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<title>24 March, 2024</title>
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<title>Covid-19 Sentry</title><meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" name="viewport"/><link href="styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="../styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.css" rel="stylesheet"/><script src="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.js"></script></head>
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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>Do abortion bans somehow save pregnant people’s lives? A cautionary research note on trends in maternal death post-Dobbs</strong> -
<div>
The National Center for Health Statistics’ published provisional monthly estimates of maternal death (12-month ending counts) appear to demonstrate that the end of federal protection for abortion rights in June 2022 was associated with an immediate and dramatic decline in maternal deaths. In this research note we investigate this apparent association by comparing the 12-month ending counts with monthly counts of maternal death. We decompose change in the 12-month ending counts into change due to months leaving the sum and change due to the current month entering the sum and conclude that the rapid decline in the 12-month ending counts is driven by events in 2021, specifically the shock to maternal deaths during the Delta and Omicron waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Actual monthly final and provisional maternal deaths from the National Vital Statistics Surveillance System did not decline after June 2022. We caution that any analysis of change in maternal deaths should exercise extreme caution when using summed measures in general and the 12-month ending counts in particular.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/jtkqe/" target="_blank">Do abortion bans somehow save pregnant people’s lives? A cautionary research note on trends in maternal death post-Dobbs</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Online Data Collection in Applied Linguistics</strong> -
<div>
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers became resourceful and many transitioned to online methods for remote data collection, suddenly bringing many platforms and methods to prominence in new experimental contexts. As in-person data collection resumed, online data collection remained as these methods have proven particularly useful in the field of applied linguistics and especially Second Language Acquisition (SLA), which often requires researchers to recruit participants who are inherently difficult to find (e.g., individuals proficient in less-commonly taught languages or living in a context far from the researcher’s university). In this chapter, we highlight factors that researchers should consider when implementing online research along with a high-level troubleshooting guide. We cover recruitment, enhancing participant performance, implementation, and deployment. Within these topics, we highlight important technological, procedural, and participant privacy recommendations for visual, aural, and oral online data collection designs specially tailored for applied linguists.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/pxfc4/" target="_blank">Online Data Collection in Applied Linguistics</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Identification of Novel Allosteric Sites of SARS-CoV-2 Papain-Like Protease (PLpro) for the Development of COVID-19 Antivirals</strong> -
<div>
Coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV-2 encode a conserved papain-like protease (PLpro) that is crucial for viral replication and immune evasion, making it a prime target for antiviral drug development. In this study, three surface pockets on SARS-CoV-2 PLpro that may function as sites for allosteric inhibition were computationally identified. To evaluate the effects of these pockets on proteolytic activity, 52 residues were separately mutated to alanine. In Pocket 1, located between the Ubl and thumb domains, the introduction of alanine at T10, D12, T54, Y72, or Y83 reduced PLpro activity to &lt;12% of that of WT. In Pocket 2, situated at the interface of the thumb, fingers, and palm domains, Q237A, S239A, H275A, and S278A inactivated PLpro. Finally, introducing alanine at five residues in Pocket 3, between the fingers and palm domains, inactivated PLpro: S212, Y213, Y251, K254, and Y305. Pocket 1 has a higher druggability score than Pockets 2 and 3. MD simulations showed that interactions within and between domains play critical roles in PLpro activity and thermal stability. The essential residues in Pockets 1 and 2 participate in a combination of intra- and inter-domain interactions. By contrast, the essential residues in Pocket 3 predominantly participate in inter-domain interactions. The most promising targets for therapeutic development are Pockets 1 and 3, which have the highest druggability score and the largest number of essential residues, respectively. Non-competitive inhibitors targeting these pockets may be antiviral agents against COVID-19 and related coronaviruses.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.05.16.540953v3" target="_blank">Identification of Novel Allosteric Sites of SARS-CoV-2 Papain-Like Protease (PLpro) for the Development of COVID-19 Antivirals</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Neural networks built from enzymatic reactions can operate as linear and nonlinear classifiers</strong> -
<div>
The engineering of molecular programs capable of processing patterns of multi-input biomarkers holds great potential in applications ranging from in vitro diagnostics (e.g., viral detection, including COVID-19) to therapeutic interventions (e.g., discriminating cancer cells from normal cells). For this reason, mechanisms to design molecular networks for pattern recognition are highly sought after. In this work, we explore how enzymatic networks can be used for both linear and nonlinear classification tasks. By leveraging steady-state analysis and showing global stability, we demonstrate that these networks can function as molecular perceptrons, fundamental units of artificial neural networks-capable of processing multiple inputs associated with positive and negative weights to achieve linear classification. Furthermore, by composing orthogonal enzymatic reactions, we show that multi-layer networks can be constructed to achieve nonlinear classification.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.23.586372v1" target="_blank">Neural networks built from enzymatic reactions can operate as linear and nonlinear classifiers</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Neutralisation sensitivity of the SARS-CoV-2 BA.2.87.1 variant</strong> -
<div>
Against the backdrop of the rapid global takeover and dominance of BA.1/BA.2 and subsequently BA.2.86 lineages, the emergence of a highly divergent SARS-CoV-2 variant warrants characterization and close monitoring. Recently, another such BA.2 descendent, designated BA.2.87.1, was detected in South Africa. Here, we show using spike-pseudotyped viruses that BA.2.87.1 is less resistant to neutralisation by prevailing antibody responses in Sweden than other currently circulating variants such as JN.1. Further we show that a monovalent XBB.1.5-adapted booster enhanced neutralising antibody titers to BA.2.87.1 by almost 4-fold. While BA.2.87.1 may not outcompete other currently-circulating lineages, the repeated emergence and transmission of highly diverged variants suggests that another large antigenic shift, similar to the replacement by Omicron, may be likely in the future.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.21.586176v1" target="_blank">Neutralisation sensitivity of the SARS-CoV-2 BA.2.87.1 variant</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Design of Antigen-Specific Antibody CDRH3 Sequences Using AI and Germline-Based Templates</strong> -
<div>
Antibody-antigen specificity is engendered and refined through a number of complex B cell processes, including germline gene recombination and somatic hypermutation. Here, we present an AI-based technology for de novo generation of antigen-specific antibody CDRH3 sequences using germline-based templates, and validate this technology through the generation of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. AI-based processes that mimic the outcome, but bypass the complexity of natural antibody generation, can be efficient and effective alternatives to traditional experimental approaches for antibody discovery.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.22.586241v1" target="_blank">Design of Antigen-Specific Antibody CDRH3 Sequences Using AI and Germline-Based Templates</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The influence of COVID-19 fear beliefs on the relationships between positive mood and loss-of-control eating: a ten-day diary study</strong> -
<div>
Loss-of-control eating (LOCE) is driven by mood, and prevalence increased following onset of coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). COVID-19 is associated with many stressors, including fear of illness, which could potentiate a relationship between mood and LOCE. Additionally, daily protective strategies to prevent contagion may be associated with LOCE, in line with ego depletion theory. Adults (N = 108) completed a 10-day diary study regarding LOCE, positive and negative mood, and protective behaviors. Participants rated COVID fear beliefs at a baseline assessment, hypothesized to predict LOCE directly between-subjects and have a cross-level interactive effect within-subjects. Data were analyzed with a multilevel model. Negative mood was associated with LOCE at both levels, although protective behaviors evinced no significant associations. Positive mood lacked significant direct association with LOCE, although there was an interactive effect such that there was an inverse association at low fear beliefs. Directions for future research and clinical implications are discussed.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/ta659/" target="_blank">The influence of COVID-19 fear beliefs on the relationships between positive mood and loss-of-control eating: a ten-day diary study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines boost the capacity of pre-existing SARS-CoV-2-specific memory B cells to cross-recognize Omicron subvariants</strong> -
<div>
Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines comprising ancestral Wuhan-Hu-1 (WH1) and the Omicron BA.1 or BA.5 subvariant elicit enhanced serum antibody responses to emerging Omicron subvariants. We characterized the memory B-cell (Bmem) response following a fourth dose with a BA.1 or BA.5 bivalent vaccine, and compared the immunogenicity with a WH1 monovalent fourth dose. Healthcare workers previously immunized with mRNA or adenoviral vector monovalent vaccines were sampled before and one-month after a monovalent, BA.1 or BA.5 bivalent fourth dose COVID-19 vaccine. RBD-specific Bmem were quantified with an in-depth spectral flow cytometry panel including recombinant RBD proteins of the WH1, BA.1, BA.5, BQ.1.1, and XBB.1.5 variants. All recipients had slightly increased WH1 RBD-specific Bmem numbers. Recognition of Omicron subvariants was not enhanced following monovalent vaccination, while both bivalent vaccines significantly increased WH1 RBD-specific Bmem cross-recognition of all Omicron subvariants tested by flow cytometry. Thus, Omicron-based bivalent vaccines can improve recognition of descendent Omicron subvariants by pre-existing, WH1-specific Bmem, beyond that of a conventional, monovalent vaccine. This provides new insights into the capacity of variant-based mRNA booster vaccines to improve immune memory against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.20.585861v1" target="_blank">Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines boost the capacity of pre-existing SARS-CoV-2-specific memory B cells to cross-recognize Omicron subvariants</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Power users: Technology and Canadian sex workers during COVID-19</strong> -
