Our Lips are Sealed

On By Catherine HausteinIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Italian philosopher and political scientist Norberto Bobbio argues that attitudes towards equality are primarily what distinguish left-wing politics from right-wing politics on the political spectrum:  “the left considers the key inequalities between people to be artificial and negative, which should be overcome by an active state, whereas the right believes that inequalities between people are natural and positive, and should be either defended or left alone by the state.” (link)

In 2020, scientists performed an astonishing feat. In less than one year, they produced not one but several safe and effective vaccines against the novel coronavirus, sars-cov-2. Yet, by the summer of 2021, barely half of all Americans had been fully vaccinated, even though free vaccines were widely available. By the autumn of 2021, ten thousand deaths following vaccination had been reported, and only six positively attributed to the vaccine, with more than four hundred and fifty million vaccine doses administered. This is a vaccine-death rate of 0.00000001 percent.1 Yet public health officials still struggled to persuade the remaining Americans to get vaccinated. Commentators have read this opposition as evidence of a crisis of public trust in science. (link)

Scientists and conservatives have not gotten along for a while and they aren’t getting along now. Although this may be seen as bias on the part of scientists, it is the conservatives who have turned away from science and encouraged the public to go with them.

Mistrust in science has been seeded for a while, lead by conservative business leaders in the US who do not want regulations. The environmental and public health movements scared them and they saw these ideals as eating into their profits. Conservative people hate the environment so much, they won’t even invest in it. They like science well enough when it is related to production of goods but otherwise, it and the government, are expected to get out of their way as they do what they please. Interestingly enough, the anti-science attitude is strongest in educated Republicans, who then use money and influence to infect other Republicans with this view, which is basically anti-government. The anti-government movement funded think tanks at The University of Chicago which basically didn’t believe in public good. They don’t believe in helping people. Is it any surprise that Iowa’s attorney general is a product of that?

Government is not supposed to help people with science problems because then, people might want to government to protect them from the maladies businesses have created. In fact, these conservative business leaders go out of their way to block government solutions because they want the government to look bad. They do not want government to lend a helping hand.

One mastermind in this conservative movement is the National Association of Manufactures. You can see their leaders here. You’ll note that the head of both Pella Corporation and Vermeer Manufacturing are on their board of directors. A former head of Vermeer Corporation received their award recently and dutifully repeated some of their anti-government talking points. You may recognize a business ally of Trump’s. NAM has flooded newspapers, radio, and television stations with their messaging—enterprising businessmen heroes fighting pesky environmentalists and socialist moralists who seek a fair and safe workplace. These companies donate to their favorite charities, advertise in local media, in effect silencing them from speaking out on issues. Our lips are sealed.

One recent result: In Iowa, the public harassed a local weather man to the point that he left the state. Read more here. His crime? He talked about climate change as being science. Which it is. We Midwesterners have lost our niceness and it’s no accident. We’re trusting the wrong people.

It’s important to realize that much of the anti-science, anti-regulation rhetoric is myth, a right-wing myth that enriches a few. For our own good, for our health and safety we need to see it as the PR stunt it is.

Recently, I asked Pella’s Planning and Zoning director about flooding in town. Climate change models predict extreme weather, including flooding over much of the US. He said we have regulations to prevent flooding from 100-year floods but to push these limits would be too expensive. Here in a self-proclaimed religious city, protecting each other is too expensive. Maybe we should care more about our neighbors. My property is not at much risk for flooding. How about yours?

You have the right, as a citizen, to expect your elected officials to listen to basic science and take the appropriate steps to protect you. One small step you can take will be to push “delete” if you get a voting guide from a member of NAM. Another is to adopt some skepticism. A friend once joined a pro-business group, because he had a small business, and received their newsletters. He noticed that every issue had a right-wing spin. He tossed his membership in the garbage.

There is nothing wrong with manufacturing. It’s been with us since the industrial revolution. But, like Botox, too much used carelessly in the wrong place will hurt you. It can even affect your empathy for others. There’s no reason to trust right-wing business leaders on matters of science. Regulation can slightly raise costs, but it does protect the community.  It also encourages innovation. The environmental costs of their neglect will be paid by the rest of us. Look through the PR stunt. Meanwhile, here comes the rain again.

Much of the information in this piece comes from this source (MIT Press)

The “A” word on Many Lips

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized1 Comment

As an eldest daughter, I can understand the appeal of authoritarianism. I was put in charge of these lesser beings, my siblings, by parental authority figures. Of course, they rebelled against my rule but I found that scaring them with the threat of home invasion and the paranormal—which only I could control– worked well to keep them under my thumb. Somehow, I inherently knew that making the world, or at least those nights when I babysat, a scary place worked in my favor.  I’m glad to say I grew out of my tyrannical ways. I can’t say how it happened. Maybe I decided I couldn’t pull it off for the rest of my life, or, having a happy childhood, I outgrew it. Good thing! It was antithetical to being a scientist.

