Josie's Journey

Tiny Pac-Man robots have learned how to reproduce.

The little video game-like creatures work not exactly like the metal machines you may be thinking of. The cells of the African clawed frog work together to self heal and reproduce-not genetically but with stem cells.

It doesn’t matter the media company I use, the most interesting section is science. This article talks about something that I don’t have a lot of knowledge on, but it still caught my attention. I would say that the writer broke it down into a simple way for people to imagine, and to make it sound more interesting.

This isn’t groundbreaking, or anything that impacts us, but it makes for a lighthearted fun story.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/04/world/xenobots-science-newsletter-wt-scn/index.html

When I asked my roommate Megan Keller what word describes her best she chose “responsible”.

Megan Keller is from Omaha, Nebraska and she is a sophomore at Morningside University studying for a degree in elementary education. Keller hopes to become a grade school teacher, most preferably for grades fourth or fifth.

Keller chose responsible to describe herself because she is usually well organized. Keller stated, “If I were to become an elementary teacher I would need to hold myself accountable for grading, classroom organization, and much more. If I do that now my job will be more fun”.

Keller admits she enjoy naps and relaxation but she also takes on the responsibility of self discipline and she hopes to be a good role model for her students.

Keller also says that she is responsible for taking care of her fish, Jefferey, because he is high-maintenance but it is her responsibility to keep him alive and happy.

Mabel Applehans, at 96 years of age, refuses the covid vaccination.

Seeing loved ones for the past couple of years has been a challenge for many families, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Any individual with a compromised immune system is at risk of contracting the virus and suffering severe symptoms. Many businesses and facilities have recognized the severity of this and have established requirements such as masks, social distancing, and even proof of vaccination for both workers and consumers. However, there is a lot of speculation about the effects of the vaccination. Since the start of covid vaccinations, the state of Wyoming has statistically shown that they have been one of the most hesitant of the fifty states. According to the Mayo Clinic vaccine tracker, just forty-six percent of Wyoming’s population is fully vaccinated.

Mabel Applehans, a 96 year old citizen at the Homestead Living Center in Riverton, Wyoming, is in the small percentage of people who are 65 and older and not fully vaccinated. Applehans tells her daughter, Nadine Wilkinson, 70, “I may be old, but I don’t want to be a statistic”. Nadine explained that Applehans is the only resident over the age of 85 that has persistently refused the vaccination in her assisted living home. Mask and social distancing precautions are enforced throughout the building but they are a bit different for the mulish woman. Applehans is restricted to her room and the dining hall. She is required to wear a mask outside of her room and test once a week for the virus. Her caretakers, who are all fully vaccinated, are still required to wear masks and other protective garb when entering her room.

The most difficult restriction on Applehans and her family is the visiting policy. Applehans lives in a small apartment that has her own living area filled with her valued trinkets she has collected throughout her life, accompanied by a personalized bathroom and bedroom. At the beginning of the pandemic, The Homestead Living Center informed Applehans’ family that visitors were not allowed in the facility, nor were they allowed to take Applehans out of the facility in order to prevent any exposure to their other elderly residents. Her daughter Nadine was fearful that her mother would get lonely due to the isolation, so her and the family found a way around it.

A small window resides next to Applehans’ sleeping chair. Here, she spends most of her days and nights because she is unable to walk well or sleep in a bed. Many of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews all gathered around her window so she wouldn’t miss a birthday, holiday, or a surprise visit. As time progressed, the living center began to loosen their visiting policies. Applehans, being the only resident unvaccinated, is allowed to leave the facility and have visitors but every visit results in two weeks of quarantine.

Fearless of COVID-19, Apllehans states, “I grew up in a very hard time… when the economy was at its lowest”. Applehans, along with her five other siblings, lived through the harsh years of the Great Depression. She recalls many days of blistering heat as she and her elder sister did chores, and many nights of going to bed hungry even after a long day. She also recalls how the influenza pandemic in 1918 turned heads just like the COVID-19 pandemic has in our present time. “It was very scary”, Applehans adds, “but there was no vaccination that came out of the government’s ass right away either, to me that’s even more scary”. Having lived in the small towns of Wyoming all of her life, Applehans has become more accustomed to the conservative perspective of life and refuses to change.

