`Life with style`

The Washington Post. How to seek care for non-covid health issues during the pandemic, and ..

2021-09-16T06:00:00.004-07:00

Diligence: (c): Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The Washington Post

How to seek care for non-covid health issues during the pandemic, and why you shouldn't delay.

(Today at 7.00 a.m EDT)

Throughout the pandemic, fears about the coronavirus have driven many people to skip doctor's appointments and avoid hospitals. Now, with the highly contagious deltavariant surging across the United States, those worries may be resurfacing. But doctors say that risk can be managed with vaccinations and other measures, and there are potentially greater consequences to delaying mediacal care.

''There are individuals who, with rising rates of covid-19 infection, have been hesitant about coming to the doctor's office, and that allowed for missed opportunities to identify a disease early on or to achieve optimal control over chronic disease ,'' said Michael Knight, a primary care physician and the associate chief quality and population health officer with the George Washington University Medical Faculty Associates.

Whether its time for a routine visit with your primary care physician or you have a medical emergency that needs immediate attention, here are tips for deciding when to see a doctor, where to go for treatment and how to try to staysafe.

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Should I keep up with routine doctor appointments?

Yes. ''There's a substantial risk to not getting routine care,'' said Gerald Harmon, president of the American Medical Association.

Data collected since the beginning of the pandemic and anecdotal reports from doctors paint a concerning picture of the possible consequences of delaying care. In 2020, adolescents and adults potentially missed an estimated 26 million doses of recommended vaccinations, not including the coronavirus vaccines, compared to 2019 figures, according to the AMA, citing an analysis by the health care consulting firm Avalere Health. An estimated total 725.000 screenings for breast, cervical and colon cances were also mised during the first year of the pandemic.

Annual physicals and schduled checkups are also crucial appointments for people with chronic health conditions that need to be monitored.

''We've seen both locally and nationally that patients are presenting later than usual with symptoms of diabetes, of poorly controlled hypertension and other chronic illness that, if not taken care of, can shorten people's lives, careers and result in mortality,'' said Russell Phillips, director of the Center for Primary Care at Harvard medical School.'' It's really important to try to keep up with your ongoing medical issues as well as your ongoing contacts with primary care, even if you're well and don't have chronic illness.''

Before making decisions about medical care, first talk with yout health-care provider, Knight said. Your provider can help your prioritize which as telehealth appointments, if you don't feel comfortable going in person.

But even though it's understandable to feel wary about to a doctor's office during a pandemic, experts emphasized that the risk of coronavirus transmission is relatively low given the effective safety measures that they have been widely adopted in medical settings, including mandatory mask-wearing and the use of other personal protective equipment, symptom and exposure screenings, and sanitation practices.

''When you go to the dctor's office, don't think you're walking into an infection center,'' Knight said.

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If I have an emergency, is it safe to go to the ER during the pandemic?

Yes, but you should take precautions.

If you are experiencing a ''911 life or death emergency'' but still need immediate care, Harmon, the AMA president, recommended calling the emergency department to let them know you're coming, so they're expecting you and you can find out if there's an extended wait. If possible, try to bring pertinent health documents, such as a medical history and medication list, which can help ER staff expedite yout care.

Once you're there, make sure you're wearing a well-made, form-fitting face covering, Harmon said. early all hospitals in the United States require people to wear masks. But this is partcularly important for people in emergency room waiting areas ''where a lot of folks are an uncertain covid status and, therefore, you've got a slightly risk of being exposed to it,'' said Keith Hemmert, medical director of the emergency department at the Hospital of the University of Pensylvania.

''Simply wearing a mask can dramatically lower your risk of contracting covid in that environment, '' Hemmert said.

Experts recommend a surgical mask, which most ERs should provide for patients who do not have one, or a well-fitted two-layer cloth mask. Higher-quality masks such as N95s can provide greater protection if worn properly, however, they are not necessary for most people and may be less comfortable, Hemmrt said.

'' If you decide to wear an N95 mask you wind up leaving it off half the time because it's so uncomfortable, you're better ff just wearing a standard medical-grade mask,'' he said. ''In terms of your own personal safety and the safety of the folks around you, leaving that mak on is most important.''

Experts cautioned against wearing surgical gloves since most people are not trained on how to properly use them and can inadvertently spread disease with the gloves. But all agreeehand hygiene is vital. Bring your own hand sanitizer or wipes, or use the hand-sanitizing stations throughout hospitals and emergency departments. ''Every time you see one, pump the button and sanitize your hands.'' Hemmert said.

Aside from that, experts encouraged people waiting to be seen to try to keep their distance, through it may be difficult since ERs are often crowded.

In some hospitals, after patients have ben triaged, they may be allowed to wait outside or in their cars until a room is available --- assuming the ER staff tells them it is safe to do so. Hemmert urged patients to inquire about the hospital's policy before deciding on their own to wait outside the ER because ''your medical condition may worsen and then nobody where to find you.''

Above all, do not avoid the emergency department during a potential emergency. Call 911 if you have significant chest pain, extreme shortness of breath, a head injury, or if you lost consciousness or are actively bleeding from a trauma, Harmon said. Other symptoms that should not be ignored include an abnormal heart rate or a fluttering sensation in the chest, rapid changes or losses in vision or hearing, or signs of a stroke, such as weakness in one side of your body, Knight said.

The risk of suffering long-term harm from not getting diagnosed and treated for a severe medical condition ''is far greater than your risk of contracting covid in an emergency department, ''Hemmert said. ''We really do urge folks --- if you think you're having an emergency, go the emergency department.''

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The Washington Post. Photography.. 20 Years after 9/11, here's how the nation is remembering that day..

2021-09-11T08:29:00.000-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The Washington Post

Photography

In photos: 20 Years after 9/11, here's how the nation is remembering that day.

(Sep 11, 2021)

Events were held across the U.S. to mark the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 that shook the nation and propelled it into war in Afganistan and Iraq. President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, along with many other dignitaries as well as the public, attended the ceremoneis and remembrances throughout the day.

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Tina Berger looks at the One World Trade Center (reflected behind her) during the 20th anniversary of the Sep.11, 2001 attacks in New York City. This photo was taken at 8.46am EDT, exactly 20 years after the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York. (Reuters)

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A memorial flag is brought onto the stage during ceremonies to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacts in New York. (AP )

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Family members and loved ones of victims attend the commemoration ceremony in New York City. (GETTY IMAGES)

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Firefighters attend a ceremony at the FDNY Engine 1/Ladder 24 fire house in New York City. (REUTERS)

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(Left Right) former President Bill Clinton, former First Lady Hillary Clinton, former President Barack Obama, former First Lady Micchelle Obama, President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, former New York City Mayor Mihael Bloomberg, Bloober's partner Diana Taylor, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi(D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) stand for the national anthem during the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum. ( AP )

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Bruce Springsteen performs. (GETTY IMAGES)

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Firefighters in New York City. (REUTERS)

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A bell is rung as the victims names are read.(GETTY IMAGES)

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People listen as the namesof those who died on 9/11 are read. (GETTY IMAGES)

More from the Post.

9/11 anniversary live updates: America reflects, and mourns, on 20th anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks

These 'gut-wrenching, scary, spectacular'photos capture 9/11's trauma

The latest from The Washington Post.

Credits

Photo editing and production by Kenneth Dickerman

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U.S.News. Biden Shifts Coronavirus Vaccine Tone From Request to Demand, & much more..

2021-09-11T07:24:00.000-07:00

Diligence: Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra Alimpoutaki

U.S. News.

