Glycyrrhizin, an Active Component of Liquorice Roots, and Replication of SARS-Associated Coronavirus
February 11th, 2020Via: The Lancet:
The outbreak of SARS warrants the search for antiviral compounds to treat the disease. At present, no specific treatment has been identified for SARS-associated coronavirus infection. We assessed the antiviral potential of ribavirin, 6-azauridine, pyrazofurin, mycophenolic acid, and glycyrrhizin against two clinical isolates of coronavirus (FFM-1 and FFM-2) from patients with SARS admitted to the clinical centre of Frankfurt University, Germany. Of all the compounds, glycyrrhizin was the most active in inhibiting replication of the SARS-associated virus. Our findings suggest that glycyrrhizin should be assessed for treatment of SARS.
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The figure shows the effect of glycyrrhizin on replication of SARS-CV in Vero cells. We detected replication of SARS-CV with serum samples from patients with SARS. Expression of viral antigens was much lower in cultures treated with 1000 mg/L of glycyrrhizin than in any other culture; high concentrations of glycyrrhizin (4000 mg/L) completely blocked replication of the virus (figure).
Nissan Halts Japanese Plant Over Coronavirus Issue
February 11th, 2020It’s astonishing to see very major cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen mostly shut down.
What will be the economic cost of this situation to China, and the world?
I haven’t seen much information yet about the implications to global supply chains, but there was this piece from Forbes, Coronavirus Hits Electronics Manufacturing Hard, Companies Are Scrambling:
Supply chains are complex, and after decades of lean manufacturing, it’s no longer common for factories to store weeks of parts inventory to feed their assembly lines. Keith shared, “We are already seeing the ramifications of the delay in factories restarting, as Hyundai recently announced it is idling a production facility in Korea for lack of components from factories in China. This same situation is likely to play out thousands of times in dozens of countries over the next 60 days as existing component inventories are depleted and Chinese factories are delayed in their ability to replenish them.”
I’ve already felt the effects in a small way. I had an Asus motherboard fail on me back in December of last year. It was under warranty, so I sent it in for repair. I was initially given an ETA of three weeks, so third week of January. I didn’t get it back and now they’re saying two or three weeks more. Needless to say, I’m not holding my breath.
Via: Cnet:
Nissan will reportedly suspend auto production at a Kyushu plant owing to parts shortages stemming from the coronavirus outbreak. The company is the first automaker in Japan to reveal such a temporary stoppage at one of its domestic plants owing to the global health crisis.
More: Coronavirus: The economic cost is rising in China and beyond
Alleged Wuhan Funeral Home Staffer Tricked Into Speaking Candidly
February 10th, 2020The source is New Tang Dynasty Television, which is Falun Gong. We need to treat Falun Gong sources (Epoch Times is another one) as we would treat state sponsored propaganda outlets such as Voice of America, Russia Today and PressTV.
I’m not saying that these sources can’t be useful, but we need to be aware of what they are.
Additionally, if the situation below actually happened, the person on the phone, that NTD tricked into speaking candidly, has probably been disappeared by the Chinese government. In other words, that person is probably dead because of this.
With a total lack of independently verifiable facts, we’re left having to try to piece together what’s happening with sources like… this.
Nobody said it was going to be easy.
Via: NTD:
109 U.S. Troops Diagnosed with Brain Injuries from Iran Attack
February 10th, 2020Via: Reuters:
The U.S. military on Monday disclosed a more than 50% jump in cases of traumatic brain injury stemming from Iran’s missile attack on a base in Iraq last month, with the number of service members diagnosed climbing to over 100.
BEIJING: “RESIDENTIAL LOCKDOWN”
February 10th, 2020Update: Shenzhen Now In Partial Lockdown
Via: BusanKevin and Daniel Sparrow:
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Via: South China Morning Post:
China’s capital Beijing has escalated measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus by ordering residential communities and villages to limit access for outsiders, as millions of workers return to the megacity after prolonged holidays.
In a 10-point circular published on Sunday, Beijing municipal authority ordered that check points be established to examine body temperatures and only residents’ vehicles be allowed into each community. A complete lockdown could be imposed on the area if a confirmed coronavirus case was discovered.
“As our city is facing the peak period of returning population, epidemic prevention is now at a critical stage,” the circular said.
