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<title>18 April, 2023</title>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="covid-19-sentry">Covid-19 Sentry</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Effect of Yoga on the Stress, Anxiety, and Depression of COVID-19-Positive Patients. A Quasi-Randomized Controlled Study. International Journal of Yoga therapy 2022 (32)</strong> -
<div>
The spread of COVID-19 has resulted in reports of an increase in stress, anxiety, and depression across society, especially in people who have tested positive for COVID-19, which affects their mental health and well-being. This article reports a quasi-randomized controlled study conducted in the COVID wards of a hospital to examine the efficacy of add-on yoga intervention in reducing stress, anxiety, and depression in COVID-affected patients under quarantine. The peripheral capillary oxygen saturation level and heart rate of the COVID-19-affected patients were also measured. A total of 62 COVID-19-positive patients participated in the study. The participants were randomized into a control group (n = 31), which received conventional medical treatment alone, and a yoga intervention group (n = 31), which received 50 minutes of yoga intervention along with the conventional medical treatment. Standardized Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Generalized Anxiety Disorder–7 Item, Patient Health Questionnaire–9, and Perceived Stress Scale were administered at the beginning and end of the quarantine period. A significant decrease in stress, anxiety, and depression was observed in the patients who undertook the add-on yoga intervention. There was also a significant decrease in anxiety in the control group, but the yoga intervention group had a larger decrease compared to the control group. Further significant improvements in oxygen saturation and heart rate levels were observed in the group of patients who were practicing yoga, but no significant improvement was observed in the control group. The findings of this study suggest that yoga intervention can be an effective add-on practice in reducing stress, anxiety, and depression levels in COVID-19 patients.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/2cswy/" target="_blank">Effect of Yoga on the Stress, Anxiety, and Depression of COVID-19-Positive Patients. A Quasi-Randomized Controlled Study. International Journal of Yoga therapy 2022 (32)</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>AMYLASE DEPLETION SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVES THE MALDI-TOF PROFILE OF SALIVA-APPLICATION TO COVID-19 DIAGNOSTICS</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Human saliva contains a plethora of proteins whose presence and concentration can be monitored for diagnosis and progression of disease. Saliva has been extensively probed for the diagnosis of several systemic and infectious diseases because of the ease with which it can be collected. However, amylase, the most abundant protein found in saliva can obscure the detection of low-abundance proteins by MALDI-ToF MS (matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry) and diminish the diagnostic utility of this specimen type. In the present study, we used a device to deplete salivary amylase from water-gargle samples through affinity adsorption. After depletion, profiling of the saliva proteome was performed by MALDI-ToF MS on gargle samples from subjects whose COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) status was confirmed by NP (nasopharyngeal) swab RT-qPCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction). Amylase depletion led to the enhancement of signal intensities of various peaks as well as the detection of previously unobserved peaks in the MALDI-ToF spectra. The overall specificity and sensitivity after amylase depletion was 100% and 85.17% respectively for detecting COVID-19. Our simple, rapid and inexpensive technique to deplete salivary amylase can be used to unmask spectral diversity in saliva by MALDI-ToF MS, reveal low-abundant proteins and aid in the establishment of novel biomarkers for diseases.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.11.23288361v1" target="_blank">AMYLASE DEPLETION SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVES THE MALDI-TOF PROFILE OF SALIVA-APPLICATION TO COVID-19 DIAGNOSTICS</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Core warming of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients undergoing mechanical ventilation - a pilot study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Abstract: Fever is a recognized protective factor in patients with sepsis, and growing data suggest beneficial effects on outcomes in sepsis with elevated temperature, with a recent pilot randomized controlled trial showing lower mortality by warming afebrile sepsis patients in the intensive care unit. The objective of this prospective single-site randomized controlled trial was to determine if core warming improves respiratory physiology of mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19, allowing earlier weaning from ventilation, and greater overall survival. A total of 19 patients with mean age of 60.5 (±12.5) years, 37% female, mean weight 95.1 (±18.6) kg, and mean BMI 34.5 (±5.9) kg/m2 with COVID-19 requiring mechanical ventilation were enrolled from September 2020 through February 2022. Patients were randomized 1:1 to standard-of-care or to receive core warming for 72 hours via an esophageal heat exchanger commonly utilized in critical care and surgical patients. The maximum target temperature was 39.8 °C. A total of 10 patients received usual care and 9 patients received esophageal core warming. After 72 hours of warming, PaO2/FiO2 ratios were 197 (±32) and 134 (±13.4), Cycle Thresholds were 30.8 (±6.4) and 31.4 (±3.2), ICU mortality was 40% and 44%, 30-day mortality was 30% and 22%, and mean 30-day ventilator-free days were 11.9 (±12.6) and 6.8 (±10.2) for standard-of-care and warmed patients, respectively (p=NS). This pilot study suggests that core warming of patients with COVID-19 undergoing mechanical ventilation is feasible and appears safe. Optimizing time to achieve febrile-range temperature may require a multimodal temperature management strategy to further evaluate effects on outcome.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.12.23287815v1" target="_blank">Core warming of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients undergoing mechanical ventilation - a pilot study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Improvement in drug prescription skills in medical students through in-person and remote simulated interviews</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Introduction: Development of drug prescription skills poses critical challenges in medical education. This study determined the effects of simulated interviews on the improvement of drug prescription skills among medical students in 2020. Methodology: This was a quantitative, cross-sectional, analytical, quasi-experimental study of simulated interviews for improving rational drug prescription skills in medical students. Baseline, pre-, and post-intervention assessments of prescription skills were performed using an expert-validated instrument constructed from the WHO Good Prescribing Guide. Three simulated interviews with different simulated patients were conducted in two groups: in-person in the first batch and remotely in the second batch due to mandatory social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemics. Friedman, Dunn-Bonferroni, and Wilcoxon tests were used, considering a significance of level p&lt;.05 and standardized mean difference (Hedges g); data were analyzed using Excel 2016 and SPSS 28. Results: Fifty-four students completed the required assessments; in-person 28 and remotely 26. The total score for pharmacological prescription skills increased significantly from pre- to post-intervention measurements, from 12.72 +/- 2.94 to 15.44 +/- 2.50, respectively (p&lt;.0001) (g: 0.996), and the increase from baseline to post-intervention scores for drug prescription knowledge was 5.39 +/- 3.67, 11.28 +/- 3.50, respectively (p &lt;.01). Discussion: Our results suggest that the implementation of pre-briefing and debriefing strategies in remote and in-person clinical interviews with simulated patients significantly improved drug prescription skills and pharmacological knowledge among medical students. The logical sequence of the WHO Guide for Good Prescribing may have facilitated debriefing, knowledge acquisition, and transfer to various clinical contexts.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.11.23288429v1" target="_blank">Improvement in drug prescription skills in medical students through in-person and remote simulated interviews</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Single Ventricle Reconstruction III: Brain Connectome and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes: Design, Recruitment, and Technical Challenges of a Multicenter, Observational Neuroimaging Study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome who have been palliated with the Fontan procedure are at risk for adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes, lower quality of life, and reduced employability. We describe the methods (including quality assurance and quality control protocols) and challenges of a multi-center observational ancillary study, SVRIII (Single Ventricle Reconstruction Trial) Brain Connectome. Our original goal was to obtain advanced neuroimaging (Diffusion Tensor Imaging and Resting-BOLD) in 140 SVR III participants and 100 healthy controls for brain connectome analyses. Linear regression and mediation statistical methods will be used to analyze associations of brain connectome measures with neurocognitive measures and clinical risk factors. Initial recruitment challenges occurred related to difficulties with: 1) coordinating brain MRI for participants already undergoing extensive testing in the parent study, and 2) recruiting healthy control subjects. The COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected enrollment late in the study. Enrollment challenges were addressed by 1) adding additional study sites, 2) increasing the frequency of meetings with site coordinators and 3) developing additional healthy control recruitment strategies, including using research registries and advertising the study to community-based groups. Technical challenges that emerged early in the study were related to the acquisition, harmonization, and transfer of neuroimages. These hurdles were successfully overcome with protocol modifications and frequent site visits that involved human and synthetic phantoms.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.12.23288433v1" target="_blank">Single Ventricle Reconstruction III: Brain Connectome and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes: Design, Recruitment, and Technical Challenges of a Multicenter, Observational Neuroimaging Study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Effect of nasal carriage of Bacillus species on COVID-19 severity: A cross-sectional study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Intranasal sprays containing Bacillus species are being researched for treating viral respiratory tract infections. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between the nasal carriage of <i>Bacillus</i> and COVID-19 severity. This was a cross-sectional study that collected nasopharyngeal samples from adults 18 years and above visiting two COVID-19 testing centers in Lagos, Nigeria between September 2020 and September 2021. Bacillus species were cultured from the respiratory samples and confirmed using molecular methods. The dependent variable was COVID-19 status classified as negative, asymptomatic, mild, or severe. The independent variable was the nasal carriage of Bacillus species. Multinomial regression analysis was done to determine the association between nasal carriage of Bacillus and COVID-19 severity after adjusting for age, sex, and co-morbidity status. About 388 participants were included in the study with a mean (standard deviation) age of 40.05 (13.563) years. The majority (61.1%) of the participants were male, 100 (25.8%) had severe COVID-19, 130 (33.5%) had pre-existing comorbidity, and 76 (19.6%) had Bacillus cultured from their nasopharyngeal specimen. Bacillus species presence was significantly associated with higher odds of severe COVID-19 compared to having a negative COVID-19 status. However, the presence of Bacillus species was significantly associated with lower odds of severe COVID-19 compared to having a mild COVID-19 status. The study suggests that nasal carriage of Bacillus species may substantially impact the clinical course of COVID-19. This study supports the exploration of <i>Bacillus</i> species in the prevention and management of viral respiratory tract infections.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.15.23288553v1" target="_blank">Effect of nasal carriage of Bacillus species on COVID-19 severity: A cross-sectional study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>SARS-CoV-2 occurrence in white-tailed deer throughout their range in the conterminous United States</strong> -
<div>
Broad-scale data show SARS-CoV-2 occurrence in white-tailed deer throughout much of their range in the conterminous United States and reinforce findings of substantial SARS-CoV-2 infection and exposure. Results shed light on both current infections and prior exposure, with prevalence decreasing over time and seroprevalence increasing.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.14.533542v1" target="_blank">SARS-CoV-2 occurrence in white-tailed deer throughout their range in the conterminous United States</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Human airway ex vivo models: new tools to study the airway epithelial cell response to SARS-CoV-2 infection</strong> -
<div>
