’s use of entities known as virus-like particles (VLPs) to create its vaccines.
Medicago is a worldwide leader in the development of VLP vaccines using a transient expression system, which produces recombinant vaccine antigens in plants. The accelerated production time frame gives the potential to vaccinate the general public before the first wave of a pandemic. Read more.
New Madrid Wake Up Call
Are you prepared for an earthquake? Tuesday evening, two shallow earthquakes, although small, were felt in Mt. Carmel, Ill. as well as five miles outside Edmond, Okla. Illinois had the largest at 3.6 magnitude, leaving Oklahoma with a smaller 2.9 magnitude quake as reported by the USGS.
The fact that both of these quakes were shallow and follow on the heels of Kentucky's 4.3 just 10 days ago makes the questions begin to fly. Is the New Madrid waking up? Is it gearing up for 'the big one'? When Ky. Experienced a 4.3 two weeks ago, it was felt across 10-12 states. Although it didn't knock runners off their feet, it did alarm many. Knoxville was among the cities that felt the quake. The shaking was not minor in many areas, and it scared people as walls shook and many began to pray. Read more.
Fracking Linked to Uptick in Earthquakes
Since 2003, there have been about 953 earthquakes in Northeastern BC. In 2008 alone there were 590. Honn Kao, Ph.D. Research Scientist, Seismology for the Pacific Geoscience Centre explains 2008 was tied to the investigation of fracking and seismic activity near Fort Nelson. From 2003 and the proceeding 17 years there were only about 185 events recorded by Natural Resource Canada (NRC).
Why the increase in earthquakes? Is it a natural occurrence? Could there be a link between an increased frequency of earthquakes and the new source for the natural gas extraction method of hydraulic fracturing aka fracking?
Fracking has been a method of extracting natural gas from the earth since 1958, however in the last five years, the method has taken an unconventional turn by trying to extract the gas from shale rock or sandstone. Hardy Friedrich, communications liaison for the Oil and Gas Commission of BC (OGC) says, “The source is unconventional, the shale and sandstone in the Montney Basin. In the Montney and Horn River basins, the gas is trapped in tight shale formations, not conventional reservoirs where there is kind of a pool of resources in the ground.” Read more.
Map Reading Tips
Orienting a map is a starting point to identify where I am, where I want to go and where I have been. I orient my topographic map (topo) before I leave the trail head and at regular intervals during a hike.
It is a process where I involve both map and compass. Of course, orienting a map can be done without a compass and done visually. I find using a compass takes just a tad more time and the more hands on time with the compass the better.
Correctly orienting my map allows me to get “dialed in” to my surroundings. It is a process where I align the map, compass and GPS to the terrain before me. Read More.
If you are left without power and knowing where you are and what’s around you is critical information. I’d like to take this one step further and say that everyone should play around with Google’s satellite maps and print out a few different views of the location they are most likely to hole up in should a disaster event occur.
I myself have a few printouts that show my entire town, as well as a few that show close up views of my immediate neighborhood. If you’re not already familiar with Google Earth you’ll be amazed to find an interactive tool with actual satellite photos down to amazing detail (zooming in on my house actually reveals my dog sleeping on the back lawn).
Simply put, this is similar to a military style high-tech reconnaissance product that is available to anyone with a computer and an internet connection. Read More.
Another Active Volcano for New Zealand
The volcano in the center of New Zealand's North Island is showing signs of a possible imminent eruption, vulcanologists in the country are warning.
The Institute of 