australiannationalreview--2020-04-28--Science minister says climate denial waste of time, but emissions targets won’t change

Australia ’ s science minister Karen Andrews says the science is settled over climate change , but the Coalition is still refusing to lift its emissions targets which scientists say are woefully inadequate if the world is to try to avoid the worst impacts of climate change .
The comments from Andrews follow remarks from Prime minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday that also indicated that the government accepted the link between emissions and bushfires , but had decided it would not look to increase its emissions efforts , even though it claimed to be “ meeting and beating ” its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ focus on adaptation .
“ The emissions reduction action of any one country anywhere in the world is not going to specifically stop or start one fire event , but what the climate resilience and adaptation work can do within a country can very much directly ensure that Australians are better protected against what this reality is in the future , ” Morrison said .
“ My response to these things is always a very practical one.
” Andrews , pictured above in the House of Representatives admiring the lump of coal that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2018 – claiming that there was “ nothing to fear ” – echoed the comments about adaptation in an interview with Nine Media on Wednesday .
“ Every second we spend discussing if climate change is real is a second we don ’ t spend addressing these issues .
Let ’ s move on and get over this , ” she told the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age .
“ My starting position in the discussion tomorrow will be that the climate has changed and it continues to change .
We need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and mitigate the impact of those changes.
” Later , Andrews told ABC Radio National , when asked why it was only Coalition MPs who disputed the science : “ It ’ s time for everyone to move on and look at what we are going to do.
” The problem is , that Coalition “ to do ” list does not include tougher targets .
Having declared it accepts the science , and its impacts during the current summer , the Coalition has also declared it will do nothing to increase its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it is leading the world on emissions reductions , but this is based on dodgy accounting that claims a “ surplus ” from the first period of the Kyoto protocol , when Australia was actually allowed to dramatically increase its emissions .
It claims another “ surplus ” from the second period of the Kyoto Protocol , which runs from 2013 to 2020 and during which time Australia was required to achieve a minimal reduction in emissions .
But analysts question whether even the actual target signed up in the UN process will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hit its 2020 emissions reduction target till 2030 and , from 2015 , Australia can meet its Kyoto target – but “ real emissions ” will not fall to -5 % by 2020 In any case , the Coalition ’ s refusal to entertain any higher emissions cuts – largely because of the pressure from right wing commentators in the Murdoch media and within its own ranks – has horrified scientists and most of those affected by the bushfires which have devastated large tracts of the country .
Some 27 lives have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ruins , more than 10 million hectares have been burned , a billion wild animals and bird incinerated or dead and dying from burns or hunger , hundreds of thousands of livestock lost and threatened species potentially wiped out .
Experts say this is just a foretaste of things to come , given that the emissions reduction efforts of the Coalition , and the rest of the world , locks in average global warming of at least 3°C – a threefold increase over what the world has already experienced .
But resources minister @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from Australia ” says the call to reduce emissions , including from the likes of teenage activist Greta Thunberg , were about social engineering than climate change .
“ Their policy prescriptions aren ’ t actually about reducing carbon emissions , it ’ s about the radical massive changes to our economy and society and culture , ” he told Sky News .
“ If they were really serious about carbon emissions , they ’ d be right for nuclear , ” Canavan said .
Almost exactly the same thing was written in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the Daily Telegraph ’ s Miranda Devine on Wednesday .

By Giles Parkinson
Australia’s science minister Karen Andrews says the science is settled over climate change, but the Coalition is still refusing to lift its emissions targets which scientists say are woefully inadequate if the world is to try to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.
The comments from Andrews follow remarks from Prime minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday that also indicated that the government accepted the link between emissions and bushfires, but had decided it would not look to increase its emissions efforts, even though it claimed to be “meeting and beating” its current targets. Instead, it would focus on adaptation.
“The emissions reduction action of any one country anywhere in the world is not going to specifically stop or start one fire event, but what the climate resilience and adaptation work can do within a country can very much directly ensure that Australians are better protected against what this reality is in the future,” Morrison said.
“My response to these things is always a very practical one.”
Andrews, pictured above in the House of Representatives admiring the lump of coal that then Treasurer Morrison brought into parliament in 2018 – claiming that there was “nothing to fear” – echoed the comments about adaptation in an interview with Nine Media on Wednesday.
“Every second we spend discussing if climate change is real is a second we don’t spend addressing these issues. Let’s move on and get over this,” she told the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
“My starting position in the discussion tomorrow will be that the climate has changed and it continues to change. We need to focus on the steps to adapt and mitigate the impact of those changes.”
Later, Andrews told ABC Radio National, when asked why it was only Coalition MPs who disputed the science: “It’s time for everyone to move on and look at what we are going to do.”
The problem is, that Coalition “to do” list does not include tougher targets. Having declared it accepts the science, and its impacts during the current summer, the Coalition has also declared it will do nothing to increase its emissions reduction efforts.
The government claims it is leading the world on emissions reductions, but this is based on dodgy accounting that claims a “surplus” from the first period of the Kyoto protocol, when Australia was actually allowed to dramatically increase its emissions.
It claims another “surplus” from the second period of the Kyoto Protocol, which runs from 2013 to 2020 and during which time Australia was required to achieve a minimal reduction in emissions. But analysts question whether even the actual target signed up in the UN process will be met.
See Australia will not hit its 2020 emissions reduction target till 2030 and, from 2015, Australia can meet its Kyoto target – but “real emissions” will not fall to -5% by 2020
In any case, the Coalition’s refusal to entertain any higher emissions cuts – largely because of the pressure from right wing commentators in the Murdoch media and within its own ranks – has horrified scientists and most of those affected by the bushfires which have devastated large tracts of the country.
Some 27 lives have been lost, thousands of homes lay in ruins, more than 10 million hectares have been burned, a billion wild animals and bird incinerated or dead and dying from burns or hunger, hundreds of thousands of livestock lost and threatened species potentially wiped out.
Experts say this is just a foretaste of things to come, given that the emissions reduction efforts of the Coalition, and the rest of the world, locks in average global warming of at least 3°C – a threefold increase over what the world has already experienced.
But resources minister Matt Canavan and self-described “Mr Coal from Australia” says the call to reduce emissions, including from the likes of teenage activist Greta Thunberg, were about social engineering than climate change.
“Their policy prescriptions aren’t actually about reducing carbon emissions, it’s about the radical massive changes to our economy and society and culture,” he told Sky News.
“If they were really serious about carbon emissions, they’d be right for nuclear,” Canavan said. Almost exactly the same thing was written in Murdoch media on Tuesday morning, and by the Daily Telegraph’s Miranda Devine on Wednesday.


australiannationalreview--2020-04-28--Rise in childhood cancer baffles experts, prompts calls for urgent investigation

The cancer rate in children is steadily rising , triggering calls for further investigation into the causes of the disease @ @ @ @

URGENT: JUST 7 DAYS REMAIN TO HELP SAVE INDEPENDENT MEDIA & ANR, SO LET'S CUT THE BS & GET TO THE POINT - WE WILL BE FORCED LAY OFF STAFF & REDUCE OPERATIONS UNLESS WE ARE FULLY FUNDED WITHIN THE NEXT 2 WEEKS - Sadly, less than 0.5% of readers currently donate or subscribe to us But YOU can easily change that. Imagine the impact we'd make if 3 in 10 readers supported us today. To start with we’d remove this annoying banner as we could fight for a full year...


australiannationalreview--2020-04-28--Merck Agrees to Settle Vioxx Suits for $4.85 Billion

Two lawyers with knowledge of the deal , however , confirmed it independently .
Based on the fact that the @ @ @ @ @ sets of plaintiffs , the average plaintiff will receive just over $ 100,000 before legal @ @ @ @ @ usually swallow between 30 and 50 percent of payments to plaintiffs .
Plaintiffs who do @ @ @ @ @ settlement can pursue their own claims , but with so many of the top trial @ @ @ @ @ agreeing to the deal , they may have difficulty doing so .

