BBC News: “This year has seen so many seismic events that Oxford Dictionaries has expanded its word of the year to encompass several “Words of an Unprecedented Year”. Its words are chosen to reflect 2020’s “ethos, mood, or preoccupations”. They include bushfires, Covid-19, WFH, lockdown, circuit-breaker, support bubbles, keyworkers, furlough, Black Lives Matter and moonshot.… Continue Reading
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Monthly Archives: November 2020
For Billion-Dollar COVID Vaccines, Basic Government-Funded Science Laid the Groundwork
Scientific American – “…The Moderna vaccine, whose remarkable effectiveness in a late-stage trial was announced Monday morning, emerged directly out of a partnership between Moderna and Dr. Barney Graham’s NIH laboratory. Coronavirus vaccines are likely to be worth billions to the drug industry if they prove safe and effective. As many as 14 billion vaccines… Continue Reading
The Best Inventions of 2020
TIME: 100 innovations changing how we live. Continue Reading
‘Forever Chemicals’ Found In Chesapeake Seafood And Maryland Drinking Water
Chesapeake Bay Journal – “More testing has found so-called “forever chemicals” in a striped bass, blue crab and oyster from the Chesapeake Bay, as well as in drinking water from household taps in Maryland’s Montgomery County. Laboratory analyses released by the nonprofit group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility detected 16 different per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances,… Continue Reading
Plastic Pollution: 2020 Edition
Pace Environmental Law Review: “Throughout its “lifecycle,” plastic poses major risks to environmental and human health,affecting “terrestrial, aquatic, and atmospheric environments.” Health-harming toxins released from raw materials extraction (i.e., oil and natural gas); refinement- and production-associated air pollution; toxins inhaled or ingested through microplastics; and food chain contamination are some of the many plastic-associated public… Continue Reading
How to choose and maintain the best masks for use against COVID-19
Ars Technica – Finding masks that meet CDC and WHO guidelines is tough. We did the work for you. “As the United States enters into the colder months and record-high daily cases of COVID-19 continue to be broken on successive days, finding the best mask for your needs is more important than ever. Wearing something… Continue Reading
The History of CTRL + ALT + DELETE
MentalFloss – “In 2013, Bill Gates admitted ctrl+alt+del was a mistake and blamed IBM. Here’s the story of how the key combination became famous in the first place…” Continue Reading
An Attacker Killed A Judge’s Son. Now She Wants To Protect Other Families
NPR: “Federal Judge Esther Salas is on a crusade. In July her husband and their son were gunned down at the family’s home in New Jersey. Her husband survived. Her son did not. On Friday, she will attend the New Jersey governor’s signing of a new state law that makes it a crime to publish… Continue Reading
Oliver Burkeman’s last column: the eight secrets to a (fairly) fulfilled life
After more than a decade of writing life-changing advice, I know when to move on. Here’s what else I learned: “In the very first installment of my column for the Guardian’s Weekend magazine, a dizzying number of years ago now, I wrote that it would continue until I had discovered the secret of human happiness,… Continue Reading
Fix Your Customer Service Issues Faster
Get a rep on the phone faster & get better help – This site has a fee component but the search engine is free and provides actionable information at no cost. Note – if you want to speak with a person (not a chat bot) you may have to be on hold a very very… Continue Reading
Content strategy in LibGuides: An exploratory study
The Journal of Academic Librarianship [no payall]- “LibGuides is a library-specific content management system (CMS) designed to help library staff members publish information online without in depth knowledge of HTML or CSS. Produced by Springshare since the late 2000’s, the company markets LibGuides and its other products as created by librarians for librarians with an… Continue Reading
FEMA Releases National Risk Index: New Online Data Shows Natural Hazards Risks for Communities
“The National Risk Index (The Index) is an online tool to help illustrate the nation’s communities most at risk of natural hazards. It is made possible through a collaboration between FEMA and dozens of partners in academia; local, state and federal government; and private industry. The Index leverages best available source data to provide a… Continue Reading