Biden Shifts Coronavirus Vaccine Tone From Request to Demand.

Biden made in his message clear: The unvaccinated minority of Americans is keeping the country from turning the corner on the pandemic.

President Joe Biden delivers remarks on plans to stop the spread of the Delta variant and boost COVID-19 vaccinations at the State Dinning Room of the White House, in Washington , DC on September 9, 2021.(GETTY IMAGES)

In a strongly worded 27-minute adress, President Joe Biden on Thursday announced new requirements to compel public and private employees to get the coronavirus vaccine and afterwark took no questions -- underscoring a change in tone from request to demand.

It markes the Biden administration's most dramatic steps to date to increase vaccine requirements. The U.S. is facing another surge of the pandemic fueled by the highly transmissible delta variant, averaging nearly 150.000 new coronavirus cases per day and roughly 1.500 deaths.

Biden made his message clear from the White House. The minority of Americans who wan't get the shot is keeping the country from turning the corner on the pandemic.

'' The unvaccinated overcrowd our hospitals or overrun emergency rooms and intensive care units, leaving no room for someone with a heart attack or pancreatitis or canser,'' Biden said.

Biden reiterated that COVID-19 is a ''pandemic of the unvaccinated'' adding that it is caused ''by the fact that despite America having unpresedented and successful vaccination programs, despite the fact that for almost five months, three vaccines have been available in 80.000 different locations, will steel have nearly 80 million Americans who have failed to get the shot.''

He made an emotional appeal to the unvaccinated, but he also gave every indication that his patience is wearing thin.

''Your refusal has cost all of us,'' Biden said. ''Please do the right thing. Don't take it from me -- listen to the voices of unvaccinated Americans who are lying in hospital beds taking their final breath saying,'' If only I'd gotten vaccinated.''

The new measures include an upcoming emergency rule from the Labor Department to require private sector companies with more than 100 employees to ensure workers get vaccinated against the coronavirus or face weekly testing before going to work. They also include executive orders requiring the majority of federal workers and constractors to get vaccinated against the coronavirus and eliminating previous options for avoiding inoculation. His post policy allowed for federal workers and contractors to undgo several mitigation measures, including masking and regular testing, if they didn't want to take the shot.

Biden's actions indicate a growing embrace of vaccine mandates --measures he initially shied away from.

He aslo called out elected officials who are ''actively working to undermine the fight against COVID-19'' without specifically naming anyone, and encouraged schools to require coronavirus shots, saying ''vaccination requirements for schools are nothing new.''

In total, the new vaccination requirements are expected to cover about two-thirds of all the workers in the U.S., or about 100 million Americans, according to the White House.

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U.S.News

What You Need to Know About Coronavirus Testing Now.

With schools reopening, crowds regathering and variants spreading, COVID-19 testing is booming.

( Sept. 10, 2021.)

CQ-ROLL CALL, INC VIA GETTY IMAGES)

If you thought the vaccine might reduce the demand for COVID-19 testing, think again. The Delta variant is on the rise and so is COVID-19 testing in hospitals, long-term care and other residential facilities.

Home COVID-19 test kits are flying off the shelves for people hoping for rapid results and peace of mind. have symptoms? Get tested.

Schools are offering testing to keep kids and teachers safe, sports teems are testing players and staff to prevent team-wide coronavirus clusters and employers want to make sure that workers aren't bringing the virus to the office.

Here's what you should know about COVID-19 testing for you and your family.

Who Gets Tested?

COVID-19 viral or diagnostic testing tells you whether you're infected with the coronavirus. People are tested for a variety of reasons including.

* COVID - 19 symptoms. Shortness of breath, dry cough, fever, unusual fatigue, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, diarrhea and lost sense of taste or smell are reasons to get tested (and contact you health care provider).

* Close contact with someone with confirmed COVID-19. Anyone who has been within 6 feet of an infected person for a combined 15 minutes over a 24-hour period is considered a close contact. Contact tracing typically leads to a referral for testing.

* Sports participation. Professional sports organizations including the NFL, NBA and NHL have strict COVID-19 testing requirements, and testing protocols were a key issue in Tokyo Olympics planning. Many university, public and private school sports require periodic testing to participate.

* In-person school attendance. As schools transition back from virtual classrooms to in-person learning, some after COVID-19 testing. Many college campuses are mandating testing for students.

* Working in health care facilities. Health care workers who have COVID-19 symptoms or have notbeen vaccinated need to be tested.

* Long-term care, group home and other facility residents. Staving off COVID-19 outbreaks continues to be a challenge in residential facilities for older adults and others.

* Vaccination exemption requirements. ''A lot of employers are putting in place vaccination mandates and testing employees who get religious or medical excemptions or exceptions to that policy,'' says Dr.Lisa Maragakis, senior director of infection prevention for the Johns Hopkins Health System and an associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore.

* Participating in high-risk activities. That includes mass gatherings like rallies, or crowded indoor settings like concerts or social functions -- while unvaccinated.

* Air travelers returning to the U.S. from abroad. International travelers must meet testing requirements ordered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as requirements at their individual destinations.

* How Testing Works

''The main two types of coronavirus testing for the public are PCR and atigen testing,'' Maragakis says. ''PCR -- the polymerase chain reaction test -- remains the gold standard for making the diagnosis of COVID-19. The other type that's available is an antigen test. Those are generally less sensitive at testing the virus but it's much faster to get results.''

Prescription tests are ordered by health care providers who identify that you need a test, determine the appropriate type of testing and explain what your results mean. Prescription tests can be done in settings such as a doctor's office, drive-thru testing facility or health department. Some prescription tests involve home sample collection or at-home tests.

Nonprescription tests, with either at-home sample collection or testing are purchased online or over the counter.

Different Types of Coronavirus Tests

* PCR testing

* Antigen testing

* Pooled testing

* Antibody testing

PCR Testing

PCR testing has the ability to extract and amplify genetic material from the coronavirus, so even tiny amounts of the viral RNA can be detected. A positive PCR result means you have the virus and are likely to be contagious.

The sample for a PCR test is typically obtained by a nose swab. The swab is quickly placed in your nose to collect a sample from your respiratory tract. Viral RNA extraction and testing is then performed in a specialized laboratory. PCR itself is a long-established lab technique, although the soecific PCR test to detect the coronavirus is new.

COVID-19 testing has become a standard, ongoing hospital service. ''Our testing operation at Stamford Hospital hasn't really changed since the get-go,'' says Dr. Asha Shah, director in the department of infectious diseases with Stamford Health and hospital epidemiologist at Stamford Hospital in Connecticut. ''We continue to provide PCR testing at one of our main hospital facilities. We also do a fair amount of testing here in our emergency room and immediate care center. So, we try to make it as accessible as possible to the community.''

Testing volume throughout the system has been reratively stable over the past several weeks, Shah says, '' but we did see a decline in the late spring and early summer, when our area of the country had a little bit of a reprieve,'' she says. ''People were getting tested for reasons such as for travel, or prior to going to school. As community transmissions started to rise, we saw a steady increase. This goes hand in han: more exposures, more people with symptoms, more testing required. For the past month, we've been doing about 1.700 tests per week.''

Testing methods haven't changed at Stamford Health, Shah says. ''We prefer to do nasopharyngeal swabs for PCR, which continues to be the gold standard for the diagnosis of COVID,'' he says. ''We have different variations on that type of technology -- different platforms that we use. ''We have different variations on that type of technology--different platforms that we use. We diversified so that we don't put all of our eggs in one basket, so to speak.''

