Moon Salad on the Menu

Plants grown in simulated lunar soil on the left and in Apollo sample on the right, seen 16 days after planting.
Credit: Tyler Jones, UF/IFAS

Well, not exactly. Scientists recently grew plants in lunar soil for the first time in history. The lunar soil, also called moon dust, was brought back from three Apollo missions. Scientists from the University of Florida planted thale cress in the moon dust and compared the growth to materials found on Earth’s surface, such as volcanic ash. Thale cress is a small, bitter-tasting plant similar to broccoli, cauliflower, and kale. After two days, the seeds had germinated (grown). However, the plants in moon soil did not thrive compared to the plants in Earth soil after six days.

Lunar soil is very different from the soil on Earth. Soil is the mixture of minerals, organic matter, and other materials that covers most of Earth’s land. Soil is a storehouse of nutrients and the decayed remains of organisms (living things). Lunar soil is more dusty and is not made up of decayed organisms, so it does not contain as many nutrients compared to soil found on Earth. Impacts of micrometeoroids (tiny meteoroids‘) grind the surface rocks into a fine, dusty powder known as regolith. Regolith overlies all the bedrock on the moon. Because regolith forms as a result of exposure to space, the longer a rock is exposed, the thicker the regolith that forms on it.

National Aeronautics and Space Association (NASA) granted the scientists 12 grams of lunar soil for the experiment because it is precious and cannot be wasted. The soil brought back from Apollo 11 was not as strong as the soil brought back from Apollo 12 and 17. The scientists believe soil from Apollo 11 was damaged by cosmic rays and radiation from solar wind on the moon’s surface. Scientists have already started planning where they could find better moon soil where lava flow has enriched the soil.

For years, scientists have wondered whether the moon could support life. If humans were to survive on the moon permanently, they would need to grow plants for food. Although the experiment did not prove that the moon could sustain life, it gives hope that there could be vegetation on the moon someday. We are one step closer to growing an herb garden on the moon!

Tags: food growth, lunar soil, moon, moon dust, plants, science

What is Monkeypox?

An electron microscope shows monkeypox virus particles.
Credit: Cynthia S. Goldsmith and Russell Regnery, CDC

On May 13, 2022, the World Health Organization was notified of two confirmed cases of monkeypox in the United Kingdom. Not the chickenpox, monkeypox! Since then, cases have been detected in Canada, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United States. Many people are now asking: what is monkeypox and how bad is it?

Monkeypox is a viral disease that affects animals and, in rare cases, human beings. Scientists first isolated and identified the monkeypox virus from laboratory monkeys in 1958. They obtained it from monkeys that had an unusual rash of skin pustules (small bumps filled with fluid). Historically, such pustules were called pox, leading to the name monkeypox. Other animals, including rats, squirrels, and mice, can also carry monkeypox.

People that eat or get bitten by infected animals can catch monkeypox, but the virus does not spread easily from person to person. The disease is uncommon in human beings. The first human case of monkeypox was not recorded until 1970.

Monkeypox occurs naturally among wild animal populations of central and western Africa. Since the 1970’s, it has caused occasional outbreaks of illness among people in the region. In 2003, 71 people in Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin became ill with confirmed or suspected cases of monkeypox. They caught the disease after handling prairie dogs that were purchased at a pet shop in Illinois. Prairie dogs do not naturally carry the monkeypox virus. The animals became infected at the pet shop, where they were housed with a rodent called a Gambian giant rat that carried the virus. An animal dealer had imported the rat from Africa to sell it as a pet.

Several people were hospitalized in the 2003 outbreak, but there were no deaths. Physicians and veterinarians quickly quarantined (isolated) people and animals that might have been exposed to the virus. This action was designed to prevent the disease from spreading to other people, pets, or wild animals. Following the outbreak, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned the importation of rodents from Africa. They also banned the transport and sale of prairie dogs and African rodents within the United States.

Symptoms of the disease develop about two weeks after a person is exposed to the monkeypox virus. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle pain, backache, and swelling of lymph nodes. Following the fever, a rash appears on the face and other parts of the body. The rash develops into fluid-filled pustules, which dry up and fall off. The illness lasts from two to four weeks. In Africa, from 1 percent to 10 percent of people infected with monkeypox die from the disease.

