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A.M.
Costa Rica
Your daily English-language news source Monday through Friday |
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Published
Monday,
July 4, 2016, in Vol. 17,
No. 130
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San
José, Costa Rica,
Monday,
July 4, 2016, Vol.
17, No. 130
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A great day
for another great picnic
By the A.M. Cost
Rica staff
Expats could not have asked for better weather so they could enjoy their Independence Day Picnic. The Cervercería Costa Rica picnic grounds was under a partly cloudy sky with moderate temperatures. Organizers said Sunday night that they had not determined the attendance that day. But the number appeared to be larger than at other recent picnics. There were more stands featuring goodies ranging from frozen yogurt to cotton candy and the ever-present coffee, hot dogs and beer. Security was tight and even included drug-sniffing dogs The highlight, as always, was the raising of the U.S. Flag by members of the embassy detachment of U.S. Marines. Another highlight was the appearance of Uncle Sam, the persona of lanky Jeff Duchesneau, a member of the American Colony Committee, the picnic organizers. He was busy much of the afternoon posing with children and adults. This was a bilingual event with English and Spanish used freely and interchangeably. Among those honored were participants in the English Access Microscholarship Program that the U.S. Embassy runs to help youngsters learn English. The students carried a banner promoting the program. The U.S. government operates this program worldwide, and in Costa Rica, students in economically challenged areas receive the help, including Pavas, Desamparados, Limón, Alajuelita, San Ramón, Ipis, Guápiles, Puntarenas, Heredia, Guadalupe, Liberia, Cartago, Tibás and Alajuela, said the embassy on its Web site.
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
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Colorado S.A 2065 and may not be reproduced anywhere
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A.M. Costa Rica Third News Page |
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San José, Costa Rica, Monday, July 4, 2016, Vol. 17, No. 130
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| The new container port is well
under way at Moín where APM Terminals had to fill in
the sea to create what is basically an island for the
cranes and transportation devices that will handle the
unloading and loading of merchandise. The bulk of the
nation’s agricultural products now goes through the
nearby public port that is considered inefficient. |
 Junta de
Administración Portuaria y Desarrollo de la
Vertiente Atlántica photo
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| The
container port will spin off nearly $1 billion for the
government |
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The container handling port under construction in Limón will be a real cash cow. But nothing will go to the central government to offset its financial deficit. An estimated $961 million instead will go to what is being called development purposes. Government officials are working to create a trust fund for the money. The main beneficiary of the income, which is estimated at about $10 million a year, will be the Junta de Administración Portuaria y Desarrollo de la Vertiente Atlántica. Participating with creating the trust fund are the Banco Nacional, the Ministerio de Planificación and the Instituto Nacional de Seguros. The APM Terminals Central América B.V. is building the container port from scratch, and it has three years to do it. Then the 30-year operating concession will kick in. It is the Consejo Nacional de Concesiones that says the project will spin off fees of some $961 million by 2047. |
Under
terms of the concession agreement, the terminal firm, a
subsidiary of the Dutch-based APM Terminals, will pay 5 percent of its gross income to support regional development and 2.5 percent of its gross income to finance development specifically in Limón. Ultimately, of course, the fees will be paid by the users of the container facility and the end consumers of products that are shipped. What still is unclear is if the Junta will be able to leverage the income to obtain much bigger loans. The central government already has set out plans to modernize the Limón region and the Caribbean coast. The plan calls for infrastructure like sewers, drainage and road ways. The government also is hoping the terminal project will generate direct employment by hiring locals to work there. The government sees the entire region as impoverished with a 29 percent poverty rate and 10.9 percent unemployment. |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this
Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2016 and may not be reproduced
anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