Two lawyers with knowledge of the deal, however, confirmed it independently.
Based on the fact that the 27,000 suits cover about 47,000 sets of plaintiffs, the average plaintiff will receive just over $100,000 before legal fees and expenses, which usually swallow between 30 and 50 percent of payments to plaintiffs. Plaintiffs who do not want to accept the settlement can pursue their own claims, but with so many of the top trial lawyers in the United States agreeing to the deal, they may have difficulty doing so.


australiannationalreview--2020-04-28--Top medical journal takes on Big Pharma

Top medical journal takes on Big Pharma

A leading medical journal has launched a campaign to separate medicine from Big Pharma , linking industry influence to scandals affecting thousands of patients .
The British Medical Journal says doctors are being unduly influenced by industry-sponsored education events and industry-funded trials for major drugs .
A leading medical journal has launched a campaign to separate medicine from Big Pharma , linking industry influence to scandals affecting thousands of patients .
The British Medical Journal says doctors are being unduly influenced by industry-sponsored education events and industry-funded trials for major drugs .
Top medical journal , The BMJ , has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reduction in the commercial influence of Big Pharma in health care .
They have brought together experts from eight nations in medicine , law and philosophy to propose fundamental cultural changes .
Modern health care trials can ’ t be trusted , the journal ’ s editor and a team of global healthcare leaders have written in a scathing editorial published on their website : The team is calling for governments to start funding independent trials of new drugs and medical devices , rather than relying on industry-funded studies .
Currently , sponsored @ @ @ @ @ @ @ favourable result compared to independent research , studies show .
They also want medical associations to discourage doctors from going to industry-funded events .
These events , critics claim , are thinly disguised sales seminars .
Studies show doctors who attend industry-sponsored events are more likely to prescribe the company ’ s drugs over generic or alternative branded counterparts .
Assistant Professor Ray Moynihan , a Bond University researcher studying the link between money and medicine , and is one of the leaders of The BMJ ’ s campaign.- “ When we want @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surgery , a lot of the evidence we used to inform that decision is biased , ” he says : But doctors have hit back , questioning who will pay for education and medical research if the pharmaceutical industry is excluded .
An oligopoly of pharmaceutical giants continue to influence Australia society , promoting an agenda of consumption over healing , disinformation over discussion and manipulation over security .
The history of the relationship between physicians and pharmaceutical companies began in the early 1900s when the Carnegie Foundation contributed to the suppression of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The BMJ ’ s report , the Australian Medical Association questioned how medical education and research would be funded without the pharmaceutical industry .
“ Who is going to fund all this ?
Is the government going to fund it ?
” says Dr Chris Moy , chair of the association ’ s ethics and medico-legal committee : Nurses , dietitians , pharmacists and other allied health workers are getting millions of dollars in payments from big pharmaceutical companies for their services .
From October 2014 to September 2015 alone , member companies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , disclosed payments of $ 89,658,566 to healthcare professionals , including millions in direct cash payments disguised as fees .
Between 2011 and 2015 , all up pharma companies spent more than $ 286 million on events for Australian doctors , nurses , pharmacists and specialists , according to University of Sydney research .
According to data released last week on the BMJ Open website , during that four-year period there were almost 117,000 industry-sponsored events , involving 3,481,750 “ individual attendances ” .
As a result , Australians are receiving harmful products @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as opposed to safety regulations or quality standards .
More often then not , they fail .
Big Pharma ’ s footprint in Australia is undeniable , from national systems to monitor customer behaviour , bribery and corruption and the destruction of the natural medicines industry .
Drug companies in Australia had a turnover of approximately $ 22 billion in 2009-10 , and it ’ s only been on the rise since then , developing new products for companies to market aggressively .
Big Pharma has a storied history of selling and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to consumers and has regularly mislead customers on an international and domestic basis .
Dr Moynihan points to the example of medical giant Johnson & Johnson , which sold pelvic mesh to thousands of Australian women .
It knew the mesh could cause serious harm consumers , but never properly warned women of the risks .
Other examples of ‘ mistakes ’ made by pharmaceutical giants in Australia include tainted Polio vaccines in the 1960s , Pfitzer , Lyrica and Thalidomide — all proven to have caused damage .
Cochrane Co-Chair Lisa Bero @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how sponsored drug trial studies are more likely to reveal statistical results and conclusions that favour a sponsor ’ s product .
Driven by profit and power , the pharmaceutical industry has shown no regard for personal safety or legal regulations , as consumers continue to trust companies caught intentionally lying to the public and promoting products underpinned by non-objective science and deception .
Critics are calling for governments to pass legislation requiring the disclosure when medical reviewers are paid by the manufacturers .
In addition , attention must be brought to physicians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and earning continuing ‘ educational credits ’ .
Citizens that consume pharmaceutical goods should seek to make lifestyle choices that will reduce dependence on drugs .
Consider the information in the following articles to help guide your choices for nutrition , exercise and sleep , three foundational pillars to good health .

By
A leading medical journal has launched a campaign to separate medicine from Big Pharma, linking industry influence to scandals affecting thousands of patients.
The British Medical Journal says doctors are being unduly influenced by industry-sponsored education events and industry-funded trials for major drugs.
A leading medical journal has launched a campaign to separate medicine from Big Pharma, linking industry influence to scandals affecting thousands of patients.
The British Medical Journal says doctors are being unduly influenced by industry-sponsored education events and industry-funded trials for major drugs.
“CANNOT BE TRUSTED”
Top medical journal, The BMJ, has launched an international initiative calling for a reduction in the commercial influence of Big Pharma in health care. They have brought together experts from eight nations in medicine, law and philosophy to propose fundamental cultural changes.
Modern health care trials can’t be trusted, the journal’s editor and a team of global healthcare leaders have written in a scathing editorial published on their website:
“The endemic financial entanglement with industry is distorting the production and use of healthcare evidence, causing harm to individuals and waste for health systems”, they write.
The team is calling for governments to start funding independent trials of new drugs and medical devices, rather than relying on industry-funded studies. Currently, sponsored research is more likely to find a favourable result compared to independent research, studies show.
They also want medical associations to discourage doctors from going to industry-funded events. These events, critics claim, are thinly disguised sales seminars.
Studies show doctors who attend industry-sponsored events are more likely to prescribe the company’s drugs over generic or alternative branded counterparts.
Assistant Professor Ray Moynihan, a Bond University researcher studying the link between money and medicine, and is one of the leaders of The BMJ’s campaign.-
“When we want to decide on a medicine or a surgery, a lot of the evidence we used to inform that decision is biased,” he says:
“It cannot be trusted. Because so much of that has been produced and funded by the manufacturers of those healthcare products”.
But doctors have hit back, questioning who will pay for education and medical research if the pharmaceutical industry is excluded.
INFLUENCE OF BIG PHARMA
An oligopoly of pharmaceutical giants continue to influence Australia society, promoting an agenda of consumption over healing, disinformation over discussion and manipulation over security.
The history of the relationship between physicians and pharmaceutical companies began in the early 1900s when the Carnegie Foundation contributed to the suppression of homeopathic practitioners.
Following the release of The BMJ’s report, the Australian Medical Association questioned how medical education and research would be funded without the pharmaceutical industry.
“Who is going to fund all this? Is the government going to fund it?” says Dr Chris Moy, chair of the association’s ethics and medico-legal committee:
“Money makes the world go round, in simple terms. Research will not happen unless there is funding. Medicine is always going to need pharma companies. We cannot be too brutal.”
Nurses, dietitians, pharmacists and other allied health workers are getting millions of dollars in payments from big pharmaceutical companies for their services.
From October 2014 to September 2015 alone, member companies of pharmaceutical trade association, Medicines Australia, disclosed payments of $89,658,566 to healthcare professionals, including millions in direct cash payments disguised as fees.
Between 2011 and 2015, all up pharma companies spent more than $286 million on events for Australian doctors, nurses, pharmacists and specialists, according to University of Sydney research.
According to data released last week on the BMJ Open website, during that four-year period there were almost 117,000 industry-sponsored events, involving 3,481,750 “individual attendances”.
As a result, Australians are receiving harmful products that are promoted based on doctor-pharma partnerships, as opposed to safety regulations or quality standards. More often then not, they fail.
GETTING IT WRONG
Big Pharma’s footprint in Australia is undeniable, from national systems to monitor customer behaviour, bribery and corruption and the destruction of the natural medicines industry.
Drug companies in Australia had a turnover of approximately $22 billion in 2009-10, and it’s only been on the rise since then, developing new products for companies to market aggressively.
Big Pharma has a storied history of selling and promoting products known to do wilful damage to consumers and has regularly mislead customers on an international and domestic basis.
Dr Moynihan points to the example of medical giant Johnson & Johnson, which sold pelvic mesh to thousands of Australian women. It knew the mesh could cause serious harm consumers, but never properly warned women of the risks.
Other examples of ‘mistakes’ made by pharmaceutical giants in Australia include tainted Polio vaccines in the 1960s, Pfitzer, Lyrica and Thalidomide — all proven to have caused damage.
Cochrane Co-Chair Lisa Bero recently took to the airwaves to highlight how sponsored drug trial studies are more likely to reveal statistical results and conclusions that favour a sponsor’s product.
Driven by profit and power, the pharmaceutical industry has shown no regard for personal safety or legal regulations, as consumers continue to trust companies caught intentionally lying to the public and promoting products underpinned by non-objective science and deception.
Critics are calling for governments to pass legislation requiring the disclosure when medical reviewers are paid by the manufacturers.
In addition, attention must be brought to physicians and doctors that are attending industry-sponsored events and earning continuing ‘educational credits’.
Citizens that consume pharmaceutical goods should seek to make lifestyle choices that will reduce dependence on drugs. Consider the information in the following articles to help guide your choices for nutrition, exercise and sleep, three foundational pillars to good health.


australiannationalreview--2020-04-28--“Fiber is safer, faster, more reliable, and far more cyber secure and energy efficient than wireless

“Fiber is safer, faster, more reliable, and far more cyber secure and energy efficient than wireless.”

