Ebola Zombies?

By Jack Brummet, Outbreak Ed.
Snopes recently debunked the rumor/urban legend that Ebola was causing people to rise from the dead.  Read the entire on Snopes.com

"On 5 October 2014, the Huzlers web site published an article positing that an "Ebola zombie" had been captured and photographed in Liberia. The story came hot on the heels of the CDC's announcement that a man who had traveled from Liberia to Dallas had fallen critically ill after contracting the Ebola virus. Concern over Ebola was at its peak in the United States when the site published an image of a purported "Ebola zombie," along with the following claim: 

"The first reports of Ebola victims rising from the dead was reported by Liberia's National Newspaper. Initially, officials from the World Health Organization fled in shock and horror as the Ebola patients suddenly arose from the dead. After organizing military reinforcements and obtaining increased containment measures, World Health Organization's special operations staff quickly responded with military assistance and quarantined the two Ebola victims who arose from the dead. 

"With Texas now infested with an unknown amount of Ebola patients, nearby Kansas has declared a state of emergency. Kansas Governor Sam Brownback has declared October "Zombie Awareness Month" and the state is on high alert for a zombie outbreak. Homes across the state are to receive pamphlets warning them of how to prevent the spread of Ebola and what to do if an Ebola Victim falls dead and then starts to show life again."

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Noah's ark

By Jack Brummet

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How to dodge a hand grenade

By Jack Brummet, Munitions Ed.


I found this fascinating. So much of what we know about war comes from the movies and television.  Real life isn't so neat and tidy. This Q & A appeared recently on the Quora site:

What is the best thing to do when a grenade is thrown?

Answered by Dan Rosenthal, U.S. Army Infantry, (Reconnaissance, Surveillance, Target Acquisition), OIF I/II Veteran

The generally accepted fragmentation radius for a frag grenade is 30-35 feet, and the fuse length will be between 3-5 seconds. So usually running isn't going to be an option for you. If you can take cover, do so. If not, hit the deck and get as low as possible, as the majority of the fragmentation will go upwards. Beyond that, there's not a whole lot to be done.

Followup questions:

Head first, sideways, or feet first? Head first. Your Kevlar helmet is specifically designed to stop shrapnel, and your plate carrier generally is going to only protect you in three spots -- straight on from the front, straight on from the back, and over the shoulders (with shoulder pads, which most troops deploy with these days). By presenting a minimal cross-section to the grenade, you're minimizing the fragments that can hit you, and by presenting your most armored front to the grenade, you're protecting yourself from what fragments do hit you. Feet first is a bad idea -- you don't have any significant protection there, and it's a great way to get your femoral artery severed. Leg and intestinal wounds are both incredibly painful, and incredibly dangerous in the field. Sideways is even worse; your plate carrier won't have any protection under the arms, and you're maximizing the frontage of your body that is exposed to the blast.

Pick it up and throw it back? Not a chance. There's no way you have enough time. Assuming a 4 second fuse length, two of which are spent in flight, you have just two seconds to notice the grenade, react, reach down, pick it up, plant your feet, lift up, and throw it far enough that you're clear of the blast radius. Not going to happen except in the ultra-rarest of situations. Plus, while you're faffing about with that, whoever threw the grenade at you is still putting fire down on your position.

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All This Is That Staff Drawing

By Jack Brummet

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Beyond The Time Barrier: A 1960 movie about ten years from now

By Jack Brummet, 1960's Ed.

click to enlarge

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Arnold Genthe's 1925 photograph of a Teodor Benda mask

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Poem: The World Seems Especially Verisimilitudinous Tonight

By Jack Brummet

Swim run fly crawl & creep —
Animals don't kill time
And time loves them back.

Threading high fidelity cirrus,
The sun unloads the last of its rays
And blesses the mountain palisade.

So much depends upon
Keeping this up.
And a red wheel-barrow.

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The paddle ball sculpture at Big Fish Games in Seattle

By Jack Brummet

I was at Big Fish Games for a meeting today.  The last time I was there must have been nearly ten years ago, when they were still pretty much in startup mode. Wow. Things have changed.  Really impressive offices.   The paddle ball sculpture in the parking lot was created by the artist Catherine Mayer in 2011.  

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Don't sit or lie down on the streets of Fremont

By Jack Brummet, Frelard Ed.

This sign is around the corner from my office in Fremont.  Those are pretty similar to the hours when people sleep on the street in Mumbai--they settle in at dark and are up and about just after sunrise.  I've never seen anyone sleeping on our block or nearby, but the sign must be there for some reason.

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The 13th Man: Seahawks Fairweather Fans

By Jack Brummet

A flag for the 13th Man, the Seattle Seahawks fairweather friends,  Go Hawks!  LOB!

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The Finger: our bi-monthly round up

By Mona Goldwater, Signs & Gestures Ed.

Our irregular scheduled round-up of middle fingers we've collected, a couple from College Humor, and a handful of reader submissions.

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The "fail whale" of Ello

By Jack Brummet

Not too surprising, if it is really growing as fast as they say. Remember the frequent Twitter fail whale?  I think they said they were either receiving 30,000 invite requests an hour, or were adding 30,000 users an hour... 

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