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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>Mortality Classification of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients in Zambia Using Machine Learning</strong> -
<div>
The Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has wreaked havoc globally, resulting in millions of cases and deaths. The objective of this study was to predict mortality in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Zambia using machine learning (ML) methods based on factors that have been shown to be predictive of mortality and thereby improve pandemic preparedness. This research employed seven powerful ML models that included: decision tree (DT), random forest (RF), support vector machines (SVM), logistic regression (LR), naïve bayes (NB), gradient boosting (GB), and XGBoost (XGB). These classifiers were trained on 1,433 hospitalized COVID-19 patients from various health facilities in Zambia. The performances achieved by these models were checked using accuracy, recall, F1-Score, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC_AUC), area under the precision-recall curve (PRC_AUC), and other metrics. The best performing model was the XGB which had accuracy of 92.3%, recall of 94.2%, F1-Score of 92.4%, and ROC_AUC of 97.5%. The pairwise Mann-Whitney U-test analysis showed that the second-best model (GB) and the third-best model (RF) did not perform significantly worse than the best model (XGB) and had the following: GB had accuracy of 91.7%, recall of 94.2%, F1-Score of 91.9%, and ROC_AUC of 97.1%. RF had accuracy of 90.8%, recall of 93.6%, F1-Score of 91.0%, and ROC_AUC of 96.8%. Other models showed similar results for the same metrics checked. The study successfully derived and validated the selected ML models and predicted mortality effectively with reasonably high performance in the stated metrics. The feature importance analysis found that knowledge of underlying health conditions about patients hospital length of stay (LOS), white blood cell count, age, and other factors can help healthcare providers offer lifesaving services on time, improve pandemic preparedness and decongest health facilities in Zambia and other countries with similar settings.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/africarxiv/98wvg/" target="_blank">Mortality Classification of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients in Zambia Using Machine Learning</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Discovery of GS-5245 (Obeldesivir), an Oral Prodrug of Nucleoside GS-441524 that Exhibits Antiviral Efficacy in SARS-CoV-2 Infected African Green Monkeys</strong> -
<div>
Remdesivir 1 is an amidate prodrug that releases the monophosphate of nucleoside GS-441524 (2) into lung cells thereby forming the bioactive triphosphate 2-NTP. 2-NTP, an analog of ATP, inhibits the SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase replication and transcription of viral RNA. Strong clinical results for 1 have prompted interest in oral approaches to generate 2-NTP. Here we describe the discovery of a 5-isobutyryl ester prodrug of 2 (GS-5245, Obeldesivir, 3) that has low cellular cytotoxicity and three to seven-fold improved oral delivery of 2 in monkeys. Prodrug 3 is cleaved pre-systemically to provide high systemic exposures of 2 that overcome its less efficient metabolism to 2-NTP leading to strong SARS-CoV-2 antiviral efficacy in an African green monkey infection model. Exposure-based SARS-CoV-2 efficacy relationships resulted in an estimated clinical dose of 350-400 mg twice-daily. Importantly, all SARS-CoV-2 variants remain susceptible to 2 which supports development of 3 as a promising COVID-19 treatment.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.28.538473v1" target="_blank">Discovery of GS-5245 (Obeldesivir), an Oral Prodrug of Nucleoside GS-441524 that Exhibits Antiviral Efficacy in SARS-CoV-2 Infected African Green Monkeys</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Stratified by Transfer and COVID-19 Infection Status, on Inpatient Mortality in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients, Using a Nationally Representative Database</strong> -
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Introduction: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted various aspects of healthcare, including the management of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients. Our study investigates the in-hospital outcomes and the impact of transfer and COVID-19 infection status on mortality in STEMI patients. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study to compare the inpatient outcomes of STEMI patients in 2020 with STEMI patients from 2016 to 2019 using the National Inpatient Sample database. We performed 1:1 greedy nearest neighbor matching and utilized logistic regression to compare mortality. Results: In our matched cohort, there was no difference in overall mortality between STEMI patients in 2020 and those from 2016 to 2019 (OR 1.00, 95% CI: 0.94-1.05; p = 0.87). When stratified by COVID-19 infection status, regularly admitted STEMI patients with concurrent COVID-19 infection in 2020 had 2.11 times higher odds of inpatient mortality compared to regularly admitted STEMI patients from 2016 to 2019 (OR 2.11, 95% CI: 1.55-2.87; p &lt; 0.001). STEMI acute care transfers with concurrent COVID-19 infection in 2020 had 3.17 times higher odds of inpatient mortality than those from 2016 to 2019 (OR 3.17, 95% CI: 1.83-5.50; p &lt; 0.001). STEMI non-acute care transfers with concurrent COVID-19 infection in 2020 had 5.13 times higher odds of inpatient mortality than those from 2016 to 2019 (OR 5.13, 95% CI: 1.87-14.06; p = 0.001). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many longstanding disparities within our healthcare system. Moving forward, it is crucial to engage in further discussions addressing the national physician shortage, the patient transfer system and healthcare in underserved regions.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.27.23289238v1" target="_blank">Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Stratified by Transfer and COVID-19 Infection Status, on Inpatient Mortality in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients, Using a Nationally Representative Database</a>
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<li><strong>Quantifying the Risk of General Health and Early COVID-19 Spread in Residential Buildings with Deep Learning and Expert-augmented Machine Learning</strong> -
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Buildings9 built environment has been linked to their occupants9 health. It remains unclear whether those elements that predisposed its residents to poor general health before the two SARS pandemics also put residents at risk of contracting COVID-19 during early outbreaks. Relevant research to uncover the associations is essential, but there lacks a systematic examination of the relative contributions of different elements in one9s built environment and other non-environmental factors, singly or jointly. Hence, the current study developed a deep-learning approach with multiple input channels to capture the hierarchical relationships among an individual9s socioecology9s demographical, medical, behavioral, psychosocial, and built-environment levels. Our findings supported that 1) deep-learning models whose inputs were structured according to the hierarchy of one9s socioecology outperformed plain models with one-layered input in predicting one9s general health outcomes, with the model whose hierarchically structured input layers included one9s built environment performed best; 2) built-environment features were more important to general health compared to features of one9s sociodemographic and their health-related quality of life, behaviors, and service utilization; 3) a composite score representing built-environment features9 statistical importance to general health significantly predicted building-level COVID-19 case counts; and 4) building configurations derived from the expert-augmented learning of granular built-environment features that were of high importance to the general health were also linked to building-level COVID-19 case counts of external samples. Specific built environments put residents at risk for poor general health and COVID-19 infections. Our machine-learning approach can benefit future quantitative research on sick buildings, health surveillance, and housing design.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.25.23289115v1" target="_blank">Quantifying the Risk of General Health and Early COVID-19 Spread in Residential Buildings with Deep Learning and Expert-augmented Machine Learning</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Inequalities in Healthcare Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic</strong> -
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The COVID-19 pandemic has led to severe reductions in non-COVID related healthcare use, but little is known whether this burden is shared equally across the population. This study investigates whether the reduction in administered care disproportionately affected certain sociodemographic strata, in particular marginalised groups. Using detailed medical claims data from the Dutch universal health care system and rich registry data that cover all residents in The Netherlands, we predict expected healthcare use based on pre-pandemic trends (2017- Feb 2020) and compare these expectations with observed healthcare use in 2020. Our findings reveal a substantial 10% decline in the number of weekly treated patients in 2020 relative to prior years. Furthermore, declines in healthcare use are unequally distributed and are more pronounced for individuals below the poverty line, females, the elderly, and foreign-born individuals, with cumulative relative risk ratios ranging from 1.09 to 1.22 higher than individuals above the poverty line, males, young, and native-born. These inequalities stem predominantly from declines in middle and low urgency procedures, and indicate that the pandemic has not only had an unequal toll in terms of the direct health burden of the pandemic, but has also had a differential impact on the use of non-COVID healthcare.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.26.23289095v1" target="_blank">Inequalities in Healthcare Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Evaluation of the Pilot Wastewater Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 in Norway, June 2022 - March 2023</strong> -
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Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater-based surveillance gained great international interest as an additional tool to monitor SARS-CoV-2. In autumn 2021, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health decided to pilot a national wastewater surveillance (WS) system for SARS-CoV-2 and its variants between June 2022 and March 2023. We evaluated the system to assess if it met its objectives and its attribute-based performance. Methods: We adapted the available guidelines for evaluation of surveillance systems. The evaluation was carried out as a descriptive analysis and consisted of the following three steps: (i) description of the WS system, (ii) identification of users and stakeholders, and (iii) analysis of the system attributes and performance including sensitivity, specificity, timeliness, usefulness, representativeness, simplicity, flexibility, stability, and communication. Cross-correlation analysis was performed to assess the system ability to provide early warning signal of new wave of infections. Results: The pilot WS system was a national surveillance system using existing wastewater infrastructures from the largest Norwegian municipalities. We found that the system was sensitive, timely, useful, representative, simple, flexible, acceptable, and stable to follow the general trend of infection. Preliminary results indicate that the system could provide an early signal of changes in variant distribution. However, challenges may arise with: (i) specificity due to temporary fluctuations of RNA levels in wastewater, (ii) representativeness when downscaling, and (iii) flexibility and acceptability when upscaling the system due to limited resources and/or capacity. Conclusions: Our results showed that the pilot WS system met most of its surveillance objectives. The system was able to provide an early warning signal of 1-2 weeks, and the system was useful to monitor infections at population level and complement routine surveillance when individual testing activity was low. However, temporary fluctuations of WS values need to be carefully interpreted. To improve quality and efficiency, we recommend to standardise and validate methods for assessing trends of new waves of infection and variants, evaluate the WS system using a longer operational period particularly for new variants, and conduct prevalence studies in the population to calibrate the system and improve data interpretation.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.27.23289199v1" target="_blank">Evaluation of the Pilot Wastewater Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 in Norway, June 2022 - March 2023</a>