Platforms are the instruments used to process patient's samples. Small, portable mobile platforms can be used at off-site points of care, while larger, facility-based devices are able to process many more tests at a time while still providing quick results.

PCR testing--with fewer false positives and false negative and so less uncertainty than antigen testing -- is preferable from Shah's perspective. '' I feel more comfortable knowing that our patients are only getting PCR testing through us,'' she says. ''And it also help us in terms of interpreting the data, because we look at the testing results every week and we make institutional decisions based on the numbers and the percent positivity. We make decisions about keeping our patients, staff and community safe based on those numbers. It just makes me sleep better at night knowing that we're using PCR here.''

Antigen Testing

Anigen testing for COVID-19 provides virtually instant results.

''Antigen tests are actually looking for a piece of viral protein,'' explains Peter Mohler, chief scientific officer for the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and the Ohio State University health sciences colleges.

''The antigen test is similar to what you would get with a rapid flu or rapid strep test,'' Mohler says. ''These are very fast, and you might get an answer back in 15 minutes.''

Antigen testing is less sensitive than PCR, Mohler explains. While a positive result tells that you have coronavirus and it's active, a negative result is not definitive. ''If it's negative, the CDC is recommending that it really needs to be followed up with the PCR test,'' he says.

Pooled Testing

Sometimes used for large groups where most results are expected to be negative -- like college dorm residents -- pooled testing combines samples obtained by swabbing to allow labs to test multiple samples at once. If the pooled test is positive, follow-up testing is done.

Although pooled testing minimizes total tests needed when the sample result comes back negative, a positive result requires each indivitual to undergo a second round of testing, since it's unknown who in the group is or isn't infected.

Antibody Testing

Antibody testing, also known as serology testing, requires a blood sample. It's used to reveal whether someone has previously been exposed to and developed a response to COVID-19.

Antibody lesting looks for the presence of antibodies, which are specific proteins your immune system produces in response to an infection. Some antibody tests are highly specific -- they measure not only whether you've had an immune response, but the strength of your response by the amount of antibodies you produced.

''Antibody tests don't really play a huge role for most people,'' Maragakis notes. ''There are certain circumstances where it could be helpfyl, if there's some question about whether someone had COVID in the past. Particularly for immunosuppressed patients, it can be helpful to see if they have responded to vaccination, and, of course, that's the group that's now eligible to get a third dose.''

Nasal Swabs and Children

Although it just takes a few seconds, the nasal-swabbing part of COVID-19 testing gives many people pause. Children (And adults) may sometimes balk at nasal testing, making it more difficult for parents in this situation.

''Depending on the age, it can be very challenging,'' says Dr. Diego Hijano, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. '' Certainly, it's a conversation. If they have symptoms, really, there is no way around it. You really need to take that test, because you want to be sure you can go to school and do other things without spreading the virus.''

After all, ''the swab is not something different than what we've done for other viruses before,'' Hijano points out. ''Many of these kids, when they were babies, actually got tested for other viruses, which of course they don't remember.''

Hijano suggests that parents prep a bit in advance, by doing a little research and looking at resources for parents on talking to kids about testing and reducing their anxiety. Many children's hospitals offer such parent information on their websites.

For kids who've been quarantined for COVID-related reasons, Hijano says, ''The test beomes a tool that schools and families can use to get kids back into their lives sooner.''

Getting the Sample

Whether you're getting tested at a drive-thru site or going the DIY route at home, here's what to know about COVID-19 testing samples:

* Nasal Swabs. Going through the nose to obtain mucus is the most-established method. If you're testing at home, the CDC has illustrated, step-by-step instructions for collecting your anterior nasal swab (right inside the nostrils) or nasal mid-turbinate swab (farther up the nose) sample.

* Oropharyngeal (throat) swabs. These are done through the mouth, with the sample taken from the middle part of the throat.

* Saliva samples. In saliva-based testing, you spit into a test tube. Although it's slightly less able to pick up the virus, it offers a more comfortable choice for some people. PCR testing using a saliva sample is almost as accurate as the standard nose-and-throat swab, according to a study from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, published September 8 in HRB Open Research...

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AP. TOP STORIES. US-built databases a potential tool of Taliban repression & more..

2021-09-07T05:03:00.004-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

AP TOP STORIES

US-built databases a potential tool of Taliban repression

(Today.)

BOSTON (AP) --- Over two decades, the United States and its allies spent hundreds of millions of dollars bulding databases for the Afghan people. The nobly stated goal: Promote law and order and government accountability and modernize a war-ravaged land.

But in the Taliban's lightning seizure of power, most of that digital apparatus --- including biometrics for verifying identities --- apparently fell into Taliban hands. Built with few data-protection safeguards, it risks becoming the high-tech jackboots of a surveillance state. As the Taliban get their governing feet, there are worries it will be used for social control and to punish perceived foes.

Putting such data to work constructively --- boosting education, empowering women, battling corruption --- requires democratic stability, and these systems were not architected for the prospect of defeat.

''It is a terrible irony,'' said Frank Pasquale, Brooklyn Law School scholar for surveillance technologies. ''It's a real object lesson in ''The road to hell is paved with good intentions.''

Since Kabul fell Aug. 15, indications have emerged that government data may have been used in Taliban efforts to identify and intimidate Afghans who worked with the U.S. forces.

People are getting ominous and threatening phone calls, texts and WhatsApp messages, said Neesha Suarez, constituent services director for Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, an Iraq War veteran whose office is trying to help stranded Afghans who worked with the U.S. find a way out.

A 27-year-old U.S. contractor in Kabul told The Associated Press he and co-workers who developed a U.S.-funded database used to manage army and police payrolls got phone calls summoning them to the Defence Ministry. He is in hiding, changing his location daily, he said, asking not to be identified for his safety.

In victory, the Taliban's leaders say they are not interested in retriution. Restoring international aid and getting foreign-held assets unfrozen are a priority. There are few signs of the draconian restrictions -- especially on woman -- they imposed when they ruled from 1996 t0 2001. There are also no indications that Afhans who worked with Americans have been systematically persecuted.

Ali Karimi, a Ubiversity of Pennsylvania scholar, is ammong Afgans unready to trust the Taliban. He worries the databases will give rigid fundamentalist theocrats, known during their insurgency for ruthlessly killing enemy collaborators, '' the same capability as an average U.S. government agency when it comes to surveillance and interception.''

The Taliban are on notice that the world will be watching how they wield the data.

All Afghans --- and their international partners --- have an obligation together to ensure sensitive government data only be used for ''development purposes'' and not for policing or social control by the Taliban or to serve other governments in the region, said Nader Nadery, a peace negotiator and head of the civil service commission in the former government.

Uncertain for the moment is the fate of one of the most sensitive databases, the one used to pay soldiers and police.

The Afghan Personnel and Pay System has data on more than 700.000 security forces members dating back 40 years, said a senior security official from the fallen government. Its more than 40 data fields include birth dates, phone numbers, fathers'and grandfather's names, fingerprints and iris and face scans, said two Afghan contractors who worked on it, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

Only authorized users can access that system, so if the Taliban can't find one, they can be expected to try to hack it, said the former official, who asked not to be identified for fear of the safety of relatives in Kabul. He expected Pakistan's ISI intelilligence service, long the Taliban's patron, to render technical assistance. U.S. analysts expect Chinese, Russian and Iranian intelligence also to offer such services.

