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<title>06 August, 2021</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>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
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<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
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<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
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<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
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</ul>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
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<li><strong>The COVID States Project #59: What Americans think about people who are not vaccinated</strong> -
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<div>
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In this report, we evaluate how people feel about those who are vaccinated and those who are not. A common way of measuring these feelings is through feeling thermometers – special survey items aimed at capturing a respondent’s overall level of warmth towards a particular person, group, or idea. Two of the thermometer questions we asked measured feelings towards “People who are vaccinated against COVID-19” and “People who are NOT vaccinated against COVID-19”, with response options ranging from 0 to 100 degrees. These are the two key outcome variables for this report (see the appendix for full question wording). To evaluate the gap between feelings towards those who are vaccinated against COVID-19 and those who are not, we take the difference in scores between the two corresponding thermometer questions. That tells us how much more favorably respondents view one group compared to the other. Our analyses examine how feelings expressed by the respondents are linked to factors such as partisanship, education, gender, age, income, place of residence and personal vaccination status, among others.
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</div>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/fy6jz/" target="_blank">The COVID States Project #59: What Americans think about people who are not vaccinated</a>
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</div></li>
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<li><strong>COVID-19 impact on stroke admissions during France′s first epidemic peak: an exhaustive, nationwide, observational study</strong> -
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Background and Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have great impacts on the care of non-COVID-19 patients. This was especially true during the first epidemic peak in France, which coincided with the national lockdown (17 March 2020 to 10 May 2020). Patients with serious and urgent disease like stroke may have experienced a degradation of care, or may have been hesitant to seek healthcare during this period. The aim of this study was to identify, on a national level, whether a decrease in stroke admissions occurred in spring 2020, by analyzing the evolution of all stroke admissions in France from January 2019 to June 2020. Methods: We conducted a nationwide cohort study using the French national database of hospital admissions (PMSI) to extract exhaustive data on all hospitalizations in France with at least one stroke diagnosis between 1 January 2019 and 30 June 2020. The primary endpoint was the difference in the slope gradients of stroke hospitalizations between pre-epidemic, epidemic peak and post-epidemic periods. Modeling was carried out using Bayesian techniques. Results: Stroke hospitalizations dropped from 10 March 2020 (slope gradient: -11.70), and began to rise again from 22 March (slope gradient: 2.090) to 7 May. In total, there were 23 873 stroke admissions during the period March-April 2020, compared to 29 263 at the same period in 2019, representing a decrease of 18.42%. The percentage change was -15.63%, -25.19%, -18.62% for ischemic strokes, transient ischemic attacks, and hemorrhagic strokes, respectively. In spatial models of French departments, the incidence of COVID-19 explained the ratio of stroke hospitalizations. Conclusions: Stroke hospitalizations in France experienced a decline during the first lockdown period, which cannot be explained by a sudden change in stroke incidence. This decline is therefore likely to be a direct, or indirect, result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.03.21261438v1" target="_blank">COVID-19 impact on stroke admissions during France′s first epidemic peak: an exhaustive, nationwide, observational study</a>
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</div></li>
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<li><strong>Dynamics of COVID-19 pandemic in India and Pakistan: A metapopulation modelling approach</strong> -
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India has been the latest global epicenter for COVID-19, a novel coronavirus disease that emerged in China in late 2019. We present a base mathematical model for the transmission dynamics of COVID-19 in India and its neighbor, Pakistan. The base model, which takes the form of a deterministic system of nonlinear differential equations, is parameterized using cumulative COVID-19 mortality data from each of the two countries. The model was used to assess the population-level impact of the control and mitigation strategies implemented in the two countries (notably community lockdowns, use of face masks, and social-distancing). Numerical simulations of the basic model indicate that, based on the current baseline levels of the control and mitigation strategies implemented, the pandemic trajectory in India is on a downward trend (as characterized by the reproduction number of the disease dynamics in India below, but close to, unity). This downward trend will be reversed, and India will be recording mild outbreaks (i.e., pandemic waves), if the control and mitigation strategies are relaxed from their current levels (e.g., relaxed to the extent that the associated community transmission parameters are increased by 20% or 40% from their current baseline values). Our simulations suggest that India could record up to 460,000 cumulative deaths by early September 2021 under the baseline levels of the control strategies implemented (up to 25,000 of the projected deaths could be averted if the control and mitigation measures are strengthened to the extent that the associated community transmission parameters are reduced by 20% from their baseline values). Our simulations show that the pandemic in Pakistan is much milder, with an estimated projected cumulative mortality of about 24,000 by early September 2021 under the baseline scenario. The basic model was extended to assess the impact of back-and-forth mobility between the two countries. Simulations of the resulting metapopulation model, which uses a Lagrangian mobility framework (based on residence-time spent in each country), shows that the burden of the pandemic in Pakistan increases with increasing values of the average time residents of India spend in Pakistan. In particular, it is shown that the India-to-Pakistan mobility pattern may trigger a significant fourth wave of the pandemic in Pakistan (under certain mobility scenarios and mitigation levels), with daily mortality peaking in mid- August to mid-September of 2021. It is also shown that extending the current travel restrictions by at least three months would significantly enhance the prospect of eliminating the pandemic in both countries. On the other hand, it is shown that, in addition to causing future multiple waves of the pandemic, easing the current levels of control and mitigation measures in the two countries (including travel restrictions) would result in delaying pandemic elimination in India and Pakistan to November and July 2022, respectively.
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</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.02.21261459v1" target="_blank">Dynamics of COVID-19 pandemic in India and Pakistan: A metapopulation modelling approach</a>
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</div></li>
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<li><strong>Sensitive and multiplexed RNA detection with Cas13 droplets and kinetic barcoding</strong> -
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Rapid and sensitive quantification of RNA is critical for detecting infectious diseases and identifying disease biomarkers. Recent direct detection assays based on CRISPR-Cas13a avoid reverse transcription and DNA amplification required of gold-standard PCR assays, but these assays have not yet achieved the sensitivity of PCR and are not easily multiplexed to detect multiple viruses or variants. Here we show that Cas13a acting on single target RNAs loaded into droplets exhibits stochastic nuclease activity that can be used to enable sensitive, rapid, and multiplexed virus quantification. Using SARS-CoV-2 RNA as the target and combinations of CRISPR RNA (crRNA) that recognize different parts of the viral genome, we demonstrate that reactions confined to small volumes can rapidly achieve PCR-level sensitivity. By tracking nuclease activity within individual droplets over time, we find that Cas13a exhibits rich kinetic behavior that depends on both the target RNA and crRNA. We demonstrate that these kinetic signatures can be harnessed to differentiate between different human coronavirus species as well as SARS-CoV-2 variants within a single droplet. The combination of high sensitivity, short reaction times, and multiplexing makes this droplet-based Cas13a assay with kinetic barcoding a promising strategy for direct RNA identification and quantification.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="article- link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.02.21261509v1" target="_blank">Sensitive and multiplexed RNA detection with Cas13 droplets and kinetic barcoding</a>
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</div></li>
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<li><strong>Optical nanoscopy reveals SARS-CoV-2-induced remodeling of human airway cells</strong> -
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<div>
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A better understanding of host cell remodeling by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is urgently needed to understand viral pathogenesis and guide drug development. Expression profiling and electron microscopy have frequently been used to study virus-host interactions, but these techniques do not readily enable spatial, sub-cellular and molecular analysis of specific cellular compartments. Here, we use diffraction-unlimited fluorescence microscopy to analyze how SARS-CoV-2 infection exploits and repurposes the subcellular architecture of primary human airway cells. Using STED nanoscopy, we detect viral entry factors along the motile cilia of ciliated cells and visualize key aspects of the viral life cycle. Using Tenfold Robust Expansion (TREx) microscopy, we analyze the extensively remodeled three-dimensional ultrastructure of SARS-CoV-2-infected ciliated cells and uncover Golgi fragmentation, emergence of large and atypical multivesicular bodies enclosing viral proteins, ciliary clustering, and remodeling of the apical surface. These results demonstrate a broadly applicable strategy to study how viruses reorganize host cells with spatial and molecular specificity and provide new insights into SARS-CoV-2 infection in primary human cell models.
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</div>
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<div class="article-link article- html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.05.455126v1" target="_blank">Optical nanoscopy reveals SARS-CoV-2-induced remodeling of human airway cells</a>
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</div></li>
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<li><strong>Elapsed time since BNT162b2 vaccine and risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection in a large cohort</strong> -
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Importance: Israel was among the first countries to launch a large-scale COVID-19 vaccination campaign, and quickly vaccinated its population, achieving early control over the spread of the virus. However, the number of COVID-19 cases is now rapidly increasing, which may indicate that vaccine protection decreases over time. Objective: To determine whether time elapsed since the second BNT162b2 messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech) injection is significantly associated with the risk of post-vaccination COVID-19 infection. Design: This is a retrospective cohort study performed in a large state-mandated health care organization in Israel. Participants: All fully vaccinated adults who have received a RT-PCR test between May 15, 2021 and July 26, 2021, at least two weeks after their second vaccine injection were included. Patients with a history of past COVID-19 infection were excluded. Main Outcome and Measure: Positive result for the RT-PCR test. Results: The cohort included 33,993 fully vaccinated adults, 49% women, with a mean age of 47 years (SD, 17 years), who received an RT-PCR test for SARS-CoV-2 during the study period. The median time between the second dose of the vaccine and the RT-PCR test was 146 days, interquartile range [121-167] days. 608 (1.8%) patients had positive test results. There was a significantly higher rate of positive results among patients who received their second vaccine dose at least 146 days before the RT-PCR test compared to patients who have received their vaccine less than 146 days before: odds ratio for infection was 3.00 for patients aged over 60 (95% CI 1.86-5.11); 2.29 for patients aged between 40 and 59 (95% CI 1.67-3.17); and 1.74 for patients aged between 18 and 39 (95% CI 1.27-2.37); P<0.001 in each age group. Conclusions and Relevance: In this large population study of patients tested for SARS-CoV-2 by RT-PCR following two doses of mRNA BNT162b2 vaccine, we observe a significant increase of the risk of infection in individuals who received their last vaccine dose since at least 146 days ago, particularly among patients older than 60.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.03.21261496v1" target="_blank">Elapsed time since BNT162b2 vaccine and risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection in a large cohort</a>
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</div></li>
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<li><strong>Temporal Geospatial Analysis of COVID-19 Pre-infection Determinants of Risk in South Carolina</strong> -
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Introduction: Disparities and their geospatial patterns exist in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) morbidity and mortality for people who are engaged with clinical care. However, studies centered on viral infection cases are scarce. It remains unclear with respect to the disparity structure, its geospatial characteristics, and the pre- infection determinants of risk (PIDRs) for people with the infection. This work aimed to assess the geospatial associations between PIDRs and COVID-19 infection at the county level in South Carolina by different timepoints during the pandemic. Method: We used global models including spatial error model (SEM), spatial lag model (SLM), and conditional autoregressive model (CAR), as well as geographically weighted regression model (GWR) as a local model to examine the associations between COVID-19 infection rate and PIDRs. The data were retrieved from multiple sources including USAFacts, US Census Bureau, and Population Estimates Program. Results: The percentage of males and the percentage of the unemployed population were statistically significant (p values < 0.05) with positive coefficients in the three global models (SEM, SLM, CAR) throughout the time. The percentage of white population and obesity rate showed divergent spatial correlations at different times of the pandemic. GWR models consistently have a better model fit than global models, suggesting non-stationary correlations between a region and its neighbors. Conclusion: Characterized by temporal-geospatial patterns, disparities and their PIDRs exist in COVID-19 incidence at the county level in South Carolina. The temporal-geospatial structure of disparities and their PIDRs found in COVID-19 incidence are different from mortality and morbidity for patients who are connected with clinical care. Our findings provided important evidence for prioritizing different populations and developing tailored interventions at different times of the pandemic. These findings provided implications on containing early viral transmission and mitigating consequences of infectious disease outbreaks for possible future pandemics.
