Desdemona Despair – Page 77 – Blogging the End of the World™

Two bird species that are extinct but not listed as such, for fear of committing the “Romeo Error”. Both species are still listed as Critically Endangered by IUCN because of the slim chance that one or more birds may still be alive. Such species are therefore not counted among extinct species, and vast sums of money are often spent in the vain hope that they will be found again. I Left: Eskimo curlew (Numenius borealis (Forster)), from Audubon (1827–1838: plate 208; Wikimedia Commons). Right: Bachman's warbler (Vermivora bachmani (Audubon)), from Audubon (1827–1838: plate 185 (detail); Creative Commons, Rawpixel). Graphic: Wikimedia Commons / Rawpixel

January 19, 2022

Earth on trajectory to Sixth Mass Extinction say biologists – “Including invertebrates is key to confirming that we are indeed witnessing the onset of the Sixth Mass Extinction in Earth’s history”

By Marcie Grabowski 14 January 2022 (UH News) – Mass biodiversity extinction events caused by extreme natural phenomena have marked the history of life on Earth five times. Today, many experts warn that a Sixth Mass Extinction crisis is underway, this time entirely caused by human activities. A comprehensive assessment of evidence of this ongoing […]

Map showing the extent of the heatwave in Western Australia on 13 January 2022, with large areas seeing temperatures of more than 45°C (113°F). A small town in Western Australia’s Pilbara endured the hottest temperature recorded in Australia in 62 years, with the mercury soaring toward 50 degrees across most of the region. In Onslow it hit 50.7 degrees at 2.26pm, the hottest day in Australia history since 1960, when temperatures in Oodnadatta Airport in South Australia also hit 50.7. Graphic: Bureau of Meteorology MetEye

January 14, 2022

Hottest temperature in Australia since 1960 recorded in Western Australia’s north as mercury soars to 50.7°C (123.3°F)

By Holly Thompson 13 January 2022 (WA Today) – A small town in Western Australia’s Pilbara endured the hottest temperature recorded in Australia in 62 years on Thursday, with the mercury soaring towards 50 degrees across most of the region. In Onslow it hit 50.7 degrees at 2.26pm, the hottest day in Australian history since […]

U.S. hospital utilization by facility, 10 January 2022. By mid-January 2022, at least 18 states had less than 15 percent capacity remaining in their ICU facilities, as the United States grappled with surging COVID-19 cases, according to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) data. Graphic: HHS Protect

January 14, 2022

ICUs nearing capacity in at least 18 U.S. states – “The sudden and steep rise in cases due to omicron is resulting in unprecedented daily case counts, sickness, absenteeism, and strains on our health care system”

By Monique Beals 13 January 2022 (The Hill) – At least 18 states have less than 15 percent capacity remaining in their ICU facilities as the United States grapples with surging COVID-19 cases, according to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) data. The states include Delaware, Georgia, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, […]

Satellite view with heat map showing temperatures rising to 45C (113F) in Argentina on 11 January 2022. At the start of 2022, Argentina faced a historic heatwave with temperatures soaring above 40°C. On the day this image was acquired, Buenos Aires recorded a temperature of 41.1°C, the second highest in the history of the Argentine capital. Photo: European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-3A imagery

January 14, 2022

Power grid fails as Argentina hit by record-breaking heatwave – Temperatures hit 45°C (113°F) with extreme heat set to last until the weekend

By Harry Cockburn 12 January 2022 (The Independent) – A historic heatwave with temperatures soaring up to 45°C (113°F) has hit Argentina, causing power grids to fail and leaving at least 700,000 people without electricity in Buenos Aires. Hot dry weather, driven by the Pacific Ocean’s La Niña weather pattern, has made the South American […]

Map showing natural catastrophe loss event worldwide in 2021. In 2021, natural disasters caused overall losses of $280 billion, of which roughly $120 billion were insured. Alongside 2005 and 2011, the year 2021 proved to be the second-costliest ever for the insurance sector (record year 2017: $146 billion, inflation-adjusted) – overall losses from natural disasters were the fourth-highest to date (record year 2011: $355 billion). Graphic: Munich Re