Originally conceived to fight payroll fraud, that system was supposed to interface eventually with a powerful database at the Defence and Interior ministries modeled on one the Pentagon created in 2004 to achieve ''identity dominance'' by collecting figerprints and iris and face scans in combat areas.

But the homegrown Afghanistan Automated Biometric Identification Database grew from a tool to vet army and police recruits for loyalty to contain 8.5 million records, including on gevernment foes and the civilian population. When Kabul fell it was being upgraded, along with a similar database in Iraq, under a $75 million contract signed in 2018.

U.S. officials say it was secured before the Taliban could access it.

Before the U.S. pullout, the entire database was erased with military-grade data-wiping software, said William Graves, chief engineer at the Pentagon's biometrics project management office.

Similarly, 20 years of data collected from telecommunications and internet intercepts since 2001 by Afganistan's intelligence agency were wiped clean, said the former Afghan security official.

Among crucial databases the remained are the Afghanistan Financial Management Information Syatem, which held extensive details on foreign contractors, and an Economy Ministry database that compiled all international development and aid agency funding sources, the former security official said.

Then there is the data --- which iris scans and fingerprints for about 9 million Afghans --- controlled by the National Statistics and Information Agency. A biometric scan has been required in recent years to obtain a passport or a driver's license and to take a civil service or university entrance exam.

Western aid organizations led by the World Bank, one of the funders, praised the data's utility for empowering women, especially in registering land ownersgip and obtaining bank loans. The agency was working to create electronic national IDs, known as e-Tazkira, in a n unfinished project somewhat modeled on India's biometrically enabled Aadhaar national ID.

''That's the treasure chest,'' said aa Western election assistance official, speaking on condition of anonymity so as not to jeopardize future missions.

It is unclear whether voter registration databases --- records on more than 8 million Afghans --- are in Taliban hands, the official said. Full printouts were made during the 2019 presidential elections, though the biometric records used then for anti-fraud voter verification were retained by the Germa technology provider. After 2018 parliamentary elections, 5.000 portable biometric handhelds used for verification went inexplicably missing.

Yer another database the Taliban inherit contains iris and face scans and fingerprints on 420.000 government employees -- another anti-fraud measure -- which Nadery oversaw as civil service commissioner. It was eventually to have been merged with the e-Tazkira database, he said.

On Aug. 3, a government website touted the digital accomplishments of President Ashraf Ghani, who would soon flee into exile, saying biometric information on ''all civil servants, from every corner of the country'' would allow them to be linked ''under one umbrella'' with banks and cellphone carriers for electronic payment. U.N. agencies have also collected biometrics on Afghans for food distribution and refugee tracking.

The central agglomeration of such personal data is exactly what worries the 37 digital civil liberties groups who signed an Aug. 25 letter calling for the urgent shutdown and erasure, where possibe, of Afghanistan's ''digital identity tool,'' among other measures. The letter said authoritarian regimes have exploited such data '' to target vulnerable people'' and digitized, searchable databases amplify the risks. Disputes over including ethnicity and religion in the e-Tazkira database --- fo fearr it could put digital bullseyes on minorities, as China has done in repressing its ethnic Uyghurs --- delayed its creation for most of a decade.

John Woodward, a Boston University professor and former CIA officer who pioneered the Pentagon's biometric collecton, is worried about intelligence agencies hostile to the United States getting access to the data troves.

''ISI (Pakistani intelligence ) would be interested to know who worked for the Americans,'' said Woodward, and China, Russia and Iran have their own agendas. Their agents certainly have the technical chops to break into password-protected databases.

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AP News on the go

China's trade accelerates in August despite coronavirus

(today)

BEIJNG (AP) --- China's import and export growth accelarated in August despite disruptions due to the spread of the coronavirus's delta variant.

Exports rose 25.6% over a year earlier to $ 294.3 billion, up from July's 18.9% growth, customs data showed Tuesday. Imports rose 33.1% to $236 billion, up from the previous month's 28.7%.

That came despite lingering disruptions in industrial production chains due to last year's global economic shutdown and a renewed rise in infections in the United States and some other markets that has dampened consumer sentiment.

China has so far defied forecasts that export demand would level off as anti-disease controls eased, entertainment and other service industries reopened and foreign rivals returned to global markets.

'Exports and imports were much stronger than anticipated last month thanks to buoyant demand, even as the data point to some lingering supply shortages, '' Sheana Yue of Capital Economics said in report.

This year's trade figures are distorted by comparison with 2020. Global demand plunged in the first half after governments shut factories and shops to fight the pandemic. Chinese exporters reopened after the ruling Communist Party declared the virus under control in March 2020, while its foreign competitors were hampered by anti-virus curbs.

China's exports to the United States rose 15-5% in August over a year earlier to $51.7 billion, accelerating from July's 13.4% growth despite U.S. tariff hikes imposed in an enduring battle over Beijing's technology ambitions. Imports of American goods increased 33.3% to $14 billion, up from the previous month's 25.5% gain.

President Joe Biden, who took office in Januar, has yet to say whether he might roll back penalties imposed on Chinese imports by his predecessor, Donald Trump. Envoys from the two sides have talked byvideo link but have yet to announce a date for negotiations.

China's grobal trade surplus narrowed by 1% in August over a year earlier to $58.3 billion.

The politically volatile surplus with the United States widened by 10% to $37.7 billion.

Chinese exports to the 27-nation European Union declined 9.9% from a year ago to $46.2 billion while imports of European goods fell 22% to $25.3 billion. The trade surplus with Europe widened by 10.9% to $20.9 billion.

China's economic growth slowed to a still-robust 7.9% over a year earlier in the latest quarter as a rebound from the pandemic leveled off.

Economic growth in the April-June period compared with the previous quarter, the way other major economies report results, was 1.3% as factory and consumer activity returned to normal. That was up from the January-March period's 0.6% expansion over the final three months of 2020 but still among the past decade's weakest quarters.

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NASA. Media Invited to Virtual Briefing on Launch of NASA, USGS Landsat 9..

2021-08-27T17:38:00.002-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina) Joustra - Alimpoutaki.

NASA

Media Invited to Virtual Briefing on Launch of NASA, USGS Landsat 9.

(Aug. 27, 2021)

Officials from NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will discuss next month's planned launch of the Landsat 9 stellite during a media briefing at 10 a.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug.31.

The Lansat 9 aunch is targeted for no earlier than Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021. The media brifing will air live on NASA TV, the NASA app, and the agency's website.

Data from Landsat 9 will add to nearly 50 years of free and publicly available date from the Landsat program. The Landsat program is the longest-running enterprise for acquisition of satellite imagery of Earth. It is a joint NASA/USGS program. The Landsat program is the longest-running enterprise for acquisition of satellite imagery of Earth. It is a joint NASA/USGS program. Reaserchers harmonize Landsat data to detect the footprint of human activities and measure the effects of climate change on land over decades.

Once fully operational in orbit, Landsat 9 will replace Landsat 7 and join its sister satellite, Landsat 8, in continuing to collect data from across the planet every eight days. This calibrated data will continue the Landsat program's critical role in monitoring land use and helping decision-makers manage essential resources including crops, water resources, are forests.

Briefing participants, in speaking order, are:

* Karen St. Gemain, director of NASA's Earth Science Division

* Del Jenstrom, Landsat 9 project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

* Jeff Masek, Landsat 9 project scientist at Goddard.

* David Applegate, acting director of USGS

* Brigit Peterson, geographer at USGS

* Inbal Becker-Reshef, ditector of NASA's Harvest food security and agriculture program.

