印度新德里登革熱 Dealing with dengue: Lessons from the fever crippling Delhi

Dealing with dengue: Lessons from the fever crippling Delhi

Justin RowlattSouth Asia correspondent

• 5 hours ago
 
• From the sectionIndia

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Media captionHospitals and clinics across Delhi have been inundated with patients as Justin Rowlatt reports

An auto rickshaw buzzes to a halt outside the Bara Hindu Rao Hospital in Delhi, one of the biggest in the Indian capital.

Two women get out and pull a young man after them. His body is limp.

The women take an arm each and manhandle him into the casualty area where they join a crush of people.

Every day this hospital sees hundreds of people with the high fever and agonising joint pain that has earned dengue its alternate name: breakbone fever.

Security guards have been deployed to keep order but even so fights are still common. People are that desperate to see a doctor.

Tough decisions

Delhi is in the grip of its worst outbreak of dengue in years. According to the official figures, 25,000 people have been infected in India this year. The real figure is believed to be hundreds of times higher.

And the scale of the outbreak means hospitals have to make tough decisions.

One the day we visit, it is Dr Sonali Chaturvedi's job to decide who gets admitted. She says she turns nine out of 10 people away.

Most people recover after a week or two of severe illness, but a few will go on to develop the most serious and life-threatening form of the disease.

That's when the plasma starts to leak out of patients' blood vessels. It is known as dengue haemorrhagic fever.

Image copyrightReuters

Image captionNine of ten patients are turned away in Delhi hospitals as doctors struggle to deal with the deluge of cases

Image copyrightAP

Image captionThe only way to tackle dengue is to get to the root cause.

Image copyrightAP

Image captionOfficial figures say 25,000 people have been infected by dengue. The real number is believed to be much higher

The medical director of the hospital, Dr Hemant Sharma, leads me through wards full of dengue sufferers.

Ceiling fans churn the torpid air above the rows of beds. Space is so short some patients have to share a bed.

And, Dr Sharma says, that's after the hospital has cancelled all emergency surgery to free up more wards for dengue.

All government doctors have been told they can't take any leave until the disease subsides and that won't happen for weeks - until the first winter chills kill off the mosquitoes that carry the disease.

There is no vaccination to protect you from dengue, and no cure if you contract the disease, so the only way to tackle dengue is to get to the root cause.

Hunting for aedes

In a narrow alley in Delhi's old town I meet up with a team of 30 government employees, some of up to 10,000 who are sent out into the city each day to warn of the dangers of dengue and to try and hunt down the aedes mosquitoes that carry it.

The only way is to go house to house, checking for anything that could hold even a tiny puddle of water.

Babita Bisht, who is in charge of the small team, tells me aedes mosquitoes can breed in just a few millimetres of clear water.

Image copyrightAP

Image captionGovernment employees are sent into the cities to warn of the dangers of dengue

She's a trained entomologist - an insect expert - and I'm surprised when she tells me she loves the aedes mosquito and loves to find it breeding.

After less than half an hour a shout goes up. One of the team has found a water vessel on the roof of one of the houses. Hundreds of aedes larvae squirm and wriggle inside.

The family that live here will face a fine designed, says Babita, to encourage people to take more care to get rid of anything the mosquitoes could breed in.

'Spread across the world'

Dengue is a disease of modernity. Fifty years ago just a couple of countries reported dengue outbreaks, now it is endemic in more than 120 nations.

The transport networks that knit our world together have spread the mosquitoes across the world and the explosion in urban living over the same period has ensured a ready supply of people to feed on and all sorts of new habitats to live in.

Over the last few decades the rate of infection has increased thirtyfold, says Neena Valecha, a world expert on dengue and the head of India's national mosquito research centre.

The mortality rate is fewer than one in a hundred but with the World Health Organisation estimates there at least 100 million infections a year so it is still a very serious health issue.

And she warns that dengue will continue to spread out across the world.

Climate change is likely to make the warm, wet conditions dengue mosquitoes love even more common.

