Aporkalypse Now: Where to get Swine Flu info online
Forgive us for laughing at a potential pandemic, but this swine flu hysteria is getting a little bit out of hand. Taking proper precautions is one thing, shutting down schools, wearing masks that don't do anything everywhere and banning pork (that isn't contaminated and doesn't spread the disease anyway) is just silly.Ridiculous or not, with all the buzz about H1N1 on TV, Twitter and from hypochondriac friends and family, distilling the correct information can be difficult.
Thus, we present the Download Squad guide to Swine Flu '09:
Official Agency Sites:
CDC H1N1 Page -- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (located in Atlanta, holla!) is a great source for H1N1 information for individuals and communities. The site is frequently updated and links to other world agencies and organizations. You can also check out the CDC's mobile site for news on the go, and check out the assorted CDC Twitter feeds.
PandemicFlu.gov -- This site is maintained by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and aggregates information from the CDC, WHO and other organizations.
World Health Organization -- The UN's World Health Organization (WHO) has a dedicated H1N1 site with media information, latest news and official WHO reports. The WHO also has a Twitter feed.
Food and Agriculture Organization -- Similarly, the UN's FAO is focussed on background information on H1N1, and is monitoring the situation.
Miscellaneous News Sites:
Swine-flu.Alltop.com -- Alltop's mashup of H1N1 information includes not only agency sources, but major news coverage from sources like the New York Times and USA Today, as well as social streams from places like Twitter, WordPress.com and other social networks.
Open Directory Project -- The Open Directory Project has some resources if you're into accessing the Internet a la Yahoo! in 1996.
Maps
Google Flu Trends -- Google Flu Trends, which is still in development is tracking swine flu cases in the US and in Mexico
HealthMap.org -- HealthMap.org has a color coded map (using the Google API) that is frequently updated and shows outbreaks and cases all over the world.
Ushahidi -- Social powered site Ushahidi has a Swine Flu outbreak map too.
Google Maps -- This user-created Google Map is frequently updated and includes more specific outbreak information, easily viewable by location.
Videos, Podcasts and others:
Swine Flu Podcasts from the CDC (iTunes link) -- The CDC has produced a series of podcasts for information and sensible tips for preventing the spread of infection. Video versions (iTunes link) are available too.
iPhone app (coming soon) -- According to Tech Crunch, an iPhone app tracking the Swine Flu is on the way. Now this is just getting stupid.
Muppets: I couldn't resist. Some of my favorite, "wash your hands" themed Sesame Street sketches. Check out Gordon #1 and freakadelic Big Bird in clip one!
- Ernie and Bert: Everybody Wash
- What do we do before we eat?
- Wash your hands before you eat
So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do.
Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game.
The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Golther said 11:23AM on 5-02-2009
Call me when there are 140,000 confirmed cases in America then, I will call the Swine Flu a pandameic.
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Ridgecity said 5:15PM on 5-02-2009
a pandemic is a disease that spreads rapidly, not the quantity of infected.
Getting factual information from disaster movies isn't really helping.
Quikboy said 12:47PM on 5-02-2009
Nice list.
MSNBC has an interactive map displaying states with how many cases in each so far:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30435064
I like this interactive map that BBC has, with embedded videos:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/8018428.stm
UMapper has a heat map to look at:
http://www.umapper.com/blog/?p=1053
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Greg Neilson said 1:22PM on 5-02-2009
Flu doesn't kill, ignorance does. The over-sensationalism by the media is what drives people into a panic, not the pigs and birds.
CRAP like this:
[ Russian Health Ministry Officials reporting to President Medvedev today are warning in their reports that the World must prepare for a “tidal wave of death” of “unprecedented dimension” due to the current swine flu pandemic sweeping across the Globe at frightening speed. ]
Should be laughed at.....NOT believed.
'Right on' article CW.
I'm going back to my cellar now, by-by
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ScoobySnacks said 2:21PM on 5-02-2009
http://doihaveswineflu.org/
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Christina Warren said 3:17PM on 5-02-2009
That's brilliant!!
kcdk99 said 4:48PM on 5-02-2009
This Swine Flu "Pandemic" is going to end up being NOTHING; it's being totally blown out of proportion by the media who apparently is having a slow news month. The sad thing is, when it does end up being NOTHING they are going to credit the nothingness to all the quick action taken to prevent the pandemic.
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Kenn.keeper said 6:49PM on 5-02-2009
My opinion of this is to stay inside with your favorite beverage and wait until the idiots stop having a field day scaring people, works for me.....
Kenn.....
A beer with aporklips sandwich sounds good.
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allan said 3:46AM on 5-03-2009
So while ridiculing the ”hype” about Swine Flu (Influenza A) Downloadsquad decides to use online space to enter the hype anyway…one week later than the rest of other sites that already wrote about the hype...hmmmm
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bill cant fart is ANGRY! said 11:57AM on 5-03-2009
This is great and all, but where can I get swine flu online?
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Goldenpower said 3:04AM on 5-05-2009
Btw there is a #swineflu channel on Freenode also with quite some people.
This is their topic:
'WHO Pandemic level 5/6 | #swineflu Panic level 1.337/∞ | http://www.pandemicflu.gov/ | 1-page summary: http://h1n1.co.nz/ | row row, fight da powah! | Aporkalypse Now : Where to get Swine Flu info online http://tinyurl.com/d693yn'
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molly said 9:51AM on 7-28-2009
The aporkalypse is coming. Run!
If we are all screwed, at least we should do it in style and make fun of it
http://baseacid.com/swineflu.aspx
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