Exploring associations between the Covid-19 vaccination campaign and fertility trends: A population-level analysis for 22 countries -
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+Background At the turn of 2021-2022, monthly birth rates declined in many higher-income countries. We explore how the rollout of COVID-19 vaccination was associated with this decline. Methods Using an interrupted time series design, we evaluate the impact of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the start of COVID-19 vaccination on seasonally-adjusted monthly total fertility rates in 22 high-income countries. We study the associations between COVID-19 vaccination and fertility by additionally controlling for youth unemployment, stringency index, and vaccination coverage. Results The start of the pandemic had an immediate effect on fertility in most countries, although the size and direction of level changes considerably varied across countries. The impact of COVID-19 vaccination was less all-embracing. A negative association between the COVID-19 vaccine rollout and fertility nine months later was found for ten out of 22 countries. For several countries, the decline was preceded by fertility increase that took place after the onset of the pandemic. Only four of 22 countries had post-vaccination fertility declines that resulted in fertility being on a lower level than what the pre-pandemic trend predicted. Additional control variables changed the associations only little. Conclusions The COVID-19 vaccination campaign contributed to the variation in the short-term fertility trends. Several countries experienced declines following the campaign, however, this decline often returned fertility closer to the pre-pandemic trend. Fertility appears to have responded in short run to vaccination, but only in few cases such that the long-term trajectory is below the pre-pandemic trend.
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Urban birds’ tolerance towards humans was largely unaffected by increased variation in human levels due to COVID-19 shutdowns -
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+The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic dramatically altered human activities, and, during shutdowns, potentially changed human pressures on urban-dwelling animals. Here, we evaluated whether urban birds from five countries (Finland, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Australia) changed their tolerance towards humans (measured as flight initiation distance) during the COVID-19 shutdowns. We collected 6369 flight initiation distance estimates for 147 bird species and found that human numbers in parks (at a given hour, day, week or year - before and during the COVID-19 shutdowns) had a little effect on birds tolerance of approaching humans. Apart from the actual human numbers in the area (hourly temporal scale) - which as expected correlated negatively, albeit weakly, with escape distance - the effect of human activity at other temporal scales centered around zero. The results were similar across countries, for most species or when we restricted our analyses only to species sampled both before and during the COVID-19 shutdowns. As expected, the level of daily human presence in parks (measured by Google Mobility Reports) correlated negatively with the stringency of governmental restrictions (a weekly proxy for human presence) and was overall lower during COVID-19 shutdowns than during the post-shutdown year (2022). Our results highlight the resilience of birds to changes in human numbers on multiple temporal scales, the complexities of linking animal fear responses to human behavior, and the challenge of quantifying both simultaneously in situ.
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Escherichia coli grown in cost-effective conical tubes produces more plasmid DNA -
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+Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we grew plasmid-transformed Escherichia coli in Falcon round-bottom-polypropylene tubes (F-Round-PP) and isolated plasmid using a Miniprep kit. When obtaining sufficient quantities of F-Round-PP became problematic during the pandemic and the inflation, we grew them using any available tubes. Notably, we observed that plasmid yield from cells grown in a cost-effective Oxford conical-polypropylene tubes (O-Conical-PP) was higher than that from F-Round-PP. We assessed the impact using O-Conical-PP and other conical brand tubes. As a result, the plasmid yield from O-Conical-PP (the list price is nearly 1/3 of F-Round-PP) was 1.5-fold higher than other PP tubes (p<0.001). We propose that researchers may need to re-assess the effectiveness of their laboratory supplies to optimize the budget during this inflationary period.
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Protein nanoparticle vaccines induce potent neutralizing antibody responses against MERS-CoV -
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+Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a zoonotic betacoronavirus that causes severe and often lethal respiratory illness in humans. The MERS-CoV spike (S) protein is the viral fusogen and the target of neutralizing antibodies, and has therefore been the focus of vaccine design efforts. Currently there are no licensed vaccines against MERS-CoV and only a few candidates have advanced to Phase I clinical trials. Here we developed MERS-CoV vaccines utilizing a computationally designed protein nanoparticle platform that has generated safe and immunogenic vaccines against various enveloped viruses, including a licensed vaccine for SARS-CoV-2. Two-component protein nanoparticles displaying MERS-CoV S-derived antigens induced robust neutralizing antibody responses and protected mice against challenge with mouse-adapted MERS-CoV. Electron microscopy polyclonal epitope mapping and serum competition assays revealed the specificities of the dominant antibody responses elicited by immunogens displaying the prefusion-stabilized S-2P trimer, receptor binding domain (RBD), or N-terminal domain (NTD). An RBD nanoparticle vaccine elicited antibodies targeting multiple non-overlapping epitopes in the RBD, whereas anti-NTD antibodies elicited by the S-2P- and NTD-based immunogens converged on a single antigenic site. Our findings demonstrate the potential of two-component nanoparticle vaccine candidates for MERS-CoV and suggest that this platform technology could be broadly applicable to betacoronavirus vaccine development.
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Self-inhibiting percolation and viral spreading in epithelial tissue -
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+SARS-CoV-2 induces delayed type-I/III interferon production, allowing it to escape the early innate immune response. The delay has been attributed to a deficiency in the ability of cells to sense viral replication upon infection, which in turn hampers activation of the antiviral state in bystander cells. Here, we introduce a cellular automaton model to investigate the spatiotemporal spreading of viral infection as a function of virus and host-dependent parameters. The model suggests that the considerable person-to-person heterogeneity in SARS-CoV-2 infections is a consequence of high sensitivity to slight variations in biological parameters near a critical threshold. It further suggests that within-host viral proliferation can be curtailed by the presence of remarkably few cells that are primed for IFN production. Thus the observed heterogeneity in defense readiness of cells reflects a remarkably cost-efficient strategy for protection.
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Engineered Migrasomes: A Robust, Thermally Stable Vaccination Platform -
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+The burgeoning abilities of pathogens and tumor cells to evade immune responses underscore the urgent need for innovative vaccination platforms based on a variety of biological mechanisms. The current logistical challenges associated with cold-chain (i.e. low-temperature) transportation particularly impacts access to vaccines in the global south. We recently discovered organelles called migrasomes, and herein we investigate the potential of migrasomes as an alternative vaccination platform. Their inherent stability and their enrichment with immune-modulating molecules make migrasomes promising candidates, but their low yield presents a hurdle. We address this problem through our engineered migrasome-like vesicles (eMigrasomes), which emulate the biophysical attributes of natural migrasomes with substantially improved yield. We show that eMigrasomes loaded with a model antigen elicit potent antibody responses and maintain stability at room temperature. We demonstrate that eMigrasomes bearing the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein induce robust humoral protection against the virus. Our study demonstrates the potential of eMigrasome-based vaccines as a unique, robust, and accessible alternative to traditional methods.
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CircRNA-Pro: A Novel Toolkit for High-Precision Detection of Differentially Expressed Circular RNAs and Translatable Circular RNAs -
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+With the increasing discovery of circular RNAs (circRNAs) and their critical roles in gene regulation and disease progression, there is a growing need for more accurate and efficient tools for circRNAs research. In response, we have developed an integrated software suite specifically for circRNAs. This all-in-one tool specializes in detecting differentially expressed circRNAs, including those with the potential to be translated into proteins, and allows for comparing against relevant databases, thereby enabling comprehensive circRNA profiling and annotation. To enhance the accuracy in detecting differentially expressed circRNAs, we incorporated three different software algorithms and cross-validated their results through mutual verification. Additionally, this toolkit improves the effectiveness in identifying translatable circRNAs by optimizing Ribo-seq alignment and verifying against public circRNA databases. The performance of circRNA-pro has been evaluated through its application to public RNA-seq and Ribo-seq datasets on breast cancer and SARS-CoV-2 infected cells, and the results obtained have been validated against previous literature and databases. Overall, our integrated toolkit provides a reliable workflow for circRNA research, facilitating insights into their diverse roles across life sciences.
