WHY IS THE DEAD SEA SO SALTY?

When I was a child was fascinated after learning about the Dead Sea in my G.K book. I was thrilled to learn that we can never drown in the Dead Sea (Ironic!). My dad had told me why the Dead Sea is the way it is and I'm gonna tell you. Of course, I did a little research from my side too. Many of you might be knowing about this but its a light read, so, enjoy! Who knows, you might end up learning some facts you didn't know before!

As its name suggests, no organisms can survive in the dead sea and this is mainly accredited to its high-saline condition. Dead Sea's extra-salty water is also responsible for its buoyancy because of which humans can practically sit on its surface without drowning.

We all knew that already, there's no news there! But did you know the Dead Sea is not really a sea?

Lakes or ponds are fully surrounded by land and are often fed by streams or rivers. Whereas, Seas can be either surrounded by land (like a lake) or by the ocean (like a gulf). Bordered by Jordan to the east and by Israel to the west, the Dead Sea is a landlocked lake rather than a true sea.

How do water bodies get their salt?

Acids in rainwater slowly dissolve the rocks to create ions. The runoff carries the salt into the water bodies. The most common ions are Sodium and Chloride, that eventually form the salt.

Most oceans and seas have around 3.5 percent salt context but the Dead Sea is around 5 to 9 times saltier than normal seawater.

The high salt content is due to the fact that the Dead Sea has only one source of freshwater i.e., the Jordan River. Although there is an inlet source, being a landlocked lake, the Dead Sea does not have an outlet.  Therefore, as the water reaches the sea, it has no way to exit. The Dead Sea geographically comes under the arid-low lying desert region where the rate of evaporation is way higher than that of open oceans. Over the years the water kept getting evaporated and a massive amount of salt was left behind.

It is disheartening to see that the Dead Sea is slowly disappearing due to human intervention. The Jordan River is being used for agriculture purposes which has paved way for a gradually reducing boundary of the Dead Sea and an increase in the salt content of the water.

A paper named 'Environmental impacts on the Dead Sea, sustainability cost estimates' by Majed Atwi Saab published in Environmental Economics in the year 2010 suggests that the water level of the dead sea drops by 1 meter every year. 

FUN FACT: The shores and surface of the Dead Sea are about 1412ft below sea level. It is known to be the lowest elevation on land. A group of researchers who were part of a drilling project led by the Hebrew University and the Tel Aviv University found that around 120,000 years ago, before the last Ice-age, the Dead Sea had dried up completely.

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BUTTERFLY EFFECT

COVID-19 TREATMENT: WHAT IS HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE

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THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT

 "Does the flap of a butterfly's wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?" ~ Edward Lorenz, 1963.

I learned about this amazing theory called the 'chaos theory' a few days back and I felt there is an absolute need for sharing information about something called the 'butterfly effect'. Read this for extra knowledge about something you weren't aware of! (What harm could it do?)

Chaos theory is a specific branch of mathematics that focuses on the study of chaos. Chaos theory stems from a broader study of Non-Linear Dynamics (NLD). NLD deals with common situations of daily life and expresses these systems using non-linear equations. This theory mainly studies complex, non-linear, dynamic systems that are sensitive and unpredictable. 

The most fascinating part of chaos theory is its underlying principle i.e., the butterfly effect.

According to the butterfly effect, small changes in the initial conditions of chaotic systems (such as the atmosphere) can lead to large-scale and unpredictable variations in the future state of the system. The most commonly studied chaotic system is nature. The only prediction that can ever be made about nature is that it is unpredictable.

An analogy that is commonly used for explaining the butterfly effect is that a butterfly fluttering its wings at one location can cause a hurricane in a location far away. The fundamental instability of the system is to be blamed for such huge variations that occur as a result of slight imbalances. The butterfly effect is a daily, hourly, even a minute-by-minute occurrence.

This theory stemmed from the study od Edward Lorenz in 1961. A paper that was published in 1963 named 'Deterministic Nonperiodic Flow' acted as the foundation of the butterfly theory. He used a numerical computer model to make weather predictions. Let's not get into the details of his study but the gist was this:

His system gave him an output of 0.506127 which gave on kind of weather prediction. Upon performing calculations using 0.506 instead of 0.506127, an entirely different weather scenario was observed.

