#Mosquito Control Measures

[townpostin]

Anti-Larva Spraying Intensifies to Combat Dengue in Jamshedpur

Municipal Corporation fines Rs. 10,500 for water logging violations Jamshedpur Municipal Corporation steps up efforts to prevent dengue spread with daily anti-larva spraying and awareness programs. JAMSHEDPUR – The Jamshedpur Municipal Corporation has escalated its anti-dengue initiatives by undertaking daily anti-larva spraying in numerous regions and imposing penalties for water logging…

[thesightstoshowyou]

Shoot for the Moon

Bo Sinclair X GN Reader

Warnings: None. Just fluff. Who am I?

~~

Keys jingle as you cut the engine. The thrum ceases and a moment of tranquil silence passes before the nighttime sounds rise to life all around. Crickets and frogs chirp, night herons splash, a barred owl calls. Cypress, oak, and maple trees creak and rustle in a gentle breeze. Car door hinges squeal as you slip from your vehicle and your boots swish in tall grasses as you make your way to the trunk.

Carefully, you unpack the telescope, flashlight, guides, and notepads. The scents of damp earth and decaying wood wash over you as you move. Already, the oppressive Louisiana humidity sticks your hair to your forehead, yet you wear a jacket and jeans to protect your limbs from mosquitos and ticks.

Satisfied with a small, nearby clearing, you meticulously set up your equipment. You peek through the eye piece and adjust the telescope’s position incrementally. Little flashlight clutched between your teeth, you scratch notes on the illuminated portion of paper before repeating the process.

An hour or so in, you abruptly surface from the lull of peaceful concentration. At first, you’re not certain what distracts you, but then you recognize the silence. All the wildlife has gone quiet, disturbed by something close by.

You frown and quiet your own breath, tilting your head to listen intently. To your left, a sharp snap; twigs underfoot. Something stalks through the brush, just out of sight.

A bear, maybe, or a stray dog. Your mind whirs with the possibilities, but you will yourself to stay calm. Nothing you can’t handle.

However, when a man emerges from the tree line, your heart stutters. Fear and confusion take root in your brain and you must consciously fight back the panic to keep your thoughts clear.

Where the hell had he come from? There isn’t a town or house around for miles, as far as you’re aware. You’d carefully chosen this particular spot for that very reason.

The man saunters toward you, hands buried in the pockets of the deep blue coveralls he wears. His pace is leisurely, every step measured and deliberate, meant to instill dread. You can’t make out the details of his face through the gloom and the cap perched atop his head does you no favors.

“Yer out here awfully late,” he notes, the pleasant drawl of his voice disturbing the hush of the clearing. He nods toward the crescent moon hanging low in the sky as though you need his help to tell it’s nighttime.

“Could say the same about you,” you respond, slipping the flashlight into your palm. You could blind him if he gets too close.

He stops his advance about twenty feet away, head tilting slightly as he studies you and your equipment. “Folks out this late don’t often have the best intentions.”

Pot, meet kettle. You resist the urge to call him out and instead motion to your telescope. “Just star gazing. I wasn’t aware this was private property. I’ll go—

“Nah, s’not private. Yer good, sugar.” He takes a few steps closer. The muscles in your shoulders tense. You swallow thickly, mind racing. What now?

You speak before you can stop yourself, “I, uh, I just found Saturn. It’s nice and clear tonight. Wanna see?” The man stops abruptly, obviously taken aback. He’s silent for a moment, contemplating.

“…Yer serious?” he questions. His steps are tentative now, cautious. You caught him off guard, it seems.

Roll with it. “Yeah!” You wave him over and allow the excitement to take control of your vocal cords, “And the Milky Way is so pretty right now. We can look at that next….”

He’s close enough now that you can make out the incredulous expression on his face…his very handsome face. The scents of engine oil, burnt grease, and metal hit you and the outfit suddenly makes sense. Still, you question why he’s out for a midnight stroll in such a remote area wearing his work garb.

You scoot out of the way and instruct him to look through the eye piece. He shoots you one more skeptical glance before carefully leaning over and peering into the telescope. You smell him now too: Cigarette smoke, faint aftershave, and woody musk that is not at all unpleasant.

You watch the exact moment the man spots the planet. What you can see of his face lights up and he shifts his body in toward the telescope, hunching more to get a better angle through the eyepiece. “Well, I’ll be damned,” he murmurs, hand coming up and hovering over the finderscope, hesitant to touch. You can’t help the grin that spreads across your face.

“So beautiful, right? Do you see the rings?”

“Sure do,” he replies, straightening and flashing you a hesitant, crooked smile. Your thoughts are almost derailed by the charm of it, but the eagerness to teach keeps you grounded.

“Here, scooch over a sec, lemme just readjust it….” You quickly check your notes then fiddle with the telescope. You’re overly aware of the man standing next to you, but he surprises you with polite silence, hands on his hips, apparently content to watch you work.

“Here, look,” you excitedly tell him as soon as it’s adjusted. With a quizzical expression, he leans down again, though there’s more enthusiasm in his movement this time.

“…What am I lookin’ at?” he asks, glancing over at you expectantly.

You giggle and mutter a quick, “Oh right,” before launching into an explanation. You gesture and describe, the animation in your voice and knowledge on the subject captivating the stranger.

He watches you speak with a mixture of admiration and bemusement on his face, like he can’t believe he’s listening so attentively, but doesn’t want to miss a word. All previous tension evaporates as you show him the charts you’ve drawn and move the telescope to and fro.

“Oh, and you should be able to see Phobos right now—

“What’s yer name, darlin’?” the man interrupts suddenly. You glance up at him and realize just how close he stands. Your shoulder brushes his chest, his body heat palpable. You’re glad for the darkness when your cheeks burn.

You do your best not to trip over your own name when he smirks, sudden shyness drying your throat and making your heart skip a beat. There’s irritation there too, annoyance with his smugness. You’re easier to read than you’d hoped, apparently.

“Bo,” he tells you as he holds out his hand. You turn to face him and accept his outstretched palm. It is then you notice your watch.

“Oh christ, it’s late. I really gotta go!”Hurriedly, you gather up your notes and pack away your equipment. Bo watches quietly and you can tell by the way he stands so stock still that he’s contemplating something.

You don’t give him a chance to decide on whatever it was he was planning when he entered the clearing.

“I, uh…I was gonna come back on Thursday if, you know, if you wanted to learn more.” Bo blinks at you, genuine surprise on his face. You’re just as shocked by your own words. Offering to meet a strange man with questionable intentions, alone, in the middle of rural Louisiana to teach him amateur astronomy?

Have you lost your damn mind?

Yet, the way he’d engaged with the subject and how eagerly he listened makes you think there’s something more to this man. The initial trajectory of your meeting had changed, hadn’t it? There was a spark, a yearning for connection. He wants to learn, and you want to teach.

That, or you’re completely delusional.

“Next Thursday?” You nod at his question. He tips his head again, like he’s thinking. Slipping his hands back into his pockets, he shrugs. “I can try and make it.”

**

He does make it on Thursday. You do too. And again on Saturday. And the following Friday. And Monday.

Sunday finds you seated on a blanket, Bo at your side, flashlight in your mouth and pen in had. Around you, the nighttime creatures sing their songs. Your trusty telescope points to the sky, ready to capture the comet you’re tracking.

You’re relaxed in his presence now. You’ve decided to attribute your initial meeting to simple chance. He hasn’t given you a reason not to trust him, and you’re not going to look for one.

Your name murmured in a hushed and careful tone breaks your reverie. You hum in response before lowering the flashlight and glancing up. The look in Bo’s baby blues freezes you in place and brings heat to your cheeks.

