Asteroid mining: NASAs off-world ambitions to trigger a new Space Race – Express.co.uk

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Asteroids are rich in natural resources which are dwindling on our planet, so scientists have identified space rocks as a gap in the market. For example, many asteroids are rich in the mineral platinum, which is growing more and more scarce here on Earth.

Platinum is extremely valuable and costs around $1million (686,982) per 1000 cubic centimetres.

To put that into perspective, an asteroid which passed Earth in 2016 which had 3.7trillion worth of platinum.

A new report has now identified up to 9,000 Near Earth Objects (NEOs) which could be ideal candidates to mine for their resources.

Not only could the space rocks be mined, but they could also help with planet colonisation and even to protect Earth from inbound asteroids.

The study from market research firm ReportLinker said: Space exploration is vitally important for our future and offers a new reality that can help us solve problems that we face on Earth, including resource and population pressures, reduced energy supplies, protection of the environment, scientific advances, new manufacturing and production processes, space tourism and settlement.

It is estimated that there are more than 9,000 NEOs; they are classified based on their mineral composition.

It is estimated that almost two asteroids are discovered every day.

Most have resources that can be extracted with the development of advanced spacecraft, fuel and related technologies including communications, remote sensing, approaching and surface operations, sample collection and testing.

Asteroid mining or space mining could help start the colonisation of planets where finding water would be imperative.

READ MORE:Asteroid news: Watch as fireball EXPLODES over Germany

Also, the water (H2O) can be broken down into hydrogen (used as fuel) and oxygen (air to breathe) and water is used to help grow food, as well as protective shield from the harsh rays from the space such as UV, infrared and others.

Also, asteroid mining can help in tackling the incoming asteroids that have the potential to hit Earth.

NASA is expected to launch a probe to asteroid 16 Psyche in 2022, which is 156.5 miles (252km) in diameter and experts estimate that it is worth up to 8,000 quadrillion (8,000,000,000,000,000,000) due to the wealth of rare minerals on it such as platinum.

The space agency is sending the probe to the asteroid in order to study the origins of our solar system, as the space rocks are often the leftover debris from planetary formations.

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Asteroid mining: NASAs off-world ambitions to trigger a new Space Race - Express.co.uk

How Star Trek’s Prime Directive is influencing real-time space law – SYFY WIRE

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Michelle Hanlon moved around a lot while growing up. Her parents were part of the Foreign Service, the government agency that formulates and enacts U.S. policy abroad, so she found herself in new places all the time. Despite relocating often, one memory of her childhood remains constant. "We always had Star Trek," Hanlon tells SYFY WIRE. "You know how families have dinner around the table? I remember eating meals in front of Star Trek, watching it no matter where we were."

That connection to Star Trek, in part, inspired Hanlon to create For All Moonkind, a volunteer non-profit with the goal of preserving the Apollo landing sites on the Moon, alongside promoting the general preservation of history and heritage in outer space.

Hanlon, who is a career attorney, has always had an interest in outer space. She didn't study engineering or other sciences while at school, though, so she felt it couldn't be more than a hobby. But after Johann-Dietrich Wrner, the head of the European Space Agency, made an offhand joke about how China may remove the United State's flag from the Apollo moon landing site during a press conference, Hanlon started thinking about space preservation and what would eventually become For All Moonkind. She started the group in 2017 with her husband after returning to school to get a master's degree in space law.

One point Hanlon and For All Moonkind stress is the idea that we can only preserve our history in space if we put the space race behind us and do it together an ideal partially inspired by Star Trek. "I've never felt that I couldn't do what I wanted because of my gender or race because I grew up with Star Trek," Hanlon, who has a Polish father and Chinese mother, says. "The diversity [in] Star Trek was a reflection of my life; I was shocked to not see it when I came back to the U.S."

Hanlon especially looks up to George Takei, who was one of the first Asian actors to play a heroic character on TV as Star Trek's Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu. And she remembers the story of how Martin Luther King Jr. convinced Nichelle Nichols to remain on Star Trek after the actress wanted to leave her role as Communication Officer Lieutenant Uhura. Both are examples of Stark Trek as a progressive melting pot. Stories like those, and the overall diversity of the cast, helped shape her worldview.

That same mindset, where diversity and cooperation will be the only way we'll get further in outer space, has seeped into her work with For All Moonkind. The organization helped get the One Small Step to Protect Human Heritage in Space Act a law that would see "all U.S. government licenses related to space include requirements preserving the Apollo landing sites" passed in the Senate in July 2019. The bill is currently waiting to go through the House of Representatives, although both Hanlon and other space experts believe it's not a high priority for lawmakers with the election underway.

Hanlon and other volunteers are also working with international governments and organizations to pass a resolution through the United Nations. "We keep reaching people and getting positive feedback, we've gotten a lot of informal support," she says. "People keep saying come back. We count that as a win."

Convincing international governments and groups is one of the primary obstacles For All Moonkind faces in its path to preserving parts of our history in the United States. "If it's framed as something that's overseen or controlled by the U.S., then it'll be a problem," Ram Jakhu, an associate professor of law at McGill University and a space law expert, explains.

Additionally, For All Moonkind is pushing governments to think about what it means to own property in outer space. The Outer Space Treaty act in 1967 prohibited "any government or international entity from claiming property on the moon." It's something that most governments haven't considered due to it "not being a big priority," Hanlon says. "Everyone thinks they have so much time, but it's really around the corner."

"The moon is going to be very crowded soon," she adds, emphasizing that we're going to miss our chance at preservation if we don't take action immediately.

The United Nations is currently focused on the impact of orbital debris, but For All Moonkind is leading the conversation about preservation.

"The real question when you talk about the moon is property," Hanlon says. "You can't own property on the moon." The Outer Space Treaty prohibits any government from claiming property on the moon, and despite growing plans to return to the Moon (and even Mars by 2022) governments have yet to consider what property ownership might look like in space.

While Hanlon and other For All Moonkind volunteers urge governments and space groups from around the world to act, they are trying to spread awareness and approach the problem from other angles. For instance, they're currently compiling an interactive database of all the Apollo landing sites and objects on the moon. They plan to build a site so visitors can learn more about the Apollo missions and For All Moonkind's preservation mission. They don't have a confirmed release date for the site yet.

Over the past 20 years, space exploration has changed from a mostly private endeavor to something that private companies can take part in. It's a big shift from space exploration's origin in the Cold War. "We initially went into space as part of an international competition that was driven by national pride and security," said Robert Pearlman, another For All Moonkind board member and the founder of collectSPACE. But now that there isn't a race to colonize the moon or land a person on Mars first, people such as Pearlman and Hanlon believe space exploration is something that needs to be completed together, cooperatively and not competitively.

For All Moonkind is leading the charge in trying to unite groups from all over the world so they can complete their mission to preserve part of our history in space. They still have a ways to go, but they have no plans to stop. Star Trek, with all of its sci-fi glory, is a small part of how they got to where they are today.

"Star Trek is an inspiration, from a regulatory standpoint," Pearlman says. "The Prime Directive, where you do no harm, is the way we approach the idea that the solar system doesn't belong to anyone. The flag we planted wasn't a symbol that we own it, just that we were there."

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How Star Trek's Prime Directive is influencing real-time space law - SYFY WIRE

Yes the Soviets Built a "Space Cannon" to Fight America During the Cold War – The National Interest

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Key point:It is no surprise that during the tense Cold War, Russia put a weapon in space. Both superpowers were interested in militarizing the heavens.

On June 25, 1974, the Salyut 3 space station and its two-cosmonaut crew blasted into space. On the surface, it seemed like just another space exploration mission. TheSalyutswere the Soviet counterpart to America's Skylab, civilian spacecraft designed to conduct experiments, test what happens to the human body during long-duration spaceflight and, incidentally, to garner some Cold War propaganda points.

This first appeared several years ago and is being reposted due to reader interest.

Recommended:Russia'sBattlecruisersCould Be a Super Weapon

But though the mission was called Salyut ("Salute"), it was just a cover name. In reality, Salyut 3 was theAlmaz2 military space station.

The mission of theAlmazstations was surveillance, similar to the U.S. Air Force's Manned Orbiting Laboratory in the1960s. The idea was that a vantage point 170 miles high made for the perfect observation post. America cancelled the MOL, but the Soviets launched threeAlmazspacecraft between 1973 and 1976.

However, there was something different about Salyut 3/Almaz2. It wasn't just a military space station. It was anarmedmilitary space station.Almaz2 was equipped with a small cannon to test whether Soviet spacecraft could protect themselves from American anti-space weapons.

Recommended:A Hypersonic Arms Race is Coming.

Details are sketchy, but some have emerged over time. "According to published accounts, reportedly confirmed by the spacecraft commander,PavelPopovich, the station carried a modified Soviet jet interceptor cannon. It was aNudelman-Rikhter'Vulkan' gun, similar to models installed on the Mig-19, Mig-21 and theSukhoi-7," writes JamesOberg,a leading Western authority on the Soviet space program.

Some sources believe it was a 23-millimeter cannon, while others put the caliber at 30 millimeters. "The gun was fixed along the station's long axis and aimed by turning the station, guided by a sighting screen at the station control post,"Obergwrites. A Wikipedia entry states the cannon had 32 rounds.

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The cannon was apparently test-fired by remote control from the ground, during a period when no cosmonauts were aboard. This means thatAlmazdidfire its weapons, albeit not in anger. "On 24 January 1975 trials of a special system aboard Salyut-3 were carried out with positive results at ranges from3000mto500m," according to anEncyclopediaAstronauticaentry. "These were undoubtedly the reported tests of the on-board 23 mmNudelmannaircraft cannon (other sources say it was aNudelmannNR-30 30 mm gun). Cosmonauts have confirmed that a target satellite was destroyed in the test."

TheAlmaz'scannon was certainly no offensive weapon like the Death Star's planet-buster ray, or the H-bombs that Americans feared would drop on their heads during the panic over Sputnik in the1950s. However, experts differ on how effective it would have been in space combat.

Obergwrites that "at ranges of less than a kilometer it could have been highly effective, as long as it was not fired crosswise to the stations orbital motion, in which case orbital mechanics would have brought the bullets back to the station within one orbit!"

Tony Williams,who has written a history of cannon and machine guns, tellsThe National Interestthat "vibration was certainly a problem, discovered when ground-firing the gun installed on the spacecraft, and meant that the gun was only test-fired in space during unmanned missions. Recoil would need to have been compensated by the spacecraft's steering/propulsion system. Lack of air would not be a problem, but I expect that temperature extremes might have been."

Space warfare expert PaulSzymanskibelieves that it was possible to operate the cannon in space, but there would have been some issues, especially in fire control. "The trajectory of the fired shell would be curved, based on gravity (same as on Earth), so the aiming mechanism would have to account for this, along with the great speeds of theAlmazspacecraft and the target," he tells theThe National Interest. In addition, destroying a high-speed anti-space weapon at close range might have resulted inAlmazbeing hit by fast debris.

The Soviet space cannon was defensive, but what would it have defended against? The fictional U.S. Space Marines in that famous and bizarre scene from the James Bond movie "Moonraker"? Anti-satellite weapons existChina is reportedly developing them while the U.S. destroyed one of its malfunctioning satellites with ananti-ballistic missile in 2006. But the technology is still largely untested.

In any event, one pities the poor cosmonaut who would have tried to gun down a rocket headed toward at five miles per second.

This first appeared several years ago and is being reposted due to reader interest.

Image: Reuters

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Yes the Soviets Built a "Space Cannon" to Fight America During the Cold War - The National Interest

Kerbal Space Program 2 heads to space while grounded in science – PCGamesN

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Kerbal Space Program has a secret, but its not hard to find it just takes some time. As you fiddle with rocket configurations and fuel payloads, while youre nervously watching the countdown timer on the launchpad, as you adjust an orbital velocity, suddenly it happens: something clicks, and you get it. And once you get it, you just want to see what you can do with it.

The open secret of Kerbal Space program is that it offers players true insight into orbital physics in a way most classrooms cant. The sequel is coming out this year, and while Kerbal Space Program 2 has its sights set on interstellar travel and other feats that are still strictly theoretical, its designers are keen to maintain the originals ability to thrill, awe, and ultimately teach.

The sort of accidentally educational aspect of this game is one of the most beautiful things about it, creative director Nate Simpson says. Its not a capital E educational game, and we dont market it as such, but then you learn some really big, fundamental stuff about the way the universe works which is very rare for a videogame.

For most players, the a-ha moment is when they first understand reallyunderstand how an orbit works.

Everyone knows what an orbit is its when a thing goes around another thing! Michael Cook, executive producer at publisher Private Division, says. But theres a moment when you realise that youre not flying up to get to space, youre flying sidewaysto get to space. And then theres a series of concepts prograde and retrograde where youre essentially changing the dimensions of your orbit by going faster or slower. Theres a moment when everything just switches 90 degrees inside your brain, and youre like, oooh!And suddenly theres this universe of possibilities it all just kind of builds on itself.

