Study explores the effects of bilingualism on the developing brain

by Ingrid Fadelli , Medical Xpress

Credit: Jerry Wang, Unslplash

Recent research in the field of neuroscience suggests that knowing and speaking more than one language could impact the speaker's brain structure. Some studies, for instance, have found differences in the cortical regions and subcortical grey matter structures of bilingual or multilingual adults, compared to those of monolinguals.

These findings are aligned with other observations highlighting changes in the brain structure of those who mastered a new skill, such as juggling, playing the piano or handling specific tools. As these changes have typically been observed in brain regions associated with the acquired skills, bilingualism and multilingualism are expected to affect brain areas associated with language processing, learning and control.

Researchers at the University of Reading and Georgetown University have recently carried out a new study exploring the effects on brain development of knowing more than one language from early childhood to young adulthood. Their paper, pre-published on PsyArXiv and currently under review for publication in Brain Structure & Function, is based on a large repository of past imaging and behavioral data.

"The regions of the brain affected by bilingualism are those involved in how we acquire and process language, as well as in how we control what language we use each time, if we know more than one," Christos Pliatsikas, lead researcher on the study, told Medical Xpress. "These structural changes are thought to make the brain more efficient in handling these demanding tasks, which become more intensive if you are a bilingual."

In their past research, Pliatsikas and his colleagues found that the structural brain changes that take place in the developing brain of bilinguals and multilinguals often vary, depending on how frequently they speak the languages they know. Their new study was aimed at investigating these changes further, by observing brain development in bilingual and monolingual individuals from childhood to early adulthood.

"We used a large, publicly available, dataset of MRI structural brain images from participants aged three to 21, including those reporting speaking more than one language," Pliatsikas explained. "This dataset provided measures of brain structure (e.g. volume) for the entire brain, separated into smaller regions."

The researchers analyzed MRI brain images looking for changes that take place during development, then checked whether these changes differed between bilinguals and monolinguals. They particularly examined the thickness, volume and surface area of grey matter in 41 cortical and subcortical brain regions, as well as characteristics of white matter in 20 brain tracts.

"We used advanced statistics that take into account the particular shapes of the trajectories over development (e.g. peaks at certain ages followed by drops), which are more appropriate than more traditional methods that would treat brain development as a continuous straight line," Michael Ullman, senior researcher on this study, told TechXplore.

The analyses carried out by Pliatsikas, Ullman, and their colleagues yielded a number of interesting results. First, the researchers found that the developmental trajectories of some brain regions were indeed affected by bilingualism. For instance, while past research consistently found that the brain gets slightly smaller during childhood, this shrinking process appeared to be slower for bilinguals, particularly in some brain regions.

The brain regions that did not appear to shrink as much in bilinguals were all previously found to be associated with language processing and control. This ultimately suggests that bilingualism and potentially even multilingualism makes areas of the brain that acquire, process and control language more 'resilient' to developmental effects.

"Our findings not only corroborate previous suggestions that the structure of the bilingual brain differs to that of the monolingual one, but also show that some of the effects found in adults might have their roots in development," Ullman said.

In addition to broadening the current understanding of how bilingualism can impact the brain, the new findings gathered by the researchers could have important implications for future neuroscience studies. In fact, the variance that Pliatsikas, Ullman and their colleagues identified in how the bilingual brain develops during childhood could be ultimately linked to or explain the structural differences observed in the brain of bilingual adults.

"In my next studies, I am particularly interested in exploring the long-term effects of bilingualism in the brain, and especially the ageing brain," Pliatsikas said. "If bilingualism changes the structure of the brain to make it more efficient, does it have the potential to make it more resilient to age-related decline, both in healthy bilinguals and in bilingual patients?"

Being bilingual may help protect cognitive decline in multiple sclerosis patients

---

More information: Christos Pliatsikas et al. The effect of bilingualism on brain development from early childhood to young adulthood, psyarxiv (2020). DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/kjq6m

On “Bullshit Jobs” by David Graeber

REVIEW By Chris Wright

Referring to cultural Marxism, especially the Frankfurt School, Noam Chomsky once said
, “I don’tfind that kind of work very illuminating… The ideas that seem useful also seem pretty simple, andI don’t understand what all the verbiage is for.” While I think there’s much of value in the so -called Western Marxist tradition—for instance, I’m partial to Georg Lukács (more so than to Adorno and others in the Frankfurt School)

I have to admit I strongly sympathize with Chomsky.But his criticism generalizes, and is even truer in other areas: since well before the mid-twentieth century, a large amount of work in the humanities has been prone to unnecessary and sometimes incomprehensible verbiage. Later this tendency came to be associated with postmodernism, for itwas most pronounced in the writings of such luminaries as Derrida, Lacan, Kristeva, Deleuze, and Foucault, as well as their hordes of epigones. By the end of the twentieth century, a vast field of “Theory ” had reached maturity, encompassing much of philosophy, anthropology, psychoanalysis,and literary, film, and cultural studies.As an anthropologist, David Graeber works in this broadly conceived “interpretive” tradition (I call it that because it consists essentially of endless cultural and social “interpretations” or “theories,” often playful and highly verbose conceptual exercises). He has an advantage over many of his peers in that, while not a particularly great writer, he can at least write clearly and informally   enough to be widely read. Presumably this lucidity helps account for his fame as do, more importantly, his heterodox ideas, his ability to capture a cultural mood even in the titles of his books (Debt ,The Utopia of Rules,Bullshit Jobs), and his impressive productivity.

Perhaps he’s too productive: while reading his latest book, I couldn’t help thinking
it would have packed a greater punch if he had shortened it by a third. It meanders and meanders, repeats and repeats, and,well, I didn’tunderstand what all the verbiage was for. The full title of his book is  Bullshit Jobs: A Theory I wasn’t able to find the “theory,” unless it be that bullshit jobs do in fact exist. And Graeber marshals abundant evidence to test and confirm that theory. The most entertaining, and probably the most valuable, parts of the book are the many testimonies he presents from poor souls who spend their lives in a bullshit job, which is to say a job they think shouldn’t exist because it contributes nothing to the world.

The numbers of people who believe this are incredibly high. One poll in the United Kingdom found that only 50 percent of people with full-time jobs were sure their job made a meaningful contribution to the world, while 37 percent were sure theirs didn’t. A poll in Holland put the latter number at 40 percent.