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</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.02.21261500v1" target="_blank">Temporal Geospatial Analysis of COVID-19 Pre-infection Determinants of Risk in South Carolina</a>
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<li><strong>Challenges in Tracking the Risk of COVID-19 in Bangladesh: Evaluation of A Novel Method</strong> -
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Identifying actual risk zones in a country where the overall test positive rate (TPR) is higher than 5% is crucial to contain the pandemic. However, TPR-based risk zoning methods are debatable since they do not consider the rate of infection in an area and thus, it has been observed to overestimate the risk. Similarly, the rate of infection in an area has been noticed to underestimate the risk of COVID-19 spreading for the zones with higher TPR. In this article, we discuss the shortcomings of currently available risk zoning methods that are followed in the lower-middle- income countries (LMIC), especially in Bangladesh. We then propose to determine a risk zone by combining the rate of infection with TPR and effective reproduction number, <i>R_t</i> in a distinct manner from existing methods. We evaluate the efficacy of the proposed method with respect to the mass-movement events and show its application to track the evolution of COVID-19 pandemic by identifying the risk zones over time. Demo website for the visualization of the analysis can be found at: http://erdos.dsm.fordham.edu:3000/.
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</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.03.21261567v1" target="_blank">Challenges in Tracking the Risk of COVID-19 in Bangladesh: Evaluation of A Novel Method</a>
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<li><strong>Pandemic-Scale Phylogenomics Reveals Elevated Recombination Rates in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Region</strong> -
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<div>
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Accurate and timely detection of recombinant lineages is crucial for interpreting genetic variation, reconstructing epidemic spread, identifying selection and variants of interest, and accurately performing phylogenetic analyses. During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, genomic data generation has exceeded the capacities of existing analysis platforms, thereby crippling real-time analysis of viral recombination. Low SARS-CoV-2 mutation rates make detecting recombination difficult. Here, we develop and apply a novel phylogenomic method to exhaustively search a nearly comprehensive SARS- CoV-2 phylogeny for recombinant lineages. We investigate a 1.6M sample tree, and identify 606 recombination events. Approximately 2.7% of sequenced SARS-CoV-2 genomes have recombinant ancestry. Recombination breakpoints occur disproportionately in the Spike protein region. Our method empowers comprehensive real time tracking of viral recombination during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and beyond.
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</div>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.04.455157v1" target="_blank">Pandemic-Scale Phylogenomics Reveals Elevated Recombination Rates in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Region</a>
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<li><strong>But Mouse, you are not alone: On some severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 variants infecting mice</strong> -
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<div>
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In silico predictions combined with in vitro, in vivo and in situ observations collectively suggest that mouse adaptation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus requires an aromatic substitution in position 501 or position 498 (but not both) of the spike protein receptor binding domain. This effect could be enhanced by mutations in positions 417, 484 and 493 (especially K417N, E484K, Q493K and Q493R), and to a lesser extent by mutations in positions 486 and 499 (such as F486L and P499T). Such enhancements due to more favourable binding interactions with residues on the complementary angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) interface, are however, unlikely to sustain mouse infectivity on their own based on theoretical and experimental evidence to date. Our current understanding thus points to the Alpha, Beta and Gamma variants of concern infecting mice, while Delta and Delta Plus lack a similar biomolecular basis to do so. This paper identifies a list of countries where local field surveillance of mice is encouraged because they may have come in contact with humans who had the virus with adaptive mutation(s). It also provides a systematic methodology to analyze the potential for other animal reservoirs and their likely locations.
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.04.455042v1" target="_blank">But Mouse, you are not alone: On some severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 variants infecting mice</a>
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<li><strong>Virucidal activity of CPC-containing oral rinses against SARS-CoV-2 variants and are active in the presence of human saliva</strong> -
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<div>
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The role of human saliva in aerosol-based transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has highlighted the need to understand the potential of oral hygiene products to inactivate the virus. Here we examined the efficacy of mouthwashes containing cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) or chlorhexidine (CHX) in inactivating SARS-CoV-2. After 30 seconds contact under standard aqueous conditions CPC mouthwashes achieved a [≥]4.0log10 PFU/mL reduction in SARS-CoV-2 (USA-WA1/2020) titres whereas a comparable product containing CHX achieved <2.0log10 PFU/mL reduction. Further testing with CPC mouthwashes demonstrated efficacy against multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants, with inactivation below the limit of detection observed against the Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.35.1) and Gamma (P.1) variants. Virucidal efficacy of CPC mouthwash was also observed in the presence of human saliva with the product delivering [≥]4.0log10 PFU/mL reduction in SARS-CoV-2 titres after 30 seconds providing additional evidence for the virucidal efficacy of CPC mouthwashes under simulated physiological conditions. Together these data suggest CPC-based mouthwashes are effective at inactivating SARS-CoV-2 and further supports the use of mouthwash to mitigate the risk of transmission during density procedures.
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.05.455040v1" target="_blank">Virucidal activity of CPC-containing oral rinses against SARS-CoV-2 variants and are active in the presence of human saliva</a>
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<li><strong>Rapid assessment of SARS-CoV-2 evolved variants using virus-like particles</strong> -
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Newly evolved SARS-CoV-2 variants are driving ongoing outbreaks of COVID-19 around the world. Efforts to determine why these viral variants have improved fitness are limited to mutations in the viral spike (S) protein and viral entry steps using non-SARS-CoV-2 viral particles engineered to display S. Here we show that SARS-CoV-2 virus-like particles can package and deliver exogenous transcripts, enabling analysis of mutations within all structural proteins and rapid dissection of multiple steps in the viral life cycle. Identification of an RNA packaging sequence was critical for engineered transcripts to assemble together with SARS-CoV-2 structural proteins S, nucleocapsid (N), membrane (M) and envelope (E) into non-replicative SARS-CoV-2 virus-like particles (SC2-VLPs) that deliver these transcripts to ACE2- and TMPRSS2-expressing cells. Using SC2-VLPs, we tested the effect of 30 individual mutations within the S and N proteins on particle assembly and entry. While S mutations unexpectedly did not affect these steps, SC2-VLPs bearing any one of four N mutations found universally in more-transmissible viral variants (P199L, S202R, R203M and R203K) showed increased particle production and up to 10-fold more reporter transcript expression in receiver cells. Our study provides a platform for rapid testing of viral variants outside a biosafety level 3 setting and identifies viral N mutations and viral particle assembly as mechanisms to explain the increased spread of current viral variants, including Delta (N:R203M).
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.05.455082v1" target="_blank">Rapid assessment of SARS-CoV-2 evolved variants using virus-like particles</a>
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<li><strong>Identification of Potent Small Molecule Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Entry</strong> -
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<div>
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The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 responsible for COVID-19 remains a persistent threat to mankind, especially for the immunocompromised and elderly for which the vaccine may have limited effectiveness. Entry of SARS-CoV-2 requires a high affinity interaction of the viral spike protein with the cellular receptor angiotensin- converting enzyme 2. Novel mutations on the spike protein correlate with the high transmissibility of new variants of SARS-CoV-2, highlighting the need for small molecule inhibitors of virus entry into target cells. We report the identification of such inhibitors through a robust high-throughput screen testing 15,000 small molecules from unique libraries. Several leads were validated in a suite of mechanistic assays, including whole cell SARS-CoV-2 infectivity assays. The main lead compound, Calpeptin, was further characterized using SARS-CoV-1 and the novel SARS-CoV-2 variant entry assays, SARS-CoV-2 protease assays and molecular docking. This study reveals Calpeptin as a potent and specific inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 and some variants.
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.05.455262v1" target="_blank">Identification of Potent Small Molecule Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Entry</a>
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<li><strong>SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern have acquired mutations associated with an increased spike cleavage</strong> -
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For efficient cell entry and membrane fusion, SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein needs to be cleaved at two different sites, S1/S2 and S2 by different cellular proteases such as furin and TMPRSS2. Polymorphisms in the S protein can affect cleavage, viral transmission, and pathogenesis. Here, we investigated the role of arising S polymorphisms in vitro and in vivo to understand the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants. First, we showed that the S:655Y is selected after in vivo replication in the mink model. This mutation is present in the Gamma Variant Of Concern (VOC) but it also occurred sporadically in early SARS-CoV-2 human isolates. To better understand the impact of this polymorphism, we analyzed the in vitro properties of a panel of SARS-CoV-2 isolates containing S:655Y in different lineage backgrounds. Results demonstrated that this mutation enhances viral replication and spike protein cleavage. Viral competition experiments using hamsters infected with WA1 and WA1-655Y isolates showed that the variant with 655Y became dominant in both direct infected and direct contact animals. Finally, we investigated the cleavage efficiency and fusogenic properties of the spike protein of selected VOCs containing different mutations in their spike proteins. Results showed that all VOCs have evolved to acquire an increased spike cleavage and fusogenic capacity despite having different sets of mutations in the S protein. Our study demonstrates that the S:655Y is an important adaptative mutation that increases viral cell entry, transmission, and host susceptibility. Moreover, SARS-COV-2 VOCs showed a convergent evolution that promotes the S protein processing.
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.05.455290v1" target="_blank">SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern have acquired mutations associated with an increased spike cleavage</a>
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<li><strong>Immunolocalization studies of vimentin and ACE2 on the surface of cells exposed to SARS-CoV-2 Spike proteins</strong> -
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The Spike protein from SARS-CoV-2 mediates docking of the virus onto cells and contributes to viral invasion. Several cellular receptors are involved in SARS-CoV-2 Spike docking at the cell surface, including ACE2 and neuropilin. The intermediate filament protein vimentin has been reported to be present at the surface of certain cells and act as a co-receptor for several viruses; furthermore, its potential involvement in interactions with Spike proteins has been proposed. Here we have explored the binding of Spike protein constructs to several cell types using low-temperature immunofluorescence approaches in live cells, to minimize internalization. Incubation of cells with tagged Spike S or Spike S1 subunit led to discrete dotted patterns at the cell surface, which showed scarce colocalization with a lipid raft marker, but consistent coincidence with ACE2. Under our conditions, vimentin immunoreactivity appeared as spots or patches unevenly distributed at the surface of diverse cell types. Remarkably, several observations including potential antibody internalization and adherence to cells of vimentin-positive structures present in the extracellular medium exposed the complexity of vimentin cell surface immunoreactivity, which requires careful assessment. Notably, overall colocalization of Spike and vimentin signals markedly varied with the cell type and the immunodetection sequence. In turn, vimentin-positive spots moderately colocalized with ACE2; however, a particular enrichment was detected at elongated structures positive for acetylated tubulin, consistent with primary cilia, which also showed Spike binding. Thus, these results suggest that vimentin-ACE2 interaction could occur at selective locations near the cell surface, including ciliated structures, which can act as platforms for SARS-CoV-2 docking.