But how do you continue teaching fundamental concepts when you move away from practical, applied science and into the theoretical? The developers had a new demo video to show at PAX East, which included footage of planetary colonies, new forms of nuclear propulsion, space-based launch platforms, and ultimately, travel to distant stars. The developers are keenly aware of the issue, and are taking steps to make sure Kerbal Space Program 2 retains the groundedness of the original or at least, most of it.

When the first person sets foot on Mars, I assume their historic statement will include a shout-out to our team

Nate Simpson

Creative director

Obviously, if these were fully solved engineering problems, we would be using them right now, Cook says. But theres not a single engine in this that doesnt have some kind of root in real science.

Since interstellar distances are orders of magnitude larger than those found within a single solar system, Kerbal Space Program 2 is introducing new rocket engines that use novel and theoretical forms of fuel, like metallic hydrogen hydrogen gas that has been compressed to the point that it forms an alkali lattice, which would be an extremely potent fuel.

Most of the engineering challenges with the next gen engines are around cooling, Simpson explains. It turns out that its quite easy to make very violent things happen inside of a rocket nozzle. The trouble is having whatever that is not vaporise the vehicle itself.

Helping the Kerbal Space Program 2 team out is a panel of scientific experts, which includes Dr Uri Shumlak, the associate chair for research at the University of Washingtons Aeronautics and Astronautics department. Theres also Dr Joel Green, an astrophysicist working on the James Webb Space Telescope, who provides the team with guidance on the movement of celestial bodies.

We may spend even more of our time cross-checking this stuff against reality, because so much of it is so, on the face of it, implausible, Cook says.

The PAX East presentation leans heavily into Kerbal Space Program 2s inadvertent comedy: much of what makes its particular approach to science so much fun, after all, is watching things go catastrophically awry. The resulting explosions have received a significant makeover, and the new lighting system makes everything look more dramatic and real the launch sequence the team showed off was particularly stirring.

But the presentation also highlights some of these uncharted frontiers for exploration. Solar arrays spread out across the surface of a distant moon, and elsewhere, an interstellar craft the size of the Empire State Building slips its moorings and moves away from an orbital shipyard against the backdrop of the rings of a gas giant.

Its inspiring to see, even when the ships are crewed by goofy, wide-eyed Kerbals. And that inspiration has proven to be motivating. One person who had lined up to see the PAX demo, Simpson says, told them hed recently accepted a job with SpaceX, and that it had been Kerbal Space Program that had originally gotten him interested in space exploration.

This is a progression that can go very, very far, he said, laughing. When the first person sets foot on Mars, I assume their historic statement will include a shout-out to our team.

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Kerbal Space Program 2 heads to space while grounded in science - PCGamesN

How the moon formed new research – The Conversation US

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How the Earth got its moon is a long debated question. The giant impact theory which states that the Moon formed from the a collision between the early Earth and a rocky body called Theia has become the front runner among the explanations. But the details around how this happened are blurry and there are many observations that scientists are still struggling to explain.

Now a new study, published in Nature Geoscience, has shed light on what actually happened by solving one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the crash why the Moon ended up being nearly identical to Earth, rather than Theia, assuming she existed.

According to the giant impact theory, Theia was a body roughly the size of Mars or smaller half the diameter of Earth. It smashed into the developing Earth 4.5 billion years ago. This collision produced enough heat to create magma oceans and ejected a lot of debris into orbit around the Earth, which subsequently coalesced into the Moon.

The theory explains the way and the speed which the Earth and Moon spin around each other. They are tidally locked, which means that the Moon always shows the same side towards Earth as it spins around it. This is why it was such an achievement when the Chinese landed their Chang'e 4 spacecraft on the far side of the Moon in 2019 direct communications with that side are never possible from Earth.

The Moon and the Earth are nearly identical in composition. The differences are that the Moon has less iron and less of the lighter elements such a hydrogen, which are needed to produce water. The giant impact theory explains why. The heavy element iron would have been retained on Earth. And the heat produced during the impact and the ejection into space would have boiled the lighter elements off while the rest of the material of Earth and Theia would have mixed.

Computer models have reproduced the events that led to the formation of the Moon. The models that best fit all of the observations suggest that the Moon should be composed by approximately 80% from the material originating from Theia. So why is the Moon instead suspiciously similar to Earth?

One explanation is that Theia and the early Earth must have had an identical composition to start with. That seems unlikely because every documented planetary body in our solar system has their own unique composition, with slight differences reflecting the distance from the sun where a body formed.

Another explanation is that the mixing of the two bodies was much more thorough than anticipated, leaving a less clear signature of Theia in the Moon. But that is also unlikely, as it would require a much larger impact than the one that actually took place.

Listen to The Conversations podcast series To the moon and beyond to find out what plans there are to use the moon as a staging post for future space exploration.

The new study resolves this dilemma by showing that the Earth and the Moon arent as similar as previously thought. The researchers looked with very high precision at the distribution of isotopes of the element oxygen in rocks returned from the Moon by the Apollo astronauts. In chemistry, any elements atomic nucleus is made up of particles known as protons and neutrons; isotopes of an element have the same number of protons in the nucleus as the regular version, but different numbers of neutrons. In this case, oxygens isotope, O-18, which has eight protons and ten neutrons, is slightly heavier than the much more common than O-16, with its eight protons and eight neutrons.

The study shows that there is a small difference between the Earth and the Moon in their oxygen isotope composition their profiles arent identical after all. What is more, the difference increases when you look at rocks from the Moons mantle, which is a layer below the surface or crust having more lighter oxygen isotopes than the Earth. This is important. The crust is where mixed debris would have ended up, whereas the deep interior would have more bits of Theia.

So Theia and Earth werent identical, and the Moon and the Earth arent identical either. But the results also teach us a bit more about Theia itself.

Because of gravity, one may expect slightly more of the heavier isotopes closer to the Sun. Compared to Earth, Theia must have had more of the lighter oxygen isotopes, which suggests that it would have formed further away from the Sun than the Earth.

With the results from this study the giant impact theory has crossed another hurdle in explaining the formation of our Moon, and we have learned a little more about Theia itself on the way.

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How the moon formed new research - The Conversation US

The Return of Cosmos and Ann Druyan – The Planetary Society

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Cosmos: Possible Worlds is the third season of the beautiful, groundbreaking television series helmed by the late Carl Sagans widow and partner, Ann Druyan. Ann returns to tell us about the show and her new companion book of the same name. You might win a hardcover copy in this weeks Whats Up space trivia contest. The equinox edition of The Planetary Report has arrived! Planetary Society Editorial Director Jason Davis provides an overview.

A Planetary Society r-r-r-rubber asteroid and a hardcover copy of Ann Druyans new book, Cosmos: Possible Worlds.

What is the second largest planetary moon in our solar system that orbits retrograde? (Neptunes Triton is by far the largest.)

The winner will be revealed next week.

Rusty Schweickarts EVA call sign during Apollo 9 was Red Rover.

Mat Kaplan: [00:00:00] Cosmos returns, and so does Ann Druyan, this week on Planetary Radio. Welcome, I'm Mat Kaplan of the Planetary Society, with more of the human adventure across our solar system and beyond. Have you seen it? Season three of Cosmos premiered March 9th on the National Geographic channel. This time, it's Cosmos: Possible Worlds, and judging from the first two episodes, some of those worlds will be wonderful places to live. Executive producer, writer, director, and guiding hand for the series, Ann Druyan, visits with us again. She'll also tell us about her just published companion book for the series. It's spectacular, and you'll get the chance to win a copy in this week's, What's Up segment.

A new edition of the Planetary Report also waits for you at planetary.org. Jason Davis will give us a preview in minutes. First, so I'm [00:01:00] proud to announce the long-awaited expansion of Jason's great weekly post, The Downlink. It still opens with mission briefings from around the solar system, but The Downlink now also contains notes from the Planetary Society, like, the announcement of the science communicator position we need to fill. You'll also find a brief What's Up section, and the Wow of the Week, something you just might wanna share. You can sign up to get the newsletter delivered to your inbox for free at planetary.org/connect, or you can view the latest edition at planetary.org/downlink.

And here's a sampling of the news items you'll find inside; Perseverance, that's the new name of what has been known only as the Mars 2020 rover. Congratulations to seventh grade student, Alexander Mather, for submitting the winning nomination and essay. NASA has cleared the wide field infrared survey telescope [00:02:00] for its next stage of development. As you may have heard, on the March space policy edition of our show, the Trump administration's 2021 budget proposal for NASA does not include funding for WFIRST, but it could be restored by Congress.

Psyche, the spacecraft that will make the first visit to a nickel iron asteroid, has a ride; a SpaceX Falcon Heavy will rocket it skyward in 2026. And though their results haven't yet been peer reviewed, a group of researches believes they have, for the first time, found a protein in a meteorite. There's evidence the big molecule is not just earthly contamination, but really did originate, well, some place else. Let's hear it directly now from the Planetary Society's editorial director, Jason Davis.

Jason, welcome back to the show. I- I... Maybe the first thing that we should talk about is, uh, why I'm not having this conversation with Emily Lakdawalla. [00:03:00] She is still very much with the society, no worries, anybody, uh, but there has been a bit of a change in staffing for TPR, so that Emily is, uh, able to, uh, go back to doing some other things. Can you, can you tell us what's up?

Jason Davis: Yeah. Turns out that, uh, editing a magazine is a very full-time position [laughs] ...

Mat Kaplan: [laughs].

Jason Davis: ... for one person, so, uh, it's a little overwhelming, uh, if, to have that as your entire job duty, and then also try to do other things. So, Emily won't be, uh, responsible for editing the magazine as a whole anymore. We now split it up into different parts, and I'll be editing the features. We have some other, uh, staffers who are responsible for some of the internal parts, like the Impact Report. So, yeah, no worries, Emily is still quite around.

Mat Kaplan: Yeah. Big phew, P-H-E-W. And, in fact, she has a contribution or two in this, uh, issue of the magazine, but let's start, maybe, by talking about this main feature. I don't think I've seen anything like this before in, uh, The Planetary Report.

Jason Davis: Yeah. The main feature, [00:04:00] uh, since it is 2020, we're starting a new decade, we thought this would be a good time to take a holistic look at planetary science in general, and talk about what we think is coming down the pipe for the next decade. This roughly coincides with the decadal survey, that's the report that the science community gets together and puts out, under the National Academies of Science, uh, every 10 years. that says, "Hey, here are the main things that we're gonna try to discover in these next 10 years, and we're gonna look at some of the missions that will accomplish those objectives."

Even though the decadal survey technically doesn't come out for another, uh, two years, they're working on it right now. We figured this would be a great idea if we went and talked to scientists representing each major field of planetary science, or maj- each major subgroup, and, uh, ask them to tell us about what cool science they're looking forward to.

Mat Kaplan: So what are these subgroups, and, and there's a piece about each one?

Jason Davis: Yeah. We've got Mercury, even though there's no technical subgroup for Mercury, we didn't want Mercury to feel left out [laughs], so we had [00:05:00] a very, very short piece of Mercury. Uh, we have one for Venus, and of course, there's a Venus exploration group for Venus, so that totally made sense to, to do that one separately. Uh, we've also got a Mars piece, we've got an outer planets piece, and so that just swamps in anywhere from, uh, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and all of their moons, because it's just such a diverse area of the solar system, you know. You have your gas giants, but then you also have these little moons that have complex geology that, uh, is worth exploring in their own right.

And then you also have small bodies, that's asteroids, comets, things like that. Finally, the moon. Can't forget the moon. That's, uh, a big part of NASA's human spaceflight program right now, and also a subgroup. So, yeah, we have all of that representative, uh, in one giant feature article, and I really hope our readers, uh, appreciate it and love it.

Mat Kaplan: And as always, there is much more than, uh, this main feature in the, uh, spring equinox, uh, edition of The Planetary Report. There are a couple of things that really hit me, and, even though they're kinda minor [00:06:00] pieces, you know, we, we have this regular piece, Why I Explore Now, and this time, it features a little essay from somebody that I got to know recently on Planetary Radio.

Jason Davis: Yeah. Uh, we got Sasha Sagan to contribute for this issue, and it's a really nice little story about, uh, her father and mother, and what it was like to grow up in such a science oriented household, and what inspired her to, um, ultimately explore some of this, um, herself. And, of course, yeah, you interviewed her, and she's got her new book out. So it's a really nice little piece, uh, that I hope our members will enjoy.

Mat Kaplan: Pretty good timing for us to mention that piece since her mother is going to be featured in moments on this, uh, this episode of Planetary Radio, uh, Ann Druyan, of course. I had just one other thing I'll mention. Um, the- there's so much more here in the magazine though, including, uh, where you'll find all those spacecraft around the, uh, solar system, that really popular, uh, graphic feature that was instituted by Emily not too long ago. There is something that really is charming to me, and it says something [00:07:00] about, uh, a major anniversary for The Planetary Society. It's this, uh, reproduction of typewritten notes from our founding executive director, Lou Friedman, that he typed up in August of 1979. You know what I'm talking about.

Jason Davis: [laughs] Yeah, yeah. This is super exciting to feature too. We featured this on the website a while back, and we just loved it so much, we wanted to make sure it got in the magazine as well. Uh, all of year long, we're gonna be celebrating the Planetary Society's 40th anniversary, which is pretty wild, uh, when you think about it. We've been around for 40 years now, s- since Carl Sagan, Bruce Murray and Lou Friedman founded us. And in this issue, we have one of the founding documents reprinted. It's the goals and objectives of what this blank society will be. And when I say blank, it i- it's literally in the document. It says, it starts out by saying ...