---

Dengue fever

Dengue fever is prevalent in sub-tropical and tropical regions, including South East Asia and South America

It is a major cause of illness worldwide, causing about 100 million episodes of feverish illness a year

Symptoms include high fever, aching joints and vomiting

Complications can prove fatal in extreme cases

There are four major strains of the virus

為什麼柴油車更污染環境

為什麼柴油車更污染環境

汽車的柴油引擎比汽油引擎更節油，但是尾氣排放是工程師們面臨的一個巨大挑戰。目前煙塵顆粒可以過濾得比較乾淨，但是氮氧化物卻不能通過過濾器清除。

（德國之聲中文網）汽油和柴油燃料之間有兩個關鍵的差異：柴油沒有汽油易燃，但其能量更高。一立方米柴油可以產生9800千瓦小時的功率，而同量汽油僅8760千瓦小時。

因此 柴油車耗油少 ，更經濟。此外，市場上的柴油取暖燃油價格較低，因為與價值更高和更輕的原油產品如航空煤油和汽油相比，煉油廠用同樣數量的原油，可以提取更多的柴油和取暖燃油。

油煙過濾性能好

雖然柴油發動機產生的一氧化碳和有毒的碳氫化合物比汽油發動機少，但是柴油車始終難以擺脫"散發臭氣"的形象。原因之一是在柴油車被強制安裝尾氣過濾器之前，車輛行駛時車尾經常冒黑煙。

柴油車加速或者上坡時，進入燃油箱的油滴加大，油不能全部燃燒乾淨所以產生黑煙，因此也就產生微型煙霧顆粒和氮氧化物。除此之外，柴油發動機的重量因設計要求也比汽油發動機大。

歐盟要求汽油車必須安裝催化式淨化器

從2000年開始，先進的微塵顆粒過濾器開始大批量生產使用。同時汽車製造商也在嘗試，通過更徹底的燃燒減少微塵排放。結果是排放出的粉塵顆粒更小，反而更容易進入人的肺部，因此也更容易致癌。

因此，目前的柴油粉塵過濾器成為柴油車的標準配備。煙塵和微塵顆粒物的排放現在也得到很好的控制。95%以上的粉塵可以被過濾掉，但是氮氧化物仍然無法排除。

從前只有柴油車才有的微型顆粒物問題，現在新一代汽油車也同樣面臨。汽車發動機不再將汽油送入氣化器，而是像柴油馬達那樣，將汽油直接注入發動機。這樣非常節油，但是會產生或許高度危險的微型粉塵顆粒。由於是新一代發動機，發現這個問題的時間不長，目前還沒有要求這些車輛必須安裝粉塵過濾器的規定。

如何解決氮氧化物問題

自從實行了汽車必須使用三元催化轉換器和無鉛燃料的規定之後，帶有汽油氣化器的傳統汽車發動機排放的尾氣幾乎無毒。通過採用了四元轉化催化劑，烴化合物、一氧化碳或氮氧化物排放量進一步降低。因此，大多數汽油車可以輕而易舉地達到美國規定的每英里氮氧化物排放不超過50毫克的嚴格限制。

配置了SCR-尾氣催化淨化器的柴油車發動機

但是 柴油車 達到美國的這一嚴格規定非常困難。這也是歐盟對柴油車氮氧化物排放值的規定比汽油車佔絕大多數的美國寬鬆的一個原因。歐盟的氮氧化物排放值是每公里180毫克。從9月份開始限制更嚴格，改為每公里80毫克，儘管如此仍是美國的2倍多。

為排除柴油車尾氣中含有的氮氧化物，可以採取一種化學解決方法。這種方法的可行性已經通過垃圾焚燒設備得到證實。通過選擇性催化還原方法(SCR)，可以清除尾氣中大約90%的氮氧化物，使其變成水蒸氣和氮氣。

