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<title>22 January, 2022</title>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="covid-19-sentry">Covid-19 Sentry</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Giving a Socially Distanced Voice to Disabled Young People: Insights from the Educational Pathways and Work Outcomes Qualitative Longitudinal Study</strong> -
<div>
The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for social research. However, little is known about the impact of social distancing measures on research with hard-to-reach populations. This paper provides methodological reflections on the efficacy of socially distanced recruitment and interviewing methods for research with disabled young people, drawing on our experience from the Educational Pathways and Work Outcomes longitudinal study, which started in March 2021 during the third national lockdown in England. We discuss difficulties in gaining access to disabled young people and argue that the pandemic has exacerbated longstanding barriers implicated in the recruitment of hard-to-reach populations who are typically seen as vulnerable by gatekeepers. In contrast, our experience suggests that flexible online/virtual interviews can overcome pitfalls inherent in the face-to-face interviewing of disabled young people and could therefore be utilised to make their voices heard in a variety of contexts and scenarios after the end of the ongoing pandemic.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/ps367/" target="_blank">Giving a Socially Distanced Voice to Disabled Young People: Insights from the Educational Pathways and Work Outcomes Qualitative Longitudinal Study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>What is the impact of Covid-19 on the Antenatal Care Services Utilization in Public-Private-Rural-Urban Hospitals of India during the COVID-19 Pandemic Period of 2020-2021 compared to pre-pandemic era 2018-2019?</strong> -
<div>
Background The ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is well documented to have a disastrous effect on the health-care services, particularly pregnancy-related health services. In order to provide the information to the scientific community and policy makers with accredited evidence and data in the country, this retrospective cross sectional mixed research study aims to find out the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on antenatal services utilization among pregnant women of India attending public / private / rural / urban health facilities in 36 states and union territories. Hence, the researcher hopes that result and analysis will be beneficial to important stakeholders as well as policy makers in designing strategies for prioritizing pregnancy healthcare even within the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic period. Methods A facility-based retrospective mixed cross-sectional study was conducted from 1st January 2018 to 31st May 2021 for pregnant women attending public / private / rural / urban ANC services in 36 states and union territories of India. A total of 96990524 women registered for ANC during this period across all health facilities were included in the study with a purposive sampling technique. The data required for this study is collected from HMIS of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) which is the most accredited data source in India. The total number of indicators included for the study was 20.The data collected is analysed with the help of Microsoft office. Results Overall, 96990524 women registered for ANC during the study period. The analysis shows that the covid-19 pandemic era has a negative impact on several indicators. The study revealed that there is significant increase in ANC service utilization at urban health facility of all the services as compared to pre-pandemic era on cumulative all India basis. Conclusion Enhancing women knowledge of protective health services, prioritizing maternal care related health services during ongoing COVID-19, and improving the accessibility of ANC service should be emphasized for getting maximum benefit to the neediest. Keywords: antenatal care, health facility, utilization, coronavirus disease, pregnant women, India
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/q7pgv/" target="_blank">What is the impact of Covid-19 on the Antenatal Care Services Utilization in Public-Private-Rural-Urban Hospitals of India during the COVID-19 Pandemic Period of 2020-2021 compared to pre-pandemic era 2018-2019?</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Covid-19: acquired acute porphyria hypothesis</strong> -
<div>
Pandemic Covid-19 pneumonia, of SARS-CoV-2 aetiology, is of global importance to health systems, national economies and individual civil liberties. Multiple therapeutic and prophylactic agents are currently undergoing clinical trial and, while progress towards a curative agent is promising, the principal limiting factor in public health emergency is time. A pre-existing licensed therapeutic would offer reprieve to international citizens currently enduring the adverse consequences of lockdown policies. This brief communication serves as an update on the initial version of the acquired acute porphyria hypothesis and advocates for direct testing of the hypothesis.
</div>
<div class="article-link article- html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/fxz3p/" target="_blank">Covid-19: acquired acute porphyria hypothesis</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Combination of Spironolactone and Sitagliptin Improves Clinical Outcomes of Outpatients with COVID-19: An Observational Study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) leads to hospitalization and death, especially in elderly and those with comorbidities. There are evidences showing that sitagliptin and spironolactone can potentially improve the clinical outcomes of COVID-19 cases. In this observational study on acutely symptomatic outpatient COVID-19 cases, we investigated the effects of spironolactone and sitagliptin on the outcomes of the disease. Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences Clinics during the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic between July 2021 and September 2021. We followed mild to moderate symptomatic COVID-19 patients, who were treated with either combination (spironolactone 100 mg daily and sitagliptin 100 mg daily) or standard (steroid, antiviral and/or supportive care) therapy up to 30 days. Our primary outcome was hospitalization rate. The secondary outcomes included ER visit, duration of disease, and complications, such as hypoglycemia, low blood pressure or altered mental status. Results: Of the 206 patients referred to clinics, 103 received standard therapy and 103 treated with combination therapy. There were no significant differences in baseline characteristics, except for slightly higher clinical score in control group (6.92 +/- 4.01 control, 4.87 +/- 2.92 combination; P &lt;0.0001). Treatment with combination therapy was associated with lower admission rate (5.8% combination, 22.3% control; P = 0.0011), ER visits (7.8% combination, 23.3% control; P = 0.0021) and average duration of symptoms (6.67 +/- 2.30 days combination, 18.71 +/- 6.49 days control; P =&lt;0.0001). Conclusion: In this prospective cohort study of acutely ill outpatients with COVID-19, the combination of sitagliptin and spironolactone reduced duration of COVID infection and hospital visits better than standard therapeutic approaches. The effects of combination of sitagliptin and spironolactone in COVID-19 patients should be further verified in a double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.21.22269322v1" target="_blank">Combination of Spironolactone and Sitagliptin Improves Clinical Outcomes of Outpatients with COVID-19: An Observational Study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>ReadItAndKeep: rapid decontamination of SARS-CoV-2 sequencing reads</strong> -
<div>
Viral sequence data from clinical samples frequently contain human contamination, which must be removed prior to sharing for legal and ethical reasons. To enable host read removal for SARS-CoV-2 sequencing data on low-specification laptops, we developed ReadItAndKeep, a fast lightweight tool for Illumina and nanopore data that only keeps reads matching the SARS-CoV-2 genome. Peak RAM usage is typically below 10MB, and runtime less than one minute. We show that by excluding the polyA tail from the viral reference, ReadItAndKeep prevents bleed-through of human reads, whereas mapping to the human genome lets some reads escape. We believe our test approach (including all possible reads from the human genome, human samples from each of the 26 populations in the 1000 genomes data, and a diverse set of SARS-CoV-2 genomes) will also be useful for others. ReadItAndKeep is implemented in C++, released under the MIT license, and available from https://github.com/GenomePathogenAnalysisService/read-it-and-keep .
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.21.477194v1" target="_blank">ReadItAndKeep: rapid decontamination of SARS-CoV-2 sequencing reads</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Nanoformulated Remdesivir with Extremely Low Content of Poly(2-oxazoline) - Based Stabilizer for Aerosol Treatment of COVID-19</strong> -
<div>
The rise of the novel virus SARS-CoV2 which causes the disease known as COVID-19 has led to a global pandemic claiming millions of lives. With no clinically approved treatment for COVID-19, physicians initially struggled to treat the disease and there is still a need for improved anti-viral therapies in this area. We conceived early in the pandemic that an inhalable formulation of the drug Remdesivir which directly targets the virus at the initial site of infection could improve therapeutic outcomes in COVID-19. We developed a set of requirements that would be conducive to rapid drug approval: 1) try to use GRAS or GRAS similar reagents 2) minimize excipient concentration and 3) achieve a working concentration of 5 mg/mL Remdesivir to achieve a deliverable dose which is 5-10% of the IV dose. In this work, we discovered that Poly(2-oxazoline) block copolymers can stabilize drug nanocrystal suspensions and provide suitable formulation characteristics for aerosol delivery while maintaining anti-viral efficacy. We believe POx block copolymers can be used as a semi-ubiquitous stabilizer for the rapid development of nanocrystal formulations for new and existing diseases.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.21.477258v1" target="_blank">Nanoformulated Remdesivir with Extremely Low Content of Poly(2-oxazoline) - Based Stabilizer for Aerosol Treatment of COVID-19</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Pre-existing antibodies targeting a linear epitope on SARS-CoV-2 S2 cross-reacted with commensal gut bacteria and shaped vaccine induced immunity</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The origins of pre-existing SARS-CoV-2 cross-reactive antibodies and their potential impacts on vaccine efficacy have not been fully clarified. In this study, we demonstrated that S2 was the prevailing target of the pre-existing S protein cross-reactive antibodies in both healthy human and SPF mice. A dominant antibody epitope was identified on the connector domain of S2 (1147-SFKEELDKYFKNHT-1160, P144), which could be recognized by pre-existing antibodies in both human and mouse. Through metagenomic sequencing and fecal bacteria transplant, we proved that the generation of S2 cross-reactive antibodies was associated with commensal gut bacteria. Furthermore, six P144 specific monoclonal antibodies were isolated from naive SPF mice and proved to cross-react with commensal gut bacteria collected from both human and mouse. Mice with high levels of pre-existing S2 cross-reactive antibodies mounted higher S protein specific binding antibodies, especially against S2, after being immunized with a SARS-CoV-2 S DNA vaccine. Similarly, we found that levels of pre-existing S2 and P144 reactive antibodies correlated positively with RBD specific binding antibody titers after two doses of inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in human. Finally, we provided data demonstrating that immunization of a SARS-CoV-2 S DNA vaccine could alter the gut microbiota compositions of mice.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.07.13.21260404v5" target="_blank">Pre-existing antibodies targeting a linear epitope on SARS-CoV-2 S2 cross-reacted with commensal gut bacteria and shaped vaccine induced immunity</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Outbreak.info: A standardized, searchable platform to discover and explore COVID-19 resources and data</strong> -
<div>
To combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, scientists have been conducting research at breakneck speeds, producing over 52,000 peer reviewed articles within the first 12 months. In contrast, a little over 1,000 peer reviewed articles were published within the first 12 months of the SARS-CoV-1 pandemic starting in 2002. In addition to publications, there has also been an upsurge in clinical trials to develop vaccines and treatments, scientific protocols to study SARS-CoV-2, methodology for epidemiological modeling, and datasets spanning molecular studies to social science research. One of the largest challenges has been keeping track of the vast amounts of newly generated disparate data and research that exist in independent repositories. To address this issue, we developed outbreak.info, which provides a standardized, searchable interface of heterogeneous data resources on COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2. Unifying metadata from 14 data repositories, we have assembled a collection of over 200,000 publications, clinical trials, datasets, protocols, and other resources as of October 2021. We used a rigorous schema to enforce a consistent format across different data sources and resource types, and linked related resources where possible. This enables users to quickly retrieve information across data repositories, regardless of resource type or repository location. Outbreak.info also combines the combined research library with spatiotemporal genomics data on SARS-CoV-2 variants and epidemiological data on COVID-19 cases and deaths. The web interface provides interactive visualizations and reports to explore the unified data and generate hypotheses. In addition to providing a web interface, we also publish the data we have assembled and standardized in a high performance public API and an R package. Finally, we discuss the challenges inherent in combining metadata from scattered and heterogeneous resources and provide recommendations to streamline this process to aid scientific research.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.20.477133v1" target="_blank">Outbreak.info: A standardized, searchable platform to discover and explore COVID-19 resources and data</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Sialic acid and fucose residues on the SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain modulate IgG reactivity</strong> -
<div>
