4.5 Million Confirmed Cases of Coronavirus

by Mike Tucker

COVID-19 is an illness caused by a coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2. What makes it such a devastating infection is the multiple ways that it can impact the body. Some people experience zero symptoms, while others might have shortness of breath, a fever, vomiting, loss of smell or taste, and blood clotting issues.

Some people may become infectious to others up to five days before they start experiencing the physical symptoms of COVID-19. That’s why it continues to spread in ways that are much different than previous novel coronavirus infections.

It is thought to infect through respiratory droplets produced by sneezing or coughing. When those small moisture bubbles get inhaled, then it begins the development process. It may be possible to acquire the virus by touching an infected surface, then placing the skin in the vicinity of the nose, eyes, or mouth could spread it.

As of this writing, global confirmed cases of Covid-19 reached more than 4.5 million. However, since many people are asymptomatic and do not show as symptoms, that number could be much higher.

How to Defeat COVID-19

The best way to defeat the new coronavirus is to avoid infection. That means staying away from crowds, washing your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and avoiding touching the face without sanitizing the skin first.

Early studies suggested that not taking ibuprofen or naproxen could reduce the risk of experiencing severe symptoms. Anyone taking medication for high blood pressure should continue doing so unless a healthcare provider says otherwise.

Then get some exercise every day while maintaining social distancing of at least six feet. Having a well-rounded diet with the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients your body requires can give your immune system the support it needs.

If you don’t get everything needed for your health, then brands like Apricot Power, Metagenics, and Premier Research Labs can help you to fill in the missing pieces of the puzzle.

How Long Does a COVID-19 Infection Last?

The unwanted symptoms of COVID-19 can appear in as little as two days. It can also be up to 14 days before someone experiences a fever, shortness of breath, headaches, muscle aches, conjunctivitis, or any of the other signs the coronavirus is present.

People with mild cases of COVID-19 typically recover in 7-14 days after experiencing the first symptoms. The more severe infections can take six weeks or more for recovery, while at least 1% of those infected globally die from the disease.

Although the most significant impacts affect seniors and those with pre-existing conditions, a post-infection inflation syndrome can put the health of children at risk. That’s why avoiding this virus whenever possible is the best option.

FCC Approves One Million SpaceX Satellite Linkups

by Mike Tucker

SpaceX received government approval to deploy one million user terminals in the United States to access its satellite broadband constellation dubbed Starlink.

The Elon Musk-headed company asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for the license to take this action in February 2019. Approval of the request came a year later through the publication of a public notice. It is blanket permission for the operation of fixed-earth stations for 15 years to communicate with the satellite system.

Musk describes the technology as something that looks like a UFO on a stick. The actuators on the stations point themselves in the correct direction to ensure high-speed communications are always possible.

Although this figure only covers a small portion of American homes, Musk isn’t trying to saturate the marketplace with this technology immediately. The goal of Starlink is to offer high-speed Internet solutions to the 4% of rural homes that have zero connectivity right now because of their location.

SpaceX Has Over 350 Satellites in Orbit Right Now

The FCC already approved for SpaceX to launch almost 12,000 satellites into orbit for the Starlink system. About 350 of them have launched so far, capable of delivering latencies of less than 20ms from its low-Earth orbital position. The service is expected to be available to some parts of the United States this year.

It will take several years for Musk and SpaceX to launch the entire system. The company is getting about 60 satellites into orbit each month.

Mobile devices are currently the primary method that people use to access the internet. That’s the reason why cities aren’t expected to be the primary customers for SpaceX with this new system.

It is the homes that don’t have access to fiber or cable connections. Although Internet saturation rates are high in the United States, the 4% of homes that are the most rural are still relying on outdated dial-up connections based on landline installations. This fact applies to the developing world, especially in places where little infrastructure exists. 

As Starlink continues to press forward with its plans, the competition may be giving up. OneWeb is one of the primary disrupters in this unique business space, and the company is considering a bankruptcy filing because of delays to the launch schedule.
A price for the new Starlink service is not official as of yet, but it is expected to cost at least $80 per month once launched.