<div>
The transition from physical to online advertising by sex workers in Canada has been well documented. However, few studies use rigorous sampling methods. This study considers how a technically sophisticated group of advertisers from a large Canadian sex work classifieds site used multiple online resources to promote or provide services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advertisers qualified for the study if they used a URL as part of their contact information and were actively advertising between August 23 and September 22, 2022. A random sample of 1000 qualifying advertisers were selected of which 783 had accessible contact URLs. Themes were identified in downloaded website texts using grounded theory analysis. Ad metadata was used to identify demographic and behavioral distinctions between the sample and other advertisers. Almost all sampled advertisers (99%) provided in person services and most (70%) provided online services. The sample advertised more frequently, were more affluent and were more likely to be Anglophone, White, trans-female, or provide BDSM services. Themes of security, health, identity, and social networks were identified. Advertisers emphasized physical, emotional, and financial security. Most workers did not work in isolation and many participated in extensive social networks.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/u5kd2/" target="_blank">Power users: Technology and Canadian sex workers during COVID-19</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Modulation of Biophysical Properties of Nucleocapsid Protein in the Mutant Spectrum of SARS-CoV-2</strong> -
<div>
Genetic diversity is a hallmark of RNA viruses and the basis for their evolutionary success. Taking advantage of the uniquely large genomic database of SARS-CoV-2, we examine the impact of mutations across the spectrum of viable amino acid sequences on the biophysical phenotypes of the highly expressed and multifunctional nucleocapsid protein. We find variation in the physicochemical parameters of its extended intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) sufficient to allow local plasticity, but also exhibiting functional constraints that similarly occur in related coronaviruses. In biophysical experiments with several N-protein species carrying mutations associated with major variants, we find that point mutations in the IDRs can have nonlocal impact and modulate thermodynamic stability, secondary structure, protein oligomeric state, particle formation, and liquid-liquid phase separation. In the Omicron variant, distant mutations in different IDRs have compensatory effects in shifting a delicate balance of interactions controlling protein assembly properties, and include the creation of a new protein-protein interaction interface in the N-terminal IDR through the defining P13L mutation. A picture emerges where genetic diversity is accompanied by significant variation in biophysical characteristics of functional N-protein species, in particular in the IDRs.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.11.21.568093v2" target="_blank">Modulation of Biophysical Properties of Nucleocapsid Protein in the Mutant Spectrum of SARS-CoV-2</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>SARS-CoV-2 infection activates inflammatory macrophages in vascular immune organoids</strong> -
<div>
SARS-CoV-2 provokes devastating tissue damage by cytokine release syndrome and leads to multi-organ failure. Modeling the process of immune cell activation and subsequent tissue damage is a significant task. Organoids from human tissues advanced our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 infection mechanisms though, they are missing crucial components: immune cells and endothelial cells. This study aims to generate organoids with these components. We established vascular immune organoids from human pluripotent stem cells and examined the effect of SARS-CoV-2 infection. We demonstrated that infections activated inflammatory macrophages. Notably, the upregulation of interferon signaling supports macrophages role in cytokine release syndrome. We propose vascular immune organoids are a useful platform to model and discover factors that ameliorate SARS-CoV-2-mediated cytokine release syndrome.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.20.585837v1" target="_blank">SARS-CoV-2 infection activates inflammatory macrophages in vascular immune organoids</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Deep learning of antibody epitopes using molecular permutation vectors</strong> -
<div>
The accurate computational prediction of B cell epitopes can vastly reduce the cost and time required for identifying potential epitope candidates for the design of vaccines and immunodiagnostics. However, current computational tools for B cell epitope prediction perform poorly and are not fit-for-purpose, and there remains enormous room for improvement and the need for superior prediction strategies. Here we propose a novel approach that improves B cell epitope prediction by encoding epitopes as binary molecular permutation vectors that represent the position and structural properties of the amino acids within a protein antigen sequence that interact with an antibody, rather than the traditional approach of defining epitopes as scores per amino acid on a protein sequence that pertain to their probability of partaking in a B cell epitope antibody interaction. In addition to defining epitopes as a binary molecular permutation vectors, the approach also uses the 3D macrostructure features of the unbound 3D protein structures, and in turn uses these features to train another deep learning model on the corresponding antibody-bound protein 3D structures. We demonstrate that the strategy predicts B cell epitopes with improved accuracy compared to the existing tools, and reliably identifies the majority of experimentally verified epitopes on the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 not seen by the model in training. With the approach described herein, a primary protein sequence with the query molecular permutation vector alone is required to predict B cell epitopes in a reliable manner, potentially advancing the use of computational prediction of B cell epitopes in biomedical research applications.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.20.585661v1" target="_blank">Deep learning of antibody epitopes using molecular permutation vectors</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Simulation-Driven Design of Stabilized SARS-CoV-2 Spike S2 Immunogens</strong> -
<div>
The full-length prefusion-stabilized SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) is the principal antigen of COVID-19 vaccines. Vaccine efficacy has been impacted by emerging variants of concern that accumulate most of the sequence modifications in the immunodominant S1 subunit. S2, in contrast, is the most evolutionarily conserved region of the spike and can elicit broadly neutralizing and protective antibodies. Yet, S2s usage as an alternative vaccine strategy is hampered by its general instability. Here, we use a simulation-driven approach to design S2-only immunogens stabilized in a closed prefusion conformation. Molecular simulations provide a mechanistic characterization of the S2 trimers opening, informing the design of tryptophan substitutions that impart kinetic and thermodynamic stabilization. Structural characterization via cryo-EM shows the molecular basis of S2 stabilization in the closed prefusion conformation. Informed by molecular simulations and corroborated by experiments, we report an engineered S2 immunogen that exhibits increased protein expression, superior thermostability, and preserved immunogenicity against sarbecoviruses.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.10.24.563841v3" target="_blank">Simulation-Driven Design of Stabilized SARS-CoV-2 Spike S2 Immunogens</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Identifying causal role of COVID-19 in immunopsychiatry models</strong> -
<div>
This preprint is a 1000-word Viewpoint that explores methodological considerations of the COVID-19 pandemic for immunopsychiatry. It has been accepted for publication in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity for a special issue on Immunopsychiatry and COVID-19. Specifically, we discuss the treatment of COVID-19 as a confounding versus mediating variable in immunopsychiatric research. We leverage simulated data varied in sample and effect size to illustrate key considerations. Further, we highlight the statistical implications of each of these scenarios. Recommendations and key considerations for the field are briefly discussed.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/w4d5u/" target="_blank">Identifying causal role of COVID-19 in immunopsychiatry models</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The advent of the COVID-19 epidemic did not affect Americans’ endorsement of moral foundations</strong> -
<div>
Prior work has suggested that existential threats in the form of terror attacks may shift liberals’ reliance on moral foundations to more resemble those of conservatives. We therefore hypothesized that endorsement of these moral foundations would have increased when the COVID-19 epidemic became a salient threat. To examine this hypothesis we conducted a longitudinal study with 237 American participants across the liberal-conservative spectrum, in which their endorsement of various moral foundations were measured before and after the advent of the pandemic. We did not find evidence of any systematic change in the endorsement of any moral foundation, neither in general nor specifically among liberals or specifically among those who perceived the greatest threat from COVID-19. We conclude that the threat from the pandemic does not seem to have had any substantial effect on the moral foundations that people rely on. This finding is consistent with other longitudinal studies of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on measures related to conservatism.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/957zk/" target="_blank">The advent of the COVID-19 epidemic did not affect Americans’ endorsement of moral foundations</a>