The receptor binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein is a conserved domain and a target for neutralizing antibodies. We defined the carbohydrate content of recombinant RBD produced in different mammalian cells. We found a higher degree of complex type N-linked glycans, with less sialylation and more fucosylation, when the RBD was produced in Human embryonic kidney cells compared to the same protein produced in Chinese hamster ovary cells. The carbohydrates on the RBD proteins were enzymatically modulated and the effect on antibody reactivity was evaluated with serum samples from SARS-CoV-2 positive patients. Removal of all carbohydrates diminished antibody reactivity while removal of only sialic acids or terminal fucoses improved the reactivity. The RBD produced in Lec3.2.8.1-cells, which generate carbohydrate structures devoid of sialic acids and with reduced fucose content, exhibited enhanced antibody reactivity verifying the importance of these specific monosaccharides. The results can be of importance for the design of future vaccine candidates, indicating that it might be possible to enhance the immunogenicity of recombinant viral proteins.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.20.477056v1" target="_blank">Sialic acid and fucose residues on the SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain modulate IgG reactivity</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Relationship between monomer packing, receptor binding domain pocket status, and pH, in the spike trimer of SARS- CoV-2 variants</strong> -
<div>
Existence of a SARS-CoV-2 spike protein trimer form with closer packing between monomers when receptor binding domains (RBDs) are all down, locked as opposed to closed, has been associated with linoleic acid (LA) binding at neutral pH, or can occur at acidic pH in the absence of LA binding. The relationship between degree of closure of the LA binding pocket of the RBD, and monomer burial in the trimer, is examined for a range of spike protein structures, including those with D614G mutation, and that of the Delta variant (which also carries D614G). Some spike protein structures with this aspartic acid mutation show monomer packing approaching that of the locked form (at neutral pH, without LA binding) for two segments, a third (around the RBD) remains less closely packed. Mutations in the RBD are a focus for the Omicron variant spike protein. Structure reports suggest that these mutations are involved in increased RBD-RBD interactions, and also that they could lead to a closing of the LA pocket, both of which could impact on pH- dependence. One potential outcome is that the extent of pH-dependent conformational transitions of the pre-fusion SARS- CoV-2 spike trimer are reduced in the Omicron variant.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.14.472554v2" target="_blank">Relationship between monomer packing, receptor binding domain pocket status, and pH, in the spike trimer of SARS-CoV-2 variants</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>A human antibody reveals a conserved site on beta-coronavirus spike proteins and confers protection against SARS- CoV-2 infection</strong> -
<div>
Broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) to coronaviruses (CoVs) are valuable in their own right as prophylactic and therapeutic reagents to treat diverse CoVs and, importantly, as templates for rational pan-CoV vaccine design. We recently described a bnAb, CC40.8, from a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-convalescent donor that exhibits broad reactivity with human beta-coronaviruses ({beta}-CoVs). Here, we showed that CC40.8 targets the conserved S2 stem-helix region of the coronavirus spike fusion machinery. We determined a crystal structure of CC40.8 Fab with a SARS-CoV-2 S2 stem-peptide at 1.6 A resolution and found that the peptide adopted a mainly helical structure. Conserved residues in {beta}-CoVs interacted with CC40.8 antibody, thereby providing a molecular basis for its broad reactivity. CC40.8 exhibited in vivo protective efficacy against SARS-CoV-2 challenge in two animal models. In both models, CC40.8-treated animals exhibited less weight loss and reduced lung viral titers compared to controls. Furthermore, we noted CC40.8-like bnAbs are relatively rare in human COVID-19 infection and therefore their elicitation may require rational structure- based vaccine design strategies. Overall, our study describes a target on {beta}-CoV spike proteins for protective antibodies that may facilitate the development of pan-{beta}-CoV vaccines.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html- link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.30.437769v2" target="_blank">A human antibody reveals a conserved site on beta-coronavirus spike proteins and confers protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Habit Formation of Preventive Behaviours during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Study of Physical Distancing and Hand Washing</strong> -
<div>
Introduction: Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, physical distancing and hand washing have been used as effective means to reduce virus transmission in the Netherlands. However, they pose a societal challenge as they require people to change their customary behaviours in various contexts. The science of habit formation is potentially useful for informing policy-making in public health, but the current literature largely overlooked the role of habit in predicting and explaining these preventive behaviours. Our research aimed to describe habit formation processes of physical distancing and hand washing and to estimate the influences of habit strength and intention on behavioural adherence. Methods: A longitudinal survey was conducted between July and November 2020 on a representative Dutch sample (n = 800). Respondents reported weekly their intention, habit strength, and actual adherence regarding six context- specific behaviours. Temporal developments of the measured variables were visualized, quantified, and mapped to five distinct phases of the pandemic. Regression models were used to test the effects of intention, habit strength, and their interaction on future adherence. Results: Dutch respondents generally had strong intention to adhere to all preventive measures and their actual adherence rates were between 70% and 90%. They also self-reported to experience their behaviours as more automatic over time, and this increasing trend in habit strength was more evident for physical distancing than hand washing behaviours. For all six behaviours, both intention and habit strength predicted future adherence (all ps &lt; 2e-16). In addition, the predictive power of intention decreased over time and was weaker for respondents with strong habits for physical distancing when visiting supermarket (B = -0.63, p &lt; .0001) and having guests at home (B = -0.54, p &lt; .0001) in the later phases of the study, but not for hand washing. Conclusions: People’s adaptation to physical distancing and hand washing involves both intentional and habitual processes. For public health management, our findings highlight the importance of using contextual cues to promote habit formation, especially for maintaining physical distancing practice. For habit theories, our study provides a unique data set that covers multiple health behaviours in a critical real-world setting.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/sz5w6/" target="_blank">Habit Formation of Preventive Behaviours during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Study of Physical Distancing and Hand Washing</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Time to Get Social: Adaptive Social Processes in the Daily Lives of Youth (Full PhD thesis)</strong> -
<div>
To better understand the development of mental health problems, it is of fundamental importance to focus on both adolescence – as this is the age period where most psychopathology develops – and social processes – as psychological distress is largely interpersonal in nature. In addition, certain parenting styles are strong predictors of both social and mental health outcomes. However, relatively little is known about how these different factors interrelate in adolescent day-to-day life. Within this dissertation, we draw on data collected with the Experience Sampling Method to gain a greater, more ecologically valid insight into the relationship between parenting, social processes, and psychopathology in adolescents. In Chapter 3, we present the case for why assessments of social processes require a greater consideration of ecological validity – and of daily life. Social cognition assessments in psychosis are discussed, but the arguments posited here are relevant for all types of social assessments in mental health research. In Chapters 4 to 6, the interrelationships between parenting, psychopathology, and daily-life social interactions are studied in three empirical studies using two large adolescent experience sampling data sets. In Chapter 4, we find how parental care and control are largely related to the experienced quality of daily-life social interactions rather than to its quantity. A similar finding is reported in Chapter 5, where we see consistent associations between the quality of daily-life social interactions and mean psychopathology level – and less consistent relationships between the quantity of social interactions and psychopathology. Finally, in Chapter 6, these relationships are investigated in one comprehensive model, including more specific parenting styles, and daily social interactions in different companies. In this model, paternal autonomy support and an altered quality of daily social interactions have unique associations with psychopathology levels. Taken together, these findings indicate a particular relevance of the quality of day-to-day social interactions for better understanding psychopathological development. As the social lives of contemporary adolescents are happening largely online as well as offline, in Chapter 7, we assess how adolescents experience online vs. face-to-face social interactions at the moment that they engage in them. We find how participants report more affective benefits when engaging in face-to-face interactions compared to online interactions, and, in contrast to our hypotheses, we report no moderating effects of social resources on the strength of these benefits. The investigation of adolescents` social lives and their relation with mental health became much more relevant as COVID-19 hit, when restrictions prevented people from interacting with each other. In the last study, presented in Chapter 8, we investigate differences in young people’s mental health and day-to-day social interactions, from before the pandemic to early in the pandemic (May 2020). We find how face-to-face interactions decreased and online interactions increased, but more surprisingly, that general psychopathology levels were lower than expected and that anxiety levels had even decreased. Moreover, the relationship between the quality of social interactions and psychopathology had become stronger during the pandemic, indicating the relevance of high-quality social interaction during times of social deprivation. In sum, in this thesis, I target the uniquely relevant momentary social interaction to better understand the social development of young people – and to assess when this might go awry. Across all studies, the quality of social interactions seems fundamentally important. Cross-level relationships seem to exist between general parenting perceptions and how social interactions are experienced in the moment, and between those daily-life social experiences and psychopathology levels. Future research should further disentangle these processes longitudinally to gain greater insight into the temporal ordering of these relationships. Finally, for the development of momentary interventions aimed at relieving social distress, a focus on the quality rather than the quantity of social behaviors is likely most helpful.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/knzms/" target="_blank">Time to Get Social: Adaptive Social Processes in the Daily Lives of Youth (Full PhD thesis)</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Microbial GWAS studies revealing combinations of Omicron RBD mutations existed and may contribute to antibody evasion and ACE2 binding</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Since Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 was first detected in South Africa (SA), it has now dominated in United Kingdom (UK) of Europe and United State (USA) of North America. A prominent feature of this variant is the gathering of spike protein mutations, in particularly at the receptor binding domain (RBD). These RBD mutations essentially contribute to antibody resistance of current immune approaches. During global spillover, combinations of RBD mutations may exist and synergistically contribute to antibody resistance in fact. Using three geographic-stratified genome wide association studies (GWAS), we observed that RBD combinations exhibited a geographic pattern and genetical associated, such as five common mutations in both UK and USA Omicron, six or two specific mutations in UK or USA Omicron. Although the UK specific RBD mutations can be further classified into two separated sub-groups of combination based on linkage disequilibrium analysis. Functional analysis indicated that the common RBD combinations (fold change, -11.59) alongside UK or USA specific mutations significantly reduced neutralization (fold change, -38.72, -18.11). As RBD overlaps with angiotensin converting enzyme 2(ACE2) binding motif, protein-protein contact analysis indicated that the common RBD mutations enhanced ACE2 binding accessibility and were further strengthened by UK or USA-specific RBD mutations. Spatiotemporal evolution analysis indicated that UK-specific RBD mutations largely contribute to global spillover. Collectively, we have provided genetic evidence of RBD combinations and estimated their effects on antibody evasion and ACE2 binding accessibility.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.19.22269510v1" target="_blank">Microbial GWAS studies revealing combinations of Omicron RBD mutations existed and may contribute to antibody evasion and ACE2 binding</a>
</div></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Public support for global vaccine sharing in the COVID-19 pandemic: Intrinsic, material, and strategic drivers</strong> -
<div>
As of early 2022 an estimated 50% of the global population is fully vaccinated for COVID-19 but the global distribution of vaccines is extremely unequal, over 85% vaccinated in the top 10 countries and below 3% in the bottom</div></li>
</ul>
<ol start="10" type="1">
<li>Given that governments need to secure public support for investments in global vaccine sharing, it is important to understand the levels and drivers of public support for international vaccine solidarity. Using a factorial experiment administered to more than 10,000 online survey respondents in Germany, we show that global inequities are out of line with domestic German public opinion. Respondents are supportive of substantive funding amounts, on the order of the most generous contributions provided to date, though still below amounts that are likely needed for a successful global campaign. Public preferences appear largely to be driven by intrinsic concern for the welfare of global populations though are in part explained by material considerations – particularly risks of continued health threats from a failure to vaccinate globally. Strategic considerations are of more limited importance in shaping public opinion; in particular we see no evidence for free riding on contributions by other states. Finally, drawing on an additional survey experiment, we show that there is scope to use information campaigns highlighting international health externalities to augment public support for global campaigns.