Mat Kaplan: [laughs].

Jason Davis: ...the goal of the blank society is to bring together ...

Mat Kaplan: [laughs].

Jason Davis: ...uh, various constituees, uh, constituencies to provide, uh, public opportunity for engagement and support space exploration. So, [00:08:00] they didn't even know what the name was gonna be yet when they wrote this first document. So, um, very cool, and I, I, I hope everyone enjoys that as well.

Mat Kaplan: Well, by the time you hear this, the entire edition, the, this entire issue of The Planetary Report, should be available to everybody at planetary.org. Of course, members of the Planetary Society will receive their beautiful printed copy of the magazine as well. Jason, thanks so much for coming back on to, uh, give us this little preview.

Jason Davis: Thanks so much, Mat, for having me.

Mat Kaplan: That's Jason Davis, the editorial director for The Planetary Society. Ann Druyan's relationship with the Planetary Society goes back nearly as far as her partnership with society co-founder, Carl Sagan. They worked together to create 1980's Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, which remains the most popular public television series ever in America. Cosmos returned in 2014 under Ann's guidance as Cosmos: A Space Time Odyssey, with [00:09:00] Neil deGrasse Tyson as our guide to life, the universe and everything. Now, six years later, Ann and her team are back with the third season, Cosmos: Possible Worlds. She has also launched a beautiful companion book of the same name.

The book and series consider far, far more than space exploration, but we space geeks will find plenty to satisfy us. Consider the cosmic telescope, an instrument that would use the bending of space and light described by Einstein, to reveal the surfaces of exoplanets. You'll see it in the series, along with an awe-inspiring imagining of the launch of thousands of tiny light sails toward a distant star. And then, far larger sails carrying humans across the void, through it all as recognition that humanity stands at a crossroads, with science pointing the best way forward.

I got up early on the morning of March 4th, so that I could catch Ann at the beginning of a full day of media [00:10:00] interviews. As you'll hear, she has promised to return when we can take more time to explore Cosmos, and do so over something better than a telephone connection. Ann Druyan, it is a pleasure and an honor to welcome you back to Planetary Radio. Thanks for joining us.

Ann Druyan: Mat, it's always a pleasure to talk with you. I love our conversations.

Mat Kaplan: [laughs]. That is a very high complement, and it is especially gratifying to be able to talk to you about, um, this latest work, Cosmos: Possible Worlds. Here's a roundabout way of paying i- uh, it a high complement. And I'm talking first now about the TV series, though I'm very happy to say that I have the book in front of me. Since I couldn't make it to your Los Angeles screening of the, uh, the third season, your people were kind enough to let me enjoy the first two episodes online.

Ann Druyan: Wonderful.

Mat Kaplan: [laughs]. Eh, [inaudible 00:10:53] but, oh, yeah, it really was.

Ann Druyan: I'm glad they did.

Mat Kaplan: I connected my iPad to our, our flat screen, [00:11:00] because I thought it really deserved to be seen on a big screen, and I was gonna watch the first episode intending to be on my treadmill as it played, I never pulled myself away from the TV. I stood three feet away ...

Ann Druyan: Oh.

Mat Kaplan: ...from it during the entire show. And then, that night, I watched it again with my equally enchanted wife, uh, and the second episode was just as awe-inspiring. You have accomplished something wonderful here.

Ann Druyan: Well, um, my heart is s- soaring to hear you say that,...

Mat Kaplan: [laughs].

Ann Druyan: ...because, uh, 'cause I've known you such a good long while, and I'm really excited that, that you and your wife enjoyed it. That, that thrills me.

Mat Kaplan: So, the premier of the third season, it's still ahead of us as, as you and I speak now, but the first episode will have aired by the time, uh, this episode of Planetary Radio is heard. Uh, I was looking at the comments about the trailer for the third season on YouTube, they are overwhelmingly positive. Have you seen the one, [00:12:00] there's a guy who said, "I need this science to be in liquid form, so I can inject it straight into my veins."

Ann Druyan: [laughs].

Mat Kaplan: [laughs].

Ann Druyan: Oh. No, I haven't seen that. Thank you for telling me. Wow. How gratifying this is. You know, the series is the work of 987 people, we actually literally counted, in so many countries around the world. The show is going to premier next week, or m- maybe last week of, when this broadcast ... uh, you know, 172 countries around the world, making it a truly global experience. And I can't tell you how so profoundly that moves me, because the dream of Cosmos is to empower absolutely everyone. And I think this is a moment of relatively low human self-esteem.

Mat Kaplan: Mmh.

Ann Druyan: And yet there's so much that we've accomplished that we can be proud of. Cosmos, in each [00:13:00] season, has been f- fused with hope. I hope it's s- rigorous science, no pie in the sky, but I know that we can do this. We can meet these challenges, and it's such a, such a thrill to be able to communicate that hope to such a truly vast audience on earth.

Mat Kaplan: I think you've answered, uh, a question I was going to ask you anyway, which was, your ... Was your focus in both the book, and the new season of the TV series more to provide information or to provide inspiration? I suspect it's the latter.

Ann Druyan: Equally. No, ...

Mat Kaplan: Mm.

Ann Druyan: ...it's two, equally. I think the information itself is empowering and goosebump-raising. I'm not a scientist, I'm just a hunter-gatherer of stories,...

Mat Kaplan: [laughs].

Ann Druyan: ...but I'm asked, you know, to have, uh, you know, to have the opportunity to not only pick the brains of people who know far more than [00:14:00] I do, a panel of very distinguished scientists, but also to vet both the show and the book, have been vetted, so that, you know, when I go awry, you know, they set me straight. So, the information is vital. And, you know, I always say that the ship of the imagination has twin engines of rigor and skepticism, and the engine of imagination and of hope. So, if I looked at the evidence, and I thought it was hopeless, I'd hope I would've be truthful about that, and re- the book would reflect that, and, you know, as dreary and sad as that would be. But, you know, everyone in your audience, every, every single person who can hear my voice and yours, is descended from people who had their backs to the wall countless times. This is why we're all here, because they endured hardships we can't even imagine. [00:15:00] And, I still believe, facing climate change, environmental degradation, loss of biodiversity, that, if we start taking science to heart, and what the scientists are telling us to heart, and act, we can still have the glorious future that's portrayed in the series, and the book.

Mat Kaplan: There are things in the television series, as well as the book, but it's the TV series, of course, that will probably, uh, receive the most public exposure, which are going to be disturbing to certain segments of, of society. I, I don't think that's anything that's new to you, but it does seem to show a certain level of courage o- on th- the part of National Geographic, and, and Fox, uh, who, uh, have stood behind this, this program over three seasons now.

Ann Druyan: That's absolutely true. And in fact, in the last two seasons, both networks have been my partner. I have produced 26 [00:16:00] hours of Cosmos, and I'm happy to say that there has never been a moment where they asked me to change a word or an idea throughout those 26 scripts. They have been the best of partners, and, uh, I'm really excited about the fact that, um, National Geographic, you know, my mother, and, every time a new issue of the magazine arrived when I was a little girl, my mother was so in love with, with the world, we would turn every page, she would read aloud to me, and we'd read together when I was able. You know, it has an emotional resonance to me that they have been such great partners, and that they are distributing the series in so many countries around the world.

Mat Kaplan: You know, returning to, uh, things like the cosmic calendar, your, your compression of the universe's history into a single year, it's like returning to an old friend. I mean, it takes us back not just t- to [00:17:00] the previous seasons in, in this incarnation of Cosmos, but, but back to the beginning, and your, and your partnership with Carl.

Ann Druyan: Ah. Well, it ... This c- you know, the cosmic calendar was Carl's vision. It was part of his lifelong campaign to make the revelations of science as accessible as possible to all of us. For me, in trying to wrap my brain around, what is 13.8 billion years really, to us [inaudible 00:17:29] to live for 100 years at the most? Carl came up with that. When you see it at a glance, years calendar, and to understand, and it ... Because we know a little bit about what it feels l- what a year feels like, but this vast expanses of time are just completely beyond our capacity to imagine. Uh, it has unrivaled explanatory power. I- I've never found anything that was better, and so, the, the time skips of the cosmic calendar have been subject [00:18:00] to revision since the first Cosmos.

Back then, the scientific consensus was that the universe was 18 billions of years o- old. And so, it's the universe has become younger, but that's the great strengths of science, is that in the face of, of new evidence, science is willing to change its view of the age of the universe or anything, as long as the new evidence is stronger than the evidence we had before.

Mat Kaplan: Speaking of Carl, it's, it's still thrilling to hear his voice joining Neil deGrasse Tyson's at the, at critical junctures in the show. I mean, for those of us who grew up with him, and, and learning from him, and trusting him, it's, it's wonderful to be able to hear it again.

Ann Druyan: There are magical moments in, in the episodes. I thought it was a good idea to weave Carl's voice throughout the series, because that [00:19:00] magnificent voice, and so tender, and yet so truthful, and so, so wise, is that, it's, it's just a- another, adds another dimension to the series. Carl was, in many ways, very ... And he was prophetic. Not that he was, in any way, more or less than a human being, he was just a human being, but, he saw clearly. He used his science to see clearly, and to call attention to the, not only like blooming opportunities and wonders, but also the [inaudible 00:19:38] dangerous. You know, I was, I actually always get a catch in my throat, many times, for tears, when I hear Carl's voice, because, it reminds me of his enormous goodness, and the beauty of his life. And so, it just seemed right to, to have him [00:20:00] with me, um, in the series.

Mat Kaplan: I'll be right back with Ann Druyan and more about Cosmos: Possible Worlds.

Debra Fischer: Hi, I'm Yale astronomer, Debra Fischer. I've spent the last 20 years of my professional life searching for other worlds. Now I've taken on the 100 Earths Project. We want to discover 100 earth-sized exoplanets circling nearby stars. It won't be easy. With your help, The Planetary Society will fund a key component of an exquisitely precise spectrometer. You can learn more and join the search at planetary.org/100earths. Thanks.

Mat Kaplan: There was so much of that, that duality, uh, of vision in both the book and the TV series. I'm, I- I'm thinking of your vision of this spectacular 2039 World's Fair that is in, in both works, in, in print and in the, uh, television series. [laughs] You obviously picked 2039, uh, for a very good reason. Could you talk about that?

Ann Druyan: [00:21:00] Yes. Well, Carl, when Carl and I first got to know each other, he, he told me, and later wrote eloquently, about the fact that his parents, working class, living in a small apartment in Brooklyn, back when Brooklyn wasn't the place he wanted to live, and, um, when he was five years old, they took him to the 1939th New York World's Fair. It was actually Einstein's first words in the opening of the fair that inspired, inspired me to write the series and the book. And I'll save those words, uh, for the show and the reader, but Carl said later that, when he went to the fair, he was very upset because his parents brought a brown bag lunch, they couldn't afford even the fancy, uh, d- uh, dessert, or, or the tchotchkes that were everywhere at the fair, which he desperately wanted, but it was there that he discovered, [00:22:00] if there was such a thing as a future event, that the only way to get to it was science.

And then Neil had a, a, a similar e- experience around the same age. I think he was six, when he was taken to the 1964 World's Fair on the very same site in Queens, that which was right near where I grew up. I was a little bit older than Neil, but I was at that fair almost weekly for that technicolor joy of all the great things we were going to do in cities as in the 1939 World's Fair, cities of the future depicted without any slums, any poverty, everyone would have what they needed. That was very inspiring to me. And so, in imagining a dream of a near future, I wanted to create a New York World Fair of 2039; what that would be like, how we could use [00:23:00] our science with wisdom to solve the f- challenges we, we face, and that how art and science could combine to create a new colossus in New York Harbor. Well, I was very lucky in that I was working with Brandon Braga, and Kyle, oh, Walter, [inaudible 00:23:20] and, um, bunch of brilliant cinematographers and visual effects geniuses.

What happened was, we were able, with a cast of, of hundreds, to create that, that 2039 World's Fair, in which some of the daunting problems that we face now, have been dealt with, and we're ready to move further out into the cosmos.

Mat Kaplan: It really is a, a wonderful vision, and it's a, it, it is in the book as well. There's another scene that I knew I was going to see, because yeah, as you know, I had a delightful conversation with your daughter Sasha, [00:24:00] Sasha Sagan, two conversations actually, about her really touching, and, and very perceptive book, For Small Creatures Such As We. So, I wasn't surprised when she showed up in an episode. Would you describe that scene? It, it must have had special meaning for you.

Ann Druyan: Yes, very special meaning. You know, there's a drawing that Carl made at as an 11 or 12 year old, which is called the evolution of interstellar flight.

Mat Kaplan: Hmm.

Ann Druyan: And he did it in that little apartment in Brooklyn, on, what I imagine is a kind of ragged living room rug. It was the unfolding of our exploration of the cosmos as depicted on the newspaper, um, mastheads and headlines of the future, and how that would unfold as we moved further and further out into the cosmos. Well, Carl had a extraordinary [00:25:00] mother, Rachel, who really was part of, of why he became who you became. And, even though Sasha was born, uh, after Rachel's death, and they never met, Carl and I were, uh, fascinated by the fact that when she started laughing, she had Rachel's unique laugh.