Airway-liquid interface cultures of primary epithelial cells and of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived airway epithelial cells (ALI and iALI, respectively) are physiologically relevant models for respiratory virus infection studies because they can mimic the in vivo human bronchial epithelium. Here, we investigated gene expression profiles in human airway cultures (ALI and iALI models) infected or not with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) using publicly available and our own bulk and single-cell transcriptome datasets. SARS-CoV-2) infection significantly increased the expression of interferon-stimulated genes (IFI44, IFIT1, IFIT3, IFI35, IRF9, MX1, OAS1, OAS3 and ISG15) and inflammatory genes (NFKBIA, CSF1, FOSL1, IL32 and CXCL10) at day 4 post-infection, indicating activation of the interferon and immune responses to the virus. Extracellular matrix genes (ITGB6, ITGB1 and GJA1) also were altered in infected cells. Single-cell RNA sequencing data revealed that SARS-CoV-2 infection damaged the respiratory epithelium, particularly mature ciliated cells. The expression of genes encoding intercellular communication and adhesion proteins also was deregulated, suggesting a mechanism to promote shedding of infected epithelial cells. These data demonstrate that ALI/iALI models help to understand the airway epithelium response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and are a key tool for developing COVID-19 treatments.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.15.536998v1" target="_blank">Human airway ex vivo models: new tools to study the airway epithelial cell response to SARS-CoV-2 infection</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>SARS-CoV-2 shifts transcription of host gene to increase Spike acylation and boost infectivity</strong> -
<div>
SARS-CoV-2 infection requires Spike protein mediating fusion between the viral and cellular membranes. The fusogenic activity of Spike requires its post-translational lipid modification by host S-acyltransferases, predominantly ZDHHC20. Previous observations indicate that SARS-CoV-2 infection augments the S-acylation of Spike when compared to transfection. Here, we find that SARS-CoV-2 infection triggers a change in the transcriptional start site of the zddhc20 gene, both in cells and in an in vivo infection model, resulting in a 67-amino-acid-long N-terminally extended protein with 37-times higher Spike acylating activity, leading to enhanced viral infectivity. Furthermore, we observed the same induced transcriptional change in response to other challenges, such as chemically induced colitis, indicating that SARS-CoV-2 hijacks an existing cell damage response pathway to generate more infectious viruses.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.15.537011v1" target="_blank">SARS-CoV-2 shifts transcription of host gene to increase Spike acylation and boost infectivity</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Social dialogue quality and workers’ health as perceived by Belgian trade union representatives during the COVID-19 pandemic.</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Besides major employment disruptions, the COVID-19 pandemic has generated policy responses with specific mechanisms to protect workers9 health. In Belgium, most of these policies were negotiated at national and cross-sectorial level but implemented at company level with company-based collective negotiation playing a key role. This study examines the relationship between trade union representatives9 perception of social dialogue quality and change in workers9 physical and mental health in such a context. Methods: Union representatives were surveyed throughout Belgium between August and December 2021 through an online questionnaire (N=469). We asked about the way they perceived workers9 physical and mental health within their companies and explain variations with the self-perceived change in quality of social dialogue as an exposure. We use a modified Poisson regression for binary outcomes on four stratified models that additively account for no control, company characteristics, pre-pandemic self-reported health and COVID-19-related measures. Weights are generated to ensure sector representativeness. Results: 30.1% of the sample reported a worsening social dialogue quality during the pandemic. Relative Risks (RR) of poor physical and mental health when social dialogue has worsened are respectively 1.49 [95%CI:1.03; 2.15] and 1.38 [95%CI= 1.09;1.74] when controlling for company characteristics and pre-pandemic health. Adding pandemic-related measures reduces the risk of both poor mental [RR=1.25; 95%CI: 0.84; 1.87] and physical health [RR=1.18; 95%CI:0.94;1.49]. Conclusions: Although based on self-reported variables, the study shows an association between poor social dialogue quality and poor physical and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic that must be explored further in post-pandemic context.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.10.23288317v1" target="_blank">Social dialogue quality and workers’ health as perceived by Belgian trade union representatives during the COVID-19 pandemic.</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Post COVID-19 Condition, Work Ability and Occupational Changes: Results from a Population-based Cohort</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Evidence from population-based studies on the impact of post COVID-19 condition (PCC) on ability to work is limited but critical due to its high prevalence among individuals of working-age. Objective: To evaluate the association between PCC, work ability, and occupational changes. Design: Population-based, longitudinal cohort. Setting: General population, Canton of Zurich, Switzerland. Participants: 672 adults of working-age with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Measurements: Current work ability, work ability related to physical and mental demands, and estimated future work ability in 2 years (assessed using Work Ability Index), as well as PCC-related occupational changes at one year after infection. Results: There was very strong evidence that current work ability scores were 0.62 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.30 to 0.95) points lower among those with PCC compared to those without. Similarly, there was very strong evidence for lower odds of reporting higher work ability with respect to physical (odds ratio (OR) 0.30, 95% CI 0.20 to 0.46) and mental (OR 0.40, 0.27 to 0.62) demands among those with PCC compared to those without. Higher age and history of psychiatric diagnosis were associated with a more substantial reduction in current work ability. 5.8% of those with PCC reported direct effects of PCC on their occupational situation, with 1.6% of those with PCC completely dropping out of the workforce and 43% of those with PCC-related occupational changes reporting financial difficulties as a result. Limitations: Selection, use of self-reported outcome measures, and limited generalizability to individuals with most severe COVID-19 or following vaccination. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for providing support and interdisciplinary interventions to individuals affected by PCC to help them maintain or regain their work ability and productivity. Primary Funding Source: Federal Office of Public Health, Department of Health of the Canton of Zurich, University of Zurich Foundation, Switzerland. Study Registration: ISRCTN14990068.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.17.23288664v1" target="_blank">Post COVID-19 Condition, Work Ability and Occupational Changes: Results from a Population-based Cohort</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 NSP10 highlight strong functional conservation of its binding to two non-structural proteins, NSP14 and NSP16</strong> -
<div>
The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 protects its RNA from being recognized by host immune responses by methylation of its 5’ end, also known as capping. This process is carried out by two enzymes, non-structural protein 16 (NSP16) containing 2’-O-methyltransferase and NSP14 through its N7 methyltransferase activity, which are essential for the replication of the viral genome as well as evading the host’s innate immunity. NSP10 acts as a crucial cofactor and stimulator of NSP14 and NSP16. To further understand the role of NSP10, we carried out a comprehensive analysis of &gt;13 million globally collected whole-genome sequences (WGS) of SARS-CoV-2 obtained from the Global Initiative Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) and compared it with the reference genome Wuhan/WIV04/2019 to identify all currently known variants in NSP10. T12I, T102I, and A104V in NSP10 have been identified as the three most frequent variants and characterized using X-ray crystallography, biophysical assays, and enhanced sampling simulations. In contrast to other proteins such as spike and NSP6, NSP10 is significantly less prone to mutation due to its crucial role in replication. The functional effects of the variants were examined for their impact on the binding affinity and stability of both NSP14-NSP10 and NSP16-NSP10 complexes. These results highlight the limited changes induced by variant evolution in NSP10 and reflect on the critical roles NSP10 plays during the SARS-CoV-2 life cycle. These results also indicate that there is limited capacity for the virus to overcome inhibitors targeting NSP10 via the generation of variants in inhibitor binding pockets.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.12.23.521761v2" target="_blank">Emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 NSP10 highlight strong functional conservation of its binding to two non-structural proteins, NSP14 and NSP16</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The Lasting Legacy of COVID-19: Exploring the Long-Term Effects of Infection, Disease Severity, and Vaccination on Health and Cognitive Function</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
COVID-19 affects a variety of organs and systems of the body including the central nervous system. Recent research has shown that COVID-19 survivors often experience neurological and psychological complications that can last for months after infection. We conducted a large internet study using online tests to analyze the effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection, COVID-19 severity, and vaccination on health, intelligence, memory, and information processing precision and speed in a cohort of 4,446 subjects. We found that both SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity were associated with negative impacts on patients9 health. Furthermore, we observed a negative association between COVID-19 severity and cognitive performance. Younger participants had a higher likelihood of SARS-CoV-2 contraction, while the elderly had a higher likelihood of severe COVID-19 and vaccination. The association between age and COVID-19 severity was primarily mediated by older participants9 impaired long-term health. Vaccination was positively associated with intelligence and the precision of information processing. However, the positive association between vaccination and intelligence was likely mediated by achieved education, which was itself strongly associated with the likelihood of being vaccinated.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.12.23288455v1" target="_blank">The Lasting Legacy of COVID-19: Exploring the Long-Term Effects of Infection, Disease Severity, and Vaccination on Health and Cognitive Function</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Covid-19: Statistics, Science and Scientific Temper</strong> -
<div>
It is widely believed that science played a seminal role in combating the Covid-19 pandemic. But many things that were done in the name of science, in fact, contributed to the creation of this scourge and in giving it a horrifying form. During the Corona times, statistics were projected as science and a major part of the world was pushed into lockdown. Against this backdrop, the question that arises is whether science is more important or scientific consciousness? This research paper highlights some facts and actions, which fall into the category of superstition, but which were projected as scientific. This has triggered a process of turning science into a kind of religious ritual and mega corporations have played a key role in this. This research paper proposes that drawing a lesson from what happened during the Covid times the so-called scientific solutions should subjected to democratic scrutiny.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/k975g/" target="_blank">Covid-19: Statistics, Science and Scientific Temper</a>
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<li><strong>Effect of face-covering use on adherence to other COVID-19 protective behaviours: a systematic review</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
During the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns were raised that face covering use may elicit risk compensation; a false sense of security resulting in reduced adherence to other protective behaviours such as physical distancing. This systematic review aimed to investigate the effect of face covering use on adherence to other COVID-19 related protective behaviours. Medline, Embase, PsychInfo, EmCare, medRxiv preprints, Research Square and WHO COVID-19 Research Database were searched. All primary research studies published from 1 January 2020 to 17th May 2022 which investigated the effect of face covering use on adherence to other protective behaviours in public settings during the COVID-19 pandemic were included. Papers were selected and screened in accordance with the PRISMA framework. Backwards and forwards citation searches of included papers were also conducted on 16th September 2022, with eligible papers published between 1st January 2020 and that date being included. A quality appraisal including risk of bias was assessed using the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ Quality Criteria Checklist. This review is registered on PROSPERO, number CRD42022331961. 47 papers were included, with quality ranging from low to high. These papers investigated the effects of face covering use and face covering policies on adherence to six categories of behaviour: physical distancing; mobility; face-touching; hand hygiene; close contacts; and generalised protective behaviour. Results reveal no consistent evidence for or against risk compensation, with findings varying according to behaviour and across study types. There is a suggestion that face covering use might reduce face-touching and face covering mandates might increase mobility, though the lack of robust evidence means these are tentative claims. Evidence on the other protective behaviours is largely inconsistent, and therefore confident conclusions cannot be made in these areas. Any policy decisions related to face coverings must consider the inconsistencies and caveats in this evidence base.