Arizona Economy Facts: 350,000 New Jobs Added Since 2015

by Mike Tucker

Arizona’s economy was one of the strongest in the United States before the coronavirus shutdown occurred. Over 300 people per day were moving to the state, allowing for the creation of 350,000 new jobs since 2015.


About 70,000 new jobs were expected in the state in 2020 before COVID-19. If the economy can right itself by the end of the summer, that forecasted figure could still be reachable.

That means there’s one question to ask about the economy right now: how does Arizona open for new business when the threat of the coronavirus eventually disappears?

Every Arizona County Has at Least 1 COVID-19 Case

Because an economy as robust as today’s has never been artificially closed in human history, moving forward is more of a guessing game than a fact-based approach.

The good news for Arizona is that there is still plenty of strength found in multiple industrial sectors after the COVID-19 emergency. We can begin the road to recovery by implementing two ideas right away.

Arizona’s government needs to work with the federal government to suspend all bankruptcy procedures temporarily. That step would eliminate the transfer of assets to secured creditors. France has already taken this step by doubling the time a business cannot pay its obligations to the bankruptcy filing.

Then the state must design a restart procedure that meets local needs. That means creditors will likely need to write off a portion of the debt from this time. No amount of restructuring will be useful for companies that have been paying salaries without having any revenues coming in from customers.

Some businesses won’t open right away after the lockdown ends because the process needs to be slow and steady to support the economy. Those owners also need help.

What Can People Do Right Now?

The best thing that Arizonans can do right now is to support local businesses whenever possible Continue to follow your usual spending patterns by getting curbside pickup at restaurants, ordering pizzas, and shopping online from local outlets.

When the economy reopens, go out to these companies immediately to spend some money. Don’t go into debt with this process, but please do consider a more significant transaction.

Then be patient with people. Some businesses are going to go bankrupt, but that doesn’t mean the owners are going to disappear. There are always new ideas to pursue.

We are going to talk about this time in our lives for generations. How we respond in the aftermath will determine if it becomes a positive experience. 

Use These Data Collection Tools for Accuracy in Research

by Mike Tucker

The underlying need for data collection tools in research is for the capture of high-quality evidence that provides answers to posed questions.

Proper data management techniques can determine the quality of the information and data available to make it more comfortable to reach an informed decision.

These data collection tools in research work in product, opinion-based, and academic categories to grab the details needed for a successful outcome.

List of the Best Data Collection Tools in Research

Interviews

Face-to-face conversations can yield relevant information quickly to satisfy research purposes. You can use unstructured, semi-structured, or structured approaches to generate the data needed. 

Questionnaires

This instrument enables data collection from individuals in remote locations. It takes a group-based approach by comparing the information collected to other responses to recognize potential trends. Three question types are used for this effort: open-ended, scaled, and fixed-alternative. 

Reporting

Data reporting is the method of gathering information to submit it for further analysis. It is only effective when the individuals offering the info provide accurate results. It is not unusual for this data collection tool in research to suffer from exaggeration.

Existing Data

Another tool to consider using is the introduction of new questions to existing information. You can add a new instrument to the studying effort even though the initial collection efforts didn’t consider the questions as relevant. This method generates accurate results that are easily accessible.

Observation

Information becomes an observable phenomenon when using this data collection tool in research. You can be a complete observer, a participant who observes, or an observer who participates in collecting info for a project. Although some processes don’t benefit from this process, the information gathered comes from a universally-accepted practice.

Focus Groups

This tool uses small groups and interviews, questionnaires, and reporting to create another layer of useful information. People can build on top of each answer given to an administrator to discover new ideas that they wouldn’t have considered when using other options. The skill of the facilitator will dictate the quality of the info gathered because one loud voice can drown out the rest of them.

When you need to make decisions or prove an idea, then information is your best avenue to a successful conclusion. These data collection tools in research can help you find the outcome you require.