Mat Kaplan: [laughs]

Ann Druyan: And, how could that this happens, you know. It was one of those, uh, you know, astonishing things where you realize that, maybe it's a little more n- nature than nurture than you like to think.

Mat Kaplan: Mmh. [laughs]

Ann Druyan: And, um, and so, when I was imagining that moment when he made that drawing as a child, that drawing which is now in the collection of the Library of Congress of the United States, I imagined Rachel there in the apartment with him, lovingly working on. And, of course, Sasha was the perfect person to play Rachel to bring her back to life. Sasha is not only, uh, [00:26:00] I think, and then I declare my bias as her mother.

Mat Kaplan: [laughs]

Ann Druyan: I couldn't be more proud of her book, which, which just, I think is a tremendous achievement. She is also, it turns out, a really good actress, and she, uh, and an actor are playing Carl's father's, Sam, gets to take little Carl Sagan to the 1939 World's Fair in this series, and, uh, she appears throughout. So, it was wonderful to work with her and to direct her, that was a thrill.

Mat Kaplan: It is a lovely scene in that little Brooklyn apartment. A- and, this is gonna sound a little over the top, but, but I think I can make the case that this is the most beautiful documentary series ever made. And,...

Ann Druyan: Stop.

Mat Kaplan: ...[laughs] I, I wish I had a ... We're, we're gonna run short of time here, I wish I had more time to talk about it, but with you, but, uh, for example, I mean, it almost opens with these two black [00:27:00] holes that are in this, this spiral of, I don't know, [inaudible 00:27:04] probably not a death spiral, um, it's almost a birth spiral, but they are ... You can actually see that they are dragging space and light along with them as they spiral around each other. And I think it's an example that is j- just repeated so many times throughout, uh, what I've seen of the TV series, and in the book as well, of, of how closely related science and art are.

Ann Druyan: Yes. And that brings me back, uh, to Einstein's opening of the New York World's Fair. You know, what he said that rainy night in Queens, to 200,000 people who had gathered to hear him speak, and then to see 10 cosmic rays pull out from the sky, and convert it into the energy that would, at the flick of a switch, be the greatest illumination in history, this is what he said, he said, "If science will ever [00:28:00] fulfill its mission as fully as art, its inner meaning will have to penetrate into the consciousness of the people." That is the dream of Cosmos in every one of its three seasons. And, that is the dream that I hold in my heart for our civilization, that science and art, not at odds with each other, not one looking down on the other, but each working together, these great, these two great powers of humanity, that they will join together to create a future that is not only livable, but thrilling.

And so, that's my inspiration o- for this, is the idea that every one of us will be empowered by having some of this knowledge within, and it will make us better decision makers, better citizens, more able to know when we're being lied to, because we humans are terrible liars. We lie [00:29:00] to each other, we lie to ourselves, our leaders lie to us chronically. We have to be clear eyed at this moment in our history, if we are the link in the chain of generations that comes before us, and that leads to the future, it's up to us to awaken to what the scientists have been telling us for, uh, 70 or 100 years, about our climate, about our environment, about biodiversity. We have to take those things to heart instead of compartmentalizing them into 40 minutes of boredom or terror, a few times a week.

Mat Kaplan: To quote somebody, uh, "The truth will set you free."

Ann Druyan: That's it.

Mat Kaplan: Hmm.

Ann Druyan: That's it.

Mat Kaplan: Here's another scene which, um, listeners to this program are going to love. Uh, there's a happy little girl, she's skipping along, along a field of grass, but it just happens that she's under a vast transparent dome on Mars.

Ann Druyan: Mm-hmm [affirmative].

Mat Kaplan: And, uh, she [00:30:00] Look up, she's skipping, by the way, in reduced gravity, the third, one third G of, uh, of the Martian gravity field.

Ann Druyan: Yep.

Mat Kaplan: And she looks up, and she waves, and there is this great ship that appears to be setting out for the stars.

Ann Druyan: Yes, I love that ship, it had multi-generational interstellar liner, which is, by the way, only, uh, one of the conveyances, one of many conveyances that we imagined...

Mat Kaplan: Mm-hmm [affirmative].

Ann Druyan: ...are into, ju- making our way through the cosmos. And, what I love about that liner, first of all, is I've never seen a spacecraft of the future that looked quite like that one, but also, it's to, i- i- i- it conveys the scale of great undertaking. In this moment of very low human self esteem, it's a reminder of what we can do if we work together, and if we refuse to be manipulated, and to be, you know, uh, in [00:31:00] any way, driven off better paths for our world. So, I love that because, you know, as a child, I've sailed on ocean liners, which, to me then, were cutting edge, and filled with excitement, promise of adventure, promise of new worlds, and that's what we hope the audience will feel when they see that mighty ship making its way to the stars.

Mat Kaplan: I'm gonna use one of my precious minutes, uh, to follow up on something, uh, that I noticed, uh, there, it appeared that that multi-generational ship, it had this strange whirling drive unit at its rear end.

Ann Druyan: Yes.

Mat Kaplan: And, that looked, to me, like an homage to the giant wormhole generator in the film version of a story I loved called Contact.

Ann Druyan: Yes. Well, there were echoes of Contact in that idea. I, uh, I have to give credit to our brilliant, uh, VFX supervisor, [00:32:00] Jeff Balkan, who worked with, I believe it was a VFX house in Australia, one of the many international houses we worked with. I wanted uh, a means of propulsion that made sense, but was unlike any other that we've seen before, and that's what we got, and I loved it. I also love the idea that the ship itself reminds me of a whale fall, at the bones of a whale at the bottom of the sea, in a way.

Mat Kaplan: Yes.

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16 Fabulous Events Happening In Southern California This Weekend – LAist

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NOTE: Because of the ever-changing COVID-19 situation, events could get canceled or rescheduled. Please check with organizers about the status of an event before you finalize your plans.

Hamilton returns to Hollywood. Kites take to the air in Huntington Beach. And the Elks Lodge opens to ghost hunters.

Through SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22HamiltonHollywood Pantages Theatre 6233 Hollywood Blvd., HollywoodLin-Manuel Miranda's hit musical makes its triumphant return to Los Angeles. For those living under a rock, the production tells the story of America's founding fathers and mothers, including Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant from the West Indies who became the nation's first treasury secretary.COST: Tickets start at $55; MORE INFO

FRIDAY, MARCH 13 - SATURDAY, APRIL 4Cabaret MacabreZombie Joe's Underground Theatre 4850 Lankershim Blvd., North HollywoodZombie Joe's Underground Theatre presents Brittany DeWeese's dance production with all the sex, gore and thrills you'd expect from ZJU. The cabaret walks the line between arousing and disturbing. Ages 16+.COST: $16; MORE INFO

FRIDAY, MARCH 13 - SUNDAY, JUNE 14We Are Here: Contemporary Art and Asian Voices in Los AngelesUSC Pacific Asia Museum 46 N. Los Robles Ave., PasadenaThe museum opens an exhibition that features the work of seven L.A.-based female contemporary artists of diverse Asian Pacific heritages. These artists draw from their family's experiences as refugees, immigrants and foreign nationals in works that invite viewers to think about their own families' histories. Artists included are Reanne Estrada, Phung Huynh, Ahree Lee, Ann Le, Kaoru Mansour, Mei Xian Qiu and Sichong Xie. COST: $7 - $10, free for 17 and younger; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14 - SUNDAY, MARCH 15Peppa Pig at the L.A. ZooLos Angeles Zoo 5333 Zoo Dr., Griffith ParkFamilies can meet Peppa Pig as she visits the zoo this weekend. The visits are free with membership or admission, but require a reservation. The weekend also features storytime with Peppa, craft activities, a kiddie dance party and giveaways. If it rains, the party will move indoors.COST: $17 - $22; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14 - SUNDAY, MARCH 15Kite Party 18Huntington Beach Pier 200 Pacific Coast Hwy., Huntington BeachGo fly a kiteand connect with other kite enthusiasts on the beach. The general public is welcome to watch or fly their own kites outside of the main flying field, which is being reserved for experienced, registered participants. Watch pro demonstrations at random times throughout the day or take sport kite lessons held on the south side of the pier. COST: FREE; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14 - SUNDAY, MARCH 15; 12 P.M. - 12 A.M.Burgerama 2020The Echo (and Echoplex) 1822 Sunset Blvd., Echo ParkBurger Records' music fest returns after a five-year hiatus. The all-ages show features The Mummies, Flamin' Groovies, Apache (in the last show ever), Hollywood Stars, Tomorrows Tulips, Cosmonauts and Pearl and the Oysters.COST: $32; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14 - SUNDAY, MARCH 15; 3:30 P.M. - 2 A.M.Hollywood Crawl of FameMiniBar Hollywood 6141 Franklin Ave., HollywoodThe bar teams up with Writers' Tears Whiskey for the Fifth Annual Hollywood Crawl of Fame. In advance of St. Patrick's Day, an Irish foot parade will lead guests to cocktail specials at five of Hollywood's finest bars, with a live Irish band following the crawl and a complimentary first round at MiniBar. Attendees can sample Writers' Tears Whiskey and take advantage of $10 drink specials along the route. Ages 21+.COST: $25; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14; 4 - 9 P.M.Soup & Tart: Los AngelesWerkartz 1013 S. Los Angeles St., downtown L.A.The new food and art nonprofit Active Cultures presents an evening of two-minute performances by 50 artists, complemented by food (soup or tarts) by acclaimed chefs like Minh Phan from Porridge + Puffs and Roxana Jullapat of Friends and Family. The art activation takes its inspiration from an event devised by Fluxus-affiliated artist Jean Dupuy in 1974, held at The Kitchen in New York. COST: $20; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14; 7 - 9 P.M.Haunted by History Paranormal Investigation of the Van Nuys Elks LodgeVan Nuys Reseda Elks Lodge 2790 14440 Friar St., Van NuysBizarre Los Angeles presents a night of ghost hunting. Elks Lodge #2790 is supposedly haunted by ghosts; members have claimed to have seen darting shadows, apparitions and poltergeist activity. This night features a paranormal investigation of the Lodge's first and second floor as well as the true tales about the history of the building. The Lodge's haunted bar will be open before the hunt. If you have your own ghost hunting gear, bring it. If not, a few pieces will be available for use. Part of the event proceeds go toward Elks Lodge building preservation.COST: $35; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14; 7 - 9 P.M.Los Angeles Pun-OffSilverlake Independent JCC 1110 Bates Ave., Silver LakeOn Pi Day, celebrate the world of improvised punsthe good, the bad and the downright groan-inducing. The night opens with a noncompetitive showcase of original punning on any topic (two minutes or less) by puntificators. And then punslingers battle each other in lightning rounds of freestyle punning on any given category. At the Pun-Off, remember that the jokes don't have to be funny, they just have to be puns.COST: $20; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14; 7:30 - 9 P.M.AstronomyLos Angeles County Arboretum 301 N. Baldwin Ave., ArcadiaBring a warm blanket and gaze at the stars. Arboretum experts talk about the myths, legends and history of the night sky. Stargaze in the gardens and learn the constellations. Plus hear the kooky history of the area that made Pasadena a mecca for space exploration. This event is weather permitting.COST: $20 - $25; MORE INFO

SATURDAY, MARCH 14; 8 - 10 P.M.Playhouse Celebrity Game Night: Speed CharadesThe Pasadena Playhouse 39 S. El Molino Ave., PasadenaThe Playhouse's big fundraising event of the year features celebrity teams going head-to-head in speed charades. The participants include Jason Alexander, Amy Brenneman, Michele Engemann, Simon Helberg, Sharon Lawrence, Matthew Lillard, Alfred Molina, John C. Reilly, Amber Riley, George Salazar, Sally Struthers and Jon Tenney. COST: Tickets start at $135; MORE INFO

SUNDAY, MARCH 15; 5 - 7 P.M.Schrab Home VideoDynasty Typewriter at The Hayworth 2511 Wilshire Blvd., WestlakeGet ready for a night that mixes clips from VHS tapes with a cable access talk show vibe. Host Rob Schrab talks to artists, actors, comedians, horror icons and odd-balls he admires for a new podcast taping. Ages 18+.COST: $10 - $15; MORE INFO

SUNDAY, MARCH 15; 6 - 10 P.M.Film Noir NightsSegovia Hall at Ace Hotel 929 S. Broadway, downtown L.A.March is Women's History Month and Mental Health Awareness Month. To commemorate both causes, Film Noir Nights LA presents a collection of films written, directed and starring women (and those identifying) of color. Get there early for an opening cocktail hour, followed by screenings and Q&As.COST: $5; MORE INFO

SUNDAY, MARCH 15; 6:30 - 9:30 P.M.Bill Harris Dinner SeriesBottlefish Restaurant 11677 San Vicente Blvd. #200, BrentwoodGuest chefs Jet Tila (The Charleston and Pakpao Thai), Dakota Weiss (Sweetfin Pok), and Ali Tila (cookbook author and pastry chef) join executive chef Ohad Yosef for a collaboration dinner hosted by Billy Harris. Guests enjoy a multicourse, wine-paired dinner, in addition to cocktails, hors-d'oeuvres, chef meet-and-greets and a live auction. The proceeds benefit culinary nonprofits C-CAP Los Angeles and The Trotter Project.COST: $125; MORE INFO

SUNDAY, MARCH 15; 7 - 9:30 P.M.Passover Around the World: A Multimedia ConcertThe Pico Union Project 1153 Valencia St., Pico-UnionThis multimedia concert features Passover songs like "Chad Gadya" and "Who Knows One" in several languages. Listen to songs that are arranged and performed in both traditional and contemporary styles. Musicians include Jewlia Eisenberg and Jeremiah Lockwood (Yiddish), Asher Shasho Levy (Judeo-Arabic) and Chloe Pourmorady (Judeo-Persian, Ladino). The night also includes food samples from global Passover traditions (catered by Got Kosher) as well as an introduction to endangered Jewish languages.COST: $15-$25; MORE INFO

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16 Fabulous Events Happening In Southern California This Weekend - LAist

Uniphi Space Agency Launches the Virtual Astronaut Initiative – AiThority

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Virtual Keynotes & Collaborations With Astronauts

Today,uniphi space agency, a division ofuniphi good, LLC, is proud to launch,The Virtual Astronaut, an agency-wide initiative designed specifically to provide world class motivational keynotes and collaborations with Astronauts, all in a virtual setting.