</div></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Reducing Chronic Breathlessness in Adults by Following a Self-guided, Internet Based Supportive Intervention (SELF-BREATHE)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Advanced Respiratory Disease; Chronic Breathlessness Due to Advanced Respiratory Disease; Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease; Bronchiectasis; Interstitial Lung Disease; Lung Cancer; Asthma; Chronic Fibrotic Lung Disease Following SARS-CoV2 Infection <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Other: SELF-BREATHE <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: King’s College Hospital NHS Trust <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>Valacyclovir Plus Celecoxib for Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; PASC Post Acute Sequelae of COVID 19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Valacyclovir celecoxib dose 1; Drug: Valacyclovir celecoxib dose 2; Drug: Placebo <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Bateman Horne Center <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>Supervised Computerized Active Program for People With Post-COVID Syndrome (SuperCAP Study)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Post-COVID Condition <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Device: SuperCAP Program <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Fundación FLS de Lucha Contra el Sida, las Enfermedades Infecciosas y la Promoción de la Salud y la Ciencia; Institut de Recerca de la SIDA IrsiCaixa; Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital <br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Utilizing Novel Blood RNA Biomarkers as a Diagnostic Tool in the Identification of Long COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Diagnostic Test: RNA Biomarker Blood Test <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: MaxWell Clinic, PLC <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>Home-Based Circuit Training in Overweight/Obese Older Adult Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis and Type 2 Diabetes</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Aerobic Exercise; Strength Training; Glycemic Control; Blood Pressure; Oxidative Stress; Metabolic Syndrome <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Behavioral: 12-week home-based circuit training (HBCT); Behavioral: Standard of care (CONT) <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University <br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SVF for Treating Pulmonary Fibrosis Post COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Pulmonary Fibrosis <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Biological: Autologous adipose-derived SVF IV administration <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Michael H Carstens; Ministerio de Salud de Nicaragua; Wake Forest University; National Autonomous University of Nicaragua <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>RECOVER-AUTONOMIC Platform Protocol</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; Long Covid19; Long Covid-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: IVIG + Coordinated Care; Drug: IVIG Placebo + Coordinated Care; Drug: Ivabradine + Coordinated Care; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo + Coordinated Care; Drug: IVIG + Usual Care; Drug: IVIG Placebo + Usual Care; Drug: Ivabradine + Usual Care; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo + Usual Care <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman <br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RECOVER-AUTONOMIC: Platform Protocol, Appendix B (Ivabradine)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; Long Covid19; Long Covid-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Ivabradine; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo; Behavioral: Coordinated Care; Behavioral: Usual Care <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman <br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RECOVER-AUTONOMIC: Platform Protocol, Appendix A (IVIG)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; Long Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid19); Long Covid-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulin); Drug: IVIG Placebo; Behavioral: Coordinated Care; Behavioral: Usual Care <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman <br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</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>Lymphopenia associated with survivin and its downstream pathway in COVID-19 serving as a potential route in COVID-19 pathogenesis</strong> - CONCLUSION: The role of survivin and its related pathway was first discovered in the development of COVID-19 and may serve as a potential prognostic and therapeutic target.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Discovery of Covalent Lead Compounds Targeting 3CL Protease with a Lateral Interactions Spiking Neural Network</strong> - Covalent drugs exhibit advantages in that noncovalent drugs cannot match, and covalent docking is an important method for screening covalent lead compounds. However, it is difficult for covalent docking to screen covalent compounds on a large scale because covalent docking requires determination of the covalent reaction type of the compound. Here, we propose to use deep learning of a lateral interactions spiking neural network to construct a covalent lead compound screening model to quickly…</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>Establishment, Optimization and validation of a fluorescence polarization-based high-throughput screening assay targeting Cathepsin L inhibitors</strong> - Cathepsin L (CTSL), a lysosomal cysteine proteinase, is primarily dedicated to the metabolic turnover of intracellular proteins. It is involved in various physiological processes and contributes to pathological conditions such as viral infection, tumor invasion and metastasis, inflammatory status, atherosclerosis, renal disease, diabetes, bone diseases, and other ailments. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), with its rapid global spread and significant mortality, has been a worldwide…</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>C1q enables influenza hemagglutinin stem binding antibodies to block viral attachment and broadens the antibody escape repertoire</strong> - Antigenic drift, the gradual accumulation of amino acid substitutions in the influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) receptor protein, enables viral immune evasion. Antibodies (Abs) specific for the drift-resistant HA stem region are a promising universal influenza vaccine target. Although anti-stem Abs are not believed to block viral attachment, here we show that complement component 1q (C1q), a 460-kilodalton protein with six Ab Fc-binding domains, confers attachment inhibition to anti-stem Abs and…</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>Molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation-based phytoconstituents against SARS-CoV-2 with dual inhibition of the primary protease targets</strong> - A novel coronavirus has caused major health problems and is spreading globally. The main protease enzyme plays a significant role in the number of copies of ss-RNA produced during the proteolytic cleavage of polypeptides. This work aims to find possible dual inhibitors of the 3-Chymotrypsin-like proteases PDB-6W63 and 6LU7 which increase efficiency and faster inhibition activity. By using an in-silico technique, polyphenols are molecularly docked against these targets to inhibit protease…</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>N-Arylsulfonamide-based adenosine analogues to target RNA cap N7-methyltransferase nsp14 of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - RNA cap methylations have been shown to be crucial for the life cycle, replication, and infection of ssRNA viruses, as well as for evading the host’s innate immune system. Viral methyltransferases (MTases) therefore represent an attractive target for the development of compounds as tools and inhibitors. In coronaviruses, N7-methyltransferase function is localized in nsp14, which has become an increasingly important therapeutic target with the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent years, we have been…</p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Unusual NiNi interaction in Ni(ii) complexes as potential inhibitors for the development of new anti-SARS-CoV-2 Omicron drugs</strong> - Two nickel(ii) coordination complexes <a href="2">Ni(L)</a>(1) and <a href="n">Ni(L)</a>(2) of a tetradentate Schiff base ligand (H(2)L) derived from 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehyde with ethylenediamine were synthesized, designed, and characterized via spectroscopic and single crystal XRD analyses. Both nickel(ii) complexes exhibited unusual Ni⋯Ni interactions and were fully characterized via single-crystal X-ray crystallography. Nickel(ii) complexes <a href="2">Ni(L)</a>(1) and <a href="n">Ni(L)</a>(2) crystallize in monoclinic and triclinic…</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>Integrating virtual screening, pharmacoinformatics profiling, and molecular dynamics: identification of promising inhibitors targeting 3CLpro of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - Introduction: The pursuit of effective therapeutic solutions for SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19 necessitates the repurposing of existing compounds. This study focuses on the detailed examination of the central protease, 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro), a pivotal player in virus replication. The combined approach of molecular dynamics simulations and virtual screening is employed to identify potential inhibitors targeting 3CLpro. Methods: A comprehensive virtual screening of 7120…</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>TRIM6 facilitates SARS-CoV-2 proliferation by catalyzing the K29-typed ubiquitination of NP to enhance the ability to bind viral genomes</strong> - The Nucleocapsid Protein (NP) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is not only the core structural protein required for viral packaging, but also participates in the regulation of viral replication, and its post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation have been shown to be an important strategy for regulating virus proliferation. Our previous work identified NP could be ubiquitinated, as confirmed by two independent studies. But the function of NP…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Identification of FasL as a crucial host factor driving COVID-19 pathology and lethality</strong> - The dysregulated immune response and inflammation resulting in severe COVID-19 are still incompletely understood. Having recently determined that aberrant death-ligand-induced cell death can cause lethal inflammation, we hypothesized that this process might also cause or contribute to inflammatory disease and lung failure following SARS-CoV-2 infection. To test this hypothesis, we developed a novel mouse-adapted SARS-CoV-2 model (MA20) that recapitulates key pathological features of 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>No immunological interference or concerns about safety when seasonal quadrivalent influenza vaccine is co-administered with a COVID-19 mRNA-1273 booster vaccine in adults: A randomized trial</strong> - The objective of the study was to assess the safety and immunogenicity of mRNA-1273 COVID-19 booster vaccination when co-administered with an egg-based standard dose seasonal quadrivalent influenza vaccine (QIV). This was a phase 3, randomized, open-label study. Eligible adults aged ≥ 18 years were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive mRNA-1273 (50 µg) booster vaccination and QIV 2 weeks apart (Seq group) or concomitantly (Coad group). Primary objectives were non-inferiority of haemagglutinin…</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>Targeted degradation of zDHHC-PATs decreases substrate S-palmitoylation</strong> - Reversible S-palmitoylation of protein cysteines, catalysed by a family of integral membrane zDHHC-motif containing palmitoyl acyl transferases (zDHHC-PATs), controls the localisation, activity, and interactions of numerous integral and peripheral membrane proteins. There are compelling reasons to want to inhibit the activity of individual zDHHC-PATs in both the laboratory and the clinic, but the specificity of existing tools is poor. Given the extensive conservation of the zDHHC-PAT active…</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>Inhibitory effects of senkyuchachosan on SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease activity in vitro</strong> - Papain-like protease (PLpro) enzyme plays a vital role in viral replication as it breaks down polyproteins and disrupts the host’s immune response. There are few reports on Kampo formulas that focus on PLpro activity. In this study, we evaluated the inhibitory effects of senkyuchachosan, a traditional Japanese medicine, on PLpro of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for causing COVID-19. We purified the PLpro enzyme and conducted in vitro enzymatic assays using specific substrates. Among the nine…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Identification of inositol monophosphatase as a broad-spectrum antiviral target of ivermectin</strong> - Ivermectin has broad-spectrum antiviral activities. Despite the failure in clinical application of COVID-19, it can serve as a lead compound for the development of more effective broad-spectrum antivirals, for which a better understanding of its antiviral mechanisms is essential. We thus searched for potential novel targets of ivermectin in host cells by label-free thermal proteomic profiling using Huh-7 cells. Inositol monophosphatase (IMPase) was found among the proteins with shifted thermal…</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>Optimized Recombinant Expression and Purification of the SARS-CoV-2 Polymerase Complex</strong> - An optimized protocol has been developed to express and purify the core RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) complex from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). The expression and purification of active core SARS-CoV-2 RdRp complex is challenging due to the complex multidomain fold of nsp12, and the assembly of the multimeric complex involving nsp7, nsp8, and nsp12. Our approach adapts a previously published method to express the core SARS-CoV-2 RdRP complex in…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