Physicians suspect monkeypox if a person shows the symptoms and has had contact with an infected person or animal. Laboratory tests are used to detect the monkeypox virus in samples from blood, pustules, or scabs of patients.

People can prevent infection by not handling wild animals that may carry the virus. The monkeypox virus is related to the virus that causes smallpox. Smallpox vaccine can protect against monkeypox when it is given before a person is exposed to the virus. Smallpox vaccination given after exposure to monkeypox may help prevent the disease or make it less severe. However, because the disease is uncommon, health officials do not recommend widespread smallpox vaccination to protect people from monkeypox.

Tags: infection, monkeypox, pox, virus, world health organization

Asian and Pacific Heritage Month: Filmmaker Taika Waititi

New Zealand Filmmaker Taika Waititi
Credit: © Xavier Collin, Image Press Agency/Alamy Images

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. All month long, Behind the Headlines will celebrate the accomplishments and heritage of Asians and Pacific Islanders.

Taika Waititi is a New Zealand filmmaker known for his comedies. In 2020, he became the first person of Māori ancestry to win an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. He won for the motion picture Jojo Rabbit (2019), based on the novel Caging Skies (2008) by Christine Leunens. He was also the first Indigenous (native) writer to be nominated for an Academy Award for a screenplay. Jojo Rabbit tells the story of a German boy whose mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home during World War II (1939-1945). The boy struggles with his beliefs in Nazism and anti-Semitism (prejudice against Jews). He confronts these ideas in part in the form of his imaginary friend, a buffoonish Adolf Hitler, played by Waititi in the film.

Taika Cohen was born on Aug. 16, 1975, in Raukokore, on the North Island of New Zealand. For his professional career, he later adopted the surname of his father, the Māori artist Taika Waititi, who also went by Tiger. Taika means tiger in the Māori language. The young Taika grew up in Wellington with his mother, the educator Robin Cohen. He graduated from Victoria University of Wellington in 1997 with a degree in theater and arts. At the school, he formed a comedy duo called The Humourbeasts with the comic musician Jemaine Clement. Waititi later directed and wrote a few episodes of the television series “The Flight of the Conchords” (2007-2009) in which Clement co-starred with Bret McKenzie.

Waititi made his screen acting debut in the motion picture Scarfies (1999). He showed his first short film, John & Pogo (2002), at the New Zealand International Film Festival. His next short film, Two Cars, One Night (2003), was nominated for an Academy Award. Waititi’s first feature-length film was Eagle vs. Shark (2007). Both Eagle vs. Shark and his second feature film, Boy (2010), premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Boy is a comedy-drama about the reunion of a Māori son with his father, played by Waititi. Waititi wrote and directed Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016). It surpassed Boy as the highest-grossing New Zealand-made film of all time.

Waititi and Clement co-wrote, co-directed, and starred in the short film What We Do in the Shadows: Interviews with Some Vampires (2005). It was expanded into a mockumentary (satirical documentary) film What We Do in the Shadows (2014), followed by a television series of the same name starting in 2019.

Waititi directed the Marvel Studios film Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and its sequel Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), which he also cowrote. He provided the voice for the rocklike warrior Korg in these and other Marvel Studios productions. Waititi has also worked on projects set in the “Star Wars” universe. Starting in 2022, he produced the comedy series “Our Flag Means Death.” The show follows Stede Bonnet, an aristocrat turned pirate who sailed with the famous Blackbeard, played by Waititi.

Tags: aboriginal people of australia, asian american and pacific islander heritage month, filmmaking, indigenous people, Māori, new zealand, taika waititi

National Rescue Dog Day

Dogs are playful animals that have lived with people as pets for more than 10,000 years, longer than any other animal. 
Credit: © Jean Frooms, Shutterstock

Today, May 20, is National Rescue Dog Day! You probably know a rescue dog in your neighborhood. Dogs are considered rescue dogs when they are adopted from shelters, humane societies, or found in unfortunate situations. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals (ASPCA) reports over 3.3 million dogs enter shelters in the United States every year. They take in dogs of all sizes, breeds, ages, and colors.

