Parademic Notes Week Ending 161127

#(161127)

1. Synthetic Biology Fiction; 2. Cultures = Different Perception; 3. MERS Outbreak; 4. Zika; 5. Darwin; 6. Valdez Oil Spill; 7. Dementia; 8. Immobile Mass Gathering; 9. Leprosy Disenfranchisement; 10. Flu News Fatigue; 11. Die Off; 12. Cuba; C⁴. CERC Corner.

-1. The Field of Synthetic Biology Runs on Speculative Fiction. Gene editing and new biological engineering techniques have allowed our minds to run wild: In the last few years, we’ve seen proposals to build jackets out of synthesized spider silk, grow human organs within pigs for transplantation, deˍextinct long dead animals, and use animal-human “hybrid organs” to prevent or treat disease. We’ve seen projects proposing leather made from humans, lab-grown, cruelty-free meat, and have begun to grapple with a future that might include both real dragons and DIY pathogens cooked up in someone’s basement. Top U.S. Intelligence Official Calls Gene Editing a WMD Threat. Can CRISPR Make Cheap, GM Based WMDs. Can the Bioweapons Convention Survive Crispr. November BWC Review Conference Tackles Major Biosecurity Developments like Gene Drives, \fs24fldinst    HYPERLINK "http://www.the-trench.org/btwc-8th-revcon-final-document/" The 8^th Review Conference of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) ended today in great disappointment. The First Patented Animal Is Still Leading the Way on Cancer Research. CRISPR: A Revolutionary Tool for Editing the Code of Life. 161023-2.1A↓.

-2. ∩ Sniffing out Cultural Differences. When two people smell the same thing, they can have remarkably different reactions, depending on their cultural background. Researchers have found that even when two cultures share the same language and many traditions, their reactions to the same smells can be different. This strong influence on such a primeval sense illustrates that the affect of culture/structure 161120-1↓ cannot be dismissed as irrelevant. People literally live in different worlds of perception despite what is shared in common – language, history, infrastructure, government. This is another basis of parademic where different age groups, employments (or lack of), geographic areas, participation in government and political process (or not), factions within these, education, economics, belief systems, gender, sex (and this is not considering ethnic differences) etc –  perceive very differently, therefore interpret very differently, and therefore behave very differently from expectations. These unexpected behaviors are then perceived, interpreted and acted upon differently. Examples include different views of vaccination, GMO, changing climate, destruction of the environment, biothreats, risk, whether help and aid is actually help and aid. The most dramatic recent example of this is http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/11/air-strike-hits-children-hospital-syria-aleppo-161118163200380.htmlrsltSyria War: Air Raid Hits Children's Hospital in Aleppo, East Aleppo’s Last Hospital Destroyed by Airstrikes, Bombs Damage Hospitals in Rebel Held Aleppo, Halting.

1. This literal leap from the sense of smell being tied to the war crime of bombing hospitals may seem ludicrous. It is. No empirical causal chain is available that links the two. That however is the point. This is not about causality but perception. The reason combatants on one side feel totally justified in destroying medical facilities with non-combatants insides and needing the services, just for the purpose of being able to weaken and then attack the opposing combatants despite the war crimes being well documented is that they perceive a different reality. International Community Ignores Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria, Terrorists Use Chemical Weapons in Syria's Aleppo: Russian Defense Ministry, Aleppo Doctor Attacks Western Media for Bias, Censorship and Lies, The ‘Aleppo Hospital’ Smokescreen: Covering up Al Qaeda Massacres in Syria, Once Again. Persisting Trend in the Breach of Medical Neutrality: A Wake Up Call to the International Community. Experts Urge United Nations to Protect Hospitals from Further Attacks. This invokes the smells of dust, explosives, fire, death, and the stench of propaganda, self serving lies, ineffectual policies and media slanting. Scents and Sensibility. Perhaps the most primal of senses, smell holds surprising sway over cognition, emotion and even other senses [Photo]. Illustration from a different application of the same idea of cultural difference means cultural difference: Advertising Gone Wrong: Issues in International Advertising.
2. As repugnant as this is to say hopefully Aleppo will fall quick back into Syrian/Russian hands so that they can benevolently allow humanitarian aid to go in and provide help to non- combatants. Undoubtedly though the definition of what is a non-combatant will differ between the victorious belligerents and those providing aid. Jordan: Winter Will Bring Even More Desperate Living Conditions for over 75,000 Syrians Stranded at the 'Berm'. How much more terrible will the conditions be in Aleppo this winter if the fighting continues. The only comparable historical event that I can think of is Stalingrad. Medicine at the Battle of Stalingrad.