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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>What It Takes to Give Palestinians a Voice</strong> - A new poll conducted during war in Gaza and escalating tensions in the West Bank allows Palestinians to tell the world what they want for their future. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/what-it-takes-to-give-palestinians-a-voice">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Quinta Brunson Hacked the Sitcom with “Abbott Elementary”</strong> - With “Abbott Elementary,” the comedian and writer found fresh humor and mass appeal in a world she knew well. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/quinta-brunson-profile">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Crime Rings Stealing Everything from Purses to Power Tools</strong> - In Los Angeles, a task force of detectives is battling organized retail theft, in which boosted goods often end up for sale online—or commingled on store shelves with legitimate items. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/the-crime-rings-stealing-everything-from-purses-to-power-tools">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Julien’s Auctions Leads the Booming Market in Celebrity Memorabilia</strong> - As the art market cools, Julien’s Auctions earns millions selling celebrity ephemera—and used its connections to help Kim Kardashian borrow Marilyn Monroe’s J.F.K.-birthday dress. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/how-juliens-auctions-leads-the-booming-market-in-celebrity-memorabilia">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Has Putin’s Invasion of Ukraine Improved His Standing in Russia?</strong> - As Russians go to the polls, the economy is booming and the public feels hopeful about the future. But the politics of Putinism still depend on the absence of any means to challenge it. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-weekend-essay/has-putins-invasion-of-ukraine-improved-his-standing-in-russia">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Congress can’t get anything done. Except on foreign aid.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="U.S. Rep.-elect Matt Gaetz (R-FL) talks to Reps.-elect Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Joe Neguse (D-CO) and other Democratic members in the House Chamber during the third day of elections for Speaker of the House at the US Capitol Building on January 5, 2023 in Washington, DC" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/mLAY04RD71f_cMtLDeuA3Lm4iog=/613x0:5525x3684/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73229121/1454483238.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-CA), center, is sponsoring the Locally-Led Development and Humanitarian Response Act, which passed the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on March 20. | Win McNamee/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Major reform on how the US gives money to other countries is breezing through the House with bipartisan support.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sVYc5c">
Today’s <a href="https://www.vox.com/congress">Congress</a> is not exactly a well-oiled machine. Even <a href="https://www.vox.com/politics/2023/12/27/24012615/house-republicans-humiliating-year-speaker-mccarthy">picking a speaker</a> has proven to be incredibly difficult for the House, which took as many floor votes on the matter in 2023 alone as in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_speaker_of_the_United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections">previous 36 years combined</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="61MZVB">
But there’s one issue in which Congress has shown a surprising facility for bipartisan, bicameral cooperation: foreign aid.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xH9SgY">
Last year saw a <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2023/1/13/23544865/congress-hiv-malaria-global-fund-replenishment">historic deal to greatly increase funding</a> for global health efforts, especially those targeting AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis — which together kill some 2.5 million people a year — as well as <a href="https://www.vox.com/2023/4/25/23692700/usaid-foreign-aid-joaquin-castro-young-kim">new bipartisan legislation</a> introduced to reform the way the US Agency for International Development (USAID), America’s leading foreign aid agency, works.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="J42f15">
2024 promises more bipartisan collaboration on the issue. This past week, <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/7710?s=1&amp;r=1">Reps. Sara Jacobs (D-CA) and Cory Mills (R-FL)</a> and <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/3994/cosponsors?s=1&amp;r=1">Sens. Christopher Coons (D-DE), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Pete Ricketts (R-NE)</a> introduced the <a href="https://sarajacobs.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=910">Locally-Led Development and Humanitarian Response Act</a>, another measure to reform USAID. Introduced in the House on March 19, it already passed the Foreign Affairs Committee by a unanimous voice vote on March 20.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TSWPXQ">
The bill is meant to push USAID to distribute more of its budget to local groups in the countries where it works. The basic case for using more local groups is simple. US aid spending currently goes largely to a <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/23274306/usaid-foreign-aid-effectiveness-evidence-grants">small group of very large contractors</a> that are insulated from evaluation and tend toward bloated programs.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Fvg1pJ">
Giving the money instead to small local organizations would not only help develop civil society in developing countries, but likely achieve better outcomes at a lower cost. A recent review by development research group the Share Trust estimated that <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b2110247c93271263b5073a/t/6377d05b92d652286d6720e5/1668796508981/Passing+the+Buck_Report.pdf">funding aid through local groups is roughly 32 percent more cost-effective</a> than funding groups based in rich countries, largely because salaries and overhead in rich countries are significantly higher.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="X8IAUl">
This isn’t new: USAID administrators going back decades have promised more funding for local programs. Raj Shah, Obama’s first USAID administrator, had a push called <a href="https://www.cgdev.org/blog/usaid-didnt-hit-its-30-percent-target-local-solutions">“Local Solutions.”</a> Mark Green, who led the agency under Trump, had the <a href="https://www.usaid.gov/npi/npi-awards">New Partnership Initiative</a>, with similar goals.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Nu4qGe">
Local funding, however, is still the exception. The agency distributed <a href="https://www.foreignassistance.gov/agencies">$38.8 billion in fiscal year 2022</a>, or about $30 billion excluding Ukraine aid. But that same year, <a href="https://www.usaid.gov/news-information/press-releases/jun-12-2023-usaid-releases-localization-progress-report">only 10.2 percent of funds went to local partners</a>: “organizations, firms, and individuals based in the countries in which we work.” Current administrator Samantha Power has <a href="https://www.usaid.gov/news-information/speeches/nov-04-2021-administrator-samantha-power-new-vision-global-development">pledged to increase that share</a> to 25 percent by next year and 50 percent by 2030, ambitious targets that will be challenging to hit.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="P8mEvA">
The Locally-Led Development and Humanitarian Response Act is meant to move toward that goal by clearing out red tape, some of it imposed by past acts of Congress, to make it easier for small local organizations to apply for support from USAID. Specifically, it:
</p>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KOf8W2">
Lets groups apply for money in languages other than English, sparing them translation costs
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6RzVTr">
Grants more flexibility in accounting systems, so groups using systems common outside the US can still apply
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5igIiY">
Allowing late registrations on the System for Award Management, a federal government-wide platform for paying vendors
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8mnweg">
Lets USAID missions restrict bids to local groups on projects costing up to $25 million; currently only projects under $5 million can be restricted to local groups
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KOe3RW">
Increases the share of grants allowed to be spent on administrative costs/overhead from 10 percent to 15 percent
</li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RhxyVS">
The last bit, allowing higher overhead charges, may seem on its face like a problem. After all, money spent on overhead is money not spent on direct aid. But the change is meant to address an inequity in how local organizations are currently treated compared to big contractors.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uXo0kk">
Right now, small local groups “only really get 10 percent of the contract for overhead,” Rep. Jacobs said in an interview, “whereas big organizations negotiate larger overhead costs and get more money for overhead.” Boosting the share to 15 percent is meant to provide an equal playing field.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HF1Q5U">
Erin Collinson, director of policy outreach at the Center on Global Development and a development policy expert not involved in drafting the bill, argues it would be a real step forward, highlighting the changes to the overhead rate (technically called the “de minimis indirect cost rate”) as significant. “These are very much things that the agency is trying to work through,” she said of the bill’s provisions. “It sends the right kinds of signals that Capitol Hill is on board with this.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mw7hd4">