Internet and Telecommunications data can be transmitted either through wires or through the air “ wirelessly ” .
Wired transmissions are faster , safer , more reliable , and far more cyber secure and energy efficient than wireless transmissions .
So in the best of all worlds , we would rely on wired transmissions for the vast majority of our Internet and Telecommunications needs , and reserve wireless for short communications when out-and-about .
Unfortunately , that is not the infrastructure Telecom is designing for us , as wireless is cheaper and more profitable for industry than is fiber .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ humans and wildlife , fiber is safe for all beings .
Fiber is a far more energy efficient way to move data from point A to point B .
Imagine you want to watch a video on your device .
That video data can be sent in a straight line of shot to your device , and you will receive it all at once – one transmission , done .
That ’ s fiber optic cable .
What ’ s wireless ?
First off , you need a ton of electricity because going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or “ small cells ” ) you will lose about 80 % of the electricity for the conversion to radio frequency/microwave radiation .
From the top of the pole , the data is sent out , not just to you , but to your whole community , because that ’ s what cell towers can do – throw a 60 degree ( or more ) spray through the air .
( Please note that with 5G the angle will likely be smaller but the “ spray ” far more intense . )
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the transmission , so it needs to be sent again .
And again .
And again .
Until after many transmissions , you have finally received the complete video .
Where did the rest of the RF microwave radiation go ?
Well , it was wasted on about a sixth of your community not watching the video .
All these people are needlessly polluted so their neighbor down the street , perhaps a mile away , can watch a video .
A highly inefficient and hazardous way to transmit data .
The US @ @ @ @ @ @ @ project to connect every business , school , home , and farm with fiber optic cables .
This would create an invaluable and defensible national asset as well as many thousands of American jobs .
Private companies could then share access to this national asset to offer competing services , in much the same way that long distance telecom providers once shared access to one integrated system of copper telephone wires .
( Please note we are in no way advocating for the private sector to use this public fiber asset to build @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deliver safe , wired services in lieu of the unbridled wireless expansion that is being foisted on us all . )
Consider sharing some of these with your community and elected representatives : Re-Inventing Wires : The Future of Landlines and Networks Timothy Schoechle , PhD Senior Research FellowNational Institute for Science , Law and Public Policy “ The Internet has become one of the defining technologies of the modern world .
Why has America , the Internet ’ s creator , become one of its most impoverished users among all the developed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its people with Internet access and the speed and quality of that access ?
Why has the Internet been growing in an inefficient , insufficient , and unsustainable direction ?
Is wireless access being oversold ?
Why are existing copper phone lines being abandoned when current protocols allow them to deliver data at gigabit speed ?
This report seeks to address these questions and propose answers and solutions .
It explores the historical forces at play , the emerging technologies that will define the future of landlines and networks , and the public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ today.
” http : //electromagnetichealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/ReInventing-Wires-1-25-18.pdf Connected Communities – Wired Networks for Crossing the Digital Divide Why Community Owned Fiber is the Smart Choice Superb website on municipal fiber .
Well worth sharing with city councils and other potentially interested parties .
http : //connected-communities.ca Enough of the 5G Hype Feb. 11th , 2019 | Ernesto Falcon | Electronic Frontier Foundation Electronic Frontier Foundation usually covers the privacy concerns of our increasingly all things wireless world .
In this piece they debunk 5g and explain why fiber-to-the-home is far superior to wireless broadband .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ talk up 5G ( Fifth Generation ) wireless as the future of broadband .
But don ’ t be fooled—they are only trying to focus our attention on 5G to try to distract us from their willful failure to invest in a proven ultrafast option for many Americans : fiber to the home , or FTTH.
” https : //www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/02/enough-5g-hype Dividing Lines | A Docu-Series put out by National Digital Inclusion Alliance ( NDIA ) Why is Internet Access Still a luxury in America ?
Website and home of the documentary , Dividing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Inclusion Alliance ( NDIA ) .
This website documents clearly how Telecom and our government have not only neglected to bring broadband to rural America , but have created the “ digital divide ” by enacting laws and regulations that have the effect of preventing the delivery of fast , reliable , and safe fiber to all homes , businesses , and farms .
https : //www.dividinglines.org Wireless Networks Are Not as Fast , Secure , Reliable or Energy-Efficient as Wired Systems , Says New Report Jan. 26th , 2018 | Business Wire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Timothy Schoechle .
“ A public policy report on the Internet and the future of landlines and wireless networks , “ Re-Inventing Wires : The Future of Landlines and Networks , ” was published online today by the National Institute for Science , Law & Public Policy ( NISLAPP ) in Washington , D.C. Because broadband networks and the Internet have become vital components of our nation ’ s physical , cultural and social structure , the future of these networks , the report says , must be steered towards the fastest , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infrastructure available .
Such infrastructure would be wired , not wireless.
” https : //www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180126005137/en 5G , fiber and the law Mar .
4th , 2019 | Katie Singer | Electronic Silent Spring Clear presentation that sheds light on some of the technical and political intrigue of fiber vs.5G .
“ Until 2016 , businesses and households considered “ fiber optics-to-the premises ” the safest , fastest , most energy efficient and secure way to access the Internet .
Encased in thick conduit , pulsing light on thin strands of glass fibers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ telecommunications .
Effectively , fiber cables offer unlimited bandwidth .
They do not emit radiofrequency radiation ( RFR ) .
They tend to withstand weather catastrophes better than wireless systems .
For years , wireless telecom providers have run fiber optic cables from their core network to the large towers that support cellular antennas .
Then , the system ’ s “ last hop ” ( from the cell tower to individual , mobile devices ) is delivered wirelessly .
In other words , wireless telecom infrastructure is not entirely wireless.
” http @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Landlines and Networks Feb. 5th , 2018 | Podcast Panel discussion on the enormous benefits of fiber-to-the-premises and the serious drawbacks of 4G/5G small cells being pushed on us by Telecom .
Speakers : Timothy Schoechle , Ph.D. Senior Research Fellow , National Institute for Science , Law and Public Policy Martin Pall , Ph.D .
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Sciences , Washington State University Jim Turner , Esq .
Partner , Swankin & Turner Duncan Campbell , Esq .
Radio Host , “ Living Dialogues https : //www.commonwealthclub.org/events/archive/podcast/reinventing-wires-future-landlines-and-networks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , home automation expert says May 25th , 2017 | André Fauteux , Editor | La Maison du 21e siecle magazine Interview of Dr. Timothy Schoechle .
“ I recommend deploying local fiber-optic networks everywhere .
All municipalities in North America should put their own fiber networks in .
They would save a lot of money on Internet access .
The smart grid has always been confused with smart meters but they are not related .
The original idea of the smart grid was to use information to better control the generation , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is still a good idea and fiber is best to transmit data.
” https : //maisonsaine.ca/english/municipal-fiber-optic-networks-are-the-future-home-automation-expert-says.html Bruce Kushnick Primer Dec. 2017 | Scientists for Wired Technology Why do we still not have a fiber optics system if we paid for it in our rates ?
Bruce Kushnick has spent decades following Telecom/FCC actions with regard to fiber .
He has an in depth understanding of how consumers have paid out billions in rate increases for fiber optic networks that Telecom never delivered on .
Furthermore , the FCC has been completely complicit and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s shoddy accounting and broken promises .
Cabled Municipal Broadband–a solution to 5G and everything else April 4th , 2019 | Devra Lee Davis | Thrive Dr. Davis invites communities to consider municipally owned fiber in lieu of the densification of our neighborhoods with unnecessary wireless infrastructure .
Tired of your lack of connectivity ?
Embarrassed that South Korea has internet speeds 200 times faster than we do ?
There are 800 cities across the nation that are building their own municipal wired fiber-optic networks to bring lightning-fast connections straight to their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fund Fiber Optic Broadband , NOT WIRELESS Broadband Nov. 2017 | Blog post by ElectricalPollution.com “ The United States is planning its future broadband infrastructure .
Public input asking for safe , secure , reliable , extremely high speed , and energy efficient is needed .
Fiber optic broadband delivers all these .
Support Fiber Optic Broadband.
” http : //www.electricalpollution.com/FundFiberNOTWireless.html Hundreds of Cities Are Wired With Fiber—But Telecom Lobbying Keeps It Unused June 4th , 2014 | Jason Koebler | Motherboard Although from 2014 , this article has a lot of useful @ @ @ @ @ @ @ why many people still don ’ t have fiber when the fiber has already been laid !
Bottom line seems to be , the big telecom companies , like Comcast , Verizon and AT & T are controlling the playing field to their advantage and our loss .
“ Government buildings all around the country are wired with fiber , but agreements with huge telecoms keep it out of people ’ s homes….Unfortunately , those people—and millions of others around the country—will have to settle for Internet speeds that are relatively run-of-the-mill , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them.