            -2.1. Why We Rely on Inaccurate Information. Even when we know better, our brains often rely on inaccurate or misleading information to make future decisions. But why are we so easily influenced by false statements such as "vaccinations cause autism" or "30 million illegal immigrants live in the U.S.". Critically evaluate information right away. Consider the source. Beware of truthy falsehoods. This is another of my justifications parademic in the way it is written. Parademic will be masses of “information” filled with uncertainty (Fear of the Unknown Common to Many Anxiety Disorders), certainty in misinformation, speculation, opinion, a priori beliefs, fact, interpretations. Again the curators contention is that one has to practice with this overload before it happens, not after. [Cartoon]

            -2.2. Speaking of smells, thing includes changing behavior to more sanitary behavior. This "Perfume" for Toilets Could Help Improve Sanitation Around the World. The odor masking scent could help convince people to choose latrines and prevent pollution of waterways with waste.

-3. Official Downplays New Coronavirus Outbreak. A fresh coronavirus outbreak in the Kingdom has been attributed to the camel delivery season. However, the spokesman downplayed the fresh outbreak of MERS cases in the Kingdom saying it cannot be described as pandemic. Technically correct. This is an outbreak from a limited area with a limited cause, though it will spread further until it is controlled or “burns out” again. Right now the word pandemic is very vague in popular and technical meaning.

↕4. Pope Francis Grants All Priests the Ability to Forgive Abortions. The Vatican has long considered abortion such a grave sin that only bishops can grant absolution. The pope changed that temporarily in 2015; now he's extended the change indefinitely. Will be interesting to watch this impact on abortion for women exposed to Zika. Some elements will condemn the policy, if not directly countermand it. Others will commend this and use it to get more approval for women’s rights to terminate a birth that could be severely handicapped. The issue of contraception and abortion have delayed funding and response in many countries, not just ones with Catholic majorities. Most like there will be more access to contraception and maintenance of the status quo on abotion. There is one problem though, the risk of Zika babies is still largely uncertain. Zika: Let's Give Women the Contraception They so Desperately Want. As Zika continues to spread through the western hemisphere, the women's health aspect of the virus has not entered the public conversation. Perhaps more than the failure to control mosquito populations, lack of access to widespread, effective contraception is the root cause of microcephaly in most of Latin America and the Caribbean, and yet remains the least talked about aspect of the epidemic. Scientists Zero in on Microcephaly Risk for Babies Born to Zika Infected Mothers, Brazil Opens Probe as Cases of Zika Babies Defy Predicted Patterns, 160731-4.1.1, 160724-4A, 160710-4↓. This is complicated further with Zika Caused Birth Defect May Become Clear Only After Birth, CDC Says Zika Babies Can Develop Microcephaly Months after Birth. Babies Exposed to Zika Developed Microcephaly after Birth. Gov't to Track Children Exposed to Zika in the Womb into Their Teens.

            -4.1. Zika Is No Longer an Emergency – It’s Worse than That, Says WHO. Zika virus no longer represents a public health emergency, the World Health Organisation announced on Friday. On the face of it, this sounds like good news. But this is not a downgrading of the threat of the virus – if anything, it’s an upgrading 161120-4.1↓. Interesting twist. Normally we think of the end of an emergency or disaster as a return to a not emergency, not disaster condition. In actual fact this is not the case. When a patient dies the emergency is over, when the forest burns down completely after millions of acres lost the disaster is over, when a threat is neutralized or removed a worse one may arise in its place, or become so normalized that it is accepted. In this case to sustain for a long term biodisaster the term implying short term surge of effort had to be removed. In the Battle Against Zika, Researchers Prepare for a Marathon. #Document U.S. Public Perception of Zika Risk. Average Americans, however, weren’t adequately grasping their personal risk even before the WHO downgrade. Canceling the Zika Public Health Emergency Was the Wrong Thing to do. #Document Science Literacy: Concepts, Contexts, and Consequences. Better education will not generate greater support for science. Instead a new take on science literacy that includes the relationship between science knowledge and attitudes about science, as well as how communities (as opposed to individuals) engage in science, is needed. New Report Finds Americans Most Interested in Science When Moon Looks Different than Usual.