He’s closer than you anticipated. He removed his hat at some point and his dark hair is ruffled like he hastily ran his fingers through it. That self-satisfied smirk you tell yourself you hate pulls at the side of his mouth and there’s warmth in his eyes as they trace the curve of your lips.

“Been tryin’ t’kiss ya for the past ten minutes,” he teases, his hand reaching out to playfully flick the pen in your hand. You release a breathy laugh as your heart flutters in your chest like a trapped bird.

“Oh, um…s-sorry,” is all you can manage, mouth curving in a weak smile. Your teeth worry your bottom lip when Bo slides closer to cradle your face in his palms.

“Looks like I finally get t’teach ya somethin’ huh?” he jokes, lips ghosting across yours.

You huff, “Oh shut up,” but there’s no real bite to your words. Bo chuckles affectionately and smoothes his thumbs over your hair.

His next words are soft, the vulnerability in them meant only for your ears. “You been real sweet, darlin’. Ain’t nobody taught me anythin’ like you.”

“Oh,” you breathe, moved by his admission. The gratitude in it warms you deep in your chest. Bo wrinkles his nose.

“Alright, enough a’ that. Turnin’ me into a fuckin’ sap.” Your next scoff and eye roll is cut off when he finally claims your mouth in a searing kiss.

Overhead, stars twinkle, your silent spectators.

[thecreaturecodex]

Xiangliu

Image © deviantArt user YunaXD, accessed at her gallery here

[Sponsored by @coldbloodassassin. The xiangliu appears in Guideways through Mountains and Seas as an individual, Xiangliu, who is the minister of the malevolent water god Gonggong. I did consider making it a native or even extraplanar outsider because of that, but ended up going with aberration to stress its connection to nagas. Not that nagas are very aberrant as far as aberrations go...]

Xiangliu CR 14 NE Aberration This creature is an oversized serpent with nine heads and slime coating its scales. Its heads are disturbingly humanoid, but still bear fangs and forked tongues.

Xianglius are sadistic water serpents that delight in spreading disease and stagnant water. They are native to swampy lands, and fight violently against any attempt to drain such swamps or make them suitable for cultivation. Nearby fields are likely to be subject to their attacks, including flooded crops, summoned clouds of malarial mosquitoes and fouling wells and springs. Xianglius sometimes find allegiances with evil druids, daemons of pestilence and famine, or even gods of water who are hostile to civilization.

A xiangliu rarely hesitates to fight. Their bites are not fully venomous, but carry a foul slime that renders creatures bitten weak and queasy. They can spit jets of water with lethal force, and often split their attacks, biting creatures up close while barraging enemies that are more distant. Fighting a xiangliu is often quite frustrating, as the monsters create moats of mud and water to slow anyone approaching on foot, and can manipulate water to isolate and capsize boats. Wise adventurers approach a xiangliu’s lair from the air.

Despite their nine heads, a xiangliu has only one personality; peevish, cruel and sadistic. They are notorious gluttons; one legend is that they have nine heads in order to eat nine different meals at the same time. A xiangliu grows to about twenty feet long. Their lifespans are measured in centuries.

Xiangliu              CR 14 XP 38,400 NE Large aberration (aquatic) Init +6; Senses all around vision,darkvision 60 ft., Perception +22, scent

Defense AC 29, touch 15, flat-footed 23 (-1 size, +6 Dex, +14 natural) hp 190 (20d8+100) Fort +13, Ref +15, Will +16 DR 10/magic; Immune acid, disease, poison, sickness and nausea effects; SR 25

Offense Speed 30 ft., swim 40 ft. Melee 9 bites +20 (1d6+4 plus sickening slime) Ranged 9 water jets +20 (1d8 bludgeoning plus push) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks combined arms, mud wave, push (5 ft.) Spell-like Abilities CL 15th, concentration +20 (+24 casting defensively) At will—contagion (DC 18), putrefy food and drink 3/day—control water, insect plague 1/day—plague storm (DC 21), transmute rock to mud

Statistics Str 19, Dex 23, Con 20, Int 18, Wis 19, Cha 20 Base Atk +15; CMB +20; CMD 36 (cannot be tripped) Feats Blind Fight,Combat Casting, Combat Reflexes (B),Deadly Aim, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (bite), Lightning Reflexes, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Skill Focus (Stealth), Weapon Finesse Skills Acrobatics +22, Climb +20, Heal +18, Intimidate +21, Knowledge (arcana, geography) +18, Knowledge (nature) +20, Perception +22, Sense Motive +17, Spellcraft +20, Stealth +24, Swim +28; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception Languages Aquan, Common, Draconic SQ amphibious, improved swamp stride, multiheaded reflexes

Ecology Environment any swamps and aquatic Organization solitary Treasure standard

Special Abilities Combined Arms (Ex) When using a full attack action, a xiangliu can divide its nine attacks up between bites and water jets. Improved Swamp Stride (Su) A xiangliu can move without penalty through natural or magically manipulated mud, water, or vegetation native to swamp environments. Insect Plague (Sp) When a xiangliu uses its insect plague spell-like ability, it summons mosquito swarms instead of wasp swarms. Mud Wave (Su) As a standard action, a xiangliu can create a burst of mud and water in a twenty foot radius centered on itself. All creatures in the area take 14d6 points of bludgeoning damage and are knocked prone. A DC 25 Reflex save halves the damage and negates the prone effect. The area affected by the mud wave becomes difficult terrain for the next minute. A xiangliu can use this ability three times per day, but must wait 1d4 rounds between uses. The save DC is Charisma based. Multiheaded Reflexes (Ex) A xiangliu gains Combat Reflexes as a bonus feat. It can make as many attacks of opportunity in a round as it has heads. Sickening Slime (Ex) A creature bitten by a xiangliu must succeed a DC 25 Fortitude save or be sickened for 1 round. Failing additional saves increases the duration of the sickened effect by 1 round per save failed. The save DC is Constitution based. Water Jet (Su) A xiangliu can spit water from one of its mouths as a standard action, and up to all nine as a full attack. Treat each water jet as a ranged attack from a projectile weapon with a range increment of 20 feet. Attacks with water jets do not provoke attacks of opportunity. A creature struck by a water jet takes 1d8 points of bludgeoning damage and is exposed to the xiangliu’s push attack.

[mordenheim]

It consumes me

Marv blinked in the darkness, the husky struggling against his bonds.  He could feel leather straps around his wrists and angels that chafed as he struggled, the buckles ripping the fur from his skin.  He struggled harder, arching his back only to find that similar leather straps were pulled tight around his chest and waist.

Lifting his head a bit, he tried to cry out, only to find a muzzle restricting his jaws.  He could open them slightly but not all the way.  His teeth couldn’t open fully so he gave out a loud snarl.

“Oh good, you’re awake.”

The voice sounded ancient, dry and cracked with age as the overhead light flickered on, blinding him.  An elderly gray rabbit stared down at him.  Skin hung loose on his emaciated frame that almost seemed to just float inside of the baggy lab coat that he wore.  His eyes were bright and animated, but soulless.  No life seemed to exist within them.

“Now, how is my latest test subject feeling?”

“Who are you?!  What the hell did you do to me?!”  Marv hissed at the lapine through gritted teeth.

He grinned, his teeth stark white and frighteningly perfect in spite of his age.  “Finally someone who asks questions instead of just screaming.  I am Dr. Alvin Ein, and I have…  Acquired you for one of my latest experiments.”

“Acquired?  What are you talking about?”

“Yes, more questions!  Honestly, it’s so refreshing.  I almost regret what I am about to have to do.  Anyway, I have been monitoring you for days via micro-drone and once I found a convenient moment I drugged you and brought you here.  You know, you really should have been pulling your truck over to sleep more often.  Four hours a day is not healthy and quite dangerous to others on the road.”

