside of the mask, wired it to a computer, and found that it outperformed conventional planer chip-based commercial sensors, particularly when monitoring rapid breathing. (A paper describing the invention was published today in the journal Science Advances.)

    Dubbed “inflight fiber printing,” the technique enables the researchers to print the fibers and hook them into a monitoring circuit, all in one step.

    In their demonstration, the researchers found that respiratory moisture and droplets tended to leak out of fabric masks through the front, while N95 masks tended to leak around the edges of the mask, the researchers found. This kind of knowledge may be useful in informing or designing face coverings for use during the pandemic or in hospitals.

    Reply
37. October 3, 2020 at 11:22 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    If we keep developing the tech that has been supercharged for COVID19, it never has to be this bad again.

    https://spectrum.ieee.org/static/the-next-pandemic

    Reply
38. October 3, 2020 at 7:53 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/more-evidence-that-your-blood-type-affects-your-risk-of-covid19/

    Reply
39. October 3, 2020 at 7:57 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    This Giant Automatic Hand Sanitizer Dispenser Is Insane. Nose Boi!
    https://www.hackster.io/news/this-giant-automatic-hand-sanitizer-dispenser-is-insane-nose-boi-831b9d21b562

    Nose Boi is the gigantic, nose-shaped automatic hand sanitizer dispenser that you never knew you needed.

    Reply
40. October 4, 2020 at 2:38 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Users answer 13 questions about their symptoms and health condition and the app identifies the severity of the symptoms and whether they should get tested.

    Do You Think You Have COVID-19 Symptoms? Find Out with This App
    https://spectrum.ieee.org/news-from-around-ieee/the-institute/ieee-news/do-you-think-you-have-covid19-symptoms-find-out-with-this-app

    Symptoms of COVID-19 can vary from mild to severe and often overlap with other illnesses, which makes it difficult to diagnose people without a test. However, it has been difficult for testing sites to keep up with the demand, and they can quickly get overcrowded.

    Several students interested in engineering as well as experienced engineers have developed tools to help prevent overcrowding at testing sites.

    Reply
41. October 5, 2020 at 8:07 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Bill Gates lays out a three-point plan to rid the world of COVID-19 – and anti-vaxxer cranks aren’t gonna like it
    Aunty Mabel on Facebook thinks he is a Bond baddie (spoiler: he’s not)
    https://www.theregister.com/2020/09/30/bill_gates_coronavirus_vaccine/

    Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates stuck an oar into tinfoil-hat-infested waters once again today with a pretty reasonable plan to deal with the ongoing global pandemic.

    In an opinion piece for Tortoise Media, His Billness laid out a three-part plan for eliminating the grim threat of coronavirus and, unsurprisingly, it all hinges on those pesky vaccines.

    Gates reckoned that likely more than one vaccine will be available by the early part of next year, but dealing with the pandemic would first require the capacity to make enough of the stuff, and then ensure a global reach for dosages.

    “Right now,” he said, “most of the world’s supply of COVID-19 vaccines is slated to go to rich countries.” Those countries at the other end of the scale are not so lucky: “As things stand now, these countries will be able to cover, at most, 14 per cent of their people.”

    “New modeling from Northeastern University helps illustrate what will happen if vaccine distribution is so unequal. The researchers there analyzed two scenarios. In one, vaccines are given to countries based on their population size. Then there’s another scenario that approximates what’s happening now: 50 rich countries get the first 2 billion doses of vaccine. In this scenario, the virus continues to spread unchecked for four months in three quarters of the world. And almost twice as many people die.”

