Raywat Deonandan 's avatar

Raywat Deonandan

@deonandan.bsky.social

1895 followers 287 following 4859 posts

Professor, Epidemiologist, Research Chair in University Teaching. Teller of stupid jokes, Keeper of good hair, Servant to a toddler, Scourge of the ignorant.

www.deonandan.com

Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Did you really need to hold up an "L"?

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Waiting for any mayor of a medium-to-large jurisdiction to implement an experiment with a sequestered portion of that city's garbage, to see if any of the tech I've been reading about for decades can actually convert landfill stuffs into organic compounds friendly to nature.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Cow in Latin is "vacca", which is pronounced, "wocka." "Vacca" spoken backwards is, "A cow." You're welcome.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Me, to spouse: "If I were king, I would...." 4-year old, interrupting: "You'll never be king." Me: "What?" 4-year old: "You'll never be king." Me: "Well, thanks for that vote of confidence!" A supportive family is everything.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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I'm the guest on today's episode of Mark Hislop's podcast, "Political Talks"

share.transistor.fm/s/c93f17e7/t...

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Where did the rural mansplainer get his water? A well, actually...

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Remember back when social media wasn't weaponized? When it was mostly about cats trying to has cheezeburgers?

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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I used to live in Washington, DC. I admire the American "experiment". Despite their personal failings, the "Founding Fathers" put together an imperfect but transformative nation. Happy 4th of July to my American friends. Now, please don't fuck up your hard won democracy.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Ironically, if RFK Jr were the Democratic nominee, I think he'd win the Presidency easily. And sadly, as horrendous as he is, I think I'd still prefer him to Trump.

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Reposted by Raywat Deonandan

Dr. Stephanie 's avatar Dr. Stephanie @punkrockscience.bsky.social
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Fourth human H5N1 case reported, this one in Colorado, alongside more dairy cattle and cat detections.

Again, the person had mostly mild eye-related symptoms and responded well to tamiflu. 🧪

www.cdc.gov/media/releas...

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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My prediction #1: Biden withdraws from the race before July 12. My prediction #2: New Dem ticket would be Harris/Newsome. (I think they really want Newsome, but can't see a way of skipping over Harris.)

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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I do tire of living in unprecedented times.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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When/if H5N1 makes the jump to sustained human-to-human transmission, the virus might not resemble the current stockpiled vaccine. The mRNA option allows for a better match to that hypothetical strain, as well as much faster mass production if needed.

www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-influe...

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Important to note that a RAT is not meant to "detect the lowest concentrations of COVID-19." Rather, they're meant to detect the lowest concentration *thought to render the person infectious.* The problem is that that latter cut-off is not well defined for current variants.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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New Fall COVID vaccine *must* target KP.2. This variant and its relatives are showing extraordinary immune escape characteristics, really compromising previous (humoral) immunity. To avoid an enormous Fall surge, the updated shots should be recommended for all age groups.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Old pics keep popping into my reel. Like this one. This is me off to my high school formal in 1986. Either that or a bagpipe recital. I can't be sure.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Memories of the best live national TV interview I ever gave, in December of 2020, because it featured my dog sitting by the door, licking his butthole.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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I became exposed to the first name "Kinga" only a year ago. And since then, it seems every third person I read about is named Kinga.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Despite a SCOTUS-rendered god-king executive, do keep in mind that a potential Trump regal presidency is always only a single fried egg sandwich away from early vacancy.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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23 years ago, a friend asked me, "In 100 years, what do you think people will look back fondly upon from our current day?" I replied, "Democracy." And things have only gotten darker.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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JFC these people and their bottomless victim complex.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Here's the ideal higher education model: separate education from certification. Anyone who wants to learn can learn for free. But if you want proof of education (i.e., certification) that'll cost you; and that's where evaluation/examination takes place, by different instructors.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Tasty, filling, nutritious food doesn't have to be difficult or expensive. Vegan Indian food totally fits the bill, as per this lentil dosa with potato curry.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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The word "teetotaler" comes from the letter "T", to suggest "Total" abstinence. It has nothing to do with tea, which is soundly disappointing.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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The three branches of US federal government --Legislative, Judiciary, and Executive-- are supposed to be equal. I've always found it odd that one of them is 100% unelected by the people.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Did you hear about the dolphin couple who struggled to communicate with each other? They just weren't clicking.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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What do you call a sausage made from seabirds? A tern for the wurst.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Know what I miss the most about Taiwan? All the delicious fried rice omelettes I used to get from... 711.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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This arrived yesterday and my 4-year old asked, "Is this for me?!" And of course I said, "Uhhh... yeah?" So now my book is actually a colouring book.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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My grandmother would have been 104 today. She always enjoyed getting an annual letter from the Prime Minister's office on her birthday, which coincided with Canada Day.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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My spouse makes an origami crane for our 4-year old. The 4-year old: "That's not a crane. It's a Eudimorphodon." Sigh.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Just found this decades-old photo from the first day of my first job post-PhD. And no, that job was not modelling for the cover of knock-off generic romance novels.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Ah yes. Share the love, people.

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Raywat Deonandan 's avatar Raywat Deonandan @deonandan.bsky.social
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Today is also the 161st anniversary of the start of the Battle of Gettysburg. I took this photo at Gettysburg 22 years ago. Yes, I'm pretty sure this is a Civil War reenactment actor. But she might also be a ghost. You never know.

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