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
|
||||
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.04.442648v2" target="_blank">Immunolocalization studies of vimentin and ACE2 on the surface of cells exposed to SARS-CoV-2 Spike proteins</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>ACTIV-5 / Big Effect Trial (BET-C) for the Treatment of COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Danicopan; Other: Placebo; Drug: Remdesivir<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)<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>COVID-19 Administration of Single-Dose Subcutaneous or Intramuscular Anti- Spike(s) SARS-CoV-2 Monoclonal Antibodies Casirivimab and Imdevimab in High-Risk Pediatric Participants Under 12 Years of Age</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: casirivimab and imdevimab<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: <br/>
|
||||
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals<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>Phase I/II Study of COVID-19 DNA Vaccine (AG0302-COVID19 High-dose)</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Lower Respiratory Infection<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Biological: AG0302-COVID19 for Intramuscular Injection; Biological: AG0302-COVID19 for Intradermal Injection<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: AnGes, Inc.; Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development<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>Efficacy, Immunogenicity and Safety of COVID-19 Vaccine , Inactivated in Children and Adolescents</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Biological: Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccine; Biological: Controlled vaccine<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Sinovac Research and Development Co., Ltd.<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>Immunogenicity And Safety of COVID-19 Vaccine , Inactivated Co -Administration With Quadrivalent Influenza Vaccine And 23-valent Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Biological: Experimental Group1; Biological: Experimental Group 2; Biological: Experimental Group 3<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: <br/>
|
||||
Sinovac Research and Development Co., Ltd.<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>Efficacy of Canrenone as add-on Treatment in Moderate to Severe ARDS in COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome<br/><b>Intervention</b>: <br/>
|
||||
Drug: Potassium Canrenoate<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico; University of Milan; IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna<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>Study to Evaluate the Immunogenicity and Safety of Heterologous SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Schemes in an Elderly Population</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Vaccines<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: Gam-COVID-Vac / Gam-COVID-Vac<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Ministerio de Salud de Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires<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>Effect of Cyproheptadine on Ventilatory Support-free Days in Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Pneumonia<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: Cyproheptadine<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: <br/>
|
||||
Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Safety of an Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine for Prevention of COVID-19 in Children and Adolescents</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Biological: Experimental Group<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: <br/>
|
||||
Sinovac Research and Development Co., Ltd.<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>Investigating the Efficacy and Safety ICATIBANT For The Treatment of Patients With SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Infection</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Pneumonia<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Firazyr; Other: SoC<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Sebastian Videla<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Randomized, Double Blind, Placebo-controlled Study to Evaluate the Efficacy of Lavandula Angustifolia Containing Nasal Spray Medical Device in Preventing Deterioration of COVID-19 in Symptomatic Patients</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Infection<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Device: Nasal Spray Device<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: The Grasses of Eden Ltd; Sherutei Briut Clalit<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>Phase 2b Dose-confirmatory Trial to Evaluate the Safety, Immunogenicity and Potential Efficacy of an VSV-ΔG SARS- CoV-2 Vaccine</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: IIBR-100; Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: <br/>
|
||||
NeuroRx, Inc.; Cromos; Iqvia Pty Ltd; Brilife Georgia; Israel Institute for Biological Research<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>Echinacea Drug for Covid-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: Covid19<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: ECHINACEA ARKOPHARMA<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: <br/>
|
||||
Jesús R. Requena; IDIS; SALUD; Laboratoires Arkopharma<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>HC-1119 Adjuvant Treatment for Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Respiratory Infection<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: HC-1119; Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Applied Biology, Inc.; Hinova Pharmaceuticals Inc.<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>CRISPR/Cas9-modified Human T Cell ( PD-1 Knockout Engineered T Cells ) for Inducing Long-term Immunity in COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Condition</b>: COVID-19 Respiratory Infection<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: PD-1 Knockout T Cells<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Mahmoud Ramadan mohamed Elkazzaz<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-pubmed">From PubMed</h1>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inhibition of elastase enhances the adjuvanticity of alum and promotes anti-SARS-CoV-2 systemic and mucosal immunity</strong> - Alum, used as an adjuvant in injected vaccines, promotes T helper 2 (Th2) and serum antibody (Ab) responses. However, it fails to induce secretory immunoglobulin (Ig) A (SIgA) in mucosal tissues and is poor in inducing Th1 and cell-mediated immunity. Alum stimulates interleukin 1 (IL-1) and the recruitment of myeloid cells, including neutrophils. We investigated whether neutrophil elastase regulates the adjuvanticity of alum, and whether a strategy targeting neutrophil elastase could improve…</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>Integrated human/SARS-CoV-2 metabolic models present novel treatment strategies against COVID-19</strong> - The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is currently responsible for more than 3 million deaths in 219 countries across the world and with more than 140 million cases. The absence of FDA- approved drugs against SARS-CoV-2 has highlighted an urgent need to design new drugs. We developed an integrated model of the human cell and SARS-CoV-2 to provide insight into the virus’ pathogenic mechanism and support current therapeutic strategies. We show…</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>Assessing the potential correlation of polymorphisms in the IL6R with relative IL6 elevation in severely ill COVID-19 patients’</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: While it is unlikely that “cytokine storm” is the norm in severe COVID19, baseline elevations above 150 pg/ml may be associated with worst outcomes and as such may warrant treatment considerations. So far no clinical studies used IL-6 baseline assessment to stratify the patient population participating in clinical studies. We believe that careful examination and interpretation of the IL-6 levels and genetic variants can help to determine a patient population with a potentially very…</p></li>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Evaluation of anti-cancer and anti-covid-19 properties of cationic pentapeptide Glu-Gln-Arg-Pro-Arg, from rice bran protein and its d-isomer analogs through molecular docking simulations</strong> - Bioactive peptides derived from food proteins are becoming increasingly popular due to the growing awareness of their health-promoting properties. The structure and mechanism of anti-cancer action of pentapeptide Glu-Gln-Arg-Pro-Arg (EQRPR) derived from a rice bran protein are not known. Theoretical and experimental methods were employed to fill this gap. The conformation analysis of the EQRPR pentapeptide was performed first and the obtained lowest energy conformer was optimized. The…</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>BTK inhibitors for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2): A systematic review</strong> - CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: BTKinib use was associated with decreased oxygen requirements and decreased hospitalization rates and duration.</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>NMPylation and de-NMPylation of SARS-CoV-2 nsp9 by the NiRAN domain</strong> - The catalytic subunit of SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) contains two active sites that catalyze nucleotidyl-monophosphate transfer (NMPylation). Mechanistic studies and drug discovery have focused on RNA synthesis by the highly conserved RdRp. The second active site, which resides in a Nidovirus RdRp-Associated Nucleotidyl transferase (NiRAN) domain, is poorly characterized, but both catalytic reactions are essential for viral replication. One study showed that NiRAN transfers…</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>Aromatic Cadinane Sesquiterpenoids from the Fruiting Bodies of Phellinus pini Block SARS-CoV-2 Spike-ACE2 Interaction</strong> - The ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 inspires the development of effective inhibitors to block the SARS-CoV-2 spike-ACE2 interaction. A chemical investigation on the fruiting bodies of Phellinus pini led to the isolation of five aromatic cadinane sesquiterpenoids including four new ones, named piniterpenoids A-D (1-4), as well as three known lignans. Their structures were determined by extensive spectroscopic analysis including HRMS and 1D and 2D NMR. All of the aromatic…</p></li>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-CoV-2 host cell entry: an in silico investigation of potential inhibitory roles of terpenoids</strong> - CONCLUSION: The identified terpenoids from this study provides core structure that can be exploited for further lead optimization to design drugs against SARS-CoV-2 cell-mediated entry proteins. They are therefore recommended for further in vitro and in vivo studies towards developing entry inhibitors against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.</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>Host ADP-ribosylation and the SARS-CoV-2 macrodomain</strong> - The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted intense research efforts into elucidating mechanisms of coronavirus pathogenesis and to propose antiviral interventions. The interferon (IFN) response is the main antiviral component of human innate immunity and is actively suppressed by several non-structural SARS-CoV-2 proteins, allowing viral replication within human cells. Differences in IFN signalling efficiency and timing have emerged as central determinants of the variability of COVID-19 disease severity…</p></li>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>COVID-19 Ocular Prophylaxis: The Potential Role of Ozonated-Oils in Liposome Eyedrop Gel</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: SARS-CoV-2 transmission through the ocular surface should not be ignored. Although the prevalence of coronavirus disease 2019 conjunctivitis infection is low, the need for a barrier to prevent possible viral infection is warranted. OED treatment may prevent the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection after 72 hours of twice-daily applications.</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>Remdesivir for the treatment of COVID-19</strong> - BACKGROUND: Remdesivir is an antiviral medicine with properties to inhibit viral replication of SARS-CoV-2. Positive results from early studies attracted media attention and led to emergency use authorisation of remdesivir in COVID-19. A thorough understanding of the current evidence regarding the effects of remdesivir as a treatment for SARS-CoV-2 infection based on randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is required.</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>Absorbed plant MIR2911 in honeysuckle decoction inhibits SARS-CoV-2 replication and accelerates the negative conversion of infected patients</strong> - No abstract</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>Flavan-based phytoconstituents inhibit Mpro, a SARS-COV-2 molecular target, in silico</strong> - A well-validated in-silico approach can provide promising drug candidates for the treatment of the ongoing CoVID19 pandemic. In this study, we have screened 32 phytochemical constituents (PCCs) with Mpro binding site (PDB:6W63) based on which we identified three possible candidates that are likely to be effective against CoVID19-viz., licoleafol (binding energy: -8.1 kcal/mol), epicatechin gallate (-8.5 kcal/mol) and silibinin (-8.4 kcal/mol) that result in higher binding affinity than the known…</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>Understanding Covid-19 vaccine acceptance in Pakistan: an echo of previous immunizations or prospect of change?</strong> - CONCLUSION: Despite a reasonably good response of Pakistanis to vaccination, factors negatively influencing their intention need to be timely addressed to control this pandemic.</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>Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors as potential therapeutic agents for COVID-19: A review</strong> - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is first detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, China which is a new pandemic caused by SARS-COV-2 that has greatly affected the whole world. Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors are drugs that are used for the management of cancer, and are being repurposed for COVID-19. BTK regulates macrophage and B cell activation, development, survival, and signaling. Inhibition of BTK has revealed an ameliorative effect on lung injury in patients with severe COVID-19….</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Camellia nitidissima C.W.Chi Caffeine and Chlorogenic acid composition for anti-SARS-CoV-2 and preparation method and application thereof</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU331907401">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Novel Method COVID -19 infection using Deep Learning Based System</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU331907400">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COVID- 19 DIAGNOSIS USING DETECTION RESULTS FROM CHEST X- RAY IMAGES</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU330927328">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Advanced Machine Learning System combating COVID-19 virus Detection, Spread, Prevention and Medical Assistance.</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU329799475">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种包装重组流感病毒的重组载体和重组流感病毒及其构建方法和应用</strong> - 本发明提供了一种包装重组流感病毒的重组载体和重组流感病毒及其构建方法和应用,涉及生物医药技术领域。本发明利用A型流感病毒八个基因片段为骨架包装出带有新型冠状病毒SARS‑CoV‑2表面刺突蛋白受体结合域(SARS‑CoV‑2_RBD)片段的重组流感病毒,此重组流感病毒可在复制过程中表达具有生物学活性和免疫原性的刺突蛋白受体结合区域RBD。本发明所述重组流感病毒rgH1N1(PR8)‑PA‑RBD可作为重组病毒类药物,用于2019新型冠状病毒肺炎(COVID‑19)的预防;也可作为体外SARS‑COV‑2 RBD等相关抗原表达和体内递呈系统。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN331407402">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Differential detection kit for common SARS-CoV-2 variants in COVID-19 patients</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU328840861">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>新型冠状病毒B.1.525尼日利亚突变株RBD的基因及其应用</strong> - 本发明属于生物技术领域,具体涉及新型冠状病毒B.1.525尼日利亚突变株RBD的基因及其应用。本发明的新型冠状病毒B.1.525尼日利亚突变株RBD的基因,其核苷酸序列如SEQ ID NO.1或SEQ ID NO.6所示。本发明通过优化野生型新型冠状病毒B.1.525尼日利亚突变株RBD的基因序列,并结合筛选确定了相对最佳序列,优化后序列产生的克隆表达效率比野生型新型冠状病毒B.1.525尼日利亚突变株RBD序列表达效率大幅提高,从而,本发明的新型冠状病毒B.1.525尼日利亚突变株RBD的基因可以用于制备新型冠状病毒疫苗。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN331407276">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种新型冠状病毒的mRNA疫苗</strong> - 本发明公开了一种新型冠状病毒的mRNA疫苗。本发明提供的疫苗,其活性成分为mRNA,如序列表的序列6所示。本发明还保护TF‑RBD蛋白,如序列表的序列2所示。本发明的发明人通过一系列序列设计和序列优化得到了特异DNA分子,进一步构建了特异重组质粒,将特异重组质粒进行体外转录,可以得到多聚化TF‑RBD mRNA。进一步的,发明人制备了负载TF‑RBD mRNA的脂质纳米粒。本发明对于新型冠状病毒的防控具有重大的应用推广价值。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN330068008">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>新型冠状病毒B.1.1.7英国突变株RBD的基因及其应用</strong> - 本发明属于生物技术领域,具体涉及新型冠状病毒B.1.1.7英国突变株RBD的基因及其应用。本发明的新型冠状病毒B.1.1.7英国突变株RBD的基因,其核苷酸序列如SEQ ID NO.1或SEQ ID NO.6所示。本发明通过优化野生型新型冠状病毒B.1.1.7英国突变株RBD的基因序列,并结合筛选确定了相对最佳序列,优化后序列产生的克隆表达效率比野生型新型冠状病毒B.1.1.7英国突变株RBD序列表达效率大幅提高,从而,本发明的新型冠状病毒B.1.1.7英国突变株RBD的基因更有利于用于制备新型冠状病毒疫苗。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN330068024">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-CoV-2 anti-viral therapeutic</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU327160071">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
