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<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>Effect of Yoga on the stress, anxiety, and depression of COVID-19 positive patients. A pre-post quasi randomized study.</strong> -
<div>
Background and aim: - Due to the spread of COVID-19 there have been reports of increase in stress, anxiety, and depression across the society, especially so in the affected people, impacting the mental health and well-being. This paper reports a quasi-randomized control study conducted in covid wards of a hospital, to examine the efficacy of add-on yoga intervention in reducing stress, anxiety, and depression in the covid affected patients under quarantine. The oxygen saturation level (SPO2) and heart rate (HR) of the covid affected patients were also measured along with the stress. Experimental procedure: - A total of sixty-two COVID-19 positive patients participated in the study. The participants were randomized into the control group (n=31) which received conventional medical treatment alone and the yoga intervention group (n=31) which additionally received 50 minutes of yoga intervention along with conventional medical treatment. Standardized scales of Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-14), Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) were administered at the beginning as well as at the end of the quarantine period. Results: - A significant decrease in stress, anxiety and depression were observed in the patients who undertook the add-on yoga intervention. Also, improvement in SPO2 and HR levels were observed in the group of patients who were practicing yoga. Conclusion- Findings of this study suggest that add-on Yoga intervention can be an effective add-on practice in reducing stress, anxiety, and depression level of COVID-19 patients.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/2cswy/" target="_blank">Effect of Yoga on the stress, anxiety, and depression of COVID-19 positive patients. A pre-post quasi randomized study.</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Initial Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant in Exhaled Breath Aerosol</strong> -
<div>
From December 16 through 21 of 2021, we collected exhaled breath aerosol (EBA) from five members of a University campus community infected with SARS-CoV-2 viruses displaying an S-gene target failure when assayed using the TaqPath COVID-19 Real Time PCR Assay (Thermo Scientific).
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/mtdx9/" target="_blank">Initial Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant in Exhaled Breath Aerosol</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Positive and negative risk-taking in adolescence and early adulthood: A citizen science study during the COVID-19 pandemic</strong> -
<div>
Sensation seeking is an important underlying factor of both positive and negative forms of risk-taking during adolescence and early adulthood. However, macro-factors such as the global Covid-19 pandemic may influence sensation seeking opportunities and risk-taking behaviors that are considered negative and positive. Therefore, the primary aim of this study was to examine the associations between sensation seeking and behaviors that are considered positive or negative forms of risk-taking during the Covid-19 pandemic in a sample of adolescents and early adults (N = 660, Mage = 22.91, SD = 3.14). Using citizen science methods, negative risk-taking was defined as taking unaccepted risks, such as falsifying vaccination reports or deliberately contracting Covid-19. Positive risk-taking was defined as taking socially accepted risks, such as balancing between the risk to infect elderly people and the need to socialize with peers. Results showed that participants with higher levels of sensation seeking took more positive and negative Covid-19 related risks. An additional finding was that sensation seeking was positively associated with the experienced need to contribute to society. This indicates that during adolescence and early adulthood, sensation seeking may be a driving factor for both positive (i.e., socially accepted) and negative (i.e., socially unaccepted) risk-taking in the context of a high-stake global pandemic, arguing against a one-direction negative relation between sensation seeking and risk-taking.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/n8g9m/" target="_blank">Positive and negative risk-taking in adolescence and early adulthood: A citizen science study during the COVID-19 pandemic</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Immunogenicity of an Ad26-based SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Vaccine in Naïve Mice and SARS-CoV-2 Spike Pre-immune Hamsters</strong> -
<div>
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Omicron variant sparked concern due to its fast spread and the unprecedented number of mutations in the spike protein that enables it to partially evade spike-based COVID-19 vaccine-induced humoral immunity. In anticipation of a potential need for an Omicron spike-based vaccine, we generated an Ad26 vector encoding an Omicron (BA.1) spike protein (Ad26.COV2.S.529). Ad26.COV2.S.529 encodes for a prefusion stabilized spike protein, similar to the current COVID-19 vaccine Ad26.COV2.S encoding the Wuhan-Hu-1 spike protein. We verified that spike expression by Ad26.COV2.S.529 was comparable to Ad26.COV2.S. Immunogenicity of Ad26.COV2.S.529 was then evaluated in naive mice and SARS-CoV-2 Wuhan-Hu-1 spike pre-immunized hamsters. In naive mice, Ad26.COV2.S.529 elicited robust neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (BA.1) but not to SARS-CoV-2 Delta (B.1.617.2), while the opposite was observed for Ad26.COV2.S. In pre-immune hamsters, Ad26.COV2.S.529 vaccination resulted in robust increases in neutralizing antibody titers against both SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (BA.1) and Delta (B.1.617.2), while Ad26.COV2.S vaccination only increased neutralizing antibody titers against the Delta variant. Our data imply that Ad26.COV2.S.529 can both expand and boost a Wuhan-Hu-1 spike-primed humoral immune response to protect against distant SARS-CoV-2 variants.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.04.482636v1" target="_blank">Immunogenicity of an Ad26-based SARS- CoV-2 Omicron Vaccine in Naïve Mice and SARS-CoV-2 Spike Pre-immune Hamsters</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Highly Thermotolerant SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Elicits Neutralising Antibodies Against Delta and Omicron in Mice</strong> -
<div>
As the existing vaccines do not completely prevent infections or community transmission of the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), there is an unmet need for vaccines that can better combat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants of concern (VOC) and also eliminate cold chain requirements. We show that highly thermo-tolerant monomeric and trimeric receptor binding domain derivatives that can withstand 100C for 90 minutes and 37C for four weeks elicit high antibody titres in mice that received prime-boost immunization on Days 0 and 21; and that these antibodies neutralize SARS-CoV-2 variants VIC31 (containing the Spike D614G mutation), Delta and Omicron (BA.1.1) VOC. Compared to VIC31, there was an average 14.4-fold reduction in neutralization against BA.1.1 for the three monomeric, and 16.5-fold re-duction for the three trimeric antigen-adjuvant combinations; the corresponding values against Delta were 2.5 and 3.0. Our findings suggest that monomeric formulations are suitable for the upcoming Phase I human clinical trials, and that there is potential for improving efficacy with vaccine matching to improve responses against emerging variants. These findings are consistent with in silico modelling and AlphaFold predictions which show that while oligomeric presentation can be generally beneficial, it can make important epitopes inaccessible.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.03.481940v1" target="_blank">Highly Thermotolerant SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Elicits Neutralising Antibodies Against Delta and Omicron in Mice</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Impact of Population Mixing Between a Vaccinated Majority and Unvaccinated Minority on Disease Dynamics. Implications for SARS-CoV-2</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: The speed of vaccine development has been a singular achievement during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, though uptake has not been universal. Vaccine opponents often frame their opposition in terms of the rights of the unvaccinated. Our objective was to explore the impact of mixing of vaccinated and unvaccinated populations on risk among vaccinated individuals. Methods: We constructed a simple Susceptible-Infectious-Recovered (SIR) compartmental model of a respiratory infectious disease with two connected sub-populations: vaccinated individuals and unvaccinated individuals. We simulated a spectrum of patterns of mixing between vaccinated and unvaccinated groups that ranged from random mixing to like-with-like mixing (complete assortativity), where individuals preferentially have contact with others with the same vaccination status. We evaluated the dynamics of an epidemic within each subgroup, and in the population as a whole. Results: The relative risk of infection was markedly higher among unvaccinated individuals than among vaccinated individuals. However, the contact-adjusted contribution of unvaccinated individuals to infection risk during the epidemic was disproportionate, with unvaccinated individuals contributing to infections among the vaccinated at a rate higher than would have been expected based on contact numbers alone. As assortativity increased, attack rates among the vaccinated decreased, but the contact-adjusted contribution to risk among vaccinated individuals derived from contact with unvaccinated individuals increased. Interpretation: While risk associated with avoiding vaccination during a virulent pandemic accrues chiefly to the unvaccinated, the choices of unvaccinated individuals impact the health and safety of vaccinated individuals in a manner disproportionate to the fraction of unvaccinated individuals in the population.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.14.21267742v2" target="_blank">Impact of Population Mixing Between a Vaccinated Majority and Unvaccinated Minority on Disease Dynamics. Implications for SARS-CoV-2</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Modeling on Wastewater Treatment Process in Saudi Arabia: a perspective of Covid-19</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had devastating effects on healthcare systems and the global economy. Moreover, coronavirus has been found in human feces, sewage, and in wastewater treatment plants. In this paper, we highlight the transmission behavior, occurrence, and persistence of the virus in sewage and wastewater treatment plants. Our approach follows the process of identifying a coronavirus hotspot through existing wastewater plants in major cities of Saudi Arabia. The mathematical distributions, including the log-normal distribution, Gaussian model, and susceptible exposed infected recovery (SEIR) model, are adopted to predict the coronavirus load in wastewater plants. We highlight not only the potential virus removal techniques from wastewater treatment plants, but also methods of tracing SARS-CoV-2 in humans through wastewater treatment plants.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html- link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.11.22.21266599v3" target="_blank">Modeling on Wastewater Treatment Process in Saudi Arabia: a perspective of Covid-19</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Identifying SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern through saliva-based RT-qPCR by targeting recurrent mutation sites</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) continue to pose a public health threat which necessitates a real-time monitoring strategy to compliment whole genome sequencing. Thus, we investigated the efficacy of competitive probe RT- qPCR assays for six mutation sites identified in SARS-CoV-2 VOCs and, after validating the assays with synthetic RNA, performed these assays on positive saliva samples. When compared with whole genome sequence results, the SΔ69-70 and ORF1aΔ3675-3677 assays demonstrated 93.60% and 68.00% accuracy, respectively. The SNP assays (K417T, E484K, E484Q, L452R) demonstrated 99.20%, 96.40%, 99.60%, and 96.80% accuracies, respectively. Lastly, we screened 345 positive saliva samples from December 7-22, 2021 using Omicron-specific mutation assays and were able to quickly identify rapid spread of Omicron in Upstate South Carolina. Our workflow demonstrates a novel approach for low-cost, real-time population screening of VOCs.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271785v1" target="_blank">Identifying SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern through saliva-based RT-qPCR by targeting recurrent mutation sites</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Determinants of COVID-19 vaccine acceptability in Mozambique: the role of institutional trust</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background Vaccination plays an imperative role in protecting public health and preventing avoidable mortality. Yet, the reasons for vaccine hesitancy are not well understood. This study investigates the factors associated with the acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine in Mozambique. Methods The data came from the three waves of the COVID-19 Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) survey which followed a cohort of 1,371 adults in Mozambique over three months (N=3,809). Data collection was through a structured questionnaire using telephone interviewing (CAPI). Multilevel regression analysis was conducted to identify the trajectories of, and the factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine acceptability. Results There was great volatility in COVID-19 vaccine acceptability over time. Institutional trust was consistently and strongly correlated with different measures of vaccine acceptability. There was a greater decline in vaccine acceptability in people with lower institutional trust. The positive correlation between institutional trust and vaccine acceptability was stronger in younger than older adults. Vaccine acceptability also varied by gender and marital status. Conclusions Vaccine acceptability is sensitive to news and information circulated in the public domain. Institutional trust is a central driver of vaccine acceptability and contributes to the resilience of the health system. Our study highlights the importance of health communication and building a trustful relationship between the general public and public institutions in the context of a global pandemic.