” https : //motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/gvyyym/hundreds-of-cities-are-wired-with-fiberbut-telecom-lobbying-keeps-it-unused Defining and Mapping Broadband Coverage in America June 21st , 2017 | Dr. Robert Wack from Westminster , Maryland | Comments before the Committee on Energy and Commerce Westminster City Council president , Dr. Wack describes a public private partnership his city launched which provides fiber network to all homes and businesses .
https : //www.youtube.com/watch ?
time_continue=2578 & v=z1b8-AaBzok San Francisco seeks universal fiber broadband with net neutrality and privacy Feb. 1st , 2018 | Jon Brodkin | Ars Technica “ San Francisco is trying to find @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gigabit fiber Internet service with mandated net neutrality and consumer privacy protections .
It would be an open-access network , allowing multiple ISPs to offer service over the same lines and compete for customers ” .
https : //arstechnica.com/information-technology/2018/02/san-fran-seeks-universal-fiber-broadband-with-net-neutrality-and-privacy/ ?
comments=1 Net Neutrality Chant : “ Sue the FCC ; Break Up Verizon & AT & T ” Dec. 13th , 2017 | Bruce Kushnick | Huffington Post Bruce Kushnick explains some of the other ways beyond net neutrality in which the FCC is colluding with Telecom at the expense of the American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of 15-20 different current FCC proceedings that are designed to all work together , which we dubbed the ‘ Wheel of Mis-Fortune ’ .
While Net Neutrality is a catchy phrase , it is more of a distraction ; the real problems are much deeper and they have gotten far too little attention.
” https : //www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/net-neutrality-chant-sue-the-fcc-break-up-verizon_us_5a30f7e6e4b04bd8793e95a6 BRUCE KUSHNICK 3 PART SERIES IN UNRAVELING THE WIRELESS VS .
WIRED SCANDAL Not happy with your wireless service ?
Blame the FCC Oct. 9th , 2017 | Bruce Kushnick | Huffington Post Part 1 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Annual Report and Analysis of Competitive Market Conditions with Respect to Mobile Wireless ’ ; a piece of propaganda on wireless competition in America to help AT & T and Verizon .
As we will discuss , the statistics and presentation are based on a questionable manipulation of the facts , or more importantly , it is the omission of basic information that is the real problem.
” https : //www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/59db1ebce4b0705dc79aa964 America ’ s Wireless : 59th in the World in LTE ; 2nd in ‘ Most Expensive ’ Data Prices ; 40 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” .
Oct. 15th , 2017 | Bruce Kushnick | Huffington Post Part 2 “ America is 59th in LTE wireless speeds according to Open Signal ’ s June 2017 report .
America is 2nd in ‘ most expensive ’ data out of 41 countries , based on Rewheel Research .
The FCC manipulated the average wireless speed ; it is 46 % -72 % above what the other research firms have found.
” “ …when you go online today it is as if an uninvited mob has joined you on a conference @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , most of whom you never heard of , and you have no idea of their intentions.
” https : //www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/59e06c5be4b003f928d5e5c9 Wireless Smartphones with Only 10Mbps Down , 1Mbps Up , are Not a Substitute for a Wired Broadband Connection .
Oct. 19th , 2017 | Bruce Kushnick | Huffington Post Part 3 “ Conclusion : Wireless Is Not a Substitute for Wireline Cable TV , Internet or Even DSL , Much Less a Fiber Optic-Based Service.
” https : //www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/59e8ecbce4b0542ce4290c1c Google Pivots from Fiber to 5G Aug. 17th , 2016 | Posted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Speed Internet ) “ Cities across America have been waiting patiently for Alphabet , Google Fiber ’ s parent company , to begin building the infrastructure that ’ ll bring high-speed internet home .
But thus far , it ’ s been an exercise in frustration for both sides….Development of fiber networks by Google in over 16 cities has stumbled and stalled based on two major roadblocks : ” – Expensive Infrastructure and Legislative Limbo .
https : //www.highspeedinternet.com/resources/google-pivots-fiber-5g/ Koch Brothers Are Cities ’ New Obstacle to Building Broadband Dec. 16th , 2017 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ …fed up with federal apathy and sick of being held back by lousy internet access controlled by local cable monopolies , scrappy cities around the US are working hard to find ways to get cheap , world-class fiber-optic connectivity .
It ’ s always been an uphill climb , as the ‘ incumbents ’ —giant carriers like Comcast , Verizon , and AT & T—are constantly working behind the scenes to block competition .
( Recently , Comcast spent nearly $ 1 million opposing a municipal-fiber vote in Fort Collins , Colorado.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wireless Is the New Fiber Optic , Bait-and-Switch Scandal You can fool most of the people most of the time .
With “ 5G ” , you can fool almost everyone except those in on the joke .
Mar .
8th , 2018 | Bruce Kushnick | The Medium Telecom Analyst and expert , Bruce Kushnick pierces through industry hype and gives context to this newest 5g “ bait ” which is but a repeat of many other similar “ bait and switches ” that came before .
“ This is just the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by AT & T and Verizon to use the promise of a new technology to get rid of regulations , kill off competition and to raise rates .
And this scheme relies on the FCC , not to mention their friendly state and federal politicians , to push it through.
” https : //medium.com/ @ kushnickbruce/5g-wireless-is-the-new-fiber-optic-bait-and-switch-scandal-646246b8f34d Verizon ’ s Proposed Settlement in New York Covers Up One of the Largest , Nationwide , Accounting Scandals in American History Mar .
19th , 2018 | Bruce Kushnick | The Medium Veteran Telecom Analyst , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Verizon has cross subsidized the wireless buildout with funds paid by ratepayers for wireline services .
“ Verizon ’ s Proposed Settlement in New York Covers Up One of the Largest , Nationwide , Accounting Scandals in American History.
” https : //medium.com/ @ kushnickbruce/verizons-proposed-settlement-in-new-york-covers-up-one-of-the-largest-nationwide-accounting-5b0c1e8e1aa6 Editor ’ s Corner—Fixed 5G was tested by the cable industry , and it came up a bit short Nov. 8th , 2017 | Mike Dano | Fierce Wireless ( Fixed wireless is Internet access at a set location , such as your home or business ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can connect to the Internet while on the go .
Fixed wired is fiber or cable in a set location . )
Article discusses a new report titled , “ Can a Fixed Wireless Last 100m Connection Really Compete with a Wired Connection and Will 5G Really Enable this Opportunity ?
” The report seems to conclude that for the time being , fixed wireless doesn ’ t cut it when compared to fixed wired .
https : //www.fiercewireless.com/5g/editor-s-corner-cable-industry-tested-fixed-5g-and-it-came-up-a-bit-short Community-Owned Fiber Networks : Value Leaders in America Pricing Review Shows They Provide Least-Expensive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ David Talbot , and Kira Hessekiel , Danielle Kehl | Harvard University Authors compared municipal fiber pricing to ISPs , and found that “ most community-owned FTTH networks charged less and offered prices that were clear and unchanging….
” https : //cyber.harvard.edu/sites/cyber.harvard.edu/files/2018-01-10-Pricing.Study_.pdf 5G , Fiber Optics the Law Mar .
4th , 2019 | Katie Singer | Electronic Silent Spring Katie Singer explains clearly the ins and outs of fiber and 5G to better enable communities ( and individuals ) to make more informed technology choices than what Telecom is foisting on us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Connect Rural America Mar .
20th , 2018 | Matthew Marcus | Institute for Local Self-Reliance Excellent article about why fiber in rural areas should be built by rural communities rather than throwing billions at the “ Big 4 ” who will never deliver .
Author Mathew Marcus explains why our captured government needs to stop throwing money at the “ Big 4 ” – Verizon , AT & T , T-Mobile , and Sprint – to “ bridge the digital divide ” .
The private sector will just not deliver.
“ Rural @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the way to get good , fast Internet access to underserved areas .
So why are AT & T and other big corporations in line to get $ 2.5 billion in government funding to reach customers – again.
” http : //www.dailyyonder.com/opinion-fcc-set-waste-billions-wrong-rural-broadband-providers/2018/03/20/24578/ 5G Is Not the Answer For Rural Broadband — 5G wireless , due to begin rolling out in 2020 , will improve mobile broadband and support the internet of things .
It may even be suitable for fixed broadband in dense urban areas .
But it has neither the capacity nor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ broadband gap .
Mar .
April , 2018 | Larry Thompson and Warren Vande Stadt |Vantage Point Solutions ” As the 5G wireless network is more expensive for the initial capex ( capital expenditure ) as well as opex ( operating expenses ) and provides 1 percent of the broadband speed and capacity available on an FTTP network , it is unlikely to be a good investment if used only for fixed broadband services .
There may be some select scenarios for which it makes economic sense , but one would expect those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ //www.bbcmag.com/2017mags/Mar_Apr/BBC_Mar17_5GNotAnswer.pdf LETTER : Bringing fast and healthy internet to coastal communities .
How will local officials , including First Nations leaders , connect their communities Mar .
15th , 2018 | Oona McOuat | The Northern View Community-owned , wired fiber optic networks make it possible to have a fast connection to the web without harming the web of life that sustains us .
https : //www.thenorthernview.com/opinion/letter-bringing-fast-and-healthy-internet-to-coastal-communities/ Hundreds of Cities Are Wired With Fiber—But Telecom Lobbying Keeps It Unused .
Government buildings all around the country are wired with fiber , but agreements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people ’ s homes .
June 14th , 2014 | Jason Koebler | Motherboard “ Throughout the country , companies like Comcast , Time Warner Cable , CenturyLink , and Verizon have signed agreements with cities that prohibit local governments from becoming internet service providers and prohibit municipalities from selling or leasing their fiber to local startups who would compete with these huge corporations .
…What happens then are so-called ‘ middle-mile ’ projects , where government buildings , schools , and nonprofit groups can be wired up , but expanded access to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and threats from larger ISPs.
” https : //motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/gvyyym/hundreds-of-cities-are-wired-with-fiberbut-telecom-lobbying-keeps-it-unused