Scientists are drawn to a dynamic body of knowledge that builds and expands. Authoritarianism is a form of ignorance, governing by omission of information. It’s often static. That’s why science and authoritarianism clash.  Authoritarianism most often fails, but it can last way too long for the life of a scientist. 

Authoritarianism is fueled by both ideology and prejudice and is held up by two worldviews. Followers often follow the first view, leaders the second view, and some people have both views.

  1. The world is a dangerous, unstable and un-predictable place. A candidate appealing to this group will take a dark world view. Coercing people into conforming helps stabilize the status quo. Punishing people for violating the norm is encouraged. Scary people are at the door!  Crime is up! You’re going to need weapons! This is particularly true for right wing authoritarians (shown here in cartoon) and people who grew up with instability who have not developed “openness.”
  • The desire to socially dominate in a competitive world where the strong survive and the weak perish. These people cultivate inequality and see themselves as tough. They don’t like participation trophies. They aren’t afraid to lie. Lies make them strong when people believe them. 

One important step along the way is creating prejudice. First, an out group must be identified as both threatening to the social order and capable of competing with the dominant societal groups. I was once at a bookstore selling some of my novels alongside a person selling Pella history books. She told me that Pella was once a coal mining town. When miners went on strike, the mining company went to the South and brought back black miners to break the strike, creating prejudice.

This might explain this racist political advertisement, which combines fear, subtle prejudice, and the superiority of the white, small-town life. And it’s not the only one that will flood your screen. Most authoritarian prejudice is towards people perceived as scary, people perceived as weak (lazy, old), and people perceived as different.  

Authoritarians in general support these types of policies:

  1. Leaving cooperative alliances with others. Brexit for example lead to the United Kingdom exiting The European Union
  2. Aggressive behavior to others such as corporal punishment, banning abortion for rape victims, and forced assimilation (one language polices, forced religion) which involves removing civil rights. 
  3. Belief that your country should not be criticized.
  4. Rigid stands against personal choices and public health and safety if they oppose monied interests, including those that honestly help the group such as maintaining a clean environment. 
  5. Refusal to accept evidence and lack of awareness of anything that goes against their beliefs.
  6. Unambiguous rules and morality. 
  7. Unity means conformity, as this authoritarian expert points out in a bone chilling analysis of the RNC convention.
  8. Restraints on voting and participation.

Both right and left political views can follow authoritarians but in general, left-wing authoritarianism is much less prevalent and focuses on the good of society. It still can suffer many of the flaws of authoritarianism. By definition, right wing politics promotes social hierarchy and meshes better with authoritarianism. 

Authoritarianism is having a global resurgence. Only 20% of global citizens enjoy what would be classified as freedom. Iowa itself has repeatedly put well-funded authoritarians, often connected with  Christian Nationalists,  at the helm. Authoritarianism is the way with Christian Nationalism. Every bona fide pastor should be denouncing it but they won’t because they know what will happen at the hands of their authoritarian congregation members. 

Authoritarian candidates see generous funding and not just from Christian Nationalists. Many tech billionaires in the US says they don’t believe in democracy anymore. One of those men gave us JD Vance. Elon Musk alone is pledging tens of millions of dollars per month to Trump. 

In general, traits needed to be a good scientist such as honesty, preference for group-based hierarchy (team players), and openness to experience do not promote authoritarianism and are negatively associated with conservatism. Thus, you will see right-wing authoritarians actively opposing scientists. 

Although scientists promoted masking to protect classrooms from COVID, the Iowa Governor chose to listen to and promote a right-wing mom group. In fact, I know of people in Pella who would not get a covid test and got mad at people who did because they did not want to make their authoritarian governor look bad. 

Noted climate scientist James Hansen is from Iowa. You’d think we’d be proud of him and have our elected ones consult him. Instead, our state leaders ignore him and get scientific advice from Ashton Kutcher. Extreme weather is associated with climate change, yet authoritarians want to cut weather forecasting and study because they tell it like it is.

A downside of right-wing authoritarianism, which has been studied more than left-wing authoritarianism because it is more of a threat, is that the population will be exploited by right-wing leaders and will become less innovative and less open to learning and exploration. Because they are by nature dishonest and even unaware, authoritarians most often fall into corruption. Authoritarians are a danger to a country.

A right-wing society also faces more intergroup conflict because it promotes hostility, competition, and rigid beliefs. I like football and recognize that team sports can help foster cooperation but we are such a competitive society these days that people have to have therapy when their favorite team loses.  The dark triad of high narcissism “fosters a competitive worldview.”

You can see these elements in this t-shirt. The shirt implies others might step out of bounds and need to be strong armed and removed from town.