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/k4r7j/" target="_blank">Public support for global vaccine sharing in the COVID-19 pandemic: Intrinsic, material, and strategic drivers</a>
</div></li>
</ol>
<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>Quantifying Viral Load in Respiratory Particles That Are Generated by Children and Adults With COVID-19 Infection</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Device: COVID-19 Aerosol Collection<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:  <br/>
Massachusetts General Hospital<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Study to Evaluate the Safety and Immunogenicity of Booster With AZD1222, mRNA-1273, or MVC-COV1901 Against COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Vaccine<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: Half dose of MVC-COV1901;   Biological: Full dose of MVC-COV1901;   Biological: AZD1222;   Biological: Half dose of mRNA-1273<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp.;   Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations<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>Evaluation of Safety &amp; Efficacy of MIR 19 ® Inhalation Solution in Patients With Moderate COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: MIR 19 ®;   Combination Product: Standard COVID-19 therapy<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   National Research Center - Institute of Immunology Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia;   St. Petersburg Research Institute of Vaccines and Sera<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>Efficacy of Breathox Device Inhalation Therapy in the Treatment of Acute Symptoms Associated With COVID-19 and in the Prevention of the Use of Health Resources</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: BREATHOX 5 sessions;   Drug: BREATHOX 10 sessions<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   UPECLIN HC FM Botucatu Unesp;   Liita Holdings LTD<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Plasma Exchange in Covid-19 Patients With Anti-interferon Autoantibodies</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Drug: Therapeutic plasma exchange<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:  <br/>
Centre Hospitalier St Anne<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>Randomized Multicenter Study on the Efficacy and Safety of Favipiravir for Parenteral Administration Compared to Standard of Care in Hospitalized Patients With COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Favipiravir;   Drug: Remdesivir<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Promomed, LLC;   Solyur Pharmaceuticals Group<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>Immunogenicity of an Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccine</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Biological: Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccine<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Sinovac Research and Development Co., Ltd.<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inhaled Heparin for Hospitalised Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Drug: unfractionated Heparin<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:  <br/>
Australian National University;   The George Institute;   St George Hospital, Australia;   St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne;   John Hunter Hospital;   Royal North Shore 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 Prospective, Phase II Study to Evaluate Safety of 101-PGC-005 (’005) for Moderate to Severe COVID-19 Disease Along With Standard of Care</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: 101-PGC-005 (’005) + SOC;   Drug: Placebo + SOC<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   101 Therapeutics<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>To Evaluate Safety &amp; Immunogenicity of DelNS1-2019-nCoV-RBD-OPT1 for COVID-19 in Healthy Adults Received 2 Doses of BNT162b2</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: DelNS1-2019-nCoV-RBD-OPT1;   Biological: Matching placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   The University of Hong Kong<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>Immunogenicity and Safety Study of a SCB-2019 Vaccine Booster Dose to Adults Who Previously Received Primary Series of Selected COVID-19 Vaccines</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Biological: Candidate vaccine, SCB-2019<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Clover Biopharmaceuticals AUS Pty Ltd<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Increasing COVID-19 Testing in Chicago’s African American Testing Desserts</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Pandemic<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Behavioral: COVID-19 Testing<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Rush University Medical Center<br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>COVID-19 Messaging for Vaccination</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>:   Vaccination Refusal;   COVID-19 Pandemic<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Behavioral: Doctor Videos;   Behavioral: Sharing Videos;   Behavioral: Sharing Videos (Influencers);   Behavioral: Vaccine Ambassador;   Behavioral: Video framing;   Behavioral: Video order<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Massachusetts Institute of Technology;   Facebook, Inc.;   Code3;   Stanford University;   Harvard University;   Yale University;   Johns Hopkins University;   Massachusetts General Hospital;   Ludwig-Maximilians - University of Munich;   National Institutes of Health (NIH)<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>Respiratory Physiotherapy and Neurorehabilitation in Patients With Post-covid19 Sequelae.</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Pandemic<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: respiratory treatment<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Universidad Católica de Ávila<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>The Effect of Telemonitoring on Anxiety and Quality of Life in Patients in COVID 19 Quarantine</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19 Pandemic<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: tele-monitoring<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:  <br/>
Yuksek Ihtisas University<br/><b>Completed</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>Inhibitory effects of specific combination of natural compounds against SARS-CoV-2 and its Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Kappa, and Mu variants</strong> - Despite vaccine availability, the global spread of COVID-19 continues, largely facilitated by emerging SARS-CoV-2 mutations. Our earlier research documented that a specific combination of plant-derived compounds can inhibit SARS-CoV-2 binding to its ACE2 receptor and controlling key cellular mechanisms of viral infectivity. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of a defined mixture of plant extracts and micronutrients against original SARS-CoV-2 and its Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Kappa, and…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-CoV-2 spike protein inhibits growth of prostate cancer: a potential role of the COVID-19 vaccine killing two birds with one stone</strong> - To investigate the effects of isolated SARS-CoV-2 spike protein on prostate cancer cell survival. The effects of SARS- CoV-2 spike protein on LNCaP prostate cancer cell survival were assessed using clonogenic cell survival assay, quick cell proliferation assay, and caspase-3 activity kits. RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry were performed to investigate underlying molecular mechanisms. SARS-CoV-2 spike protein was found to inhibit prostate cancer cell proliferation as well as promote apoptosis….</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 integrated framework for identifying clinical-laboratory indicators for novel pandemics: COVID-19 and MIS-C</strong> - During the critical early stages of an emerging pandemic, limited availability of pathogen-specific testing can severely inhibit individualized risk screening and pandemic tracking. Standard clinical laboratory tests offer a widely available complementary data source for first-line risk screening and pandemic surveillance. Here, we propose an integrated framework for developing clinical-laboratory indicators for novel pandemics that combines population-level and individual-level analyses. We…</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>Arrhythmogenic mechanisms of interleukin-6 combination with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin in inflammatory diseases</strong> - Inflammatory diseases including COVID-19 are associated with a cytokine storm characterized by high interleukin-6 (IL-6) titers. In particular, while recent studies examined COVID-19 associated arrhythmic risks from cardiac injury and/or from pharmacotherapy such as the combination of azithromycin (AZM) and hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), the role of IL-6 per se in increasing the arrhythmic risk remains poorly understood. The objective is to elucidate the electrophysiological basis 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>Circulating ACE2-expressing extracellular vesicles block broad strains of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused the pandemic of the coronavirus induced disease 2019 (COVID-19) with evolving variants of concern. It remains urgent to identify novel approaches against broad strains of SARS-CoV-2, which infect host cells via the entry receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Herein, we report an increase in circulating extracellular vesicles (EVs) that express ACE2 (evACE2) in plasma of COVID-19 patients, which levels are…</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>Does Oxidative Stress Management Help Alleviation of COVID-19 Symptoms in Patients Experiencing Diabetes?</strong> - Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV-2 virus causes novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) with other comorbidities such as diabetes. Diabetes is the most common cause of diabetic nephropathy, which is attributed to hyperglycemia. COVID-19 produces severe complications in people with diabetes mellitus. This article explains how SARS- CoV-2 causes more significant kidney damage in diabetic patients. Importantly, COVID-19 and diabetes share inflammatory pathways of disease progression….</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>In Silico Evaluation of Binding of 2-Deoxy-D-Glucose with Mpro of nCoV to Combat COVID-19</strong> - COVID-19 has threatened the existence of humanity andthis infection occurs due to SARS-CoV-2 or novel coronavirus, was first reported in Wuhan, China. Therefore, there is a need to find a promising drug to cure the people suffering from the infection. The second wave of this viral infection was shaking the world in the first half of 2021. Drugs Controllers of India has allowed the emergency use of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG) in 2021 for patients suffering from this viral infection. The potentiality…</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>Potential Role of Colchicine in Combating COVID-19 Cytokine Storm and Its Ability to Inhibit Protease Enzyme of SARS-CoV-2 as Conferred by Molecular Docking Analysis</strong> - Despite the advance in the management of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the global pandemic is still ongoing with a massive health crisis. COVID-19 manifestations may range from mild symptoms to severe life threatening ones. The hallmark of the disease severity is related to the overproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines manifested as a cytokine storm. Based on its anti-inflammatory activity through interfering with several pro and anti-inflammatory pathways, colchicine had been proposed…</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>Jakinibs of All Trades: Inhibiting Cytokine Signaling in Immune-Mediated Pathologies</strong> - Over the last 25 years, inhibition of Janus kinases (JAKs) has been pursued as a modality for treating various immune and inflammatory disorders. While the clinical development of JAK inhibitors (jakinibs) began with the investigation of their use in allogeneic transplantation, their widest successful application came in autoimmune and allergic diseases. Multiple molecules have now been approved for diseases ranging from rheumatoid and juvenile arthritis to ulcerative colitis, atopic dermatitis,…</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>Atazanavir Is a Competitive Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 M(pro), Impairing Variants Replication In Vitro and In Vivo</strong> - Atazanavir (ATV) has already been considered as a potential repurposing drug to 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19); however, there are controversial reports on its mechanism of action and effectiveness as anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Through the pre-clinical chain of experiments: enzymatic, molecular docking, cell- based and in vivo assays, it is demonstrated here that both SARS-CoV-2 B.1 lineage and variant of concern gamma are susceptible to this…</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>Computational Design of Miniproteins as SARS-CoV-2 Therapeutic Inhibitors</strong> - A rational therapeutic strategy is urgently needed for combating SARS-CoV-2 infection. Viral infection initiates when the SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain (RBD) binds to the ACE2 receptor, and thus, inhibiting RBD is a promising therapeutic for blocking viral entry. In this study, the structure of lead antiviral candidate binder (LCB1), which has three alpha-helices (H1, H2, and H3), is used as a template to design and simulate several miniprotein RBD inhibitors. LCB1 undergoes two…</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>Disorders of the Cholinergic System in COVID-19 Era-A Review of the Latest