“So you kidnapped me…”

““Kidnapped" is such a strong word, that’s why I like “acquired”.  You see, now you’re mine to do anything I please with.”

“What..  What are you going to do?”

“Ah, now there’s the big question.  You see, I have a thirst.  A drive to gain knowledge at any cost.  It consumes me.”  He steps closer, placing a withered hand on the husky’s fluffy abdomen.  “However, the flesh is failing me.  I doubt that I have long left.”

Marv cringed at the touch, trying to suck in his stomach to get it away from the rabbit’s touch.  “Good!  Then nobody else will have to be subjected to your…  craziness.”

The rabbit gripped a handful of fur and yanked painfully, causing the husky to let out a sharp bark of pain.  “As I was saying before you so rudely interrupted.  You, on the other hand, are full of life, energy and vitality.  If I can concentrate it, consume it, perhaps I can restore some measure of my own youth.”

“You’re insane!”

Rolling his eyes, the rabbit stepped back and ran his fingers through his thinning white hair.  “Circe, administer the paralytic and prepare for phase two.”

Marv’s eye went wide as he saw what at first looked like a mosquito buzz by his eyes.  It gave off a silvery flash as it zipped past his vision and vanished beside his face.  He felt a sharp sting on the side of his neck and a chill began to spread through his body.

“You bastard what.. Do, y’do.. T’...  meee…”  He slurred, losing control of his muscles as he slowly went limp.  Within moments he could barely breathe without focusing, much less struggle.

“Administer phase two.”

The mosquito flew off for a moment, returning soon, this time its abdomen giving off a ghostly bluish glow.  Another sting and a tingle rapidly flowed through his form.  He felt the shackles around his wrist and ankles start to loosen as well as the bands around his body.  If he could just move, he could escape!

“Excellent, it seems to be proceeding faster than anticipated.”

Confusion flooded his mind as the shackles seemed to not just slide off of him, but to pull away.  His eyes darted around, seeing the muzzle seeming to grow larger, loosening around his muzzle.  What the hell was happening to him?

Dr. Ein reached out and pulled the muzzle from his face.  The rabbit’s hand looked massive to Marv and seemed to be getting bigger.  He felt the fur on his back shifting and bunching up beneath him and he knew the truth.  He was shrinking, rapidly, and there was nothing he could do about it.

After a moment, he was barely the size of one of the rabbit’s fingers.  He grinned and lifted the tiny husky by the scruff of his neck, leaving him dangling bonelessly.  Lifting him higher, he slowly opened his maw wide.

Marv looked down with blind terror in his eyes.  Dr. Ein opened his maw wide, letting him see the black abyss at the back of his throat and those shining, perfect white teeth up close.  The rabbit let go and the husky was in freefall before landing on that warm, wet tongue.  The maw slowly closed on him, leaving him in darkness, pressed against the hard roof of the lapine’s mouth for a second.

Dr. Ein hummed to himself, swirled his tongue to the side.  There was a wet crunch and a gulp, his throat bulging a little as he forced the husky down his gullet.  He hobbled slowly across the room, his steps getting more steady as he went.  He reached out, pulling a cloth off of a full length mirror, gazing at himself.  His white hair slowly began to turn gray and then darken to a deep red.  His body began to fill out his lab coat as he grew taller, his bent spine beginning to straighten.  Throwing his head back he gave a maniacal laugh as the stolen life coursed through his form.

[magz]

Palestine Summary April 27 to April 30, 2024. From LetsTalkPalestine (LinkTree Here)

April 27. Day 204

• 32 Palestinians killed, 69 injured in Gaza in last 24 hours

• Overnight Israeli strikes on Rafah & Nuseirat camp (central Gaza) death toll rises to 15, incl. 8 children

🚢 US & Israel continue construction of floating aid pier on Gaza’s coast w/ UK Navy assistance, despite Israel blocking flotilla ship carrying 5,000+ tons of aid

• Escalating IOF raids in West Bank — 2 Palestinians killed & left to bleed out as IOF blocked ambulances in Jenin

🇶🇦 Qatar considering ending mediatory role in ceasefire negotiations citing frustrations w/ Israel & Hamas for stalling efforts

• Armed Israeli settlers raid homes & tents of Palestinian farmers in West Bank

• IOF abducts 20+ in overnight raids in West Bank

🇨🇳 China to host Palestinian unity talks between Hamas & Fatah (controlling party of Palestinian Authority), aiming to reconcile their complicated political rivalry. For more on Palestinian political parties: https://tinyurl.com/2s3ub7yu + the PA: https://tinyurl.com/3fmhaav3

April 28. Day 205

• 66 Palestinians killed, 38 injured in Gaza in the last 24 hours

⚖️ Israel consults US to prevent ICC arrest warrants against Netanyahu and others on the basis of the deliberate starvation of Palestinians in Gaza

• 270+ settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque compound for the 2nd time recently w/ IOF protection

🚢 US predicts Gaza pier to be operational in 3 weeks, citing challenges posed by Israel’s naval blockade of aid

• IOF abducts 15 in overnight West Bank raids

🇬🇧 UK says it may deploy troops in Gaza to allegedly help deliver aid. PFLP (socialist resistance group) says UK troops not welcome, and that it may target them

🇺🇸 Biden to discuss concerns ahead of Rafah invasion, threatening to slow arms deliveries to Israel if no appropriate & credible humanitarian plan for Rafah

🇺🇳 UNRWA: 2 children in Gaza killed due to Israeli restrictions on clean water amid rising temperatures

• Israeli police arrest 5 settlers amid West Bank settler rampage, to avoid US & EU sanctions

April 29. Day 206

• 34 Palestinians killed, 68 injured in Gaza in the last 24 hours

• Several Israeli attacks on homes in Rafah kill at least 20, including 5 children and 9 family members

🇺🇸 US finds 5 Israeli military units liable for serious human rights violations but says 4 have “remedied” & don’t need sanctions. US is hesitant to sanction the 5th unit

• Mounting garbage and rising temperatures infest besieged Rafah with flies & mosquitos, worsening conditions for displaced Palestinians

🇱🇧 Lebanon accepts ICC jurisdiction to prosecute Israelis for crimes committed on Lebanese territory; considered a landmark step

🎓 1,000+ have been arrested at Gaza protests on US campuses since encampments started. Student protests have spread to France, Italy, Egypt & Jordan

🇮🇩🇲🇾 Boycotts in Indonesia & Malaysia force equity firms (General Atlantic + CVC) to halt multimillion-dollar US fast food company stake sales like in McDonalds

April 30. Day 207

• 47 Palestinians killed, 61 injured in Gaza in the last 24 hours. But Gaza’s health officials express likelihood of underreporting, unsurprising after 7 months of constant bombardment while thousands remain buried under rubble

• Israel reportedly creating gender-discriminatory checkpoints around Rafah to block Palestinian men of “military age” from fleeing, while allowing women & children, in preparation for Rafah invasion

• Netanyahu asserts Rafah invasion will happen regardless of ceasefire deal, undermining ongoing negotiations & US pressures for a deal

⚖️ ICJ rejects Nicaragua’s request for emergency measures for Germany to suspend arms exports to Israel for complicity in genocide

• Today in Hebron (West Bank), Israeli forces tear-gassed a school, injuring many children & teachers + Israeli forces shot & killed a Palestinian man

• Palestinian Authority security forces crack down on protestors in front of Canadian representative office in Ramallah (West Bank)

[eldritch-spouse]

I wanna peg Grimbly so bad and praise the fuck out of him the whole time. Like yes pretty boy, look at you taking it so well! Keep making those sweet little sounds and cum nice and hard for Mommy❤️

[( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) yes.]

TW: Obviously mommy kink; Minor degradation (giving).

You don't know how it ended this way.