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A.M. Costa Rica's Fourth News page |
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San José, Costa Rica, Monday, July 4, 2016, Vol. 17, No. 130
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| Bacteria
found to halt transmission of zika virus and others |
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By the University of
Wisconsin–Madison news staff
Researchers have confirmed that a benign bacterium called Wolbachia pipientis can completely block transmission of zika virus in Aedes aegypti, the mosquito species responsible for passing the virus to humans. Matthew Aliota, a scientist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Veterinary Medicine and first author of the paper published in the journal Scientific Reports, says the bacteria could present a novel biological control mechanism, aiding efforts to stop the spread of zika virus. Thirty-nine countries and territories in the Americas have been affected by the zika epidemic, and it is expected that at least 4 million people will be infected by the end of the year. Scientists believe the virus is responsible for a host of brain defects in developing fetuses, including microcephaly, and has contributed to an uptick in cases of a neurological disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome. There are not yet any approved zika virus vaccines or antiviral medications, and ongoing mosquito control strategies have not been adequate to contain the spread of the virus. Researchers led by Jorge Osorio, a University of Wisconsin–Madison professor of pathobiological sciences, and Scott O’Neill of the the Eliminate Dengue Program and staffers at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, are already releasing mosquitoes harboring the Wolbachia bacterium in pilot studies in Colombia, Brazil, Australia, Vietnam and Indonesia to help control the spread of dengue virus. Their work is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. An important feature of Wolbachia is that it is self-sustainable, making it a very low-cost approach for controlling mosquito-borne viral diseases that are affecting many tropical countries around the world. “In two of our initial study sites in Australia, approximately 90 percent of the mosquitoes continue to be infected with Wolbachia after initial release more than six years ago” says O’Neill. The Eliminate Dengue Program has now received additional endorsement from the World Health Organization’s Vector Control Advisory Group to conduct further pilot studies and scale up in endemic areas. Wolbachia can be found in up to 60 percent of insects around the world, including butterflies and bees. While not typically found in the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the species that also transmits dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever viruses, O’Neill discovered in the early 1990s that Wolbachia could be introduced to the mosquito in the lab and would prevent the mosquitoes from transmitting dengue virus. Zika virus belongs to the same family as dengue virus and Aliota and Osorio and team members asked whether Wolbachia-harboring Aedes aegypti may also be effective against zika virus. They were also interested in studying the mechanisms behind zika virus infection and transmission in mosquitoes. In the study, the team infected mice with zika virus originally isolated from a human patient and allowed mosquitoes from Medellin to feed on the mice either two or three days after they were infected. The mosquitoes were either harboring the same strain of the Wolbachia bacteria used in field studies or were Wolbachia-free and the mice had levels of virus in their blood similar to humans infected with zika virus. An additional group of mosquitoes, both wild-type and Wolbachia-infected, was allowed to feed instead from a membrane containing sheep’s blood spiked with a high concentration of zika virus, per other standard laboratory studies. Four, seven, 10 and 17 days after the mosquitoes fed on zika-virus-infected blood the researchers tested them for zika virus infection, assessed whether the virus had spread to other tissues in the mosquito, and examined whether the virus made its way to the mosquito saliva, where it must be present to be transmitted. “The first site of replication for arboviruses is the mosquito midgut,” says Aliota. “It eventually leaves the midgut and is swept in their blood to secondary tissues and eventually to the salivary glands, where it replicates more and is eventually spit out.” They found that mosquitoes carrying Wolbachia were less likely to become infected with zika virus after feeding on viral blood, and those that were infected were not capable of transmitting the virus in their saliva. “We saw reduced vector competence in Aedes aegypti with |
 University of
Windosn-Madison photo
Matthew Aliota with one of his
mosquitoes.
