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ORIGINAL: fcooke

.... while other cities like Cairo seemed to have done OK.

warspite1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Cwyq3XWeHE

That was good! A few decades ago I was in Cairo. Drinking and gambling in one of the casinos. One of my friends said - lets go climb a pyramid. So we go off, bribe a guard, climb the one with the flat top, and watch the sunrise from up there. The only roll of film that did not process from that trip. Not sure you could get away with those antics these days. [8D]

ORIGINAL: fcooke

That was good! A few decades ago I was in Cairo. Drinking and gambling in one of the casinos. One of my friends said - lets go climb a pyramid. So we go off, bribe a guard, climb the one with the flat top, and watch the sunrise from up there. The only roll of film that did not process from that trip. Not sure you could get away with those antics these days. [8D]

warspite1

My one and only trip to Cairo was a little different. You can't do it now but I was holidaying in Cyprus and we took a ship overnight to Israel, spent a day in the Holy Land, then another overnight to Egypt. When we got there we were herded into coaches with the army, armed to the teeth, riding shotgun and told, when we got to the Cairo Museum car park, to run to the door and not stop for anyone or anything..... nice.

IIRC it was not long after there had been a shooting of westerners at Sharm-el-Sheikh.....

Still the Pyramids were impressive to look at - although close up... not so much...

Cyprus has some pretty good history sites......those Romans!

Haven't been to Israel. The thing that struck me about the pyramids. From pics it looks like a staircase to walk to the top, but those stairs are 6 feet tall. I think I now need to find a documentary on how they actually put those critters together. civil engineering in the extreme....[&o]

Staying away from politics, I'm wondering if there's been a Covid spike from all the protests going on Stateside. Has anyone noticed? From reading Facebook posts, it seems that with Covid out of the news cycle, people are less afraid of going out and doing things back there.

In Korea, we seem to have a new normal of about 40 new cases a day, with most being in Seoul. Seoul was fairly unscathed early on. Churches are now being blamed for the latest cases. Here's the latest article from the newswire:Church-tied virus cases stoke concerns over new wave of infections in greater Seoul

The government has said it'll go to stricter measures if we pass the 50 new cases per day threshold. In my world, the American Chamber of Commerce is going ahead with its annual ball at the Grand Hyatt on June 12. Other chambers have networking events scheduled for June 24 and 25, and the British Embassy pub, which is dear to my heart, is planning on opening on July 3. Let's hope they stay the course.

Cheers,
CB

I believe that it is too early to tell, it will be about another week or two before any spikes will show.

ORIGINAL: fcooke

Cyprus has some pretty good history sites......those Romans!

Haven't been to Israel. The thing that struck me about the pyramids. From pics it looks like a staircase to walk to the top, but those stairs are 6 feet tall. I think I now need to find a documentary on how they actually put those critters together. civil engineering in the extreme....[&o]

warspite1

We went inside one of them. I don't recall climbing any stairs (well except on the way back [:)]) - we just walked for ages downwards and at the end..... there was just an empty room.....

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Staying away from politics, I'm wondering if there's been a Covid spike from all the protests going on Stateside. Has anyone noticed? From reading Facebook posts, it seems that with Covid out of the news cycle, people are less afraid of going out and doing things back there.

In Korea, we seem to have a new normal of about 40 new cases a day, with most being in Seoul. Seoul was fairly unscathed early on. Churches are now being blamed for the latest cases. Here's the latest article from the newswire:Church-tied virus cases stoke concerns over new wave of infections in greater Seoul

The government has said it'll go to stricter measures if we pass the 50 new cases per day threshold. In my world, the American Chamber of Commerce is going ahead with its annual ball at the Grand Hyatt on June 12. Other chambers have networking events scheduled for June 24 and 25, and the British Embassy pub, which is dear to my heart, is planning on opening on July 3. Let's hope they stay the course.

Cheers,
CB

I think it is too soon to tell - the lag time between infection and symptoms being 7-10 days in most cases.

There is a report that Tokyo is having a sudden spike in cases and is imposing a lockdown again.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-heal ... SKBN2391VK

EDIT: I got the city wrong initially.

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: fcooke

Cyprus has some pretty good history sites......those Romans!

Haven't been to Israel. The thing that struck me about the pyramids. From pics it looks like a staircase to walk to the top, but those stairs are 6 feet tall. I think I now need to find a documentary on how they actually put those critters together. civil engineering in the extreme....[&o]

warspite1

We went inside one of them. I don't recall climbing any stairs (well except on the way back [:)]) - we just walked for ages downwards and at the end..... there was just an empty room.....

The slope was about 30º so the stone was covered with wooden planks with cross-boards to give some traction. You left out the best part - the tunnel is only 4' high, so you have to walk bent over. That was murder on the back going downhill where you were near the tipping point for falling flat on your face and tobogganing down the ramp!