Media can RSVP and submit questions before and during the briefing by emailing Jacob Richmond at: Jaco.a.richmonf @nasa.gov.

NASA manages the Landsat 9 mission. Goddard teams also built and tested one of the two instruments on Landsat 9, the Thermal Infrared Sensor 2 (TIRS-2) instrument. TIRS-2 will use thermal imaging to make measurements that are used to calculate soil moisture and detect the health pf plants.

The USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, will operate the mission and manage the ground system, including maintaining the Landsat archive. Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado, built and tested the Operational Land Imager 2 (OLI-2)instrument, another imaging sensor that provides data in the visible, near infrared, and shortwave infrared portions of the spectrum. United Launsh Alliance is the rocket provider for Landsat 9's launch. Northrop Grumman in Gilbert, Arizona, built the Landsat 9 spacecraft, integrated it with instruments, and tested the observatory.

For more informatio about Landsat, visit: https://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov and https://www.usgs.gov/landsat

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The News & Observer..'It's exhausting. 'Second wave of COVID causes nursing shortage at Triangle Hospitals..

2021-08-27T16:39:00.004-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The News & Observer

'It's exhausting.' Second wave of COVID causes nursing shortage at Triangle hospitals

(AUGUST 27, 2021)

Katie Sessoms, RN, cares for COVID patients in the Medical Intensive Care Unit at UNC Hospital in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Friday, Aug.27, 2021. SSHARPE @ NEWSOBSERVER.COM

Early in the coronavirus pandemic, hospitals worried about not having enough ventilators, personal protective equipment and other tools to treat COVID-19 patients. The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services still tracks the number of hospital beds available in the state each day on its COVID-19 website.

BUt in time, hospital leaders said their bigger concern was having enough trained nurses, therapists and other workers to care for the patients in those beds.

Now, 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals say the shortage of health care workers is a bad as it's ever been. Turnover among a beleaguered workforce has gone up in recentmonths, and hospitals are struggling to recruit new employees and retain the ones they have.

'' I don't know of any major health care system in North Carolina right now that is not facing triple-digit shortages in terms of nursing personnel,'' said Dennis Taylor, a registered nurse at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem and president of the N.C.Nurses Association.

The shortages come as hospitals are pushed to capacity by a surge in COVID-19 patients. Statewide, the number of people hospitalized with the respiratory disease has grown from fewer than 400 in early July to 3.651 on Friday, according to DHHS.

Some hospitals report having to temporarily leave beds empty or postpone surgical procedures because they don't have enough staff. Others say they'd like to add beds to keep up with demand but don't have the workers to do it.

''You keep running into the staffing issue, ''said Dr. Seth Brody, chief physician executive at WakeMed Health and Hospitals. ''We can create all kinds of new space, but we have to have the staff that's adequately trained to take care of these critically ill patients.''

Hospitals are also hurt by the same labor shortages affecting restaurants, hotels and a host of other businesses; some hospitals say they're having trouble finding enough people to make and serve food and clean patient rooms.

But the shortages are most acute in nurses, nursing assistants and respiratory therapists. Hospital leaders say turnover in those jobs has gotten worse as the pandemic has intensified in its second year. After a recent spike in departures, the UNC Health system alone has more than 1.000 openings for registered nurses across its 12 hospitals.

Hospital workers say they're tired, frustrated and dismayed by this summer's resurgence of a disease they thought would fade with the arrival of vaccines. Erick Gonzalez, a registered nurse, started working in an intensive care unit at UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill right out of school a year ago.

''Mentally, physicall, emotionally, it's exhausting,'' Gonzalez said. ''It doesn't seem to stop. It just seems like it's progressively getting worse. I think I speak for a lot of us, it can be draining.''

Lee Stikeleather, a registered nurse who manages the emergency department at UNC's hospital in Clayton, said the stress of caring for people who are very sick with a contagious disease prompted many nurses to leave bedside jobs to work in telemedicine or for clinics, doctors offices or insurance companies. Stikeleather said others, including his wife, a registered nurse at Rex hospital in Raleigh, simply retired.

''People that could get out of it got out of it, ''he said.

Turnover in health care is a national problem. In a survey, Nursing Solution Inc. found that hospital staff turnover nationwide was 17.8% in 2019, then rose to 19.5% in 2020, the first year of the pandemic. Turnover in registered nurses at hospitals rose from 15.9% to 18.7%. And that was before the second wave of COVID-19 hit this year.

SHORTAGES LEAD TO CUBACKS IN CARE

Hospital leaders say they constantly reassessing their staffing needs and making adjustments hour by hour. At Duke Health's three Triangle hospitals, that means sometimes temporarily leaving beds unused or postponing non-emergency procedures to shift staff elsewhere, said Mary Ann Fuchs, the system's top nurse executive.

A team of nurses and respiratory therapists move a patient into the intensive care unit at Johnston UNC Health Care on Aug.19.2021 in Clayton, N.C.The 10-bed intensive care unit is completely full of COVID-19 patients.( RWILLETT@NEWSOBSERVER.COM )

''You balance what the patients need with the staff you have,'' Fuchs said. ''You may close down or temporarily close some areas to be able to provide staffing where you need it.''

UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill also kept some beds empty this week because it couldn't staff them, said spokesman Alan Wolf.

''With the increasing capacity demands because of the COVID surge, we are looking at ways to add more space for inpatients, '' Wolf wrote in an email. ''That ability to expand is hampered by staffing resources.''

UNC Medical Center hired 744 healthcare workers in April, May and June, up from 427 hires during a thee-month period last summer, said Scott Doak, the chief human resources officer. But with higher turnover, the medical center still had 321 fewer workers at the end of June than it did last summer, dropping to 8.525 employees.

The most common reason departing workers give for leaving is ''other employment,'' Doak said, followed a distant second by ''personal reasons.'' During exit interviews, UNC Health managers hear over and over from workers who are just worn after 18 months of COVID-19, said Dr. Wesley Burks, the CEO.

''And to add another spike like we're seeing on top of where we were, we're not rested like we were a year ago when the first major peak started,'' Burks said. ''So people are in a really different place. They're really tired.''

URSING SHORTAGE NOT A NEW PROBLEM

Hospitals have long stryggled to hire enough workers. That's particularly true in the Triangle, where a growing population helps drive up demand for health care. As the big three health systems open up new hospitals and clinics and expand their existing ones they must hire additional workers each year.

''Basicall there was a shortage already,''Fuchs said. ''COVID just complicated it, just made in worse.''

Duke hired 1.800 nurses in the past year, and lost 1.200, for a net gain of 600, Fuchs said. But it still has 650 positions that it's trying to fill, she said.

Nursing shortages are baked into the system in North Carolina, said Taylor, president of the nurses association. Nursing programs at the state's four -year and community colleges produce 5.000 to 6.000 nursing graduates a year, Taylor said, but the health care industry needs between 7.000 and 8.000 a year.

''So when you look at it, even if we filled every seat that we could in the nursing programs in North Carolina, we're still short,''he said.

One problem is that nursing education programs can't expand because they can't find enough faculty, Taylor said. In 200, a task force on the nursing workforce predicted a shortage of nurses if the state didn't increase pay for faculty, who can often make more money as practising nurses.

''So it's not like we didn't see this coming. '' Taylor said. ''We saw it coming as much as 16 or17 years agio.''