Wolbachia,” says Osorio, defined as the intrinsic ability of an insect to support the development or replication of a pathogen like a virus and then transmit it. “Mosquitoes with Wolbachia were less capable of harboring zika virus, and though they do get infected with zika, it is to a lesser extent than wild-type mosquitoes.” They also found that where mosquitoes got their blood meal, whether from mice or the membrane, impacted their infection and transmission status. This has implications for other laboratory-based zika virus studies, Aliota says. Non-Wolbachia-containing mosquitoes that acquired zika virus from mice were also capable of transmitting the virus in a shorter number of days, and in less time than other studies have shown. Additionally, the researchers learned that a relatively low percentage of zika-virus-transmitting mosquitoes may be sufficient to sustain an outbreak. “A surprisingly low percentage of mosquitoes are actually capable of transmitting the virus,” Aliota says, “but given the size of the outbreak, and that we think mosquitoes are the driver of the outbreak, the results were somewhat unexpected. It just goes to show you how much we still need to understand about the basic biology of this virus.” The team also confirmed that the strain of Wolbachia used does not impact the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is important to the success of field studies. Once inside a mosquito, Wolbachia is passed from mother to offspring, so newborn mosquitoes will contain the bacteria and incorporate it into the wild population. The dengue program reported it hopes to see greater than 80 percent of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in study areas harboring Wolbachia. According to Osorio, mosquitoes carrying Wolbachia in the study site in Medellin are close to reaching that number. Other studies show Wolbachia prevents mosquito transmission of yellow fever virus and another study showed that Wolbachia prevents Colombian Aedes aegypti from transmitting chikungunya virus. Like zika virus, chikungunya emerged out of Africa and spread to the Americas. It is now transmitted by mosquitoes on every inhabited continent around the globe, says Aliota. The virus can cause fever, chronic joint pain, fatigue, nausea and a rash. There is no cure or specific treatment. $2 test reported to detect zika By the American Chemical
Society news staff
Scientists are now reporting a new $2 test that in the lab can accurately detect low levels of the virus in saliva. Current tests to detect the virus require expensive lab equipment and trained personnel. Low-cost diagnostic methods have been reported but can’t detect low levels of the disease or don’t distinguish between zika and similar viruses such as dengue. Changchun Liu and colleagues wanted to design a rapid, low-cost, and more reliable point-of-care detection test. To ensure their system would be highly selective for zika without confusing it with similar viruses, the researchers looked for and found a stretch of genetic code that is nearly identical for 19 different strains of the zika virus infecting people in the Americas but not in other pathogens. Then, with materials costing $2 per test, they developed a diagnostic system, which only requires the addition of water to operate. If the zika-specific genetic sequence is in a saliva sample, a dye within the system will turn blue within 40 minutes. The test even works if low levels of the sequence are present. The research was published in the journal Analytical Chemistry. |
Here's reasonable
medical care
Costa Rica's world class medical specialists are at your command. Get the top care for much less than U.S. prices. It is really a great way to spend a vacation. See our list of recommended professionals HERE!amcr-prom
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The
contents
of
this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2016 and may not be reproduced anywhere
without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
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A.M. Costa Rica's Fifth news page |
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San José,
Costa Rica, Monday, July 4,
2016, Vol. 17, No. 130
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double under U.S. program By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
The number of Syrian refugees who entered the United States in June more than doubled over the previous month, putting President Barack Obama's goal of resettling 10,000 by the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 within reach. The U.S. State Department's Refugee Processing Center reports 2,381 Syrian refugees arrived in the U.S. last month. They settled in 38 states, mostly in Michigan (570), California (500), Arizona (388), Illinois (343), Pennsylvania (340), Texas (321) and Florida (301). To meet the administration's goal, the United States must welcome 4,814 Syrian refugees during the next three months. Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, 4.1 million Syrians have fled the country, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. Many have settled in the neighboring countries of Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. The war has contributed to the refugee crisis in Europe, which had taken in about 1 million Syrians in 2015. The humanitarian crisis created by the war prompted Obama to call for a significant increase in the resettlement of Syrians in the United States. But efforts to accommodate them have been plagued by terror fears and congressional efforts to block the program. The latest figures, though, significantly increase the likelihood that the administration's goal will be attained. Meanwhile, there appears to be ample public support in the United States for Syrian refugees. A Brookings Institution poll released in mid-June found that most Americans, 59 percent, favored admitting refugees from Syria in particular and from other Middle Eastern countries. Another teen is facing allegations of terrorism By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