Although politics may influence Applehans refusal, she has also lost family members who had received the vaccination before their untimely deaths. Nadine explains, “My nephew lost his life at just 52 after he got the vaccination for his job at the police department. He had heart complications to begin with, and a lot of those genes run through our family and the vaccination makes that a life or death risk”. Applehans has spent many of her days in the hospital as she has grown older and frail. “I have undergone three major surgeries in my old age, I’ll be damned if a vaccination takes me”, declared Applehans.

In a conversation with Applehans’ caretaker Miranda Schell, she expands on her concerns for Applehans and her other residents. “I appreciate her tough character. But it is difficult to see her be so lonely” says Schell. Schell has worked at the facility for three years now, and she explains that the pandemic was something “very new and unpredictable to work with”, she jokes, “so is Mabel, but more old fashioned”. Although she is stubborn, Applehans still understands her caretaker’s perspective. She respectively tells her, “I appreciate what these people do for me… I just want to live my life how I want”. It may be impossible to change this 96 year old woman’s mind, but she claims it is her stubbornness that has kept her this long.

Simultaneously, Applehans remains obstinate against the vaccine and free of the virus, living her life to her fullest.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/coronavirus-covid-19/vaccine-tracker

https://www.ap.org/press-releases/2021/ap-9-11-photos-to-go-on-view-at-huntsville-museum-of-art

There is not much of a difference between the stories written in class besides the resources I used to gather information for my stories. Most of the stories I write are stories I have multiple resources on and what is considered newsworthy. The press release is more of an announcement of something that will effect the community in some way.

For this particular press release I believe the audience is the families of those who were lost in the 9/11 attacks and to commemorate the destruction and reconstruction of the World Trade Center. The release made it very obvious that the purpose of releasing the tragic photographs is for the commemoration of those lost and to reflect on the acts of terrorism and the heroic efforts made to rebuild the area.

The only question I would ask is why aren’t these photos available after the anniversary of 9/11?

SCIENCE

Astronomers may have discovered the first known exoplanet outside of the Milky Way.

According to Lisa Grossman of Science News, the planet is located in the Whirlpool galaxy-light-years from Earth. This discovery suggests there are many other planets outside of our solar system to be found.

The challenge comes during the search for the planets. Considering other galaxies are lightyears away, astrophysicist Rosanne Di Stefano explains that “they always assumed there were other planets in other galaxies, but to actually find something, is a beautiful thing. It’s a humbling experience.”

Some scientists speculate how coincidental the discovery actually is to find something in such a small time frame. Di Stefano counters, saying that the observations her team has done leads them to believe that there are many other extragalactic planets to be found. Morningside College student Megan Keller also believes there is more to be found, (Student Audio).

This particular planet will take many decades to be visible again, but more studies are in the future.

SPORTS

Morningside made a splash in its home pool this weekend hosting a dual against St. Ambrose.

Distance swimmers Kirsten Verplanke and James Spicer kicked off the meet with two first place finishes for the women’s and men’s teams in the 1,000-yard freestyle. Verplanke swam in to first place with a time of 12:05.82 and her teammates Elaine Morgan and Payton Miller finished just behind her taking second and third in the event. In the same event Spicer swam a respectable 10:45.68, nearly 45 seconds ahead of second place. Ron DeFauw another distance swimmer commented on his performance at the meet, (student audio).

For team scores the women’s team earned a total of 63 points and the men’s team 73 points. St. Ambrose won the dual with almost double the points for both the men’s and women’s teams.

The Mustangs will be competing in their home pool for the second time this season for the Morningside University Invitational on Friday, Nov. 12 and Saturday Nov. 13.

CULTURE

People magazine has named Paul Rudd as the Sexiest Man Alive for 2021.

The 52-year old marvel actor often trends online as the internet periodically praises him for is ‘inability to age’.

In an interview with People Rudd revealed that his wife Julie was the only one he told beforehand, telling interviewers she was ‘stupefied’. Rudd explained that she laughed with shock but sweetly said “they got it right”, to which Rudd humbly denied.

Rudd has worked his way into fame playing roles in Friends, Roll Models, and Marvels Ant Man.

Morningside student Brianna Courtney had some thoughts to share about Paul Rudds new title (Student Audio).