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Are we at the beginning of the end of COVID-19? The tricky road to herd immunity, explained
One year into a changed world, the numbers defy comprehension. More than 21 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States — a rate approaching one in 15 people — plus untold millions who had mild or no symptoms and were never identified. Add the millions who have now received their first doses of vaccine, and it is fair to wonder: Can we start to look forward to when life returns to normal? The answer hinges on that often-misunderstood concept of herd immunity, made all the more complicated by the emergence of two variants of the coronavirus that seem to spread more rapidly, one of ...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
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Are we at the beginning of the end of COVID-19? The tricky road to herd immunity, explained
One year into a changed world, the numbers defy comprehension. More than 21 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States — a rate approaching one in 15 people — plus untold millions who had mild or no symptoms and were never identified. Add the millions who have now received their first doses of vaccine, and it is fair to wonder: Can we start to look forward to when life returns to normal? The answer hinges on that often-misunderstood concept of herd immunity, made all the more complicated by the emergence of two variants of the coronavirus that seem to spread more rapidly, one of ...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
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Why the new COVID-19 mutations may not spread as fast as you fear
As if 2020 needed any more alarming headlines, each day brings news about the new “mutant” strain of the coronavirus identified in Great Britain, where health officials have proclaimed that it spreads far more readily than the microbe that has been crisscrossing the globe for months. Well, maybe. Scientists who study the biology of viruses say that so far, there is no proof that this new strain is more transmissible, only what amounts to circumstantial evidence. Human behavior and random chance also could explain the sudden emergence of the strain which, given that it was identified in a Color...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
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A Q&A about the new coronavirus variant with a scientist who’s been tracking its spread
SEATTLE – With the U.S. on Tuesday recording its first known case of the novel coronavirus variant that’s been sweeping across the U.K., the pressure is on to track the variant’s spread and parse out why it seems to be more contagious — and what that means for the future of the pandemic. At the center of those efforts is a group at the Seattle-based Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center that has been cataloging and analyzing genetic changes in the virus since the pandemic began. Nexstrain, co-founded by Hutch computational biologist Trevor Bedford, is an uber-dashboard of genomics, mapping out...
The Seattle Times
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Landmark climate policy faces growing claims of environmental racism
When California passed its landmark cap-and-trade law in 2006, supporters were hopeful that the program would provide the template for other states — and eventually the federal government — to solve the climate crisis. Now, many environmental groups are increasingly saying the program has done little to curb climate change. Worse, they say, it is harming the lower-income areas and communities of color most affected by pollution. Those environmental justice concerns stopped President-elect Joe Biden from picking Mary Nichols, who leads the California Air Resources Board — the agency that overse...
Stateline.org
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Q&A: Distribution? Effectiveness? Safety?Coronavirus vaccine questions answered
CHICAGO — When someone gets a vaccine, how long will it take to become effective? What happens when groups of people are approved to be vaccinated? Are experts concerned about long-term safety? These are some of the many questions readers sent us that we’ve put to health and science experts. Q. How long does it take before the vaccine is effective in the body? A. The vaccine starts to work right away within the body, said University of Chicago Medicine infectious diseases expert Dr. Emily Landon. In a Chicago Tribune Facebook Live, Landon explained how it signals our immune system: “We create ...
Chicago Tribune
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Alligators can regrow their tails, study finds
Alligators can regrow their tails, according to a new study.Researchers have discovered that the reptiles, which date back to dinosaur days and can grow 14 feet long or more, can regenerate themselves — not unlike geckos, or the tuatara of New Zealand.The team from Arizona State University and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries discovered that young alligators have the ability to regrow their tails up to three-quarters of a foot, or 18% of their total body length, according to a study published this week in Scientific Reports.The interdisciplinary team used advanced imaging tec...
New York Daily News
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What the science says about coronavirus, cold weather, and steps you can take to stay safe
As the weather cools, COVID-19 is only surging hotter across the country. With safer, outdoor gatherings less viable, people inevitably flock for warmth and shelter — and its more conducive environment for viral transmission.But there is new evidence of another factor driving the surge: This new coronavirus also thrives in colder conditions, as well as at extreme relative humidities. That can further guide public health measures, as well as your own personal actions through what has been billed as a long, dark winter.“Bottom line, this virus is well adapted to multiple environmental stressors,...
The Mercury News
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Federal judge knocks down 2 permits needed for proposed $2 billion Kalama methanol plant
SEATTLE — A U.S. District Court judge in Tacoma struck down Army Corps of Engineers permits for a proposed $2 billion methanol plant in Kalama, Cowlitz County, because they were not the result of a full review of greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts, according to a ruling released Monday.The loss of the two federal permits is the latest in a series of setbacks for the project first proposed in 2014 by NW Innovation Works to convert natural gas to methanol for shipment to China. The project also has so far failed to gain approval by the state Ecology Department.The permits —...
The Seattle Times
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New details in notorious 1990 'killer clown' case show why prosecutors are so sure who was under the wig
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — After South Florida’s killer clown slipped away three decades ago, witnesses told investigators the culprit wearing white makeup and an orange wig looked like a man.But finally it’s been revealed that evidence found in the getaway car — a strand of burgundy head hair with the root attached — is why authorities in 2017 unmasked the clown as a woman: Sheila Keen Warren.In court documents filed this month, Palm Beach County prosecutors gave new insights into how they intend to use DNA evidence and other findings to win a conviction in the 1990 murder of Marlene Warren.It’s...
Sun Sentinel
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