Latest news with #Heilman
USA Today
18-07-2025
- USA Today
Police address findings on death of rising motocross star Aidan Zingg
Police have found "nothing criminal" in the death of 16-year-old motocross star Aidan Zingg, according to Sgt. Jason Heilman of the Mammoth Lakes Police Department. Two days after Zingg died June 28 after a mid-race crash on the dirt track about 300 miles north of Los Angeles, the Mammoth Lakes (California) Police Department announced it would investigate. Almost three weeks later, Heilman told USA TODAY Sports that police are wrapping up the investigation. 'There's nothing criminal,'' Heilman said on Friday, July 18. 'Just an unfortunate accident.'' As far as completing the investigation, Heilman said, 'I just got to complete one final little report there and then we'll officially close it. … It took a little while to finish this thing out because we don't want to just bombard the family with questions and whatnot.'' On June 30, Aidan parents, Bob and Shari, told USA TODAY Sports that they welcomed the police investigation as they dealt with conflicting reports over what happened during the crash at the 2025 Big Bike Weekend Mammoth Motocross. Bob Zingg said the head of event safety told them Aidan was involved in a crash 'by himself" but that two riders said another rider was involved. 'They'll never get complete closure," Heilman said. 'Losing a child like that's going to be tough." Heilman said the reports from the investigation will be forwarded to the Mono County Sheriff's Office, which is conducting an autopsy of Aidan. The Sheriff's Office has released no information, but Zingg's mother told USA TODAY Sports that Aidan died from "cardiac tamponade." Cardiac tamponade, according to the Cleveland Clinic, "describes a heart that has so much fluid around it that it can't pump enough blood. The force of this fluid makes it hard for your heart to do its job." A healthcare provider has to remove the extra fluid with a needle or surgery, according to the clinic, which reports, 'You need quick treatment for a good outcome.''
Forbes
09-07-2025
- Climate
- Forbes
4 Things To Know About Cloud Seeding
1980s Towering Puffy Cumulonimbus And Cumulus Clouds Fully Developed Mature Stage Texas USA (Photo ... More by Heilman/Classicstock/Getty Images) In the wake of the horrific Texas floods, there is a lot of discussion about cloud seeding. While it certainly did not cause those floods, talk about cloud seeding has flowed out of the fringes into mainstream conversations. As a meteorologist and atmospheric science expert with around thirty years of experience, I thought it would be useful to provide four basic facts about it. The Concept I remember sitting in a barber shop one day on a hot summer day as it rained. I told the barbers that rain began as snow in the upper reaches of the clouds. They were baffled. Let me explain. Most U.S. rainstorms are caused by a process called the Bergeron or ice crystal process. In my atmospheric physic class, I get more into the physics of it all, but a summary will suffice here. Precipitating clouds will typically have a mix of ice crystals, supercooled water (water at temperatures below freezing), water droplets, and water vapor. According to the NOAA Glossary, the Bergeron process is, "The process by which ice crystals in a cloud grow at the expense of supercooled liquid water droplets." Infographic explaining the cloud seeding process, the traditional method of artificial rainmaking. ... More (Graphic by Laurence CHU / AFP via Getty Images) All clouds need 'seeds' called condensation nuclei or ice nuclei to properly develop. This could be a speck of dust, clay or pollen in the atmosphere. There are several temperature, moisture, and air motion processes that come into play. However, ice nuclei are very important for the formation of ice crystals in the upper part of clouds. As ice crystals grow larger through clumping with other ice crystals or taking on available water in the clouds, they eventually fall out of the cloud as snow. However, the temperature is often above the freezing mark so they melt, and rainfall is observed at the ground. If temperatures are below freezing all the way down to the ground, it remains as snow. The concept of cloud seeding is to introduce seeds of 'ice nuclei' into the upper reaches of clouds to get the ice crystal process started. Precipitation types. It's Not New I learned about cloud seeding as a young graduate student at Florida State and even worked with one of the early pioneers at NASA, Dr. Joanne Simpson, who studied it early in here career. Cloud seeding is always a part of my units on cloud formation processes in atmospheric physics or radar meteorology classes that I have taught over the years. I usually end the lesson with, "Studies have been inconclusve (more on that later). According to the Desert Research Institute website, 'This rain-inducing technique, called