India Lockdowns Involve 1.3 Billion People Over Coronavirus

by Mike Tucker

India imposed a nationwide lockdown over the coronavirus. The world’s largest effort to contain COVID-19 became a stay-at-home order for 1.3 billion people. 

The goal of this effort was to stop the spread of the coronavirus, but it had an unintended outcome. All of the markets, shops, and factories shut down with the order to suspend everything. That meant pollution levels dropped dramatically in every city, especially for the harmful PM2.5 that contributes to thousands of deaths each year.

India has 21 of the 30 most polluted cities in the world. NO2 levels dropped dramatically after the announcement of the lockdown.

Why Are the Lower Pollution Levels Important?

Imagine that you fill your body with junk food and pre-processed foods instead of products from brands like Dr. Mercola, Metagenics, and Standard Process.

You can still have the energy to get through your day, but it will not be the same outcome when compared to a lifestyle with the correct nutritional content.

When you breathe nitrogen dioxide in high quantities while putting the particulate matter into your lungs, then your quality of life goes down. This pollution can even lower your life expectancy with consistent exposure to it.

After India announced the lockdown, some cities saw a 70% drop in NO2 levels. Residents are saying that they haven’t seen skies that look so blue in the country’s cities for more than a decade.

The reduces pollution levels are the silver lining in an era when people are called to sacrifice a lot for their neighbors.

Nationwide Curfews Also Have a Positive Impact

What makes the lockdown of India unique is that 1.3 billion people are also subject to an enforced curfew. This order came out on March 22, 2020. It would result in the lowest one-day traffic pollution levels on record for the city of Delhi.

PM10 and PM2.5 pollutants experienced steep drops because of the lockdown efforts. More records continue to be set as the 21-day order stays in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

Although the coronavirus has an adverse impact on health, India also has one of the highest rates of respiratory disease in the world. It was immediately apparent that protecting everyone had to be a priority. Now the government can take the lessons learned from this effort to encourage better health for everyone moving forward – including new investments for a cleaner future.

The Art of Statistics: How Data Provides New Insights

by Mike Tucker

Statistics are everywhere. This data is as integral to scientists as it is to modern businesses. We are living in an era where money might be valuable, but it is information that is the currency we use.

That means a basic grasp of statistical literacy is necessary if you want the capability of separating fact from fiction. This data provides us with hard evidence of consumer behaviors and scientific truth. When we can use this information in predictive ways, it is possible to glean new insights into customer choice.

Without the art of statistics, people become bystanders.

Why Are Statistics Important Today?

Statistics are a representation of truth. When looking at big data from a business perspective, it can also unlock new opportunities to contact customers.

It’s also a way to collect information about internal performance. Statistics can let an organization see that workers are performing less work before or after the weekend, giving managers data to help them look for motivation.

Statistics also allow organizations to examine alternative scenarios. This process enables the company to look for the best possible option.

It is also possible to use statistics in market research or product development. Surveys, random sampling interviews, focus studies, and other tools are useful in this segment to gauge the response to proposed products or services.

How Do We Collect Information from Statistics?

Statistics provide useless information unless there is a baseline from which to work. There must be metrics and key performance indicators named to create the concepts and connections that the data provides.


When the infrastructure for statistics exists, then the mathematical concepts behind the information can help us to examine complex issues. Statistician David Spiegelhalter uses his book The Art of Statistics: How to Learn from Data to show how this approach is useful to solve complex problems.

Statistics can help to determine who the luckiest passenger on the Titanic was over a century ago. It can help us to determine if screening tests for medical conditions are useful. When we all start thinking like a mathematician, then we can use the data that gets collected every day to our benefit.

The art of statistics allows us to find incomparable insights into almost any effort or industry. It can serve as a guide for product development, provide evidence for scientific theories, and improve our lives in countless ways.

Statistics provide us with the answers to the questions that life throws at us all every day.

Research Paper on Health Care Finds Women Underrepresented in Heart Studies

by Mike Tucker

Although heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in today’s world, they remain underrepresented in research efforts into this health problem. From 2010-2017, women accounted for less than 40% of the people enrolled in clinical trials focusing on cardiovascular health.