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<title>Daily-Dose</title><meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" name="viewport"/><link href="styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="../styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><style>*{overflow-x:hidden;}</style><link href="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.css" rel="stylesheet"/><script src="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.js"></script></head>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
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<ul>
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<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>
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<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
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||||
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
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||||
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
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||||
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
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</ul>
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||||
<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>Iran Inaugurates a President Tied to a Massacre</strong> - Ebrahim Raisi’s election reflects the takeover of hard-line zealots who face converging crises—and may complicate U.S. diplomatic efforts to contain Tehran’s nuclear program. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/iran-inaugurates-a-president-tied-to-a-massacre">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Near Press Blackout in Afghanistan</strong> - The war that Americans forgot is ending in chaos and secrecy. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/a-near-press-blackout-in-afghanistan">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Is This Finally It for Andrew Cuomo?</strong> - A damning new report packed with alarming and previously unreported details corroborates allegations of sexual harassment and other abuses by New York’s governor. Will it be enough for Democrats to impeach him? - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-local-correspondents/is-this-finally-it-for-andrew-cuomo">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Did Last Summer’s Protests Change Anything?</strong> - Public officials favored symbolic gestures over policy reforms, but the country is still dramatically different than it was a year ago. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/did-last-summers-protests-change-anything">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Struggle to Vaccinate Springfield, Missouri</strong> - COVID cases continue to rise, but many residents remain reluctant to get the vaccine. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/us-journal/the-struggle-to-vaccinate-springfield-missouri">link</a></p></li>
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</ul>
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||||
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
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<ul>
|
||||
<li><strong>M. Night Shyamalan’s Old, HBO’s The White Lotus, and the existential terror of right now</strong> -
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<img alt="Gael Garcia Bernal, in old-age makeup, stares at something off-camera, while Connie Britton
|
||||
toasts someone with a glass of white wine, in a diptych of two images." src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/VpOuZ_e6oSCxyarG30VjYsHpIl4=/200x0:3400x2400/1310x983/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69687762/headshots_1628199912794.0.jpg"/>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
<em>Old</em>’s Gael Garcia Bernal and <em>The White Lotus</em>’s Connie Britton both went on vacation and got older, but everything happened much more quickly for one of them. | Universal/HBO
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Both were filmed in Covid-19 bubbles, and both are about going on vacation in a world slipping into the sea.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eRltM1">
|
||||
Around halfway through director <a href="https://www.vox.com/22588761/old-shyamalan-review">M. Night Shyamalan’s latest movie <em>Old</em></a>, Maddox, played by Thomasin McKenzie, has just begun to realize the weight of what has happened to her.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="epnmEn">
|
||||
While on vacation with her parents and younger brother, Maddox went to the beach as an 11-year-old (at which point, she was played by a different actor). But this<em> </em>beach ages people at the rate of roughly one year per half-hour. Pretty soon, she’s a teenager. As the day passes, she progresses through her 20s and 30s. (McKenzie takes over the role about 30 minutes into the film, when Maddox is 16, then plays her for most of the rest of the movie.)
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="INMimS">
|
||||
Maddox is a problem solver, as so many eldest children are. She begins to pace on the sand, insisting to herself that she must keep it together. But she can’t stop thinking about all she’s lost, an 11-year-old in a young adult’s body. Prom, graduation, college — they’re all slipping away in a matter of hours. Her world is collapsing beneath her.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<aside id="0gDcgk">
|
||||
<div>
|
||||
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
</aside>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XequOU">
|
||||
<em>Old</em> is full of kids like Maddox, kids who’ve assumed their lives will always be safe and predictable, only to suddenly learn they’re anything but on the beach that makes you old. One kid tells his friend they’ll be best friends forever, until they both live next door to each other and have mortgages. Another kid, now a teenager thanks to the beach, gets pregnant; neither she nor the boy who impregnated her have any idea how it happened. Even Shyamalan’s camera gets in on the action, doing long pans across the beach from one position to another. Each time it returns to its starting point, something has changed or new information has appeared in the frame, often unpredictably. The message is always the same: Something safe has failed us. The world is falling apart.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rgx1cW">
|
||||
<em>Old</em> is a movie about how parents are rendered inadequate and helpless when faced with the task of preparing their children for a world that stops making sense. It is also one of the first wide-release movies to have been filmed entirely in the middle of <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/m-night-shyamalan-old-ending-covid-bubble-hurricane-hints-
|
||||
tribeca-2021-1234970741/">a pandemic-imposed bubble</a>, and the existential terror of a year in quarantine informs almost every moment of the movie.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CrP9wT">
|
||||
The film is not the only recent release to embrace this thematic sensibility. Another, similar project, <a href="https://www.vulture.com/article/the-white-lotus-hbo-series-
|
||||
review.html">HBO’s limited TV series <em>The White Lotus</em></a>, currently airing on Sundays, also takes place in a tropical setting drenched with omens of something dark and terrible just over the horizon. <em>Old</em> is a horror movie; <em>The White Lotus</em> is a social satire. They’re still weirdly in conversation.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dXmldA">
|
||||
Both <em>Old </em>and<em> The White Lotus</em> were produced under similar Covid-19 safety protocols (an isolated location, a small cast of actors, lots of filming outdoors). Both are informed by their respective filming bubbles, and both are also interested in the ways the world feels a little less “normal” with every day. Both are soaked through with pre- apocalyptic dread, and both prominently feature an ocean that looms in the background, occasionally sweeping a smartphone away or washing a dead body onto the shore. It’s not that far a stretch to suggest those moments are provoked by anxiety over rising sea levels.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CpWobk">
|
||||
<em>Old</em> and <em>The White Lotus</em> are convinced we live in a world that is falling apart, both broadly (nothing makes sense anymore!) and more granularly (the planet is heating up!). They both serve to underline how there’s very little we can do about any of it.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h3 id="aRvoe9">
|
||||
The symbiotic relationship between Covid-19 bubbles and the filming of <em>Old </em>and <em>The White Lotus</em>
|
||||
</h3>
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt="Gael García Bernal&nbsp;and Vicky Krieps on the beach, with a yellow umbrella
|
||||
behind them." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/33J1xA8z573zq8eh-32Gy7F0AJk=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22734077/old4.jpeg"/> <cite>Universal Pictures</cite>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
Gael Garcia Bernal and Vicky Krieps play two parents who watch in horror as they and their children’s lives spiral out of control.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ULKdQR">
|
||||
<em>Old</em> and <em>The White Lotus </em>might seem to have very little in common, beyond a tropical setting and the fact that they both feature dead bodies.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="G9lNE4">
|
||||
The former is a horror movie from a love-or-hate director whose career has become emblematic of big twist endings and overwrought dialogue. The latter is an acidic social satire set at a Hawaiian resort whose many guests have gathered for a variety of reasons — a family getaway, a honeymoon, a mourning ritual. It’s written and directed by Mike White, of <em>Enlightened</em> fame, who is one of television’s best observers of rich white people’s blind spots and idiosyncrasies. The former is an overblown B-movie. The latter is akin to an American <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rules_of_the_Game">Renoir film</a>, complete with all the class warfare you could hope for.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MjCPnh">
|
||||
That’s where their production commonalities factor in. <em>Old</em> and <em>The White Lotus</em> were both filmed in the midst of the pandemic, in complete production lockdowns. By replicating the rhythms of a vacation and traveling to a singular destination, then quarantining and establishing a Covid-19 bubble, each could limit who was on and off the set, simply thanks to geography. Shyamalan went so far as to rent an entire resort in the Dominican Republic so that his cast and crew could remain isolated from the world at large. <em>The White Lotus</em> filmed at the Four Seasons resort in Maui, with the hotel completely closed to the public for much of production.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JPlOEi">
|
||||
<em>Old</em> had been greenlit in 2019, but it didn’t begin shooting until September of 2020; production wrapped in November. HBO actually <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2021/07/mike-white-
|
||||
interview-white-lotus">approached White</a> in mid-2020 to ask if he could construct a story that could be filmed in a single location very quickly, to facilitate production during lockdown. He began shooting <em>The White Lotus</em> in October of 2020 and was done by the end of the year. At the time, Hawaii had seen very limited Covid-19 cases; Maui County has had <a href="https://usafacts.org/visualizations/coronavirus-covid-19-spread-map/state/hawaii/county/maui-
|
||||
county">just under 5,500</a> Covid-19 cases ever.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PIYhaX">
|
||||
If you poke at the seams of <em>Old</em> and <em>The White Lotus</em>, you can see how they were each designed to accommodate pandemic safety concerns. Both have extremely limited casts of characters, neither of which expands that much throughout their respective stories. Both feature a lot of scenes filmed outdoors or on large, open-air patios. Both are set at resorts, which are reasonably easy to lock down, provided you’re willing to buy out the whole place — a much easier prospect during a global event that has enormously diminished world travel.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lvvEFz">
|
||||
Both stories are also informed by pandemic-era sensitivities and share a deep-seated claustrophobia common to works predominantly set in a single location. The people on the beach in <em>Old</em> cannot escape said beach, and the people at the resort in <em>The White Lotus</em> don’t seem to <em>want</em> to leave the resort. Everybody’s trapped, usually with their families and a random assortment of strangers, like in your average quarantine-era apartment building. Children, left unsupervised, get into trouble on their own, and their parents are too exhausted or apathetic to do anything about it. Everybody gets into arguments about just how fucked they are.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cMsGtU">
|
||||
The existential dread present in <em>Old</em> is more obvious, and more immediate. “We are going to die here!” has a bit more urgency to it when you’re on a beach that ages you rapidly than when you’re simply muddling through life on a planet that is killing you and everyone you know very, very slowly. Yet it’s not hard to look at both projects and compare them to the sandcastle that two characters build near the end of <em>Old</em>, or the smartphone one character loses to the ocean in <em>The White Lotus</em>. Everything we do and everything we have is impermanent. The earth is finding new ways to remind us of that every day.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h3 id="B2FoZt">
|
||||
Covid-19 anxiety art as an amuse-bouche for climate catastrophe anxiety art
|
||||
</h3>
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<pre><code> <img alt="Sydney Sweeney (in glasses) and Brittany O’Grady (clutching a bag) await someone." </code></pre>
|
||||
src=“https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/4HpXykTCA_x4OmXR1AJgdHh4tlA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox- cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22764704/sydney_sweeney_brittany_o_grady.jpg” /> <cite>HBO</cite></figure></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
Sydney Sweeney (left) and Brittany O’Grady play two of the young people trying to deal with an endless vacation in <em>The White Lotus</em>.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YbskK3">
|
||||
The global uncertainty that defined 2020 underscored and highlighted a <a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/4/21/21224065/coronavirus-pregnancy-kids-children-
|
||||
fertility-abortion-covid">question plenty of prospective parents</a> are asking right now: Is it unethical to bring a child into a world that is crumbling? Or is having children an essential act of hope for the future? People have continued to have babies in far more dire situations than the one we’re currently in. Why would we stop now?