Even jobs that aren’t bullshit, like nurses and professors, are being increasingly bullshitized, as paperwork, meetings, and other administrative duties crowd out more meaningful tasks like taking care of patients and teaching. (Nurses reported to Graeber that as much as 80 percent of their time is now taken up with meetings, filling out forms, and the like.) Considering these facts, as well as the existence of many second-order bullshit jobs (jobs done in support of those directly engaged in bullshit), Graeber estimates that well over half of all work being done in society could be eliminated without making any real difference.What sorts of jobs are we talking about? Not most lower-tier jobs: not street cleaners, bus drivers,repairmen, restaurant workers, store clerks, gardeners, construction workers, etc. These people make a contribution to the world. Graeber suggests a rough five-fold classification of bullshit jobs.

READ THE REST HERE

MY CLASSIFICATION OF A BULLSHIT JOB HAS ALWAYS BEEN THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN ANARCHIST ACADEMIC, GRAEBER PROVES IT AS DO OTHERS IN THE ACADEMY  BY BEING ACADEMIC ANARCHISTS, THEY ARE ALL THEORY AND "THEY SPEAK IN LANGUAGE NO ONE UNDERSTANDS OF THE RIGHTS WE HAVE GRABBED WITH OUR OWN BLEEDING HANDS"....ONCE AGAIN THE ANSWER IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS NOSE, HIS JOB IS USELESS, HIERARCHICAL, PRIVILEGED, AND IN THE AGE OF THE INTERNET IRRELEVANT, I CAN TEACH MYSELF THANKS, FIRST LESSON OF DIY.

David Graeber: "Will we then pretend that everything was just a dream?"

3/31/2020

Which jobs are bullshit and which are systemically important: We shouldn't forget that after the Corona crisis, says capitalism critic David Graeber.

Is Occupy Homeoffice coming to Occupy Wall Street? A call in London to anthropologist and capitalism critic David Graeber - who hopes that our working life and our economic system will never be the same as before the Corona crisis.

ZEIT ONLINE: Mr. Graeber, suddenly home office is possible and supermarket cashiers are systemically relevant. Is the Corona crisis turning our working world upside down forever?

David Graeber: Here in Great Britain, the government has compiled a list of the systemically relevant professions - those who work in them can continue to send their children to school, where they are looked after. The list captivates with the amazing absence of management consultants and hedge fund managers! Those who earn the most don't show up there. The basic rule is: the more useful a job, the worse it is paid. An exception are, of course, doctors. But even there you could argue: As far as health is concerned, the cleaning staff in hospitals contributes just as much as the doctors, and much of the progress in the past 150 years has come from better hygiene.

ZEIT ONLINE: In France, the supermarket employees who are particularly challenged now receive a bonus payment - at the urging of the government. The market does not regulate this on its own.

David Graeber: Because the market is not so much based on supply and demand as we are always told - who makes how much is a question of political power. The current crisis makes it even clearer that my wages do not depend on how much my profession is actually used.

"Some people now contact me and say: I always suspected that I could do my job two hours a week, but now I actually know it is." David Graeber

ZEIT ONLINE: This is the issue in your current book Bullshit Jobs : Many socially indispensable jobs are poorly paid - while well-paid employees often doubt whether their office work makes any sense at all or whether they are only doing a "bullshit job".

Graeber: What is important to me: I would never contradict people who feel that they are making an important contribution with their work. For my book, however, I have collected voices from people who do not have exactly this feeling: They are sometimes deeply frustrated because they want to contribute to the good of all of us. But to make enough money for their families, they have to do the jobs that don't work for anyone. People said to me: I worked as a kindergarten teacher, it was great and fulfilling and important work, but I couldn't pay my bills anymore. And now I'm working for some subcontractor that provides health insurance with information. I tag some forms all day, no one reads my reports, but I earn twenty times as much.


ZEIT ONLINE: What happens to these office workers who are now doing their bullshit jobs because of the corona virus from their home office?

Graeber: Some people now contact me and say: I always suspected that I could do my job two hours a week, but now I actually know that it is. Because as soon as you do this from home, for example, the meetings that don't do anything are often dropped.

ZEIT ONLINE: After the financial crisis in 2008, you were involved in the Occupy Wall Street protest movement, including activists occupying a park near the New York Stock Exchange. Could the corona crisis produce a similar left movement? An occupy home office?

Graeber: If so, the motto is rather: Occupy the apartment you live in and no longer pay rent. There is a lot of talk about renting strikes right now because people can no longer pay their rent because of the corona crisis. And then the real point is to support the systemically important workers who are not provided with the equipment they need to do their job. It is in all of our interests that medical personnel and delivery drivers have protective equipment.

ZEIT ONLINE: At the same time, in this crisis we learn very clearly how central work is for our society: No matter how many places people are no longer allowed to visit, they should often continue to work.

Graeber: You can see that with restrictions in public transport: if you close it, then first at the weekend. You can no longer go to the park. But God forbid that you can no longer go to work! Although we have long since noticed that a large part of the work does not have to be done in the office at all.

"It is important that we do not suppress what we finally admit to ourselves in times of crisis - for example, which jobs are systemically important and which are not."

ZEIT ONLINE: That would actually be an insight from the current situation, right?

Graeber: Yes. The only question is: when the crisis is over, will people pretend that it was just a dream? Similar things could be observed after the financial crisis in 2008: For a few weeks everyone said: "Oh, everything we thought was true is not true!" Fundamental questions have finally been asked: What is money? What are debts? But at some point you suddenly decided: "Stop, we're going to leave it now. Let's pretend that nothing has ever happened! Let's do it all again before!" And neoliberal politics and the financial industry just kept going. That is why it is so important that we do not suppress what we finally admit to ourselves in times of crisis - for example, which jobs are systemically important and which are not.

Source: zeit

Full text of "Debt-The First 5000 Years" - Internet Archive

archive.org › stream › Debt-The_First_5000_Years_djvu

Debt : the first 5,000 years / David Graeber. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-933633-86-2 (alk. paper) 1. Debt-History. 2.

