Oleg Zabluda's blog: December 07, 2012

Oleg Zabluda's blog

Friday, December 07, 2012

Selected Yosemite accidents of 2012. Much better then 2011
Selected Yosemite accidents of 2012. Much better then 2011
https://plus.google.com/112065430692128821190/posts/emjtUjd4SHM

http://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/Lessons-Learned-2012-Last-post-for-the-season.htm

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http://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/Rescue-From-Near-Snake-Dike-Half-Dome.htm

August 27, 2012 For reasons unexplained, the climbers did not place any anchor gear for the climber who was belaying. The lead climber started up the route, climbing 40 feet of easy (5.5) slab with no protection up to a shallow roof. Under the roof he placed a piece of protective gear (#.3 cam). He then tried to turn (move past) the roof and fell. The piece of protection held. He tried again and fell, and again the piece held. He tried a third time and fell; this time his one piece of protection pulled out. He fell down to the belay ledge, struck the ledge next to his climbing partner, and fell 40 feet farther until the rope became taut, pulling the belayer off her belay ledge. They both came to rest 50 feet below the belay ledge, on the next major ledge.

The park helicopter transported the injured belayer, by short-haul in a litter to Ahwahnee Meadow, where she was flown to a trauma center in the Central Valley. Her injuries included a punctured lung, a fractured pelvis, and two fractured vertebra.

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http://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/Hikers-Seriously-Injured-After-Slipping-and-Falling-Near-Chilnualna-Falls.htm

September 3, 2012 The two individuals (one male and one female) were scrambling off-trail when they slipped, slid approximately 30-35 feet down a smooth granite slab, and then fell vertically 15-20 feet onto large uneven rocks. The female landed between two boulders and her companion landed on top of her. The female was unconscious and the male was complaining of severe lower back and pelvic pain. The patients were packaged in litters and then individually short-hauled directly from the accident scene to Wawona Meadow, where they were transferred to two separate medical evacuation helicopters and flown to hospitals in the Central Valley. As of September 15, both patients remain in critical condition.

Scrambling off-trail is one of the leading causes of serious injury and death in Yosemite.

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http://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/Hiker-Seriously-Injured-while-Scrambling-near-Illilouette-Fall.htm

June 28, 2012 Around noon last Thursday, June 28, a 65-year-old male set off from Lower Pines Campground in Yosemite Valley for an off-trail hike. The subject left the trail at the confluence of the Merced River and Illilouette Creek and headed up the Illilouette Creek drainage toward the base of Illilouette Fall, scrambling and climbing over boulders of every size. Near the base of Illilouette Fall, the hiker left the creek bed and started scrambling up much steeper terrain (class 5) toward Glacier Point. The hiker suddenly lost traction, slipped, and took a tumbling 100-foot fall, coming to rest at the base of a granite apron not far from the base of Illilouette Fall. He realized his injuries were serious-in fact, incapacitating-and that he needed help. The rangers were able to communicate directly with the subject on his cell phone, and at sunset, a team of three rescuers headed up the drainage to find him.

When the rescuers found the subject, it was close to dark. The subject was lying on his back, not moving. To immobilize the subject's spine, the rescuers packaged him in a vacuum body splint, covered him with a sleeping bag, and settled in for a long night. The next morning, the subject was extracted from the backcountry by helicopter via short-haul. His notable injuries included: four full-thickness scalp lacerations, a cervical vertebra fractured in two places, a fractured thoracic vertebra, a fractured right pelvis, and an open fracture of the left ring finger. During the entire ordeal the visitor remained calm and had a positive attitude and is expected to fully recover from his injuries
http://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/Lessons-Learned-2012-Last-post-for-the-season.htm

Labels: Oleg Zabluda

The USAF will pay $165M for a Falcon Heavy rocket to launch Space Test Program-2 satellite in 2015, and $97M for a...
The USAF will pay $165M for a Falcon Heavy rocket to launch Space Test Program-2 satellite in 2015, and $97M for a Falcon 9 rocket to launch the Deep Space Climate Observatory in 2014, a solar telescope that will be operated by NASA.

Falcon Heavy cal lift 53 tons to LEO.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_Heavy#Launches_and_scheduled_launches

Originally shared by SpaceX

SpaceX awarded two EELV-class missions by the U.S. Air Force
http://www.spacex.com/press.php?page=20121205

Labels: Oleg Zabluda

Still trying to figure out what exactly were those huge bushes, at least 2x taller then a human, covered with sweet...
Still trying to figure out what exactly were those huge bushes, at least 2x taller then a human, covered with sweet black berries, we called "Волчьи ягоды" (Wolf Berries). We ate them, over warning from grownups.

Maybe they weren't as tall as I remember. I was 4-6 years old and ~1m high.

http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Волчьи_ягоды
http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Волчьи_ягоды

Labels: Oleg Zabluda

Nightshade family (Solanaceae) "Паслёновые" has lots of cool plants, rich in various Tropane alkaloids. For example:
Nightshade family (Solanaceae) "Паслёновые" has lots of cool plants, rich in various Tropane alkaloids. For example:

== genus Atropa "Красавка" contains atropine [0], hyoscyamine [1]
- Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladonna) "Белладонна"

== genus Hyoscyamus "Белена", contains hyoscyamine [1]
- Stinking Nightshade (Hyoscyamus niger) "Белена чёрная"

== genus Datura "Дурман", contains scopolamine (aka hyoscine) [1]
- Jimson weed (Datura stramonium) "Дурман обыкновенный/вонючий"

== genus Brugmansia, contains scopolamine, hyoscyamine [1], etc
- Angels trumpet, Tree Datura (Brugmansia arborea) "Бругмансия древовидная, Дурманное дерево, Древесный дурман, Ангельские трубы

== genus Bell/Chili/Cayenne pepper (Capsicum) "Стручковый перец", contains capsaicin
- Bell/Chili/Cayenne/Habanero Pepper/Chili (Capsicum annuum) "Перец овощной/сладкий/стручковый/чили/острый/горький/паприка/Хабанеро

== genus Tobacco (Nicotiana) "Табак", contains nicotine
- Common tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) "Табак обыкновенный"
- Mapacho (Nicotiana rustica) "Махорка, Табак деревенский"

== Petunia (Petunia) "Петунья". There were some reports of Petunia
violacea being used as a hallucinogen by some native South American people under the name Shanin, but attempts to isolate an alkaloid were unsuccessful to date.

== genus Boxthorn, Wolfberry (Lycium) "Дереза, Волчьи ягоды", contains atropine, hyoscyamine, scopolamine, in small concentrations
- Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum) "Дереза обыкновенная, Волчья ягода"

== genus Nightshades (Solanum) "Паслён", contains alcaloid solanidine, and derived from it glycoalcaloids [2] solanine, solamargine, solasonine, chaconine
- Domestic Tomato (S. lycopersicum [3]) "помидор обыкновенный"
- Potato (S. tuberosum) "картофель, Паслён клубненосный" [4]
- Eggplant (S. melongena) "баклажан, Паслён темноплодный"
- Black Nightshade (Solanum nigrum) "Паслён чёрный"
- Woody/Bittersweet nightshade, poisonberry (Solanum dulcamara) "Паслён сладко-горький"

[0] Atropa named after the Greek Fate, Atropos, who cut the thread of life. Atropine is an antidote to nerve gases such as sarin and VX. "Tropane alcaloids" are named after atropine.

[1] hyoscyamine is the levo-isomer of atropine. it is a precursor of scopolamine (aka hyoscine). Atropine has a stimulant effect on the central nervous system and heart, whereas scopolamine has a sedative effect.

[2] Glycoalkaloids (alkaloid + sugars) are a family of poisons commonly found in the plant species Solanum dulcamara (nightshade). A prototypical glycoalkaloid is called solanine (sugar [solanose] + alkaloid [solanidine] = solanine), which is found in potato.

[3] Lycopersicum means "wolf peach", and comes from German werewolf myths. These said that deadly nightshade was used to summon werewolves, so the tomato's similar, but much larger, fruit was called the "wolf peach" when it arrived in Europe. Tomato leaves and roots are poisonous due to solanine, etc and glycolacaloid tomatine, derived from alcaloid tomatidine.

[4] When exposed to light, potato tuber produces glycoalcaloids solanine and chaconine to prevent being eaten, and also produces chlorophyll and turns green, thus giving a visual clue that tuber is toxic. Not definitive though, as greening and glycoalkaloid accumulation can occur independently of each other, the latter can also happen due to physical damage, and age. A bitter taste is more reliable indicator. Symptoms are headaches, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, and in severe cases coma and death. The concentration of glycoalkaloid in wild potatoes suffices to produce toxic effects in humans. Breeders keep solanine levels below 200 mg/kg, but when green, the level becomes 1000 mg/kg, concentrated just below skin, so green skin is 2200 mg/kg. For adults the symptoms of nausea ~25 mg solanine, a life-threatening dose ~400 mg solanine. In the 70s, Solanine poisoning affected 78 school boys in Britain.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solanaceae
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropane_alkaloid
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deliriant
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solanidine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solanine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atropine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyoscyamine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scopolamine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solanaceae

Labels: Oleg Zabluda

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