    “This would be a huge moral failing. A vaccine can make Covid-19 a preventable disease, and no one should die from a preventable disease simply because the country they live in can’t afford to secure a manufacturing deal,” he added.

    opinion
    How to eliminate Covid-19
    A three-part plan
    https://members.tortoisemedia.com/2020/09/30/gates-on-covid/content.html

    Reply
42. October 5, 2020 at 9:04 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Kif Leswing / CNBC:
    Ten US states, including NY and NJ, that account for ~21% of the US population have released a COVID-19 contact tracing app based on Apple and Google’s API — – New York and New Jersey both released Covid-19 apps this week, bringing the total to 10 states which have published alert apps using technology …

    States are finally starting to use the Covid-tracking tech Apple and Google built — here’s why
    https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/03/covid-app-exposure-notification-apple-google.html

    New York and New Jersey both released Covid-19 apps this week, bringing the total to 10 states that have published alert apps using technology from the Apple-Google partnership.
    Covid apps are starting to catch on six months after the system was first announced because it is becoming faster and easier for governments to build the apps.
    New York and New Jersey’s apps also work across some state lines, addressing a major issue with the early versions.

    Reply
43. October 5, 2020 at 10:04 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    An alpaca nanobody neutralizes SARS-CoV-2 by blocking receptor interaction
    https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-18174-5

    SARS-CoV-2 enters host cells through an interaction between the spike glycoprotein and the angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. Directly preventing this interaction presents an attractive possibility for suppressing SARS-CoV-2 replication. Here, we report the isolation and characterization of an alpaca-derived single domain antibody fragment, Ty1, that specifically targets the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike, directly preventing ACE2 engagement.

    Ty1 neutralizes SARS-CoV-2 spike pseudovirus as a 12.8 kDa nanobody, which can be expressed in high quantities in bacteria, presenting opportunities for manufacturing at scale. Ty1 is therefore an excellent candidate as an intervention against COVID-19.

    Camelid-derived single domain antibody fragments, also called VHHs or nanobodies, offer several advantages over conventional antibodies as candidates for specific therapies. Despite being approximately one-tenth of the size of a conventional antibody, they retain specificity and affinity similar to conventional antibodies, while being far easier to clone, express, and manipulate. They are readily expressed in bacteria in large quantities and show high thermal stability and solubility, making them easily scalable and cost effective.

    We immunized one alpaca with SARS-CoV-2 S1-Fc and RBD on a 60-day immunization schedule.

    Reply
44. October 5, 2020 at 7:36 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    UK’s test and trace system relies on Excel. And ran out of columns….or rows…depending on which news report you read.

    Covid: Test error ‘should never have happened’ – Hancock
    https://bbc.in/3cYijkn

    The health secretary has said a technical glitch that saw nearly 16,000 Covid-19 cases go unreported in England “should never have happened”.

    The error meant that although those who tested positive were told about their results, their close contacts were not traced.

    Labour said the missing results were “putting lives at risk”.

    The technical error was caused by some Microsoft Excel data files exceeding the maximum size after they were sent from NHS Test and Trace to Public Health England.

    The BBC has confirmed the missing Covid-19 test data was caused by the ill-thought-out use of Microsoft’s Excel software. Furthermore, PHE was to blame, rather than a third-party contractor.

    Reply
45. October 6, 2020 at 10:46 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    This LED Face Mask Is Capable of Showing Short Messages and Animations
    https://www.hackster.io/news/this-led-face-mask-is-capable-of-showing-short-messages-and-animations-61161033e4f6

    Tired of wearing boring face masks to the club? Austin Nelson’s LED face mask project adds a bit of flair to your pandemic facewear.

    Reply
46. October 6, 2020 at 1:11 pm

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    // Missing Covid-19 test data was caused by the ill-thought-out use of Microsoft Excel https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-54422505

    Reply
47. October 7, 2020 at 6:11 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Excel Hell: It’s not just blame for pandemic pandemonium being spread between the sheets
    Some things simply don’t belong in regulatory environments
    https://www.theregister.com/2020/10/06/excel/

    Column The howls of disbelieving, horrified laughter caused by the news of the latest pandemic data cock-up yesterday were well deserved.

    16,000 cases lost – purportedly in a blunder involving CSV data, row limits, and an out-of-date Excel file format? In a multibillion-pound, “world-beating” contact-tracing system? Unnoticed for a week of rising infection? In a system known to be broken for months but still not fixed?

    Ridicule and despair, those shagged-out nags of our Johnsonian apocalypse, once again trudged exhaustedly across the plaguelands of England.