Covid-19: a clinical trial with sea worm blood begins in France

A French laboratory launches a clinical trial to relieve patients affected by Covid-19 from hemoglobin in the arenicola. The blood of this sea worm present can carry 40 times p…
4/6/2020

In France, ten Covid-19 patients will be administered a solution from the blood of a sea worm as part of a clinical trial. "We obtained the two administrative green lights to be able to start," announced on Saturday April 4, Doctor Franck Zal, head of the Breton company Hemarina, at the origin of the product.

Intended for patients affected by Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), the solution to be administered is created from the hemoglobin of a sea worm, measuring between 10 and 15 cm, named arenicole. It has red blood cells capable of carrying 40 times more oxygen than the hemoglobin of human red blood cells.

This "molecular respirator", whose project is codenamed "Monaco", is a "perspective of hope to relieve resuscitation", commented the director of the company Hermarina.

Green light from the Personal Protection Committee

After the agreement of the French National Agency for Medicines and Health Products (ANSM), the Hemarina company announced on Saturday that it had obtained the necessary green light from the Personal Protection Committee (CPP) to start its research. The test must take place in one of the two Parisian hospitals, at the Pitié-Salpêtrière (13th arrondissment) or at Georges-Pompidou (15th), which will have these products.

"First, we will have a safety and effectiveness test to be able to see a sign of oxygenation for people who are going to fall into intensive care," said the boss of Hemarina. It is about "avoiding, trying to avoid, that patients arrive too quickly in intensive care".

"Open source is the rule"

"We would like the research to be open source, for the data to be published and open to the international community", underlined Franck Zal.

"Our results will be published in accordance with scientific rules and the people receiving the molecule. In this time of crisis, open source is the rule", reacted Laurent Lantieri, one of the scientific managers of the Monaco project, on Twitter.

Based in Morlaix, Hemarina has its own sea worm breeding farm in Vendée, and had 5,000 doses immediately available at the end of March with the capacity to produce 15,000 others "fairly quickly".

With AFP

Particles carrying a coronavirus can remain in the air and end up in another person - a new Finnish study

Preliminary research results from four Finnish research bodies show that aerosol particles carrying the coronavirus can persist in the air longer than previously thought. Researchers say it is important to avoid busy public interiors.

4/6/2020

Aalto University, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, VTT and the University of Helsinki have studied how extremely small aerosol particles floating in the air travel with the air flow. Aerosol particles escape from the airways when coughing, sneezing or even talking. They also carry pathogens such as coronaviruses.

According to a press release released on Monday, the researchers came to the same preliminary result: in the situation under study, the aerosol cloud also spreads to the immediate area outside the immediate vicinity of the coughing person. On the other hand, the cloud dilutes at the same time, but it takes up to minutes for the cloud to spread and dilute.

- If a cough infected with a coronavirus walks away and another person arrives near the same place, extremely small aerosol particles containing coronavirus in the air can end up in this other person's airways, says Ville Vuorinen, an assistant professor at Aalto University.

According to THL, new recommendations cannot yet be made directly on the basis of modeling.

- The preliminary results of the consortium underline the importance of our recommendations. The Department of Health and Welfare THL recommends staying at home sick and everyone taking physical distance. Our instructions are also to cough up a sleeve or handkerchief and take care of good hand hygiene, says leading expert Jussi Sane from THL, according to the press release.

https://www.tellerreport.com/news/2020-04-06---particles-carrying-a-coronavirus-can-remain-in-the-air-and-end-up-in-another-person---a-new-finnish-study-.ByBJSfqdvU.html


When someone coughs between a store shelf, particles that carry such a crown can spread - watch the researchers' muting video (in Finnish but its an animation so it's easy to understand)
4/6/2020

A new Finnish study has examined how small aerosol particles spread during coughing. This provides an interesting perspective on the possible spread of the coronavirus.

Watch the modeling done by researchers at Aalto University, VTT, the Finnish Meteorological Institute and the University of Helsinki in the video above.
Read more about the study here: Particles carrying the coronavirus can remain in the air and end up in another person - a new Finnish study

Pandemic effect: why the global economic downturn due to coronavirus may be worse than the 2008 crisis

3/26/2020

The head of the World Trade Organization predicts that the global economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus may be larger than the 2008 crisis. A pandemic and massive closure of borders provoked a decrease in trade and passenger traffic, as well as weakened business activity in most countries. As a result, the collapse of world GDP may exceed 4% and become the largest in 60 years. Analysts estimate the total financial losses from the consequences of the infection at $ 5 trillion. The threat of recession has already been recognized in the United States. At the same time, experts fear that, as in 2008, a large-scale economic crisis may again begin with the American mortgage market.


In 2020, the recession of the world economy as a result of the effects of coronavirus may be worse than the financial crisis of 2008. This was stated by the Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Roberto Azevedo.

“A pandemic will undoubtedly have a very serious impact on the economy, trade and, consequently, on jobs and human well-being. Recent forecasts predict a recession and job loss worse than during the global financial crisis 12 years ago, ”Azevedo emphasized.

A similar assessment was previously voiced by the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva. According to her, from the beginning of the spread of the disease, global investors withdrew about $ 83 billion from emerging markets. Capital outflows have become the largest for the entire time of observation.

According to the forecast of the Institute of International Finance (IIF), in 2020 the volume of world GDP can immediately decline by 4.1%. According to World Bank statistics, such a recession in the global economy risks becoming the largest in the past 59 years. For comparison, during the global financial crisis, the decline was only 1.68%.

“The crisis of 2008 was not accompanied by the destruction of technological and logistics chains around the world, did not create a situation where production stops and borders between countries are closed. In addition, the volume of world debt in 2008 was not as huge as it is now. Today, the amount is almost three times the volume of the world economy, ”said Pavel Sigal, First Vice President of the All-Russian public organization of small and medium-sized enterprises“ Support of Russia ”, RT.

According to official data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the total number of coronavirus infected in the world exceeds 416 thousand, of which more than 18 thousand died. Most infected were registered in China (about 82 thousand), Italy (69.1 thousand), USA (about 52 thousand), Spain (39.6 thousand), Germany (31.5 thousand), Iran ( 27 thousand) and France (22 thousand).