Beijing is one of China’s most at-risk cities from the coronavirus outbreak as millions are pouring in from extended Lunar New Year holidays. On Monday alone, some 600,000 were expected to arrive in the city by train and another 140,000 by air, according to government estimates, posing a serious challenge to authorities.
Related: Shanghai, Chongqing Also Locked Down as Wuhan Virus Spreads
CORONAVIRUS IS AIRBORNE
February 9th, 2020Via: China Daily:
Confirmed transmission routes of the novel coronavirus include direct transmission, contact transmission and aerosol transmission, a Shanghai official said on Saturday.
“Aerosol transmission refers to the mixing of the virus with droplets in the air to form aerosols, which causes infection after inhalation, according to medical experts,” said Zeng Qun, deputy head of the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau.
“As such, we have called on the public to raise their awareness of the prevention and control of the disease caused by family gatherings,” said Zeng during at a daily media briefing by the municipal government regarding efforts to contain the spread of the virus.
Experts explained that direct transmission refers to infection caused by inhalation of air close to a patient who sneezes and coughs, while contact transmission occurs when a person touches an object tainted with droplets containing the virus before infecting himself through subsequent contact with the membranes of his mouth, nose and eyes.
Related: Francis Boyle: Wuhan Coronavirus is an Offensive Biological Warfare Weapon
Swipetarded: Online Preschool
February 9th, 2020Via: Concord Monitor:
We read with concern David Brooks’s Jan. 28 article about the New Hampshire Department of Education’s goal of enrolling 200 families in a pilot program for online preschool called Upstart.
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A strong body of research, accumulated over decades, demonstrates how young children learn best – through exploration, play and interactions with each other and with caring adults.
Children need to use their bodies and their senses to learn about the world. They need to move! They learn about language by engaging in conversations with responsive adults and hearing and joining in to stories, songs, rhymes and play with words. And they learn to think creatively and solve problems through experiences like playing pretend, building with blocks and making up their own games in play with other children. Play also supports the development of social and emotional skills that we now know are essential for school success, such as self-regulation, persistence, perspective-taking and attention.
In contrast, online preschool programs like Upstart focus on discrete academic skills, like recognizing letters, colors and shapes. Rather than promoting creative or divergent thinking, they focus on right or wrong answers. They don’t engage children in give-and-take interactions or conversations. Instead, they promote the false idea that learning happens when young children sit quietly in their seats, staring at a screen.
An overwhelming body of research demonstrates that young children learn through play, and that the skills they need to be successful in school are most effectively learned through hands-on play. The American Academy of Pediatrics, in its research-based Policy Statement on Media and Young Minds (2016), states that, “Higher-order thinking skills and executive functions essential for school success, such as task persistence, impulse control, emotion regulation and creative, flexible thinking, are best taught through unstructured and social (not digital) play.”
Pompeo Discusses Chinese Government Influence in the U.S. at the National Governors Association
February 9th, 2020Via: Fox:
What Happens To All The Old Wind Turbines?
February 8th, 2020Via: BBC:
Between last September and this March, it will become the final resting place for 1,000 fibreglass turbine blades.
These blades, which have reached the end of their 25-year working lives, come from three wind farms in the north-western US state. Each is about 90m (300ft) long, and will be cut into three, then the pieces will be stacked and buried.
Turbines from the first great 1990s wave of wind power are reaching the end of their life expectancy today. About two gigawatts worth of turbines will be refitted in 2019 and 2020. And disposing of them in an environmentally-friendly way is a growing problem.
Burying them doesn’t sound very green. Can they not be recycled?
Shenzhen: Foxconn Factory Workers Told to Stay Home
February 8th, 2020Via: Bloomberg:
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. told employees at its Shenzhen facility not to return to work when the extended Lunar New Year break ends Feb. 10, according to a memo obtained by Bloomberg News.
The moratorium represents an extreme effort by Apple Inc.’s most important partner to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus that’s paralyzed much of China’s manufacturing. Foxconn’s main iPhone-making base is farther north in Zhengzhou but coastal Shenzhen serves as its Chinese headquarters and the majority of the tens of thousands employed there are out-of-towners. The company also assembles a small portion of iPhones there.
“To safeguard everyone’s health and safety and comply with government virus prevention measures, we urge you not to return to Shenzhen,” Foxconn wrote in a text message sent to employees. “We’ll update you on the situation in the city. The company will protect everyone’s work-related rights and interests in the duration. As for the happy reunion date in Shenzhen, please wait for further notice.”