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<li><strong>Demographic Influence on the Effectiveness of Englands SARS-CoV-2 Policies</strong> -
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Health data is key for the development of medicinal drugs, treatments, and policy-planning to control the spread of infectious diseases. However, the collection, curation, and interpretation of health data is often biased. This paper discusses England-wide impact of public policies to control the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) infections, based on the recorded per-capita infection cases between July 2020 to January 2023. The analysis presented herewith highlights the disparities across the upper local tier authorities, in the number of Covid-19 cases recorded in response to the policies. This paper further presents the correlation between the Covid-19 cases count and demographic factors, thus highlighting the key factors determining the effectiveness of the NHS policies, and therefore the need for incorporating demographic imbalance in the policy planning process. It is concluded that the upper local tier authorities comprise of three clusters of low, mid, and high prevalence of Covid-19 infections. Where the regions with high prevalence of Covid-19 cases are also the ones with higher proportions of Black/ Mixed racial groups, amongst a mid-range and low internal Migrations.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.25.23288871v1" target="_blank">Demographic Influence on the Effectiveness of Englands SARS-CoV-2 Policies</a>
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<li><strong>The impact of atypical intrahospital transfers on patient outcomes: a mixed methods study</strong> -
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Background: The architectural design of hospitals worldwide is centred around individual departments, which require the movement of patients between wards. However, patients do not always take the simplest route from admission to discharge, but can experience convoluted movement patterns, particularly when bed availability is low. Few studies have explored the impact of these rarer, atypical trajectories. Methods: Using a mixed-method explanatory sequential study design, we firstly used three continuous years of electronic health record data prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, from 55,152 patients admitted to a London hospital network to define the ward specialities by patient type using the Herfindahl-Hirschman index. We explored the impact of regular transfers between pairs of wards with shared specialities, atypical transfers between pairs of wards with no shared specialities and site transfers between pairs of wards in different hospital site locations, on length of stay, 30-day readmission and mortality. Secondly, to understand the possible reasons behind atypical transfers we conducted three focus groups and three interviews with site nurse practitioners and bed managers within the same hospital network. Results: We found that at least one atypical transfer was experienced by 12.9% of patients. Each atypical transfer is associated with a larger increase in length of stay, 2.84 days (95%CI: 2.56-3.12), compared to regular transfers, 1.92 days (95%CI: 1.82-2.03). No association was found between odds of mortality, or 30-day readmission and atypical transfers after adjusting for confounders. Atypical transfers appear to be driven by complex patient conditions, a lack of hospital capacity, the need to reach specific services and facilities, and more exceptionally, rare events such as major incidents. Conclusion: Our work provides an important first step in identifying unusual patient movement and its impacts on key patient outcomes using a system-wide, data-driven approach. The broader impact of moving patients between hospital wards, and possible downstream effects should be considered in hospital policy and service planning.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.26.23289016v1" target="_blank">The impact of atypical intrahospital transfers on patient outcomes: a mixed methods study</a>
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<li><strong>Improving capacity for advanced training in obstetric surgery: Evaluation of a blended learning approach</strong> -
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Introduction Significant differences in outcomes for mothers and babies following obstetric surgical interventions between low- and middle-income countries and high-income settings have demonstrated a need for improvements in quality of care and training of obstetric surgical and anaesthetic providers. To address this a five-day face-to-face training intervention was developed. When the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted its roll-out, the course was redesigned for delivery by blended learning. Methods This 3-part blended-learning course (part-1: 15 hours self-directed online learning, part-2: 13 hours facilitated virtual workshops and part-3: 10 hours face-to-face delivery), was conducted in Kenya. We assessed the completion rate of part-1 (21 assignments), participation rate in parts 2 and 3, participant satisfaction, change in knowledge and skills and compared the cost of the blended delivery compared to the 5-day face-to-face delivery, in GB Pounds.   Results 65 doctors took part in part 1, 53 completing at least 90% of the assignments. 60 doctors participated in part 2, and 53 participated in part 3. Participants completing an evaluation reported (n=53) attending the training was a good use of their time (each of parts-1 and 3: 98%, part-2: 94%) and would recommend this to other colleagues (part-1 and 3: 98%, part-2: 90%). Mean (SD) knowledge score improved from 64% (7%) to 80% (8%) and practical skills from 44% (14%) to 87% (7%). The blended course achieved a cost-saving of £207 per participant compared to the 5-day face-to-face delivery approach. Conclusion We have demonstrated that a blended learning approach to clinical training in a low resource setting is feasible, acceptable and more cost effective. More studies are required to investigate the effectiveness of this approach on health outcomes.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.25.23289116v1" target="_blank">Improving capacity for advanced training in obstetric surgery: Evaluation of a blended learning approach</a>
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<li><strong>Needlestick Injuries in Healthcare, Research and Veterinary Environments in a Sample Population in British Columbia and their Economic, Psychological and Workplace Impacts</strong> -
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Abstract Introduction: Needle-stick injuries (NSIs) are defined as the sharp point of a needle puncturing human skin. This article examines the risk and illustrates the burden of NSIs for workers in the healthcare, veterinary and research industries, and includes a sample survey population of workers in workplaces using needles. Methods: For the review component of this article, PubMed and Google Scholar were queried within the date range of 1998-2022, retrieving 1,437 results. A publicly available sample population dataset was and analyzed from British Columbia (n=30) on workplace needlestick injuries. The OSHA, WHO, and NIEHS guidelines were reviewed, and the WorkSafe BC injury database was searched using FIPPA requests. Discussion: Recapping remains a common practice despite decades of guidelines recommending against recapping. NSI research is underpowered and underrepresented in non-healthcare settings. NSIs lead to heightened anxiety, depression, and PTSD in workers and exposure to pathogens, toxic chemicals and permanent tissue damage. NSI annual reporting is likely an underestimate due to chronic underreporting, and the financial impact including work-loss and healthcare costs continues to rise. Current NSI prevention devices have limited uptake and thus, more affordable, versatile and efficient NSI-prevention devices are needed. Relevance: Due to COVID-19, healthcare workers are at a higher risk of receiving NSIs. Emphasis on safe needle handling practices is necessary to maintain workers physical and psychological safety, to protect workers using COVID-19 PPE on long shifts, and to deliver the high volume of vaccinations required to inoculate the global population. Conclusion: NSIs are detrimental to healthcare workers wellbeing, chronically underreported, and poorly surveyed. Areas of future research include determining more effective solutions to reduce NSIs, assessing the validity of NSI reporting systems, and integrating solutions with COVID-19 prevention and vaccination protocols.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.27.23288880v1" target="_blank">Needlestick Injuries in Healthcare, Research and Veterinary Environments in a Sample Population in British Columbia and their Economic, Psychological and Workplace Impacts</a>
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<li><strong>Impaired potency of neutralizing antibodies against cell-cell fusion mediated by SARS-CoV-2</strong> -
<div>
The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants have dominated the pandemic due to their high transmissibility and immune evasion conferred by the spike mutations. The Omicron subvariants can spread by cell-free virus infection and cell-cell fusion, the latter of which is more effective but has not been extensively investigated. In this study, we developed a simple and high-throughput assay that provides a rapid readout to quantify cell-cell fusion mediated by the SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins without using live or pseudotyped virus. This assay can be used to identify variants of concern and to screen for prophylactic and therapeutic agents. We further evaluated a panel of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and vaccinee sera against D614G and Omicron subvariants, finding that cell-cell fusion is substantially more resistant to mAb and serum inhibition than cell-free virus infection. Such results have important implications for the development of vaccines and antiviral antibody drugs against cell-cell fusion induced by SARS-CoV-2 spikes.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.03.09.531948v2" target="_blank">Impaired potency of neutralizing antibodies against cell-cell fusion mediated by SARS-CoV-2</a>
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<li><strong>Immunogenicity and safety in pigs of PHH-1V, a SARS-CoV-2 RBD fusion heterodimer vaccine candidate</strong> -
<div>
The continuing high global incidence of COVID-19 and the undervaccinated status of billions of persons strongly motivate the development of a new generation of efficacious vaccines. We have developed an adjuvanted vaccine candidate, PHH-1V, based on a protein comprising the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the Beta variant of SARS-CoV-2 fused in tandem with the equivalent domain of the Alpha variant, with its immunogenicity, safety and efficacy previously demonstrated in mouse models. In the present study, we immunized pigs with different doses of PHH-1V in a prime-and-boost scheme showing PHH-1V to exhibit an excellent safety profile in pigs and to produce a solid RBD-specific humoral response with neutralising antibodies to 7 distinct SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, with the induction of a significant IFN{gamma}+ T-cell response. We conclude that PHH-1V is safe and elicits a robust immune response to SARS-CoV-2 in pigs, a large animal preclinical model.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.01.19.524684v2" target="_blank">Immunogenicity and safety in pigs of PHH-1V, a SARS-CoV-2 RBD fusion heterodimer vaccine candidate</a>
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<li><strong>COVID-19-related changes in adolescents daily-life social interactions and psychopathology symptoms</strong> -
