(Undated) — Researchers are recommending Pennsylvania hunters get vaccinated for COVID-19 to prevent the spread of the virus in the state’s deer population.
They say that’s because transmission could prolong the pandemic.
Suresh Kuchipudi, a PSU researcher and biology professor who co-led the study, said the report showed that humans are spreading the disease to deer.
“We have a situation where there is still transmission of virus among human beings, which is creating opportunities for the virus to evolve, possibilities of novel variants to emerge,” Kuchipudi said. “[This] means the evolution…
ABBEVILLE, La. (AP) — Three teenagers were rescued Friday after their boat capsized in Louisiana’s Vermilion Bay.
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries enforcement agents were notified of the accident around 6 a.m. They and deputies with the Vermilion Parish Sheriff’s Office rescued the boys — two 17-year-olds and an 18-year-old — who were found clinging to the vessel.
The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries agents said the boys launched their 14- to 16-foot boat (4.26 meter to 4.87 meter) in Vermilion Bay to go duck hunting around 5 a.m. The water was too rough so they tried to turn around to go back to shore when the motor stalled.
The boat then began to take on water and capsized. One of the boys had his cell phone in a waterproof case and they were able to call the sheriff’s office for help.
A man identified by the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office as Zachary T. Barse, 28, of Gorham, was fatally shot while hunting in the Finger Lakes on Thanksgiving Day.
Deputies responded to a location at Cross Road in the town of Phelps and tried to save Barse, but were unsuccessful. He was pronounced dead at the scene and taken to the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.A man identified by the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office as Zachary T. Barse, 28, of Gorham, was fatally shot while hunting in the Finger Lakes on Thanksgiving Day.
A 61-year-old man, Kevin M. Hudson of Clifton Springs, called 911 to report that someone had been shot with a hunting rifle around 11 a.m. Thursday.
A statement from the sheriffprovided a summary Friday: “Mr. Barse and Mr. Hudson (acquaintances) were hunting together in a wooded area on the north side of Cross Road in the town of Phelps. Mr. Barse…
Seeking to revolutionize how meat is perceived and consumed globally, Planted aims to trigger a fundamental rethink about the food we eatby Leigh Venus26th November 2021
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Planted recreates the textures, tastes, appearances, and nutritional value of chicken, pork, and beef.Credit:Planted Foods
“If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian.”
In 2010, Sir. Paul McCartney lent his face and this famous quote to a PETA film that took viewers behind the opaque walls of slaughterhouses and factory farms.
Although one of the most well-known quotes in the animal rights movement, it took the team behindPlanted Foods—a Swiss food tech company dedicated to ending animal suffering through tasty plant-based alternatives to meat—to run with the idea.
Convinced the food industry needed to be more transparent about ingredients and processes, Planted made this literal…
The term “tipping point” is often applied to a moment of critical change in human history. In ecology, tipping points describe small changes that, over time, force an irreversible change. Yearly lows of sea ice and a startling increase in permafrost thaw in a warming climate signal that the tipping point has already been crossed. We have already lost the frozen Arctic.https://c3e56f5d92b1eb49f3fa6df13d0d9c5b.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
The Arctic is iconic for maintaining year-round ice and snow, but in the last decade, it has begun to transition to wetlands and open ocean. Emblematic of this change, in July 2020, the last intact ice shelf in the Canadian Arctic fell into the sea. Since first analyzed in 1902, the Milne ice sheet already lost 43 percent of its previous mass. Canada’s Ellesmere Island ice caps were also lost in the summer of 2020, as the ice deposited during the Little Ice Age (1600 to 1850)…
Hochul’s declaration on Friday is one of the first emergency steps taken by a state in the U.S. against the new variant, known as omicron, whose discovery was announced Thursday.
The nation’s top infectious disease expert,Anthony Fauci, said in an interview Friday with CNN that there have been no omicron cases detected in the U.S., although he acknowledged that doesn’t rule out the possibility the variant could be in the country.
The executive order, in effect until at least Jan. 15, allows nonessential procedures to be postponed in hospitals in order to increase hospital capacity.
Bodybuilder and “transformation expert” James Kennedy has launched an anti-vegan lifestyle brand. Kennedy launched the label, called Not Vegan Friendly, to make a “clear statement” – “I’m proud to not be a vegan,” he said.
According to the brand’s website, Kennedy has more than 20 years experience as a fitness professional, and in that time, has transformed thousands of “bodies.”
Alongside his work, he has also developed a “strong scientific stance against the tyranny of veganism,” the website reads.
However, it does not specify what aspects of veganism Kennedy is scientifically against, or why.
Speaking to Portsmouth’s The News, Kennedy said: “I wanted to create a brand which is very clearly not suitable for vegans and make an unequivocal statement that I’m proud not to be a vegan.”
Ironically, most of the products the brand offers are in fact suitable for vegans.
He later commented, “Vegans are frequently a very loud and often preachy minority, but the truth is, just three percent of the UK population are vegans so we’re here to stand up for the vast majority of people who eat meat.
“If you’ll excuse the pun, but a lot of people are fed up with vegans ramming their beliefs down our throats so it’s time to speak out in favour of our different and perfectly valid choice to eat meat.”
Anti-vegan
The Not Vegan Friendly shop stocks supplements, including “Fat Burning Juice.” It also offers meal replacements: Rump Formula for men and Hump Formula for women.
It sells merchandise too, including clothing and accessories with distinct anti-vegan slogans. The company said the products are a way to become a “social hand grenade.”
“I’ve created Not Vegan Friendly to provide a simple, effective lifestyle strategy to help transform your body. Taking the guesswork out of nutrition, making a plan far more specific for your needs,” Kennedy said in a video.
However, he doesn’t expand on how or whether any of the supplements it sells can be tailored to one’s individual needs.
Driving his anti-vegan message home, the website features a large image of a scantily clad Kennedy with devil horns and wings. He appears to be standing in flames looking contemplatively into the distance.
“The creator and leader,” the site says about Kennedy. “Not all heroes wear capes.”
Travelers line up for a COVID-19 test during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., November 26, 2021. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
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Nov 27 (Reuters) – The new Omicron coronavirus variant – identified first in South Africa, but also detected in Europe and Asia – is raising concern worldwide given the number of mutations, which might help it spread or even evade antibodies from prior infection or vaccination.
News of the variant prompted countries to announce new travel restrictions on Friday and sent drugmakers scrambling to see if their COVID-19 vaccines remain protective.
WHY ARE SCIENTISTS WORRIED?
The World Health Organization on Friday classified the B.1.1.529 variant, or Omicron, as a SARS-CoV-2 “variant of concern,” saying it may spread more quickly than other forms of coronavirus.Report ad
The Delta variant remains dominant worldwide, accounting for 99.9% of U.S. cases, and it is not yet clear whether Omicron will be able to displace Delta, said Dr. Graham Snyder, medical director, infection prevention and hospital epidemiology at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
But the new variant has over 30 mutations in the part of the virus that current vaccines target. It is also suspected of driving a spike in new infections in South Africa.Report ad
Omicron’s mutations are likely to render certain COVID-19 treatments – including some manufactured antibodies – ineffective, said Dr. David Ho, professor of microbiology and immunology at Columbia University.
Experimental antiviral pills – such as Pfizer Inc’s (PFE.N) Paxlovid and Merck & Co Inc’s (MRK.N) molnupiravir – target parts of the virus that are not changed in Omicron, and these drugs could become even more important if vaccine-induced and natural immunity are threatened.
THE UNKNOWNS
Scientists say it could be several more weeks before they can define the type of disease caused by the variant, determine how contagious it is and identify how far it has already spread.
Some note that other variants of concern, including Beta, which was also first detected in South Africa, were ultimately replaced by Delta.
But the biggest question remains whether protection from COVID-19 vaccines – nearly 8 billion doses have been administered globally – will hold up. And, will people previously infected with the coronavirus be immune from infection with Omicron?
Experts also don’t yet know whether Omicron will cause more or less severe COVID-19 compared to other coronavirus strains.
BEST RESPONSE?
Omicron has not yet been identified in the United States, but it is likely already here, scientists said.
Even without the new variant, U.S. COVID-19 rates have increased in recent weeks, mainly in northern states, as people move indoors to avoid winter weather.
Some countries have moved to limit travel from southern Africa. Beyond government restrictions, individuals should still assess their own vulnerability to COVID and tolerance for risk as they make travel decisions for the winter holidays, Snyder from University of Pittsburgh Medical Center said.
He and others said vaccination should remain a priority despite questions about effectiveness against Omicron, because it is likely that they still remain protective to a certain extent. Everyone should also continue to wear masks, avoid crowds, ventilate rooms, and wash hands.
“We have all those tools that will work against any variant,” said Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla, California.
A screenshot from the YouTube channel of Choi Jae-chun, a professor of animal behavior and ecology in the College of Natural Sciences at Ewha Womans University, shows him talking about Korea’s low birthrate.
By Yoon Ja-young
A renowned evolutionary biologist in Korea has said that it is a “stupid” choice to have children here.
Choi Jae-chun, a professor in the College of Natural Sciences at Ewha Womans University specializing in the behavior and ecology of animals, said on his YouTube channel that it would not be wise to give birth and raise a child in Korea today.
He said that, from his viewpoint as an evolutionary biologist who studies animal behavior and ecology, the current low birthrate in Korea is a “natural” consequence, since it is the result of an evolutionary adaptation. The country’s total birthrate, or the number of babies born per woman, was 0.84 last year, the world’s lowest.
“Animals that can’t control (their desire to breed) when there is no food or shelter are very unlikely to survive.”
He cited studies by evolutionary biologists that have come to the conclusion that whether a herd will grow or shrink is determined by the choices made by each individual, not by the herd. He pointed out that young Koreans as individuals are seriously doubting whether they can have children and raise them properly.
“To me, those who end up having kids after such deliberation are not making the appropriate calculations,” he said. But, he added that the country may be kept going thanks to these young people’s “bold decisions” to have children in the face of such obvious difficulties.
Regarding the irony that the birthrate has been falling, while Korea has grown economically, he said that his generation did not calculate thoroughly before having children. Even if they did not have a house or a decent job, they just got married believing that they would somehow find a solution.
“Young people nowadays calculate too much and as a result, can’t do anything. They say they will get married when they have enough money for all those plans, but that day never comes,” he explained.
Choi said it can’t be denied that young people in Korea now have different life standards from those of their parents or grandparents. “In the past, Korean people married without a plan and suffered together as a couple, but now the costs of marriage, as well as childbirth, childcare and children’s education, are too high for the younger generation to calculate,” he said.
“It is a fact that the standards young people want to have in order to raise their children in a good environment are too high. The young generation takes the perfect situation as the standard, and when that situation is not met, they are reluctant to get married and have kids,” he elaborated.
Choi said that people will have children when their situations improve, urging the government to invest more into fundamentally changing the social system, so that more people can make the choice to have children and feel that joy.
“I will say it is the biggest joy one can have in the world,” he said.
After receiving Ph.D. in evolutionary biology at Harvard University, professor Choi taught at Harvard, University of Michigan, and Seoul National University before moving to Ewha Womans University.
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Exposing the Big Game 