與汽油發動機的催化劑不同的是，選擇性催化還原需要不斷添加由尿素和蒸餾水混合的化學添加劑。

這種在歐洲被稱為AdBlue，在美國稱為柴油 尾氣排放 處理液的化學添加劑需要經常添加。如果司機忘記了，添加劑用完時車就會癱瘓在路上，無法再啟動。

一些汽車製造商當然不想讓其客戶遇到這種麻煩。因此對車輛進行技術改造，使得車輛每次進行例行檢查時添加一次AdBlue就足矣。

東京防災手冊 Tokyo Bousai: Tokyo’s New Disaster Preparedness Guide

Tokyo Bousai: Tokyo’s New Disaster Preparedness Guide

SEPTEMBER 16, 2015 / JOHNNY / 4 COMMENTS

If you live in Tokyo you may have noticed an unusual package in the mail recently. A bright yellow handbook with a cute rhino on the cover. He’s wearing a helmet, carrying a backpack and has a pensive, cautious look on his face. Open the cover and you’ll find the following statement: “It is predicted that there is a 70 percent possibility of an earthquake directly hitting Tokyo within the next 30 years. Are you prepared? This is Tokyo Bousai, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s disaster preparedness guide.

Just last week Lloyd’s of London released their City Risk Index and named Tokyo as the 2nd riskiest city in the world. The study cited an elevated chance of natural disaster (earthquake, flood and typhoon) but also named nuclear accidents as a high risk, adding that Japan could lose 39 trillion yen ($324 billion) of its GDP to potential disasters over the next decade. And so the government of Tokyo has a clear message for its residents: be prepared.

Unlike typical material and publications distributed by bureaucracies, Tokyo Bosai is beautifully designed. It’s the result of a collaborative effort between design firm Nosigner, ad agency Dentsu and the Tokyo Government Disaster Prevention Department. The Guide’s bright color makes it stand out and a simple layout with easy to recognize illustrations not only makes it comprehensible, but actually enjoyable to read. The intuitive guide is separated into 5 chapters that cover earthquake simulation, preparedness and survival tips, the latter which includes many ideas that were aggregated by Nosigner after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami and released under the Olive project.

a sub-chapter demonstrating how everyday items can be used for first aid

I’m a sucker for attention to detail and I love how the Rhino mascot turns into an animated flipbook in the corner of the pages. Although a hard copy is being distributed to all Tokyo homes – at 7.5 million copies it’s the largest effort of its kind to date – the guide in its entirety can be downloaded online. And yes, it’s available in English to. However, it’s better to keep a hard copy as electricity will likely be out during any type of disaster. Be safe Tokyoites!

Although we hear about earthquakes the most, Tokyo is prone to a host of potential disasters including torrential rain and heavy winds from typhoons.

the guide includes a checklist of must-have items people should keep in their home at all time

being aware of the things in our home that can potentially harm us during a disaster is an important step in being prepared

here are a few things we can all do to be prepared

Peanut company owner faces life in jail for salmonella

Stewart Parnell was sentenced to 28 years in prison for knowingly shipping out salmonella-tainted products in a 2008 outbreak that killed nine and sickened hundreds of others. http://cnn.it/1itBiVW

Peanut exec gets 28 years in salmonella outbreak

He was convicted last year in what food safety advocates have called a precedent-setting case.

CNN.COM|由 MONI BASU, CNN 上傳

A federal jury convicted a former peanut company owner Friday in a landmark case linked to a deadly salmonella outbreak.http://cnn.it/1Jjaa1C

Peanut company owner faces life in jail for salmonella

CNN.COM|由 MONI BASU, CNN 上傳

ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH HKFP VOICES

Stop the waste and say ‘no’ to throw-away umbrella covers

21 September 2015 18:25

 Sai Pradhan

3 min read

Hong Kong is host to many typhoons, black rain storms, and torrential downpours of every variety. All this rain means masses of people wielding umbrellas across our city, and in turn, the deluge of single-use plastic umbrella covers made available in every conceivable building lobby.

These disposable covers are wasteful; promoting them or making them easily available is irresponsible. Hong Kong has a well-documented waste disposal problem. The use of these completely dispensable packaging materials is adding to our grotesque amounts of landfill items and marine debris. In the context of a landscape where recycling facilities are minimal in proportion to the volume of waste created, this is particularly disconcerting.