But the pandemic has made everything worse. In addition to the long hours and constant donning and doffing of face shields and respirators, workers are worried about bringing the virus home to their families, Taylor said. And they're weary from watching people suffer with COVID-19; more than 14.300 people have died of the disease, most of them in hospitals.

''Because there are surch restrictions on families visiting COVID-positive patients, often times that nurse is the only one that's going to be sitting there holding that patient's hand, when they take their last breath,'' Taylor said. ''So I think it's the emotional stress. It's the professional stress.''

MORE NURSES ARE 'TRAVELING' NOW

Once complicating factor in the staffing at hospitals is the role of travel nurse agencies, which recruit nurses and temporarily hire them out to hospitals where and when they're needed. As turnover increases, hospitals are leaning more on traveling nurses, said Jeronica Goodwin, WakeMed's senior vice president of human resources.

''We have increased our nurse agency use like everyone across the Triangle has,'' Goodwin said. ''I don't think any hospital across the nation could function right now without travelers.''

But traveling nurse agencies also help increase hospital turnover, because they pay so well. Fuchs says Duke lost 100 nurses in three months last winter to travel agencies.

''Many our nurses, our younger nurses especially, they choose travel nursing, and it's because they can make $4.000, $5.000. $6.000, $7.000 a week for being able to care for patients,'' she said. ''Now what that's doing for hospitals is putting them in a really tough situation financially.''

As the name implies, nurses who sign on to travel agencies usually go to another part of the country, where the need is greatest. But with everyone in need, nurses find they can work for atravel agency without leaving home.

Taylor says he knows of at least 10 nurses who have left their regular full-time jobs in recent months to become travel nurses.

''I'm talking about still working here in North Carolina, not having to relocate anywhere,'' he said. ''They're signing some of these short-term contracts that sometimes can be up to $6.000 0r $7.000 a week that they're being paid, which is sometimes significantly more than they would be making if they remained in their current full-time position.''

HOSPITALS OFFER RAISES, BONUSES AND MORE

Hospitals are trying all sorts of strategies to bring on more nurses and other health care workers. WakeMed has hired more recruiters and streamlined the hiring process and is holding more job fairs, Goodwin said.

Duke and UNC are offering up to $25.000 to pay off student loans for new hires, as well as relocation expenses and hiring bonuses. Fuchs and Duke is offering a 15.000 signing bonus for experienced nurses for the first time in 25 years.

Hospitals are also working to hang on to the workers they have. They're offering more flexible hours and assignments and providing more opportunities and bonuses for continuing education and training. Duke stress its supportive work environment, including adequate staffing levels of nurses and assistants so people don't feel as stressed.

''We really try to focus on having a good environment for people to practice,'' Fuchs said.

All Triangle hospitals have increased pay during the pandemic and given employees opportunities to earn more by taking on extra shifts. The UNC Health board recently approved a 2.5 % across -the-board raise to take effect in January, the second in a year.

Looming ahead, all three Triangle hospital systems are requiring employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to keep their jobs. As of now, as many as 25% of workers in some hospitals remain unvaccinated, and hospitals are working hard to persuade them to get their shots by Sept. 21 at UNC and Duke and Nov. 12 at WakeMed.

Brody at WakeMed said hospitals in other parts of the country that have required vaccination have in the end had few workers leave over it.

''But if your staffing is short and you're struggling with that already, you really dont want to lose any great front-line worker at all,'' he said. ''We hope no one leaves.''

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AP Week in Pictures: Europe and Africa..

2021-08-25T12:56:00.002-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki.

AP NEWS

AP Week in Pictures: Europe and Africa

(The Associated Press. August 20, 2021)

AUG. 13-19, 2021:

From extreme weather --- ranging from wildfires in Algeria to flood in Turkey --- to Zambian elections and refugees from Afganistan, as well as the international reaction to the ongoing situation there, this photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images made or published in the past week by The Associated Press from Europe and Africa.

The celection was curated by AP photographer Armando Franca in Lisbon.

People hold a poster demanding the securitu of girls and other people in Afganistan during a demonstration in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Aug.17. 2021. Several hundred people attented a demonstration to support an air bridge to bring people out of the Taliban-controlled country.

Fireman use a hose to extinguish a fire near Le Luc, southern France, Tuesday, Aug.17. 2021. Thousands of people fled homes, campgrounds and hotels near the French Riviera on Tuesday as firefighters battled a blaze that reced through nearby forests, sending smoke pouring down wooded slopes toward vineyards in the picturesque area. (Ap Photo)

A man looks at destroyed building, in Bozkurt town of Kastamonu province, Turkey, Saturday , Aug. 14, 2021. The death toll from severe floods and mudslides in coastal Turkey has climbed to at least 44, the country's emergency and disaster agency said Saturday. Torential rains that pounded the Black Sea provinces of Bartin, kastamonu and Sinop on Wednesday caused flooding that demolished homes, severed at lrast five bridges, swpt away cars and rendered numerous roads unpassable (AP photo)

A woman cools off in front of a water vapor fan during a heatwave in Madrid, Spain, Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021. Temperatures were set to hit a maximum of 46 degrees Celsuis in Spain on Saturday, as tghe country sweltered on the hottest day of the year so far. (Ap Photo).

A child cheers during the gay pride march in Buchares, Romania, Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021. Several thousand LGBT supporters took to the streets in the Romanian capital of Bucharest Saturday for a gay pride parade which resumed after a year's pause due to the pandemic. (AP Photo)

Youths hand out on a balcony in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Aug.14,2021. Temperatures were set to hit a maximum of 46 degrees Celsius in some parts of Spain on Saturday, as the country sweltered on the hottest day of the year so far. (Ap Photo)

A helicopter participates in a wildfire extinguishing operation, in Koycegiz, Mugla, Turkey, Monday. Aug. 9, 2021. Wildfires in Turkey, described as Turkey's worst in living mamory, started on July 28 amid a ferocious heatwave and raged on for days across more than half of Turkey 's provinces. At least eight people and countless animals have been killed and villages and resorts had to be evacuated, with some people fleeing to beaches to be rescued by sea. (AP Photo).

A small truck and motorcycle drive though a charred forest after a fire near the village of Achlouf, in the Kabyle region, east of Algiers, Friday, Aug.13, 2021. Dozens of fires began devouring forested mountainsides in the Berber region of Kabyle Monday. |The President declared a three-day mourning period to honor the lives lost. (AP Photo)

Supporters of Zambia's main opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema gather outside the party's offices, in Lusaka, Zam Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021. Early election results in Zambia show opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema ahead in a tight, tense race while the national Electoral Comnission has urged people to wait for the final official results to avoid any unrest.(Ap/photo)

Holiday makers refresh themselves in Adriatic sea in Dubrovnik, Croatia, Friday, Aug. 13, 2021. Stifling heat is gripping much of Southern Europe, with peak temperatures reaching over 40 degrees Celsiu(104 degrees Fahrenheit) and forecasters saying the worse is yet to come.( AP Photo).

AP montthly staff photo contest

Each month The Associated Press honors photographers for outstanding coverage while on asssignment.

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The Seattle Times. Coronavirus daily news, August 23, What to know today about COVID-19.,

2021-08-23T12:43:00.002-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The Seattle Times

Coronavirus daily news updates, August 23: What to know today about COVID-19 in the Seattle area, Washington state and the world.

(Aug. 23, 2021.)

Thousands of fans of music festivals stage a protest in Amsterdam, Netherland, against the government's COVID-19..(The Associated Press)

By Seattle Times staff & news services

Washington's statewide mask mandate goes into effect today. After nearly ywo months when most of the state's COVID-related restrictions had dropped awy, Gov.Jay Inslee reinstituted a mask mandate for almost all indoor public places.