Research</strong> - The appearance of the SARS-CoV-2 virus initiated many studies on the effects of the virus on the human body. So far, its negative influence on the functioning of many morphological and physiological units, including the nervous system, has been demonstrated. Consequently, research has been conducted on the changes that SARS-CoV-2 may cause in the cholinergic system. The aim of this study is to review the latest research from the years 2020/2021 regarding disorders in the cholinergic system…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Assessing SARS-CoV-2 Neutralizing Antibodies after BNT162b2 Vaccination and Their Correlation with SARS-CoV-2 IgG Anti-S1, Anti-RBD and Anti-S2 Serological Titers</strong> - The humoral response through neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) is a key component of the immune response to COVID-19. However, the plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT), the gold standard for determining NAbs, is technically demanding, time-consuming and requires BSL-3 conditions. Correlating the NAbs and total antibodies levels, assessed by generalized and automated serological tests, is crucial. Through a commercial surrogate virus neutralization test (sVNT), we aimed to evaluate 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>Calcium Signaling Pathway Is Involved in the Shedding of ACE2 Catalytic Ectodomain: New Insights for Clinical and Therapeutic Applications of ACE2 for COVID-19</strong> - The angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is a type I integral membrane that exists in two forms: the first is a transmembrane protein; the second is a soluble catalytic ectodomain of ACE2. The catalytic ectodomain of ACE2 undergoes shedding by a disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain-containing protein 17 (ADAM17), in which calmodulin mediates the calcium signaling pathway that is involved in ACE2 release, resulting in a soluble catalytic ectodomain of ACE2 that can be measured as soluble…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Role of Ajwa Date Fruit Pulp and Seed in the Management of Diseases through In Vitro and In Silico Analysis</strong> - This study investigated the health-promoting activities of methanolic extracts of Ajwa date seed and fruit pulp extracts through in vitro studies. These studies confirmed potential antioxidant, anti-hemolytic, anti-proteolytic, and anti- bacterial activities associated with Ajwa dates. The EC(50) values of fruit pulp and seed extracts in methanol were reported to be 1580.35 ± 0.37 and 1272.68 ± 0.27 µg/mL, respectively, in the DPPH test. The maximum percentage of hydrogen peroxide-reducing…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>IDENTIFICATION AND ALARM SYSTEM FOR FACIAL CORONA MASK USING CNN BASED IMAGE PROCESSING</strong> - tThe covid-19 epidemic is the world’s largest wake-up call for people to pay attention to their own and society’s health. One thing to keep in mind is that there is a segment of the population that has been exposed to the covid-19 virus and has generated antibodies without developing any significant illnesses and is continuing to be healthy. This indicates that a significant section of the population, even excluding the elderly, lacks the necessary bodily immunity to combat a Viral infection. As terrible as covid-19 is on a global scale, developing personal health standards and preventative measures for any pathogenic virus as a community would have spared many lives. In’this work, a camera is combined with an image processing system to recognise facial masks, which may be improved in a variety of ways. First and foremost, this method is meant to identify masks on a single person’s face. While this method is efficient in identifying someone has a mask, it does not ensure that they will wear it all of the time. The most effective update for this task is to install a camera with a wide field of view so that many individuals can be seen in the frame, and the faces of those who aren’t wearing markings can be identified, as well as the number of people and the timing. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN346889253">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>ANTIMICROBIAL SANITIZING FORMULATION</strong> - An antimicrobial sanitizing formulation, comprising, i) isopropyl alcohol in the range of 0.1%- 80% w/w, ii) an emollient in the range of 0.1%-15% w/w, iii) hydrogen peroxide in the range of 0.1 0.13% w/w, iv) citric acid in the range of 0.1% to 2.0% w/w, v) silver nitrate in the range of 0.1% to 0.5% w/w, and vi) a fragrance imparting agent in the range of 0.1% to 2.0% w/w. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN346888094">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A HEALTH BAND WITH A BIOMETRIC MODULE AND WORKING METHOD THEREOF</strong> - The present invention discloses a health band with a biometric module and method thereof. The assembly includes, but not limited to, a plurality of sensors configured to gather health data associated with a predefined symptom of a medical condition of a user; a memory unit configured to store the data and an interface, which is configured to determine the medical condition using the data;a processing unit configured to execute the application; and a notification facility configured to provide a notification upon receiving from the interface an instruction associated with the notification, wherein the notification is associated with a drug reminder and the like. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN346889061">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RNA 검출 방법</strong> - 본 발명은 RNA의 분석 및 검출 방법에 관한 것이다. 특히, 본 발명은 특히, 본 발명은 짧은 염기서열의 RNA까지 분석이 가능하면서도 높은 민감도 및 정확도로 정량적 검출까지 가능하여 감염증, 암 등 여러 질환의 진단 용도로도 널리 활용될 수 있다. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=KR346026620">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>REUNION OF PHOTOTHERMAL THERAPY WITH MXENE ADSORBED UREMIC TOXINS AND CYTOKINES: A SHILED FOR COVID-19 PATENTS</strong> - The COVID-19 pandemic has created havoc throughout the world. The disease has proved to be more fatalfor patients having comorbidities like diabetics, lungs and kidney infections, etc. In the case of COVID-19 patientsI having kidney injury, the. removal of uremic toxins from the blood is hindered and there is a rapid surge in the levelj of cytokine hormone resulting in the death of the patient in a short interval of time. To resolve this issue,iI; researchers have examined that the immediate removal of these toxins can improve the condition of the patient to a |greater extent. Studies have also found the presence of SARS CoV-2 viral RNAs in the blood of COVID-19patients, which risks their life as well as impacts the blood transfusion process, especially in the case ofasymptomatic patients. Hence it is required to control the surge of cytokines and uremic toxins as well as disinfectthe blood of the patient from the virus. MXenes, having a foam-like porous structure and hydrophilic negativesurface functionalization have greater adsorption efficiency as well as superior photothermal activity. Utilizingthese properties of MXenes, the MXene membranes can be used in the dialyzer that can help in the efficient andBiuick removal of the uremic toxins, cytokines, and other impurities from the blood. Along with this the greaterTJAdsorption efficiency of MXenes to amino acids result in the trapping of the SARS CoV-2 viruses on the surface J)3&gt;f the MXene. Many researchers as well as the WHO have proved the efficient reduction of the viral copy numbersjjvith the increase of temperature. Hence, followed by the trapping of the viruses, the implementation of"Zphotothermal Therapy can result in the inactivation and denaturation of the viruses and their respective viral RNAsBJlby the produced heat. The same process can be repeated several times to get better results. This whole process canr&gt;oQ-esult in impurity-free and infection-free blood, that can be returned back to the body of the patient or can be!— I Sitilized for the blood transfusion process without any risk of infection.IM - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN346889224">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>REDUCING AND STOPPING OXYGEN WASTAGE IN HOSPITAL</strong> - In an aspect, the present invention discloses a system (200) for prevention and reduction of oxygen wastage from oxygen mask (202). The system (200) includes the oxygen mask (202) having straps; a tension sensor (204), the tension sensor being sensitive towards tension produced in the straps as the oxygen gets leakage through sides of the mask (202); a processor configured in alignment with the tension sensor (204); and a buzzer (206) in alignment with processor. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN346042219">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>编码SARS-COV-2病毒C.37突变株抗原的DNA分子、DNA疫苗及应用</strong> - 本发明涉及生物技术领域，具体而言，提供了一种编码SARS‑COV‑2病毒C.37突变株抗原的DNA分子、DNA疫苗及应用。本发明提供的SEQ ID NO：1核酸序列在真核表达系统中能够高效转录和表达，而且具有免疫原性，表现在体液免疫和细胞免疫应答中，以此作为活性成分的核酸疫苗同样具有良好的免疫原性。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN347705379">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-COV-2病毒B.1.617.2突变株DNA疫苗及应用</strong> - 本发明涉及生物技术领域，具体而言，提供了一种编码SARS‑COV‑2病毒B.1.617.2突变株抗原的DNA分子、DNA疫苗及应用。本发明提供的SEQ ID NO：1核酸序列在真核表达系统中能够高效转录和表达，而且具有免疫原性，表现在体液免疫和细胞免疫应答中，以此作为活性成分的核酸疫苗同样具有良好的免疫原性。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN347705359">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Hung Thanh Phan COVID-19 NEW SOLUTION</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU344983394">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A METHOD TO REVEAL MOTIF PATTERNS OF COVID-19 USING MULTIPLE SEQUENCE ALIGNMENT</strong> - This present invention consists of different levels of computation and work in a pipeline manner i.e., input of one will be output of another and it is sequential process. Input data given in form of nucleotide sequence (DNA) of different COVID-19 patients (1). Using these nucleotide sequence perform mutation if possible and arrange them in a sequential order (2). Arrange number of nucleotide sequences of different patients in row wise and also compute number of characters in each row. (3). Compute frequency of occurrence of character in column wise and create a matrix having 4 rows and maximum sequence length will be the column size (4). Find the character like A, T, C, and G which one has maximum score and similarly find for each column to produce a final sequence (5). - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN346039750">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
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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>Is Ginni Thomas a Threat to the Supreme Court?</strong> - Behind closed doors, Justice Clarence Thomas’s wife is working with many groups directly involved in controversial cases before the Court. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/01/31/is-ginni-thomas-a-threat-to-the-supreme-court">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Why President Biden Bet on a Senate That No Longer Exists</strong> - On the eve of the President’s first anniversary in office, members of the chamber he served for so long voted for paralysis over action. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/why-president-biden-bet-on-a-senate-that-no-longer-exists">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Welcome Unfreedom</strong> - Quarantining with my mother in her homeland, I questioned the U.S. approach to the pandemic and public health. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/personal-history/a-welcome-unfreedom-in-south-korea">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Original Shock of the Pompidou Center</strong> - The building was meant to weave the democratic spontaneity of street protests and town squares into the fabric of the city. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-original-shock-of-the-pompidou-center">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What a Fire in the Bronx Says About Immigrant Life in New York</strong> - The death of seventeen people, most of them from the Gambia, evoked the city’s long history of failing to provide safe and affordable housing for migrants. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/what-a-fire-in-the-bronx-says-about-immigrant-life-in-new-york">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>What Congress’s new election reform idea leaves out</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Joe Manchin and Susan Collins" src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/nkr9ZzJ1tBsw6-KVFZ-1g7I9N-A=/455x0:7728x5455/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70419895/1237858305.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), and Joe Manchin, (D-WV), talk with reporters about voting rights in the US Capitol on Thursday, January 20, 2022. | Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Improving the Electoral Count Act isn’t enough to protect voting rights and stop election subversion.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="T2u5NE">
<a href="https://www.vox.com/2022/1/19/22881837/senate-filibuster-vote-voting-rights-joe-manchin-kyrsten-sinema">While voting rights legislation is pretty much doomed</a> due to Republican opposition and moderate Democrats’ decision to keep the filibuster intact, there’s still hope for a much narrower election reform: <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-
and-politics/22876361/freedom-to-vote-act-senate-filibuster-what-next">changes to the Electoral Count Act (ECA).</a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1W2r30">
<a href="https://www.axios.com/bipartisan-group-electoral-
reform-0ffe46fc-4801-4e74-be2c-687922c52fff.html">A bipartisan group of roughly 12 lawmakers</a>, including Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Mitt Romney (R-UT), and Joe Manchin (D-WV), is now in talks about possible ECA updates, though it’s unclear if enough Republicans would ultimately sign on to reach the 60-vote threshold any bill needs to pass. Because the law governs how Congress counts presidential election results, reforms could address vulnerabilities that <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/1/6/22217203/trump-ellipse-speech-primary-republicans-overturn-the-election-pence">former President Donald Trump tried to exploit last January.</a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eht8R4">
