the week's news (10 Aug 2018)

And in this week's recap:

• as if we didn't have enough blood-sucking parasites latching onto us, to include politicians, a new tick has crossed the border.  The Asian long-horned tick is spreading from the eastern seaboard, and based on its track record in Asia, it kills 15% of its victims.  In a related story farther down in the newsletter, every state in the USA now has confirmed cases of Lyme disease.
• carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is higher than its been in 800,000 years.  I'm sure we'll be told that there is nothing to worry about.
• scientists have discovered that viruses -- thought to stalk their victims as lone wolves -- can actually form wolf packs hidden from the body's immune system by a fatty membrane that disguises their nature. 
• remember that romaine lettuce E coli outbreak?  The FDA believes that cattle may have contaminated water upstream that was used to water the lettuce downstream.
• Almond Breeze almond milk may have been "contaminated" by cow milk -- Holly take note
• In the most important news of the week:  inducing labor at 39 weeks may help keep moms and babies both alive.  Saw this on the news the other night.  The USA is actually not doing that well in keeping moms or their newborns alive during delivery -- especially during C-sections, and 1 in 3 births are done via C-section.  But inducing labor a week early was demonstrated to reduce bad outcomes like hemorrhages.
• over-hydration can kill you.  Holly was talking about this just last night.
• recall studying the Trinity Test?  That was the site of the first atomic bomb detonation in New Mexico.  A study of the impact on area residents will be released in spring of 2019.  Expect to see a nightmare of rare cancers and heartbreak.
• Scott Pruitt, before he thankfully left the EPA in disgrace, denied a petition by environmental groups to discontinue use of a pesticide -- chlorpyrifos --  on fruit, vegetable and nut crops.  A US Circuit Court denied his denial and ordered the EPA to ban the substance.   Bye, Scoot...don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.