            -4.2. This is contrary to the earlier economic impact and predictions. Florida Sees Record Tourism Numbers Despite Massacre, Zika. Zika Takes Bite out of Miami-Dade Economy — How Bad Will it Get [Cartoon].

            -4.3. Why the Nation must Prepare for Future Pandemic Threats.  $1.1 billion has been earmarked for Zika vaccine research and health care in affected areas. However, this may not be the most efficient use of government funding in addressing this emerging threat. ¶ When a new viral pandemic outbreak occurs, there is often an assumption on Capitol Hill that spending sufficient resources will yield drug and vaccine cures. However, the unfortunate reality is that aligning a disease specific drug or vaccine with an emerging pandemic threat is an immensely challenging feat, one that fails far more often than it succeeds. This is especially true in the case of a virulent pathogen that may prohibit human treatment efficacy studies from being conducted. ¶ The challenge in developing a disease specific therapy for a new pathogen threat is that it is statistically improbable that such a therapy can be developed, proven effective, manufactured and then delivered within a time frame necessary to combat a life threatening pandemic. This disease specific strategy was a problem for all the NORTHCOM Pandemic Planners. Officially our focus was supposed to only be on the 2009 H1N1 flu. Our contention was that we were planning for the military support of the non-medical aspects of a biodisaster. The causative agent might change and require different medical treatment, but no matter what the agent was the consequences to society would be the same ones of supply, maintenance, distribution, transportation, logistics, economics, personnel, communications, mortuary, information, panic. Along with convincing the decision makers we neededto be aware of what was outside our assigned areas – microbes, biomes, insects, pollution, air, water, plants, animals do not stop at International or State borders – we were never successful at convincing them we needed to be all bio hazard. Once H5N1 was officially over the decision was made that we were no longer needed and the expertise developed was lost. Biodisasters had other ideas and insisted on continuing despite policy. Research Highlights Americans' Vulnerability to Infectious Diseases.

-5. Nov 24, 1859 Origin of Species Is Published. Debating Darwin at Gettysburg.

-6. Sociocultural and Psychosocial Impacts of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. For nearly a quarter of a century, researchers Duane Gill, Steven Picou, and the Natural Hazards Center’s own Liesel Ritchie have studied the impacts of the Exxon Valdez oil spill on the residents of Cordova, Alaska. This new publication is a comprehensive view of the many insidious results such a far-reaching disaster can have on a community—from the economic impacts to the chronic stress to exhaustion caused by years of litigation and lost resources. Most people believe that this was recovered from years ago. The reality is the parademic impact of biodisasters can last for decades.

            -6.1. One of the aspects of the Valdez response is that it was not cooperative or collaborative, though one will see those words in reports about the “success” of the response. It was an imposed fix from outsiders. Those who were involved in the fix and damage control (What Is Public Relations Damage Control), tend to avoid information that will disrupt their self perception, perhaps avoiding seeing that they caused long term damage [Cartoon], in this case destroying the basis of a culture of cooperation that is vital to survive in resource limited and lethal environment. Sharing, Cooperation Key to Arctic Villages. A new analysis of subsistence data collected in three Arctic communities underscores the importance of social ties and sharing among households.

-7. Mass Gatherings: Physics Finds Ways to Predict Large Scale Collective Motion. Though a biodisaster can result in large scale migrations, these motions are too dispersed in time and space to be predicted by this method. In addition each individual in a biodisaster is moving in reference not toward or away, but avoiding other individuals. Most complicating in all is when a biodisaster results in no movement, such as mass treatment centers. Rallies, Protests, and Black Friday: Physics Finds Dangers Hiding in Plain Sight. From a parademic perspective mass gatherings are urban areas, work sites, hospitals, schools, transportation, restaurants, stores, entertainment centers (sports, theme parks, political events) – pretty much anyplace where there are people or have been. That means the whole world 160417-3↓.