These updates, however, wouldn’t bring about the sweeping protections Democrats hoped to institute <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-
politics/22876361/freedom-to-vote-act-senate-filibuster-what-next">with the voting rights package that failed this week</a>, and wouldn’t be enough to stop election subversion at the state level. The push to reform the ECA is also indicative of the legislative limits the party faces with the filibuster intact. Because they need GOP support for most bills, Democrats might be able to take some small steps toward their policy goals, but only the ones that Republicans allow.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xuAKE1">
“American democracy faces multiple threats — the possibility of interference with the electoral count is just one of them,” said Alex Tausanovitch, the director of campaign finance and election reform at the Center for American Progress. “Just reforming the Electoral Count Act would be like only locking your back door. There’s a broader set of precautions we should take, particularly when something as fundamental as the democratic process is at stake.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="X54IUz">
Like Democrats’ push to pass new federal voting rights protections, updates to the ECA are a direct response to Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election results, though they only address one aspect of these efforts.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WbVyyU">
As Congress was certifying election results last January, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/05/us/politics/pence-trump-election.html">Trump urged Vice President Mike Pence to throw out certain results</a>, something Pence ultimately declined to do. Modifications of the ECA could make it clear that a vice president is unable to discard election results, and thus unable to overturn an election. In addition, the updated ECA could make it tougher for lawmakers to challenge states’ results, thereby avoiding a situation where a group of lawmakers conspires to nullify valid election results as some Republicans attempted to do in 2021.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4q0QeP">
Although these reforms are critical and worth pursuing, election law experts say they’re no replacement for measures intended to increase voting access and combat attempts at partisan election interference in different states. Because reforms to the ECA would narrowly apply to Congress’s role in presidential elections, they wouldn’t confront state laws that restrict early voting access and vote-by-mail, and they wouldn’t counter state <a href="https://votingrightslab.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/20210924-VRL-Election-Subversion-Report-.pdf">legislatures’ attempts to exert control over local election administration</a>. Collins has said she hopes a bipartisan elections measure could also help strengthen protections for poll workers and election officials who’ve faced growing threats of violence. The limitations of these possible reforms, though, have not escaped notice from some Democratic lawmakers.<strong> </strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MjVPRR">
“I support reforming the Electoral Count Act,” said Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) in a floor speech on Wednesday. “That said, reforming the Electoral Count Act will do virtually nothing to address the sweeping voter suppression and election subversion efforts taking place in Georgia, and in states and localities nationwide.”
</p>
<h3 id="SP91rP">
The Electoral Count Act, briefly explained
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6Dn7zA">
The Electoral Count Act, which was first passed in 1887, lays out how Congress counts each state’s electoral votes in a presidential election, and how lawmakers should respond if states send in competing sets of results.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dk5rR1">
As it works now, Congress receives the presidential election results from each state and has the job of counting and certifying, or finalizing, these results. To do so, Congress gathers the January after the presidential election for a joint session in order to go through each state’s results. As the results are read, lawmakers can contest them as long as one House member and one senator agree to register their objections.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0JuUNs">
If an objection is made, the House and Senate will then each debate the objection and vote on it: For the results to actually be contested, a majority of members in both bodies need to agree to it. Otherwise the objection is dispensed with and the results are counted as is.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ipPFUe">
This provision in the law was particularly relevant last year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iFGJ0q">
In January 2021, House Republicans raised objections about the results in six states, though only their objections toward the Arizona and Pennsylvania results had Senate support. Neither of those objections received a majority of support in either chamber.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1NFFQy">
In the past, lawmakers have raised objections regarding the Georgia results in Trump’s election in 2016 and the Ohio results in former President George W. Bush’s election in 2004. The objections to the 2020 presidential results, however, were unique in the number of states that were contested, and the number of Republicans who supported the effort. In the end, 147 Republicans maintained their objections <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/1/6/22218058/republicans-objections-election-results">to the outcome in Pennsylvania or Arizona.</a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kQyKuf">
During the certification process, the vice president also has what’s typically a ceremonial role that’s detailed in the ECA. Their job is to open each state’s electoral results, present them to Congress and preside over the joint session. Once the outcomes in each state are tallied, the vice president will also announce which candidate received a majority of the electoral votes to win the presidency.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="82Oxu0">
In 2021, however, Trump urged Pence to consider overturning the results by rejecting the outcomes in several states. <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/20/politics/trump-pence-election-memo/index.html">According to <em>Peril</em>,</a> a book by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, attorney John Eastman, a member of Trump’s legal team, laid out a plan for how Pence could discard the electoral outcomes in seven states and declare Trump the winner. Pence, however, concluded there was no legal basis for him to do so and refused to follow through on the plan. Changing the ECA would further guarantee that a vice president wouldn’t be able to take such actions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PUJawq">
<a href="https://news.yahoo.com/bipartisan-senate-group-looks-to-prevent-election-subversion-175900589.html">As a Yahoo News report notes,</a> another current shortcoming in the ECA is the leeway it gives states regarding the slates of electors they could send to Congress, potentially giving states the ability to overturn results if their legislatures decide to do so:
</p>
<blockquote>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mZTGya">
At the state level, the ECA gives governors enormous power over the slate of electors sent to the Electoral College. As of now, there is room under the law for a state legislature to try to throw out the popular vote in its state by sending a competing slate of electors to Congress. If the governor signs off on that slate, then the law would dictate that those electors are the ones that are counted.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FFHtic">
<a href="https://twitter.com/Matt_Seligman/status/1482112963494490116">Matthew Seligman,</a> a fellow at the Center for Private Law at Yale Law School, has said that the ECA could be updated to more plainly state when electors can be chosen.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GmzRwk">
In addition to pressuring his vice president to disregard the election’s outcome, Trump’s push to contest the 2020 results, coupled with GOP lawmakers’ assertions that there was something amiss about those results, spurred thousands of his supporters to storm the Capitol as the certification process was taking place on January 6, 2021.
</p>
<h3 id="pyVAfk">
How lawmakers plan to change the Electoral Count Act
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CBJ1cJ">
Talks about ECA reforms are still in their early stages at the moment, though they have picked up support from both sides of the aisle. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is among those who has signaled an openness to considering them, an indication that there could be sufficient Republican support for a measure to pass the upper chamber.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XCT4ks">
ECA changes could help close certain loopholes that Trump tried to capitalize on during the vote certification process in 2021, several of which <a href="https://cha.house.gov/sites/democrats.cha.house.gov/files/documents/Electoral%20Count%20Act%20Staff%20Report_.pdf">the House Administration Committee</a> pointed to in its recommendations for reforms.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RXkUnD">
One of these suggestions would be increasing the threshold of lawmakers needed for an objection to be registered. Instead of only requiring one House member and one senator to raise an objection, committee staff recommends increasing this threshold to one-third of the members in the House and the Senate. Additionally, staff suggests that the vice president only have a very limited role in the process — including opening and presenting the electoral counts, but not presiding over the counting as they have in the past.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Uvsp8d">
“There’s a good win there,” <a href="https://wkzo.com/2022/01/20/bipartisan-u-s-senate-group-seeks-plan-b-on-voting-rights-after-democratic-bills-
defeat/">Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) previously told reporters</a> when asked about potential changes. “I mean, my goodness, that’s what caused the insurrection.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dxVLgp">
But there’s a lot the proposed updates wouldn’t accomplish.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sYUPFj">
Reforms to the ECA wouldn’t address pressure campaigns the former president launched in places like Georgia and Arizona, where he and allies urged election officials to ignore the electoral outcomes. (<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-committed-crimes-over-georgia-election-interference-report-2021-9">Trump could face charges</a> for trying to interfere in the Georgia election.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="H1aiMU">
ECA reforms also wouldn’t combat a new Georgia law that enables the <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-
analysis/blogs/stateline/2021/07/28/republican-legislators-curb-authority-of-county-state-election-officials">state election board to suspend local election officials</a>, or the initial refusal of two Wayne County, Michigan, <a href="https://www.mlive.com/public-interest/2020/11/wayne-county-canvassers-dont-certify-election-results-
in-2-2-vote.html">election canvassers to certify the region’s results in 2020</a> (both officials ended up reversing course). And it wouldn’t curb audits by states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, which have forced partisan reviews of election results that undercut trust in the outcome.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SW0LRf">
“One of the concerns is that states are taking steps to change state processes and authorities for certifying elections,” said Professor Rebecca Green, a co-director of the election law program at William and Mary Law School. “Electoral Count Act reforms would not touch those internal state processes, which are the domain of states and state legislatures.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="N4Syv1">
In addition to the limited role it can play in fighting election subversion, these reforms also offer no new protections for voters in states like Georgia, Texas, and Arizona, which have all recently passed laws intended to restrict access to the ballot by banning things like drive-through voting and shortening the time frame for submitting mail-in ballots.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HYTz6W">
Changes to the ECA “don’t do anything to block the suppression that’s taking place,” said Cliff Albright, a co-founder of the advocacy group Black Voters Matter. “They don’t block the attacks on drop boxes, on vote-by-mail, the criminalizing of people who give out food and water. They don’t block any of that.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DwZk0U">
There’s another potential issue with the ECA reforms currently under discussion as well. Albright notes that the reforms could actually inadvertently enable election subversion if they make it harder for lawmakers to contest state results should state officials submit partisan results that do not match up with the actual outcome.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qBja33">
“Let’s say we have nefarious state officials. If you raise the threshold that you need [for objections], you certainly make it harder to smoke out that kind of nefarious problem with the election officials,” said Hamline University political science professor David Schultz.
