“This thread shows clearly and definitively that Trump knew a pandemic was coming, knew the US was unprepared for it, and left the US helpless to contain or combat the virus.”
(https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1244586703475691521)
Author: danelabonte
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Trump on what to call coronavirus
“…this pandemic, by this disease. This whatever they want to call it. You call it a germ, you can call it a flu, you can call it a virus. You know, you can call it many different names. I’m not sure anybody even knows what it is…”
(Trump on Friday March 27th at the Coronavirus Task Force briefing)
(https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4864480/user-clip-call-germ)
“A bacterium that feeds on toxic plastic has been discovered by scientists. The bug not only breaks the plastic down but uses it as food to power the process.
“The bacterium, which was found at a waste site where plastic had been dumped, is the first that is known to attack polyurethane. Millions of tonnes of the plastic is produced every year to use in items such as sports shoes, nappies, kitchen sponges and as foam insulation, but it is mostly sent to landfill because it it too tough to recycle.
“When broken down it can release toxic and carcinogenic chemicals which would kill most bacteria, but the newly discovered strain is able to survive. While the research has identified the bug and some of its key characteristics, much work remains to be done before it can be used to treat large amounts of waste plastic.”
(https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/27/scientists-find-bug-that-feasts-on-toxic-plastic)
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Simulating an epidemic
“Pershing Square used credit protection on investment-grade and high-yield bond indexes to land the massive profits. The assets rise in value as the odds of corporate defaults increase. As measures to combat the virus outbreak cut into economic activity, corporate bond ratings tanked, and investors feared the worst.”
“Nearly 3.3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week — almost five times the previous record set in 1982 — amid a widespread economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus.”
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Snowy birdhouse
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The Moon transiting the Earth
“A NASA camera aboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) satellite captured a unique view of the moon as it moved in front of the sunlit side of Earth last month [16 July 2015]. The series of test images shows the fully illuminated “dark side” of the moon that is never visible from Earth.
“The images were captured by NASA’s Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC), a four megapixel CCD camera and telescope on the DSCOVR satellite orbiting 1 million miles from Earth. From its position between the sun and Earth, DSCOVR conducts its primary mission of real-time solar wind monitoring for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).”
Via (https://reddit.com/r/spaceporn/comments/ff7xv3/nasa_satellite_captures_the_far_side_of_the_moon/)
danelabonte 