Press release from the Humboldt County Public Health Division:
Two hundred sixteen new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Humboldt County since Friday. The total number of county residents who have tested positive for the virus now stands at 5,717.
Seven new hospitalizations have also been reported, including one person in their 40s, two people in their 50s, three in their 60s and one in their 70s.
Since the last weekly update on Aug. 2, the county has reported 479 new cases of COVID-19, 20 new hospitalizations and three deaths. One of the residents who died was in their 30s, one in their 40s and another in their 50s. To date, 257 hospitalizations and 56 deaths have been confirmed in the county.
The number of vaccination breakthrough cases continues to rise in Humboldt County, but at a lower rate than cases in unvaccinated individuals. The graph below shows average weekly case rates between Dec. 26, 2020 and July 31, 2021 in unvaccinated and fully vaccinated individuals.
The first local breakthrough case was in Feb. 2021, and case rates for both groups have continued to rise sharply since the state’s June 15 reopening. Current case rates for unvaccinated residents far exceed previous peaks for in January and May and rise to an unprecedented rate among fully vaccinated residents. The rise in cases underscores the need for precautions like universal masking and physical distancing, as well as the urgency to get more people vaccinated in the community.
For additional information, please view a more detailed depiction of the data here.
Vaccination progress continues to be made. On Friday, 134 residents were vaccinated, thanks to the support of two McKinleyville businesses. Six Rivers Brewery and the McKinleyville Ace Home and Garden Center hosted well-attended vaccination clinics and offered gift certificates as incentives for those who were vaccinated on site. The Department Operations Center deeply appreciates these and all other local businesses and individuals who have stepped forward to protect our community.
Vaccine remains available at Public Health vaccination clinics located throughout the county. Walk-ins are welcome or sign up in advance at MyTurn.ca.gov. Most local pharmacies also offer COVID-19 vaccines. To check availability of vaccines at local pharmacies, visit vaccines.gov or text a ZIP code to 438829 to find a participating pharmacy nearby. Most pharmacies allow walk-ins.
See the Public Health clinic schedule for the next seven days below:
Eureka – Tuesday, Aug. 10, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eureka Boat Launch (1701 Waterfront Drive under the Hwy. 255 overpass) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson
Eureka – Wednesday, Aug. 11, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wharfinger Building (1 Marina Way) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson
Arcata – Thursday, Aug. 12, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Arcata Transit Center (925 E St.) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson
Garberville – Friday, Aug. 13, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Garberville Farmers’ Market (Garberville Town Square at Church St.) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson
Redway – Friday, Aug. 13, from 4:15 to 5 p.m. Dean Creek RV Park (4112 Redwood Dr.) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson
The Pfizer vaccine is approved for children as young as 12 years old. Minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized for those 18 and older. Full protection from the vaccine is achieved two weeks after receiving the second dose of a two-dose series or two weeks after receiving a single-dose vaccine.
View the Humboldt County Data Dashboard online at humboldtgov.org/dashboard, or go to humboldtgov.org/DashboardArchives to download today’s data.
For COVID-19 testing guidance and information, refer to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/testing-overview.html and the California Department of Public Health at cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/Updated-COVID-19-Testing-Guidance.aspx.
For the most recent COVID-19 information, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or by contacting covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or calling 707-441-5000.
Sign up for COVID-19 vaccination: MyTurn.ca.gov Check for vaccine availability at a local pharmacy: Vaccines.gov Local COVID-19 vaccine information: humboldtgov.org/VaccineInfo Humboldt County COVID-19 Data Dashboard: humboldtgov.org/Dashboard Follow us on Facebook: @HumCoCOVID19 Instagram: @HumCoCOVID19 Twitter: @HumCoCOVID19 Humboldt Health Alert: humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert ###
= historic data. All data from the Humboldt County Joint Information Center.
Data from CalREDIE. Zip codes not listed have experienced five cases or fewer. Zip code populations from the American Community Survey, 2018.
Coming every Saturday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link.
Top Stories This Week
Square to acquire Australian fintech Afterpay in $29B deal
Jack Dorsey’s digital payments firm Square entered into a $29 billion stock deal to purchase Australian buy now, pay later (BNPL) firm Afterpay this week.
Just like the name Afterpayimplies, Square will essentially be buying the firm now and paying later, with the transaction set for the first quarter of 2022 and to be paid out entirely in Square common stock.