The Virtual Astronautinitiative was developed in response to current events, and as a solution to the increase in postponed or canceled meetings, and for conventions or conferences that will now be held virtually. An expansion of business offerings atuniphi space agency, the program mission is to encourage companies, groups and organizations not to overlook the importance and ability of an external speaker to help engage and motivate teams about internal messaging and directives, and to consider the benefits of booking an Astronaut.

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In these uncertain times, a few things are for sure Astronauts are incredible motivational speakers and appeal to a wide range of audiences, Astronauts and Space are prevalent and celebrated across all aspects of popular culture today, plus we have some historic milestones in space exploration that are about to occur. The traditional meeting and event landscape is changing daily, and will continue to do so, making inspirational, motivational and memorable experiences needed more than ever, notedPresident & CEO,Annie Balliro, As an Astronaut Management Group, it is an honor and privilege to represent these extraordinary trailblazers, icons and heroes. We knew it was critical to do something, and fast, to try to get ahead of this shift in the keynote speaker in-person event based culture and make sure that the marketplace knew that Astronauts are still open for business for keynotes and collaborations, both in-person and now in a virtual setting. In addition to continuing our bookings as usual, our team is ready to innovate and adapt to this new way of doing things. We are also looking forward to some fun activations as part of our upcoming National Astronaut Day onMay 5ththat will help showcase what The Virtual Astronaut is all about.

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Uniphi Space Agency Launches the Virtual Astronaut Initiative - AiThority

LearnSpace Foundation Holds Maiden Space Science And Astronomy Competition In Nigeria – Space in Africa

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On Friday, 6th March 2020, at the Women Development Center Calabar, the Learnspace Foundation, a non-governmental organization registered under the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) of Nigeria, hosted the 1st Space Science and Astronomy competition in Cross River State in Nigeria, the theme being: The benefits of space science and astronomy education in Nigeria. The competition was open to students in secondary schools in Calabar.

The President of the Foundation Nelly-Helen Ebruka explained that the Foundation is dedicated to promoting and increasing knowledge and interest in Space through space education in Africa. The Foundation also aims to create opportunities for African students to take an active part in the Space industry.

A trustee of the Foundation Ms Anne Agi while speaking to Space in Africa, noted that the aim of the competition is to promote the interest, involvement and knowledge of space science and astronomy among students by providing a fair and competitive environment for learning, interacting and the understanding of space science and astronomy. She added that the competition further encourages the development of space science as well as strengthen the inclusion of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) in the curriculum of academic institutions.

A total of ten schools in Calabar were in attendance at the Competition, however, nine schools participated in the competition. These schools were: Lourdes Academy, Berith Academy, Hillcrest High School, St. Patricks College, Christian High School, Government Secondary School Akim, Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria Secondary School, Hope Waddell Training Institute and Margaret Ekpo Secondary school.

Participating schools partook in a quiz, poetry and public speaking competition. The quiz segment was open to a total of three participants from each school with Lourdes Academy emerging as the winners, St. Patricks College was the 1st runners up and Hillcrest secondary school placed as the 2nd runners up. These positions were not only determined by their participation in the quiz but also by the cumulative scores obtained during the public speaking portion of the competition.

The poetry competition entitled If I Could Walk On The Moon, was open to only female students, with each school entitled to one participant. All participating schools submitted their written poems and the too 3 were selected to compete orally. The poem presentations, were judged by Mr Augustine Ushie, a co-trustee and founder of the foundation, along with a panel of judges. Miss Agan Grace Ripeh from Lourdes Academy was recognized as the winner; Miss Precious Ali from Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria Secondary School secured the 1st runner up position, while Miss Rosseta Tegan from Christian High School placed as 2nd runner up.

The Competition prizes included plaques, participation certificates, writing materials and cash prizes; the Coaches, Institutions and all participating students were also presented with certificates of participation by a representative of the Director of Schools, Ministry of Education, Cross River State.

The Competition also hosted a lecture segment on the theme of the Competition: The benefits of space science and astronomy education in Nigeria. Papers were presented by Mrs Iroka Chidinma Joy, the Chief Engineer, Engineering and Space Systems Division of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) and by Ms Anne Agi.

The Competition was a huge success and the spirit of enthusiasm exhibited by the team and all volunteers was infectious. When Space in Africa spoke to a few of the trustees and volunteers, they expressed delight at being a part of history. Mr Timothy Ogar, head of the Quiz Faculty, stated that he was impressed by the students as it was clear that they studied for the Competition and were knowledgeable on space history and surrounding affairs. He maintained that it was obvious that the aim of the competition had been achieved.

President of the Foundation, Ms Nelly-Helen Ebruka assured that the Competition will be held annually as the Foundation believes that Space education is essential to the development of the society. She sincerely thanked the Foundations team of volunteers.

Following this event, Space in Africa spoke to Ms Nelly-Helen Ebruka, the Founding President, to learn more about the Foundation.

LSF is a non-governmental and non-profit organization registered under the Corporate Affairs Commission Of Nigeria with interest in Space science and Astronomy Education across Africa for the benefit of the community and desired growth of Africa.

It was established in November 2019 after the Team representing Africa at the Manfred Lachs Competition returned from the competition in Washington D.C. Members of the Team came together and agreed to form a Foundation committed to training future leaders all around Nigeria and Africa to become global players in the space industry and to make a positive impact in the society.

The originating members of the team behind its establishment include Nelly-Helen Ebruka-President/Trustee/Co-Founder; Anne Agi, Esq-Trustee/Co-Founder; Augustine Ushie-Trustee/Co-Founder; And Engr. Etim Offiong -Trustee/Co-Founder.Other members of the Board of Trustees include Thankgod Egbe, Joshua Faleti, Timothy Ogar and Abraham Eni.

Our first goal is to become a pan-African organization dedicated to increasing space exploration, innovation and technology on the continent through space science and astronomy education. Secondly to develop an enabling environment for the advancement of STEM and space education and industry in Africa.

The international womens day was recently celebrated globally and it was a period to reflect on the remarkable achievements of women who dared, who gave, who lived for others. In my opinion, young women in STEAM should dedicate more time and energy in developing themselves professionally and personally. The goal should be excellence and nothing short of it. I understand that certain stereotypes about women still exist, in this age however, gender becomes irrelevant if you create the value and make the impact the world needs.

With regards to their prospective activities, the Foundation is open to partnerships, collaborations and sponsorship. With their level of enthusiasm and engagement, support from major stakeholders and players in the space industry and the general community would stimulate an interest in space education not only in Nigeria but the entire continent. Such initiatives have a direct bearing on the human capital development of the future African Space industry and the work of the LearnSpace Foundation is highly commended.

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LearnSpace Foundation Holds Maiden Space Science And Astronomy Competition In Nigeria - Space in Africa

Newsround: Thursday’s headlines and glossary – CBBC Newsround

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There's always loads of news happening and Newsround will always help keep you up to date with the bulletin and with news articles stories on the website.

But sometimes you just want a quick pick of what's going on today, why it's important and what all the words mean!

So let's get started with three things you need to know about today, find out what the words mean, then answer the questions at the bottom.

1. Trump travel ban

US President Donald Trump has put a ban on people travelling from parts of Europe to America to try to stop the spread of coronavirus in the country.

It affects most mainland European countries but not the UK

Meanwhile Prime Minister Boris Johnson will have a big meeting of his top team today to decide on the next steps for the UK to try to control the virus.

Find out more here

2. Strange Planet

An artist's impression of the ultra-hot planet

An ultra-hot planet where it's believed it rains iron has been observed by researchers using a huge telescope.

The exoplanet is located around 390 light years away.

Known as WASP-76b, the planet has one side which is always facing the star and so is in daylight, but the other side is always in darkness.

Find out more here

3. Rare Harry Potter book

A first edition copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone has sold for A LOT of money!

The ultra-rare book went up for auction in Bonhams, on Wednesday 11 March and sold for a whopping 118,812!

It was first printed in 1997, and has a very special message in the front of the book to: "the first person ever to see merit in Harry Potter" from author JK Rowling.

The sale means it is one of the most expensive copies of the book ever sold.

Find out more here

US President: This is the most senior politician in America and one of the most important jobs in the world. They are leader of the United States and adults in the country vote every four years for who they want it to be. The next Presidential election is in November 2020.

Mainland European countries: Most European countries are physically joined together. It's known as mainland Europe. Not all European countries are connected though, for instance the UK and Ireland are separated from their neighbours by the English Channel and the North Sea.

Telescope: When it comes to space exploration, these are giant machines used to look deep into the galaxy. Usually in the shape of a huge dish they allows scientists to record sound and images from far away planets.

Exoplanet: This is the name given to a planet outside our own Solar System which orbits around a different star than our Sun.

First edition copy: This is the name given to the first set of books that an author prints to see if their work will sell in the shops. If it sells well, then more are printed, which become second edition copies, and so on.

Auction: When something goes up for auction it means that if someone wants to buy something, they offer an amount of money which can then either be matched or beaten by someone else who wants to buy it. That contest goes on until all the other buyers have dropped out as the price gets too expensive for them.

How much have you learned?

1. Why has Donald Trump banned visitors from Europe?

2. What is unusual about planet WASP-76b?

3. Why is the Harry Potter book so valuable?

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Newsround: Thursday's headlines and glossary - CBBC Newsround

Guest Opinion: Physicians shouldn’t condescend to those preferring alternative medicine – UI The Daily Iowan

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While homeopathic methods have been scientifically disproven, sympathy for patients is still necessary.

The divide between homeopathic and allopathic medicine dates back to the 1800s and, albeit shrinking, is still very much present today.

As much as public interest in alternative medicine seems to have grown outside of clinic doors, the irritation and dismissive avoidance of the matter among health-care providers seems to have intensified behind them.

As a friend and family member to several people who struggle with chronic conditions and have an interest in alternative medicine, I have seen them time after time return from appointments feeling dismissed, disappointed, and ever-more distrustful of the allopathic medical community.

I am also, however, a part of that medical community as a medical student myself, and so I have seen and experienced firsthand the frustration toward patients who come to clinic with persistent skepticism of allopathic medicine and a strong preference for alternative treatment.

Standing between these two very different head spaces, I would like to make the argument that thoroughly addressing and welcoming patients concerns and preferences around this issue is an integral component of a physicians work; considering the virtues at risk, the discussion of these issues is not something to be swept aside.

To judge the legitimacy of a treatment modality solely based on its categorization between allopathic and alternative medicine is to make an emotional decision more so than a rational one, and therefore to put our scientific integrity at risk. If this sounds extreme, consider where allopathic medicine draws its authority from consistent and rigorous application of the scientific method.

To dismiss or take into practice any treatment method without first adequately studying it is unscientific and in direct opposition with three of the four virtues that we hold at the center of medical ethics: beneficence, nonmaleficence, patient autonomy.

Beneficence the virtue of maximizing benefit to the patient is put at risk when we overlook any potentially helpful intervention.

Nonmaleficence the virtue of minimizing harm to the patient is put at risk when shutting down the conversation around alternative medicine leads to an unfavorable interaction between pharmacologic agents and herbal supplements that a patient may be taking.

Patient autonomy the virtue of facilitating the patients ability to make informed decisions about their own health care and protecting their right to do so is put at risk when we deny the patient access to informed conversations and resources about the potential benefits and risks of pursuing alternative treatments.

Ultimately, concerns and preferences around the issue of alternative vs. allopathic treatments will inevitably find their way into clinics regardless of whether or not a given alternative treatment has been adequately studied. It may manifest as patients hesitance to be compliant with allopathic recommendations, a reluctance to be completely honest in conversations about their daily practices and preferences of care for fear of being condescended to, an evident distrust of the physician, or a stern insistence that only alternative treatment methods be considered.