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Mutability and hypermutation antagonize immunoglobulin codon optimality -
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+The efficacy of polyclonal antibody responses is inherently linked to paratope diversity, as generated through V(D)J recombination and somatic hypermutation (SHM). These processes arose in early jawed vertebrates; however, little is known about how immunoglobulin diversity, mutability, and hypermutation have evolved in tandem with another more ubiquitous feature of protein-coding DNA - codon optimality. Here, we explore these relationships through analysis of germline IG genes, natural V(D)J repertoires, serum VH usage, and monoclonal antibody (mAb) expression, each through the lens of multiple optimality metrics. Strikingly, proteomic serum IgG sequencing showed that germline IGHV codon optimality positively correlated with VH representation after influenza vaccination, and in vitro, codon deoptimization of mAbs with synonymous amino acid sequences caused consistent expression loss. Germline V genes exhibit a range of codon optimality that is maintained by functionality, and inversely related to mutability. SHM caused a load-dependent deoptimization of IGH VDJ repertoires within human tonsils, bone marrow, and lymph nodes (including SARS-CoV-2-specific clones from mRNA vaccinees), influenza-infected mice, and zebrafish. Comparison of natural mutation profiles to true random suggests the presence of selective pressures that constrain deoptimization. These findings shed light on immunoglobulin evolution, providing unanticipated insights into the antagonistic relationship between variable region diversification, codon optimality, and antibody secretion; ultimately, the need for diversity takes precedence over that for the most efficient expression of the antibody repertoire.
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Understanding Young Caring in the UK Pre- and Post-COVID-19: Prevalence, Correlates, and Insights from Three UK Longitudinal Surveys -
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+Background. Despite increasing awareness of young carers in recent years, there remains a significant gap in our understanding of both the prevalence and the characteristics of young carers. Our study aims to address this gap by examining the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence and characteristics of young carers. Methods. This research utilised data from three UK longitudinal surveys: the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS), the COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities (COSMO) study, and the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS). We focused on adolescents aged 16-18, and examined two pre-COVID (UKHLS and MCS) and two post-COVID (UKHLS and COSMO) samples. Results. The prevalence of young carers increased from 8.0% pre-COVID to 9.8-11.9% since COVID. Young carers were more commonly found in single-parent and socioeconomically disadvantaged households, with a higher prevalence of young carers in homes where parents were out of paid employment or held lower educational qualifications. Young carers were also more likely to reside in deprived areas. Most young carers engaged in low-intensity caring (< 10 hours/week), but post-COVID there was an increase in high-intensity caring (10+ hours/week), predominantly assumed by young female carers. The primary recipients of care were parents, followed by grandparents and siblings, with no change in the care recipient type since COVID. Conclusion. This study showed an increase in the prevalence of young carers, particularly those providing high-intensity care, since the onset of the COVID pandemic. Further, young carers were more likely to come from socioeconomically disadvantaged households and areas. Given the potential impacts that young caring can have on young peoples’ lives, it is imperative that support for young carers is increased, particularly for those facing multiple disadvantages. In tandem, services that support adult health and social care need to play a key role in identifying young carers.
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Sex differences in symptoms following the administration of BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine in Children below 5 Years of age in Germany (CoVacU5): a retrospective cohort study -
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+Background Sex differences exist not only in the efficacy but also in adverse event rates of many vaccines. Here we compared the safety of BNT162b2 vaccine administered off-label in female and male children younger than 5 years in Germany. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study, in which we performed a post-hoc analysis of a dataset collected through an authentication-based survey of individuals having registered children aged 0-<5 years for vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 in six private practices and/or two lay person-initiated vaccination campaigns. We analyzed the safety profiles of the first 3 doses of 3-10μg BNT162b2. Primary outcome was comparison in frequencies of 4 common post-vaccination symptom categories such as local, general, musculoskeletal symptoms and fever. Data were analyzed according to sex in bivariate analyses and regression models adjusting for age, weight, and dosage. Interaction between sex and BNT162b2 dosage was assessed. An active-comparator analysis was applied to compare post-vaccination symptoms after BNT162b2 versus non-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Results The dataset for the present analysis consisted of 7801 participants including 3842 females (49%) and 3977 males (51%) with an age of 3 years (median, interquartile: 2 years). Among individuals receiving 3μg BNT162b2, no sex differences were noted, but after a first dose of 5 or 10μg BNT162b2, local injection-site symptoms were more prevalent in girls compared to boys. In logistic regression, female sex was associated with higher odds of local symptoms, odds ratio (OR) of 1.33 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.15-1.55, p<0.05) and general symptoms with OR 1.21 (95% CI: 1.01-1.44, p<0.05). Following non-BNT162b2 childhood vaccinations, female sex was associated with a lower odds of post-vaccination musculoskeletal symptoms (OR: 0.29, 95% CI: 0.11-0.82, p<0.05). An active comparator analysis between BNT162b2 and non-SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations revealed that female sex positively influenced the association between BNT162b2 vaccine type and musculoskeletal symptoms. Conclusions Sex differences exist in post-vaccination symptoms after BNT162b2 administration even in young children. These are of importance for the conception of approval studies, for post-vaccination monitoring and for future vaccination strategies. (German Clinical Trials Register ID: DRKS00028759).
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Clinical phenotypes and outcomes associated with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant JN.1 in critically ill COVID-19 patients: a prospective, multicenter cohort study -
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+A notable increase in severe cases of COVID-19, with significant hospitalizations due to the emergence and spread of JN.1 was observed worldwide in late 2023 and early 2024. During the study period (November 2022-January 2024), 56 JN.1- and 126 XBB-infected patients were prospectively enrolled in 40 French intensive care units. JN.1-infected patients were more likely to be obese (35.7% vs 20.8%; p=0.033) and less frequently immunosuppressed than others (20.4% vs 41.4%; p=0.010). JN.1-infected patients required invasive mechanical ventilation support in 29.1%, 87.5% of them received dexamethasone, 14.5% tocilizumab and none received monoclonal antibodies. Day-28 mortality of JN.1-infected patients was 14.6%.
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EpidemicKabu a new method to identify epidemic waves and their peaks and valleys -
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+INTRODUCTION: The dynamical behavior of epidemic curves is an oscillation between a very low and very high number of incident cases throughout the time. These oscillations are commonly called waves of the epidemic curve. The concept of epidemic waves lacks a consensual definition and a simple methodology that can be used for many diseases. OBJECTIVE: We describe in this study the EpidemicKabu method to identify the start and the end of past epidemic waves but also their peaks and valleys. METHOD: The methodology is divided into processing of the curve, waves detection, and peaks and valleys delimitation. For processing the curve, a Gaussian kernel was used to diminish the noise and to smooth the curve. The first and second derivatives of the curve were used for the detection of waves, delimitation of peaks and valleys. The methodology was derived into the open access library. The method was tested using COVID-19 daily cases reported between 2020 and 2022 for different countries. After detection of waves, we made some measures related to the size of the waves for those countries. RESULTS: The results of the method were the dates of start and end of waves, peaks, and valleys. The dates are displayed on graphs and added as a new column in a dataset. We found that Belgium was the country recording the highest ratio of incident cases per 100 people by day in a wave. CONCLUSION: The EpidemicKabu method is simple, easy to use, and very useful in estimating epidemic waves. The methodology requires expert judgment in order to set a parameter that could only have three possible values.