</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.11.23288200v1" target="_blank">Effect of face-covering use on adherence to other COVID-19 protective behaviours: a systematic review</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>Effectiveness and Safety of Quinine Sulfate as add-on Therapy for COVID-19 in Hospitalized Adults in Indonesia ( DEAL-COVID19 )</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Standard of Care + Quinine Sulfate;   Drug: Standard of Care<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Universitas Padjadjaran;   National Research and Innovation Agency of Indonesia;   Prodia Diacro Laboratories P.T.<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 and Efficacy of Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes in Treating Chronic Cough After COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Long COVID-19 Syndrome<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Biological: MSC-derived exosomes<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Huazhong University of Science and Technology;   REGEN-αGEEK (SHENZHEN) MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY 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>Efficacy and Safety of Nirmatrelvir/Ritonavir for Treating Omicron Variant of COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Omicron Variant of COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Drug: Nirmatrelvir/Ritonavir<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Xiangao Jiang<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Nasal Treatment for COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Optate;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Indiana University<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Study of mRNA-1283.222 Injection Compared With mRNA-1273.222 Injection in Participants ≥12 Years of Age to Prevent COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: mRNA-1283.222;   Biological: mRNA-1273.222<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   ModernaTX, Inc.<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>To Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of Meplazumab in Treatment of COVID-19 Sequelae</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: Meplazumab for injection;   Other: Normal saline<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Jiangsu Pacific Meinuoke Bio Pharmaceutical 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>Evaluation of the RD-X19 Treatment Device in Individuals With Mild COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Device: RD-X19;   Device: Sham<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   EmitBio Inc.<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>Clinical Study for the Efficacy and Safety of Ropeginterferon Alfa-2b in Adult COVID-19 Patients With Comorbidities</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Ropeginterferon alfa-2b;   Procedure: SOC<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   National Taiwan University Hospital<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>Assessment of Immunogenicity, Safety and Reactogenicity of a Booster Dose of Various COVID-19 Vaccine Platforms in Individuals Primed With Several Regimes.</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: SCB-2019/Clover;   Biological: AstraZeneca/Fiocruz;   Biological: Pfizer/Wyeth<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   D’Or Institute for Research and Education;   Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Postoperative Sugammadex After COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   General Anesthesia;   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Sugammadex Sodium;   Drug: neostigmine 50µg/kg + glycopyrollate 0.01mg/kg<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Korea University Ansan Hospital<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase 2/3 Study to Determine the Safety and Effectiveness of Azeliragon in the Treatment of Patients Hospitalized for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Azeliragon;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Salim S. Hayek<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>Tailored COVID-19 Testing Support Plan for Francophone African Born Immigrants</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID19 Testing<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Behavioral: FABI tailored COVID-19 testing pamphlet;   Behavioral: Standard COVID-19 home-based test kit<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Texas Woman’s University;   National Institutes of Health (NIH)<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>Complementary Self-help Strategies for Patients With Post-COVID-19 Syndrome</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Post-COVID-19 Syndrome<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Behavioral: Complementary self-help strategies in addition to treatment as usual;   Other: Treatment as usual<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Universität Duisburg-Essen<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Study to Understand the Effect and Safety of the Study Medicine PF-07817883 in Adults Who Have Symptoms of COVID-19 But Are Not Hospitalized.</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   SARS-CoV-2 Infection<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: PF-07817883;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Pfizer<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Cognitive-behavioral Therapy for Mental Disorder in COVID-19 Survivors</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Post Acute COVID-19 Syndrome<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Behavioral: mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale di Lecco<br/><b>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>Selective translational control of cellular and viral mRNAs by RPS3 mRNA binding</strong> - RPS3, a universal core component of the 40S ribosomal subunit, interacts with mRNA at the entry channel. Whether RPS3 mRNA-binding contributes to specific mRNA translation and ribosome specialization in mammalian cells is unknown. Here we mutated RPS3 mRNA-contacting residues R116, R146 and K148 and report their impact on cellular and viral translation. R116D weakened cap-proximal initiation and promoted leaky scanning, while R146D had the opposite effect. Additionally, R146D and K148D displayed…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Discovery of Potent Pyrazoline-Based Covalent SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Inhibitors</strong> - Among the various genes and proteins encoded by all coronaviruses, one particularly “druggable” or relatively easy-to-drug target is the coronavirus Main Protease (3CLproor Mpro), an enzyme that is involved in cleaving a long peptide translated by the viral genome into its individual protein components that are then assembled into the virus to enable viral replication in the cell. Inhibiting Mpro with a small-molecule antiviral would effectively stop the ability of the virus to replicate,…</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>Esculin alleviates LPS-induced acute lung injury via inhibiting neutrophil recruitment and migration</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: Esculin inhibits β(2) integrin-dependent neutrophil migration and chemotaxis, blocks the cytoskeletal remodeling process required for neutrophil recruitment, thereby contributing to its protective effect against ALI. This study demonstrates the new therapeutic potential of esculin as a novel lead compound.</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>FDA approved drugs with antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2: From structure-based repurposing to host-specific mechanisms</strong> - The continuing heavy toll of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitates development of therapeutic options. We adopted structure-based drug repurposing to screen FDA-approved drugs for inhibitory effects against main protease enzyme (Mpro) substrate-binding pocket of SARS-CoV-2 for non-covalent and covalent binding. Top candidates were screened against infectious SARS-CoV-2 in a cell-based viral replication assay. Promising candidates included atovaquone, mebendazole, ouabain, dronedarone, and…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>4’-Fluorouridine mitigates lethal infection with pandemic human and highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses</strong> - Influenza outbreaks are associated with substantial morbidity, mortality and economic burden. Next generation antivirals are needed to treat seasonal infections and prepare against zoonotic spillover of avian influenza viruses with pandemic potential. Having previously identified oral efficacy of the nucleoside analog 4’-Fluorouridine (4’-FlU, EIDD-2749) against SARS-CoV-2 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), we explored activity of the compound against seasonal and highly pathogenic influenza…</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>Detection of pre-existing neutralizing antibodies against Ad26 in HIV-1-infected individuals not responding to the Ad26.COV2.S vaccine</strong> - CONCLUSION: Ad26.COV2.S vaccination showed a high failure rate in HIV-1-infected patients. Pre-existing immunity against Ad26 could be an important contributor to poor vaccine efficacy in a subgroup of patients.</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>Development of a novel angiotensin converting enzyme 2 stimulator with broad implications in SARS-CoV2 and type 1 diabetes</strong> - Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is protective in cardiovascular disease, lung injury and diabetes yet paradoxically underlies our susceptibility to SARs-CoV2 infection and the fatal heart and lung disease it can induce. Furthermore, diabetic patients have chronic, systemic inflammation and altered ACE2 expression resulting in increased risk of severe COVID-19 and the associated mortality. A drug that could increase ACE2 activity and inhibit cellular uptake of severe acute respiratory…</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>Chemical-guided SHAPE sequencing (cgSHAPE-seq) informs the binding site of RNA-degrading chimeras targeting SARS-CoV-2 5’ untranslated region</strong> - One of the hallmarks of RNA viruses is highly structured untranslated regions (UTRs) in their genomes. These conserved RNA structures are often essential for viral replication, transcription, or translation. In this report, we discovered and optimized a new coumarin derivative C30 that binds to a four-way RNA helix called SL5 in the 5’ UTR of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA genome. To locate the binding site, we developed a novel sequencing-based method namely cgSHAPE-seq, in which the acylating chemical…</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>Human Surfactant Protein A Alleviates SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity in Human Lung Epithelial Cells</strong> - SARS coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infects human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2)-expressing lung epithelial cells through its spike (S) protein. The S protein is highly glycosylated and could be a target for lectins. Surfactant protein A (SP-A) is a collagen-containing C-type lectin, expressed by mucosal epithelial cells and mediates its antiviral activities by binding to viral glycoproteins. This study examined the mechanistic role of human SP-A in SARS-CoV-2 infectivity. The interactions…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Role of C-Reactive Protein in Kidney Diseases</strong> - BACKGROUND: C-reactive protein (CRP) is an acute-phase protein and has been found to be a risk factor for acute kidney injury (AKI) and chronic kidney diseases (CKD). However, the role and mechanisms of CRP in AKI and CKD remain largely unclear.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An updated review on phytochemistry and molecular targets of <em>Withania somnifera (L.)</em> Dunal (Ashwagandha)</strong> - Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal belongs to the nightshade family Solanaceae and is commonly known as Ashwagandha. It is pharmacologically a significant medicinal plant of the Indian sub-continent, used in Ayurvedic and indigenous systems of medicine for more than 3,000 years. It is a rich reservoir of pharmaceutically bioactive constituents known as withanolides (a group of 300 naturally occurring C-28 steroidal lactones with an ergostane-based skeleton). Most of the biological activities of W….</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>Octyl gallate targeting the 3C-like protease exhibits highly efficient antiviral activity against swine enteric coronavirus PEDV</strong> - Infection with porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) causes severe watery diarrhea in newborn piglets, leading to substantial financial losses for the swine industry. In this study, we screened small molecule drugs targeting 3 C-like protease (3CLpro) by molecular docking, and further evaluated the antiviral activity of the screened drugs against PEDV. Results showed that octyl gallate (OG), a widely used food additive, exhibited strong binding affinity with the 3CLpro active sites of PEDV….</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 spike ectodomain targets α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors</strong> - Virus entry into animal cells is initiated by attachment to target macromolecules located on host cells. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) trimeric spike glycoprotein targets host angiotensin converting enzyme 2 to gain cellular access. The SARS-CoV-2 glycoprotein contains a neurotoxin-like region that has sequence similarities to the rabies virus and the human immunodeficiency virus glycoproteins, as well as to snake neurotoxins, which interact with nicotinic…</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>Pathological angiogenesis: mechanisms and therapeutic strategies</strong> - In multicellular organisms, angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones, is an essential process for growth and development. Different mechanisms such as vasculogenesis, sprouting, intussusceptive, and coalescent angiogenesis, as well as vessel co-option, vasculogenic mimicry and lymphangiogenesis, underlie the formation of new vasculature. In many pathological conditions, such as cancer, atherosclerosis, arthritis, psoriasis, endometriosis, obesity and…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A universal fluorescence polarization high throughput screening assay to target the SAM-binding sites of SARS-CoV-2 and other viral methyltransferases</strong> - AbstractSARS-CoV-2 has caused a global pandemic with significant humanity and economic loss since 2020. Currently, only limited options are available to treat SARS-CoV-2 infections for vulnerable populations. In this study, we report a universal fluorescence polarization (FP)-based high throughput screening (HTS) assay for SAM-dependent viral methyltransferases (MTases), using a fluorescent SAM-analog, FL-NAH. We performed the assay against a reference MTase, NSP14, an essential enzyme for…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Privacy-Minded Social Network at the Center of the Classified-Document Leak</strong> - A young National Guardsman posted hundreds of secret government files to a private Discord group. Then they sat there for months unnoticed. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/the-privacy-minded-social-network-at-the-center-of-the-classified-document-leak">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bob Lee’s Murder and San Francisco’s So-Called Crime Epidemic</strong> - The killing of a tech executive reveals the cycle of outrage that puts enormous pressure on progressive district attorneys. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/bob-lees-murder-and-san-franciscos-so-called-crime-epidemic">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>All Gaffes Are Not Created Equal: Biden vs. the Almighty Trump</strong> - On a week when the 2024 contrast could not be clearer. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/all-gaffes-are-not-created-equal-biden-vs-the-almighty-trump">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What Dominion Has to Prove in Its Case Against Fox News</strong> - Did the hosts of the country’s most popular cable news network know that Trump’s lies about the election were untrue? - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-communications/what-dominion-has-to-prove-in-its-case-against-fox-news">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ahmad Jamal Was a Modest Colossus of Jazz</strong> - The pianist and composer’s ideas had a decisive effect on the history of an art form. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/postscript/ahmad-jamal-was-a-modest-colossus-of-jazz">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>The 100-year-old mistake that’s reshaping the American West</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/rZFrHma33PJWDF5pvVVKOF_ehxs=/240x0:1680x1080/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72187160/WyattHersey_Vox_cover_final.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Wyatt Hersey for Vox
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
What happens if the Colorado River keeps drying up?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uXxf63">
You may have heard this before: The Colorado River, which supplies drinking water to seven states in the US and two in Mexico, is the lifeblood of the American West and beyond. It’s drying up at an alarming rate, threatening cities, industries, agriculture, and energy sources. As it shrinks, rich ecosystems across its 1,450 miles are also disappearing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0bQrqG">
In this issue of The Highlight, Vox’s reporters across the science, health, climate, and Future Perfect teams explore the interconnected causes of this crisis, the startling consequences that are already reshaping life in this important region of the world, and the difficult trade-offs we may need to accept to avert disaster.
