Tuesday, September 8, 2020
It’s beginning to look better for the U.S. with the Coronavirus as cases in America have fallen to their lowest level since June 22. President Trump and governors in some states continued to urge people to remain vigilant to avoid the jumps in transmission that have followed some previous holidays.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said on Twitter Sunday that the state’s hospitalization rates are down, but warned one weekend could change that. “Seriously—don’t go to a big party. Wear a mask. BE SMART. I know we’re tired of #COVID19 but literal lives are at stake,” he wrote.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Twitter urged Georgians to wear a mask, practice social distancing and wash their hands. Earlier, Mr. Kemp had warned about the consequences of social gatherings during past long weekends. “When you look at the charts, it’s abundantly clear that cases have spiked and hospitalizations have risen and deaths have increased after our holiday weekends,” he said on Friday.
The return to campuses in colleges across the country have raised many infection risks that had improved significantly since outbreaks in the spring. A late August University of New Hampshire fraternity party attended by more than 100 people has been connected to at least 11 Covid-19 cases.
The U.S. reported more than 31,000 cases for Sunday, down from 44,000 on Saturday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The seven-day moving average for new daily cases in the U.S. sank to the lowest level since June 29, this past week, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.
Many schools have made similar decisions, including James Madison University, North Carolina State University, Colorado College and the State University of New York. Public-health officials worry that dispatching students to their hometowns, often without testing them before departure, could lead to new outbreaks around the country. We’ll see what happens after this Labor Day Weekend with students and schools.
“Shipping the problem back to the community, where they can further spread, just doesn’t seem like the right answer,” said A. David Paltiel, a professor at the Yale School of Public Health. “Just because a kid is asymptomatic doesn’t mean it’s safe to send that kid home. They could be exposed and incubating. They could be in fact a ticking time bomb.”
Paltiel said the viral load rises steeply in the few days following exposure, and someone infected can transmit the virus to others starting around day three after exposure—before symptoms may present, if they ever present.
Vice President Mike Pence urged governors in a recent call to discuss isolation efforts with their university leaders.
“Even where you have test positivity on campuses, we want to encourage universities to have students remain on or near campus and minimize the potential exposure to the wider community,” he said over the weekend.
As an example, at Chico State, more than 90% of classes were already online, and the school had just about 750 students in residence halls. Another 8,000 to 10,000 are living near campus. The school didn’t test students on arrival, and testing of potentially symptomatic individuals has been led by local health officials.
By Aug. 30, there were nearly 30 cases on campus, with additional exposures “that could have an exponential and devastating effect on campus,” President Gayle Hutchinson wrote to the school community, announcing plans to reduce campus housing significantly. The school isn’t sending home students who are currently in quarantine. More than 135 will stay in university housing because of hardships, and the school has worked with about 100 others to relocate to off-campus housing nearby. As of Thursday, Chico State had reported 102 cumulative cases since the beginning of August.
As we get closer to election day both presidential campaigns are seeking to focus voters on an economic rebound and public safety. Democrat Joe Biden is redoubling efforts to make the election a referendum on the president’s performance on the coronavirus pandemic and the economy.
With the start of early voting in some states this month, Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden are fighting for control of a battleground map stretching across a dozen states against the backdrop of a pandemic that has upended traditional campaigning.
Mr. Biden threatens to make Mr. Trump the first president to lose re-election in nearly 30 years. A series of polls released since their late August nominating conventions show Mr. Biden maintaining a lead nationally and in key states, though Mr. Trump is within striking distance in some surveys and his campaign insists internal data show a closer race.
Much could hinge on whether Mr. Biden can keep the focus on Mr. Trump’s handling of the pandemic, as he argues that the president’s response has cost American lives and damaged the economy.
Mr. Trump is countering with suggestions that life under a President Biden would lead to economic distress, as well as chaos in the streets because he is siding with protesters and insufficiently tough on lawbreaking.
Friday’s jobs report showed that the economy is strengthening and added a record 1.4 million jobs. The normal is !75,00-250,000 jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 8.4%.
Their candidates’ dueling messages are playing out before a fractured nation contending with a pandemic that has claimed more than 185,000 lives and a debate over racial justice that has spurred widespread peaceful protests and some violent clashes.
Back at the Capitol Building the House and Senate are returning to Washington D.C. after their long summer break and are hoping to revive long-stalled negotiations over additional coronavirus relief with less than two months until the election.
Republicans say it’s needed for Americans now, while Democrats have no intention of passing anything that will help President Trump. But if they can’t reach an agreement on Covid-19 aid in coming weeks, they at least plan to avoid a government shutdown.