In 1972, he questioned if the flap of a butterfly's wings in Brazil can set off a tornado in Texas.

No, it doesn't literally mean that minor things like the flapping of butterfly's wings cause a tornado. This analogy is merely used to explain the fact that in large chaotic systems, predictions are not possible because there are too many factors that can be held accountable for change, and keeping track of all the unknown variables is not possible.

Let me put it this way: In a system, there are initial conditions. Sometimes changes in these conditions may set off a chain of events that may lead to a larger effect i.e., in one scenario a minor action of a butterfly's wings can change the initial conditions and may lead to a chain of events that end in a tornado. On the other hand, sometimes the changes in the initial condition may not lead to a tornado but it may lead to something else.

If we consider the chaotic system of an individual's life, a minor psychological fact of childhood has the potential to set off problems like depression or suicidal thoughts for that individual in the long run. 


Another analogy that can be used is that of an avalanche, it begins with a small impact such as a loud noise or a burst of wind but the resulting effect increases as the layers of snow collapse, adding more energy to the process.

There are several Hollywood movies that have been produced keeping this theory in mind like:

The Butterfly effect, The Butterfly effect 2, The Butterfly effect 3 Revelations, Chaos theory, etc.

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COVID-19 TREATMENT: WHAT IS HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE?

As of now, the treatment for the vicious COVID-19 is symptomatic i.e., solely based on the observable symptoms in an infected patient. Appropriate medication is provided, pinpointed to these symptoms, in an attempt to subdue the adverse effects of the infection in the patient.

News of a new drug, Hydroxychloroquine, is making the world go crazy over the fact that this might be the end of our suffering during the pandemic. Believe it or not, this drug has been in the market since 1955, the year it was approved for use by the US. Hydroxychloroquine is commonly sold under the brand name Plaquenil and is used for the treatment of diseases like Malaria, lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. 

Let's understand the similarities between these three diseases:

Malaria is caused by the Plasmodium parasite that is carried by the female Anopheline mosquito. Upon being infected by the mosquito, the malarial parasites invade the red blood cells (RBCs) of our body for further growth and development. Following this, the grown parasites (aka merozoites), rupture the RBCs and continue to invade other RBCs in a continuous cycle. 

Lupus erythematosus and Rheumatoid arthritis are auto-immune diseases where the immune system of the body starts producing antibodies against the healthy cells thereby, attacking and killing them.

If observed carefully, all three of these diseases follow a common pattern i.e., rupturing/killing of cells. If you've read my previous blog on 'CORONAVIRUS: HOW DOES IT AFFECT YOUR BODY?', this comparison I just made will surely ring a bell. 

Hydroxychloroquine is being referred to as the 'cure' for Coronavirus but there are two sides to a coin, which means that there are both positive and negative sides to this miracle drug. 

There is no absolute proof that this drug can completely cure Coronavirus, however, it can be taken as a prophylactic medicine. Prophylactic medicines are used as a preventive measure (i.e., it can be taken even if the body has not been infected yet). They help in preventing the spread or occurrence of the disease in the body. 

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of hydroxychloroquine for patients hospitalized with COVID-19 weighing over 50 kilograms as a desperate attempt to control the emergency of the global pandemic. This drug mainly prevents the spread of coronavirus inside the body. It comes as an oral tablet and it is usually taken along with other medicines like azithromycin.

Intensive research is still going on to prove the potential link between this drug and coronavirus but nothing has been proved so far except one fact that may be somewhat relevant to this case: 

The virus releases its genetic material (i.e., single-stranded RNA) into the cell in order to facilitate the production of more viruses in the host's body. In order to accomplish this, the virus requires an acidic environment. Hydroxychloroquine is an alkaline compound which increases the pH of the host cells hence, preventing the virus from releasing its genes into the cytoplasm of the cells. This way the virus is not able to affect the body. 

The idea of this drug being used for the treatment of COVID-19 patients came from studies that were carried out in France and China where they observed the drug to take a significant load off the viral infection. Then again, only those patients who were not severely infected showed a good response to this drug. 

No No! Don't get your hopes up yet! Like I said, there are two sides of a coin. Some facts about hydroxychloroquine will force you to think twice before you plan on taking this drug. 