Or, well, you should have seen it coming. Yes, that's more accurate overall.

You already have a natural urge to gravitate towards his kind. Petite, needy, girly. It was hard to think twice about how eager Grimbly was to spend time with you, supposedly a complete stranger, when you were very much dazzled by his cuteness. You know now you're a fool, that you're trapped with a scarily possessive, jealous freak of a monster man who wants to monopolize every second of your life.

It's almost horrifying how someone so small and precious-looking can hold so much malice inside.

Luckily, Grimbly doesn't seem intent in tearing you down, or sucking you dry like a bloodthirsty mosquito- He just wants something very simple, as he puts it.

Your love and attention. Forever.

The mommy thing... Well, while it did shock you how quickly he dropped that bomb on you, Grimbly always had this knowing look to his bright magenta eyes, somehow knowing you were into it, daring you to say otherwise. You rolled with it. Just as you rolled with his desire to be increasingly femme for you, to be under your supposed control and brag about how "possessive" you are to others.

While all of this was decidedly very scary and tentative for you, and at times continues to be, especially considering some of his prior tantrums- You can't really say that it isn't sexually satisfying. Because it is. More than it should be.

It's hard to stay mad at his underhanded little tactics when he flashes you a puppy look and agrees with your scolding, gets flustered by your anger- Tells you to discipline him.

It's mind-boggling how much control this bat monster has over you. You suppose you should be thankful that he doesn't need that much to stay happy. Just a draining level of attention and babying that is steadily becoming more second nature than a chore to you.

" Babyboy? " You call idly, slicking the purple length on your strap.

It's a lengthier one this time. Several bumps give it texture. Considering Grimbly's small size, you think he could be biting off a bit more than he's able to chew here, but the monster's been training with you for this, so you'll trust him if he says he's ready. Aside from the strap, you wear nothing but a flimsy white robe.

A tap tap tap tap rings out, nearing. It's him, those pointed feet that always intrigued you so making their way over. Tip tip tip tap-

The door to the bedroom opens and your short, ever-pretty boyfriend walks in. You don't know what he was up to these past moments, Grimby just said he needed to prepare. Though, the moment you turn around to face him, hand still around the silicone cock, you freeze.

He's... He dressed for the occasion.

A... A maid's dress? Sort of? Yes, a very light pink, frilled maid's dress. He didn't say anything about roleplaying, but you could roll with it, especially since it looks soooo cute on his petite figure. It looks bouncy and hugs his waist perfectly, there's- Oh lord, he even put a bow around his tail, this goof. You know he must have spent a small fortune on those custom elbow-length gloves too. Has he been planning this for long?

You silently raise an eyebrow at Grimbly.

" A-Ah so- What do you think, mommy? " He does a twirl just for good measure, a dust of color to his cheeks.

" I think it's gorgeous baby- But when did you buy that? " God, you really hope he did it with his own money, that shit looks fucking expensive. You cannot take another blow to your wallet right now.

The bat waves. " I- Well, I actually had it for a couple of weeks now! You know, sometimes we have to dress nicer for big occasions, and I'm thinking of bringing this one to work... " He pauses, now twiddling his fingers and avoiding looking you in the eye. " ... But I wanted you to help me make a good memory in it first. "

A blood vessel bursts somewhere in your body.

That's right, he's a waiter. At that really odd place he keeps talking about. It's strange, you've asked to see it before but your vampiric little pest keeps insisting it's not that important. That not a lot of humans go there, that his coworkers are kinda lame. Smells fishy, he clearly avoids talking about his job, and while that puts you off a tad, you know Grimbly isn't as cutesy and innocent as he looks- So maybe it really is wise not to push him on this topic.

" You want to get railed in your new work outfit? My, what a dirty boy. " You snicker.

He winks, flashing you his tongue.

" Lift it. " You order.

" H- Huh? "

There's a beat of stunted silence.

" Lift that skirt, I want to see what's beneath it. "

The small monster "hum"s and "ha"s a couple more times, heat steadily pooling on that pale face while his legs shimmy together. He doesn't dare defy you for long, grabbing the hem and slowly dragging it up to reveal-

Nothing.

Exactly as you expected.

" Tsk, and you think that's decent? "

He shakes his head, but his tail wags.

You march up to the monster, delighting in the confusion shining through those big round eyes as you grab him by the exposed slit none too gently. Grimbly yelps, quickly curling forward.

" What's stopping anyone from just walking up to you and taking what they want, huh? "

He gasps, caught up in the feeling of you rubbing at him incessantly, evoking all the finesse of a greasy pervert who'd want nothing more than to cop a feel of his local waitress- Probably some of the creeps he has to deal with.

" Answer me, babyboy. "

" N- Nothing! "

" Exactly. " You jam two fingers into him, neither slow nor careful, hooking them for good measure. " What's stopping me from touching you everywhere, from using you like the common fucking street whore? "

" Nothing mommy- " He's teary-eyed already, trying to grind onto the sudden intrusion.

Tutting quietly, you take several steps back, keeping your digits firmly inside his wet hole so Grimbly has to follow as well, effectively being led around by the slit. There's no curbing the smirk that decorates your face when you feel his cock brush your hand, jumping in excitement at being manhandled.

You lead him to the bed, picking Grimbly up with little effort -Thank fuck he's so light- And tossing him onto the sheets. He lands on his back, dress scrambled, already biting his lip. The lack of a barrier allows his equally cute cock to slip out, and some part of you thinks he should have put a bow on it too. To complete the look.

" Did you prep? " You ask, climbing on after him, hands on his legs.

" Y- Yes, mommy. " Sure enough, once you spread them, you find his hole wet with the shine of lube already.

" Good boy. "

You flip him around mid-purr, always happy to be able to handle him so roughly. It's a novelty.

Grimbly's practiced enough to raise his ass and plant his head on the pillows, tail kept out of the way as he grinds against your faux member. Needy slut. You know you could slam inside and he would probably only moan for more.

A devious idea pops into your head.

" M- Mommy? " The bat monster questions when you refuse to initiate anything. " ... Please fuck me? "

Hah cute, he thinks you want him to beg.

" No baby, I want you to work for it. "

You know you're treading a line here, Grimbly's such a pillow princess, it's a challenge to get him to move it. He whines already.

" Ah ah, none of that. " Curving over him, your thighs dwarfing his, you whisper where his ear would be. " You're going to fuck yourself on my dick, and then maybe, I'll give you that plowing you want so bad... "

You're close enough to feel his whole body shudder.

" Got it, sweetie? "

Grimbly moans something incomprehensible, shifts so the very tip of the silicone toy prods at his entrance, and turns to look at you with a heated nod.

Even if you don't feel a lick of it, the sight of him sliding back onto your girth is hot enough that you both moan in unison.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

The greatest Dengue epidemic in Brazil: Surveillance, Prevention, and Control

In this review, we discuss dengue surveillance, prevention, and control measures in Brazil. Data on dengue epidemics between 2000 and 2024 indicates an increase in the number of dengue cases and deaths. Global climate change is a key driver of this growth. Over the past 25 years, nearly 18 million Brazilians have been infected with the dengue virus, and the highest number of dengue cases in Brazil's history is projected to reach 2024. Dengue mortality in Brazil increased geographically over time. As of June, there were approximately 6 million probable cases and 4,000 confirmed deaths in Brazil, which represents the greatest dengue epidemic to date. Several technologies have been developed to control Aedes aegypti, including the deployment of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes, indoor residual spraying, sterile insect techniques, and mosquito-disseminated insecticides. The Ministry of Health recommends integrating these technologies into health services. Brazil is the first country to incorporate the Takeda vaccine into its public health system, and the Butantan vaccine is currently undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials. Increasing the vaccination coverage and implementing novel Ae. aegypti control technologies could reduce the number of dengue cases in Brazil in the coming years. Community activities such as home cleaning and elimination of potential mosquito breeding sites, facilitated by social media and health education initiatives, must continue to achieve this reduction. Ultimately, a multisectoral approach encompassing sanitary improvements, mosquito control, vaccination, and community mobilization is crucial in the fight against dengue epidemics.