With no American relief deal on the horizon, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin agreed last week to pursue a short-term spending bill without any controversial policy measures. The government’s current funding expires at 12:01 a.m. on Oct. 1.
“The speaker and I have agreed, we don’t want to see a government shutdown. So we’ve agreed that we are going to do a clean CR,” Mr. Mnuchin said on Sunday, referring to a continuing resolution, or short-term spending bill. He said they would do this separately from the Covid-19 aid negotiations.
That agreement means that bogged-down negotiations over another relief package likely won’t derail routine government funding and spark a shutdown, which would deliver another blow to the economy if some government workers are furloughed and federal contracting projects are stalled. However, if lawmakers can reach an agreement with the administration over coronavirus aid, that could still get attached to the spending bill, aides said.
Both congressional leaders and White House officials have sounded increasingly pessimistic notes about the chances of a relief deal coming together in the weeks before the election, when mounting political pressure makes it hardest to compromise. Talks between the White House and Democrats broke down last month.
Democrats and Republicans have clashed over what level to restore the weekly $600 in federal unemployment benefits that expired in late July; how much aid should go to state and local governments; and how money for schools should be allotted; among other issues.
The Senate reconvenes on Tuesday, while the House is set to return the next week.
A search by U.S. authorities for Chinese researchers with ties to China’s military is leading to intensifying cat-and-mouse tactics involving what prosecutors say are foiled escapes, evidence tossed into a dumpster and a chase through an airport. The trust of China by the Trump administration and the state department is growing by the month.
FBI agents have questioned dozens of researchers this summer about their work and military affiliations. In recent weeks, the widening operation has triggered efforts by some suspects to evade authorities and led to the arrest of at least two researchers whose work is allegedly tied to China’s military development, according to court filings by prosecutors.
In one case, a researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles studying artificial intelligence is accused by federal prosecutors of destroying evidence sought by the FBI in an investigation into potential technology theft. The researcher, Guan Lei, threw a damaged computer hard drive in a dumpster days after he was stopped from leaving the U.S. at Los Angeles International Airport, prosecutors allege.
In another, a scientist researching fluid dynamics at the University of Virginia is charged with stealing proprietary software code under development for two decades by his adviser, who received U.S. Navy funding. The adviser told investigators that Hu Haizhou, whom U.S. authorities prevented from boarding a flight in Chicago last month, hadn’t informed him he planned to return to China, prosecutors allege in filings in his case.
The FBI sweep launched in June factored into the U.S. decision to close China’s consulate in Houston, after authorities suspected that Chinese diplomats were assisting some of the scholars with evading investigators.
The U.S. and China are competing to develop supercomputers, which have broad uses from climate modeling to nuclear weapons development.
WAS IT THE WORST SUMMER EVER?
Labor Day has come and gone — which mean’s summer’s over. It was the worst, right? Maybe not. It may not have been the best summer on record — between COVID-19, natural disasters, hardly any sports, social distancing, and a presidential election — but for most Americans, it actually wasn’t the “worst summer ever.”
Just 16 percent of Americans describe their summer as a good one, while two-thirds either call 2020 a bad summer (41%) or the worst ever (26%). So, yeah, 67 percent of us don’t see Summer 2020 in the most favorable sunlight, but a third of us think it was at least OK or good.
THE MOST POPULAR LIQUOR IN EACH STATE
Are you a Jack Daniels fan? Maybe you prefer Jim Beam? Or is gin your poison of choice? When it comes to hard alcohol, each drinker has their own brand they swear by. And while you can debate with your buddies ad nauseam over which label is better, there is no denying the general consensus of the population. Like beer, each state has its preferred liquor of choice.
… To determine the most popular liquor, you could get an accurate count by taking a poll at all the bars in every state — but that would take forever. Luckily, if there is one thing social drinkers love as much as their brand of choice, it’s social media. Analyzing the data of 700,000 users, the social app BARTENDr took a look at posts and photos to decipher what drinkers prefer on a regional scale.
… All you whiskey drinkers out there will be happy to know that across the board a whopping 42 states prefer to drink the dark brown liquor. Of all the brands, Jack Daniels and Fireball cinnamon whisky have the most presence regionally, with mainly good Old No. 7 reigning supreme in the South around Georgia and Florida, and Fireball warming up drinkers and liquor stores in the Northeast. Only a few states went for Irish whiskey with Jameson.
… A few states set the whiskey aside for alternative brands. Grey Goose vodka, for instance, has a strong presence in Virginia, while Washington can’t get enough Patron tequila.
