Brian Almquist
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geohawk.bsky.social
Brian Almquist
@geohawk.bsky.social
400 followers 980 following 170 posts
Maker of queues and stacks. Pro-ML, GenAI skeptic. Pro-teacher, Labubu skeptic. Otherwise non-flamboyant lefty.
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Reposted by Brian Almquist
radiodeadair.com
Oh @rianjohnson.bsky.social played all innocent "I'm not doing a muppet thing with Knives Out" he knew HE KNEW
'Forks Out': A Benoit Blanc Sesame Street Mystery | Wake Up Dead Man | Netflix
YouTube video by Still Watching Netflix
www.youtube.com
December 2, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
aljwhite.bsky.social
Amazing letter in The Times (also an unbelievable play fwiw)
Saved by Stoppard Sir, In 1993 my wife and I went to see the first production of Arcadia by Tom Stoppard (obituary, Dec 1), and in the interval I experienced a Damascene conversion. As a clinical scientist I was trying to understand the enigma of the behaviour of breast cancer, the assumption being that it grew in a linear trajectory spitting off metastases on its way. In the first act of Arcadia, Thomasina asks her tutor, Septimus: “If there is an equation for a curve like a bell, there must be an equation for one like a bluebell, and if a bluebell, why not a rose?” With that Stoppard explains chaos theory, which better explains the behaviour of breast cancer. At the point of diagnosis, the cancer must have already scattered cancer cells into the circulation that nest latent in distant organs. The consequence of that hypothesis was the birth of “adjuvant systemic chemotherapy”, and rapidly we saw a striking fall of the curve that illustrated patients’ survival. Stoppard never learnt how many lives he saved by writing Arcadia. Michael Baum Professor emeritus of surgery; visiting professor of medical humanities, UCL
December 2, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
wiglet1981.bsky.social
Finally getting some theological clarity on the ethics of reclining in one’s plane seat
Pope stands holding a baseball bat on a plane
November 29, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
diane.dianeduane.com
There is NO FUCKING EXCUSE for this to be happening.

I had a baby die in my arms of pertussis some fifty years ago. It was a HORRIBLE death. But my fellow nurses said to me, "It's almost stamped out now, they're all getting the shots, we won't be seeing this again."

HOW THE FUCK ARE WE HERE. 😡
jessdkant.bsky.social Jesspooka Kant 🎃 @jessdkant.bsky.social · 7d
A third infant has died in Kentucky, KYDPH adds:

“These are Kentucky’s first pertussis deaths since 2018. None of the infants nor their mothers received the recommended pertussis vaccinations during pregnancy or early infancy.”