Bitcoin (BTC) proponent Anthony Pompliano was pleased with the news, noting on his web series The Best Business Show that Square is one of the only stocks he owns, as he forecasted that the firm’s valuation will explode following the acquisition.
In an Aug. 3 YouTube video, Pomp went for sheer and utter clickbait with the title “SQUARE is going to be worth 1 TRILLION dollars,” and he emphasized the potential of rolling out Afterpay’s BNPL services to 70 million Cash App users and 2 million Square merchants.
Ethereum London hard fork goes live
The London hard fork arrived almost on schedule on Aug. 5, ushering in Ethereum Improvement Proposal 1559. An interesting feature of the upgrade is that it also ushered in some bullish sentiments from Ethereum (ETH) proponents and some sour grapes from Bitcoin maxis.
Ethereum has now transitioned away from a bidding-based fee market to a fixed price-and-burn mechanism, which may see the asset become deflationary if more ETH is burned than issued in block rewards. However, this may be more likely after the switch to proof-of-stake with ETH 2.0. If the asset does become deflationary, it would reach the status of “ultrasound money,” which is a term that has also been a long-running meme in ETH communities that mocks Bitcoiners’ description of BTC as sound money due its capped supply of 21 million.
BREAKING: White House confirms support for minor changes to crypto tax proposal
The White House officially backed a last-minute amendment to the controversial U.S. infrastructure plan that proposes expanded cryptocurrency taxation to raise an additional $28 billion in revenue. The amendment maintains stringent reporting requirements for blockchain developers and validators while exempting miners.
However, the amendment’s vague wording and lack of clearly defined terms suggest that crypto developers and proof-of-stake validators would still be subject to expanded reporting and taxation that some have described as “unworkable.”
For some reason, members of the White House seem intent on cracking down on tax evasion in crypto without understanding the nuances of the industry. They also seem to overlook the blatant rorting of the system from multinational giants who essentially vacuum capital out of the people’s pockets while paying zero tax.
Mike Novogratz blasts US officials for poor grasp of crypto industry
Amid the backdrop of looming crypto regulations that will most likely increase taxes and decrease profits, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz has come out swinging in response to Senator Elizabeth Warren’s remarks calling cryptocurrency “the wild west” of the U.S. financial system.
The billionaire crypto proponent’s jabs were, of course, delivered through social media, with Novogratz taking to Twitter on Aug. 3 to assert that most U.S. officials have no idea what they are talking about when it comes to crypto:
“Crypto is the future of our financial system and our citizens deserve officials that do their homework to understand this new technology. Most of our leaders haven’t done that yet. We also need regulators and politicians who understand that new ideas need room to grow.”
Circle and Unstoppable Domains to introduce username-based USDC payments
Circle and Unstoppable Domains are working to introduce username-based addresses as an alternative to long-winded alphanumeric crypto wallet addresses to aid the not-so-tech-savvy, a.k.a. newbies and boomers.
According to an Aug. 4 announcement, blockchain domain name provider Unstoppable Domains and stablecoin issuer Circle are collaborating to release readable “.coin” usernames for USD Coin (USDC) transfers.
As part of the partnership, both companies will collaborate to enable support for .coin username extensions across wallets and crypto exchanges that list the number two-ranked stablecoin.
Under this arrangement, USDC transfers will become akin to sending an email, likely mitigating the problem of transferring coins to the wrong address, losing funds forever and living with regrets over one’s lack of due diligence.
Winners and Losers
At the end of the week, Bitcoin is at $42,651, Ether at $2,867 and XRP at $0.74. The total market cap is at $1.73 trillion,according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Voyager Token (VGX) at 94.22%, THORChain (RUNE) at 50.69%, and Ravencoin (RVN) at 44.13%.
The top three altcoin losers of the week are Amp (AMP) at -14.97%, XinFin Network (XDC) at -4.74%, and Telcoin (TEL) at -1.66%.
For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.
Most Memorable Quotations
“We can see Bitcoin on the balance sheets of cities, states, governments, companies, small [and] big investors.”
Michael Saylor, MicroStrategy CEO
“We’re now moving into a world where we have these nonfungible software objects that have unique identities that can actually accept money, pay money and can participate in governance, either in decentralized autonomous organizations or potentially other kinds of governments that can govern themselves.”