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="mBBqLq"/>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3hZn6L9MzUJKeupeAiUOvckpryA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24561088/Vox_lede1_final.jpg"/> <cite>Wyatt Hersey for Vox</cite>
</figure>
<h3 id="vstK5I">
<a href="https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/23670139/colorado-river-drought-lake-mead"><strong>The worst-case scenario for drought on the Colorado River</strong></a>
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AmpoZ5">
One in eight Americans depend on a river that’s disappearing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Bh9ebg">
<em>By Umair Irfan</em>
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="8Vwj4F"/>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A man in jeans and a checked short-sleeved shirt kneels next to a long row of mounded soil, where small green plants are growing." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/_zdjf_XaweXV6p3hidTzRA-ybtE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24564616/John_Boelts_showing_me_soil_moisture_in_farm_of_harper_s_melon.jpg"/> <cite>Benji Jones/Vox</cite>
</figure>
<h3 id="abZQyd">
<a href="https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/23648116/colorado-river-lake-mead-agriculture-leafy-greens"><strong>You — yes, you — are going to pay for the century-old mistake that’s draining the Colorado River</strong></a>
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RGE4N6">
A huge amount of US food is grown in the desert using water from a river that’s drying up.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="udK1Ak">
<em>By Benji Jones</em>
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="ExLOAS"/>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="An illustration of a cow drinking from a stream." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9Up50poXNoEmewDa5hilzp9mrI4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24558268/Vox_WyattHersey_WaterCrisis.jpg"/> <cite>Wyatt Hersey for Vox</cite>
</figure>
<h3 id="ahfXGw">
<strong>Let’s talk about the biggest cause of the West’s water crisis </strong><em><strong>(Coming Wednesday)</strong></em>
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NbVwTw">
The Colorado River is going dry … to feed cows.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NvKVAA">
<em>By Kenny Torrella</em>
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="DALUys"/>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ZX2mmMxb0tubwXsAZfO0s8K_giw=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24567216/MVP_VOX_LEDE_VALLEY_FEVER.jpg"/> <cite>Millie von Platen for Vox</cite>
</figure>
<h3 id="vRZoEc">
<strong>The devil lurking in the dust (</strong><em><strong>Coming Thursday)</strong></em>
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9ojKUX">
How extreme weather is driving a deadly fungus further into the American West
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qb0MwP">
<em>By Keren Landman</em>
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="tzGWGn"/>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/1b5A9ZuRhdKCK0vJ3FA1haN2FPw=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24566168/MVP_VOX_NEW_LEDE_1.jpg"/> <cite>Millie von Platen for Vox</cite>
</figure>
<h3 id="tGkViQ">
<strong>These 8 species depend on the Colorado River. What happens as it dries up? </strong><em><strong>(Coming Friday)</strong></em>
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PtIbuL">
Wildlife needs water, too.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uk6LGA">
<em>By Benji Jones</em>
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="XQiqm6"/>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jW6hDf">
<strong>CREDITS</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="otp9Bk">
<strong>Editors: </strong>Sam Oltman, Brian Resnick, Adam Clark Estes, Bryan Walsh <br/><strong>Copy editors/fact-checkers:</strong> Elizabeth Crane, Kim Eggleston, Tanya Pai, Caitlin PenzeyMoog<br/><strong>Additional fact-checking: </strong>Anouck Dussaud, Sophie Hurwitz<br/><strong>Art direction: </strong>Dion Lee<br/><strong>Audience:</strong> Gabriela Fernandez, Shira Tarlo, Agnes Mazur<br/><strong>Production/project editors:</strong> Lauren Katz, Nathan Hall
</p>
<div id="nOfMPX">
</div>
<div id="G4D8gf">
<div id="money_pixel_page_level_exception">
</div></div></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><strong>You — yes, you — are going to pay for the century-old mistake that’s draining the Colorado River</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A man in jeans and a checked short-sleeved shirt kneels next to a long row of mounded soil, where small green plants are growing." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JS934THGvsnexlK557uk_2yVNOY=/0x0:1440x1080/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72164756/John_Boelts_showing_me_soil_moisture_in_farm_of_harper_s_melon.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
John Boelts, a produce farmer in Yuma, Arizona, kneels in a field of melon plants. | Benji Jones/Vox
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A huge amount of US food is grown in the desert using water from a river that’s drying up.
</p>
<p class="p--has-dropcap" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SVsVvD">
<em>Part of the issue </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/23682697/colorado-river-drought-100-year-old-mistake-thats-reshaping-the-american-west"><em><strong>The 100-year-old-mistake that’s reshaping the American West</strong></em></a><em> from </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/the-highlight?itm_campaign=hloct22&amp;itm_medium=article&amp;itm_source=intro"><em><strong>The Highlight</strong></em></a><em>, Vox’s home for ambitious stories that explain our world.</em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ga999F">
An hour east of San Diego, there’s a lonely stretch of dry, barren land. There’s not much here but sand, dirt, and some wiry shrubs.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1WrWrK">
But keep driving east and the landscape suddenly shifts.
</p>
<div class="c-float-left">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Reeds growing at the edge of a sheet of water, with low hills in the background." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Wv0O_EWnpPpYVo2vNNoOrlwXC48=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548315/CO_river_before_imperial_dam.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A view of the Colorado River just upstream from Imperial Dam, near Yuma, Arizona.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="h9ewsS">
Near El Centro, a small city just north of the Mexican border, browns and washed-out reds erupt into emerald greens. A patchwork of verdant farmland stretches to the horizon.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VFe5Ib">
Here, in the Imperial Valley of California, humans have transformed the desert into an agricultural oasis. What was once parched ground is now rows of lettuce, carrots, and cabbage, or fields of alfalfa.<strong> </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="aqQJj7">
Rain almost never falls here. What makes this region so lush is the Colorado River, a water source that lies another 60 miles east along the Arizona border.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QxvVkj">
While it<strong> </strong>may seem odd to grow all of this food in the desert, American consumers benefit from it. The region — which includes the Imperial Valley, Coachella Valley, and Yuma, Arizona, encompassing hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland — grows <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/23310631/colorado-river-drought-arizona-california-farms#:~:text=You%20can%20find%20it%20in,and%20much%20of%20its%20vegetables.">as much as 90 percent</a> of all leafy vegetables consumed in the US between November and March. Chances are, the main ingredients of any salad or vegetable soup you’ve had during winter came from here. And they were likely grown with water from the Colorado River.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UexClj">
But a big problem looms: The river is vanishing.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A parched and cracked lake bed with branches and old bottles scattered on it." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/E1shrDZ8GtvKbnYn5DmMznqwpfE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560283/Edited_east_side_of_salton_sea__3_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
The Salton Sea is receding as farmers in California’s Imperial Valley use less water on their fields, exposing vast stretches of lake bed.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tS18nw">
More than two decades of a severe drought, coupled with a long history of mismanagement, has cut the river’s flow by <a href="https://source.colostate.edu/climate-change-shrinking-colorado-river/">roughly 20 percent</a> since the 1900s. Colorado’s largest reservoir, Lake Mead, is <a href="https://www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g4000/weekly.pdf">less than a third full</a>. While <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/23553924/california-rain-atmospheric-river-drought-aquifer-reservoir">the heavy rains and snow this past winter</a> could help buffer the ongoing crisis, they won’t change the reality that the river is simply running out of water.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pTXqx5">
This could create trouble for farmers in the desert Southwest. They’ll likely have<strong> </strong>less water in the years to come, especially as climate change dries out the West. That could, in turn, shrink the supply of winter veggies nationwide, making them more expensive for consumers. The ongoing drought could also harm the region’s economy and its many farming families, some of whom have been growing food here for more than a century.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hqzgsT">
I had these consequences in mind when I traveled to California and Arizona last month. My goal was to understand just how severe the river crisis really is and how to cope with it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FW0A89">
After talking with nearly 20 farmers, economists, and water experts, what I found was something of a mess. The policies that govern the river are incredibly complicated and inflexible, and they have failed to adapt to the grim realities of climate change. The only real option, as far as I can tell, is for the river’s many beneficiaries — including farmers in the Imperial Valley and Yuma — to use less, and using less is painful.
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="rlYeDU"/>
<p class="p--has-dropcap" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iGvBxD">
The water that feeds our winter produce starts out as rain, snow, and glacial melt in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Flowing from a lake atop the continental divide, the river rushes south for more than 1,000 miles, passing through the Grand Canyon and past Las Vegas before running into the Imperial Dam.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A concrete and board fence bearing the words “All American Canal 58-0260.” A canal stretches through grassy banks beyond it." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ttePbhNE00Ag9CzqNz_abMbNjpU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548316/on_the_outskirts_of_calexico__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
The All American Canal transports water roughly 80 miles from the Colorado River to the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QyW0bt">
The Imperial Dam, which is just north of Yuma, diverts part of the river into a large channel called the All American Canal. That’s what turns the desert near El Centro green: The canal carries water roughly 80 miles west to farms in the Imperial Valley, at one point cutting straight through a field of dunes. The water here<strong> </strong>seems eerily out of place.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6thab2">
More than 100 years ago, the US government encouraged Americans to populate rural areas like this, build infrastructure, and farm more land, according to Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University. That’s when engineers started building canals to take water from the Colorado River. At the time, the US policy was “to try to get every acre of land under the plow,” Porter said.