cloud-seeding, has been around for more than 60 years. There were suggestions about doing cloud seeding as early as the 1890s, but work on aircraft icing by General Electric during the 1940s was the ultimate catalyst. Several private and federal studies commenced in the following decades. The process involves 'seeding' existing clouds with a harmless substance called silver-iodide to give water droplets a particle to converge around, allowing them to form an ice crystal.' I strongly urge you to visit the DRI website FAQ, which addresses misinformation and misleading statements on the Internet about cloud seeding related to geoengineering, chemtrails, climate change and the toxicity of silver iodide. I also recommend this NOAA fact check site. What I mostly see is a lot of conflation of thought and concepts related to cloud seeding. Its Effectiveness Is Limited And Inconclusive The DRI website points out, 'Although not a panacea for drought-stricken regions, cloud-seeding can increase seasonal precipitation by about 10%.' There are certainly private companies, states and governments with varying claims about the efficacy of cloud seeding, most studies have found cloud seeding to be inconclusive. Writing about Dr. Joanne Simpson's early work in Nature, Bob Houze said, 'Although cloud seeding has never proved feasible, Simpson's studies led to improved cloud modelling….' Candidly, I can see why there is confusion. Many websites use very definitive language about the efficacy of cloud seeding. It would certainly make sense why some sites would be more aggressive with such claims. However, a 2024 U.S. Government Accountability Office report found: Texas Floods As I wrote this weekend, the Texas Floods had numerous meteorological signals that forecasters warned about even days in advance. On June 30th, NOAA identified Texas Hill Country with a risk for extreme rainfall. The combination of extreme moisture, a decaying tropical system, a mesoscale convective vortex, and tilted trough were clear indicators of an extreme rainfall event. That's why NOAA and NWS issues advanced warnings and watches in the days to hours leading up to the tragedy. Meteorologist Matthew Cappucci wrote, 'Cloud seeding DOES NOT cause floods. If there's enough moisture to cause a flood, it's already raining. It's like wringing the water out of a sponge. That's not going to flood your apartment. If your apartment is already flooding, that has nothing to do with the sponge in your sink.' In summary, I promise you that experts like me are aware of cloud seeding. It wasn't discovered with your Internet search or video. Search and rescue teams from Kerrville Fire Department search through debris after flooding near the ... More banks of the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas on Tuesday, July 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Letter writer should know where "Drinking the Kool-Aid" comes from
Re: the May 14 letter writer denigrating liberals' take about Trump supporters being "Kool-Aid drinkers," I think he must have forgotten about Jim Jones and the Jonestown massacre of 1978. Jones was a cult leader who convinced his followers to follow him to Guyana. They would literally do anything for him. When he realized that the end was near for his cult, he poisoned them all with Kool-Aid laced with cyanide. Thus, the term "Kool-Aid drinkers" belong to a cult. If Trump told his believers the sun was shining, but it was actually a hurricane outside, they would believe him. They would twist themselves inside out to justify whatever he said. That is the origin and definition of the term "Kool-Aid drinker". As for his comment about "Googling TDS" and repeating their definition, isn't Google one of the companies that has bowed down to the administration's demand for fealty? Of course, they're going to have something that supports the cult mindset and denigrates anyone with a thirst for truth and knowledge. Judi Stern Levine, Lake Worth For decades airports around the country have spent billions of dollars turning terminals into lavish shopping, wining and dining areas at the mercy of safety in the control towers. It's a disgrace that air traffic controllers are overworked and understaffed, with electronic communications systems decades-old. Thus we have the current unsafe conditions around the United States — terrible. As we tell our grandkids, safety first safety always. Well, the time is now to take action to reduce stress and save lives. Hopefully the powers to be will give immediate attention and rectification. Don Smith, Juno Beach In a May 17 'Your Turn' Opinion column, Uriel Heilman mentions former Israeli Shin Bet head Ami Ayalon concerning the continuing conflict between Israel and Hamas. Although Heilman's column does not specifically mention it, Ayalon has elsewhere favored a 'two-state' solution as part of the way to end that struggle. The problem is that the dateline of Heilman's column reads 'Modin, Israel. That populous Israeli city, where Heilman resides, is located on the West Bank, in territory that would be part of a Palestinian state in a 'two-state' solution. This may explain Heilman's frustrations. Jack Lippman, Boynton Beach This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: "Drinking the Kool-Aid" meaning in the age of Trump | Letters