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<aside id="XZ80bR">
|
||||
<div>
|
||||
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
</aside>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YgWOU2">
|
||||
Still — if things keep getting worse, have you just brought a child into a world that will increasingly become uninhabitable? What happens when you bring your kids to a place where the rules you grew up with no longer hold sway? How do you cope with the idea that the world might fall apart to such a degree that they won’t have a prom, a graduation, a college education? What if it comes to that?
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NAeM1E">
|
||||
There are, of course, billions of people on the planet for whom horrible instability has always been a given, but the awful, democratizing effect of both Covid-19 and climate change is that their horrors are somewhat more evenly spread across the species. While the horrors that Covid-19 inflicted on privileged people around the globe have been <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2020-12-16/high-poverty-neighborhoods-in-california-bear-the-
|
||||
brunt-of-covid-19">far less cataclysmic than those inflicted on everybody else</a>, everyone is affected by it at least a little bit, and climate change seems likely to follow a similar template.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sh3LMP">
|
||||
Science-fiction writer Charlie Jane Anders <a href="https://buttondown.email/charliejane/archive/you-dont-always-slay-or-flee-your-demons-
|
||||
often/">recently wrote in her newsletter</a> about just how much her fear of climate change’s effects on humanity has bled into her writing. She also observed, however, that there can be something healing in acknowledging that fear.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<blockquote>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WHDwd2">
|
||||
I’m honestly terrified of what’s coming, and the fact that we’re already starting to live through heat waves and superstorms and (maybe) zoonotic diseases doesn’t do anything to make the future climate disruption less scary. At all. We are going to suffer, all of us, in ways we’ve barely wrapped our heads around so far. And yet, I don’t think fiction about climate change needs to be disaster porn, or pure misery, or something engineered to “scare us straight.” At all. A lot of my work on climate change is about surviving and adapting.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</blockquote>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ALDPSa">
|
||||
The trick of being alive right now is pretending that everything we’re doing still matters. There is abundant evidence that <a href="https://www.un.org/press/en/2019/ga12131.doc.htm">nothing might be as important</a> as humans banding together in a last-ditch effort to slow the effects of climate change, such that the planet might continue to support life as we know it. Whatever anxiety Covid-19 has provoked, including in so many artists, feels like an appetizer for the main course.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gb33XO">
|
||||
“We’re still parasites on the Earth!” one character exclaims in <em>The White Lotus</em>, hoping to underline the hypocrisy of his family members, who are squabbling about the right way to organize society. They all know he’s right; they also are powerless to stop being parasites. They are the super- rich, and they are loath to change their ways because it’s easier to be comfortable than to do something difficult but right. <em>Old</em> touches on this idea as well, in a moment I dare not spoil here. Both works are very interested in the ways in which unchecked capitalism has contributed to the state of the world, past, present, and future, but <em>The White Lotus</em>, in particular, is excoriating about the upper classes.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wkoQ0z">
|
||||
The 2020s might very well become a decade of art forged in paranoia and anxiety at the thought of a warming climate that is outpacing our ability or willingness to act before it’s too late. But art that is terrified about a slowly building apocalypse isn’t a new phenomenon. The 1920s were filled with art set in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Gatsby">beautiful baubles of decadence</a> that felt uneasily gleeful (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Waste_Land">or deeply traumatized</a>) in the wake of World War I and the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic. The 1950s and ’60s were <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twilight_Zone_(1959_TV_series)">rife with art terrified</a> by the seeming <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Strangelove">inevitability of nuclear war</a>. We imagine our apocalypses in great detail, perhaps in hopes that we can avert them in reality.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vf4ACA">
|
||||
That sense of looming apocalypse is what most unites <em>Old</em> and <em>The White Lotus</em> in the end. <em>Old </em>suggests that at least some of us might find a way out of our current series of existential threats; <em>The White Lotus</em> isn’t so sure. But for as attuned as both works are to this particular moment in time, they also have one eye on what has always been true: We’re always heading toward an ending of some sort. Every beach you visit makes you older by virtue of the time you spend there, just not as quickly as the beach in <em>Old</em>. The planet is going to get you eventually.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mOcmPa">
|
||||
Everything we do is impermanent, regardless of whether we halt climate change. Centuries from now, if humanity exists, no one will be talking about <em>Old</em> or <em>The White Lotus</em> or this article discussing the two. People will have new concerns and new thoughts to ponder through their art. The things that are permanent — or at least as close to permanent as our conceptions of time will allow — are the ocean and the sand and the endless chain of life that stretches behind and beyond us. Having a child right now is a tremendous act of faith that things might turn out okay in the end, but having a child is always a tremendous act of faith. The world is always ending, and it’s always beginning, too. You have to make your peace with that somehow.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oCq3hv">
|
||||
Or, to put it more bluntly, as one character says after watching a whale surface in the ocean in <em>The White Lotus</em>: “What the fuck?”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><strong>How should a person be in the age of climate change?</strong> -
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/x37XmgBHHKMS-i8Rz9FxPHDm6PU=/0x0:2667x2000/1310x983/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69687646/GettyImages_1233709080_copy.0.jpg"/>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
People rest at a cooling station in Portland, Oregon, on June 28. | Kathryn Elsesser/AFP via Getty Images
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
We’re not powerless, even if it feels that way.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bfWWd2">
|
||||
Summer 2021 has been a season of disasters.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nld8ok">
|
||||
In June, a <a href="https://www.vox.com/22538401/heat-wave-record-temperature-extreme-climate-
|
||||
change-drought">heat dome</a> descended over the Pacific Northwest, sending temperatures soaring <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/29/us/pacific-northwest-heat-wave.html">30 to 40 degrees above normal</a>. It was so hot that <a href="https://www.kptv.com/news/portland-nursery-gives-tips-on-how-to-care-for-scorched-plants-after-
|
||||
heat-wave/article_ef5e6044-dae0-11eb-bec3-bfcfe2d0c73d.html">plants scorched in the soil</a>, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/29/us/pacific-northwest-heat-wave.html">roads cracked</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/PDXStreetcar/status/1409287314870837253">streetcar cables melted</a> in temperatures that reached over 115 degrees Fahrenheit.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qL85VJ">
|
||||
Then, in July, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22577431/germany-
|
||||
flooding-europe-climate-change">extreme floods ripped through northwest Europe</a>, leaving at least 199 dead. The same happened in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/22/china-floods-military-blasts-dam-release-water-as-
|
||||
floods-death-toll-climbs">China’s Henan province</a>, where subways flooded, roads collapsed, and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/death-toll-jumps-to-99-in-flooding-in-central-
|
||||
china/2021/07/29/ef75d2c4-f04d-11eb-81b2-9b7061a582d8_story.html">at least 99 people died</a>. And last week, <a href="https://gizmodo.com/a-stifling-new-heat-wave-is-baking-the-u-s-1847372144">yet another heat dome</a> swept the US, putting 17 states under some form of heat advisory.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="c3Aj10">
|
||||
Scientists and activists have been warning about climate change for decades — and plenty of people around the world have experienced its effects long before now. John Paul Mejia, for example, became a climate organizer as a Miami high school student, after seeing what Hurricane Irma did to “people who both looked like me, and came from the same background as I did.” (Climate change didn’t cause Hurricane Irma, but it did <a href="https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/8/28/16213268/harvey-climate-change">worsen its impacts</a>.)
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<div class="c-wide-block">
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/FAxL8Ov0OzyUl4XBFAtwTIKO8nU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22764607/GettyImages_1332385126_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Thomas Lohnes/Getty Images</cite>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
“These are the harbingers of climate change that have now arrived in Germany,” said German Minister of the Environment Svenja Schulze in response to the flooding in northwest Europe earlier this year.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XvDaxE">
|
||||
“I understood the climate fight through the justice lens from experience, not from an article,” Mejia, now a spokesperson for the Sunrise Movement, which mobilizes youth to fight climate change, told Vox.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="92WiUO">
|
||||
But through the events of this summer, many Americans — including those from more affluent communities that have been insulated so far — have seen more direct and devastating impacts of climate change on their own lives. For a lot of people, that can come with a sense of despair: What can one person possibly do to save a world <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/7/25/22592004/wildfires-climate-change-reconciliation-
|
||||
bill">literally on fire</a>?
