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Kronprinzessin Cecilie
History
German Empire
NameKronprinzessin Cecilie
NamesakeCrown Princess Cecilie
OwnerNorth German Lloyd
Port of registryBremen
RouteTransatlantic
BuilderAG Vulcan, Stettin, Germany
Launched1 December 1906
Maiden voyage6 August 1907
FateInterned, 1914; Seized by US, 1917
United States
NameMount Vernon
NamesakeMount Vernon
Acquired
by Navy: 3 February 1917
by Army: 17 October 1919
Commissioned28 July 1917
Decommissioned29 September 1919
FateReturned to Shipping Board by Army August 1920; scrapped 13 September 1940
General characteristics
Class & typeKaiser-class ocean liner
Tonnage
19,400 GRT
18,372 GRT[1]
Length
215.29 m (706 ft 4 in) LOA[2][3]
208.89 m (685 ft 4 in) LBP
Beam22.00 m (72 ft 2 in)
Draft31 ft 1 in (9.47 m)
PropulsionFour quadruple-expansion steam engines, two screw propellers
Speed23–24 knots (43–44 km/h; 26–28 mph)
Capacity1,741
Complement1,030 (as USS Mount Vernon)
Armament
4 × 5 in (130 mm) guns
2 × 1-pounder guns
2 × machine guns
Notesfour funnels, three masts
SS Kronprinzessin Cecilie was an ocean liner built in Stettin, Germany in 1906 for Hapag-Lloyd that had the largest steam reciprocating machinery ever fitted in a ship at the time of construction.[2][4] The last of four ships of the Kaiser class, she was also the last German ship to have been built with four funnels. She was engaged in transatlantic service between her home port of Bremen and New York until the outbreak of World War I.
On 4 August 1914, at sea after leaving New York, she turned around and put into Bar Harbor, Maine, where she later was interned by the neutral United States. After that country entered the war in April 1917, the ship was seized and turned over to the United States Navy, and renamed USS Mount Vernon (ID-4508). While serving as a troop transport, Mount Vernon was torpedoed in September 1918. Though damaged, she was able to make port for repairs and returned to service. In October 1919 Mount Vernon was turned over for operation by the Army Transport Service in its Pacific fleet based at Fort Mason in San Francisco. USAT Mount Vernon was sent to Vladivostok, Russia to transport elements of the Czechoslovak Legion to Trieste, Italy and German prisoners of war to Hamburg, Germany. On return from that voyage, lasting from March through July 1920, the ship was transferred to the United States Shipping Board and laid up at Solomons Island, Maryland until September 1940 when she was scrapped at Boston, Massachusetts.
History
Concept
Kronprinzessin Cecilie, built at Stettin, Germany, in 1906 by AG Vulcan Stettin, was the last of a set of four liners built for North German Lloyd, and the last German liner to carry four smokestacks. She was the product of ensuing competition between Germany and the United Kingdom for supremacy in the North Atlantic. Her older sister, Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse had been introduced in 1897 and was a great success.[5] Her popularity prompted North German Lloyd to build three more superliners, namely Kronprinz Wilhelm (1901), Kaiser Wilhelm II (1903) and, finally, Kronprinzessin Cecilie.[5]
As designed the ship had 287 first-class, 109 second-class cabins and 7 compartments for steerage passengers.[3] Passenger capacity was 775 first-class, 343 second-class and 770 steerage passengers for a total of 1,888 supported by a crew of 679 that included 229 stewards and stewardesses and 42 cooks, pantrymen, barbers, hairdressers and other passenger service people.[3][note 1] Two "Imperial suites" had a parlor, private dining room, bedroom and bath room with toilet while eight other suites had all but the dining room.[3] Twelve deluxe rooms had a large bedroom with bathroom and toilet.[3]
The liner was 19,400 GRT and was 215.29 metres (706 ft 4 in) length overall,[2][3] 208.89 metres (685 ft 4 in) length between perpendiculars, by 22.00 metres (72 ft 2 in) abeam. She had four reciprocating, quadruple-expansion steam engines, two per shaft. There were two screw propellers. Kronprinzessin Cecilie sailed at a comfortable 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph).
Eduard Scotland and Alfred Runge's design for the Bremen ship
In 1907 Wiegard trusted Eduard Scotland and Alfred Runge with the interior design of the ship. They designed luxury cabins where the beds would convert to sofas and the washstands would convert into tables. All of the metalwork was gilded; the surfaces were generally white while the wooden surfaces of violet amaranth were inlaid with agate, ivory and citron wood.[6]
First-Class passengers had access to a smoking room, music room, reading, library and writing room, bookshop, and two "Vienna Cafés" decorated in the Louis XVI style. One café was for smokers and the other ladies-only.[7] The smokers' café had an open-air section which could be enclosed in bad weather by bronze and glass doors. The ladies' café was modeled after the boudoir of Marie Antoinette at the Palace of Fontainebleau. The First-class smoking room was decorated in the "modern Roman style", according to The Marine Review, with painted scenes of Mecklenburg, the home of the ships' namesake Crown Princess Cecilie, decorating the walls. The dining saloon was illuminated from a skylight four decks above and its walls were upholstered in blue silk tapestry. The saloon's seating was innovative in that it dispensed with the long tables typical of other liners, instead featuring 76 round tables seating two, five or seven people. There was also a separate children's dining room aboard.[7]
German career
Named after Crown Princess Cecilie of Prussia, she was launched by her father in law Wilhelm II, German Emperor. In July 1907, the new Kronprinzessin Cecilie was planned to leave Bremerhaven on her maiden voyage. However, before the voyage could take place, the ship sank in Bremerhaven harbour. It was not until the next month on 6 August, had the ship been pumped out and repaired, before finally setting out.[5]
The so-called "Vienna Café" on Kronprinzessin Cecilie
In comparison with a $2,500 first-class-suite ticket, the immigrant could sail on Kronprinzessin Cecilie for a mere $25—one hundred times cheaper.[5]
The interiors of the "four flyers",[5] as they were called, were special. The entire ship was fitted with the best of craftsmanship Germany could offer; the salons were full of ornamented wood and gilded mirrors. While her sister, Kaiser Wilhelm II was thought by some to be too extravagant, Kronprinzessin Cecilie was a popular ship.[5] Some of her first-class suites were fitted with dining rooms so the passengers who booked the suite could dine in private if they did not wish to take their meals in the main restaurant. Also, a fish tank was placed in the kitchen, providing first-class passengers with the freshest of fish.[5] In what was a novelty at the time, first-class passengers in the dining saloon could choose à la carte dishes for no extra charge instead of being limited to a fixed menu.[7]
The liner operated on North German Lloyd's transatlantic route travelling from Bremen, with occasional calls at other ports, including Boston and New Orleans. The ship was steaming toward Germany from America with Captain Charles Polack,[8] who had succeeded Dietrich Hogemann in 1913,[9] when she received word of the outbreak of war. In addition to 1,216 passengers, including some British reservist, she was carrying US$10,679,000 in gold and US$3 million in silver.[10] The ship, bound for Bremen, was nearing Liverpool when directed to head back to the closest port in the neutral United States to avoid capture by the British Navy and French cruisers.[10][11] Captain Polack had her normally all-buff funnels painted with black tops so as to resemble the liner Olympic or another ship of the British White Star Line as a form of disguise.[4][12]
Due to the liner's dwindling fuel, Bar Harbor, Maine, though not a large port, was selected with the ship being brought on 4 August 1914 piloted by a local banker and yachtsman as none of the ship's officers were familiar with the port.[10] North German Lloyd representatives met in Washington with officials of the departments of State, Treasury, Commerce and the United States Revenue Cutter Service (USRCS) with the result USRC Androscoggin was ordered to Bar Harbor to prevent unauthorized departure of foreign vessels but primarily to protect the transfer of gold and silver, as well as all mail and passengers, from Kronprinzessin Cecilie to shore to be transported by train to New York.[10] Androscoggin, joined by the destroyer USS Warrington, arrived at Bar Harbor on 6 August with wild speculation in the press.[10] On 7 November the ship moved to Boston where she was to remain while civil suits against the ship were resolved in federal court.[13]
American career: Mount Vernon
Navy
Kronprinzessin Cecilie was commandeered by the United States on 3 February 1917 and transferred from the United States Shipping Board (USSB) to the U.S. Navy when America entered the war that April. She was commissioned 28 July 1917 and renamed USS Mount Vernon after George Washington's Virginia home. She was fitted out at Boston to carry troops and materiel to Europe.[2]
Mount Vernon left New York for Brest on 31 October 1917 for her first U.S. Navy crossing, and during the war made nine successful voyages carrying American troops to fight in Europe. However, early on the morning of 5 September 1918, as the transport steamed homeward in convoy some 200 nautical miles (370 km) from the French coast, her No. 1 gun crew spotted a periscope some 500 yards (460 m) off her starboard bow. Mount Vernon immediately fired one round at German U-boat U-82. The U‑boat simultaneously submerged, but managed to launch a torpedo at the transport. Mount Vernon's officer of the deck promptly ordered right full rudder, but the ship could not turn in time to avoid the missile, which struck her amidships, knocking out half of her boilers, flooding the midsection, and killing 36 sailors and injuring 13. Mount Vernon's guns kept firing ahead of the U‑boat's wake and her crew launched a pattern of depth charges. Damage-control teams worked to save the ship, and their efforts paid off when the transport was able to return to Brest under her own power. Repaired temporarily at Brest, she proceeded to Boston for complete repairs.[2]
Mount Vernon rejoined the Cruiser and Transport Service in February 1919 and sailed on Washington's Birthday for France to begin returning veterans to the United States. Mount Vernon pulled out of port on 3 March 1919 at 11 PM to return to the United States. Some of her notable passengers during her naval service were: Admiral William S. Benson, Chief of Naval Operations; General Tasker H. Bliss, Chief of Staff of the United States Army; Col. Edward M. House, Special Adviser to President Wilson; and Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War.[2]
Army
On 17 October 1919 Mount Vernon was transferred to the War Department for operation by the Army Transport Service where the ship was assigned to the Army's Pacific fleet based at Fort Mason in San Francisco.[14] USAT Mount Vernon made one trip between March and July 1920 to Vladivostok, Russia embarking elements of the Czechoslovak Legion to be disembarked at Trieste, Italy and 300 German prisoners of war for Hamburg, Germany.[14] On return the ship was turned over to the United States Shipping Board and laid up at Solomons Island, Maryland.[14]
Scrapping
At the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the Americans offered the former Kronprinzessin Cecilie to the British as a troop transport, who declined as they considered her too old.[5] The ship was scrapped in Boston, Massachusetts, the demolition began on 13 September 1940.[2][14]
Masks will remain a critical part of the fight against Covid-19, even after vaccinations are further along. This is what my wife and I use now -- a KN95 mask. We double mask with a surgical mask on top. Cloth masks alone are not as effective with the new variants of SARS-CoV-2 now circulating. My recommendation (I am a retired infectious diseases physician and epidemiologist and have been keeping up daily with the science) is use a KN95 or KF94 mask that is FDA approved. Double mask with a surgical mask or cloth mask atop that. Use all the other public health precautions (hand hygiene, physical distancing, avoid crowds, make sure indoor spaces are ventilated). And please, get vaccinated as soon as you can. We cal stop Covid-19 but it requires each of us doing her or his part. It is literally an all hands evolution.