With one woman dying every 80 seconds globally from heart disease, one-third of women will experience this issue in their lifetime.

Lijing Yan evaluated a total of 740 completed cardiovascular clinical trials from Duke Kunshan University. A total of almost 863,000 adults between the ages of 25 to 89 were reviewed for this effort, with the average age of a participant being 61.

Only 38% of the participants were women.

Why Are Women Underrepresented in Heart Studies?

Researchers found that women make up 49% of the population across all studies. When looking at cardiovascular needs, women are 51% of the patients, but then less than 40% of the participants in clinical trials. 

The 1993 National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act states that women and minorities must be included in government-funded clinical research. This law recognizes that gender bias in the United States exists in its research. What this legislative effort didn’t provide are real-world benchmarks to use for participation.

Doctors and scientists historically used thin, white men to represent most patients in medical research efforts. If you went through medical school in the 1980s, then the profiles you looked at involved men instead of women.

It is an approach that could be costing many women their lives.

Heart Disease Symptoms in Women Are Different

Every research paper on health care finds that women have different physical symptoms than men when suffering a cardiac event.

For women, having a heart attack can feel a lot like indigestion instead of having a sharp pain in the chest. That’s one of the reasons why women are less likely to survive when they experience a cardiovascular episode – especially when being treated by a male doctor.

Women have also had unforeseen complications to specific drugs developed for treating heart conditions because of their underrepresentation. 80% of the pharmaceuticals that the FDA withdrew its approval for from 1997 to 2000 had harmful side effects for women.
What is going to change this problem? Researchers must address the barriers that discourage women from participating in clinical trials. Providers must take their symptoms as seriously as they do for men. Since many women are also caregivers, extra time, and transportation assistance may be necessary. This is hardly the first time that research has come under fire. These things need to change if we are to make gains across all areas of health.

The U.S. Loses 36 Million Trees in Its Cities Each Year

by Mike Tucker

Tree cover in the United States is shrinking. The U.S. Forest Service found that the country lost 36 million trees each year between 2009 to 2014, reducing urban coverage by 1%.

Since trees can lower summer daytime temperatures by as many as 10 degrees Fahrenheit, losing them may lead to adverse outcomes. Cities could become more polluted, have higher temperatures, and be less healthy for inhabitants.

With more people moving to urban environments, that means now is the time for Americans to act to restore the urban tree canopies.

Why Are U.S. Cities Losing So Many Trees?

Several reasons exist for the amount of tree loss that U.S. cities experienced during the five-year review period. Insects, disease, fires, tornadoes, and hurricanes all contributed significant numbers to this trend.

The one reason for tree loss that we can control involves the sensible development of our cities. Many urban environments are trading their canopies for impervious cover. That means there are more buildings and parking lots than green spaces.

Over 80% of the American population lives in an urban area. Most people live in the forested regions along the East or West coasts. When you put down a road, that means you need to cut down a tree.

It creates a lost value of roughly $100 million per year when the energy conservation and air pollution factors get calculated into monetary figures. 

How Can Cities Start Planning for More Trees?

City designers can manage tree canopies in the layout and design of new buildings and infrastructure. Many of the native trees that we save when expanding our urban centers can’t find places to drop seeds to encourage regeneration.

That’s because Americans have turned natural areas into unnatural living spaces.

We must protect what we currently have. If you have trees on your property, then maintaining them is going to help the local community. That process starts by pruning dead limbs out of them, which also reduces the risk of home damage.

Trees can also provide noise control and reduce flood damage. It’s an affordable way to approach a cooler yard and a lower utility bill. It takes up to a century for some of the biggest ones to reach their maximum height, so it may be helpful to trim them instead of a complete removal.

Saving trees in U.S. cities will take the efforts of everyone. You can attend city council meetings, plant them on your property, and join local non-profit groups that are working to restore our urban canopies. 

5 Personality Traits Affected by Gut Health

by Mike Tucker

Could the bacteria in a person’s gastrointestinal tract be responsible for part, if not all, of their personality development?