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The PRIME-NL study: evaluating a complex healthcare intervention for people with Parkinson’s disease in a dynamic environment -
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+Background: An innovative, integrative care model for people with Parkinson (PRIME Parkinson) has gradually been implemented in a selected region of the Netherlands since 2021. A prospective evaluation of this model (PRIME-NL study) was initiated in parallel, spanning the year prior to implementation (baseline) and the implementation period. Following publication of the original study protocol, the COVID-19 crisis delayed implementation of the full PRIME Parkinson care model by two years and hampered the recruitment of study participants. Objective: To describe which methodological adjustments were made to the study protocol because of these developments. Methods: We compare various outcomes between a region where PRIME Parkinson care was implemented (innovation region) versus the rest of the Netherlands (usual care region). We use healthcare claims data of virtually all people with Parkinson in the Netherlands and annual questionnaires in a representative subsample of 984 people with Parkinson, 566 caregivers and 192 healthcare professionals. Four major methodological adjustments had to be made since publication of the original protocol. First, we extended the evaluation period by two years. Second, we incorporated annual process measures of the stage of implementation of the new care model. Third, we introduced a real-time iterative feedback loop of interim results to relevant stakeholders. Fourth, we updated the statistical analysis plan. Discussion: This manuscript provides transparency in how the design and analyses of the evaluation study had to be adapted to control for external influences in a dynamic environment, including eruption of the COVID-19 crisis. Our solutions could serve as a template for evaluating other complex healthcare interventions in a dynamic environment.
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The association between prolonged SARS-CoV-2 symptoms and work outcomes -
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+While the early effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the United States labor market are well-established, less is known about the long-term impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection and Long COVID on employment. To address this gap, we analyzed self-reported data from a prospective, national cohort study to estimate the effects of SARS-CoV-2 symptoms at three months post-infection on missed workdays and return to work. The analysis included 2,939 adults in the Innovative Support for Patients with SARS-CoV-2 Infections Registry (INSPIRE) study who tested positive for their initial SARS-CoV-2 infection at the time of enrollment, were employed before the pandemic, and completed a baseline and three-month electronic survey. At three months post-infection, 40.8% of participants reported at least one SARS-CoV-2 symptom and 9.6% of participants reported five or more SARS-CoV-2 symptoms. When asked about missed work due to their SARS-CoV-2 infection at three months, 7.1% of participants reported missing >=10 workdays and 13.9% of participants reported not returning to work since their infection. At three months, participants with >=5 symptoms had a higher adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of missing >=10 workdays (2.96, 95% CI 1.81-4.83) and not returning to work (2.44, 95% CI 1.58-3.76) compared to those with no symptoms. Prolonged SARS-CoV-2 symptoms were common, affecting 4-in-10 participants at three-months post-infection, and were associated with increased odds of work loss, most pronounced among adults with >=5 symptoms at three months. Despite the end of the Federal COVID-19 Public Health Emergency and efforts to “return to normal”, policymakers must consider the clinical and economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s employment status and work absenteeism, particularly as data characterizing the numerous health and well-being impacts of Long COVID continue to emerge. Improved understanding of risk factors for lost work time may guide efforts to support people in returning to work.
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Tight Fit of the SIR Dynamic Epidemic Model to Daily Cases of COVID-19 Reported During the 2021-2022 Omicron Surge in New York City: A Novel Approach -
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+We describe a novel approach to recovering the underlying parameters of the SIR dynamic epidemic model from observed data on case incidence. We formulate a discrete-time approximation to the original continuous-time model and search for the parameter vector that minimizes the standard least squares criterion function. We show that the gradient vector and matrix of second-order derivatives of the criterion function with respect to the parameters adhere to their own systems of difference equations and thus can be exactly calculated iteratively. Applying our new approach, we estimated a four-parameter SIR model from data on daily reported cases of COVID-19 during the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron/BA.1 surge of December 2021 - March 2022 in New York City. The estimated SIR model showed a tight fit to the observed data, but less so when we excluded residual cases attributable to the Delta variant during the initial upswing of the wave in December. Our analyses of both the real-world COVID-19 data and simulated case incidence data revealed an important problem of weak parameter identification. While our methods permitted separate estimation of the infection transmission parameter and the infection persistence parameter, only a linear combination of these two key parameters could be estimated with precision. The SIR model appears to be an adequate reduced-form description of the Omicron surge, but it is not necessarily the correct structural model. Prior information above and beyond case incidence data may be required to sharply identify the parameters and thus distinguish between alternative epidemic models.
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Utilizing Novel Blood RNA Biomarkers as a Diagnostic Tool in the Identification of Long COVID-19 - Conditions: Long COVID Interventions: Diagnostic Test: RNA Biomarker Blood Test Sponsors: MaxWell Clinic, PLC Recruiting
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Home-Based Circuit Training in Overweight/Obese Older Adult Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis and Type 2 Diabetes - Conditions: Aerobic Exercise; Strength Training; Glycemic Control; Blood Pressure; Oxidative Stress; Metabolic Syndrome Interventions: Behavioral: 12-week home-based circuit training (HBCT); Behavioral: Standard of care (CONT) Sponsors: Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University Completed
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RECOVER-AUTONOMIC: Platform Protocol, Appendix B (Ivabradine) - Conditions: Long COVID; Long Covid19; Long Covid-19 Interventions: Drug: Ivabradine; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo; Behavioral: Coordinated Care; Behavioral: Usual Care Sponsors: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman Enrolling by invitation
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SVF for Treating Pulmonary Fibrosis Post COVID-19 - Conditions: Pulmonary Fibrosis Interventions: Biological: Autologous adipose-derived SVF IV administration Sponsors: Michael H Carstens; Ministerio de Salud de Nicaragua; Wake Forest University; National Autonomous University of Nicaragua Completed
RECOVER-AUTONOMIC: Platform Protocol, Appendix A (IVIG) - Conditions: Long COVID; Long Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid19); Long Covid-19 Interventions: Drug: IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulin); Drug: IVIG Placebo; Behavioral: Coordinated Care; Behavioral: Usual Care Sponsors: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman Not yet recruiting
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Understanding Adaptive Immune Response After COVID-19 Vaccination Boosters to Improve Vaccination Strategies in Vulnerable Groups. - Conditions: COVID-19 Interventions: Other: Analisys of cellular response and humoral response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccine booster doses Sponsors: IRCCS Sacro Cuore Don Calabria di Negrar Recruiting
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COVIDVaxStories: Randomized Trial to Reduce COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in Populations of Color - Conditions: Vaccine Hesitancy Interventions: Behavioral: Storytelling; Behavioral: Learn More (Active Comparator) Sponsors: University of Massachusetts, Worcester; Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC Recruiting
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Sulfureous Water Therapy in Viral Respiratory Diseases - Conditions: Long-COVID; Post COVID-19 Condition; Chronic COVID-19 Syndrome; Post Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 Interventions: Other: Inhalation of Sulfurous Thermal Water; Other: Inhalation of Sterile Distilled non-pyrogenic Water Sponsors: University of Roma La Sapienza; Università degli studi di Roma Foro Italico; Queen Mary University of London; Bios Prevention Srl Completed
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An E-health Psychoeducation for People With Bipolar Disorders - Conditions: Bipolar Disorder; Psychoeducation; COVID-19 Pandemic Interventions: Other: e-health psychoeducation Sponsors: University of Cagliari; Alessandra Perra Completed
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Phase 3 Study to Evaluate the Safety and Immunogenicity of COVID-19 Vaccine and Influenza Combination Vaccine - Conditions: COVID-19 Interventions: Biological: CIC Vaccine Co-formulated tNIV2 , SARSCoV-2 rS and Matrix-M Adjuvant; Biological: Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine; Biological: Comparator Influenza Vaccine - Fluarix; Biological: Comparator Influenza Vaccine -Fluarix High Dose; Biological: Placebo 0.9% sodium chloride for injection Sponsors: Novavax Not yet recruiting
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Evaluation of KGR Prescriptions in Suppressing COVID-19 Infection. - Conditions: Coronavirus Disease 2019; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection Interventions: Combination Product: Kang Guan Recipe (Treat); Combination Product: Kang Guan Recipe (Placebo) Sponsors: Sheng-Teng Huang Completed
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SHEN211 Tablets for the Treatment of Mild and Moderate Novel Corona Virus Infections (COVID-19) - Conditions: COVID-19 Interventions: Drug: SHEN211 Tablets; Procedure: Placebo for SHEN211 Tablets Sponsors: JKT Biopharma Co., Ltd. Not yet recruiting
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From PubMed