An 18-year-old man is accused of conspiring to carry out acts of terrorism against government buildings in the southwest U.S. state of Arizona. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Arizona Attorney General's Office say 18-year-old Mahin Khan was arrested following an investigation by the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force. He is suspected of planning attacks on government buildings in Phoenix and Tucson. Officials said Khan's alleged plans did not involve the Fourth of July or any related festivities. They added there are no additional suspects and no current threat to the public involving Khan's plans. Khan appeared in court Saturday on two counts of conspiracy to commit terrorism and terrorism. Khan's court records have been sealed and no additional details were immediately available. Mrs. Clinton meets with FBI, reportedly about email server By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton met with FBI officials Saturday about the use of a private email server while she was secretary of State, campaign spokesman said. The approximately three-and-a-half-hour interview took placed at FBI headquarters in Washington. "Secretary Clinton gave a voluntary interview this morning about her email arrangements while she was secretary. She is pleased to have had the opportunity to assist the Department of Justice in bringing this review to a conclusion,” campaign spokesman Nick Merrill wrote in an email to the media. “Out of respect for the investigative process, she will not comment further on her interview," Merrill wrote. The meeting followed U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch's announcement of her intent to accept recommendations from career Justice Department employees and federal agents looking into Mrs. Clinton's use of a private email server. FBI officials are expected to conclude their investigation soon. Legal experts have said they do not expect any criminal charges to be filed against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Speaking at a summit in Colorado Friday, Ms. Lynch insisted that career agents and investigators with the Department of Justice are acting independently, and that their probe predates her tenure as attorney general. "I fully expect to accept their recommendations," said Ms. Lynch, who has the option of modifying any possible charges against Mrs. Clinton. She later said she will be accepting the findings. Her remarks followed an impromptu meeting she had with the candidate's husband, former president Bill Clinton, days earlier that raised questions voiced by Republican lawmakers about if the email investigation had been compromised. Mrs. Lynch has said the meeting has no bearing on how the matter is being reviewed. Obama will join campaign Tuesday in North Carolina By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
President Barack Obama and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton will campaign together for the first time Tuesday in Charlotte, North Carolina. At a rally at the Charlotte Convention Center, Obama and Mrs. Clinton "will discuss building on the progress we've made and their vision for an America that is stronger together," her campaign said in a statement. Obama, who formally endorsed Clinton's campaign early last month, said at the time he was fired up and ready to campaign for his former secretary of State. Fired up is a catchphrase from the president's own campaign eight years ago. In throwing his support behind the former first lady, Obama said, "I know how hard this job can be. That's why I know Hillary will be so good at it. In fact, I don't think there's ever been someone so qualified to hold this office. She's got the courage, the compassion and the heart to get the job done." The campaign hopes to use the president's appeal to motivate the party base to generate excitement for Mrs. Clinton's campaign. Obama and Mrs. Clinton had planned to hold their first campaign event in Green Bay, Wisconsin, June 15. The event was postponed following the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, June 12. The Democratic Party sees North Carolina, a state with a Republican governor and a Republican-majority legislature, as a battleground in the November general election. North Carolina voted for Obama in the 2008 general election but voted for Obama's Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, in 2012, even though the Democratic Party held its national convention in Charlotte that year. Mrs. Clinton's campaign has run more than $10 million worth of advertising in the state, The Charlotte Observer reported this week. Political news Web site Real Clear Politics said polling in the state showed Mrs. Clinton leading presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump by slim margins in two recent surveys, while Trump led in a third by a similarly slim margin. Just over a year ago, the president and Mrs. Clinton were in Charlotte for the funeral for the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, one of nine black churchgoers who were slain in a racially motivated attack. Meanwhile, both parties are gearing up for their national conventions, scheduled for this month. The Republican convention will be held in Cleveland July 18 to 21. The Democrats will meet