By Ronald M. Powell, Ph.D.
Internet and Telecommunications data can be transmitted either through wires or through the air “wirelessly”. Wired transmissions are faster, safer, more reliable, and far more cyber secure and energy efficient than wireless transmissions. So in the best of all worlds, we would rely on wired transmissions for the vast majority of our Internet and Telecommunications needs, and reserve wireless for short communications when out-and-about. Unfortunately, that is not the infrastructure Telecom is designing for us, as wireless is cheaper and more profitable for industry than is fiber.
But unlike wireless radiation which harms both humans and wildlife, fiber is safe for all beings.
Energy Consumption Fiber Vs. Wireless
Fiber is a far more energy efficient way to move data from point A to point B. Imagine you want to watch a video on your device. That video data can be sent in a straight line of shot to your device, and you will receive it all at once – one transmission, done. That’s fiber optic cable.
What’s wireless? First off, you need a ton of electricity because going up the pole (think cell tower or “small cells”) you will lose about 80% of the electricity for the conversion to radio frequency/microwave radiation. From the top of the pole, the data is sent out, not just to you, but to your whole community, because that’s what cell towers can do – throw a 60 degree (or more) spray through the air. (Please note that with 5G the angle will likely be smaller but the “spray” far more intense.)
But you only got a tiny sliver of the transmission, so it needs to be sent again. And again. And again. Until after many transmissions, you have finally received the complete video. Where did the rest of the RF microwave radiation go? Well, it was wasted on about a sixth of your community not watching the video. All these people are needlessly polluted so their neighbor down the street, perhaps a mile away, can watch a video. A highly inefficient and hazardous way to transmit data.
“When one puts fiber so deep into a network, why stop at the small cell rather than at the premises a few hundred feet away? Fiber to the premises allows much higher speeds and availability without the same kinds of capacity limitations.” Larry Thompson and Warren Vande Stadt
The US would benefit from a coordinated public/private infrastructure project to connect every business, school, home, and farm with fiber optic cables. This would create an invaluable and defensible national asset as well as many thousands of American jobs. Private companies could then share access to this national asset to offer competing services, in much the same way that long distance telecom providers once shared access to one integrated system of copper telephone wires. (Please note we are in no way advocating for the private sector to use this public fiber asset to build more wireless infrastructure, but rather to deliver safe, wired services in lieu of the unbridled wireless expansion that is being foisted on us all.)
Resources on Fiber
Consider sharing some of these with your community and elected representatives:
Re-Inventing Wires:The Future of Landlines and Networks Timothy Schoechle, PhD Senior Research FellowNational Institute for Science, Law and Public Policy
“The Internet has become one of the defining technologies of the modern world. Why has America, the Internet’s creator, become one of its most impoverished users among all the developed nations in terms of the proportion of its people with Internet access and the speed and quality of that access? Why has the Internet been growing in an inefficient, insufficient, and unsustainable direction? Is wireless access being oversold? Why are existing copper phone lines being abandoned when current protocols allow them to deliver data at gigabit speed? This report seeks to address these questions and propose answers and solutions. It explores the historical forces at play, the emerging technologies that will define the future of landlines and networks, and the public policy choices and opportunities that confront us today.”
https://electromagnetichealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/ReInventing-Wires-1-25-18.pdf
Connected Communities – Wired Networks for Crossing the Digital Divide Why Community Owned Fiber is the Smart Choice
Superb website on municipal fiber. Well worth sharing with city councils and other potentially interested parties.
https://connected-communities.ca
Enough of the 5G Hype Feb. 11th, 2019 | Ernesto Falcon | Electronic Frontier Foundation Electronic Frontier Foundation usually covers the privacy concerns of our increasingly all things wireless world. In this piece they debunk 5g and explain why fiber-to-the-home is far superior to wireless broadband. “Wireless carriers are working hard to talk up 5G (Fifth Generation) wireless as the future of broadband. But don’t be fooled—they are only trying to focus our attention on 5G to try to distract us from their willful failure to invest in a proven ultrafast option for many Americans: fiber to the home, or FTTH.”https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/02/enough-5g-hype
Dividing Lines | A Docu-Series put out by National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA)
Why is Internet Access Still a luxury in America?
Website and home of the documentary, Dividing Lines, published by the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA). This website documents clearly how Telecom and our government have not only neglected to bring broadband to rural America, but have created the “digital divide” by enacting laws and regulations that have the effect of preventing the delivery of fast, reliable, and safe fiber to all homes, businesses, and farms.
https://www.dividinglines.org
Wireless Networks Are Not as Fast, Secure, Reliable or Energy-Efficient as Wired Systems, Says New Report Jan. 26th, 2018 | Business Wire
Announcement and link to report by Dr. Timothy Schoechle. “A public policy report on the Internet and the future of landlines and wireless networks, “Re-Inventing Wires: The Future of Landlines and Networks,” was published online today by the National Institute for Science, Law & Public Policy (NISLAPP) in Washington, D.C. Because broadband networks and the Internet have become vital components of our nation’s physical, cultural and social structure, the future of these networks, the report says, must be steered towards the fastest, most reliable and future-proof, and secure infrastructure available. Such infrastructure would be wired, not wireless.”
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180126005137/en
5G, fiber and the law Mar. 4th, 2019 | Katie Singer | Electronic Silent Spring
Clear presentation that sheds light on some of the technical and political intrigue of fiber vs.5G.
“Until 2016, businesses and households considered “fiber optics-to-the premises” the safest, fastest, most energy efficient and secure way to access the Internet. Encased in thick conduit, pulsing light on thin strands of glass fibers, fiber optic cables carry multiple frequencies for telecommunications. Effectively, fiber cables offer unlimited bandwidth. They do not emit radiofrequency radiation (RFR). They tend to withstand weather catastrophes better than wireless systems.
For years, wireless telecom providers have run fiber optic cables from their core network to the large towers that support cellular antennas. Then, the system’s “last hop” (from the cell tower to individual, mobile devices) is delivered wirelessly. In other words, wireless telecom infrastructure is not entirely wireless.”
https://www.electronicsilentspring.com/march-2019-blog/
Reinventing Wires: The Future of Landlines and Networks Feb. 5th, 2018 | Podcast
Panel discussion on the enormous benefits of fiber-to-the-premises and the serious drawbacks of 4G/5G small cells being pushed on us by Telecom. Speakers: Timothy Schoechle, Ph.D. Senior Research Fellow, National Institute for Science, Law and Public Policy Martin Pall, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Sciences, Washington State University Jim Turner, Esq. Partner, Swankin & Turner Duncan Campbell, Esq. Radio Host, “Living Dialogues
https://www.commonwealthclub.org/events/archive/podcast/reinventing-wires-future-landlines-and-networks
Municipal fiber optic networks are the future, home automation expert says
May 25th, 2017 | André Fauteux, Editor | La Maison du 21e siecle magazine
Interview of Dr. Timothy Schoechle.
“I recommend deploying local fiber-optic networks everywhere. All municipalities in North America should put their own fiber networks in. They would save a lot of money on Internet access. The smart grid has always been confused with smart meters but they are not related. The original idea of the smart grid was to use information to better control the generation, transmission and distribution of power. This is still a good idea and fiber is best to transmit data.”
https://maisonsaine.ca/english/municipal-fiber-optic-networks-are-the-future-home-automation-expert-says.html
Bruce Kushnick Primer Dec. 2017 | Scientists for Wired Technology
Why do we still not have a fiber optics system if we paid for it in our rates?
Bruce Kushnick has spent decades following Telecom/FCC actions with regard to fiber. He has an in depth understanding of how consumers have paid out billions in rate increases for fiber optic networks that Telecom never delivered on. Furthermore, the FCC has been completely complicit and has turned a blind eye to Telecom’s shoddy accounting and broken promises.
Link to video lecture and book by Bruce Kushnick:
https://scientists4wiredtech.com/regulation/kushnick-primer/ Opinion: FCC Set to Waste Billions on the Wrong Rural Broadband Providers Mar. 20th, 2018 | Mathew Marcus | Institute for Local Self Reliance
Author Mathew Marcus explains why our captured government needs to stop throwing money at the “Big 4” – Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint – to “bridge the digital divide”. The private sector will just not deliver on fast, safe, reliable, cyber secure and energy efficient fiber to all homes.
https://www.dailyyonder.com/opinion-fcc-set-waste-billions-wrong-rural-broadband-providers/2018/03/20/24578/ Why 5G Makes Me Reconsider the Health Effects of Cellphones April 1st, 2019 | Susan Crawford | Wired
Susan Crawford is a John A. Reilly Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. Crawford has been an outspoken proponent of fiber optics for high speed broadband due to its superiority to wireless. But until now, Crawford has not talked about health. Here for the first time, she addresses health.
https://www.wired.com/story/why-5g-makes-reconsider-health-effects-cellphones/?mbid=social_fb_onsiteshare&fbclid=IwAR2rfyHxZ_z1bcnLjZ62s_Sxvk8efAa6DRQ0JdjmOtwI-PkdXaroEz_pAVs
Cabled Municipal Broadband–a solution to 5G and everything else April 4th, 2019 | Devra Lee Davis | Thrive
Dr. Davis invites communities to consider municipally owned fiber in lieu of the densification of our neighborhoods with unnecessary wireless infrastructure. Tired of your lack of connectivity? Embarrassed that South Korea has internet speeds 200 times faster than we do? There are 800 cities across the nation that are building their own municipal wired fiber-optic networks to bring lightning-fast connections straight to their homes.
https://thriveglobal.com/stories/cabled-municipal-broadband-a-solution-to-5g-and-everything-else/?fbclid=IwAR2WS-XtqwYVoW4AeAysKO0crmCilnJuv0tA4lO811qv5I1kHXo-LNc_VjM