Many right-wing leaders have emerged recently. They most often arise out of a chaotic situation which is why they love to sew more chaos and out-group hostility. Trump and the Iowa Republicans are such leaders. Trump and Republicans have authoritarian plans for education, which wipes out any intercultural understanding. Iowa appears to be a test case for Pr0ject 2O25 which is distinctly uncooperative and right wing. 

Authoritarianism is a harmful societal ideal which ultimately undercuts personal autonomy, a key to happiness and diminishes democracy. It undermines science and public health. It cuts creativity, which requires openness. 

To resist authoritarianism, point out their corruption and stand up for human rights. People who dislike authoritarianism and prefer intergroup cooperation are a diverse group of people, so appreciating some differences of opinion is important. Leave the absolutes to the authoritarians! Not all of them are not going to grow up, unfortunately. 

Most of the information for this post comes from this review article in the prestigious science journal Nature. 

What’s the missing element in science education?

On By Catherine HausteinIn chemistry, science4 Comments

What makes a kid like science? It isn’t information or government edict, advanced courses, or religion. Yes, a promise of a good job helps kids like me who grew up middle class. but it can’t be all it is, because there are times when science is routine, boring, and demands repetition, because some of the joy of science is being able to predict.

One of my favorite exercises in high school was the bug collection, which had been done for eons. I’m not sure it’s done anymore but I remember just being so fascinated with catching the bugs and classifying them.  I needed to add a twist so future chemist me had this thought that instead of sticking the bugs on pins and putting the pins on a piece of Styrofoam or cardboard, I incased them in plastic. Each bug was set in transparent resin. Giving them a category and finding their scientific name was a whole new language, and an interesting one at that. I remember one kid getting in trouble for turning in an old collection, one his brother had done. The evidence? He had a cicada in his collection that didn’t emerge in the year we were supposed to be catching our bugs. Science triumphed. Why would you ever want to cheat in science?

What’s missing in the STEM education discussion these days is curiosity, and the sense of wonder about and the respect for the whole vast natural world as compared to the engineered world of humans. In fact, respect for scientists themselves is missing from our political landscape in Iowa.

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I was just about to put this old book in the Little Free Library near the park. I paused because I wanted to read it one more time. I don’t think enough people understand what it takes to really, really be a scientist and to persist in it. I thought I might, for a post, just go through a few of the entries in that old book and see what scientists had to say about what brought them to science.

For many, it was being in nature itself. One scientist recalled being at a summer camp in Wisconsin and becoming fascinated with amoebas. Looking at the stars was the key for another. One scientist grew up in the California mountains, surrounded by nature. As an aside, Iowa has very few public lands to allow for exploring nature. The state has severely cut back the DNR. One strike against us.

The DNR budget has been cut back for years. Our state parks have fallen into disrepair. This isn’t a great way to encourage science.

According to the book, playing with batteries and wires in a family shed and constructing tic-tac-toe machines gave another his start. Some were from families of scientists, others had parents who never finished high school. There wasn’t a standard path to science. “Scientists are people of very dissimilar temperaments doing different things in very different ways. Among scientists are collectors, classifiers and compulsive tidiers-up; many are detectives by temperament and many are explorers; some are artists and and others artisans. There are poets–scientists and philosopher–scientists and even a few mystics. … and most people who are in fact scientists could easily have been something else instead.”

The scientists highlighted their curiosity,  physical discomfort when there was incomprehension and the ability to be both free and skeptical.

The scientists interviewed pointed to a few factors which helped them along the way—financial assistance and autonomy of thought. Neither of these things will the average kid get from a right-wing authoritarian. What are we getting from our state education department?

In the science homework that I’m seeing in the schools, there’s a whole lot about evidence. What’s the answer? How do you know? And that’s fine. Science is evidence based. But there’s a whole swath of it that’s missing.

Iowa has gotten overly practical about educating kids for jobs, especially ones the state—and no doubt the parents– want them to have. These are often STEM jobs. Manufacturers are even hitting up grade school kids, telling them to work for them when they grow up. But in some cases, I’ve heard students express doubts about a life making poisons and making people fat.

Likewise, long ago the now Iowa Governor came to visit my private school science department to tell us how much she likes science and private schools. I am seeing through a glass dimly here but I didn’t like her because she didn’t get science and was not there to listen to what we had to say.

Now, she acts as if she’s done miracles with STEM education. She might even be the next Secretary of Education, all while ignoring doctors and scientists. In other words, she ignores the informed opinions that scientists with autonomy of thought have given her. This is not anything to model if you want to promote science. She is a Trump supporter and Trump said that listening to scientists is something “only a fool would do.” Instead, you have to listen to the money.

Few people on the Iowa STEM council are working scientists, especially sparse are the natural sciences and basic sciences such as chemistry and biology. I’ve seen some of the curriculum and it has a heavy emphasis on design and engineering. And of course, there are corporate partners and a focus on jobs. It should be called a sTEM Council with a lower-case s. Current science focuses on methodology which many older scientists point out, can be boring. And I really, truly worry about a future where the only people paying for science are people that are making money from it. In the past, the government and universities have been drivers in basic science, the foundation of scientific discovery.