Altadena, California
Seen at the Dock Memorial in Caledonia State Park, Pennsylvania.
www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateParks/FindAPark/CaledoniaStatePark/P...
(crack surface)
-----------------------------------
Obsidian is a glassy-textured, extrusive igneous rock. Obsidian is natural glass - it lacks crystals, and therefore lacks minerals. Obsidian is typically black in color, but most obsidians have a felsic to intermediate chemistry. Felsic igneous rocks are generally light-colored, so a felsic obsidian seems a paradox. Mafic obsidians are scarce, but they are also black and glassy. Mafic glass is usually called tachylite (if black) or sideromelane (if golden-brown).
Obsidian is an uncommon rock, but can be examined at several famous localities in America, such as Obsidian Cliff at the Yellowstone Hotspot (northwestern Wyoming, USA) and Big Obsidian Flow at the Newberry Volcano (central Oregon, USA).
Obsidian is moderately hard and has a conchoidal fracture (smooth and curved fracture surface), with sharp broken edges. Freshly-broken obsidian has the sharpest edges of any material known, natural or man-made (as seen under a scanning electron microscope).
Obsidian forms two ways: 1) very rapid cooling of lava, which prevents the formation of crystals; 2) cooling of high-viscosity lava, which prevents easy movement of atoms to form crystals. An example of obsidian (tachylite) that formed the first way is along the margins of basaltic lava flows at Kilaeua Volcano (Hawaii Hotspot, central Pacific Ocean). Most obsidian formed the second way.
Seen here is velvet rainbow obsidian, a rare variety. The rainbow effect is two-beam interference coloration (see: www.flickr.com/photos/jsjgeology/albums/72157672953170470/ ). Two-beam interference colors in Mexican rainbow obsidian occur due to the presence of flow-aligned microphenocryst rods in the glass (Ma et al., 2001). Microphenocrysts can be hedenbergite pyroxene (CaFeSi2O6) or plagioclase feldspar (NaAlSi3O8 to CaAl2Si2O8).
Locality: unrecorded / undisclosed site in Jalisco State, Mexico (but possibly from the La Revoltosa Mine at Mount San Andreas, east of the town of San Andrés, Magdalena Municipality, northwestern Jalisco State, western Mexico)
-------------------------------
Reference cited:
Ma et al. (2001) - Micro-analytical study of the optical properties of rainbow and sheen obsidians. The Canadian Mineralogist 39: 57-71.
preventing you from sharing your nightmare....
AIA
HALLOWEEN HAUNTS - 2025 October
www.flickr.com/groups/recreatingmasters/
nightcafe and gimp
A true "pandemic baby" she was born in 2020 right at the beginning of the mask mandate and start of the lockdown which prevented us from physically being with her for almost 9 mos.. It is so nice to be with family again!
In order to prevent larger animals from stepping on their nests, Killdeer preform a display in order to grab the threat's attention and force them in a different direction. This display is slightly different from the well know "broken wing" display . The display for unaware, non-predatory animals such as horses and cows consists of the bird fluffing up, raising and opening its tail, and then charging at the potential threat.
- Info from Cornell
The so-called "coppo"-tiled roof.
These tiles tend to slide down, mainly due to adverse weather conditions, thus leaving uncovered areas of the roof. To prevent this from occurring, it's customary to weigh down the tiles by placing heavy stones on them.
Pulteney Weir,
Bath,
Somerset.
A weir on the River Avon has appeared on maps of Bath, England, ever since 1603. Located just downriver from the Pulteney Bridge, the Pulteney Weir (or just “the Weir” for short) was built in the late Middle Ages to prevent the river from flooding the town of Bath.
The weir—a low barrier built across a river in order to control water level and regulate flow—was completely rebuilt in the early 1970s and given a more effective and now iconic V-shape design. A sluice and controlled flood gates were also added in the upgrade.
London Underground: the 1962 Stock Rail Adhesion Train (RAT) with cars numbers 1406-2406-9125-1681-1682-2682-9459-1407 passing Woodford towards Ruislip Depot.
These RAT trains are used during autumn to clear tracks of fallen leaves of trees, so detrimental to the adhesion of the trains. These trains applied on the rails a product known as "sandite", a mixture of sand, aluminium and a special adhesive, which prevents the viscous paste resulting from mixing of fallen leaves with moisture and rain.
Cross-dressing as a woman is for me a lonely experience. My circumstances prevent me from venturing out and socialising en femme. Instead the Internet is now the only place where my female alter-ego can exist in a sociable way. I have found though it is a place that does not always provide the support and comfort I have been seeking. I am sure I am not alone with this experience. Flickr provides me with an outlet but many who I had thought of as friends no longer communicate with me and my correspondence goes unanswered.
It was a harsh lesson to learn that my views and contact eventually became unwelcome so I resolve to try and stand on my own these days. There are some people that have maintained contact and encourage me and I am grateful for this but increasingly I feel I am an embarrassment to others who do not approve of my views I express in my narratives.
For many transvestites it is a lonely existence when it comes to our cross-dressing and I am fully aware I am by no means unique in experiencing this. There are those who do socialise and meet up but for the majority of us this is an unlikely scenario.
This is not meant to come across as a ‘woe is me’ narrative, I am trying to express the reality that I’ve encountered as I think others too have experienced it and I just wish to acknowledge it is all part of the reality of being a a transvestite. I’m not pointing fingers at anyone just outlining my own experiences.
I do get a lot of joy from cross-dressing but I am more aware it is always going to be a private and solitary experience but I am pleased I do get to engage in the activity. I am not able to dress just now and my usual coping technique is to look through my photo archives and I gain comfort from the memories as they are snapshots of pure joy. The inability to get a cross-dressing opportunity is what prompts my rambling stream of consciousness outpourings alongside my photos. It always feels good to just sit and type away and let it flow out.
I hope to record some very honest videos this year as Helene as I have reached the point in my life I have a strong need to speak openly about all that I feel regarding my transvestism. I will really enjoy the freedom of that self expression. I bottled it up for two long and I am guilty of over enthusing and driving people away. I cannot change what has happened and I do miss some people but like everything in life one has to move on, tomorrow is another day.
I am more aware of my situation than ever before. I am aware of my limitations and lack of abilities but I want the elation and fulfilment I get from cross-dressing despite my failings with my efforts and with how I communicate and alienate others. I am a flawed person but I know that and just have to accept that is how I am.
Transvestism is not well received by wider society and even amongst transvestites it can be uncomfortable, it’s a rewarding thing to be a transvestite yet not without it’s downsides. On the whole though I gain more from it than i find negative.
I am aware Helene’s future is always going to be a solitary one but at least I can be her now and again and these days I feel easier talking about it, albeit in these narratives or on camera in my videos. Becoming her on occasion is true reward and liberating and yes, quite exciting, adore cross-dressing.
I usually try to have something close in the background to prevent blackouts from the flash but in some instances I either can't help it or it works for the shot. Think it works here.
Still getting to grips with the MP-E 65mm as had little time using it due to weather mainly.
Steady hands, strong arms and lots of patience very much required!
Gear: Canon EOS 40D (F13, 1/250, ISO 100) + Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro Photo (@2x) + B+W 81A MRC Warming Filter + a diffused Canon MT-24EX (-2/3 FEC)
I am certainly VERY concerned for the ENTIRE Gulf Coast region for the severe threat the leaking oil well is posing. My prayer will be that the giant steel box lowered over the leak will work and that clean up efforts will prevent as many bird, fish and mammal lives from being lost as possible.
This Rookery is most certainly threatened---
Early hours of Christmas Eve the Inverness to Euston Highlander Sleeper failed at Preston, due to a problem with the new Mk5 carriages preventing the train to run above 3MPH.
After 2 attempts to depart the train was cancelled and I assume passengers transferred to a another London bound service
GBRf 92 020 passing Lower Heamies Farm not long after sun rise with 5M16 the empty sleeper stock move from Preston to Wembley.
Tymfi mountain, Epirus, Greece - August 2019.
Tymfi mountain is one of the most beautiful mountains I've ever been to. This was the second time I managed to visit these hiking trails. I was given the opportunity by winning a Canon competition and the prize was to participate in a workshop in Tymfi and its homonymous dragonlake. The main purpose of the workshop was night photography and astrophotography. After all, mountains are one of the best places for this kind of photography because of the little light pollution they have. The original plan was to shoot the moon rising above the dragon lake. But we calculated wrong the rise time so we had a dark sky with the galaxy looking crystal clear behind the dragonlake. So we managed to get some good astrophotographies. On the way back to the Astrakas refuge the moon had started to rise behind the highest Tymfi’s peak, Gamila. It slowly began to illuminate Astraka, the second highest peak, and the colt between Astraka and Lapatos where the refuge came into view. The shade of the Gamila and Ploskos peaks covered the Laka Tsoumani plateau where there were herds of semi-wild horses. The galaxy above Astraka had begun to disappear, and so it is equally noticeable in the photo. As the moonlight shone, along with the galaxy most of the stars began to disappear. However I was lucky enough to have a very clear and bright view, of Jupiter to the right of the galaxy and Saturn to his left. The sky was clear except for one cloud over the colt that filled the indifferent part of the sky with almost no star due to the light pollution from the small and large Papigo. Without a second thought I set up the tripod and fastened the wide-angle lens to the camera. I push up the iso and set the time to 20 seconds to prevent the movement of the stars. The result is what you see.
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My entry for SummerJoust 2023 "The Heroic Duel".
It's based on the Dutch Legend about Jan van Schaffelaar. (Mid 15th century). He was a mercenary who took a tower in Barneveld with his men. However, the enemies came, threatening to destroy the tower. The only way to prevent this was for Jan van Schaffelaar to jump down. Then his men would be allowed to go free.
The moment in my MOC is the moment of the duel in his head. Fight on, or jump down? Die with his men, or die for his men,
To jump or not to jump?
(For the connoisseurs of Dutch history: I briefly detached the tower from the church and the manner of destruction is also my own interpretation)
The snowblower storage checklist was finally completed this past weekend!