The spread of the disease has already provoked a massive reduction in trade and passenger traffic in the world. As previously estimated by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), due to the effects of coronavirus in 2020, the global economy could lose up to $ 2 trillion. However, according to the assessment of RT analysts surveyed, the total amount will be several times higher.

“Only the world tourism industry by the end of the year can lose about $ 1 trillion and lose 50 million jobs. At the same time, about 60 sectors of the economy are somehow tied to tourism. As a result, the total global losses of the global economy may exceed $ 5 trillion. It is expected that global trade can be halved, and unemployment can grow by 30-50%, ”said Pavel Sigal.

By old memory

According to the IIF, in 2020 the GDP of developing countries can drop by 3.1%, and that of developed countries by 4.8%. In this case, the United States and Europe risk the most serious losses, according to the organization. So, analysts predict a decrease in US GDP by 4.9%, and the eurozone - by 5.9%.

“At the moment, the most vulnerable countries will be those with the largest number of infected. In addition, the United States is at risk because, unlike other countries, they are much more dependent on domestic consumption. Plus, in the United States there were already difficulties with corporate debt even before the whole history of coronavirus, ”said Arseniy Dadashev, director of the Academy of Financial and Investment Management, in a conversation with RT.

The threat of economic recession has already been recognized in Washington. So, on March 26, Jerome Powell, the head of the US Federal Reserve System (an analogue of the central bank), made the possibility of an economic recession in the country. Earlier, similar statements were made by the largest banks in the country.

“To the internal problems due to the virus, the negative impact of a global pandemic and a decrease in business activity is being added. For example, the leading American financial companies - Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley - forecast a decrease in US GDP in the I quarter by 6%, and in the II quarter - even by 24-30%. Unemployment in the country, according to the Minister of Finance Stephen Mnuchin, can exceed 20%, which is twice as much as during the peak of the 2008 crisis, ”said Mark Goikhman, chief analyst of TeleTrade, RT.

According to the latest data from the US Department of Labor, for the week ending March 21, the number of initial applications for unemployment benefits in the country jumped almost 12 times - up to 3.28 million. The value was the highest in the entire history of observations.

As a senior analyst at BCS Premier Sergey Suverov explained in an interview with RT, a sharp increase in unemployment will reduce the ability of many borrowers to pay on loans, especially housing. Against this background, experts do not exclude the possibility that, as in 2008, a large-scale economic crisis may again begin with the mortgage market.

The words of specialists are confirmed by the official statistics of the Association of Mortgage Banks (MBA) of the USA. According to the organization, for the week ending March 20, the number of mortgage applications in the country fell by 29% - the largest drop since 2009.

Source: russiart

The world's fast-growing mountain of debt


Dion Rabouin Jan 13, 2020 AXIOS

Illustration: Aïda Amer and Sarah Grillo/Axios

The world's total debt surged by some $9 trillion in the first three quarters of 2019, according to data from the Institute of International Finance, bringing the world's total debt load to $253 trillion, or 322% of its GDP — a record high.

Why it matters: In times of economic strength, economists exhort countries to pare back their debt burdens and pay it down to protect against future unrest and downturn.
The U.S. and the overwhelming majority of the world have done just the opposite — 2019 saw the world's debt-to-GDP ratio rise at the fastest rate since 2016.
Conversely, global growth fell to its slowest pace since the 2008–2009 financial crisis, showing diminishing returns for the increasingly large debt pile.

What it means: The two may be linked. Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, told Axios earlier this year that the weak growth seen by the U.S. and much of the rest of the globe may be directly caused by the ever-growing debt.
"The effect may be a subtle crisis over time," she said.

Be smart: Even Fed chair Jerome Powell, who has been careful to focus his remarks almost exclusively on the strengths of the U.S. economy, was dour in his assessment of current U.S. debt levels.
He said last year that "the federal budget is on an unsustainable path" that could "restrain fiscal policymakers’ willingness or ability to support economic activity during a downturn.”

Between the lines: The U.S. led the way in debt accumulation last year, with government debt-to-GDP rising to an all-time high of 102% of GDP, IIF finds.
Mature markets like the U.S., eurozone and Japan ratcheted up their government debt levels last year, while emerging markets like China, India and Latin America saw the sharpest increase in non-financial corporate debt.
China's debt notably rose to 310% of GDP, despite the nation's drive to delever and clamp down on runaway borrowing. Government debt grew at its fastest annual pace since 2009.

What's next: All signs point to the debt binge continuing. Thanks to low interest rates and loose central bank policy, IIF estimates that total global debt will exceed $257 trillion in the first quarter of 2020.

Go deeper:
U.S. businesses have more debt than American households
The states having the most trouble with credit card debt

RIP
Kiefer Sutherland announces death of his mother Shirley Douglas, who passed away from pneumonia at 86
REST IN POWER 

The actress and activist was a longtime resident of Toronto

She shared Kiefer and his twin sister Rachel with ex-husband Donald Sutherland 

The Designated Survivor star tweeted his mom had been in poor health for some time and her death was not related to COVID-19

Douglas appeared in Stanley Kubrick's Lolita and David Cronenberg's Dead Ringers 

She is also survived by son Thomas Emil Sicks from her first marriage

PUBLISHED 6 April 2020

Kiefer Sutherland announced Sunday that his mother Shirley Douglas has died.

The Designated Survivor star tweeted the news, stressing that his mom's death at 86 was due to pneumonia and was not related to COVID-19.

'My mother was an extraordinary woman who led an extraordinary life. Sadly she had been battling for her health for quite some time and we, as a family, knew this day was coming,' Kiefer, 53, wrote.

Sad news: Kiefer Sutherland announced Sunday that his mother Shirley Douglas has died at 86. He said her death was due to pneumonia and was not related to COVID-19

The actor added: 'To any families who have lost loved ones unexpectedly to the coronavirus, my heart breaks for you. Please stay safe."

Douglas, a Canadian who celebrated her 86th birthday just this past Thursday, shared Kiefer and his twin sister Rachel with ex-husband Donald Sutherland.

The two were married from 1966 to 1970.

She was well-known as both an actress and as an activist and her father Tommy Douglas was the former premier of Saskatchewan and the founder of Canada's Medicare. 