New research finds some intriguing associations between gut bacterial diversity and specific personality traits, including neuroticism and sociability. If the data holds, then the findings suggest that there could be mental health benefits to eating foods rich in prebiotics and probiotics.

Dr. Katerina Johnson from Oxford University’s Department of Experimental Psychology designed a research study to look at the microbiome-gut-brain axis. Her findings discovered that extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness could all have links to an individual’s gastrointestinal health.

Having Friends Could Promote Better Gut Health

Johnson’s study found that the various types of bacteria researchers previously linked to the autism spectrum disorder also had associations with sociability differences.

Her team found that the people who have the most extensive social networks were also the most likely to have a diverse composition of bacteria in their gut. That means being socially active could promote better health.

At the other end of the spectrum, Johnson found that a low level of microbial diversity was directly associated with higher levels of anxiety and stress.

What Does This Mean for Personal Nutrition?

The research team found that people who consumed more foods with prebiotics or probiotics in their natural form had significantly lower levels of stress, anxiety, and neuroticism. This group was also less likely to develop a mental illness throughout the study.

Johnson’s team compared the people who at the natural sources of prebiotics and probiotics to those who added them to their diet in the form of supplements. They discovered that the same correlation was not present.

Another interesting finding from the research effort was that the adults who had been fed formula as an infant had less diversity in their gut biome.

That means it may be beneficial for people to include more natural sources of probiotics in their diet. Foods like sauerkraut and fermented cheese could work to restore gut biome diversity. Items with natural sources of prebiotics include onions, leeks, whole grains, bananas, and legumes.

You may also choose to add probiotic supplements to your diet to help support the health of your gut flora. Youtheory, Oxylent, and AlternaScript are all brands that have formulas that support gut health.

It is essential to note that Johnson’s work was a cross-sectional study, so there are limitations in this research. A direct investigation of the effects and impact that these bacteria have on behavior could result in exciting new therapies for issues such as depression or autism spectrum disorder concerns. 

5 Million Undocumented Immigrants Entered the U.S. Legally

by Mike Tucker

The Trump Administration placed immigration reform as one of its essential platforms during its first days in the White House. This focus is often on building a wall along the southern border with Mexico. It has also led to a surge in deportations and a reversal of policies set under President Obama’s guidance.

What everyone is overlooking in this debate is the largest demographic of undocumented immigrants in the United States. Over 5 million people came to America with a legal visa – and then overstayed it.

Over 350,000 International Visitors Arrive Daily

Hundreds of thousands of travelers come to the United States every year. Most of them come from South America, Asia, and Africa. These people arrive on a visa that allows for studying, vacations, or to conduct business for a specific amount of time.

When someone stays beyond their authorized time, then they become an undocumented immigrant in the same way that someone who crosses the border with Mexico illegally.


Almost 50% of the estimated undocumented population flew to the United States on a visa, received clearance at the airport, and then never left the country.

Over 3.5 million undocumented immigrants entered the country from 2010 to 2017. 65% of them came with full permission on their passports.

Twice as Many Come with Visas Than Cross Illegally

The Trump Administration is calling for the hiring of thousands of new Border Patrol agents. Miles of new fencing gets authorized through appropriated funds out of the defense budget.

How can so many people who are in the United States illegally receive such little attention?

The Department of Homeland Security reports that a lack of interior enforcement creates difficulties in recognizing who leaves and who stays.

Undocumented immigrants from Mexico who arrived in this way lead the population, with over 1 million members overstaying their welcome. Since 2010, people coming from India have gone past their visa deadline more often, resulting in over 330,000 people.

Brazil, Colombia, China, and Venezuela also contribute to this issue.

Many of the workers arrive on an employment visa. Then they stay on as an independent contractor after their visa expires. Most people hesitate to answer questions because they don’t want to run the risk of getting caught.

There are no legal pathways for people who stay too long. Tracking overstayers is still tricky, which is why ensuring proper monitoring of data is important, but the government is one the cse to try and remedy this situation soon – although a wall probably won’t make much of a difference with this issue.