Dogs have lived with people as pets for more than 14,000 years, longer than any other animal. During that time, breeders have developed about 400 dog breeds to perform various tasks, provide companionship, and please the human eye.

Pets depend on their owners
Credit: (c) Ariel Skelley, Corbis

If you are looking to get a dog, you have many options. You can find a breeder and buy a purebred or designer dog. You can also adopt a dog from a shelter! The chief advantage of selecting a purebred pup is that you know how the dog will look when it is grown. Purebred dogs, however, suffer from many inherited diseases. For this reason, you should buy a purebred dog only from an experienced breeder with a good reputation. You should also find out as much as you can about the dog’s parents and their ancestors. A veterinarian may also recommend good breeders and help you choose a healthy dog. Be careful where you look for a puppy, because you might end up supporting a puppy mill. Puppy mills are breeding facilities that can cause suffering to dogs through overbreeding and neglect. Overbreeding and neglect are considered animal cruelty.

If you aren’t committed to a certain breed, you can find a companion in a mixed-breed dog. The best thing about mixed-breed dogs is that each one is unique. Mutts come in every size, shape, and color. However, it may be difficult to predict the adult size and appearance of a mixed-breed puppy. Humane societies and animal shelters have good selections of mixed-breed dogs. Adopting an adult or senior dog can save the dog’s life. You can offer the dog a safe and loving home for the rest of its years.

Rescue dogs have sometimes gone through traumatic situations and may take time and patience to calm down. National Rescue Dog Day was founded by Lisa Wiehebrink after she rescued her dog Cooper from a shelter in Los Angeles, California. Before he was adopted, Cooper was found in an abandoned lot. Under Wiehebrink’s care, Cooper became a loving, fun, and loyal pet. She decided more people should know how many rescue dogs need a caring home. It is estimated that more than 1 million rescue dogs are euthanized in the United States every year because shelters become overcrowded. You can save a dog’s life by heading to your local shelter to adopt a tail-wagging rescue dog!

If you want to help out a rescue dog today, check out your local animal shelter. You can volunteer, donate supplies such as dog food or dog beds, adopt a dog, or foster a dog. When you foster a dog, you take care of it in your home until someone adopts it, making sure the shelters have enough room to care for all the abandoned dogs in a safe, healthy, and loving manner. If you rescue a dog, you might end up asking yourself “Who rescued who?”

Tags: animal shelter, dogs, humane society, national rescue dog day, rescue dog

Spotlight: Rap Artist Doja Cat

Musician Doja Cat
Credit: © UPI/Alamy Images

From the Grammy Awards to the Billboard Music Awards, Doja Cat has been winning all year long. Doja Cat is an American rapper, songwriter, and music producer. She rose to fame in 2018 after releasing the single “Mooo!” on the video-sharing website YouTube.

Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini was born on Oct. 21, 1995, in Tarzana, outside Los Angeles, California, to a Jewish American mother and South African father. Her mother, Deborah Sawyer, worked as a graphic designer. Her father, Dumisani Dlamini, was an actor in New York. Doja Cat lived with her grandmother in Rye, New York, northeast of New York City, for five years before moving to Sai Anantam Ashram with her mother and brother. The ashram was a Hindu worship community run by the musician Alice Coltrane outside of Santa Monica, California. Dlamini’s family then moved to Oak Park, California. Dlamini studied dance and piano throughout her childhood. She attended high school in Los Angeles, dropping out in her junior year.

In 2013, Dlamini began releasing songs on the music-sharing website SoundCloud under the name Doja Cat. The American producer Yeti Beats invited Doja Cat to record in his studio after hearing her song “So High” (2014). Through Yeti Beats, Doja Cat signed a contract with Kemosabe Records, part of RCA Records, in 2014. That same year Doja Cat released her first EP “Purrr!” and a series of singles. EP stands for extended play and is a type of musical recording that includes several songs but is not considered a full-length album. She released the music video “Mooo!” in 2018. The single went viral—expanding rapidly in popularity—on YouTube. Doja Cat released her debut album, Amala, in 2018. Her other albums include Hot Pink (2019) and Planet Her (2021).