We're updating this page with the latest news about the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the Seattle area, the U.s. and the world.

NAVICATING THE PANDEMIC

* How to properly wear a face mask to slow the spread of coronavirus.

* How to improve your mask's protection against COVID-19: Do's and don'ts

* The delta variant and kids: Parent's questions on school, masks answered

Pregnant, unvaccinated and intubated: Doctors alarmed by rise in virus cases among expectant mothers

More young and healthy pregnant people are ending up hospitalized on ventilators, delivering babies prematurely and sometimes dying from COVID-19 during the data-fueled spike in cases.

Doctors across the country are reporting this trend, not seen in previous surges, largely in the South but also in states like California and Washington. As of Aug. 14, 76.2% of pregnant people were unvaccinated.

Pregnant women with COVID-19 are 15 times more likely to die, 14 times more likely to need to be intubated, and 22 times more likely to have preterm birth than those who are uninfected, according to a study published this month on JAMA Network Open.

Though youngand healthy, unvaccinated father dies of COVID

Healthy and in their 30s, Christina and Josh Tidmore figured they were low-risk for COVID-19. With conflicting viewpoints about whether to get vaccinated against the virus filling their social madeia feeds and social circles, they decided to wait.

This photo provided by Christina Tidmore shows Josh Tidmore Wednesday, Aug.11, 2021 at Marshall.(AP)

On July 20, Josh came home from work with a slight cough iniatially thought to be sinus trouble. On Aug. 11, he died of COVID-19 at north Alabama hospital as Christina Tidmore witnessed a doctor and her team frantically try to resusciatate her husband.

''She would say, Í need a pulse. Í would hear, 'no pulse,'Cristina Tidmore said through tears. '' They were trying so hard.''

''Nobody should go through this. He was only 36 and I'm 35 and we have three kids.''

She is now imploring young adults not to dismiss the risk and to consider getting vaccinated.

''Josh was completely healthy, active, not a smoker. '' He would have turned 37 on Saturday.

Oregon ran a lean healthcare system. The latesst COVID surge is taking it to the brink

For decades, Oregon's health system was envired across the nation.

Managed care organizations enrolled a large share of the population. The Oregon Health Plan, conceived in the 199os, made care more available to the working poor.

The system ran lean. Reformers emphasized primary and preventive care, allowing the state tomoperate with the fewest hospital beds per capita in the nation.

Then came the latest coronavirus surge. With the Delta variant sweeping through the state, the scarcity of beds in suddenly a liability.

Hospitals rural areas with low vaccination rates have run out of space, leaving COVID-19 patients backlogged on beds in emergency-room hallways, waiting for admission to maxed-out intensive care units.

Patients from the southwest corner of Oregon, which has borne the brunt of the surge, were being transported to larger cities. But even urban hospitals were struggling tho handle the state's fifth wave of COVID-19.

'' We have parients that have died in emergency departments waiting for beds,'' said Becky Hultberg, president and chief executive of the Oregon Assn. of Hospitals and Health Systems. ''In parts of Oregon, we are looking at a system in a state of collapse.''

Pentagon to mandate COVID-19 vaccine, as Pfizer is approved

The Pentagon says it will require service members to receive the COVID-19 vaccine now that the Pfizeraccine has received full approval.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Monday that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is making good on his vow earlier this month to require the shots once the Food and Drug Administration approved the vaccine.

In a memo Aug. 9, Austin said he'd seek the president's approval to make the vaccine mandatory no later than mid-September, or immediately upon FDA licensure ''whichever comes first.''

Tokyo opens oxygen station for COVID patients as cases surge

People wearing face masks to help protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk on a street in Tokyo Monday, Aug. 23,2021.(AP Photo)

Japan on Monday opened a temporary facility in Tokyo to provide oxygen for up to 130 coronavirus patients with mild symptoms, as the capital's health care system grows severely strained.

The so-called ''oxygen station'' in Tokyo's Shibuya district is aimed at people who develop a problem while isolating at home or waiting for hospital vacancies, and is staffed by three doctors and 25 nurses.

The idea is to temporarily treat mild cases with supplementary oxygen amid growing concerns that people may get sicker -- and possibly start dying at home-- in the absence of medical attention.

Texas congressman Nehls says he tested positive for COVID-19

U.S.Rep. Troy Nehls of Texas says that he's tested positive for COVID-19 and has moderate symptoms.

Nehls, a Republican from the Houston area, said Saturday that he is fully vaccinated and hopes the symptoms pass soon.

''All Americans are free to make their own health decisions, but I strongly encourage getting vaccinated,'' he wrote on Twitter Saturday. ''It is scientifically proven to drastically reduce the risk of severe illness & death from COVID.''

Texas Gov. Greg Abbot announced Tuesday that he'd tested positive for the virus. He claims that he has now tested negative.

New Zealandextends virus lockdown; Australia eyes vaccines

New Zealand's government on Monday said it will extend a strict nationwide lockdown until at least Friday as it tries to extinguish a growing coronavirus outbreak.

The news came as health authorities reported 35 new local infections of the fast-spreading delta variant, the highest number of daily COVID-19 cases in New Zealand since April last year.

First discovered last week, the outbreak has grown to 107 cases. But health authorities say they've found links among most of those cases, giving them hope they can quash the outbreak. Authorities said they've tested about 3% of the nation's entire population over the past six days.

US regulators give full approval to Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

FILE -- In thisMarch 2,2021, file photo, pharmacy technical Hollie Maloney loads a syringe with Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine..(AP Photo)

The U.S gave full approval to Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, a milestone that may help lift public confidence in the shots as the nation battles the most contagious coronavirus mutant yet.

The vaccine made by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech now carries the strongest endorsement from the Food and Drug Administration, which has never before had so much evidence to judge a shot's safety. More than 200 million Pfizer doses already have been administered in the U.S. --- and hundreds od millions more worldwide --- since emergency use began in December.

The U.S. become the first country to fully approve the shot, according to Pfizer, and CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement he hoped the decision ''will help increase confidence in our vaccine, as vaccination remains the best tool we have to help protect lives.''

Catch up on the past 24 hours

Mask up whether you're vaccinated or not, because Washington sate's new mask mandate goes into effect today for everyone age 5 and up. Here's where masks are required and where they aren't.

If you have unvaccinated kids, act like ''nobody in the household'' is vaccinated, pediatric experts in Washington state urge. As we head into back-to-school season with the more contagious delta variant changing the landscape, they're outlining the safety measures you can take, what schools are doing --- and how to talk with your kids about this.

Full FDA approval of Pfizer's vaccine may come today, another chapter in Americans' bewildering crash cource in scientific uncertainty. Researchers are learning about the virus at lightning speed, with their disagreements, debates and blindalleys'' illuminated under an unusually public spotlight. But what they have not done is explain, in ways that the average person can understand, that this is how science has always worked.

Where King County residents aren't getting vaccinated:FYI Guy broke down vaccine hesitancy by ZIP code, finding that it's fading somewhat -- but pockets of high resistance remain.

''Every single hallway has beds in it'' in a Mississippi hospitals as COVID-19 cases overwhelm the Gulf Coast, with unvaccinated patients dying one after another. You can track the spread of the virus on these maps.

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MORNING BREW. COVID, The Washington Post. Photos: The scene in Haiti in the aftermath of a earthquake..