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Early findings on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents, suggest that despite being at the lowest physical health risk both their mental health and day-to-day social lives are strongly affected. In this longitudinal study, we assessed changes in adolescent psychopathology symptoms, the quality and quantity of daily-life social interactions, and the relationship between social interactions and psychopathology symptoms before and during the pandemic. A sample of n=173 Flemish adolescents (mean age=16.0 at latest measurement; 89% girls) from the SIGMA cohort was tested between January 2018 - June 2019; and between April 27th - May 10th 2020. Subclinical psychopathology was assessed using the Brief Symptom Inventory-53; daily social interactions were assessed in six-day experience sampling periods with ten daily questionnaires. Multilevel linear and logistic regression analyses indicated lower general psychopathology and anxiety symptoms, beyond age effects; fewer face-to-face social interactions, more online social interactions; and higher-quality face-to-face interactions during the pandemic than before. Negative associations between psychopathology and the quality of face-to-face peer and family interactions were stronger during the pandemic than pre-pandemic. The observed decrease and stability in psychopathology symptoms is surprising and potentially reflects resilience. Although digital communication may buffer much of the quarantine-induced distress, the current results imply that high-quality face-to-face interactions with family and peers may have been more powerful in keeping adolescents resilient. As restrictions are lifted and adolescents daily lives and social worlds change, it is crucial to learn more about the longer-term effects of the experienced social deprivation.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/5nfp2/" target="_blank">COVID-19-related changes in adolescents daily-life social interactions and psychopathology symptoms</a>
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<li><strong>Stent For Life Initiative in Portugal: progress through years and Covid-19 Impact</strong> -
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Background: During Stent for Life Initiative in Portugal lifetime, positive changes in ST elevation myocardial infarction treatment were observed, by the increase of Primary Angioplasty numbers and improvements in patients behaviour towards myocardial infarction, with an increase in those who called 112 and the lower proportion attending non primary percutaneous coronary intervention centres. Despite public awareness campaigns and system educational programmes, patient and system delay did not change significantly over this period. The aim of this study was to address the public awareness campaign effectiveness on peoples behaviour facing STEMI, and how Covid-19 has affected STEMI treatment. Methods: Data from 1381 STEMI patients were collected during a one-month period each year, from 2011 to 2016, and during one and a half month, matching first lockdown in Portugal 2020. Four groups were constituted: Group A (2011); Group B (2012 &amp; 2013); Group C (2015 &amp; 2016) and group D (2020). Results: The proportion of patients who called 112, increased significantly (35.2% Group A; 38.7% Group B; 44.0% Group C and 49.6% Group D, p=0.005); significant reduction was observed in the proportion of patients who attended healthcare centres without PPCI (54.5% group A; 47.6% Group B; 43.2% Group C and 40.9% Group D, p=0.016), but there were no differences on groups comparison. Total ischemic time, measured from symptoms onset to reperfusion increased progressively from group A [250.0 (178.0-430.0)] to D [296.0 (201.0 457.5.8)] p=0.012, with statistically significant difference between group C and D (p=0.034). Conclusions: During the term of SFL initiative in Portugal, patients resorted less to primary health centres and called more to 112. These results can be attributed the public awareness campaign. Nevertheless, patient and system delays did not significantly change over this period, mainly in late years of SFL, probably for low efficacy of campaigns and in 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.25.23288494v1" target="_blank">Stent For Life Initiative in Portugal: progress through years and Covid-19 Impact</a>
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<li><strong>Leveraging Machine Learning for Effective Public Health Policies: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Future Directions in Global Health</strong> -
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The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the vulnerabilities of global health systems and highlighted the need for rapid, data-driven decision-making in public health. Machine learning (ML) has the potential to provide valuable insights and contribute to improved health outcomes. In this paper, we aim to explore the role of ML in global health, identify its limitations, and discuss strategies to overcome these challenges while maximizing its benefits. We conduct a comprehensive literature review and analyze case studies from the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings indicate that ML has played a significant role in the COVID-19 response, particularly in areas such as disease modeling, drug discovery, and resource allocation. However, several limitations, including data quality and accessibility, hinder the full potential of ML in global health. We propose strategies to overcome these limitations, such as promoting data-sharing collaborations, ensuring data privacy, and fostering interdisciplinary research. This paper contributes to the ongoing conversation on the applications and limitations of ML in global health, providing insights and recommendations for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers to effectively leverage ML for improved public health outcomes.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/f64cn/" target="_blank">Leveraging Machine Learning for Effective Public Health Policies: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Future Directions in Global Health</a>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>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>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>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>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>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Coping and Resilience Intervention for Adolescents</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Pandemic<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Behavioral: Coping and Resilience Intervention for Adolescents;   Other: Printing materials of Coping and Resilience Intervention for Adolescents<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Taipei Medical University<br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effectiveness of Modified Diaphragmatic Training for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease Post Covid-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   GERD;   Post COVID-19 Condition;   Diaphragm Issues<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Other: modified diaphragmatic training;   Other: standard diaphragmatic training<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Indonesia University<br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effect of Telerehabilitation Practice in Long COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Long COVID-19;   Long COVID;   Post COVID-19 Condition;   Post-COVID-19 Syndrome;   Post-COVID Syndrome<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Behavioral: Telerehabilitation;   Behavioral: Standard rehabilitation care<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Indonesia University<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>The Safety, Tolerability and Pharmacokinetics Study of RAY1216 in Healthy Adult Participants</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019)<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: RAY1216 dose 1;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 2;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 3;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 4 &amp;ritonavir   Drug: RAY1216 dose 5;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 6;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 7;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 8;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 9;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 10<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Guangdong Raynovent Biotech Co., Ltd<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>Computerized Training of Attention and Working Memory in Post COVID-19 Patients With Cognitive Complaints</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   COVID-19;   Cognitive Impairment;   Cognition Disorder;   Memory Disorders;   Attention Deficit;   Memory Impairment;   Memory Loss;   Attention Impaired<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Device: RehaCom<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Erasmus Medical Center<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>Strategies and Treatments for Respiratory Infections &amp;Amp; Viral Emergencies (STRIVE): Immune Modulation Strategy Trial</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: abatacept infusion;   Drug: Placebo group<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   University of Minnesota<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 Silmitasertib (CX-4945) in Healthy Subject</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Drug: CX-4945<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Senhwa Biosciences, Inc.<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>Evaluation of the Efficacy and Safety of Nano-S1</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Pneumonia<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Drug: NANOS1 , argent colloïdal ,<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   General Administration of Military Health, Tunisia<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>Digital Mental Health Care for COVID-19 High-Risk Populations - Phase 2</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Stigma, Social;   Help-Seeking Behavior<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Other: Adjusted Content Intervention;   Other: Non-Adjusted Intervention Video<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, Inc.;   Columbia 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>Research of the Long-COVID-19 Syndrome in the Children</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Long COVID<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: Device<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Samara State Medical University<br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</b></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-pubmed">From PubMed</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Robust SARS-CoV-2-specific and heterologous immune responses in vaccine-naïve residents of long-term care facilities who survive natural infection</strong> - We studied humoral and cellular immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in 152 long-term care facility staff and 124 residents over a prospective 4-month period shortly after the first wave of infection in England. We show that residents of long-term care facilities developed high and stable levels of antibodies against spike protein and receptor-binding domain. Nucleocapsid-specific responses were also elevated but waned over time. Antibodies showed stable…</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>Sulfated endospermic nanocellulose crystals prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and HIV-1</strong> - Biomaterials with antimicrobial activity are gaining attention due to their biodegradability and efficacy in interacting with a wide range of microorganisms. A new cellulose nano-biomaterial, endospermic nanocellulose crystals (ENC) obtained from parenchymal tissue of ivory nut endosperm, has a natural capacity as a universal binder. This feature is enhanced when it is chemically functionalized, and can be exploited in the fight against microbes. We tested the ability of sulfated ENC in aqueous…</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>MasitinibL shows promise as a drug-like analog of masitinib that elicits comparable SARS-Cov-2 3CLpro inhibition with low kinase preference</strong> - SARS-CoV-2 infection has led to several million deaths worldwide and ravaged the economies of many countries. Hence, developing therapeutics against SARS-CoV-2 remains a core priority in the fight against COVID-19. Most of the drugs that have received emergency use authorization for treating SARS-CoV-2 infection exhibit a number of limitations, including side effects and questionable efficacy. This challenge is further compounded by reinfection after vaccination and the high likelihood of…</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>Recuperative herbal formula Jing Si maintains vasculature permeability balance, regulates inflammation and assuages concomitants of “Long-Covid”</strong> - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a worldwide health threat that has long-term effects on the patients and there is currently no efficient cure prescribed for the treatment and the prolonging effects. Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) have been reported to exert therapeutic effect against COVID-19. In this study, the therapeutic effects of Jing Si herbal tea (JSHT) against COVID-19 infection and associated long-term effects were evaluated in different in vitro and in vivo models. The…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Fourteen immunomodulatory alkaloids and two prenylated phenylpropanoids with dual therapeutic approach for COVID-19: molecular docking and dynamics studies</strong> - The pandemic outbreak of COVID-19 caused by the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is a global health burden. To date, there is no highly effective antiviral therapy to eradicate the virus; as a result, researchers are racing to introduce new potential therapeutic agents. Alternatively, traditional immunity boosters and symptomatic treatment based on natural bioactive compounds are also an option. The 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CL^(pro)) crystal structure, the…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Protecting the public interest while regulating health professionals providing virtual care: A scoping review</strong> - Technology is transforming service delivery in many health professions, particularly with the rapid shift to virtual care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Health profession regulators must navigate legal and ethical complexities to facilitate virtual care while upholding their mandate to protect the public interest. The objectives of this scoping review were to examine how the public interest is protected when regulating health professionals who provide virtual care, discuss policy and practice…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Anti-spike protein to determine SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels: Is there a specific threshold conferring protection in immunocompromised patients?</strong> - CONCLUSION: We suggest specific adjusted thresholds (BAU/ml) for the four commercial antibody assays that are used to assess pre-exposure prophylaxis in immunocompromised 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>MicroRNA-598 inhibition ameliorates LPS-induced acute lung injury in mice through upregulating Ebf1 expression</strong> - Acute lung injury is a critical acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) with high morbidity and mortality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been demonstrated to play important roles regulating acute lung injury development. In this study, we found that the expression of miR-598 was significantly upregulated in the lung tissues of mice with lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury. Both loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies were performed to evaluate the function of miR-598 in acute…</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>Regulatory approval pathway for COVID-19 vaccine in USA, Europe and India</strong> - The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has confused everyone, including healthcare experts, physicians and frontline workers. Monoclonal antibodies, anticoagulants and immunomodulatory therapy were initially used to treat COVID-19. However, they can only inhibit the virus from replicating, which is not enough to provide a lasting cure. As each month passes, a growing number of companies are working on vaccinations that will aid in the development of resistance against the corona virus….</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 Highly Potent Small Molecule Pan-Coronavirus Fusion Inhibitors</strong> - The unprecedented pandemic of COVID-19, caused by a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, and its highly transmissible variants, led to massive human suffering, death, and economic devastation worldwide. Recently, antibody-evasive SARS-CoV-2 subvariants, BQ and XBB, have been reported. Therefore, the continued development of novel drugs with pan-coronavirus inhibition is critical to treat and prevent infection of COVID-19 and any new pandemics that may emerge. We report the discovery of several highly…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Flavonoid Cyanidin Shows Immunomodulatory and Broad-Spectrum Antiviral Properties, Including SARS-CoV-2</strong> - New antiviral treatments are needed to deal with the unpredictable emergence of viruses. Furthermore, vaccines and antivirals are only available for just a few viral infections, and antiviral drug resistance is an increasing concern. Cyanidin (a natural product also called A18), a key flavonoid that is present in red berries and other fruits, attenuates the development of several diseases, through its anti-inflammatory effects. Regarding its mechanism of action, A18 was identified as an IL-17A…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Efficacy of Plant-Made Human Recombinant ACE2 against COVID-19 in a Golden Syrian Hamster Model</strong> - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel infectious respiratory disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. We evaluated the efficacy of a plant-based human recombinant angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hrACE2) and hrACE2-foldon (hrACE2-Fd) protein against COVID-19. In addition, we analyzed the antiviral activity of hrACE2 and hrACE2-Fd against SARS-CoV-2 using real-time reverse-transcription PCR and plaque assays. The therapeutic efficacy was detected using the Golden Syrian hamster model infected with…</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>Inhibition of Rab1B Impairs Trafficking and Maturation of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein</strong> - Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) utilizes cellular trafficking pathways to process its structural proteins and move them to the site of assembly. Nevertheless, the exact process of assembly and subcellular trafficking of SARS-CoV-2 proteins remains largely unknown. Here, we have identified and characterized Rab1B as an important host factor for the trafficking and maturation of the spike protein (S) after synthesis at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Using confocal…</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>Perspectives Associated with Human Papillomavirus Vaccination in Adults: A Qualitative Study</strong> - CONCLUSION: Both intrinsic and extrinsic factors play a role in influencing HPV vaccine uptake, and such considerations can guide efforts to improve the odds of HPV vaccination in working-age adults.</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 Oral Galectin Inhibitor in COVID-19-A Phase II Randomized Controlled Trial</strong> - CONCLUSION: PL-M is safe and effective for clinical use in reducing viral loads and promoting rapid viral clearance in COVID-19 patients by inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 entry into cells through the inhibition of Gal-3.</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>A Security Camera for the Planet</strong> - A new satellite, funded by a nonprofit, aims to pinpoint emissions of methane—a gas that plays a major role in global warming. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-climate-action/a-security-camera-for-the-planet">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Week the Biden-Trump Rematch Got Real</strong> - One difference from 2020: the Republican attacks on the Presidents even more unpopular Veep. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/the-week-the-biden-trump-rematch-got-real">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Climate Crisis Gives Sailing Ships a Second Wind</strong> - Cargo vessels are some of the dirtiest vehicles in existence. Can a centuries-old technology help to clean them up? - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-a-warming-planet/the-climate-crisis-gives-sailing-ships-a-second-wind">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Curious Side Effects of Medical Transparency</strong> - When we peer into our patient portals, we dont always see ourselves more clearly. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/the-curious-side-effects-of-medical-transparency">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Risky Gamble of Kevin McCarthys Debt-Ceiling Strategy</strong> - In the face of a catastrophic default, the House Speaker has pitted his most extreme members against the President. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-political-scene/the-risky-gamble-of-kevin-mccarthys-debt-ceiling-strategy">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>What is Bluesky, and why is everyone on Twitter talking about it?</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A cellphone displaying the app Bluesky." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/eOJFGVuD01W0BD1RYK2bXdPmEeE=/342x0:5707x4024/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72231584/GettyImages_1252042607.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Twitter alternative Bluesky is catching on. | Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The invite-only, decentralized new social network, explained.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="K5Odgv">
As Elon Musk continues to <a href="https://www.vox.com/technology/2023/4/25/23697830/elon-musk-twitter-checkmark-removal-blue-kara-swisher-lebron-james-doja-cat">make drastic changes to Twitter</a>, a new competitor called Bluesky is rising up — and an invite to it is the hottest social media ticket in town.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JeLz8F">
Originally started by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, Bluesky has recently taken off with an influential crew of media and celebrities. Some of the <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-28/how-to-get-a-bluesky-invite-code-aoc-dril-teigen-join-twitter-s-hottest-rival">big names that have joined</a> in the past few days include New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, Chrissy Teigen, Twitter comedic legend Dril, and prominent journalists from publications like the New York Times and CNN. On Thursday, Bluesky said that Thursday represented its biggest single-day jump in new users that it had experienced so far, up 100 percent from the day before.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="daJ0Ng">
“A/s/l?” posted Teigen on Friday morning — referencing the early internet chatroom acronym — in the kind of inside online humor thats popular on the platform.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M08ITr">
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8dwPtDIDKHD29S6TljebMUTqYyc=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24619144/chrissy_teigan.jpg"/> <cite>screenshot of Bluesky</cite>
<figcaption>
One of Chrissy Teigens first posts on Bluesky.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wcfI2u">
Part of the apps appeal is its exclusivity. Right now, theres a scramble for people to secure a coveted invite code, and its a bit of a mystery how Bluesky is dishing those out and letting people off the waiting list.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4EEAKS">
“My DMs are full of people asking me for an invite right now,” said NBC News reporter Ben Collins, who started using the app on Thursday. Collins added hes ready to embrace an alternative to Twitter, which for him “has been rendered almost unusable for getting information in the moment.” Musk has recently made several controversial changes to Twitter, like changing its verification system and <a href="https://www.vox.com/technology/2023/3/31/23664041/elon-musk-twitter-checkmark-pay-play-subscription-blue-doge-dog-dogecoin-shiba-logo">prioritizing paid accounts</a> in peoples feeds, that have made it harder for many people to quickly find credible sources of news.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="95KrJU">
Bluesky is hardly the only platform vying to be a Twitter alternative. Competitors like Mastodon, Post News, and Artifact have all gained attention in the months following Musks takeover, but Bluesky has managed to set itself apart. Some say its because of the sites irreverent vibe — many users are calling posts “skeets” — or simply how easy it is to use.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cyUOYy">
At first glance, Bluesky looks a lot like Twitter. You can post short messages of up to 300 characters and toggle between an algorithmically sorted feed or a chronological one. But behind the scenes, Bluesky is built differently: It is an open, decentralized network. That means when you join, you have to join a specific server with its own unique set of rules, interests, and users similar to the also popular social media app Mastodon. For now, Bluesky has set up one main server that everyone is on, but in the future, people will be able to customize their own algorithms and feeds using Blueskys underlying technology.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5PZm3I">
Its too soon to say whether Bluesky will keep gaining traction and become a popular alternative to Twitter. It could also quickly fade into obscurity, like the many trendy social apps before it, including Clubhouse and BeReal. But Bluesky does appear to be the most serious contender weve had for a Twitter replacement just yet. And its timing — sending out a blast of invites just as Musk plows ahead with controversial product decisions at Twitter — is perfect.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="opqUbU">
So, what exactly makes Bluesky interesting, and what are people talking about there? Heres a brief rundown of what you need to know about the buzzy new app.
