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Montana Nurse Describes How Coronavirus Pushes Rural Health Care To Its Limits
Published December 4, 2020 at 12:40 PM CST
A patient is connected to a ventilator and other medical devices in a COVID-19 intensive care unit. (Go Nakamura/Getty Images)
In rural America, treating COVID-19 patients can be especially difficult.
People live far from limited medical facilities, and communities are small and isolated. Often, there's a stigma around just getting tested for the virus.
Joey Traywick, a nurse working in the coronavirus unit at St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, Montana, says he walks into work every morning with an "ominous feeling."
"You start realizing you're kind of going into the heart of the beast, if you will," he says.
As a nurse, he mentally prepares for a demanding 12 or more hour shift where he has to hit the ground running as soon as he clocks in. Multiple patients typically need assistance right away, he says.
In a rural hospital, there are only so many intensive care unit beds, he explains, which often means the ICU and COVID-19 units are bargaining with each other.
"We do the best we can," he says. "We're rural medicine — 500 miles for any direction, we're it. We have more cows than people in Montana, we like to say."
But with so few resources and a current coronavirus surge underway, Traywick expects patients will have to be taken to cities with larger facilities, such as Denver or Salt Lake City.
Traywick is recovering from COVID-19 himself. He didn't need to be hospitalized but says he's still not back to 100% health. With the coronavirus, even taking a hot shower gave him the chills, he says.
While fellow health care workers told him to take his time coming back, Traywick knew as soon as he tested negative for the virus, he had to get back to nursing and his patients. It's something he knows others in the field have experienced during the pandemic and predicts it's a feeling that will "define us as a generation of caregivers and nurses."
During the pandemic, Traywick cared for 53-year-old J.D. Old Mouse, a member of the Northern Cheyenne tribe. He was the last flute maker for the Northern Cheyenne people.
At first, the two didn't get along, he says. Old Mouse expected doctors and nurses to be on time, a nearly impossible feat with nurses stretched thin with a multitude of patients.
During a series of long shifts — Traywick recalls being on day 14 or 15 in a row — the nurse cared for Old Mouse every day. After several weeks of interacting, the pair ended up sparking a friendship.
But Old Mouse's health deteriorated. Still, they kept the conversation light with Traywick reminding Old Mouse about making him a flute and teaching him how to play. Their chat about flutes happened two days before Old Mouse died in the ICU.
Traywick recalls getting a call from Old Mouse's family, who said they wanted to thank him for taking care of their beloved husband, father and grandfather.
Sure enough, about 40 friends and family members of the Northern Cheyenne tribe were in the hospital parking lot waiting to share their gratitude with Traywick. They "encircled me and prayed for me in the dark at nine o'clock at night to thank me," he recalls through tears.
Shortly after, they dispersed. They said Old Mouse's body was being brought from the hospital to the funeral home.
A little while later, Traywick received a handmade Native American flute, called the Sparrow Hawk, in the mail. The instrument was from a stranger in Arizona who heard of Traywick and Old Mouse's story and wanted the nurse to have it.
The entire experience — caring for Old Mouse, the family's thankfulness and a stranger's gift — touched Traywick. He says if others don't have empathy and compassion in their hearts during these unprecedented times, then he'll have twice as much to make up for it.
"My job is to have twice as much compassion and twice as much empathy for the people that don't have it," he says, "and for the people that don't think about wearing a mask for my friend J.D. Old Mouse."
Knowing the virus is random and unjust, he says it's everyone's responsibility on the front lines to act tenderly and respectfully to those they care for.
As Traywick reflects on the experience, he says he's been writing thank you cards to the folks who have recently sent him kind words and gifts.
One 80-year-old woman from California couldn't go out to buy a card so she painted a watercolor picture. It depicts a nurse holding the hand of a patient.
"And the last responders," she wrote.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.


Explore Psychology is devoted to helping students learn about the fascinating world of psychology. On our site, you will find articles covering some of the most essential theories, definitions, and thinkers.
Whether you are a psychology major looking for advice or a new psychology student trying to finish a tough homework assignment, Explore Psychology is here to help.
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Q: Is python`s SysLogHandler nonBlocking? I am trying to create a python script that well periodically connect to haproxy socket, send a "show info" command and exit. This script will be used along with keepalived in order to determine, through this script, when to switch master/slave servers. Therefore, my goal is that my python script been non-blocking.
Within my script, i have initiated a SysLogHandler to send to my local syslogd various messages (exceptions e.t.c). However, i don't know if SysLogHandler is Blocking or not.

A: The python documentation on logging is the main point where you should start.
SysLogHandler is a subclass of Handler(There are many more. See the docs).
This is the relevant part that you are looking for I think.
I went a bit further and checked the actual implementation of Handler.
You can see that it uses threading.RLock().

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


I think there is probably some likely issue with the fact that NSMutableData is a subclass and the layout initialization is not properly setup during the init for that object.
> Running this infinite loop with swift-corelibs-foundation shows a steady memory leak, with the process's RSS increasing over time.  No leak is seen with Foundation on Darwin.
> 67.36% (114,349B) (heap allocation functions) malloc/new/new, --alloc-fns, etc.
> I've stepped through the code with a debugger and observed that the requested capacity is thrown away <https://github.com/apple/swift-corelibs-foundation/blob/df239bbbdf5bcdd9ea31c394c6af4dd7c328f99d/Foundation/NSData.swift#L904>  to begin with.  The leak occurs regardless of the capacity requested.
> The deinitializer for NSData does call through to _CFDeinit(), which does then call the finalize() <https://github.com/apple/swift-corelibs-foundation/blob/ea6179dd35be2c7d9a8f953579f626a5f1be6511/CoreFoundation/Base.subproj/CFRuntime.c#L1773>  function and hence through to __CFDataDeallocate() <https://github.com/apple/swift-corelibs-foundation/blob/ea3014bd7883e428727272118cbf37dc56522be6/CoreFoundation/Collections.subproj/CFData.c#L294> .  However, once in __CFDataDeallocate(), the code to free the buffer is skipped, because __kCFDontDeallocate is set.
> If I hack _CFDataInit() so that __kCFDontDeallocate isn't set (by commenting out this line <https://github.com/apple/swift-corelibs-foundation/blob/ea3014bd7883e428727272118cbf37dc56522be6/CoreFoundation/Collections.subproj/CFData.c#L337> ) then I get crashes elsewhere - so this obviously isn't the right approach.
> I can see that some work has been done in this area <https://github.com/apple/swift-corelibs-foundation/commit/ea3014bd7883e428727272118cbf37dc56522be6>  previously by Philippe so I'm wondering if anyone can advise on what might be going on here?
> The init?(length:) initializer avoids CFData entirely and calls malloc() and free() directly.  I'm not sure why that approach was taken and whether it's relevant to my issue.
> Any help would be gratefully received!


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Q: Show that $\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}-f \right| \leq \frac{2}{n^{1/3}}$ where $\hat{f_n}$ is a density estimator for $f$ Question
Suppose we have a continuous probability density $f : \mathbb{R} \to [0,\infty)$ such that $\text{sup}_{x \in \mathbb{R}}(\left|f(x)\right| + \left|f'(x)\right|) \leq 1. \;$ Define the density estimator:
$$\hat{f_n} = \frac{1}{n^{2/3}}\sum^n_{i=1}\mathbf{1}\{-1/2 \leq n^{1/3}(x-X_i) \leq 1/2\}, \: x \in \mathbb{R}$$
Show that, for every $x \in \mathbb{R} \:$ and every $n \in \mathbb{N},$
$$\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right| \leq \frac{2}{n^{1/3}}$$

Attempt
It's easy to show that $$\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n} = \frac{F(x+\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}) - F(x-\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3})}{n^{-1/3}}$$
where $F$ is the CDF of $f$. From here, using the condition $\:\text{sup}_{x \in \mathbb{R}}(\left|f(x)\right| + \left|f'(x)\right|) \leq 1 \:$ and in particular, $\:\text{sup}_{x \in \mathbb{R}}\left|f'(x)\right|\leq 1\:$ we can show (geometrically) that,
$$\left|\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}-f\right| \leq \frac{1}{4n^{1/3}}$$
However, I'm not sure how to get a bound on $\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}-f\right|$.