The reason for the ban on climbing the pyramids is less to do with preserving them and more to do with the loss of about one tourist per week who fell to their death or permanent injury. The body spoils the pictures for the rest of the tourists and the tour busses are on a schedule ...

Best part of my visit there was staying at the Mena House Hotel at the edge of Cairo, very close to the pyramids. One of the few places in the country with a swimming pool and ice cold beer! That was in 1977, so it may not be so great now.

About Cairo itself - the city was a mixture of old and new. The 8-lane highway from Cairo Airport to downtown had perfect asphalt and painted lines which the residents ignored. The rule was that the biggest vehicle has the right of way. And watch out for the heavily laden donkey carts on this 50 MPH highway, and in downtown Cairo.

I'm wondering if there's been a Covid spike from all the protests going on Stateside. Has anyone noticed?

It is the news around here, waiting to see if a spike occurs. Also waiting to see if Memorial Day festivities cause a spike.

Personally, I believe the warmer weather is holding it fown, not anything else, and it will be back.

And ... ALL Lives Matter !

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Staying away from politics, I'm wondering if there's been a Covid spike from all the protests going on Stateside. Has anyone noticed? From reading Facebook posts, it seems that with Covid out of the news cycle, people are less afraid of going out and doing things back there.

In Korea, we seem to have a new normal of about 40 new cases a day, with most being in Seoul. Seoul was fairly unscathed early on. Churches are now being blamed for the latest cases. Here's the latest article from the newswire:Church-tied virus cases stoke concerns over new wave of infections in greater Seoul

The government has said it'll go to stricter measures if we pass the 50 new cases per day threshold. In my world, the American Chamber of Commerce is going ahead with its annual ball at the Grand Hyatt on June 12. Other chambers have networking events scheduled for June 24 and 25, and the British Embassy pub, which is dear to my heart, is planning on opening on July 3. Let's hope they stay the course.

Cheers,
CB

A spike is widely expected.

Also of note, the US numbers ticked up slightly after stalling out on the decline.

ORIGINAL: sPzAbt653

I'm wondering if there's been a Covid spike from all the protests going on Stateside. Has anyone noticed?

It is the news around here, waiting to see if a spike occurs. Also waiting to see if Memorial Day festivities cause a spike.

Personally, I believe the warmer weather is holding it fown, not anything else, and it will be back.

And ... ALL Lives Matter !

This thread says no politics. Please take it elsewhere. It would be helpful also if you would delete the offending part of your post (and I'll delete it from the quote as well).



On topic, the prevailing evidence is that while warm weather slows this coronavirus, it's not the driving factor in the sustained (but slow) decline.

Following on a post by a forumite yesterday, here's a news report about the Italian professor who contends the virus is diminishing and the strong opposition to his contention: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/02/claim-c ... versy.html

Here's an article about Sweden's tactics: https://www.bloombergquint.com/onweb/ma ... ings-wrong

Regarding whether protests will trigger renewed outbreaks, I have a feeling they won't. Outdoor transmission seems consistently low, especially when the population involved isn't vulnerable due to age. Remember the Lake of the Ozarks partying over Memorial Day weekend? That was now about 10 days ago. There was one report that a participant came down with the virus, but overall no spike appears to have developed there. (Per that theory, the outbreak in Louisiana following Marti Gras most likely happened in bars and other indoor activities rather than the outdoor revelries; ditto spring break activities in South Florida.)

So should indoor businesses start modifying their High Volume Air Flow Systems to filter air more effectively [as they used to do with 'smokeaters' when indoor smoking was allowed], or design systems that circulate indoor air to the outside while bringing in fresh outdoor air?

This may seem like an expensive thing to do, but otherwise we have empty arenas, and folks sitting at restaurant tables set up outside in the street. Or, businesses shut down or operating at 25-50% capacity while waiting to see how long it will take for this thing to pass.

London report.

The Ro is supposed to down to 0.4 here now, and the transport system is still pretty unused during non-rush hour times. My wife took our new one in to get a BCG immunization (which apparently is somewhat useful in fighting Corona infection as well as TB) and encountered good distancing and masks on people in the tube.

Things are definitely getting more normal, with openings happening in more cafes and shops, and much more traffic on the roads and sidewalks.

We are now allowed to see friends which is a relief, and our nursery is open. We may begin sending our oldest in by the middle of the month if all still seems good.

In spite of all of that, a workmate of my wife and her family came down with Covid last week. So it isn't gone completely. All seem to be doing well so far, with noticeable but more mild symptoms.

ORIGINAL: sPzAbt653

So should indoor businesses start modifying their High Volume Air Flow Systems to filter air more effectively [as they used to do with 'smokeaters' when indoor smoking was allowed], or design systems that circulate indoor air to the outside while bringing in fresh outdoor air?