Photo: HKFP remix.

Surely we can come up with less wasteful ways to prevent drippy umbrellas? It is understandable that malls and office buildings don’t want potentially dangerous puddles indoors, and equally understandable if umbrella users don’t want sopping wet umbrellas with them all day post-use. There are several solutions that don’t involve creating unnecessary waste when entering a building during rainy weather.

A Hong Kong landfill. Photo: EPD.

Firstly, individuals could act on principle, and simply avoid using the disposable covers. Most umbrellas come with reusable covers at the time of purchase, which could easily be brought from home. If those covers are lost, as is often the case, or if the umbrella didn’t come with one, why not keep an existing plastic bag from home tucked into a pocket or handbag instead of plucking out a new bag from the cover dispensers each time one enters a building? Go home, dry the bag, and reuse it.

Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, property managers, retailers, and institutions that purchase and put out the automated or manual disposable umbrella cover dispensers in their entrances should stop. Let’s stop waste as close to production as possible instead of shoving that responsibility wholly on users. Umbrella stands can easily be placed in shop entrances. Umbrella-check services with tags available at the concierge (like coat checks) are easy to implement. Barring that, simple signs that ask people to shake the water off their umbrellas outside and a mat inside the building or store entrance would probably take care of most drips.

Systemic changes and individual actions can have a big impact on our waste situation in Hong Kong. Our weather isn’t going to be any less wet and humid anytime soon; let’s not let that add extra plastic to our seas and our overflowing landfills.

過去一個月 中國多家化工廠發生爆炸

【看中國2015年09月17日訊】（看中國記者端木珊綜合報導）大陸再有化工廠發生爆炸，這次發生爆炸的是廣東省惠州市博羅縣的一家化工廠，大火燃燒了約3個小時。據不完全統計，自“812”天津發生特大爆炸事故后，大陸已有近10家化工廠發生爆炸事故。


9月15日晚8時左右，位於廣東省惠州市博羅縣的一家化工廠發生爆炸。據《南方都市報》消息，大火燒了約3個小時才被撲滅。有目擊者稱，爆炸點上空一片黑煙，化工廠內火光衝天。

目前，爆炸原因仍在調查中。

根據公司簡介，爆炸公司主要從事環氧樹脂烘漆、丙烯酸烘漆、防火塗料、聚酯樹酯絕緣漆、氨基清烘漆、稀釋劑的生產、銷售及環氧地板漆的生產與責任施工。

過去一個月 大陸多家化工廠發生爆炸

自“812”天津發生特大爆炸事故后，類似的化工廠爆炸事件在中國不斷上演。

就在惠州市化工廠發生爆炸的同一天，遼寧新興化工廠亦發生爆炸，現場聽到3聲巨大爆炸聲，黑煙滾滾直衝天際。

9月7日下午，浙江省麗水市一化工廠發生爆炸並引發火災，現場黑煙滾滾。現場目擊者稱，火勢很猛，黑煙冒出百米高，“火從一樓燒到了三樓”。

9月3日凌晨，河南省開封市東郊一家化工廠突然發生爆炸，引發附近居民恐慌撤離，擔心再次發生天津港大爆炸式慘劇。但由於9月3日恰逢中共當局的閱兵日，因此消息被當局嚴密封鎖，傷亡情況不明。

8月31日，山東東營市的山東濱源化學有限公司發生着火爆炸事故。經過四天多時間，山東東營市政府網站9月5日發出通知稱，爆炸造成13人死亡。

8月23日，河南省許昌長葛市坡胡鎮陶樓村一個生產打火機的工廠發生火災爆炸事故，現場冒出大量濃煙。成為天津大爆炸以來大陸媒體報導的第三起火災爆炸事故。

8月22日，山東淄博的潤興化工科技有限公司發生爆炸。爆炸威力波及方圓5公里建築物，造成1人死亡，9人受傷。據悉，發生爆炸事故的化工廠，距離最近民居不足一公里，兩公里內還有座中學。