Several people who took this medication did not respond well to it and were hospitalized due to side effects ranging from mild allergies to severe heart problems. Other symptoms may include blurred vision, dizziness, muscle weakness, fever, chills, painful urination, etc. It may also affect the skin causing skin irritation, ulcers, blisters, red skin lesions, sores, etc. Some patients also experience hypoglycemia/ low blood sugar. 

Hydroxychloroquine is mostly taken by patients and health care workers because it's potential advantages to an individual exceeds the dangers. 

However, it should be taken only if prescribed by a doctor. The dosage must be clearly understood and the drug should not be taken for an extended period. 

WARNING: DO NOT TAKE THIS DRUG IF YOU ARE NOT IN THREAT OF EXPOSURE TO THE VIRUS. 

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CORONAVIRUS: HOW DOES IT AFFECT YOUR BODY?

Coronavirus has claimed around 4,706 lives in India as of today. How exactly does coronavirus infect the body and why has it suddenly become such a great threat?

Well, let's begin by saying that coronavirus causes respiratory infections which means that most of the trouble lies in the fact that it affects the lungs and airways.

We all know that the main symptoms of coronavirus infection to be cough, fever, and trouble in breathing. However, roughly around 3.4 percent (as mentioned by The Daily Mail) of the COVID positive patient's condition gets critical serious when they not treated properly/on time because the mild breathing problems tend to turn into pneumonia, which in medical terms means an illness where the alveoli/air sacs of one or both lungs become filled with fluid or pus leading to difficulty in breathing. 

Among the different kinds of cells in our body, coronavirus mostly affects the goblet cells and ciliated cells. The main purpose of the goblet cells in the respiratory tract is to produce mucus that helps in trapping dirt, bacteria, and other unwanted substances. The ciliated cells, on the other hand, have tiny hair-like projections that help in expelling out the dust and other solid particles that are not supposed to enter the respiratory system. 

The virus affects these cells and starts killing them to support their own multiplication inside the body. 

But if the mucus can trap unwanted bodies in it then how does the virus get past it?

Coronavirus is hardly 120 nm in diameter so it's extremely tiny. It is made up of a capsid or a protein shell that is lined on the outside by glycoprotein spikes which gives the virus a spiked or crown-like appearance, hence the name, coronavirus. This capsid layer holds/ encapsulates the viral genome which is a single-stranded positive-sense RNA (Ribonucleic acid). For all the biology muggles reading this, let me put it this way: Humans have DNA ( double-stranded) as their genetic material while viruses have RNA (single-stranded) as their genetic material. 

The virus binds with the cells of the human respiratory system using a receptor. The binding of the virus fools the cells of the body to believe that the virus is not dangerous and is a part of the body itself. This way the virus is capable of making its way past the body's defenses. It then discharges its genetic material into the cytoplasm of the cell. 

Once inside the cell cytoplasm, the viral RNA takes over the cell and uses the cell's 'DNA replicating machinery' to produce more and more viral RNA thus, turning the cells into a virus replicating factory. 

The virus multiplies inside the cells to produce a huge number of new viruses. The pressure of viral creation ultimately puts the cells in a state of apoptosis or programmed cell death. The cells burst and the viral particles spread out to infect other cells of the respiratory system in the same manner. 

As the virus keeps killing the cells as a part of their replication process, the tissues start collapsing and falling into the lungs to create blockages. It is this blockage that leads to the development of pneumonia in the patients. The blockages (consisting of dead tissues) clog different parts of the lungs and as a reaction, the lungs tend to swell up, producing fluids that cause difficulty in breathing. 

Another way things can get worse is when the body realizes that something is wrong and the immune system generates an Auto-immune reaction to prevent the spreading of the virus inside the body. This means that the immune system starts killing cells of the body that are close to the infected cells in an attempt to prevent the spreading of the virus. The body becomes hyperimmune but unfortunately, the damage by the virus is irreversible and numerous viral copies have already been made that can travel to healthy cells easily.

As the infection progresses, the functions of other internal organs like the liver and kidney may also begin to deteriorate. This may be more like a side effect of the virus. Since the lungs do not function properly, the other organs may be starved of oxygen that they need to function properly thus, leading to organ failure. 