Read the paper.

[scuttling-comfuddlement]

Welcome to my shop!

We have a lot of trinkets, tools, and pets! We can also have some things custom-made for you, if you'd like. Our door is always open, and we welcome anyone. Even if you don't buy anything.

The currency is coins, but we are willing to negotiate. We will often take items needed for crafting and such as payment.

Items:

We have cloaks of camouflage, which shift color to blend in to your surroundings.

We've got the lighthearted potions. A powder to make a person rhyme for a few hours, a candy that gives them a high voice for a day or two, and the kaleidoscope glasses cleaner. Makes em see everything like a kaleidoscope, obviously.

We've got the ones that alter emotions. Buy 2, get one free! Or you can mix and match to your heart's desire.

How about the soaps? One makes it so you never have to bathe again, it'll keep you clean. Another one makes mosquitoes terrified of you. Permanently.

Or there's the arm-band that gives you an outfit that morphs into whatever you deem fitting for the occasion.

As for the armband, I recommend wearing clothes underneath, just in case it malfunctions. Just leggings and a t-shirt. I've had angry customers wanting refunds and they were a pain in the knuckles.

Also, a pill that makes you not a loser. I take it daily. I don't think it's too effective.

There's the leaf crown that gives you the ability to photosynthesize... but your eyes will turn green while you're wearing it. Which isn't the worst of things. Green eyes are pretty.

There's a thermometer, it measures figurative warmth and cold.

We've got the magnet from the Shaggy Man in the Wizard of Oz. Makes people love you. Honestly, I think all the love potions are overrated.

We've also got bracelets with attachable charms including but not limited to: charisma, intelligence, stamina, strength, speed, stealth, wit, etc.

There is also a pocketknife that can never be lost, a notepad that takes notes for you, and a book that changes its story every time you finish it.

A pair of hair-pieces. You exchange it with a person, and it allows controlled, consensual telepathic communication. The simple ones are a button apeice. The multi-dimensional ones cost a seashell for a pair, but if you get the multiple dimension ones, I can offer you a discount.

We have nail polish that can turn your fingernails into claws that can cut through metal.

We've also got earrings that give you controlled selective hearing. And yes, we also carry the magnetic kind.

Pets:

Some new items!

Bags, that when you put something into it, it does not have any weight. Great for traveling.

Little metal beetles that can be programmed to detect almost anything you'd like; such as water, warmth, certain types of plants, or even tracking animals.

Mirrors that show not physical appearance, but personality.

Hourglasses that measure the time until your next sneeze.

Candles. You can put a memory you want to forget into them, and then when it burns out, the memory will be gone.

Fish eggs. They're for fish about the size of a minnow, but you can use them to relay messages. They whisper in your ear. And all of the species have a hive mind, so you could use them to spy.

Well, the fish, we've also got birds. The parakeets will pretty much do what you tell them to. They're smarter than most. We've got the axolotls, they basically just look cute and question everything you do. Our crabs are crabby, our frogs can make it rain, toads will selectively eat the bugs you don't like, and turtles are pretty wise. The squirrels are excellent trackers, and can find almost anything. But they'll never shut up.

We're not supposed to sell the hawks because they have an extremely keen sense of justice, and have injured their owners for being prejudiced or unjust. If I made an exception, you'd have to raise it from a fledgling, to raise it loyal to you.

We are currently working on getting larger animals. Ferrets coming soon!

You'd have to sigh a waiver for that though.

Some new pets!

Monkeys! They're pretty awesome. No magical abilities, but quite well behaved and very fun to spend time with. But they need a lot of enrichment.

Glow worms that can read books to you.

Caribou. Very friendly and great emotional support.

Hummingbirds. They bring better luck.

Sloths. They sleep so you don't have to. This is literal. If you let them sleep, you will not need sleep.

Employees:

If you're interested in buying something from my shop, feel welcome to come in! Speak to one of these people if you want to buy something, or have something custom made.

Firefly: Troubled past, silly, easy to please, cares deeply about people and is a fierce fighter. Gone most of the time on quests and such.

Ohtacaro: Quiet, smart, stereotypical ninja, has a cat named Randir. He and Otsi'stia have a sign language that they came up with for private conversations.

Otsi'stia: She is clever, practical, and the twin sister of Ohtacaro. She is less withdrawn than he is, but usually won't start a conversation for no reason. Hates small talk. Will get straight to the point.

Hotaru: Cheerful, hyper, enthusiastic. She's innocent and loves everyone. She just wants to help people. She is easily fascinated by little things. Especially koi fish.

Jon: Has a sense of humor, charming, and loves books. He is good at planning and dealing with people. He won't take abuse, and won't let you abuse his friends, either. He hates it when things get awkward.

Rena: A little bit bossy. She can be a grouch. You do NOT want to get on her bad side. But the number one way to get on her bad side is to be mean to Hotaru. She goes on runs to clear her head, and is currently taking anger management courses, because Jon and Lilian made her do it.

Lilian: The comforting, motherly one. She'll probably invite you in for a cup of tea, or babysit your pets or children or irresponsible friends. She wants you to be okay. She usually has calming music playing in the background, and she can be really poetic when she wants to be.

Soraya: The mechanic/scientist/inventor. Not a great fan of eye contact. Shy, as in, almost never speaks to anyone. Has her own space to work in, and stays there most of the time, but often goes to the library, or to the abandoned lot to test things out. She is extremely intelligent and a problem solver.

[fatehbaz]

[A]s [...] Nelson explains: The creation of transportation infrastructure such as canals and railroads, the deployment of armies, and the clearing of ground to plant tropical products all had to confront [...] microbial resistance. The French, British, and US raced to find a cure for malaria [...]. One French colonial official complained in 1908: “fever and dysentery are the ‘generals’ that defend hot countries against our incursions and prevent us from replacing the aborigines that we have to make use of.” [...] [T]ropical medicine was assigned the role of a “counterinsurgent field.” [...] In 1897 in [British-administered] Calcutta, this transimperial medical-military network [...] finally succeeded in scientifically proving the “mosquito theory”: mosquitoes were identified as carriers of the malaria pathogen [...]. Once [...] [the] theory was recognized, the idea of ‘environment’ became internalized and miniaturized in the form of invading entities [...].

[T]he discovery of mosquitoes as malaria and yellow fever carriers reawakened long-cherished plans such as the construction of the Panama Canal (1904–1914) [...]. In 1916, the director of the US Bureau of Entomology and longtime general secretary of the American Association for the Advancement of Science rejoiced at this success as “an object lesson for the sanitarians of the world” -- it demonstrated “that it is possible for the white race to live healthfully in the tropics.” 

As Timothy Mitchell writes: “In 1915, the year after the canal’s completion, the newly established Rockefeller Foundation took over the mosquito campaign from the U.S. Army and launched a worldwide program [...]. Thus the global movements of the mosquito gave shape to a transnational corporate philanthropy.” [...] The urgency and severity of measures to combat dangerous diseases always had the collateral benefit of social pacification. In 1918, George Vincent, president of the Rockefeller Foundation, candidly declared: 

“For purposes of placating primitive and suspicious peoples, medicine has some decided advantages over machine guns.”