Ready to go when the going gets tough again later this year.
Duranta repens
A beautiful shrub in our garden visited by many insects.
We planted it not realising that it is a toxic plant. The berries can be taken by birds to the nearby National Park where it could become a problem. To prevent harm to anyone we removed the plant.
www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&am...
Photo: Jean
Li River near Xingping Village, Guilin Province
Cormorant fishing is a traditional fishing method in which fishermen use trained cormorants to fish in rivers. Historically, cormorant fishing has taken place in Japan and China since about 960 AD. This technique has also been used in other countries but is currently under threat in China.
To control the birds, the fishermen tie a snare near the base of the bird's throat. This prevents the birds from swallowing larger fish, which are held in their throat, but the birds can swallow smaller fish. When a cormorant has caught a fish in its throat, the fisherman brings the bird back to the boat and has the bird spit the fish up.
(from Wikipedia)
_1JF4202
Our Political Divide and Tribal Mentality Prevents us from solving the Climate Crisis.
planetearthneedsyou.blogspot.com/2024/10/our-political-di...
Operating as support for President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's visit to Berlin on 14 May 2023. A huge police cordon prevented closer public access. A third (unidentified) Super Puma was also present.
One of my favourite photos of Jason.
He was seven here. Taken by my grandma.
She and he and my youngest brother were
on a road trip to Springfield (Illinois)
with a stop at New Salem Historic Site.
(My family are Abraham Lincoln groupies.)
Today is the anniversary of my son’s death.
You are remembered and I love you to the
moon and back, Jason.
Thousands of coastal homes will be protected by a £7 million scheme, which will pump more sand onto Lincolnshire beaches.
Starting on Monday, May 13, the Environment Agency will replenish 400,000 cubic metres of sand.
It will prevent coastal flooding by taking the brunt of the waves away from the existing sea defences.
Over the next six weeks beaches at Trusthorpe, Mablethorpe, Ingoldmells, Trunch Lane, Wolla Bank, Chapel Six Marshes and Huttoft will be protected.
There are over 20,000 homes and businesses, as well as 24,500 static caravans and 35,000 hectares of land that are at risk of flooding.
The Bell P-39 Airacobra was a single-engined fighter produced by Bell Aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was one of the principal American fighters in service when the United States entered combat in December 1941.
It had an unusual layout compared to other fighters of the day, with the engine installed in the center of the fuselage, behind the pilot, and driving a tractor propeller in the nose with a long shaft. It was also the first fighter fitted with a tricycle undercarriage. Although its mid-engine placement was innovative, the design was handicapped by the absence of an efficient turbo-supercharger, thus preventing it from performing high-altitude work. For this reason, it was rejected by the RAF for use over Western Europe but adopted by the USSR, where most air combat took place at medium and lower altitudes. With the derivative P-63 Kingcobra, the P-39 was one of the most successful fixed-wing aircraft ever manufactured by Bell, with over 9,500 built.
The Airacobra saw combat worldwide, particularly in the Southwestern Pacific, Mediterranean, and Soviet theaters. Because its engine was equipped with only a single-stage, single-speed supercharger, the P-39s performed poorly above 17,000 feet (5,200 m). In both Western Europe and the Pacific, the Airacobra often found itself outclassed as an interceptor, and the type was gradually relegated to other duties. It was usually used at lower altitudes for such missions as ground target strafing.
After the war, a few late-production P-39Qs survived long enough in the USAAF inventory to be acquired by the United States Air Force upon its separation from the Army. These aircraft served in training and testing roles for approximately a year. In June of 1948, they were redesignated as ZF-39Qs ("ZF" stood for "Obsolete Fighter") as part of the new aircraft designation scheme throughout the USAF.
In 1945, Italy purchased the 46 surviving P-39s at 1% of their original cost, but in the summer of 1946, many accidents occurred, including fatal ones. By 1947, 4° Stormo was re-equipped with P-38s, with the P-39s being sent to training units until the type's retirement in 1951. Only a T9 cannon survives today at Italy's famous Vigna di Valle Museum.
Not much can be found about the service record and f this particular P-39, BuNo 42-8740. According to the museum, this aircraft was originally part of a British order for Airacobras and was delivered to the RAF, but it was found in New Guinea. As all the delivered P-39s that went to the RAF in Great Britain were later passed on to the USSR, 42-8740 was probably originally ordered by the British, then diverted to the USAAF after Pearl Harbor. It is unknown which units this aircraft served with in the Southwestern Pacific, but it was abandoned, along with several other Airacobras, at Tadji Airfield in New Guinea. The aircraft was recovered in 1991 by Yanks and restored to flying condition by 2002. Though it lacks any unit markings, 42-8740 is painted in standard USAAF camouflage and carries the 1942-era national insignia.
After a wet and windy start preventing any shots of the sunrise, the rain finally moved on allowing a couple of shots of Aira Force jetty.
This Blue Dasher was living up to his name sake, dashing about, until posing briefly in front of these contrasting colors at the Lotus Pond. Of course he kept his distance doing all he could to prevent me from getting a close up.
Seen at Dauset Trails.
Thankfully the wide tonal range of a 6x7 transparency provides sufficient detail in the dark winter shadows to prevent this 'wrong' side view looking too dark! Unfortunately a long shadow from another class 37 has put half the front of the Railfreight Hoover into the gloom - the disadvantage of shooting in the depths of winter alas.
replaced with same pic...just added the website on the bottom because people keep taking my photos. Anyone know how to prevent that?
It's always a joy to see Honeybees about. Their decline in numbers over the past decades it's obvious to those who look. I remember as a child the large numbers of Honeybees throughout the summer months & the care needed to prevent from getting stung. Nowadays... I'm happy to see more than one at a time.
Beginning of the war prevented restart of mass production of the Er-2 with M-40F diesel engines as it was planned in 1941. Rapid German advance to Moscow made it necessary to evacuate the experimental factory and the V.Ermolayev Design Bureau to Kazan, where it was impossible to resume works on improvements of the bomber. Having returned to Moscow in Summer 1942 the Bureau found itself without working accommodation, since all its working spaces had been given to the S.llyushin Design Bureau. It took another year to develop a new variant of the Er-2, this time with M-30B diesels.
At the beginning of 40-s 1250 H 1500 hp aircraft diesels were considered one of the main achievements of the Soviet engine industry. These economical engines, fueled by easily available tractor kerosene made possible combat range, tremendous for that time. For the Er-2 it was 5500 — 6000 km with 1000 kg of bombs to be dropped at the middle of the route. Moreover, aircraft with diesel engines definitely were not so flammable. But diesels had a weak side — big weight and insufficient reliability.
At the end of 1943 having passed state trials the Er-2 with M-30B diesel engines (soon the designation of the engine changed to ACh-30B, after its designer A.Charomsky) was put into production at an aircraft factory in Irkutsk, and at the Spring of 1944 began forming of units, equipped with the newest bomber. By mid-Summer of 1944 the Long Range Aviation (Soviet equivalent of Strategic Bomber Command) had seven regiments, flying on Er-2s. But these regiments were mostly on paper, since by the end of the year no more then forty planes had been produced and delivered to the operating units. The main reason for such a delay being exceptionally low reliability of the engine (its fuel system, for instance).
Only in April 1945 two regiments of the 18th Guards Division became operational and took part in fighting. At the closing stage of the war Er-2s bombed Konigsberg and Berlin suburbs. However, the diesel Er-2 saw limited combat — the general situation was so unfavorable for Germany that there were no need in mass night bombing raids against its rear targets.
During Summer of 1945 in the 18th Guards Division were held operational trials of the Er-2 with ACh-30B diesels, ended with negative results. After the war quality standards for military equipment became much higher, and many defects that were turned blind eye on before by military representatives and air crews were no more tolerated. The Design Bureau that after the death of V.Ermolayev was headed by a renowned designer RSukhoy was tasked with elimination of all defects, including power-plant problems, in extremely short period — till 1 January, 1946. Unfortunately, it was not done, moreover, new aircraft industry leaders had different views on diesel-powered planes. It was the start of the era of jet propulsion, and diesels that once looked so promising were loosing their appeal quickly.
In Spring of 1946 it was decided to withdraw the Er-2 from service with the Red Army Air Force units. Actually, its production had been terminated even earlier, in August, 1945. In all, 360 planes were produced.
Title:
Back door.
日本語のあらすじ等は下の方にあります😃
( 富士フィルム GFX50R shot )
新宿。東京都。日本。2025年12月29日 … 1 / 40
(今日の写真。それは未発表です。小説の内容とは無関係です。）
子供の関係で、新宿のホテルへ一泊してきました。最初の裏口と居酒屋の二枚を除いて、朝の６時から３０分以内ですべて撮影しました。
今回は、子供中心で一泊したので、朝食前にちょっとだけ撮りに出かけました。ホテルの朝食が美味しかったです。:)
Additional Notes
1Under artillery fire, with dust swirling in the air, three UAS-cell drones descend from the rooftop of “26 Federal Plaza”, which houses the FBI New York Field Office (New York Field Office).
2Headsets on: a prototype setup—Apple Vision Pro (third generation) and PlayStation controllers.
Operators: Veronica, Elliott, Sarah, Tyler.
Overall Chain of Command
•Alexander Harris (52): Special Agent in Charge, New York Field Office / Incident Commander (overall command)
•Veronica Reeves (41): Special Agent / Field Operations Coordinator (liaison between the ground team and the rooftop team)
•Elliott Chen (36): Technology Unit Chief / Tech Lead (commands the rooftop UAS cell)
Rooftop “UAS Cell”
1Elliott Chen (36)
◦Role: UAS-cell command / on-the-spot decisions / integrated dashboard (ground cameras, air traffic control, vehicle telemetry)
◦Assigned drone: Drone-1 (overwatch / primary tracking reference)
2Sarah Kim (28) (Junior #1)
◦Title: UAS Operator (licensed Remote Pilot)
◦Personality: Calm, quiet, procedure-driven (reliable under pressure)
◦Assigned: Drone-2 (close-in observation / route prediction)
3Tyler Brooks (26) (Junior #2)
◦Title: Robotics & Autonomous-Driving Analysis Specialist (technical specialist role)
◦Personality: Fast-talking, brilliant; talks even more when nervous (adds “heat” to dialogue)
◦Assigned: Drone-3 (perimeter sensors / monitoring communications and RF conditions)
B♭ (B Flat)
A Novel by Mitsushiro Nakagawa
“Synopsis”
A Palestinian group from Gaza hacks into North Korea’s cryptocurrency system, stealing hundreds of millions of dollars. Their true goal is not money—but to recreate the lost homeland of Gaza on American soil.