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'Having this means we matter'
New London — When John Sharon arrived at his Connecticut College dorm in August 1982, he had the distinction of being only the second physically disabled student enrolled in the school's history. 'The first student was here in the late 1960s and I was told she used a walker to get around,' said Sharon, a 61-year-old North Carolina school administrator who was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, a rare condition that affects his muscles and bones. On Tuesday, Sharon adjusted his leg braces and sat down on a cushioned chair inside the college's new Disability Cultural Center ahead of a grand opening ceremony later in the day. As he looked around at student artwork, blue-trimmed windows and a wide entryway, Sharon compared the amenities to his time on campus, well before federal disabilities requirements were in place and accessibility was a foreign concept — even to him. 'It wasn't until a friend mentioned the idea of accessibility that I really looked around,' he said. 'And the more I looked, the more I saw. And I got mad. But I know anger would just shut down conversations about what was needed. So Sharon channeled his outrage about a lack of elevators, too many steps and too few ramps into activism. About a year later, he and some friends hosted the college's first disability awareness week complete with student volunteers spending a week in wheelchairs loaned by a local pharmacy. 'So, my mind is blown being here,' he said, looking around the center. 'It's gratifying.' From beer pong to a "place of belonging" Discussions over a disability center began about two years ago at the urging of students seeking a dedicated space to call their own, said Jillian Heilman, the college's director of student accessibility services. Heilman noted the campus already boasted similar centers for LGBTQ+, Muslim and Jewish students along with a sexual violence prevention and advocacy group. 'These are spaces where events can be hosted and students can feel at home,' she said, adding the center had a soft opening over the fall. The college was able to convert a former dorm room and quad area inside the Smith House dormitory into new office and center spaces by stripping out old carpets, repainting walls, widening doors and generally airing out the rooms. 'This used to be a men's quad and when we walked in last year, it still smelled like stale beer — the rumor mill says the room had a beer pong table,' Heilman said, pointing out puzzle tables and book stacked near a microwave and refrigerator. 'Now it's a place of belonging.' Becca Bachenheimer, a 21-year-old junior from New York's Westchester County, is a center volunteer who works to keep the area welcoming, from ensuring lighting, temperature and sound levels are kept correct to answering guests' questions. Bachenheimer, who suffers from chronic pain and movement issues, said students with her challenges can find traditional study and social spaces uncomfortable. 'It's calming and quiet here, but it's still a place to meet with other students,' she said. Heilman said about 500 of the college's 2,000 students have registered with a disability with her office. Those disabilities range from physical issues — mobility, sight and hearing — to those related to mental health or neurodivergent diagnosis. Intention, not afterthought Anna Vredevoogd, 21, of Chelmsford, Mass., who uses a wheelchair to navigate around campus, helped spearhead the student push for a new center. 'Having this means we matter, that disability culture is important to the college,' said Vredevoogd, co-president of the school's Disability Affinity Club. Vredevoogd said a big challenge for disabled students is finding and connecting with peers sharing similar backgrounds and experiences, a problem other disabled students said they also faced. "When I first came here, I had a hard time finding anyone else like me and now disabled people — and their allies — can come right in," she said. "My hope is the changes made by this class will give the next class of disabled students an easier time here. Alex Eikinas, a 21-year-old immunocompromised junior with arthritis and mobility issues, said too often accessible spaces are afterthoughts, places cobbled together without vision. 'This place was intentionally made, though,' Eikinas said. 'It's a place to meet with friends, to get advice and be our authentic selves. If you have a place like this, a community forms. And community is the backbone of change.'