This may seem like an expensive thing to do, but otherwise we have empty arenas, and folks sitting at restaurant tables set up outside in the street. Or, businesses shut down or operating at 25-50% capacity while waiting to see how long it will take for this thing to pass.

So should indoor businesses start modifying their High Volume Air Flow Systems to filter air more effectively [as they used to do with 'smokeaters' when indoor smoking was allowed], or design systems that circulate indoor air to the outside while bringing in fresh outdoor air?

This may seem like an expensive thing to do, but otherwise we have empty arenas, and folks sitting at restaurant tables set up outside in the street. Or, businesses shut down or operating at 25-50% capacity while waiting to see how long it will take for this thing to pass.

in NYC we have vastly expanded out 311 call taking ability. 311 is for anything that is not a 911 emergency. Anyway, some genius got a "bargin" lease on the top floor of a 25 story building. Great deal in April, until they found out that the build AC goes off at 6PM (standard for NYC office buildings). Since 311 is a 24x7 operation no AC all night is not good for office spaces loaded with people and hastily installed computer equipment. So they quickly folded 311 into my agency cause what the hell and now it's our problem. Cut to the chase we heroically design a system of roof top AC units, big, heavy, expensive, ugly, but fast. Found out yesterday the building codes have been changed so now we need to add more outside air. Have no idea if the units that are supposed to arrive today can be modified. So, yes, at least new construction will require more outside air.
Both of our 911 call centers are 24x7 365 so they are always on but one of the head engineers told me this. You have thousands of office buildings in NYC that have water chillers on top of them that are supposed to be on 24x7 all year. You just throttle them back during the night, but the water keeps circulating. Anyways, when the city shut down many of these buildings shut this units down since it was so cold in March and April. Stagnate water in water chillers = Legionnaires' disease. Once they start these back up they better treat them or we are going to have outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease here. God I love this City. Side note. The Brooklyn NYC center is right at the foot of the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges and you have to go through the plaza to get to Barclays center so we pretty much have massive protests for 18 hours each day.I keep the police scanner on at work so when the protests start coming over the bridge or up from Barclays I get in my car and go. Good times. Never dull around here

Funny water chiller story. The company needed to do some work that required turning off the chillers. They kept postponing the work until they got a really cold day to replace the effect of the chillers. Work happens on a weekend. Come Monday morning the load on the mainframes goes up and then suddenly they start to overheat and crash. Turns out in the desire to get that really cold day to do the work, having the chillers off allowed all of the water in them to freeze, so no circulation come Monday am and therefore the overheated mainframes. Talk about unintended consequences.

The AC off after 6pm thing also led to a lot of 'interesting' discussions between myself and Corporate services when my team was routinely working until midnight to get high profile work done.

The joys of working in NYC.

ORIGINAL: fcooke

Funny water chiller story. The company needed to do some work that required turning off the chillers. They kept postponing the work until they got a really cold day to replace the effect of the chillers. Work happens on a weekend. Come Monday morning the load on the mainframes goes up and then suddenly they start to overheat and crash. Turns out in the desire to get that really cold day to do the work, having the chillers off allowed all of the water in them to freeze, so no circulation come Monday am and therefore the overheated mainframes. Talk about unintended consequences.

The AC off after 6pm thing also led to a lot of 'interesting' discussions between myself and Corporate services when my team was routinely working until midnight to get high profile work done.

The joys of working in NYC.

That's funny. Folks don't realize those chillers have to run all the time or they freeze over. No easy way out for you. Just have to wait for it to thaw I guess.

We scrounged up every fan we could find to blow at the mainframes while others tried to thaw out the chillers. Not sure if anyone lost their job over the fiasco, I was a mere plebe at the time.

ORIGINAL: fcooke

We scrounged up every fan we could find to blow at the mainframes while others tried to thaw out the chillers. Not sure if anyone lost their job over the fiasco, I was a mere plebe at the time.

Yup, we had a data center go down a few years ago because someone, on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, when the head engineer, and most of my team were offsite, violated every procedure in the book to go under the raised floor to plug in a cabinet. He tripped the pre-action, filled the sprinkler pipes, knocked all the CRAC units off line (to prevent air distribution), didn't know how to get the cooling back, junior building engineer didn't know, I'm at the Jones Beach Air Show, Blue Angles screaming overhead, trying to talk the nitwit through this and we lost the entire data center. We now have a bunch of those Move & Cool spot coolers at every site. Anyway, the same genius that signed that lease I was talking about knows about those spot coolers. They are the size of refrigerators. He demanded a bunch for the office space while the cooling gets sorted out. Couldn't be talked out of it. Getting warm today. He will find out these sound similar to a small jet engineer and are not really made to co-exist with people having to hear phone calls. Malicious compliance on my co-workers part. He is absolutely going to get dinged for this but it is going to be worth it.