navan
/
Daily-Dose
mirror of https://github.com/navanchauhan/Daily-Dose.git
1
0
Fork 0
Code Issues Projects Releases Wiki Activity

Added daily report

This commit is contained in:
Navan Chauhan 2023-08-03 12:46:14 +00:00
parent d2ec1ceaf3
commit 024874b8d1
3 changed files with 895 additions and 2 deletions
Show Stats Download Patch File Download Diff File Expand all files Collapse all files

184
archive-covid-19/03 August, 2023.html Normal file
View File

@ -0,0 +1,184 @@
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="" xml:lang="" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head>
<meta charset="utf-8"/>
<meta content="pandoc" name="generator"/>
<meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0, user-scalable=yes" name="viewport"/>
<title>03 August, 2023</title>
<style>
code{white-space: pre-wrap;}
span.smallcaps{font-variant: small-caps;}
span.underline{text-decoration: underline;}
div.column{display: inline-block; vertical-align: top; width: 50%;}
div.hanging-indent{margin-left: 1.5em; text-indent: -1.5em;}
ul.task-list{list-style: none;}
</style>
<title>Covid-19 Sentry</title><meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" name="viewport"/><link href="styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="../styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.css" rel="stylesheet"/><script src="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.js"></script></head>
<body>
<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="covid-19-sentry">Covid-19 Sentry</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Tetherin restricts SARS-CoV-2 replication despite antagonistic effects of Spike and ORF7a</strong> -
<div>
SARS-CoV-2 infection induces interferon-stimulated genes, one of which encodes Tetherin, a transmembrane protein inhibiting the release of various enveloped viruses from infected cells. Previous studies revealed that SARS-CoV encodes two Tetherin antagonists: the Spike protein (S) inducing lysosomal degradation of Tetherin, and ORF7a altering its glycosylation. SARS-CoV-2 ORF7a has also been shown to antagonize Tetherin. Therefore, we here investigated whether SARS-CoV-2 S is also a Tetherin antagonist and compared the abilities and mechanisms of S and ORF7a in counteracting Tetherin. SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 S reduced Tetherin cell surface levels in a cell type-dependent manner, possibly related to the basal protein levels of Tetherin. In HEK293T cells, under conditions of high exogenous Tetherin expression, SARS-CoV-2 S and ORF7a reduced total Tetherin levels much more efficiently than the respective counterparts derived from SARS-CoV. Nevertheless, ORF7a from both strains was able to alter Tetherin glycosylation. The ability to decrease total protein levels of Tetherin was conserved among S proteins from different SARS-CoV-2 variants (D614G, Cluster 5, , {gamma}, {delta}, o). While SARS-CoV-2 S and ORF7a both colocalized with Tetherin, only ORF7a directly interacted with the restriction factor. Despite the presence of two Tetherin antagonists, however, SARS-CoV-2 replication in Caco-2 cells was further enhanced upon Tetherin knockout. Altogether, our data show that endogenous Tetherin restricts SARS-CoV-2 replication, and that the antiviral activity of Tetherin is partially counteracted by two viral antagonists with differential and complementary modes of action, S and ORF7a.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.28.550997v1" target="_blank">Tetherin restricts SARS-CoV-2 replication despite antagonistic effects of Spike and ORF7a</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The Human Microglia Atlas (HuMicA) Unravels Changes in Homeostatic and Disease-Associated Microglia Subsets across Neurodegenerative Conditions</strong> -
<div>
Dysregulated microglia activation, leading to neuroinflammation, is currently considered to be of major relevance in the development and progression of neurodegenerative diseases. The initial M1/M2 dual activation classification for microglia is now considered outdated. Even the "disease-associated microglia" (DAM) phenotype, firstly described in mice, has proven insufficient to precisely represent the multitude of microglia phenotypes in pathology. In this study, we have constructed a transcriptomic atlas of human brain immune cells by integrating single-nucleus (sn)RNA-seq datasets from multiple neurodegenerative conditions. Sixteen datasets were included, comprising 295 samples from patients with Alzheimer's disease, autism spectrum disorder, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Lewy body diseases, COVID-19, and healthy controls. The integrated Human Microglia Atlas (HuMicA) dataset included 60,557 nuclei and revealed 11 microglial subpopulations distributed across all pathological and healthy conditions. Among these, we identified four different homeostatic clusters as well as pathological phenotypes. These included two stages of early and late activation of the DAM phenotype and the disease-inflammatory macrophage (DIM) phenotype, which was recently described in mice, and is also present in human microglia, as indicated by our analysis. The high versatility of microglia is evident through changes in subset distribution across various pathologies, suggesting their contribution to the establishment of pathological phenotypes. Our analysis showed overall depletion of four substates of homeostatic microglia, and expansion of niche subpopulations within the DAM and DIM spectrum across distinct neurodegenerative pathologies. The HuMicA is an invaluable resource tool used to support further advances in the study of microglia biology through healthy and disease settings.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.08.01.550767v1" target="_blank">The Human Microglia Atlas (HuMicA) Unravels Changes in Homeostatic and Disease-Associated Microglia Subsets across Neurodegenerative Conditions</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Frequency of Atypical Pulmonary Manifestations of COVID-19 Patients on Chest CTscan: A cross-sectional study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Chest CT examination is significant in COVID-19 diagnosis due to its high sensitivity. Although typical chest CT findings have been discussed thoroughly in the literature throughout the pandemic, we aimed to investigate the prevalence of the atypical conclusions during the start of the Omicron variant insurgency and compare the results to studies conducted before its outbreak. Methods: 606 confirmed COVID-19 cases were included in this study based on inclusion and exclusion criteria during January and February 2022. Demographic information of patients, including age and sex, was recorded. The computed tomography (CT) examination was carried out using a 100-slice scanner (Philips Brilliance 6 CT Scanner). One radiology attending and one resident evaluated SARSCoV- 2 RT-PCR-positive patients for atypical pulmonary CT findings. The obtained data were evaluated using R software version 4.1.1. Results: 55% of patients were female, and the median age was 56 (IQR: 42, 69 59% of patients had atypical findings on their pulmonary CT examination. These findings showed that pleural abnormalities were the most frequent atypicalfindings, with pleural thickening being the most common (17%). The double halo sign represented the least frequent atypical sign (0.2%). Conclusion: Atypical findings were more prevalent in this study than its predecessors, while we acknowledge that other factors, such as study design and patient population, could have impacted it. The presence of atypical signs generally was not correlated with specific demographic groups, while some of these signs were more frequent in some groups.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.28.23293261v1" target="_blank">Frequency of Atypical Pulmonary Manifestations of COVID-19 Patients on Chest CTscan: A cross-sectional study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in a prospective cohort of COVID-19 survivors</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Purpose: To analyze the prevalence of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in patients who survived moderate and severe forms of COVID-19 and the risk factors for LUTS six months after hospital discharge. Materials and Methods: In this prospective cohort study, patients were evaluated six months after being hospitalized due to COVID-19. LUTS were assessed using the International Prostate Symptom Score. General health was assessed through the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the EQ5D-L5 scale, which evaluates mobility, ability to perform daily activities, pain and discomfort and completed a self-perception health evaluation. Results: Of 255 participants, 54.1% were men and the median age was 57.3 [44.3 / 66.6] years. Pre-existing comorbidities included diabetes (35.7%), hypertension (54.5%), obesity (30.2%) and physical inactivity (65.5%). 124 (48.6%) had a hospital stay &gt;15 days, 181 (71.0%) were admitted to an ICU and 124 (48.6%) needed mechanical ventilation. Median IPSS score was 6 [3-11] and did not differ between men and women. Moderate to severe LUTS affected 108 (42.4%) patients (40.6% men and 44.4% women; p=0.610). Nocturia (58.4%) and frequency (45.9%) were the most prevalent symptoms and urgency was the only symptom that affected men (29.0%) and women (44.4%) differently (p=0.013). LUTS significantly impacted the quality of life of 60 (23.5%) patients with women more severely affected (p=0.004). Preexisting diabetes, hypertension and self-perception of worse general health were associated with LUTS. Conclusions: LUTS are highly prevalent and bothersome six months after hospitalization due to COVID-19. Assessment of LUTS may help ensure appropriate diagnosis and treatment in these patients.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.08.01.23293500v1" target="_blank">Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in a prospective cohort of COVID-19 survivors</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Graphical Learning and Causal Inference for Drug Repurposing</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Abstract Gene expression profiles that connect drug perturbations, disease gene expression signatures, and clinical data are important for discovering potential drug repurposing indications. However, the current approach to gene expression reversal has several limitations. First, most methods focus on validating the reversal expression of individual genes. Second, there is a lack of causal approaches for identifying drug repurposing candidates. Third, few methods for passing and summarizing information on a graph have been used for drug repurposing analysis, with classical network propagation and gene set enrichment analysis being the most common. Fourth, there is a lack of graph-valued association analysis, with current approaches using real-valued association analysis one gene at a time to reverse abnormal gene expressions to normal gene expressions. To overcome these limitations, we propose a novel causal inference and graph neural network (GNN)-based framework for identifying drug repurposing candidates. We formulated a causal network as a continuous constrained optimization problem and developed a new algorithm for reconstructing large-scale causal networks of up to 1,000 nodes. We conducted large-scale simulations that demonstrated good false positive and false negative rates. To aggregate and summarize information on both nodes and structure from the spatial domain of the causal network, we used directed acyclic graph neural networks (DAGNN). We also developed a new method for graph regression in which both dependent and independent variables are graphs. We used graph regression to measure the degree to which drugs reverse altered gene expressions of disease to normal levels and to select potential drug repurposing candidates. To illustrate the application of our proposed methods for drug repurposing, we applied them to phase I and II L1000 connectivity map perturbational profiles from the Broad Institute LINCS, which consist of gene-expression profiles for thousands of perturbagens at a variety of time points, doses, and cell lines, as well as disease gene expression data under-expressed and over-expressed in response to SARS-CoV-2.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.29.23293346v1" target="_blank">Graphical Learning and Causal Inference for Drug Repurposing</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Loss of severe respiratory syncytial virus infection-associated antibody function during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic mitigation measures</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Studies have linked reduced respiratory syncytial virus-specific Fc-mediated phagocytic function and complement deposition to more severe infection. This study shows a loss of these functions during the first year of COVID-19 pandemic. These findings corroborate other data supporting a general waning of RSV antibody functions in absence of viral circulation.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.30.23292881v1" target="_blank">Loss of severe respiratory syncytial virus infection-associated antibody function during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic mitigation measures</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Prevalence of long-term symptoms varies by using different post-COVID-19 definitions in positively and negatively tested adults: the PRIME post-COVID study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Abstract Background Long-term symptoms after a SARS-CoV-2 infection (i.e., post-COVID-19 condition or long COVID), constitute a substantial public health problem. Yet, the prevalence remains currently unclear as different case definitions are used, and negatively tested controls are lacking. We aimed to estimate post-COVID-19 condition prevalence using six definitions. Methods The Prevalence, Risk factors, and Impact Evaluation (PRIME) post-COVID-19 condition study is a population-based sample of COVID-19 tested adults. End 2021, 61,655 adults were invited to complete an online questionnaire, including 44 symptoms plus a severity score (0-10) per symptom. The prevalence was calculated in both positively and negatively tested adults, stratified by time since their COVID-19 test (3-5, 6-11 or ≥12 months ago). Results In positives (n=7,405; 75.6%), the prevalence of long-term symptoms was between 26.9% and 64.1% using the six definitions, while in negatives (n=2,392; 24.4%) the prevalence varied between 11.4% and 32.5%. The prevalence of long-term symptoms potentially accountable to COVID-19 ranged from 17.9% to 26.3%. Conclusion There is a (substantial) variation in prevalence estimates by using different definitions as is current practice, showing limited overlap between definitions, indicating that the essential post-COVID-19 condition criteria are still unclear. Including negatives is important to determine long-term symptoms accountable to COVID-19. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05128695.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.27.23293244v1" target="_blank">Prevalence of long-term symptoms varies by using different post-COVID-19 definitions in positively and negatively tested adults: the PRIME post-COVID study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Growth media affects susceptibility of air-lifted human nasal epithelial cell cultures to SARS-CoV2, but not Influenza A, virus infection.</strong> -