australiannationalreview--2020-04-28--‘One of the largest human experiments in history’ was conducted on the unsuspecting residents of San

‘One of the largest human experiments in history’ was conducted on the unsuspecting residents of San Francisco

San Francisco ’ s fog is famous , especially in the summer , when weather conditions combine to create the characteristic cooling blanket that sits over the Bay Area .
But one fact many may not know about San Francisco ’ s fog is that in 1950 , the US military conducted a test to see whether it could be used to help spread a biological weapon in a “ simulated germ warfare attack.
” This was just the start of many such tests around the country that would go on in secret for years .
The test was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at Discover Magazine , and also “ one of the largest human experiments in history.
” But as she writes , it was also “ one of the largest offenses of the Nuremberg Code since its inception.
” The code stipulates that “ voluntary , informed consent ” is required for research participants , and that experiments that might lead to death or disabling injury are unacceptable .
The unsuspecting residents of San Francisco certainly could not consent to the military ’ s germ warfare test , and there ’ s good evidence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of at least one resident of the city , Edward Nevin , and hospitalized 10 others .
This is a crazy story , one that seems like it must be a conspiracy theory .
An internet search will reveal plenty of misinformation and unbelievable conjecture about these experiments .
But the core of this incredible tale is documented and true .
It all began in late September of 1950 , when over a few days , a Navy vessel used giant hoses to spray a fog of two kinds of bacteria , Serratia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the time to be harmless — out into the fog , where they disappeared and spread over the city .
“ It was noted that a successful BW [ biological warfare ] attack on this area can be launched from the sea , and that effective dosages can be produced over relatively large areas , ” concluded a later-declassified military report , cited by the Wall Street Journal .
Successful indeed , according to Leonard Cole , director of the Terror Medicine and Security Program at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” documents the military ’ s secret bio-weapon tests over populated areas .
Cole wrote : This was among the first but far from the last of these sorts of tests .
Over the next 20 years , the military would conduct 239 “ germ warfare ” tests over populated areas , according to news reports from the 1970s ( after the secret tests had been revealed ) in The New York Times , Washington Post , Associated Press and other publications ( via Lexis-Nexis ) , and also detailed in congressional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ included the large-scale releases of bacteria in the New York City subway system , on the Pennsylvania Turnpike , and in National Airport just outside Washington , D.C .
In a 1994 congressional testimony , Cole said that none of this had been revealed to the public until a 1976 newspaper story revealed the story of a few of the first experiments — though at least a Senate subcommittee had heard testimony about experiments in New York City in 1975 , according to a 1995 Newsday report .
When Edward Nevin III , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ died in 1950 , read about one of those early tests in San Francisco , he connected the story to his grandfather ’ s death from a mysterious bacterial infection .
He began to try to convince the government to reveal more data about these experiments .
In 1977 , they released a report detailing more of that activity .
In 1950 , the first Edward Nevin had been recovering from a prostate surgery when he suddenly fell ill with a severe urinary tract infection containing Serratia marcescens , that theoretically harmless bacteria @ @ @ @ @ @ @ red in colour .
The bacteria had reportedly never been found in the hospital before and was rare in the Bay Area ( and in California in general ) .
The bacteria spread to Nevin ’ s heart and he died a few weeks later .
Another 10 patients showed up in the hospital over the next few months , all with pneumonia symptoms and the odd presence of Serratia marcescens .
They all recovered .
Nevin ’ s grandson tried to sue the government for wrongful death , but the court held @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lawsuit for negligence and that they were justified in conducting tests without subjects ’ knowledge .
According to the Wall Street Journal , the Army stated that infections must have occurred inside the hospital and the US Attorney argued that they had to conduct tests in a populated area to see how a biological agent would affect that area .
In 2005 , the FDA stated that “ Serratia marcescens bacteria … can cause serious , life-threatening illness in patients with compromised immune systems.
” The bacteria has shown up in a few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1950s , according to the San Francisco Chronicle , leading to some speculation that the original spraying could have established a new microbial population in the area .
While Nevin lost his lawsuit , he said afterwards , as quoted by Cole , “ At least we are all aware of what can happen , even in this country … I just hope the story won ’ t be forgotten .
”

By KEVIN LORIA
San Francisco’s fog is famous, especially in the summer, when weather conditions combine to create the characteristic cooling blanket that sits over the Bay Area.
But one fact many may not know about San Francisco’s fog is that in 1950, the US military conducted a test to see whether it could be used to help spread a biological weapon in a “simulated germ warfare attack.” This was just the start of many such tests around the country that would go on in secret for years.
The test was a success, as Rebecca Kreston explains over at Discover Magazine, and also “one of the largest human experiments in history.” But as she writes, it was also “one of the largest offenses of the Nuremberg Code since its inception.” The code stipulates that “voluntary, informed consent” is required for research participants, and that experiments that might lead to death or disabling injury are unacceptable.
The unsuspecting residents of San Francisco certainly could not consent to the military’s germ warfare test, and there’s good evidence that it could have caused the death of at least one resident of the city, Edward Nevin, and hospitalized 10 others.
This is a crazy story, one that seems like it must be a conspiracy theory. An internet search will reveal plenty of misinformation and unbelievable conjecture about these experiments. But the core of this incredible tale is documented and true.
‘A successful biological warfare attack’
It all began in late September of 1950, when over a few days, a Navy vessel used giant hoses to spray a fog of two kinds of bacteria, Serratia marcescens and Bacillus globigii — both believed at the time to be harmless — out into the fog, where they disappeared and spread over the city.
“It was noted that a successful BW [biological warfare] attack on this area can be launched from the sea, and that effective dosages can be produced over relatively large areas,” concluded a later-declassified military report, cited by the Wall Street Journal.
Successful indeed, according to Leonard Cole, director of the Terror Medicine and Security Program at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. His book, “Clouds of Secrecy,” documents the military’s secret bio-weapon tests over populated areas. Cole wrote:
Nearly all of San Francisco received 500 particle minutes per litre. In other words, nearly every one of the 800,000 people in San Francisco exposed to the cloud at normal breathing rate (10 litres per minute) inhaled 5000 or more particles per minute during the several hours that they remained airborne.
This was among the first but far from the last of these sorts of tests.
Tests included the large-scale releases of bacteria in the New York City subway system, on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and in National Airport.
Over the next 20 years, the military would conduct 239 “germ warfare” tests over populated areas, according to news reports from the 1970s (after the secret tests had been revealed) in The New York Times, Washington Post, Associated Press and other publications (via Lexis-Nexis), and also detailed in congressional testimony from the 1970s.
These tests included the large-scale releases of bacteria in the New York City subway system, on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and in National Airport just outside Washington, D.C.
In a 1994 congressional testimony, Cole said that none of this had been revealed to the public until a 1976 newspaper story revealed the story of a few of the first experiments — though at least a Senate subcommittee had heard testimony about experiments in New York City in 1975, according to a 1995 Newsday report.
A mysterious death
When Edward Nevin III, the grandson of the Edward Nevin who died in 1950, read about one of those early tests in San Francisco, he connected the story to his grandfather’s death from a mysterious bacterial infection. He began to try to convince the government to reveal more data about these experiments. In 1977, they released a report detailing more of that activity.
In 1950, the first Edward Nevin had been recovering from a prostate surgery when he suddenly fell ill with a severe urinary tract infection containing
Serratia marcescens, that theoretically harmless bacteria that’s known for turning bread red in colour. The bacteria had reportedly never been found in the hospital before and was rare in the Bay Area (and in California in general).
The bacteria spread to Nevin’s heart and he died a few weeks later.
Another 10 patients showed up in the hospital over the next few months, all with pneumonia symptoms and the odd presence of Serratia marcescens. They all recovered.
Nevin’s grandson tried to sue the government for wrongful death, but the court held that the government was immune to a lawsuit for negligence and that they were justified in conducting tests without subjects’ knowledge. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Army stated that infections must have occurred inside the hospital and the US Attorney argued that they had to conduct tests in a populated area to see how a biological agent would affect that area.
In 2005, the FDA stated that “Serratia marcescens bacteria … can cause serious, life-threatening illness in patients with compromised immune systems.” The bacteria has shown up in a few other Bay Area health crises since the 1950s, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, leading to some speculation that the original spraying could have established a new microbial population in the area.
While Nevin lost his lawsuit, he said afterwards, as quoted by Cole, “At least we are all aware of what can happen, even in this country … I just hope the story won’t be forgotten.”