就在大陸民眾心繫天津之時，8月13日晚21點45分左右，遼寧鞍山二檯子鍋爐廠發生爆炸。事發的是一個民營小鋼廠，發生了泄漏事故，泄露的液體引發了明火。

中國有2000多個枕邊炸彈

“812”天津爆炸發生后，中國城市規劃設計研究院副院長楊保軍接受《第一財經日報》採訪時指出，潛在危險化工產品放在居民區，就如同讓居民抱着炸彈睡覺。它很可能一年都不會爆炸，但也有可能突然就爆炸了。楊保軍還指出，現在仍有企業、政府為了眼前利益，對此抱有僥倖心理。

據陸媒統計，中國至少還有2,489個類似天津的“枕邊炸彈”。網易的統計數據顯示 ，中國有1/3的化工項目與城為鄰。僅就2006年，原中共國家環保總局進行的全國化工石化項目環境風險大排查結果顯示，有2,489個化工石化項目，布設於城市附近或人口稠密區。而這個數字只局限2003年9月1日《環境影響評價法》實施至排查時已批複的擬建、在建和建成投產的化工石化類項目。

Make Hong Kong's landfills meat-free and end supermarket waste

• stimulus, package, injection, aerobics, anaerobic,...

HKFP_Voices: "While strolling through a Wellcome supermarket one evening, I saw the staff removing 30 or so packs of unsold meat from the fridge," writes Go Green Hong Kong~ 香港綠色生活指南.
"These packs of unsold meat.. will be sent to the nearby landfill. There, they will decompose anaerobically, emitting a horrendous stench and methane, a greenhouse gas at least 20 times more powerful than CO2."

HKFP_Voices:"同時漫步惠康超市一天晚上，看到工作人員從冰箱拿出來，刪除 30 左右包的未售出肉"寫去綠色 Hong 香港 ~ 香港綠色生活指南."未售出肉這些包。將發送到附近的垃圾填埋場。在那裡，他們將其分解為厭氧，發出可怕的惡臭，甲烷，一種溫室氣體 CO2 比強至少 20 倍。"

翻譯由 Bing 提供

Make Hong Kong's landfills meat-free and end supermarket waste | Hong Kong Free Press

While strolling through a Wellcome supermarket one evening, I saw the...

HONGKONGFP.COM|作者：GO GREEN HONG KONG~ 香港綠色生活指南

美研究：喝咖啡可減少耳鳴

你常有耳鳴的困擾嗎？
或許你可以試試看喝咖啡這個方法！

PHOTO： https://flic.kr/p/7X3Z79

美研究：喝咖啡可減少耳鳴-風傳媒

許多人都有耳畔嗡嗡作響的苦惱，過去醫師會建議耳鳴病患不要喝咖啡，以免咖啡因導致症狀加劇。不過美國醫學機構一項最新研究顯示，咖啡似乎蒙受了不白之冤，...

STORM.MG

Eco-houses are coming back after centuries

Eco-houses are coming back after centuries

Contact us

By Dr Bilsay Pastakkaya

14 September 2015

Floor-heating systems exist since Roman times. Watercolour by General Eduard von Kallee, 1884© 

public domain, adapted from the original.

What makes a house eco-friendly and how has the technology changed over time? Dr Bilsay Pastakkaya, who worked with fellow researchers in the UK, explains.

Eco-houses and energy efficiency

I would define an eco-house as a residence that has minimal impact on the environment, consumes minimal energy from design to demolition, and is built with eco-friendly materials and technologies – all without sacrificing the residents' quality of life.

Energy efficiency is crucial to the idea of eco-housing. If we use more of something (e.g. lighting and heating) but with the same energy input, or we use the same with less input, then we are being energy-efficient.

An eco-house derives much of its energy needs from renewable energy sources such as solar power, which can be converted into both thermal and electrical energy. Wind power can also be used to generate electricity, although it has some disadvantages related to wind availability and noise.

If we can reduce the energy requirement of our house substantially, then we can be said to live in a ‘low-energy' house. If the net energy consumption is equal to zero, we call this a ‘zero' house. If we can produce more energy from renewable energy sources than we need, then our home becomes a ‘plus' house.