s3.amazonaws.com/nursing-netw...
Kentucky Public Health KENTUCKY HEALTH ALERT Increase in Pertussis in Kentucky Recommendations for Identification and Prevention November 21, 2025 Kentucky health officials are alerting providers that cases of pertussis ("whooping cough") have increased steadily across the Commonwealth in recent weeks. To date, 566 cases of pertussis have been reported in Kentucky in 2025, the highest number of cases in the Commonwealth since 2012. This follows a trend that was first announced in July 2024 when pertussis cases began increasing in Kentucky to levels not seen in over a decade. Health officials anticipate that pertussis will continue to increase during the winter months based on historic trends. Many U.S. states and other countries are also experiencing elevated levels of pertussis. Many of the recent cases have occurred in young infants, and health officials also recently confirmed the third pertussis-related death in a Kentucky infant within the last year. This follows two other infant deaths that were announced in June. These are Kentucky's first pertussis deaths since 2018. None of the infants nor their mothers received the recommended pertussis vaccinations during pregnancy or early infancy. Health officials urge all Kentuckians to remain up to date on recommended pertussis immunizations and emphasize the importance of maternal immunization during pregnancy, and for all infants beginning promptly at two months of age. Health officials also encourage providers to consider pertussis as a diagnosis in addition to circulating seasonal respiratory viruses such as influenza, RSV and COVID-19. A significant number of cases have also occurred in school-aged children, many of whom were up to date on pertussis vaccination. Immunity from vaccination or natural infection wanes over time so infections can occur in people who are fully vaccinated. However, the vaccine is known to reduce disease severity, and hospitalization among vaccinated individuals is rare. The Kentucky Dep… Kentucky Public Health regularly in Kentucky, however an increase beyond the expected background rate has been reported in recent weeks. Though pertussis vaccination (DTaP or Tdap) is available and widely implemented, B. pertussis continues to spread in the U.S. due to lack of vaccination or timely boosters, the lack of lifelong immunity from vaccination or natural infection and the long duration of infectiousness in untreated cases. Symptoms of pertussis usually begin with a runny or congested nose, a low-grade fever, and mild coughing; apnea/stopping breathing can also occur in infants. After one to two weeks, the cough can progress to rapid, violent (paroxysmal) coughing fits that can cause the "whooping" sound, vomiting or labored breathing. Young children are the most severely affected; most teens and adults will have mild symptoms. People with preexisting health conditions that may be worsened by whooping cough are at high risk for developing a severe infection. Testing for Pertussis: The preferred methods for pertussis testing include nasal pharyngeal (NP) swab or nasal wash via PCR testing or culture. PCR has optimal sensitivity during the first three weeks of cough, is widely available at commercial laboratories and has a fast turnaround time. Culture is considered the gold standard due to excellent specificity but may take longer to complete. Serology for antibodies to B. pertussis is available at many commercial laboratories, however, serologic assays are not generally recommended for primary diagnosis of pertussis due to variability and unknown clinical accuracy. The most promising serologic assays are those that measure IgG antibodies against pertussis toxin only and are collected two to eight weeks following cough onset. Prevention of Pertussis: Prevention of pertussis is primarily achieved through routine vaccination with DTaP (ages two months to six years) and Tdap (ages seven years and older), followed by appropriate booster doses. Vaccination of pr… Bordetella parapertussis B. parapertussis is a bacterium that is similar to B. pertussis and can cause pertussis-like illness but does not produce pertussis toxin. Symptoms of parapertussis are typically milder and infection may be asymptomatic. There is no vaccine for B. parapertussis and post-exposure prophylaxis is not recommended, however treatment recommendations for symptomatic patients are the same as those for B. pertussis. B. parapertussis is not reportable in Kentucky. Thank you for your attention to this alert and guidance. The KDPH pertussis website includes supplemental resources, including a pertussis quicksheet with additional information that providers may find useful. If you have questions regarding reporting, testing, or prevention of pertussis or other infectious diseases, please contact the Kentucky Immunization Branch at (502) 564-4478 or after hours by calling the KDPH Epidemiology on-call line at 888-9-REPORT (888-973-7678). Our Mission: To improve the health and safety of people in Kentucky through Prevention, Promotion, and Protection
November 25, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
cpsc.gov
KPOP Demon Hunters is a movie about the importance of effective public health communication in this essay I will...
November 23, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
riotgrlerin.bsky.social
An Aliens movie poster featuring The Yip-Yips.
November 22, 2025 at 2:29 PM
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alanrichardson.bsky.social
For Canadian academics: Writing an email just now and “tri-council grants” was autocorrected to “trivial grants.”
November 17, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
womensartbluesky.bsky.social
'Three black cats' by Maud Lewis (1903-1970), Canadian folk artist #WomensArt #FridayFeeling
Painting of three sitting black cats facing forwards in a row, one larger than the others, created in a naive or simple child-like style, the sits sit in a green garden with tulip flowers and under branches full of blossom
November 14, 2025 at 6:41 AM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
riotgrlerin.bsky.social
Miss Piggy in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
November 9, 2025 at 11:42 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
riotgrlerin.bsky.social
The Doomsday Machine in The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali.
November 1, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
jfruh.bsky.social
me in inning 5/me in inning 13
October 28, 2025 at 4:55 AM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
leastactionhero.bsky.social
Dominos meme White Sox fan forced to accept Cubs jersey Assyrian bishops refuse to condemn Nestorius's 431 challenge to the use of the title Theotokos ('Bearer of God'") for Mary.
October 28, 2025 at 3:44 AM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
jeremykaplowitz.com
you don't understand. as someone who isn't inherently good at art, stealing paintings from the museum is the *only* way i'm able to express myself creatively. i wouldn't be able to paint beautiful portraits. but by breaking into a museum and stealing the paintings, now i am
August 3, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
edmondsscanner.bsky.social
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Put on an inflatable frog suit and rage against the dying of the light.
October 16, 2025 at 2:30 AM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
debbshock.blue
dressing for the job I want
two adult sized yip yips, costumes
October 14, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
moviessilently.bsky.social
DW Griffith directed BIRTH OF A NATION (1915), a virulently racist film (and neither his first nor his last one of those) that saw racist violence follow wherever it was screened.

So, naturally, there are film bros and gals who think we should "ignore the racism" and keep it in the canon.

Thread
May 23, 2025 at 12:39 PM
geohawk.bsky.social
The Moog Cookbook - Free Fallon's

youtu.be/tPYKzzjuDRs?...
October 13, 2025 at 9:46 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
riotgrlerin.bsky.social
Mr. Bean in Nightmare Before Christmas.
October 12, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
rajandelman.bsky.social
Mariners win
Winona ryder heathers cigarette
October 11, 2025 at 5:10 AM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
mastersthepen.bsky.social
14th inning. Good god.
#Mariners
October 11, 2025 at 4:38 AM
geohawk.bsky.social
If you see this, quote your favourite Pokemon (wrong answers only)
Ranger Rock: An Orange raccoon wearing a ranger hat, 1970s version. He was the mascot of the National Wildlife Federation
October 10, 2025 at 9:09 PM
Reposted by Brian Almquist
ianboudreau.com
These are called cane toads and they're a serious problem
oregonian.com The Oregonian @oregonian.com · Oct 10
Things are happening at Portland's ICE facility tonight.

Read more of our protest coverage here: www.oregonlive.com/crime/2025/1...
October 10, 2025 at 4:08 AM