From the blue?

Reader question:

In this sentence – the deadly virus, which came as a bolt from the blue for Microsoft users in the West, possesses the arsenal to destroy “Sector Zero” from the hard disk – what does “from the blue” mean? What blue?

My comments:

Here it means Microsoft users were utterly unprepared for the advent of this deadly virus, which is capable of destroying “Sector Zero” (which, by the way, is completely beyond yours truly) from the hard disk.

“The bolt from the blue” is a beautiful American idiom. Blue refers to the blue sky. Bolt, of course, refers to a lightening bolt, which is normally observed in a heavy rain storm. When lightening strikes from a clear sky, it, well, shocks people.

It is a rare occasion to be sure. I’ve never seen a bolt from the blue personally but have seen something similar. I remember playing hide and seek with pals as a kid when we saw a father of one of the boys come back home riding a bicycle. It was sunny with a few sparkling white clouds overhead but the man was soaking wet, with water dripping from his face and trousers. He had caught a rain shower, or the rain caught him, in the street next ours. “I thought nothing of it as I could see the sun shining,” he explained to a chorus of curious laughter, “but it became heavier and heavier. And before you know, I was like this. Apparently, it seemed all that rain dropped on my head.”

At any rate, even though a bolt from the blue is rarely seen as a phenomenon, the idiom is pretty commonplace in use and it means, remember, total surprise.

Here are media examples:

1. IT WAS a decision that rocked the business world. After months of speculation, Sir Fred Goodwin - arguably Scotland's best-known banker - was appointed as an adviser to RMJM - arguably Scotland's best-known architectural practice.

The decision, just 12 months ago, to hire Sir Fred, who had been out of work for 15 months following his notorious departure from Royal Bank of Scotland, was a bolt from the blue.

He had no experience in architecture, but his business expertise and international contacts, it was claimed, would be invaluable to RMJM, which was embroiled in an aggressive global expansion plan.

- Sir Fred: Appointment that came as a bolt from the blue ended in ignominy, The Scotsman, January 6, 2011.

2. Millions of asthma sufferers risk making their illness worse by taking certain pain-killers, according to new claims. Over-the-counter pills such as aspirin and ibuprofen could trigger a potentially fatal attack.

Exactly why certain painkillers exacerbate asthma is not clear, but latest research suggests that the problem - which has been known about for several years - is more widespread than originally thought.

Early studies indicated that only three per cent of the UK's 10 million sufferers could have symptoms made worse by painkillers. But findings - published in the British Medical Journal - indicate that as many as 25 per cent of asthmatics are sensitive to aspirin, while 98 per cent are also sensitive to ibuprofen.

Dr John Costello, the respiratory physician from King's College Hospital, London, who led the research, says: “We want to alert the public to the danger. Quite clearly, some people will have died as a result of a severe asthma attack triggered by aspirin or another painkiller.

“But what I would say to asthmatics is that if they are well and have taken aspirin without side-effects, they should continue - particularly if they have had it prescribed for something such as heart disease to thin blood.”

Doctors think that the real incidence of painkiller-induced asthma may have been disguised by the fact that not all cases have been reported either by patients or hospitals. “Some people may have had only a mild attack or not even realized it was induced by a painkiller,” says Dr Costello.

While most non-steroidal painkillers have the capacity to trigger asthma, paracetamol appears to pose the least danger. However, the study does point out that even so, seven per cent of asthma sufferers were affected by it.

Those sensitive to aspirin can normally expect an attack to develop within 30 minutes of taking it, say experts. But the effect might be cumulative - as more tablets are taken - and it could be several days before a reaction occurs.

Many asthmatics have their disease well under control and an attack can come like a bolt from the blue. Linda Evans, 56, from Bourton, near Swindon, suffered a severe attack while out shopping, after taking a painkiller containing aspirin.

She says: “Since being diagnosed with asthma 15 years ago, I’d never had an attack. I took my medication and it worked, so I never carried a relief spray for emergencies.

“But on this occasion I took a painkiller with a cup of coffee. Within a few minutes, I was gasping for breath in the doorway of the shop. It was terrible, and it was a good half an hour before I started to feel better.”

Now fully aware of the risks, mother-of-three Linda, a hairdresser, says: “I check anything I take very carefully.”

- Aspirin asthma alert, Daily Mail, April 21, 2011.

About the author:

Zhang Xin is Trainer at chinadaily.com.cn. He has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.