Doja Cat has received many music awards. In 2022, she won her first Grammy Award, for the song “Kiss Me More” featuring the American singer SZA. At the 2022 Billboard Music Awards on Sunday, May 15, Doja Cat won four awards, including top R&B artist.

Tags: billboard, doja cat, grammy awards, music, musician, producer, rapper, rhythm and blues, soundcloud

Asian and Pacific Heritage Month: K-Pop

Members of the South Korean pop group BLACKPINK are, left to right, Rosé, Lisa, Jennie, and Jisoo.
Credit: © Imaginechina Limited/Alamy Images

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. All month long, Behind the Headlines will celebrate the accomplishments and heritage of Asians and Pacific Islanders.

Blackpink is an all-girl K-pop (Korean pop) music group that gained international fame in the late 2010’s. K-pop is a term used to describe music and artists originating in South Korea’s popular music industry. The most prominent K-pop acts generally are boy bands and girl groups with 5 to 10 members, but there also are smaller acts and many K-pop soloists. K-pop groups usually are formed and managed by entertainment companies that seek out talented individuals to present as artists after long periods of training. Many K-pop idols also pursue acting, modeling, and other careers.

Blackpink became known for its dancing, fashion, vocals, and eye-catching music videos. Blackpink is also known for its base of devoted fans, called “Blinks,” made up primarily of young women all over the world. Blackpink’s music combines elements of rap , hip-hop , pop, and electronic dance music (EDM). The group’s vocals are mainly in Korean, but it also has lyrics in English and Japanese.

Blackpink was formed by the South Korean music executive and record producer Yang Hyun-suk, also known as YG. The four members of the group are Jennie (born Kim Je-ni), Jisoo (Kim Ji-soo), Lisa (Lalisa Manoban), and Rosé (Roseanne Park). The group’s first release was a single titled Square One (2016), which included the songs “Boombayah” and “Whistle.” Since then, Blackpink has released many successful recordings. The group’s debut album was the mini album Square Up (2018). In June 2018, Blackpink became the first all-female K-pop group to reach number one on Billboard magazine’s “Emerging Artists” chart. Later that year, the group released its first full-length studio album, Blackpink in Your Area.

Blackpink’s popularity spread through the video-sharing website YouTube . In 2018, the group released a music video for the song “Ddu-Du Ddu-Du.” It reached 1 billion views on YouTube. The viral video also helped Blackpink to become the first K-pop group to reach 20 million YouTube subscribers, in March 2019. In 2020, Blackpink released its second studio album, The Album. It included the collaborations “Ice Cream,” featuring Selena Gomez , and “Bet You Wanna,” featuring Cardi B . The group has also collaborated on singles with other performers, including Lady Gaga .

Members of the South Korean pop group BTS are, left to right, front row: Suga and V. Back row: J-Hope, RM, Jin, Jimin, and Jungkook.
Credit: © RB/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images/Getty Images

BTS, also known as Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean pop music group that gained international fame in the mid-2010’s. The group is known for its expressive vocals, stylish image, sharp dance moves, and strong fan base and social media presence. BTS combines elements of rap, hip-hop , pop, and EDM. The group also is known for its lyrics about the challenges that young people face. The group’s vocals are mainly in Korean. It also performs lyrics in English and Japanese.

The members of the group are J-Hope (born Jung Ho-seok), Jimin (Park Ji-min), Jin (Kim Seok-jin), Jungkook (Jeon Jeong-guk), RM (Kim Nam-joon), Suga (Min Yoon-gi), and V (Kim Tae-hyung). BTS was formed by the South Korean music producer and record executive Bang Si-hyuk. The group’s first single was “No More Dream” (2013). The song deals with the pressures many young Koreans feel from their culture and society. Since 2013, the group has released many successful recordings. The band’s first full-length studio album was Dark & Wild (2014).