</p>
<h3 id="MUo9Nu">
Changes to the ECA are indicative of the watered-down policies Democrats will have to consider
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9XKCL4">
Whether any ECA changes actually materialize is an open question. In the past, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/05/04/gop-hatches-another-lucy-and-the-football-scam-democrats-
prep-response/">Republicans have signaled interest in policies</a>, only for talks to falter when there’s been disagreement on key provisions. In the case of a 2020 and 2021 push for police reform, for example, Republicans expressed interest in a bipartisan compromise, but talks collapsed after members of both parties couldn’t overcome their differences on the issue of qualified immunity. The same dynamic has played out on gun control, which has garnered bipartisan support that’s failed to translate to concrete policies.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qUGNWl">
On the issue of voting rights more specifically, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) has said she’d be open to working on a more limited measure that addresses voter protections and has previously voted in favor of advancing the <a href="https://www.ktoo.org/2021/11/04/murkowski-is-the-only-senate-republican-who-voted-to-advance-voting-rights-
bill/">John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.</a> There aren’t yet the 10 necessary Republican votes needed to actually pass a bill on that front yet either.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NKIZ2O">
That means the ECA reform may be all Democrats are able to accomplish on elections in the near term, making it an example of how Democrats have to settle, since conservative members of their caucus have voted to preserve the filibuster. Because of Senate rules, Democrats will have to water down their proposals on everything from immigration reform to the minimum wage in order to have a shot of picking up any Republican support.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jNDTnT">
For now, the changes to the ECA seem like the most tenable election reform that lawmakers at the federal level may be able to achieve. Because of the narrow majority they have and the existing Senate rules, Democrats will likely need to make similarly drastic concessions on other priorities if they want to get anything done.
</p></li>
<li><strong>Can Russia back down in Ukraine?</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/RgbdgEgAxYEaWXq9tieQQFWTRlo=/392x0:4765x3280/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70419836/AP22020041850813.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A convoy of Russian armored vehicles moves along a highway in Crimea on January 18. Russia has concentrated an estimated 100,000 troops with tanks and other heavy weapons near Ukraine. | AP
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Russia’s invasion threat looms, and there have been no diplomatic breakthroughs yet.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dgc42M">
“My guess is he will move in. He has to do something,” President Joe Biden <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2022/01/19/remarks-by-president-
biden-in-press-conference-6/">said</a> of Russian President Vladimir Putin during a Wednesday press conference. Biden was describing the predicament his counterpart has created for himself in Eastern Europe, as Russia <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/12/8/22824015/russia-ukraine-troops-tensions-putin-biden-nato">has stationed tens of thousands of troops</a> along the Ukrainian border.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="J7meaJ">
Biden added that there is space to work with Russia on a peaceful solution if Putin wants it, but if he escalates, “I think it will hurt him badly.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yNqmFo">
It was a remarkably blunt — <a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/national-security-
daily/2022/01/20/no-minor-blowback-to-bidens-ukraine-gaffe-495795?tab=most-read">maybe too blunt</a> — assessment of the standoff between Russia and the West over Ukraine, which is staring down the threat of a possible Russian invasion. The crisis <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/12/8/22824015/russia-ukraine-troops-tensions-putin-biden-nato">has built and built</a>, lately with renewed signs of Russian aggression, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jan/14/ukraine-massive-cyber-attack-government-websites-suspected-russian-
hackers">from cyberattacks on Ukrainian government websites</a> to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jan/17/russia-moves-troops-to-belarus-for-joint-exercises-near-ukraine-
border">Kremlin moving troops to neighboring<strong> </strong>Belarus for joint military exercises</a>. Against this backdrop, <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/us-russia-talks-ukraine-/31645760.html">diplomatic talks in Geneva between the US and Russia sputtered earlier this month</a>, and renewed efforts between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday produced <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/top-diplomats-us-
russia-meet-geneva-soaring-ukraine-
tensions-2022-01-21/?utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=The%20Reuters%20Daily%20Briefing&amp;utm_content=21-1-22&amp;utm_campaign=21-1-22">no big breakthroughs</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nydzI7">
Blinken <a href="https://www.state.gov/secretary-antony-j-blinken-at-a-
press-availability-12/">said Friday</a> that the two would speak again after the US consults with its allies and responds to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/17/russia-issues-list-demands-tensions-europe-ukraine-
nato">a series of demands</a> from Russia. It’s one sign there might still be a way out of the crisis, if not exactly an optimistic one.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OIAbok">
Some of the big-ticket demands on Russia’s list are nonstarters with US and NATO allies, something Russia also probably knows. For example, Moscow wants guarantees that NATO would not expand eastward, including to Ukraine, and a rolling back of troop deployment to some former Soviet states, which would turn back the clock decades on <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/17/world/europe/russia-nato-security-deal.html">Europe’s security and geopolitical alignment.</a> These demands are “a Russian attempt, not only to secure his interest in Ukraine, but essentially re-litigate the security architecture in Europe,” said Michael Kofman, research director in the Russia studies program at CNACNA, a research and analysis organization in Arlington, Virginia.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/hCvOOGhgL0QmC694rnEvb_qp5m0=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23183594/russia_ukraine_map_1.jpg"/>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DRR3Eb">
In other words, this is about Ukraine. But Ukraine is also a stage for Russia’s own insecurities about its place in Europe and the world, and how Putin’s legacy is tied up all in that.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Odj1ei">
“For Russia, what it sees as Western encroachment into Ukraine is a very big part of how the West has been weakening Russia, and infringing on a security interest for all of this time,” said Olga Oliker, program director for Europe and Central Asia at the International Crisis Group.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3U9gdZ">
All of this makes it difficult to see a diplomatic way out, especially when 100,000 troops are posted along the Ukrainian border. Russia has denied that it has plans to invade, and few believe Putin has fully made up his mind on what he wants to do. But with all the threats and ultimatums, Putin may still have to do something if he cannot wrest concessions from the West.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="C6PEf1">
“In a certain way, [he] has put himself in a corner,” said Natia Seskuria, associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. “Because he can only do this once.”
</p>
<h3 id="HTbqed">
Diplomacy isn’t totally dead. But it’s not going great.
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Zvv19B">
Russia presented the United States with its demands last month. It requested “legally binding <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/russia-
makes-sweeping-demands-security-guarantees-us-amid/story?id=81821816">security guarantees,”</a> including a stop to eastward NATO expansion, which would exclude Ukraine from ever joining, and that NATO would not deploy troops or conduct military activities in countries that joined the alliance after 1997, which includes <a href="https://www.gov.pl/web/national-defence/poland-in-nato-20-years">Poland </a>and former Soviet states in the <a href="https://warontherocks.com/2019/10/the-breakaways-a-retrospective-on-the-baltic-road-to-nato/">Baltics</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="D22h1b">
Kyiv and NATO have grown closer over the last decade-plus, and <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_190906.htm">actively cooperate</a>. But Ukraine is nowhere close to officially joining NATO, <a href="https://globalnews.ca/video/8524725/biden-says-likelihood-of-ukraine-joining-nato-in-
near-term-is-not-very-likely">something the US openly admits</a>, and something Russia also knows. Still, NATO says Ukrainian future membership is a possibility<strong> </strong>because of its <a href="https://www.nato.int/nato_static_fl2014/assets/pdf/pdf_2016_07/20160627_1607-factsheet-enlargement-eng.pdf">open- door policy</a>, which says each country can freely choose its own security arrangements. To bar Ukrainian ascension would effectively give Russia a veto on NATO membership and cooperation. Removing NATO’s military presence on the alliance’s eastern flank would restore Russia’s influence over European security, remaking it into something a bit more Cold War-esque.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UCUehY">
Russia almost certainly knew that the US and NATO would never go for this. The question is what Putin thought he had to gain by making an impossible opening bid. Some see it as a way to justify invasion, blaming the United States for the implosion of any talks. “This is a tried-and-true Russian tactic of using diplomacy to say that they’re the good guys, in spite of their maximalist demands, that [they’re] able to go to their people and say, ‘look, we tried everything. The West is a security threat, and so this is why we’re taking these actions,’” said David Salvo, deputy director of the Alliance for Securing Democracy and a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="z3hrUj">
On the other hand, Russia’s hardline requests — alongside its aggressive military buildup — may be intended to get the West to move on <em>something</em>. “I don’t think that this was intended by Putin to fail, as some think. I think it was intended to extract concessions,” said Anatol Lieven, senior research fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. “And the question, of course, would be just how many concessions would satisfy the Russian government and obviously allow Putin to build up his domestic prestige.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rbCTag">
And that really is the question, especially since, so far, nothing seems to have really worked. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jan/12/wendy-sherman-us-veteran-negotiator-ukraine-
europe">seasoned negotiator</a>, met with Russian counterparts in Geneva earlier in January <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/russia-says-its-disappointed-by-us-signals-before-geneva-talks-2022-01-09/">but made little progress</a>. Blinken and Lavrov met Friday for 90 minutes; the meeting yielded no breakthroughs but Russia and the US agreed to potentially keep at it, after the US delivers written answers to Russia’s demands next week. “I can’t say whether or not we are on the right path,” <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/21/world/russia-us-
ukraine#another-high-stakes-us-russia-meeting-comes-as-fears-grow-of-a-new-war-in-europe">Lavrov told reporters</a>, according to the New York Times. “We will understand this when we get the American response on paper to all the points in our proposals.”
