Mike Todd

Perhaps you also need Specsavers - read the original more carefully!

I think that what we are hearing over the past couple of days is that the most recent in-hospital studies show that the Covid virus affects much more of the body than just the respiratory system - at least in some people.

I think you are confusing the rate of new infections (which relates closely to R) and total infections or total active infections (ie people who are at risk of passing on the virus) That 8000 in a day come from all the previously infected people, not just the day before's 8000. Their infections of others will be spread over the time of their infectiousness. (As I understand it!) The point is that until R is very much less than 1, the virus will continue to spread through the community at a consistent rate until the level of immunity impacts the ability of the virus to infect (and will then be seen in further reductions in R). As Whitty and Vallance have been trying to get across to non-scientific politicians and Joe Public for ages, unless and until something changes (eg social contact rules, treatment, vaccine) then the rate of infection will continue for a very long time. At present it has only touched around 7% of the population, we hear.

If we have, say 8000 new cases per day and R = 1.0 then in a month's time we will still have 8000 new cases a day, same in 6 months or a years' time. It only starts to come down if the virus runs out of vulnerable people to find its lodging or R is significantly less than 1 or there is some form of immunity eg vaccine. Flattening the curve may well have avoided the NHS running out of critical care beds (but the graphs show never getting much above 60% of capacity) but it does not reduce the overall number of infections, just that they will take longer to occur. It will have been a plus tactic if a treatment arrives in short order and so avoids the death of people who might otherwise of become infected before a treatment is available. OTOH, if no treatment arrives then it will only have prolonged the crisis.

How dare you? if you need a clue, how Dare you? I guess most of the marina based pump outs are likely to be closed right now.

I guess the argument is that you are - potentially - in greater control moving deliberately forwards whilst in the reverse direction you are 'letting go' in a hopefully controlled way. In either case, you only find that you have insufficient power when it si too late to do much about it!

It is not a target but a scientific fact.

Lower Heyford used to

If private tests are to be banned , where does that leave the sports clubs whose current training depends on them? Or are they all 'exceptional circumstances'?

We have failed on two occasions to exit Selby as it was not recommended by the lockie owing to flood conditions (we could not have moored at York anyway!) However, our alarming experience a number of years ago was at Keadby, River Trent. Although mid summer here had been a lot of rain and we had been delayed at Stockwith but were eventually advised that it was OK to travel and we set off. All was fine until we neared Keadby when the tide turned earlier than the lockies expected (it is hard to judge when there is a lot of fresh) and we made our turn to the lock as we had been advised, arriving at the lock facing upstream from just below the lock, a couple of boat lengths out from the entrance wall. The trouble was that the engine at near max revs simply held us in the stream and we only just moved forward (worrying about imminent over heating!) with the lockie looking on apparently unconcerned. After what seemed like an eternity (probably only 10 - 15 mins) we eventually came level with the lock and made a dash for it into the safety of the lock. Thinking about it later (which we have done many times, usually in a nightmare!) I wondered about the reversing down technique although concerned about what would happen if the increasing flow simply took us past against our engine's best endeavours. We have only been that way once since then and there was no problem with the flow so no chance to test out the theory as the advice was still to use the approach from downstream, facing upstream. Maybe next time . . .

180?

So what support did he get from being near his family? (cannot have it both ways)

Nowhere much to tie up there . . . I imagine quite complicated for a single hander. Would blend in well with the locals!

Gives your avatar picture a whole new image . . .

Depends on where you are asking about: not a lot in the North! (Unless you consider shuffling up and down the Bridgewater to be fun)