This forum is for discussions on the noteworthy events, people, places, and circumstances of both the past and the present (note: pop culture etc... is on the back porch).
"The name is most familiar in terms of vacuum cleaners, but Dyson is now going to churn out ventilators, too, reports Forbes. British billionaire James Dyson says the company designed and built a prototype in 10 days after receiving an SOS call from Prime Minister Boris Johnson in regard to the coronavirus pandemic..."
Now the guy behind the revision in the British estimates is backing off his earlier statements, but looks like trying to save face to me. You be the judge....
And of course Socialist medicine fails its people.
If we compare the populations of the UK with the US, we find that the UK has 65 million people whereas the US is home to 330 million people. Therefore, in the UK, each resident must potentially share each ventilator with 8,125 of their compatriots. In the US, each resident must only compete with 1,886 of our neighbors if we wind up in the ICU. The ratio of population between the two countries calculates to 5.07 times more people in the US than the UK but the ratio of ventilators is tipped in favor of 21.9 times more ventilators in the US than in the UK. US residents are therefore 4.3 times more likely to have a ventilator available when one is required than our UK cousins.
Netpackrat, you have my sympathy for the loss of your uncle. I agree that some are taking this too lightly, I'm also sure that some are intentionally screaming that the sky is falling for their own purposes.
I tend to be a little more worried than some, mainly because there are a number of factors working against me/us.
Linda is 68 years old
Linda had polio as a child, and has multiple health issues as a result, as well as other health issues
I just turned 63.Although I did quit smoking and drinking, both, a long time ago, I DID do both, heavily, for a long time, and I was diagnosed with stage 2 bladder cancer a couple of weeks ago. I'll be starting chemo on Monday, two months of that and then surgery. I'm "immuno-compromised" big time, and will be more so soon.
My worthless step-son (age 42) is living with us and works in construction, is working now, and God only knows how many people he or his girlfriend (a restaurant worker) come into contact with daily. He is not the most diligent with his precautions.
My step-daughter's husband is an electrician, deemed essential, and comes into contact with God knows how many people every day. He's also an idiot who can't be bothered to take the least amount of precautions to protect himself, his wife, or his two-year-old son.
Birds gotta swim, fish gotta fly, assholes gotta ass, until the day they die.
Don't look now, but the "curves" in places with stray at home orders are not looking much different than places without.
I cannot find it now unfortunately, but I saw a very interesting article by a doctor talking about as little as 1 out of 5 people not following social distance and isolation makes it essentially the same as doing nothing. If so, hanging our hats on that course of action was always a fool's errand.
Don't look now, but the "curves" in places with stray at home orders are not looking much different than places without.
I cannot find it now unfortunately, but I saw a very interesting article by a doctor talking about as little as 1 out of 5 people not following social distance and isolation makes it essentially the same as doing nothing. If so, hanging our hats on that course of action was always a fool's errand.
I can't find it now, but I think I read somewhere that to effectively eliminate a disease, you need about 90-95% vaccine coverage. So, 20% neglect of social distancing doesn't surprise me that it negates the effect of the other 80% who are doing it. Networks matter.
Note to self: start reading sig lines. They're actually quite amusing. :D