YOU SHOULD RUB AN ITCH INSTEAD OF SCRATCHING IT
When you have an itch you scratch it — right? Researchers say rubbing an itch instead of scratching it can ease the irritation more quickly as it activates a soothing pathway from the spinal cord. Scientists (University of Miami Miller School of Medicine) investigated the neural pathways behind forms of “itch relief” including rubbing and scratching. The researchers say people should stop scratching and start rubbing skin in order to activate an anti-itch ‘pathway’ in the spinal cord that calms the irritating sensation.
STOP SINGING HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Sorry friends, but we’re no longer allowed to sing the Happy Birthday song. A study warns singing Happy Birthday could spread COVID-19 because the enunciation of Bs and Ps releases large droplets — which may be infectious.
… This was a real study, too, done by researchers from Sweden. They had professional singers perform different songs and used high speed cameras to measure the spread of mouth droplets — aka spit. As you can imagine, songs with a lot of consonants — particularly B and P — pose the greatest threat.
… The good news: If singers wear face masks while performing the worst risks can be mitigated.
DO YOU REALLY HAVE TO WASH YOUR MASK AFTER EVERY USE?
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks have become a necessity, like keys or your wallet — you can’t leave home without them. For the reusable cloth masks popular with so many people, that means a lot of laundry. But there’s one question that dogs mask-wearers: Do you really have to wash them after every use? The answer is yes.
… Dr. Ravina Kullar, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist, suggests we wash our mask every day. Kullar points out that the purpose of the mask is to prevent the virus from spreading, so if there are virus particles on yours, wearing an unwashed mask is counterproductive.
… Cloth masks can be washed by hand or in a washing machine. Surgical masks, another popular option, cannot be washed and should be discarded after one use.
GENDER REVEAL PARTY SPARKED NEW CALIFORNIA WILDFIRE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA NEAR RIVERSIDE.
A smoke generating pyrotechnic device used at a gender reveal party was the source of a wildfire in El Dorado, California, that has spread to over 7,000 acres. The fire began at 10:23AM Saturday in the El Dorado Ranch Park in Yucaipa, spreading to the north. California is fighting more than ten major fires around the state with more acres lost this year than ever.
LITTLE DEBBIE AND KELLOGG’S LAUNCH OATMEAL PIE BREAKFAST CEREAL
Here’s another excuse to eat dessert for breakfast. Little Debbie’s beloved Oatmeal Creme Pies are being reimagined as a breakfast cereal with Kellogg’s. To celebrate the iconic snack brand’s Oatmeal Creme Pie treats turning 60, the cereal brand is turning the dessert into breakfast sweets described as “crispy oatmeal puffs with a creme coating.”
AFTER VICTORY, COLLEGE KIDS WEAR MORE SCHOOL-THEMED CLOTHES
This one goes into our Book of the Overly Obvious. A professor of psychology says there’s nothing like a sports blowout to make a college student put on his school colors. A professor of psychology at Arizona State University conducted research at seven major universities and found college students were “significantly more likely” to wear school-themed apparel after a victory.
NEW HAMPSHIRE GIRL SWIMS ACROSS ENGLISH CHANNEL
What did your kid do with all their free time over the summer? A 16-year-old from New Hampshire practiced swimming long distances. 16-year-old Vera Rivard (of Springfield, New Hampshire) successfully swam across the English Channel Tuesday, completing a 33-mile swim she called an “adventure.” The swim took her more than 14 hours, and she is the second American to cross the channel this year. A support boat accompanied Rivard across the channel.
… Rivard’s mother wrote on Facebook: “As she leaves the beach in England for her English Channel attempt, I will be the proudest parent ever! Not if she finishes, not how fast she swims, but that she was brave enough to start.”
… Rivard’s swim cost her family around $15,000, about a third of which was covered by donations and sponsorships. The trip included a two-week quarantine in Dover.
SOME ADULTS SAY THEY’RE ‘TOO BUSY’ TO DRINK MORE WATER _ A new survey (by water company Evian) finds a little over one in ten adults is “too busy” to drink more water. Interestingly, 15 percent of adults actually track their water intake with an app, and 10 percent track it with pen an paper?
PEOPLE OBEYED STAY-AT-HOME ORDERS, CDC CELLPHONE DATA SHOWS _ Stay-at-home orders issued across the United States in the spring appeared to work at keeping people home. The CDC shared that new cellphone data shows that in 97.6 percent of counties with mandatory stay-at-home orders issued by states or territories, these orders were associated with decreased population movement after the order start date. The researchers also found that in areas where orders were lifted or expired, movement “significantly increased” immediately afterward.
