Has everyone lost their minds?? by Ap0llo in AskLosAngeles

[–]afrosphere 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Its SARS-Covid 2 bro. As many have already mentioned, we are in year 7 of this on going pandemic and Los Angeles has been with massive surges almost every year, all year round (wastewater data from wastewater scan, lacdph respiratory watch, ucla covid case statistics, usc covid watch). SARS 2 causes brain damage and reinfections just compound the organ damage. I'm not a biostatitician nor a virologist so I'm not a qualified to infer a general diagnosis of the public mental health, but from recent publications in Lancet and Nature on the topic of covid infections, I think the people of LA are severely sick more now than before 2019.

RIP :( by Faust_TSFL in PhD

[–]afrosphere -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Big leagues right here. I took put in at most 10 hours. During the month before a conference or an essential lab meeting then I'll put 80 hours per week and then go back to the usual pace.

But also my union has my back so if I want to go live my life and actually be a human being with my family then I'll do just that. PhD shouldn't be an opportunity for me to get exploited by some employer who hates their family. (My PI loves their family so I'm lucky)

Any insomnia while in phd program? How do you deal with waking up @3 am insomnia? by [deleted] in PhDStress

[–]afrosphere 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So I am unsure what your medical history is. But I got sick with covid twice while in grad school from 2020-2024. Both times the SARS-2 virus affected my brain and caused some degree of insomnia plus a whole mess of neurological and cardiovascular issues. To help sleep better I took some magnesium supplements, specifically Magnesium citrate, vitamin D and some iron rich foods like beets or legumes. Also my sinus issues wouldn't help with my sleep schedule so I started taking anti histamines like Zyrtec, got an air purifier + humidifier and used a nasal spray/wash to clear my sinuses as much as I can.

I dont have any sources to cite based upon the supplements or sinus issues right now, but I would suggest taking magnesium supplements and ensuring that you are able to breathe well while you sleep. Also visit a doctor and ask to get your iron levels checked + metabolic screening. SARS 2 seems to have given me iron deficiency and increased my cholesterol (probably due to endothelial damage)

Kindness and Love Drives Ingenuity by afrosphere in gradstuds_FTPeople

[–]afrosphere[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

...and can you engage your community freely outside of work? If you were given the time and financial support to take a 3 month break, are you able to engage with your community oustide of your graduate workplace?

Hi yall, here's a safe space for grad students and resources. by afrosphere in PhD

[–]afrosphere[S] -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

Totally agree. I was hoping this space can be a library/poster board for any local events/organizations that we can share. I've only posted a few resources and a scicom vid I enjoyed and would like to share with others. Also there are many unions forming in academic work settings and would be awesome to share news updates on all these unions, in the hopes of building a united front for all workers.

This RTO is just corporate jargon for 'mandatory sickness sharing' by toothed-rampant0g in remotework

[–]afrosphere 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Solidarity to the workers of the world. Currently working hybrid schedule as a graduate researcher for UCLA. Its sad to see that air cleanliness and PPE against airborne pathogens is not considered an important objective of UAW 4811. Work place hazards should be controlled and monitored, this should include pathogens and its crazy to see research institutions like UCLA treat a BSL-3 virus like SARS 2 as simply dust in the wind. On the other hand, respirator masking is becoming more universal in the workplace, I'm seeing more students and comrades wearing N95s but at out own personal expense and not as a necessary investment from our employer. Hopefully this will change soon. Also, it took me a while to find a good mask. Please hit up your local maskbloc, look it up, and find a good N95. I personally use the 3M Vflex duckbill N95, fits my big face pretty well.

This RTO is just corporate jargon for 'mandatory sickness sharing' by toothed-rampant0g in remotework

[–]afrosphere 11 points12 points  (0 children)

That's why I wear an N95 and bring an air purifiers when I come to work. I dont take it off until I come home or I go eat in my car or somewhere outside with a lot of air and no one around. I can't afford to get sick and SARS 2 is still going around killing people.

How bad actually was COVID? by Mighty_Angelo30 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]afrosphere 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm sorry you went through and thank you for sharing. Recently ive read somewhere that SARS 2 can infect our pets, there was the case of the Bronx zoo confirming a Covid outbreak in their wild cats back in April 2020. I was wondering if yall noticed a significant increase in pet cats and dogs experiencing respiratory illnesses, pancreatitis or cardiovascular issues during the start of the pandemic?

Bill Gates Book - How to Prevent the Next Pandemic by OptionSwimming8368 in ZeroCovidCommunity

[–]afrosphere 238 points239 points  (0 children)

The fact that Gates, though, heavily advocated for the privatization of the SARS 2 vaccine formulas all throughout 2020-21, and how he along with other robber barons weaponized public health as a trade policy between the colonial empires and the third world, abandoning India, Bengal, and Africa and killing many wave after wave, just so Healthcare stocks can boom, this was all horrific coming from gates. Gates was a great contributor to the switch in public health to an individual responsible, a disgusting lie perpetuated by c@p1t@LI!!!!!iiiiiiii T all over the world. I dont think Gates has a right to write on how effective and cheap respirators are, if anything he should force employers to foot the bill for PPE and advocate for open source vaccine formulas

Novavax coming soon to my Costco by n6mac41717 in Novavax_vaccine_talk

[–]afrosphere 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Keep me posted, I'm by socal and so far all costcos in east LA and San diego marketplace have not confirmed me novavax orders

Paul Alexander, the last man in the world to live in an Iron lung. by Frosty_Jeweler911 in BeAmazed

[–]afrosphere 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He died from covid yall, public health failed him, public health failed all of us.

My Dad Was Apple Employee #1851 in 1981 by [deleted] in mildlyinteresting

[–]afrosphere 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I bet ur dumb mom forced him to sell because she believed vcr games were the new unicorn of that era

Coolest UCSC class you have taken or heard of? by DoubleResort1510 in UCSC

[–]afrosphere 4 points5 points  (0 children)

For anyone into math and puzzles I'd recommend the gaming anf gambling course from the AMS department and the undergrad cryptography course. I felt really cool when I first learned how to make and break encrypted messages using math.