A: General
The density estimator is a special case of a kernel density estimator (KDE) with rectangular kernel $$K(x)=\mathbf{1}\{-1/2\leq x\leq 1/2\}$$ and bandwidth $h=n^{-1/3}$. It would therefore be possible to use the general theory of KDEs and deduce the result.
I will not follow that approach but instead derive properties of this specific estimator directly and link the results to the general KDE theory if possible.
Distribution of $\hat{f_n}$
As (apart from a multiplicative constant) the estimator is effectively counting the number of times an observation of $X_i$ is falling into the interval $\left[x-\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}, x+\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}\right]$ when calculating $\hat{f_n}(x)$ we can immediately see that $$n^{2/3} \hat{f_n}\sim\operatorname{Binomial}(n,p)$$ with $p$ equal to $$F\left(x+\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}\right)-F\left(x-\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}\right).$$ This secretly assumes that all the $X_i$ are independent and identically distributed with CDF $F$. From this we can infer directly that $\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)=n^{1/3}p$ and $\operatorname{Var}(\hat{f_n}(x))=n^{-1/3}p(1-p)$.
Asymptotics
To get the asymptotic behaviour of the expectation and variance we have to analyse $p$ from above. Using a Taylor approximation at $x$ we see that $$F\left(x\pm\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}\right)=F(x)\pm f(x)\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}+f'(\xi_\pm)\frac{1}{8}n^{-2/3}$$ for some $\xi_\pm$ between $x$ and $x\pm\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}$. Knowing that $|f'|\leq 1$ we get $$\left|\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|\leq\frac{1}{4}n^{-1/3}\tag1.$$
Remark
Assuming that also $f''$ exists and is continuous we could get a stronger result. In this case the bias of $\hat{f_n}$ would tend to zero with the order $n^{-2/3}$. This is in line with the more general result that under mild assumptions on the kernel $h$ we have that $$\left|\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|=\mathcal{O}(h^2)$$ for $n$ towards infinity.
For the variance we also use a shortened version of the Taylor approximation $$F\left(x\pm\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}\right)=F(x)\pm f(\zeta_\pm)\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}$$ for some $\zeta_\pm$ between $x$ and $x\pm\frac{1}{2}n^{-1/3}$. The variance can now be written as $n^{-1/3}p(1-p)=n^{-1/3}(p-p^2)$ with $$p-p^2=f(x)n^{-1/3}+(f'(\xi_+)-f'(\xi_-))\frac{1}{8}n^{-2/3} - (f(\zeta_+)+f(\zeta_-))^2\frac{1}{4}n^{-2/3}.$$ Again, using the given upper bounds for $f$ and $f'$ we can bound the variance from above by $$\operatorname{Var}(\hat{f_n}(x))\leq n^{-1/3}\left(n^{-1/3}+\frac{1}{4}n^{-2/3}\right)\leq\frac{5}{4}n^{-2/3}.\tag2$$
Remark
This result is similar to a result from the general theory of KDEs, which gives $$\operatorname{Var}(\hat{f_n}(x)) =\mathcal{O}((nh)^{-1})$$ for $n$ towards infinity.
Combining the results
To get the desired result we use a decomposition of the mean absolute error (MAE) similar to that of the mean squared error. We start with \begin{align}\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|&\leq\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}(x)-\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)\right|+\mathbb{E}\left|\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|\\&\leq\left(\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}(x)-\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)\right|^2\right)^{1/2}+\left|\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|\\&=\operatorname{Var}\left(\hat{f_n}(x)\right)^{1/2}+\left|\mathbb{E}\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|\end{align} using the triangle and Hölder inequalities. Using bounds $(1)$ and $(2)$ we finally get $$\mathbb{E}\left|\hat{f_n}(x)-f(x)\right|\leq\left(\frac{\sqrt{5}}{2}+\frac{1}{4}\right)n^{-1/3}\leq 2n^{-1/3}$$ and have the result.


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Image : CNET
The Motorola Razr 2022 was announced in China last month, and while it is unclear when Motorola will bring the device to markets outside of China, it seems likely that a global release is imminent given that the credible leaker Evan Blass (@evleaks) has shared images of the device in English.
In other words, the leak indicates that the phone may be released internationally. However, we shouldn't get too excited, as the leaker didn't reveal much about the global availability. The new Razr 2022 was initially released in China last month with promotional materials that presented the display's content only in Chinese, thus there is no hint for a global release.
Despite this, the most recent render showcases a lot of English text, which suggests that it may be intended for display on Motorola's global website. Users in the United States will have a glimmer of hope to experience the new Motorola's clamshell foldable, as reported by Android Central. This is due to the fact that its predecessor, the Motorola Razr 5G, has launched in the United States after a few weeks of China's debut.
Furthermore, it has been reported that the Razr 2022 will likely be more accessible on the U.S. market, and its release in Europe is also probable. Those who are still looking for an alternative to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip may want to consider the Razr 2022 as its getting a flagship chipset of a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 along with massive configuration storage options, including 8GB RAM + 128GB ROM, 8GB RAM + 256GB ROM, and 12GB RAM + 512GB ROM. As for the display, It has a 6.7-inch P-OLED screen with a resolution of 1080 x 2400 and a height-to-width ratio of 20:9 when it is open. The Quick View display on the outside of the phone measures 2.7 inches.
On the rear, there is a dual-camera setup on the new Razr 2022 consisting of a 50MP primary camera and a 13MP ultra-wide-angle and macro camera. There is a front-facing 32MP camera that can record slow-motion videos. In addition, it has a 3500mAh battery capacity, which is a significant improvement over the 2800mAh battery on its predecessor.
pic.twitter.com/ZBRKfdS91D
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) September 20, 2022
Tags: directd directdmedia Motorola Motorola Razr 2022 smartphone
Previous Kenko Tokina introduces the Pieni II, the smallest accessory camera that able to take a real photo and video.
Next Instagram will roll out the Nudity Protection feature to cover repulsive images in Direct Messages.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Would have preferred the finish to be matt as this would have made it less slippy.
Pure Silky Black One !!
An excellent cover, well made from the soft PU material that's great for absorbing impacts, just perfect ! The cut outs are exactly in the right places and the edges are smooth. A perfect fit and the best bit, the rear of the case is finished in pure mirror finish silk black. Highly Recommended, thanks Mobile Phone another successful job well done. Rustysniper.
does it suit my phone.
Fast delivery, good product. Happy with the service. 5 stars.
Material makes for a good grip so I won't drop it, and the moulded areas for the power and volume buttons are firm, meaning I don't accidentally press them, also the volume up and down are separate which makes it easier to adjust without looking.


