Newsletter Week of 29 May 2020
The Reference Library (book review column) • Analog May/June 2020 • read for free
Eight panels and one reading over four days. That was my share of participation in last weekend's Virtual Balticon. Topics ranged from Star Wars to worldbuilding to post-apocalyptic fashions. Discussions were lively, respectful, and exceptionally interesting.
Panels aren't the only thing going on at SF/F cons. Indeed, one could easily and happily attend a con without going to any panels (I've done it myself). But if you're looking for intellectual stimulation, if you enjoy watching smart people play with ideas, there's nothing lioke a good panel. All of the ones I participatred in were good.
All of the panels were recorded. Over the next few weeks, the tech crew will be busy posting them to YouTube (and possibly other vendors). Keep an eye on the Virtual Baslticon website.
And finally, if you appreciate what Balticon did this year, go to the Virtual Balticon GoFundMe page and consider making a donation. One panelist suggested donating the amount you would have spent on parking or transit during IRL Balticon.
- Appeared on 9 panels at Virtual Balticon
- Ripped 9 DVDs to mp4
- Legion of Super-Heroes website: More cleaning up old entries
- Added 500 words to my memoir
- Worked on the next gay erotic short story
- Work on Rule of Five episode 2.21
- More progress on the Great Kitchen Rearrangement
Don & Thomas on "The Mandalorian" panel at Virtual Balticon.
Bill Tilghman and the Outlaws (movie)
American History Tellers podcast
Please take a look at this article from elemental, and the original paper from The Lancet. Mandeep Mehra, MD, medical director of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Heart and Vascular Center, discovered that the SARS-CoV-2 virus can infect cells that make the lining of blood vessels. “The concept that’s emerging is that this is not a respiratory illness alone, this is a respiratory illness to start with, but it is actually a vascular illness that kills people through its involvement of the vasculature,” says Mehra.
This finding helps explain odd COVID-19 complications like increased blood clots, cardiovascular damage, heart attacks, and blue toes. It also explains why ventilators have not helped as much as we thought they would—in the presence of vascular complications, oxygen flow to the lungs might not be sufficient.
This also explains why those with pre-existing cardiovascular conditions are at higher risk for complications.
This could be a crucial step toward more effective treatments. Keep your eyes on this.