australiannationalreview--2020-04-29--Coronavirus outbreak: How the COVID-19 vaccine is being made

Scientists around the world are working at lightning speed to make a COVID-19 vaccine – and Australian experts are bringing breakthrough technology to the effort .
How do you make a vaccine and what ’ s new about this Australian innovation ?
Barely six weeks after the first recorded death from the new coronavirus in Wuhan , researchers in Australia began testing a potential vaccine on animals .
A factory in Melbourne has created small doses of the vaccine for testing .
If it keeps animals safe from the virus , it will be tested on humans .
And the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ animal model ” – a ferret infected with the virus – which gives scientists an insight into how COVID-19 progresses and provides a basis for testing ways to stop it .
The extraordinary plan – to develop a vaccine for a virus we barely understand , at breakneck pace – is being led by a team of scientists at the University of Queensland , with support from other teams around the country .
If their efforts succeed , not only will they have a powerful weapon to stop the spread of coronavirus but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ potentially leading to jabs for a range of other lethal conditions .
How do you make a vaccine for a new disease ?
What are these new “ molecular clamp ” vaccines and how do they differ from our current inoculations ?
How do you make one so quickly ?
And how likely is it to work ?
What is the plan for developing a COVID-19 vaccine ?
Vaccines are among our best tools for preventing infection .
In the developed world , they have helped largely stamp out crippling diseases such as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ historically , making a vaccine has been a lengthy process , arduous , frustrating and often unsuccessful .
It takes about 10 years to bring a vaccine all the way from research through to approval – and that ’ s if the vaccine works .
Many more end up as failed experiments .
After watching SARS ( Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ) and MERS ( Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome ) and then Ebola and Zika viruses emerge , killing thousands and terrifying the world , scientists decided a new approach was needed – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ response to emerging threats .
Known as the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation , it was launched in 2017 and is headquartered in Norway .
The coalition ’ s plan : to build “ platform vaccines ” that could be instantly adapted to new viruses when they emerged .
The challenge : they would need to invent vaccines unlike any in use right now .
The CEPI coalition wants to go from isolating this coronavirus to testing a vaccine for it within 16 weeks – so it would be ready for wide distribution @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world of vaccines , that ’ s lightning fast .
Its first major test has come faster than anyone could have expected .
Having emerged from a live animal market in the Chinese city of Wuhan , COVID-19 has rapidly turned into a global menace .
The Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity in Melbourne captured a sample of the virus from the first person in Australia diagnosed with the disease .
They placed the virus inside a flask filled with monkey kidney cells , monitoring the flask via a video camera @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can ’ t see the virus – it ’ s too small .
The cells sit quietly in a bath .
Slowly at first but then more and more quickly , they start turning black , until the entire dish is filled with death .
How do vaccines work ?
Why do we need a new type ?
All vaccines work by taking advantage of your immune system ’ s innate defences .
A vaccine contains a part or all of a virus , treated in such a way that it won ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system recognises the virus as a foreign invader and then makes different antibodies to destroy it .
Every virus has a different shape .
To kill it , your body needs to produce antibodies that are exactly the right shape to stick to the virus .
Imagine puzzle pieces slotting together – but when they connect , the virus dies .
The CEPI coalition has three vaccines for coronavirus in development around the world ( with the hope that at least one works ) .
Two of them , being developed by pharmaceutical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Moderna , are of a type known as “ DNA ” vaccines .
The other , being developed in Australia , is a “ molecular clamp ” vaccine .
Other companies in China and Russia are independently working on their own vaccines outside of the coalition .
At the moment , there are three common types of vaccine One key thing the CEPI coalition is doing differently is to not use the virus in making a vaccine .
In a new outbreak , getting a live sample of a virus takes too long @ @ @ @ @ @ @ genetic code , which can be obtained as soon as an outbreak starts .
Scientists analyse a virus ’ s genetic code and identify a section that contains the blueprint for a small part of the virus .
If you inject that DNA into human cells , the human cells will read it and start printing off small parts of the virus .
Your immune system spots these virus fragments and makes antibodies to kill them – giving you immunity .
“ That is the simplest vaccine we can make , and we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they are often not terribly effective , ” says Professor Eric Gowans , a DNA vaccine expert formerly based at the University of Adelaide .
The molecular clamp vaccine being developed for CEPI at the University of Queensland is entirely different .
Molecular clamp technology was invented about seven years ago by three University of Queensland scientists : Dr Keith Chappell , Dr Daniel Watterson and Professor Paul Young .
Funded by CEPI , they had hoped to spend the next few years developing their innovation ; instead , they have been thrust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 .
The virus ’ genetic sequence was released by China on January 11 .
Within 24 hours , the team had picked the part of the virus they wanted to target and ordered the materials to get started .
“ We did not need the virus itself .
All we needed was the sequence , ” says Professor Young .
Viruses have a single goal : to get inside a human cell , where they can reproduce .
To do this , the coronavirus is covered in “ spike ” proteins , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Spike proteins are designed to bind to a human cell and uncoil , blowing a hole in the cell wall that lets the virus in .
Our immune system works by recognising that protein and making antibodies to kill it .
Specifically , you want your antibodies to recognise and kill the coiled shape of the spike proteins – killing the coronavirus before it gets a chance to penetrate your cells .
If you want to give someone immunity without infecting them , the obvious thing to do is cut off a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine .
But it ’ s not that simple .
Put a coiled spike protein – unconnected to the surface of the virus – in a vaccine and inject it , and the spike proteins will automatically uncoil inside the body .
Rather than making antibodies to fight the coiled protein on the surface of COVID-19 , the body will make antibodies that match the shape of the uncoiled protein .
If full coronavirus comes along , those antibodies won ’ t kill it .
These clamps are tiny pieces of protein that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shape .
“ It locks the protein into the shape that ’ s seen on the virus , ” says Professor Young .
Trapped in that shape , the protein is ripe for investigation by the immune system .
This encourages the immune system to generate not one but many different antibodies to attack the virus , meaning your immunity is stronger , says molecular biologist Upulie Divisekera at the University of Auckland .
The coronavirus is also mutating , much as the flu mutates to escape our immune system .
By generating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you should be able to get a broad immune response that can still handle a mutated coronavirus , Divisekera says .
You ’ ve got a potential vaccine .
Then what ?
On February 21 the team ’ s vaccine draft was sent to the CSIRO ’ s manufacturing facility in the Melbourne suburb of Clayton , and manufacturing of a pilot dose began .
The facility houses a 200-litre fermenting vat that will be filled with a “ soup ” of Chinese hamster ovary cells – the best cells for the task @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clamped protein DNA sequence from the University of Queensland lab has been fed into the fermenters .
The cells will absorb the DNA and copy the instructions it contains , manufacturing litres and litres of the clamped protein .
That will then be extracted , purified and placed in a vaccine .
“ We hope… we can give the purified material within four weeks for toxicology studies , ” said Professor George Lovrecz , research team leader at CSIRO ’ s manufacturing division .
“ I believe they are very , very close @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” How would the vaccine be tested ?
Before you can hand the vaccine to humans , you need to test it ’ s safe and effective .
At the CSIRO ’ s highly secure laboratory in Geelong , south-west of Melbourne , those tests are already being prepared .
Scientists at the lab have used the virus sample from the Doherty Institute to grow their own vats of coronavirus .
Using that sample , they have now been able to show that ferrets can also get infected with COVID-19 .
They are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – how the animal gets sick , which cells the virus targets , and how the immune system responds .
Knowing the course of the illness is important because it allows a proper comparison to be made .
The sick ferrets can be compared to ferrets given a test vaccine to see if it is truly protective .
The results will be known quickly .
If the ferrets stay healthy , human trials can begin .
If they don ’ t , it is back to the drawing board .
The technology works @ @ @ @ @ @ @ excited .
Several told us the University of Queensland ’ s vaccine had at least a 50-50 chance of succeeding .
But the road to scientific discovery is paved with failure .
Two-thirds of new drugs that work in animals simply don ’ t work in humans .
So the scientists at CEPI estimate they would need to test as many as 21 different vaccines to have a good chance of one working .
Here ’ s the thing , though : they only need to succeed once .