text:
Support/Docs
Compile Guides
> Bugs
> Compile Guides
> History
> License
> Localisation
> Manual
WIP Blog
FB Alpha
Varth Bootleg
Posted by barry on 21 October 2014 at 21:24:56
About a month ago Caius dumped a bootleg version of Varth. A had a quick look at the time but never got it going. I've had another look over the last couple of days and the game is now working.
Initially I didn't get very far, the game was halting when reading from the 68K address 0x100280. Initially I thought there was some simple protection, but didn't find anything that worked. I mapped some of the 68K program ROM into the space, and the game did do a little more, but never started.
At this point, I realised there were two more ROMs in the dump. These two ROMs matched data from the end of main 68K ROMs in the original set, but were much smaller. Mapping this data into the space at 0x100000 to 0x1fffff and the game boots and works fine. It looks like the bootleggers used a subset of the 68K ROM as protection data, or maybe they needed to be able to return the original data in the area where they added their code.
The game doesn't appear to write the scroll 3 RAM offset anywhere (the usual address is now the sound command), so I have hard-coded it on boot. However, the game does write the value at boot to 0x800188 (which is normally the PSound fade command). The game promptly overwrites this again though. Is it feasible that the first write to this address sets up the scroll 3 RAM offset, and subsequent writes are used as the fade command as usual?
This bootleg is taken from the 920612 etc version. I can't see any differences in-game but the following hardware differences are observed (as well as the previously mentioned 68K data, and scroll 3 RAM offset handling);
Different layout of graphics data
PCM data combined into one ROM
The scroll registers have moved to the 0x980000 range
The game uses Playmark style sprites mapped at 0x990000 to 0x993fff
Sound command moved to port 6
This is another CPS-1 bootleg emulated and documented. Look out for it in an FB Alpha release soon.
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Moundsville: West Virginia State Pen, Part 3
ghost hunting, small towns, Tourist Traps
Apparently, whoever lived in this cell was well-behaved enough to be given his own TV, what the hell?
After getting a load of the maximum security North Hall digs, the cells in the "moderately bad guy" hall almost looked livable. According to Wiki, "[t]he fate of the prison was sealed in a 1986 ruling by the West Virginia Supreme Court which stated that the 5 x 7-foot cells were cruel and unusual punishment." Nine years later, the prison peaced out when all the inmates were moved to a larger facility in a nearby town.
Volunteers got to be locked inside the cells. Of course, Chooch was all over this. I only wish they'd have kept him longer.
The guide told us that on one of her tours, a man was taking pictures of his wife and daughter in one of the cells, but every time he looked at the pictures on his camera, the cell was empty. The guide said she saw the pictures herself and could confirm that his wife and daughter were not appearing in the photos. A girl in our tour group lunged for that cell immediately after hearing the story, but the phenomenon must be particular because she showed up in all of the pictures.
Ghost shit never happens when I'm around!
Another outdoor area where the general population criminals could exercise and, I don't know, mill about? Lay on their backs and look at the clouds?
There's a chapel out there, and a bathroom, the wall of which had to be knocked down after an inmate was killed in there.
Entrance to the Sugar Shack. This was an area in the basement where the inmates could go during inclement weather, but they entered at their own risk. They were completely unsupervised down there, and even though there's no record of anyone actually dying, it's still considered the most haunted area of the prison, due to all of the violence and suffering that occurred in there. We didn't get to go inside during our tour, which means I'm going to have to go back and take one of the ghost hunt tours, so if anyone wants to join me, holla atcha girl.
Old Sparky! I think he speaks for himself.
The museum room was fascinating. I think I want to decorate my future invisible house with prisoner art work. I mean, I already have a small collection thanks to my death row pen pal's penchant for abstract water coloring.
(I shouldn't be concerned that he painted a nude of me, right?)
Next possible Christmas card in the series…
Chooch seemed particularly interested in the weapon wall. Go figure.
My favorite part of Moundsville is its connection with Charles Manson. Manson grew up in this area, and his mom was even imprisoned there when Manson was a kid. So he wrote a letter to the warden, asking for permission to be transferred so he could be closer to his childhood home. He also thought he would be treated better there.
The warden's response was a simple yet effective, "It'd be a cold day in Hell."
Can you imagine how different Moundsville's history would be if Manson's wish was granted? He would have taken control of that prison right off the Aryan Nation and god only knows what would have happened next.
Anyway, I pointed to Manson's picture and asked Chooch if he recognized him. He looked at me like I was a dummy and said, "Um, yeah. He's the guy on your cards."
That night, Chooch watched some of Manson's interviews on my phone. It was a really awesome bonding moment for us. Thank you, Moundsville!
One Response to "Moundsville: West Virginia State Pen, Part 3"
Have you ever read Helter Skelter? If not, you should. It's basically the entire Manson story, from his crazy cult start to his imprisonment. I've got a copy I could send you but you would have to promise to send it back when you're done. I read it every few years, just to remind myself I could be more fucked up.
Moundsville: West Virginia State Pen, Part 2 Return to Music Box Mountain: Part 1


"I don't fish against other anglers, I'm just competing against the fish."
I know I've said the same statement myself in the past... but I never really believed it completely. The point it - I often fish better whenever I fished against tougher competition AND I think it is also more productive to make an attempt to concentrate as much as possible on the things you can personally control.