<div>
Primary differentiated human epithelial cell cultures have been widely used by researchers to study viral fitness and virus-host interactions, especially during the COVID19 pandemic. These cultures recapitulate important characteristics of the respiratory epithelium such as diverse cell type composition, polarization, and innate immune responses. However, standardization and validation of these cultures remains an open issue. In this study, two different expansion medias were evaluated and the impact on the resulting differentiated culture was determined. Use of both Airway and Ex Plus media types resulted in high quality, consistent cultures that were able to be used for these studies. Upon histological evaluation, Airway-grown cultures were more organized and had a higher proportion of basal progenitor cells while Ex Plus- grown cultures had a higher proportion terminally differentiated cell types. In addition to having different cell type proportions and organization, the two different growth medias led to cultures with altered susceptibility to infection with SARS-CoV-2 but not Influenza A virus. RNAseq comparing cultures grown in different growth medias prior to differentiation uncovered a high degree of differentially expressed genes in cultures from the same donor. RNAseq on differentiated cultures showed less variation between growth medias but alterations in pathways that control the expression of human transmembrane proteases including TMPRSS11 and TMPRSS2 were documented. Enhanced susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 cannot be explained by altered cell type proportions alone, rather serine protease cofactor expression also contributes to the enhanced replication of SARS-CoV-2 as inhibition with camostat affected replication of an early SARS-CoV-2 variant and a Delta, but not Omicron, variant showed difference in replication efficiency between culture types. Therefore, it is important for the research community to standardize cell culture protocols particularly when characterizing novel viruses.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.31.551381v1" target="_blank">Growth media affects susceptibility of air-lifted human nasal epithelial cell cultures to SARS-CoV2, but not Influenza A, virus infection.</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Jointly modeling deep mutational scans identifies shifted mutational effects among SARS-CoV-2 spike homologs</strong> -
<div>
Deep mutational scanning (DMS) is a high-throughput experimental technique that measures the effects of thousands of mutations to a protein. These experiments can be performed on multiple homologs of a protein or on the same protein selected under multiple conditions. It is often of biological interest to identify mutations with shifted effects across homologs or conditions. However, it is challenging to determine if observed shifts arise from biological signal or experimental noise. Here, we describe a method for jointly inferring mutational effects across multiple DMS experiments while also identifying mutations that have shifted in their effects among experiments. A key aspect of our method is to regularize the inferred shifts, so that they are nonzero only when strongly supported by the data. We apply this method to DMS experiments that measure how mutations to spike proteins from SARS-CoV-2 variants (Delta, Omicron BA.1, and Omicron BA.2) affect cell entry. Most mutational effects are conserved between these spike homologs, but a fraction have markedly shifted. We experimentally validate a subset of the mutations inferred to have shifted effects, and confirm differences of &gt;1,000-fold in the impact of the same mutation on spike-mediated viral infection across spikes from different SARS-CoV-2 variants. Overall, our work establishes a general approach for comparing sets of DMS experiments to identify biologically important shifts in mutational effects.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.31.551037v1" target="_blank">Jointly modeling deep mutational scans identifies shifted mutational effects among SARS-CoV-2 spike homologs</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals characteristics of myeloid cells in pulmonary post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2</strong> -
<div>
Background: Although our understanding of the immunopathology and subsequent risk and severity of COVID-19 disease is evolving, a detailed account of immune responses that contribute to the long-term consequences of pulmonary complication in COVID-19 infection remain unclear. Few studies have detailed the immune and cytokine profiles associated with post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection with persistent pulmonary symptoms (PPASC). However, the dysregulation of the immune system that drives pulmonary sequelae in COVID-19 survivors and PASC sufferers remains largely unknown. Results: To characterize the immunological features of pulmonary PASC (PPASC), we performed droplet-based single-cell RNA sequencing to study the transcriptomic profiles of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from participants naive to SARS-CoV-2 (Control) and infected with SARS-CoV-2 with chronic pulmonary symptoms (PPASC). We analyzed more than 34,139 PBMCs by integrating our dataset with previously reported control datasets (GSM4509024) cell distribution. In total, 11 distinct cell populations were identified based on the expression of canonical markers. The proportion of myeloid-lineage cells ([MLCs]; CD14+/CD16+monocytes and dendritic cells) was increased in PPASC compared to controls. MLCs from PPASC displayed up-regulation of genes associated with pulmonary symptoms/fibrosis, while glycolysis metabolism-related genes were downregulated. Similarly, pathway analysis showed that fibrosis-related (VEGF, WNT, and SMAD) and cell death pathways were up-regulated, but immune pathways were down-regulated in PPASC. In PPASC, we observed interactive VEGF ligand-receptor pairs among MLCs, and network modules in CD14+ (cluster 4) and CD16+ (Cluster 5) monocytes displayed a significant enrichment for biological pathways linked to adverse COVID-19 outcomes, fibrosis, and angiogenesis. Further analysis revealed a distinct metabolic alteration in MLCs with a down-regulation of glycolysis/gluconeogenesis in PPASC compared to SARS-CoV-2 naive samples. Conclusion: This study offers valuable insights into the immune response and cellular landscape in PPASC. The presence of elevated MLC levels and their corresponding gene signatures associated with fibrosis, immune response suppression, and altered metabolic states suggests their potential role as a driver of PPASC.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.31.551349v1" target="_blank">Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals characteristics of myeloid cells in pulmonary post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Integrated Organ Immunity: Antigen-specific CD4-T cell-derived IFN-γ induced by BCG imprints prolonged lung innate resistance against respiratory viruses</strong> -
<div>
Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccination can confer non-specific protection against heterologous pathogens. However, the underlying mechanisms remain mysterious. Here, we show that mice immunized intravenously with BCG exhibited reduced weight loss and/or improved viral clearance when challenged with SARS-CoV-2 and influenza. Protection was first evident between 14 - 21 days post vaccination, and lasted for at least 42 days. Remarkably, BCG induced a biphasic innate response in the lung, initially at day 1 and a subsequent prolonged phase starting at ~15 days post vaccination, and robust antigen-specific Th1 responses. MyD88-dependent TLR signaling was essential for the induction of the innate and Th1 responses, and protection against SARS-CoV-2. Depletion of CD4+ T cells or IFN-{gamma} activity prior to infection obliterated innate activation and protection. Single cell and spatial transcriptomics revealed CD4-dependent expression of interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) in myeloid, type II alveolar and lung epithelial cells. Thus, BCG elicits "integrated organ immunity" where CD4+ T cells act on local myeloid and epithelial cells to imprint prolonged antiviral innate resistance.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.31.551354v1" target="_blank">Integrated Organ Immunity: Antigen-specific CD4-T cell-derived IFN-γ induced by BCG imprints prolonged lung innate resistance against respiratory viruses</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Strong immunogenicity &amp; protection in mice with PlaCCine: A COVID-19 DNA vaccine formulated with a functional polymer</strong> -
<div>
DNA- based vaccines have demonstrated the potential as a safe and effective modality. PlaCCine, a DNA-based vaccine approach described subsequently relies on a synthetic DNA delivery system and is independent of virus or device. The synthetic functionalized polymer combined with DNA demonstrated stability over 12 months at 4C and for one month at 25C. Transfection efficiency compared to naked DNA increased by 5-15-fold in murine skeletal muscle. Studies of DNA vaccines expressing spike proteins from variants D614G (pVAC15), Delta (pVAC16), or a D614G + Delta combination (pVAC17) were conducted. Mice immunized intramuscular injection (IM) with pVAC15, pVAC16 or pVAC17 formulated with functionalized polymer and adjuvant resulted in induction of spike-specific humoral and cellular responses. Antibody responses were observed after one immunization. And endpoint IgG titers increased to greater than 1x 105 two weeks after the second injection. Neutralizing antibodies as determined by a pseudovirus competition assay were observed following vaccination with pVAC15, pVAC16 or pVAC17. Spike specific T cell immune responses were also observed following vaccination and flow cytometry analysis demonstrated the cellular immune responses included both CD4 and CD8 spike specific T cells. The immune responses in vaccinated mice were maintained for up to 14 months after vaccination. In an immunization and challenge study of K18 hACE2 transgenic mice pVAC15, pVAC16 and pVAC17 induced immune responses lead to decreased lung viral loads by greater than 90% along with improved clinical score. These findings suggest that PlaCCine DNA vaccines are effective and stable and further development against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants is warranted.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.08.01.551509v1" target="_blank">Strong immunogenicity &amp; protection in mice with PlaCCine: A COVID-19 DNA vaccine formulated with a functional polymer</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Evolution of transient RNA structure-RNA polymerase interactions in respiratory RNA virus genomes</strong> -
<div>
RNA viruses are important human pathogens that cause seasonal epidemics and occasional pandemics. Examples are influenza A viruses (IAV) and coronaviruses (CoV). When emerging IAV and CoV spill over to humans, they adapt to evade immune responses and optimize their replication and spread in human cells. In IAV, adaptation occurs in all viral proteins, including the viral ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complex. RNPs consists of a copy of the viral RNA polymerase, a double-helical coil of nucleoprotein, and one of the eight segments of the IAV RNA genome. The RNA segments and their transcripts are partially structured to coordinate the packaging of the viral genome and modulate viral mRNA translation. In addition, RNA structures can affect the efficiency of viral RNA synthesis and the activation of host innate immune response. Here, we investigated if RNA structures that modulate IAV replication processivity, so called template loops (t-loops), vary during the adaptation of pandemic and emerging IAV to humans. Using cell culture-based replication assays and in silico sequence analyses, we find that the sensitivity of the IAV H3N2 RNA polymerase to t-loops increased between isolates from 1968 and 2017, whereas the total free energy of t-loops in the IAV H3N2 genome was reduced. This reduction is particularly prominent in the PB1 gene. In H1N1 IAV, we find two separate reductions in t-loop free energy, one following the 1918 pandemic and one following the 2009 pandemic. No destabilization of t-loops is observed in the IBV genome, whereas analysis of SARS-CoV-2 isolates reveals destabilization of viral RNA structures. Overall, we propose that a loss of free energy in the RNA genome of emerging respiratory RNA viruses may contribute to the adaption of these viruses to the human population.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.05.25.542331v2" target="_blank">Evolution of transient RNA structure-RNA polymerase interactions in respiratory RNA virus genomes</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 progeny virions requires the activity of host cell N-myristoyltransferases and it is severely compromised by their inhibition</strong> -
<div>
Acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causative agent of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite vaccinations, the development and use of neutralising antibodies against the viral surface spike proteins, and small molecule inhibitors targeting the viral replication machinery, COVID-19 remains a global public health crisis. Emerging mutations in the viral genome have the potential to reduce prophylactic and therapeutic efficacy of virus-directed treatments. Targeting host cell factors required for infection could, therefore, be a potential strategy to overcome this problem since mutations in the viral genome are unlikely to bypass the requirement for the targeted host factor or function. The enzymatic activity of N-myristoyltransferases (NMTs) are essential to mediate stable membrane binding and function of a diverse class of cellular proteins, many of which regulate intracellular membrane trafficking. Here we report that nanomolar concentrations of the NMT inhibitor IMP-1088 inhibited SARS-CoV-2 spreading in human cells by compromising the infectivity of released viral particles, which was reduced by up to 90%. IMP-1088 also inhibited human Respiratory syncytial virus, the main cause of viral death in infants world-wide, but not the mosquito-delivered alphavirus Semliki Forest virus and the vesiculovirus Vesicular stomatitis virus. The antiviral effect of IMP-1088 against SARS-CoV-2 displayed remarkably slow reversibility, was well tolerated by cells, and is, therefore, a promising candidate for COVID-19 prophylaxis and therapy.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.03.03.530798v2" target="_blank">The infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 progeny virions requires the activity of host cell N-myristoyltransferases and it is severely compromised by their inhibition</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>SARS-CoV-2 Viral Clearance and Evolution Varies by Extent of Immunodeficiency</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Despite vaccination and antiviral therapies, immunocompromised individuals are at risk for prolonged SARS-CoV-2 infection, but the immune defects that predispose to persistent COVID-19 remain incompletely understood. In this study, we performed detailed viro-immunologic analyses of a prospective cohort of participants with COVID-19. The median time to nasal viral RNA and culture clearance in the severe hematologic malignancy/transplant group (S-HT) were 72 and 21 days, respectively, which were significantly longer than clearance rates in the severe autoimmune/B-cell deficient (S-A), non-severe, and non-immunocompromised groups (P&lt;0.001). Participants who were severely immunocompromised had greater SARS-CoV-2 evolution and higher risk of developing antiviral treatment resistance. Both S-HT and S-A participants had diminished SARS-CoV-2-specific humoral, while only the S-HT group had reduced T cell-mediated responses. This highlights the varied risk of persistent COVID-19 across immunosuppressive conditions and suggests that suppression of both B and T cell responses results in the highest contributing risk of persistent infection.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.31.23293441v1" target="_blank">SARS-CoV-2 Viral Clearance and Evolution Varies by Extent of Immunodeficiency</a>
</div></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effect of Natural Food on Gut Microbiome and Phospholipid Spectrum of Immune Cells in COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Dietary Supplement: Freeze-dried Mare Milk (Saumal)<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effects of Exercise Training on Patients With Long COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Long COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Behavioral: Exercise training<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Safety and Immune Response Study to Evaluate Varying Doses of an mRNA Vaccine Against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Healthy Adults</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: mRNA-CR-04 vaccine 10μg;   Biological: mRNA-CR-04 vaccine 30μg;   Biological: mRNA-CR-04 vaccine 100μg;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   GlaxoSmithKline<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Phase 3, Randomized, Double-Blinded Study to Evaluate the Safety and Immunogenicity of Omicron Subvariant and Bivalent SARS-CoV-2 rS Vaccines in Adolescents Previously Vaccinated With mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: NVX-CoV2601 co-formulated Omicron XBB.1.5 SARS-CoV-2 rS vaccine;   Biological: Prototype/XBB.1.5 Bivalent Vaccine (5 µg)<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Novavax<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Immunoadsorption vs. Sham Treatment in Post COVID-19 Patients With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Fatigue;   Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Procedure: Immunoadsorption vs. sham immunoadsorption<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Hannover Medical School<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Non-ventilated Prone Positioning in the COVID-19 Population</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19;   Proning;   Oxygenation;   Length of Stay<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Other: Proning group;   Other: Control group<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>HD-Tdcs and Pharmacological Intervention For Delirium In Critical Patients With COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19;   Delirium;   Critical Illness<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Combination Product: Active HD-tDCS;   Combination Product: Sham HD-tDCS<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Suellen Andrade;   City University of New York<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Study on the Safety and Immune Response of a Booster Dose of Investigational COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines in Healthy Adults</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   SARS-CoV-2<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: CV0701 Bivalent High dose;   Biological: CV0701 Bivalent Medium dose;   Biological: CV0701 Bivalent Low dose;   Biological: CV0601 Monovalent High dose;   Biological: Control vaccine<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   GlaxoSmithKline;   CureVac<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RECOVER-VITAL: Platform Protocol, Appendix to Measure the Effects of Paxlovid on Long COVID Symptoms</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Long COVID-19;   Long COVID<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Paxlovid 25 day dosing;   Drug: Paxlovid 15 day dosing;   Drug: Control<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Kanecia Obie Zimmerman<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>PROTECT-APT 1: Early Treatment and Post-Exposure Prophylaxis of COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   SARS-CoV-2<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Upamostat;   Drug: Placebo (PO)<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine;   Joint Program Executive Office Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defense Enabling Biotechnologies;   FHI Clinical, Inc.;   RedHill Biopharma Limited<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RECOVER-NEURO: Platform Protocol, Appendix_A to Measure the Effects of BrainHQ, PASC CoRE and tDCS Interventions on Long COVID Symptoms</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Long COVID;   Long Covid19;   Long Covid-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Other: BrainHQ/Active Comparator Activity;   Other: BrainHQ;   Other: PASC CoRE;   Device: tDCS-active;   Device: tDCS-sham<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Duke University<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Directed Topical Drug Delivery for Treatment for PASC Hyposmia</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Post Acute Sequelae Covid-19 Hyposmia<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Beclomethasone;   Other: Placebo;   Device: Microsponge<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Duke University<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RECOVER-NEURO: Platform Protocol to Measure the Effects of Cognitive Dysfunction Interventions on Long COVID Symptoms</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Long COVID;   Long Covid19;   Long Covid-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Other: BrainHQ/Active Comparator Activity;   Other: BrainHQ;   Other: PASC CoRE;   Device: tDCS-active;   Device: tDCS-sham<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Duke University<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Impact of COVID-19 on Sinus Augmentation Surgery</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Bone Loss<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Procedure: Sinus lift in patients with positive COVID-19 history;   Procedure: Sinus lift with negative COVID-19 history<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Cairo University<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Telerehabilitation for Post COVID-19 Condition</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Long COVID;   Chronic Fatigue Syndrome<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: Telerehabilitation program based on cardiorespiratory principles<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Université de Sherbrooke;   Hotel Dieu Hospital<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-pubmed">From PubMed</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Structural-Based Virtual Screening of FDA-Approved Drugs Repository for NSP16 Inhibitors, Essential for SARS-COV-2 Invasion Into Host Cells: Elucidation From MM/PBSA Calculation</strong> - NSP16 is one of the structural proteins of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) necessary for its entrance to the host cells. It exhibits 2’O-methyl-transferase (2’O-MTase) activity of NSP16 using methyl group from S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) by methylating the 5-end of virally encoded mRNAs and shields viral RNA, and also controls its replication as well as infection. In the present study, we used in silico approaches of drug repurposing to target and inhibit the SAM…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Invalidation of geraniin as a potential inhibitor against SARS-CoV-2 main protease</strong> - Recently, geraniin has been identified as a potent antiviral agent targeting SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro). Considering the potential of geraniin in COVID-19 treatment, a stringent validation for its Mpro inhibition is necessary. Herein, we rigorously evaluated the in vitro inhibitory effect of geraniin on Mpro using the fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), fluorescence polarization (FP), and dimerization-dependent red fluorescent protein (ddRFP) assays. Our data indicate that…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Crystal structures of main protease (M<sup>pro</sup>) mutants of SARS-CoV-2 variants bound to PF-07304814</strong> - There is an urgent need to develop effective antiviral drugs to prevent the viral infection caused by constantly circulating SARS-CoV-2 as well as its variants. The main protease (M^(pro)) of SARS-CoV-2 is a salient enzyme that plays a vital role in viral replication and serves as a fascinating therapeutic target. PF-07304814 is a covalent inhibitor targeting SARS-CoV-2 M^(pro) with favorable inhibition potency and drug-like properties, thus making it a promising drug candidate for the treatment…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Direct blue 53, a biological dye, inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection by blocking ACE2 and spike interaction in vitro and in vivo</strong> - COVID-19 is a global health problem caused by SARS-CoV-2, which has led to over 600 million infections and 6 million deaths. Developing novel antiviral drugs is of pivotal importance to slow down the epidemic swiftly. In this study, we identified five azo compounds as effective antiviral drugs to SARS-CoV-2, and mechanism study revealed their targets for impeding viral particles’ ability to bind to host receptors. Direct Blue 53, which displayed the strongest inhibitory impact, inhibited five…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Chicoric Acid Presented NLRP3-Mediated Pyroptosis through Mitochondrial Damage by PDPK1 Ubiquitination in an Acute Lung Injury Model</strong> - Chicoric acid (CA), a functional food ingredient, is a caffeic acid derivative that is mainly found in lettuce, pulsatilla, and other natural plants. However, the anti-inflammatory effects of CA in acute lung injury (ALI) remain poorly understood. This study was conducted to investigate potential drug usage of CA for ALI and the underlying molecular mechanisms of inflammation. C57BL/6 mice were given injections of liposaccharide (LPS) to establish the in vivo model. Meanwhile, BMDM cells were…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Therapeutic effects of tea polyphenol-loaded nanoparticles coated with platelet membranes on LPS-induced lung injury</strong> - Patients with ALI (acute lung injury)/ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome) are often septic and with poor prognosis, which leads to a high mortality rate of 25-40%. Despite the advances in medicine, there are no effective pharmacological therapies for ALI/ARDS due to the short systemic circulation and poor specificity in the lungs. To address this problem, we prepared TP-loaded nanoparticles (TP-NPs) through the emulsification-and-evaporation method, and then the platelet membrane vesicles…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Combination of Chinese herbal medicine and conventional western medicine for coronavirus disease 2019: a systematic review and meta-analysis</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: Potentially, CHM listed in this study, as an adjunctive therapy, combining with CWM is an effective and safe therapy mode for COVID-19. However, more high-quality RCTs are needed to draw more accurate conclusions.