Mike Thurber
- Staff Writer, Outside Magazine
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Articles by Mike Thurber
The Best Winter Camping Gear of 2022
For exclusive access to all of our fitness, gear, adventure, and travel stories, plus discounts on trips, events, and gear, sign up for Outside+ today. Most of the time, having nice gear is about being more comfortable. But when the weather really turns rough, having the right tools can be a matter of safety.
The New Winter Camping Gear We're Drooling Over
2021 Winter Buyer’s Guide Make even the coldest nights cozy (Photo: Courtesy the Companies) SlingFin Arctic 6 Dome Tent ($2,750) (Photo: Courtesy SlingFin) It may be pricey, but the Arctic 6 is a unique alpine tent with a stove port. It’s ideal for base, with clever features like a removable floor and reach-through vents. Buy Now Klymit Drift Camp Pillow ($35 and up) (Photo: Courtesy Klymit) The Drift is our favorite backcountry frill.
Lockdowns Knock Down the Spread of COVID-19, but Only to a Point (and only early on)
by Mike Thurber and John Elder, Ph.D. By tracking anonymized mobile phone location data and COVID-19 case reports for many countries with different policies, we studied the effect of restricting mobility on the spread of COVID-19. We found that lockdown policies did rapidly reduce the Covid reproduction ratio,R, but only up until ~3 days before a country’s peak daily case rate, and they had little or negative impact after that. Also, people should be allowed to go to Parks.
Is the Spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus Being Slowed?
by Mike Thurber, Principal Scientist, Elder Research The COVID-19 pandemic has created a need for clear and actionable analytics like never before. The world can’t wait for controlled scientific studies to be completed, or dodge with, “We can’t say anything until we get more data.” To discover true relationships, we’d love to have detailed structured public data. But we usually must take the limited data at hand and quantify actionable insights in the face of uncertainty.
A Holistic Framework for Managing Data Analytics Projects
By Mike Thurber, Principal Scientist, Elder Research. Data Science project management must be customized to work best with each organization. Still, we find that our projects are most successful when managed using an Agile + CRISP-DM process rather than a traditional Waterfall approach. Sprint planning in an Agile + CRISP-DM framework constantly encourages the team to consider emerging requirements and to pivot based on findings from the previous sprint.
COVID-19 Social Distancing Has Mitigated 2020 Flu Season
by Mike Thurber, Principal Scientist, Elder Research Three weeks ago, our Brief Is the Spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus Being Slowed looked at the impact of social distancing on the flu. Evidence showed that the unprecedented measures taken by the government are having the expected effect, as measured by seasonal flu cases. In this Brief, we update and amplify that information. The economic costs of social distancing are enormous, so we need to quantify the health benefits, even if only roughly.
COVID-19 Asymptomatic Rates and Implications
by Mike Thurber, Principal Scientist, Elder Research A key issue for COVID-19 response policies moving forward is the asymptomatic rate - people who have the virus but do not show symptoms. If all the people who get the virus show symptoms, then despite the wide scope of the current outbreak, we have a long way to go.
COVID-19 Social Distancing Has Mitigated 2020 Flu Season
Three weeks ago, our Brief Is the Spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus Being Slowed looked at the impact of social distancing on the flu. Evidence showed that the unprecedented measures taken by the government are having the expected effect, as measured by seasonal flu cases. In this Brief, we update and amplify that information. The economic costs of social distancing are enormous, so we need to quantify the health benefits, even if only roughly.
Take a Note from the Finns and Build Yourself a Sauna
First we roasted sausages over an open fire next to a lake. At dusk it was time for the sauna(the only Finnish word in the English dictionary). I had no clue what I was doing, so I followed the Finns. I was 18, had just graduated from high school, and had flown to Finland to visit Hanna, an exchange student who’d lived with my family in California a few years prior. We piled into a wooden shack heated by burning wood, with way too many people naked under towels.
Brave the Elements with the Ultimate Winter Camping Setup
2020 Winter Buyers Guide Warm, durable gear for extreme adventures (Photo: Inga Hendrickson) When you buy something using the retail links in our stories, we may earn a small commission. Outside does not accept money for editorial gear reviews. Read more about our policy.
A Day in the Life of a Rookie Ski Patroller
We’ve always been fascinated by ski patrollers. They get first tracks on powder days, chuck bombs for a living, and, crucially, decide when to pull ropes and open a new section of a mountain. But we wanted to know what they actually do on a day-to-day basis. So we called up Mike Thurber—friend of Outside, sometimes gear reviewer, and soon-to-be second-year ski patroller at Taos Ski Valley—to hear about a typical day on the mountain.
The Best Winter Camping Gear of 2019
If you’re determined to camp in winter, you’re going to need some sturdy gear Don’t try using these for downhilling. The GlideLites have bindings that work with most winter hiking boots, combining the convenience of snowshoeing with the efficiency of cross-country planks. Redesigned for 2018, this shelter has ample room to sleep four and hold all their gear. Guy lines self-equalize to maintain tension and keep the tarp erect.
The Best Backpacking Stoves of 2018
What’s the best backpacking stove? To answer this question, I tested 29 stove models from six different brands, interested only in those that I’d be happy to carry for an extended outing in the backcountry and run on either white gas or isobutane canisters—stoves that 90 percent of the backcountry-going public would be interested in. My favorite from that pool was the Primus Primetech stove set.
The Best Backpacking Stoves
Outside's long reads email newsletter features our strongest writing, most ambitious reporting, and award-winning storytelling about the outdoors. Sign up today. What’s the best backpacking stove? To answer this question, I tested 29 stove models from six different brands, interested only in those that I’d be happy to carry for an extended outing in the backcountry and run on either white gas or isobutane canisters—stoves that 90 percent of the backcountry-going public would be interested in.
Making the Case for Collapsible Camping Gear
When space is precious, turn to these key products to help you save big (Photo: Sea to Summit) I camp most weekends in summer—usually chasing after some boulder problem—and I bring the same gear every time. I pack most of my camping stuff into a large storage bin, but it can be hard to make everything fit. To solve this problem, I use products that are collapsible without compromising on function. Here are a few of my go-to collapsible products.
The Best Winter Camping Gear of 2016
There's no need to put away your camping gear come winter. Just upgrade it. Presenting everything you need to stay warm and have a blast on snowbound nights. This 850-plus-fill down jacket, made from Gore Windstopper, was easily the warmest of the dozen tested. But with quilted stitching along the side panels, we never felt we were trading mobility for coziness. Bonus: the expanded hood creates better peripheral vision. The new Odin Neo is 10 percent lighter than last year’s but equally capable.
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