Amid the backdrop of hardline Republican immigration policies and a growing wave of xenophobia, a quiet plan begins to take shape: the gradual collapse of America from within.
During a speech at Madison Square Garden, Republican presidential candidate Justin Bradford is shot. Almost simultaneously in Los Angeles, former president Owen Reed is attacked at a rally for Democratic hopeful Ryan Bennett.
Two assassinations—mirroring one another—ignite a nation’s deepest divide. Yet, against all odds, Justin survives. His blood type is one in 2.5 million: the Bombay Blood Group.
The only person who can donate such blood is Anaya Patel, a community art facilitator working in Brooklyn. Her blood, stored in the Bellevue Hospital Blood Bank, is used for an emergency transfusion that saves the candidate’s life.
Jack Vance, an agent of the U.S. Secret Service, suspects a Gaza-based network behind the attacks. Together with Cameron Bartlett, the FBI Director of the Los Angeles Field Office, and Veronica Reeves, a senior investigator from New York, he begins to uncover a vast conspiracy.
Their investigation leads them to Rafi Gannam, a former architecture student at the Islamic University of Gaza, who has infiltrated redevelopment sites across Los Angeles and New York—embedding C4 explosives deep within beams and structural cores.
His targets: new residential districts where agents of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and ERO (Enforcement and Removal Operations) live—symbols of “the order America built.”
Veronica urges the President to pursue dialogue to prevent further destruction, but President Grant M. Ranford refuses to listen.
Meanwhile, the recovering Justin and his Democratic rival Ryan appear on national television, calling for unity beyond political divisions.
Their words of reason, however, are drowned out when Grant takes the stage in Iowa, defiantly declaring: “We will never bow to terror.”
Among the crowd, Rafi’s operatives have already taken their positions.
As chaos erupts and the stage collapses, Amir Nasser—once Rafi’s comrade, haunted by the memory of his sister’s death in Gaza—tries desperately to halt the chain of destruction.
But Rafi’s conviction remains unshaken.
Under the twilight beneath the Williamsburg Bridge, amid the city’s fading noise, the two men part ways.
It is the boundary between prayer and vengeance, between hope and nothingness.
“Characters”
Anaya Patel – 25, Community Art Facilitator
Arjun Singh – 26, Anaya’s boyfriend, Luminatech Innovations
Mika Sato – 25, Anaya’s friend, Community Art Facilitator
Justin Bradford – 27, Republican Presidential Candidate
Eleanor Blake – 26, Justin’s fiancée
President Grant M. Langford – 61, Incumbent Republican President
Vice President Charles “Chuck” Baines – 64, Incumbent Republican Vice President
Ryan Bennett – 30, Democratic Presidential Candidate
Sophia Bennett – 30, Ryan’s wife
Owen Reed – 65, Former Democratic President
Jack Vance – 45, Secret Service, Former FBI Los Angeles Field Office
Ben Holloway – 30, Jack’s colleague
Darryl Ross – 29, Jack’s colleague
Elijah Kane – 28, Jack’s colleague
Marcus Dane – 45, FBI Los Angeles Field Office
Cameron Bartlett – 55, FBI Los Angeles Field Office, Field Office Director
Tom Caldwell – 38, FBI Technical Unit, Marcus’s subordinate
Veronica Reeves – 41, FBI Special Agent
Alexander Harris – 52, FBI New York Field Office, Field Office Director
Elliot Chen – 36, Technology Unit Chief
Alicia Monroe – 58, FBI Director
Zakaria Haddad – 51, Gaza Strip, Palestine; Former Islamic University Engineering Professor, New York Team
Amir Nasser – 23, Gaza Strip, Palestine; Former Islamic University Electronics Engineering, New York Team
Rafi Gannam – 32, Gaza Strip, Palestine; Islamic University, Architecture, New York Team
Rohan Shah – 29, Gaza Strip, Palestine; Islamic University, Architecture, New York Team
Majid Hamza – 47, Gaza Strip, Palestine; University of Palestine, Information Technology, Los Angeles Team
Samira Hammad – 28, Gaza Strip, Palestine; University of Palestine, Engineering, Los Angeles Team
Saeed Kabari – 35, Gaza Strip, Palestine; University of Palestine, Business Administration, Los Angeles Team
Reem Nasser – 30, Gaza Strip, Palestine; University of Palestine, Media Studies, Los Angeles Team
Noah Levi – 55, Israel, residing in Tel Aviv, Jewish
B♭ will be released worldwide on February 29, 2026.
Recently, director Ridley Scott remarked that streaming films and series have become dull.
I agree.
If you have two hours to spare for such stories, I ask for only two minutes of your time.
Two minutes with my novel will outlast those two hours.
I am confident of that.
Stay tuned.
Mitsushiro
October 9th, 2025
P.S.
Micchan — the man who challenges Netflix. 😃
( Fujifilm GFX50R shot )
Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. December 29, 2025 … 1 / 40
(Today’s photos. Unpublished.This is unrelated to the novel.)
Because of my child, I stayed one night at a hotel in Shinjuku. Except for the first two shots—the back entrance and the izakaya—I took everything within 30 minutes, starting at 6:00 a.m.
This time the trip was all about my child, so I only slipped out briefly before breakfast to take a few photos. The hotel breakfast was delicious. :)
Images.
L'Arc-en-Ciel … CHASE (Eng. ver.)
youtu.be/ruqQJtq4Lgc?si=03sxDkNGqdZHbHqT
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
My new novel:
B♭ (B-flat)
There’s still more to come. 😃
(This is not the final draft.)
Set in New York City.
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:: Soundtrack ::
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack )
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack/pl.u-47...
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack . For Japanese)
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-for-jap...
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack . Sweet Summer rain ver.)
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-sweet-s...
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack . Hard days ver.)
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-hard-da...
::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Note: I gave a brief explanation of this novel in the following video:
youtu.be/3w65lqUF-YI?si=yG7qy6TPeCL9xRJV
My new novel:
B♭ (B-flat)
Notes
1. "Bombay Blood Type (hh type)"
•Characteristics: A rare blood type that lacks the usual ABO antigens — cannot be classified as A, B, or O.
•Discovery: First identified in 1952 in Mumbai, India (formerly Bombay).
•Prevalence: Roughly 1 in 10,000 people in India; globally, about 1 in 2.5 million.
•Transfusion Compatibility: Only compatible with blood from other Bombay type donors.
2. 2024 Harvard University Valedictorian Speech – The Power of Not Knowing
youtu.be/SOUH8iVqSOI?si=Ju-Y728irtcWR71K
3. Shots Fired at Trump Rally
youtu.be/1ejfAkzjEhk?si=ASqJwEmkY-2rW_hT
Mitsushiro Nakagawa belong to Lot No. 402 _.Copyright©︎2025 Lot No.402_ All rights reserved.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Title:
裏口。
追加メモ
１ 砲撃を受け、粉塵の舞うFBI New York Field Office（ニューヨーク支局）**が入っている「26フェデラル・プラザ」の屋上からUASセル（ドローン）３機降下
２ ヘッドセット装着 試作機 アップルヴィジョンプロ 第三世代 プレイステーションコントローラー ヴェロニカ、エリオット、サラ、タイラー
全体の指揮系統
•アレクサンダー・ハリス（52）：NY支局長／Incident Commander（総指揮）
•ヴェロニカ・リーヴス（41）：特別捜査官／現場オペレーション統括（地上班と屋上班をつなぐ）
•エリオット・チェン（36）：テクノロジー班主任／Tech Lead（屋上UASセル指揮）
屋上「UASセル」
0.エリオット・チェン（36）
•役割：UASセル指揮／現場判断／統合画面（地上カメラ・交通管制・車両テレメトリ）
•担当ドローン：Drone-1（俯瞰監視／追尾の基準機）
0.サラ・キム（28）（若手部下①）
•肩書：UASオペレーター（Remote Pilot資格持ち）
•性格：冷静・無口、手順を守るタイプ（緊迫シーンで頼れる）
•担当：Drone-2（接近観測／ルート先読み）
0.タイラー・ブルックス（26）（若手部下②）
•肩書：ロボティクス／自動運転解析担当（技術スペシャリスト枠）
•性格：早口・天才肌、焦ると余計に喋る（会話に“熱”が出る）
•担当：Drone-3（周辺センサー／通信・電波状況の監視）
僕の新しい小説
B♭ （ビーフラット） ……. Mitsushiro Nakagawa
“あらすじ”
北朝鮮の仮想通貨システムをハッキングし、数億ドルを奪取したガザ出身のパレスチナ人グループが、アメリカ合衆国へ密かに潜入する。
彼らの目的は、失われた祖国ガザを、アメリカの地に「復元」することだった。
共和党による強硬な移民政策と、国内にくすぶる排外感情を利用し、アメリカ社会を内側から崩壊させる計画が静かに進行していく。
共和党大統領候補ジャスティン・ブラッドフォードがマディソン・スクエア・ガーデンで演説中に狙撃され、ほぼ同時刻、ロサンゼルスでは前大統領オーウェン・リードもまた、民主党候補ライアン・ベネットの集会で撃たれる。
国家を二分する双方向の暗殺。だが、ジャスティンは奇跡的に生還する。
彼の血液型は、世界でわずか250万人に一人といわれる「ボンベイブラッド」。
その希少な血を提供できたのは、ブルックリンで活動するコミュニティアート・ファシリテーター、アナヤ・パテルだった。
彼女の血液はベルビュー病院の血液バンクに保存されており、緊急輸血によって、候補者の命はかろうじて繋がれた。
シークレットサービスのジャック・バンスは、テロの背後にガザ出身の組織が関与していることを察知し、FBIロサンゼルス支局長官キャメロン・バートレット、ニューヨーク支局の特別捜査官ヴェロニカ・リーブスと共に捜査を進める。
やがて彼らは、イスラム大学で建築学を学んだラフィ・ガンナムが、ロサンゼルスやニューヨークの再開発現場に潜入し、梁や構造体の中枢にC4爆薬を仕込んでいた事実に辿り着く。
標的は、ICE（移民・関税執行局）やERO（執行・送還作戦部門）の職員が暮らす新興住宅街——すなわち、「アメリカが築いた秩序」そのものだった。
ヴェロニカは、これ以上の破壊を防ぐため、大統領への対話を進言するが、現職のグラント・ランフォード大統領は耳を貸さない。
一方、命を取り留めたジャスティンと民主党候補ライアンは、テレビを通じて国民に訴えかけ、分断を乗り越えようとする。
だが、その理性の声を嘲笑うかのように、グラントはアイオワ州での演説を強行し、「テロには屈しない」と宣言する。
その会場には、すでにラフィの仲間が率いる工作チームが潜入していた。
崩壊する会場の惨状を前に、仲間の一人アミール・ナッセルは、かつてガザで妹を失った記憶に引き裂かれ、破壊の連鎖を止めようとする。
だが、ラフィの信念は揺るがない。
ウィリアムズバーグ橋の下、夕暮れの喧騒のなか、二人は決別する。
それは、祈りと報復、希望と虚無の境界線だった——。
“登場人物”
アナヤ・パテル ２５歳 コミュニティアート・ファシリテーター
アルジュン・シン ２６歳 アナヤの恋人・ルミナテック・イノベーションズ社
佐藤 ミカ ２５歳 アナの友人・コミュニティアート・ファシリテーター
ジャスティン・ブラッドフォード ２７歳 共和党大統領候補
エリノア・ブレイク ２６歳 ジャスティンの婚約者
グラント・M・ランフォード大統領 ６１歳 共和党大統領現職
チャールズ・ベインズ副大統領 ６４歳 共和党副大統領現職
ライアン・ベネット ３０歳 民主党大統領候補
ソフィア・ベネット ３０歳 ライアンの妻
オーウェン・リード ６５歳 民主党前大統領
ジャック・バンス ４５歳 シークレットサービス 元FBIロサンゼルス支局
ベン・ホロウェイ ３０歳 ジャックの同僚
ダリル・ロス ２９歳 ジャックの同僚
イライジャ・ケイン ２８歳 ジャックの同僚
マーカス・デイン ４５歳 FBI ロサンゼルス支局
キャメロン・バートレット ５５歳 FBI ロサンゼルス支局 支局長
トム・コールドウェル ３８歳 FBI技術班 マーカスの部下
ヴェロニカ・リーヴス ４１歳 FBI特別捜査官
アレクサンダー・ハリス ５２歳 FBI ニューヨーク支局 支局長
エリオット・チェン ３６歳 テクノロジー班主任
アリシア・モンロー ５８歳 FBI長官
ザカリア・ハッダード ５１歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 元イスラム大学 工学部教授 ニューヨークチーム
アミール・ナッセル ２３歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 元イスラム大学 電子工学部 ニューヨークチーム
ラフィ・ガンナム ３２歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 イスラム大学 建築学部 ニューヨークチーム
ロハン・シャー ２９歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 イスラム大学 建築学部 ニューヨークチーム
マジード・ハムザ ４７歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 パレスチナ大学 情報技術学部 ロサンゼルスチーム