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1rSGNu">
|
||||
“What happens is, when people first realize how bad it is, they feel powerless,” Mary Annaïse Heglar, a <a href="https://www.vox.com/first-person/2018/10/11/17963772/climate-change-global-
|
||||
warming-natural-disasters">climate writer</a> and co-creator of the podcast <em>Hot Take</em>, told Vox. With the extreme weather this year, “there’s a new wave of new people realizing how bad it is.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="umotUO">
|
||||
Indeed, 40 percent of Americans feel helpless about climate change, and 29 percent feel hopeless, according to a <a href="https://www.climatechangecommunication.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/climate-change-american-mind-
|
||||
december-2020.pdf">December 2020 survey</a>. It’s also no surprise that these emotions are coming up during a devastating pandemic — yet another global disaster over which individual humans have seemingly little control.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="v1JfA0">
|
||||
To help stop climate change, we’ve sometimes been told to change our personal habits: recycle, reuse, take shorter showers, etc. But these individual choices are dwarfed by the actions of corporations and countries.<strong> </strong>Just 100 companies are responsible for 70 percent of the world’s carbon emissions since 1988, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2017/jul/10/100-fossil-fuel-companies-investors-
|
||||
responsible-71-global-emissions-cdp-study-climate-change">according to one study</a>, and sweeping changes aren’t possible without government intervention. Not to mention the fact that poverty and other factors constrain the choices many people can make in the first place.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dpbWQq">
|
||||
Given all this, it’s no surprise that “all of a sudden, everybody’s going into nihilism,” as Heglar puts it.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<aside id="DXJuCg">
|
||||
<div>
|
||||
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
</aside>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6nJizU">
|
||||
But experts say we’re not<strong> </strong>completely powerless, and there’s a way to live in an age of climate change without giving up or sticking your head in the sand. It’s not necessarily about going vegan or making your home <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/5/9/18535943/zero-waste-movement-gender-sustainability-women-instagram">zero- waste</a>, either.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3cT5bE">
|
||||
The idea of reducing your personal carbon footprint, while not inherently wrong, has often been used as a distraction, “pitting working people against each other with morality choices about how sustainable you are,” rather than “realizing how much you actually have in common,” Mejia said.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ztLS6Z">
|
||||
Instead, many say the key to fighting despair is to think beyond the individual and seek community support and solutions — especially those that put pressure on governments and companies<strong> </strong>to make the large-scale changes that are necessary to truly curtail emissions. As Heglar put it, “the most detrimental thing to climate action is this feeling that we’re all in it alone.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h3 id="bNwHgc">
|
||||
Many Americans are recognizing the reality of climate change
|
||||
</h3>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WLkdm7">
|
||||
Climate anxiety and despair are far from new phenomena. But this<strong> </strong>disastrous summer has driven<strong> </strong>home the message that the changing climate “is not something we can avoid,” Sarah Jaquette Ray, leader of the Environmental Studies Program at Humboldt State University, told Vox. “I’m literally talking to you from the smoke right now.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SmSeNe">
|
||||
That message is showing up in polling. About <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/343025/global-warming-attitudes-frozen-2016.aspx">a third of Americans</a> (and two- thirds of Republicans) still don’t believe that humans are causing climate change, but a lot of people have been growing more concerned in recent years. This year, for example, 50 percent of participants in a <a href="https://morningconsult.com/2021/04/27/paris-agreement-climate-change-threat-poll/">Morning Consult poll</a> said the changing climate poses a “critical threat” to American interests, up 6 percentage points from 2019 and 10 points from 2017.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang">
|
||||
<aside id="h1oKbT">
|
||||
<q>“We’ve really changed the conversation around climate change away from individual action” —Mary Annaïse Heglar</q>
|
||||
</aside>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xvNB9N">
|
||||
American attitudes about what to do about climate change are evolving too. Carbon emissions have often been treated as a problem to be solved by changing our personal consumption habits, with an explosion of <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-
|
||||
goods/2019/5/14/18563375/zero-waste-products-straws-jars-tote-bags">green products</a> aimed at capitalizing on people’s desire to be environmentally friendly. Aside from the irony of getting people to buy more stuff as a way of reducing their environmental impact, this approach also obscured the real culprits, many say: companies that produce or use large amounts of fossil fuels, and governments that have been far too slow to curb emissions.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MCXVUB">
|
||||
Indeed, oil companies like ExxonMobil have used sophisticated PR campaigns to make climate change seem like an issue of personal responsibility, and deflect blame away from their own actions, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22429551/climate-change-
|
||||
crisis-exxonmobil-harvard-study">as Rebecca Leber reported for Vox</a>. “A lot of the individualist solutions that have propagated across society and across our discourse, such as the carbon footprint and the idea of self-sacrifice in order to save the planet, really have the fingerprints of a few oil companies,” Mejia said.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8BquNk">
|
||||
In truth, the biggest contributors to carbon emissions in the United States, <a href="https://css.umich.edu/factsheets/carbon-
|
||||
footprint-factsheet">transportation, electricity, and industry</a>, are only partly under individuals’ control. People can choose to use less energy in their homes, but household electricity use only accounts for about 10 percent of CO2 emissions in the US — even getting rid of it entirely wouldn’t be enough to stop climate change. And while some people can choose to drive an electric car or go car-free, they can’t individually shut down coal plants or redesign America’s public transit systems to make that an option for everyone.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt="A pie chart
|
||||
showing the sources of greenhouse gas emissions by economic sector, with transportation and electricity the largest
|
||||
slices of the pie." src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/q46jJyMgpTTzT8clKAbmzyRgVFc=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22763773/greenhouse_gas_emissions.png"/> <cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2021-04/total-ghg-2021-caption.png" target="_blank">US Environmental Protection Agency</a></cite>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JLlNQ9">
|
||||
That’s why it will take government action, not just individual sacrifice, to meaningfully rein in emissions. For example, Congress could pass a <a href="https://www.vox.com/22579218/clean-energy-standard-electricity-infrastructure-democrats">nationwide clean electricity standard</a>, requiring utilities to get their electricity from renewable sources like solar, rather than fossil fuels. Without that, even supposedly environmentally-friendly individual decisions like driving an electric car may not mean much, since that electricity could still come from burning coal. And only governments have the money and authority for the <a href="https://www.vox.com/22549410/infrastructure-deal-biden-climate-senate-bipartisan-
|
||||
jobs">improvements to public transit and other infrastructure</a> that are needed to dramatically reduce emissions over the long term.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6oxp4w">
|
||||
In recent years, there’s been <a href="https://twitter.com/anitasarkeesian/status/1412516872281489409">growing awareness</a> of the outsize role that big companies and government entities play in climate change. “We’ve really changed the conversation around climate change away from individual action, which I think we really needed to do,” Heglar said. However, now we’re “in danger of the pendulum swinging too far,” she said, with people thinking “they can’t do anything at all.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h3 id="KXZl0c">
|
||||
Here are some ways Americans can think about — and act on — climate change
|
||||
</h3>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EDqmuf">
|
||||
Giving up<strong> </strong>on our climate is not an option, experts and advocates say. As Mejia puts it, “cynicism serves no purpose but to uphold the status quo.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iRRWr1">
|
||||
Instead, people who’ve been steeped in climate action for years or decades have some advice for those who might feeling powerless today in the face of the problem.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h4 id="LcdXEi">
|
||||
Don’t try to do everything. Do what you can.
|
||||
</h4>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bDF3as">
|
||||
Individual “green” behaviors aren’t enough to stop climate change on their own. And not all people have the same ability to reduce their carbon footprints. Many Americans can’t afford solar panels or <a href="https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/services/do-it-yourself-energy-savings-projects/savings-project-
|
||||
insulate-your-water">insulation for their hot water heaters</a> — many others don’t live in places where they can control such things. Time is also a factor — reducing waste in a society designed to produce a lot of it is labor- intensive, and that labor often falls disproportionately on women, as <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-
|
||||
goods/2019/5/9/18535943/zero-waste-movement-gender-sustainability-women-instagram">Alden Wicker reported at Vox</a>.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cXQbGI">
|
||||
So rather than beating ourselves up when we fall short of environmental perfection — or criticizing others when they do — we can choose the most meaningful actions that are doable for us. Things like reducing consumption of animal products, driving less, and taking fewer airplane flights likely have the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20181102-what-can-i-do-about-climate-change">biggest impact</a> on <a href="https://www.lunduniversity.lu.se/article/four-lifestyle-choices-most-reduce-your-carbon-footprint">our personal carbon use</a>.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ghF0Z3">
|
||||
Everyone’s capabilities are different. Overall, “it’s important to find the ways that you can reduce your consumption, that work for your lifestyle and within your means,” Heglar said.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wf4t58">
|
||||
And it’s important to remember that those consumption decisions are just the beginning. “It’s a good starting point, but it’s a really dangerous stopping point,” Heglar said. People need to exercise their power as consumers, but remember that they have power as citizens and community members, too.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h4 id="39L7wm">
|
||||
Think communally
|
||||
</h4>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="C7yKfP">
|
||||
The most important step, many say, is collective action. In America, “we have such a myth of individualism,” said Humboldt State’s Ray, also the author of <em>A Field Guide to Climate Change: How to Keep Your Cool on a Warming Planet</em>. That myth can make people feel “that they have no power, because they can’t do anything against such as something so big as climate change.” For many in climate movements, the antidote to that feeling — and the way to build real power — is to band together.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DvUWJi">
|
||||
At the Sunrise Movement, for example, that means advocating for a <a href="https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2018/12/21/18144138/green-new-deal-alexandria-
|
||||
ocasio-cortez">Green New Deal</a>, alongside other priorities like <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/sunrise-infrastructure/">climate investment in the infrastructure deal</a> currently before Congress. The movement has hosted <a href="https://www.sunrisemovement.org/campaign/generation-on-fire/">marches across the country</a> in recent months to bring the Biden administration’s attention to the problem, as well as reaching out to <a href="https://www.sunrisemovement.org/our-election-impact/">more than 6.5 million voters</a> in the 2020 election. “Since the winds of change are blowing,” Mejia says, “why don’t we make them sail in our direction?”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/NLGJgfsJVuAzfYQ4qYHiffSMqPg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22764765/GettyImages_1325963273_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images</cite>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
Rep. Cori Bush (left) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rally hundreds of young climate activists near the White House June 28.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gyWTG1">
|
||||
The Sunrise Movement is just one of many groups working on climate advocacy today, and for some, getting involved with collective action can seem as daunting as reducing your individual carbon footprint: Where do you even start? For Heglar, the answer is simple: “You do what you’re good at, and you do your best.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HBlsNn">
|
||||
“If you’re good at organizing, organize. If you’re good at taking care of people, take care of people who do other things, Heglar said. And “no matter who you are, build community.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zb1C5L">
|
||||
Around the world, people are already working on communal solutions to environmental degradation, and have been for generations, whether that’s <a href="https://www.vox.com/22586851/indigenous-native-
|
||||
firefighters-western-wildfires-climate-change">Indigenous firefighting practices</a> or the <a href="https://www.vox.com/identities/2019/10/11/20904791/young-climate-activists-of-color">fight to protect the rainforest in Colombia</a>. And for Americans looking for ways to join together to help one another and the planet, there are many options, like <a href="https://www.pri.org/stories/2020-04-13/mutual-aid-groups-respond-double-threat-
|
||||
coronavirus-and-climate-change">local mutual aid groups</a> that help communities cope with the impact of climate change, such as by <a href="https://www.thecut.com/2021/06/where-to-donate-during-the-pacific-northwest-heat-
|
||||
wave.html">providing water and sunscreen</a> during heat waves. Local <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home/buy-nothing-groups-gift-
|
||||
economy/2021/04/20/e392b896-964d-11eb-a6d0-13d207aadb78_story.html">Buy Nothing groups</a> can help people reduce waste by giving away and sharing used items.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QH1qgD">
|
||||
Putting pressure on elected officials is one of the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20181102-what-can-i-do-about-climate-change">most important collective actions</a> people can take. People can urge their representatives in Congress, state legislatures, and city governments<strong> </strong>to support climate investments, public transit, and clean energy standards, for example. The Natural Resources Defense Council has <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/stories/how-lobby-your-legislator">a guide</a> to lobbying your legislator.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3fZEQX">
|
||||
Getting involved in communities doesn’t just multiply your impact — it can also stave off despair. Ray has seen this in her classes at Humboldt State, in which she encourages students to build trust, express their feelings about climate change, and essentially practice for going out into the wider world. “The alleviation of anxiety that happens when you’re working towards a common goal, even if it’s a really depressing one, in community is actually very joyful and very fulfilling,” she said.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h4 id="pilGw3">
|
||||
Think long-term
|
||||
</h4>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uiff7i">
|
||||
Just as no one person can fix climate change, the crisis isn’t going to be solved overnight — and it may not be “solved” in a conventional way at all. In order to confront this fact, people need to think of fighting climate change as a long-term process they engage with over time, Heglar said.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QupFYz">
|
||||
We should see the problem “in the same realm that you would see reproductive justice or racial justice or any other justice issue,” she explained. “You would never say, what’s the one thing I can do about racism?”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yZkVwg">
|
||||
Especially since the uprisings last summer following the murder of George Floyd, more Americans — especially white people — are<strong> </strong>beginning to internalize the idea that the fight against racism will be a long-term struggle, one that probably won’t ever be “over,” but that they have a responsibility to keep committing to, again and again. And racial justice activists have experience working for a cause that can seem hopeless, and confronting an existential risk to themselves and their families — but they keep doing the work anyway.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bBkZqs">
|
||||
It’s also important to remember that for many communities the world over, facing a major threat to the present and future is nothing new. Anti-colonial and abolitionist movements “have had long traditions of movement resilience that have a lot to teach the climate movement,” Ray noted, including the message that climate change is not “the first and only existential threat we’ve ever faced.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jYzJj0">
|
||||
Indeed, social movements from the opposition to apartheid in South Africa to Indigenous rights activism here in the US have “seen a lot of reason for despair, and no evidence for hope, and have still figured out how to fight the fight,” Ray said.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h4 id="2YX6bK">
|
||||
Seek joy, but allow for grief
|
||||
</h4>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xoVm9V">
|
||||
The fight against climate change can be slow, difficult, and painful. But in order to stay committed for the long haul, people need to think about the positive too, Ray said, to “actively discipline into your life the cultivation of joy.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YcXf6j">
|
||||
That could mean something as simple as reading news about environmental <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/these-conservation-storeis-prove-2020-was-not-all-bad-
|
||||
news-180976512/">success</a> <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516588&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newscientist.com%2Farticle%2Fmg24933223-400-ten-
|
||||
conservation-success-stories-when-species-came-back-from-the-
|
||||
brink%2F&referrer=vox.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vox.com%2F22595896%2Fclimate-change-fire-heat-wave-anxiety" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">stories</a> or successful activism in your local community. Ray is involved in a local group with <a href="https://climatejusticealliance.org/just-transition/">the Just Transition movement</a>, which works toward an equitable shift away from fossil fuels, and says “the newsletter that they send me is enough to keep me going.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="H6Kb7c">
|
||||
“The world is awful,” Ray said. “And there’s so much beauty, joy, and delight to be had too.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<div class="c-wide-block">
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qsTlx77UM_Xdp-f-HDQkJJjsfJA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22764771/GettyImages_1233694107_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Nathan Howard/Getty Images</cite>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
Cliff divers spend time at High Rocks Park in Portland during the heat dome that descended over the Pacific Northwest in June.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3vyXM0">
|
||||
It’s also okay to feel the awfulness of the world. After all, climate change for many Americans today means risk to themselves or their loved ones, or destruction of their homes or places they’ve come to love. And part of acknowledging climate anxiety and grief, for people not yet personally affected by disasters, can be asking yourself, “If I am hurting so much, what is happening to people who are less privileged?” Kritee, a senior climate scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/04/climate/climate-anxiety-stress.html">recently told the New York Times</a>.