in Philadelphia July 25 to 28. The Republican Party has been struggling to fill its lineup of convention speakers, normally sought-after spots for party leaders and rising stars. Several prominent Republican Party members have said they will not attend this year's convention because of the billionaire businessman's outspoken rhetoric. The candidate has called for a ban on Muslims and building a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border, among other things. Neither former President George W. Bush nor his brother, Jeb Bush, whom Trump beat in the presidential nominee selection contests this year, will attend the convention. The party's two previous presidential nominees, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and Arizona Sen. John McCain, have also said they will not attend. However, Saturday Trump tweeted that the speaker slots at the Republican National Convention were "totally filled, with a long waiting list of those that want to speak." He tweeted the list of speakers would be released Wednesday. Friday, while at the Western Conservative Summit in Denver, Trump said several of his family members would speak. "My children are gonna be speaking at the convention," Trump said. "My children are all gonna be speaking. Ivanka, Tiffany, Don, Eric, they're gonna be speaking. My wife is gonna be speaking." A Trump aide, Armstrong Williams, also tweeted Friday that former Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson, who now supports Trump's campaign, would speak at the convention. Globalizing wears two faces in area around Philadelphia By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
The air outside a factory in northeast Philadelphia once smelled of cookies. But the aroma, along with the 350 workers who for decades made Oreos and Ritz crackers disappeared last year when snack food giant Mondelez decided to close the plant and shift production elsewhere. “It’s terrible, we have so many companies shutting down,” Art Millevoi said. Across the street from the now abandoned factory, the owner of Millevoi Auto Sales and Service recalls how friends have lost work in recent years. “We see so many people unemployed, so many older people, too, in their fifties who have lost their jobs,” said Millevoi. “They are on their third or fourth job, where our parents would have it for life and they would have pension and they would have social security. We are not guaranteed any of this.” Philadelphia was one of the first major industrial cities in the United States, home to manufacturing plants, foundries and refineries. The eastern U.S. city has struggled with economic growth, however, ranking 250th in a recent Brookings Institution report assessing employment and GDP of the world’s 300 largest metropolitan economies. As Millievoi stands in his auto body shop, U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump can be heard on a nearby television railing against trade deals and globalization. “NAFTA was the worst trade deal in history, and China's entrance into the World Trade Organization has enabled the greatest jobs theft in history,” Trump said. For her part, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton voiced support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal in 2011 as secretary of State, though last year on the “PBS NewsHour” with Judy Woodruff, Clinton said, "What I know about it, as of today, I am not in favor of what I have learned about it." In Trump's June 28 speech in the small western Pennsylvania town of Monessen, the Republican candidate appealed to working class voters promising to keep U.S. factories open and workers employed. The message resonates with Millevoi who says he likely will be forced to shutter one of his many Philadelphia area auto centers due to rising taxes and regulatory fees. He says the government should do more to support small businesses and keep American companies like Mondelez from shifting their operations overseas to countries like Mexico. “NAFTA has allowed avenues for companies such as Mondelez to leave this country easily,” Millevoi said. “And all the people who were promised jobs were scattered for a short time. But I understand their other plants are shutting down in Chicago, etc.” Just 20 miles south of the Mondelez plant, the scene couldn’t be more different along the Delaware River, as truckers pick up cargo containers at the port on a busy Wednesday morning. Amid the hustle and bustle of factories and cargo ships lies Frank’s restaurant serving up breakfast and lunch to truck drivers and longshoremen in Philadelphia since 1910. Owner Joe Trocino, whose father bought the place in 1966, says business has gone up and down with the economy over the years. “We have had good years and lean years,” said Trocino. “In the 1980’s they had deregulation with Ronald Reagan and that hurt us. We were slow for a few years, but we hung in there and then things picked up.” Despite all the national talk of trade and globalization spurred by the Britain’s exit from the European Union, the restaurant owner says national policy doesn’t affect him much. One of those stopping in to pick up sandwiches is Kevin Kundla. The project superintendent at Commerce Construction Corp. recalls how the marine contracting company bounced back after the recession. A registered Republican, Kundla has not yet made up his mind as to whom he will vote for in number, only remarking that he is pro-labor. He says that amid all the talk of Brexit and globalization, the United States cannot afford to go it alone. “I don’t believe that the U.S. should isolate itself, it’s a global economy. It’s a global world. My son lives overseas, and I travel overseas to Southeast Asia,” Kundla noted. He points in the direction marine terminal, where containers are arriving from Mexico and China. Dangerous yeast strain said to resist usual array of drugs By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