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HACKETT v. THE STATE OF NEW YORK, # 2021-015-102, Claim No. 130240
Claimant, formerly incarcerated, was awarded $150,000 for past pain and suffering and $75,000 for future pain and suffering arising from the prison medical staff's failure to properly treat his diabetic foot ulcers which resulted in the amputation of two toes on his remaining foot. .
Claimant(s): JOHN HACKETT
Claimant short name: HACKETT
Footnote (defendant name) : The Court has sua sponte amended the caption to reflect the properly named defendant.
Motion number(s):
Judge: FRANCIS T. COLLINS
Claimant's attorney: Law Offices of Devon M. Radlin
By: Devon M. Radlin, Esq.
Defendant's attorney: Honorable Letitia James, Attorney General
By: Kevin Grossman, Esq., Assistant Attorney General
Heather Zimmerman, Esq., Assistant Attorney General
City: Saratoga Springs
Claimant, formerly an incarcerated individual, seeks damages for medical malpractice arising from the alleged failure of medical staff at Marcy Correctional Facility to properly treat a diabetic foot ulcer which resulted in the amputation of two toes. Trial of this matter was conducted by remote video on September 20, 2021.
Claimant, who was 63 years of age at the time of trial, testified that he was diagnosed with type II diabetes at the age of 17 or 18 and has required the administration of insulin intravenously since then. He has worn "medical shoes"(2) since he was approximately 20 years old. Claimant testified that he previously underwent two amputations as the result of his diabetes - one sometime in the 1980's when the middle toe on his right foot was partially amputated and one in 2012 when his left leg was amputated below the knee. After his left leg amputation in 2012, claimant used a prosthetic leg and cane for ambulation.
Claimant was received in the custody of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) in April 2016. He testified that although he required the use of a cane and a prosthetic leg for ambulation when he went to prison, DOCCS would not permit him to keep the shoes that had been prescribed for his diabetic neuropathy. Claimant testified that because of the neuropathy, he carefully monitors the condition of his remaining foot by inspecting it for sores each morning with a mirror. Claimant tearfully described the difficulty he experienced after entering DOCCS' custody, testifying that he was made to walk long distances to obtain his insulin from the infirmaries of the various prisons he was in. At Elmira Correctional Facility there were three flights of stairs he was required to traverse before prison staff finally transferred him to the prison infirmary where he resided for two months. At Wyoming Correctional Facility where he resided for approximately 6 months, claimant's foot issues worsened, however, his multiple requests for a "wheelchair pusher" and "medical shoes" were ignored.
Claimant was transferred to Marcy Correctional Facility (Marcy) in January 2017. The form entitled "Health Screening For Intrasystem/SHU Transfer," dated January 13, 2017, indicates that claimant suffered from diabetes, had a below-the-knee amputation of his left leg, used a cane to ambulate, and had a rash or lesion on the stump of his left leg (Exhibit 6, p. 96). Claimant testified that in order to receive his daily insulin shots at Marcy, it was a "horrible walk" to get to the infirmary. The infirmary was located approximately 10 to 15 dorms away from his dormitory and the long walk caused bruising on the stump of his left leg and pressure sores on his right foot. In addition to daily walks to and from the infirmary, claimant was required to walk to and from the recreation yard. Claimant again testified that notwithstanding his increasing complaints of pain, his requests for a "wheelchair pusher" were continually ignored. Because claimant suffered from decreased sensation in his extremities, he knew that the pain he felt was concerning.
While inspecting his feet with a mirror on May 22, 2017, claimant noticed a blister on the bottom of his big toe and reported the problem to a nurse in the infirmary while he was there for his morning insulin. The Ambulatory Health Record Progress Note for that day indicates that the claimant was "afraid area is going to open up" and that to "avoid another skin breakdown" an appointment to see a physician was scheduled for May 23, 2017 (Exhibit 14, p. 73). No appointment was scheduled, however, and by May 25, 2017 the blister had opened up and claimant reported to the infirmary that he had " 'blood' in sock" (id. at p. 73 [quoting claimant]). The Ambulatory Health Record Progress Note for that date, written by Nurse Wilcox, indicates that claimant "now has skin breakdown to toes R foot" and that he was not seen by a physician on May 23, 2017 as planned (id.). Claimant testified and the record confirms that although the area of the wounds was cleaned, antibiotics were not prescribed on that day. Instead, claimant testified that Nurse Wilcox scheduled an appointment for the claimant to be seen by a physician on May 30, 2017. Unfortunately for the claimant, however, his condition quickly worsened. On the morning of May 29, 2017, claimant awoke to find the blisters opened up and blood in his sock and bed. After a correction officer eventually located a wheelchair, claimant was wheeled to the infirmary and taken to Upstate Medical Center. The infirmary nurse's Ambulatory Health Record Progress Note indicates that claimant's right foot was "very swollen" with an open blister on the ball of his foot and that the "swelling is double in size" (id.). Following an x-ray examination at Upstate Medical Center, claimant was informed that the first and second toes on his right foot needed to be amputated. The amputation was performed and claimant was discharged from Upstate Medical Center on June 5, 2017. His subsequent medical records from Marcy indicate that despite the existence of a "small opening" in the wound with a "foul odor" on June 15, 2017, claimant's wounds were "healing well" as of June 25, 2017 (id. at pp. 78, 79). Claimant identified the photograph received in evidence as Exhibit 18 as a fair and accurate depiction of his right foot as it appeared on May 29, 2017, the day he was transported to the hospital for treatment. The photograph depicts the grotesquely swollen and deformed condition of the claimant's toes.
Claimant testified that as a result of his most recent amputations, he can no longer walk without the use of a "walking chair," he sleeps in a hospital bed, his balance has been adversely affected, and his life has been "devastated."
Claimant's expert, Peter Goulden, M.D., is a Board Certified Endocrinologist specializing in the treatment of diabetes.(3) In preparation for his testimony, he performed an examination of the claimant and reviewed his medical records. Dr. Goulden testified that because diabetic neuropathy enhances the risk of foot ulcers, diabetic footwear is recommended. A podiatrist will take molds of the feet or, in claimant's case, the foot, in order to create shoes that will alleviate pressure points. When an individual with diabetes undergoes an amputation of a leg, there is an increased chance of future amputations because of the increased pressure on the remaining foot. In addition, a diabetic foot ulcer can develop and worsen from prolonged walking. As a result, the applicable standard of care requires that one with a history of foot ulcers be provided access to diabetic footwear, according to Dr. Goulden.
Dr. Goulden testified that what is most striking about this case is claimant's diligent efforts to maintain control of his diabetes through diet (as confirmed by blood tests) and daily inspections of his extremities for sores. According to Dr. Goulden, when a diabetic suffering from neuropathy has a foot ulcer or blister, he or she must be closely monitored because of the high risk of infection and the speed at which such infections may progress. Once an ulcer develops, the immediate administration of antibiotics is required. According to Dr. Goulden, on May 22, 2017 when the claimant first complained of edema he should have been examined, x-rayed and prescribed oral antibiotics. This was not done. In Dr. Goulden's opinion, rendered with a reasonable degree of medical certainty, the ulcer on the claimant's right foot developed, at the latest, on May 23, 2017. Had antibiotics been prescribed on May 22, 2017, the progression of the infection and necrosis could have been abated, and the amputation of claimant's toes could have been prevented. By May 25, 2017 when the blister ruptured, there was evidence of an infection and deep ulcer. Dr. Goulden testified that scheduling an appointment for the claimant to see a doctor five days later on May 30th was a breach of good and accepted medical practice. In Dr. Goulden's opinion claimant should have seen a doctor on May 22, 2017 but, failing that, he should have been seen by a doctor no later than May 25, 2017. By May 29, 2017 the tissue was necrotic and no longer viable. Dr. Goulden testified with a reasonable degree of medical certainty that the treatment rendered by DOCCS' medical staff between May 22, 2017 and May 25, 2017 fell below the applicable standard of care because a proper examination was not performed, the claimant was not immediately referred to a physician, and antibiotics were not prescribed. The amputations of the claimant's right great toe and second toe could have been avoided had the proper steps been taken. According to Dr. Goulden, the great toe is significant for balance and decreasing the pressure placed on the remaining areas of the foot.
This concluded the trial testimony.
"It is fundamental law that the State has a duty to provide reasonable and adequate medical care to the inmates of its prisons" (Rivers v State of New York, 159 AD2d 788 [3d Dept 1990]). To succeed on a claim alleging medical malpractice, a claimant must establish a deviation from accepted medical practice and that the alleged deviation proximately caused his or her injuries (Mazella v Beals, 27 NY3d 694, 705 [2016]; James v Wormuth, 21 NY3d 540, 545 [2013]; Mattison v OrthopedicsNY, LLP, 189 AD3d 2025 [3d Dept 2020]; Parker v State of New York, 242 AD2d 785 [3d Dept 1997]; PJI 2:150). Where the duty allegedly breached is "substantially related to medical treatment," the resulting cause of action is one for medical malpractice (Berger v State of New York, 171 AD2d 713, 717 [2d Dept 1991]). Among the healthcare professionals who may be held accountable for medical malpractice are nurses who fail to properly screen patients for timely medical treatment (Bleiler v Bodnar, 65 NY2d 65 [1985]; see also Bamert v Central Gen. Hosp., 77 AD2d 559 [2d Dept 1980], affd 53 NY2d 656 [1981]; Martinez v Tsung, 14 AD3d 399 [1st Dept 2005]). Indeed, the Court of Appeals in Bleiler observed the increasing role of nurses in the provision of modern medicine, noting that
" '[t]oday, the professional nurse monitors complex physiological data, operates sophisticated lifesaving equipment, and coordinates the delivery of a myriad of patient services. As a result, the reasonably prudent nurse no longer waits for and blindly follows physicians' orders' " (65 NY2d at 71, quoting 1 Louisell & Williams, Medical Malpractice, ¶ 16A.01, at 16A-2).
Claimant established by a preponderance of the credible evidence that nursing staff at Marcy Correctional Facility deviated from the applicable standard of care in the treatment of a diabetic foot ulcer and that this deviation proximately caused the amputations of two toes on the claimant's right foot. Claimant had already undergone two amputations prior to his receipt in DOCCS' custody and DOCCS' Ambulatory Health Record Progress Notes reflect neuropathy and recurring incidents of soreness and pain in claimant's right foot. DOCCS' medical staff therefore knew or should have known that claimant was at risk of developing diabetic foot sores, infection, and necrosis and should have acted accordingly (see Martuscello v Jensen, 134 AD3d 4 [3d Dept 2015]). According to the claimant's unrefuted testimony he was made to walk long distances to and from the infirmary and recreation yard without the benefit of diabetic footwear. Considering claimant's condition, Dr. Goulden testified it was a deviation from the relevant standard of care not to afford claimant access to diabetic footwear and the long walks only made the situation worse. Moreover, while it appears claimant's prior episodes of soreness were treated expeditiously, the incident which led to the need for his most recent amputations was not. In Dr. Goulden's opinion, rendered with a reasonable degree of medical certainty, the treatment provided by DOCCS' medical staff between May 22, 2017 and May 25, 2017 fell below the applicable standard of care. Dr. Goulden testified, credibly, that claimant should ideally have seen a doctor on May 22, 2017 but in no event should a physician's examination have been delayed beyond May 25, 2017. The appointment scheduled for May 30, 2017 was too late because, in Dr. Goulden's opinion, by May 29, 2017 the tissue was necrotic and no longer viable. Dr. Goulden's opinion that the amputations of the claimant's right great toe and second toe could have been avoided had claimant been timely examined by a physician and prescribed antibiotics is unrefuted. Consequently, the Court has no difficulty concluding that DOCCS' nursing staff breached the applicable standard of nursing care and that this breach was a substantial causative factor in the sequence of events that led to the amputation of the claimant's two toes on his right foot (see Humbolt v Parmeter 196 AD3d 1185, 1192 [4th Dept 2021]).
Turning to the issue of damages, awards for pain and suffering are not capable of precise quantification (Acton v Nalley, 38 AD3d 973, 976 [3d Dept 2007]). As a result, New York Courts look to awards approved in similar cases to determine the reasonableness of an award (Gasperini v Center for Humanities, Inc., 518 US 415, 425 [1996]; Albanese v Przybylowicz, 116 AD3d 1216, 1219 [3d Dept 2014]; Karney v Arnot-Ogden Mem. Hosp., 251 AD2d 780, 782 [3d Dept 1998], lv dismissed 92 NY2d 942 [1998]). Even with the benefit of guidance from comparable cases, however, it is well recognized that no two cases are the same and an individualized assessment of the facts and circumstances of each case is necessary. "[F]actors to be considered in evaluating such awards include the nature, extent and permanency of the injuries, the extent of past, present and future pain and the long-term effects of the injury" (Nolan v Union Coll. Trust of Schenectady, N.Y., 51 AD3d 1253, 1256 [3d Dept 2008], lv denied 11 NY3d 705 [2008]).
In the instant matter, claimant's ability to walk was already seriously compromised as the result of the prior amputations of his left leg and part of the middle toe of his right foot. Claimant testified that he has worn diabetic footwear since he was 20 years old and used a cane to ambulate. While he was incarcerated claimant made repeated requests for both "medical shoes" and a "wheelchair pusher." Consequently, while the Court determines that the amputation of claimant's two toes on his right foot adversely affected his balance and ability to walk with the use of a prosthetic leg and cane as he once did, it does not find that the claimant's life was "devastated" as the result of his most recent amputations, as he testified. Before the most recent amputation of claimant's two toes, he walked with a cane and prosthetic leg whereas he is now unable to ambulate without the use of a walker. However, claimant's ability to walk and, thus, enjoy life as he once did, was already seriously affected by his prior amputations. Considering the claimant's age and physical condition at the time of the malpractice and the pain and suffering he endured and will continue to endure for the remainder of his life, the Court finds an award of $150,000 for past pain and suffering and $75,000 for future pain and suffering to be adequate compensation (cf. Sermoneta v New York City Tr. Auth., 151 AD3d 565 [1st Dept 2017] [award of $700,000 for five years of past pain and suffering arising from knee injury with the traumatic onset of arthritis, though high, was not excessive]; Nolan, 51 AD3d 1253 [deep vein thrombosis caused by difficulty walking after accident warranted an award of $300,000 for past pain and suffering]; Gonzalez v City of New York, 45 AD3d 347 [1st Dept 2007], lv denied 10 NY3d 701 [2008] [award of $20,000 to pedestrian found 90% liable for past and future pain and suffering was upheld where three knee procedures were performed and a total knee replacement would eventually be required]; Lukas v Trump, 281 AD2d 400 [2d Dept 2001] [award of $600,000 for past pain and suffering and $700,000 for future pain and suffering was upheld for 60-year-old man with polio who used crutches and leg braces to walk before a trip and fall accident but was unable to resume using crutches and became confined to a wheelchair after suffering a fractured hip requiring surgery]; Stokes v New York Med. Group, 304 AD2d 449 [1st Dept 2003][award of $1 million and $2 million for past and future pain and suffering respectively was upheld for teenager who lost two gangrenous toes and part of the metatarsal head with concomitant pain, permanent gait impairment, embarrassment and increased susceptibility to arthritis and injury]).
Based on the foregoing, claimant is awarded $150,000 for past pain and suffering and $75,000 for future pain and suffering for a total award of $225,000.(4)
All trial motions not heretofore decided are denied.
To the extent claimant has paid a filing fee, it may be recovered pursuant to Court of Claims Act §11-a (2).
Let judgment be entered accordingly.
FRANCIS T. COLLINS
2. Quotes are taken from the audio trial testimony unless otherwise noted.
3. At trial, defendant moved to preclude claimant's expert from testifying on the ground he was not qualified to render an opinion as to the applicable standard of nursing care. The Court denied the motion as Dr. Goulden was familiar with the standard of care applicable to nurses by virtue of his teaching and clinical experience (see e.g. Schmitt v Medford Kidney Ctr., 121 AD3d 1088 [2d Dept 2014]). According to Dr. Goulden, nurses are the first "set of eyes" on the patient and are therefore trained to recognize diabetic foot ulcers and the need for prompt treatment by a physician.
4. No proof was submitted with respect to medical expenses or lost income and no award is made therefor.