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="o4OT3r">
|
||||
People who have been involved in climate science or activism for years still feel sorrow, despair, or rage, Heglar said. In fact, “I feel comforted by the fact I can still feel that way, because it means I’m not desensitized,” she said. “I never want to be that person who can look at the world burn and feel fine.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gfXbTi">
|
||||
But when climate grief or despair become overwhelming, the key is to reach out to others in your community. “You are not the only one feeling this way,” Heglar said, adding that “it benefits the fossil fuel industry when you think you are. So find the other people who are feeling it too.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><strong>Democrats say Cuomo must resign. He’s refusing. What now?</strong> -
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<img alt="New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo waves to members of the press at a press conference." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/VaRNUT9ihJOk9ssl9SN5LYPhcBA=/94x0:2761x2000/1310x983/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69684811/GettyImages_1327337790_copy.0.jpg"/>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is being asked to resign by prominent Democrats including President Biden. | Spencer Platt/Getty Images
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Impeachment looms, but Democrats are still hoping he’ll quit first.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="w5AKS3">
|
||||
The new report accusing New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, of sexually harassing several women has raised the odds that he’ll be ousted from office — but it hasn’t entirely quieted fears that he’ll be <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/08/how-does-andrew-cuomo-survive-sexual-harassment-report.html">let off the hook</a>.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bWXreF">
|
||||
The <a href="https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/2021.08.03_nyag_-
|
||||
_investigative_report.pdf">report from the New York state attorney general’s office</a> documented testimony from 11 women, mostly state employees, who allege that Cuomo acted inappropriately toward them. The accusations covered conduct ranging from unwanted kissing and touching to inappropriate comments. One state employee claims Cuomo groped her breast; others describe the governor telling sex jokes and commenting on how they looked.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HfiJ1A">
|
||||
This <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/cuomo-investigations-possible-impeachment.html">isn’t even the only scandal</a> Cuomo’s facing — investigators are looking into his handling of data on Covid-19 deaths at New York nursing homes and whether he used state resources <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/19/nyregion/andrew-cuomo-book-
|
||||
investigation.html">to write and promote a book</a>, among other matters. Criminal charges from county prosecutors <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/03/nyregion/cuomo-criminal-investigation.html">are also possible</a>. (In response, a lawyer for the governor <a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/8.3.21_Position_Statement_of_Governor_Cuomo.pdf">issued a statement</a> asserting that the worst of the allegations are simply untrue, and <a href="https://twitter.com/hjessy_/status/1422606964689887237">Cuomo himself claimed</a> in a Twitter video that he has a habit of touching people’s faces and doesn’t intend anything sexual by it.)
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wNGjAt">
|
||||
A chorus of top Democrats on the national and state levels — including <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/03/nyregion/cuomo-biden-
|
||||
sexual-harassment.html">President Joe Biden</a>, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-senate-democratic-leader-
|
||||
schumer-sen-gillibrand-call-cuomo-resignation-2021-08-03/">Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer</a>, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/03/calls-increase-for-cuomo-to-resign-after-sexual-harassment-report.html">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi</a>, <a href="https://nypost.com/2021/08/03/eric-adams-says-cuomo-should-be-impeached-if-he-doesnt-
|
||||
resign/">New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Eric Adams</a>, and <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/566141-entire-ny-democratic-congressional-delegation-now-calling-for-
|
||||
cuomos">New York’s entire Democratic congressional </a><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/566141-entire-ny-
|
||||
democratic-congressional-delegation-now-calling-for-cuomos?rl=1">delegation</a> — have concluded that enough is enough and demanded Cuomo’s resignation.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l2XmLo">
|
||||
The problem is that, for now at least, he says he won’t.
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/htbW4ukUxvrHcIfvAgmIZNXTXkI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22764249/GettyImages_1332208471_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Win McNamee/Getty Images</cite>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
In a press conference on Tuesday, August 3, President Joe Biden told reporters that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo should resign following the results of a state investigation into his behavior.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="q10OEf">
|
||||
So, what’s next? An impeachment vote in the New York State Assembly looms, posing the threat that Cuomo could be removed from power involuntarily. But Democrats are still hoping that won’t be necessary. As New York state Sen. James Skoufis <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/cuomo-should-resign-or-be-impeached-59-of-new-
|
||||
yorkers-say-in-new-poll">said recently</a>, the hope is that once it’s made clear to Cuomo that his impeachment and removal is certain, he’ll resign to save some face.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HRQax4">
|
||||
Scandal-plagued politicians often don’t resign because of shame or docility, but because they’ve concluded that leaving office voluntarily is the least bad, most face- saving option for them personally.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cs8BQt">
|
||||
That could still happen. But Cuomo, evidently, has not yet concluded that he’s doomed. We’ve seen politicians fend off calls for resignation and beat back impeachment efforts before, even in the face of seemingly damning evidence. If Cuomo keeps refusing to go, Democrats will have two options to oust him against his will: 1) through impeachment, and 2) in the 2022 elections, if impeachment fails and Cuomo continues his reelection bid.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h3 id="VzN5k6">
|
||||
Cuomo appears headed toward impeachment
|
||||
</h3>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XPgKTI">
|
||||
A scandal- spurred resignation is nothing new for New York Democrats, given the downfalls of Gov. Eliot Spitzer (in 2008) and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (in 2018). But Cuomo seems to be trying a different strategy — that of Donald Trump, who stayed in both the 2016 presidential race <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/allegations-women-
|
||||
have-made-against-donald-trump-n665731">after several women</a> accused him of sexual misconduct and in the White House after numerous scandals. Cuomo may also be thinking about Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam: <a href="https://www.axios.com/full-list-calls-for-ralph-northam-
|
||||
resignation-8eb77302-f340-4faa-8887-24432984a7fd.html">Practically every leading Democrat</a> asked him to resign when photos showing him in blackface surfaced in 2019, but he stayed in office and has since been <a href="https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/coronavirus/biden-northam-to-speak-after-virginia-lifts-
|
||||
covid-19-restrictions/2686114/">welcomed back into polite Democratic company</a>.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8yq8eP">
|
||||
Cuomo’s political position looks far worse than Trump’s or Northam’s, though. While some top Republicans repudiated Trump on occasion, most others remained loyal to him despite years of scandals, as did the vast majority of GOP voters. But polls already show a narrow majority of Democratic voters in the state <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/state-
|
||||
watch/566319-63-percent-of-new-york-voters-say-cuomo-should-resign-poll">saying Cuomo should resign</a>.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0tOWAD">
|
||||
Northam’s scandal, meanwhile, did not involve official misconduct, so impeachment never went anywhere. But leaders of the New York State Assembly, which has the power to impeach, have said they’re very serious about pursuing Cuomo’s removal and <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2021/08/05/assembly-gives-
|
||||
cuomo-8-days-to-share-additional-evidence-1389556">hope to make it happen</a> within months.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<figure class="e-image">
|
||||
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/thumbor/byNtHLwrXSaPK79SdvsdnMCE3QY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
|
||||
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22764242/GettyImages_1234430274_copy.jpg"/> <cite>David Dee Delgado/Getty Images</cite>
|
||||
<figcaption>
|
||||
On Tuesday, August 3, New York Attorney General Letitia James (center) presented the findings of an independent investigation looking into allegations of sexually harassment by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
|
||||
</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VNx2T9">
|
||||
Impeaching a governor in the New York State Legislature plays out similarly to that of a US president in Congress. The Assembly goes first, and a majority vote there is necessary for impeachment. A trial is then held in the state Senate, with a two-thirds vote there being necessary to convict Cuomo, remove him from office, and ban him from holding future elected office in the state. (One difference is that the “jury” in a potential Cuomo impeachment trial would include 62 state senators plus seven <a href="https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/CNS/A6S24">judges of the New York State Court of Appeals</a>, all of whom Cuomo appointed.)