</p>
<h3 id="vN1UAQ">
Blueskys backstory: A decentralized social media protocol backed by Twitters co-founder
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bf3nLo">
While Bluesky launched a public beta version in February, its origins go back to 2019, when Twitter co-founder and then-CEO Jack Dorsey <a href="https://twitter.com/jack/status/1204766078468911106?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1204766078468911106%7Ctwgr%5Ed3c76523cc65e7acc0af89f1544088b5475b8f77%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ffortune.com%2F2023%2F04%2F28%2Fjoin-aoc-dril-bluesky-jack-dorsey-fast-growing-attempt-twitter-rival%2F">announced that</a> he was funding a small team within Twitter to develop an “open and decentralized standard for social media.” It was intended to serve as a “protocol” for other apps and social media networks, including Twitter itself one day.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AeYFQz">
Bluesky became independent of Twitter in early 2022, well before the Musk-Twitter deal closed. It was set up as a public benefit limited liability company, meaning its supposed to operate in a more socially responsible way than a regular company. Bluesky also fits into <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22907072/web3-crypto-nft-bitcoin-metaverse">Web3 principles</a> of a less hierarchical, more distributed vision of social media.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Kx9vHu">
Even though its decentralized by design (more on that later), Bluesky is currently giving users access to a centralized experience on the main server it has set up. So what does that all look like?
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dX4k3f">
Design-wise, the app looks a lot like Twitter. It has a “Whats hot” and a “Following” feed, similar to the algorithmic “For You” and the chronological “Following” feeds on Twitter. For now, you can only post text or pictures on Bluesky (theres no video and no DM feature yet). But its still early days, so well likely see more features rolling out soon.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tMazAd">
Now back to that decentralized concept. The idea is that Bluesky wants to give users more control over their social media experience — control over their own data as well as what content they see when they log in. The company is doing this by building an underlying protocol that works a bit like the Android OS. Unlike a more traditional social media platform that designs the experience and makes the rules, Bluesky provides a framework on which users can build their own social media apps.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ib5j8a">
So in the future, Bluesky could spawn a whole generation of new apps with feeds that are tailored to different kinds of interests, like a news-heavy feed, cat memes, or a feed thats more or less profane. Bluesky also wants to let users easily transfer their own data like their username and followers to other apps if they so choose.
</p>
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“Users will also be able to control the algorithms that determine what content is served to them,” Bluesky wrote in an <a href="https://blueskyweb.xyz/blog/10-18-2022-the-at-protocol">October 2022 company blog post</a>. “We must have control over our algorithms if were going to trust in our online spaces.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rxvzZ1">
Its apparent, though, that its early days and there are major parts of content moderation the app is still figuring out, like how to block people.
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<h3 id="5koSDu">
Whats drawing users in: Fewer meanies, more weirdos
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JxcIH4">
On a technical level, Bluesky is definitely different from major social media apps, including Twitter. But the difference people really care about is simple: People using it are less mean and are having more fun (so far).
</p>
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“Theres something so refreshing about scrolling through a feed and seeing posts from accounts you follow that are funny instead of accounts that you dont follow and think you dont deserve rights,” posted Friday by a user who goes by “em.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6P61d6">
Thats in contrast to what some people say theyre experiencing on Twitter these days. Twitter has <a href="https://newrepublic.com/post/170176/twitter-suspends-white-supremacist-nick-fuentes">controversially allowed</a> previously suspended neo-Nazis and other extremist figures back on Twitter in line with Musks “free speech absolutist” <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/23042878/elon-musk-twitter-free-speech">ideology</a>, and recently rolled back some <a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/04/twitter-quietly-edited-its-hateful-conduct-policy-to-drop-transgender-protections/">hate speech protections</a> for trans users. Musk has said that hes <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1593673339826212864?lang=en">decreasing the visibility</a> of negative tweets and that <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1595630109116989440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">hate speech has gone down</a> since he took over, but outside researchers <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/02/technology/twitter-hate-speech.html">have tracked a rise</a> in racial and homophobic slurs on the platform since Musk took over.
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Blueskys approach also stands apart from Twitters new approach of more laissez-faire content moderation as well as its old, more heavily moderated one. Blueskys moderation is largely user-driven.
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With a few straightforward settings, the app lets individuals decide whether they want to hide or show — or warn before showing — certain kinds of content like “explicit sexual images,” “political hate groups,” or “violent/bloody content.” The company also says it takes a “first pass” on moderating its central server in order to remove illegal content and label “objectionable material.”
</p>
<div class="c-float-left">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/va7uAm6Jw5kDtLh78SeO-t82loU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24619158/katee3.jpg"/> <cite>screenshot of Bluesky</cite>
<figcaption>
Example of a lighthearted post on Bluesky.
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</figure>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ttw430">
But beyond moderation, for now, it seems people are encountering less hate on Bluesky simply because of whos on it: writers, some politicians and Twitter-famous people, tech enthusiasts, and people looking to escape the angry trolling of major social media networks.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/zrjKPfRIVgoQI6C0Pc5qezkSGXg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24619147/april_king_screenshot.jpg"/> <cite>screenshot of Bluesky</cite>
<figcaption>
AOC jumping into the conversation on Bluesky.
</figcaption>
</figure>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Uw3WNQ">
Bluesky is full of people cracking internet jokes and starting quirky memes, but without the default angry tone thats become so common on Twitter.
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So part of the appeal of Bluesky — which currently does feel similar to early Twitter — is that you have some serious people posting not-so-serious things, and famous people replying to not-famous people. When user April King, for example, posted asking if she needed to “start acting responsibly now that AOC follows me?” none other than AOC herself replied “no” with a relaxed-face emoji.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HPulb7">
If Bluesky can manage to keep the good vibes flowing between media people, politically important people, and Very Online people, it could have lasting power.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Oxlraj">
“Weirdos are the people who drive news,” said Collins. “Interesting content only comes from weirdos, thats what makes platforms live or die.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>Right-wing media used to shun pop culture. Now its obsessed with it.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="General view of a “Super Mario Bros. Movie” billboard featuring Princess Peach on the Sunset Strip" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/DtqvOUBXDpN3rHp7U0yeakJhqBQ=/0x0:4536x3402/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72231465/GettyImages_1251828960.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Does an ass-kicking, pants-wearing Princess Peach mean <em>The Super Mario Brothers Movie </em>is too woke for conservative media? | AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
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</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
From Super Mario to the Little Mermaid, websites like the Daily Wire and the Washington Examiner sure have a lot of opinions.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VblzEi">
Is the blockbuster success of <em>The</em> <em>Super Mario Bros. Movie</em> a victory for the “anti-woke”?