</p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Bare dunes in the sun with a canal running through them in the shade, backed by blue sky and puffy white clouds." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/WMuIeimq8bwvPb_C3EtveMgZ2Bc=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548322/B88A0446.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
The All American Canal cuts through dunes between Yuma and the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JlnpW2">
These canals turned the desert into a produce powerhouse. When farmland<strong> </strong>in Iowa or Nebraska is frozen and blanketed in a thick layer of snow, it’s 70 degrees and sunny in the Imperial Valley and Yuma. As soon as there was enough water in the mix, the conditions were ideal for growing crops year-round.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="u5i3e8">
Today, the Imperial Valley, Coachella Valley, and Yuma together use close to 4 million acre-feet of water per year. That’s an enormous amount, equal to roughly a third of the entire flow of the river. (An acre-foot fills one acre of land with one foot of water and is roughly what two average houses use each year.)
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A vast field of rows of low-growing crops with water visible between the rows." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/krUbulbz9qiBnolXUfqNyplylFk=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548324/B88A9077.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A field is flooded with water in Brawley, California, in the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<div class="c-float-left">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Palm date trees in rows stand in water." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/piaYwJ4ta9grEimXXI3hOUqBAFs=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548326/flood_irrigating_date_farm.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Water fills a date farm in Yuma.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lRKR3u">
That water appears everywhere when you wander around the region. It fills small concrete channels that border farms and sprays from sprinklers that line fields of romaine. In Yuma, I saw a date farm flooded with so much water that it created a shallow pool. Here, the threat of drought feels distant, yet all that water comes from the same, dwindling resource.
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="CKSydJ"/>
<p class="p--has-dropcap" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0LN4lw">
The crisis along the Colorado River is a mess of our own making, and it’s rooted in a decision made more than 100 years ago.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="F4jna1">
In 1922, the Bureau of Reclamation, the government agency that manages water in the US, divided the river among two groups of states: the upper basin and the lower basin. The upper basin includes Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico, and the lower basin comprises California, Nevada, and Arizona.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZQ2Nc5">
In determining the share each basin would get, water officials <a href="https://www.vox.com/2022/9/23/23357093/colorado-river-drought-cuts">ignored inconvenient science</a> and massively overestimated the river’s average flow. Western water users each got a piece of the river, but — together with water later allocated to Mexico through a treaty — those pieces turned out to be more than what it can offer in a typical year. (The 1922 decision also <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/colorado-river-on-its-100th-birthday-the-colorado-river-compact-shows-its-age">failed to spell out</a> what shares would be given to the 30 or so tribal nations in the basin.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TzfvrX">
Meanwhile, water officials didn’t factor in the possibility of a changing climate. Decades of recent warming have been drying out the West, causing less water to flow into the river. Scientists estimate that every degree Fahrenheit of warming reduces the river’s flow by about <a href="https://source.colostate.edu/climate-change-shrinking-colorado-river/">4 percent</a>. That’s concerning because they expect temperatures in the basin to rise as much as 5 degrees F by the middle of this century, relative to the 1900s.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3HBd24">
Together, these two problems have drained the river. Last summer, Lake Mead and Lake Powell — which provide not only water to millions of people, but also an enormous amount of electricity — fell to historic lows and drew dangerously close to “dead pool.” That’s when water is so low in the reservoirs that it can’t pass downstream through the dams, and beyond the level when it can no longer spin turbines to generate hydropower.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KZOVgM">
“We’re at a danger point,” John Fleck, an author and Colorado River expert, <a href="https://www.vox.com/2022/9/23/23357093/colorado-river-drought-cuts">told me last fall</a>. The reservoirs can store roughly four times the river’s annual flow, providing water and power during a drought. But Western states have burned through nearly all of that storage in just 20 years, Fleck said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="a5rRMp">
The <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/23553924/california-rain-atmospheric-river-drought-aquifer-reservoir">recent flooding</a> in California and snowfall in the Rockies could raise the reservoirs, though probably not by much. The ground is still so dry in much of the West that it absorbs a lot of the runoff before it even reaches the river. “We’re far from filling the reservoirs in the Colorado River system,” Paul Miller, a hydrologist at the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, said in a press conference last month.
</p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block">
<div class="c-image-grid">
<div class="c-image-grid__item">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A man in a slouchy hat holds a stalk of greenery while kneeling beside a channel of water." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/6BQoP6HYzJ7Cn_GiVcdlbWNswVs=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560113/Resized_Ernesto_Amador_next_to_canal_next_to_his_farm__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Ernesto Amador, a vegetable and herb farmer in Yuma, next to a channel that brings water to his farms.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<div class="c-image-grid__item">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Carrots piled in a field by a kneeling worker in a sunhat, longe sleeves, and gloves." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3HIx3C8tzz6ayNEWUrTFHbngjj4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560148/Resized_carrots_elmore__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Workers bunch hand-picked carrots at a farm in the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3Wdc19">
What this means for farmers and the food they grow is complicated.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HdFx2H">
The Law of the River, which dates back to the 1922 allotment, details which regions have to give up water in times of scarcity and which ones can keep their taps turned on. Typically, the people who have the most senior, protected rights to the river are those who have been using water for the longest, and use it toward something that the government deems “beneficial.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5yjrgA">
Those people include farmers in the Imperial Valley, Coachella Valley, and Yuma, who grow our winter veggies; they have incredibly senior rights. Growers have been farming land here for decades using water from the Colorado River — in some cases, since before the Bureau of Reclamation was established in 1902.
</p>
<div class="c-float-left">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="An older man in suspenders and walking with a cane, stands in front of a huge field planted with greens." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/y9yT4rDgvYkC2Ndv8u5axRdVAlA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560191/Resized_broccoli__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Craig Elmore, a third-generation vegetable farmer in the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MgT21x">
“We are blessed with a huge allocation because pioneers saw the potential here,” said Craig Elmore, a third-generation vegetable farmer in the Imperial Valley. His grandfather came here in 1908 to help build some of the region’s original canals. “We were using water before any dam or federal intervention.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="T7wdhw">
(Indigenous people and their ancestors have lived in the region for thousands of years. They, too, are legally entitled to a large portion of the river’s water but — <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/colorado-river-basin-tribes-work-to-protect-their-water-rights">for a number of reasons</a> — have a hard time realizing those rights.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jRwko4">
Those senior water rights have, so far, protected farmers in California and Yuma. While the drought-fueled drop in Lake Mead has already<strong> </strong>triggered mandatory cuts under the Law of the River, they’ve only hit cities and farms in Nevada, other parts of Arizona, and Mexico; regions with<strong> </strong>more junior rights. Earlier this year, farmers in Pinal County, Arizona, for example, <a href="https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2023/01/13/drought-arizona-colorado-river?utm_source=pocket_saves">lost access</a> to their river water, while those in California and Yuma were spared. That’s why these growers are water-rich when other regions are cutting back.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6ffpQJ">
Yet even senior rights can’t protect farmers from cutbacks if the river is running out of water.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vIs8Z6">
Over the summer, Reclamation announced that the lower basin states<strong> </strong>will have to cut an additional 2 million to 4 million acre-feet — at least in the short term — to prevent the system from crashing. That’s as much as one-third of the river’s annual flow, enough to flood the entire city of Phoenix with more than 6 feet of water.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bazu4Z">
Many farmers in the Imperial Valley, Coachella Valley, and Yuma will have to contribute to reach a cutback on that scale. The simple fact is that agriculture in this region uses so much of the river’s water — more than Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Las Vegas combined — that it’s hard to imagine a large reduction without them.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kAL0qs">
“We’ve always relied on our water rights,” said Tina Shields, the water department manager at the Imperial Irrigation District (IID), a public agency that provides water and power in the Imperial Valley. “But if there’s no water in the system, that’s a different story.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="49E3tq">
The best-case scenario, Shields said, is that growers will be paid through government funds to reduce their water consumption, and it would be entirely voluntary. Some of those funds could come from the Inflation Reduction Act or the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which together set aside <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/04/06/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-announces-new-investments-to-protect-the-colorado-river-system/">more than $15 billion</a> for the Western drought. This concept isn’t new: IID already runs a program that pays farmers if they can demonstrate that they’re saving water. The city of San Diego funds the program, essentially paying IID for the water that those farmers conserve.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2B8hpo">
Conserving water<strong> </strong>obviously sounds like a great idea. The problem is that farmers in these regions are already highly efficient. Water-saving technologies are also pricey, and farmers I spoke to are concerned that any future payments won’t be enough to cover them.
</p>
<div>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A man holds and looks at a bright green head of curly-leaf lettuce in a huge field growing lettuce." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2mrLAUvh4p1yKaA0pPHR7HwshTI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560218/Resized_vessey_romaine_lettuce__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Jack Vessey, a farmer and farm advocate in the Imperial Valley, examines a head of lettuce.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="asaySY">
“I’m not sure how much less water I can use,” Jack Vessey, a fourth-generation farmer in the Imperial Valley, said one cloudy morning as we drove by his fields of cabbage. Sprinklers coated the turquoise plants with beads of water.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yB08yX">
Vessey uses sprinklers to water his cabbage and other leafy greens, he said, instead of just flooding water down rows in the field (which is a cheaper, more traditional technique known as flood irrigation). Each year, sprinklers save him as much as 1.5 acre-feet of water per acre, he said.
</p>
<div>
<div class="c-image-grid">
<div class="c-image-grid__item">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2Zd9x9Tnl0EbIBomrCNCREMmIRs=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560238/Resized_ImperialValley.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Sprinklers water crops at dusk in the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<div class="c-image-grid__item">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JERZ42O6Wved5jtObk8tXy3V5Oo=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560270/2_Resized_Yuma_field_of_romaine_lettuce__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A field of romaine lettuce in Yuma.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mnDL85">
Many farmers here also use drip irrigation, another water-saving technique, and commonly level their fields with lasers. By making the soil perfectly flat, precise leveling ensures that more water sinks into the ground instead of running off the farm.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kVpGKi">
Because farmers are already so economical with their water, any new restrictions — which could cut their water usage by 10 percent or more, experts told me — would likely force them to grow less. They may have to harvest crops fewer times each year, for example, or leave some of their fields bare for a season or more.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Iz2vNd">
“That’s fallowing, which we don’t like down here,” Shields told me when I met her at IID’s headquarters, several modest buildings in the town of Imperial, just north of El Centro. “We call it the ‘F-word’ because it has so many impacts on our community.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zHON1r">
Some growers told me that they might plant fewer acres of alfalfa and other kinds of hay, since these “secondary” crops tend to be less lucrative than veggies. “Secondary crops will probably go by the wayside,” said Elmore, who’s also a director at the Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association, an industry group. “A lot of ground that’s being farmed right now will probably become unproductive.”
