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Monthly Archives: May 2020

Librarians Recruited as COVID-19 Hunters

American Libraries – Library workers say contact tracing is a good fit for their skills: “Gathering information, educating patrons, hunting down hard-to-find items—it’s all part of the everyday work of librarians. That’s why some cities are turning to them to serve on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic as so-called contact tracers. The work… Continue Reading

New Map Reveals Distrust in Health Expertise Is Winning Hearts and Minds Online

GW Today – Researchers warn scientists are fighting health misinformation in the wrong place. “Communities on Facebook that distrust establishment health guidance are more effective than government health agencies and other reliable health groups at reaching and engaging “undecided” individuals, according to a first-of-its-kind study published today by researchers at George Washington University and other… Continue Reading

Guide to Federal Reserve Main Street Loan Facilities and Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility

Bracewell LLP: “This guide describes the key provisions of the Main Street Loan Facilities and the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility (collectively, the “Facilities”) that were recently introduced and expanded by the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury, and provides considerations about the programs for borrowers, lenders and other interested parties. Part I provides an Executive… Continue Reading

What’s the Difference? Comparing U.S. and Chinese Trade Data

CRS report via LC: What’s the Difference?—Comparing U.S. and Chinese Trade Data, May 20, 2020 – “The size of the U.S. bilateral trade deficit with the People’s Republic of China (China) has been and continues to be an important issue in bilateral trade relations. President Trump and some Members of Congress view the deficit as… Continue Reading

Presidential Removal of IGs Under the Inspector General Act

CRS via LC – Presidential Removal of IGs Under the Inspector General Act May 22, 2020: “President Trump has recently removed or replaced a number of acting and permanent Inspectors General (IGs), including the Intelligence Community IG, the State Department IG, and acting IGs at the Department of Transportation and Department of Defense. These actions… Continue Reading

Find wheelchair accessible places with Google Maps

Google Blog: “Imagine making plans to go somewhere new, taking the journey to get there and arriving— only to be stuck outside, prevented from sitting with family or being unable to access the restroom. It’s a deeply frustrating experience I’ve had many times since becoming a wheelchair user in 2009. And it’s an experience all… Continue Reading

From Print to Digital: Making Over a Million Archived Photos Searchable

NYT Open – A team of technicians have scanned over a million photos into a New York Times database. It took a team of technologists to make those photos searchable. “A block away from the hustle and bustle of Times Square in New York City, buried three floors below street level, lies The New York… Continue Reading

States Are Reopening: See How Coronavirus Cases Rise or Fall

ProPublica: “Update, May 21, 2020: After a story in The Atlantic reported that states may be inflating test numbers, we changed this map to display positive tests per capita rather than as a percentage of total tests. Many states are lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions on social and business activity that were put in place to curb… Continue Reading

Your ZIP Code and Your Life Expectancy

The New York Times: “For many, the past few weeks have been tough, but at least we’ve had a respite from pollution: With Americans staying home, emptying the roads and highways of traffic, skies have cleared across the country. That, at least, feels good. But for neighborhoods with historically high levels of air pollution, a… Continue Reading

America’s Patchwork Pandemic and CDCs compounding mistakes

Via The Atlantic see – America’s Patchwork Pandemic Is Fraying Even Further – “The coronavirus is coursing through different parts of the U.S. in different ways, making the crisis harder to predict, control, or understand..This pattern exists because different states have experienced the coronavirus pandemic in very different ways. In the most severely pummeled places,… Continue Reading