サミラ・ハンマド ２８歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 パレスチナ大学 工学部 ロサンゼルスチーム
サイード・カバリ ３５歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 パレスチナ大学 経営学部 ロサンゼルスチーム
リーム・ナセル ３０歳 パレスチナ・ガザ地区 パレスチナ大学 メディア学部 ロサンゼルスチーム
ノア・レヴィ 55歳 イスラエル テルアビブ在住 ユダヤ人
僕のこの小説は、来年、２０２６年２月末日に公開します。
先日、リドリースコット監督がサブスクの映画やドラマ群がつまらないと話していたようだけど、同感です。
僕も非常に退屈です。
それらに2時間を要するなら、僕の小説を２分間だけ読んで欲しい。
その2分間は、２時間を越えるでしょう。
僕は自信があります。
ぜひ、期待してお待ちください。
Mitsushiro Nakagawa
09th. Oct . 2025.
追伸
ネトフリに挑戦する男、みっちゃん。😃
( 富士フィルム GFX50R shot )
新宿。東京都。日本。2025年12月29日 … 1 / 40
(今日の写真。それは未発表です。小説の内容とは無関係です。）
子供の関係で、新宿のホテルへ一泊してきました。最初の裏口と居酒屋の二枚を除いて、朝の６時から３０分以内ですべて撮影しました。
今回は、子供中心で一泊したので、朝食前にちょっとだけ撮りに出かけました。ホテルの朝食が美味しかったです。:)
Images.
L'Arc-en-Ciel … CHASE (Eng.ver.)
youtu.be/ruqQJtq4Lgc?si=03sxDkNGqdZHbHqT
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
僕の新しい小説。
B♭ （ビーフラット）
舞台はニューヨークです。
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:: Soundtrack ::
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack )
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack/pl.u-47...
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack . For Japanese)
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-for-jap...
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack . Sweet Summer rain ver.)
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-sweet-s...
B♭ ( My Novel . Soundtrack . Hard days ver.)
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-hard-da...
::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Note: I gave a brief explanation of this novel in the following video:
youtu.be/3w65lqUF-YI?si=yG7qy6TPeCL9xRJV
追記 この小説を多少説明しました。
youtu.be/3w65lqUF-YI?si=yG7qy6TPeCL9xRJV
メモ
1
「Bombay型（ボンベイ型、hh型）」
•特徴：通常のABO血液型を持たない（A、B、Oに分類されない）特殊な型。
•発見地：1952年、インド・ムンバイ（旧ボンベイ）で初めて確認。
•発生頻度：インドでは1万人に1人程度だが、世界的には約250万人に1人とも。
•輸血制限：同じBombay型しか輸血できない。
2
2024年ハーバード大学首席の卒業式スピーチ『知らないことの力』
youtu.be/SOUH8iVqSOI?si=Ju-Y728irtcWR71K
3
Shots fired at Trump rally
youtu.be/1ejfAkzjEhk?si=ASqJwEmkY-2rW_hT
Mitsushiro Nakagawa belong to Lot No. 402 _.Copyright©︎2025 Lot No.402_ All rights reserved.
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Penola.
Penola is centrally situated - being roughly 50km from Mt Gambier, Naracoorte, Millicent and Casterton and it is a district of pastoralists and swamps. The great pastoralists of the district prevented the growth of small-scale agriculture in the 19th century and the town population grew very slowly. The district known as Penola was first squatted on before 1840 by Solomon, Josiah and Thomas Austin at Yallum Park. The site was probably selected by their agent John Bowden. The first settlers, as opposed to squatters, were Scottish born Alexander Cameron and his wife Margaret, nee MacKillop, who in 1845 obtained an occupation licence to lease the land. The pastoralists had licenses and from 1851 formal leaseholds of the lands. At that time the proforma lease documents noted the natives had prerogatives to “full and free ingress to the springs and surface water thereon…and they may….use, occupy, dwell on and obtain food and water thereon….” These rights however were extinguished in the 1860s when land was surveyed and sold with freehold title. (Penola and Coonawarra from Foundation to Federation by Peter Rymill 2017, page 65/66.) But as a pioneer with a land license Alexander Cameron built the first house in Penola - Cameron Cottage in 1845 which is now behind the Catholic Church. Margaret’s niece Mary MacKillop lived with them in the cottage for some time as a governess to their children from 1860 to 1862. By the 1860s Cameron had an estate of around 50,000 freehold acres. Other settlers like the Gladstone’s and Duncan Cameron lived in the district in the 1840s also.
In April 1850 Alexander Cameron obtained eighty acres of freehold land and established the private town of Panoola, later known as Penola. He set aside several blocks for the use of the community, including a market square and blocks for churches to be built on at a later stage. The plan for the town was drawn in 1858. Alexander Cameron was born in 1810 in Scotland and overlanded his first sheep to South Australia from NSW. In 1848 Duncan Cameron (no relation to Alexander Cameron) became the original licensee of the Royal Oak Hotel. He did a roaring trade during the early 1850s when thousands of men from Adelaide travelled to the Victorian goldfields via Penola. Adam Lindsay Gordon the writer became the police trooper in Penola from 1854-56. The Royal oak Hotel was rebuilt in 1872. Apart from the two Cameron men the first residents were Christopher Sharam, a boot maker and his wife Ellen who had fifteen children. A post office was constructed in 1857 and in the early days religious services were held in the local courtroom with the Presbyterians being the first to make use of this facility. The Reverend Mark Dixon was the first Presbyterian clergyman from 1856 until 1864. The Catholics started with a wooden church in 1858. Their first resident priest was Father Powell who also had established a school in 1855 in Penola. Michael O'Grady had charge of 40 students in his private school. The best-known school was opened in 1866 by the red haired Gaelic speaking Mary MacKillop, the co-founder of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. Scottish born Mary lived 1842-1909. She was greatly assisted by Father Tenison Woods of Mt Gambier who encouraged her and had her take her vows to be a nun in 1867. Mary established her second school in Adelaide before setting up the order around Australia. By the time of her death in 1909 in Sydney she presided over 223 school and charitable institutions. She became the first Australian to be made a Catholic Saint in 2010. A new stone school room and residence was built in Penola in 1867 for Mary Mackillop and it which still stands. Saint Mary MacKillop started teaching in this school room. A new stone Catholic Church, called St Joseph’s was completed in 1865 at a cost of £1,000. Most of this money had come from the wealthy Catholic Highland Scots of the district. The other buildings on this site include the later Catholic Church built in 1924 with its modern curved glass shrine to Saint Mary MacKillop. Behind the church is the old Convent built in 1872. Next to the old buildings is the modern 1998 Mary MacKillop Interpretive Centre with the lake in front of it. It includes considerable information on Father Tension Woods too. The site also includes a replica of Alexander Cameron’s first wooden cottage.
The Church of England's Saint Mary's church was completed in 1873 and consecrated in 1887. George Dickson the son of the pioneer of Maaoupe station commission the stained glass window above the altar in memory of his parents after their deaths in the 1880s. Across the road from the Church is the Anglican Parish hall was built in simple Gothic style in 1899. Near the little park which was part of Alexander Cameron’s original town plan is the old Mechanics Institute building which is now the Information Centre. It was built in 1869 with classical Greek architectural features. Opposite it is the former Foresters Hall built in 1873. It is a small building with two rounded windows and a small pediment a cross the roof line. Next to the Riddoch Centre is the grand Presbyterian Church built in 1870. It has Gothic arches, buttresses and a fine bell tower which was added in 1906. The first government school was completed in 1879 but located a fair distance from the Main Street. Petticoat Lane, the oldest street of Penola, retains much historical charm. Red gum kerbing as well as rose and lavender plantings enhance the lane’s character. It is a State Heritage Area. Back in the Main Street at an historic crossroad is the original Georgian style Post Office built in 1876 and across the road from it is the former single storey Italianate style Bank of South Australia constructed in 1884. On the other corner is the rebuilt Royal oak Hotel of 1873 and on the last corner is the gracious two storey former National Australian bank built in a Georgian style in 1868. Behind the Post Office towards the Catholic Church is the first telegraph station, a single storey structure erected in 1859. Further along this street is the former Methodist church erected in 1908 and it is now Piper’s Restaurant and next to it is the former offices of Cobb and Co coaches. This ticket booking office was built in 1857. Much later of course the railway replaced the need for the coaches. The railway line from Mt Gambier to Naracoorte and Bordertown was started in 1885 with John Riddoch turning the first sod of soil and it was completed in 1887 giving Penola a comfortable railway link to Adelaide. In the 1870s John Riddoch tried to convince parliament to build a railway from Beachport to Penola but that never occurred. The old railway station in the western side of town was built in 1887. This was probably a weatherboard station which was replaced with an Art Deco style railway station in 1909 with large arched windows. This SA Railways design was copied in Wallaroo, Moonta, Bordertown, Tailem Bend etc. At the northern exit of the town is the historic Bushman’s’ Inn. This fine two storey hotel was built in 1870 as a single storey hotel with the upper floor added later in the 1870s or 1880s. Mrs. Spillett opened it as excellent accommodation for travelers with good stables and plenty of chaff. Just north of the town is the Katnook Winery. The buildings there include the old shearing shed of John Riddoch’s which was built in 1867. The population of Penola in the 1891 census was 1,200 people. Today it has risen slightly to 1,600.
the bluest skies one can see--and a broken fragment of a house....now nature can seep in ....our boundaries can no longer prevent nature from coming to us...