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="f9LtYx">
Well, according to right-wing media pundits like Charlie Kirk, Steven Crowder, and Alex Jones, <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/confusing-history-how-super-mario-bros-became-anti-woke-symbol-1794536">it sure is</a>, mostly because of how the films producers ignored public calls to cast Italian American voice actors in the cartoon roles of Mario and Luigi. Yet if you check the Washington Examiner, you can<a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/equality-not-elitism/the-super-mario-bros-movies-invisible-wokeness"> read</a> all about “<em>The Super Mario Bros. Movie</em>s Invisible Wokeness,” which has something to do with the video games Princess Peach being elevated from a damsel-in-distress to a goomba-kicking action heroine. For further analysis, why not consult the Daily Wire, the news site that has become something of an industry leader for conservative pop culture coverage? Here, you can <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woke-or-anti-woke-the-super-mario-bros-movie-sparks-debate-among-conservatives-about-setting-the-bar-too-low">find</a> a detailed breakdown of the issue under the headline “Woke, Or Anti-Woke? <em>The Super Mario Bros. Movie</em> Sparks Debate Among Conservatives About Setting the Bar Too Low.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4Zf93s">
If all of this seems like a lot, just wait for later this month when Disney releases its long-awaited live-action remake of <em>The Little Mermaid</em> starring Black actress Halle Bailey in the titular role. Matt Walsh, a Daily Wire contributor, already kicked off the discourse way back in <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/matt-walsh-slammed-online-saying-black-little-mermaid-not-scientifically-accurate-1743240">September</a> when the first teaser trailer dropped, courting accusations of racism by remarking on his podcast that “from a scientific perspective, it doesnt make a lot of sense to have someone with darker skin who lives deep in the ocean.”
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Yes, from Black mermaids and hobbits to “girlboss” princesses and Jedi knights — not to mention drag queens and <a href="https://www.vox.com/money/2023/4/12/23680135/bud-light-boycott-dylan-mulvaney-travis-tritt-trans">trans TikTok stars</a> — todays right-wing media commentators have no shortage of opinions when it comes to pop culture. For that, we have the “<a href="https://www.vox.com/2016/8/24/12552602/breitbart-trump-explained">Breitbart Doctrine</a>” to thank, a.k.a. the theory that changed everything, which has convinced a generation of right-wing media professionals that, as the late right-wing commentator Andrew Breitbart said, “politics is downstream from culture.” Yet this was not always the case.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<aside id="OXTGeP">
<q>The “Breitbart Doctrine,” a.k.a. the theory that “politics is downstream from culture”</q>
</aside>
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According to journalists and editors who cover the entertainment industry for conservative news outlets, the current pop culture obsession in right-wing media represents a significant break with its own past. I spoke to over a dozen of these professionals while researching my book <em>Pop Culture, Politics, and the News: Entertainment Journalism in the Polarized Media Landscape</em>, and they characterized the shift as a recent one, and audience-driven.
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Previously, in the wake of the great cultural schisms that embittered the right beginning <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/11/1960s-cultural-political-agenda-institutionalized/">in the 1960s</a>, the target market for conservative news tended to have little overlap with the audience for youth-skewing mainstream Hollywood entertainment. In fact, many members of this mostly older, conservative news audience could be described as deliberate “pop culture avoiders,” actively shunning Hollywood products due to their perceptions of their irredeemable moral depravity and left-wing bias.
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If this audience sees mainstream pop culture as something entirely foreign and alienating to them, then it is understandable that they would prefer not to see, hear, or read about it all. Indeed, when confronted with this kind of coverage in their favorite conservative news outlets, the reaction has been historically so unfavorable that these outlets were essentially forced to be “pop culture avoiders” themselves.
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For decades, this negative audience feedback loop has played out time and time again in the offices of conservative media outlets. The journalists I spoke to recounted how whenever they would talk about Hollywood entertainment in their work — even when harshly criticizing it from a right-wing point of view — they would inevitably get angry emails from, as one put it, “cranky old people” who complained that the entire topic was so unseemly that it was unworthy of their attention.
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However, in recent years, the tide has been starting to turn. Younger members of the conservative news audience, so it seems, are far more pop culture-savvy than their elders, even to the point of being full-throated pop culture fans. For this younger audience, the entertainment industry is viewed not as a lost cause to shun, but rather as a battlefield to be conquered in the name of the right. As one conservative pop culture commentator noted regarding his audience, “When I started, they werent talking about this, and now they are, and now they pay attention. And the younger they are, the more they pay attention.”
</p>
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In the eyes of many in the right-wing news media, the audiences burgeoning embrace of a “pop culture war” mentality has come not a moment too soon, as they have been convinced for quite some time that the entertainment field must be one of their central focal points. Such a philosophy is largely attributable to the influence of the late Andrew Breitbart, the right-wing media entrepreneur behind the famous “politics is downstream from culture” phrase that has become <a href="https://redstate.com/tladuke/2022/03/31/folks-complaining-about-pop-culture-dont-understand-the-breitbart-doctrine-n543588">enshrined</a> over time in conservative circles as the “Breitbart Doctrine.”
</p>
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By “culture,” Breitbart wasnt just referring to culture war issues in the broadest sense, like debates about gay people and abortions. He meant, quite literally, pop culture. As he wrote in his book <em>Righteous Indignation</em>, published a year before his sudden passing in 2012, “Hollywood is more important than Washington. … What happens in front of the cameras on a soundstage at the Warner Bros. lot often makes more difference to the fate of America than what happens in the backrooms … on Capitol Hill.”
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Inside the offices of right-wing media outlets, the “downstream from culture” line is repeated over and over as a kind of mantra — indeed, it was the first thing to come up, unprompted, in nearly every interview I conducted. For over a decade now, this “Breitbart Doctrine” has urged conservative journalists and editors to take on pop culture as one of their primary political battlegrounds, and it appears as though the audience is finally starting to catch on.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<aside id="v81KlC">
<q>The rights battle against “woke” pop culture makes sense considering its growing anxieties over the loss of social status</q>
</aside>
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Certainly, Breitbart was not the first pundit to attack Hollywood from the right. As far back as the 1990s, one could find relatively high-minded cultural commentary and even film reviews from writers like Jonah Goldberg and John Podhoretz in the pages of National Review. Also on the menu for conservative critics of yore were intermittent servings of “moral panic” aimed at <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/2015/10/09/oral-history-tipper-gores-war-explicit-rock-lyrics-dee-snider-373103.html">sex</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-27620071">violence</a>, and <a href="https://www.slashfilm.com/753575/the-last-temptation-of-christ-controversy-explained-how-martin-scorseses-passion-project-became-a-nightmare/">anti-Christian sentiment</a> in mainstream entertainment (and even further back in time, during McCarthyism, conservative-minded newspaper columnists like Walter Winchell and Hedda Hopper were known for railing against suspected communists in Hollywood, even naming names and destroying careers in the process). But Breitbarts enduring legacy is that he was the first to introduce a consistent, day-to-day editorial focus on pop culture topics from a right-wing partisan perspective at an institutional level.
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His mission of embracing entertainment as a means of positively advancing a conservative political agenda, rather than decrying and shunning it altogether, is also key to his vision — Breitbart was a self-described “pop culture-infused, wannabe hipster” and former Hollywood employee who got his start delivering scripts, and he initially aspired to a career as a comedy writer. His subsequent disaffection with an entertainment industry establishment that treated conservatives like him “as though they suffer from highly contagious leprosy,” and his vow to take it over from the outside with his own media empire, now reads as a kind of “villain origin story” in the rights broader push into pop culture warfare.
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Prior to the “Breitbart Doctrine,” the conservative movements take on mainstream entertainment media was largely one of scandalized moral outrage over the supposed corruption of youth — if and when it was paying attention to pop culture at all. The film critic Michael Medved epitomized this approach with his 1992 book <em>Hollywood vs. America: Popular Culture and the War on Traditional Values</em>, in which he longed for the good old pre-1960s days, when Hollywood movies were produced under the strict Motion Picture Production Code and offered safe, sanitized fun for the whole family. This narrow focus on Hollywoods seeming violations of Christian family values represents an older paradigm — these days, you dont hear much from right-wing media about excessive violence in entertainment (and on the rare occasion that you do, <a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/154744/right-wing-attack-hunt-film">critics</a> are quick to <a href="https://www.vox.com/2019/8/26/20754659/video-games-and-violence-debate-moral-panic-history">point out</a> the glaring hypocrisy of the right denouncing fictional violence at the same time as it has increasingly embraced Donald Trumps <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/13/nyregion/right-wing-rhetoric-threats-violence.html">very real</a> violent rhetoric).