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-CoV-2 main protease targeting potent fluorescent inhibitors: Repurposing thioxanthones</strong> - The coronavirus disease, COVID-19, is the major focus of the whole world due to insufficient treatment options. It has spread all around the world and is responsible for the death of numerous human beings. The future consequences for the disease survivors are still unknown. Hence, all contributions to understand the disease and effectively inhibit the effects of the disease have great importance. In this study, different thioxanthone based molecules, which are known to be fluorescent compounds,…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Identification of a small chemical as a lysosomal calcium mobilizer and characterization of its ability to inhibit autophagy and viral infection</strong> - We previously identified GAPDH as one of the cyclic adenosine diphosphoribose (cADPR)’s binding proteins and found that GAPDH participates in cADPR-mediated Ca^(2+) release from ER via ryanodine receptors (RyRs). Here we aimed to chemically synthesize and pharmacologically characterize novel cADPR analogues. Based on the simulated cADPR-GAPDH complex structure, we performed the structure-based drug screening, identified several small chemicals with high docking scores to cADPR’s binding pocket…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Discovery and evaluation of active compounds from Xuanfei Baidu formula against COVID-19 via SARS-CoV-2 M<sup>pro</sup></strong> - CONCLUSION: Acteoside is regarded as a representative active natural compound in XFBD to inhibit replication of SARS-CoV-2, which provides the antiviral evidence and some insights into the identification of SARS-CoV-2 M^(pro) natural inhibitors.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Neurological side effects and drug interactions of antiviral compounds against SARS-CoV-2</strong> - CONCLUSION: Neurological side effects and drug interactions must be considered for antiviral compounds against SARS-CoV-2. Further studies are required to better evaluate their efficacy and adverse events in patients with concomitant neurological diseases. Moreover, evidence from real-world studies will complement the current knowledge.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Deuteration for Metabolic Stabilization of SARS-CoV-2 Inhibitors GC373 and Nirmatrelvir</strong> - Nirmatrelvir and GC373 inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease and hinder viral replication in COVID-19. As nirmatrelvir in Paxlovid is oxidized by cytochrome P450 3A4, ritonavir is coadministered to block this. However, ritonavir undesirably alters the metabolism of other drugs. Hydrogens can be replaced with deuterium in nirmatrelvir and GC373 to slow oxidation. Results show that deuterium slows oxidation of nirmatrelvir adjacent to nitrogen by ∼40% and that the type of warhead can switch the site…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Structures of SARS-CoV-2 N7-methyltransferase with DOT1L and PRMT7 inhibitors provide a platform for new antivirals</strong> - The RNA N7-methyltransferase (MTase) activity of SARS-CoV-2’s nsp14 protein is essential for viral replication and is a target for the development of new antivirals. Nsp14 uses S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) as the methyl donor to cap the 5’ end of the SARS-CoV-2 mRNA and generates S-adenosyl homocysteine (SAH) as the reaction byproduct. Due to the central role of histone MTases in cancer, many SAM/SAH analogs with properties of cell permeability have recently been developed for the inhibition of…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Mega-scale desalination efficacy (Reverse Osmosis, Electrodialysis, Membrane Distillation, MED, MSF) during COVID-19: Evidence from salinity, pretreatment methods, temperature of operation</strong> - The unprecedented situation of the COVID-19 pandemic heavily polluted water bodies whereas the presence of SARS-CoV-2, even in treated wastewater in every corner of the world is reported. The main aim of the present study is to show the effectiveness and feasibility of some well-known desalination technologies which are reverse osmosis (RO), Electrodialysis (ED), Membrane Distillation (MD), multi effect distillation (MED), and multi stage flashing (MSF) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Systems’…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An RBD bispecific antibody effectively neutralizes a SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant</strong> - Potent neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) against SARS-CoV-2 are a promising therapeutic against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, the continuous emergence of neutralizing antibody escape variants makes it challenging for antibody therapeutics based on monospecific nAbs. Here, we generated an IgG-like bispecific antibody (bsAb), Bi-Nab, based on a pair of human neutralizing antibodies targeting multiple and invariant sites of the spike receptor binding domain (RBD): 35B5 and 32C7. We…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
<script>AOS.init();</script></body></html>

709
archive-daily-dose/03 August, 2023.html Normal file
View File

@ -0,0 +1,709 @@
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="" xml:lang="" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head>
<meta charset="utf-8"/>
<meta content="pandoc" name="generator"/>
<meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0, user-scalable=yes" name="viewport"/>
<title>03 August, 2023</title>
<style>
code{white-space: pre-wrap;}
span.smallcaps{font-variant: small-caps;}
span.underline{text-decoration: underline;}
div.column{display: inline-block; vertical-align: top; width: 50%;}
div.hanging-indent{margin-left: 1.5em; text-indent: -1.5em;}
ul.task-list{list-style: none;}
</style>
<title>Daily-Dose</title><meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" name="viewport"/><link href="styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="../styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><style>*{overflow-x:hidden;}</style><link href="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.css" rel="stylesheet"/><script src="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.js"></script></head>
<body>
<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Trump’s Offense Against Democracy Itself</strong> - At last, the former President’s “fraud,” “deceit,” and “lies” are called out in court. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/trumps-offense-against-democracy-itself">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The New Trump Indictment and the Reckoning Ahead</strong> - With the former President still far ahead of the rest of the Republican field, the American electorate is headed for a crucial test. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-new-trump-indictment-and-the-reckoning-ahead">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Biden’s Moral Calculus in Brokering a Saudi-Israeli Peace Deal</strong> - The U.S. is trying to land a tripartite agreement that could dramatically alter its involvement in the Middle East. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/bidens-moral-calculus-in-brokering-a-saudi-israeli-peace-deal">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Public Opinion About Trump’s Criminality Is Shifting—a Bit</strong> - As prosecutors release details of the charges and evidence against him, minds are slowly changing among less partisan voters—and maybe even among Republicans. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/public-opinion-about-trumps-criminality-is-shifting-a-bit">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Georgia’s Broad Racketeering Law May Now Ensnare Donald Trump</strong> - Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, often relies on Georgia’s capacious RICO statute—though critics say that she has stretched it past the law’s intent. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-the-south/georgias-broad-racketeering-law-may-now-ensnare-donald-trump">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>What’s up with all these drones hitting Moscow?</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A man crouches on the sidewalk to inspect rubble and debris in front of a mirrored wall." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/X2c_bQAJWSYCwOPB456GCjkG2U4=/688x0:6192x4128/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72509885/1568499658.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Security forces inspect the scene after a skyscraper bombing on August 1, 2023, the second drone attack on the same building in two days in Moscow, Russia. | Boris Alekseev/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Ukraine is trying to bring the costs of its war home to Russia.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RqvdKD">
This week, at least two <a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-drone-attack-moscow-crimea-0773a8607c3e3c25a47124f4ef4d7b8c">drones have struck </a>a skyscraper in Moscow, a sign that Ukraine is increasingly willing to take the war directly to <a href="https://www.vox.com/russia">Russia</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CjGGrd">
The building, which houses some government ministry offices, was initially damaged in a Sunday drone hit before a second on Tuesday. Russian defense officials accused Ukraine of perpetrating both, and said that both drones <a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-drone-attack-moscow-crimea-0773a8607c3e3c25a47124f4ef4d7b8c">were “jammed” before crashing into the exact same skyscraper</a>. Russian defense officials also <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/russia-accuses-ukraine-drone-attack-moscow-hitting-tower-101890300">said</a> they intercepted two other drones outside Moscow overnight Tuesday, following a <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66352765">similar drone attack on Sunday in Moscow’s business district</a>. On Thursday, <a href="https://t.me/mod_russia/28895">regional authorities in Russia</a> claimed it had shot down six Ukrainian drones outside of Moscow.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0lCpPd">
Ukraine has tended to be pretty coy regarding these kinds of attacks on Russian soil, but it was a bit more open about suggesting responsibility for the incidents earlier this week. “Gradually, the war is returning to the territory of Russia — to its symbolic centers and military bases, and this is an inevitable, natural and absolutely fair process,” <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66352765">President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video address Sunday</a> while avoiding outright ownership of the attack. In the aftermath of the apparent attack on Tuesday, Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Zelenskyy, <a href="https://twitter.com/Podolyak_M/status/1686270645238190080?s=20">echoed that sentiment</a>: “<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Moscow?src=hashtag_click">#Moscow</a> is rapidly getting used to a full-fledged war, which, in turn, will soon finally move to the territory of the ‘authors of the war’ to collect all their debts …”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OWPrxT">
Ukraine probably isn’t being quite as shy about this drone attack because it wants to send a message, and it wants Moscow to know who sent it. Ukraine is trying to raise the cost of war, and to make it more visible to the Russian people, particularly the elite and the establishment, who’ve largely been insulated from the consequences of Russia’s invasion.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YjVDOS">
“By bringing the war home to this business district in Moscow, of course, Ukraine makes the point that, well, life may go on in most of Russia, but Russia is at war, it’s a war Russia started — and the Putin government isn’t able to insulate its population or key elements of its population from the effects of the war,” said Niklas Masuhr, a military analyst at the Center for Security Studies at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7sZVTz">
The Ukrainian drones did not initially appear to do great damage or cause serious harm to civilians, but Ukraine is raising the specter that it could. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/01/world/europe/moscow-drone-attack-ukraine.html">said Tuesday</a> that the attacks were “a clear threat” and that measures are being taken to improve defense near the capital. But for the most part, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/31/ukraine-fatalities-in-kryvyi-rih-and-kherson-as-russia-plays-down-drone-attack-on-moscow">Russian officials have downplayed the attacks</a>. This is a bit of a repeat of what happened in May, after drones entered Moscow, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/24/us/politics/ukraine-kremlin-drone-attack.html">including one that targeted the Kremlin.</a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AiHN0c">
Ukraine did not take public responsibility for that drone event, but Vladimir Putin largely framed it as Kyiv retaliating against Russia for its strategic missile strikes — that is, <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/world-report/articles/2023-05-31/drone-strikes-on-moscow-leave-putin-with-few-options-analysts">Ukraine was lashing ou</a>t, which in Moscow’s view<strong> </strong>did not warrant a Russian escalation beyond what it was already doing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RRaGxw">
What is different about this time is Kyiv is hinting that reaching inside Russia may become part of its wider strategy to counter the Kremlin. It’s not clear how much influence that will have on Russia, or on the battlefield and <a href="https://www.vox.com/2023/6/10/23750041/russia-ukraine-war-counteroffensive-begins-explained">Ukraine’s ongoing counteroffensive</a>. But messaging matter in war, and Ukraine is not being nearly as cagey about these attacks.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7RdBcx">
“The shiny face of business-friendly Moscow, open to the world, has been attacked, and the Russians couldn’t do anything about it. That’s very valuable as a symbol,” said Simon Schlegel, a senior analyst for Ukraine with the International Crisis Group.