In 2017, BTS released the popular EP (extended play recording) Love Yourself: Her. An EP contains several songs but is not considered a full-length album. The EP’s songs “DNA” and “Mic Drop” became the first tracks by a Korean group to be certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). RIAA presents a gold record to an artist who sells 500,000 copies of an album. The group’s single “Idol” (2018) also became a huge hit. That same year, BTS became the first K-pop (Korean pop) group to reach number 1 on Billboard magazine’s “Billboard 200″ music chart, with its album Love Yourself: Tear (2018).

In 2019, the video for the group’s single “Boy with Luv” (featuring the American singer-songwriter Halsey) became the most-viewed debut in the history of the video-sharing website YouTube. The group’s full-length studio album Map of the Soul: 7 (2020) also reached number 1 on the “Billboard 200.” Later in 2020, the group released the single “Dynamite,” making BTS the first South Korean pop act to debut at number 1 on the Billboard “Hot 100″ chart. It was also the first song the group recorded entirely in English.

BTS also has worked on projects with other musicians, including the American rap musician Nicki Minaj, the American electronic musician Steve Aoki, and the American rap musician Desiigner. In addition, some BTS members have released solo recordings.

Tags: blackpink, bts, k-pop, korean pop

W Boson Weighs in Heavy

A particle detector helps scientists study subatomic particles. Physicists at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Ill., use this detector to record information about particles produced in collisions between beams of protons and beams of antiprotons.
Credit: Fermilab Visual Media Services

Particle physicists are buzzing about a hefty discovery. In April 2022, researchers at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (also known as Fermilab) announced that a particle called the W boson appears to have slightly more mass than expected. Their results were published in the journal Science.

Bosons are particles that transmit forces between other particles. As particles go, bosons are much less popular than their cousins the fermions, which make up matter. The W boson carries the weak nuclear force, which is involved in the decay (breakdown) of some radioactive atoms.

A particle accelerator helps scientists study electricity and the building blocks of matter. The accelerator at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois, accelerates protons to almost the speed of light in an underground tunnel, shown here.
Credit: Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory

So who cares about a chunky boson? Physicists do. Modern physics is based largely on a theory called the Standard Model. The Standard Model includes a family tree of particles and can be used to make predictions about their properties. Most of these predictions have turned out to be highly accurate. A deviation in the mass of the W boson, if confirmed, could hint at the existence of unknown particles or other revisions to the Standard Model.

Physicists study particles in giant devices called particle accelerators. As the name suggests, these devices accelerate particles to extremely high speeds. They then smash them together to study any particles created in the collision.

The experiments in question were conducted in an accelerator called the Tevatron. The device smashed positively charged particles called protons into anti-protons, their antimatter counterparts. About one in 10 million such collisions create a W boson. It took the scientists 10 years to collect enough data.

The Tevatron was shut down in 2011. But it took another 10 years to properly analyze all that data. The results suggest that the W boson is 0.1 percent heavier than expected. That’s about as much as your weight might vary if measured before and after lunch. But for extremely precise particle measurements, it may be just enough to alter our understanding of the universe.

Tags: fermi national accelerator laboratory, fermilab, particle accelerator, particle physicist, w boson

Endurance Uncovered

The Endurance shipwreck was photographed at the bottom of the Weddell Sea, east of the Antarctic Peninsula. The photo shows the stern (back) of the ship.
Credit: © Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust/National Geographic

In a testament to its name, the legendary Endurance is in one piece after sinking off the coast of Antarctica 107 years ago. On March 5, 2022, a search expedition organized by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust discovered the shipwreck of the Endurance. It was at the bottom of the Weddell Sea, east of the Antarctic Peninsula in the Southern Ocean, about 4 miles (6 kilometers) from its last position as recorded by its captain. The ship’s hull (body) was largely intact. Under the international Antarctic Treaty, the ship was protected as a historic site and monument and left undisturbed.

The expedition which took off at the beginning of World War I (1914-1918) was led by Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton. Shackleton was a British explorer who made four journeys to Antarctica. In 1909, he came within 97 nautical miles (about 110 miles or 180 kilometers) of the south geographic pole, sometimes called simply the South Pole. Shackleton measured in nautical miles, because he wanted to reach a point within 100 miles of the pole. It was the farthest point south any expedition had reached. Shackleton also is known for a heroic rescue mission that he undertook in 1915-1916.

