Showing posts with label #Covid-19. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #Covid-19. Show all posts

Thursday, July 9, 2020

An Urgent Virtual Pubic Announcement: #COVID-19

 As COVID-19 rages on World-Wide based on the latest from Johns Hopkins and the World Health Organization, our team decided to release this Virtual Public Service Annoucement on all our platforms  courtesy the CDC as we join in asking all to #WearAMaskToSaveALife.   



Tuesday, June 23, 2020

#WEARAMASK2SAVELIVES

As we went to press, we have seen a continue spike in COVID-19 Cases.    A sampling of the reporting as noted by the Washington Examiner is noted below:


The number of new coronavirus cases and hospitalizations has increased in Texas and several states in the South and West, leading governors to eye more aggressive responses.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday that increased rates in hospitalizations and record daily highs of new coronavirus cases show that “COVID-19 is now spreading at an unacceptable rate in Texas, and it must be corralled.”

In light of this,  we have decided to ask all to Wear a Mask, Practice Social Distancing as we hereby concluded this PSA with this appeal from all our living Governors of California as we say let's Defeat COVID 19 Together:



Friday, April 24, 2020

Notations On Our World (W-End Edition): On #LifeInTheTimeofCorona

President Barack Obama message to mayors


We here at the Daily Outsider joined President Obama in doing all that we can to make sure we will not misnform in anyway, shape or form.

As part of this commitment, we hereby present the following on the ravaging effects of  COVID19 as it continues to wreck havoc on our World: 




What covid-19 does to your body

We also hereby present for weekend readings courtesy of the team at Abudance Digital some insightful hopeful trends--up and including how Mother Earth continues to take a breather!!!


Coronavirus lockdowns have changed the way Earth moves.

VIBRATIONS
What it is: In the wake of mass lockdowns spurred by the Coronavirus pandemic, seismologists have observed the Earth quite literally vibrating less. Typically, all human activities (and primarily transportation, construction, industrial machinery) contribute to a background “hum” that can be measured by our most precise seismographs. While most seismographs are placed in remote locations for this exact reason — after all, their purpose is to measure earthquakes, not human activity — the measuring devices located closer to major cities have noticed a marked decrease in background seismic noise as a result of current lockdowns. 
Why it’s important: Seismologists have a rare chance to measure extremely small quakes and other far more subtle seismic activity. While the individual effects of commercial transit and infrastructural activity are minor, they together produce sufficient background noise to reduce scientists’ ability to discern signals marked by the same frequency. According to Andy Frassetto, a seismologist at the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology in Washington DC, “You’ll get a signal with less noise on top, allowing you to squeeze a little more information out of those events.” Especially valuable will be the extra-precise measurements scientists can take of natural vibrations, such as ocean waves, as well as their fine-tuned ability to monitor volcanic activity.

Artificial intelligence is preserving our ability to converse with Holocaust survivors even after they die.

HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS AVATARS
What it is: Last Sunday, 60 Minutes’ Leslie Stahl interviewed Holocaust survivor Aaron Elster, who died two years ago. Yes, you read that right. Elster was projected on an 11-foot screen and responded to Stahl’s various unscripted questions in real time, ranging from his childhood to his belief in God, with AI-selected, pre-recorded responses. Elster is one of 22 Holocaust survivors who have been recorded by the University of Southern California’s Shoah Foundation for the purposes of preserving the stories of Holocaust survivors, most of whom are in their 80s or 90s today. The initial participant, Pinchas Gutter, spent a week answering over 2,000 questions while being filmed in a lattice-like dome with 20 cameras— a setup fitted to capture every angle in preparation for the holograms of the future. AI programs interpret audience questions and determine the correct pre-recorded response to deliver. The program, led by Heather Maio, has placed Holocaust survivor projections in museums across the nation, where visitors can converse with these remarkable individuals for years to come. 
Why it’s important: Preserving the memory of human lives by integrating real footage with computer programming has the power to transform historical narratives. From an educational standpoint, the novelty of this technology and the personal interaction it enables will enhance any learning experience about the past. While filmed survivors are currently only visible in the medium of 2D projections, footage from every angle could one day allow programmers to create lifelike holograms, further bringing these individuals and their stories virtually back to life. The interactive nature of asking questions and instantaneously receiving first-person responses will undoubtedly humanize our understanding of history and its key figures.

Behind the global efforts to make a privacy-first coronavirus tracking app.