In keeping with the movement towards wholistic medicine, these concerns and questions are just as much deserving of the physicians acknowledgement as anything else a patient brings into the clinic room that has a significant impact on their well-being.

I would urge all practicing and future physicians to take this into consideration. Addressing these issues may be irritating, but its an important part of our work and the Hippocratic Oath that we took to get here.

Kelsey Adler, M.D. Candidate, UI Carver College of Medicine

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Guest Opinion: Physicians shouldn't condescend to those preferring alternative medicine - UI The Daily Iowan

Spread of coronavirus sparking demand for traditional medicines – The Hill

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With coronavirus dominating headlines and prompting people to clear pharmacies of hand sanitizer, face masks, and even toilet paper, some Americans are turning to alternative medicine to prevent COVID-19 infection.

Speaking with New York City acupuncturist and herbalist Clayton Shiu, Reuters profiled the latest trend spurred by anxiety over the coronavirus: herbal remedies.

It was like a light switch was flipped, Shiu told reporters, referring to the jump in demand for herbs and other holistic remedies as cities like New York consider ambitious quarantine efforts.

While the U.S. focuses on developing vaccines in clinical settings with partnerships with pharmaceutical companies, Reuters reports that the Chinese government jumpstarted emergency research programs to mitigate the massive outbreak near Wuhan in mainland China that included traditional Chinese medicines.

One of Shius suppliers, Kamwo Meridian Herbs, recorded twofold increases in herb formulas that aim at treating flu-like symptoms and support immune system function. Shiu also said that within the community of Chinese herbalists, experts have been sharing thoughts on formulas to help prevent and treat COVID-19, which increase both demand and prices.

Some of the more popular formulas include ingredients like honeysuckle, cinnamon twig and peony root.

Naturally, the jump in demand has strained supplies. This is both due to demand as well as a drop in global travel that slows trade, as most of the herbal products are imported from China.

In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) formally recognized traditional medicines, including herbal remedies. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has written extensively on the topic as well, but has not recommended using herbal remedies as treatment for the coronavirus.

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Spread of coronavirus sparking demand for traditional medicines - The Hill

Forget coronavirus, homoeopathy cant cure anything. Its a placebo, at best – ThePrint

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Bengaluru: When cases of coronavirus, the virus that has killed more than 3,000 people in China, were first reported in India, the AYUSH Ministry advised citizens to use homoeopathy to prevent infection.

A system of alternative medicine, homoeopathy courts deep popularity in India, so much so that many are known to believe that its an Indian system. According to the government, its the second most popular form of medicine in the country with as much as 10 per cent of the population relying on it.

It claims to treat diseases for which allopathy, or Western medicine, currently offers no cure from diabetes and psoriasis to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Among followers, it is seen as a form of natural therapy, invoking a sense of Eastern mysticism with its promise of painless treatment.

However, homoeopathy is neither all-natural, nor Indian. Its not even Eastern it was created in 1796 by a German physician named Samuel Hahnemann, who reportedly coined the term allopathy as a pejorative for modern medicine.

One of the two basic tenets of the system is like cures like that is, if something causes acidity, the same thing will also ease it.

The other is the law of minimum dosage Taking a core ingredient and diluting it to such an extent that there isnt even a single molecule of the original substance left.

Despite its popularity, the system remains controversial. Most health experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO), to the US Department of Health and Human Services and Britains National Health Service cite research and express scepticism. They discourage its use as an alternative to conventional medicine for life-threatening diseases, and see it as a harmless placebo at best and a purveyor of potentially lethal concoctions at worst.

Several countries like Britain and France do not allow government funding in the field, while Australia conducted a thorough review and declared it pseudoscience. Spain has proposed banning it for being dangerous.

Even so, there is no dearth of people who testify to its potential as a cure for a laundry list of conditions. In India, its the subject of a degree course that allows students to become registered practitioners and is overseen by a dedicated government department.

This contradiction is precisely the reason why the AYUSH Ministrys coronavirus advisory seemed to set the cat among the pigeons, leading several people to question the unproven advice in the face of a health crisis. But backers of the system were equally vocal.

So, what does a layperson make of it?

Also Read: Homoeopathy for coronavirus: Is AYUSH commitment to alt meds healthy or promoting quackery?

Hahnemann, the homoeopathy creator, believed there were only three kinds of illnesses, syphilis, psychosis (or fig-wart disease), and the itch (where the skin itches), which he thought were symptomatic of other diseases like cancer, deafness and epilepsy.

This theory is contentious even within homoeopathic communities today.

Hahnemanns basic premise rejects the theory that a disease or infection is through an outside cause and states that every illness is from within ones own body.

The homoeopathic premise of like cures like derives from an experiment Hahnemann conducted where he reportedly ingested large amounts of cinchona bark (it contains quinine, used to treat malaria even today). Hahnemann is believed to have concluded that the symptoms produced by overconsumption mirrored those for malaria, and thus the bark could treat the disease.

While its often believed to be plant-based and natural, the core ingredients involved in homoeopathic remedies can be animal- or plant-based, mineral or synthetic, designated with Latin or Latin-sounding names.

The creation of remedies involves diluting the core ingredient to such an extent with water, alcohol or sugar that there isnt even a single molecule of the original substance left.

Arsenic oxide, known as arsenicum album in homoeopathy, was what the AYUSH Ministry prescribed for coronavirus prevention. It has traditionally been used by homoeopaths as treatment for conditions such as digestive disorders, allergies and even anxiety and insomnia.

Other core ingredients include natrum muriaticum (sodium chloride or common salt), the poisonous belladonna flower, opium, and even products from a diseased person, like blood, urine, faeces, pus and mucus discharge.

Some preparations use captured ingredients such as x-rays and sunlight. Sol or sunlight is particularly common, and is obtained by exposing lactose (natural sugar occurring in milk) to the Sun.

To reduce the effects of radiation therapy, alcohol exposed to x-rays is used (which isnt natural). Often, insoluble substances like granite are ground to pieces with lactose and then diluted. For example, it was reported last year that a British homoeopath, who also caters to the royal family, was offering a remedy devised from pieces of the Berlin Wall as a cure for depression and asthma.

The dilution takes place in a form of logarithmic scales (where each step is a multiple of the previous one). The two used most commonly are X potency, where each scale represents a dilution by a factor of 10, and centesimal (C), by a factor of 100.

A 2X (unit of potency) scale would mean that a substance is diluted one part in 9, and then one part of the resulting solution again diluted in 9 parts of the solvent.

For example, one millilitre of a core ingredient first diluted in 9 millilitres of water, and one part of the resulting solution again diluted in 9 millilitres of water.

So, a 10X potency would repeat the process 10 times, and a 15X, 15 times.

This is the same for C, but by a factor of 100: One part diluted with 99 parts.

Common potencies used are 30X or 300C, but beyond 12C or 24X, there is no presence of even a single molecule of the core substance.

Homoeopathy believes that the more diluted a remedy is, the more potent it is. A potency of 100X, for example, is considered to be higher than 10X a fact chemists see as counterintuitive.

This is based on the controversial notion that water has memory and retains information about the substances it comes in contact with (and thus cures the body).

The final solution is poured over sugar tablets and left to evaporate.

Homoeopathic remedies are thus as good as harmless to the human body, but only when mixed correctly. There have been cases of arsenic poisoning in India because of poorly concocted homoeopathic remedies.

Homoeopathy was widely adopted in the 1800s as modern medicine was just evolving and included several painful practices. New diseases were infecting the human population, and medical science hadnt caught up yet.

Homoeopathy held the promise of painless treatment and gained popularity.

Homoeopathic schools opened in the US and Europe throughout the late 19th century, spurred by ineffective treatments for outbreaks like cholera, which killed hundreds of thousands of people at the time.

Medical practitioners investigated the system for assessing efficacy, and this is thought to have encouraged rigour in modern medicine as well.

However, leading homoeopaths rapidly started abandoning the practice in the mid-20th century as modern medicine showed real results. The last homoeopathic school in the US was shut down in 1920.

Later, Nazi interest in homoeopathy led to its resurgence in public consciousness in the 1930s and 40s but they abandoned the system quickly too.

It then gained favour with the New Age Movement, a Western phenomenon that spawned a variety of spiritual and religious beliefs in the 70s, and incorporated natural remedies for the mind, body, and spirit as their central tenet for health.

The movement has been known to adopt pseudoscientific beliefs such as astrology as a reaction against institutional establishment structures, and is credited with the rising popularity of homoeopathy today.

In India, homoeopathy was introduced in the early 19th century and was quickly adopted across the country, via Bengal.

The Calcutta Homoeopathic Medical College, the first Indian homoeopathic institute, was established in 1881.

In 1973, the Union government recognised homoeopathy as one of the national systems of medicine and set up the Central Council of Homoeopathy (CCH, now overseen by AYUSH Ministry) to regulate its education and practice.

Also Read: Homoeopathy as ideology

Homoeopathic training involves a number of beliefs that run counter to well-established science. The system rejects germ theory, believing that all illnesses come from within. Future practitioners are reportedly taught that vaccines are poisonous and antibiotics a sham.

Right from the time it took hold, homoeopathy has been criticised by physicians. Evidence for its efficacy is said to have been established by Hahnemann by having patients simply write down their symptoms in detail after consumption of a remedy, a process that lacked rigour.

Scientific studies into homoeopathy have consistently shown it to be ineffective in treating illnesses or their symptoms or occasionally just as effective as placebos.

Analyses of existing studies show that research suggesting positive results was either not conducted as rigorously as necessary or was backed by insufficient evidence.

A 2002 study conducted by a British researcher a systematic review of other systematic reviews on homoeopathy found that no study was able to determine positive outcomes. It concluded that the best clinical evidence for homoeopathy available to date does not warrant positive recommendations for its use in clinical practice.

Many other such studies have followed in the two decades since.

Most recently, an extensive 2015 study in Australia, conducted by the countrys top funding body for medical research, the National Health and Medical Research Council, assessed over 1,800 other studies and the results yet again werent in favour of homoeopathy.

The basic foundation of homoeopathy, that water holds the memory of substances it has been in contact with, has been widely discredited but remains controversial.

Following large-scale denunciations of homoeopathy by scientists, many medical bodies and health services have conducted independent research and issued advisories against the use of homoeopathy.

The health agencies of the US and Britain the Department of Health and Human Services and Britains National Health Service, respectively both state clearly on their websites that the purported effectiveness of homoeopathy is not backed by research. The WHO has discouraged its use for treatment of serious diseases, and called for quality control and regulation of homoeopathy to avoid lethal consequences.

National medical and health bodies in Russia, Australia, and Europe have warned against homoeopathy. Countries like Britain and France have forbidden reimbursement for homoeopathic treatments, while Spain is pushing for a ban on the entire system for being dangerous and unethical.

Many countries have conducted comprehensive research and have ultimately decided that it doesnt work, said Amalorpavanathan Joseph, a vascular surgeon at Chennais Vijaya Hospital.

Speaking about the recent government advisory against coronavirus, he added, Even if it was issued as a preventive measure to build up immunity and not a cure, it cant work. Building up immunity takes years, it cant happen in a matter of a few days.

Supporters of homoeopathy claim it can cure almost anything, including conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), psoriasis and diabetes that Western medicine is yet to find a cure for.

Homoeopathy has medicines for everything, including thyroid, PCOD, psoriasis, diabetes, hair-fall, osteoarthritis, and even cancer, said Josy Joy, a homoeopath practising at the Bengaluru-based Care N Cure Health Clinic.

According to Joy, his patients have seen improvements in all these illnesses without modern medicine.

Asked about the criticism directed at the medicine system, he said, Western science looks for material content in homoeopathic medicines, but homoeopathy acts in a dynamic way. If the medicines are used, results can be seen.

Our patients have seen their goiters dissolve through homoeopathy but allopathy has only surgery for most of these.

Medical experts disagree.

Any claims made should be backed by data and evidence. There has been no documented evidence that homoeopathy works and can cure people of illnesses, said Joseph of Chennais Vijaya Hospital.

If theres evidence that homoeopathy works, doctors would be the first to adopt it. We want our patients to be cured and healthy after all.

Sumaiya Shaikh, a Sweden-based neuroscientist who serves as science editor of the fact-checking portal Alt News, has done extensive research on homoeopathy and academic homeopathic publications as a part of her reportage.

The studies (that prove homoeopathy to be effective) have faulty statistics at the outset, she said.

A mechanical explanation of the drug dynamics is never attempted in the discussion, even as a hypothesis, as the authors never know how exactly they think the drug is working. Often the conclusions are far-fetched in the abstract but when the study is carefully examined, the data doesnt reflect the assertion of the conclusions, Shaikh added.

Additionally, critics claim, processes that induce scientific rigour, such as blinding, are rarely used. Blinding is when the patient doesnt know if theyre being given a homoeopathic medicine or an allopathic one. A similar system is double-blinding, when doctors themselves dont know either.

Such systems are important to establish the effectiveness of a treatment without bias.

Shaikh explained how citation value of research a measure of credibility is enhanced by the authors or other homoeopaths by repeatedly citing faulty studies that discard other variables.