</p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hfnwxcmy6xsWPSbZ5JxA8wb1FjM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548340/romaine_lettuce_pickers_in_Yum__Mike_Pasquinelli_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Rows and rows of romaine lettuce cover the ground in Yuma.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rX9QNK">
Other farmers said they might grow fewer water-intensive vegetables, such as onions, or cut back on produce altogether. Celeste Alonzo, a third-generation grower in the Coachella Valley, said her family will probably downsize to adapt to less water and stop growing bell peppers, for example.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l6bMvZ">
Estimating exactly how farmland here will change isn’t easy; acreage depends not just on water, but on the value of different crops. Overall, however, farmland is almost certainly going to shrink in the coming years, said Kurt Schwabe, an economist who studies water and agriculture at the University of California Riverside. It’s just a question of by how much.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6nRd32">
“Business as usual won’t be business as usual in the future,” he told me.
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="Uxq5Y4"/>
<p class="p--has-dropcap" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M80pHL">
Should farmers grow less food, consumers could feel the pain. Although there are plenty of regions that grow forage crops that fuel the meat and dairy industry — helping buffer any regional shortfall in supply — the Imperial Valley, Coachella Valley, and Yuma grow nearly all of the country’s vegetables for more than five months out of the year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CQxCnX">
“The biggest risk that we’re going to have is the possible reduction in the supply of veggies,” said Mike Pasquinelli, a third-generation grower in Yuma who buys and markets produce.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pAcY2I">
That could increase retail prices, he said, and some <a href="https://eraeconomics.com/2023/regional-impacts-colorado-river-cuts/">experts agree</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dgxhnX">
Vessey, the fourth-generation farmer and another director of the Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association, put it bluntly: “Where are you going to have a Caesar salad in February? If the Colorado River isn’t growing produce, good luck. The American consumer is going to pay more for food.”
</p>
<div>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9cy0x8xaUUN6yLuSsruA5_oGgQA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548343/edwardo_on_elmore_farm.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A worker harvests broccoli in a field in the Imperial Valley.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0zXzKo">
But there are also other troubling consequences should farmers cut back.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="inPeix">
One sunny morning in March, I stood in a field of romaine in Yuma. There were rows and rows of lettuce, each with bright green leaves organized like loose petals of a flower. A dozen or so men, wearing baseball caps and rubber boots, harvested the field in front of me and spoke among themselves in Spanish.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Two field workers at a large outdoor table pack and load boxes labeled Ocean Mist Vegetables." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KKgJbOAqu5-ZXRIFunCAPw1LbRg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548345/someone_and_jesse_on_elmore_farm.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Workers pack freshly harvested stalks of broccoli for the company Ocean Mist.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tHPHU5">
Workers like these — many of whom come over from Mexico for the day’s work — could lose a source of income if farmland here shrinks. Growers told me repeatedly that agriculture is the engine that runs the economy in Yuma and the Imperial Valley. “If we don’t farm, our community suffers,” said Pasquinelli, who sells the lettuce these men were harvesting.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QcXuKE">
A shortage of water on farmland could also threaten wildlife. The Salton Sea, California’s largest lake by surface area, is home to a wide range of birds, and it’s fed by wastewater that pours off farmland in the Imperial and Coachella Valleys. Without farming, the sea would eventually evaporate.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Tg2rJy">
It has been<em> </em>evaporating already. The shallow lake is receding as farmers become more water-efficient, exposing vast areas of beach — which emit toxic dust <a href="https://news.ucr.edu/articles/2022/12/08/salton-sea-dust-triggers-lung-inflammation">linked to asthma</a> — and making the water salty. Extreme salinity appears to have killed much of the lake’s fish and invertebrate populations, causing declines in fish-eating birds.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NzuWtH">
“You just don’t see what you used to,“ said Robert McKernan, a retired ornithologist who’s been studying the Salton Sea since the 1970s. Populations of American white pelicans and Caspian terns, for example, seem to have shrunk in recent years.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AhqTOC">
If farmers become more efficient with water, it could accelerate the sea’s decline, another example of how even solutions to the river crisis come with consequences.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DriEWQ">
There is some relief in sight: The state and federal governments have promised hundreds of millions of dollars to control the toxic dust and create wetlands for wildlife. Yet those efforts are unlikely to be sufficient to fix the problem, experts told me.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/lRD7FbNz7Q7zrCV8erwPnM-jJrs=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560972/edited_salton_sea_east_side__2_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A pair of black-necked stilts search for food on the bank of the Salton Sea.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NQWU8m">
It’s ironic that water being diverted to grow food is helping to sustain this area’s wildlife, considering that farming is one of the <a href="https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/22662490/grasslands-better-than-lawns-yard">largest drivers of biodiversity loss</a> worldwide. Here, McKernan said, many birds “need agriculture.”
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="vhj81A"/>
<p class="p--has-dropcap" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="V2j4Ws">
This summer, Reclamation will announce how it intends to slash the amount of river water supplied to cities and farms in the Southwest. There are two main options on the table: honor the existing rights-based system, forcing urban regions of Arizona and Nevada to suffer deep reductions; or spread the pain evenly among the river’s users, regardless of their seniority. The second option could expose Imperial Valley and Yuma farmers to severe cuts.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UBbdFZ">
In a March statement to Vox, the Interior Department (which oversees Reclamation) said it’s pursuing a “consensus-based approach” to find ways to save water in the basin, while “preparing to use its authorities” to protect the river. Tyler Cherry, a spokesperson for the department, declined to specify how it would use those authorities. But if the seven states that depend on the river can’t reach an agreement on their own, <a href="https://www.vox.com/science/2023/4/13/23680422/colorado-river-lake-mead-drought-cuts">it’s clear</a> that the department could try to impose mandatory cuts that sidestep the existing Law of the River.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ks7cYL">
“The prolonged drought afflicting the American West is one of the most significant challenges facing our country today,” Tommy Beaudreau, deputy secretary of the interior, said earlier this month at a press conference in a room overlooking Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. “We cannot kick the can on finding solutions.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="B4fEG7">
Ultimately, Reclamation is very likely to honor the existing priority system, according to Michael Cohen, a senior researcher at the Pacific Institute, a nonprofit water policy organization. Still, it may be hard for states to reach a major reduction without forcing the hands of farmers. “A 2 to 4 million acre-feet reduction is a big lift,” Shields, of the Imperial Irrigation District, said. “Let’s be honest: You can’t do that voluntarily. You need a regulator to come in and tell you how it’s going and give you someone to blame.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l3jasR">
The farmers I spoke to strongly oppose spreading cuts evenly among the river’s users. Beyond having senior rights, they’ve already cut consumption in order to provide water to urban areas, they said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WjO1kt">
“Why should my business sacrifice to the point of probably going out of business so another industry in a junior area can continue to flourish?” said Elmore, whose family has been involved in water fights for decades. “We cannot sacrifice. I have dozens of families that are dependent on my farm staying in business.”
</p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A farmer bends down to look at a kale plant growing in a large field of kale." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/iYJ24zk7BIMnkoarzZodR7FnnJI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24548348/Ernesto_with_his_organic_kale.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Amador examines a head of kale on his farm in Yuma.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="litybK">
But for many growers, the writing is on the wall: More restrictions are inevitable. Western cities have more people and larger economies, and they, too, have already cut their water usage significantly. Ultimately, if it’s between drinking water for Phoenix and Vegas and irrigation for fields of alfalfa, it’s pretty clear that these urban areas will take priority.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="33hLrh">
“I love farming, and I see how important it is,” Porter of Arizona State University said. “But the pressures for moving that water supply for urban use — or leaving that water in the system for other uses — are just going to be overwhelming.”
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="DTN18j"/>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/cgW-nfMBQFA4asdkWCj62OXsTYQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24560975/B88A0482__1_.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
The Colorado River, in Yuma, near the Mexico border.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p class="p--has-dropcap" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rFjXoy">
On my last day in the region,<strong> </strong>I sat on the bank of the Colorado River near the border of California, Arizona, and Mexico. Here, downstream from most of the dams and the canals, the river was narrow. It was more like a stream. A group of waterbirds paddled near the shore, each occasionally disappearing under the current. It was strange to imagine that this is the water that everyone is fighting over.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wcFiuW">
I’ve spent the last few weeks searching for a good solution to the crisis, an end to this story. No source I found could offer one. Any effort to restore the river will mean some people (or animals) get less water, barring several more winters like this one. And there’s no way around that, no secret technology to grow food without water. “It’s just such a complicated, ugly problem,” Schwabe said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="20zl2V">
It’s an unsatisfying conclusion.<strong> </strong>Then again, maybe that’s what climate change creates: ugly problems where everybody loses. The best thing we can do, perhaps, is to sober up to this reality — that climate change will reshape economies and human lives — and use that knowledge to prepare.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ahF44T">
Scientists have known for decades that the Colorado River is over-allocated and that warming is drying out the basin. Yet water regulators have failed to act in a meaningful way to rebuild Lake Powell and Lake Mead, Schwabe said. They should have started overhauling the Law of the River years ago, he said, instead of always being in “crisis mode.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jfdkBf">
“The longer you wait to act, the more drastic your action has to be,” Schwabe said. “If we had started making these cutbacks in the ’80s and ’90s, in incremental steps, we probably wouldn’t be talking about this today. The situation is dire because we failed to act previously.”
</p>
<div id="QKmMhR">
<div class="volume-video" id="volume-placement-529">
</div>
<div class="caption">
Who’s really using up the water in the West?
</div>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Elon Musk’s plan for a mysterious X app is coming into focus</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Elon Musk in the Twitter headquarters holding a sink." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/YuoWGiZJ66k4HHFc4fNbXD36c1I=/337x0:2604x1700/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72190836/GettyImages_1244262469.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Elon Musk wants Twitter to have everything but the kitchen sink. | Twitter account of Elon Musk/AFP via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Musk wants Twitter to become a “super app.” Wait, what’s a super app?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7ZESka">
Elon Musk’s grand plan for Twitter — that is, what he hopes to create beyond a “town square” for posting and messaging — is starting to take shape. And that shape is a super app.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="plQ440">
In recent weeks, Twitter has <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2023/04/twitter-inc-x-corp-elon-musk-x-nevada.html">changed its name</a> to X Corp. and <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/13/twitter-to-let-users-access-stocks-crypto-via-etoro-in-finance-push.html">partnered</a> with a stock and crypto trading firm. Musk has also <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-new-artificial-intelligence-business-x-ai-incorporates-in-nevada-962c7c2f?mod=Searchresults_pos1&amp;page=1">incorporated</a> an artificial intelligence company called X.AI, which may also be part of whatever he intends his super app, X, to be.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RbeMZb">
So-called “super apps” or “everything apps” are apps that offer several services, usually including a payments component. They’re hugely popular in Asia, though you can find them in <a href="https://qz.com/africa/2101076/super-apps-are-on-the-rise-in-africa-with-at-least-5-so-far">Africa</a> and <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/19/the-emergence-of-the-super-apps-in-latin-america/">Latin America</a>. But they haven’t caught on in the US. Musk clearly wants that to change, and he wants Twitter to lead the way. The billionaire has said a few things about his plans and made what appear to be a few preliminary moves toward it. But what his Twitter can do, with its dwindling resources and polarizing owner, is still very much in question.
