April 4, 2022

Wild astronomy fact to make your Monday morning to-do list feel small: Of all the mass in our solar system, the sun accounts for 99.86%. Think about that for a second — the planets, moons, Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson, and asteroids comprise just .14% of our solar system's mass. Wowzer.

Today's Wrap explains why freshwater snails are scarier than great white sharks. Well, maybe it's a bit more complicated than that...

― Key Stories

Amazon Warehouse Unionizes
Overview

• Workers at an Amazon warehouse in New York City’s Staten Island borough voted to unionize
• The union will be the first Amazon warehouse union in the US. It comes after failed unionization attempts elsewhere in the US and despite anti-unionization efforts by Amazon
• The workers voted 55%/45% to unionize. The pro-union workers' demands included higher pay, longer breaks, and more sick leave and time off
• Amazon says it provides industry-leading pay and benefits. Its Staten Island wages start at $18.25, but some workers say that's not enough to live in NYC

Boardroom Diversity Law Struck Down
Overview

• A California judge ruled that a state law mandating corporate diversity is unconstitutional
• The law, enacted last year, requires California-based publicly traded companies to have at least 2 members of an “underrepresented community” on their corporate board by year end
• A conservative group had filed a lawsuit alleging that the law violated the California state constitution’s anti-discrimination clause
• California’s governor had called the law a victory for “racial justice”; the group opposing it called it “blatant and significant” discrimination

Mass Shooting in Sacramento
Overview

• An early Sunday morning shooting in Sacramento, California's capital, left 6 people dead and 12 injured
• The shooting took place in the city's downtown, near the Sacramento Kings’ NBA arena, as bars were closing around 2 AM
• Police believe an argument preceded the violence and that there may have been multiple shooters. No one has yet been arrested
• Police called it a “very complex and complicated scene.” They are looking for at least 2 suspects

Pakistan's PM Alleges US Coup Plot
Overview

• After accusing the US of plotting a coup, Pakistan’s Prime Minister dissolved the country's parliament, creating a political crisis on Sunday
• Pakistan is the world's 5th-most populous country and 1 of 9 with nuclear weapons. Its PM, Imran Khan, was a cricket star who became a politician
• Last week, Khan’s opposition was reportedly poised to remove him from office through a vote of no-confidence. He alleged a “foreign conspiracy” and dissolved parliament to block the vote
• Khan said the US was conspiring with his opponents to remove him. The US denied the claims

See yesterday's results below the Wrap!

 Popcorn

Culture & Sports

• No K in win! UNC defeated Duke in an 81-77 thriller to conclude Coach K's career and set up a blue-blood title game between UNC and Kansas
• Will Smith formally resigned from the Academy. The actor who slapped Chris Rock last weekend described himself as "heartbroken"
• Farewell, Mrs. Costanza! Estelle Harris, best known for playing George Costanza's mom in Seinfeld, died at 93 of natural causes

• A man in Germany reportedly received 90 Covid vaccine shots to sell fake vax passes. Authorities are now investigating him
• Can't spell gaffe without K: Nike confused the internet with a tweet following Duke's loss that read, "You can’t spell championship with K"
• NASA’s Perseverance Rover has confirmed that sound travels slower on Mars. It also moves at different speeds depending on the pitch
• A new study suggests that fish oil pills with omega-3 help support cancer treatments. The Harvard researchers saw great results in mice

― Roca Wrap

A Newsletter Exclusive

Sharks kill an average 6 people a year; wolves 10; hippos 500. 

Freshwater snails? 20,000 to 200,000, depending how you count. 

Freshwater snails don’t kill people directly, but they carry the parasite responsible for schistosomiasis – the second-most widespread deadly parasitic disease after malaria. According to the WHO, schistosomiasis affects 240M people, 85% of whom are in Africa.

Schistosomiasis is caused by ​​schistosomes, a type of parasitic worm. The worm ranges from 6 - 28mm in length (a quarter of an inch to an inch) and can live in animals or humans. When a worm-carrier goes to the bathroom, they can shed the eggs. In water, those eggs hatch larva, which penetrate the tissue of freshwater snails. The species of snail that hosts the parasite depends on the specific type of worm. 

The larva mature in the snail, which eventually releases them back into the water, where they can survive for 48 hours. If they come in contact with human skin, they can penetrate the tissue and develop within the person’s body. When that person goes to the bathroom, the cycle restarts. 

The worm itself doesn’t cause symptoms, but its eggs do: They can travel to organs, causing inflammation, scarring, and other forms of damage. This can result in malnutrition, anemia, learning difficulties, pain, and, if left untreated, death. 

Schistosomiasis affects all types of people, but especially children – who enjoy playing in water – and those whose livelihoods require them to spend time in the water: Fishermen, farmers, irrigation workers, and clothes washers are some examples. It’s most prevalent in tropical areas.

The disease is typically treatable with a short, low-cost course of medicine, although decent medical access is rare in many places where it’s endemic. Because of that, health groups focus on preventing it.

Prevention takes many forms: The WHO recommends “preventive chemotherapy,” which is the use of a mild drug on an entire at-risk population, followed by continued treatment of particularly at-risk groups. That can prevent the worm from getting a foothold within a community.  

Medical groups also try to improve sanitation and hygiene and provide clean water. Other methods include irrigating the water so they are inhospitable to carrier snails, and introducing predators – often snail-eating prawns – to control the snail population.

Per the WHO, schistosomiasis is beatable: Over a dozen countries have controlled it, and 67% of at-risk children are now receiving preventive chemotherapy.

Yet the disease continues to wreak havoc, impacting millions yearly and keeping snails among the world’s deadliest animals.

 Games

1. "It's 9 o'clock on a Saturday. The regular crowd shuffles in"
2. "… Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it"
3. "Hands, touching hands. Reaching out, touching me, touching you!"
4. "It started out with a kiss; how did it end up like this? It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss"

 Roca Clubhouse

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― Final Thoughts