Category: science

  • What is Monkeypox?

    What is Monkeypox?

    University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics epidemiologist, Dr. Karen Brust, MD, provides essential information about Monkeypox, which has been in the news a lot lately.

  • Heads Up from University of Iowa Health Care: Why Vaccinated People Still Catch Covid-19

    Heads Up from University of Iowa Health Care: Why Vaccinated People Still Catch Covid-19

    Some people still get Covid-19 symptoms despite being vaccinated. University of Iowa Health Care infectious disease expert, Dr. Dan Diekema, MD, MS, explains why.

  • Bigfoot on Blood Moon May 2022!

    Bigfoot on Blood Moon May 2022!

    For the first time we watched a total lunar eclipse on the night of May 15, 2022. It was a cool night. I used two cameras in an effort to make the most of my first effort in getting pictures of the event. I’m a novice and I’m sure it shows, of course. We had…

  • Do Blood Moons Make Aliens Fart?

    Do Blood Moons Make Aliens Fart?

    I have a couple of questions about the total lunar eclipse that’s occurring tonight. First, where’s the best place to observe it? If you consult the best advice on how to watch it, you learn that the first phase (which in Iowa City, Iowa happens at 8:32 PM) is visible in the Southeastern part of…

  • Total Lunar Eclipse Starts May 15, 2022

    Total Lunar Eclipse Starts May 15, 2022

    We’ve never seen a total lunar eclipse, but it’ll happen May 15-16, 2022. It happens over several hours. For us in Iowa City, Iowa it starts at around 8:30 PM on May 15, 2022 and ends at around 2:00 AM on May 16, 2022. You don’t need any special eclipse glasses and you can see…

  • COVID-19 Transmission Level Medium in Johnson County, Iowa

    COVID-19 Transmission Level Medium in Johnson County, Iowa

    The CDC has reported that the level of COVID-19 transmission in Johnson County, Iowa is Medium. It’s recommended to adopt appropriate safety precautions accordingly. The Swiss Cheese Model is an easy way to remember: Learn more about how to keep yourself and others safe.

  • University of Iowa Participating in COVAIL Trial on Covid-19 Vaccine Boosters

    University of Iowa Participating in COVAIL Trial on Covid-19 Vaccine Boosters

    University of Iowa Health Care is participating in a multi-center Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating various additional COVID-19 vaccine boosters. It’s the COVID-19 Variant Immunologic Landscape (COVAIL) trial, sponsored by the National Institute of Allery and Infectious Disease (NIAID). The trial “will test new and existing booster vaccines in various combinations to see which ones…

  • Iowa City Nature Challenge Begins!

    Iowa City Nature Challenge Begins!

    The Iowa City Nature Challenge began on April 29, 2022. It’s sponsored by the University of Iowa Office of Sustainability and the Environment. According to their web site: “From April 29th to May 2nd, find and photograph plants and animals in your backyard, in parks, along city streets, on school grounds—anywhere you find nature in…

  • ACIP Meeting on Covid-19 Vaccines and Boosters Held on April 20, 2022

    ACIP Meeting on Covid-19 Vaccines and Boosters Held on April 20, 2022

    I got to listen to some of the presentations yesterday during the ACIP meeting on Covid-19 vaccines and boosters. My impression is that there seems to still be some discussion about what the most important goals of the vaccination program. Is it to prevent severe disease, hospitalization, and death? Or is it to prevent infection…

  • Looking Back on Gunslingers and Chess Masters

    Looking Back on Gunslingers and Chess Masters

    I was looking at an early version of the handbook of consultation-liaison psychiatry that eventually evolved into what was actually published by Cambridge University Press. I wrote virtually all of the early version and it was mainly for trainees rotating through the consult service. The published book had many talented contributors. I and my department…