</p>
<h3 id="ZUMMqo">
Super apps, explained
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tZcCb0">
If you’re in the US, you probably haven’t used a super app before. It’s possible you hadn’t even heard of them before Musk started talking about the concept. But you might be familiar with WeChat, a Chinese messaging app that then-President Trump <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/9/20/21447589/wechat-ban-blocked-trump-judge">tried to ban</a> along with TikTok in 2020. WeChat has <a href="https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3162340/chinas-ubiquitous-wechat-doubles-down-mini-apps-short-videos-it-faces">1.26 billion users worldwide</a> as of September 2021, and it’s enormously popular in China. If you have family there, you probably use WeChat to stay in touch with them.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7VxIvY">
Since its 2011 release, WeChat has become much more than a messaging app for mobile devices. It quickly expanded into payments and gaming (WeChat is owned by a Chinese company called Tencent, which is a <a href="https://www.polygon.com/22949530/tencent-the-worlds-biggest-video-game-company">major player</a> in gaming). Then it added <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/11/07/wechat-mini-apps-200-million-users/">mini-programs</a>, or third-party apps housed within WeChat, which vastly expanded its capabilities. These days, users can <a href="https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3162340/chinas-ubiquitous-wechat-doubles-down-mini-apps-short-videos-it-faces">do just about everything</a> within WeChat. They can hail a taxi, order food, pay bills, share videos, and even share their government ID. In some circumstances, they may only be able to <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/07/payments-just-got-easier-in-china-where-no-one-wants-to-accept-cash.html">access certain services</a> through their WeChat accounts. WeChat supplies and has control of the infrastructure that underpins this ecosystem, and the possibilities are almost endless. For many people in China, WeChat <em>is</em> the internet.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CPqcZe">
Jason Wong, an analyst on software design and development at Gartner, describes the concept as one company building “an open app for third parties to build these mini apps.” He likens super apps to how Batman and Iron Man have suits with core powers, and they add or remove different gadgets and functionalities to them as needed. “You build a super app, which is that costume, that shell that has some core value,” Wong said. “And then other partners will see value and create additional superpowers for your suit.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rzJQiN">
WeChat’s success has inspired other super apps in Asia and other continents. Alibaba’s AliPay, which began as a payment service, is also popular in China. Southeast Asia has <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-56967633">Grab</a>, which started out as a ride-hailing app, and Gojek, which began as a delivery service. Africa’s super apps, which include <a href="https://www.connectingafrica.com/author.asp?section_id=761&amp;doc_id=770425">M-Pesa</a> and <a href="https://laffaz.com/temtem-super-app-diaspora-algeria/">temtem</a>, have similar origin stories, as does Latin America’s <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-12-04/rappi-is-the-super-app-that-s-transforming-latin-america">Rappi</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Yj1rVe">
But the US, along with Canada and Europe, hasn’t been able to produce a super app of its own. We have seen companies expand the services their apps offer into other areas, like how Uber, a ride-hailing service, now offers food delivery and grocery delivery within its platform. Microsoft allows <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/21/21332414/microsoft-teams-third-party-apps-calls-meetings-integration-features">third parties</a> to develop apps within its Teams workplace. PayPal launched its version of a “<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/21/paypal-launches-its-super-app-combining-payments-savings-bill-pay-crypto-shopping-and-more/">super app</a>” in September 2021, though it seems to be limited to financial services for now. Microsoft is <a href="https://www.theinformation.com/articles/microsoft-eyes-super-app-to-break-apple-and-googles-hold-on-mobile-search">reportedly</a> making a push, <a href="https://www.morningbrew.com/daily/stories/2022/09/15/the-enduring-dream-of-a-super-app">as is Meta</a>. So Musk isn’t the only person who has recognized the potential of super apps. But those other tech companies, which already have a massive scale, may be in a better position to create one.
</p>
<h3 id="ByOrQl">
Musk’s moves toward an everything app start with Twitter
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Xi5aZr">
Even before he took ownership of Twitter, Musk made his desire to turn it into a super app known. In May 2022, he said on a podcast that super apps “need to happen” in the US and that he could “convert Twitter to that,” citing WeChat as the model he wanted to follow. This makes sense. Not only is WeChat a massively successful super app, but it also began life as a messaging platform. Musk repeated this in a <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/23171541/leaked-transcript-elon-musk-first-meeting-twitter-employees">town hall</a> with Twitter employees in June 2022.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3Iqirs">
“I think of, like, WeChat in China, which is actually a great, great app, but there’s no WeChat movement outside of China. And I think that there’s a real opportunity to create that,” he said. “You basically live on WeChat in China because it’s so useful and so helpful to your daily life. And I think if we could achieve that, or even close to that with Twitter, it would be an immense success.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Dy7OhZ">
Musk has also tweeted about it, <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1577428272056389633">saying in October</a> that “buying Twitter is an accelerant to creating X, the everything app,” and that having Twitter in hand, rather than starting from scratch, would <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1577428673971777536">hasten the process</a> by “3 to 5 years.” In April 2023, he <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1646792765567561729">tweeted</a> “yup” in response to a <a href="https://twitter.com/cb_doge/status/1646561149591375872">fan’s tweet</a> about X being the “everything app.” The tweet included emojis indicating the various things that app would house, including messages, media, and money.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="c57UIj">
But the steps Musk is taking to create such an app have been less public. He’s said his super app will be called X, and he created <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-21/musk-forms-x-holdings-after-hints-at-parent-for-tesla-spacex">X Holdings</a> to buy Twitter. In April, he <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2023/04/twitter-inc-x-corp-elon-musk-x-nevada.html">quietly</a> folded Twitter into an entity called X Corp. And he has <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/9d84d534-b2dd-4cff-85d1-aee137b26a45">reportedly</a> been working on building a payments system within Twitter, which is integral to making Twitter, or X, into a super app. Twitter has also filed paperwork needed to become a payments processor. It’s not known how far along that process actually is now, since Esther Crawford, who was leading the payments project, was <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/2/26/23615841/twitter-blue-esther-crawford-layoffs">laid off</a> in late February.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="d9eQKL">
Musk also appears to be pursuing partnerships that could play into his super app ambitions. The stock and crypto trading company eToro <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/04/13/twitter-to-let-users-access-stocks-crypto-via-etoro-in-finance-push.html?utm_medium=LINKEDIN&amp;utm_source=social_retention&amp;utm_campaign=PR_PR+articles_Twitter+Cashtags+_20230413_EN+(FCA)&amp;linkId=300000005320410">announced</a> in April that it partnered with Twitter to allow Twitter users to buy and sell assets on eToro through Twitter’s “cashtags.” If you click on a cashtag (a hashtag, but it’s a dollar symbol instead of the pound symbol), you’ll be taken to a screen with that company’s stock price on it and a button to view it on eToro’s site. You can’t actually buy or sell anything on Twitter itself, nor does your Twitter identity allow you to log into eToro. It’s not a mini-app, but it is a sign that Twitter wants to move into the financial sector.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tzOIPi">
And Musk has <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-new-artificial-intelligence-business-x-ai-incorporates-in-nevada-962c7c2f">started</a> an artificial intelligence company called X.AI Corp. It appears to be a separate company for now, but it has that X name and AI may well have a place in Musk’s super app ambitions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FXNmlO">
Musk has also said he wants to expand Twitter’s social media capabilities, such as the ability to send much longer tweets and videos for Twitter Blue subscribers. He also says he’ll <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/musk-says-twitter-will-allow-users-offer-subscription-content-video-2023-04-13/">add ways</a> for creators to monetize their content on the platform, as they do on YouTube. But the success of these ventures has yet to be determined, and even if Musk is able to pull more users onto Twitter through them, that’s a long way from being a super app.
</p>
<h3 id="4N8yxj">
How a super app could work in the US
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="e6YQK3">
Musk’s chances of success also hinge on the American appetite for one — not just a super app from Twitter, but one from any company. There are reasons to be skeptical that the US will get a WeChat of its own.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rZj2SQ">
Some of the reason for this is how the internet and the usage of it has grown in the respective countries. In China, widespread access to the internet didn’t really happen until relatively cheap mobile devices were accessible to its population.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WnPyFB">
“In terms of infrastructure — the communications infrastructure, the messaging infrastructure, the payment infrastructure — all those things were still being developed last decade,” Wong said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7lJHoO">
In the US, many of those things had already been established <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2015/06/26/americans-internet-access-2000-2015/">well before</a> the iPhone came along. That meant consumers were used to doing those things across many different websites and apps.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EEx4Fb">
“I think a lot of American consumers do see value in being able to combine and coordinate some of their activities into one app,” Jasmine Enberg, a social media analyst at Insider Intelligence, said. “But we are already used to doing different things in different apps. We have apps for shopping, video viewing, socializing, banking. And while there is some overlap, for the most part we keep those parts of our digital lives pretty separate.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZOTa3u">
There also may be legal hurdles to overcome. It’s likely that we would see some pushback from regulators, which already <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22822916/big-tech-antitrust-monopoly-regulation">aren’t thrilled</a> with how much power some companies, especially tech companies, have over our lives.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RmgleJ">
People may not want to hand all their data and lives over to an app that comes from a company they either don’t know or know they can’t trust, especially when they have so many choices. For example, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/01/google-abandons-plans-to-offer-plex-bank-accounts-to-users.html">Google</a>, <a href="https://www.americanbanker.com/slideshow/how-amazon-is-shaking-up-financial-services">Amazon</a>, <a href="https://www.pymnts.com/personnel/2020/uber-money-head-quits-as-company-moves-away-from-financial-operations/">Uber</a>, and <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/a88fb591-72d5-4b6b-bb5d-223adfb893f3">Meta</a> have had to scale back or cancel their attempts to get into banking or other fintech arms. Apple, which has a reputation for privacy, has steadily expanded its offerings, just rolled out a <a href="https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2023/04/apple-cards-new-high-yield-savings-account-is-now-available-offering-a-4-point-15-percent-apy/">savings account</a> connected to its Apple Card.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KYwBew">
“Trust in social platforms is already incredibly low,” Enberg said. “Users would have to hand over their payment information in order to use many of the functions of a super app. And we already know that they’re not willing to do that.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gccBXS">
Wong pointed out that it’s not just about user trust, either. The third parties making the mini-apps have to trust the platform, too.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MilKDX">
“Why would I build inside your app if I don’t trust you, or I think your users don’t trust you?” he said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kkO65y">
Wong and Enberg both believe there’s room for a kind of super app in the US, but they think it will be industry- or vertical-specific.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NYnyUJ">
“You can be a very narrow super app. Think of building a super app for health care,” Wong said. A health super app could incorporate third-party apps from health insurers, doctors, pharmacies, and wellness services, for instance. “The super app doesn’t need to be the same thing as WeChat in the US.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OgEv65">
But Musk has said many times that WeChat is exactly the kind of thing he wants to create.
