Covid-19 Vaccines in Clinical Trials
The Body Scientific by Richard Kessin On January 10, 2020, Chinese scientists published the genome sequence of a novel virus by depositing a file in Genbank, a digital resource for DNA sequences at the National Institutes of Health. People at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease used that sequence to make a vaccine, […]
October, Not Just for Plants
Text and illustration by Leslie Watkins When we think of gardens we think of plants, shrubs, trees, etc., but that’s just the beginning. What we’re really doing is setting the stage for what’s to come. When the stage is set, the actors enter: insects, birds and animals move in, filling the garden with life, music […]
Warm and Dry Once Again
Norfolk’s August 2020 Weather by Russell Russ August’s weather for Norfolk was highlighted by a couple of severe events during the first four days of the month. A small tornado went through North Norfolk on Aug. 2, causing some tree and powerline damage. It was a localized event caused by one small, but strong, storm […]
September, Think Spring
Text and Illustration by Leslie Watkins This is the best time of year to get your new gardens started and to improve the gardens you already have. As the days cool down it’s easier to work outside, and there’s plenty to do. Catch the weed seeds now before they get away. Doing a thorough weeding […]
News of the September Sky
By Matthew Johnson The September or autumnal equinox will arrive on Sept. 22. The autumnal equinox marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall. The term “equinox” is derived from the Latin aequinoctium, meaning equal night. On both the spring and fall equinox, the earth experiences 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours […]
The End of the Beginning: Covid-19 Clinical Trials
By Richard Kessin It takes gall to channel Churchill’s World War II phrase, especially when we could be looking forward to the beginning of the end. But let’s keep our attention on the development of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. All of the vaccines are designed to present a SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein to the human immune system and […]
Norfolk’s July Weather
Warmest Month on Record by Russell Russ Historically, July is Norfolk’s warmest month of the year. It is the summer season, and it is supposed to be warm during summer, but July 2020 was something special. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), for many states in the Northeast, South and East it […]
“A Small School with a Big Heart” Plans for Reopening
By Virginia Coleman-Prisco Under the direction of Governor Ned Lamont and the Connecticut Department of Education (DOE), school districts have been required to develop plans for three scenarios for fall 2020: a full reopening of school with in-person instruction, a blend of in-person and remote instruction, and full remote instruction. School superintendent Mary Beth Iacobelli says […]
Discovery of a New Comet
By Matthew Johnson The discovery of Comet NEOWISE proved to be astonishing, especially to those who hunt for such objects. It surprised astronomers when it passed by the Sun emitting a bright tail as well as a darker dust tail. The comet was discovered March 27 by NASA’s Near-Earth Object Wide-Field InfraredSurvey Explorer. This space […]
Masks, Mistakes and Progress on Covid-19
By Richard Kessin We are currently arguing about masks and disease prevention. Virologists and others (including me) thought that because the Covid-19 virus is so small, it would pass through a normal surgical mask. But masks are useful because viruses come packaged in large respiratory droplets that are blocked by the mask, and they also […]