Loss: Kiefer, 53, shared that his mom had been in poor health for some time and paid tribute to her as 'an extraordinary woman who led an extraordinary life' (pictured in 2005)

Empathy: The Designated Survivor and 24 star broke the news via his Twitter on Sunday along with a heartfelt message to others who are losing loved ones at this time

Exes: Douglas was married to fellow Canadian Donald Sutherland from 1966 to 1970 (pictured in 1968). They welcomed son Kiefer and his twin sister Rachel in December 1966

A native of Weyburn, Saskatchewan, Douglas was a longtime resident of Toronto.

She starred in Stanley Kubrick's Lolita released in 1962 and in David Cronenberg's Dead Ringers released in 1988.

She tirelessly supported a variety of causes throughout her life, including the civil rights movement, the Black Panthers and the fight to save Canada's public health care, pioneered by her politician father.

In addition to her children with Donald Sutherland, she is survived by a son Thomas from her first marriage to Canadian prairie brewery heir Timothy Emil Sicks

(OF SICKS BREWERY LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA, THE MAKER OF PILSNER)

Well-known: A native of Saskatchewan, Douglas was a longtime resident of Toronto and the daughter of the province's former premier Tommy Douglas who founded Canada's Medicare

Read more:
Kiefer Sutherland on Twitter: "… "

Kiefer Sutherland announces death of his mother Shirley Douglas who passed away from pneumonia at 86

Donald Trump STOPS Dr. Fauci answering a question about unproven anti-malarial drug during briefing and insists he sees the 'light at the end of the tunnel' after U.S. passes the 'horrific point of death' in the next two weeks

President Donald Trump stopped Dr. Tony Fauci from answering a question about the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in treating the coronavirus, telling him: 'You don't have to answer that question'

Trump has pushed the anti-malaria drug as preventative against coronavirus, and revealed Sunday that the government has purchased and stockpiled 29 million doses to send to hot spot areas of the country

Fauci has previously warned hydroxychloroquine is not a 'knockout drug' , and says more testing is needed

But Trump told reporters there isn't time, saying: 'I would love to go to a laboratory and spend a couple of years testing something. We don't have time.'

Trump started his daily press briefing Sunday with hopeful note, insisting: 'We're starting to see light at the end of the tunnel'

By EMILY GOODIN, SENIOR U.S. POLITICAL REPORTER FOR DAILYMAIL.CO PUBLISHED: 6 April 2020

President Donald Trump stopped Dr. Tony Fauci from answering a question about the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in treating the coronavirus as he tried to push a more hopeful message about the pandemic.

Trump has promoted use of the drug to treat coronavirus, after unproven evidence in other countries that it might help. He has even said he'd consider taking hydroxychloroquine himself.

But when reporters tried to get the opinion of Dr Fauci - who has previously warned against seeing the malaria medication as a wonder drug - Trump stepped in and stopped the question.

The president started his daily press briefing on a hopeful note, saying there was a 'light at the end of the tunnel' in the coming days - a marked contrast to his surgeon general who warned earlier Sunday that 'the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans' lives' was coming up in the battle against the coronavirus.

Trump's message was different.

'We're starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. And hopefully in the not-too-distant future we'll be very proud of the job we all did,' he said.

He conceded America was in for a tough week, but went on to add that just meant things were about to get better.

'I think we all know we have to reach a certain point, and that point is going to be a horrific point in terms of death, but it's also a point at which things are going to start changing. We're getting very close to that level right now, and the next week and a half, two weeks are going to be - I think they are going to be very difficult,' he said.

But his tone grew more brisk as he was questioned on the anti-malaria drug he's advocated as a barrier against the highly contagious disease.

Fauci, meanwhile, has warned Americans not to consider it a 'knock out' drug when it comes to the coronavirus.

But Trump stopped Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, from answering a question about using hydroxychloroquine to treat the coronavirus during Sunday's briefing.

'You know how many times he's answered that question: 15 times,' Trump told CNN reporter Jeremy Diamond, who tried to question Fauci.

'You don't have to answer that question,' the president told the doctor. And then he turned back to Diamond. 'He's answered that question 15 times.'


Fauci told Fox News on Friday that people should take care with the anti-malarial, which has many side effects.

'We’ve got to be careful that we don’t make that majestic leap to assume that this is a knockout drug. We still need to do the kinds of studies that definitely prove whether any intervention is truly safe and effective,' he told 'Fox & Friends' on Friday.

Hydroxychloroquine is primarily used to treat lupus and arthritis.

The president announced Sunday the government has purchased and stockpiled 29 million doses of the hydroxychloroquine to send to hot spot areas of the country battling the virus.

'I want people to live and I'm seeing people dying,' he explained Sunday about why he continually touts the drug, which scientists say has not gone under enough testing in regards to the coronavirus.

'I've seen people that are going to die without it, and you know the expression, when that's happening, they should do it. What really do we have to lose? We also have this medicine's been tested for many years for malaria and for lupus, so it's been out there. It is a very strong powerful medicine, but it doesn't kill people,' the president said.

'But what do I know? I’m not a doctor,' Trump conceded. 'I'm not acting as a doctor. I'm saying, do what you want.'

The president also argued there isn't time to conduct in-depth studies on hydroxychloroquine's effect on the coronavirus.

'I would love to go to a laboratory and spend a couple of years testing something. We don't have time. We don't have two hours because there are people dying right now,' he said.

The president grew testy when he was repeatedly questioned about why he pushed a drug medical experts have warned lacks enough information to use for treatment.

'I want them to try it. It may work. It may not work, but if it doesn't work, it's nothing lost by doing it, nothing because we know long-term - what I want, I want to save lives. I don't want it to be in a lab for the next year and a half as people are dying all over the place,' Trump said.

He also argued he wasn't promoting the drug even as he mentioned it repeatedly and bragged about how many doses of it the government purchased to combat the coronavirus.

'I'm not,' he said, when asked why he promoted the drug. 'I'm not at all.'

And he repeated his willingness to take it himself.

'I would be very serious about taking it,' he said. 