DESCRIPTION
The main role of the Starwolf Tactical Fighter is 'First Attack Wave Suppression (FAWS)'. An attacking force will typically launch multiple fighters to engage the capital ships offensive and defensive weapon systems. Starwolves are launched to prevent this 'first wave' of attacking fighters to reach the capital ships by greatly reducing their numbers before coming into in range. The remaining enemy fighters are more easily handled by the capital ships defense network.
As a secondary, attack role, the Starwolf can use it's Hedgehog system to overwhelm the shields of enemy capital class ships with a single burst of 16 missiles with a synchronized impact on a specific point. Only when friendly capital ships have trouble engaging enemy capital ships will Starwolves be deployed for this role. The problem with this tactic is that Starwolves will need to be heavily supported by fighters when attacking enemy ships head on.
Starwolves have atmospheric flight capabilities, however this uses considerably more fuel than spaceflight. A Starwolf is incapable of landing on a planet surface.
STANDARD OFFENSIVE WEAPON SYSTEMS LOADOUT
Two 'Muger MK7' 20 mm caliber chain guns
The guns fire a mix of armor piercing incendiary tracers and high explosive rounds at a rate of 2400 rounds per minute with a spool-up time of 0.5 seconds.
Two 'Kurstroski-S30' 30 mm caliber cannons
The cannons fire High Explosive Dual Purpose rounds at a rate of 350 rounds per minute.
Four 'Spagin HE5' High Explosive Missiles
Standard multi purpose fire-and-forget missiles with proximity detection systems.
HAAM16 'Hedgehog' Multimissile System
Multiple 'SPIKE' missiles fired simultaneously at up to 16 targets. The missiles are guided by the Hedgehog radar system. The high maneuverability of the missiles makes them capable of evading most countermeasures while guided by the Hedgehog. The system can also be used to overwhelm the shields of capital-class vessels.
DEFENSIVE SYSTEMS
Electronic warfare pod
The pod integrated in the lower wing is outfitted with many types of electronic warfare capabilities that include field jamming (producing a stealth bubble around the ship), ghosting (projecting false data) and tactical hacking (taking control of enemy ship systems, as well as some reconnaissance abilities.
Starburst
The starburst system ejects multiple decoys in different directions to confuse enemy guided weapon systems.
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NOTES
This was originally planned as a more standard shaped fighter. But once I started work on the engines the ship grew more in width than it did in length. Also, the placeholder dual wings looked kind of cool, so I build on that. The problem was getting it to be stable enough to be handled, and sturdy enough to hold up the cockpit section. I had a blast building it because it turned out so different than I had initially planned. Please check out the other views in the Starwolf set as they explain more than I can tell you (especially the front view).
Construction began on the Babcock Building at the South Carolina Lunatic Asylum in 1857 and continued for seven years.
In many of the wards, roll down fire doors were installed, after the building's original construction, to help prevent flames from spreading into other wards if a fire broke out.
According to Proclus’ summary the “Aithiopis”, the lost epic attributed to the poet Arctinus of Miletus (around 8th century BC), featured important events in the last year of the war. The poem picks up the story again where the Iliad leaves off, describing how the Amazon Penthesileia and the Ethiopian prince Memnon arrived to fight as allies of the Trojans. It also described the death of Achilles and the quarrel between Odysseus and Ajax over his armor.
The hydria body is decorated with images showing the strife of Ajax and Odysseus over the arms of Achilles. Between the combatants is Agamemnon to right looking to left, bearded, with a chlamys over his arms, interposing to separate them. On the left is Ajax to right, nude, bearded, with drawn sword in right hand, sheath in left, confronting Odysseus, who is nude and beardless, and holds sword in left hand, sheath in right. Each of them is seized round the waist by a nude male figure, who prevents them from attacking one another. On the right is a bearded male figure to left with drapery round his loins, who has seized Odysseus by the left arm to prevent his using his sword; on the left, behind Ajax, is a beardless male figure wearing a fillet and chlamys, who has seized his right wrist for the same purpose.
CARC / CAVI @ www.beazley.ox.ac.uk
Source: Museum WEB Notice # 1843,1103.2
Black-figured hydria
Height 50,8 cm
Attributed to The Leagros Group
Ca. 580 BC
From Vulci, Viterbo
London, The British Museum, Vase B327
Social distancing, or physical distancing, is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures taken to prevent the spread of a contagious disease by maintaining a physical distance between people and reducing the number of times people come into close contact with each other. It involves keeping a distance of six feet or two meters from others and avoiding gathering together in large groups. By reducing the probability that a given uninfected person will come into physical contact with an infected person, the disease transmission can be suppressed, resulting in fewer deaths. The measures are combined with good respiratory hygiene and hand washing. During the 2019–2020 coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) suggested the reference to "physical" as an alternative to "social", in keeping with the notion that it is a physical distance which prevents transmission; people can remain socially connected via technology. To slow down the spread of infectious diseases and avoid overburdening healthcare systems, particularly during a pandemic, several social distancing measures are used, including the closing of schools and workplaces, isolation, quarantine, restricting movement of people and the cancellation of mass gatherings. Social distancing measures date back to at least the fifth century BCE. The biblical book of Leviticus contains one of the earliest known references to the practice, likely as response to leprosy. During the Plague of Justinian, emperor Justinian enforced an ineffective quarantine on the Byzantine Empire, including dumping bodies into the sea, blaming the widespread outbreak predominately on "Jews, Samaritans, pagans, heretics, Arians, Montanists, and homosexuals".[11] In modern times, social distancing measures have been successfully implemented in several previous epidemics. In St. Louis, shortly after the first cases of influenza were detected in the city during the 1918 flu pandemic, authorities implemented school closures, bans on public gatherings and other social distancing interventions. The case fatality rates in St. Louis were much less than in Philadelphia, which despite having cases of influenza, allowed a mass parade to continue and did not introduce social distancing until more than two weeks after its first cases. Social distancing has also been used during the 2019-20 coronavirus epidemic. Social distancing measures are more effective when the infectious disease spreads via droplet contact (coughing or sneezing); direct physical contact, including sexual contact; indirect physical contact (e.g., by touching a contaminated surface); or airborne transmission (if the microorganism can survive in the air for long periods). The measures are less effective when an infection is transmitted primarily via contaminated water or food or by vectors such as mosquitoes or other insects.Drawbacks of social distancing can include loneliness, reduced productivity and the loss of other benefits associated with human interaction. Since January, Taiwan, India and Thailand, all of which also make face masks, have banned their export, although, to help China, India later temporarily revoked its restriction. South Korea also banned the export of masks, as will Indonesia soon. Outside Asia, Russia, Germany and the Czech Republic also stopped exports in early March. So did Kenya, where the first case of coronavirus was confirmed on March 13.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released straightforward guidance in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic: Everyone in the US should wear a cloth mask or face covering while in certain public settings. The recommendation marks a shift from the federal government. Less than six weeks ago, Surgeon General Jerome Adams tweeted that members of the general public should “STOP BUYING MASKS!” He added that masks “are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus, but if healthcare providers can’t get them to care for sick patients, it puts them and our communities at risk!” The CDC is still advising against the general public wearing traditional medical masks, such as surgical variants and N95 respirators, to preserve them for health care workers. The shift in messaging on cloth masks, the agency said, came in light of evidence that people with few or no symptoms of Covid-19 can still transmit the virus. The CDC now recommends everyone use cloth masks in public. The upshot: Masks can help stop the spread of coronavirus not just by protecting the wearer, but by preventing the wearer — who could be an asymptomatic spreader — from breathing and spitting their germs everywhere. Some studies in households and colleges “show a benefit of masks,” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have described social distancing as a set of "methods for reducing frequency and closeness of contact between people in order to decrease the risk of transmission of disease".[10] During the 2019–2020 coronavirus pandemic, the CDC revised the definition of social distancing as "remaining out of congregrate settings, avoiding mass gatherings, and maintaining distance (approximately six feet or two meters) from others when possible". Previously, in 2009, the WHO described social distancing as "keeping at least an arm's length distance from others, [and] minimizing gatherings".[7] It is combined with good respiratory hygiene and hand washing, and is considered the most feasible way to reduce or delay a pandemic.Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Research Program at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, told me, “so it would be plausible that they would also protect in lower-intensity transmission settings such as in the general community.” But masks do not make you invincible. They can’t replace good hygiene — Wash your hands! Don’t touch your face! — and social distancing, both of which have been key to stemming the coronavirus even in Asian countries where widespread mask use was already common. Epidemiological models also suggest coronavirus cases will rise if social distancing measures are relaxed, potentially causing hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of deaths in the US alone. That’s true whether people are gathering wearing masks or not. People wear masks in midtown New York City on April 6. Kena Betancur/Getty Images. Still, the CDC’s about-face has left many people with plenty of questions: What does it mean to use a mask correctly? When should they be used and washed? Do you need them for all public situations? Can they really keep you safe? If you can’t find a mask, how can you make one? Knowing that a disease is circulating may trigger a change in behaviour by people choosing to stay away from public places and other people. When implemented to control epidemics, such social distancing can result in benefits but with an economic cost. Research indicates that measures must be applied rigorously and immediately in order to be effective. Several social distancing measures are used to control the spread of contagious illnesses. And why aren’t there more medical masks to begin with? Here’s a guide to some of the most common questions. Avoiding physical contact: Social distancing includes eliminating the physical contact that occurs with the typical handshake, hug, or hongi; this illustration offers eight alternatives. Keeping at least two-metre (six-foot) distance from each other and avoiding hugs and gestures that involve direct physical contact, reduce the risk of becoming infected during flu pandemics and the coronavirus pandemic of 2020. These distances of separation, in addition to personal hygiene measures, are also recommended at places of work.Where possible it may be recommended to work from home. Various alternatives have been proposed for the tradition of handshaking. The gesture of namaste, placing one's palms together, fingers pointing upwards, drawing the hands to the heart, is one non-touch alternative. During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic in the United Kingdom, this gesture was used by Prince Charles upon greeting reception guests, and has been recommended by the Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Other alternatives include the wave, the shaka (or "hang loose") sign, and placing a palm on your heart, as practiced in parts of Iran.
