Viral Outbreak On Appalachian Trail Hikes Toward Pennsylvania

Appalachian Trail building in . (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

While the worst viral outbreak to strike hikers in Appalachian Trail history is traveling north from Georgia into Pennsylvania, health officials say there is really no reason for area residents to be concerned.

Bob Proudman, director of conservation operations for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, said an outbreak of norovirus among trail hikers began somewhere around the Tennessee-North Carolina border about four weeks ago and is moving north with the hikers.

Norovirus has a 12- to 48-hour incubation period, lasts 24 to 60 hours and may cause severe diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration.

“You could say it’s the most serious outbreak in AT history.  There was one case of hanatavirus which is very serious, in 1990.  It struck an Australian hiker and CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) got involved,” he said.  Hantavirus is a contagious disease spread by rodents.

Read more:  http://www.publicopiniononline.com/news/ci_23348379/viral-outbreak-appalachian-trail-hikes-toward-pennsylvania

The No. 1 State For Lottery Suckers

English: Great Seal of the State of Georgia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Georgia‘s lottery players are the biggest suckers in the nation, according to Bloomberg Rankings, buying nearly $5 billion of the $50 billion a year in tickets for U.S. state-run games that have the worst odds of any form of legal gambling.

Players in Georgia, whose per capita income is about 10% below the U.S. average, are doing the most damage to their personal finances. According to the Sucker Index created by Bloomberg Rankings, Georgia residents spent the second-highest chunk of their income on the lottery, which funds college scholarships and prekindergarten.

Read more: http://money.msn.com/personal-finance/the-no-1-state-for-lottery-suckers-bloomberg.aspx