BUT HE WON'T WEAR A MASK 

Hydroxychloroquine is currently used to treat Malaria and also Lupus and comes with a laundry list of side effects

President Trump lectured a CNN reporter who asked Dr. Fauci to weigh in about using the anti-malarial as a preventative for the coronavirus

Dr. Anthony Fauci sat on the steps of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building before heading to the White House ahead of Sunday's briefing; he told reporters he was on a conference call and enjoying the nice Washington D.C. weather
BLUE SOCKS, BROWN SHOES, PURPLE TURTLE NECK SWEATER, 

A FASHIONISTA TOO 

Hydroxychloroquine itself can't be used by all Americans. 

It has a laundry list of side effects including slowing the heartbeat, arm, leg and back pain, symptoms of heart failure, hair loss, worsening of skin conditions, stomach and abdominal pain. 

The mental health side effects alone include anxiety, depression, rare thoughts of suicide and hallucinations.   

Last week, the FDA issued emergency authorization for the use of the anti-malarial drug for some coronavirus patients. 

Fauci and White House trade advisor Peter Navarro had a heated exchange on the drug during Saturday's coronavirus task force meeting at the White House, Axios reported. 

Trump tasked Navarro with purchasing supplies to combat the coronavirus and, in that meeting, the trade adviser defended his purchase of hydroxychloroquine at that meeting.

Fauci pushed back against Navarro, saying that there was only anecdotal evidence that it works against the coronavirus, Axios reported. 

Medical officials have questioned why studies in France and China on the drug have not included a control group to measure its effectiveness. 

Some close friends of Trump are also advocating the drug to the president. 

Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal attorney, has talked to Trump about it, The Washington Post reported.

'I discussed it with the president after he talked about it,' Giuliani told the newspaper. 'I told him what I had on the drugs.' 

And Fox News host Sean Hannity has repeatedly touted the drug as a treatment for coronavirus

In the briefing, Trump also defended his sounding a hopeful note about the battle against the virus even as Surgeon General Jerome Adams warned of a tough week ahead in the fight against the coronavirus. 

'I see light at the end of the tunnel. I think indications are some of the numbers coming out today. I think we had a very good meeting today and we are seeing things we don't even report because it's too early to report. They think we are seeing things happen that are very good and we also know, all of us including the medical professions, we have to open our country up,' the president said.

Adams had a different message when he made the rounds of the Sunday morning talk shows.

'This is going to be the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans' lives, quite frankly,' Adams told Fox News Sunday.

'This is going to be our Pearl Harbor moment, our 9/11 moment – only it's not going to be localized, it's going to be happening all over the country. And I want America to understand that,' he continued in his warning to Americans.

Fauci, at Sunday evening's White House briefing, stepped in to explain how Trump's words weren't really contradictory. 

'It seems to be inherited contradictory but it really isn't,' he said.  

'It has to do with what we explained before about the lag and when you look at the indications that they were talking about, when you see a flattening out of cases and you don't see the realization of what that means until two weeks later. So right now we are seeing, as we all said, correctly that this is probably going to be really bad week. That is a reflection of what happened to a half weeks ago so if we start seeing a flattening or stabilization of cases, what you are hearing about, potential light at the end of the tunnel doesn't take away from the fact that tomorrow or the next day it's going to look really bad,' he said.

He added it was important to keep the lag time in the reporting of the numbers in mind. 

'We've gotta make sure. We're always talking about a two and half week lag so I wanted to make sure,' he noted. 

Donald Trump dismissed Health Secretary Alex Azar's January warning on coronavirus as 'alarmist' and cut him off during a phone briefing, report says

• Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar  reportedly tried to warn President Donald Trump about coronavirus in a January 18 phone call 
• Trump dismissed his concern as 'alarmist' and talked over Azar
• The White House was first warned about the outbreak in China on January 3
• Trump was reportedly more concerned about his impeachment trial then  
• No serious action was taken until March when Trump ordered public to social distance and stay indoors  in light of the pandemic 
• The US has suffered massive casualties from the virus with over 9,600 deaths  

By MARLENE LENTHANG FOR DAILYMAIL.COM PUBLISHED: 6 April 2020

President Donald Trump dismissed Health Secretary Alex Azar's initial warnings about the deadly coronavirus as 'alarmist' back in January, a new report says.

Trump's administration has been heavily criticized for its delayed reaction to COVID-19 by failing to mobilize upon early warnings, form a chain of command, and organize efficient nation-wide testing - as the US suffers heavy casualties from the virus with over 9,600 deaths. 

But the president had time to respond as he was first notified about the coronavirus outbreak in China on January 3. 

Then, Azar called Trump on January 18 while the president was at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida to brief him about the severity of the novel coronavirus.

During that call the president reportedly cut him off before Azar could explain and instead criticized the health secretary over his handling of the axed federal vaping ban.  

At that time the president was reportedly more concerned about his then-ongoing impeachment trial.

That same day the US introduced screening procedures for travelers returning to the US from China who showed symptoms.

Azar told several associates that Trump thought his warnings were 'alarmist', the Washington Post reported Saturday.

Azar, who was involved in the federal government’s response to 9/11 and the 2002 SARS outbreak, even asked a colleague for advice on getting through to the president. 

Despite his efforts, Azar has also been criticized for failing to stress to the president the urgency of the pandemic. 

Days later on January 21 the virus became a real problem for the US when a Seattle man who had recently traveled to Wuhan tested positive for the coronavirus and became the first known infection on American soil. 

Around the same time, US spy agencies signaled to Trump the seriousness of the outbreak and how it could spread. 

In late January into early February leaders at the Health and Human Services department sent two letters to the White House Office of Management and Budget seeking to transfer $136million in department funds to combat the virus. 

White House budget officials said that was too much money to allocate when there were only a few cases in the US and it would be viewed as alarmist. 

Overall it took 70 days for Trump to finally seriously act on the virus and initiate lockdown measures and stay at home orders.  

Still, the White House has defended its response to the crisis. 

'While the media would rather speculate about outrageous claims of palace intrigue, President Trump and this Administration remain completely focused on the health and safety of the American people with around the clock work to slow the spread of the virus, expand testing, and expedite vaccine development,' Judd Deere, a spokesman for the president, said. 

'Because of the President’s leadership we will emerge from this challenge healthy, stronger, and with a prosperous and growing economy.' 

For months the president downplayed the seriousness of the virus.

Days after Azar’s warning Trump told reporters 'we have it [the coronavirus] totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control.'

Then in February the optimistic president boasted the virus would be gone by April.