Hopping on a ferry from the Seaport to North Station just got a little cheaper! The Seaport Leadership Group – funders of the ferry – announced on Tuesday that the one-way fare for public riders will now be five dollars (including fees). It was from twelve dollars. The new fee begins on April 1st (no fooling).
Another bonus is the number of public seats guaranteed to be available will increase from five to fifteen depending on the time of the departure up to seventy seats will be made available for public reservations. Well, that should help commuters often stuck in traffic in this area. You just need to reserve your spot here!
Wouldn't it be nice to have more ferries available for commuters? Well, according to the Boston Globe, Boston Harbor Now is hoping to get approval for two more ferry routes – one to expand the Charlestown-Long Wharf route to include East Boston and the Seaport. The second ferry would be a Quincy-to-downtown boat that could also stop at the JFK Library. Well, that's good news! Boston Habor Now will pitch these new ferry's at the state's Water Transportation Advisory Council meeting on Thursday.
For more information regarding the Seaport/North Station ferry service, or to book a ticket, please visit www.seaportferry.com.
The post Fare reductions & more public seating on Seaport/North Station Ferry appeared first on Caught In Southie.


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Karen Bass & John Delaney
Compare the voting records of Karen Bass and John Delaney in 2017-18.
Karen Bass
Represented California's 37th Congressional District. This is her 4th term in the House.
Represented Maryland's 6th Congressional District. This is his 3rd term in the House.
Karen Bass and John Delaney are from the same party and agreed on 93 percent of votes in the 115th Congress (2017-18).
Sept. 27, 2018 — American Innovation Act of 2018
July 24, 2018 — Protect Medical Innovation Act
June 14, 2018 — Securing the International Mail Against Opioids Act
May 22, 2018 — Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act
Feb. 27, 2018 — To place requirements on operational risk capital requirements for banking organizations established by an appropriate Federal banking agency
Dec. 20, 2017 — Corporate Governance Reform and Transparency Act
Dec. 13, 2017 — Iranian Leadership Asset Transparency Act
Dec. 1, 2017 — Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act
Sept. 28, 2017 — Disaster Tax Relief and Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2017
Sept. 4, 2018 — Biometric Identification Transnational Migration Alert Program Authorization Act
June 28, 2018 — Foster of Illinois Amendment No. 24
Oct. 5, 2017 — Yarmuth of Kentucky Substitute Amendment No. 4
Oct. 4, 2017 — Scott of Virginia Substitute Amendment No. 2
Sept. 14, 2017 — Ellison of Minnesota Amendment No. 200
July 13, 2017 — Rogers of Alabama Part B Amendment No. 88
April 4, 2017 — Providing for consideration of H.R. 1343, the Encouraging Employee Ownership Act of 2017
March 8, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1301) making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, and for other purposes
Jan. 11, 2017 — Peterson of Minnesota Part A Amendment No. 5


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Published: August 19, 2020, 6:47 PM
Updated: August 19, 2020, 8:04 PM
Tags: Rudy Gobert, Royce O'Neale, Bol Bol, Mike Conley, Gary Harris, Mike Malone, Torrey Craig, Will Barton, Nikola Jokic, Juwan Morgan, Donovan Mitchell, Jordan Clarkson, Sports, Michael Porter Jr., Quin Snyder
Donovan Mitchell scores 30 points, Jazz rout Nuggets 124-105
Published: August 19, 2020, 6:47 PM Updated: August 19, 2020, 8:04 PM
Kim Klement
Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell dribbles the basketball against the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Kim Klement/Pool Photo via AP)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Donovan Mitchell remained patient with Denver's defense making things difficult for him.
Instead of forcing the issue, he simply distributed the ball — until his opening arrived.
Mitchell scored 21 of his 30 points in a big third quarter and the Utah Jazz beat the Nuggets 124-105 on Wednesday to even the first-round playoff series at a game apiece.
All part of his maturation as a playmaker.
"The biggest thing for me is reading the situation," Mitchell explained. "My first years, I kind of saw the rim, being a scorer. I prided myself over the quarantine just how to become play-maker. Find a way to get the team involved. It may not always be scoring. I think today, just trusted my teammates."
Mitchell was an efficient 10 of 14 from the floor and added eight assists. He helped the Jazz break open the game in the third quarter and increase the lead to 31 in the fourth.
His performance was on the heels of scoring a Jazz playoff-record 57 points in a 135-125 overtime loss in Game 1. Naturally, Mitchell was the focus as the Nuggets tried take away his drives to the right side.
"Anytime you put two guys on the ball, you're going to give something up," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.
Mitchell's teammates contributed in a pivotal way.
Jordan Clarkson scored a personal playoff-best 26 points on a day the Jazz shot 51.7% from the floor. They also had 32 assists and hit 20 3-pointers.
Game 3 is Friday.
"We stayed locked in and communicated. That's what we need the whole series," Mitchell said. "We need the same energy and intensity."
Nuggets rookie Michael Porter Jr. had 28 points, and Nikola Jokic added 28 points and 11 rebounds.
It was a rare blowout in what's been a tight showdown between the two teams all season. Despite Denver winning the previous four games, counting the regular season, the total margin was only 21 points.
"All of our games are usually close games and this one got away from us," Malone said. "We have to learn from it. We have to look it. We can't be afraid to look into the mirror and see why we lost. But once we do that let's turn the page."
Already in the process of happening.
"If we want to do big things out here it's going to take a team effort and we're all going to have to step up in a major way," Porter said.
Denver forward Torrey Craig was assigned to cover Mitchell and early on it worked. But Mitchell took over in the third quarter, going 5 of 5 from 3-point range and hitting all four of his free throws.
Utah went on a 22-6 run to end the first half. It was punctuated by Gobert's put-back dunk at the buzzer.
Jokic and the Nuggets couldn't get anything going late in the second quarter, with one trip down the floor illustrating their struggles. They had about five shots — several in close by Jokic — but no points to show for it.
This bodes well for the Jazz: Guard Mike Conley could back for the next game. He returned to the NBA bubble Monday night after leaving for the birth of his son and is going through a four-day quarantine.
"It only adds positives having a player like Mike Conley, and a leader like Mike Conley, back with us," said center Rudy Gobert, who had 19 points.
Jazz: F/C Juwan Morgan started his second straight game. ... F Royce O'Neale had eight assists, while G Joe Ingles added six.
Nuggets: Gary Harris (right hip) and Will Barton III (right knee) missed the game. ... Rookie C Bol Bol got some playing time late in the fourth with Utah up big. He had two free throws. ... G Jamal Murray was held to 14 points on 6-of-13 shooting. He had 36 in Game 1.
DINNER PLANS?
For the seeding games, there was a collegiate, almost friendly atmosphere between teams inside the NBA campus. Now, there's less interaction with the playoffs at hand.
"We're not crossing over and eating in their dining room and they're not doing that with us," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. "Everybody is professional and understands that we're here to play."
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports


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Would Pirates Make Good Politicians? Iceland's About to Find Out
When the rest of the world chooses nationalism, Iceland chooses radical change.
Laurie Vazquez
Iceland's Pirate Party holding court from a Viking Ship. Credit: European Pirate Party.
When the rest of the world swings right, Iceland chooses left.
"At a time when millions around the world are looking to populist politicians for solutions to their problems, many Icelandic voters have rallied around a radical, technology-focused left-wing party that champions political transparency, free health care and new measures to protect digital privacy."
That quote comes from the BBC, and it's about Iceland's Pirate Party. The Pirate Party was founded in 2012 by a handful of internet activists. Their goal? To "Restart Iceland" by prioritizing "transparency in governance and the protection and promotion of civil rights" in Iceland's government, as their site explains. They welcome anyone who wants to help and give potential allies two ways to do that on the front page of their site: "Strengthen" and "Participate."
The Pirate Party was dismissed by critics as activists with no understanding of government. But they came in third in an October election, earning 10 out of 63 seats in Iceland's Parliament, and "will continue talks with [the] four other parties represented in parliament, the Left-Greens, Social Democrats, Bright Future and the Reform Party," according to Reuters.
That means the Pirate Party has a real shot at changing Iceland's government. Their first steps fall to party leader Birgitta Jonsdottir because after the October election "Iceland's president asked Jonsdottir to [help] form a new coalition government," BBC reports. A self-described "anarchist poetician," Jonsdottir takes that new responsibility seriously: "A lot of marginalized people, people that nobody really cares about, people that feel left behind because the system is not working for them, have actually started to engage and work with us," she told BBC. Why Iceland's disenfranchised voted for pirates to government rather than right-wing nationalists like the UK, the US, and Austria is unclear -- but having an option like the pirate party in a country whose government has more than two political parties doing the work could be key.
Leader of the Pirate Party of Iceland Birgitta Jonsdottir, poses for a picture at the party's office in the Icelandic Parliament in Reykjavik, Iceland. Credit: Gwladys Fouche/REUTERS
One thing Jonsdottir and the Pirate Party are working on is giving Iceland's citizens power to "introduce their own policies to be voted on, as long as they arrange at least one meeting to discuss it," BBC reports. The party "has also produced a new draft constitution for Iceland incorporating ideas crowdsourced from the population. "To be the robin hood of power, we take the power from the powerful and give it to the people," Jonsdottir told the BBC.
Another issue the Pirate Party wants to resolve is the lack of security for online information. Where traditional politicians downplay or ignore the safety of our digital data, Jonsdottir is dire: "she is fully aware that technology cannot be rolled back – and that people seem to be very willing to give up their personal data," the BBC reports. "I totally declare that privacy is dead and gone forever and we will never be able to reclaim it," she says. "We have to start to look at our realities from that perspective."
Jonsdottir is right in asserting that "privacy is dead and gone forever." Here's why, according to the FBI's former Futurist-in-Residence, Mark Goodman:
Other items on the Pirate Party's agenda include embracing Bitcoin as a currency and offering asylum to Edward Snowden. And they're open to public suggestions for more. "The Icelandic Pirate Party's adoption of a policy hinges on the ability to root it firmly in the core policies of the party," they explain on their site. "It must also receive sufficient support in the Pirate Party's online voting system." The party does much of its work online, holding policy discussions and constitutional conventions in "in-house meetings, social media and various online groups," according to the site. Consider it crowdsourcing for government.
This amount of transparency between a political party and the people it's governing is radically refreshing. But there are potential hiccups to its abilities. "Jonsdottir's opponents claim her party are political lightweights, arguing that a party formed from a grab-bag of anarchists chasing ideals are not up to tackling problems like rising house prices, student debt and climate change," BBC reports. Highlighting lack of a experience as the major critique of a new political party is a bit like kicking a horse when it's down. Yet the Pirate Party is responding to this critique with its biggest asset: its people. "What others call passing the buck, Jonsdottir sees as the best way to represent a diverse population. "Somebody needs to set new standards," she told the BBC. Setting new standards while a country's future is uncertain is brave. And both Jonsdottir and the Pirate Party are determined to make it work.
Jonsdottir's perspective is a hard one for Americans to empathize with. In the wake of a bitter, divisive election where our President-elect will be a man who earned 2.6 million less votes than his competitor, half the country is so pissed off it wants to abolish the electoral college. Yet rebuilding institutions the way Iceland is may be the best way to create a functional government, as Dan Ariely told us here:
Iceland Pirate Party Birgitta Jonsdottir constitution crowdsourcing internet privacy digital anarchy politics left wing populist


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Grace Niewijk
Grace Niewijk is a freelance science writer and editor from Chicago. Her writing has appeared in Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, Clinical OMICs, Proto Magazine, and elsewhere. She holds a degree in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale.
Hormiphora californensis is a ctenophore, or comb jelly, common to the Eastern temperate Pacific Ocean. In this photo, they can be seen with their sticky tentacles cast out to capture plankton. The chromosome-scale Hormiphora californensis genome is a new resource for studying early animal evolution. See https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkab302. Image courtesy of Darrin Schultz.
Scientists generated a karyotype, chromosome-scale genome assembly, and manual genome annotation for a common ctenophore.
Ctenophores—beautiful marine invertebrates also known as "comb jellies"—have long fascinated and perplexed biologists. Phylogeneticists believe that either ctenophores or sponges were the first organisms to branch off from the tree of life, making them the "sister clade" to all other animals. However, debate is ongoing about which group can claim this title.
A study published in G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics provides researchers with new tools to address these questions. The paper describes the first-ever published ctenophore karyotype and the first full annotated genome assembly for Hormiphora californensis, a small, globular ctenophore that is found off the shores of California and elsewhere in the Pacific Ocean.
The chromosome-scale H. californensis genome will allow whole-genome comparisons that weren't possible with previous assemblies, says lead author Darrin Schultz. "The applications go beyond studying ctenophores—we can compare this genome to that of any other species to look for differences and understand more about the history of evolution."
Going Over the Genome with a Fine-Toothed Comb
Schultz and his fellow researchers started with karyotyping, using a simple DNA staining protocol on ctenophore embryos to determine that H. californensis has 13 chromosomes. Then, after successfully isolating DNA samples suitable for long-read sequencing—a feat in and of itself—the team used PacBio Iso-Seq and Illumina RNA-seq technologies to sequence and annotate the full 110-Mb genome, manually determining at high resolution how genes were arranged on each chromosome.
"We spent hundreds of hours going through the entire genome by hand and making sure that every single gene annotation was correct," says Schultz. "We did this because we saw evidence that previous ctenophore genome assemblies contained incorrect fusions or splits in genes. We wanted it to be right this time."
As the researchers sifted through the genome, they found that H. californensis has an unusually high degree of heterozygosity—up to eight or nine percent in some areas of the genome. This presented bioinformatic challenges.
"The copies of the genome from the maternal side and the paternal side are so different from each other that it was like I had to assemble two separate genomes and try to come up with one assembly to represent both of those unions at the same time," says Schultz.
As they got further into the annotation process, the team realized that two to three percent of the protein-coding genes occur completely within the bounds of another gene—not just one inside another, but multiple genes nested like Russian dolls. This architectural quirk has been observed in other species, especially eukaryotes with smaller genomes, but scientists are not yet sure whether the transposition processes that likely cause this "nesting" have any implications for the overall biology of an organism.
Comparative and Evolutionary Studies in Store
The new annotated ctenophore genome assembly will likely be used for comparative studies to address the phylogenetic "sister clade" debate between ctenophores and sponges in the coming years. Other applications of this study include addressing even broader questions about life on Earth. Some researchers are studying the genetic underpinnings of symbiosis using marine models like corals, ctenophores, and other cnidarians that have symbiotic algae. Others are interested in using comparative genomic studies to examine the evolution of specific traits that separate animals from all other organisms.
"This genome is just another step toward understanding how neurons and muscle cells—these things that made all of us uniquely animals—evolved over 600 million years ago," says Schultz.
Schultz also notes that H. californensis may eventually be able to become a model species. It has a short life cycle, clear embryos ideal for developmental observation, and is more easily maintained in culture than many other related organisms. And now, it has a complete annotated genome available for study.
A chromosome-scale genome assembly and karyotype of the ctenophore Hormiphora californensis
Darrin T Schultz, Warren R Francis, Jakob D McBroome, Lynne M Christianson, Steven H D Haddock, Richard E Green
G3 Genes|Genomes|Genetics 2021: jkab302
https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkab302
EvolutionGenomicsSequencing