The construction of the Panama Canal [...] advanced the military expansion of the United States in the Caribbean. The US occupation of the Canal Zone had already brought racist Jim Crow laws, [...] [and racial segregation from] the US, to the spatial structure [neighborhoods and work camps] around the canal. Yet, when the increasing presence of US troops and the flow of migrant laborers in the Canal Zone during the two world wars heightened fears of sexually transmitted diseases, “a medicalized state of war ... attacked environmental space [...]. The spatial imaginary established through control of malarial mosquitoes deeply influenced cartographies” of sexually transmitted diseases [...]. Besides the [...] establishment and expansion of [...] [policing] squads and prophylaxis stations, during the night women were picked up all over the city and forcibly tested for sexually transmitted diseases -- if the results were positive, they were detained in something between a prison and hospital for up to six months. [...] [W]omen in Panama were becoming objects of police surveillance by way of combatting malaria [...].

---

All text above by: Fahim Amir. “Cloudy Swords.” e-flux Journal Issue #115. February 2021. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me.]

[townpostin]

JNAC Imposes Rs 15,900 in Fines for Dengue Prevention Violations

Intensified campaign targets hotspots; dedicated team conducts rigorous inspections Jamshedpur Notified Area Committee levies fines to enforce dengue prevention measures across the city. JAMSHEDPUR – JNAC imposes Rs 15,900 in fines as part of an intensified dengue prevention drive, targeting identified hotspots. The Jamshedpur Notified Area Committee (JNAC) has stepped up its efforts to combat…

[proton-wobbler]

Round 1, Poll 7

Gray Vireo vs Dusky Seaside Sparrow

sources under cut

Gray Vireo Propaganda:

Noted as being one of the most plain looking birds in North America, Gray Vireo live in the Southwest in various scrublands: pinyon-juniper, mesquite, and oak.

Like other vireos, they will use the slight hook in their bill to help tear apart the insects they capture, typically beating them against branches before holding down the bug and ripping into it. Also like other vireos, they sometimes sing while sitting on their nest!

They're monogamous throughout the breeding season, with males singing consistantly from dawn til noon and running circles around their territory multiple times per day. Sometimes on these rounds, the female will wander with him, only singing if there is a territorial conflict with another pair. Both male and female will incubate eggs, and feed the young.

(this is my current focal species for work I promise I'm not biased, they're just perfect in every way)

Dusky Seaside Sparrow:

"extinct; RIP little guy :(" - declared officially extinct in December 1990

A subspecies of the Seaside Sparrow, this specific type was found in saltmarshes of Florida's Atlantic Coast on Merritt Island and the upper St. Johns River.

The main cause for extinction is likely linked to mosquito control measures: DDT use, the creature of "mosquito impoundments" that destroyed saltmarsh habitat, and finally the flooding of the marshes on Merritt Island after the Kennedy Space Center was built. Another huge blow was when the marshes were drained to facilitate highway construction.

As a species, Seaside Sparrows are incredible habitat specialists that remain in saltmarshes and brackish marshes their entire life. They nest in the tall grass of riverbanks, creating an orb-shaped nests just high enough from the water to keep from flooding daily. Once the chicks have fledged and been cared for by their parents, they will often form small flocks in order to forage together.

Image Source: All About Birds

[dusts-sun]

hehe haha I do not have a title yet chp1

You see, Donatello wasn't being reckless per-say, he was actually being quite careful. The experiment was a simpler one, nice and controlled. The turtle was observing the Oozeqitoes and how the biotech-born creatures interacted with true, living animals. Oozeqitoes were a complex and intricate machine- one built perfectly to replicate the flying patterns and noises of a true mosquito. But these delicate gadgets were far from living. They did not breathe, did not drink- its sole purpose was to inject. But still, Donnie’s curiosity got the better of him. It often did.

It started out innocent- as most things do- as simple tests, like on a cat. Donnie found interesting results. The contents of the Oozeqsitos’ venom was extremely potent. So much so that it spreads a certain cancer-like fluid through one’s cells. It messed with the DNA. It left the cells vulnerable and open to new DNA to join its extensive ladders. And thus, the mutations must occur. If no new DNA is given, the venom will degrade the cells closest to it. The dying cells will develop an illness, and there is no treatment. The longest Donnie had seen an infected creature last was 4 hours. But those were land creatures.

Today, Donatello had a new specimen, an electric eel. The electric eel was an intriguing creature to Donnie. He found it amazing that nature- ever primitive and feral- has made something so sophisticated, it could create electricity. Power. One of the many things Donatello admired. And the dark, slippery creature was here. Right in front of him. Dopey as ever, yet so dangerous. The fish had been placed in a rectangular tank. There was a pane of glass separating the top side and bottom that Donnie could slide out. On the bottom, there was the eel, placed in water. On the top, there was an Oozeqito, buzzing about. There was a sickly, almost evil green glow from the biotech. This did not bothe Donatello, however. He’d done experiments like this time and time before. This wasn't new. The procedure was quick: Ready note-taking things and record the experiment. Then, slide the glass plate that separated the top and bottom out of the way. Lastly? See what happens. In moderation, of course. Donatello could quickly end the experiment if worse came to worst.

Safety measures in mind, Donnie slid the glass pane out from the middle of the rectangle. That was his first mistake. As soon as he was about to cover the holes, the Oozeqito buzzed through the slits. It flitted around his room, all the time Donnie was frozen in place, helpless. He could only watch the mechanical bug as cold, molten fear seeped in his bones, dripped off his ribs, infected his stomach with an eternal anxiety. The biotech flitted around until it drew closer and closer. Then it landed on his arm. His left one. The sting felt like fire in his veins. The venom coursed through. He could feel it. He could feel it. It hurt so much. It made Donatello want to rip off his skin and let the green fire weep out. But it was far too late. Donnie knew what would happen if he didn’t act soon. The turtle mutant looked around frantically as the Oozeqito fell to the floor. Then, his eyes landed on the glass box. The glass box with the eel. The electric eel. In a flash, the lid was off the box and Donnie stuck his hand down, fishing around for the slimy creature. The turtle’s hand hit something. It brushed up against the cool, wet skin. Then it went black.

[xtruss]

Twenty-Five Years Before The Wright Brothers Took To The Skies, This Flying Machine Captivated America

First Exhibited in 1878, Charles F. Ritchel’s Dirigible Was About As Wacky, Dangerous and Impractical as Any Airship Ever Launched

— June 11, 2024 | Erik Ofgang

“When I Was Making It, People Laughed at Me a Good Deal,” Charles F. Ritchel Later Said. “But Do They Did at Noah When He Built the Ark.” Illustration by Meilan Solly/Images via Wikimedia Commons under public domain, Newspapers.com

Charles F. Ritchel’s Flying Machine Made a Sound Like a Buzzsaw as its pilot turned a hand crank to spin its propeller. It was June 12, 1878, and a huge crowd, by some accounts measuring in the thousands, had gathered at a baseball field in Hartford, Connecticut. The spectators had each paid 15 cents for a chance to witness history.

The flying machine—if one could really call it that—was an unsightly jumble of mechanical parts. It consisted of a 25-foot-long, 12-foot-wide canvas cylinder filled with hydrogen and bound to a rod. From this contraption hung a framework of steel and brass rods that the Philadelphia Times likened to “the skeleton of a boat.” The aeronaut would sit on this framework as though it were a bicycle, controlling the craft with foot pedals and a hand crank that turned a four-bladed propeller.

The device did not inspire confidence.

“When I was making it, people laughed at me a good deal,” Ritchel later said. “But so they did at Noah when he built the ark.”

A self-described “professor,” Ritchel was the inventor of such wacky, weird and wild creations that a recounting of his career reads as though it were torn from the pages of a Jules Verne novel. Supposedly friends with both P.T. Barnum and Thomas Edison, Ritchel for a time made a living working for a mechanical toy company in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where he designed talking dolls, model trains and other playthings. But he was more than just a toymaker.