He even described the deadly bug as a 'new hoax' cooked up by Democrats in light of the upcoming presidential election.

Only in March did the president seem to crack down and initiate stay at home orders and mobilize legislation to help unemployed Americans as businesses shut down and the number of virus-stricken citizens skyrocketed.

In the US there are over 337,000 cases of COVID-19 and at least 9,600 deaths. 

The US' Head Surgeon says the worst is yet to come and the next two weeks will be the most catastrophic for the nation.  

In total the White House anticipates between 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from the virus.  

Read more:

• - The Washington Post

Sex Workers Are Facing Increasingly Risky Conditions As The Coronavirus Spreads

Sex workers are losing money because of the coronavirus. Advocates say that means they’re more likely to face exploitation.

Otillia Steadman BuzzFeed News Reporter Posted on March 13, 2020

Courtesy of Jade
Jade, an escort who lives in Austin, said she is asking clients to wash their hands for 30 seconds to protect against the coronavirus.

Sex workers are facing dire financial and personal circumstances as fear of the coronavirus extends into every corner of life, with some under pressure to work in increasingly risky conditions.

Escorts, strippers, dominatrixes, and an intimacy coach told BuzzFeed News they had lost thousands of dollars due to canceled conferences, travel restrictions, and clients’ fears of being in public spaces.

Porn performers have been advised to stockpile video content to release in the event that the industry shuts down, but the most vulnerable sex workers face the threat of exploitation and homelessness.

“Anytime there’s this type of panic,” said sex worker and activist Molly Simmons, “clients understand that as a shift in power.”

As public health departments recommend "social distancing," the sex workers whom BuzzFeed News spoke to explained how they’re planning to continue to support themselves while trying to protect their health in the midst of a global pandemic.

Some said they are turning to online work like sexting and video calls, putting wish lists of food and other goods on Amazon, asking questions about their clients’ travel history, and relying on trusted clients to make ends meet.

But, like the millions of hotel and food service workers in the US with bills and no paid leave, some sex workers said they would simply have to keep working.

“I have a house and a car. I have a mouth to feed. I don’t have time for a stupid virus to stop my money flow,” said Carly, a stripper in Seattle who asked to be identified by her stage name for privacy reasons.


Courtesy of Carly
Carly, a stripper who works in Seattle where there have been the highest number of cases in the US so far.


In Seattle, which has recorded the most cases of the coronavirus so far in the US and where schools have closed, sex workers said they’ve already seen a dramatic drop in business.

Lady A, a dominatrix in the city, said she’s been losing at least $500 a week since concerns about the virus hit, and that the three women she shares a workspace with have faced the same. “We would usually do, say, three clients per day in that space,” Lady A, who asked to be identified by her professional pseudonym to maintain her privacy, told BuzzFeed News.

“This last weekend we would usually have been booked, but it was open. So that’s pretty bad,” she said.

Malice Amarantine, who works as a stripper in Seattle, said she has had nights where she went home empty-handed, and that she barely made rent last month. “I made the last two dollars I needed on the fifth of the month,” she said, adding that that had never happened before.


Courtesy of Malice Amarantine

Amarantine said that concerns about the virus had affected the service industry broadly in the city, but that she felt sex workers had been hit particularly hard.

This is partly due to the perception that strip clubs are dirty, Amarantine told BuzzFeed News. “In general, strip clubs are suffering a little bit more because even though it’s totally untrue, they’re seen as being grimy places. So I think there’s just this perception of them being more high risk,” she said.

Amarantine said that while some strip clubs might deserve the bad reputation, most clubs clean aggressively, and that strippers themselves are obsessed with Purell.

“Strippers are some of the cleanest people because we have to smell good to make money,” she explained. “We all carry hand sanitizer in our purses, and we always have.”


Courtesy of Malice Amarantine
A poster advising that people wash their hands for at least 20 seconds at the strip club where Malice Amarantine and Carly work.

She said she had so much hand sanitizer, in fact, that even in the midst of people panic-buying the disinfectant, she didn’t expect to run out anytime soon. “Our club actually has hand sanitizer there, and it’s still there. I already have one in my purse, there’s one in my kitchen, I have one I keep in my car, so I’m not running out anytime soon,” she said.

River, an escort based in Alaska, who spoke to BuzzFeed News on Twitter and only gave her professional name, compared the current environment to the financial crash in 2007 and the passage of FOSTA-SESTA, a 2018 federal law that restricted content related to selling sex online, and said that she didn’t expect to work until the crisis had subsided.

She said she had learned to save for tough times, but would still probably have to put her taxes on her credit card. “In sex work you have to save and be ready, because when you need money is when you start letting your safety practices slip,” she said.

River, who was traveling in Europe when she first spoke to BuzzFeed News, said she had changed her return flight after Trump announced travel restrictions, and that she would self-quarantine at home. She said she had made a quarantine wish list on Amazon and said some clients have been sending her supplies. “These sweeties bought me like 12lbs of dried cherries, 2lbs of dried blueberries, and 25lbs of rice so far!” she said.

In Austin, where the cancellation of SXSW has already caused layoffs and hurt the local economy broadly, intimacy coach and sex educator Sasha Rose said she has been forced to cancel naked yoga, play parties — where partygoers can have sex or watch others in a safe space with sex-positive ground rules — and a big event with a panel discussion she was planning on the sidelines of SXSW for a friend’s book launch.

Rose said clients would normally complain about event cancellations, but that she hadn’t heard from anyone this time around. She’s not so upset about it herself — “I don’t want to kiss anybody,” she told BuzzFeed News.

Jade, an escort in Austin who asked to be referred to by her porn persona to protect her identity, said she was continuing to see clients, but was nervous because she has a few clients who travel regularly to Houston and San Antonio, where there had been confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. She said she has gotten more serious about asking clients to wash before she sees them.

“Most people are showered or they come in and shower, but I don’t always ask them to go wash their hands right when they come in,” said Jade. But since the spread of the virus, she said she’s been stricter. “I’m like, ‘stay at the sink for 30 seconds.’ Some people turn the water on, and it’s often 5 seconds, and I’m like, 'you didn’t wash your hands,'” she said.