</p>
<h3 id="aED6o4">
Elon Musk’s Twitter may not be the right platform for a super app, thanks to Elon Musk
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0dlCA6">
Some of the hurdles Musk will face in developing his super app are of his own making. While WeChat was a messaging app that became a super app, that doesn’t mean all super apps have to start as messaging apps (many don’t), or that those origins would work here. Nor that it would work on a platform owned by Musk specifically.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5lKN4H">
“It’s hard to imagine that most Americans are going to want to tweet on the same app where they pay their utility bill,” Enberg said. “Trust in Elon Musk, too, is really low after this past <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/23423341/elon-musk-buy-twitter-deal-social-media">year of chaos</a>.” That loss of trust, Enberg said, hasn’t just come from Twitter’s users. Advertisers — the kinds of companies that would presumably make mini-apps for Twitter’s super app platform — haven’t been thrilled with what Musk has done to Twitter, either.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="q7QW52">
But, Enberg pointed out, Musk still has a passionate fan base, and that translates into at least a few companies that are still willing to work with him.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eD10BA">
There are also Twitter’s well-known issues with privacy and security, which predate Musk. In 2020, many high-profile celebrity accounts were <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/7/16/21327474/florida-teen-arrested-twitter-hack-joe-biden-election-2020-security">hacked by a teenager</a>. A whistleblower who used to be a highly placed employee of Twitter <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2022/8/23/23318503/twitter-whistleblower-peiter-mudge-zatko-elon-musk-bots">said in August 2022</a> that the platform was rife with security and privacy issues, and failed to implement even basic security measures. Twitter is under a <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cases/2010/06/100624twitteragree.pdf">consent decree</a> dating back to 2011 for not protecting user privacy, which has violated at least once (leading to <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2022/05/twitter-pay-150-million-penalty-allegedly-breaking-its-privacy-promises-again">a fine</a> of $150 million) by using users’ email addresses and phone numbers it supposedly needed for security to target them with ads. Again, these problems cropped up before Musk bought Twitter, but the Federal Trade Commission is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/07/technology/ftc-twitter-investigation-privacy.html">reportedly</a> investigating Musk-owned Twitter for potential violations of the consent order.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qF9w9c">
Even if Musk had the user base and third parties he needs for a super app to succeed, he still has to build the thing. And it would have to be good enough that users and third-party app developers alike would want to use it. Part of the appeal of super apps is that they make it easier to access services within the one app than it would be to do so across several of them. You don’t win over customers or even developers by offering them what they already have.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="I6kBns">
Musk’s Twitter, on the other hand, doesn’t even work as well as it did before Musk took it over. His drastic cuts have meant far fewer engineers and other support staff. There do not appear to be enough people left to <a href="https://www.vox.com/technology/2023/4/15/23683554/twitter-dying-elon-musk-x-company">keep Twitter running smoothly</a>, let alone to build and run a super app platform. Musk’s attempts to roll out new features in Twitter have seemed impulsive and almost always result in something breaking down, assuming they happen at all. A buggy and glitchy platform owned by someone who seems to do a lot of things <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-exec-slams-elon-musk-after-changed-twitter-titter-sign-2023-4">for</a> <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/04/04/1167877216/dogecoin-elon-musk-twitter-logo">the</a> <a href="https://www.indy100.com/viral/elon-musk-harry-bolz-twitter">lols</a> when he isn’t threatening to <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1588676939463946241?lang=en">go thermonuclear</a> on advertisers or <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/04/12/1169269161/npr-leaves-twitter-government-funded-media-label">drive away</a> news outlets doesn’t engender much confidence.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gzMPId">
Even if the cuts are temporary and Musk can afford to build Twitter’s headcount back up again, he may find it difficult to hire the people he needs after how publicly poorly he’s treated Twitter’s employees. Those who remain have been forced to work extremely <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-twitter-staff-layoffs-long-hours-shifts-work-jobs-2022-11">long hours</a> and submit their work to <a href="https://www.theverge.com/23551060/elon-musk-twitter-takeover-layoffs-workplace-salute-emoji">code reviews</a>. He’s lashed out at former employees who dared to criticize him, accusing them of being “<a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/12/elon-musk-smears-former-twitter-executive-yoel-roth.html">groomers</a>” or <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/03/08/1161857747/elon-musk-apologizes-after-mocking-laid-off-twitter-employee-with-disability">faking their disabilities</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="o39Im0">
“I’m not sure there are many people with the required skills left who want to work for him after the way he’s treated former and current employees,” Enberg said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2rrchj">
Before Musk’s X can be an everything app, he has to at the very least prove that he can keep its one app running. And even that seems to be a tall order now.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OULCSL">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9z8FTE">
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>IPL 2023 | Dhoni will be banned if CSK bowlers don’t buck up: Sehwag</strong> - Sehwag pointed out that CSK bowlers had 37 dot balls, but despite that, RCB went on to score 218/8</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>Sri Lanka vs Ireland, 1st Test | Jayasuriya’s 10 wickets lead hosts to record win</strong> - Ireland lost 13 wickets on the third day in Galle to be all out for 143 and 168 in reply to Sri Lanka’s 591-6 declared, losing the match by an innings and 280 runs. The win surpassed Sri Lanka’s previous highest victory margin of an innings and 254 runs against Zimbabwe in 2004</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>Premier League | Liverpool ends winless run by thrashing Leeds 6-1</strong> - Liverpool hadn’t tasted victory in the Premier League in more than six weeks, since routing Manchester United 7-0.</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>Kohli fined 10% of match fee for IPL code of conduct violation</strong> - A statement said that Kohli had breached the rules under Article 2.2 of the IPL Code of Conduct</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>Jayasuriya’s 5 wickets leave Ireland facing follow-on</strong> - Prabath Jayasuriya’s fifth five-wicket haul left Ireland struggling at 117-7 on day two of the second test against Sri Lanka</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>Andhra Pradesh: YSRCP should apologise for blaming Naidu government for the murder of Vivekananda Reddy, says TDP</strong> - ‘YSRCP had systematically targeted Naidu and the TDP during 2019 elections’</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>‘Mangrove Man’ in Kerala fights to salvage sinking shores</strong> - T.P. Murukesan has turned to planting trees along the shores of Vypin and the surrounding areas in Kochi to counter the impacts of rising waters on his home</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>Somanna and wife declare assets worth ₹31.61 crore</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Thermal stress poses a serious threat to sustainable livestock farming</strong> - CAADECCS project to quantify impact of thermal stress on cattle. Experts urge Kerala farmers to go for cattle with higher heat tolerance so that production and reproduction rates will not be impacted by hot and humid conditions</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>Bihar hooch tragedy | Toll reaches 27, police arrest 174 people</strong> - At least 20 others are battling for their lives at Sadar and different hospitals in the district, a senior officer said.</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>Evan Gershkovich: US journalist arrested in Russia appears in court</strong> - Evan Gershkovich was arrested on spying charges while working for the Wall Street Journal.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukraine war: Putin visits occupied Kherson region in Ukraine</strong> - It is the Russian leader’s first visit to occupied areas of Ukraine since he travelled to Mariupol.</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>Bear captured in Italy after killing Alpine jogger Andrea Papi</strong> - Andrea Papi was killed earlier in April and a decision will now be taken on the bear’s fate.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukraine war: US accuses Lula of parroting propaganda</strong> - Brazil denies its leader is spreading Russian and Chinese propaganda about the war in Ukraine.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Vladimir Kara-Murza: Russian opposition figure jailed for 25 years</strong> - Vladimir Kara-Murza says the harsh sentence shows he is “doing everything right”.</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>Porsche bumps battery capacity, charging speed for 2024 Cayenne hybrid</strong> - Battery capacity increases to 25.9 kWh, and the electric motor is 30% more powerful. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1932367">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Report: Pixel 7a will cost $499, Pixel 6a will continue at a reduced price</strong> - With an upgraded screen, cameras, and wireless charging, Google wants $50 more. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1932403">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Adobe teases generative AI video tools</strong> - “Firefly for Video” will generate sound effects and music, edit footage via text. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1932354">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>FBI: Rent-a-Hitman site nabbed Air National Guardsman who was “excited” to kill</strong> - FBI: Guardsman owned AR-15 and was willing to take fingers and ears as trophies. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1932368">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Science confirms it: The best kimchi is made in traditional clay jars (onggi)</strong> - Onggi have just the right amount of porosity to enable kimchi to ferment faster. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1931767">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A snake walks into a bar</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
And the bartender says, “how did you do that?”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/tetrahedralcathedral"> /u/tetrahedralcathedral </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12qforn/a_snake_walks_into_a_bar/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12qforn/a_snake_walks_into_a_bar/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A man tries to clean his fake eye by licking it, but accidentally swallows it. He goes to the doctor in utter constipation seeking help.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The doctor tells the patient to bend over and cough, and promptly faints.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
When he comes to, the nurse asks him what happened. “|’ve looked at quite a few arseholes in my practice” said the doctor, “first time ever an arsehole looked back!”.
</p>
</div>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Bangorip"> /u/Bangorip </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12qe98l/a_man_tries_to_clean_his_fake_eye_by_licking_it/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12qe98l/a_man_tries_to_clean_his_fake_eye_by_licking_it/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Dear Dad, <span class="math inline"><em>c</em><em>h</em><em>o</em><em>o</em><em>l</em><em>i</em></span> great. I’m making lot$ of friend$ and $tudying hard. I $imply can’t think of anything I need, <span class="math inline"><em>o</em><em>j</em><em>u</em></span>t <span class="math inline"><em>e</em><em>n</em><em>d</em><em>m</em><em>e</em><em>a</em><em>c</em><em>a</em><em>r</em><em>d</em>, <em>a</em></span> I would love to hear from you. Love, Your $on</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Dear Son, I kNOw astroNOmy, ecoNOmics and oceaNOgraphy are eNOugh to keep even an hoNOr student busy. Do NOt forget that the pursuit of kNOwledge is a NOble task, and you can never study eNOugh. Love, Dad
</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/no_bon3s_about_it"> /u/no_bon3s_about_it </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12qhjhy/dear_dad_chool_i_great_im_making_lot_of_friend/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12qhjhy/dear_dad_chool_i_great_im_making_lot_of_friend/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>I once hooked up with a Japanese porn star…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
…but it was a total blur.
</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/iForgot2Remember"> /u/iForgot2Remember </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12pq8sb/i_once_hooked_up_with_a_japanese_porn_star/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/12pq8sb/i_once_hooked_up_with_a_japanese_porn_star/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A cat owner invited their neighbor over for dinner and introduced their four cats. “That’s Alogue, Aract, Erpillar, and Astrophe,” they announced. The neighbor was surprised and asked, Where on Earth did you get those names?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Oh, those are their last names, the owner said. Their first names are Cat.
</p>
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