Left: Charles F. Ritchel filed more than 150 patents over his lifetime. Right: Ritchel's 1878 patent for his flying machine — Photographs: Public Domain Via Wikimedia Commons

Some years after the flying machine demonstration, the inventor proposed an ambitious attraction for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World’s Fair): a “telescope tower” that would rival France’s Eiffel Tower. The design consisted of a 500-foot-wide base topped by multiple nested structures that rose up over the course of several hours, eventually reaching a height of about 1,000 feet. After this proposal was rejected, Ritchel launched a campaign to raise funds to build a life-size automaton of Christopher Columbus, which the Chicago Tribune reported would speak more than 1,000 phrases in a human-like voice, rather than the “far-away, metallic sounds produced by a phonograph.”

By the mid-1880s, Ritchel claimed to have filed more than 150 patents. Not all of them were fun. He invented more efficient ways to kill mosquitos and cockroaches, a James Bond-esque belt that assassins could use to inject poison into their targets, and a gas bomb for use in land or naval warfare.

Yet never in his career was his quirk-forward blend of genius and foolishness more apparent than on that June day in Hartford. Because the balance of weight and equipment was so delicate, Ritchel was too heavy to fly the craft. Instead, he employed pilot Mark W. Quinlan, who tipped the scale at just 96 pounds. Quinlan was a 27-year-old machinist and native of Philadelphia, but little else is known about him. The record, however, is crystal clear on one count: Quinlan was very, very brave.

When preparations for the craft were complete, the crowd watched in eager anticipation as Quinlan boarded the so-called pilot’s seat. The airship rose 50 feet, then 100 feet, then 200 feet. Such a sight was uncommon but not unheard of at the time. The real question was: Once the craft was in the air, could it be controlled?

The first heavier-than-air flight (in which airflow over a surface like a plane wing creates aerodynamic lift) only took place in 1903, when the Wright Brothers conducted their famous flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. But by the late 19th century, flying via lighter-than-air gases was already close to 100 years old. (This method involves heating the air inside of a balloon to make it less dense, leading it to rise, or filling the balloon with a low-density gas such as helium or hydrogen.) On November 21, 1783, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d’Arlandes completed the first crewed, untethered hot-air balloon flight, passing over Paris on a craft built by the Montgolfier brothers. Later, balloons were used for reconnaissance during the French Revolutionary Wars and the American Civil War.

A drawing of the Montgolfier brothers' hot-air balloon Public Domain Via Wikimedia Commons

But free-floating balloons were, and still are, at the mercy of the winds. While balloon aeronauts can achieve limited control by changing altitude and attempting to catch different currents, they can’t easily return to the spot where they took off from, which is why even today, they have teams following them on the ground. Mid-1800s aviation enthusiasts dreamed of fixing this problem, which led to the development of dirigibles—powered, steerable airships that were inflated with lighter-than-air gases. (The word dirigible comes from the French word diriger, “to steer”; contrary to popular belief, the term, which is synonymous with airship, is not derived from the word “rigid.”) While some early aeronauts successfully steered dirigibles, none of these rudimentary airships could truly go against the wind or provide a controlled-enough flight to take off and land at the same point consistently.

In 1878, Ritchel was unaware of anyone who had successfully taken off in a dirigible and landed at the same spot. He hoped to change that with his baseball field demonstration. A month earlier, Ritchel had exhibited the airship’s capabilities during indoor flights at the Philadelphia Main Exhibition Hall, a massive structure built for that city’s 1876 Centennial Exposition. But there is no wind indoors, and the true test of his device would have to be performed outdoors.

After rising into the air, Quinlan managed to steer the craft out over the Connecticut River. To onlookers, it was clear that the aeronaut was in control. But as he flew, the wind picked up, and it began to look like a storm was gathering. To avoid getting caught in the poor weather and facing an almost-certain disaster, Quinlan steered the craft back toward the field, cutting through the “teeth of the wind until directly over the ball ground whence it had ascended, and then alighted within a few feet of the point from which it had started,” as the New York Sun reported.

Ritchel's dirigible, as seen on the July 13, 1878, cover of Harper's Weekly Public Domain Via Wikimedia Commons

The act was hailed far and wide as a milestone. An illustration of the impressive-looking flying machine was featured on the cover of Harper’s Weekly.

“The great problem which inventors of flying machines have always before them is the arrangement by which they shall be able to propel their frail vessels in the face of an adverse current,” the magazine noted. “Until this end shall have been achieved, there will be little practical value to any invention of the kind. In Professor Ritchel’s machine, however, the difficulty has been in a great measure overcome.”

Across the country, observers hailed Ritchel’s odd but impressive milestone in flight. In the years and decades that followed, this achievement was forgotten by almost all except a select group of aviation historians.

Wikipedia incorrectly lists the flight of the French army dirigible La France as the first roundtrip dirigible flight. But this event took place six years after Ritchel’s Hartford demonstration, in August 1884. Why has a flight so seemingly monumental in its time been relegated to the dustbin of history?

Given his eccentric nature and creativity, it’s easy to root for Ritchel and think of him as a Nikola Tesla-like genius robbed of his rightful place in history. The reality of why his feat was forgotten is more complicated. As Tom Crouch, an emeritus curator at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, says, it’s possible Ritchel’s craft was the first to complete a round-trip dirigible flight. But other aircraft in existence at the time probably could have accomplished the same feat in favorable conditions. “La France made the first serious round-trip,” Crouch says.

Additionally, while Ritchel’s machine worked to a point, it wasn’t a pathway to more advanced dirigibles. Richard DeLuca, author of Paved Roads & Public Money: Connecticut Transportation in the Age of Internal Combustion, points out that the hand-cranked nature of Ritchel’s craft made it nearly impossible to operate with any kind of wind. “On the first day, he got away with it and directed the ship out and over the river and back to where he started, and that was quite an accomplishment,” DeLuca says. “But the conditions were just right for him to do that.”

Dan Grossman, an aviation historian at the University of Washington, has never come across evidence that any later pioneers of more advanced dirigible flights were influenced by Ritchel. “There are a lot of firsts in history that got forgotten because they never led to a second,” Grossman says.

An artist's depiction of the La France airship Public Domain Via Wikimedia Commons

The day after their first successful public outdoor flight in Hartford, Quinlan and Ritchel tried again at that same ballfield. This time, the weather was less cooperative, and the wind came in sharp gusts. Still, the pair persisted in their attempt. “Little Quinlan, even if he does only weigh 96 pounds, has confidence and nerve enough to go up in a gale,” the Sun reported. Up he went about 200 feet, but this time, the wind carried him away with more force. Quinlan was “seen throwing his vertical fan into gear, and by its aid, the aerial ship turned around, pointing its head in whatever direction he chose to give it.” Although he could move the ship about, “he could not make any headway against the strong wind.”

Quinlan descended about 100 feet, trying to catch a different current, but the wind still pushed him away from the ballfield. He raised the craft, this time going higher than 200 feet, but still couldn’t overcome the wind and was soon swept off toward New Haven, vanishing from sight like some real-world Wizard of Oz.

Eventually, Quinlan safely brought the airship down in Newington, about five miles away from Hartford. The inventor and his pilot were unfazed by this setback. They held more public exhibitions that year with a mix of success and failure—including an incident that nearly cost Quinlan his life. During a July 4 exhibition in Boston, the machine malfunctioned and continued to rise, soaring to what the Boston Globe estimated to be 2,000 feet. Quinlan couldn’t get the propeller to work, and the craft continued to rise, reaching as high as 3,000 feet.

Terrified but quick-thinking, Quinlan tied his wrist and ankle to the craft and swung out of his seat to fix the propeller, using a jack-knife he happened to have on him as a makeshift tool. The daring midair repairs worked, and the craft gradually descended. Quinlan landed in Massachusetts, 44 miles from his starting destination, after a 1-hour, 20-minute flight.

