Word: virus
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Almost since the day the H5N1 virus was first discovered, India has loudly proclaimed itself free of the bird flu it causes. The discovery that 50,000 chickens have died of H5N1 in the western state of Maharashtra has confirmed what many long suspected: that for a vast country with a chicken population of around 2.4 billion producing 33 billion eggs a year on 160,000 farms, the arrival of a disease thought to be spread by migratory birds was only a matter of time...
...Another certainty is that for a nation with a poor record of public healthcare, containing the virus will be a steep challenge. India's Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss has quarantined the area in the district of Nandurbar and dispatched medical teams to cull up to half a million chickens from around 16 farms. Other flocks on nearby farms are being vaccinated. Ramadoss has also sent a million doses of H5N1 bird vaccine to Nandurbar. But despite his assurances that "people need no panic, the situation is under control," Indian newspapers on Monday published pictures showing some farmers participating...
...first outbreak of H5N1 in poultry, and began culling 500,000 birds in the western state of Maharashtra. Yet in a world where millions die every year because of diseases that could be prevented with a bit more funding, $1.9 billion is a lot of money for a virus that has so far killed fewer than 100 people. A real risk exists that a single-minded battle against a pandemic that may or may not occur soon could drain needed health resources from clear and present dangers...
...Nowhere is that choice more stark than in Africa. Earlier this month, authorities uncovered a large bird-flu outbreak on several poultry farms in northern Nigeria, the first time H5N1 has been found on the continent; more than 140,000 chickens have so far died from the virus or been culled. Though no human cases have been discovered yet, the news that the outbreak had gone undetected for up to a month raises concerns that the virus may already be spreading under the radar to other parts of the continent. Africa has an estimated poultry population of 1.1 billion birds...
...Safeguard Your Computer Google Pack is a new collection of free software that includes virus protection and spyware-blocking to keep out programs that can damage your operating system. It?s basically a bunch of software that novices need but often don't know how to get, packaged for easy use. The virus protection is trial software, though, which may eventually have to be purchased. In addition to the safety stuff, the collection includes fun new diversions like Google Earth, which lets you zoom around the globe seeing satellite images of your favorite spots...