Backers, however, are quick to reject the argument about the lack of credible research, saying it was consequence of the Wests indifference towards the alternative medicine system.

The accessibility of homoeopathic system is very limited in the Western world and did not receive much attention in development as compared to allopathy, said Dr Anil Khurana, director general at the Central Council For Research in Homoeopathy, an institute under the AYUSH Ministry.

Because of the low cost of medicines, it did not get investment from sponsors either. Even governments in Western countries did not invest funds in alternative medicine, including homoeopathy, he added. Their support towards allopathy has prevented them from investing in further research and studies to prove the efficacy of homoeopathy.

However, there are countries like Brazil, Cuba and Mexico where the government supports this system of medicine The therapy has started growing in the US, where seven states have allowed legal practice of homoeopathy. In Europe, acceptance is at an all-time high in most countries, including Italy, Germany, France and Switzerland.

While as much as 60 per cent of the French population reportedly uses homoeopathy, come 2021, the government will end public support for medicines under the system. In Switzerland, meanwhile, homoeopathy has been given the same status as conventional medicine.

According to Khurana, students seeking training in homoeopathy are subjected to a rigorous 5.5-year curriculum, which includes a year-long internship and is equivalent to MBBS where lessons dont only deal with homoeopathy but also other subjects, as happens at allopathic medical colleges.

India has the largest infrastructure of homoeopathy because of increased demand from the public who have experienced the benefits of homoeopathy, he said.

There are nearly 3 lakh registered homoeopaths in India today. An estimated 32,000 students enrol each year in AYUSH colleges, of which over 13,000 students opt for homoeopathy.

But this curriculum has a potentially dark underbelly.

Homoeopathy degrees are an easy gateway into medical practice for students who didnt obtain good enough scores to enter an MBBS programme, said Shantanu Abhyankar, a trained homoeopath who switched to modern medicine after being convinced that homeopathy is humbug.

Abhyankar himself did the same entered a homeopathy course as he couldnt score well enough for MBBS.

But during the course of his training, he realised that they were just taught theory, and research papers published in the field offered no proof that homoeopathy worked.

Homoeopaths are legitimised by the prefix Dr against their name, and thus set up a practice, he said.

Abhyankar eventually went back and obtained an MBBS degree, and has been a practising gynaecologist for 20 years now.

Also Read:PM Modis acupressure roller could work for some, but mostly it is pseudoscience

There are many reasons why critics believe homoeopathy seems to work for people.

Primary among these is called regression to the mean.

Nearly every illness has a natural growth curve before it tapers and dies (or kills). Typically, the moment illness sets in, patients go to doctors. Antibiotics or other modern drugs are prescribed and might not always work. A homoeopath then prescribes a long course of remedies. So, just as the patient consumes them, the disease in its natural course starts to decline, and eventually the patient is cured.

The regression to the mean has been cited as a factor behind faulty results in placebo experiments on multiple occasions. This is also believed to be the reason why many patients who have survived dangerous illnesses like cancer report feeling better when they follow up medical treatment with a trip to the homoeopath.

We have treated many cancer patients who have suffered from all kinds of cancer such as lung cancer and breast cancer, said homoeopath Joy.

Homoeopathy prolongs life. With chemotherapy, the problem is that there is increased chances of cancer recurrence [there is no proof for this claim], but people still always go to chemotherapy and then come to homoeopathy. We have successfully avoided recurrence for many kinds of cancers.

Different patients have different needs, so we use different remedies made of arsenic, belladonna etc., he added.

He did, however, concede that he hadnt seen cancer patients who came to homoeopathy directly before chemotherapy.

A similar effect as regression to the mean is also seen in unassisted natural healing, where the bodys system builds up immunity over time to fight off an illness, and this often coincides with a homoeopathic course.

It is also possible that the patient feels better on account of a completely different aspect of their life that is inducing a pharmacological change in the body and treating the illness, such as a new meditation practice.

Patients also often use homoeopathy as a complementary treatment to a medicine course.

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Forget coronavirus, homoeopathy cant cure anything. Its a placebo, at best - ThePrint

VP Ma’ruf Amin jokes on benefits of wild horse milk to ward off coronavirus – Coconuts

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The increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia has evidently not deterred the countrys second-in-command from reportedly joking about the benefits of alternative medicine, amid a global health emergency that the World Health Organization (WHO) has just declared a pandemic.

As it turns out, there is something here [in West Nusa Tenggara] that could ward off corona[virus] that the governor is offering, its wild horse milk, Vice President Maruf Amin said yesterday, as quoted by CNN Indonesia.

The idea was first sounded by the governor of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), Zulkieflimansyah, who said that after seeing people in his province unconcerned about the spread of the coronavirus, he eventually discovered that they believed they had strong immune system because of regular consumption of wild horse milk.

They said, we have a strong immune system. Even increasing stamina on the daily, because we drink wild horse milk every day, Zul said, as quoted by Kompas.

The two officials were participating at an event in Mataram, NTB.

Weve got to be careful, we also have to ward off the impact of the wild horse milk. Dont be a wild horse, Maruf jokingly said.

Indonesia is certainly no stranger to alternative medicines to cure different kinds of sickness, but considering how COVID-19 has infected over 115,000 people and killed more than 4,200 across the globe in just a few months, the official comments come off as a bit misplaced.

The United Nations health agency has declared COVID-19 a pandemic, citing concerns over alarming levels of the coronavirus spread, severity and inactions and said they expect to see the number of cases, deaths and affected countries to climb even higher in the coming weeks.

Indonesia now has 34 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country, which includes a foreign patient who died in Bali and four patients who have tested negative for the coronavirus.

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VP Ma'ruf Amin jokes on benefits of wild horse milk to ward off coronavirus - Coconuts

BIFF Longmont Kicks Off at the Museum – Longmont Observer

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The Boulder International Film Festival (BIFF) kicked off inLongmont on Friday evening with a special showing of Short Films at 7:00 pm,preceded by a red carpet access to the Museums opening night celebration forticket holders. Film lovers mingled witheach other, enjoying live gypsy jazz and swing from Espresso, as well as goodcocktail food and drinks, courtesy of Bookcliff Vineyards and Jefes Tacos& Tequila.

Longmonts BIFF program started earlier on Friday with a specialshowing of The Euphoria of Being, a sub-titled documentary about thereturn to Hungary of Eva Fahidi, an Auschwitz survivor, and her participationat the age of 90 in a dance celebration of life.

The rest of the BIFF showings in Longmont, are equally beguiling, with a highlight of Fridays short program being the Oscar-nominated NEFTA Football Club, which included a childrens football (soccer) game in Tunisia and a headphone-wearing donkey. The second Short Films offering on Saturday included The Other Fab Four about the group told by John Lennon but girls dont play the guitar.

The other four Saturday showings were among the pick of the over 90 BIFF movies in the 2020 schedule. They ranged from a documentary on the life and career of Gordon Lightfoot If You Could Read My Mind, to the amazing story from Poland of a released juvenile prisoner who convinces a young local in a remote town that he is a recently ordained priest. Ai Weiwei: Yours Truly describes the art exhibition on Alcatraz Island created by the famous artist and activist to honor his fathers long years in a Chinese labour camp. Finally, On Broadway documents the cyclical ups and downs of the great New York tradition, from A Chorus Line to Hamilton, and included performances by Patti Lupone, Bernadette Peters, and Mandy Patinkin.

Sundays showings highlighted three feature documentaries, that range from the story of The Dog Doc, who uses alternative medicines along with traditional veterinary medicine to treat his patients, to Henri Dauman: Looking Up, that shares the life of the Holocaust survivor and photographer through his vibrant oeuvre of, it is said, over a million negatives. The UK produced Piano to Zanskar relates the story of 65-year-old piano tuner Desmond OKeeffe , who decided to attempt the most perilous delivery of his career: transporting a 100-year old classic upright piano from bustling London to a school in the remote heart of the Indian Himalayas. What could possibly go wrong?

The final feature film in the Sunday program was Those Who Remained, a lyrical story of the healing power of love in the midst of conflict, loss and trauma, describing the unlikely relationship between Hungarian camp survivor Aldo and the young Klara, hoping for the return of her parents. And the BIFF program ended in a flourish, with a program of Adventure Short Films. These short documentary films range from Par for the Course, in which Mirna Valerio, a 250-pound African American woman from Brooklyn, takes on a 25-kilometer race in Squaw Valley that encompasses over 1500 vertical meters on exposed ridges, snow fields and massive climbs, to REEL ROCK: United States of Joes, relating how, in rural Utah, a valley of world-class bouldering is created among a conservative community of Mormons, cowboys and coal miners. After years of antagonism, a ragged band of climbers work with locals to build a harmonious future. Not all of the Adventure Shorts are from the Western Hemisphere, as Aziza from Morocco tells the story of this role model for Moroccan women. Aziza has dedicated her life to long distance racing, balancing home life and overcoming cultural and social challenges to compete in some of the toughest foot races on Earth.

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BIFF Longmont Kicks Off at the Museum - Longmont Observer

Trump Order Expected on Medical Supplies amid Outbreak – Voice of America

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WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is expected to announce an executive order Wednesday insisting on American-made medical supplies and pharmaceuticals in response to the coronavirus outbreak, according to a person familiar with the plan.

Word about the planned announcement, from a person who was not authorized to publicly discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity, comes amid another tumultuous day in the unfolding crisis. Confirmed cases in the United States are topping 1,000, fluctuations in the financial markets are continuing and Washington is straining to respond.

The White House is also considering a host of more aggressive responses, including a declaration of a national disaster, to free up additional federal dollars and to address concerns that the administration's initial response to the pandemic was insufficient.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three weeks to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed and more than 58,000 have so far recovered.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., raised concerns about diversifying the supply chain and reducing the U.S. reliance on imports, including from China, during a private lunch with Trump and GOP senators this week.

Trump appeared to agree with the senator's outlook, said according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to publicly discuss the private session and spoke on condition of anonymity,

Rubio praised the forthcoming announcement.

"The coronavirus outbreak has been a wake-up call that we must combat America's supply chain vulnerabilities and dependence on China in critical sectors of our economy,'' Rubio said in a statement. He said the expected order is "a very strong first step toward increasing domestic production by enforcing Buy American requirements for pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, as well as fast-tracking approval'' by the Food and Drug Administration of "critical products impacted by the coronavirus outbreak's strain on the supply chain.''

China is a key supplier of drug active ingredients, the chemical components that make drugs work, and finished medicines for the U.S. market. Those include the active ingredients for antibiotics and pills to treat common chronic conditions such as heart disease.

Many of China's active ingredients are shipped to India, which makes much of the global supply of generic drugs. India recently restricted all exports of 13 active pharmaceutical ingredients, and finished drugs made from those chemicals, to protect its domestic drug supply.

The restricted drugs are mostly antibiotics, antiviral drugs and a fever reducer, all of which are used for supportive care of patients with coronavirus symptoms, because there is no approved medicine to treat the virus. U.S. regulators have stressed that alternative medicines are available to treat patients.

Members of Congress and others since last fall have been raising concerns that the U.S. has become much too dependent on medicines made in Asia, as U.S. and European drugmakers increasingly have outsourced much of their manufacturing to Asia, where labor and materials are far cheaper.

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Trump Order Expected on Medical Supplies amid Outbreak - Voice of America

How To Deal With Anxiety And Relieve Stress With Alternative Medicine, Home Remedies & Herbs – YourTango

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For those who are looking for natural remedies.

Anxiety and depression can take over your life without you knowing it.

And while some people work well with taking antidepressants, there are some who don't feel comfortable or know how to deal with their anxiety, and as a result, their mental health suffers.

If you're stressed out, exhausted and anxious, and need to figure out how to relieve stress without pills, there are non-medicated ways to help yourself stay healthy, like herbs, alternative medicine, and even home remedies.

So where can you start?

RELATED: 6 Ways My Anxiety Has Actually Made Me A More Successful Person

To maintain balance and realize when there might be a problem, it is important to stay in touch with your inner self or inner critic.

It has become very common for people to experience fear, anxiety, stress, and yes, depression. For decades, they've been given a medication that has only served to mask the symptoms but never to eliminate the problem.

Think about how many people you may know that are on anti-depressants and still depressed. It has become an epidemic and it doesnt have to be.

If you have severe anxiety or nausea, make sure to see a health care professional. Nevertheless, there are natural ways to reduce depression by yourself for everyday stress and anxiety.

Here are 10 natural herbs, home remedies, and alternative medicine techniques to reduce anxiety, stress, and depression without medication or antidepressants:

Passionflower is a common herb known to help lower anxiety.

Passionflower is as beneficial for many as some prescription medicines. As anxiety and insomnia often go hand in hand, it also assists with insomnia.

Hypnosis can be a great way to relax and get in touch with your subconscious. Self-hypnosis enables you to perform techniques on yourself instead of requiring someone else's assistance.

There are many strategies of self-talk and self-hypnosis including and limited to affirmations, mantras, meditations, and breathing exercises.

It's easy to forget about the intense connection between how you feel and what you put into your body. If you ever saw a child after they were given a sugary snack it is a good reminder that food affects your emotions and behavior.