</p>
<h3 id="9OMljo">
A message to Moscow amid a contested counteroffensive
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Mf8bHp">
Ukrainian strikes or sabotage on Russian territory are nothing new. Kyiv has carried them out throughout the war, though they have tended to be in parts of Russia closer to the border with Ukraine, or in Russian-held Ukrainian<strong> </strong>territory, like Crimea. Favored targets include <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/blasts-hit-military-base-in-russian-occupied-crimea-c9c1ffc1">military bases</a>, <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/crimea-russian-air-base-attacked-satellite-images/31982540.html">air fields</a>, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/video/crimea-residents-evacuated-as-ukraine-confirms-oil-depot-strikes/75AF1214-D54B-4826-BE15-CC83C30D9607.html">oil depots</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/12/key-russian-railway-bridge-destroyed-in-belgorod-border-region-with-ukraine">rail lines</a>, and other infrastructure and logistic hubs that allow Russia to wage its war.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vJSB7a">
Ukraine has mostly avoided taking direct responsibility for these attacks, staying quiet rather than celebrating any Russian setbacks. As one Ukrainian official said last year: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/30/world/europe/ukraine-russia-attack-denials.html">“We don’t say yes and we don’t say no.”</a> This strategic ambiguity, so to speak, is partly because these attacks are audacious and risk potential escalation with Moscow. Also, if Ukraine used any Western weapons to carry out these strikes, it could feed Putin’s narrative that the threat of NATO is fueling his Ukraine invasion. The US and its allies have, in the past, also indicated they do not want to <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-energy-infrastructure-attacks/32163666.html">enable or encourage Ukraine to hit within Russia</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LbkpBC">
These recent drone strikes in Moscow are more about optics than directly targeting Russia’s war logistics. But, of course, Russia is able to carry on this war because its public, and its elites, are insulated from the pain of it. It’s hard to know exactly what the Russian population thinks of the so-called special military operation, but it does seem that the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64703768">majority support</a> it, or at least aren’t actively opposed to it. That has flagged at moments when the war has been made real — think <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/russiams-anxious-mobilization-poll-levada/32059441.html">Putin’s mobilization effort last year,</a> which prompted protests and people fleeing en masse. The <a href="https://www.vox.com/2023/7/1/23779941/wagner-group-revolt-ukraine-counteroffensive-putin-war">Wagner rebellion</a> also showed that Russian politics are not fully protected from battlefield setbacks. A few Moscow visits from Ukrainian drones pierces that armor, too.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OyXdzh">
The drones used in these attacks also seem to be homegrown, and a New York Times analysis found that <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/31/world/europe/ukraine-drone-strikes-russia.html">Ukrainian-made models</a> were used in these strikes on Moscow. Kyiv is scaling up its drone fleet, and this is a way to show it is investing in, developing, and expanding its own military capabilities amid war.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cpInZt">
Federico Borsari, a Leonardo fellow with the Transatlantic Defense and Security Program at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), said that in some ways, Ukraine is mirroring what Russia has done, which is use drones — like those the Kremlin has <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/exclusive-iran-agrees-ship-missiles-more-drones-russia-defying-west-sources-2022-10-18/">purchased from Iran</a> — to carry out attacks in Ukraine and penetrate Kyiv’s air defense systems. Russian drones have been used in recent attacks on a grain silo in <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/25c8cf50-209d-4db4-af0a-b4b9f8f7d750">Odesa and a critical river port on the Danube</a>, which Ukraine will rely on to export agricultural products now that the Black Sea <a href="https://www.vox.com/world-politics/2023/7/19/23798701/black-sea-grain-deal-ukraine-russia-odesa-strikes">routes are effectively blockaded again</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="p5SajD">
“Ukraine is trying now to build the same type of capabilities — a cheap, long-range attack capability to target Russian objectives, deplete Russian air defenses,” Borsari said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LR3C1H">
“It hasn’t the numbers yet to conduct this kind of attack at scale,” he added. “But I think, with time, we will see an increasing of this attack, and we will see more large-scale drone attacks by Ukraine against Russian targets, whether they are industrial complexes or military bases and the like.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KLyavv">
It seems unlikely that these recent drone attacks will fully change Putin’s calculus about the war, but it does communicate to Russia that Ukraine can increasingly strike Russian targets. That may force Russia to expend resources to try to protect different assets within Russia, which could stretch its military capabilities, especially as Ukraine wages its counteroffensive, which has shifted into a much more <a href="https://www.iiss.org/en/online-analysis/survival-online/2023/04/ukraine-strategy-of-attrition/">attritional conflict</a> yet again.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OHkHvt">
From Ukraine’s perspective, a greater ability to wage war and defend itself is a success, one that Ukrainian officials are likely as happy to sell at home as they are eager to let Moscow know. “It’s not a silver bullet for winning the war,” said Borsari. “But this demonstrates that Ukraine could really integrate, and can use proficiently, all kinds of technology.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>Why do so many new songs sound familiar?</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Rick Astley sings into a microphone with both hands raised near his ears. He wears a mauve suit jacket and pants and a black shirt. The performance took place at Worthy Farm, Pilton, in Glastonbury, England, on June 24, 2023." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ysVLmwS5wKydxLqy2goWTMHPmy4=/379x0:4663x3213/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72509813/1512080244.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Rick Astley performs on the main Pyramid Stage at the Glastonbury Festival on June 24, 2023. | Matt Cardy/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Hint: Ask the publishing companies.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WdWlnP">
If you’ve listened to music over the past 35-plus years, you’ve probably noticed that some of the songs you’re streaming from your smartphone sound a lot like the songs that roared out of previous generations’ record players and car radios.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CJWNZE">
For Gen X (and some older millennials), this sort of thing has happened before. An obvious example is “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUhRKVIjJtw">Mo Money Mo Problems</a>” by The Notorious B.I.G. featuring Mase and Puff Daddy. The 1997 hit contains a sample and an interpolation of Diana Ross’s 1980 Billboard hit “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CHdKORwPEQ">I’m Coming Out</a>.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="06KoZT">
Around the same time, Puffy (as he was known then) also sampled The Police’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMOGaugKpzs">Every Breath You Take”</a> for “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKMtZm2YuBE">I’ll Be Missing You</a>.” And Will Smith dropped “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiBLgEx6svA">Men in Black</a>,” which basically lifted all of Patrice Rushen’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtMHsNhQBvI">Forget Me Nots</a>.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8zw3t1">
But nearly 25 years later, Pitchfork’s contributing writer and editor Jayson Greene says <a href="https://pitchfork.com/features/overtones/everything-is-interpolated-inside-musics-nostalgia-industrial-complex/">what’s old has become new all over again</a>. “Some very business-savvy people have spotted that the value of well-known intellectual property in pop music has been skyrocketing,” he says. “And they have bought up with their significant holdings and power a huge portion of most of what American listeners consider to be the most beloved pop music and pop songs of the past 50 to 100 years.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ev14hB">
Greene points to recent examples like the rapper Yung Gravy, who recently scored a breakout hit with the song “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oE5Z2GLhNc">Betty (Get Money)”</a> by repurposing the chorus of Rick Astley’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ">Never Gonna Give You Up,”</a> as well as pop stars <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hLtlzkoGPk">Britney Spears</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm_XpTTtRKk">Dua Lipa</a>, who each recycled portions of Elton John’s music for their own singles.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Iyo0eE">
For some greater understanding of this trend, <a href="https://www.vox.com/today-explained-podcast"><em>Today, Explained</em></a> host Sean Rameswaram spoke to Greene on Vox’s daily news explainer podcast. Read on for a partial transcript of the conversation, edited and condensed for length and clarity, and listen to the full conversation <a href="https://link.chtbl.com/todayexplainedpod">wherever you find podcasts</a>.
</p>
<div id="nHEguY">
</div>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="9Bk6Mj"/>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4eV4HF">
<strong>Jayson, how is what’s happening now with artists like Yung Gravy different from what Puffy or Will Smith were doing in the ’90s? </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fb5HZx">
What’s different — and this is a crucial, not an academic difference at all — is who is the person behind the music.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EKqnAr">
Puff Daddy was doing that work. Yes, he was sort of looking at his pop music factory as a hit factory, you know, like many super producer entrepreneurs of yore. But he was ultimately still a producer. While he blurred the line between being a CEO and a creative — he was on stage, he was a performer, he was in the music videos — it was his creative decision to take these beloved songs and remake them.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yrWvnm">
<strong>Sure. But he was still borrowing and trading on well-known songs, right? </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5Veoar">
Yes. But again, it was his decision. So for a thought experiment, imagine that it actually went that some other guy that no one in the world who listens to music has ever heard of because he’s vice president of whatever at some record company pulls Puff Daddy aside and says, “Hey, listen, we need you to sample ‘I’m Coming Out’ because our company just acquired this and we need you to take this and use it. But don’t mess with it too much because if you do, we won’t get as big of a payout.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="D9mcC2">
<strong>So this is a very intentional business strategy seeping into the creative process. </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VZbJG1">
One of these music publishing companies that has sort of been at the forefront of this extremely aggressive and very novel and new technique of guarding over your corporate property, your intellectual property, is a company called Primary Wave.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="feS5Y2">
Now, Primary Wave — and this is crucial to this story — they are not people who came from music publishing. Music publishing has historically been an extremely dry and sleepy area of the music business. No one was looking to shake it up. You were just there to sign a piece of paper. But these people at Primary Wave came from the late ’90s world of major label CD market boom. They are ex music managers.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Qi6Rng">
Larry Mestel, the CEO and founder, Justin Shukat, the president, and later on, a guy named Adam Lowenberg who worked with Avril Lavigne and helped break her in — these three guys left Arista Records in the late ‘90s, roughly when Carlos Santana’s <em>Supernatural</em> sold 10 million records, right?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="g8tsR9">
This is still a time when major labels were just printing money and recording their highest ever grosses, and these people were behind the helm. But these people, as they saw the music industry was cratering around them, at least as they had known and built it. And then Napster hits. It was the first shock wave. It was roughly around this time that Mestel, Shukat, and Lowenberg gathered together and formed a music publishing company called Primary Wave. They ended up at the forefront of a lot of what has now become super commonplace, and that is they’ve acquired the rights to massive artist’s catalogs that they then own either a piece of or 100 percent of, depending.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3aPgNR">
Many of them are catalogs by artists who are deceased. In some ways they have a more efficient way of maneuvering because there is no living artist in the room with them to talk to them about what they think they should be doing with their catalog. To that end, their first big purchase that they made headlines with was the catalog of Kurt Cobain.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ioh1Bv">
<strong>But what do they do with it? Because I haven’t heard, like, a Kurt Cobain hook in a Dua Lipa song yet. </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5DN0Pl">
This is where this new mentality that the Primary Wave guys are bringing into the industry comes into play. They say, “No. We’re gonna monetize this. We’re gonna work this catalog,” as if they were artist development A&amp;Rs.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VimEJ9">
Over the course of the next decade, what they did manage to do was sort of plant the seeds for and help stoke the fires of and arrange the meetings around the documentary <em>Montage of Heck</em>, which was this very impressionistic piece of sort of biographical docudrama that was largely based on the fact that there was this treasure trove of home recordings. They’re trying to basically invent a biopic as the rights holders to their publishing. No one’s even dared to think this audaciously.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SOOLkZ">
<strong>Are there other examples of how they’re repurposing these catalogs? </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5DmJPZ">