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Utilizing sinapic acid as an inhibitory antiviral agent against MERS-CoV PLpro - Concerns about the social and economic collapse, high mortality rates, and stress on the healthcare system are developing due to the coronavirus onslaught in the form of various species and their variants. In the recent past, infections brought on by coronaviruses severe acute respiratory syndrome coronaviruses (SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2) as well as middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) have been reported. There is a severe lack of medications to treat various coronavirus types…
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Recognition of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor by specific S100 proteins - Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a pleiotropic myelopoietic growth factor and proinflammatory cytokine, clinically used for multiple indications and serving as a promising target for treatment of many disorders, including cancer, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, asthma, COVID-19. We have previously shown that dimeric Ca^(2+)-bound forms of S100A6 and S100P proteins, members of the multifunctional S100 protein family, are specific to GM-CSF. To…
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Developing inhibitory peptides against SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein - Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected approximately 800 million people since the start of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Because of the high rate of mutagenesis in SARS-CoV-2, it is difficult to develop a sustainable approach for prevention and treatment. The Envelope (E) protein is highly conserved among human coronaviruses. Previous studies reported that SARS-CoV-1 E deficiency reduced viral propagation, suggesting that E inhibition might…
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Interactions among stress, behavioral inhibition, and delta-beta coupling predict adolescent anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic - The COVID-19 pandemic brought about unprecedented changes and uncertainty to the daily lives of youth. The range of adjustment in light of a near-universal experience of COVID restrictions highlights the importance of identifying factors that may render some individuals more susceptible to heightened levels of anxiety during stressful life events than others. Two risk factors to consider are temperamental behavioral inhibition (BI) and difficulties in emotion regulation (ER). As such, the…
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Examination of SARS-CoV-2 serological test results from multiple commercial and laboratory platforms with an in-house serum panel - Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a novel human coronavirus that was identified in 2019. SARS-CoV-2 infection results in an acute, severe respiratory disease called coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The emergence and rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 has led to a global public health crisis, which continues to affect populations across the globe. Real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) is the reference standard test for COVID-19…
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Neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 and Intranasal Protection of Mice with a nanoCLAMP Antibody Mimetic - Intranasal treatment, combined with vaccination, has the potential to slow mutational evolution of viruses by reducing transmission and replication. Here, we illustrate the development of a SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain (RBD) nanoCLAMP and demonstrate its potential as an intranasally administered therapeutic. A multi-epitope nanoCLAMP was made by fusing a pM affinity single-domain nanoCLAMP (P2710) to alternate epitope-binding nanoCLAMP, P2609. The resulting multimerized nanoCLAMP P2712 had…
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Exploring cell-free assays for COVID-19 serosurvey - Serosurveys to monitor immunity toward COVID-19 in the population are primarily performed using an ELISA to screen samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, followed by confirmation by a virus neutralization test, which is considered the Gold Standard. However, virus neutralization test may not be feasible for some laboratories because of the requirement for specific facilities and trained personnel. In an attempt to address this limitation, we evaluated three cell-free methods as potential…
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The risk of acute infections in new users of antidepressants: An observational cohort study - CONCLUSIONS: Fluoxetine, sertraline, paroxetine, and venlafaxine were not associated with a reduced risk of acute infection when compared with the presumably weak FIASMA citalopram.
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Overlaid Lateral Flow Immunoassay for the Simultaneous Detection of Two Variant-Specific SARS-CoV-2 Neutralizing Antibodies - COVID-19 vaccines have been provided to the general public to build immunity since the 2019 coronavirus pandemic. Once vaccinated, SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies (NAbs-COVID-19) are needed for excellent protection against COVID-19. However, monitoring NAbs-COVID-19 is complicated and requires hospital visits. Moreover, the resulting NAbs-COVID-19 are effective against different strains of COVID-19 depending on the type of vaccine received. Here, an overlaid lateral flow immunoassay (O-LFIA)…
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An orally bioavailable SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitor exhibits improved affinity and reduced sensitivity to mutations - Inhibitors of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) main protease (M^(pro)) such as nirmatrelvir (NTV) and ensitrelvir (ETV) have proven effective in reducing the severity of COVID-19, but the presence of resistance-conferring mutations in sequenced viral genomes raises concerns about future drug resistance. Second-generation oral drugs that retain function against these mutants are thus urgently needed. We hypothesized that the covalent hepatitis C virus protease…
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Repurposing of Plant-based Antiviral Molecules for the Treatment of COVID-19 - COVID-19, stemming from SARS-CoV-2, poses a formidable threat to global healthcare, with a staggering 77 million confirmed cases and 690,067 deaths recorded till December 24, 2023. Given the absence of specific drugs for this viral infection, the exploration of novel antiviral compounds becomes imperative. High-throughput technologies are actively engaged in drug discovery, and there is a parallel effort to repurpose plant-based molecules with established antiviral properties. In this context,…
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Protective effect and mechanism of Qingfei Paidu decoction on myocardial damage mediated by influenza viruses - Introduction: Significant attention has been paid to myocardial damage mediated by the single-stranded RNA virus. Qingfei Paidu decoction (QFPDD) has been proved to protect the damage caused by the influenza virus A/PR/8/1934 (PR8), but its specific mechanism is unclear. Methods: Molecular biological methods, together with network pharmacology, were used to analyze the effects and underlying mechanism of QFPDD treatment on PR8-induced myocardial damage to obtain insights into the treatment of…
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Decoding HiPSC-CM’s Response to SARS-CoV-2: mapping the molecular landscape of cardiac injury - CONCLUSION: SARS-CoV-2 infection in hiPSC-CMs is fundamentally mediated via mitochondrial dysfunction. Therapeutic interventions targeting mitochondrial dysfunction may alleviate the cardiovascular complications associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Identification of Phytochemicals from Arabian Peninsula Medicinal Plants as Strong Binders to SARS-CoV-2 Proteases (3CL(Pro) and PL(Pro)) by Molecular Docking and Dynamic Simulation Studies - We provide promising computational (in silico) data on phytochemicals (compounds 1-10) from Arabian Peninsula medicinal plants as strong binders, targeting 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CL^(Pro)) and papain-like proteases (PL^(Pro)) of SARS-CoV-2. Compounds 1-10 followed the Lipinski rules of five (RO5) and ADMET analysis, exhibiting drug-like characters. Non-covalent (reversible) docking of compounds 1-10 demonstrated their binding with the catalytic dyad (CYS145 and HIS41) of 3CL^(Pro) and…
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Inhibitory Efficacy of Main Components of Scutellaria baicalensis on the Interaction between Spike Protein of SARS-CoV-2 and Human Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme II - Blocking the interaction between the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and the human angiotensin-converting enzyme II (hACE2) protein serves as a therapeutic strategy for treating COVID-19. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treatments containing bioactive products could alleviate the symptoms of severe COVID-19. However, the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants has complicated the process of developing broad-spectrum drugs. As such, the aim of this study was to explore the efficacy of TCM treatments against…
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From Patent Search
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Mike Johnson, the First Proudly Trumpian Speaker - Though he has adopted a “nerd constitutional-law guy” persona, he is in lockstep with the law-flouting former President. - link
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Have the Liberal Arts Gone Conservative? - The classical-education movement seeks to fundamentally reorient schooling in America. Its emphasis on morality and civics has also primed it for partisan takeover. - link
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Percival Everett Can’t Say What His Novels Mean - The author of “Erasure” is renowned for his satires of genre, identity, and America. But his great target may be language itself. - link
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The Open-Air Prison for ISIS Supporters—and Victims - Since the Islamic State fell, tens of thousands of people—many of them children—have been herded into Al-Hol, a giant fenced-in camp in Syria, and effectively given life sentences. - link
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Among the A.I. Doomsayers - Some people think machine intelligence will transform humanity for the better. Others fear it may destroy us. Who will decide our fate? - link
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From Vox
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How to think about Boeing’s recent safety issues -
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+National Transportation Safety Board Investigator-in-Charge John Lovell examines the fuselage plug area of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 Max on January 7, 2024, in Portland, Oregon. | Getty Images
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+Flying is still extremely safe. But Boeing’s safety issues are real.