GOOGLE DOC
What it is: Software engineers and health experts are collaborating on a 20+ page Google Doc to halt the spread and resurgence of COVID-19. Although scattered across the globe, this unlikely distributed team of experts is working to build voluntary smartphone tracking solutions, similar to apps already present in China, Singapore, and Israel. The idea is that if enough people download the app and voluntarily consent to data collection, the software could warn users of any detected recent contact with a virulent person, alerting them to their risk of infection. As a protective measure, only healthcare officials would be granted the authority to confirm if an individual tests positive, thereby avoiding abuse of the service. As privacy remains critical, the software would employ anonymous, encrypted use of Bluetooth technology, preventing government access to user data, according to AI researcher Peter Eckersley, who coordinates a team working towards this goal. Although there is no official launch date for a U.S.-based app, developers anticipate one could be ready within two weeks.
Why it’s important: Social media giants like Pinterest and Facebook have launched programs through which people can voluntarily enter symptoms and demographic information to track the virus, but Google Doc collaboration offers an alternate decentralized approach to slowing the pandemic. Everyday citizens are now forming bootstrapped solutions at speed, highlighting the power of mass mobilization enabled by today’s proliferating connectivity and cloud-based platforms. Despite concerns of surveillance, technologists have repeatedly asserted the goal to simultaneously protect human health and safeguard privacy. As bottom-up civilian solutions rise to the surface, we will soon see how nascent technologists and developers balance the two.

Oil Companies Are Collapsing, but Wind and Solar Energy Keep Growing.

RENEWABLE ENERGY
What it is: The economic impact of COVID-19 has been felt across all sectors, and especially by the oil and gas industry. While largely influenced by geopolitical tensions, oil prices have more than halved since the Coronavirus crisis began, yet wind and solar continue to add capacity. Renewables are now on track to account for almost 21 percent of U.S. electricity demands, and analysts project that the recent downturn will even help the renewables industry, as utilities opt for cheaper operating costs of solar and wind farms. As oil prices dwindle, new wind installations are only down 3 percent, partially given that such projects are built directly outside urban centers and many states have deemed construction an essential industry.
Why it’s important: The resilience of the renewable energy sector in the wake of our current crisis could signal a paradigm shift in the energy economy. “Renewables are on a growth trajectory today that I think isn’t going to be set back long term. [...] This will be a bump in the road,” stated Dan Reicher, founding executive director of the Steyer-Taylor Center for Energy Policy and Finance at Stanford University. This sentiment is echoed by Caton Fenz, chief executive of ConnectGen, a Houston-based developer of wind, solar and electricity storage. According to Fenz, “We blew through all of the projections [and are] surfing a long-term wave. [...] We just can’t get specific things done because of the pandemic, but I don’t think that affects the broader trajectory.” Indeed, solar added 13.3 Gigawatts of capacity last year alone, surpassing both wind and natural gas. As oil and gas companies struggle, the long-term surge of renewable energy sources is yet another herald of positive news in the fight against climate change, an issue gaining its own spotlight as the COVID-19 pandemic has seen a tremendous near-term reduction in GHG emissions.

COVID-19 crisis spurs triple-digit growth for refurbishing startup Back Market.

BACK MARKET
What it is: Back Market, a Paris-based startup that refurbishes and sells devices into the online secondhand market, has experienced a big boost in business due to COVID-19. As people buy laptops for remote work, the demand for refurbished devices has skyrocketed. According to CEO Thibaud Hug de Larauze, while “[the company doesn’t] release the gross merchandise volume, it’s a three-digit growth rate [...] We saw an increase in demand for laptops, printers and other devices needed for working at home.” Aiding Back Market’s revenue growth is the closure of Apple and Samsung retail stores, a trend that has nudged consumers towards refurbishing and secondhand platforms. Founded in 2014, Back Market has already raised two financing rounds, totaling 48 million Euros.
Why it’s important: Beyond supplying work-from-home (WFH) consumers in a time of crisis, the firm is playing a part in “closing the loop” for our digital device economy by reducing the accumulation and disposal of e-waste. Globally, the refurbishing market is worth US$80 billion, boasting 13% year-over-year (YoY) growth. As de Larauze has stated, “They realized that it’s not only ecological, but it’s also a good business. Two hundred (new refurbishing factories) are on-boarding.” And the push for closed-loop hardware manufacturing is largely accounted for by developed Western economies. “The U.S. and Germany are pushing the growth [...] They are the main two drivers of the boom of Back Market,” says de Larauze.