Instead, politicians publicly bash scientists. This in turn causes a public distrust, especially among Republican voters. It’s unlikely that Iowa’s Republicans will look at the evidence. They will instead, create a science-hostile climate for the foreseeable future, making a mockery of STEM education.

A Bug in Our Ears

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized2 Comments

I once was a part time DJ. I was program director at my college station and worked Sunday mornings at KKRQ in Iowa City. Back in the day, a Fairness Doctrine kept radio from being a partisan tool. The college station is no more and KKRQ moved to Solon and is part of IHeartMedia, which owns most stations in Iowa.

The conservative media group, IHeart, came in as Clear Channel. It’s constantly changing its name but not its message. It owns country radio and even got rid of the Dixie Chicks.  So much for Goodbye Earl.

As I drive my husband to his chemo appointments in Iowa City, the government cutbacks, which the conservatives usher in is as obvious as the cracks in a country road. The more cracks, the more Trump signs you’ll see along the back-ways. You’ll not see a black person but you will see “all lives matter” signs. Conservatives run on slogans. In this article, a shallow guy repeats some slogans and says he wants good roads but government out of his life so he votes Republican, even as his teacher wife points out the down side. Buddy, you are not getting good roads or the government out of your life. Dumb stuff got in your ears and came out of your mouth. 

Poweshiek County is an example. It’s got a few things going for it such as Grinnell College and Brownell’s. The later was a run-down shack outside of the county seat of Montezuma. The family started donating to Republicans. Before you know it, they had a new retail store with an opening attended by state Republicans who were a lot more wrinkly than they are now. And let me tell you, Brownell’s got a lot of free PPP funding.The funding was in the 5-10 million dollar range because they were having troubles keeping up with sales. Despite their tribulations and need of government assistance, the company guys had enough money to donate to political policy foundations.You can drive past their store on I-80, or stop and get an AR-15 or ammo magazine.

Or take the back roads such as state highway 85 if you want to see the country and give your tires a workout. Be sure to tune in an independent radio station or bring a podcast. You don’t want to get one of those conservative ear-worms.

A Brief Visit from Reverend Need

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized3 Comments

A few weeks ago, at an author event, Reverend Ovid Need  came up to me and gave me his book.

I asked him what made him an authority on women. He said, “The Bible.”

I wouldn’t call myself a Bible expert. I took a New Testament class in college but his book was based on the Old Testament. 

Here are the verses which inspired him to write 19 pages telling women what to do.

Proverbs 31 has a little bit of sexism in it but it is basically about marrying a hard-working woman instead of a beauty.

Leviticus 21 talks about tithing and how much people are worth. Men are worth more than women and young people more than old.

Here is how these verses were interpreted.

Note that he really strays from the passages, supporting homeschooling (unpaid labor by the woman basically), and declaring other people enemies to be shot down by weaponized kids.

He concludes with saying that women who don’t accept his advice are “pagan, anti-Christ, Humanists.” This is what life is like here in Marion County, Iowa. The hatred is getting intense. You can’t even go to your own book event without a confrontation.

There is no reason to consider people who believe this way to be nice or harmless. They are manipulative jerks with manipulated followers. They hate us. They consider us evil. The Bible is a very complicated book. One thing I learned in my long-ago Bible course was how many books were left out of the Bible and how much cherry picking was done to create the modern version of the Bible.  There are many great parts of the Bible such as the Beatitudes.  Jesus rebuking the Devil’s temptation is also a good section. These passages say that you shouldn’t hate and the ends don’t justify the means. Think about it, Reverend Need. 

The Importance of Being a Tree Hugger

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized4 Comments

“People want to be connected to the natural world,” says biologist Paul Weihe. Connecting with nature isn’t easy here in Iowa, where just 3% of Iowa is public land and some of this is highway right of ways. Most Iowans don’t own large acreages and depend on public lands for their outdoor recreation. Fortunately, Pella has the 83-acre Big Rock Park owned by the City of Pella! On May 18, Dr. Paul Weihe of Central College gave a multigenerational crowd a new appreciation of living “solar panel apparatuses,” those woody plants that persist through winter and have one or several main trunks –also known as trees.

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When one approaches a tree you want to note its

habitat—where it is

its habit—its size and spreading, some of which is influenced by sunlight

and its anatomy—such as the color of the bark and the width and of the bark plates along with the presence of thorns and fruit.

 Big Rock Park has a variety of habitats—a meadow, a native oak savannah characterized by widely spaced trees, and a prairie like wet meadow. Thus, it’s home to a variety of trees.