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html- link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.03.22271828v1" target="_blank">Determinants of COVID-19 vaccine acceptability in Mozambique: the role of institutional trust</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Estimating relative generation times and relative reproduction numbers of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 with respect to Delta in Denmark</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The Omicron variant is the most transmissible variant of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) we had so far. The BA.1 and BA.2 sublineages of Omicron are circulating in Europe and it is urgent to evaluate the transmissibility of these sub-lineages. Using a mathematical model describing trajectories of variant frequencies that assumes a constant ratio in generation times and a constant ratio in effective reproduction numbers among variants, trajectories of variant frequencies in Denmark from November 22, 2021 to February 26, 2022 were analyzed. We found that the generation times of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 are 0.60 (95%CI: 0.59-0.62) and 0.51 (95%CI: 0.50-0.52) of the length of that of Delta, respectively. We also found that the effective reproduction number of Omicron BA.1 is 1.99 (95% CI: 1.98-2.02) times and that of Omicron BA.2 is 2.51 (95% CI: 2.48-2.55) times larger than the effective reproduction number of Delta. The generation times of Omicron BA.2 is 0.85 (95% CI:0.84-0.86) the length of that of BA.1 and that the effective reproduction number of Omicron BA.2 is 1.26 (95% CI:1.25-1.26) times larger than that of Omicron BA.1. These estimates on the ratio of generation times and the ratio of effective reproduction numbers has epidemiologically important implications. The duration of quarantine for people who contacted with an Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 patient can be reduced to 60% and 51% of that for Delta, respectively. The control measures against Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 need to reduce contacts between infectious and susceptible people respectively by 50% (95% CI: 49-50%) and 60% (95% CI: 60-61%) compared to that against Delta to achieve the same effect on their control.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271767v1" target="_blank">Estimating relative generation times and relative reproduction numbers of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 with respect to Delta in Denmark</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Disparities in SARS-CoV-2 case rates by ethnicity, religion, measures of socio-economic position, English proficiency, and self-reported disability: cohort study of 39 million people in England during the Alpha and Delta waves</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Objective: To examine socio-demographic disparities in SARS-CoV-2 case rates during the second (Alpha) and third (Delta) waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Design: Retrospective, population-based cohort study. Setting: Resident population of England. Participants: 39,006,194 people aged 10 years and over who were enumerated at the 2011 Census, registered with the National Health Service (NHS) and alive on 1 September 2020. Main outcome measures: Testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 during the second wave (1 September 2020 to 22 May 2021) or third wave (23 May to 10 December 2021) of the pandemic. We calculated age-standardised case rates by socio-demographic characteristics and used logistic regression models to estimate adjusted odds ratios (ORs). Results: During the study period, 5,767,584 individuals tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. In the second wave, the fully-adjusted odds of having a positive test, relative to the White British group, were highest for the Bangladeshi (OR: 1.88, 95% CI 1.86 to 1.90) and Pakistani (1.81, 1.79 to 1.82) ethnic groups. Relative to the Christian group, Muslim and Sikh religious groups had fully-adjusted ORs of 1.58 (1.57 to 1.59) and 1.74 (1.72 to 1.76), respectively. Greater area deprivation, disadvantaged socio-economic position, living in a care home and low English language proficiency were also associated with higher odds of having a positive test. However, the disparities between groups varied over time. Being Christian, White British, non-disabled, and from a more advantaged socio-economic position were all associated with increased odds of testing positive during the third wave. Conclusion: There are large socio-demographic disparities on SARS-CoV-2 cases which have varied between different waves of the pandemic. Research is now urgently needed to understand why these disparities exist to inform policy interventions in future waves or pandemics. What is already known on this topic: People with pre-existing health conditions or disability, ethnic minority groups, the elderly, some religious groups, people with low socio-economic status, and those living in deprived areas have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of risk of infection and adverse outcomes. What this study adds: Using linked data on 39 million people in England, we found that during the second wave, COVID-19 case rates were highest among the Bangladeshi and Pakistani ethnic groups, the Muslim religious group, individuals from deprived areas and of low socio-economic position; during the third wave, being Christian, White British, non-disabled, and from a more advantaged socio-economic position were all associated with increased odds of receiving a positive test. Adjusting for geographical factors, socio-demographic characteristics, and pre-pandemic health status explained some, but not all, of the excess risk. When stratifying the dataset by broad age groups, the odds of receiving a positive test remained higher among the Bangladeshi and Pakistani ethnic groups aged 65 years and over during the third wave, which may partly explain the continued elevated mortality rates in these groups.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271762v1" target="_blank">Disparities in SARS-CoV-2 case rates by ethnicity, religion, measures of socio-economic position, English proficiency, and self-reported disability: cohort study of 39 million people in England during the Alpha and Delta waves</a>
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<li><strong>Analyzing county-wide trends in Tennessee Covid-19 rates, Median Household Income, and Presence of Hospital</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused millions of deaths and infections worldwide. Recent studies suggest that Covid-19 may be disproportionately affecting certain groups. The Tennessee Department of Health regularly publishes data on Covid infections and vaccinations. This data alongside data published from the 2010 census was used to analyze trends in Covid-19 rates for the State of Tennessee. The census data for the average household income of each county was cross-referenced with the covid data. A positive correlation between population of the county and the number of new cases reported on January 3rd, 2022, appeared when observing the data. A regression analysis (ANOVA) revealed that the data on population and covid rate was significant (P-value: 2.69E-10). The results from comparing the covid rates in a county with a hospital and a county without a hospital seemed to be the most significant. The data reported by the Sycamore institute on the Tennessee counties without a hospital was used to identify trends unique to these counties. The counties lacking a hospital were compared with counties with a similar population. 7 hospital-less counties were used for comparison, 6 counties (Fayette, Grainger, Haywood, Chester, Sequatchie, Clay) reported a greater number of cases than counties of a similar population. Of the 20 counties lacking a hospital, 16 fell within the bottom 50% of median household incomes, with 9 in the bottom 25% and 4 in the bottom 10%. Healthcare sites in rural areas may lack fundamental infrastructure. These areas may require unique interventions to address the healthcare concerns present.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271656v1" target="_blank">Analyzing county-wide trends in Tennessee Covid-19 rates, Median Household Income, and Presence of Hospital</a>
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<li><strong>An observational study of the association between COVID-19 vaccination rates and participation in a vaccine lottery</strong> -
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Objectives Are financial incentives from entry in a vaccine lottery associated with a higher probability of vaccination for COVID-19? Design A cross-sectional study with adjustment for covariates using logistic regression Setting October and November 2021, Australia. Participants 2,375 respondents of the Taking the Pulse of the Nation Survey Interventions Participation in the Million Dollar Vaccination Lottery Primary and secondary outcome measures The proportion of respondents who had any vaccination, a first dose only, or second dose compared to all other respondents Results Those who participated in the lottery were 2.27 times more likely to be vaccinated after the lottery opened on October 1st than those who did not. This was driven by those receiving second doses. Lottery participants were 1.38 times more likely to receive their first dose after October 1st and 2.31 times more likely to receive their second dose after October 1st. Conclusions Lottery participation is associated with a higher vaccination rate, with this effect dominated by a higher rate of second doses. There is a smaller insignificant difference for those receiving a first dose, suggesting lotteries may not be as effective at reducing vaccine hesitancy, compared to 9nudging9 people to get their second dose more quickly.
</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271734v1" target="_blank">An observational study of the association between COVID-19 vaccination rates and participation in a vaccine lottery</a>
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<li><strong>Effects of BA.1/BA.2 subvariant, vaccination, and prior infection on infectiousness of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron infections</strong> -
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BACKGROUND: Qatar experienced a large SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) wave that started on December 19, 2021 and peaked in mid-January, 2022. We investigated effects of Omicron subvariant (BA.1 and BA.2), previous vaccination, and prior infection on infectiousness of Omicron infections, between December 23, 2021 and February 20, 2022. METHODS: Univariable and multivariable regression analyses were conducted to estimate the association between the RT-qPCR cycle threshold (Ct) value of PCR tests (a proxy for SARS-CoV-2 infectiousness) and each of the Omicron subvariants, mRNA vaccination, prior infection, reason for RT-qPCR testing, calendar week of RT-qPCR testing (to account for phases of the rapidly evolving Omicron wave), and demographic factors. RESULTS: Compared to BA.1, BA.2 was associated with 3.53 fewer cycles (95% CI: 3.46-3.60), signifying higher infectiousness. Ct value decreased with time since second and third vaccinations. Ct values were highest for those who received their boosters in the month preceding the RT-qPCR test - 0.86 cycles (95% CI: 0.72-1.00) higher than for unvaccinated persons. Ct value was 1.30 (95% CI: 1.20-1.39) cycles higher for those with a prior infection compared to those without prior infection, signifying lower infectiousness. Ct value declined gradually with age. Ct value was lowest for those who were tested because of symptoms and was highest for those who were tested for travel-related purposes. Ct value was lowest during the exponential-growth phase of the Omicron wave and was highest after the wave peaked and was declining. CONCLUSIONS: The BA.2 subvariant appears substantially more infectious than the BA.1 subvariant. This may reflect higher viral load and/or longer duration of infection, thereby explaining the rapid expansion of this subvariant in Qatar.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271771v1" target="_blank">Effects of BA.1/BA.2 subvariant, vaccination, and prior infection on infectiousness of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron infections</a>
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<li><strong>Morning SARS-CoV-2 testing yields better detection of infection due to higher viral loads in saliva and nasal swabs upon waking</strong> -
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Background. The analytical sensitivities of SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic tests span 6 orders of magnitude. Optimizing sample-collection methods to achieve the most reliable detection for a given sensitivity would increase the effectiveness of testing and minimize COVID-19 outbreaks. Methods. From Sept. 2020 to April 2021 we performed a household-transmission study in which participants self-collected samples every morning and evening throughout acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Seventy mildly symptomatic participants collected saliva and, of those, 29 also collected nasal- swab samples. Viral load was quantified in 1194 saliva and 661 nasal-swab samples using a high-analytical-sensitivity RT-qPCR assay (LOD, 1,000 SARS-CoV-2 RNA copies/mL). Findings. Viral loads in both saliva and nasal-swab samples were significantly higher in morning-collected samples than evening-collected samples after symptom onset. We used these quantitative measurements to infer which diagnostic tests would have detected infection (based on sample type and test analytical sensitivity). We find that morning collection would have resulted in significantly improved detection and that this advantage would be most pronounced for tests with low to moderate analytical sensitivity, which would likely have missed infections if sampling in the evening. Interpretation. Collecting samples for COVID-19 testing in the morning offers a simple and low-cost improvement to clinical diagnostic sensitivity of low- to moderate-analytical- sensitivity tests. The phenomenon of higher viral loads in the morning may also have implications related to when transmission is more likely to occur.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.02.22271724v1" target="_blank">Morning SARS-CoV-2 testing yields better detection of infection due to higher viral loads in saliva and nasal swabs upon waking</a>
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<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>EPIC-Peds: Study of Oral PF-07321332 (Nirmatrelvir)/Ritonavir in Nonhospitalized COVID-19 Pediatric Patients at Risk for Severe Disease</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: nirmatrelvir;   Drug: ritonavir<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Pfizer<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>Anti-inflammatory Drug Algorithm for COVID-19 Home Treatment</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Recommended treatment schedule;   Drug: Usual care<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research;   Family physicians<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>Transcranial Direct Stimulation for Persistent Fatigue Treatment Post-COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Device: Active tDCS;   Device: Sham tDCS<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Hospital San Carlos, Madrid<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>Evaluation of Full Versus Fractional Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine Given as a Booster for the Prevention of COVID 19 in Adults in Mongolia- Mongolia, Indonesia, Australia Coronavirus (MIACoV).</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: Tozinameran - Standard Dose;   Biological: Tozinameran - Fractional Dose<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Murdoch Childrens Research Institute;   Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations;   PATH;   The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity<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 III, Randomised, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Study to Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of TD0069 Capsule as a Combination Regimen With Standard Treatment for Patients With Mild to Moderate COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: TD0069 hard capsule;   Drug: TD0069 Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Sao Thai Duong Joint Stock Company;   Clinical Training Company<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>Nebulised Heparin in Patients With COVID-19 Pneumonia</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Pneumonia<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Drug: Unfractionated heparin<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Lady Reading Hospital, Pakistan<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>Nutrition and LOComotoric Rehabilitation in Long COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: Intervention group<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:  <br/>
Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel;   Vrije Universiteit Brussel<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>Immuno-bridging and Broadening Study of a Whole, Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccine BBV152 in Healthy Adults</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Biological: BBV152<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Ocugen<br/><b>Active, not 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>Vale+ Tu Salud: Corner-Based Randomized Trial to Test a Latino Day Laborer Program Adapted to Prevent COVID 19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Behavioral: COVID-19 Group Problem Solving;   Behavioral: Control Group-standard of care<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston;   National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)<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>Reparixin as add-on Therapy to Standard of Care to Limit Disease Progression in Adult Patients With COVID-19.</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19 Pneumonia;   Sars-CoV-2 Infection<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Reparixin;   Other: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Dompé Farmaceutici S.p.A<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>COVID-19 Prevention Trial: Effect of Prophylactic Use of TAFFIX™ on Infection Rate by SARS-COV-2 VIRUS (COVID-19).</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19;   Upper Respiratory Tract Infections<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Device: TaffiX™<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Nasus Pharma<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>An Open-label, Randomized, Parallel-arm Study Investigating the Efficacy and Safety of Intravenous Administration of Pamrevlumab Versus Standard of Care in Patients With COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19 Respiratory Infection;   COVID-19 Pneumonia;   Covid19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:  <br/>
Drug: Pamrevlumab<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS<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>The Effect of Mobile Health Application Based on Omaha System on Symptoms and Quality of Life in COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19;   Symptoms and Signs;   Quality of Life<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Other: COVOS app;   Other: Standard Care<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Kocaeli University;   Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa;   The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey<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>The Role of Natural Killer, Complement and T-lymphocytes in COVID-19 Disease, a Prospective Monocentric Study</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Complement Abnormality;   Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells;   Covid19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: Blood analysis<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel<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>Safety, Reactogenicity, and Immunogenicity Trial of CV2CoV mRNA Vaccine Against SARS-CoV-2 in Seropositive Adult Participants</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   SARS-CoV-2<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: CV2CoV (2 µg);   Biological: CV2CoV (4 µg);   Biological: CV2CoV (8 µg);   Biological: CV2CoV (12 µg);   Biological: CV2CoV (16 µg);   Biological: CV2CoV (20 µg)<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   GlaxoSmithKline;   CureVac AG<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</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>Antiviral Effect of Selenomethionine on Porcine Deltacoronavirus in Pig Kidney Epithelial Cells</strong> - Porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV) is an emerging porcine intestinal coronavirus in recent years, which mainly causes different degrees of vomiting and diarrhea in piglets and has caused great harm to the swine husbandry worldwide since its report. Selenium is an essential trace element for organisms and has been demonstrated to have antiviral effects. In this study, pig kidney epithelial (LLC-PK) cells were used to study the antiviral activity of selenomethionine (Se-Met) (2, 4, 8, and 16 μM)…</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>Role of Dexamethasone and Methylprednisolone Corticosteroids in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Hospitalized Patients: A Review</strong> - The WHO announced coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a pandemic disease globally on March 11, 2020, after it emerged in China. The emergence of COVID-19 has lasted over a year, and despite promising vaccine reports that have been produced, we still have a long way to go until such remedies are accessible to everyone. The immunomodulatory strategy has been kept at the top priority for the research agenda for COVID-19. Corticosteroids have been used to modulate the immune response in a wide…</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>Evaluation of a commercial ELISA as alternative to plaque reduction neutralization test to detect neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2</strong> - High-throughput detection of neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 presents a valuable tool for vaccine trials or investigations of population immunity. We evaluate the performance of the first commercial surrogate virus neutralization test (sVNT, GenScript Biotech) against SARS-CoV-2 plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT) in convalescent and vaccinated individuals. We compare it to five other ELISAs, two of which are designed to detect neutralizing antibodies. In 491 pre-vaccination…</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>Association between FIASMA psychotropic medications and reduced risk of intubation or death in individuals with psychiatric disorders hospitalized for severe COVID-19: an observational multicenter study</strong> - The acid sphingomyelinase (ASM)/ceramide system may provide a useful framework for better understanding SARS-CoV-2 infection and the repurposing of psychotropic medications functionally inhibiting the acid sphingomyelinase/ceramide system (named FIASMA psychotropic medications) against COVID-19. We examined the potential usefulness of FIASMA psychotropic medications in patients with psychiatric disorders hospitalized for severe COVID-19, in an observational multicenter study conducted at Greater…</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>Network pharmacology-based predictions of active components and pharmacological mechanisms of Artemisia annua L. for the treatment of the novel Corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19)</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that A. annua may prevent and inhibit the inflammatory processes related to COVID-19.</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>HDAC inhibition as neuroprotection in COVID-19 infection</strong> - The SARS-CoV-2 virus is responsible of COVID-19 affecting millions of humans around the world. COVID-19 shows diverse clinical symptoms (fever, cough, fatigue, diarrhea, body aches, headaches, anosmia and hyposmia). Approximately 30% of the patients with COVID-19 showed neurological symptoms, these going from mild to severe manifestations including headache, dizziness, impaired consciousness, encephalopathy, anosmia, hypogeusia, hyposmia, psychology and psychiatry among others. The neurotropism…</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>Trace element homeostasis in the neurological system after SARS-CoV-2 infection: Insight into potential biochemical mechanisms</strong> - CONCLUSION: Trace elements play important roles in viral infections, such as helping to activate immune cells, produce antibodies, and inhibit virus replication. However, the relationship between trace elements and virus infections is complex since the specific functions of several elements remain largely undefined. Therefore, there is still a lot to be explored to understand the biochemical mechanisms involved between trace elements and viral infections, especially in the brain.</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>In silico analysis highlighting the prevalence of BCL2L1 gene and its correlation to miRNA in human coronavirus (HCoV) genetic makeup</strong> - The ongoing pandemic that resulted from coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which is caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), had been spiraling out of control with no known antiviral drugs or vaccines. Due to the extremely serious nature of the disease, it has claimed many lives, with a mortality rate of 3.4% declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 3, 2020. The aim of this study is to gain an understanding of the regulatory nature of the proteins…</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>Anti-inflammatory and anti-viral actions of anionic pulmonary surfactant phospholipids</strong> - Pulmonary surfactant is a mixture of lipids and proteins, consisting of 90% phospholipid, and 10% protein by weight, found predominantly in pulmonary alveoli of vertebrate lungs. Two minor components of pulmonary surfactant phospholipids, phosphatidylglycerol (PG) and phosphatidylinositol (PI), are present within the alveoli at very high concentrations, and exert anti-inflammatory effects by regulating multiple Toll like receptors (TLR2/1, TLR4, and TLR2/6) by antagonizing cognate…</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>ACE2-Fc fusion protein overcomes viral escape by potently neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern</strong> - COVID-19, an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, emerged globally in early 2020 and has remained a serious public health issue. To date, although several preventative vaccines have been approved by FDA and EMA, vaccinated individuals increasingly suffer from breakthrough infections. Therapeutic antibodies may provide an alternative strategy to neutralize viral infection and treat serious cases; however, the clinical data and our experiments show that some FDA-approved monoclonal…</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>Rapid and Quantitative In Vitro Evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 Neutralizing Antibodies and Nanobodies</strong> - Neutralizing monoclonal antibodies and nanobodies have shown promising results as potential therapeutic agents for COVID-19. Identifying such antibodies and nanobodies requires evaluating the neutralization activity of a large number of lead molecules via biological assays, such as the virus neutralization test (VNT). These assays are typically time- consuming and demanding on-lab facilities. Here, we present a rapid and quantitative assay that evaluates the neutralizing efficacy of an antibody…</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>Complement Activation via the Lectin and Alternative Pathway in Patients With Severe COVID-19</strong> - Complement plays an important role in the direct defense to pathogens, but can also activate immune cells and the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. However, in critically ill patients with COVID-19 the immune system is inadequately activated leading to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and acute kidney injury, which is associated with higher mortality. Therefore, we characterized local complement deposition as a sign of activation in both lungs and kidneys from patients with severe…</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>Modulation of Innate Antiviral Immune Response by Porcine Enteric Coronavirus</strong> - Host’s innate immunity is the front-line defense against viral infections, but some viruses have evolved multiple strategies for evasion of antiviral innate immunity. The porcine enteric coronaviruses (PECs) consist of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV), transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus (TGEV), and swine acute diarrhea syndrome-coronavirus (SADS-CoV), which cause lethal diarrhea in neonatal pigs and threaten the swine industry worldwide. PECs…</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>Correlated sequence signatures are present within the genomic 5’UTR RNA and NSP1 protein in coronaviruses</strong> - The 5’UTR part of coronavirus genomes plays key roles in the viral replication cycle and the translation of the viral mRNAs. The first 75-80 nucleotides, also called the leader sequence, are identical for the genomic mRNA and for the subgenomic mRNAs. Recently, it was shown that cooperative actions of a 5’UTR segment and the non-structural protein NSP1 are essential for both the inhibition of host mRNAs and for specific translation of viral mRNAs. Here, sequence analyses of both the 5’UTR RNA…</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 Nsp13 encodes for an HLA-E-stabilizing peptide that abrogates inhibition of NKG2A-expressing NK cells</strong> - Natural killer (NK) cells are innate immune cells that contribute to host defense against virus infections. NK cells respond to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in vitro and are activated in patients with acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, by which mechanisms NK cells detect SARS-CoV-2-infected cells remains largely unknown. Here, we show that the Non-structural protein 13 of SARS-CoV-2 encodes for a peptide that is presented by human leukocyte…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IMPLEMENTING IMPROVED GENERALIZED FUZZY PEER GROUP WITH MODIFIED TRILATERAL FILTER TO REMOVE MIXED IMPULSE AND ADAPTIVE WHITE GAUSSIAN NOISE FROM COLOR IMAGES</strong> - ABSTRACTMETHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IMPLEMENTING IMPROVED GENERALIZED FUZZY PEER GROUP WITH MODIFIED TRILATERAL FILTER TO REMOVE MIXED IMPULSE AND ADAPTIVE WHITE GAUSSIAN NOISE FROM COLOR IMAGESThe present invention provides a new approach is proposed that includes fuzzy-based approach and similarity function for filtering the mixed noise. In a peer group, the similarity function was adaptive to edge information and local noise level, which was utilized for detecting the similarity among pixels. In addition, a new filtering method Modified Trilateral Filter (MTF) with Improved Generalized Fuzzy Peer Group (IGFPG) is proposed to remove mixed impulse and Adaptive White Gaussian Noise from Color Images. The modified trilateral filter includes Kikuchi algorithm and loopy belief propagation to solve the inference issues on the basis of passing local message. In this research work, the images were collected from KODAK dataset and a few real time multimedia images like Lena were also used for testing the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN351884428">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A STUDY ON MENTAL HEALTH, STRESS AND ANXIETY AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS DURING COVID-19</strong> - SARS-Cov-2 virus causes an infectious disease coronavirus(COVID-19).The Students life is made harder by COVID-19.The human reaction that happens normally to everyone through physical or emotional tension is stress. Feeling of angry, nervous and frustration caused through any thought or events leads to stress. As college closures and cancelled events, students are missing out on some of the biggest moments of their young lives as well as everyday moments like chatting with friend, participating in class and cultural programme. For students facing life changes due to the outbreak are feeling anxious, isolated and disappointed which lead them to feel all alone. We like to take the help of expert adolescent psychologist to find out the techniques to practice self-care and look after their mental health. We would like to find out whether techniques used reduce the anxiety and stress among Engineering Students. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN351884923">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A METHOD FOR THE TREATMENT OF COVID-19 INFECTIONS WITH PALMITOYLETHANOLAMIDE</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU351870997">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A CENTRAL TRANSACTION AUTHENTIC SYSTEM FOR OTP VERIFICATION</strong> - The present invention relates to a central transaction authentic system (100) for OTP verification. The system (100) comprises one or more user display units (102), one or more financial units (104), an account deposit unit (106), an OTP authentication unit (108) and a service server unit (110). The central transaction authentic system (100) for OTP verification work as Anti-money laundering measure. The system (100) also helpful for minimizing rate of cybercrime. The central transaction authentic system (100) for OTP verification that can neutralize digital financial fraud. The present invention provides a central transaction authentic system (100) for OTP verification that can monitor and analyze every transaction and customer interaction across its customer base for suspicious and potentially criminal activity. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN350377210">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>FORMULATIONS AND METHOD FOR PREPARATION OF HERBAL MEDICATED TRANSPARENT SOAP</strong> - ABSTRACTFORMULATIONS AND METHOD FOR PREPARATION OF HERBAL MEDICATED TRANSPARENT SOAPThe present invention provides formulations for herbal medicated transparent soaps and method of preparation of the same. Transparent soaps are prepared by saponification of mixture of non-edible oils to get the desired consistency and cleaning action. Nonvolatile alcohols and other transparency promoters are used to get good transparency and binding properties. Herbal extracts of different herbs are added to get medicated properties. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN350377796">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SOCIAL NAVIGATION SYSTEM FOR MOBILE ROBOTS IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT TECHNOLOGY</strong> - The emergency department (ED) is a safety-critical environment in which healthcare workers (HCWs) are overburdened, overworked, and have limited resources, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. One way to address this problem is to explore the use of robots that can support clinical teams, e.g., to deliver materials or restock supplies. However, due to EDs being overcrowded, and the cognitive overload HCWs experience, robots need to understand various levels of patient acuity so they avoid disrupting care delivery. In this invention, we introduce the Safety-Critical Deep Q-Network (SafeDQN) system, a new acuity-aware navigation system for mobile robots. SafeDQN is based on two insights about care in EDs: high-acuity patients tend to have more HCWs in attendance and those HCWs tend to move more quickly. We compared SafeDQN to three classic navigation methods, and show that it generates the safest, quickest path for mobile robots when navigating in a simulated ED environment. We hope this work encourages future exploration of social robots that work in safety-critical, human-centered environments, and ultimately help to improve patient outcomes and save lives. Figure 1. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN349443355">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种新型冠状病毒核酸检测试剂盒</strong> - 本发明公开了一种新型冠状病毒核酸检测试剂盒，属于生物检测技术领域。本发明使用实时荧光定量交叉引物等温扩增技术检测新型冠状病毒，设计了两组适用于这一技术的引物。两组引物分别针对型冠状病毒基因组中的ORF1ab基因和型冠状病毒基因组中的S基因进行检测。本发明新型冠状病毒核酸检测试剂盒特异性强，灵敏度高，不仅可以对样品进行定性定量的检测，还可以实时观测数据的变化，有利于对样品数据的全面收集，方便进行下一步的研究。因此本发明不仅适用于现场快速检测，还适用于以科研为目的的检测。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN351915848">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种新型冠状病毒核酸纯化试剂及纯化方法</strong> - 本发明公开了一种新型冠状病毒核酸纯化试剂及纯化方法，属于核酸纯化技术领域，核酸纯化试剂包括包覆有硒代赖氨酸改性壳聚糖的纳米磁珠、结合液、洗涤I液、洗涤II液和洗脱液。纯化方法包括，将待纯化样本、磁珠和结合液加入离心管中，混匀，磁分离，弃上清；将离心管中加入洗涤I液，清洗，磁分离，吸净管盖及管底的残液；将离心管中加入洗涤II液，清洗，磁分离，吸净管盖及管底的残液；将离心管中加入洗脱液，60‑70℃下放置10‑15min，每隔1‑2min轻摇混匀，磁分离，小心吸取上清液至新的离心管中，放入‑20℃冰箱保存。本发明方法纯化过程快速、结果准确、精密度高，能够提高核酸纯化的产量、纯度、重复性和稳定性。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN351915839">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种全人源抗新冠病毒广谱中和抗体ZW2G10及应用</strong> - 本发明公开了一种抗SARS‑CoV‑2的全人源单克隆抗体ZW2G10，所述抗体具有独特的CDR分区，其抗原识别表位位于S1蛋白的RBD区。所述抗体中和新冠病毒野生型、Alpha、Beta、Gamma、Delta和Omicron变异株假病毒的EC50分别是14.19、14.12、18.41、15.59、36.18、19.26ng/mL。ZW2G10对目前的主要变异株具有广谱高效中和活性。本发明公开的单克隆抗体还具有高表达、全人源、稳定性好的特点，适合产业化生产，对于应对新冠变异株导致的爆发流行具有重大应用价值。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN351915789">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种抗新冠病毒全人源广谱中和抗体ZWC12及应用</strong> - 本发明公开了一种抗SARS‑CoV‑2的全人源单克隆抗体ZWC12，所述抗体具有独特的CDR分区，其抗原识别表位位于S1蛋白的RBD区。所述抗体中和新冠病毒野生型、Alpha、Beta、Gamma、Delta、Omicron变异株假病毒的EC50分别是1.041、0.124、0.162、0.136、0.411、0.093μg/mL，该抗体对目前主要变异株具有广谱高效中和活性。所述抗体还具有高表达、全人源、稳定性好的特点，适合产业化生产，对于应对新冠变异株导致的爆发流行具有重要应用价值。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN351925790">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
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<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>An Outpouring of Support for Ukrainian Refugees and Resistance</strong> - An ad-hoc network in Europe is helping Ukrainians flee—and fight—the Russian invasion. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/an-outpouring-of-support-for-ukraine">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inside Kyiv’s Metro, a Citywide Bomb Shelter</strong> - Across Ukraine, especially in the cities where Russia’s onslaught has been particularly intense, underground spaces have become precious. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/03/14/inside-kyivs-metro-a-citywide-bomb-shelter">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Bipartisan Thank-You to Breyer Masks the Brawling Already Under Way</strong> - Ketanji Brown Jackson is eminently qualified, but her confirmation hearings will reflect the pernicious and, at times, unhinged discourse in Washington. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/a-bipartisan-thank-you-to-breyer-masks-the-brawling-already-%20under-way">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Google’s New Manhattan Groundscraper Bets on the Future of the Office</strong> - The company’s purchase of St. John’s Terminal for $2.1 billion is the biggest single-building commercial-real-estate deal in the city since the pandemic began. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-local-correspondents/googles-new-manhattan-groundscraper-bets-on-the-%20future-of-the-office">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Revisiting the World of “Carnival Strippers”</strong> - Susan Meiselas’s intimate view of a sex-industry subculture remains a remarkable document of its time. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/revisiting-the-world-of-carnival-strippers">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Germany’s dramatic reversal on defense, explained</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/utWKJOUIP9z3Iz11KYJ3fC9wrN0=/0x0:2431x1823/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70582608/GettyImages_1238799975.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz delivers a speech on the Russian invasion of Ukraine during a meeting of the Bundestag — the German parliament — in Berlin on February 27. | Hannibal Hanschke/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Russia’s Ukraine war forced a turning point in how Berlin sees itself in the world.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Z9w3kb">
In January, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22917719/russia-ukraine-invasion-border-crisis-nato-explained">as Russia’s military buildup threatened Ukraine</a>, the German government declined to support Kyiv with lethal aid. Instead, it sent Kyiv <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/27/germanys-offer-to-send-5000-helmets-to-ukraine-provokes-outrage.html">5,000 helmets</a> and a <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/germany-rejects-arms-deliveries-to-ukraine-but-will-send-field-
hospital/a-60523137">$5 million field hospital</a>. It also <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/germany-ukraine-
arms/germany-blocks-estonia-from-exporting-german-origin-weapons-to-ukraine-wsj-idUSL1N2U123W">blocked</a> other NATO countries from sending German-made weapons to Ukraine. “Germany has not supported the export of lethal weapons in recent years,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/germany-ukraine-arms/germany-blocks-estonia-
from-exporting-german-origin-weapons-to-ukraine-wsj-idUSL1N2U123W">told reporters at the time.</a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wX5XJf">
Last week, <a href="https://www.vox.com/2022/2/23/22948534/russia-ukraine-war-putin-explosions-invasion-
explained">after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine</a>, Germany <a href="https://www.axios.com/germany-weapons-ukraine-
russia-156e24ad-b591-421e-9c22-105118adc377.html">sent</a> 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger anti-aircraft defense systems to Ukraine. Berlin also unblocked other EU countries from sending German-made equipment.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AbXQQM">
The Russian invasion of Ukraine, <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/ukraine-war-russia-germany-still-
blocking-arms-supplies/">Scholz said in a Saturday statement</a>, was a “turning point.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cOHBSH">
A day later, Scholz showed exactly how dramatic this turning point would be. In <a href="https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-
en/news/policy-statement-by-olaf-scholz-chancellor-of-the-federal-republic-of-germany-and-member-of-the-german-
bundestag-27-february-2022-in-berlin-2008378">just one speech to the Bundestag</a>, Germany’s parliament, Scholz undid decades of German foreign and defense policy. Most strikingly, Scholz proposed massive investments in Germany’s defense and security, reversing the country’s reluctance to build up its military. It’s<strong> </strong>a seismic shift not just for the country, but potentially for Europe and the trans-Atlantic relationship.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wYQkw0">
“It’s really revolutionary,” said Sophia Besch, a Berlin-based senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform. “Scholz, in his speech, did away with and overturned so many of what we thought were certainties of German defense policy. He ticked off just one taboo after the next.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="c1cmYV">
Scholz said Germany would need to invest much more in its security, <a href="https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-en/news/policy-statement-by-olaf-scholz-chancellor-of-the-
federal-republic-of-germany-and-member-of-the-german-bundestag-27-february-2022-in-berlin-2008378">“in order to protect our freedom and our democracy.”</a> He introduced a €100 billion ($113 billion) special fund for investments in the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces. He committed Germany to spending more than 2 percent of its GDP on defense — a target all NATO member countries agreed to meet, but <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-44717074#:~:text=In%202020%2C%20it's%20estimated%20that,)%20was%201.77%25%20of%20GDP.">one that less than half actually do</a>. Germany spent a total of <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-
defense/germany-hike-defense-spending-scholz-says-further-policy-shift-2022-02-27/">about €47 billion on defense in 2021</a>. And, if that wasn’t enough, Scholz also said Germany would seek to guarantee a more secure energy supply — as in, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22881709/nord-stream-2-russia-ukraine-germany-united-states-cruz">away from dependence on Russia and its natural gas</a>, a little more than a week after he paused approval on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
</p></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fCkpdd">
Scholz called Putin’s war a <a href="https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-en/news/policy-statement-by-
olaf-scholz-chancellor-of-the-federal-republic-of-germany-and-member-of-the-german-bundestag-27-february-2022-in-
berlin-2008378">“Zeitenwende”</a> — a turning point, or “watershed moment.” But as German speakers tried to explain, it’s larger than that. It’s akin to the dawning of a new era.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QVH917">
“It’s a very disorienting moment,” said Tyson Barker, head of the technology and global affairs program at the German Council on Foreign Relations. “But, at the same time, the public and the political class are all on board.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VGXrfo">
Scholz’s announcement was reportedly a surprise <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/02/germany-unites-behind-chancellor-olaf-
scholz-u-turn-on-arming-ukraine-russia">even within his own governing coalition</a>, but he <a href="https://twitter.com/Quicktake/status/1497985642445348874?s=20&amp;t=0aQDdAr8ryN6gchp3Wd-lQ">received applause and a standing ovation in the Bundestag</a> when he made these defense commitments.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qijpcr">
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine invasion entirely upended Germany’s views of Russia, and of security, both its own and Europe’s. It is unprecedented, but this is also an unprecedented time — war and a refugee crisis in Europe that is unraveling the post-Cold War order.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="V5kEFn">
“The images of democracy being thwarted, of a sovereign country being invaded, that’s what it took to wake Germany up,” said Rachel Rizzo, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center. “The question now is: how long does it stay?”