Hunt Is on for Genetic Clues to Why Coronavirus Impact Varies.

GENETIC CLUES
What it is: The mystery behind Covid-19’s highly variable severity across patients could be a matter of genetics, and scientists across the globe are working to solve the puzzle. DNA testing company 23andMe just launched a study to analyze the genomes of patients who test positive for Covid-19. Given that 80% of the company’s 10 million customers have already opted in to share their data for research purposes, the project will likely move quickly. At the Rockefeller University in New York, Dr. Jean-Laurent Casanova is now recruiting 1,000-2,000 previously healthy people under the age of 50 who ended up in the ICU with Covid-19. While he claims this niche makes up just 1% of severe cases, Dr. Casanova and his team hope to better understand why some patients fare worse than others. Geneticists worldwide are also pooling their research in the Covid-19 Host Genomics Initiative, aiming to determine underlying genetic predispositions and protections against the virus.
Why it’s important: In the case of Covid-19, genetic analysis will enable researchers to better understand the virus’s mechanisms and potentially design gene therapy solutions to cure patients who lack the underlying genetic protections. To meet this goal, researchers have recognized the need to collectively aggregate data and transparently share findings at lightning speed. Moving forward, this same form of distributed collaboration could drive progress across countless vexing diseases — not only to determine causes of disease, but also to develop effective treatments.

 We implore all to Practice #SocialDistancing, #StayHome, in following  the CDC Guidelines as we are convinced #WeWillGetThroughThisTogether as we present the following from Yuval Noah Harriri:


Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Notations From the Grid (Special Tuesday Edition): On #LifeIntheTimeofCorona With a Window to the Future

Data Sheet

April 7, 2020


The economist Paul Romer is credited with the expression “a crisis is a terrible thing to waste.” Apple seems to be taking the maxim to heart, using its massive balance sheet to go shopping at a time equity values are plummeting.

Last week, Apple said it would buy the popular weather app Dark Sky, an opportunity to beef up its map and meteorological offerings as well as deprive customers with Android phones from using the app. It also is buying Voysis, an artificial intelligence software company that makes voice-assistance tech, presumably to beef up the sometimes-maligned Siri. The Apple-focused (if anachronistically named) site 9to5Mac reports that Apple plans to buy an augmented reality company called NextVR too.

There’ve been recent reports that famously secretive and office-centric Apple hasn’t taken well to the working-from-home era. It also has begun throwing itself into pandemic aid by donating masks. But it’s clear that Apple is chugging along, especially in the dealmaking department.

***

I watched an inspiring coronavirus news conference Monday hosted by the mayor of San Francisco and top city officials. The mayor, London Breed, didn’t once criticize anyone. She didn’t offer medical advice of any kind. Her heads of health, public transportation, homeless services, and other departments calmly explained, with ample dollops of data, what the city is doing to confront the crisis.

Breed repeatedly made reference to an inevitable surge on local hospitals and explained how the city is preparing for it. She came under criticism for declaring an emergency in San Francisco on February 26, an act meant to trigger preparedness. Along with other Bay Area officials, she ordered residents to stay home on March 16, days before other cities and even before the rest of California. So far, however, there have been 583 Covid-19 cases in San Francisco and nine deaths. The city is widely believed to have flattened the curve of the disease.

I can’t pretend this news conference, available here, is good television. The time each official takes to disinfect the microphone and their hands alone is a ratings killer. How refreshing.

***

Mauro Guillen, the Wharton professor whose thoughts on technology and the coronavirus I mentioned Monday, has posted his presentation here.

Monday, March 30, 2020

#LifeIntheTimeofCorona: One the #CaresAct--The 2 Trillion Dollar Package Passed by Congress


A new quarter is before us--Lives have been upended and will never be the same.
We hope all enjoy the headline courtesy of KALTOONS as we hereby present the following from 
The team at Visual Capitalist put together this snapshot of the CARES Act as the United States gears up to deal with the Corona Virus:

Anatomy of CARES Act covid-19 stimulus package

Saturday, March 14, 2020

Notations On Our World (Week-End Edition): On A Post #Covid-19 Future in Our World





The #CoronaVirus has had a determinetal impact on our World.    However, our team captured the following excerpts of a Medium Article by the Scholar and Activist Kaveh Madani about a potential silver lining as our World battles COVD-19 which we hereby present for this special Friday edition of Notations: