Delthia Ricks
@dricks.bsky.social
Science writer, author, essayist & avid gardener.
Pinned
Delthia Ricks
@dricks.bsky.social
· Dec 21
The contrast between Rwanda’s handling of Marburg and the chaotic response to Covid-19 is stark
The country’s response prevented a crisis – and provided the world with a valuable blueprint for effective outbreak control
www.telegraph.co.uk
The stark contrast between Rwanda’s handling of a deadly Marburg virus outbreak this year & the rest of the world’s chaotic response to #Covid provides textbook lessons in how to properly respond to a threat and how to make a threat worse www.telegraph.co.uk/global-healt...
Yikes! Hope you’re on the mend. And by the way. Happy New Year!
January 13, 2026 at 8:38 PM
Yikes! Hope you’re on the mend. And by the way. Happy New Year!
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
🧪 💉 #Medsky #IDsky
„Medical education does not exist in a vacuum. When vaccine policy is reshaped without transparency or accountability, the consequences do not stop at regulatory agencies. They land in exam rooms, hospital wards, and classrooms.“
Worldwide 🌍
www.statnews.com/2026/01/12/m...
„Medical education does not exist in a vacuum. When vaccine policy is reshaped without transparency or accountability, the consequences do not stop at regulatory agencies. They land in exam rooms, hospital wards, and classrooms.“
Worldwide 🌍
www.statnews.com/2026/01/12/m...
Medical schools must prepare tomorrow’s doctors for yesterday’s diseases
Medical schools must now prepare tomorrow’s doctors for yesterday’s diseases.
www.statnews.com
January 13, 2026 at 8:11 AM
🧪 💉 #Medsky #IDsky
„Medical education does not exist in a vacuum. When vaccine policy is reshaped without transparency or accountability, the consequences do not stop at regulatory agencies. They land in exam rooms, hospital wards, and classrooms.“
Worldwide 🌍
www.statnews.com/2026/01/12/m...
„Medical education does not exist in a vacuum. When vaccine policy is reshaped without transparency or accountability, the consequences do not stop at regulatory agencies. They land in exam rooms, hospital wards, and classrooms.“
Worldwide 🌍
www.statnews.com/2026/01/12/m...
The Environmental Protection Agency under the Trump regime doesn’t really care about the air that Americans breathe—and that includes the people who voted the regime into the White House👇
E.P.A. to Stop Considering Lives Saved When Setting Rules on Air Pollution
www.nytimes.com
January 13, 2026 at 6:33 PM
The Environmental Protection Agency under the Trump regime doesn’t really care about the air that Americans breathe—and that includes the people who voted the regime into the White House👇
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
“The new dietary guidelines’ internal inconsistencies and the pyramid’s muddled design don’t just baffle consumers — they undermine the credibility of nutrition professionals and make it harder for dietitians like me... If the goal was to make nutrition clearer, this pyramid does the just opposite.”
I’m a dietitian. The new federal dietary guidelines will make my job harder
The new federal dietary guidelines are confusing — even, or maybe especially, if you’re a dietitian.
www.statnews.com
January 13, 2026 at 1:31 PM
“The new dietary guidelines’ internal inconsistencies and the pyramid’s muddled design don’t just baffle consumers — they undermine the credibility of nutrition professionals and make it harder for dietitians like me... If the goal was to make nutrition clearer, this pyramid does the just opposite.”
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Please share: We are hosting the 2026 DZG evolutionary biology graduate meeting at Uni Hamburg on March 25-27: "Interactions and Coevolution: from Molecules to Species". #PhD students, early postdocs and advanced Master students in evolutionary biology are welcome to register! t1p.de/dzg2026evolbio
January 13, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Please share: We are hosting the 2026 DZG evolutionary biology graduate meeting at Uni Hamburg on March 25-27: "Interactions and Coevolution: from Molecules to Species". #PhD students, early postdocs and advanced Master students in evolutionary biology are welcome to register! t1p.de/dzg2026evolbio
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
The $70 Billion supplement, peptide, and other unregulated stuff business and RFK Jr
Gift link
www.wsj.com/health/rfk-j...
Gift link
www.wsj.com/health/rfk-j...
Supplements Are a $70 Billion Industry. RFK Jr. Is Good for Business.
Secretary Kennedy has vowed to ‘end the war on vitamins,’ surrounding himself with advocates for pills, powders, tinctures and IV drips that aren’t subject to FDA approval.
www.wsj.com
January 11, 2026 at 1:39 PM
The $70 Billion supplement, peptide, and other unregulated stuff business and RFK Jr
Gift link
www.wsj.com/health/rfk-j...
Gift link
www.wsj.com/health/rfk-j...
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Total body MRI scans generate lots of false positive results. Then there's the false negatives, too. wapo.st/3ZfYSw5
A $2,500 full body scan said he was healthy. Then he had a catastrophic stroke.
Prenuvo promotes full body MRI scans to detect hazardous conditions early. But medical associations say they may cause unnecessary alarm or a false sense of security.
wapo.st
January 13, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Total body MRI scans generate lots of false positive results. Then there's the false negatives, too. wapo.st/3ZfYSw5
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
South Carolina's measles outbreak has exploded into one of the worst in the U.S., with state health officials confirming 99 new cases in the past few days. The outbreak, centered in Spartanburg County, grew to 310 cases over the holidays & spawned cases in North Carolina and Ohio👇
South Carolina Measles Outbreak Grows by Nearly 100, Spreads to North Carolina, Ohio
Officials acknowledge the spike in cases had been expected following the holidays
www.medpagetoday.com
January 12, 2026 at 8:34 AM
South Carolina's measles outbreak has exploded into one of the worst in the U.S., with state health officials confirming 99 new cases in the past few days. The outbreak, centered in Spartanburg County, grew to 310 cases over the holidays & spawned cases in North Carolina and Ohio👇
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" could result in >1 million *missed cancer screenings* & hundreds of avoidable deaths over a 2 year period. The U of Chicago study also says strict "workfare" requirements reduce medical services leading to 1,152,664 missed breast, colorectal & lung cancer screenings👇
Trump Bill May Result in Over a Million Missed Cancer Screenings
Hundreds of avoidable deaths also projected over 2-year period
www.medpagetoday.com
January 12, 2026 at 5:44 PM
Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" could result in >1 million *missed cancer screenings* & hundreds of avoidable deaths over a 2 year period. The U of Chicago study also says strict "workfare" requirements reduce medical services leading to 1,152,664 missed breast, colorectal & lung cancer screenings👇
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Deranged: Trump "declares himself acting president of Venezuela." Can his impeachment finally get underway for misusing & abusing the US presidency? www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/u...
Trump declares himself 'Acting President of Venezuela' days after Maduro capture
President Donald Trump shared a digitally altered image on social media, calling himself the “Acting President of Venezuela”.
www.hindustantimes.com
January 12, 2026 at 7:49 AM
Deranged: Trump "declares himself acting president of Venezuela." Can his impeachment finally get underway for misusing & abusing the US presidency? www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/u...
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Food contamination warnings announced almost weekly: FDA has upgraded a national recall of Ambriola's Pecorino Romano cheese to class I—its most serious warning—after Listeria was confirmed. Trump's regime loosened surveillance rules & stopped monitoring for several pathogens, including Listeria👇
FDA upgrades nationwide cheese recall to highest danger level after listeria-causing bacteria found
The reclassification is tied to the detection of Listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria that can cause severe illness.
www.kare11.com
January 12, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Food contamination warnings announced almost weekly: FDA has upgraded a national recall of Ambriola's Pecorino Romano cheese to class I—its most serious warning—after Listeria was confirmed. Trump's regime loosened surveillance rules & stopped monitoring for several pathogens, including Listeria👇
What is below Earth, since space is present in every direction? theconversation.com/what-is-belo...
What is below Earth, since space is present in every direction?
Which way is ‘down’ has a different answer depending on where you are on Earth, in the solar system, in our galaxy and beyond.
theconversation.com
January 12, 2026 at 7:23 PM
What is below Earth, since space is present in every direction? theconversation.com/what-is-belo...
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
I think delegitimizing ICE is good.
January 12, 2026 at 2:07 AM
I think delegitimizing ICE is good.
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
These changes to our #publichealth system will be felt for generations, and most strongly by marginalized communities.
How RFK Jr. upended the public health system wapo.st/4qixKJ4 by @laurenweberhp.bsky.social @lenasun.bsky.social @rachelroubein.bsky.social CC: @drdemetre.bsky.social
How RFK Jr. upended the public health system wapo.st/4qixKJ4 by @laurenweberhp.bsky.social @lenasun.bsky.social @rachelroubein.bsky.social CC: @drdemetre.bsky.social
January 12, 2026 at 6:43 PM
These changes to our #publichealth system will be felt for generations, and most strongly by marginalized communities.
How RFK Jr. upended the public health system wapo.st/4qixKJ4 by @laurenweberhp.bsky.social @lenasun.bsky.social @rachelroubein.bsky.social CC: @drdemetre.bsky.social
How RFK Jr. upended the public health system wapo.st/4qixKJ4 by @laurenweberhp.bsky.social @lenasun.bsky.social @rachelroubein.bsky.social CC: @drdemetre.bsky.social
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
“There’s no defined ‘high risk’,” Ault said. Because of the high hospitalization rate for babies with no preexisting conditions, simply being an infant should make them eligible for the shot, Rupp and Ault both said.
Dr. Ault says all infants are high risk therefore all infants should get them.
Dr. Ault says all infants are high risk therefore all infants should get them.
RSV shots are extremely effective at preventing hospitalization, more data shows. So why is the U.S. government restricting them to "high-risk" babies only? My latest: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Evidence shows benefit of RSV vaccines as Trump officials push restrictions
Shots to prevent respiratory syncytial virus recommended only for high-risk babies even as experts hail jabs’ success
www.theguardian.com
January 11, 2026 at 5:02 PM
“There’s no defined ‘high risk’,” Ault said. Because of the high hospitalization rate for babies with no preexisting conditions, simply being an infant should make them eligible for the shot, Rupp and Ault both said.
Dr. Ault says all infants are high risk therefore all infants should get them.
Dr. Ault says all infants are high risk therefore all infants should get them.
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
I thought this was a joke but it’s an actual post from the White House: “we are ending the war on protein”
How about ending the war on the health of this country?
How about ending the war on the health of this country?
January 12, 2026 at 5:02 AM
I thought this was a joke but it’s an actual post from the White House: “we are ending the war on protein”
How about ending the war on the health of this country?
How about ending the war on the health of this country?
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
The big business of longevity pseudoscience and marketing
wapo.st/4pvE4LT
wapo.st/4pvE4LT
These are the treatments dominating the business of living longer
Longevity medicine has exploded into the mainstream, but the fervor has outpaced rigorous scientific evidence and federal regulations.
wapo.st
January 12, 2026 at 4:46 PM
The big business of longevity pseudoscience and marketing
wapo.st/4pvE4LT
wapo.st/4pvE4LT
Food contamination warnings announced almost weekly: FDA has upgraded a national recall of Ambriola's Pecorino Romano cheese to class I—its most serious warning—after Listeria was confirmed. Trump's regime loosened surveillance rules & stopped monitoring for several pathogens, including Listeria👇
FDA upgrades nationwide cheese recall to highest danger level after listeria-causing bacteria found
The reclassification is tied to the detection of Listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria that can cause severe illness.
www.kare11.com
January 12, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Food contamination warnings announced almost weekly: FDA has upgraded a national recall of Ambriola's Pecorino Romano cheese to class I—its most serious warning—after Listeria was confirmed. Trump's regime loosened surveillance rules & stopped monitoring for several pathogens, including Listeria👇
Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" could result in >1 million *missed cancer screenings* & hundreds of avoidable deaths over a 2 year period. The U of Chicago study also says strict "workfare" requirements reduce medical services leading to 1,152,664 missed breast, colorectal & lung cancer screenings👇
Trump Bill May Result in Over a Million Missed Cancer Screenings
Hundreds of avoidable deaths also projected over 2-year period
www.medpagetoday.com
January 12, 2026 at 5:44 PM
Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" could result in >1 million *missed cancer screenings* & hundreds of avoidable deaths over a 2 year period. The U of Chicago study also says strict "workfare" requirements reduce medical services leading to 1,152,664 missed breast, colorectal & lung cancer screenings👇
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Removing rotavirus vaccine from the standard schedule isn’t an experiment. It's not brave or controversial.
It’s just plain stupid. 1/n
It’s just plain stupid. 1/n
January 12, 2026 at 3:07 AM
Removing rotavirus vaccine from the standard schedule isn’t an experiment. It's not brave or controversial.