Joe Lubin, ConsenSys founder and CEO
“I’m spending five hours a day on everything from regulation to licensing and everything in between.”
Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX CEO
“Primarily, crypto assets provide digital, scarce vehicles for speculative investment. Thus, in that sense, one can say they are highly speculative stores of value.”
Gary Gensler, chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
“Crypto is a bit like the parable of the blind men and the elephant. People touch it from different sides. They get distracted and carried away and energized about these different topics.”
Marc Andreessen, Andreessen Horowitz general partner and co-founder
“If you put a gun to my head, and you said, ‘I can only have one.’ I would choose gold.”
Ray Dalio, billionaire hedge fund manager
“Just so we’re all clear here, the SEC has no authority over pure commodities or their trading venues, whether those commodities are wheat, gold, oil….or #crypto assets.”
Brian Quintenz, U.S. CFTC commissioner
“The more people with stablecoins in the pocket, the more people who can participate in decentralized finance.”
Matthew Gould, Unstoppable Domains CEO
Prediction of the Week
Bitcoin chart fractal suggests BTC price will have rallied to at least $80K by September
If this latest bullish BTC prediction turns out to be true, Bitcoiners may soon be able to start driving their lambos on the moon.
Nunya Bizniz, an independent market analyst, posted a bullish prediction on Aug. 1, as they highlighted that the recent rally of around 40% in late July included 10 consecutive days of lovely green candles, and not those horrible red ones that bears love so much.
The analyst noted that each of BTC’s previous 10-day bull runs has ended up with at least a 100% price increase within 30 to 60 days. Therefore, if history repeats itself, Bitcoin’s price may double and surge to new all-time highs around the $80,000 mark.
FUD of the Week
South Korean regulator to reportedly shut down 11 crypto exchanges
Crypto regulations in South Korea may become more stringent after news circulated this week that South Korea’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission, or FSC, is reportedly planning to shut down a dozen local cryptocurrency exchanges amid accusations of fraud.
The FSC will suspend operations of at least 11 mid-sized crypto exchanges in South Korea due to alleged illegal activities and fraudulent collective accounts, according to local media outlets.
The publication cited anonymous industry sources claiming that the names of the exchanges were not yet disclosed, so Koreans will not know exactly what to FUD over until the names come to light. The sources argued that the mentioned crypto exchanges will be unable to get approval for operation by the FSC.
The report also notes that the authority is planning to implement stricter regulations for smaller crypto exchanges in South Korea, meaning that anyone firm that wants to partake in illegal behavior will have to do it on a large scale.
Monero’s former maintainer arrested in the US for allegations unrelated to cryptocurrency
Speaking of alleged illicit behavior, Riccardo Spagni, the former maintainer of the Monero (XMR) cryptocurrency, was arrested last month in Nashville, Tennessee, but not for anything related to crypto.
Spagni is facing fraud charges tied to alleged offenses in South Africa between 2009 and 2011, during his time serving as an information technology manager at a company dubbed Cape Cookies.
Spagni allegedly fabricated additional invoices from a supplier of Cape Cookies, which included inflated prices for goods and services, along with his bank details instead of the suppliers’. He now faces a hearing on Aug. 5 to determine whether he is held, pending trial. If convicted in South Africa, he faces 20 years in prison.
Bitcoin SV reportedly suffered a “massive” 51% attack on Aug. 3 that resulted in up to three versions of the chain being mined simultaneously.
Speaking about the attack, Lucas Nuzzi, a network data product manager at Coin Metrics, stated on Twitter that “someone is seriously trying to destroy BSV,” and added that:
“For over 3 hours, attackers were able to take over the chain. All exchanges that received BSV deposits during that time might have been double spent.”
Best Cointelegraph Features
BlockFi faces regulatory heat, a sign of possible crypto lending regulations?
The crypto lending giant BlockFi is facing regulatory scrutiny from a handful of states in America ahead of a proposed public listing.
Civic engagement and crypto: Miami unveils its own digital coin
MiamiCoin is not just a cryptocurrency, but rather a decentralized application that can function as a developer platform for cities.
Ready to deploy? Amazon’s Bitcoin acceptance can prime a payments future
Amazon denied reports it will accept BTC payments soon, but seemingly, it’s only a matter of time before the tech giants embrace the token economy.
Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Stocks look steady, bond yields rise after strong jobs data
A trader works on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, August 5, 2021.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
2. Nonfarm payrolls in July came in higher than expected
The Labor Department on Friday reported the U.S. economy created 943,000 new nonfarm jobs in July. The nation’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.4%. That’s also much better than expected. Average hourly earnings also increased more than expected, rising 0.4% for the month.
3. United Airlines will require vaccines for its 67,000 U.S. employees
United Airlines pilot Steve Lindland receives a COVID-19 vaccine from RN Sandra Manella at United’s onsite clinic at O’Hare International Airport on March 09, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois.
Scott Olson | Getty Images
United Airlines will require its 67,000 U.S. employees to get vaccinated against Covid by no later than Oct. 25 or risk termination, a first for major U.S. carriers that will likely ramp up pressure on rivals. Airlines including United have resisted vaccine mandates for all workers, instead offering incentives like extra pay or time off to get inoculated. Delta Air Lines in May started requiring newly hired employees to show proof of vaccination. United followed suit in June.
4. White House backs senators pushing for stricter crypto reporting rules
The White House weighed in, somewhat out of the blue, on a contentious battle over competing crypto amendments to the $1 trillion infrastructure bill. The fight is over a provision in the bipartisan bill, which raises money through stricter tax rules on cryptocurrency transactions. The White House wrote in a statement late Thursday that the “amendment put forward by Senators Warner, Portman, and Sinema strikes the right balance and makes an important step forward in promoting tax compliance.”
5. JPMorgan quietly unveils access to a half-dozen crypto funds
A woman walks past JPMorgan Chase & Co’s international headquarters on Park Avenue in New York.
Andrew Burton | Reuters
JPMorgan Chase, led by bitcoin skeptic Jamie Dimon, has started giving its wealth management clients access to six crypto funds in the past month. On Thursday, financial advisors were allowed to begin placing private bank clients into a new bitcoin fund created with crypto firm NYDIG, according to people with knowledge of the move. The fund is nearly identical to one NYDIG offers to clients of rival bank Morgan Stanley, said the people. Late last month, JPMorgan rolled out access to four funds from Grayscale Investments and one from Osprey Funds.
— Follow all the market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with CNBC’s coronavirus coverage.
After months of leaks and rumors, Samsung has officially announced that its next Unpacked event will take place virtually on Wednesday, Aug. 11 at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT.
Invites for the next Unpacked event were sent out to the media today, and while Samsung did not specifically mention any of the devices it plans to announce, between recent leaks and a tagline for the event that reads “Get ready to unfold,” it’s clear at least one of Samsung’s big talking points will be about its next-gen foldables.
Based on recent leaks, we’re expecting that Samsung’s next two flagship foldables will be the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Galaxy Z Flip 3. The Z Fold 3 will reportedly sport a large foldable display measuring 7.6 inches across and feature built-in stylus support, which means it will cater to high-end power users looking for something that’s a hybrid between a tablet and traditional big screen phone. Meanwhile, with its smaller dimensions (and presumably lower price), the Z Flip 3 looks to be aimed more at mainstream consumers looking for something a bit more compact in an old-school flip phone design, but with some cutting-edge specs.
The inclusion of stylus support on the Z Fold3 would mark a significant improvement over previous Galaxy Folds, as it suggests that Samsung has created a new type of flexible display that’s able to withstand repeated impact from a stylus. That’s because even though previous Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip devices featured a layer of what Samsung calls “ultrathin glass,” that glass didn’t offer anywhere near the same kind of durability you’d get from a traditional smartphone, with users able to dent those flexible screens with just their fingernails.
However, by combing increased durability with rumors of lower price tags for both the Z Fold3 and Z Flip 3, Samsung may be finally signaling that its foldable devices are finally ready to primetime.
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As for the Galaxy Watch 4, Samsung’s next smartwatch represents a potential major departure from previous Galaxy Watches as it will run Samsung’s new One UI Watch, which is based on Google’s Wear OS instead of Samsung’s Tizen OS. While retaining a circular display and handy side buttons, the Galaxy Watch 4 is expected to be available in three sizes and will include updated health tracking such as advanced metrics for sleep, VO2 Max, Spo2, continuous heart rate monitoring, and more.
Finally, the fourth gadget we’re expecting to see at Samsung Unpacked are the Galaxy Buds 2, which are rumored to be a replacement for the original Galaxy Buds and Galaxy Buds+ that will come with some sort of built-in ANC and a price tag of around $100.