</p>
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By contrast, youll surely hear a lot of grumbling from conservative commentators every time a movie franchise casts a woman or a performer of color in a role that was previously played by a white man. In the post-Breitbart paradigm, pop culture is framed not just as morally decadent but also, and far more importantly, as “woke” — the rights new favorite buzzword to describe any and all cultural output (or public policy, or anything for that matter) that is imbued with left-progressive social values.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Lx3gz4">
The rights mounting battle against “woke” pop culture makes a lot more sense when considering its growing anxieties over the loss of social status. As political scientists Pippa Norris and Ronald Inglehart argue in the book <em>Cultural Backlash</em>, status anxiety is perhaps <em>the</em> key driving force behind todays right-wing populism and grievance politics. Ultimately, what is at stake is a sense of esteem — that feeling of being at the top of the social and cultural ladder and having that position constantly reflected back to you in the media. Anxieties about the loss of social status help account for why topics as seemingly trivial as casting news for cartoon and mermaid movies now loom so large in the right-wing medias imagination — to no small degree, pop culture provides the perfect microcosm for aggrieved straight white men to chart their diminishing social dominance in real time. Its a convenient symbolic target to which they can channel their anger.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="74nC0s">
Todays right-wing news media establishment is not merely content to throw spitballs at “woke” Hollywood. As one editor at a conservative news site told me, the goal is to “engage with culture,” not just rage at it. After all, Breitbarts vision was all about the rights long-term political success being dependent on its cultural success, or, as he bluntly put it in <em>Righteous Indignation</em>, “young people suckle at the teat of popular culture—but by refusing to fight for their attention, we lose by default.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NePuIJ">
Figures like the Daily Wires Candace Owens, who has <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-communications/the-gospel-of-candace-owens">achieved notoriety</a> for cozying up to “canceled” celebrities just as much as mocking those that she deems “woke,” offer a signpost of where this is all headed in the long term. In February 2021, the Daily Wire even went as far as inking a film production deal with fired <em>Mandalorian </em>actor and extremely online Trump supporter Gina Carano, which company co-founder Ben Shapiro heralded as the dawn of “the cultural resistance.”
</p>
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The conservative news media may have shunned entertainment in the past out of a market necessity, but now they are increasingly eager to get into the business and take their audience with them. Their first release, however, the notably violent Carano-starring <em>Terror on the Prairie</em>, was widely <a href="https://www.avclub.com/gina-carano-ben-shapiro-terror-on-the-prairie-star-wars-1849979835">deemed a failure</a> after its feeble box office showing and complaints from conservatives that it was not sufficiently right-wing. For now, theyre still mostly stuck championing ostensibly “anti-woke” entertainment success stories like <em>The Super Mario Bros. Movie</em>, and fomenting jeers and backlash. Still, theyre certainly not done trying to paddle their way upstream.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZVx46g">
<em>Joel Penney is an associate professor of the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University and the author of </em><a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/pop-culture-politics-and-the-news-9780197557594?cc=us&amp;lang=en&amp;">Pop Culture, Politics, and the News: Entertainment Journalism in the Polarized Media Landscape</a>,<em> published in 2022 by Oxford University Press. </em>
</p>
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</p></li>
<li><strong>The blithe cruelty of the GOP push for Medicaid work requirements</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Harlem residents pack free groceries at the Food Bank For New York City on December 11, 2013." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FRGSAqzS90Rd-QVGqo5Hc20h7zE=/320x0:5440x3840/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72231368/455151285.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Residents at the Food Bank for New York City in 2013. People ages 50-55 on food stamps will be heavily affected by House Republicans proposed work requirements. | John Moore/Getty Images
</figcaption>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Some more people might get jobs. What about those who dont?
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House Republicans want to cut spending as a condition for <a href="https://www.vox.com/politics/2023/4/26/23699509/debt-ceiling-vote-deadline-2023-house-republicans">raising the debt ceiling</a> — but they have proven unwilling to make major cuts to the three biggest components of the federal budget: Social Security, Medicare, and the military. And so their <a href="https://www.vox.com/politics/2023/4/27/23700637/debt-ceiling-house-republicans-democrats">just-passed spending plan</a> focuses heavily on whats left: mostly, programs for the poor.
</p>
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The <a href="https://www.crfb.org/blogs/cbo-scores-limit-save-grow-act">Lift, Save, Grow Act</a>, the House GOPs opening bid in the debt ceiling drama, would <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy/2023/4/25/23697375/medicaid-eligibility-work-requirements-debt-limit-bill">add work requirements to Medicaid</a> — the health insurance program for low-income Americans — and expand those in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, or “food stamps”) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF, often called “cash welfare”).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UvGWzu">
Requiring people to work to be eligible for social program benefits doesnt save much money in the scheme of things; the Congressional Budget Office found it would save <a href="https://www.cbo.gov/publication/59102">about $120 billion over 10 years</a>, or 0.2 percent of the <a href="https://www.cbo.gov/publication/58946#_idTextAnchor004">10-year budget</a>. <a href="https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2023-04/59102-Arrington-Letter_LSG%20Act_4-25-2023.pdf"></a><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/4qtig55vs6tx59z/Screenshot%202023-04-28%20at%2010.33.27%20AM.png?dl=0"></a><a href="https://www.cbo.gov/publication/58946#_idTextAnchor004"></a><a href="https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/images/full-reports/2023/58848-1.png"></a>But they could have a major impact on the low-income families that rely on these programs. The White House (hardly a disinterested party, but still) projects the Medicaid provisions could <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy/2023/4/25/23697375/medicaid-eligibility-work-requirements-debt-limit-bill">put 21 million people at risk of losing their health insurance</a>. (Roughly 90 million Americans currently receive Medicaid benefits.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OuN7CV">
<a href="https://www.aei.org/opportunity-social-mobility/questions-and-answers-about-work-requirements-provisions-in-the-house-republican-debt-limit-proposal-part-ii/">Defenders of work requirements for social programs</a> tend to point to evidence that they, well, “work” — that is, that when work requirements are in place, more benefit recipients wind up employed, which they argue is better than the unemployed passively receiving benefits.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="enAZR7">
One response from opponents is to dispute the evidence. Arkansas, the first state to introduce Medicaid work requirements in 2018, saw <a href="https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2020.00538">no increases in employment as a result</a>, even as <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/19/18691249/medicaid-work-requirements-health-care-reform-study-nejm">the share of the population without health insurance surged</a>. As my colleagues Alvin Chang and Tara Golshan <a href="https://www.vox.com/2018/7/26/17465068/work-requirements-medicaid-snap-republican-cartoon">noted a few years ago</a>, a <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/work-requirements-dont-cut-poverty-evidence-shows">review of several randomized experiments</a> with work requirements for cash welfare found that while they boost employment noticeably early on, the effects fade quickly with time:
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Two charts show how 11 work requirement experiments outcomes varied after 1-2 years compared to after 5 years." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/aL0P9cc560voQQQzNNu2VNiSu7s=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24615539/workrequirements.jpg"/> <cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.vox.com/2018/7/26/17465068/work-requirements-medicaid-snap-republican-cartoon" target="_blank">Chart by Alvin Chang and Tara Golshan</a></cite>
<figcaption>
Data from <a class="ql-link" href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/work-requirements-dont-cut-poverty-evidence-shows" target="_blank">Center on Budget and Policy Priorities / LaDonna Pavetti</a>.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="W5Qutr">
Let me make a slightly different argument. I think its plausible that work requirements modestly increase work in the short or even long term. But I think they are still a bad idea, because of the effects on the people for whom they do not “work.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M2EIMg">
Work requirements inevitably leave in their wake a large group — maybe 20 percent, maybe 30 — who do not or cannot work after their implementation. Those people are then left without either wages or support from the government program thats now kicked them out. Applied to food stamps and Medicaid, that means creating a group of people who have no cash income, no means of buying food, and no health insurance.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CoTleu">
The prospect of abandoning a large group of Americans to that fate should trouble us greatly.