Now, let's understand why the medical authorities and government has been pleading us to take the same measures (social distancing, self- isolation, and sanitization) since the very start of this pandemic:

Since the virus resides and replicates in the respiratory tract, droplets carrying the virus from coughing, sneezing, or even by talking of an infected person may be expelled out into the air. The droplets can travel up to 7 ft distance which is why the main way to keep yourself protected is by practicing social distancing at all times.

The second risk lies in the fact that infected people can easily contaminate their surroundings by touching with infected hands. When you touch these contaminated surfaces like doorknobs, taps, etc, you get contaminated. This is mainly because viruses are neither dead nor alive outside the body of living beings. Viruses are opportunist organisms. The moment they find a medium (living beings) that facilitates their survival, they take over the system. Thus, coronavirus can live on surfaces for several days. 

The virus can easily be killed by disinfectants such as alcohol or bleach. This is why it is recommended to disinfect your hands and surroundings with alcohol-based products (A good alcohol-based product tends to be more watery and not in the form of gel!)

So now that I have created a sense of positive fear in your mind, you would not want to fall prey to this painful biological process that I tried to meticulously explain above. Protect yourself as well as others because every life is valuable. 

Stay tuned for the next blog where I will be talking about the miracle drug Hydroxychloroquine and other ways to strengthen your immune system to fight coronavirus. 

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 COVID-19: AAROGYA SETU APP - HOW DOES IT WORK?

During COVID-19, Aarogya setu app has proved to be the support system for all Indians. This application was developed and released by the National Informatics Centre in April 2020. 

The name of this app was carefully coined to give out the meaning: ‘The bridge for liberation from disease’. To break it down into simpler words, Aa stands for ‘without’, rogya stands for ‘disease’ and setu stands for ‘bridge’ in the Hindi vernacular. 

                      

What citizens need to know is the mechanism that this application follows to make them safe from coming face to face with any situation that may subject them to COVID-19. Aarogya setu uses the premise of Geo-tagging, syndromic mapping, self-assessment, and Contact tracing to make the user aware of their closeness to the COVID-19 ‘hot-spots’ or to a person who may potentially carry the disease. By doing so, the application can assist the user to embrace precautionary measures and promote their safety in regions where there are known COVID-19 positive citizens, thus, helping them stop the transmission of disease to a certain degree. 

The application also enables users to self-screen/ evaluate themselves in cases where the situation of the user is such that they are not able to step out and visit health-care facilities. Aarogya Setu application additionally assists individuals by helping them distinguish the side effects, alert them about the best well-being safety measures, and also gives them pertinent data concerning the spread of COVID-19.

When you download the Aarogya Setu application, you register with your telephone number and include personal details like your age and sexual orientation, etc. This information helps you to go through a self-evaluation for your well-being. The chat-bot keeps you informed regarding the latest news from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and related helplines.

 For the app to track your activities, it is of prime importance that you keep your GPS area sharing and Bluetooth consistently on. GPS tracks your location, while a Bluetooth trade happens between proximal gadgets that have been registered and have an active account on Aarogya Setu. 

                   

The application utilizes your Geo-location and the administration database to decide if you are within six feet of an infected individual, or whether you are in a territory assigned as a COVID-19 hot-spot. The application will warn you about physical vicinity to possible infected individuals or risk-prone zones, scale your danger of disease depending upon your contact with surroundings, and give relevant recommendations to avoid the disease. In the unfortunate event that you test positive for COVID-19 or are in danger since you've been in close contact with an infected individual, your information and the details of everybody you've come into contact with in recent days are sent to the cloud which can then be accessed by the government. 

Your area history is intended to be erased from the application and cloud following a 30-day cycle. 

The information from the application allows the government to generate statistical visualization of the whereabouts of the user. The government may also share this information with nearby health care clinics so that necessary action can be taken on time. 

It has been declared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the application could adequately be used as an e-pass for traveling as the transportation facilities are being made available to the public slowly. The purpose is that you might be permitted to travel just if you have the application installed on your phone. This application will act as an additional layer of screening for the citizens during these unprecedented times. 

                          

This application is an absolute necessity in India during the COVID-19 pandemic. Aarogya setu app saw a massive amount of downloads in just a few days. Everyone should do their bit and download this app to help safeguard themselves as well as the citizens around them from getting infected.