It’s just plain stupid. 1/n
It’s just plain stupid. 1/n
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
The UN Secretary-General has proposed sunsetting UNAIDS by the end of 2026, as global HIV funding and operational support have been undermined by aid cuts and competing priorities. www.poz.com/blog/sunsett...
Sunsetting UNAIDS is a Global and Domestic HIV Threat
Global health faces yet another unprecedented threat, as UN Secretary-General has proposed a closure of UNAIDS by the end of 2026.
www.poz.com
January 10, 2026 at 10:35 PM
The UN Secretary-General has proposed sunsetting UNAIDS by the end of 2026, as global HIV funding and operational support have been undermined by aid cuts and competing priorities. www.poz.com/blog/sunsett...
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
"This sudden and misguided dismantling would put countless lives in danger, risking increased transmissions and growing death rates from an epidemic that we are so close to ending" -
@unaids.org
@unaids.org
The UN Secretary-General has proposed sunsetting UNAIDS by the end of 2026, as global HIV funding and operational support have been undermined by aid cuts and competing priorities. www.poz.com/blog/sunsett...
Sunsetting UNAIDS is a Global and Domestic HIV Threat
Global health faces yet another unprecedented threat, as UN Secretary-General has proposed a closure of UNAIDS by the end of 2026.
www.poz.com
January 10, 2026 at 10:37 PM
"This sudden and misguided dismantling would put countless lives in danger, risking increased transmissions and growing death rates from an epidemic that we are so close to ending" -
@unaids.org
@unaids.org
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
A study shows that the North Atlantic subtropical gyre holds the key to how the ITCZ responds to AMOC slowdown: 🌊🧪 ocean2climate.org/2026/01/12/o...
Oceanic Slow-Lane: Why the Subtropical Gyre Holds the Key to How the ITCZ Responds to AMOC Slowdown
This blog post, created by NotebookLM, is based on “On the Atlantic extratropical-tropical teleconnection in response to external freshwater forcing” by Joshi an Zhang (2026). This research study u…
ocean2climate.org
January 12, 2026 at 1:46 PM
A study shows that the North Atlantic subtropical gyre holds the key to how the ITCZ responds to AMOC slowdown: 🌊🧪 ocean2climate.org/2026/01/12/o...
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
Students sometimes fail to appreciate that relativity did not emerge fully formed from Einstein's head. I for sure failed to appreciate how long before Einstein's 1915 general relativity paper people were already discussing the idea that mass might distort space-time.
⚛️🧪🎢
⚛️🧪🎢
Sylvester and Clifford on Curved Space
Einstein realized that gravity is due to the curvature of spacetime, but let’s go back earlier: On the 18th of August 1869, the eminent mathematician Sylvester gave a speech arguing that geom…
johncarlosbaez.wordpress.com
January 12, 2026 at 1:29 PM
Students sometimes fail to appreciate that relativity did not emerge fully formed from Einstein's head. I for sure failed to appreciate how long before Einstein's 1915 general relativity paper people were already discussing the idea that mass might distort space-time.
⚛️🧪🎢
⚛️🧪🎢
Reposted by Delthia Ricks
TV characters who experience cardiac arrest outside a hospital are more likely to receive CPR than people in real life.
The CPR on these shows often uses outdated practices and inaccurate techniques
(but it's still useful for raising awareness)
theconversation.com/cpr-on-tv-is... 🩺🧪
The CPR on these shows often uses outdated practices and inaccurate techniques
(but it's still useful for raising awareness)
theconversation.com/cpr-on-tv-is... 🩺🧪
CPR on TV is often inaccurate – but watching characters jump to the rescue can still save real lives
TV shows can be misleading when it comes to educating viewers on hands-only CPR, along with who experiences cardiac arrest and where.
theconversation.com
January 12, 2026 at 2:12 PM
TV characters who experience cardiac arrest outside a hospital are more likely to receive CPR than people in real life.
The CPR on these shows often uses outdated practices and inaccurate techniques
(but it's still useful for raising awareness)
theconversation.com/cpr-on-tv-is... 🩺🧪
The CPR on these shows often uses outdated practices and inaccurate techniques
(but it's still useful for raising awareness)
theconversation.com/cpr-on-tv-is... 🩺🧪