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Anuj has played a key role in delivering the construction package for Campbell Park sites 14 A & 14 B. A 167-unit residential and mixed-use development for Taylor Wimpey. He undertook detail design and construction packages while liaising with the Structural, M&E engineers and sub-contractors to coordinate information. He is also engaged in site stage coordination for the Manor Way project at Borehamwood for the same client group. This is a 170-unit housing scheme for Taylor Wimpey in advanced stage of construction with the last remaining blocks due for completion this year.
Anuj's experience over the last five years involves projects in the residential sector working closely with contractor-clients such as Taylor Wimpey and Wates. Previous experience in designing and delivering projects throughout the residential & healthcare sectors have helped Anuj in his role at HTA, ensuring that we deliver a quality outcome in line with our client's requirements.
Anuj previously worked as Project Coordinator at Baily Garner LLP, London for five years on a number of Healthcare PFI and P21 projects. Significant among them are projects such as Goldie Leigh and Memorial Hospital at Shooters Hill, London for Laing O Rourke and Lanchester Road Hospital at Durham for BAM Construction/ HBG Construction.
Anuj worked on Kender Phase 4, London - a large residential development. This is a development of 204-units including a mixture of terraced houses and low and medium rise flat blocks. The scale of this project demanded a commitment from a range of professionals, Anuj has been responsible for the design coordination, shell and core production packages for the six residential blocks on this project.
Anuj has worked on the production Information package of the Dollis Hill Estate, which is a development of 142 flats and 18 houses. He also undertook the site stage coordination for New Homes for Wates Residential at Luton over the three sites of Hart Hill, Wigmore Lane and Falconers Road.
Anuj was Project leader for the L&Q Standard unit types project for L&Q, who are developing standard residential Blocks and Unit type modules to be used over a range of sites across the London region. The current scheme has options of four and six storey residential blocks with flexibly to join with each other or be built as a stand-alone, depending on the specific site constraints and the requirements of the scheme.
Anuj is currently working on Stonebridge Sites 29 and 30 which is a new development of 178 homes in a mixed neighbourhood of private and shared ownership apartments and family homes. The construction of the project is due to start early next year.


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5 Real-Life Lessons About an animal that lays eggs but is not a bird
Author RadhePosted on October 27, 2022
A bird that lays eggs but is not a bird is an animal. This is a bird that lays eggs and is not a bird. It is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. It is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. It is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. It is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is not an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird.
So, we have an animal that lays eggs but is not a bird. But the bird is an animal that lays eggs.
The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. So we have an animal that lays eggs but is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird.
The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. So we have an animal that lays eggs but is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird. The bird is an animal that lays eggs and is not a bird.
I guess this is a question you can answer with a question. Do you have a pet that lays eggs but is not a bird? If you do, then I would assume that you will be able to answer this question with a question.
It's also important to note that this animal does not "lay" eggs. It lays eggs. Most animals lay eggs. Some animals lay eggs when they are sick or injured. Some animals lay eggs to pass on traits from parent to offspring. Some animals lay eggs so that they may be born with a certain trait.
So, animals that do not lay eggs do not really qualify as birds. Birds, however, do lay eggs. In fact, birds are one of the most common classifications of animals which have eggs. Birds lay eggs so that they can pass on traits from parent to offspring. Birds also lay eggs so that they may be born with a certain trait.
Birds are one of the most common classifications of animals that have eggs. Birds lay eggs so that they may pass on traits from parent to offspring. Birds also lay eggs so that they may be born with a certain trait. Like many animals, birds also have other traits which they share with their offspring which makes them somewhat more interesting.
For instance, chickens are the common name for birds which lay eggs. So birds may be the bird equivalent of the horse.
Chickens are not the only species that lay eggs. Not all birds lay eggs. Some birds lay eggs that never hatch into eggs. These birds' eggs may continue to grow and develop. Other birds lay eggs that hatch into eggs and eggs that never hatch into eggs. As it turns out, chickens are not the only birds that lay eggs. Not all birds lay eggs. Not all birds lay eggs. Some birds lay eggs that never hatch into eggs.
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Barbara Rae (1943-)
Barbara Rae was born in Falkirk in Stirlingshire and studied at Edinburgh College of Art from 1961 to 1965, where she was awarded a travel scholarship, taking her to work in France and Spain in the later 60s.
Rae's work has been included in many solo and group exhibitions both nationally and internationally, her first solo show being held in 1967 at the New 57 Gallery, Edinburgh. Rae's work is included in many private collections in Britain, Europe and the USA, as well as in many public and corporate collections.
Rae's many awards include Royal Scottish Academy — Sir William Gillies Travel Award (1983) Calouste Gulbenkian Printmaking Award (1983) and Hunting Group Prize-winner (1990). Rae was elected President of the Society of Scottish Artists in 1983. She was made a Member of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1992 (ARSA 1980), and a Royal Academician in 1996.


For anyone who is preparing for retirement, maybe you're not sure where to begin, or you made a budget a few years ago and haven't followed up on it. Use these key areas to help you get on track with your retirement goals and to avoid falling into retirement planning pitfalls.
1. Not saving enough: For anyone who has been working at their job for a number of years, one thing you want to do is maximize how much you set aside in your 401(k)s, as well as your individual retirement account, (IRA). You can also invest in a 403b, 457, or even a SEP-IRA. Because the government lets you contribute a little bit more money every year, you want to make sure you keep up on the maximum amount allowed so you can increase your savings accordingly. For 2015, you can put away up to $18,000 into your 401k. Keep in mind, too, that many employers offer 401k matching so it can really pay to save for retirement.
The money that you start to save right away can be the extra income you need to make up for what you're contributing to your 401(k) and your IRA.
3. Not Creating a Budget and Not Cutting Your Fees: Because there can sometimes be hidden fees that you may not be aware of that you're paying for each month, you want to write out all of your bills and start a budget. You then want to examine each bill's line item of charges to uncover any hidden fees for services you're not using. For example, many vehicle insurance plans offer roadside assistance…for a fee. However, you may also be paying for a roadside assistance plan through your mobile phone. If you know what you're dealing with, you can simply cancel the most expensive roadside assistance plan…and still be covered while saving money. And, most importantly, make sure you're not paying late fees. Even if a late fee is $5 a month for each bill, this can quickly add up to about $500 a year or more. Also try to get better rates on your credit cards and cheaper phone plans. All you have to do is ask. You'd be surprised at what a company will offer to help keep your valued business.
4. Overspending: You also want to ensure that you're not spending excessive fees on things like movies. Because there are so many ways to stream content for movies and get free TV, it can pay to look into this. Saving for retirement is all about being smart and cutting back now so you don't have to cut back later on. Look into Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu for movies. Cut the cable cord and consider investing in a Roku or similar device, which is a streaming player that can help you to get the same movies. A Roku is about $60 and there's no monthly fee. Even if you add in Netflix and Hulu, that's about $16 a month.
That also might mean you want to stop throwing your credit cards around like cash. The problem is while you might think you are the life of the party, you're also getting hit with all of the bills and all of the potential fees. If you can stop using your cards and carry cash, you'll actually spend less.
5. Tapping into Your 401k: Some people think that a 401(k) means you have an extra reserve of cash, but you have to remember that if you take any money out prior to the age of 59 1/2, you will have to pay the Internal Revenue Service a 10% penalty fee. You will also have to pay tax on that income. Once you've invested money in your 401(k), keep that money in your 401(k).
6. Not Re-balancing Your Portfolio Regularly: According to Investopedia, portfolio re-balancing "is the process of buying and selling portions of your portfolio in order to set the weight of each asset class back to its original state." Re-balancing makes sense to do every now and then because different investments invariably perform differently, month after month, year after year. Some go up, some go down, which changes your original portfolio allocations. Allocations are made according to your investment goals and risk tolerances, so it's also important to take another look if your life circumstances change. For example, if you get a new job or promotion, you may be able to take more risk and you'll want to adjust your allocations accordingly.
Lastly, it's important to work with an expert to help make sure you'll be set for a secure future when you're ready to retire. A retirement income planning specialist is a good place to start and can help you make the most out of your nest egg including your IRA, your 401(k), pensions, Social Security, your portfolio, and estate planning needs.