Shackleton was born on Feb. 15, 1874, in Kilkea, County Kildare, Ireland, then part of the United Kingdom. His family moved to London, England, when he was a child. Shackleton was educated at Dulwich College in London. He joined the British merchant marine when he was 16 years old and served for about 10 years.

From 1901 to 1903, Shackleton served on an Antarctic expedition led by the British explorer Robert Falcon Scott. Shackleton was part of a small party that trekked across the Ross Ice Shelf. The group reached a point about 530 miles (850 kilometers) from the south geographic pole. It was the farthest south that anyone had gone. After returning to the United Kingdom, Shackleton worked as a journalist and as secretary of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society while raising funds for his own expedition. In 1906, he ran unsuccessfully for Parliament.

From 1907 to 1909, Shackleton led his British Antarctic Expedition. Shackleton and three of his men traveled overland from Ross Island toward the south geographic pole. On Jan. 9, 1909, they reached a latitude of 88 degrees 23 minutes, more than 400 miles (600 kilometers) closer to the pole than Scott’s expedition had gotten. Another small party traveled north from Ross Island and came close to reaching the south magnetic pole. Members of the expedition also made the first ascent of Mount Erebus, on Ross Island, in 1908, as well as the first motion pictures of Antarctica. Shackleton returned to England a hero and was knighted.

Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914-1917 did not accomplish its goal of crossing the continent from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea. However, it became one of history’s great stories of survival. Shackleton’s ship, the Endurance, became trapped in ice in the Weddell Sea near the coast of Antarctica in January 1915. It drifted north for about 10 months before it finally was crushed by the ice and sank on Nov. 21, 1915. The crew had abandoned the ship in late October, and they camped on floating ice for several months. In April 1916, they traveled in small boats to desolate Elephant Island, off the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Leaving 22 men on Elephant Island, Shackleton and five companions then made a daring open-boat journey of 800 miles (1,300 kilometers). They sailed northeast and reached the island of South Georgia in 17 days. Shackleton and two men trekked across the island’s snowy mountains for 36 hours to get help at a whaling station. It took until August 1916 to reach the 22 men stranded on Elephant Island, but the entire expedition of 28 men was rescued.

Shackleton served with British forces in Russia near the end of World War I. He set out once more for Antarctica in September 1921. However, he died of a heart attack on his ship in Grytviken Harbour, South Georgia, on Jan. 5, 1922. Shackleton wrote about his adventures in the books The Heart of the Antarctic (1909) and South (1919).

Tags: antarctica, endurance, expedition, shipwreck, sir ernest henry shackleton, south pole

Asian and Pacific Heritage Month: Shang-Chi

Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) in Marvel Studios’ Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Credit: © Walt Disney Studios

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. All month long, Behind the Headlines will feature AAPI pioneers in a variety of areas.

Marvel’s newest superhero and first-ever Asian lead has actually been around for a while. Shang-Chi is a comic-book superhero who is a Chinese master of martial arts. He was created for the American publisher Marvel Comics. Shang-Chi was featured in the motion picture Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings released in September 2021.

Shang-Chi was trained as a child to serve his father’s secret criminal organization. He developed superior skills in hand-to-hand combat and mastered various weapons. Shang-Chi also has advanced instincts and wisdom. In addition, Shang-Chi possesses 10 rings with supernatural powers. The rings are worn on the fingers in the comics, but they appear as iron bracelets in the film.

Shang-Chi was created by the American writer Steve Englehart and artist Jim Starlin. He first appeared in the 1973 comic Special Marvel Edition #15. From 1974 to 1983, he was the lead character of Marvel’s “Master of Kung Fu” series. Shang-Chi also appeared in such Marvel comic-book series as “Heroes for Hire,” “Agents of Atlas,” “Avengers,” and “X-Men.”