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/fx90X0wAJnBHHC4iIHPGP0rQrWA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23186308/GettyImages_1237876724.jpg"/> <cite>Russian Foreign Ministry/TASS via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov shake hands ahead of security talks at the Hotel President Wilson in Geneva, Switzerland, on January 21.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BTM3PN">
Russia might not like the responses on NATO, but there are spaces where the US and NATO could offer concessions, such as greater transparency about military maneuvers and exercises, or more discussions on arms control, including reviving a version of the <a href="https://www.vox.com/2018/10/22/18008726/trump-
russia-inf-treaty-missile-arms-control">Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty</a>, or even scaling back some US naval exercises in places like the Black Sea, which <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-united-states-black-
sea/31550090.html">Russia sees as a provocation</a>. “There is still potentially room on those fronts,” said Alyssa Demus, senior policy analyst at the Rand Corporation. “That’s entirely possible that the US and Russia or NATO and Russia could negotiate on those — and then maybe table the other issues for a later date.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ePGiLl">
But if the US and NATO extend<strong> </strong>those olive branches or others, that might not be enough for Putin. Neither of these<strong> </strong>will resolve Putin’s fundamental sticking point. He has repeatedly framed the US and NATO as a major security threat to Russia for his domestic audience, including spreading <a href="https://www.state.gov/fact-vs-
fiction-russian-disinformation-on-ukraine/#_edn6">disinformation about the West</a> being behind the real chaos in Ukraine. “Having built up this formidable force, and issued all manner of ominous warnings, he’s got to come back with something tangible,” said Rajan Menon, director of the grand strategy program at Defense Priorities.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="36fwLZ">
Moscow will likely continue the diplomatic route for as long as it thinks it serves its interests. But<strong> </strong>Russia has previously said it wouldn’t <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/russia-wants-quick-us-
response-on-ukraine-security-proposals/a-60422931">“wait forever.”</a> “If they decide that it’s not worth continuing to talk — that they’re not going to get enough of what they want from talking — then they might as well fight,” Oliker said. “Then they’re doing it because they think the fight is going to get them closer to that solution than not fighting.”
</p>
<h3 id="yu8LWN">
Russia could opt to destabilize Ukraine — but it’s already been doing that
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5IE5uV">
Russia <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/01/07/world/europe/ukraine-maps.html">has deployed troops, tanks, and artillery near the Ukrainian border</a>, movements that look as though Moscow is preparing for war. But what kind of war will determine the humanitarian, political, and economic tolls, and the response of Ukraine, the United States, and Europe.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AnQOpQ">
And, really, Ukraine is already at war. In 2014, Russia illegally annexed Crimea, and exploited protests in the Donbas region, in eastern Ukraine, backing and arming pro-Russian separatists. Russia denied its direct involvement, but military units of <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ukraine-
crimea/29790037.html">“little green men</a>” — soldiers in uniform but without insignia — moved into the region with equipment. More than <a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/content/conflict-ukraines-donbas-visual-explainer">14,000 people have died</a> in the conflict, which ebbs and flows, though <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2017-11-24/russia-has-deployed-thousands-of-tanks-troops-to-ukraine-
top-official-says">Moscow has fueled the unrest since</a>. Russia has also <a href="https://www.lawfareblog.com/why-did-
russia-escalate-its-gray-zone-conflict-ukraine">continued to destabilize and undermine Ukraine</a>, including by launching cyberattacks on <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/russian-military-was-behind-
notpetya-cyberattack-in-ukraine-cia-concludes/2018/01/12/048d8506-f7ca-11e7-b34a-b85626af34ef_story.html">critical infrastructure</a> and conducting <a href="https://jsis.washington.edu/news/russia-disinformation-
ukraine/">disinformation campaigns</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="A7GO5e">
It is possible that Moscow takes aggressive steps — escalating its proxy war, launching sweeping disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks, and applying pressure in all sorts of ways that don’t involve moving Russian troops across the border and won’t invite the most crushing consequences.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QfenBd">
But this route looks a lot like what Russia has already been doing, and it hasn’t gotten Moscow closer to its objectives. “How much more can you destabilize? It doesn’t seem to have had a massive damaging impact on Ukraine’s pursuit of democracy, or even its tilt toward the west,” said Margarita Konaev, associate director of analysis and research fellow at Georgetown’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="icCU5u">
And that might prompt Moscow to see force as the solution.
</p>
<h3 id="1NpPwV">
What happens if Russia invades
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LiOf1z">
There are plenty of <a href="https://www.csis.org/analysis/russias-possible-invasion-
ukraine">scenarios</a> mapping out a Russian invasion, from sending troops into the breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/if-russia-launches-attack-ukraine-what-might-it-look-
here-n1287369">seizing strategic regions and blockading Ukraine’s access to waterways</a>, to a full-on war with Moscow marching on Kyiv in an attempt to retake the entire country. What Russia does, ultimately, will depend on what it thinks will give it the best chance of getting what it wants from Ukraine, or the West. Any of it could be devastating, though the more expansive the operation, the more catastrophic.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/GnnY7TCivTgQyFVg9vbkz57pP3k=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23186318/GettyImages_1237852955.jpg"/> <cite>Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Ukrainian troops stand in a trench on the front line with Russia-backed separatists near Verkhnetoretske village, in the Donetsk region of Ukraine on January 18.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iT6MeG">
A full-on invasion to seize all of Ukraine would be something like Europe hasn’t seen in decades. It could involve urban warfare, including on the streets of Kyiv, and airstrikes on urban centers. It would cause astounding humanitarian consequences, including a refugee crisis. Konaev noted that all urban warfare is harsh, but the specifics of how Russia fights in urban settings — <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/13/world/middleeast/russia-bombing-syrian-
hospitals.html">witnessed in places like Syria</a> — has been “particularly devastating, with very little regard for civilian protection.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cUDV5z">
The colossal scale of such an offensive also makes it the least likely, experts say, and it would carry tremendous costs for Russia. “I think Putin himself knows that the stakes are really high,” Seskuria, of RUSI, said. “That’s why I think a full-scale invasion is a riskier option for Moscow in terms of potential political and economic causes — but also due to the number of casualties. Because if we compare Ukraine in 2014 to the Ukrainian army and its capabilities right now, they are much more capable.” (Western training and arms sales have something to do with those increased capabilities, to be sure.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Lun3dS">
Such an invasion would force Russia to move into areas that are bitterly hostile toward it. That increases the likelihood of a prolonged resistance (possibly even one <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/14/us/politics/russia-ukraine-biden-military.html">backed by the US</a>) — and an invasion could turn into an occupation. “The sad reality is that Russia could take as much of Ukraine as it wants, but it can’t hold it,” said Melinda Haring, deputy director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7Z4pTh">
Still, Russia could launch an invasion into <em>parts</em> of Ukraine — moving to secure more of the east, or south to the Black Sea. That would still be a dramatic escalation, but the fallout will depend on what it looks like and what Russia seeks to achieve. The United States and its allies have said that a large-scale invasion will be met with aggressive political and economic consequences, including potentially <a href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/how-financial-western-sanctions-might-target-russia-2022-01-19/">cutting Russia off from the global financial system</a> to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-may-consider-
halting-nord-stream-2-if-russia-attacks-ukraine-scholz-says-2022-01-18/">nixing</a> the Russia-to-Germany <a href="https://www.vox.com/22881709/nord-stream-2-russia-ukraine-germany-united-states-cruz">Nord Stream 2 pipeline</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cNfU7O">
Biden, during his Wednesday remarks, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-
remarks/2022/01/19/remarks-by-president-biden-in-press-conference-6/">said</a> that if Russia invades it will be held accountable, though “it depends on what it does. It’s one thing if it’s a minor incursion and then we end up having to fight about what to do and not to do.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MBIxyM">
Some accused Biden of signaling that Russia could get away with a baby invasion, though the White House later clarified that any move across the Ukrainian border will be met with <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/01/20/1074466148/biden-russia-ukraine-minor-incursion">“a swift, severe, and united response</a>” from the US and its allies. Ukraine has said there is no such thing as a <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/01/20/1074466148/biden-russia-ukraine-minor-incursion">“minor incursion.”</a> But those remarks also reflected the challenges of trying to contain Russia in a place the United States and Europe do not themselves want to fight, and where allies do have <a href="https://www.vox.com/22881709/nord-stream-2-russia-ukraine-
germany-united-states-cruz">competing interests</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UDz3qs">
And Putin, of course, already knows this. “The question is,” Konaev said, “how much military power [Russia is] willing to commit to where it will call it a day and call it goals achieved?”
</p>
<h3 id="m4b83U">
Has Putin backed himself into a corner?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="APvnup">
Putin’s ultimatum — give me Ukraine, and a say in Europe, or I may do something with all these troops — is a dangerous one. Not just because, well, war, but because it has created a situation where Putin himself has to deliver. “He has two options,” said Olga Lautman, senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, “to say, ‘never mind, just kidding,’ which will show his weakness and shows that he was intimidated by US and Europe standing together — and that creates weakness for him at home and with countries he’s attempting influence.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eDi4MS">
“Or he goes full forward with an attack,” she said. “At this point, we don’t know where it’s going, but the prospects are very grim.”
</p></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yomaI1">
This is the corner Putin has put himself in, which makes a walk-back from Russia seem difficult to fathom. That doesn’t mean it can’t happen, and it doesn’t eliminate the possibility of some sort of diplomatic solution that gives Putin enough cover to declare victory without the West meeting his explicit demands. It also doesn’t eliminate the possibility that Russia and the United States will be stuck in this standoff for months longer, with Ukraine caught in the middle and under sustained threat from Russia.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oHFK8x">
But it also means the prospect of war remains. “The Russian government has not decided definitely on war. In other words, there is still a possibility of compromise,” Lieven said. “But that war is certainly much, much more likely than it has ever been since 2015.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PIj0de">
</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>The hidden lesson in the new free Covid-19 tests</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/xpKlbCtLEjvxVyL9OMzs0_sS2Sw=/171x0:2902x2048/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70419773/1236974841.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A woman receives a package with a rapid Covid-19 test in Gentbrugge, Belgium. In the US, free tests by mail are starting to roll out. | Philippe Francois/Belga Mag/AFP via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
It is possible to create programs that don’t burden the people who need them most.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tsYs2z">
<em>This is an excerpt from the newsletter for The Weeds. To sign up for a weekly dive into policy and its effects on people, click </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/weeds-
newsletter"><em>here</em></a><em>.</em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BkOwWR">
This week, the Biden administration rolled out a plan to send up to four free Covid-19 tests to every household in America.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="koRdBe">
But you probably already knew that. At times, <a href="https://link.vox.com/click/26445581.25002/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhldmVyZ2UuY29tLzIwMjIvMS8xOC8yMjg4OTc2OS91cy1nb3Zlcm5tZW50LWZyZWUtY292aWQtdGVzdC13ZWJzaXRlLW1hc3NpdmUtcGFnZS12aWV3Y291bnQ/608882a30f10407b8071b663Bc95a4a5a">there were over 700,000 <em>concurrent </em>visitors</a> to the page on the USPS site — more than every other .gov page combined.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="R6beUU">
The enthusiastic response was remarkable because it was unusual. There are at least three different ways the Covid-19 test rollout succeeded where people expect government to fail:
</p>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5KYMhQ">
It highlighted the failures of industrial and regulatory policy that have led to widespread shortages in at-home Covid-19 tests, and delays in results coming back from test sites.