The bill has considerable civil society backing from groups like <a href="https://www.crs.org/media-center/news-release/crs-urges-passing-locally-led-development-and-humanitarian-response-act">Catholic Relief Services</a> and the <a href="https://www.modernizeaid.net/press-room/mfan-applauds-congressional-action-on-bipartisan-legislation-to-advance-locally-led-development">Modernizing Foreign Assistance Network</a> and is recent enough that I was not able to find any outright opponents. Existing vendors have natural reasons to fear the legislation, but they could also scheme to work around it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uwUIMe">
Jacobs raised the prospect of large contractors hiring a token number of foreign workers, changing their names, incorporating small subsidiaries, and similar moves, to try to claim money being reserved for local groups. She concedes that USAID and Congress will have to exercise constant oversight to prevent these incumbent firms from undermining the reform.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="O1seOk">
But with the bill already through its House committee and garnering the backing of liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans in both houses already, Jacobs is optimistic. “We think it has a really good shot of becoming law this year,” Jacobs said. “I know many people don’t think we can get anything done. Hopefully, this is one proof point that we can still do some big things.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>The battle for blame over a deadly terror attack in Moscow</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Candlelight vigil for Russia terrorist attack" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/mish3-cNL7yWr_4F-sSPMZLFkJU=/454x0:7739x5464/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73228573/GettyImages_2100336361.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
People light candles in honor to the victims of the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack near the Crocus City Expo Complex on March 23, 2024 in Krasnororsk, Russia. | Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
All signs point to ISIS in a terrorist attack that killed over 130 people near Moscow, but Vladimir Putin is connecting it to the war in Ukraine
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5DMVyX">
Russia’s deadliest terrorist attack in decades may not be directly related to the ongoing war in Ukraine, but that doesn’t mean it won’t have implications for the future of that conflict. In fact, the horrific attack has already become one more battle in the ongoing information war between Russia, Ukraine, and Ukraine’s western allies, including the US. The nature and timing of the attack, as well as its alleged perpetrators, have all combined to make this tragedy fertile ground for conspiracy theories and motivated reasoning.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GxpuQR">
At least <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/23/moscow-concert-attack-what-we-know-a84590">133 people were killed in the attack</a> on the Crocus City Hall theater just outside Moscow on Friday, where a concert by the veteran Russian rock band Piknik was happening. A group of gunmen wearing tactical gear and carrying automatic weapons shot concertgoers and set fire to the building. Grisly videos circulating on social media seen by Vox show the attackers firing on defenseless people crouched on the ground.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SCrLeU">
With over 100 people wounded, the death toll is likely to rise, but it is already higher than the 132 people killed in the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/24/world/chechens-seize-moscow-theater-taking-as-many-as-600-hostages.html">2002 Moscow theater hostage crisis</a> – an event with which it shared some disturbing resemblances – and is likely to be the second-worst terrorist attack in Russian history after the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2004/09/04/russia-school-siege-ends-in-carnage/552d979f-2930-434e-b736-b41665420370/">2004 Beslan school hostage crisis</a> in the country’s North Caucasus region, which resulted in more than 300 deaths.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7LRO8T">
The Islamic State terrorist network has <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/23/islamic-state-group-claims-russia-gun-attack-a84583">claimed responsibility</a> for the attack and US intelligence officials have said<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/22/world/europe/moscow-shooting.html"> they believe it was specifically the work of</a> the group’s Afghan affiliate, the Islamic State in Khorasan (ISIS-K). (Khorasan refers to a historic region that includes parts of modern Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkmenistan.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CV4Sy3">
The US embassy in Moscow had<a href="https://ru.usembassy.gov/security-alert-avoid-large-gatherings-over-the-next-48-hours/"> issued a warning</a> on March 7 advising US citizens to avoid large gatherings due to reports that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts.” Russian authorities also claimed earlier this month to have foiled <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-says-it-neutralized-isis-cell-plotting-attack-moscow-synagogue-2024-03-07/">an ISIS attack on a synagogue in Moscow</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2nq6lT">
In a<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/23/europe/moscow-concert-hall-attack-intl/index.html"> video statement released Saturday</a>, President Vladimir Putin said that 11 people have been arrested, including the four perpetrators of the attack, who had fled the scene. Authorities in Moscow say the four were not Russian citizens.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mLXUlR">
Colin Clarke, a terrorism analyst with the Soufan Center, said that evidence suggested the four gunmen had experience and training. “If you look at the videos of this attack, the way that they shot, and even the spacing between them when they carry out the attacks, it’s clear they were well trained,” Clarke told Vox. “It doesn’t seem like these were just local guys who were imbibing ISIS propaganda and decided to do something. I would put money on them being trained in Afghanistan.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SDYgVe">
Why would an ISIS offshoot attack Russia? Islamist extremist groups like ISIS-K have long-standing grievances against Moscow dating back to the Soviet war in Afghanistan in the 1980s, as well as the Russian Federation’s brutal counterinsurgency campaigns in Chechnya and the North Caucasus in the 1990s and 2000s and its support for Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria. More recently, ISIS-K <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/05/world/asia/kabul-russian-embassy-suicide-attack.html">carried out a suicide attack targeting the Russian embassy in Kabul in 2022</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zoAJrf">
The simple explanation that ISIS was responsible would be an inconvenient one for Putin. It would mean that he had ignored the US warning of an imminent attack, which at the time <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68646375">he dismissed</a> as “blackmail” intended to destabilize Russian society. (In fairness, <a href="https://www.vox.com/world-politics/2023/12/13/23998928/hamas-taliban-isis-attacks-terrorism-extremist-groups-israel-palestine">he would definitely not be the only world leader </a>to recently ignore such a warning.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="exWaXg">
It would also be another instance, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/23/us/politics/intelligence-russia-us-ukraine-china.html">along with the remarkable detailed US warnings </a>of Russian war plans ahead of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, when America’s spies seemed to know more about what was happening in Russia than Putin’s own security services.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CaDplN">
So it’s not that surprising that Russian authorities are already assigning blame elsewhere.
</p>
<h3 id="ZnT1bm">
Moscow points at Ukraine
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JYbIYD">
In his statement, Putin hinted that the attack was linked to Ukraine, saying that the suspects had been detained in the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/23/europe/moscow-concert-hall-attack-intl/index.html">western Bryansk region</a>, which borders Ukraine, and “where, according to preliminary data, a window was prepared for them on the Ukrainian side to cross the border.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Fx0pdO">
The Russian government has not presented any evidence of a link. None of the videos that are circulating of the detained suspects — which include a particularly grisly one in <a href="https://meduza.io/en/news/2024/03/23/video-circulates-showing-russian-security-agent-cutting-off-the-ear-of-an-apprehended-terrorist-suspect-and-forcing-him-to-eat-it">which guards appear to cut a prisoner’s ear off</a> — include any mention of Ukraine.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Gpyzhy">
There are also<a href="https://www.belta.by/society/view/krutoj-belorusskie-spetssluzhby-pomogali-rossii-vypolnit-zadachu-ne-dat-ujti-terroristam-cherez-623207-2024/"> some indications</a> the suspects might actually have been fleeing to Belarus, which also borders Byransk. Reporting by the Latvia-based Russian opposition <a href="https://meduza.io/news/2024/03/23/v-kremle-dali-ukazanie-gosudarstvennym-i-loyalnym-vlasti-smi-podcherkivat-v-soobscheniyah-o-terakte-v-krokuse-vozmozhnyy-ukrainskiy-sled">news site Meduza reported, citing state media employees, </a>said that Russian news outlets have been instructed to emphasize possible Ukrainian involvement in the attacks.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fppQ20">
Ukrainian officials have denied any involvement, with Mykhailo Podolyak, an senior adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, <a href="https://twitter.com/Podolyak_M/status/1771258890170057119">tweeting</a>, “Ukraine certainly has nothing to do with” the attacks. He added: “Ukraine has never resorted to the use of terrorist methods. It is always pointless.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="k88G0E">
Earlier on Friday, Ukraine’s military intelligence services had gone farther than that, <a href="https://gur.gov.ua/content/terakt-u-moskvi---splanovana-i-svidoma-provokatsiia-rosiiskykh-spetssluzhb-za-vkazivkoiu-putina-ii-meta---vypravdannia-shche-bilsh-zhorstkykh-udariv-po-ukraini-ta-totalnoi-mobilizatsii-na-rosii.html">posting a statement</a> calling the attacks “a planned and deliberate provocation by the Russian special services at the behest of Putin. Its purpose is to justify even tougher strikes on Ukraine and total mobilization on Russia.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qQnUUo">
The statement noted that the attacks come shortly after Putin’s reelection as president and just hours after the publication of an interview in which Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/809f6341-d775-4457-a2e5-504a4269d427">described the conflict in Ukraine as a “war” for the first time,</a> rather than the Russian government’s preferred euphemism: special military operation. In other words, the attacks would be used to justify a new more brutal phase of the war for Putin’s new term in office.