    But the true horror is rooted much deeper and the underlying sins stretch much wider than Number 10. Of that sad catalogue of fail, one item which was widely blamed for the chaos deserves our very finest scorn. One alleged piece of the jagged little jigsaw is a global pandemic all its own, poisoning our data and sickening our businesses for 35 years. In five years’ time, with some luck and much work, vaccines and social changes will see COVID-19 demoted to flu status, yet Excel will be with us still.

    It is an execrable design, from any angle. It has forced generations of untrained business people to operate without help on their data through a letterbox using Lego bricks as scalpels. It knows not any modern data techniques – of structure, robustness, verification, documentation, modularity, versioning, variable typing, variable naming, bound labels. How the Hell is anyone supposed to build and use and communicate and maintain any sort of model where you have to build it cell by cell, with tricksy little links and kiddy algebraic naming conventions?

    It is a sixth-form programming project grown to the size of Godzilla.

    If you mention VBA, I shall scream.

    If you mention security, I shall scream louder.

    For this, I blame Microsoft. People have to use Excel because it is the only data manipulation tool in Office, and Office is the only game in town. And because of this, Microsoft hasn’t done an innovation worth a damn in personal data management for the common business user in decades.

    The result is an unending history of misery, at a corporate and a personal level, because Microsoft doesn’t care. It’s got your money, you’ve got to use its software, off you go.

    If there were health and safety rules for software, Excel would be up there with radium cigarettes and arsenic gobstoppers.

    In fact, where there are rules – such as in some medical regulatory environments – you can’t just use Excel. You have to certify your particular application.

    People and data do not mix well, but in the sacred names of Turing, Shannon, and Lovelace, we deserve a better answer than Excel.

    Use spreadsheets for their intended purpose

    For your edification, I present this list – 44 pages long – of spreadsheet horror stories, of data entry, calculating, modelling, and analytic chaos that has cost hundreds of millions of pounds and put endeavour of all sorts at risk.

    I say spreadsheets, because all are bad, but I mean Excel, because that’s the only one that matters. That’s the compulsory one. The compatibility enforcer, the one that sets the rules. The one that misrules.

    http://www.eusprig.org/horror-stories.htm

    Reply
48. October 7, 2020 at 6:25 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    Masks Under the Microscope
    https://www.eetimes.com/masks-under-the-microscope/

    Like so many aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a range of opinions regarding the efficacy of masks for reducing the spread of the disease. In fact, masks have become a highly divisive issue with little middle ground on when and where wearing a mask can help put an end to the pandemic. We won’t touch that debate, but we hope to offer some evidence based on standard construction analysis techniques employed in our day jobs as semiconductor failure analysts.

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the use of cloth masks while requesting that masks intended for healthcare are not used by the general public. There is a consensus among the CDC and other health organizations that cloth material is an effective filter, although these same authorities discourage the use of gaiter type masks due to problems obtaining a seal against the face.

    Much of the benefit of mask use is related to just that — use. However, if we consider perfect deployment as the baseline, mask efficacy depends upon the mask design, materials, assembly, and manufacturing quality control. Our analysis focuses on these.

    Reply
49. October 7, 2020 at 6:25 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    How to Select, Wear, and Clean Your Mask
    https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/about-face-coverings.html

    Reply
50. October 7, 2020 at 7:24 am

    Tomi Engdahl says:

    HS: Tutkijat löysivät Ruotsissa vasta-aineen, joka pysäytti koronaviruksen
    https://www.iltalehti.fi/koronavirus/a/679fee29-a4ed-4f07-80d4-b3bdedb50c03

    Karoliinisen instituutin tutkijat ovat löytäneet alpakasta vasta-aineen, joka pysäytti koronaviruksen. Nyt tutkijat pyrkivät kehittämään vasta-aineesta lääkettä covid-19-tautiin, kertoo Helsingin Sanomat.

    Tutkijat tutkivat ja jatkokehittivät alpakan kehittämiä vasta-aineita ja onnistuivat tunnistamaan tietynlaisen vasta-aineen, joka esti koronaviruksen leviämisen.

    Reply