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JC5Vix">
It brought back memories of new government websites being unable to handle high traffic volume (e.g. Healthcare.gov).
</li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hJ5JRO">
It was quick and simple:<em> </em>The only information people needed to provide was their street address.
</li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9ZOSkz">
The execution wasn’t perfect (a flaw affecting some apartment dwellers led the government to limit some buildings to a single four-test order) but that didn’t dampen the enthusiasm. Which tells us something about how difficult Americans expect it to be to interact with the government, especially when trying to get the assistance the government has promised them.
</p>
<h3 id="63xEfN">
Emotional labor, but for government
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qOY4K7">
There are a few ways to think about these bureaucratic struggles. One, coined by Annie Lowrey in a 2021 <a href="https://link.vox.com/click/26445581.25002/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlYXRsYW50aWMuY29tL3BvbGl0aWNzL2FyY2hpdmUvMjAyMS8wNy9ob3ctZ292ZXJubWVudC1sZWFybmVkLXdhc3RlLXlvdXItdGltZS10YXgvNjE5NTY4Lw/608882a30f10407b8071b663B5b2f36e8">Atlantic feature</a>, is the “time tax” — the amount of time and energy that people waste interacting with the government. But my preferred term, popularized by the academics Donald Moynihan, Pamela Herd, and Hope Harvey is <a href="https://link.vox.com/click/26445581.25002/aHR0cDovL2pvdXJuYWxzLm1vdW50YWludG9wdW5pdmVyc2l0eS5lZHUubmcvUHVibGljJTIwQWRtaW5pc3RyYXRpb24vQWRtaW5pc3RyYXRpdmUlMjBCdXJkZW4tJTIwTGVhcm5pbmcsJTIwUHN5Y2hvbG9naWNhbCwlMjBhbmQlMjBDb21wbGlhbmNlJTIwQ29zdHMlMjBpbiUyMENpdGl6ZW4tU3RhdGUlMjBJbnRlcmFjdGlvbnMucGRm/608882a30f10407b8071b663B17553128">“administrative burden”</a> — which refers not only to the concrete loss of time and money, but to the cognitive and psychological burdens of having to learn and comply with government rules.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kI6E2K">
It’s hard to say just how much administrative burden there is. There’s no attempt to synthesize information about it even at the federal level, let alone the state and local governments that are responsible for implementing most safety-net programs. The best way to understand it is to look at all the labor involved to access a specific program: <a href="https://link.vox.com/click/26445581.25002/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucHJvcHVibGljYS5vcmcvYXJ0aWNsZS9ob3ctbm9ydGgtY2Fyb2xpbmEtdHJhbnNmb3JtZWQtaXRzZWxmLWludG8tdGhlLXdvcnN0LXN0YXRlLXRvLWJlLXVuZW1wbG95ZWQ/608882a30f10407b8071b663B1dc4e191">unemployment benefits in North Carolina</a>, for example.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pKuQJ7">
The one overarching truth is that administrative burdens particularly harm people already marginalized because they’re most in need of assistance and because they’re most likely to have difficulty jumping through all the hoops. Maybe they don’t have a computer, maybe they don’t speak English or understand legalese, or maybe they have to forgo shifts at work just to go to the right office to submit a form.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7jqvVS">
By extension, any restriction on who is eligible for benefits increases administrative burden, not only for people who apply and are found ineligible but also those who have to do more work to prove eligibility in the first place. The Covid-19 test webpage could be easy because there were no restrictions; it didn’t need to ask about anything besides your address.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7dMqts">
There’s also a second-order way that making programs universal fights administrative burden: When politically empowered, privileged Americans are inconvenienced by something, they’re more likely to make noise and get it to change.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TYQFtm">
But there is little if any political incentive to reduce the burden on people who politicians don’t typically listen to or need to court, such as noncitizens or people disenfranchised due to criminal records.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qYlSnN">
<em>If you work in government or as a service provider — or if you are or know someone who’s been further marginalized by the hassle of administrative burden — I’m really curious to learn more about what you’ve seen. You can email </em><a href="mailto:weeds@vox.com"><em>weeds@vox.com</em></a><em>. It’s always good when The Weeds can talk about policy not only from the perspective of its designers, but also its users.</em>
</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>F1 bans pre-race military flypasts, Red Arrows get exemption</strong> - Italy’s Corriere della Sera reported that the country’s Frecce Tricolori would no longer feature at Imola and Monza this year, however</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>Australian Open | Sabalenka overcomes serving issues to see off Vondrousova</strong> - The Belarusian, who has won 10 WTA singles titles, back from a set down to defeat her opponent 4-6, 6-3, 6-1</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>Prime Volleyball League moved from Kochi to Hyderabad</strong> - Rising COVID cases in Kerala behind the change in venue</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>Where we need to get better is right in front of us: K.L. Rahul</strong> - For the second game in a row, Indian bowlers looked pedestrian especially in the middle overs</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Tata Steel Masters | Vidit Gujrathi remains among the leaders</strong> - Gujrathi shared honours with Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland) to take his tally to four points while Praggnanandhaa (2.5 points) held Sam Shankland (U.S.) to a draw late on January 21</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>Ayyanna ridicules Jagan’s proposal to build one airport in every district</strong> - ‘Chief Minister has already pushed the State into a debt trap’</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>VUPPC launches signature campaign against sale of steel plant</strong> - One crore signatures will be collected from people, says CITU State president</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>Coimbatore-based entrepreneur’s innovative machines make eco-friendly food containers</strong> - The machine upcycles red chillies, tamarind seeds and peanut shells to create inventive, eco-friendly food containers</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>Data | Why are petrol prices steady</strong> - The retail price is linked to the international crude oil prices and that is why it changes every day</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>Jaishankar speaks with Kuwaiti, Qatari counterparts; discusses ties, Afghanistan</strong> - “Spoke on our bilateral, economic and energy cooperation.”</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 tension: US ‘lethal aid’ arrives in Kyiv amid border build-up</strong> - The first delivery of a security assistance package includes ammunition for “front line defenders”.</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>Serbia revokes Rio Tinto lithium mine permits following protests</strong> - The country cancels the mining licence for the Anglo-Australian firm’s controversial $2.4bn project.</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>French elections: Divided left fight doomed race of their own</strong> - For the first time in living memory there is no left-wing candidate challenging for the presidency.</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>French tourist Benjamin Briere goes on trial in Iran for espionage</strong> - Benjamin Brière was arrested in 2020 after flying a drone near the Iran-Turkmenistan border.</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 tension: US and Russia hold ‘frank’ talks</strong> - Their top diplomats say they want to pursue dialogue as fears of Russian military action persist.</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>This 22-year-old builds chips in his parents’ garage</strong> - Sam Zeloof’s creations show what’s possible for small-scale silicon tinkerers. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1827533">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Study: Leidenfrost effect occurs in all three water phases: Solid, liquid, and vapor</strong> - But there’s a much higher threshold of 550° C for levitation of an ice disk to occur. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1827280">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Picard and Guinan have a warm reunion in S2 trailer for Star Trek: Picard</strong> - “Your answers are not in the stars and they never have been.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1827532">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Unvaccinated 5X more likely to get omicron than those boosted, CDC reports</strong> - Real-world data shows booster doses are standing up to omicron. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1827676">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Two cannabinoids have opposing effects on SARS-CoV-2 in culture</strong> - In early tests, CBD inhibits the virus, but THC blocks this effect. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1827654">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>23andme is a fake, rip-off scam website.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The results of my ancestry came back 85% German and 10% Bavarian/Eastern European, but I know <em>FOR A FACT</em> that my grandparents came to the USA from <strong>Argentina!</strong>
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON
-->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/KeckyOK"> /u/KeckyOK </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9qezk/23andme_is_a_fake_ripoff_scam_website/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9qezk/23andme_is_a_fake_ripoff_scam_website/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A cop sees an old woman carrying two large sacks. One of the sacks has a hole and is leaking 20 dollar bills.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The cop asks the woman, “Where did an old lady like you get all of that money?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
She replies, “Well, there’s a golf course behind my house and when golfers need to go to the bathroom, they stick their penis through a hole in my fence and pee into my yard. It became a problem because it kills the flowers.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The cop asks, “So what did you do about it?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The old lady says, “I get my hedge clippers and I wait behind the fence. When a golfer sticks his penis through the fence, I grab ahold of it and shout GIVE ME $20 OR IT COMES CLEAN OFF!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“That seems fair enough,” the cop says, “so what’s in the other sack?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The old lady replies with, “Not everyone pays…”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Me getting all these upvotes: <a href="https://media.tenor.com/images/e32a0bcd1ee692f13f9fcad63f4f6b62/tenor.gif?ctx=share">https://media.tenor.com/images/e32a0bcd1ee692f13f9fcad63f4f6b62/tenor.gif?ctx=share</a>
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/JingaMikage"> /u/JingaMikage </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9m1vn/a_cop_sees_an_old_woman_carrying_two_large_sacks/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9m1vn/a_cop_sees_an_old_woman_carrying_two_large_sacks/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>How many narcissists does it take to screw in a lightbulb?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
None! They use gaslighting!
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/PolyMath3301"> /u/PolyMath3301 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9mn05/how_many_narcissists_does_it_take_to_screw_in_a/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9mn05/how_many_narcissists_does_it_take_to_screw_in_a/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>My wife was in the kitchen wearing only the t-shirt she slept in…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
… preparing our usual soft-boiled eggs and toast for breakfast.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
As I walked in, almost awake, she turned to me and said softly, “You’ve got to make love to me right now! Right here!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
My eyes lit up and I thought, “I am either still dreaming or this is going to be my lucky day!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Not wanting to loose the moment, I embraced her and then gave it my all; right there on the kitchen table.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Afterwards she said, “Thanks” and returned to the stove, Her T-shirt still around her neck.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Happy, but still a little puzzled, I asked, “What was that all about?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
She explained, “The egg timer’s broken”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/noobmaster69_is_hela"> /u/noobmaster69_is_hela </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9amnf/my_wife_was_in_the_kitchen_wearing_only_the/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9amnf/my_wife_was_in_the_kitchen_wearing_only_the/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>I’m sitting here thinking about leaving my husband. He hasn’t been intimate with me since our son died. I would leave right now,</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
But the ambulance is still in the drive way blocking my car.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Jussi_Wade_1755"> /u/Jussi_Wade_1755 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9xqn7/im_sitting_here_thinking_about_leaving_my_husband/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/s9xqn7/im_sitting_here_thinking_about_leaving_my_husband/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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