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+Another week, another series of bad news stories for Boeing.
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+On Monday, 50 people were injured (none were killed) when a 787 “dropped abruptly” midflight from Sydney to Auckland. That same day, the New York Times reported that a Federal Aviation Administration investigation into the production of the 737 Max jets found that the company failed 33 of the 89 product audits at the factory where the planes are being built. The FAA’s inspection was connected to the alarming incident in which a door plug blew out of a Max 9 midflight in January.
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+It’s worth underscoring: Air travel remains extremely safe. As my colleague Marina Bolotnikova writes, the number of Americans killed on US commercial fights in the last 10 years is two. During that same period, 365,000 Americans were killed in car crashes.
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+In fact, the reason Boeing’s recent failures have attracted so much scrutiny is because these types of events are so rare.
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+That said, reporting on Boeing’s plane problems — and reading Whizy Kim’s piece from late January diving deep into the corporate issues at the company — have made me more appreciative of the risks posed by a combination of profit-driven corporate culture, inadequate regulation, and strained resources.
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+“The Boeing story is far from over,” Matthew Oliver, an aerospace engineer formerly with the Canadian Armed Forces and expert in complex systems failures and forensic investigations, told me.
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+It’s “like an onion,” he says. “There are so many layers to the Boeing failure.”
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+Let’s peel them back.
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+Profits over planes
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+The flight control features that caused the 737 Max planes to crash in 2018 and 2019 and the missing bolts that caused the door plug to fly off in the January flight incident are totally different, but there’s a common theme around criticisms of the company: Investigators and journalists say that Boeing sometimes valued cost- and corner-cutting measures over the objections of its employees.
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+It wasn’t always this way. For years, the culture of Boeing was one of pride in their engineering innovation and the high value they placed on product safety. But that started to change in the late 1990s. As Whizy writes:
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+In Flying Blind: The 737 MAX Tragedy and the Fall of Boeing, journalist Peter Robison describes an environment where safety concerns were concealed or downplayed, in part to be faster and cheaper than Airbus, the former underdog that overtook Boeing as the biggest commercial aircraft manufacturer in the world in 2019.
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+Executives and shareholders got rich, she writes, while tensions roiled in the rank and file, who argued that the company needed to be investing more in the people who built the planes and ensured their safety.
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+In 2000, Boeing’s engineers went on strike; between 2019 and 2020, the company laid off thousands of people, raising concerns about the experience of those hired when the company began staffing up again post-pandemic.
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+Workers-turned-whistleblowers complained about serious safety problems they said they witnessed while working on Boeing planes. (One of the whistleblowers, John Barnett, died by suicide this week after giving interviews related to a lawsuit against the company. Barnett’s family said he was struggling with “PTSD and anxiety attacks” related to the “hostile work environment at Boeing”; the company issued a statement expressing their condolences without responding directly to the allegations.)
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+The problems at Boeing may have a lot to do with corporate culture, but the company’s struggles aren’t happening in a vacuum.
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+Critics also point to the FAA’s regulation of the manufacturing giant and have questions about whether the agency is sufficiently funded and independent enough to provide proper oversight. One of the FAA’s practices — allowing manufacturers to “self-certify” that their planes meet US safety regulations — is the subject of particular scrutiny.
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+Ganesh Sitaraman, a law professor at Vanderbilt and the author of Why Flying Is Miserable, says, “The reality is that markets need good, strong rules to work. Without those rules, the profit motive means that people will cut corners, squeeze and exploit consumers, and engage in all kinds of anticompetitive behavior.”
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+With so much public attention on the company and the government, both are now taking steps to demonstrate publicly that they’re working to ensure the safety of the planes. “[W]e continue to implement immediate changes and develop a comprehensive action plan to strengthen safety and quality, and build the confidence of our customers and their passengers. We are squarely focused on taking significant, demonstrated action with transparency at every turn,” the company said in a statement.
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+Those familiar with the long-running problems, though, are not so easily assured.
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+Should you fly on a Boeing?
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+The chances that something bad will happen to you while flying are still extremely low. As the National Safety Council notes, the passenger vehicle death rate per 100 million miles is 595 times higher than it is for scheduled airlines. For most people, that should be all they need to know.
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+That said, if you decide you don’t want to fly on a Boeing Max anymore, you aren’t alone. A former senior manager for Boeing’s 737 Max program and the executive director of the Foundation for Aviation Safety won’t fly in one. Oliver feels similarly: “I would avoid flying on a recent Boeing product as much as possible.”
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+On the Foundation for Aviation Safety’s website, there’s a page that offers advice for people looking to avoid flying on a Max. Alternative Airlines has info, too.
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+The gist: Check the flight details when booking your ticket to see what kind of plane is listed. Sign up for status updates from the airline. Then, on your day of travel — and this is crucial — check again with your airline or a site like Flightradar24 to make sure it’s the same kind of plane, since airlines can and often do swap planes if one needs service or repair. If you find yourself booked on a Max, you can ask the ticket agent if you can be rebooked for a different flight.
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+Ultimately, though, you might have to weigh your tolerance for remote risk against the serious inconvenience of rebooking a flight — and the safety risks in whatever alternative modes of transportation you’re considering.
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+Just remember, it can be true that Boeing has safety issues and that flying is still very safe. Also, driving is (much, much) worse. Happy travels!
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How the world has radically cut child deaths, in one chart -
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+Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu via Getty Images
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+Fewer kids are dying than ever before — but a lot of work remains.
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+Children worldwide are less likely to die before they reach the age of 5 than at any time in recorded history, according to new data from the United Nations.
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+The worldwide mortality rate for kids younger than 5 years old was slashed in half in 2022 compared to the turn of the century. Child mortality was even higher in 1990, when 13 million children under 5 died. By 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, that number hovered around 4.9 million.
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+The rate is currently an estimated 37 deaths per 1,000 births, the UN report released this week concluded. (The agency takes all of the relevant data available from national governments — such as vital registration systems, censuses, and household surveys — then statistically adjusts and models that data to arrive at its worldwide and regional child mortality estimates.)
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+The UN’s researchers credit the global decline to more skilled medical personnel being present at births, increased investment in postnatal care, and more aggressive public health campaigns, including vaccinations.
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+In recent years, many developing countries have also strengthened local health systems that can better diagnose and treat serious health conditions, on top of multilateral humanitarian initiatives that have reduced hunger and malnutrition over the long term.