While <em>Montage of Heck </em>is being developed, they test out some other pretty big moves. The one that Adam Lowenberg was most proud to tell me about was this campaign they devised in 2009 around Aerosmith’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZfZ8uWaOFI">Dream On”</a> which is, you know, the proto power ballad. It’s the first lighter-waver song arguably in rock history, up there with “Stairway to Heaven.” Iconic. Everyone knows it. Everyone knows it within 10 seconds. They surmised in their sort of pitch meeting that there’s something dreamy about thinking you win the lottery, and they want to stoke that. So they approach lottery vendors.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SQ37oo">
I can’t imagine in the history of music publishing that any pop music catalog owner had ever approached the lottery vendor before for a meeting ever. But they basically approach a lottery vendor and say, “Hey, we have this idea for Massachusetts, which is Aerosmith’s home state, we want to run an Aerosmith-themed lottery campaign. And so what we’re going to do is we’re going to brand it with our logo. And when you scratch off, the lyrics to this song that we own is going to be on the card.” And then when you promote this campaign on radio stations to get people to buy tickets, guess what? You can play “Dream On” on it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mktDoH">
This was a genius move from a marketing standpoint because it meant they collected revenue streams on the two different ways that you can own rights to a song. The minute those words appear on the lottery ticket, a check — ka-ching — goes to Primary Wave and then they get paid again when the song appears in the campaign. It’s a massive success and it ends up spreading to 10 different states. This is when I think the big money green light bulb went on over all of their heads.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cZa9A7">
<strong>Is this sort of thing that music publishing companies are doing good or bad for music? </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3Wo0st">
On its face, there is nothing inherently evil with a company trying to make money for the intellectual property that they hold, right? I think that there’s something suffocating in the current way that this is happening because I think that when the proverbial suits look after everything but the creative side are in the creative process, I think it’s rare that that’s good for the music or the art. I think that there’s always this complicated symbiosis between people like Justin Shukat and, you know, someone like Otis Redding.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jLYGk2">
But I think broadly speaking, it’s just not great for creativity as a sort of pursuit, as a muse, when the stuff that people use in pop music, which is the catalog, right — they reference the catalog either directly or indirectly, whether through sampling or inspiration — when you have people who are so closely guarding those songs as if they were a big pile of jewels.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="m3Ypey">
<strong>Let me play devil’s advocate for a second here. I do wonder if ultimately it’s good to be reminded how great of a song “Never Gonna Give You Up” was even if it comes at the cost of hearing it in some, you know, cheesed-up, mass-produced single. </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Gga3nZ">
I mean, I would argue that that song is very well loved. That’s the reason it was pointed to. It was chosen because they knew it was a song everyone already knew to the point of being sick of it. It would defeat their purpose in many ways if they were farming out more obscure stuff.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7c1iKR">
Cultural attention is not an endlessly renewable resource. There’s a finite amount of cultural attention, right? We only give our bandwidth to so many songs by so many artists. And it’s a very recursive place right now. It’s very empty. It’s very full of recycled air. So I can’t imagine that it’s a good thing, right? If anything, it makes people tired.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4j91P5">
<strong>One final devil’s advocate-y thought: The Beatles were, in a way, repurposing Little Richard. The Rolling Stones were, in a way, repurposing all the blues that they had ever heard, right? </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ORnKF5">
Mm-hm.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="T4wMMn">
<strong>Beyoncé wrote one of the most critically acclaimed albums of our young decade, and it’s a lot of samples. And my favorite Billie Eilish song sounds just like a Weezer track from the ‘90s, you know what I mean?</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xfirZr">
Oh, yeah!
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JpF68J">
<strong>Is music always sort of throwing back? And is music always referencing and always acknowledging nostalgia? </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="crb2N3">
Yes, of course. But what’s different now is that you have effectively patent trolls who are blocking access and hoarding resources. That’s not good. To me, this was a story about end-stage capitalism. Because these are also people who decided to stop working with living artists and mostly manage the affairs of dead ones.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ak2czZ">
They’re like, it’s too hard to make money off of living artists. So let’s transition and let’s work with the catalogs of ones that everyone already knows.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lB8B3I">
When you already own the catalog to the most beloved music of the past 50 years, your job is really easy. I don’t have to walk into a room and convince everyone that this new artist is great. Everyone already knows this stuff is great, and that’s why they’re there.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pJCRWU">
I think it can’t be good for new art. I don’t.
</p></li>
<li><strong>Are carbon offsets a scam? We tracked one from Kenya to England to find out.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Stylized illustration of flows of carbon credits moving between Africa and Europe" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/bzZsTC1Bfv2nXdUzmD9hKzbEq2g=/240x0:1680x1080/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72509767/Vox_CarbonCredit_CalebLukeLin.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Caleb Luke Lin for Vox
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Carbon credits explain the hyper-financialization of climate policy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JQH8nT">
<em>The reporting of this story was supported by a grant from the </em><a href="https://pulitzercenter.org/"><em>Pulitzer Center</em></a><em> on Crisis Reporting. </em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dDC0xO">
Carbon offsets are suddenly everywhere. Long the domain of airlines and unimaginative bureaucrats, firms selling offsets have proliferated, promising a way for ordinary people and organizations in wealthy countries to fight <a href="https://www.vox.com/climate">climate change</a> with the click of a button. These companies claim that emissions in the rich world can be canceled out by buying credits from projects that sequester carbon, often in poorer parts of the world.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MFghnL">
Some of these projects <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/restoring-degraded-land-in-brazil">plant trees</a>. Others simply <a href="https://unfccc.int/climate-action/momentum-for-change/activity-database/reducing-emissions-from-deforestation-and-forest-degradation">pay</a> those who own trees not to cut them down. Others go further, investing in technologies that decarbonize everyday life, like <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/solar-pv-indonesia">renewable energy</a> and <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/capturing-waste-biogas-in-turkey">landfill gas capture</a>. What links them all is the claim that, by paying (usually small) sums of money, consumers are counteracting the emissions their activities generate, chalking up a minus on the global carbon ledger.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9DxQPD">
The ease and affordability with which carbon credits can now be bought can feel out of step with the urgency of climate change, and in the last couple years, concerns have been mounting that offsetting is little more than a sugar hit for the conscience. Some critics claim that the whole thing is a fraud, amounting to a “license to pollute” with no real bearing on the health of the planet.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9EpdFR">
As economists who care deeply about the climate crisis, we wanted to understand what customers actually get when they buy a carbon credit. We set out to follow the journey of a carbon credit purchased from the buzzy startup <a href="https://ecologi.com/">Ecologi</a> by Al Dix, a retiree from Yorkshire, England, who wants to take practical climate action.
</p>
<h3 id="NY9tKn">
The rapidly growing “financialized carbon” market
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="g7NJ6e">
SALTAIRE, Yorkshire, England —
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IXZsv5">
Al Dix is a conscientious man. Born in the shadow of World War II, the son of a well-known trade unionist, he was thinking politically from childhood. “Some kids go and play in the street when they are little. I folded Labour Party leaflets,” he says with a laugh.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="portrait of an elderly man in a beige cable-knit sweater, folding his arms and looking at the camera against a backdrop of foliage" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/tFso9ZxOPsJyKtOT6SVjGBwVjuM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24826203/Al_Dix_Decade_0301__CarolynMendelsohn.jpeg"/> <cite>Photo by Carolyn Mendelsohn</cite>
<figcaption>
Al Dix
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mFCLrY">
Dix shows us photos of a theatrical performance he produced early in the 1980s, lamenting the polar ice caps. He says he began feeling “helpless” about climate change in the 1990s. Now 75, he still sees little that he likes in policy or corporate behavior to address the crisis. But resignation is not his style. About a year ago he began researching ways to mitigate the carbon emissions his lifestyle generates, and started paying <a href="https://ecologi.com/">Ecologi</a> $15 per month to offset them.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="T15ie7">
On Ecologi’s website, lush <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects">imagery</a> of trees, rivers, wind turbines, and <a href="https://www.vox.com/solar-energy">solar panels</a> is paired with cute animations of the personal “forest” your money has planted. Each month, Dix receives a personalized statement outlining where his payment has been spent, usually in the Global South. This past January and February, it says, he planted eight trees, and through carbon credits purchased on his behalf, offset 0.75 metric tons of CO2 — about the monthly carbon footprint of the average Brit.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EeCVAM">
In the absence of adequate regulation limiting climate-warming emissions in affluent countries, personalized offsets of this nature have become big business. They form what is known as the voluntary carbon market (VCM): a decentralized space where people and businesses can choose to buy credits to offset their emissions. The market for these offsets, which is largely unregulated, could hit $50 billion as soon as 2030 and grow 100-fold by 2050, <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/a-blueprint-for-scaling-voluntary-carbon-markets-to-meet-the-climate-challenge">according</a> to McKinsey.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="o7hTyD">
Ecologi, since launching in 2019, has described itself as the <a href="https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/spotify-of-sustainability-carbon-offset-subscription/">“Spotify of sustainability</a>” and received <a href="https://ecologi.com/articles/updates/ecologi-chapter-2">financial backing</a> from the same venture capitalists who launched Airbnb and Stripe. Last year, it recorded annual revenue growth of over <a href="https://www.eu-startups.com/2022/11/ecologi-wants-to-make-climate-action-easy-for-everyone-interview-with-co-founder-and-ceo-elliot-coad/">200 percent</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FNFV3j">
Carbon offsets are traded in marketplaces like US-based <a href="https://xpansiv.com/about/">Xpansiv</a>, which offer real-time prices for different kinds of offsets — or, as they call them, “fungible environmental products.” These marketplaces facilitated the movement of <a href="https://carboncredits.com/real-voluntary-carbon-market-value-is-2-billion/">500 million metric tons</a> of financialized carbon in 2021. Carbon is becoming high finance, with the likes of Xpansiv and Ecologi potentially set to become the Bloombergs and Wells Fargos of the climate economy — if financial industry incumbents don’t crowd them out first.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NWuVkH">
Early this year, JP Morgan’s <a href="https://am.jpmorgan.com/us/en/asset-management/institutional/investment-strategies/alternatives/timber/">Timberland fund</a> plowed $<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/j-p-morgan-asset-management-adds-500-million-of-southern-timberland-11675226805">500 million</a> into carbon offsetting in pine forests in the US South. HSBC has been <a href="https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/hsbc-plans-trader-hires-as-part-of-first-foray-into-carbon-market-20220523#:~:text=HSBC%20recently%20posted%20a%20job,see%20significant%20growth%20and%20mature'&amp;text=HSBC%20is%20looking%20to%20enter,related%20financial%20products%20heats%20up.">recruiting</a> carbon traders since May 2022. Hedge funds are also <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/a5ff89ec-323c-4fb8-85a1-9d0225ae3cdb">expected</a> to pile in as carbon prices rise and offset markets mature.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Rpie7P">
Recent revelations have cast doubt on these schemes. In January, a high-profile <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/18/revealed-forest-carbon-offsets-biggest-provider-worthless-verra-aoe">investigation</a> by the Guardian, German newspaper Die Zeit, and journalism nonprofit SourceMaterial asserted that over 90 percent of rainforest carbon credits issued by Verra, the world’s leading carbon credit certifier, claimed reductions in deforestation that didn’t actually exist. As a result, they said, the credits were “worthless,” <a href="https://verra.org/verra-response-guardian-rainforest-carbon-offsets/">provoking painstaking rebuttals from the industry</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="obTjIZ">
With climate change nearing a point of no return, carbon trading is not something we can afford to get wrong. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently <a href="https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/our-last-chance-decade-tonights-ipcc-report-final-warning-for-humanity-act-swiftly/">warned</a> that the 2020s were a critical decade to limit warming. If carbon offsets are going to be a centerpiece of global emissions mitigation efforts, it is important that consumers understand what they’re actually getting when they buy one — something that is, it turns out, easier said than done.