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Bark is the dead skin of a tree, which grows out from the trunk anon the tips of branches and roots. Bark is a way to identify trees, even in the winter.Above we see two similar trees. The closer one has vertical stipes or plates of bark with red fissures and bristle top leaves and the other one has white fissures with rounded leaves. They are two oaks of different species—one red and one white. The oak-hickory forest is the most dominant forest ecosystem in Iowa, thanks in part to their fire resistance.

Could anything be prettier than green leaves reaching for a clear, blue sky? This tree (below) is an American Basswood or Linden tree, used for making wooden shoes.

The shagbark hickory (below) has compound leaves and lifting bark plates that are popular homes for bats.

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What tree has double dentate leaves, very dry bark that yields easily in layers of cream and reddish brown? It’s one of the many native trees that was over-planted as a “street” tree and later fell victim to sweeping plague? Pella’s Main Street was lined with them until the1960s. See the photos and answer below.

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It’s the American Elm!

The group identified the smooth hickory, hackberry, thorny honey locust, the native black walnut—known for poisoning plants coming near it with juglone toxin, and the wild cherry with “burnt potato chip bark” and gummy resin.

We even found a deer (we think) femur!

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People can identify trees by learning from others, through apps such as iNaturalist, and from keys in books. Dr. Weihe says all are valid, but the books tend to have fewer errors.

Why should we care about trees? Trees cover about a third of the earth, producing oxygen, purifying water, and preventing flooding. And for the religious/spiritual, remember that only God can make a tree.

Observing and journaling about nature increases brainpower and well-being in kids.

Being in nature and even looking at photos of nature is part of healthy aging.

Being around trees reduces stress and hugging a tree releases the feel-good chemical oxytocin.

So, if you haven’t already, take a walk through the trees and don’t be afraid to hug a few.

For more on Big Rock Park, visit here: 

https://www.friendsofbigrockpark.org

When moms turn bad

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized1 Comment

I had a great Mother’s Day. My family is amazing. But I can’t help be a little disturbed about what “Mother” is coming to mean these days. Have you noticed all the women and politicians who are playing their Mom card when they do mean things to other women? “I’m a mom and I want to regulate your pregnancy.”

It really doesn’t matter if you are a mom, a grandma or whatever. Those labels don’t get you off the hook for your misogyny. Misogyny, hatred of women, runs deep. 

Women have faced so much oppression that naturally, some seek refuge in being misogynists themselves for their own safety. This link points out the numerous forms of female misogyny, some of which I have no doubt embraced at a point in my life. Certainly, we can have different opinions. But let’s face it, betrayal and denial of autonomy, is the ultimate crime against women. At its core, misogyny takes away choices and sadly, some females are more than happy to take away the choices of others.

Take a moment to read about the hellscape Idaho has become for women of childbearing age. The idea that you and your doctor can’t make pregnancy decisions is a blatant form of misogyny. Why do females subscribe to these views? The answer is: we’ve all been indoctrinated into a society that devalues women. Some of us may have been mean girls. We may have gotten our promotion but kept other women down. Maybe we’ve felt that a capable woman didn’t deserve a leadership position. Maybe, like Queen Victoria, we’ve disparaged feminists, because we are good girls, worthy leaders, and they are bad.

 Let’s not forget that the Nazis treasured motherhood and gave women gold crosses for having kids. Lots of women loved this and were Hitler fans because it gave them a purpose and a justification for being and a godly reward for their piety and submission to their husbands. Not to be too graphic here but these women let others be shot and lead to the gas chambers in order to make themselves feel good about their lives. That’s how bad women have it. They kill for respect. Some women who have low self-esteem and have been abused even find serial killers of women sexually appealing.

Yes, women are misogynists. They even hate themselves. Hatred of women rubs off. I don’t think many can escape it. Now it seems, we have a whole crop of female politicians and Supreme Court justices who are here to support the devaluation of female life. It’s getting to be too much. Doctors won’t put up with this unhealthy, inhumane behavior.Heck, normal people won’t either. But misogyny is sneaky and takes many disguises. The most recent is to pretend to be a gynomorph. 

The gynomorph, combining male and female characteristics, has always had a certain allure. Think David Bowie, who has recently had a gynomorph lobster named after him. Many of us love unisex fashion, unisex fragrance, and gender neutral baby names. In the past, Bacchus, the ancient god of ecstasy, has been portrayed as a gynomorph. The gynomorph is powerful, but it’s being used for unsavory ends that betray the whole concept.

Here is a modern-day interpretation of a gynomorph. It’s a female but a tough woman with a gun down there to represent her “masculine side.” How many political ads have we seen like this? The far-right, guns, and misogyny go hand in hand.Easy access to guns is part of a misogynist’s toolbox. Mass shootings and misogyny are buddies.  Misogynists are more likely to be violent.  Yes, misogyny is the gateway for violence. Despite this, politicians, including female politicians, glorify violence in their advertisements. Most of these violent types claim the label of mom. Exposure to violence is bad for kids by the way. 

