Submitted by Luis Kun

mountsinai.org - January 17th, 2013

Scientists have discovered that that the flu virus can essentially tell time, thereby giving scientists the ability to reset the virus' clock and combat it in more effective ways. According to researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, the flu knows how much time it has to multiply, infect other cells, and spread to another human being. If it leaves a cell too soon, the virus is too weak. If it leaves too late, the immune system has time to kill the virus.

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Forecast high temperatures on Monday, Jan. 21, from the GFS computer model.
Click to enlarge the image. Credit: Weatherbell

climatecentral.org - by Andrew Freedman - January 21, 2013

An unusual event playing out high in the atmosphere above the Arctic Circle is setting the stage for what could be weeks upon weeks of frigid cold across wide swaths of the U.S., having already helped to bring cold and snowy weather to parts of Europe.

This phenomenon, known as a “sudden stratospheric warming event,” started on Jan. 6, but is something that is just beginning to have an effect on weather patterns across North America and Europe. . .

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Damage in the Rockaway neighborhood in Queens, N.Y., where the historic boardwalk was washed away during Hurricane Sandy on Oct. 31, 2012. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

propublica.org - by Theodoric Meyer - January 18, 2013

When Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, Congress passed two relief bills almost unanimously. But when it comes to Hurricane Sandy, some in Congress seem to have had a change of heart.

In total, 58 representatives voted against bills this month similar to ones that they had supported after Katrina.

Here's a breakdown of how each of them voted on the two Katrina bills and the two Sandy ones:

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cbsnews.com - by Jonathan LaPook - January 9, 2013

(CBS News) The national flu epidemic is getting worse by the day: On Wednesday, Boston -- with a population of at least 600,000 -- declared a public health emergency after the virus killed more than a dozen people.

At least three more states -- Montana, South Dakota and Arizona -- are now reporting widespread flu, bringing the total to 44 states.

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Image: Correlation of violent protests in Africa and the Middle East with local food prices.

compression.org - October 25th, 2012 - Robert W. "Doc" Hall

Formal risk management has become common in large organizations. Risk management has become complex, standardized in ISO 31000, and meriting university degrees. Most risk assessment multiplies the consequences of an event times its probability to create a risk index. Managements can then choose to eliminate, mitigate, or accept each risk.

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Image: 2010 Drought in Russia. (c) New York Times.

foreignpolicyblogs.com - November 10th, 2012 - Mia Bennett

The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and National Research Council (NRC) have released a report commissioned by the CIA and various other American intelligence agencies on the security threats posed by climate change. The report’s goal is to inform intelligence agencies as to how to best carry out monitoring to anticipate climate-related disasters, help prevent them from occurring, and, when they do, respond to emergencies. The report investigates how climate change could potentially induce social and political stresses that will affect U.S. security over the next decade.

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Image: Oil derricks like this one outside of Williston, North Dakota, are part of a shale oil boom that has helped put the United States on track to overtake Saudi Arabia as the world's leading oil producer. Photograph by Gregory Bull, AP

news.nationalgeographic.com - November 12th, 2012 - Theodore K. Grose

In an indication of how "fracking" is reshaping the global energy picture, the International Energy Agency today projected that the United States will overtake Saudi Arabia as the world's largest oil producer by 2017.

And within just three years, the United States will unseat Russia as the largest producer of natural gas.

Both results would have been unthinkable even a few short years ago, but the future geography of supply has shifted dramatically due to what IEA calls America's "energy renaissance."

huffingtonpost.com - November 12th, 2012 - John Rudolf, Ben Hallman, Chris Kirkham, Saki Knafo and Matt Sledge

On the night that Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast, Vinny Baccale was in his Staten Island living room, plotting a last-minute escape and regretting not evacuating, when his kids shouted to him from another room. Their neighbor was outside, trying to start his car in the rising water.

As Baccale stepped to his window, a six-foot wave swept down his block and over the man’s car, propelling it down the dark street.