A highly drug-resistant and potentially fatal yeast strain called Candida auris is emerging in hospital settings around the world. The yeast has shown resistance to three of the most commonly prescribed antifungal drugs: fluconazole, amphotericin B and caspofungin. U.S. public health officials are urging doctors and nurses to be on the lookout for the dangerous pathogen, which can be fatal in 30 percent to 60 percent of infected patients. The yeast strain has been found in nine countries on four continents since 2009, including one possible infection in the United States in 2013. It was first identified in Japan in 2009 in a person with an ear infection. Other countries with confirmed infections are India, South Africa, Kuwait, Pakistan, South Korea, Colombia, Venezuela and the United Kingdom. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sent an alert warning of the potential threat of C. auris in the U.S. and globally. Tom Chiller, chief of the mycotic diseases branch at the Centers, which monitors and studies fungal infections, said the drug-resistant strain of C. auris "sounds pretty nasty." However, Chiller said, he hasn't heard of any clusters or outbreaks of C. auris, making it "very, very rare." C. auris poses the greatest risk to hospitalized patients with diabetes and people with large vein catheters. Patients who are taking antibiotics or antifungal medications or who are in intensive care are also at risk. The yeast infection can get inside the body through open wounds. Once inside, it can infect the bloodstream, causing organ failure. Officials with the Centers say the biggest problem in spotting C. auris is that it mimics other more harmless, treatable yeast infections, such as those of the genitals, skin or throat. Fukushima radiation followed along west coast of America By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
A massive earthquake and tsunami in April 2011 caused the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan to melt down, releasing radiation into the surrounding environment. While some of this radiation was released directly into the ocean, most of the radiation went into the atmosphere, where it spread and eventually rained into the ocean. The ocean is full of radiation from natural sources, as well as from nuclear testing in the early 1960s. This radiation circulates throughout the ocean and is ingested by marine life. While scientists had a gauge on levels of radiation in the ocean before the Fukushima incident, they weren’t sure what would happen with the additional radiation from the meltdown. Monitoring the fallout in the oceans can be challenging. The biggest hurdle to testing is the sheer size of the ocean, which makes monitoring and sampling difficult. Another problem is that water is constantly in motion, affected by wind, competing currents and temperature, which can make predictions difficult. International teams of scientists are working to discover how these radioactive particles are traveling throughout the ocean. A review, published in the Annual Review of Marine Science, of the condition of the oceans five years after Fukushima was presented at the Goldschmidt Conference in Japan this past week. “It’s a really timely review. This particular group . . . of experts . . . have produced a really great overview of what has happened . . . what is likely to happen and what that means for both environmental and public health,” said Jay Cullen, chemical oceanographer and head of the Fukushima InFORM project in Canada. Results of the study show radiation levels in the ocean spread much as the models had projected. The main radiation plume from the disaster surfed along currents and reached western North American shores in June 2013. Radiation levels, steadily rising as the plume travels along the coast, are expected to peak before the end of this year. The levels detected, even though they are rising, are very low and do not pose any risk to humans, scientists said. Swimming in the ocean for eight hours a day for an entire year, even in the highest levels measured, would give a person a dose of radiation 1,000 times smaller than what he or she would receive during a dental X-ray, Ken Buesseler, oceanographer and lead author of the review, said. In the U.S., individual states are responsible for monitoring radiation levels in the ocean to ensure the levels are safe for people and marine life. However, the level of monitoring done by states does not meet the level for research. While the testing methods used by states cannot detect radiation at the low levels quoted in the study, states such as Alaska collaborate with researchers and federal agencies, sharing samples and testing results. Buesseler’s work at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute gave Alaska a much better understanding of the movement of radioactive particles in the ocean, said Marlena Brewer, an environmental program specialist with the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation. But, “we don’t really need to see down to . . . those levels because the established safety levels for foodstuffs is orders of magnitude higher," Ms. Brewer said. Ben Franklin’s lighting rod handles a bolt in Maryland By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