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If you think about it, a woman who is willing to define and betray her sisters and/or who embraces violence, is a warped evil gynomorph, embracing the male art of betraying females and being a violent misogynist. Gynomorphs are supposed to be symbols of unity. Too bad this symbol is being used for false purposes by politicians.

It’s difficult for women to get ahead without some form of gynomorphism. It might be brandishing a gun, drinking men under the table, or most blatantly, making laws targeted at other women. I wish I had a dollar for every man who said positive things about women who hold the very same views as misogynistic men. These false gynomorphs are reversing women’s rights and obediently doing everything misogynic men would love, as this person points out so clearly. 

And don’t forget—the new false gynomorphs are wives, mothers, and grandmothers. In case you didn’t know, their biographies, group names, and they will tell you. They want you to believe that what they stand for is what a normal woman would do. Well, I’m a mother too and I don’t like what they have brought us–women airlifted to abortion friendly states to save their lives or tossing doctors in jail for example. And let’s not forget some of the things the man they endorse for president has said about women. Claiming that infanticide is a thing is blatant misogyny—it’s aimed at taking away rights. Terrorizing women is the goal of misogyny. 

There are “moms” who support the assault on information both in the forms of library bans (claiming some sort of knowledge about books harming children)  and bad mouthing public schools—because censoring and ignoring other opinions is a sign of these control freak moms married to control freak men who lose their cool. It’s sad to say but their kids will suffer—struggling to make choices and exhibiting low self-esteem. Maybe that’s the way they like it. 

There is nothing wrong with a woman being strong, decisive, informed, a scientist, a rugby player, a Jezebel, a homemaker, or even liking target practice. Several people in my family are good shots. There’s nothing wrong with protecting children.

One beef I have with these evil gynomorphs is the way they downplay the expertise of other women and their advocates (such as OBGYNS) as if there are only so many seats at the table. Another problem comes when they deny autonomy to others, because autonomy is at the heart of happiness. Having autonomy in life choices is key to adolescent happiness. It makes for a better workplace. Lack of autonomy is why traditional roles can be stifling and it’s why, people are drawn to the power of the gynomorph.

A gynomorph should be a unifying symbol, a fun way of celebrating inclusivity. Sadly, those masquerading as a gynomorph want to take away the choice and self-expression of others. Women, let’s stop killing each other, and our pets, to try to get self-respect. And please, stop labeling hate groups with the word “mom”. It’s truly degrading.

Zoonose News–what’s happening with the latest bird flu?

On By Catherine HausteinIn science historyLeave a comment

I don’t know about you but when the last pandemic swept the globe, I got the distinct impression that beyond my family, nobody cared much about my health. Here in Iowa, masks were panned and mask mandates were banned. The unfortunate were ordered back to work. With that in mind, I decided to brush off my notes from the last round of bird flu and give them an update just in case this hits the fan. 

Perhaps you recall your biology and remember that a virus can’t reproduce on its own. It needs a host which was why lockdowns and masks were recommended during COVID.

Bird flu, H5N1, is an Influenza A (A as in Avian).

According to the CDC, Influenza A viruses are divided into subtypes based on two proteins on the surface of the virus: hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N). These are parts of the virus (which has a protein coat) that are easily identifiable—like IDing a perpetrator. If you want to read more about that here is a great description.  Let’s just say that it takes a matchup of the right H and N to allow a virus to invade your cells, hijack them, create “baby” viruses, and pop the cells to release more viruses. That is how we get the designations such as H1H1 (the deadly Swine flu) and H2N3 (another virulent strain.) Both of these, and all influenzas, are zoonoses–infections that can move between people and animals.

Viruses reproduce by injecting themselves into cells and replacing cellular RNA with their own. Influenza A, the type deadly to humans, has eight strands of RNA bundled together to give our poor cells a big punch.

Here is an old diagram showing Influenza A and the animals it traditionally infects. Note that H5N1is deadly to humans.

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I’d like to thank https://informationisbeautiful.net/licensing for letting me use this for free because fewer than 100,000 people visit me here.

Many Type A viruses can creep between birds, humans, pigs, and now dairy cows. Birds are a significant reservoir of these viruses. Shore birds including geese are potent carriers, but other types of domestic and wild birds also carry viruses. For example, N3 viruses are associated with ducks.

Most Influenza A viruses originate in birds. However, not many of these are easily transmitted to people. They can be transmitted to pigs. Pigs are a common go-between for viruses. It’s known that pigs act as mixing vessels for bird flu which is hard for people to catch and pig flu which people can catch.  They create new types of flu inside them–possibly in their snouts/respiratory tracts. There are several other diseases that can be transmitted between pigs and people. Pigs and humans can infect each other with influenza more easily than birds and humans can infect each other. Pig flu symptoms are much like human flu symptoms.