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Image: Members of the Army National Guard Unit Gulf 250 from Morristown, NJ evacuate a victim from Hurricane Sandy on October 31, 2012 in Hoboken, New Jersey. (Getty)

weather.aol.com - October 31st, 2012

National Guard troops delivered food and water to residents in this heavily flooded city across from Manhattan on Wednesday as officials sent out a plea for more supplies, including boats and generators.

Superstorm Sandy sent the raging Hudson River waters from one side of the one-square-mile city to the other Monday. Two days later, at least 25 percent of the community was flooded and 90 percent was without power, leaving many residents increasingly anxious and municipal leaders struggling to get assistance to all those who need it.

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Image: The twisted remains of a Hudson River marina are seen across from New York City as a result of superstorm Sandy on Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012 in Hoboken, NJ. (AP Photo/Charles Sykes)

bradenton.com - October 30th, 2012 - Samantha Henry

National Guard troops delivered food and water to residents in this heavily flooded city across from Manhattan on Wednesday as officials sent out a plea for more supplies, including boats and generators.

Superstorm Sandy sent the raging Hudson River waters from one side of the one-square-mile city to the other Monday. Two days later, at least 25 percent of the community was flooded and 90 percent was without power, leaving many residents increasingly anxious and municipal leaders struggling to get assistance to all those who need it.

Tempers flared Wednesday at a staging area outside City Hall, where a man screamed at emergency officials about why food and water had not been delivered to residents just a few blocks away.

Doctors Without Borders has arrived in the Rockaways.

http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/north-america/united-states/new-york/new-york-city/Far-Rockaways-Global-Disaster-Zone.html?page=all

nycgov.tumblr.com

This evening, November 6th, 2012, Mayor Bloomberg issued mandatory evacuation orders for four health care facilities in the Rockaways:

• Park Nursing Home (181 residents)
• Ocean Promenade Nursing Center (91 residents)
• Peninsula Center for Extended Care and Rehabilitation (180 residents)
• Surfside Manor Home for Adults (173 residents)

The facilities are in the most heavily-impacted area of the Rockaways and have been successfully operating on generator power. The impending Nor’easter storm surge could compromise the facilities’ generators, putting the elderly residents at risk. All facilities will be evacuated tonight to protect the health and safety of residents and staff.

http://nycgov.tumblr.com/post/35162642365/mayor-announces-mandatory-evacuation-of-four-health

https://twitter.com/nycgov/status/265994702581547008

reuters.com - November 4th, 2012 - Krista Hughes and Julien Toyer

Finance chiefs of leading economies pressed the United States on Sunday to avert a rush of spending cuts and tax hikes that could hurt global output next year, though some countries still saw Europe's debt crisis as the No. 1 danger.

Unless a fractious Congress can move quickly to reach a deal after Tuesday's U.S. elections, about $600 billion in government spending cuts and higher taxes are set to kick in from Jan. 1, threatening to push the American economy back into recession.
   
"They need to act swiftly on the fiscal cliff and then they will need to put in place a medium-term fiscal consolidation," Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan told Reuters before ministers from the Group of 20 countries gathered for talks.

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Image: A NASA satellite image shows Hurricane Sandy battering the Caribbean on Thursday. (Agence France-Presse — Getty Images)

nytimes.com - October 26th, 2012 - John H. Cushman Jr.

The United States is facing a year or more without crucial satellites that provide invaluable data for predicting storm tracks, a result of years of mismanagement, lack of financing and delays in launching replacements, according to several recent official reviews.

 The looming gap in satellite coverage, which some experts view as almost certain within the next few years, could result in shaky forecasts about storms like Hurricane Sandy, which is expected to hit the East Coast early next week.

The endangered satellites fly pole-to-pole orbits and cross the Equator in the afternoon, scanning the entire planet one strip at a time. Along with orbiters on other timetables, they are among the most effective tools used to pin down the paths of major storms about five days ahead.