1) When should I wear a mask?
According to the CDC, you should wear a mask in public, particularly while in “settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (e.g., grocery stores and pharmacies)” and “especially in areas of significant community-based transmission.” Think of circumstances where it’s going to be harder to keep at least 6 feet away from other people, especially in closed, poorly ventilated places. It’s in those kinds of situations that coronavirus-containing droplets are more likely to spread by air or surfaces. There are some exceptions to the mask guidance, the CDC stated: “Cloth face coverings should not be placed on young children under age 2, anyone who has trouble breathing, or is unconscious, incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance.” The evidence for everyone wearing masks, explained. And be warned: If you use a mask incorrectly, or start acting recklessly because you’re wearing a mask, it could actually hurt you more than it helps.
If you fidget with your mask, and especially if you touch your face in the process, you can infect yourself with virus-containing droplets your mask caught. If you reuse a mask without cleaning it, you can breathe in or otherwise expose yourself to droplets the mask captured last time. If you generally ease up on good hygiene or social distancing because you’re wearing a mask, you’re putting yourself — and your community — at greater risk.
The CDC offers some tips for how to properly use a mask. Above all, don’t touch the mask and then touch other parts of your face, especially your eyes, mouth, and nose. The entire point of this fabric is to shield you from outside germs. So you don’t want to touch the part of the mask doing the shielding and then the parts of your face that are vulnerable to infection. You should also wash your hands before and after taking off a mask — before to avoid getting anything on your face and mask, and after to get rid of anything that was on your mask. Remove the mask with the loops, not by touching the front. If possible, throw away disposable masks after using them. And if you can’t throw a mask away, make sure to thoroughly disinfect it with ultraviolet light sterilizers — not something most people have around — or, if using a cloth product, throw it in the wash or clean it with soap and water. For some people, it might make sense to have multiple masks around if you have to go out multiple times on a particular day. The important thing, though, is to throw a recently used mask in the laundry or in the wash as soon as possible and avoid touching it at all until it’s clean. Do not keep dirty masks around your house, where people can easily touch them and potentially infect themselves.
2) What kind of mask should I use? The CDC recommends a cloth mask or face covering, whether a professionally made mask or a homemade variant. The CDC explicitly advises against the general public using a surgical mask, which is the standard mask you’ve probably seen doctors and nurses wear. It also advises against the public using N95 respirators, which are more complex, expensive masks meant to fit more tightly on the face.
Surgical masks and N95 respirators, the agency noted, “are critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for healthcare workers and other medical first responders, as recommended by current CDC guidance.” New York City nurses and health workers gather to demand safer working conditions, more personal protective equipment (PPE), and free virus testing during the Covid-19 outbreak on April 6. Giles Clarke/Getty Images As it stands, there is a serious shortage of PPE, including masks, for health care workers. There are reports of doctors, nurses, and other health care workers using bandanas and scarves for masks and trash bags for gowns. Hospitals are considering do-not-resuscitate orders for dying Covid-19 patients out of fear that such intensive, close-up procedures could get doctors and nurses without PPE infected with the virus. The CDC, acknowledging the shortage, previously recommended homemade masks for health care workers when no other options are available. “I am worried that telling people to wear masks will strain already weak supplies that are needed by doctors and nurses,” Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University, told me. “If we are able to fix that supply chain, I’d feel less worried about this. But some of the shortages initially were due to members of public and medical staff raiding medical offices’ and hospitals’ supplies for home use.” Private companies and public officials are racing to fix the PPE shortage. But until it’s fixed, it’s critical that the existing supplies of surgical masks and N95 respirators are left for health care workers who are literally saving people from this pandemic.
3) Will a mask protect me from getting Covid-19? The CDC’s guidance — and the best argument for wearing a mask, according to the experts I spoke with — is primarily to stop the wearer from infecting other people. That’s especially important for Covid-19, since at least some spread happens when people are asymptomatic, when they have few symptoms, or before they develop symptoms. Universal mask use could stop these asymptomatic carriers, many of whom might not even know they’re sick, from inadvertently infecting other people. Masks also can offer some protection from others by putting a physical barrier between them and your mouth and nose. But we don’t know how much, because it’s unclear how much the virus spreads through airborne droplets or aerosols. Masks can’t replace all the other approaches needed to fight the coronavirus, like washing your hands, not touching your face, and social distancing. Still, when paired with all these other tactics — and when used correctly — masks offer an extra layer of protection.
The quality of the research on this topic is weak, with a lot of small, underpowered studies. But the studies that do exist generally favor more people wearing masks. A 2008 systematic review, published in BMJ, found medical masks halted the spread of respiratory viruses from likely infected patients. In particular, studies on the 2003 outbreak of SARS — a cousin to the coronavirus that causes Covid-19 — found that masks alone were 68 percent effective at preventing the virus. By comparison, washing hands more than 10 times a day was 55 percent effective. A combination of measures such as hand-washing, masks, gloves, and gowns was 91 percent effective.
A 2015 review, also published in BMJ, looked at mask use among people in community settings, specifically households and colleges. Some studies produced unclear results, but the findings overall indicated that wearing a mask protected people from infections compared to not wearing a mask, especially when paired with hand-washing. A big issue was adherence; people were often bad at actually wearing masks, which, unsurprisingly, diminished their effectiveness. But if masks were used early and consistently, the authors concluded, they seemed to work. MASKS CAN’T REPLACE ALL THE OTHER APPROACHES NEEDED TO FIGHT THE CORONAVIRUS, LIKE WASHING YOUR HANDS, NOT TOUCHING YOUR FACE, AND SOCIAL DISTANCING A more recent study published in Nature Medicine found that surgical masks appear to block droplets and aerosols containing some viruses, including the flu and coronavirus. Other studies have produced similar results, typically finding at least some protective value from masks as long as they’re used consistently and properly. The results vary depending on the mask. N95 respirators are, in theory, the best possible masks. But they require a bit of skill and fitting to use — to the point that a 2016 review in CMAJ couldn’t find a difference among health care workers using N95 respirators versus surgical masks for respiratory infection, likely due to poor fitting. That’s another reason these masks should be reserved for the professionals. Cloth masks, meanwhile, are much less effective than surgical masks or N95 respirators, as a 2015 study in BMJ found. And they can be extra risky, since they can trap and hold virus-containing droplets that wearers can then breathe in. But they still, in general, offer more protection than no mask at all, several studies concluded. There’s no good research on how wearing a mask could affect people’s behaviors, but the experience of some Asian countries suggests it’s possible to adopt social distancing, good hygiene, and masks in the midst of an outbreak. Taiwan and South Korea, for example, have done a better job containing Covid-19 than the US while embracing masks and all the other evidence-based measures. To emphasize: Yes, masks can help. But they’re not an excuse to ease up on social distancing, good hygiene, and all the other things public health officials are recommending right now. Do all of those things too.
4) Do I need a mask if I’m walking or running in the open air?
Probably not — but if used properly, wearing a mask probably can’t hurt, and might help encourage others to wear one too.
The CDC specifies that it’s recommending cloth face coverings where social distancing isn’t possible. A solitary walk or run outside is typically not going to fall into one of those categories.
In general, masks become more helpful as the risk of infection increases. If you’re having closer, more prolonged contact with potentially sick people, using a mask is more likely to protect you. And if you’re potentially sick and having closer, more prolonged contact with others, a mask is more likely to protect them from your germs as well. “Are people having those prolonged, close-contact interactions with people?” Saskia Popescu, an epidemiologist focused on hospital preparedness, told me. “Because that’s what’s more considered high-risk. … It’s that face-to-face for a significant chunk of time.” That’s why the CDC had already recommended masks for people who know they’re sick or interacting with someone who’s sick. People who frequently interact with others as part of their jobs, like a first responder or a grocery store clerk, are more likely to get good use out of masks too. That especially includes health care workers, who spend more time with sick people than anyone else — which is why they need masks and other PPE more.
Certain populations also may want to especially consider masks in less risky environments, such as people who are older or have underlying health issues, like a compromised immune system, that put them at greater risk if they’re infected. Besides the health benefits, there’s also a potential social value to wearing a mask everywhere: It could push more people to do so as well. If more people are out in public wearing face coverings, that could help remove the stigma that only sick people wear masks. So if you go out with a mask in more situations, it could not only help you and those around you, but it might help instill a healthier norm for the rest of society too.
5) How do I make a mask? There are a lot of options! But keep in mind guidance, from the CDC, about a proper mask: It should fit snugly but comfortably around the face, be secured around the ears with ties or loops, include multiple layers of fabric, allow for breathing without restriction, and be readily washable without damage. If you have the time and can sew, the CDC recommends a face covering that can be made with two 10-inch by 6-inch rectangles of cotton fabric, two 6-inch pieces of elastic or rubber bands, string, cloth strips, or hair ties, a needle and thread or bobby pin, scissors, and a sewing machine. Here’s the agency’s four-step tutorial: If you’re like me and the idea of sewing anything sounds like a total nightmare, the CDC offers a non-sewing option. It just requires a T-shirt and a pair of scissors. Here’s the three-step tutorial: A three-step tutorial for a mask made from a T-shirt. If you’re even more like me and that mask is still too much, the surgeon general posted a 45-second video guide on Twitter for an even easier mask that can be made solely with a T-shirt or just about any other cloth fabric and two rubber bands: Chances are the less skill-intensive, less time-consuming masks will be, at the very least, less comfortable, and maybe harder to wear for long. But if you’re in a pinch, or if you’re unable to do more complicated tailoring, the easier alternatives offer more protection than nothing.