Iowa is home to about 24 million hogs, with the number of hogs per farm on an ever-uphill climb. Iowa also has over 60 million chickens. What could go wrong?

We can’t directly blame the chickens. Domestic pigs get wild bird viruses when birds interact with water used for cleaning their housing facilities that sits on site in ponds. In my opinion, deregulation of such facilities is asking for a new flu to be created.

A new wrinkle is that the Influenza A virus is now being detected in dairy cows and cats. Dairy farms in Texas noticed that the cows were producing less milk, and thick milk, and all of the farm cats died. The cats are thought to have eaten infected birds or more likely unpasteurized milk. H5N1 has also been found in marine mammals and foxes.

A few people have gotten it, probably from air born particles laden with virus. Although the most recently infected person got a mild case from a cow, over half of humans infected with H5N1 die of respiratory illness. The good news is, it isn’t transmitted from one human to another, at least not yet. The main worry is that a mutation will allow this.

It is suspected that ground up chicken waste may have introduced the flu virus into dairy cattle. Did you know that dairy cattle in the US are fed “poultry litter” – a mix of poultry excreta, spilled feed, feathers, and other waste scraped from the floors of industrial chicken and turkey production plants? I sure didn’t! Besides being found in cattle and cats, this new bird flu breaks the global flu pattern where influenzas originate in Asia.

Now, Iowa will be welcoming even more cows to the state. And besides eating a diet of chicken scraps, dairy cattle are often shipped across the country, posing more of a threat of the spread of bird flu.

I’m remaining cautiously optimistic that once spring migration of wild birds is over, this flu will die down. I really don’t want to run on a wing and a prayer like we did during COVID. In the meantime, there are a few ways to get ahead of this potential pandemic.

1.     Cook eggs thoroughly. Make sure any chicken is cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. The virus will denature and fall apart.

2.     Don’t let raw meat touch surfaces in your kitchen. Cook beef to at least 145 degrees. (Note: bird flu has not been found in non-dairy herds.)

3.     If cats can get the virus from unpasteurized milk, maybe you could too. Best avoid it. (Pasteurized milk has been found to contain virus particles.) 

4.     Move to California. Buy California products. California regulates the use of bird litter as food.

5.     If you use manure as fertilizer and it isn’t from a bag that reads “composted”, compost it. Please don’t use raw manure. It can burn plants and introduce pathogens.

6.     Wash hands and clothing after touching birds. You should also wear a facemask.

7.     Hunters should field dress birds while wearing protective equipment.

8.     Take an antiviral medication if you are sick after contact with infected animals. Bird flu symptoms in humans are similar to other flu symptoms: fever, fatigue, sore throat, muscle aches, vomiting, diarrhea, stuffy nose.

9.     Other states have taken steps such as killing infected birds and limiting cattle shipments.

10.  If you have pet birds, keep them in a covered location away from wild birds and wild bird droppings. Know the symptoms of bird flu: sudden death, nasal discharge, low appetite, limited egg production, soft or misshaped eggs, diarrhea, and un-coordination. It’s wild bird migration season so keep flocks inside and covered up.

The Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, points out that cattle appear to be recovering from bird flu quite quickly. And no one has yet to become sick from consuming contaminated foods, at least as far as we know. Vaccines for cattle and humans (although we might not have enough) are being developed.

No doubt if COVID had affected farm animals, our governor might have taken it more seriously. She really was a dumb-dumb when it came to that virus. Or should I use the term bird brain?

Eclipse ( & life) in the Rear View Mirror

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized7 Comments

I’m really lucky that my kids took me to Missouri and into the center of the path of the total solar eclipse. I sometimes get the hint that they aren’t sure I’ve had enough adventures yet, having been a lowly professor who was dedicated to my job. Until this time. I was sure that eclipse viewing  close to totality was good enough. I was wrong.

We went camping at the Sam A Baker State Park. It’s not close to any major city and the crush of people they expected didn’t show up in force, although the campgrounds were full. We camped and although I’d prefer a luxury hotel, it was worth it. The park was pretty and well kept. The spring ephemerals were in bloom.

We attended a lecture about the eclipse given by a retired astronomy professor. We learned that one special thing about this eclipse is that the moon was very close to the Earth (perigee) and the sun far away (apogee). This made it possible for the moon to totally cover the sun. (An annular eclipse doesn’t meet this requirement). I also had no idea that the moon has a titled elliptical orbit, as does the earth, which is why an eclipse occurs in so many varied places. This also explains why they are more likely to occur when the Earth is titled towards the sun, which means they are rare in winter. Here’s a map of upcoming eclipses. He stressed that we needed to wear eclipse glasses to prevent us from going blind, but at totality, we could take them off.  