Remember to take care of yourself by eating a well-balanced diet and drink plenty of water. It can help you reduce anxiety.

If eating right is difficult for you, be sure to take a natural supplement in the form of a multivitamin and avoid chemicals, sugar, processed foods, alcohol, and caffeine when possible.

Running around frantically can cause anxiety. Perhaps you need to look at whats important that you must do and what you must not. Then what to eliminate or delegate to someone else.

When you manage your time you can schedule what you also need to help refill your own tank so you are ready for whats next. This will help you stop reacting and start responding. Remember to schedule time for fun and relaxation, too.

RELATED: 5 Creative Ways To Deal With Anxiety (And Get Your Mind Off Of What's Bothering You)

St. John's Wort is a natural supplement that has been used for centuries that helps with both depression and anxiety. It's best used for mild to moderate cases.

Acupuncture is an ancient art that can reduce your anxiety by enabling you to feel calm and relaxed. It can be an effective low-risk treatment option for anxiety and involves the use of thin needles to relax your muscles.

If you find yourself worrying all the time, it would be a good idea to limit it by creating a specific time. Decide on the amount of time you desire and what time of day would work best for you. Maybe 7:00 p.m.-7:30 p.m. becomes the time where you allow yourself to worry as much as you want.

Worrying is simply no longer tolerated during the rest of the day.

Any time you feel worries arise during other times of the day, tell yourself that they have to wait for your "worry time." You'll soon find that you won't really worry all that much during your worry time!

Studies have shown that regular exercise can reduce anxiety and depression. Exercise produces serotonin (the "feel-good" hormone), relieves stress, increases oxygen levels throughout the body, and relaxes your muscles.

Create a schedule that works for you perhaps three times a week for one hour at a time.

Select a time that you can meditate each day. It doesnt have to be for long periods of time you can start out slow and build your way up. For some people, ten minutes is a long time for others its an hour. Find what works best for you.

Find a quiet, relaxing place and focus on your breathing while you relax. If you would like to use an app on your phone or even find a guided meditation on YouTube.

Next, immerse yourself in visualizing that you are living the life you desire. Allow yourself to let go of what no longer serves you and step into what you truly desire. Let it help you relax, inspire, and motivate you.

This is a great alternative if you are having challenges sleeping. This is another natural anxiety herb as well. Valerian root can be taken as a tea or a capsule and should be taken approximately two hours before you go to bed.

Whether you choose a natural herb, activity, or life change to reduce your anxiety, you're making a good decision when you opt to go with a natural solution to your problem.

Remember that you get to control your emotions and choose whether or not to let them take you over. If you want to eliminate anxiety and depression start small and find a few of the recommendations that you want to implement and make them part of your daily routines.

Start small and build your way up until you feel you have been able to reduce or eliminate the stress of anxiety and depression altogether.

RELATED: 12 Life Skills Only People With Anxiety Can Teach You

Lisa Lieberman-Wang is a licensed neuro-linguistic practitioner and creator of Neuro Associative Programming (NAP). Find more helpful tips to loving yourself and improving your life on her website, FineToFab.

This article was originally published at Fine to Fab. Reprinted with permission from the author.

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How To Deal With Anxiety And Relieve Stress With Alternative Medicine, Home Remedies & Herbs - YourTango

SteadyMD Telemedicine Doctors Provide Alternative to Face-to-Face Clinical Visits for COVID-19 Concerns – Business Wire

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ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Telemedicine provider SteadyMD, which delivers online continuous care and healthcare monitoring, today announced SteadyMD physicians have developed a member protocol for dealing with coronavirus concerns. SteadyMD medical assistant teams are also helping members access local resources for care in each of the 50 U.S. states.

United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended alternatives to face-to-face doctor or clinic visits to help limit exposure to the COVID-19 virus. Dr. Josh Emdur, SteadyMD chief medical officer comments, Most telemedicine apps only offer urgent care or episodic visits. SteadyMD differs by offering primary continuous care online with a dedicated doctor. This therapeutic relationship provides primary disease prevention in the long term and augments treatment during an epidemic or other health crisis-situation.

SteadyMD is a member-based technology company and healthcare provider. SteadyMD delivers continuous, collaborative, personalized healthcare online with board-certified doctors. Doctors see a limited number of patients in order to get to know each member and provide thorough care. Patients access their doctor through texts, calls or video chat follow-ups, from the comfort of their own homes.

A big part of dealing with a personal health situation, is coping with anxiety, added Emdur. "Communication with a doctor who knows you, is important. COVID-19 is at the fore-front but major healthcare problems related to chronic disease, lack of access to care and other health care challenges, can be more effectively addressed with continuous care. SteadyMD reimagines modern healthcare online.

The SteadyMD platform provides:

Built for people who do not have a primary care doctor or are looking for more convenient and personalized care, SteadyMD delivers modern, continuous healthcare, online.

SteadyMD offers three months of free membership to COVID-19 first responders. Qualified nurses, doctors and healthcare workers can access the service at SteadyMD.com/first-responders.

About SteadyMD

SteadyMD is a member-based technology company and healthcare provider. SteadyMD members and doctors pair up, collaborate and develop long-term personal relationships, online. The SteadyMD Matching Engine evaluates each new member and healthcare provider across hundreds of medical, fitness and lifestyle attributes to help spark a meaningful connection.

Headquartered in St. Louis, MO, SteadyMD offers telehealth services for Primary Care, Functional Medicine and Employers in all 50 U.S. states. For more information or to become a member, please visit https://www.steadymd.com.

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SteadyMD Telemedicine Doctors Provide Alternative to Face-to-Face Clinical Visits for COVID-19 Concerns - Business Wire

In times of coronavirus outbreak, why Steven Soderber..edical thriller Contagion makes for essential viewing – Firstpost

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In times of the coronavirus outbreak, Steven Soderbergh's 2011 medical thriller Contagionmakes for essential viewing because it is a fully realised, accurate vision of a pandemic, and its impact across various quarters, while also never losing hope.

As Irewatched the film,there were several instances that felt close to the bone. The film deals with a fictional pandemic of MEV-1. When scientists come up with the vaccine in a limited quantity, they pick the few fortunate ones to receive it via a lottery based on birth date.

The world is your oyster, until it is claimed by the virus

Sodenbourgh, along with writer Scott Z Burns, builds a 'hyperlink cinema' narrative around the pandemic to lend it a global appeal. From Hong Kong to Chicago to Africa to Europe, the virus spreads across the globe like an ink pot spilled onto a map.

Gwyneth Paltrow in a still from Contagion

Eventually in the narrative, the US government's attempt to lock down their country (like Italy has done in the current climate of coronavirus) fails to translate because the world is connected by intangible media like the internet, particularly social media. Physical barring can barely prevent the transmission of information, which can easily lead to access of illegal or alternative routes. If that was the case back in 2011, it is far worse now in 2020.

(Mis)Information spreads like a wildfire

In the state of a pandemic, the need of the hour is to remain aware. But awareness may be subjected to either the government's whims and fancies or the new forces' vested interests. In the film, there is an attempt by the higher authorities in the US government to avoid public panic. "Nobody knows till everybody knows," one official is heard saying, which reflects the state's apathy or incompetence to cure an epidemic. Their best bet is to merely contain it, and disown the infected population.

But at the same time, reliance devoid of individual assessment cannot be applied to private sources of information. This is illustrated in the film through the example of Jude Law's character Alan Krumwiede, an independent journalist and a conspiracy theorist. He conducts an online campaign to protest against the governments "in bed with" pharmaceutical companies. However, towards the end, it is revealed he was just employed by the alternative medicine biggies to encourage sale of their homeopathic medicine.

Jude Law in a still from Contagion

Does panicmake the doctor go away?

Now, misinformation or confusion regarding the authenticity of the source of any information can conveniently lead to panic. ButContagion also shows the flip side of what damage an all-hell-breaks-loose situation can cause in such a case. Once the medication (like sanitizers and air masks in the case of coronavirus currently) start going out of stock, only a few hands get claim over the limited stock in every medical store across the country. As is the tendency of mob mentality, concerned crowds ransack medical stores, break into locked general stores, and loot supplies from the few fortunate ones. This leads to unhinged mayhem, and subsequently law-and-order tension, in addition to widespread concerns of a pandemic.

Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear

Soderbergh also doubles up as the cinematographer of Contagion, which is reflected in the detailing of every frame. Right from the start, he chooses to focus the camera on the object, from the handle of a door to a plastic straw in a cocktail, that comes in contact with the infected people. The crystallised images of these objects return to one's eyes when one is joining the dots in the end to decode how the virus spread from one person living in a remote part of the world to another residing in some other corner.

Professional duty > personal sacrifice

A couple of instances in the film show how a professional, particularly in the realm of public health, is torn between the well-being of their loved ones and the larger cause of controlling the outbreak. In one such instance, Dr Erin Mears (Kate Winslet), an Epidemic Intelligence Officer, goes to great lengths (both physical and geographical) to trace the index case of the virus. She keeps her calm throughout the process but gets rattled by the subsequent surfacing of the symptoms in her body. A professional of unwavering dedication, and a human of endless optimism, she decides to investigate how she got the virus. However, she cannot help but communicate the development to Dr Ellis Cheever (Lawrence Fishburne) of the Centre for Disease Control and prevention (CDC), who cannot help her since the authorities decide to use the designated charter to rescue a Congressman instead.

Kate Winslet in a still from Contagion

In another instance, Cheever encounters a weak moment when he informs a loved one to leave her home state on the verge of a confidential lockdown. Later, he redeems himself by offering his vaccine to his less privileged helper's son.

(Also read: Rise in anti-Asian sentiment following coronavirus outbreak is hardly a new phenomenon, experts say)

Why diffusion of love and hope must precede that of the virus

The micro impact of a macro outbreak of the virus is highlighted through the track of Mitch Emhoff (Matt Damon), an everyman from the US. His life changes within a day when both his wife and son succumb to the disease. He tries his best to conceal his daughter from the virus. He bars her from meeting her boyfriend Lorraine in order to avoid any human contact. But in the final moments of the film see him fixing up a date for the two. He smiles as they dance together as his fear gives in to love, the lack of which distanced him from his late wife. Instances like these separate Contagion from post-apocalyptic films like Bird Box and A Quiet Place.But at the same time, they make the film more real, and the threat it presents more imminent.

All images from YouTube.

Find latest and upcoming tech gadgets online on Tech2 Gadgets. Get technology news, gadgets reviews & ratings. Popular gadgets including laptop, tablet and mobile specifications, features, prices, comparison.

Updated Date: Mar 11, 2020 16:06:28 IST

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In times of coronavirus outbreak, why Steven Soderber..edical thriller Contagion makes for essential viewing - Firstpost

Are These 4 Coffee Trends Worth Trying? – Dance Magazine

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When you're toggling between morning classes and late-night performances, coffee can become a dancer's best friend. Fortunately, recent research has found multiple nutritional benefits to coffee, suggesting it's helpful not only for that well-known energy boost, but also for lowering the risk of everything from type 2 diabetes to depression.

What there's not yet enough quality research on? Most of the trendy new coffee "upgrades." Although some holistic health experts suggest that various oils and powders can make your morning cup even healthier, there is insufficient evidence to prove any real benefits, says registered dietitian Monika Saigal. It's best to consider your individual body: Is it worth sticking with your simple cup of joe, or trying one of today's next-gen trends?

Made from medium-chain triglycerides, MCT oil is a compound found in foods like coconut oil. It provides a satisfying fat source. "Hormone balance relies on the use of healthy fat," says Stephanie Rapp, certified holistic health coach and co-founder of Embody Wellness Company in New York City. Some holistic practitioners believe MCT oil leads to more mental clarity, satiety and boosted metabolism, though science has not yet conclusively backed up these claims.

Georgette Schwartz, director of nutrition services at Integrative Acupuncture in Florida, says that MCT oil goes directly from the gut to the liver, where it can be made into ketones, an alternative fuel source for the body. Because the oil is easily absorbed, Schwartz suggests drinking it 10 to 15 minutes before class for an energy boost.

Coined by wellness guru Dave Asprey, "bulletproof coffee" refers to adding butter or ghee along with MCT oil to coffee. The idea is that "it provides lasting, sustainable energy, and helps you feel satiated," says Rapp. Yet Schwartz warns that those with fat-digestion or gallbladder issues should use caution with these kinds of high-fat add-ins.

One trend that has shown promise in studies is supplementing with collagen: Some research suggests that it can help you manage injuries. "Every piece of connective tissue in the body is made from collagen," says Schwartz, who uses it in her coffee every morning. Like any nutrient, collagen is best absorbed from a real food source, says Rapp. But adding hydrolyzed collagen powder to your coffee can be an easy way to incorporate it into your diet.

Mushrooms are filled with antioxidants, and alternative medicine purports that different mushrooms offer different benefitsthat reishi is calming and chaga helps with mental clarity, for example. "I carry packets of a blend by Host Defense as a superfood boost," says Rapp, who uses a mushroom supplement daily in her tea or coffee. Since you'd have to eat many actual mushrooms to get the same potency as a supplement, this might be the rare time when an extract or powder might be more beneficial.

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Are These 4 Coffee Trends Worth Trying? - Dance Magazine