</p>
<h3 id="hDZojT">
Who is left behind when you add work requirements?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jEVRXQ">
Work requirements are not new. SNAP currently has work requirements for able-bodied adults age 18 to 49 without dependents. The <a href="https://www.crfb.org/blogs/cbo-scores-limit-save-grow-act">Limit, Save, Grow Act</a> would apply these requirements to people from age 50-55.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="V8eISM">
Medicaid currently has no work requirements (the Arkansas experiment was blocked by a court). The House bill would change that. Adults aged 19 to 55 without dependents would have to work, do community service, or engage in work training for at least 80 hours a month (about 18 hours a week) to receive Medicaid.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CQdhks">
Lets suppose these requirements, put together, would be startlingly effective at raising 50 to 55-year-olds work participation. Lets say out of the population of adults that age, without dependents, receiving both SNAP and Medicaid, the share holding a job would go from 55 percent (the <a href="https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/understanding-the-intersection-of-medicaid-work-a-look-at-what-the-data-say/">current level for childless people on Medicaid</a>) to 70 percent. That would be an enormous effect <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/work-requirements-dont-cut-poverty-evidence-shows">in the context of past work requirements</a>, a huge success.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wggrlj">
My question is: What would happen to the 30 percent of people who <em>didnt</em> find work (or a training program, or a community service opportunity)? If the work requirements were vigorously enforced (as they would have to be to generate the budgetary savings the GOP wants), these people would lose their monthly food benefit. They would no longer have health insurance if they got sick. And they would not have a job. They would have no source of cash income or government support whatsoever.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GOwoR7">
We dont really have a recent precedent for so thoroughly abandoning a group of Americans. In the 1990s, Bill Clinton signed a welfare reform bill establishing strict work requirements on cash welfare — but he did so only because no such requirements were imposed on parents access to food stamps or Medicaid. He had vetoed two earlier GOP bills that attempted to limit those programs, later <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/American_Dream/khvG8rDKAikC?hl=en&amp;gbpv=1&amp;pg=PT152&amp;printsec=frontcover">telling journalist Jason DeParle</a>, “I thought there ought to be a national guarantee of health care and nutrition.” After welfare reform, the share of people with no income <em>except for food stamps </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2019/6/5/18650492/2019-poverty-2-dollar-a-day-edin-shaefer-meyer">rose sharply</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KrvmnF">
What the House GOP is now proposing is to pull that safety net out from under the very poorest. If you are someone who cant meet the new requirements in the world the House GOP is contemplating, you will not have a guarantee of health care and nutrition to fall back on. You will have nothing but private charity and desperate hope.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PVVsRt">
One sees a similar dynamic at work with <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/2/6/16735966/social-security-disability-insurance">disability insurance</a>. The Social Security Disability Insurance program <em>absolutely</em> discourages people from working. There are <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/pol.6.2.291">excellent</a>, <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aer.103.5.1797">rigorous</a> <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/000282802760015595">studies</a> proving this, and it annoys me when otherwise like-minded friends try, in defending the program, to pretend that this isnt true. The reason to keep SSDI, and to not cut it, isnt that it has zero effect on work. Its that efforts to reform it and kick participants off will inevitably throw out people who will still be out of work, disabled, and now extremely poor.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Yh3PrD">
A famous study <a href="https://eml.berkeley.edu/~saez/course/maestas-mullen-strandAER13.pdf">measuring the effect of disability insurance</a> found that in a group of applicants they examined, 52.2 percent of people denied benefits wound up working and earning at least $1,000 after two years; that compares to only 14.8 percent of people granted benefits who ended up working. Thats a big negative effect on employment.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="py2q6h">
But think about the 47.8 percent of rejected applicants who still were not working. Theyre not getting any earnings, and theyre not getting any disability benefits. Theyre just very, very poor. Dont we owe them <em>something</em>? Would toughening up eligibility to force those who could be pressured to work to do so be worth impoverishing this other population, who wouldnt work either way? Who perhaps <em>couldnt</em>, physically, work either way?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4VrE8O">
Work is a good thing. But mercy is a good thing too. There has been a rough consensus, reflected in government policy, in the United States that poor people should not starve, whether or not they work. They should not die for lack of medical care. There should be a (patchwork, imperfect) safety net to prevent the absolute worst possible outcomes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HbWVoZ">
The moral case against work requirements isnt that they dont work, but that they can never work perfectly. There will always be people kicked off benefits who <em>also</em> do not or cannot work — and they will be without any economic resources at all in one of the richest nations the world has ever known.
</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>Kings Walk claims the Simons Shoes Handicap</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>WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh says ready for probe but wont resign, blames Congress</strong> - Priyanka Gandhi visited the wrestlers at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi and expressed solidarity with them, accusing the government of “protecting” the Wrestling Federation of India chief Brijj Bhushan Sharan Singh</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>IPL 2023: KKR vs GT | Gujarat opts to bowl against Kolkata as rain threat looms</strong> - It began to drizzle immediately after the toss, as the ground was put under cover. There will be no loss of over if the match start within one hour.</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>Ibrahimovics season at risk after calf injury</strong> - The veteran striker picked up the injury during the warm-up before Milans 2-0 win over Lecce last weekend</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>IPL 2023: MI vs RR: Misfiring Mumbai vary of Rajasthans batting prowess</strong> - RR are currently at the top of the table with some incredible performances — for example their one-sided routing of Chennai Super Kings.</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>Crisis grips YSRCP as Balineni decides to quit as party Regional Coordinator</strong> - The move likely to be a setback for the ruling party as Mr. Srinivasa Reddy has been handling the affairs of the party in Nellore district, where it is faced with serious dissidence in at least three Assembly segments</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>Yediyurappa expresses confidence of winning election</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>Dont listen to people who say BJP does not need votes of Muslims, says ex-MP Syed Zafar Islam</strong> - BJPs national spokesperson and former Rajya Sabha member Syed Zafar Islam clarified that the statement by some BJP functionaries should not be taken seriously, as it is not the view of the party</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>Wife of slain IAS officer moves Supreme Court against ex-MP Anand Mohans release</strong> - Bihar MP Anand Mohan was released from Saharsa jail on April 27 morning following an amendment in Bihars prison rules</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>Large presence of Chinese vessels in Indian Ocean region, India keeping close watch: Navy Chief</strong> - During an interaction at a conclave here, he also said that the Indian Navy is seized of the docking of various PLA Navy ships at ports in Pakistan, and it is “keeping a watch on it”</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>Ukraine war: Crimea oil tank set ablaze by reported drone</strong> - Flames engulf the facility in Russian-held Sevastopol, a day after a wave of strikes across 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>Ukraine war: Ex-BBC journalist Bondarenko killed on front line</strong> - Oleksandr Bondarenko had volunteered to defend his country at the start of Russias 2022 invasion.</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>Metro driver investigated for Paris platform death</strong> - Paris metro drivers stop work in support of a colleague, after a passenger was dragged to her death.</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>Sperm donor who fathered 550 children ordered to stop</strong> - The Dutch man, 41, could be fined more than $100,000 by a court if he tries to donate again.</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>Principal forced to resign over Michelangelos David visits sculpture</strong> - “Its beautiful,” said the educator, who was forced to resign after students were shown the masterpiece.</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>Driving across the American West in techno-excess with the BMW XM</strong> - “Hey Batman, turn on the seat massage.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1935214">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Curious about screen-based fitness machines? Here are the best weve found</strong> - We tried he most unique devices on the market to see whats worth your dollar. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1934016">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An ominous heating event is unfolding in the oceans</strong> - Average sea surface temperatures have soared to record highs—and stayed there. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1935397">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sensitive data is being leaked from servers running Salesforce software</strong> - Theres disagreement about how easy it is to configure Salesforce Community. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1935543">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Report describes Apples “organizational dysfunction” and “lack of ambition” in AI</strong> - Sources say Apples conservative approach makes it less competitive. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1935453">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 7 year old &amp; 4 year old are in their bedroom. “You know what” says 7 year old “I think its time we started swearing…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A 7 year old &amp; 4 year old are in their bedroom. “You know what” says 7 year old “I think its time we started swearing. When we go downstairs for breakfast IlI swear first then you”. “OK” says 4 year old. Mum asks 7 yr old what he wants for breakfast. “III have Coco pops, bitch”. WHACK, he flew out of his chair crying his eyes out. Mum looked at 4yr old &amp; said sternly “And what do you want?”. “Dunno but it wont be fucking coco pops.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/No-Eye-9491"> /u/No-Eye-9491 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132pv3u/a_7_year_old_4_year_old_are_in_their_bedroom_you/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132pv3u/a_7_year_old_4_year_old_are_in_their_bedroom_you/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>I was told, I would never be good at poetry, since Im dyslexic…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
But so far Ive made 3 jugs and a vase… and they look very nice, if you ask me.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/FighterWoman"> /u/FighterWoman </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132288o/i_was_told_i_would_never_be_good_at_poetry_since/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132288o/i_was_told_i_would_never_be_good_at_poetry_since/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Whats the difference between a bull and an orchestra?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The bull has the horns in the front and the asshole in the back.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/humicroav"> /u/humicroav </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132fwtc/whats_the_difference_between_a_bull_and_an/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132fwtc/whats_the_difference_between_a_bull_and_an/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sex with my wife is like Disneyland.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
I wait in line for an hour just to be told Im not big enough.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/EntrepreneuralSpirit"> /u/EntrepreneuralSpirit </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1322krl/sex_with_my_wife_is_like_disneyland/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1322krl/sex_with_my_wife_is_like_disneyland/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A joke my grandmother, of all people, told me when I was a kid.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
I dont know how many of yall have heard this joke, but here it goes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Two guys were at a University of Georgia football game when one of them looks down at the Georgia Bulldog sidelines and sees Uga, the school mascot, licking himself like dogs like to do. The guy smiles, leans over to his buddy while pointing at Uga and says, “Man, I wish I could do that”. His friend looks back at him in surprise and says, “Man, that dog would bite you!”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/KellyfromLeedsUK"> /u/KellyfromLeedsUK </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132oml3/a_joke_my_grandmother_of_all_people_told_me_when/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/132oml3/a_joke_my_grandmother_of_all_people_told_me_when/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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