Reducing energy consumption with solar power

One of the best ways to minimise the energy requirement is to design structures in a way that maximises solar gains. For example, an eco-house might have an enlarged roof facing south, with solar panels tilted at an angle that maximises solar gain.

It may seem paradoxical, but we can use solar energy not only for heating but also for cooling, such as through a trombe wall, which optimises heat gain and minimises heat loss during cold times, but also prevents excess heat in hot times.

Eco-housing is not a new concept

Human beings have always aspired to better living conditions. Down the ages, many heating and cooling systems have been developed to maintain the desired temperature of living spaces. Many of these systems are still used in eco-house design today.

Ancient Greek cities, for example, were oriented towards the south and built with south-facing windows in order to obtain sunlight for heating and illumination. Wind catchers, with various designs, were used for natural ventilation and cooling of buildings in Persia and Egypt thousands of years ago.

The first examples of wall-cooling as a heat-distribution system in buildings were seen in Roman cities. Water carried to the city via aqueducts was circulated through pipes embedded in the walls of the residences to cool down the living spaces. Romans also used hypocausts, floor-heating systems that send hot air into a hollow space under the floor to heat a room or bath.

Eco-technologies have come and gone

When considering what makes a house or building comfortable to live in, occupants often put thermal comfort (i.e., a comfortable temperature) at the top of the list.

At the dawn of the 20th century, the demand for domestic heating and hot water was satisfied by laborious and inefficient techniques and devices – especially those powered by wood and coal. The use of solar energy for these purposes, on the other hand, had the advantage that they required no cost, labour or maintenance. Many solar-powered systems were patented and commercialised around this time, and the first practical applications appeared in the 1930s.

Renewable energy applications declined in popularity as oil production increased, although they made a brief comeback at the time of the energy crisis in the 1970s. At the beginning of the 21st century, eco-technologies became popular again due to the economic, ecological and social problems related to the use of fossil fuels.

Eco-housing continues to improve, but it has limitations

The last decade has seen great improvements in eco-technologies thanks to computer-aided design and manufacturing, which have helped produce more reliable technologies at lower cost. Today, there are thousands of eco-houses all over the world built in different climactic conditions with various approaches to design and technologies.

There are always limitations when designing something, however. As mentioned earlier, orienting the building to the south is necessary for maximising solar gains, but if a tall building or hill shades your roof, all efforts for maximising solar gains will be useless.

Similar limitations exist with the heating and cooling of an eco-house. A ground source heat pump that uses the earth as a heat source requires a large area, not only for digging, but also for soil-heaping. Since the soil properties affect the system’s performance directly, you may need to carry extra soil with better properties from other places if the soil in your installation area is undesirable. This may double or triple your investment cost, which is already more expensive than its alternatives.

Eco-houses can take care of themselves

Eco-houses usually come with sensitive and accurate automation systems that maximise efficiency without sacrificing comfort. Also, remote-control systems allow you to manage or programme your eco-house when you are away.

Simulation programmes can determine the best solutions for all different scenarios. If you ensure that your house is designed and built by experts (which is really essential), you won’t have to worry about reliability, or technical or economic aspects.

Eco-housing is becoming less expensive

The cost of eco-housing varies widely depending on the design and what kind of technology is used. When a new technology comes on to the market, its price will be higher than existing alternatives. This is partly because new technology is built on expensive research and development.

Take, for example, photovoltaic (PV) panels, (otherwise known as 'solar panels'). In the 1950s, we paid more than $1,700 per watt for a PV panel with 4.5 per cent efficiency to produce 230 watts of electric power. Today, we produce the same power with 23 per cent efficiency and pay less than one dollar per watt for this technology. It is estimated that the price of PV panels, and other eco-technologies, will continue to decrease in the future.

Dr Pastakkaya is a Turkish researcher who worked with fellow academics in Nottingham, UK, on research titled New Approaches to Eco House Design and Renewable Energy Applications in Sustainable Buildings through the Newton-Katip Çelebi Fund, delivered by TUBITAK and the British Council.

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