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/sLYEZcRE5XmSdeJfk_cLGU4cgvM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23288039/GettyImages_1238807716.jpg"/> <cite>Hannibal Hanschke/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
People gather at Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, to protest against the ongoing war in Ukraine on February 27.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 id="caNTf5">
Why Germany’s about-face shocked everybody
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="686ZpI">
Germany is reportedly going to send another 2,700 anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine. They’re reportedly <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/germany-to-ship-anti-aircraft-missiles-to-ukraine-reports/a-60995325">shoulder-fired Strela systems</a>, a Soviet-era model; <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-mulls-supplying-anti-aircraft-
missiles-ukraine-source-2022-03-03/">old inventory from the East German armed forces</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EXEpcp">
The German government hasn’t officially confirmed the reports, and <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/strela-
raketen-der-bundeswehr-weisen-erhebliche-maengel-auf-a-5260e48f-5977-4f0d-8f79-dac5f24ced94">Der Spiegel<em> </em>reported</a> that hundreds were in moldy boxes and basically unusable, but it seemed to symbolize — in a very on- the-nose way — how quickly Germany is trying to shed old norms.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BGIbj1">
Similarly unthinkable before last week was Scholz’s other major U-turn:<strong> </strong>the freezing of Nord Stream 2, a natural gas pipeline between Russia and Germany <a href="https://www.vox.com/22881709/nord-stream-2-russia-ukraine-germany-united-states-cruz">agreed to after Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea</a>. Scholz, as previous governments had, initially defended the project as solely an economic one, despite long-standing pressure from allies that Berlin nix it. Germany did say Nord Stream 2’s future was on the table if Russia invaded, but they didn’t commit — that is, until Russia <a href="https://www.vox.com/2022/2/21/22944995/russia-vladimir-putin-orders-troops-ukraine-east-donbas">deployed troops for so-called “peacekeeping” operations in eastern Ukraine</a>, and Scholz, just like that, paused the project’s approval process. <strong> </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OQi8vS">
It shows just how much Russia’s invasion crushed long-held tenets, not just of Germany’s foreign policy, but possibly of how the country sees itself.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KkK1EJ">
During the Cold War, starting in the late 1960s, West Germany pursued a policy of “Ostpolitik” — basically, Eastern policy — that sought to normalize relations with the Soviet Union. Those imprints have continued to the modern day, with Germany seeing itself as something of a bridge between Western allies and Moscow, trying to balance its commitments to partners while also trying to maintain good relations with Russia. That meant favoring diplomacy, trying to engage with Russia on multiple fronts, cultivating <a href="https://www.vox.com/22881709/nord-stream-2-russia-ukraine-germany-united-states-
cruz">economic ties</a> between the two countries like Nord Stream 2, and putting faith in these tools as the off-ramp to any conflict.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9GIGv9">
Germany was “really guided by this idea that European security could only be achieved with Russia,” Besch said. “And in his speech, Scholz has now called out Putin’s action, Putin’s Russia, as a threat to the European security order.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="T6N988">
What makes Germany’s policy shift such a big deal is the widespread political and public backing for it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LxacPQ">
More than just pragmatism, Germans embraced a strain of pacifism in the post-World War II world. Experts said it’s important to separate a rhetoric and identity built around pacifism from the reality of Germany’s foreign policy — West Germany was the front line against Russia in the Cold War — which makes it, as Barker said, “a historiography that the Germans and the international community tell themselves about the Germans.” But even so, that perception and embrace of pacifism is still bound up in Germany’s national identity.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lnGo60">
In 2014, after Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, NATO members agreed <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/official_texts_112964.htm">on a timeline for members to spend 2 percent of their GDPs on defense</a>. Germany made the commitment, too, but it was mostly driven by outside pressure, specifically Germany’s allies, like the United States, (<a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/obama-european-unity-nato-defense-russia-
sanctions/27695322.html">who asked sometimes nicely</a> and <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/12/24/how-
trump-made-war-on-angela-merkel-and-europe">sometimes less so</a>). Germany <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-
germany-nato/germany-commits-to-nato-spending-goal-by-2031-for-first-time-idUSKBN1XH1IK">still struggled to meet those targets</a>, and was expected to spend <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/germany-hike-defense-
spending-scholz-says-further-policy-shift-2022-02-27/">about 1.5 percent of its budget on defense in 2021</a>. Some of that lack of urgency came from the sense that the German public wasn’t into beefing up Germany’s defense, so politicians lacked the motivation to make the case for it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Jqyj7u">
“At the heart of it, there really has never been the sort of public support for strong defense posture. And therefore, no politician has really been the one to make that issue their own, and really push it forward,” Rizzo said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rWmNeC">
The shock of Russia’s invasion upended that. Preliminary live polls conducted by Civey, a German polling firm, <a href="https://app.civey.com/dashboards/live-
lagebericht-russland-ukraine-krieg-9025">show clear backing for Germany’s new course</a>. At publication time, one showed that 74 percent of respondents supported Scholz’s decision to invest €100 billion into the Bundeswehr, which included overwhelming majorities from parties on both the right and the left — including from the Greens (73 percent), traditionally the more pacifist party of the current governing coalition, to the Free Democrats (81 percent), traditionally fiscal hawks, but whose leader, Finance Minister Christian Lindner, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-25/lindner-urges-more-german-defense-spending-amid-fears-of-
neglect">has embraced Scholz’s plan to spend billions on defense</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FgI5nd">
Germany’s politics have a reputation for stability; from the outside, upending years worth of foreign and defense dogma doesn’t quite square with that. But Barker said that, in some ways, these kinds of dramatic turning points are part of Germany’s political tradition: an outside event has to come along and force Germany — or, at least its chancellor — to seize the moment. A recent example would be Europe’s refugee crisis, and former chancellor <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/angela-
merkel-refugee-pledge-we-can-manage-it/">Angela Merkel’s decision to welcome more than a million refugees.</a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tRL72d">
So while there were forces pushing Germany in this direction, it took an event like Putin’s war to unleash it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UtvMbo">
Barker likened it to pressure on a dam. “The threshold to break is much higher, much more difficult, much more intractable in Germany than other places,” he said. “But once it breaks, it’s like the floodgates open.”
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/fb9GW3RodO1qKE8YqRBP3eEkpa8=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23288045/GettyImages_1238916381.jpg"/> <cite>Clemens Bilan/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz passes by a map of Ukraine during a visit to the Bundeswehr — the German armed forces — operations command in Schwielowsee, eastern Germany, on March 4.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 id="wqzMaV">
Germany still has to figure out its military identity — and maybe Europe does, too
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UkbrWT">
The big question now is: what does it all mean? At the very least, Germany will be supplying lethal aid to Ukraine as it battles Russia, something Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has continued to plead for from<strong> </strong>the West. It is also likely to mean that Europe can send more arms,<a href="https://www.dw.com/en/german-arms-
exports-hit-new-record-during-merkels-last-days/a-60256034"> since Germany makes a lot of them</a>, and will no longer be blocking their delivery.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hHZAQt">
But there are still a lot of unknowns, big and small.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LraEhL">
The war in Ukraine drove this massive decision, so experts are watching how deep and robust this change is, and what it might look like in practicality. As experts said, this investment is going to be a shock to the system. The armed forces were underfunded, but money itself is only one part of the equation; there are questions about what it even focuses on and <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/german-army-chief-fed-up-with-neglect-countrys-
military-2022-02-24/">about its military readiness</a>. “Absorbing 100 billion euros in defense spending in a year is like drinking from a massive firehose,” Barker said. “I don’t know if the German military has the absorption capacity to take on that much modernization at once.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jA8ENb">
As Besch said, Germany <a href="https://dgap.org/en/research/publications/germany-2022-ukraine-crisis">was already in the process of developing a new national security strategy</a>, so the resources arrive at the right time. But Germany has to fundamentally grapple with the kind of military it wants to have, where it wants to invest money on strategy and equipment, and whether this is merely in response to Russia now, or if it will want to stay on this course in the longer term.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eQeE0e">
How Germany wrestles with this question may echo across Europe, and the trans-Atlantic alliance. Europe, too, has talked for years about establishing a security identity separate from NATO — what the nerds call “strategic autonomy.” Afghanistan added new urgency to this idea, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22639474/afghanistan-nato-europe-
refugees-germany-uk">as it reminded Europe of its dependence on the US for its own security</a>. Germany’s overall reticence on defense, and the justified lack of desire to really invest there, always made the idea of a strong European security policy seem more theoretical than practical. But Germany’s latest decision is born from a sense that it, and Europe, isn’t really secure — and that may reshape how the continent approaches defense, even beyond NATO.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ya3Zfn">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="E0YfDM">
</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>America can’t solve its gas price problem (or its Russia problem) with drilling</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/RWqelTYyit4xAL6YAnMmNNkfgoQ=/32x0:3232x2400/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70582537/GettyImages_1238879633.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Sen. Rob Portman speaks during a news conference with Senate Republicans about the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the US Capitol on March 2. The group of GOP senators — from left, Pat Toomey, Lindsey Graham, Dan Sullivan, James Lankford, and James Risch — urged the US to halt Russian oil imports and boost energy production domestically. | Drew Angerer/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The four myths Republicans have been spreading about oil and gas prices, explained.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5IDOJE">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ackx85">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UrPqhC">
Republicans and conservative commentators in the last week have had a field day using Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an opportunity to bemoan US energy policy and champion fossil fuel reserves. They’ve pointed fingers at the <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/03/russian-invasion-gop-biden-
climate-plan-00012446">Biden administration</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/KristiNoem/status/1498395756104982531">environmentalists</a>, and <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/benshapiro/status/1496864248215093260">even</a> Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, alleging that climate priorities are what have kept America from its “energy independence.” If only oil and gas companies were allowed to drill or frack more, we’d have a quick fix to rising energy prices in the <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2022/02/27/ukraine-invasion-russia-energy-bills/6964171001/">US</a> and <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/european-gas-prices-touch-new-highs-russia-supply-fears-
grow-2022-03-02/">Europe</a> and to Putin’s influence, they’ve said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="n419iO">
There are many problems with these claims, and the stakes of this conversation are very high: The way western Europe and the US respond to this crisis could determine the course on climate change and energy costs in the long run.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6BNdBT">
Let’s walk through the myths currently circulating and how to avoid falling for them.