</p>
<h3 id="N6KQdp">
The journey of a carbon credit
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="J8FSbl">
Al Dix, for his part, doesn’t care much for financial speculation. He wants transparency. That’s why he chose to offset with Ecologi. Their friendly website, clear, direct impact on the ground, and openness about the inherent limitations of carbon offsetting appealed to him. “At Ecologi,” the website reads, “we believe that funding climate solutions is vital, but it doesn’t diminish your own carbon emissions — and should therefore be carried out alongside steps you take to reduce your own footprint.” But like many people, Dix worries that the whole thing might be smoke and mirrors.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BUefDa">
“I’m aware of the fact that carbon offsetting is a scam in a lot of ways, for a lot of people,” he says. “It’s quite obvious that buying and selling carbon doesn’t really, actually, make much difference to the state of the fucking planet. Quite obviously. Because it hasn’t, has it?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mcFQAL">
Still, he figures that it’s better than nothing: “I’d like to think that I give Ecologi my money, they contract people to plant trees, and that’s it.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vWNI4Z">
We leave Dix’s Yorkshire home on an unseasonably warm March day. A storm darkens the top of the valley where he lives, peppered with smokestacks and coal turbines left over from the region’s industrial heyday. Armed with Dix’s most recent carbon offset certificate, we are off to track the journey of a carbon credit.
</p>
<h3 id="Xf1rNx">
Cooking for credits in Kenya
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tsUbua">
ABERDARE RANGE, Central Province, Kenya —
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4qlRo8">
Here, between 2010 and 2017, a company called Carbon Zero Kenya, a subsidiary of CO2Balance, distributed <a href="https://www.co2balance.com/projects/improved-cookstoves-kenya/">55,000</a> new cooking stoves to villagers. The Somerset, England-based company funds projects that create carbon credits, and then sells them to offset brokers like Ecologi.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3OGTiC">
By replacing traditional open fires with more efficient metal-and-concrete stoves, CO2Balance estimates it can halve the amount of wood required for a household. Under the rules of carbon accounting, this halves the emissions entering the atmosphere from cooking for every Kenyan villager who switched to the stove.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l55SAI">
This kind of “carbon avoidance” is the crux of the carbon trade. It means that CO2Balance can create and sell carbon credits, representing tons of greenhouse gases that would otherwise enter the atmosphere, as long as they can distribute stoves and prove that they are being used.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RPuz8n">
The same logic applies to all carbon credit projects, such as renewable energy plants, forest conservation, and waste-to-energy projects. Companies account for these projects in different ways, but common to all is the idea of “additionality”: that they would not have otherwise gone ahead without the sale of carbon credits. In the Aberdare project, Ecologi says, carbon finance plugged a key affordability gap; the villagers wouldn’t have been able to afford the stoves without it. But it’s worth noting that, from looking at all of the project’s documentation, it wasn’t clear to us whether or how it accounted for other sources of emissions, like, for example, those produced in manufacturing and shipping the stoves.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="O2A65N">
In mid-2019, Ecologi <a href="https://registry.goldstandard.org/projects/details/1245">bought</a> a total of 535 credits from CO2Balance’s Aberdare project. In February 2023, they allocated about one-third of one Aberdare credit to Dix. He now owns the right to say he stopped one-third of a metric ton of greenhouse gases from being emitted.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fK2C05">
But emissions reductions on the ground in Kenya don’t just become carbon credits in Yorkshire. To be bought by retailers like Ecologi, and sold to people like Dix, they first need to go through the Swiss Alps.
</p>
<h3 id="137cuO">
The certification game
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4PwKqA">
GENEVA, Switzerland —
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M8SeMz">
The Gold Standard Foundation offices occupy part of a squat white block, hemmed in by an overpass and drab apartments characteristic of Geneva’s northern suburbs. It’s an unremarkable but powerful location; the UN headquarters at the sprawling Palais des Nations is 10 minutes away by car.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tx9qpw">
It’s here that the Aberdare carbon credits were actually created, after Gold Standard received <a href="https://platform.sustain-cert.com/public-project/1349">documentation</a> from CO2Balance’s external auditor, Bureau Veritas, that the project was doing what it claimed.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mm6YmG">
Gold Standard’s certification requirements read like a mantra: <em>certified</em>, <em>real</em>, <em>additional</em>, <em>independently verified</em>, <em>unique</em>, <em>traceable</em>. They are backed by complex mathematics. The <a href="https://platform.sustain-cert.com/public-project/1349">documentation</a> for the Aberdare project contains several dense pages of equations, quantifying different kinds of gases over different time periods and under different conditions, all revised and updated each year by the verification teams sent out to ensure the project is still working as intended. Documentation for larger projects can run into the hundreds of pages. It’s all necessary, says Sarah Leugers, Gold Standard’s Chief Growth Officer, to ensure credits represent actual, tangible change.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AFZaxQ">
She acknowledges the limitations. Carbon crediting is hard, complicated, and feels abstract, requiring a leap of faith that the equations and reports represent something real and all actors are working in good faith. When you really get down to it, it’s often an exercise in <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-africa-has-a-major-new-carbon-market-initiative-what-you-need-to-know-196071">trust</a>. Leugers echoes something we hear from practically every industry figure we talk to: “We can’t offset our way to a solution.” But she insists that carbon credits, properly and transparently administered, remain a vital tool in the fight against climate change.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YeoRWU">
“Let’s be honest. The voluntary carbon market only exists because there isn’t the political will to introduce a carbon tax economy-wide,” she said. If there were, “we wouldn’t need to exist. It’s frustrating that such energy is being used to criticize people doing something, when the people doing nothing are often let off the hook.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lYZsjp">
As important as what Gold Standard does is what it doesn’t do. It has decided <a href="https://globalgoals.goldstandard.org/101-par-principles-requirements/">not</a> to engage in what it sees as the murkier waters of carbon trading, where projects might have large downside risks or prolong <a href="https://www.vox.com/fossil-fuels">fossil fuel</a> use. Geoengineering is out, as is fossil fuel switching — when dirtier fossil fuels like coal are replaced with slightly less-emitting ones, like gas. Renewable energy, too, is now so cheap to provide that it’s unlikely renewables projects need to sell carbon credits to be viable. Most renewables projects, then, do not meet Gold Standard’s requirements for additionality.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hbBQwE">
This purist approach has limited Gold Standard’s market share. For Leugers, most critical is Gold Standard’s refusal to certify credits linked to UN-REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation), the UN’s flagship climate change program, which supports <a href="https://www.sylvera.com/resources/the-state-of-carbon-credits-report">almost half</a> of all carbon credits issued globally. While Dix’s statements don’t include any such credits, REDD+ is such a huge part of the industry that it’s almost impossible not to talk about it.
</p>
<h3 id="LV46gi">
The REDD+ program anchoring the carbon offset market
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8mRpJq">
REDD+ works by encouraging developing nations to conserve or restore carbon-sequestering forests through financial incentives. This approach to carbon offsetting has been the subject of controversy in the industry because it relies on hard-to-verify assumptions that a particular stretch of forestland would be cut down if it wasn’t being protected by a paid-for carbon credit. UN-REDD+, along with Verra, the <a href="https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/energy-transition/060823-corresponding-adjustments-should-not-be-enforced-in-voluntary-market-verra-icvcm">world’s biggest carbon credit certifier</a>, was the focus of the Guardian’s damning reporting earlier this year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KKVkah">
This is why Gold Standard refuses to issue credits for REDD+ products, Leugers told us. They can’t be sure that the forests “protected” by the program would otherwise be logged. If a certifier gets this wrong, it would mean the carbon offsets sold to consumers, or to polluting companies like oil producers or airlines, are meaningless.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="y1lY5B">
Mario Boccucci, head of the UN-REDD+ Programme Secretariat in Geneva, who shares the same office block as Leugers in this small, intense world, sees things differently. “I don’t look at them as controversies,” he says. “They are legitimate questions that have to be put into the right context.” He is frustrated that there hasn’t been more of an effort to comprehend what he sees as the benefits, emphasizing to us the acres of forests rescued by REDD+.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M3dCF4">
Verra, which certifies offsets generated by REDD+ projects and issues <a href="https://carbonplan.org/research/verra-integrity-council">two-thirds</a> of credits in circulation, sits at the center of the contentious rhetoric leveled at carbon trading from all sides. In response to allegations that offsets amount to greenwashing or are outright fraudulent, Verra’s then-CEO David Antonioli told us in March, much like others in the industry have, that carbon trading is just one small piece of the climate mitigation puzzle.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rCcMmS">
Antonioli insists that the Guardian’s investigation got it wrong — that the methods it used to discredit Verra’s credits, he says, “are comparing apples and oranges.” He’s probably right about the difficulty of evaluating such complex data. But if it is so difficult to explain that carbon credits have integrity, it’s equally hard to feel much confidence that these abstract instruments are shifting the climate dial.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="52RGGS">
This is obviously not an ideal situation — but the failure of politicians and the success of lobbyists on climate mitigation has gotten us here. If governments, particularly the US, had not balked at robust carbon pricing regimes in the mid-2000s, and if more schemes like the European Union’s <a href="https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/eu-emissions-trading-system-eu-ets_en">Emissions Trading System</a> or Uruguay’s new <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/05/magazine/uruguay-renewable-energy.html">carbon tax</a> had been implemented sooner, there would be no need for the private market, Antonioli said. He thinks new initiatives to create regulatory momentum in the private carbon market, such as the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market, an independent industry effort to codify best practices, have come about five years too late. What is left is a patchwork of poorly regulated voluntary carbon markets.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bETe0L">
Into the void created by government, corporate, and social inaction have rushed myriad players. Some are motivated by environmental concerns. Others, sniffing a quick, green buck, may not be. One large forestry corporation, which spoke to us on condition of anonymity, said it was considering developing a REDD-conforming carbon credit project on a piece of land it owned, but had never planted or logged. It was just sitting there, they said, and they realized they could get paid to keep doing what they’d been doing already. With a few consultants, some hefty reports, and a few years of back and forth with Verra, the credits could start flowing. The incentives, in this case, would be working precisely as designed. But it’s not most people’s idea of transformative climate action.