He also told us to look for Baily’s Beads and talked a little about solar ejections (coronal mass ejections.) The later has the potential to disrupt telecommunications and navigation devices. This is called a Carrington Event –one melted telegraph lines and sparked railroad tracks during the US Civil War. The world is anticipating another one, with a scary scenario. Using their best predictive powers, scientists are working to predict the next super storm.

We had no cell service and hadn’t gotten a weather update in days. Starlink traveled overhead but we couldn’t get a connection, only a reminder not to subject ourselves to the whims of billionaires. People asked the wise professor the inevitable. “What’s the weather going to be like?” He echoed what a man selling firewood had predicted. “It’s going to be perfectly clear.”

Poking fun at conspiracy theories, we donned our tinfoil hats as we waited for the eclipse—totality was to occur about 2 pm.

Sometimes, it’s hard to muster a sense of awe, but with cool breeze and eerie shadows, the eclipse caught us in its snare.

Moon-shadow basking.

We weren’t prepared for the weird and surreal moment of totality. Without a sunset, darkness fell as if a switch was thrown. We dropped our glasses, under the spell of the darkened sun with its dazzling corona. Had I been alone, I might have cried. Stars came out. Crows cawed. A frog chirped. Humans yelled at the raw moment of cosmic wonder. Within 4 minutes, the sun peeked out and the light came back in a rush.

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(photo on location by Paul Van Zante)

We headed for home, avoiding St. Louis and its traffic. Back roads put us behind an hour, not bad considering all-nighters experienced by some.

During the long car ride, I sat there thankful for the experience.  I was grateful to the professor and his insights. It made me proud to have been a professor. Without understanding of an eclipse, it would have been a frightening experience.  It’s good to be reminded that we really are at the mercy of the universe.  Science has helped make nature appear less capricious, but every bit as magnificent.

Killers in America

On By Catherine HausteinIn Uncategorized2 Comments

As I was traveling on highways a couple weeks ago through North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana, I saw signs, particularly in Indiana, where politicians were really pushing fear and bragging about how strong they were and how they were going to make sure you weren’t going to be a crime victim. Crime is not a laughing matter, but the crime rate has plunged and people over estimate how common it is. (A notable exception is domestic violence. )

The political billboards were showing how tough on crime each politician was. The irony was, it was rainy, the traffic was terrible, and trucks in particular were just driving like crap. Unlike the crime rate, the motor vehicle accident rate is on the rise.

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On a dark desert highway…

Trucks were in a hurry and they were doing bad jobs of merging. I saw one pull in front of a little Honda and almost take it out.  At a merge, two trucks didn’t want to give each other room and almost crashed. Another truck wove all over the road, the driver looking at a screen in her hand.

To my horror, I saw a truck driver getting out of a truck at a gas station. He was wearing slides with thick soles. My chemist danger signs flashed. Flip flops and sandals have caused over a million accidents. Not only do they fall off and get stuck under pedals, they double driver reaction time. Add thick soles and you get even slower at pushing the brake pedal. Imagine this in a truck.

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Welcome to Indiana!

That was just on a small stretch of Indiana highway. I started thinking. Really, what should be we be worrying about? Should be we be worrying about getting mugged and robbed? I mean, sure, we should be, but what is more of a danger to us—other peoples’ bad driving or a stranger’s criminal intents? What’s most likely to kill us?

The top causes of death in the US in order are heart disease, cancer, covid, and accidents. Of the accidents, accidental poisoning is the most common type of accident. You might think of prescription drugs at this point but carbon monoxide is a big source of poison. Alcohol is the top killer by poison. Motor vehicle accidents are the second cause of accidental deaths.

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Above: what is most likely to kill those under age 75.

There are highway improvements that can increase safety including rumble strips, medians, increased signage, and high friction curves. I swear, the last politician I heard taking about safer highways was Leonard Boswell, who died in 2018.

One really frightening thing I saw on my nail-biting trip across Indiana and points south was trucks merging with barely a signal. Yet here in Iowa, we don’t care about that. We have a law limiting truck liability. We have a law making it easier to get a trucking license—a national and bipartisan push. Here’s the rub. Iowa is a top state for fatal truck accidents. In fact, it ties for number one! (Indiana is up there, too, as shown on this map.)

The political billboards were meant to make people afraid of death by homicide. It isn’t a top cause of death overall, especially not compared to heart problems, cancer, poisoning, or motor vehicle accidents. I suppose one thing that makes people afraid of it is that you can choose to get in a car but you can’t choose not to be mugged. But politicians are notoriously guilty of ramping up the fear. Interestingly enough, people who are more educated are less likely to commit homicide.  (Domestic violence is also less common for educated women and educated couples.) Educated people are less likely in general to commit crimes. What do you want to bet that some of those tough on crime politicians complain about student loan forgiveness? If they really cared about reducing crime, they’d make college free. They’d pour money into public education.

Meanwhile, drive safely. Watch out for the other guy.