 Courtesy of Sasha Rose

Rose, the sex educator, and other sex workers told BuzzFeed News that they’re relying on online sessions with clients to keep some money coming in while they wait for the spread of the virus to slow down and public fear to subside.

“I work with people on intimacy and relating in trauma. I teach somatic processing,” said Rose, referring to an alternative therapy for people dealing with PTSI. “So I’m focusing on that area. It makes me a lot less money,” she said.

Madame Rose, a dominatrix based in LA, said she’s actually seeing some clients more regularly through online sessions, which include tasks and instructions built around what a client likes. “A couple of regulars ... have requested more video sessions than I would normally see them face to face,” she said. “It’s interesting.”

Despite the video calls, she said the situation has declined rapidly and she’s still losing money overall. “I’ve definitely lost some money. I wouldn’t say it’s catastrophic numbers yet, but enough to feel the impact. It’s made me feel that I need to boost my video and clips production so that I can continue to make money.”

Bella French, the CEO of cam site ManyVids, told BuzzFeed News that although she decided to cancel upcoming photoshoots and travel for her staff, the site was doing well.

“Our sales are doing really really good. I feel like it’s almost benefitting the adult industry,” French said. “I think people stay home more, some maybe they’re a little more bored than usual, so maybe they consume a little bit more than they would.”

French also made a point to note that she thought headlines about porn videos tied to the fantasy of the coronavirus were “fake news,” and explained that it’s a common marketing strategy for porn sites to get more clicks. “I talked to my data science team,” French said, “We didn’t see any influence of that on ManyVids.”

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC), a porn industry trade association that oversees an STI screening program for porn performers, recommended that performers stockpile videos to release in the event that porn sets are shut down.

Mike Stabile, who is the communications director for the FSC, told BuzzFeed News that this was the first time in memory that the industry had discussed a shutdown for something that was not an STI. The FSC administers a system called PASS, which records the results of biweekly tests that performers are required to get. If someone passes, they get a green check, but if they skip the test or they fail, they get a red X. In the event of a shutdown, everyone’s results show a red X, meaning no one is cleared for work.




Stabile said the FSC is not expecting a shutdown at this point, but in a statement put out Friday, the FSC advised performers and producers to begin actively planning for one, and said individual performers should make their own choices about whether or not to continue shooting. In addition to standard protections for health, the FSC also suggested performers and studios make more videos now so they would have new content to release if the virus did eventually cause a widespread shutdown or performers get sick. “The last thing you want in a situation like this is a financial incentive for people to go on set when they’re not feeling well.”

For the most vulnerable, though, there are few alternatives, and the diminishing client base only puts sex workers at further risk, said Simmons, who is based in Brooklyn.

Simmons, along with her co-chapter representatives at the Brooklyn chapter of the Sex Worker Outreach Project (SWOP), established a GoFundMe campaign to provide crisis relief for sex workers dealing with increasing financial strain, and is putting together resource guides to help people access social services.

“When work is really scarce and everybody is really worried about their money, there are some clients,” said Simmons, “who try to take advantage of that.”

“They will push for lower prices, they will push for not having to screen, they will push for unsafe work practices — whether that’s bareback or meeting someone you don’t know or meeting in an unsafe location or being forced to push your own personal boundaries of what you’re willing to do,” she explained. “Because they know that workers are really desperate for money.”

A fund similar to the one SWOP Brooklyn has created has been established in Seattle, and No Justice No Pride, a mutual aid organization that supports the transgender community in DC, was also taking donations to provide supplies to trans people and sex workers, saying, “we are concerned about how the spread of COVID-19 may affect work environments for sex workers.”

The virus, which lives in the upper respiratory system, poses yet another risk for sex workers.

Dr. Peter Meacher, the chief medical officer at Callen-Lorde Community Health Center in New York City, said that although there’s still a lot we don’t know about the coronavirus, we do know that it primarily spreads through droplets transmitted into the air by coughing and sneezing.

Meacher said kissing posed a particular risk. “You are at risk of exposure to COVID from each person you’re having that type of contact with. And whilst we think people are most infectious when they have symptoms — the symptoms again, this is an important message to get out, specifically, cough and fever — we honestly don’t really know about the days before symptoms,” said Meacher, speaking over the phone.

Sex workers face different degrees of risk depending on what they’re doing, said Chuck Cloniger, clinical director at the St. James Infirmary, which provides clinical and social services to sex workers in San Francisco.

“People who are doing street-based sex work, may not be able to stop doing sex work to survive,” said Cloniger.

For people who trade sex to survive and other sex workers who continue to see people in person, Cloniger recommends a discussion with clients ahead of time to ask the same questions about recent travel and other risk factors that doctors may be asking. Meacher, at Callen-Lorde, also emphasized that handwashing was an important step for everyone.

Madame Rose, the LA-based dominatrix, said she has already implemented this, adding some health-related questions to the prescreening she does with clients.


Courtesy of Madame Rose
Madame Rose, a dominatrix in Los Angeles, said she's losing money and trying to make up for lost income with videos.

“If somebody did show up for a session and they were wheezing and dripping and coughing I would definitely send them home, because that would be violation of my consent at that point,” said Rose.

But Simmons, the sex worker and activist, said that for the most vulnerable sex workers that advice missed the point. “Without any adequate connection to government services to help people stay alive — literally stay alive — people don’t have any other option but to continue to do what they’ve always done," she said.

Ruth Morgan Thomas, who advocates for sex worker rights around the world, argued that the health crisis was also exacerbated by criminalization of sex work, which limits sex workers’ ability to access health care and other social services. “For me, this just amplifies the vulnerabilities [that result from] criminalization and the refusal of many governments to recognize sex workers as part of the labor force in the country,” said Morgan Thomas, adding that it “somehow makes people feel we have less rights to the social protection systems that others have.”

Amarantine, who works as a stripper in Seattle, said that she has health care coverage through the state due to an accident a few years ago. She agreed with Morgan Thomas, adding that lack of rights and access to health care for sex workers and others in the service industry puts the broader community at risk too.

“It trickles up hill, I guess you could say. I wish more people understood,” she said.

Carly, who works with Amarantine, said she’s relying on her training as a certified nurse assistant to stay healthy during the pandemic because she doesn’t currently have health insurance. “I did last year because of my other job...” she said. “Knock on wood.”●