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+Some countries have made particularly remarkable progress: Malawi, Rwanda, and Mongolia have seen some of the largest declines in child deaths, with their under-5 mortality rate dropping by 75 percent since 2000. Among the world’s least-developed countries, as defined by the UN, the mortality rate among kids under 5 has plummeted from 175 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1990 to fewer than 60 in 2022.
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+ Dylan Scott/Vox
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+But enormous disparities remain between rich and poor countries. The UN report warns that the progress of the past three decades is slowing and could begin to backslide, a bleak possibility given the recent uptick in global hunger after decades of improvement.
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+As with hunger, living in politically fragile and conflict-ridden countries increases the risk of life-threatening health problems among young children. Nations considered by the World Bank to be in fragile and conflict-affected situations experienced 73 deaths per 1,000 live births among kids under 5. That’s nearly three times the rate in all other countries.
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+Sub-Saharan Africa — where conflicts in the Central African Republic and elsewhere are currently threatening access to food and medical care — has the highest under-5 mortality rate of any region in the world. A baby born there is 18 times more likely to die before reaching the age of 5 than one born in Australia and New Zealand, the regions with the second-lowest mortality rate among kids under 5, after Europe and North America.
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+Four out of every five deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa or South Asia, the former accounting for 57 percent of all such deaths globally and the latter enduring another 26 percent.
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+Premature birth, lower respiratory infections, birth trauma, birth defects, malaria, and diarrhea are the leading causes of death among young children worldwide. Infant mortality rates in particular are stagnating, a worrying indicator for the future. In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, the death rate has barely budged from 2010 (when there were 32 deaths per 1,000 live births) to 2022 (27 deaths per 1,000 live births). Overall, the annual rate of reduction in child mortality decelerated from 3.8 percent between 2000 and 2015 to 2.1 percent between 2015 and 2022.
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+Taken together, the UN report mixes optimism with caution. Yes, fewer children under 5 are dying than ever before. But the recent slowdown in progress means that about 60 countries are now on pace to miss the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) for child mortality set by the UN in 2015: fewer than 25 deaths per 1,000 live births by 2030.
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+Increased investments in local health care workforces and infrastructure, public health campaigns, and reducing malnutrition will be necessary to continue reducing child deaths and avoid backsliding, the UN report concluded.
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+“If current trends continue, 35 million children will die before reaching their fifth birthday by 2030,” the UN’s experts wrote. “Meeting the SDG targets would save 9 million of those lives. That’s millions of families and communities spared the heartbreaking loss of a child and devastating loss of potential.”
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J.K. Rowling’s transphobia: A history -
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+J.K. Rowling, pictured at the premiere of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore in 2022, has a history of transphobic statements and actions. | Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images
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+An exhausting — if not exhaustive — timeline of J.K. Rowling’s transphobia.
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+J.K. Rowling’s supporters frequently claim the author has never actually said or done anything transphobic. It’s a position you can see on social media, in the pages of the New York Times, and even on a new podcast with Rowling herself.
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+It’s also an easily debunked lie.
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+Some of this confusion around Rowling’s opinions can be cleared up with a definition of transphobia, which doesn’t — despite the “phobia” — solelymean fear of trans people, but, per Merriam-Webster, also an “irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against transgender people.” (In fact, Merriam-Webster’s own examples list cites multiple articles related to Rowling.) Rowling can say she likes everyone, but she has displayed that prejudice time and again. She’s also peddled explicit fear of trans people, particularly trans women, insisting they’re an inherently dangerous threat to cisgender women.
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+Although some in the media distort the anger directed at Rowling from trans activists, trans people, and allies, the truth is those feelings — not just anger, but betrayal and grief — are justified. Rowling has made her antagonistic position on trans issues clear through tweets, sound bites, actions, and even a 3,600-word blog post. By 2024, her transphobia has become so rampant and constant that it’s difficult to build a completely comprehensive timeline of it. For those attuned to it, she doesn’t have to spell it out every single time; it’s a huge part of her identity. These dog whistles only lead to more confusion, however, allowing people to point to the absence of immediately obvious bigotry to claim she’s being unfairly maligned. Additionally, she increasinglythreatens detractorswith legal action, which contributes to critics of her behavior falling silent. Conspicuously, many of her legal threats appear to be directed at individuals identifying as part of the LGBTQ+ community.
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+Since Rowling began airing her views, her community, especially online where many of these conversations are had, is now stacked with similarly minded people who share her transphobic beliefs. For instance, Rowling is friends with numerous anti-trans activists, including Helen Joyce, who’s made alarmingly transphobic statements calling for a “reduction” in the number of trans people. She’s tweeted public support for anti-gay, anti-trans activist Caroline Farrow. These connections are part of a social network echo chamber of trans-exclusionary radical feminists, or TERFs (sometimes called “radfems” or the “gender-critical” movement). In Rowling’s native UK, TERFism has gained a unique stronghold over some particularly vocal, ostensibly liberal feminists like Rowling.
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+The facts we can easily point to suggest that Rowling has been turning toward an anti-trans stance over a long period, beginning mostly with simple engagement on social media and leading to fiery and extremist statements. While labeling something transphobic is a serious accusation, and not something we do lightly, it’s important to recognize Rowling’s bigotry for what it is. The rundown that follows shows her growing embrace of transphobic, even extremist rhetoric.
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+2014: Rowling writes The Silkworm, the second novel in the Cormoran Strike mystery series, which involves a trans woman who is portrayed as conspicuous and unable to pass. The book includes a scene where the main character gleefully threatens this character with prison rape.
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+October 2017: Rowling “likes” a tweet linking to a controversial, since-deleted Medium article referring to a theoretical trans woman in a female space as “a stranger with a penis.” While liking a tweet might seem small, this is notable because the piece made the basic argument Rowling continues to make today, namely that trans women are by default part of a “male-bodied” group who are dangerous to women and who should not have access to women’s bathrooms. In the public sphere, this kicks off questions about whether Rowling is anti-trans, which are followed by the author entrenching further.
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+JK Rowling hitting that like button on a “trans women are rapists” piece, if you were wondering whether to relax as a trans person in the UK pic.twitter.com/W5JvBmylPW
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+2018: In March, Rowling “likes” (and then unlikes) a tweet referring to trans women as “men in dresses” and implying that trans rights are “misogyny.” A JKR spokesperson later claims that this “like” was an accident and that Rowling was having “a middle-aged moment.”
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+In September, Rowling “likes” a tweet linking to an opinion column by known TERF Janice Turner, which argues yet again that trans women are inherently sexual predators, referring to them as “fox[es] in a henhouse … identify[ing] as [hens].” The myth that trans women are a danger to cis women is a grossly transphobic stereotype with almost no real-world justification, but Rowling pins most of her anti-trans arguments on it, using her experience as a survivor of domestic abuse to justify her prejudice.
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+December 2019: In a shift toward openly voicing her anti-trans sentiments, Rowling vocally supports the plaintiff of an employment discrimination suit in the UK. Maya Forstater became a cause célèbre in the TERF community after suing the company that chose not to renew her contract. In 2018, Forstater posted numerous anti-trans tweets, both generalizing about trans people and directly targeting one nonbinary person. The tweets made staff members at her company uncomfortable, and ultimately, in March 2019, the organization declined to renew Forstater’s contract. Rowling’s tweet, in which she distorts trans identity and the facts of the case, marks the first time many people become aware of her growing transphobic tendencies.
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+June 2020: In a tweet, Rowling mocks the trans-inclusive phrase “people who menstruate” in an article about pandemic menstrual health, implying that the phrase, meant to encompass trans men and nonbinary people, erases, overrides, or obscures the word “women.”