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vfwQOH">
|
||||
Democrats hold large majorities in both the State Assembly and State Senate, so Cuomo’s fate depends on them. As with Trump, Cuomo’s best hope may be the Senate’s two-thirds threshold necessary for conviction. If just 24 senators vote no, he’ll be able to stay in power.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JsieOk">
|
||||
Still, Democrats are hoping to avoid the ugly, protracted process of impeachment by getting Cuomo to resign. One way to do that would be to make clear that he doesn’t have enough support from state senators and that the outcome truly is inevitable — if, in fact, it is.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<h3 id="Yp8Eva">
|
||||
If Cuomo survives impeachment, there’s an election next year
|
||||
</h3>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QFT69x">
|
||||
As of now, Cuomo still <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/02/nyregion/cuomo-fundraiser-election.html">seems set on running</a> for a fourth term as governor, and no Democrat has stepped up to challenge him in the June 2022 primary. So if he does manage to fend off impeachment — and if, improbable as it may seem today, he stays in the race — the party would face quite a dilemma.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qmp6Je">
|
||||
That is, they’d need at least one strong challenger to oust Cuomo, but if several enter the race and Cuomo stays in, it may be challenging for the party to coordinate around one alternative.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="a42HHl">
|
||||
According to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/03/nyregion/cuomo-guilty.html">the New York Times’s Katie Glueck</a>, “many Democrats hope” that Attorney General Letitia James, whose office released this week’s report on the investigation into Cuomo’s conduct, will run, but it’s not clear whether she will. An early, unified party backing one challenger would be another way to send Cuomo the message that his time as governor is up.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lEm7xw">
|
||||
But Cuomo could gamble that he’s more in touch with rank-and-file party voters than his critics. Glueck writes that he’s been seeking “to connect with those voters — especially older voters — who might be sympathetic to his suggestion that many of the allegations of misconduct can be traced to ‘generational or cultural’ differences or misunderstandings.” And, if things truly get to this point, it really would be those voters who make the call.
|
||||
</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>Indian 4x400m relay team breaks Asian record but fails to qualify for final in Olympics</strong> - India missed out the eight-team final as they ended at ninth spot overall.</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>Race For The Stars, Mzilikazi, Battista and Queen Of Gibraltar impress</strong> - Race For The Stars, Mzilikazi, Battista and Queen Of Gibraltar impressed when the horses were exercised here on Friday (Aug. 6).Inner sand: 600m: Eag</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>Wrestler Deepak Punia’s coach Gaidarov expelled from Tokyo Olympics</strong> - The International Olympic Committee has cancelled Gaidarov’s accreditation after a hearing was held in the matter.</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>Retaining Messi was a “risky” investment, says Barcelona president Laporta</strong> - He blamed Barcelona’s previous administration for the club’s dire financial situation.</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>Over and out: Marijne says Olympics was last assignment as coach with India women’s hockey team</strong> - Indian women came tantalisingly close to winning their maiden Olympic medal before losing to Great Britain 3-4 in a close bronze play-off match</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>Rename stadia also after sportspersons: Congress</strong> - Welcomes move to retitle Khel Ratna after hockey legend Dhyan Chand</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>India, China withdraw from Gogra area in Eastern Ladakh</strong> - This is second friction area from which disengagement has been done after Pangong Tso in Feb.</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>Tata Advanced Systems to make Boeing 737 fan cowls in Hyderabad</strong> - Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) on Friday said it has been awarded a contract for manufacturing and supply of Boeing 737 fan cowl, at its facility in Hyd</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>CBI books UP govt officer over alleged irregularities in additional private secretary exam-2010</strong> - The CBI has registered an FIR against Special Secretary in the Uttar Pradesh government Prabhunath for alleged irregularities in the conduct of Additi</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>Renegotiate Indus Water Treaty to address impact of climate change: Parliamentary Panel</strong> - In its report the panel has also reccomended monitoring of Chinese actions on the Brahmaputra river</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Olympics expels Belarus coaches over athlete removal</strong> - Ms Timanovskaya said she was forced to leave Tokyo after she complained about her coaches online.</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>Greece battles wildfires near Athens and on Evia island</strong> - Strong winds and scorching heat fuel dozens of blazes, forcing thousands to evacuate.</p></li>
|
||||
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Covid: Italy rolls out ‘green pass’ for public venue access</strong> - All those aged 12 and over with at least one jab will be able to access bars, cinemas and gyms.</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>Vitaly Shishov: Belarus activist feared for life before he died</strong> - The girlfriend of a Belarusian activist who died in Ukraine says he would never have killed himself.</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>Lionel Messi will not stay at Barcelona</strong> - Barcelona say Lionel Messi will not be staying at the club “because of financial and structural obstacles”.</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>Rocket Report: Virgin Galactic ups ticket prices, Starship surge in Texas</strong> - “It has been a tough journey at times.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1785388">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Climate contrarians predicted the world would cool—it didn’t</strong> - The anticlimate-science blogosphere’s trophy cabinet is bare. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1785318">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Paragon is working to get its ntfs3 filesystem into the Linux kernel</strong> - Torvalds seems bullish on getting Paragon’s project across the line eventually. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1785374">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Back 4 Blood beta impressions: A template for potential co-op greatness</strong> - As a beta, Turtle Rock’s co-op return already feels like a full-fledged <em>L4D</em> sequel. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1785379">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Apple explains how iPhones will scan photos for child-sexual-abuse images</strong> - Apple offers technical details, claims 1-in-1 trillion chance of false positives. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1785443">link</a></p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
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<ul>
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<li><strong>A husband leans over and asks his wife, “Do you remember the first time we had sex together over fifty years ago?”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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<div class="md">
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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“We went behind the village tavern where you leaned against the back fence and I made love to you.”
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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“Yes”, she says, “I remember it well.”
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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OK, he says, “How about taking a stroll around there again and we can do it for old time’s sake?”
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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“Oh Jim, you old devil, that sounds like a crazy, but good idea!”
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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A police officer sitting in the next booth heard their conversation and, having a chuckle to himself, he thinks to himself, I’ve got to see these two old-timers having sex against a fence. I’ll just keep an eye on them so there’s no trouble. So he follows them.
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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The elderly couple walks haltingly along, leaning on each other for support aided by walking sticks. Finally, they get to the back of the tavern and make their way to the fence The old lady lifts her skirt and the old man drops his trousers. As she leans against the fence, the old man moves in.. Then suddenly they erupt into the most furious sex that the policeman has ever seen. This goes on for about ten minutes while both are making loud noises and moaning and screaming. Finally, they both collapse, panting on the ground.
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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The policeman is amazed. He thinks he has learned something about life and old age that he didn’t know.
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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After about half an hour of lying on the ground recovering, the old couple struggle to their feet and put their clothes back on. The policeman, is still watching and thinks to himself, this is truly amazing, I’ve got to ask them what their secret is.
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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So, as the couple passes, he says to them, “Excuse me, but that was something else. You must’ve had a fantastic sex life together. Is there some sort of secret to this?”
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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Shaking, the old man is barely able to reply,
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</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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“Fifty years ago that wasn’t an electric fence.”
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</p>
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</div>
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<!-- SC_ON -->
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/PrettyLittleToaster2"> /u/PrettyLittleToaster2 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oyvl37/a_husband_leans_over_and_asks_his_wife_do_you/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oyvl37/a_husband_leans_over_and_asks_his_wife_do_you/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
|
||||
<li><strong>My Italian Grandfathers favorite joke about a woman who doesn’t want sex</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
|
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<div class="md">
|
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
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||||
Hopefully this joke translates to English. It was my grandfather’s favorite.
|
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</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
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A woman goes to see the doctor with complaints of a low sex drive. She tells the Dr “My husband wants me to get medicine so I’ll want sex as much as he does”, Doc tell her no problem he will give her the same hormone pills the Olympic weightlifting team uses . He confidently explains, “all of them want to have sex multiple times a day”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
2 months later the woman returns to doctor in tears: “Now I want sex all the time but my husband doesn’t want to have it with me, because I’ve grown hair on my chest.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
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The surprised doctor asks her: “How far does the hair go down?”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Woman replies: “All the way to my balls. That is another thing I wanted to talk you about”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<!-- SC_ON -->
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/oculardocular"> /u/oculardocular </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oymhwe/my_italian_grandfathers_favorite_joke_about_a/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oymhwe/my_italian_grandfathers_favorite_joke_about_a/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
|
||||
<li><strong>A housewife takes a lover during the day, while her husband is at work. Not aware that 9 year old son was hiding in the closet. Her husband came home unexpectedly, so she hid her lover in the closet. The boy now has company.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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<div class="md">
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Boy: ‟Dark in here.”<br/> Man: ‟Yes it’s.”<br/> Boy: ‟I have a baseball.”<br/> Man: ‟That’s nice.”<br/> Boy: ‟Want to buy it?”<br/> Man: ‟No, thanks.”<br/> Boy: ‟That’s my dad outside.”<br/> Man: ‟How much did you say the baseball was again?”<br/> Boy: ‟$250.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
In the next few weeks, it happens again that the boy and the mom’s lover are in the closet together.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Boy: ‟Dark in here.”<br/> Man: ‟Yes, it’s..”<br/> Boy: ‟I have a baseball glove.”<br/> Man: ‟That’s nice.”<br/> Boy: ‟Want to buy it?”<br/> Man: ‟No, thanks.”<br/> Boy: ‟I think I just remembered something I needed to tell my dad.”<br/> Man: ‟How much did you say the glove was again?”<br/> Boy: ‟$750.”<br/> Man: ‟Fine.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
A few days later, the father says to the boy, ‟Grab your glove. Let’s go outside and toss the baseball!”<br/> The boy says, ‟I can’t. I sold them.”<br/> The father asks, ‟How much did you sell them for?”<br/> The son says, ‟$1,000.”<br/> The father says, ‟It’s terrible to over-charge your friends like that. That is way more than those two things cost. I’m going to take you to church and make you confess.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
They go to church and the father alerts the priest and makes the little boy sit in the confession booth and closes the door.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
The boy says, ‟Dark in here.”<br/> The priest says, ‟Do not start that shit again.”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<!-- SC_ON
|
||||
-->
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/littleboy_xxxx"> /u/littleboy_xxxx </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oz4yvv/a_housewife_takes_a_lover_during_the_day_while/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oz4yvv/a_housewife_takes_a_lover_during_the_day_while/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
|
||||
<li><strong>Good Italian Girls</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
|
||||
<div class="md">
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
A young Italian-American girl was going on a date…..
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Her Nonna said: "Sita here ana letame tella you about those-a younga boys.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
He’s agonna try ana kiss you, you are agonna likea dat … but don’t let him do that.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
He’s agonna try ana kiss your breasts, you are agonna likea dat too… but don’ta let him do that.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
But most important, he’s agonna try ana lay on topa you, you are agonna likea dat, but don’ta let him do that.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Doing that willa disgraca the family.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
With that bit of advice, the granddaughter went on her date. The next day she told grandma that her date went just like she had predicted:
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
“Nonna, I didn’t let him disgrace the family. When he tried, I just turned over, got on top of him, and disgraced HIS family!”
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
Nonna fainted!!
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<!-- SC_ON -->
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Waitsfornoone"> /u/Waitsfornoone </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oyrtwu/good_italian_girls/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oyrtwu/good_italian_girls/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
|
||||
<li><strong>My little daughter came to me all excited, saying, “Daddy! Daddy! Guess how old I’ll be this August!” I chuckled, “Oh I don’t know princess, why don’t you tell me?” She gave me a huge smile and held up four fingers.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
|
||||
<div class="md">
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
|
||||
It’s now three hours later, the police are annoyed and she <em>still</em> won’t say where she got them!
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<!-- SC_ON -->
|
||||
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/808gecko808"> /u/808gecko808 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oyesf0/my_little_daughter_came_to_me_all_excited_saying/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/oyesf0/my_little_daughter_came_to_me_all_excited_saying/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
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