-8. An unintended consequence of improved health and extending the human life span. Facing a ‘Tidal Wave’ of Dementia, China Is Running out of Time. Thirty years from now, China’s elderly population will vastly outnumber its younger citizens. In a country where assisted living homes are scarce, and dementia is not widely understood, will people pay the price before the government does. Dementia is one of Earth’s* largest and costliest public health crises, a slow moving calamity of human suffering that also portends economic and political danger. *A bit arrogent in this curator’s opinion. Its not a problem of Earth but a global human problem. An Alzheimer's Drug Fails, but Many Others Still in Testing. Video Game Aims to Diagnose Alzheimer’s.

-9. I was aware that parademic can lead to denial of civil rights and due process – #Ebola, Typhoid Mary: Captive to the Public's Health, The History of Quarantine Is the History of Discrimination, #Hickox Caught Between Civil Liberties and Public Safety Fears: Personal Reflections from a Healthcare Provider Treating Ebola – but I was not aware of the right to vote because one has a disease. Living with Leprosy, Robbed of Voting Right, Citizen Status, Termination of the Leprosy Isolation Policy in the US and Japan : Science, Policy Changes, and the Garbage Can Model, The Separating Sickness. #Book Fever [Cover], #Book Fever 1793 [Cover].

-10. BTW am aware of the current flu outbreaks impacting poultry and swine (or swine fever) that are being reported globally. However nothing new parademic wise. Same economic impact, quarantines, standstill/hold in place, travel restrictions, culling, worries it will jump to humans, continued promises of a universal flu vaccine, flu shot resistence, misconceptions, if flu vaccination should be mandatory for all, should healthcare workers be vaccinated ...... If something different shows up will report that, and maybe next year, or the year after will report again even if nothing has changed, but just to refresh the topic after a hiatus, or catch up with people who have not monitored the social dimensions of flu outbreaks before. \fs24ulYawning – Contagious Flu. [Cartoon, Cartoon]

-11. Die offs are a potential indicator of a threatening biodisaster, or more fuel for conspiracy theory. This time it is a biodisaster indicator that will impact on human livelihoods, recreation, drought, crop failures, locust and other insect swarms, climate change, migration of animals and predators into urban areas, increased wild fire damage, that will increase possibility of direct health threats of floods, mud slides and hazardous smoke. This is also a very visual image of a dying environment. An Astounding 102 Million Trees Have Now Died in California, and the biggest worry is what happens next summer. New Maps Show Spread and Impact of Drought on California Forests. [Photo, Photo, Map]

-12. This may impact on not just the thawing relations with Cuba, but the potential of sharing Cuban medical advances with the US, 161023-9↓. Donald Trump Condemns Fidel Castro as “Brutal Dictator”. Why Donald Trump's Tweet about Fidel Castro's Death Is Not OK. [Tweet, Statement] Trump’s Tough Talk on Castro and Cuba Shows Big Shift from Obama. Like other areas this is an area of uncertainty. Analysis: Fidel Castro's Death Will Do Little to Change US-Cuba Relations, f2 Fidel Castro's Death Casts Further Doubt on US Relations with Cuba Ahead of Donald Trump Presidency. Castro's Death Could Change Cuba Reform Dynamic, Much Depends on Trump. Mourning, Celebration Follow Death of Fidel Castro.

↕C⁴. Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) Corner [Logo]. Community Engagement. All crises start and end at the community level. Communicating effectively with local partners and stakeholders is critical to managing an emergency. Engaging community members in a response helps responders tailor communication efforts to local needs and promote realistic actions to improve public health outcomes (before the crisis): Outreach: Establish communication channels to provide the affected community with information (before the crisis). Consult: Seek community input to develop connections and identify communication needs (before the crisis). Involve: Community members participate with responders on response efforts (before the crisis). Collaborate: Community members and responders partner on response activities—including communication development and dissemination (before the crisis).