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HISTORY OF PANDEMICS AND EPIDEMICS

LABORS AND LOCKDOWN

INTRODUCTION

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CORONAVIRUS OVER THE WORLD

THE HISTORY OF PANDEMICS AND EPIDEMICS

CONTEXT: This article has been written in light of COVID-19 Pandemic to admire the world of micro-organisms. I bow down to the true gods of the Earth. 

Humans are guests on this planet. We think we rule this world just because we have intelligence and abilities like no other living being. However, the world always belonged to micro-organisms and we are immature to think otherwise. 

If we take a closer look at the life on Earth we would notice that Bacteria evolved about 3.5 billion years ago and viruses evolved about 1.5 billion years ago. So what about humans? Well, Homo sapiens have been walking this land for merely 130,000 years. This shows that humans today are merely products of micro-organisms. Now and then we tend to forget about this fact and whenever humans try to establish their power in the world, these micro-organisms take the matter to their hands and make sure to remind us of our real position. It’s fascinating to see how things we can’t even see can turn the whole world upside down. Every pandemic and epidemic is our reckoning.

Before we start, let’s understand the difference between Pandemic vs Epidemic:

EPIDEMIC is when a disease affects a large number of people or animals.

PANDEMIC is an epidemic that’s spread over multiple countries and continents.

Extra info: PLAGUE is a disease caused by the resistant strains of Yersinia pestis.

Since the 1700s a pattern has been observed where there is a massive epidemic that occurs every 100 years, wiping out populations without any efforts. Sometimes these epidemics turn into pandemics.

THE GREAT PLAGUE OF MARSEILLE, 1720: 

Location- France 

Causative agent- Yersinia pestis

Began with the arrival of a merchant ship called ‘THE GRAND SAINT ANTOINE’ from Lebanon at the French port city of Marseille that carried infected passengers from the Middle East. The disease spread upon unloading the cargo containing rat fleas that acted as carriers for this disease. Needless to say, the infection spread across the city like wildfire and killed about 75,000 to 100,000 people hence, turning it into an epidemic disease. 

CHOLERA, 1820:

Location- India

Causative agent- Vibrio cholera

Began in Calcutta from contaminated rice. Flies acted as carriers of the disease. Due to lack of proper toilets infected people, completely oblivious to their diseased state, would defecate in open areas and near water bodies. The pathogens would then spread through water or through flies that landed on food after feasting on the feces of infected people. The disease rapidly spread throughout South East Asia, Middle East, Eastern Africa, and the Mediterranean coast. Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines were hit the hardest by this pandemic, killing around 100,000 people in the Java island of Indonesia alone. 

SPANISH FLU, 1920:

Location- France

Causative agent- H1N1 type of influenza virus

Originated in an overcrowded hospital camp which was the perfect location for the spread of a respiratory virus. This virus passed through several precursors like birds and pigs where they got mutated into highly infectious pathogens before migrating to humans. This epidemic saw a death toll between 50-100 million. Because of which it was quoted to be one of the ‘deadliest epidemics’ in human history. (Not anymore! Pretty sure Corona will snatch the spotlight away from Spanish flu soon.)

CORONA VIRUS, 2020:

Location- China

Causative agent- SARS-CoV-2

We know all about Coronavirus Pandemic. The death toll has reached 333K worldwide as of today. We also know that there was a prediction made on the emergence of such a virus in an old novel. I present to you the exact words of the Novel ‘The Eyes of Darkness’ by Dean Koontz, published in February 1981:

“.……China’s most important and dangerous new biological weapon in a decade. They call the stuff ‘Wuhan-400’ because it was developed at their RDNA labs outside the city of Wuhan, and it was the four-hundredth viable strain of man-made microorganisms created at that research center. 

Wuhan 400 is a perfect weapon. It afflicts only human beings. No other living creature can carry it……”
(Now don't get me wrong, I am in no way indicating that this controversy of covid-19 being a man-made virus is true) 

Every pandemic and epidemic that this world had faced was worse than the ones experienced before. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. As time passes, humans exploit the earth, destroying it a little more with every passing year. And every century, we are thrown down by Mother Earth who, in her indirect ways, tries to warn us that Earth doesn’t need us as much as we need her. 

Facts never lie and the fact is that humans are a mere waste of mass. We can never rule this land. We are under the control of living beings that are much simpler to us and yet have the ability to destroy us in seconds.

On this note, stay safe and stay home. 

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