FARMER PLANTS OVER 2 MILLION SUNFLOWERS, INVITES VISITORS TO TAKE A DOZEN HOME
Scott Thompson’s family has been running the Thompson Strawberry Farm in Bristol, Wisconsin, for more than 70 years — but this is the first year that flowers are in the spotlight. The pick-your-own farm usually consists of strawberries, rasberries, and pumpkins. This year the family said they wanted to give locals a place to go and spread a little happiness. So they planted sunflowers. The 22 acres makes for over 2 million blooms of sunflowers. And anyone is invited to visit and take a dozen home.
… Thompson said the sunflowers will now be a regular thing at the farm, even without a pandemic.
TACO BELL IS DROPPING THE THE MEXICAN PIZZA
Earlier this month, Taco Bell discontinued several popular items — including the Nachos Supreme, Spicy Potato Soft Taco, Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes, Spicy Tostada and the 7-Layer Burrito. On Thursday, the fast-food chain announced starting on November 5 they are also going to remove the Mexican Pizza, and all items with shredded chicken. Fans of the Mexican pizza have taken to social media to voice their displeasure about the Mexican Pizza going away.
THIEF STOLE STEALING NEARLY $300K WORTH OF PISTACHIOS
There’s probably a lot of high-fiving going on in the Agricultural Crimes Unit of the Tulare County, California near Fresno, Sheriff’s Office, after some of its detectives busted what they described as an “elaborate scheme” involving the theft of almost $300,000 worth of pistachios and a pair of stolen tractor-trailers. According to a Facebook post from the Sheriff’s Office, its detectives were called to Setton Pistachio, where employees reported a significant theft of its packaged nuts. The Setton workers said that someone had used the name of a real trucking company to get the go-ahead to pick up two tractor-trailers’ worth of pistachios from the company. But instead of fulfilling the delivery order, the pseudo-drivers took all $294,000 worth of nuts to an abandoned property, shook all of the pistachios out of the packages, and then sold them to an unsuspecting individual. The nut thieves were eventually located because the semi-truck and the two trailers they’d swiped had real-time GPS.
MAN GOES VIRAL WITH RANT ABOUT BONELESS CHICKEN WINGS _ Ander Christensen went before Monday’s Lincoln, Nebraska, City Council to tell them — and the world — that we’ve “been living a lie to long.” Ander, the son of one Lincoln’s City Council members, told the council: “I propose that we as a city remove the name boneless wings from our menus and from our hearts.” Ander said the food called boneless chicken wings don’t actually come from the wing of a chicken: “We’ve been living a lie for far too long.” There was no indication the City Council would take up the suggestion to rename boneless chicken wings. • VIDEO
BATTERY-FREE GAME BOY RUNS FOREVER
A hand-held video game console allowing indefinite gameplay might be a parent’s worst nightmare. But a new version of Game Boy is not just a toy. It’s a powerful proof-of-concept, developed by researchers at Northwestern University and the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in the Netherlands, that pushes the boundaries of battery-free computing. Instead of batteries, the special Game Boy harvests energy from the sun — and the user. The researchers say it’s the first battery-free interactive device that “harvests energy from user actions. When you press a button, the device converts that energy into something that powers your gaming.”
2020 CALENDAR UPDATE from BASINLIFE.com
- September 9-12: CANvention, for beer can collectors, in St. Louis
- September 10: 2020 NFL regular season begins
- September 11: 19th anniversary of the September 11 attacks
- September 13: Tom Brady’s first game as a Buccaneer
- September 14: Boston Marathon
- September 19: International Talk Like a Pirate Day
- September 19: Batman Day
- September 20: Emmy Awards (ABC)
- September 22: Fall begins (9:31AM EDT)
- September 26: Farm Aid (virtual)
- September 29: First presidential debate
- September 30: World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest
- October 3: Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta begins
- October 3: Preakness Stakes
- October 4: National Taco Day
- October 10: Today is 10-10-20-20
- October 15: Second presidential debate
- October 19: The Voice (Season 19) returns
- October 20: Major League Baseball World Series begins
- October 22: Third and final presidential debate
- October 30: The Mandalorian Season 2
- October 31: Halloween (Saturday)
- November 1: Daylight Saving Time ends. Move clocks back one hour.
- November 1: New York City Marathon
- November 3: Election Day
- November 9: Masters golf tournament begins
- November 11: Veterans Day
- November 11: CMA Awards (ABC)
- November 26: Thanksgiving
- December 4: Mulan available on Disney+
- December 21: Winter begins (5:02AM EST)
- December 25: Christmas (Friday)
- January 20: Inauguration Day
- February 2, 2022: It’s 2-2-22 and a 2sday
- February 7: Super Bowl 55