</p>
<h3 id="duBYkV">
Myth No. 1: Biden killed oil production
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NXFHH1">
Republicans on the Senate Natural Resources Committee sent a <a href="https://www.energy.senate.gov/services/files/6902686E-7AEC-47F8-8C38-5010A3A352D4">letter</a> to Biden this week claiming that he has shut down leasing for oil and gas and is holding back more production. “There has not been one lease sale on federal lands since you imposed a ban in violation of federal law,” the letter said. “No other major oil- producing nation shuts off its own reserves to production.” Sen. Joe Manchin echoed the myth at a <a href="https://twitter.com/Sen_JoeManchin/status/1499408048976273413">hearing</a> this week: “The time for leasing pauses has come &amp; gone.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tRqIbQ">
Biden has done nothing to halt oil leasing. In fact, the Biden administration has <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/01/27/oil-gas-leasing-biden-
climate/">outpaced Trump</a> in issuing drilling permits on public lands and water in its first year, according to <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/new-data-biden-slays-trumps-first-year-drilling-permitting-
by-34-2022-01-21/#:~:text=New%20Data%3A%20Biden's%20First%20Year,34%25%20%2D%20Center%20for%20Biological%20Diversity&amp;text=WASHINGTON%E2%80%94%20New%20federal%20data%20shows,first%2Dyear%20total%20of%202%2C658.">federal data analyzed</a> by the Center for Biological Diversity. His administration set a record for the largest offshore lease sale ever in the Gulf of Mexico last year, before a federal court blocked the lease sale for not considering climate impacts.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rulFPH">
There was a temporary pause on new federal leases in the first few months of Biden’s administration when he <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/06/15/1006948814/bidens-ban-on-new-oil-and-gas-leases-is-
blocked-by-a-federal-judge">placed</a> a moratorium on them while the administration reviewed how to better integrate climate costs in lease sales. Meanwhile, the president has done nothing to prevent the vast amount of gas production that occurs on private lands or halt existing oil leases on federal lands. The moratorium is now irrelevant, anyway, because a Louisiana federal judge ruled against it last June. (There’s a second, temporary pause on <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/02/21/social-cost-of-carbon-biden/">new lease sales</a> because another court invalidated the administration’s use of a social cost of carbon.) The US also became the world’s largest exporter of liquified natural gas (LNG) for the first time in 2021.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="aVY1Cv">
Clark Williams-Derry, an energy analyst with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, offered a reality check to those complaining that climate regulations have changed the fate of oil and gas. “The idea that the tiny marginal changes in US policy have anything to do with the big shifts we’ve seen in prices is just preposterous,” he told Vox. The marginal Biden measures — like <a href="https://grist.org/project/accountability/trump-rollbacks-biden-climate-
tracker/">reversing</a> Trump-era environmental rollbacks — haven’t made any kind of dent in the global oil market.
</p></li>
</ul>
<h3 id="FQDlKq">
Myth No. 2: The oil and gas industry can quickly ramp up production to make a dent in prices
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="swJVJi">
According to an op-ed in <a href="https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/energy-environment/596804-the-
real-way-to-support-ukraine-is-to-flip-the-switch">the Hill</a> from Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), increasing oil and gas production is as easy as “flipping the switch.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ypIlta">
The White House would probably be pulling those levers if it could because Biden advisers have said they’d like to see more production. “Prices are quite high, the price signal is strong,” White House National Economic Council Deputy Director Bharat Ramamurti said in an <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-01/biden-aide-says-energy-companies-can-up-production-if-they-
want?sref=qYiz2hd0">interview</a>. “If folks want to produce more, they can and they should.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="coiwf8">
But oil companies have made it clear in <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/02/energy/us-oil-
production/index.html">earnings calls </a>with <a href="https://coloradonewsline.com/2022/03/03/colorado-drillers-oil-
russia-ukraine-crisis/">shareholders</a> that they don’t plan to produce much more, anyway. Remember that just two years ago the industry was in a complete free fall when demand crashed because of the pandemic. Banks sought government <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2021/04/jpmorgan-secretly-emailed-the-trump-administration-about-bailing-
out-the-oil-industry/">bailouts for oil investments</a> that went under, and oil prices actually hit <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52350082">negative levels</a> as producers grew desperate for oil to be taken off their hands.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KWJ6aN">
Now oil and gas prices are climbing in the US because demand during the pandemic has bounced back faster than supply — the average price for a gallon of gas Friday was $3.84, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/04/energy/gas-prices/index.html">the highest since September 2012</a>. But these are still not historic highs. It’s more that, in the past decade, Americans have gotten used to cheap fuel. Crude oil is currently over $100 a barrel, similar to where prices were in 2014.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FgvvII">
It’s possible prices will still climb, but that hasn’t changed companies’ calculations on production levels. “Whether it’s $150 oil, $200 oil, or $100 oil, we’re not going to change our growth plans,’’ Pioneer CEO Scott Sheffield told Bloomberg Television. “If the president wants us to grow, I just don’t think the industry can grow anyway.’’ The largest US fracking companies reiterated in earnings calls in February that they intend to keep output roughly flat, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/frackers-hold-back-production-as-oil-nears-100-a-barrel-11645150760">reporting</a> from the Wall Street Journal.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MXGBY0">
In other words, now that companies are making handsome profits, they’re using that extra cash to reward investors and pay down debts, not invest in new production.
</p>
<h3 id="1ysDdQ">
Myth No. 3: LNG exports will fix Europe’s problems and help US gas prices
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sFiAw9">
Lawmakers and pundits have offered an overly simplified solution that the US can just make up that difference in exports. Columnist <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/energy/fracking-is-a-powerful-weapon-against-
russia/2022/02/24/8bd49c56-95b5-11ec-bb31-74fc06c0a3a5_story.html">Karl Smith</a> at Bloomberg Opinion argued, “Fracking may be America’s most powerful weapon against Russian aggression.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lU0iOs">
But LNG exports don’t solve Europe’s or America’s energy challenges. In some ways, they exacerbate them.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NbBazo">
To export gas to Europe, a facility first needs to convert it to liquified natural gas, which cools and pressurizes the methane so it can be shipped across continents. On the other end of the ocean, another facility must turn it back into gas for shipment via pipeline.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="a8mEso">
That’s a lot of infrastructure, which is impossible to scale up in enough time to make an impact on current prices. There’s <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-01/first-lng-cargo-
shipped-from-new-u-s-terminal-as-demand-soars">one new LNG terminal</a> that opened this year in Louisiana. On the European side, the LNG terminals are already <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/brimming-european-lng-
terminals-have-limited-space-more-gas-2022-02-17/">at capacity</a>. This isn’t going to help make up Russia’s supply of 40 percent of Europe’s gas either.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bH1Xvn">
So it’s not particularly helpful or possible to boost exports to Europe, but it also wouldn’t help prices in the US.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FHXobI">
Williams-Derry points to US exports of liquified natural gas as the primary reason for climbing prices. In 2015, Congress passed a law signed by President Obama that lifted the crude oil export ban in place since 1975, with the goal of reducing the <a href="https://www.vox.com/2015/12/17/10442030/oil-export-ban-solar-wind">glut of excess gas</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PlQ2Qp">
“The reason we’re experiencing higher natural gas prices right now is we’re exporting more,” Williams-Derry said. “It’s not that we’re consuming more. It’s not that we’re producing less. It’s that we’re exporting.” The chart shows how LNG exports have grown since 2016.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/eHTVVKZb3X8ups-GiN96ZVs9Uyg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23287972/ieefa_on_gas_exports.jpeg"/> <cite>IEEFA</cite>
<figcaption>
Gas exports are rising since Congress lifted the oil-export ban at the end of 2015. The move was intended to boost profits, and now is responsible for rising methane gas prices.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="J2LvoS">
There’s a reason the fossil fuel industry has been pushing <a href="https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/national/russia-ukraine-
conflict/us-fossil-fuel-lobbyists-call-on-biden-to-push-for-more-oil-and-gas-production">so aggressively</a> for new infrastructure. Jack Fusco, president and CEO of the largest LNG company in the US, Cheniere, welcomed the instability because of how it would boost the industry’s profits. In recent comments highlighted by Kate Aronoff at <a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/165487/russia-war-ukraine-us-oil-gas-profits">the New Republic</a>, Fusco said, “But if anything, these high prices, the volatility, drive even more energy security and long-term contracting.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="T91dYv">
Fusco’s argument underscores the real reason the industry is drumming the message about energy security. The more government investment in new infrastructure, the more multi-year contracts the industry can get, and the better the prospects are in the long term. Exports aren’t the simple fix for the US or Europe, but they are the best thing that can happen to the oil industry in the long run.