</p>
<h3 id="mnNKvo">
A humbler vision for carbon offsets
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ngh564">
So, Dix in Yorkshire bought offsets from Ecologi in Bristol, who bought them from CO2Balance in Somerset, which paid Bureau Veritas in London to convince Gold Standard in Geneva to issue credits for emissions reductions achieved by Carbon Zero’s Kenyan stoves. The journey of a carbon credit is a long chain of financialization — of nature, of communities, of solutions. A price has been set for the air that we breathe. It feels like a rather abstract, roundabout way to save the planet, and Dix, at home on the muddy moors of Yorkshire, may not like it. Yet he does it anyway, and it makes him feel a little better. An imperfect response to a perfect storm.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MwQIe7">
Everyone we spoke to is adamant: offsets can never be the total solution or a get-out-of-climate-regulation-free card. But even this may be thinking about it in the wrong way. John Holler, a climate expert at the World Wildlife Fund, who <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnholler/">used </a>to work at Verra, says carbon trading isn’t really about offsetting at all. Instead, it’s simply a tool for routing money toward good things: low-carbon stoves, forests, community solar energy. “You’re purchasing carbon credits to contribute to global decarbonization,” he says, “not making a claim against your own emissions.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TcEduk">
A humbler, less satisfying goal. But perhaps a more honest one.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LE3e2K">
<em>Angus Chapman is an Australian economist specializing in environmental policy. A former civil servant and long-time climate activist, his work has appeared in Vox, Overland, Arena, and the BBC World Service. </em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1NPQnV">
<em>Desné Masie is an economist and journalist specializing in international political economy and sustainability. Her work has appeared in Business Day, African Business, the Guardian, International Business Times, BBC World Service, and Monocle Radio.</em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MNymXP">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iGk57z">
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Great Guns, Ameerah and Golden Neil impress</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>MIC to host National Motorcycle Racing third round this weekend</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>ICC World Cup 2023 | Netherlands to arrive in India in early September for practice matches</strong> - The details of the matches, such as the dates and venues, are still being worked out, as these will be played a few days ahead of the scheduled pre-tournament warm-up matches.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Manager of 2007 World T20-winning team Sunil Dev dead</strong> - Dev, who was synonymous with DDCA from late ’70s till 2015, also served in various BCCI sub-committees during his tenure as sports administrator</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>We will surprise India: Pakistan head coach Saqlain</strong> - “Definitely, preparation-wise India is ahead since it has been playing of late and is coming off a stint in Europe, whereas we have arrived right from our homes. It is the same even in cricket,” Saqlain said during a media interaction</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Environment free of terror imperative for normal ties: MEA on Pak PM’s remarks on talks</strong> - External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India wants normal ties with all neighbouring countries including Pakistan</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>AAP opposition to Delhi services bill aimed at hiding corruption: Amit Shah</strong> - With Opposition questioning the power of Parliament to make laws for the Delhi government, Mr. Shah asserted that the Constitution, under Article 239AA, granted such powers</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Here are the big stories from Karnataka today</strong> - Welcome to the Karnataka Today newsletter, your guide from The Hindu on the major news stories to follow today. Curated by Nalme Nachiyar.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Lokayukta raid on 45 BBMP offices across Bengaluru to check irregularities</strong> - At least 13 Judicial Officers, 7 Superintendents of Police, 19 Deputy Superintendents of Police, 26 Police Inspectors along with several other Police Personnel and staff were deployed for inspection</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>PM Modi meets Bandi Sanjay; hails his work for party</strong> - Prime Minister Narendra Modi met newly appointed BJP national general secretary and Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar and his family at New Delhi on August 3.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Marseille riots: French officer in custody row admits firing riot gun</strong> - The policeman has been detained since a 22-year-old man was disfigured in Marseille last month.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukraine war: Family reunited 18 months after tearful goodbye on Platform 5</strong> - A Ukrainian family, who said a tearful goodbye at a crowded railway station, finally come together again.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Giorgia Meloni: Italian PM sues Placebo frontman for defamation</strong> - Giorgia Meloni is taking action against Brian Molko over comments at a concert in Turin last month.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Pope meets victims of clerical sexual abuse in Portugal</strong> - A report this year said at least 4,815 children in Portugal were abused by members of the clergy.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukraine war: Drones target Odesa grain stores near Romania border</strong> - A grain silo was damaged and fires broke out in Ukraine’s Danube port of Izmail.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Microsoft comes under blistering criticism for “grossly irresponsible” security</strong> - Azure looks like a house of cards collapsing under the weight of exploits and vulnerabilities. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1958508">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>ESA still seems shy about sharing news on Ariane 6 rocket testing</strong> - Officials don’t plan to broadcast a key Ariane 6 test-firing on its launch pad. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1958359">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Internet providers that won FCC grants try to escape broadband commitments</strong> - “Coalition of RDOF Winners” lobbies FCC but won’t reveal its full member list. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1958448">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Meta releases open source AI audio tools, AudioCraft</strong> - Meta’s suite of three AI models can create sound effects and music from descriptions. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1958362">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>ChromeOS is splitting the browser from the OS, getting more Linux-y</strong> - There’s nothing official yet, but it might launch sometime this month. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1958381">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A tattoo artist went to a coffee place and ordered coffee but forgot his wallet…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
so he tells the woman at the counter that he can’t pay for it. The woman gets angry at first and then asks “What can we do about this situation?” The tattoo artist says “Well I can give you a tattoo for free instead and we can call it even”. The woman thinks for a while, reluctantly agrees to it and gets the tattoo made.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Another fine day the woman was just looking at her tattoo, and realises that she likes it very much and thinks “I should get another”, so she goes out and finds the tattoo artist’s studio. She tells him she needs another tattoo as good as the previous one and the guy goes ahead and makes another one. This time the woman realises she forgot her wallet and tells him she can’t pay for it. So the guy asks “What can we do about this situation?” The woman says “Well I’ll let you touch my boobs in exchange and we can call it even”. The guy thinks for a while, reluctantly agrees to it and goes ahead and touches her boobs. The woman then tells him he shouldn’t be thinking so much cuz it was tit for tat.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/l_Mr_Vader_l"> /u/l_Mr_Vader_l </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gw351/a_tattoo_artist_went_to_a_coffee_place_and/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gw351/a_tattoo_artist_went_to_a_coffee_place_and/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Abdul was going through bit of a rough patch in his marriage.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
So after work, he decided to pay his Imam a visit.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
He said “I have been going through some problems with my wife, she seems like she is always angry at me, what do I do?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The Imam replied “You should spend more time with your wife, appreciate her role in your life, maybe praise her cooking once in a while.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Satisfied with the advice, Abdul goes back home and his wife has set the dinner table. As he’s having dinner he says “Darling, the food is very good today.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
To his surprise, his wife is upset with that and she says “21 years we’ve been married to each other and you’ve never appreciated my cooking, the one day I get food from the neighbours, you like it?”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/rest_in_war"> /u/rest_in_war </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15ga82x/abdul_was_going_through_bit_of_a_rough_patch_in/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15ga82x/abdul_was_going_through_bit_of_a_rough_patch_in/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The confession</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">A Priest in a small town was called away for an emergency on a Sunday afternoon while he was about to hear confessions.</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">Not wanting to leave the confessional unattended, and having no one else to assist him he called his Rabbi friend from across the street and asked him to cover for him.</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">The Rabbi told him he wouldn’t know what to say or do.</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">The Priest told him to come over and he’d stay with him for a little bit to show him what to do.</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">The Rabbi dutifully came over.</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">The Rabbi and the Priest were in the confessional working out the details.</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">A few minutes later, a woman came in and said,</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Father, forgive me for I have sinned.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The priest asked,
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“What did you do?”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The woman said,
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“I committed adultery.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Priest:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“How many times?”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Woman:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Three times.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Priest:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Say two Hail Marys, put five dollars in the donation box, go and sin no more.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A few minutes later a man entered the confessional.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
He said,
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Father, forgive me for I have sinned.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Priest:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“What did you do?”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Man:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“I committed adultery.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Priest:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“How many times?”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Man:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Three times.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Priest:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Say two Hail Mary’s, put five dollars in the box, go and sin no more.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The Rabbi told the Priest that he thought he understood the procedure, so the Priest left.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A few minutes later another woman entered and said,
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Father forgive me for I have sinned.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Rabbi:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“What did you do?”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Woman:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“I committed adultery.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Rabbi:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“How many times?”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Woman:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Once.”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Rabbi:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">“Go do it two more times. We have a special this week, three for five dollars!”
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p>
</li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul></div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/boa_constrictor"> /u/boa_constrictor </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gmj5y/the_confession/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gmj5y/the_confession/">[comments]</a></span></li>
</ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>There are three software engineers who find themselves needing a piss at their annual conference.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
First one goes in, has his piss, comes out and after washing his hands he grabs a towel to dry them. And another, and another. Soon the bin is overflowing with used towels, but his hands are perfectly dry.<br/> “At IBM, they teach us to be thorough”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Second one goes in, has his piss, comes out and after washing his hands he grabs a towel to dry them. And he’s going to town with this single towel… Wiping, dabbing, rubbing, until when it’s on the verge of falling apart he bins it.. And his hands are perfectly dry.<br/> “At Microsoft, they teach us to be efficient”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The third one goes in, has his piss, comes out and just walks past the other two, without doubt or any hesitation.<br/> “At Sun, they teach us not to piss on our hands”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/airzonesama"> /u/airzonesama </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gn6oq/there_are_three_software_engineers_who_find/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gn6oq/there_are_three_software_engineers_who_find/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A plane is on its way to Toronto</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A plane is on its way to Toronto when a blonde woman in the economy class gets up and moves to the first class section and sits down.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The flight attendant watches her do this and asks to see her ticket.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
She then tells the blonde woman that she paid for the economy class and that she will have to sit in the back.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The blonde woman replies, “I’m blonde, I’m beautiful, I’m going to toronto and I’m staying right here.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The flight attendant goes into the cockpit and tells the pilot and the co-pilot that there is a blonde lady sitting in first class that belongs in economy and won’t move back to her seat.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The co-pilot goes back to the blonde woman and tries to explain that because she only paid for economy she will have to leave and return to her seat.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The blonde replies, “I’m blonde, I’m beautiful, I’m going to toronto and I’m staying right here.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The co-pilot tells the pilot that he probably should have the police waiting when they land to arrest this blonde woman who won’t listen to reason.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The pilot says, “you say she is a blonde? i’ll handle this, I’m married to a blonde. I speak blonde.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
He goes back to the blonde woman and whispers in her ear, and she says, “oh, I’m sorry.” and gets up and goes back to her seat in economy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The flight attendant and co-pilot are amazed and asked him what he said to make her move without any fuss.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“I told her, ‘first class isn’t going to toronto.’”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/krabbypattykrabs"> /u/krabbypattykrabs </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gokgm/a_plane_is_on_its_way_to_toronto/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/15gokgm/a_plane_is_on_its_way_to_toronto/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<script>AOS.init();</script></body></html>

4
index.html
View File

File diff suppressed because one or more lines are too long