However, the one device we’re not expecting to see is a new Galaxy Note, which has been long rumored to be skipping a generation, due in part to the lack of available components caused by the ongoing global chip crunch.
Notably, while Samsung has yet to reveal any info about its upcoming devices, today Samsung did announce a reservation system for its upcoming flagships that offers some extra perks, a discount on Samsung Care+, and increased trade-in credit for anyone willing to pre-order new gadgets ahead of their official debut.
Either way, it seems like we’re going to have to wait until August 11 to get a real look at everything Samsung has planned for its next big gadget showcase, so until then, stay tuned for more updates on Gizmodo.com.
Black Ops Cold War’s MP5 is a great close-range choice in Warzone Season 2, so here are the best attachments and perks to run with it.
The MP5 has been a fan-favorite weapon in almost every Call of Duty title. It hasn’t lost any of its power in Cold War and Warzone, being an underrated gem for close-range combat.
It’s one of the first weapons you’ll unlock, making it an excellent choice for beginners and veterans alike. Here are the best attachments and perks to dominate with BOCW’s MP5 in Warzone Season 2.
Best Cold War MP5 Warzone attachments
Muzzle: Agency Suppressor
Barrel: 10.1″ Calvary Lancer
Laser: SWAT 5mW Laser Sight
Grip: Field Agent Grip
Ammunition: Salvo 50 Rnd Fast Mag
This Cold War MP5 is built to dominate at close range. Pair it with a long-range rifle such as the AUG, or if you’re especially confident with your aim, a Sniper Rifle. Quickly switch to it if your primary weapon is out of ammo, or use it in close-quarters situations.
First, we’ve added the Agency Suppressor. This works similarly to the Monolithic Suppressor from Modern Warfare, which increases the weapons range while hiding you from the minimap. For increased versatility, we’ve also equipped the 10.1″ Calvary Lancer barrel. This increases the MP5’s damage at range without any negatives.
To make the MP5 as accurate as possible, you should add the Field Agent Grip. This helps with both horizontal and vertical recoil control, which makes it easy to land headshots up close and stay accurate even at longer ranges. And for some extra accuracy at point-blank, the SWAT 5mW Laser Sight will boost your hip-fire accuracy.
For ammunition, the Salvo 50 Rnd Fast Mag is ideal. You can down several enemies without ever having to reload, and you’ll also have increased reload speed.
Best perks to use with Cold War’s MP5 in Warzone Season 2
Not only are your weapons important in a Warzone loadout, but your choice of perks can also make or break a class. Here are the perks you should be running with Black Ops Cold War’s MP5 in Verdansk and Rebirth Island.
Perk 1: E.O.D
Perk 2: Overkill then Ghost
Perk 3: Amped
A major part of Warzone is the lethal equipment at your disposal. Before pushing a room, enemies will lob a bombardment of grenades, rockets, and explosives inside. If you have any hope of surviving, you’ll need the E.O.D perk equipped.
The MP5 is best suited as a secondary weapon, so you want to run Overkill to carry two primaries. If you’re really feeling the MP5 love, you could equip both the Cold War and Modern Warfare versions. Make a duplicate loadout with Ghost instead, and you can swap the Perks out when you get another loadout and keep the weapons.
There’s nothing worse than running out of ammo in a firefight, where you’ll need to quickly swap weapons to have a chance. So for perk 3, the Amped Perk will allow you to swap weapons insanely fast, which is vital in a firefight.
How to unlock Cold War’s MP5 in Warzone
To unlock Cold War’s MP5 in Warzone, you simply need to reach Level 4. You’ll manage this after only a game or two, so you can essentially use it straight away. Then once you’ve unlocked it, use it as much as you can and take advantage of Double XP events to rank it up fast.
Best Cold War MP5 alternatives in Warzone
The MP5 is best suited for close-range combat, so if you’re looking for alternatives, the MAC-10 and Gallo SA12 are solid choices. They destroy enemies at close-range, which is exactly what you want in a secondary. Of course, there’s always Modern Warfare’s MP5 too.
Use Cold War’s MP5 with these attachments and perks, and you’ll find yourself running one of the best SMGs Warzone has to offer.
If you’re looking to overhaul your Call of Duty: Warzone loadouts, you can check out our guides on some of the weapons dominating the meta right now.