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+In a follow-up to the previous tweet and the backlash it spawned, Rowling posts a thread implying that trans activists are “erasing the concept of [biological] sex” and along with it “the lived reality of women.” She also states, “I’d march with you if you were discriminated against on the basis of being trans.” (To date, she has not.)
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+Days later, Rowling produces her most overt and lengthy discussion of her views, a 3,600-word manifesto published on her website responding to “the new trans activism.” The post is replete with myths and false transphobic stereotypes, particularly revolving around the narratives that gender and biology are inextricable and that trans women are dangerous. Rowling states the movement offers “cover to predators”. She also repeatedly amplifies the alarmist, false idea that teens are transitioning as part of a social media trend, a claim based on a handful of inaccurate and shady scientific studies claiming that an outsize number of trans teens will detransition later, studies that have since beenwidely debunked.
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+August 2020: After the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization issues a statement repudiating her transphobia, Rowling doubles down on her position and returns an award given to her by the org in 2019.
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+September 2020: Rowling releases the Cormoran Strike book Troubled Blood and is widelycriticized after she creates a villain who preys on women by wearing women’s clothes. This is exactly the specter of a sexual predator that Rowling believes hides behind the label of “trans woman.”
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+ Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images
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+Trans rights banners call out J.K. Rowling during anti-government protests in Bangkok, Thailand.
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+December 2020: In an interview with Good Housekeeping, Rowling claims that “90 percent” of Harry Potter fans secretly agree with her anti-trans views, but that “many are afraid to speak up because they fear for their jobs and even for their personal safety.” This once again stereotypes trans activists as an angry, entitled, and vicious mob.
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+July 2021: Rowling tweets a screenshot of a tiny account — reportedly with around 200 followers at the time — of a self-identified trans user who mentions her in a tweet discussing gender identity. Since Rowling did not remove the trans user’s information in the screenshot that went out to her 14 million followers, that user is subsequently inundated with transphobic harassment and ultimately deletes their Twitter account.
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+November 2021: Rowling publicizes that a group of three trans people shared a photo of themselves holding protest signs outside of her house, saying that she had called the police out of alarm (a fact Scottish police also verified). Rowling claims that these protesters had “doxxed” her, and the media runs with this report, which plays into the larger evolving media narrative of Rowling as a victim of trans harassment. But as many people have pointed out, Rowling’s address is publicly known — so well-known, in fact, that it is a frequent fan tour stop. Police later officially state there is “no criminality” in what the trans protesters had done.
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+As trans culture vlogger Jessie Earl points out, trans people themselves are at much higher risk of experiencing doxxing, bullying, and harassment than cisgender people. Earl also notes that Rowling has supported and platformed (through Twitter likes, follows, and retweets) multiple TERFs who had themselves doxxed other people, including Marion Millar, who faced criminal charges for homophobically doxxing a police officer (though those charges were dropped pending review); Rosie Duffield, an MP who drew criticism for “publicly outing” a staff member who resigned over her transphobia; and Rosa Freedman, a professor who doxxed a student who emailed her requesting a chat about her views on trans equality.
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+December 2021: Rowling shares a Sunday Times article that mocks the Scottish police for recognizing transgender identity. In her tweet, she parodies 1984, writing, “War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength. The Penised Individual Who Raped You Is a Woman.”
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+Later that month, in the middle of a thread ostensibly attempting to support trans equality, Rowling tweets, “The question at the heart of this debate is whether sex or gender identity should form the basis of decisions on safeguarding, provision of services, sporting categories and other areas where women and girls currently have legal rights and protections.” The idea behind what Rowling is saying is that allowing trans women equal access to those spaces will erode current legal rights for cisgender women and girls. This is a position that only makes sense if you are denying that trans women and girls are women and girls. Rowling then adds an insistence on separating “sex” from “gender,” an essentialist idea that contradicts current medical practice and scientific research, which advocates for treating gender identity as linked primarily to the brain, not anatomy.
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+March 2022: In response to a since-deleted tweet (which was itself a reply to a tweet in which Rowling implied trans women were “predators”), Rowling tweets about a sexual assault committed by a trans woman, using this single incident to imply that all trans women should be denied access to public spaces designated for women.
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+The next day, on International Women’s Day, Rowling posts a series of tweets maligning gender-inclusive language and mockingly referencing Voldemort by sarcastically opining that the day in future would be known as “She Who Must Not Be Named Day.” She also explicitly criticizes gender-inclusive legislation.
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+Later that month, British lawyer Alison Bailey partially wins an employment discrimination lawsuit in which she claimed that she was discriminated against because of her gender-essentialist views. While the lawsuit was in progress, Rowling posted a tweet urging her followers to financially support Bailey.
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+August 2022: Rowling’s latest Cormoran Strike book, The Ink Black Heart, once again comes under fire for transphobia because of its depiction of a character broadly viewable as a satirical stand-in for Rowling herself — an anti-trans public figure who is “canceled” by the internet on trumped-up charges of transphobia and then killed.
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+December 2022: Rowling screencaps a thread about the controversial new Hogwarts Legacy video game by the aforementioned popular transgender YouTuber Jessie Earl, a.k.a. Jessie Gender. Earl points out that supporting the franchise would “justify her continued targeting of trans people”; Rowling, in response, sarcastically accuses Earl of practicing “purethink,” implying trans advocacy is a type of religious dogma. An onslaught of transphobic social media harassment targeting Earl follows.
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+Since JK Rowling retweeted me with an honestly nonsensical argument; I’m gonna stay off the Musk app today cause she knows she’s sending harassment my way. I send you all love & this article with my thoughts on Rowling continued harm against trans people. https://t.co/MJ9yizkCcMhttps://t.co/7NfYMVr65i
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+This month, Rowling also personally funds a new domestic violence support center in Edinburgh, Scotland, which explicitly excludes trans women; Rowling frames this new center as offering “women-centered and women-delivered care.” Edinburgh’s longstanding domestic violence support center has had a trans woman as its director since 2021. Trans women, in particular women of color, are at a vastly higher risk of experiencing domestic violence and sexual assault than cisgender women.
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+January 2023:Rowling tweets that she is “Deeply amused by those telling me I’ve lost their admiration due to the disrespect I show violent, duplicitous rapists.” The most immediate context for this comment is presumably both the backlash to Hogwarts Legacy and the ongoing backlash over Rowling’s views writ large regarding trans women being dangerous predators. So a reasonable implication of Rowling’s words seems to be that she considers trans women, by default, to be “violent, duplicitous rapists.”
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+March 2023: A new podcast, The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling, produced by Bari Weiss’s The Free Press and hosted by prominent former Westboro Baptist Church member Megan Phelps-Roper, featured interviews with Rowling. In its fifth episode, Rowling begins discussing the modern trans rights movement, calling it “a cultural movement that was illiberal in its methods and questionable in its ideas” and insisting, “I believe, absolutely, that there is something dangerous about this movement and that it must be challenged.”
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+She then compares the movement to Death Eaters — the villainous supremacists in her books, analogous to Nazis:
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+[S]ome of you have not understood the books. The Death Eaters claimed, “We have been made to live in secret, and now is our time, and any who stand in our way must be destroyed. If you disagree with us, you must die.” They demonized and dehumanized those who were not like them.
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+I am fighting what I see as a powerful, insidious, misogynistic movement, that has gained huge purchase in very influential areas of society. I do not see this particular movement as either benign or powerless, so I’m afraid I stand with the women who are fighting to be heard against threats of loss of livelihood and threats to their safety.