</p>
<h3 id="NH6rL8">
Myth No. 4: We can ignore climate concerns because boosting gas will counter dependence on Russia
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lYIhMW">
In an <a href="https://fortune.com/2022/03/03/russia-invasion-ukraine-usa-lng-energy-security-biden-putin-eu-sanctions-trade-
policy-mike-sommers/">op-ed</a> for Fortune, American Petroleum Institute CEO Mike Sommers suggested the oil industry is ramping up production for patriotic reasons: “U.S. natural gas producers and exporters have mobilized to help ease Europe’s ongoing energy crisis,” he wrote, adding “as in World War II and other crises, America has Europe’s back.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4sIFj5">
None of the suggestions Sommers suggest, like boosting LNG capacity, actually help in the immediate crisis. Sommers says himself this is a lesson for the long run.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ih3Plf">
In the long run, investing in fossil fuel infrastructure can seriously backfire by raising energy costs for Europeans and increasing reliance on Russian gas. LNG will always be the more expensive option because of its processing and transport. “By locking yourself into a gas-powered future, you’re locking in higher costs for the long haul,” Williams-Derry said. “There’s not a good alternative to Russian gas if you want to have inexpensive gas in Europe.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IwCzC1">
“If you’re going to double down on gas, essentially, you’re doubling down on Russia,” Williams-Derry added.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4Loeag">
Skyrocketing energy prices during periods of global instability is nothing new, but countries have still not learned that “part of what we’re seeing here is the cost of reliance on fossil fuels,” said Sam Ori, executive director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3nl9aI">
Clean energy isn’t a panacea either. “Once you’re in the [energy] crisis, it’s too late,” Ori noted. But Ori noted that the world will have to make choices anyway of how to respond to Russia. Countries will invest in new energy infrastructure. They will have to make a choice what kind of energy future to support. And there’s a real opportunity to break the cycle of instability.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ekUXti">
But the US risks learning the wrong lessons. Sen. Manchin, who has voiced support for historic funding for climate and clean energy investments but blocked the passage of the original Build Back Better bill, has rallied for an all-of-the-above energy approach that boosts fossil fuels. “To continue to ask other countries to do what we can do for ourselves in a cleaner way is hypocritical,” Manchin said in a statement <a href="https://www.energy.senate.gov/2022/2/manchin-rings-
alarm-on-continued-russian-crude-oil-
imports#:~:text=To%20continue%20to%20ask%20other,they%20attack%20Ukraine%20is%20senseless.">last week</a>. Lobbyists from the <a href="https://www.uschamber.com/international/record-high-russian-oil-imports-show-need-for-smarter-
domestic-energy-policy">US Chamber of Commerce</a> and American Petroleum Institute are beating the same drum.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BlOwuV">
The biggest risk is if the US and Europe respond to this crisis by over-investing in the future of fossil fuels. Actions like building LNG terminals and approving new leasing don’t help in the short term when people are struggling to pay high bills. It doesn’t achieve energy independence. But it would lock the world onto a dangerous path for climate change.
</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Why it’s more difficult to flee Ukraine if you’re not from Ukraine</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A tall, slim Black man in a dark hoodie, seen though a slightly misty train window, holds onto
a handrail. He looks toward the camera, his face grave." src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/STe6oqAnTFA9Zhlot5wRgrM6j0c=/578x0:6009x4073/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70582490/GettyImages_1238841562.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A Black refugee, fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine, waits on train in Przemysl, Poland, near the border with Ukraine. | Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Non-Ukrainian refugees are trapped between racism and Cold War geopolitics.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OPgDy2">
An estimated <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/03/02/1084100763/1-million-
refugees-fled-ukraine">1 million people</a> have already fled Russia’s war on Ukraine, and many European Union nations are welcoming Ukrainians with open arms. But non-Ukrainian citizens face an uncertain immediate future: Some have had difficulty trying to flee, and those who’ve managed to cross the border may not be able to find refuge in the European Union, at least for the long term.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l3KdTK">
That has put foreigners who adopted Ukraine as their home in a difficult situation, one aggravated by longstanding political and social factors, including the continuing embrace of Cold War policy, the inherent limits of the European Union’s will to welcome non-Europeans, and pervasive (though not necessarily overt) racism.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="a2QbOG">
The EU and United Nations have been adamant that anyone who wants to leave Ukraine should be allowed to do so. But on the ground, a number of non-Ukrainians of color, including <a href="https://twitter.com/BijanCNN/status/1498692812203831299?s=20&amp;t=lyZpHQCABDiINwZ_t9lpYw">Africans</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/annieisi/status/1498993373037973504?s=20&amp;t=Z95dqQeHuYo4467wfLjGQg">Afghans</a>, and <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/3/yemen-students-ukraine-russia-war">Yemenis</a>, have reported facing discrimination while waiting in line at the border and while trying to access critical resources. While official statistics on the number of non-Ukrainian refugees facing such issues haven’t yet been compiled, the sheer volume of troubling reports has led to rebukes from United Nations diplomats and refugee officials.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="R07oij">
The EU recently issued a framework for member countries to process non-Ukrainian refugees. All member states agreed on Thursday to allow some non-Ukrainians to automatically obtain asylum through the same pathway as Ukrainian citizens. But it’s not clear just how many non-Ukrainians will have access to the program, and which will need to return to their countries of origin. For some, that uncertainty — as well as the prospect of having to go back to their home countries — is daunting.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="irOqHq">
“I thought my whole life would be in Ukraine. My family doesn’t know who I am anymore,“ one medical student from Morocco, whose name is being withheld to protect their safety, told Vox. “Morocco isn’t as safe as everyone thinks, especially when it comes to expressing political opinions.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zJhkgj">
It’s not yet clear whether Morocco will be deemed risky enough for that student to gain access to the newly announced asylum program. And that lack of clarity is a reminder that the EU’s current open-arms approach to Ukrainian refugees is an exception to the continent’s refugee policy, not an indication of a paradigm shift. After a <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2016/08/02/number-of-refugees-to-europe-surges-to-record-1-3-million-
in-2015/">record 1.3 million </a>people sought asylum in Europe in 2015 alone, Europe became more hostile to people seeking refuge at its doorstep, including Syrians, Afghans, Iraqis, and sub-Saharan Africans. Having lived for a time in Ukraine isn’t likely to shield anyone from that reality.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dmamFc">
Race is certainly a factor in Europe’s stance toward Ukrainian refugees. Countries have been much more willing to accept refugees who<strong> </strong>are perceived as white than those who are<strong> </strong>not. But it’s not the only factor. Unlike other refugee crises in the recent past, Russia’s assault on Ukraine involves geopolitics that go beyond the immediate conflict.
</p>
<h3 id="yRIIaK">
Not all fleeing the war get the same treatment leaving Ukraine
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cbOzhK">
While everyone fleeing Ukraine has encountered long lines at the borders, often without adequate access to basic necessities and services, some non-Ukrainians have faced particularly poor treatment. <a href="https://twitter.com/Damilare_arah/status/1497654141350522880?s=20&amp;t=bgw2te3L9ymGc0q7uuL3Mw">Reports include African refugees</a> being pushed to the back of the lines at the border by Ukrainian soldiers or by others trying to flee. Some were even reportedly turned away at hotels in cities close to the Polish border.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Uc9hB4">
Poland has suggested that these reports are inaccurate. Polish Ambassador to the UN Krzysztof Szczerski has said that his country allows anyone who arrives at the border to cross, even without a valid visa or passport, and that arriving refugees have represented nearly 125 nationalities. “The nationals of all countries who suffered from Russian aggression or whose life is at risk can seek shelter in my country,” he said at a UN General Assembly meeting on Monday.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Gmpdsw">
But those on the ground have told a different story. Many refugees of color who’ve succeeded in crossing the border say they did so only after multiple attempts, and after being deprioritized in favor of white Ukrainians.
</p></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zgtWiw">
“It was just a blanket bias against foreigners to favor Ukrainians and allow them to cross the border and access help first,” Asya, a Kenyan national who was studying medicine in Ukraine, told Vox.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A Black man with short hair leans against a wall clad in grey marble. He wears a
yellow and blue jacket, and his face is obscured by his hand, which bears a large, rectangular ring. White people await
a train behind him." src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/nkhvuegL4c6l8Cgou5ozR7NW5qE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23290092/GettyImages_1238833518.jpg"/> <cite>Ethan Swope/Bloomberg via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A Nigerian student covers his face, crying, after reportedly being told by Ukrainian officials at a train station in Lviv that he wasn’t allowed to leave for Poland.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eBZ1LD">
And it’s not just an issue faced by Black refugees. There have been <a href="https://twitter.com/annieisi/status/1498993373037973504?s=20&amp;t=Z95dqQeHuYo4467wfLjGQg">reports of Afghans</a> being turned away, and <a href="https://twitter.com/AzalALSalafi/status/1497906318509854727">advocates have shared narratives</a> of Yemeni students facing extreme violence.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JgJclE">
Diplomats and world leaders have spoken out against these incidents and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/28/nigeria-condemns-treatment-
africans-trying-to-flee-ukraine-government-poland-discrimination">cited global commitments the European Union</a> must follow during times of crisis.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0Iwowv">
“We strongly condemn this racism and believe that it is damaging to the spirit of solidarity that is so urgently needed today,” Kenyan Ambassador to the UN Martin Kimani said Monday at the security council meeting.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YudetU">
But for many migration advocates and people trying to flee Ukraine, these difficulties reflect broader issues with how Europe treats migrants.
