Apocalypse Not: Behind the Swine Flu Hysteria

At the height of the swine flu pandemic this spring, when the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was recommending that schools with cases of H1N1 be closed for 14 days and Mexico was still on lockdown, the epidemiology community already suspected the world wasn't ending. Why? The numbers came in: case fatality rate (how many infected people are dying) and replication rate (how many others an infected person will transmit the illness to — "R-zero," in disease-speak). H1N1 had an RØ of about 1.3, high enough to spread the virus but low enough that a strong isolation program could break its back. Its case fatality rate was a wussy 1.9 percent in Mexico and 0.1 percent worldwide. By comparison, the 1918 Spanish flu had an RØ of 2.7 and a case fatality rate of up to 5 percent, making it far more deadly. A real apocalypse, like the killer flu in The Stand — Stephen King's opus of epidemiologic eschatology — would be off the chart, with an RØ of 5 to 6 and a case fatality rate of 99 percent. So, don't panic ... unless H1N1 surges this fall. Where did we leave that hand sanitizer, again?

Baby do's and don'ts

10 Steps to a Gorgeous you

from mag the weekly,

We’ve all had our fare share of beauty blunders over the years and find ourselves shouting “What was I thinking!” Well, do not Vanity Casefear. Say goodbye to those neon coloured eyeshadows and follow our ten step guide to a gorgeous you.

1. Go Bespoke
Always remember to personalise your approach to makeup, never feel you have to wear the brightest of red lipstick, just because Angelina Jolie was spotted wearing it one evening. You might see a trend you love in a magazine - don’t copy it outright. Remember, you are unique and you need to identify what colours suit you by experimenting. The best way to do this is to start with what’s in your make-up bag and de-clutter make-up that doesn’t suit your tone. Then, tailor the products you’re left with to suit you.

2. Enhance Your Best Feature
Take a really close look at yourself in a brightly lit room and preferably in-front of the window to make the most of the natural light. Work out which features you’d like to make the most of and which ones you’d like to draw attention away from. For instance, dark circles under the eyes, or possibly a thin top or bottom lip. Maybe you’d like to enhance your bone structure and define your cheek bones. All of these can be addressed with the right make-up.

3. First Base
When buying foundation, think of the texture being just as important as the colour. Choosing the wrong texture is a common mistake and can be easily avoided. Remember that foundation is used to even out your skin tone, not to completely hide flaws, that’s what a concealer is used for. When choosing your foundation, find the right texture, then, the right shade. If your skin’s oily, use a light weight foundation that won’t overload pores and aggravate the problem. If you have dry skin, opt for something more moisturising and illuminating. When applying the foundation, focus on the area where it’s really needed.

4. Colour Match
Make sure your foundation matches the colour of your neck, chest and any other exposed areas of skin. It’s a misconception to match the foundation colour with your jaw line. If you do that, you’ll end up with a two-tone look - your face, one tone and the rest of your body, another. When you apply foundation, don’t stop at the jaw. Take it to the neck and blend downwards on to the chest.

5. The Art of Concealment
The all too common mistake most women do is use a light reflecting pen instead of a concealer to cover-up imperfections. A light reflecting will do just what it says it will do - to reflect light back and is ideal to conceal shadows under the eyes and that’s it. For concealing spots, blemishes and areas of uneven pigmentation, you’ll need to use something more opaque which will provide you with complete coverage. To make a spot disappear, use a concealer brush to apply a creamy, full-coverage concealer. If you prefer, you can pat it down with your finger, but use the brush to blend the edges so that the effect is seamless.

6. How To Bronze
When using a bronzer, do not go more than 2-3 shades deeper than your natural tone. If you’re very pale, choose something tawny or peachy and avoid shimmery shades that tend to look too glittery on pale skin. For a natural, pretty look, apply sparingly to the areas where the sun would naturally hit your face, the forehead, cheek bones, bridge of the nose and chin. If using a powder, apply a light dusting of translucent powder all over to create a velvety base and to help avoid any streaking. Don’t worry if you’ve applied too much, simply buff off the top layer with a dry cotton wool pad. Also, if you’re using bronzer, never apply coppery shades.

7. Blush Tips
Always remember that the point of blusher is to make you look healthy and fresh. A touch of pink or apricot on the cheek instantly makes you look less tired. So where is it that we go wrong? Never try to use blusher to contour cheeks. Sculpting should be done subtly by using a bronzer. With blusher, you’d only want to apply it to the apples of your cheeks, moving towards the ear, with short, up-and down strokes. The shade to aim for is the flush of colour you get after a good work-out, not more.

8. Be Brow Perfect
What to aim for when grooming your brows is naturally defined arches. Not a permanently surprised look, so don’t over pluck. Try not to go over the top when plucking - having to resort to filling in the gaps with eyebrow pencil. An eyebrow pencil should only be used to enhance and add definition. It’s amazing how plucking a few stray ends from underneath the browline can give your face an instant lift. Be selective. Use a soft eyebrow pencil for natural definition and don’t go too dark. A grayish brown shade suits most people; orangey or chestnut tones only look good on flaming redheads.

9. How To Get Lovely Lips
Lipliner should never be obvious! The purpose of the lip-liner is to stop lipstick from bleeding and to give your lips that much needed pout. Nothing can look worse than when the colour looks too dark and you end up with an unattractive ring around your mouth where the lipstick has worn off. So, how do you get it right? The trick is to choose a shade that matches your natural lip colour as closely as possible. If you’re using stronger colours, use a lip brush to carefully apply the lipstick, following with a tissue. Next, rather than drawing a standard line around the mouth, use the lip liner to fill the edges, and buff the colour so that it blends in completely with the lipstick. Follow with a second coat of lipstick.

10. Maxim Eyes
Many people make the mistake of applying mascara only to the tips of their lashes. They end up applying one coat after another and before they know it, they’re left with clumpy bumpy lashes from too much product build-up.
The trick is to get the mascara as close to the roots as possible, you will achieve natural definition with just a few strokes. Begin by holding the wand at the roots and using a zigzag motion. Take the brush upwards from roots to the tips.more..