6) Why aren’t more medical masks available? The simple answer is that supply hasn’t kept up with demand. Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, China made half the world’s face masks. When the outbreak took off there, China started to use its supply and hoard what remained. This problem has only spread since, as more and more countries hoard whatever medical supplies they can get — with some, like Germany, even banning most PPE exports. So as demand increased due to Covid-19 — not just from health care workers but from a general public increasingly scared of infection — there was less supply to go around. On a deeper level, though, the shortage in masks and other PPE reflects America’s — and, really, the rest of the world’s — poor preparedness for a pandemic. The mask and broader PPE shortage, in fact, was well-known to the US government before the Covid-19 outbreak, yet the US did not prepare. “When we have done exercises in the past for pandemic preparedness, supply chain issues were a well-documented challenge,” Popescu said. “This is something we’ve known about — maybe not to this extent, but this isn’t a shocker. It’s more surprising that we let it get this bad.” One of those simulations held by the federal government, as the New York Times reported, covered a pandemic that looked a lot like the one we’re facing now: a respiratory virus that started in China and made its way to the US and the rest of the world. Among the many problems, the Times found, were “deficiencies ‘in personal protective equipment use.’” The exercise found that the US didn’t have the means to quickly produce more PPE. When states turned to the federal government for help in the exercise, there was “confusion” and “bureaucratic chaos” as requests and submissions hit multiple agencies at once. This was far from the only simulation to produce these results, experts told me. Jeremy Konyndyk, senior policy fellow at the Center for Global Development, argued a previous outbreak should have acted as a warning for the world: the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak. While working in President Barack Obama’s administration at the time, Konyndyk quickly realized that the US — and much of the world — was simply not ready for a major disease outbreak. “I came away from that experience just completely horrified at how unready we would be for something more dangerous than Ebola,” he said, noting Ebola was, thankfully, relatively hard to transmit. Indeed, experts and advocates argue that the US generally underfunds disease outbreak preparedness and public health programs more broadly. It’s these concerns that led the Obama administration, after the Ebola outbreak, to attempt to scale up preparedness by establishing a White House office dedicated solely to the issue and producing a 69-page playbook in case of an outbreak. But President Donald Trump’s administration neglected and rolled back these efforts, eventually disbanding the White House office.
We’ve seen the results in the botched rollout of coronavirus testing, but PPE offers another example. America could have shored up its supplies of PPE in its strategic stockpile. It could have ensured that there would be surge capacity to boost production in case of emergency. And it should have been doing this all before the coronavirus pandemic. But it didn’t, even after it became clearer, around January and February, that the coronavirus was a looming threat. By early March, federal officials acknowledged the Strategic National Stockpile had just 1 percent of the medical masks the country needed in a full-blown pandemic. “The US … was not prepared,” Jen Kates, director of global health and HIV policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, told me. “A good preparedness plan would have helped address this and had things in place to allow for that increased need to be met.” So the US is playing catch-up with different public and private interventions to boost PPE production. Until that’s fixed, we simply don’t have enough medical masks to go around.
7) If medical masks are better, why shouldn’t I get some for myself? Because health care workers need them more, since they’re constantly in contact with those who are sick — in a way not many other people, if any, in the general public are. And even if you take a totally selfish perspective on this, there are good reasons to want health care workers to get these medical masks first. As coronavirus has spread, experts have talked up “flattening the curve.” The idea is to spread out the number of coronavirus cases — through social distancing, testing, contact tracing, and other protective measures — to avoid overwhelming the health care system. Here’s what that looks like in chart form:
An infographic that shows the goals of mitigation during an outbreak with two curves. The X-axis represents the number of daily cases and they Y-axis represents the amount of time since the first case. The first curve represents the number of cases when no protective measures during an outbreak are implemented and displays a large peak. The second curve is much lower, representing a much smaller rise in the number of cases if protective measures are implemented. Christina Animashaun/Vox
The PPE shortage could make it harder to flatten the curve of new cases if doctors and nurses get sick. But the line representing health care system capacity also isn’t a constant. If we develop more capacity, it can handle more cases at once. If capacity falls — if doctors and nurses get sick because of a lack of protective equipment, or refuse to work without conditions that can ensure their safety — even a flatter curve will be hard for the system to handle. That’s why experts, even those who acknowledge that the public would benefit from using masks, say that doctors and nurses should get priority: This isn’t just about keeping people on the front lines safe; it’s about keeping all of us safe. To put it in selfish terms: If you do get sick with the coronavirus or anything else during this pandemic, and you want to make sure that there are doctors and nurses available to treat you, you should let them get the masks they need first.
It’s true that we might all be better off wearing surgical masks in an ideal world. But that’s not the world we live in right now. For all our sakes, we should act accordingly.
8) If masks are so great, why is the CDC just telling us this now?
Officially, the CDC has said it changed its stance with the changing evidence. As it became clearer that asymptomatic transmission was happening with the coronavirus, the CDC argued, the benefits of everyone wearing a mask increased, since they could help stop transmission from people who don’t even know they’re sick. Unofficially, the answer is a little more complicated. In my discussions with public health officials and experts before the CDC changed its guidance, it seemed many people were afraid of saying anything that could exacerbate the PPE shortage for health care workers or get members of the general public to think — incorrectly — that they could ease social distancing measures if they just wear a mask. “I fear that if we tell everyone they should go out and buy masks, it will not only contribute to the PPE shortage,” Jaimie Meyer, an infectious disease expert at Yale University, told me, “but it will give a false sense of a ‘quick fix’ for protection, whereas people still need to be practicing social distancing strategies that are much more effective, though perhaps socially, psychologically, [and] logistically challenging.” Trump ordered more N95 masks. 3M says his tactics could make the shortage worse. Part of the issue is the CDC also operates on a different evidence level than a lot of the public. The agency tends to follow the best reviews of the scientific evidence with very rigorous standards for what’s a good study and what’s not. So what may sound like good enough evidence and reasoning to you and me may not be good enough for the CDC. Since the scientific evidence for public mask use isn’t great — even if it’s generally positive — the CDC, as an agency filled with scientists, was just more skeptical of taking a leap than many laypeople were. Regardless of the reasoning, the CDC’s messaging backfired. As health care workers clamored for masks, it became increasingly harder to tell the public that masks wouldn’t benefit everyone else. By obfuscating and failing to fully explain the issue, officials likely sowed distrust toward their guidance. And the public rushed to buy masks anyway.
9) How can I donate masks to health care workers?
The dire shortage of masks and other PPE has led to several options for donations: If you want to make and donate cloth masks, WeNeedMasks.org provides options for most states and Puerto Rico. If you have surgical masks, N95 respirators, and other PPE around, #GetUsPPE is another option. (Although note that many places will only take unopened supplies.)
If you’re a manufacturer or supplier, the N95 Project is trying to connect companies that make or have masks with the hospitals and clinics that need them. At this point in the pandemic, health care workers and facilities all over the country will gladly accept the help they can take. Some places, like New York and Louisiana, are dealing with much worse coronavirus outbreaks right now and really need the supplies today. But it’s also worth being realistic about just how far donations can go. Given the research, cloth masks are simply not suitable replacements for actual medical masks. With medical masks, N95 respirators are widely regarded as more effective than conventional surgical masks when properly fitted. So even with donations, it’s on the federal government to set up more production and coordination of supply lines to make sure places in need get PPE. It’s on private producers to step up and do what they can. (Some car, clothing, and pillow companies, among others, have already done so.) And it’s on us — to make sure that the existing supplies of masks and other PPE are made available to health care workers. Americans can accomplish that, in part, with donations, but we can also do that by not buying surgical masks or N95 respirators until the shortage is fixed, and instead relying on cloth and homemade coverings. So, yes, health experts recommend wearing a mask in public. Just don’t take one from health care workers. And keep doing all the other things public health officials recommend, like social distancing and washing your hands, as we deal with this pandemic. Support Vox’s explanatory journalism Every day at Vox, we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you, and our audience around the world, with information that has the power to save lives. Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment: to empower you through understanding. Vox’s work is reaching more people than ever, but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn. Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation, but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free articles, videos, and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires. Please consider making a contribution to Vox today. Since the beginning of March and the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in Europe, Chinese companies have sold nearly 4 billion face masks overseas, according to authorities. For Beijing, this is a perfect way to change the narrative: China is now offering its assistance to virus-hit countries while trying to leave the mistakes of the early outbreak in the past. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, face masks have become a hot commodity and international competition is fierce. Last week, a number of French politicians accused the US of buying up Chinese face masks ordered by France. In one case, the Americans allegedly outbid the French on the airport tarmac in China. China is the biggest producer of masks on the planet and is getting orders from around the world. With the Covid-19 pandemic now under control in the country, factories have been mobilised to boost production. Since early April, China has been able to produce 200 million masks a day. In the case of a second wave of infections, will China continue to send masks to the entire planet? With a population of 1.5 billion inhabitants, the country would need to protect itself too. Mathematical modeling has shown that transmission of an outbreak may be delayed by closing schools. However, effectiveness depends on the contacts children maintain outside of school. Often, one parent has to take time off work, and prolonged closures may be required. These factors could result in social and economic disruption. Modeling and simulation studies based on U.S. data suggest that if 10% of affected workplaces are closed, the overall infection transmission rate is around 11.9% and the epidemic peak time is slightly delayed. In contrast, if 33% of affected workplaces are closed, the attack rate decreases to 4.9%, and the peak time is delayed by one week. Workplace closures include closure of "non-essential" businesses and social services ("non-essential" means those facilities that do not maintain primary functions in the community, as opposed to essential services). Cancellation of mass gatherings includes sports events, films or musical shows. Evidence suggesting that mass gatherings increase the potential for infectious disease transmission is inconclusive.[30] Anecdotal evidence suggests certain types of mass gatherings may be associated with increased risk of influenza transmission, and may also "seed" new strains into an area, instigating community transmission in a pandemic. During the 1918 influenza pandemic, military parades in Philadelphia and Bostonmay have been responsible for spreading the disease by mixing infected sailors with crowds of civilians. Restricting mass gatherings, in combination with other social distancing interventions, may help reduce transmission.Border restrictions or internal travel restrictions are unlikely to delay an epidemic by more than two to three weeks unless implemented with over 99% coverage.Airport screening was found to be ineffective in preventing viral transmission during the 2003 SARS outbreak in Canada[35] and the U.S.[36] Strict border controls between Austria and the Ottoman Empire, imposed from 1770 until 1871 to prevent persons infected with the bubonic plague from entering Austria, were reportedly effective, as there were no major outbreaks of plague in Austrian territory after they were established, whereas the Ottoman Empire continued to suffer frequent epidemics of plague until the mid-nineteenth century. A Northeastern University study published in March 2020 found that "travel restrictions to and from China only slow down the international spread of COVID-19 [when] combined with efforts to reduce transmission on a community and an individual level. [...] Travel restrictions aren't enough unless we couple it with social distancing."[39] The study found that the travel ban in Wuhan delayed the spread of the disease to other parts of mainland China only by three to five days, although it did reduce the spread of international cases by as much as 80 percent. A primary reason travel restrictions were less effective is that many people with COVID-19 do not show symptoms during the early stages of infection.