</p>
<h3 id="J5DVmT">
Race and geopolitics are playing a role in the scale of Europe’s response
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6sIy0B">
It’s clear that race and identity have affected Europe’s response to this refugee crisis. At least one European political leader has stressed that they feel Ukrainians’ perceived whiteness, tendency toward Christianity, and “Europeanness” makes them more palatable than past refugee populations.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="d2ZTAK">
“These people are Europeans,” Bulgarian <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/europe-
racism-ukraine-refugees-1.6367932">Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said</a> last week. “These people are intelligent. They are educated people. … This is not the refugee wave we have been used to, people we were not sure about their identity, people with unclear pasts, who could have been even terrorists.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qF0c5D">
Rhetoric like Petkov’s hasn’t arisen in a vacuum. It is very much a consequence of the 2015 arrival of Syrians — who, similar to Ukrainians, were fleeing an authoritarian leader destroying their country.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9z3h5t">
Between 2014 and 2016, millions of Syrians, North Africans, and others arrived in Europe. Some countries, though not all, initially welcomed them. Then- German Chancellor Angela Merkel arguably <a href="https://www.npr.org/2016/08/15/490037581/merkel-stakes-her-career-on-
welcoming-middle-east-migrants">staked her political career</a> on her decision to open her country’s doors;<strong> </strong><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/30/angela-merkel-great-migrant-gamble-paid-off">1.7 million people applied for asylum in Germany</a> in the five years after. But the influx of people — and the public debates over how to handle those Syrians — helped<em> </em>fuel the rise of populist, anti-immigration, euroskeptic, and far- right parties across Europe.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A bearded man in a dark jacket and a
bright blue shirt holds a baby in a puffy pink and blue striped coat; a woman in a black hijab and grey sweater walks
next to him. Both the man and woman are smiling. They pass groups of refugees, sitting in the dim light of a white
walled shelter covered in graffiti. " src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/mh9PgvYvsOxs0NWk61MxecJYGeM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23290097/GettyImages_1036468544.jpg"/> <cite>Andreas Gebert/picture alliance via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Syrian refugees await aid in a shelter at the border of Austria and Germany in September 2015.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NaWaAR">
The rise of those parties not only led to Europe embracing a more nativist stance on migration but also struck fear in politicians who might have previously been more welcoming. Governing parties such as French President Emmanuel Macron’s La République en Marche have become hawkish on migration in recent years, and in 2020, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised Greece as Europe’s “<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/greece-refugees-border-eu-police-ursula-von-der-
leyen-a9373281.html">shield</a>” against asylum seekers and migrants.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fwbFN7">
To this day, migration remains politically fraught in Europe. It’s recently manifested in Poland deciding to deploy troops and construct a <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/25/poland-begins-work-on-400m-belarus-border-wall-against-migrants">$400 million wall</a> to <a href="https://www.rescue.org/article/what-happening-belarus-poland-border">repel predominantly Muslim asylum seekers</a> at its border with Belarus. To complicate the situation, Belarus was accused of transporting those asylum seekers to the Polish border with false promises of easy passage as a means of <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/11/14/22781335/belarus-hybrid-attack-immigrants-border-eu-poland-crisis">antagonizing the EU</a> over sanctions imposed in 2020. And Hungary has passed laws criminalizing support for asylum seekers and limiting the right to asylum; it’s also allowed police to <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/en-
us/news/press/2021/3/6048976e4/unhcr-concerned-hungarys-latest-measures-affecting-access-asylum.html">automatically expel</a> any unauthorized migrants — all measures predominantly affecting Muslims.<strong> </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kUFWiv">
History and foreign policy are two other elements driving the disparate treatment of Ukrainians and non- Ukrainians. The so-called Refugee Convention, signed in 1951 by 145 nations, was initially meant to protect people who had been displaced as a result of World War II in Europe. But it became a weapon Europe used to fight the Cold War, as countries began to use it as a legal framework to absorb people who wanted to leave Soviet bloc countries.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Nf7ylL">
“It became a way, from a political and moral kind of narrative, to project this idea of the West being better than the East,” said Nando Sigona, chair of international migration and forced displacement at the University of Birmingham.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FrTth3">
The EU’s decision to absorb Ukrainians is a continuation of that idea. It allows Europe to position itself as a safe bastion for peaceful, democracy-loving people fleeing for their lives from a dangerous and authoritarian Russia.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jTqltJ">
But when it comes to refugees from other parts of the globe, Europe has become less interested in investing in resettlement. That’s because those refugees don’t do much to advance the continent’s geopolitical interests, Sigona said. Certainly, Europe wants to be seen as a benevolent power and leader on humanitarian issues. But accepting refugees from sub-Saharan Africa or Yemen doesn’t serve its objective of advancing the supremacy of Western-style democracies over the Russian political system.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9hZA0F">
“What we’re seeing with Ukraine now is very much a return to the Cold War kind of logic,” Sigona said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YAL6oR">
Beyond the political considerations, there are also practical issues driving the European response to the refugee crisis. Neighboring European countries are the closest landing spot for Ukrainians who are fleeing, and those Ukrainians currently don’t have a country to go back to. Non-Ukrainians (in some but not all cases, given crises in countries like Yemen or Ethiopia) arguably do.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="llalJf">
“We don’t really have another choice to respond to this crisis because these people are going to come to Europe,” said Camille Le Coz, a senior policy analyst for the Migration Policy Institute Europe.
</p>
<h3 id="6x3eBW">
What’s next for non-Ukrainians fleeing the war?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BFnHuP">
All 27 EU member states have agreed to adopt a directive that instantly grants temporary protection to Ukrainian citizens and some others fleeing Russia’s invasion. It would give them the right to live and work in the European Union for up to three years without going through the EU’s long asylum process that has historically left thousands of refugees in limbo, as well as <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=COM:2022:91:FIN">access to social welfare assistance, medical assistance, and childhood education. </a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QPcc3D">
The fate of non-Ukrainians is less clear, however.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A woman and child, both wearing heavy coats and pink hijabs,
sit on a cot. The woman is speaking to another child, standing to her left, in a pink coat. In front of them, in a
carrier, is a baby with a blue blanket up to their chin. Behind the family are rows and rows and of black cots, each
with a pillow and a brown blanket." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/QnxAcXLMsbiU-
hY3S1yCrJexsT4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23290108/GettyImages_1238877759.jpg"/> <cite>Beata Zawrzel/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A family of non-Ukrainian refugees rests in a temporary shelter in Korczowa, Poland, on March 2, 2022.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6J9nFl">
The EU is not <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-ministers-historical-deal-protect-ukraine-refugees/">offering automatic protection </a>to most of them. That’s partly because Poland, among several other member countries, does not want to host non-Ukrainians long term.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nL82de">
People who had long-term residency permits in Ukraine would be eligible for that automatic protection. But to otherwise qualify for protection, non-Ukrainians, including stateless individuals, must <a href="https://twitter.com/StevePeers/status/1499420861341704202">prove</a> that they were legally residing in Ukraine and are unable to return to their home countries due to the lack of “safe and durable conditions.” It’s not clear how EU countries will determine what constitutes those kinds of conditions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kMGdSl">
They could also apply for asylum through lengthy, traditional pathways, but there’s no guarantee that they will get it. And without legal status in the EU, they could potentially be forcibly returned to their home countries.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hBDKCQ">
“For example, if you’re a Moroccan student, the idea is you go back home. If you’re an Indian student, you go back home,” said Le Coz. “But if you’re an Afghan refugee — because there were some Afghans who had sought refuge in Ukraine or have been evacuated there — it means you can seek asylum in Poland.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7UIEzC">
The policy has left many non-Ukrainians unsure how to regain the opportunities they’d hoped Ukraine would provide. Ali Sadaka, a dentistry student from Lebanon who was studying in Kharkiv, was reluctant to halt his studies and return home.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IyAqby">
“We didn’t want to stop. Most Lebanese students don’t have any other opportunities, mainly because our government won’t help us to continue here. There’s an economic crisis,” he told Vox.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BVr8RJ">
And for nationals of countries currently involved in conflict, there’s been uncertainty as well. Though<strong> </strong>Yemenis should receive protection under the EU’s plan, the Yemeni Embassy in Poland posted <a href="https://twitter.com/embassy_yemen/status/1497595834736721927">a statement</a> on February 26 implying that resettlement in the EU would be difficult. There’s been no further information since.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NSFVJ7">
Ultimately, though, non-Ukrainian refugees “now have to figure out what they are going to do with their lives,” as Azal Al-Salafi, a researcher at Yemen Policy Center, told Vox. And they have limited time to do so.
</p>
<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>India women begin elusive trophy search with World Cup opener against Pakistan</strong> - India’s bowlers struggled compared to the batting unit, which managed to score in excess of 250 runs five times in the seven 50-over outings, including two 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>Easy like Sunday morning</strong> - Ordinary won’t change the world: Lewis Pugh</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>Women’s World Cup | Khaka bowls South Africa to 32-run win over Bangladesh</strong> - The South Africans were bundled out for a below-par 207; Bangladesh could only manage 175</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>Women's World Cup | Haynes, Lanning set up 12-run win for Australia</strong> - Nat Sciver, who remained unbeaten on 109, and star opener Tammy Beaumont (74) tried to rally England to victory but the defending champions fell short in an exciting match</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>Mad Love and Queen O’ War please</strong> -</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>Congress faults YSRCP for clinging on to the three- capital theory</strong> - At least now, the government should think about development, says Thulasi Reddy</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>Dheeraj murder: five bail pleas rejected</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>Plan fund utilisation in local bodies at 59.51%</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>Scientists rediscover two rare spiders after over a century</strong> - Species spotted on campus of Christ College, Irinjalakuda</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>CM to hold conference with Collectors, police and forest officials</strong> - He will review administration, law and order and development in the districts</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>Siege of Mariupol: Fresh Russian attacks throw evacuation into chaos</strong> - Mariupol authorities postpone a planned mass evacuation because of continued bombardment.</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>War in Ukraine: Zelensky slams Nato over rejection of no-fly zone</strong> - Zelensky said Nato has given Russia “a green light” to continue bombing Ukrainian towns and cities.</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>War in Ukraine: UK woman on husband barred from leaving Ukraine</strong> - Nicola’s husband home was barred from returning home to London from Ukraine due to martial law.</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 nuclear plant: Russia in control after shelling</strong> - Authorities say the facility - the largest plant in Europe - is safe and radiation levels are normal.</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>War in Ukraine: Russians on boycotts, sanctions and cancellations</strong> - Russia is being hit by a global backlash after it invaded Ukraine. How does it feel to be shunned?</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>Liveblog: All the news from Apple’s “Peek performance” event</strong> - Tune in at 1 pm EDT on March 8, 2022, to see what’s next from Apple. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1838354">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Hackers stoke pandemonium amid Russia’s war in Ukraine</strong> - A wave of cyberattacks meant to buoy Ukraine could have unintended consequences. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1838378">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Prominent peddler of COVID misinfo pleads guilty to joining Capitol riot</strong> - Gold has spent the pandemic downplaying COVID-19 and promoting unproven treatments. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1838478">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Activision employee suicide was spurred by workplace harassment, lawsuit says</strong> - Parents of deceased allege “hostile work environment” contributed to her death. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1838470">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Elon Musk: “High” probability of Russian attacks on Starlink in Ukraine</strong> - Musk urges users to place Starlink antennas as far away from people as possible. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1838408">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Stalin appears to Putin in a dream.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Why is everything here so bad?” asks Putin, “what can I do to make Russia great again?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Stalin replies, “Execute half of your population and paint the Kremlin blue.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Why blue?” asks the inquisitive Putin.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“I knew you wouldn’t object to the first part,” says Stalin.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/MudakMudakov"> /u/MudakMudakov </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t71lut/stalin_appears_to_putin_in_a_dream/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t71lut/stalin_appears_to_putin_in_a_dream/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A sadist, a masochist, a murderer, a necrophile, a zoophile and a pyromaniac are all sitting on a bench in a mental institution.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Let’s have sex with a cat?” asked the zoophile.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Let’s have sex with the cat and then torture it,” says the sadist.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Let’s have sex with the cat, torture it and then kill it,” shouted the murderer.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Let’s have sex with the cat, torture it, kill it and then have sex with it again,” said the necrophile.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Let’s have sex with the cat, torture it, kill it, have sex with it again and then burn it,” said the pyromaniac.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
There was silence, and then the masochist said:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Meow.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/bee_like_bob"> /u/bee_like_bob </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t6rf9a/a_sadist_a_masochist_a_murderer_a_necrophile_a/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t6rf9a/a_sadist_a_masochist_a_murderer_a_necrophile_a/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>If Ani is short for Anakin and Obi is short for Obi-Wan, what is Luke short for?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A stormtrooper.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/wimpykidfan37"> /u/wimpykidfan37 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t6noml/if_ani_is_short_for_anakin_and_obi_is_short_for/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t6noml/if_ani_is_short_for_anakin_and_obi_is_short_for/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>Officer: I’m arresting yoh for illegally downloading the entire wikipedia</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Man: Wait I can explain everything!
</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/dulhan-perera"> /u/dulhan-perera </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t70s1p/officer_im_arresting_yoh_for_illegally/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t70s1p/officer_im_arresting_yoh_for_illegally/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>My buddy got arrested on drug charges and because it was his first offense, he thought he would get off lightly, but it turned out his lawyer was one of the worst in the state and ended up botching his case, so instead of getting a short term, he ended up getting 40 years without parole!!</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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Man, that sentence was way too long!
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/808gecko808"> /u/808gecko808 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t6g4h3/my_buddy_got_arrested_on_drug_charges_and_because/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/t6g4h3/my_buddy_got_arrested_on_drug_charges_and_because/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
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