Updated May 15th, 2006

The CVARC monthly meetings have moved from the T.O. Elks to the East Valley Sheriff's Station (EVSS) on Olsen Road. The dates are changing to the third Thursday of the month. Please mark your calendars and be there for an exciting presentation.

Our speaker for this month is a representative from the County Health Department to talk about the possibility of a bird flu (H5N1) pandemic, how it might occur, and how it would be fought by public health agencies from all over the US. The H5N1 designation for this virus is based on the proteins on the surface of the flu virus. The United States has been remarkably fortunate in not having experienced a dreadful pandemic since the 1918-1919 "Spanish flu" (H1N1) pandemic which killed more than a half a million Americans (far more than died in battle during the war). More than 50 million died world-wide after a previously mild strain suddenly went from a minor bother (mortality less than 1/10th of 1 percent) to a 2.5% mortality rate (a 25x jump) and changed from very low rates of infection until almost 1/3 of the population contracted the disease. Scientists are interested in the current bird flu since it has many similarities to the 1918 strain before that one became deadly (the 1918 strain was also a bird flu that rarely infected humans at first and the current bird flu is actually thought to be a descendants of the 1918 strain). This information and more is available at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol12no01/05-0979.htm and other public health sites.

The appearance of a Tamiflu-resistant variant strain in Korea this year has meant that only one of the four existing anti-viral flu medicines have consistent capability to affect the course of the disease, and while its production is being ramped up, not enough is available.

Come and hear this interesting presentation about the issues, what public health agencies are doing, and perhaps what you might be able to do.

APRS Tracker 1
Mechanical 1
Mechanical 2
Schematic 1
GPS PC and 12 volt details
GPS PC and 12 volt (word doc)
APRS Log (word doc)

We will be posting details as fast as we can make them accurate and error-free. Watch this page and the CVARCDiscussion mailing list for updates. The links to the diagrams are also here on the CVARC site:

Mechanical 1 - 10
Mechanical 11 - 20
Tracker 1
Tracker 2
Schematic 1
GPS PC and 12 volt details
GPS PC and 12 volt (word doc)
APRS Log (word doc)