Per Grossman, the human-powered method Ritchel attempted to utilize was doomed from the start. “In the absence of an internal combustion engine, there really was no control of lighter-than-air flight,” he says.

Ritchel stubbornly refused to consider powering dirigibles with engines and did not foresee how powerful a better-designed aircraft truly could be.

“I have overcome the fatal objection of which has always been made to the practicability of aerial navigation—that is, I have made a machine that can be steered,” Ritchel told a reporter in July 1878. “I claim no more. I have never pretended that a balloon can be made to go against the wind, and I am sure it never could. It is as ridiculous as a perpetual motion machine, and the latter will be invented just as soon as the former.”

Left: A page from Ritchel's ballooning scrapbook National Air and Space Museum Archives. Right: The scrapbook covers the years 1878 to 1901. Photographs: National Air and Space Museum Archives

Even so, Ritchel was influential in his own way. “He was one of the first to really come up with the notion of a little one-man, bicycle-powered airship, and those things were around into the early 20th century,” says Crouch. After Ritchel, other daring inventors launched similar pedal-powered airships. Carl Myers, for example, held demonstrations of a device he called the “Sky-Cycle” in the 1890s.

Ritchel stands as one of the fascinating early aeronauts whose work blurred the line between science and the sideshow. “I refer to them as aerial showmen, these guys who came up with the notion of making money [by] thrilling people [with] their exploits in the air,” Crouch says.

According to Crouch’s 1983 book, The Eagle Aloft: Two Centuries of the Balloon in America, Ritchel and Quinlan took the airship on tour with a traveling circus in the late 1870s. Ritchel also operated his machine at Brighton Beach near Coney Island. He sold a few replicas of his device and later attempted to develop a larger, long-distance version of the craft powered by an 11-person hand-cranking crew. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this idea failed to gain momentum, and Ritchel faded from the headlines. Soon, the exploits of new aeronauts would upstage him, among them Alberto Santos-Dumont’s circumnavigation of the Eiffel Tower in 1901.

Left: Alberto Santos-Dumont's first balloon, 1898. Right: Santos-Dumont circles the Eiffel Tower in an airship on July 13, 1901. Photographs: Public Domain Via Wikimedia Commons

Despite many earlier dirigible flights, Crouch and Grossman agree that the technology only became practical when German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin built and flew the first rigid dirigible in the early 1900s. Over the first decade of the new century, Zeppelin perfected his namesake design, which featured a fabric-covered metal frame that enclosed numerous gasbags. “By 1913, just before [World War I] begins, Zeppelin is actually running sightseeing tours over German cities,” Crouch says, “so the Zeppelin at that point can safely carry passengers and take off and land from the same point.”

For a brief period, airships ruled the sky. (The spire of New York City’s Empire State Building, built in the 1930s, was famously intended as a docking station for passenger airships.) But the vehicles, which use gas to create buoyancy, were quickly eclipsed by airplanes, which achieve flight through propulsion that generates airflow over the craft’s wings.

While the 1937 Hindenburg disaster is often viewed as the end of the dirigible era, Grossman says that’s a misconception: The real death knell for passenger airships arrived when Pan American Airways’ China Clipper, a new breed of amphibious aircraft, flew from San Francisco to Manila in November 1935. “Partly because they flew faster, they could transport more weight, whether it’s people or cargo, mail, whatever, in the same amount of time,” Grossman explains. “They were less expensive to operate, they required much, much smaller crews, [and] they were less expensive to build.”

Airplanes were also safer. “Zeppelins have to fly low and slow,” Crouch says. “They operate in the weather; airplanes don’t. An airplane at 30,000 feet is flying above the weather. Weather, time after time, is what brought dirigibles down.”

Today, niche applications for passenger airships endure, including the Zeppelin company’s European tours, as well as ultra-luxury air yachts and air cruises. But “it’s always going to be a tiny, tiny slice of the transportation pie,” Grossman says.

Crouch agrees. “People still talk about bringing back big, rigid airships. That hasn’t happened yet, and I don’t think it will,” he says.

The USS Los Angeles, a United States Navy airship, in 1931. Photograph Public Domain Via Wikimedia Commons

In some ways, Ritchel’s flying machine was a microcosm of the larger history of dirigibles: fascinating, fun and the perfect fodder for fiction, but ultimately eclipsed by more efficient technology.

As for Ritchel, he died, penniless, of pneumonia in 1911 at age 66. “Although during his lifetime he had perfected inventions that, in the hands of others, had brought in great wealth, he died a poor man, as he lacked the business ability to turn the children of his brain to the best advantage to himself,” wrote the Bridgeport Post in his obituary.

Even so, the public had not forgotten the brief time three decades earlier when Ritchel and his airship ruled the skies. As the Boston Evening Transcript reported, his flights captured “the attention of the world. In every country and in every language, newspapers and magazines of the day printed long stories of the wonderful feats performed by the Bridgeport aviator and his marvelous machine, of which nothing short of a cruise to the North Pole was expected.”

— Erik Ofgang is the co-author of The Good Vices: From Beer to Sex, The Surprising Truth About What’s Actually Good For You and the author of Buzzed: A Guide to New England's Best Craft Beverages and Gillette Castle: A History. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Atlantic, Thrillist and the Associated Press, and he is the senior writer at Tech & Learning magazine.

[beardedmrbean]

A record surge in dengue cases throughout Latin America and the Caribbean prompted the head of the Pan American Health Organization to warn of the need for proactive measures to curb the virus that is transmitted by mosquitoes.

PAHO Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa said in a press briefing Thursday that as of March 26, the region had seen more than 3.5 million cases of dengue and more than 1,000 deaths.

"This is cause for concern, as it represents three times more cases than those reported for the same period in 2023, a record year with more than 4.5 million cases reported in the region,” he said.

As of March, the hardest-hit countries in Latin America are Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina — which have accounted for 92% of the dengue cases and 87% of the deaths — where mosquitoes have thrived because of the warm and rainy weather this time of year.

Barbosa said, however, that they're seeing an uptick in Barbados, Costa Rica, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Martinique and Mexico, "where transmission is usually higher in the second half of the year.”

U.S. embassies have been issuing health alerts in countries throughout the region, urging people to cover their arms and legs, use mosquito repellent and avoid stagnant water and other mosquito-breeding places.

The U.S. territory of Puerto Rico declared a dengue public health emergency this week, with a surge in cases mostly in the island's capital, San Juan.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “dengue viruses are spread to people through the bite of an infected Aedes species” mosquito, with symptoms that can range from mild to life-threatening for those who get sick from the infection. About 1 in 20 people can get severe dengue, which can lead to death.

The most common symptom is fever, according to the CDC; other symptoms include serious headaches, nausea, vomiting, rash and body pain.

“Facing the dengue problem is a task for all sectors of society,” Barbosa said, urging community engagement.

This includes “efforts to eliminate mosquito breeding sites and protect against mosquito bites, increase preparedness in health services for early diagnosis and timely clinical management, and continuous work to educate the population about dengue symptoms and when to seek prompt medical attention,” according to a PAHO news release.

[madamlaydebug]

The CDC issued a health advisory after several cases of malaria have been reported. It is the first time in two decades that there have been locally transmitted cases of malaria in the United States. None of the patients had a history of travel to high-risk areas, such as sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

The CDC said that four people in Florida contracted the disease, as did one person in Texas. In addition, the agency said that local officials have implemented mosquito surveillance and control measures to help stop the disease from spreading.

Malaria causes flu-like symptoms and, if left untreated, can cause serious disease and death. It can be treated with a regimen of drugs based on several factors, including the species of the infecting parasite, the clinical status of the patient, and the area where the infection was acquired.