</p>
<h3 id="K26UlX">
Post-fact warfare
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hvEPId">
To be clear: there is little evidence to suggest at this point that the attacks were planned by Kyiv or were a “false flag” operation by Russia. It seems far more likely that ISIS, the group that has claimed responsibility and has shown itself in the past to have both the means and motivation to pull off precisely this kind of attack, was the actual perpetrator. In addition to the attempted Moscow synagogue attack, a pair of <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-vows-revenge-after-biggest-attack-since-1979-revolution-2024-01-04/"> ISIS-K suicide bombings</a> killed nearly 100 people in the Iranian city of Kerman in January.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6SUifh">
But there are several reasons why it will be particularly easy for partisans on both sides in the Ukraine-Russia war to believe whatever they want.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="POpT5L">
First: while Ukraine has never targeted Russian civilians like this and would risk losing all of its international support if it did so, officials like intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov have been <a href="https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/03/16/7446799/">fairly open</a> about helping, though not actively coordinating with, anti-Putin Russian militant groups like the Russian Volunteer Corps and Freedom of Russia legion. Both groups have carried out raids in Ukraine-Russia border regions, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-based-russian-armed-groups-say-they-have-launched-incursion-into-russia-2024-03-12/">including in recent weeks</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QI4Puo">
Some of the leaders of these groups have <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/c4ffe9b8-a3f5-4f33-a420-effe32754bbf">extremist ties of the far-right variety, rather than to Islamists</a>. Some <a href="https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/6592262">Russian media outlets have also suggested </a>the Russia Volunteer Corps may have been involved in the Crocus attack, though the group<a href="https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/03/23/blame-game-en"> has denied it</a>. Still, the notion of Ukraine backing militant attacks on Russian soil will not seem far-fetched to Russians nor to their international supporters.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rylnTw">
On the other side, those suggesting it was a Kremlin inside job will point to the <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-russia-president-1999-chechnya-apartment-bombings/30097551.html">widespread allegations</a>, with some compelling evidence, that it was the Russian government that was behind a series of apartment bombings in 1999 that were blamed on Chechen separatists.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wikT1E">
Those bombings, which caused the deaths of more than 300 people in total, provided a pretext for Russia’s second war in Chechnya and were a key event in the political rise of then-Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The Russian government was also accused by <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59998988">Western intelligence services of orchestrating so-called “false flag” attacks </a>in eastern Ukraine to justify the full-scale invasion in 2022.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DShLVU">
The Russian government already appears to be using Ukraine’s supposed involvement for propaganda value. “If it is established that these are terrorists of the Kyiv regime…All of them must be found and mercilessly destroyed as terrorists, including officials of the state that committed such an atrocity,” <a href="https://www.jpost.com/international/islamic-terrorism/article-793284">said former president and frequent Kremlin attack dog Dmitry Medvedev</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CWk7FG">
But as Sam Greene, professor of Russian politics at King College London, <a href="https://twitter.com/samagreene/status/1771271658860363908?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email">noted</a>, “The fact that the Kremlin will use the attack for political purposes does not mean it was a false flag<em>.”</em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KHQVq0">
The attack has also focused an enormous amount of attention on the US embassy warning from earlier this month. US intelligence agencies operate under a policy known as “<a href="https://fas.org/publication/duty-to-warn/">duty to warn</a>” which requires them to warn potential victims, including non-Americans, of imminent lethal threats, as long as it does not compromise sources and methods of intelligence gathering.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cd51vF">
There’s no exception for US adversaries: The US <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/26/us-warned-iran-of-terror-threat-ahead-of-twin-suicide-bombings-in-kerman">privately warned</a> Iran’s government ahead of the ISIS bombings in January. But in this case, many <a href="https://twitter.com/Dpol_un/status/1771270106741412288">Russian officials</a> and <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/moscow-terror-simonyan-isis-direct-participation-1882644">media figures</a> have instead seen the warning as evidence that the US was partly responsible for the attack.
</p>
<h3 id="4Xxtw4">
Who is ISIS-K
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="97huvg">
Finally, the nature of ISIS-K itself lends itself to conspiracy theories.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OV8mJI">
The group simply doesn’t map neatly onto either the West’s or Russia’s prevailing geopolitical narratives. Yes, the group has now apparently attacked Russia and Iran this year, but before that, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/taliban-kills-isis-k-leader-behind-2021-afghanistan-airport-attack-that-left-13-americans-dead/">its best known attack</a> was a bombing at Kabul’s airport that killed 13 Americans and more than 100 Afghans in the end stages of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. Just a few days ago, German authorities arrested<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/19/europe/germany-isis-suspects-sweden-intl/index.html"> two Afghan ISIS supporters allegedly</a> planning an attack on the Swedish parliament.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7q6DRx">
Rather than taking sides in the clash between Russia and the west, <a href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/05/09/islamic-state-afghanistan-khorasan-propaganda-russia-ukraine-war/">ISIS’s propaganda has welcomed the war </a>in Ukraine as the opening salvo in “crusader against crusader wars” that they hope will help destroy all their enemies.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="w0xf3S">
“If you think about Iran, the US, and Russia, we’re always talking about great power competition, but ISIS hates all of those countries for different reasons,” Clarke said. Similarly, after the attack in Iran in January, Iran<a href="https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20240104-iran-blames-israel-us-for-deadly-twin-blasts-near-grave-of-guards-general-soleimani"> initially blamed the US and Israel</a> despite ISIS claiming responsibility and the group’s long history of targeting Iran.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="woYLHp">
All of these factors contribute to a situation where it can feel like, as the title of a prominent book on Russia’s media environment puts it, “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Nothing-True-Everything-Possible-Surreal/dp/1610394550">nothing is true and anything is possible</a>.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZOd9bC">
In normal times, the Russian state would be expected to carry out a brutal campaign of retaliation against the group responsible for the attack, as it did in the Caucasus after previous attacks. Right now, however, thanks to the war in Ukraine, Russia’s military and security services have little manpower to spare. So we get Medvedev’s threats against Ukraine and other Russian officials calling for the <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinRothrock/status/1771542437099368485">country to reinstate the death penalty</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MVRUWs">
Even if ISIS was responsible for the attacks — and there’s every indication that they were —Ukrainians as well as Putin’s remaining opponents inside Russia are more likely to be targeted by the Kremlin’s response.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MgSWDd">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="q73WKg">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DE9OW9">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4gdxDK">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LHWH6K">
</p></li>
<li><strong>We’re long overdue for an Asian lead on The Bachelor franchise</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Eight women standing outside in a row." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KBOFvD-tymvqV7Ut-j8bkrLWRg0=/103x172:2269x1797/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73227751/170453_0126.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Rachel Nance (third from left) and Jenn Tran (sixth from left) are strong potential contenders from this season of <em>The Bachelor</em>. | Disney
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
How come there’s never been an Asian Bachelorette?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KqtEVe">
For the first time in years, <em>The Bachelor</em> franchise had not one, not two, but multiple contestants of Asian descent who were prominent contenders.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cZTkMy">
Historically, there have been a handful of Asian participants who have made it to later rounds in the show. But in most seasons, there are <a href="https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/sydney-lotuaco-on-being-the-only-asian-woman-on-the-bachelor/">few — if any — Asian contestants</a> across both <em>The</em> <em>Bachelor</em> and <em>Bachelorette</em>. Those who are cast are often eliminated early, sidelined as supporting characters, or reduced to meek stereotypes. Tammy Ly, a fan favorite from the 24th season, has spoken about how <a href="https://www.usmagazine.com/podcasts/here-for-the-right-reasons/tammy-ly-explains-video-about-being-done-with-bachelor-franchise/">she felt “alienated” by the franchise</a> and treated as a secondary character because she didn’t fit a white ideal of beauty.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="R5QdO7">
<em>The Bachelor</em> franchise has long <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/12/22308108/the-bachelor-racism-chris-harrison-rachael-kirkconnell-matt-james">been critiqued</a> for its <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/02/04/the-bachelor-is-embarrassingly-white/">overwhelmingly white casting</a>, storylines that <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-bachelor-should-be-ashamed-of-what-its-done-to-matt-james">amplify discriminatory tropes</a>, and <a href="https://www.glamour.com/story/garrett-yrigoyen-the-bachelorette">high-profile contestants</a> who’ve made racist statements. In recent seasons, the show has attempted to address these disparities — with mixed results. Notably, ABC cast its first Black Bachelorette, Rachel Lindsay, in 2017, and it has sought to diversify its contestant pool in the years since. As Rachel Lindsay and other contestants have emphasized, however, the changes to casting alone haven’t been sufficient to combat systemic issues the franchise suffers from, onscreen and behind the scenes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WBnn1P">
The most recent season, its 28th, revealed how <em>The Bachelor</em> still struggles with many of these problems even as it took some small steps forward. In showcasing a diverse group of Asian women, the show introduced new perspectives on everything from growing up in an immigrant household to cultural family traditions, viewpoints that haven’t been highlighted much on its platform. It still fell short, however, in grappling with the discrimination that its contestants of color face and confronting conversations about the need to explicitly call out racism.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EgsdKa">
Five women of Asian descent stayed late into the current season as both popular contenders and villains<strong>.</strong> Notably, a few of these women — Rachel Nance, an ICU nurse from Hawaii, of Filipino and African American descent; and Jenn Tran, a physician’s assistant student from Florida, of Vietnamese descent — were among the final six contestants, a development that makes it more likely that one of them could get picked as the lead for a following season. (Typically, the show selects its next star based on the women or men who don’t “win” from the prior season.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9UX55n">
Featuring more Asian contestants on the show — and highlighting them — has not only helped dispel stereotypes, but also enabled portrayals that were more multidimensional and human. Having an Asian lead — a long overdue first for both <em>The Bachelor </em>and<em> The Bachelorette</em> — would bring even more representation to the <a href="https://www.vox.com/reality-tv">reality TV</a> giant, expand the universe of stories that it tells, and provide new visibility to members of a group that have long been underrepresented in media.