The governor of the U.S. state of Maryland is crediting a lightning rod designed more than 200 years ago by one of America's most revered founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin, with averting a fire at Maryland's historic State House. The rod on the dome of the State House in Annapolis was hit by lightning Friday evening, sending huge bolt of electricity harmlessly to ground. Fire officials said that the jolt triggered a sprinkler system installed in the dome of the 244-year-old facility, but that there was no fire. Gov. Larry Hogan, at home in the nearby governor's mansion, said he ran across the street to view the scene immediately after the strike. He later wrote on Facebook that the lightning rod was "constructed and grounded to Franklin's exact specifications." He also described the pointed lightning rod atop the building, which served briefly in the 1780s as the nation's capitol, as a "powerful symbol of the independence and ingenuity of our young nation." Franklin, who died in 1790 at age 84, has sometimes been referred to as the first American for his early and strenuous campaigning for colonial unity. The multitalented Franklin also distinguished himself as a scientist, political theorist, mathematician, inventor, diplomat, printer and author. His research in the 1750s led him to design 2.4- to 3-meter-long rods that soon protected many buildings and homes of the day from lightning strikes. His design for the Maryland State House led to what historians describe as the largest lightning rod ever attached to a colonial-era building: an 8.5-meter pointed rod that is thought to have saved the day more than two centuries later. |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The
contents
of
this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2016 and may not be reproduced anywhere
without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
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| A.M. Costa Rica sixth news page |
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San José, Costa Rica, Monday, July 4, 2016, Vol. 17, No. 130
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Tree haircuts can
be a close shave
Every now and then, you have to give a tree a haircut. Not a pruning, mind you, a real haircut. And why? Let’s just say that we have trees here, old
So there we were this morning (and into the afternoon) giving the mandarina a haircut and, as you can see, it was pretty drastic. While we were at it, we decided to give the tree a shave as well, removing the moss and other growth from its branches. “Other growth” included small vines, bromeliads, and orchids. This is about the only time you can remove an orchid from a living tree because removing the moss and the roots of other plants disturbs the orchids to the point that they need to be transplanted. Plus all those branches that had to be cut are a good place for orchid hunting. But, back to the haircut. Be careful! We found ant nests in both the upper branches of the tree and in the branching area of the bole. I don’t know if these were stinging ants or the biting ants, I just know that once was enough. The darn things (or maybe another species) also creep around under the moss on the branches, another reason to be careful. Then there is the moss itself which is slippery in the rainy season. I suggest shoes with a nice solid grip, textured gloves, and a constant 3-point stance. A ladder is very helpful, but make sure it is on level ground (if you can find level ground, let me know. At one point, the ladder slipped, leaving my gardener dangling from a branch). The best tool for a haircut seems to be a really sharp machete as mandarina wood is quite dense. Armondo made it look very easy, but it wasn’t. Or maybe it was just his 20-year-old muscles, compared to my (mumble, mumble) year old muscles. It’s possible. I do know that clippers and even branch loppers didn’t do much damage when I wielded them. So get out there and look for things that don’t belong in your trees. Oh, there is one more tip – from Metric Man. Don’t let your (mumble, mumble) year old wife climb trees. (Oh my aching back!) If you would like to suggest a topic for this column, simply send a letter to the editor. And, for more garden tips, visit https://www.facebook.com/pages/Arenal-Gardeners/413220712106845 |
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| From Page 7: U.S. markets stage an unexpected rally By the A.M. Costa Rica
wire services
Most of the post-Brexit equity sell-off has now been erased to close out the month of June and the first half of 2016. The Dow Jones industrial average is coming off three consecutive days of gains of more than 200 points. For the month, the Dow rose 0.8 percent, the S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent and the Nasdaq lost 2.1 percent. The S&P 500 was on track for its best weekly gain since October after making a stunning rally following two days of massive sell-offs because of the surprise Brexit vote. The Dow was within reach of 18,000, while the S&P 500 was back over the 2,100 level Friday. Once again, markets were boosted by central bank easing talk. The European Central Bank said it is weighing changes to its bond-buying program, and Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said his organization probably would have to loosen policy within months to deal with the fallout of the Brexit vote. Interestingly, gold, which is viewed as a safe-haven asset, extended its fifth weekly advance, and silver jumped to its highest point since September 2014. Yields on government bonds slipped around the world, showing investors were uncertain about the state of the global economy. U.S. markets will be closed today in observance of the Independence Day holiday, sending traders to the beaches for a well-deserved rest following market volatility around Brexit. |