January 13, 2022

For the insurance industry, 2021 was the second-highest loss year on record, after 2017 – “The 2021 disaster statistics are striking because some of the extreme weather events are of the kind that are likely to become more frequent or more severe as a result of climate change”

10 January 2022 (Munich Re) – Worldwide, natural disasters caused substantially higher losses in 2021 than in the two previous years. Based on provisional data, storms, floods, wildfires, and earthquakes destroyed assets worth US$ 280bn. Losses in the previous year amounted to US$ 210bn, while in 2019 they were US$ 166bn. Roughly US$ 120bn of […]

Anti-COVID-19 “Vaccine Police” leader Christopher Key poses with multiple guns. On 9 January 2022, Key told The Daily Beast he advocates what he calls “urine therapy” and railed against “foolish” people who took the COVID-19 vaccine, which is safe and effective. Photo: Telegram

January 13, 2022

Anti-Vax leader urges followers to drink their own urine to fight COVID-19

By Zachary Petrizzo 9 January 2022 (The Daily Beast) – Anti-COVID-19 “Vaccine Police” leader Christopher Key has a new quarter-baked conspiracy theory for his anti-vax followers to use to cure themselves of COVID-19: Drink their own urine. “The antidote that we have seen now, and we have tons and tons of research, is urine therapy. OK, and […]

Daily positive COVID-19 test rate in the United States, 14 March 2020 - 5 January 2022. As of 11 January 2022, there were roughly 62.4 million cases and 841,000 deaths from COVID-19 in the United States. Over the previous 14 days, daily new cases increased by about 100 percent and daily deaths increased by about 13 percent. Graphic: Covid Act Now

January 13, 2022

The Great Resignation roars again: Here’s why more U.S. workers than ever quit in November 2021 – Nearly 3 million reported not working due to COVID-19 symptoms or caring for somebody who was sick

By Connie Lin 4 January 2022 (Fast Company) – New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the Great Resignation did not go gently into that good night; rather, it was very much alive at the end of 2021. A historic 4.5 million workers willingly quit their jobs in November, up from a succession of records […]

Trends in atmospheric CO2 vs. global temperature change, 1958-2020, with climate conference dates indicated. #climateINACTIONstripes Graphic: @MuellerTadzio / @wiebkemarie / @MariusHasenheit / @sustentioEU

January 12, 2022

Graph of the Day: Atmospheric CO2 vs. global temperature change and climate conference dates, 1958-2020

10 January 2022 (Sustentio) – Climate conferences? All well and good, but what we need is action! Peter Gericke, Marius Hasenheit from Sustentio, together with Tadzio Müller and Wiebke Witt, have visualized international climate diplomacy, the increase in CO2 concentration, and heating of our planet. And thus landed a huge success on Twitter: More than 1000 retweets and shares by Greta […]

Daily COVID-19 cases reported to the CDC, 23 January 2020 - 10 January 2022 CDC. The United States reported 1.35 million new coronavirus infections on 10 January 2022 CDC, the highest daily total for any country in the world, as the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant showed no signs of slowing. The previous record was 1.03 million cases on 3 January 2022. The seven-day average for new cases tripled in two weeks to more than 700,000 new infections per day. Graphic: CDC

January 11, 2022

U.S. reports 1.35 million COVID-19 cases in one day, shattering global record – More than 65,000 L.A. students and employees test positive as school resumes – U.S. breaks COVID-19 hospitalization record

By Lisa Shumaker 11 January 2022 (Reuters) – The United States reported 1.35 million new coronavirus infections on Monday, according to a Reuters tally, the highest daily total for any country in the world as the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant showed no signs of slowing. The previous record was 1.03 million cases […]

Deaths from overdoses, alcohol use, or suicide in Washington state, 2015-2020. Nearly 3,900 Washingtonians died from “deaths of despair” in 2020, an increase of almost 600 since 2019. Graphic: Mark Nowlin / The Seattle Times

January 11, 2022

“Deaths of despair” spiked in Washington state in 2020, exceeding deaths from COVID-19

By Gene Balk 10 January 2022 (Seattle Times) – They’ve come to be known as “deaths of despair” — fatalities from drug overdoses, alcohol use, and suicide. Research has shown they’ve been on the rise for decades in the United States and have contributed to the decline in life expectancy over the last few years. Since the […]