</p>
<h3 id="dVjPaT">
Telling people’s stories counters stereotypes and humanizes them
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DXi33x">
<em>The Bachelor </em>franchise’s<em> </em>history of quickly dropping candidates of color, <a href="https://screenrant.com/bachelorette-ethan-kang-asian-american-representation-bachelor-lead/">including Asian contestants,</a> is so well-known it has spurred satirical spinoffs like <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/asian-bachelorette-is-back_n_5ba3c84ce4b069d5f9d0ee52">WongFu Production’s “Asian Bachelorette,”</a> in which nearly all the contestants are of Asian descent.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Lh4HYM">
In past seasons, there were usually one or two Asian contestants, though few advanced to later episodes, with Catherine Giudici, Ivan Hall, Caila Quinn, Ethan Kang and Serena Pitt among the handful of exceptions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Qjgqmh">
Additionally, if they aren’t eliminated early, contestants of color typically get less screen time than <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/how-the-bachelor-missed-an-opportunity-for-representation-4136227/">white contestants</a>. And when they have appeared, some of their storylines have exacerbated old tropes, including ideas of Asian women as docile or hypersexual.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IL2Sbn">
In season 24 of <em>The Bachelor</em>, for example, Marylynn Sienna is effectively used by <a href="https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/01/10257923/what-did-marylynn-do-victoria-bachelor-fight-racism">a white woman named Victoria Larson</a> to advance her storyline. Larson arbitrarily accuses Marylynn of being “toxic,” forcing her to defend herself in the face of a bully. <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2016/03/13/470124738/what-would-it-mean-to-have-a-hapa-bachelorette">In Season 10 of <em>The Bachelor</em></a>, a Cambodian American woman named Channy Choch debuted on the show by inviting the lead to have sex with her in Cambodian, later noting that he needed to catch “Cambodian fever.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FIHkfC">
By putting real time and investment into Asian contestants’ storylines, this season has delivered more nuanced depictions of their experiences and the chance to see more humanized narratives.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="H4JgCZ">
Rachel’s hometown date with Bachelor Joey Graziadei, a milestone that takes place near the end of the season when the lead meets a contestant’s family, was a vibrant glimpse of how Filipino and Hawaiian culture have shaped her. Prior to the visit, Rachel informs Joey that he should touch her mother’s hand to his forehead when they meet, a gesture known as <a href="https://opinion.inquirer.net/109755/mano-po-treasures">“Mano po</a>,” which conveys respect. And during the date, Rachel’s family warmly receives him with a roast pig in the backyard and schools him on a Filipino courtship tradition.
</p>
<div id="yU3LKX">
<blockquote cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@bachelornationabc/video/7342686733139561759" class="tiktok-embed">
<section>
<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@bachelornationabc?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="@bachelornationabc"><span class="citation" data-cites="bachelornationabc">@bachelornationabc</span></a>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Joey with the Mano Po
</p>
<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7342686878434380575?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - The Bachelor">♬ original sound - The Bachelor</a>
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</blockquote>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="00haKN">
Rachel has also discussed her upbringing in Hawaii as a mixed-race person, offering a perspective that’s rarely been highlighted on the show, and emphasizing how her family has blended different cultures. “Growing up as a mixed girl in Hawaii, there wasn’t many people who looked like me on TV,” <a href="https://people.com/the-bachelor-rachel-nance-regrets-addressing-racist-bachelor-messages-women-tell-all-exclusive-8610540#:~:text=%E2%80%9CGrowing%20up%20as%20a%20mixed,I%20can%20speak%20her%20truth.'">she said in a <em>People</em> interview</a>. “I’m very honored that moving forward, girls can say, ‘Hey, if Rachel can do that, I can do that. If Rachel can speak her truth, I can speak her truth.’”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qA6Onx">
Another moving moment this season centered on Jenn and her description of the trauma she experienced growing up in a dysfunctional household. In one scene, Jenn spoke candidly about the conflict in her immigrant family, prompting what she’s said has been an outpouring from fans who have similar backgrounds. While on a one-on-one date with Joey, Jenn described how her parents often had volatile fights when she was a kid and how her relationship with her father has deteriorated in the years since as a result.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kkkX9G">
“I wanna acknowledge the comments and DMs I’ve been getting from people who say that they can relate to my story and I just want to say that I’m so sorry you can relate,” <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTL2HkRF8/">Jenn said in a TikTok post.</a> “It felt so nice to hear another Viet woman go through the same generational trauma that I went through,” one of the top commenters on the post wrote.
</p>
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<blockquote cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@jenntranx/video/7333040357694835998" class="tiktok-embed">
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<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@jenntranx?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="@jenntranx"><span class="citation" data-cites="jenntranx">@jenntranx</span></a>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Toxic relationships is something i really want to talk about bc often times we dont know we’re in one bc it creeps up on you but i want everyone to know theyre deserving of love and to not let history repeat itself <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/toxic?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="toxic">#toxic</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/toxicrelationship?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="toxicrelationship">#toxicrelationship</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/emotionalabuse?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="emotionalabuse">#emotionalabuse</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/abuse?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="abuse">#abuse</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/relationships?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="relationships">#relationships</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/relationshipadvice?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="relationshipadvice">#relationshipadvice</a>
</p>
<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7333040482701888287?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - Jenn Tran">♬ original sound - Jenn Tran</a>
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</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1Sg4UM">
Both Nance and Tran also received “hot seats,” or special interviews, in the recent “Women Tell All” episode, often a sign ABC is considering them as potential leads. Nance was known on the show for her level-headed energy, commitment to her career, and “slow burn” relationship with Joey, while Tran’s bubbly personality, openness to adventure, and a playful connection were her signature. Both women, who were eliminated in recent weeks, were charismatic contenders and would be compelling future stars.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tOJjGq">
Being able to see an array of Asian women depicted this season was significant as well because it highlighted a wide spectrum of personalities. In addition to Rachel and Jenn, who were portrayed more prominently as frontrunners focused on vying for Joey’s affections, Katelyn DeBacker, a radiochemist from New Mexico of Vietnamese descent, was seen as bringing her quirk and humor to the show, and Madina Alam, a therapist of Bangladeshi descent, was synonymous with her thoughtful and considerate responses to the bizarre drama swirling around her. Lea Cayanan, an account manager from Hawaii who is of Filipino descent, also received what is known in <em>Bachelor </em>parlance as a “villain edit,” in a way barrier-breaking in itself.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Hb2eQz">
After dueling with fellow contestant Maria Georgas — a white executive assistant from Ontario, Canada — Lea became associated with causing drama and coming off as a “mean girl.” While her actions were far from laudable, it was interesting to see an Asian woman embrace the role of the villain after years of other portrayals as submissive sidekicks.<strong> </strong>That said, when you distill that storyline to its essence, she was still used to <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/06/asian-women-movies-tv-stereotypes">draw a contrast with a white counterpart</a>, a problematic plot point of its own.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3nP8wf">
It’s uncommon to see Asian women depicted in pop culture in a way that’s more complicated and messy, <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/07/16/1016968651/never-have-i-ever-complicates-its-asian-american-characters-thats-the-whole-poin">NPR’s Deepa Shivaram</a> previously wrote about Devi, the protagonist of the <a href="https://www.vox.com/netflix">Netflix</a> show <em>Never Have I Ever. </em>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YhVMvT">
Harleen Singh, director of the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis University, emphasized that representation and the breaking of stereotypes require the chance for people to be their full selves and not just an ideal that’s been set out for them. “It’s … [the ability] to just be human beings who have errors, who have wants, who are contradictory. Pardon my French, but to f*** up as much as anybody else,” Singh <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/07/16/1016968651/never-have-i-ever-complicates-its-asian-american-characters-thats-the-whole-poin">previously told NPR</a>.
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<h3 id="i6Mje8">
Contestants have also forced discussions about racism
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SfX83a">
Asian contestants have also used their platforms to force conversations about racism that would otherwise be left poorly addressed by a franchise ill-equipped to confront them.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FDlrn0">
One of the early examples of this was tied to a mistake that <em>The Bachelor</em>’s social media accounts made in January, when it <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/bachelor-sparks-controversy-tagging-wrong-194447646.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAEB-1yAX4zRR2CfYJMxDT4-56nXcc1i7TcuycNtY2WXT2-ax29auWkxhJAul5LOcW9c9dmjn3o7r0H6wUlrzVBpfS6B1D49PsGfBJ1O56NSGqqRFKOIVeSwmcfozA3EZ_Azt5Par27cjAQZaQYzf8vXdokSAbbbi0J6ZSp8ZwVG2#:~:text=The%20mistake%3A%20In%20an%20Instagram,a%20tennis%20player%20from%20Pennsylvania.">tagged the wrong Asian person</a> in an <a href="https://www.vox.com/instagram-news">Instagram</a> post. In a photo of Jenn kissing Joey, <em>The Bachelor</em> account instead tagged Lea. That mistake then sparked a discussion about how Asian people <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/bachelor-sparks-controversy-tagging-wrong-194447646.html">have been confused</a> for one another in different settings, including the workplace, and how dehumanizing those errors can be.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iE6Tks">
In response to the mix-up, Jenn posted a <a href="https://www.vox.com/tiktok">TikTok</a> video sharing an experience of how a nurse she worked with wasn’t able to tell her apart from another Asian staff member, despite having known each other for a year. “The issue at hand is not that you can’t tell me apart from different Asians, it’s the fact that you don’t care,” <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT8WvFhfc/">Jenn</a> said in the video.