If you do not have a Credit Account with Chandlers, but want to enjoy Trade Prices, a Chandlers Advantage Card is for you.
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Walt Disney Animation Studios pulled this group of heroes from some Marvel comics that had been set aside and transformed them from nerds into heroes. Hiro (Potter) loves "bot" fighting and is not much interested in academics, but he is super bright and builds tiny robots that can fight with big brutes, which earns him a fair amount of money. He and his brother Tadashi (Daniel Henney) have lost their parents, and live with Aunt Cass (Rudolph). On the way to a fight one evening, Tadashi takes Hiro to his "nerd lab" where all kinds of wondrous inventions are taking place, including his own, a "health care" robot named Baymax (Adsit) that is completely devoted to his patients' physical and mental health. He is a white inflated balloon-type of figure that doesn't look the part, but he performs all kinds of helpful health tests and recommendations. Hiro is immediately entranced with the lab and vows to create an invention that will get him enrolled, which will end his bot fighting activities. This is decided without a second thought of the money he will be missing (good influence for kids).
Hiro is indeed successful in getting approved; however, soon after, misfortune and intrigue enter the picture, and Hiro recruits several of the lab inventors to become super-heroes and help him and Baymax recover a stolen invention. Hiro is constantly "upgrading" Baymax to add to his powers, and the group together becomes more and more impressive. Their sleuthing reveals where the villains are, which takes them through the air, under water, and racing through the streets of San Fransokyo.
Disney's special effects are impressive, which keep the older kids entertained, and there are some genuinely funny sections that brings belly laughs from the younger ones. There are also sequences that deal with the issue of what to do with the bad guys if/when they're captured. Baymax has been programmed for health care, so he's more of a peacenik, as are the nerds, and the discussions in working this out are good for children to hear. I especially liked the nods to intelligence and education as ways to solve problems, vindicating and giving more respect—I hope— to the nerds in American classrooms.


Jackie Anderson, Sarah Callahan, Tim Harrod, Tyler Hinman, Jeremy Horwitz, Robert Hutchinson, Dan Katz, Michael Lewis, Eric Maddy, Matt Matros, Stefanie Newhouse, Kiya Nicoll, Joon Pahk, Al Sanders, Xtina Schelin, Jeffrey Schwartz, Andy Silikovitz, David Stigant (the first to submit), Kurt Storm, Michael Sylvia, Byron Walden, and Scott Weiss.
Incidentally, if you enjoyed these puzzles, you are also dead certain to enjoy "Mutant Sudoku" by Thomas Snyder and Wei-Hwa Huang (which I edited and did the illustrations for, but that's not the only reason I'm partial to it), so if you happen to be purchasing my book and need to toss something else into your cart to reach the free shipping minimum, consider giving that a shot as well. And I will see more of all of you...in the fuuuuture!
Sudoku ... in ... Spaaaaaaace!
That's right, everyone: Huzzah! (Or whatever the futuristic sci-fi equivalent of "Huzzah!" is -- "Fraktastic"?) My new book is out today: "Sudoku in Space"! I'm super-pleased with it, and it's available at all your standard online joints such as Amazon and B&N, in real-world bookstores, or from this very blog, if you are the winner of the Exciting Solving Contest below!
In this puzzle, each solid colored circle represents a planet, and the hollow circles that match a planet's color represent its moons. The numbers associated with a planet's moons must add up to the planet's number. So, for instance, if a planet had two moons, and the planet's number was 8, its moons could be 1 and 7, 2 and 6, 3 and 5, or 4 and 4.
In these puzzles, you and a counterpart in a parallel universe are both navigating starships whose starting locations are indicated by the blue squares. Both starships are attempting to reach a starbase located at the gray square. Starships may travel horizontally and vertically through vacant squares only -- that is, squares without given numbers in them -- and both ships' paths must contain the same numbers in the same order. (Their starting squares will also contain identical numbers.) The two paths may not intersect.
To enter the contest, solve all three puzzles by midnight, February 9, and send me your answers; you can scan your printouts and e-mail them to me at f_heaney[this is where the @ symbol goes]yahoo.com, or simply type up your answers. For the Parallel Universe puzzles, either circle the correct paths (if you scan your grids) or list the numbers in the path, in order (if you type your answers). One correct solver selected at random will win a free copy of the book!
So there you have it! If you enjoy the puzzles, please spread the word (though if you wish to increase your chance to win by waiting until after the contest deadline to do so, I suppose I understand). Good luck!


TheGenealogist is adding to its Military Records collection with the release of more than 1 million entries for people recorded in the [UK] Second World War Casualty Lists. Sourced from collection WO 417 held at The National Archives, these documents contain records from the war years of 1939 to 1945 and list casualties sustained by the British Army during the Second World War. There are volumes for Officers and Nurses, with separate volumes for Other Ranks. The Casualty Lists were compiled from daily lists that had been prepared by the War Office Casualty Section and cover the various expeditionary forces deployed in different locations across Europe, Africa and Asia as well as for personnel at home.
The National Archives is one of the world's most valuable resources for research and an independent research organisation in its own right. As the official archive and publisher for the UK government, and England and Wales they are the guardians of some of the UK's most iconic national documents, dating back over 1,000 years. Their role is to collect and secure the future of the government record, both digital and physical, to preserve it for generations to come, and to make it as accessible and available as possible. The National Archives brings together the skills and specialisms needed to conserve some of the oldest historic documents as well as leading digital archive practices to manage and preserve government information past, present and future.


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Dr. Jessica Johnson: First Black student wins 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee
Columns, News, Top Stories
Dr. Jessica Johnson - Guest Column
Murraya, the prize-winning word spelled by 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee champion Zaila Avant-garde, is still a top Google search after the Harvey, Louisiana native became the first African American to win this esteemed competition. Zaila is also being hailed as the "real-life Akeelah," a shoutout from actress Keke Palmer who played the fictional character Akeelah Anderson in the 2006 film "Akeelah and the Bee." Just like the storyline for Akeelah, Zaila, 14, did not have many years of training in preparing for the Scripps contest. It was mind-blowing to read that she only had two years of practice under her belt winning local and regional competitions.
When Zaila's historic victory was announced, many people instantly thought of "Akeelah and the Bee" simply because we have never had a Black American Scripps winner. But Zaila told reporters that she was thinking of a spelling bee trailblazer whose story is not well-known, MacNolia Cox. Cox was a 13-year-old Black girl from Akron, Ohio, who competed in the National Spelling Bee competition in 1936. Racial resentment from the bee's White, southern judges prevented her from having a fair chance to win. The fact that Zaila had done her research on Cox, in addition to studying over 10,000 complex words seven hours a day, is equally impressive.
As Zaila was being interviewed on major network news shows, she exhibited an adorable, shy innocence but also a mature acknowledgment of her place in history. She expressed on "CBS This Morning" that it was "sad" that there had not been any African American winners in almost 100 years of the bee's existence. While the absence of Black children on the national stage during the initial years of spelling bees is due to the racism that Cox experienced, the lack of diversity today can be attributed to structural inequality that results in poorer schools not having a curriculum that would prepare minority students for the rigors of a Scripps competition. For example, in "Akeelah and the Bee," Akeelah's middle school is in the Crenshaw District of South Los Angeles, which struggles with low standardized test scores and dispirited morale from students. Her school did not have a Latin class, one of the essential courses needed for students to master spelling. When Akeelah finally decides to participate in her school's inaugural spelling bee, she wins easily, but she is asked to spell words that are regularly used in everyday language, such as "doubt" and "fanciful." The simplicity of these words pales in comparison to the difficulty of spelling "solidungulate" and "Nepeta" as Zaila did this year. In the film, Akeelah is fortunate to come under the tutelage of a UCLA English professor who coaches her to the Scripps bee. In reading more about Zaila's preparation, she and her father began using commercial word lists featuring words spelled by former Scripps champions.
Many doors are now opening for Zaila as a result of her spelling fame. She has full scholarship offers from the presidents of LSU and Southern University. I believe that she will probably have to choose either an athletic or academic scholarship when she begins to narrow down her college selections because she is also a basketball prodigy. If you've seen Zaila's dribbling Instagram videos, you know that her "handles" would have NBA All-Star guards Chris Paul and Steph Curry on their heels. With athletic talent combined with her academic acumen, Zaila is posed to go far in life. In thinking about the great opportunities that she will have, another scene from "Akeelah and the Bee" comes to mind. In this part of the film Akeelah is asked to read the famous poem from Marianne Williamson, which begins with "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate." The latter part of the poem states that "We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same." Zaila's light is shining bright with her God-given abilities on display, and her accomplishments will encourage all children that any goal can be achieved with hard work. This is what makes her Scripps win extra special.
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Dr. Jessica Johnson
Dr. Jessica A. Johnson is a lecturer in the English department at The Ohio State University-Lima. Email her at smojc.jj@gmail.com. @JjSmojc
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