In the original comics, Shang-Chi is raised in an ancient fortress in China as part of a secret society. After being assigned to assassinate an enemy of his father, Shang-Chi meets a British secret agent named Smith. Smith reveals the criminal nature of the secret society. Shang-Chi’s father is Fu Manchu, a crime lord also known as the Master of Kung Fu. Shang-Chi agrees to work with Smith and British intelligence to stop his father’s criminal organization.

In Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, the character is played by the Chinese-born Canadian actor Simu Liu. The character’s origin story is largely rewritten, in part to correct harmful stereotypes present in the original comics. The creators and cast consisted largely of artists of Asian descent. The film was directed by the Japanese-American Destin Daniel Cretton from a screenplay by the Chinese-American writer Dave Callaham.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings follows Shang-Chi and his friend Katy in San Franciso, California. They are running from villains sent by his father, Xu Wenwu, who is armed with immortality granted by the fabled 10 rings. The characters travel to Macau, China, where Shang-Chi’s sister, Xialing, runs a successful underground fighting club. Xialing joins them to travel to the magical world of Ta Lo, the home of the sibling’s late mother and her warrior people. There, they confront otherworldly forces and Xu Wenwu’s secret society.

Tags: asian american and pacific islander heritage month, chinese canadian, comic books, martial arts, marvel, shang-chi, shang-chi and the legend of the ten rings, simu liu, superhero

National Nurses Week

A nurse greets a patient with an elbow bump.
Credit: © 2021 Prostock-studio/Shutterstock.

National nurses week begins today, May 6, 2022. Each year an entire week is dedicated to the hardworking, brave, and caring nurses who take care of sick, injured, and vulnerable patients. If you know or see any nurses this week, make sure to tell them “thank you” for all that they do. The week always ends on May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale. Nightingale founded the nursing profession as we know it today.

Born into a wealthy British family in 1820, Nightingale was expected to marry. However, she felt called to help the sick. She led the care of injured soldiers in the Crimean War (1853-1856). From this work, she became a world authority on scientific care of the sick. In 1860, Nightingale used donations of about $222,000 to found the first school of nursing, Nightingale Training School for Nurses at St. Thomas’s Hospital in London. The United States asked Nightingale’s advice for setting up military hospitals during the American Civil War (1861-1865). Nightingale received many honors and became the first woman to be given the British Order of Merit. She died on Aug. 13, 1910.

Nursing is a profession that provides care to the sick, the injured, and other people in need of medical assistance. Nurses perform a wide variety of duties in many settings. Many nurses work in hospitals, outpatient clinics, or other health care facilities. Other nurses work in health insurance companies, research institutions, and pharmaceutical (medicinal drug) companies. Nurses also work in schools, factories, and the armed forces. Nurses may run general health screening or immunization clinics and blood drives.

Patients often get most of their direct health care through nurses. Among their duties, nurses record patient medical histories and symptoms, help perform medical tests, administer treatment and medications, operate medical machinery, and help with follow-up care and rehabilitation. They also provide advice and emotional support to patients and their families.

Nurses educate patients about various medical conditions. They teach patients and their families how to manage illnesses or injuries. They explain home care needs, including diet, nutrition, and exercise programs; physical therapy; and how to take medication. Some nurses work to promote public knowledge about health and health care. They may give public lectures on health and medical topics.

More women serve in the field of nursing than in any other profession except teaching. However, this trend is changing. Until the 1960′s, men made up only 1 percent of professional nurses. By the early 2000′s, men made up more than 10 percent of students enrolled in undergraduate professional nursing programs. Men make up about 6 percent of professional nurses.

Nursing offers satisfaction to those who desire to help others. It also provides a wide range of job opportunities. A capable nurse—especially one with an advanced degree—can generally feel sure of a job. Salaries for nurses are often high compared with those for other professions. A nurse must like people and want to help them. A nurse must also have self-reliance and good judgment. Patience, tact, honesty, responsibility, and the ability to work easily with others are valuable traits. Good health is another requirement.

Nurses have worked tirelessly throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, many nurses took care of people sick from COVID-19 and quarantined away from their families and friends to prevent spreading the virus. While nurses always deserve praise and gratitude, throughout the past few years they have been true heroes.

Tags: florence nightingale, health, immunization, may, national nurses week, nursing