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<blockquote cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@jenntranx/video/7330691507822824734" class="tiktok-embed">
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<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@jenntranx?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="@jenntranx"><span class="citation" data-cites="jenntranx">@jenntranx</span></a>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
This is why Asian representation on TV is so important. The lack of exposure directly correlates to the ignorance. I’m not saying everyone is guilty of cultural ignorance but it is disheartening to see how many news articles about me have used pictures of other Asian women who clearly do not look like me. Let’s continue to take accountability, learn from others and lead with love always <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/culturalignorance?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="culturalignorance">#culturalignorance</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/diversity?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="diversity">#diversity</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/asianamerican?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="asianamerican">#asianamerican</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/asian?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="asian">#asian</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/culture?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="culture">#culture</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/vietnamese?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="vietnamese">#vietnamese</a>
</p>
<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7330691550248602398?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - Jenn Tran">♬ original sound - Jenn Tran</a>
</section>
</blockquote>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7ipwXA">
It’s a problem that’s so commonplace that designer Linh-Yen Hoang has released a pithy pin that simply reads, <a href="https://twitter.com/nancywyuen/status/1296135071791906821?lang=en">“Wrong Asian.”</a> And while people often brush off such actions as honest mistakes, they essentially suggest that Asian people are interchangeable, reaffirming tropes that Asian people are a monolithic group devoid of individuality.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DGqoEv">
“Whether the person acted without malice, the effect is the same: It erases my body of work for someone else’s, simply because their ancestors were born on the same continent as mine,” <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/05/02/shes-asian-female-shes-not-me/?_pml=1">Washington Post reporter Michelle Ye Hee Lee wrote in 2019</a>. “It tells me that my place in journalism — and that of the other Asian reporter they confused me for — is dispensable, interchangeable and indistinguishable.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="u4zx3C">
Jenn’s and Lea’s perspectives were ultimately invaluable in having a deeper conversation about this mishap and in drawing attention to a widespread issue that some may write off as trivial. “Until we have a world stage and a media platform that is representative of the world we come from and the communities that make it up, I think we will always have a ways to go,” <a href="https://www.tvinsider.com/1121406/the-bachelor-lea-cayanan-responds-reacts-social-media-tagging-jenn-tran-racist/">Lea stated in her response</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="aPePmY">
During the “Women Tell All” episode, Rachel also spoke about racism she’s faced from viewers of the show, revealing that people have bombarded her with messages calling her the “N-word” and “jungle Asian.” Many of these attacks came after Rachel was chosen to move forward as one of the final three contestants instead of Maria, who has accrued a large fanbase.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kFoICm">
Rachel’s comments have renewed attention to the racism within the <em>Bachelor </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/internet-culture">fandom</a> and the harassment that contestants of color, in particular, have faced.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="t9I8NM">
That conversation showed, too, how much work the show still needs to do to protect its contestants and to thoughtfully handle the subject. Rather than specifically addressing the racism that Rachel experienced, for instance, host Jesse Palmer quickly pivoted to asking the rest of the cast if they had received “hateful” comments in a follow-up to her remarks. In doing so, he glossed over the specific racism she was experiencing and sought to broaden the focus to more general harassment that the cast of women has faced.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GafidV">
“It is part of my Asian culture to remain quiet, always be respectful, and apologize first. No more,” <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C4sFp9suu-b/?igsh=MzY1NDJmNzMyNQ==">Rachel wrote in an Instagram post.</a> “ It is time that we speak up. To all my minorities… speak up and speak loud.”
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C4sFp9suu-b/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Rachel Nance (<span class="citation" data-cites="rachelmariean">@rachelmariean</span>)</a>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xqKYZO">
Whether it’s offering viewers a window into their personalities and upbringings, or vocally condemning enduring racism in the franchise, the contestants of this season have brought new voices to a tired show. Leads on the show, in particular, also send a message about who has agency in these relationships, and who’s deserving of this chance to find love. Casting Rachel or Jenn as the next <em>Bachelorette </em>would be a huge opportunity to keep these conversations going — and reframe that narrative.
</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>Haryana boxers assured of 19 medals at sub-junior Nationals</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>Count Of Savoy and Elpenor show out</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>No reason to believe that Champions Trophy will not be held in Pakistan: PCB</strong> - The ICC delegation which will also include a security expert will visit all the proposed venues with particular emphasis on Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi.</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>SL vs BAN first Test | Kamindu Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva make history; Bangladesh in trouble</strong> - Dhananjaya and Mendis became the third pair in Test history to score century in both innings after the Chappell brothers and Misbah-ul-Haq and Azar Ali</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>IPL-17: RR vs LSG |  Samson powers Rajasthan Royals to competitive total against Lucknow Super Giants</strong> - Rajasthan Royals are playing with three overseas players in Jos Buttler, Trent Boult and Shimron Hetmyer.</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>Miffed at police, Budaun boys’ father sets bike on fire, attempts immolation</strong> - Vinod was missing his children and set his bike on fire in rage.</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>Lok Sabha elections | JD(U) releases list of 16 candidates with caste composition</strong> - Six are OBCs, five are EBCs, three are upper castes, one each from Mahadalit, Muslim communities; two sitting MPs dropped, two turncoats given tickets; final round of Congress-RJD seat sharing talks on Sunday</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-piracy Act has been a great enabler: Navy chief</strong> - ‘Any suspicious vessel craft or fishing boat or dhow which we suspect, we board, inspect, and if we find piracy triggers like skiffs, weapons, ammunition, then we take action to ensure that they are don’t proceed with their mission,’ Admiral Hari Kumar</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>Former Minister Bandaru Satyanarayana Murthy hospitalised due to ill health</strong> - Bandaru Satyanarayana Murthy’s condition was stable, sources said, quoting medical report</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>Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann in Delhi, rather than investigating death of 21 in hooch tragedy: Anurag Thakur</strong> - So many people lost their lives to a hooch tragedy, Mr. Mann was stationed in Delhi and did not ‘utter a word about the incident, nor initiate an investigation,’ says Anurag Thakur</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
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<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukraine says it hit Russian landing ships in Crimea</strong> - A large number of missiles targeted Kyiv early on Sunday as Russia stepped up attacks against Ukraine.</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>Russia marks day of mourning after concert attack</strong> - Flags are flying at half mast after at least 133 people were killed at a packed venue outside Moscow.</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>Bullets, a crush and panic: Moscow concert that became a massacre</strong> - People initially thought they heard firecrackers, but they soon realised they were under attack.</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>Moscow attack: ‘The first thing you notice is the smell’</strong> - The BBC’s Steve Rosenberg visits the Moscow concert hall where more than 100 were people were killed.</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>US call at UN for Gaza truce linked to hostages blocked</strong> - The draft resolution put to the UN Security Council marked a hardening of its stance towards Israel.</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>Testing the 2024 BMW M2—maybe the last M car with a manual transmission</strong> - We’ve tested the three-pedal, stickshift BMW M2 on the road and on track. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2012238">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Reddit faces new reality after cashing in on its IPO</strong> - Reddit must now answer to its shareholders as well as its vocal users. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2012282">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Dragon’s Dogma 2 is gritty, janky, goofy, tough, and lots of fun</strong> - This epic RPG reminds us of <em>Skyrim</em>’s ambitious jank, but with way better combat. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2012266">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>It’s a few years late, but a prototype supersonic airplane has taken flight</strong> - “This milestone will be invaluable to Boom’s revival of supersonic travel.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2012264">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>GM stops sharing driver data with brokers amid backlash</strong> - Customers, wittingly or not, had their driving data shared with insurers. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2012276">link</a></p></li>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
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<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>I went to a psychic, and she told me that I would be totally heartbroken in 14 years.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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I felt so bad about this, I went and got a puppy.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/hoosyourdaddyo"> /u/hoosyourdaddyo </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bmcqar/i_went_to_a_psychic_and_she_told_me_that_i_would/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bmcqar/i_went_to_a_psychic_and_she_told_me_that_i_would/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What’s the best part about dating a communist?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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You don’t have to worry about giving off red flags cause red flags are all she’s looking for
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Kreanxx"> /u/Kreanxx </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bmcudf/whats_the_best_part_about_dating_a_communist/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bmcudf/whats_the_best_part_about_dating_a_communist/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Lawyer Joe</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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Joe the lawyer died suddenly, at the age of 45. He got to the gates of Heaven, and the angel standing there said, “We’ve been waiting a long time for you.”<br/> <br/> “What do you mean,” he replied, “I’m only 45, in the prime of my life. Why did I have to die now?”<br/> <br/> “45? You’re not 45, you’re 82,” replied the angel.<br/> <br/> “Wait a minute. If you think I’m 82 then you have the wrong guy. I’m only 45. I can show you my birth certificate.”<br/> <br/> “Hold on. Let me go check,” said the angel and disappeared inside. After a few minutes the angel returned. “Sorry, but by our records you are 82. I checked all the hours you have billed your clients, and you have to be 82…”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/firesnake412"> /u/firesnake412 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1blu1of/lawyer_joe/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1blu1of/lawyer_joe/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How do you say “S’up Dawg” in Japanese?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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Konichihuahua
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Gerry1of1"> /u/Gerry1of1 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1blwjn6/how_do_you_say_sup_dawg_in_japanese/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1blwjn6/how_do_you_say_sup_dawg_in_japanese/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What’s worse than ants in your pants?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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Uncles.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/boombostic573"> /u/boombostic573 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bm4jcx/whats_worse_than_ants_in_your_pants/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bm4jcx/whats_worse_than_ants_in_your_pants/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
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