By Liam Mannix
Scientists around the world are working at lightning speed to make a COVID-19 vaccine – and Australian experts are bringing breakthrough technology to the effort. How do you make a vaccine and what’s new about this Australian innovation?
Barely six weeks after the first recorded death from the new coronavirus in Wuhan, researchers in Australia began testing a potential vaccine on animals.
A factory in Melbourne has created small doses of the vaccine for testing. If it keeps animals safe from the virus, it will be tested on humans.
And the CSIRO have just finished developing an “animal model” – a ferret infected with the virus – which gives scientists an insight into how COVID-19 progresses and provides a basis for testing ways to stop it.
The extraordinary plan – to develop a vaccine for a virus we barely understand, at breakneck pace – is being led by a team of scientists at the University of Queensland, with support from other teams around the country.
If their efforts succeed, not only will they have a powerful weapon to stop the spread of coronavirus but they will also revolutionise vaccine technology, potentially leading to jabs for a range of other lethal conditions.
How do you make a vaccine for a new disease? What are these new “molecular clamp” vaccines and how do they differ from our current inoculations? How do you make one so quickly? And how likely is it to work?
What is the plan for developing a COVID-19 vaccine?
Vaccines are among our best tools for preventing infection. In the developed world, they have helped largely stamp out crippling diseases such as polio, diphtheria and rubella.
But historically, making a vaccine has been a lengthy process, arduous, frustrating and often unsuccessful. It takes about 10 years to bring a vaccine all the way from research through to approval – and that’s if the vaccine works. Many more end up as failed experiments.
After watching SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and MERS (Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome) and then Ebola and Zika viruses emerge, killing thousands and terrifying the world, scientists decided a new approach was needed – one that could quickly make vaccines in response to emerging threats. Known as the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation, it was launched in 2017 and is headquartered in Norway.
The coalition’s plan: to build “platform vaccines” that could be instantly adapted to new viruses when they emerged. The challenge: they would need to invent vaccines unlike any in use right now.
The CEPI coalition wants to go from isolating this coronavirus to testing a vaccine for it within 16 weeks – so it would be ready for wide distribution within 12 to 18 months. In the world of vaccines, that’s lightning fast.
Its first major test has come faster than anyone could have expected. Having emerged from a live animal market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, COVID-19 has rapidly turned into a global menace.
The Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity in Melbourne captured a sample of the virus from the first person in Australia diagnosed with the disease. They placed the virus inside a flask filled with monkey kidney cells, monitoring the flask via a video camera.
On the video below, you can’t see the virus – it’s too small. The cells sit quietly in a bath. Slowly at first but then more and more quickly, they start turning black, until the entire dish is filled with death.
How do vaccines work? Why do we need a new type?
All vaccines work by taking advantage of your immune system’s innate defences. A vaccine contains a part or all of a virus, treated in such a way that it won’t make you sick. Your immune system recognises the virus as a foreign invader and then makes different antibodies to destroy it.
Every virus has a different shape. To kill it, your body needs to produce antibodies that are exactly the right shape to stick to the virus. Imagine puzzle pieces slotting together – but when they connect, the virus dies.
The CEPI coalition has three vaccines for coronavirus in development around the world (with the hope that at least one works). Two of them, being developed by pharmaceutical companies working with CEPI, Inovio and Moderna, are of a type known as “DNA” vaccines. The other, being developed in Australia, is a “molecular clamp” vaccine. Other companies in China and Russia are independently working on their own vaccines outside of the coalition.
At the moment, there are three common types of vaccine
Sub-unit vaccines contain a single piece of a virus in a soup of chemicals that cause the body to generate antibodies. Examples: hepatitis B, shingles, HPV, some flu shots. Live-attenuated vaccines contain a live virus that has been subtly weakened so that it still infects cells but does not make people sick. This allows the body to generate antibodies. Examples: measles, mumps, rubella. Inactivated vaccines contain a virus that has been killed. Our immune system recognises the dead virus and produces antibodies. Examples: rabies, hepatitis A, some flu shots.
One key thing the CEPI coalition is doing differently is to not use the virus in making a vaccine. In a new outbreak, getting a live sample of a virus takes too long. Instead, they are using its genetic code, which can be obtained as soon as an outbreak starts.
Scientists analyse a virus’s genetic code and identify a section that contains the blueprint for a small part of the virus. If you inject that DNA into human cells, the human cells will read it and start printing off small parts of the virus. Your immune system spots these virus fragments and makes antibodies to kill them – giving you immunity.
“That is the simplest vaccine we can make, and we can make them very quickly. But they are often not terribly effective,” says Professor Eric Gowans, a DNA vaccine expert formerly based at the University of Adelaide.
The molecular clamp vaccine being developed for CEPI at the University of Queensland is entirely different.
What is a molecular clamp vaccine?
Molecular clamp technology was invented about seven years ago by three University of Queensland scientists: Dr Keith Chappell, Dr Daniel Watterson and Professor Paul Young.
Funded by CEPI, they had hoped to spend the next few years developing their innovation; instead, they have been thrust into the heart of the fight against COVID-19.
The virus’ genetic sequence was released by China on January 11. Within 24 hours, the team had picked the part of the virus they wanted to target and ordered the materials to get started.
“We did not need the virus itself. All we needed was the sequence,” says Professor Young.
Viruses have a single goal: to get inside a human cell, where they can reproduce. To do this, the coronavirus is covered in “spike” proteins, which are coiled up like tiny springs.
Spike proteins are designed to bind to a human cell and uncoil, blowing a hole in the cell wall that lets the virus in.
Our immune system works by recognising that protein and making antibodies to kill it. Specifically, you want your antibodies to recognise and kill the coiled shape of the spike proteins – killing the coronavirus before it gets a chance to penetrate your cells.
If you want to give someone immunity without infecting them, the obvious thing to do is cut off a spike protein and stick it in a vaccine.
But it’s not that simple.
Put a coiled spike protein – unconnected to the surface of the virus – in a vaccine and inject it, and the spike proteins will automatically uncoil inside the body.
Rather than making antibodies to fight the coiled protein on the surface of COVID-19, the body will make antibodies that match the shape of the uncoiled protein. If full coronavirus comes along, those antibodies won’t kill it.
The potential solution is molecular clamps.
These clamps are tiny pieces of protein that fix the spike protein in its coiled shape. “It locks the protein into the shape that’s seen on the virus,” says Professor Young.
Trapped in that shape, the protein is ripe for investigation by the immune system. This encourages the immune system to generate not one but many different antibodies to attack the virus, meaning your immunity is stronger, says molecular biologist Upulie Divisekera at the University of Auckland.
The coronavirus is also mutating, much as the flu mutates to escape our immune system. By generating a whole range of different antibodies, you should be able to get a broad immune response that can still handle a mutated coronavirus, Divisekera says.
You’ve got a potential vaccine. Then what?
On February 21 the team’s vaccine draft was sent to the CSIRO’s manufacturing facility in the Melbourne suburb of Clayton, and manufacturing of a pilot dose began.
The facility houses a 200-litre fermenting vat that will be filled with a “soup” of Chinese hamster ovary cells – the best cells for the task – in a nutritious goo.
The clamped protein DNA sequence from the University of Queensland lab has been fed into the fermenters. The cells will absorb the DNA and copy the instructions it contains, manufacturing litres and litres of the clamped protein. That will then be extracted, purified and placed in a vaccine.
“We hope… we can give the purified material within four weeks for toxicology studies,” said Professor George Lovrecz, research team leader at CSIRO’s manufacturing division.
“I believe they are very, very close to having the first vaccine candidate ready.”
How would the vaccine be tested?
Before you can hand the vaccine to humans, you need to test it’s safe and effective. At the CSIRO’s highly secure laboratory in Geelong, south-west of Melbourne, those tests are already being prepared.
Scientists at the lab have used the virus sample from the Doherty Institute to grow their own vats of coronavirus.
Using that sample, they have now been able to show that ferrets can also get infected with COVID-19. They are now studying the course of that infection – how the animal gets sick, which cells the virus targets, and how the immune system responds.
Knowing the course of the illness is important because it allows a proper comparison to be made. The sick ferrets can be compared to ferrets given a test vaccine to see if it is truly protective.
The results will be known quickly. If the ferrets stay healthy, human trials can begin. If they don’t, it is back to the drawing board.
Will it work?
The technology works – on paper. Scientists are very excited. Several told us the University of Queensland’s vaccine had at least a 50-50 chance of succeeding.
But the road to scientific discovery is paved with failure. Two-thirds of new drugs that work in animals simply don’t work in humans.
So the scientists at CEPI estimate they would need to test as many as 21 different vaccines to have a good chance of one working.
Here’s the thing, though: they only need to succeed once.