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+While Rowling can say she only intends to target the specific trans activists who are angry at her, that’s an impossible distinction. She does not mention any formal group or entity that represents trans rights that has acted against her. The only context we have for what she is responding to are non-affiliated individuals on Twitter sending angry messages in response to her transphobic comments. Indeed, the episode is titled “The Tweets” and features Phelps-Roper reading angry and sad tweets from former fans of Rowling. This generalization doesn’t distinguish “the movement” from people who are simply angry and upset with Rowling. Instead, it seems to imply that “good” trans people are the ones who accept Rowling’s version of their identity and allow her viewpoint — that they aren’t who they say they are — to dominate their fight for social acceptance.
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+Trans people are estimated to comprise about half a percent of populations in both the US and the UK. A 2018 study from UCLA found no evidence to support that anti-trans legislation makes designated public spaces safer, but did find that “reports of privacy and safety violations in these places are exceedingly rare.” In essence, there was no danger to begin with.
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+March 2024: On March 13, Rowling appears to deny on Twitter that trans people were targeted during the Holocaust. This all started when Rowling retweeted a post by James Esses about having been “canceled.” Esses is a blogger and former student who was fired from his counseling job and expelled from his therapy degree program for his anti-trans campaigning.
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+Esses’s post claimed he was fired for opposing the use of puberty blockers for trans children. In the threads of Esses’s post, in response to one of his supporters but also copying both Esses and Rowling, a Twitter user responded with, “The Nazis burnt books on trans healthcare and research, why are you so desperate to uphold their ideology around gender?”
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+Rowling then takes this tweet and screencaps it, asking, “I just… how? How did you type this out and press send without thinking ‘I should maybe check my source for this, because it might’ve been a fever dream’?”
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+The literal burning by Nazis of books and research from Berlin’s pioneering Institute for Sexual Research, which conducted the world’s first gender-affirming surgeries for trans people, was captured in German newsreels at the time and has been well-documented since, including by the UK’s own Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. Calling this very well-sourced history a “fever dream” quickly drew significant backlash from Twitter users, with many framing it as a form of Holocaust denial. When challenged on her claim with multiple sources by Harvard Cyberlaw Clinic instructor Alejandra Caraballo, Rowling first responds that the original tweet had made claims it didn’t say: that the Nazis burnt all research on trans health care, and that trans people were the first victims of the Nazis.
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+Rowling then doubles down on Twitter, by quote tweeting another tweet claiming trans people were not targets of the Nazis during the Holocaust. In her quote, Rowling frames the verified history of Nazi violence toward trans people as “persistent claims.” She then, again in response to Caraballo’s pushback in reply, attempts to separate “trans-identifying people” from “gay people, who were indeed victims of heinous treatment by the Nazis.”
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+Caraballo’s reply, which cited sources including Scientific American, and a thorough accounting by a historian about the ways trans people faced persecution under Nazi Germany, did not receive a rejoinder from Rowling.
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+Clarification, March 3, 2023, 12:15 pm ET:Updated to clarify details of the character who is “canceled” in The Ink Black Heart.
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+Clarification, March 16, 2023, 3:20 pm ET: Updated to clarify that Rowling’s remarks drew a comparison between the Death Eaters and the trans rights “movement,” rather than trans people.
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+Update, March 14, 2024, 6:50 pm ET: This story, originally published March 3, 2023, has been updated several times, most recently with Rowling’s March 2024 tweets concerning trans people in Nazi Germany.
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From The Hindu: Sports
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Golden Glow excells -
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ICC makes stop clock rule permanent in ODIs, T20Is; approves reserve day for Twenty20 World Cup semifinals, final - As per the rule, the fielding side will have to start a new over within 60 seconds of the completion of the previous over.
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There is only one MSD, I am happy to be Dhruv: Jurel on comparisons with Dhoni - Dhruv Jurel was sharp behind the wickets, solid with the bat and quite instinctive while guiding captain Rohit Sharma during DRS calls.
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Indian Wells | Alcaraz survives bee swarm to buzz Zverev - Carlos Alcaraz survived a swam of bees and beat Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-1 to reach the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open. Sinner goes to 16-0 to reach Indian Wells semifinals
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Europa League | Liverpool thrash Sparta; Leverkusen stage comeback to extend unbeaten run - Xabi Alonso’s high-flying Bayer Leverkusen secured a 3-2 home victory over Azerbaijani team Qarabag
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From The Hindu: National News
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The Hindu Future India Club to hold sports quiz at IIT-Hyderabad -
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Denied BJP ticket, Srinivas Prasad’s kin call on Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah - In fact, both the sons-in-law of BJP MP from Chamarajanagar Srinivas Prasad were in the race for the BJP ticket
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Electoral bonds are quid pro quo: AIMIM chief Owaisi - The Hyderabad parliamentarian claimed that if citizenship can be given on the basis of religion, it can also be taken away on the basis of religion
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Election Commission of India to announce poll dates on March 16 - It remains to be seen whether the poll panel announces dates for Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir as well.
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Lotus to bloom in Kerala this time, says PM Modi during visit to State - Narendra Modi urges voters to break the cycle of LDF and UDF forming governments in order to ‘save Kerala from its current slide’
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From BBC: Europe
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Europe rift on Ukraine clouds Macron talks in Berlin - The French president meets Germany’s Olaf Scholz amid a rift over Europe’s response to the war.
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Russians begin voting in election Putin is bound to win - Despite the guaranteed result, the Kremlin is keen to make the election appear legitimate.
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Putin: From Russia’s KGB to a presidency defined by war - Vladimir Putin has been in power since 2000, longer than any Kremlin leader since Joseph Stalin.
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Can Sweden keep its edge in the music industry? - Stockholm is buzzing with music tech start-ups but can the city repeat successes like Spotify?
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Murder trial 50 years after Berlin Wall shooting - A former member of the secret police in East Germany is accused of shooting a Polish man in the back.
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From Ars Technica
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Rocket Report: Starship heats up in third flight; Chinese lunar launch failure - “Frustration with Artemis’s high price tag is justifiable.” - link
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Banish OEM self-signed certs forever and roll your own private LetsEncrypt - Toss certbot or acme.sh onto some servers and baby, you got a stew going! - link
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Member of LockBit ransomware group sentenced to 4 years in prison - 33-year-old Canadian-Russian national pleaded guilty last month. - link
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Next-gen battery tech: Reimagining every aspect of batteries - From more efficient production to entirely new chemistries, there’s a lot going on. - link
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FCC scraps old speed benchmark, says broadband should be at least 100Mbps - Standard of 100Mbps down and 20Mbps up replaces old 25Mbps/3Mbps benchmark. - link
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From Jokes Subreddit
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7 Wives -
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+5 years old son,
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+After watching a story of an Emperor on TV:
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+“Mum, I also want 7 wives, one will cook for me, one will read for me, one will go for walk with me, one will sing for me,one can bath me….”
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+Mum smiled and said:
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+“Then night time I don’t have to accompany you to sleep”.
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+After some thought, son said: “Not possible, I still want to sleep with you mummy!”
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A husband and wife were having dinner at a very fine restaurant -
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+A husband and wife were having dinner at a very fine restaurant when this absolutely stunning young woman comes over to their table, gives the husband a big kiss, says she’ll see him later and walks away.
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+His wife glares at him and says, “Who the hell was that?”
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+“Oh,” replies the husband, “she’s my mistress.”
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+“Well, that’s the last straw,” says the wife. “I’ve had enough, I want a divorce.”
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+“I can understand that” replies her husband, “but remember, if we get a divorce, it will mean no more shopping trips to Paris, no more wintering in Barbados, no more summers in Tuscany, no more Infinities and Lexuses in the garage and no more yacht club. But the decision is yours.”
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+Just then, a mutual friend enters the restaurant with a gorgeous babe on his arm. “Who’s that woman with Jim?” asks the wife.
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Dylan Scott/Vox
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Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images
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