2021-08-22T05:42:00.006-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

MORNING BREW

COVID

COVID Resurgence Leads to Event Cancellations and Office REturn Delays

The Delta variant now accounts for more than 98% of new cases in the US

Giphy

Remember that website isitcancelledyet.com from last spring that documented all of the events that were postponed due to Covid? It might have to make a comeback. A groeing number of performes, conferences, and companies are switching up their plans on account of the recent Delta-fueled wave.

Concerts:

* Bad news for the 40.8 million-strong BTS ARMY: Their beloved K-pop supergroup officially canceled its upcoming world tour.

* Country star Garth Brooks also canceled the next five cities on his tour.

Events:

* The Fed's annual Jackson Hole symposium, set to begin next week in Wyoming, will take place virtually.

* VidCon, the convention that brings together online creators and their fans in Ahaheim, CA, was canceled for the second year in a row.

* The New York International Auto Show, which was supposed to start yesterday, didn't.

Return-to-office:

* A delayed its plans to bring employees back to the office until Janyary 2022.

* IBM temporarily losed its NYC offices amid rising cases.

Zoom out: Try as it might, Delta can't stop everything. NYC's big holecoming concert, featuring Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer Hudson, The KIllers, and more A-listers, is going ahead tonight as planned in Central Park.

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MORNING BREW

GRAB BAG

Key Performance Indicators: August 21

The viral picture showing Afghan citizens being evacuated out of Kabul Sunday night is also one for the history books

(AUGUST 20, 2021)

US Air Force

STAT: The viral picture showing Afgan citizens being evacuated out of Kabul Sunday night is also one for the history books. 823 people were on that C-17 cargo plane, nearly 200 more than wea first reported, making it the largest numbr of passengers ever transported by the C-17 in its history.

Quote: ''Happy Friday, y'all!''

What actor LeVar Burton, a guest host of Jeopardy! and someone who has very publicly lobboed for the permant role, tweeted yesterday morning.

Read: An oral history of Adam Sandler, pickup basketball legend. (Mel Magazine)

---------------------------------

The Washington Post

Photography

Photos: The scene in Haiti in the aftermath of a major earthquake

( By Eashington Post staff| August 21, 2021)

Survivors of a powerful earthquake in Haiti scrambled for shelter, food amd medical supplies as officials ackowleged that they deadly temblor had distrupted vaccination efforts, and the aftermath of Tropical Storm Grace continued to snarl already feeble relief efforts, worsening a dire humanitarian crisis and fueling anger.

Aug. 21

People carry coffins during the funeral of four family members, in Marceline near Les Cayes. (REUTERS)

Aug. 20

Doctor Geraldine Chery examines a boys head at L'Saile Community Hospital as woman in a hat looks on, in L'Saile(THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug. 19

Dust and debris from the recent earthquake cover a room at Seminaire Collage de Mazenod in Camp-Perrin.(THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug. 19

School chairs are surround by debris from the recent earthquake at Evangelical Baptist School of Picot, in Camp-Perrin(THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug.19 A pedestrian walks over a crack that cuts across National Highway 7, in Camp-Perrin. (THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug. 19. People on a motor bike ride past Eglise De Dieu, in Camp-Perrin.(THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug.19. A man searchers for belonging at the home of his mother and aunt, in Camp-Perrin.(THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug.18. People walk by buildings destroyed by the earthquake outside Les Cayes. The quake, which struck last week in the southwest area of Haiti, has killed more than 1.900 people.(THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug.18. The rubble of a destroyed home in LÁsile. THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug. 18. Toys are seen outside the destroyed home of Alvena Yolette Dormistoire in LÁsila. She suevived the earthquake along with her daugter, Nael, and husband, but her son Mael was killed. (THE WASHINGTON POST).

Aug.18. A man holds 13-month-old Nael, who suvived the earthquake in LÁsile. Nael's twin brother, Mael, did not. (THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug.18. People attend a funeral for Defrygny Barbier in LÁsile. Barbier was killed by a landslide during the earthquake. (THE WASHINGTON POST)

Aug. 18. A man sits outside St. Joseph's Catholic Church, which was damaged in the earthquake in LÁsile.(THE WASHINGTON POST).

Aug.18. Improvised structures, set up residents displaced by the earthquake, fill an area next to a school in Les Cayes. (AP)

August.18. A girl stands inside a classroom, where her family is staying, at a school turned into a shelter in Les Cayes for those displaced by the earthquake. (AP)

Aug.18. A man carries boxes of city government food aid for displaced residents in Les Cayes.(AP).

Aug. 18. Residents walk on a damaged road in Rampe.(AP)

Aug. 18. A man walks over rubble covering a road in River Glass after a landslide was triggered by the earthquake, four days earlier. (AP).

Aug. 18. Drivers negotiate a mountainside road cluttered with debris from a landslide in Rampe. (AP)

Aug.17. An earthquake-displaced woman sits under a piece of plastic in a field the morning after Tropical Storm Grace swept over Les Cayes.(AP)

Aug. 17. Earthquake-displaced people sit under blankets to shield themselves from rain the morning after Tropical Storm Grace swept over Les Cayes.(AP)

Aug.17. A man repairs a tarp damaged by the passing of Tropical Storm Grace at a makeshift camp in Les Cayes.(REUTERS)

Aug.17. A man walks along a road in a slightly flooded area of Tout Mahot. (AP)

Aug. 17. Earthquake-displaced people are exposed to the elements the morning after Tropical Storm Grace swept over Les Cayes.(AP)

Aug.17. Two women shelter from the rain under a tarp in a makeshift camp in Les Cayes after Tropical Storm Grace passed though the area. (REUTERS)

Aug.16

People affected by Saturday's earthquake walk under the rain of TRopical Depression Grace at a refugee camp in Les Cayes. (AP)

Aug. 16. People leave as Tropical Storm Grace hits a refugee camp at a football field called Parc Lande de Gabion, in Les Cayes.(GETTY IMAGES)

Aug.16. A woman cries as Tropical Storm Grace hits a refugee camp at a football field called Parc Lande de Gabion, in Les Cayes.(GETTY IMAGES)

Aug. 16. A woman affected by Saturday's earthquake recovers her belongings under the rain of Tropical Depression Grace at a refugee camp in Les Cayes.(AP).

Aug.16. A child, center left, cries as he waits for a sack of rice being distributed to residents in Les Cayes, two days after an earthquake struck Haiti.(AP)

Aug. 16. A woman walks through the rubble of a collapsed hotel in Les Cayes. (AP)

Aug.16. People stand near debris of a collapsed building in Les Cayes. (GETTY IMAGES)

Aug.16. Injured people are assisted in the surroundings of the general hospital in Les Cayes due to the lack of available beds. (EPA-EFE/ REX / SHUTTERSTOCK).

Aug.15. A woman carries her child as she walks through the remains of her home destroyed by the earthquake.(AP)

Aug.15. Red Crossparamedics carry an injured girl.

Aug.14. Men work to retrieve the body of a girl buried in the rubble of a house in the aftermath of the earthquake in Les Cayes.(AP)

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U.S.N.News. Strapped by Shortage and Hit With Departures, Nurse Corps Swamped by Another COVID.,& more

2021-08-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

U.S.News

Strapped by Shortage and Hit With Departures, Nurse Corps Swamped by Another COVID Wave

Already shorthanded, the nation's nurses are fighting burnout along with another surge in coronavirus cases.

(Aug. 19, 2021)

A patient rests in a corridor waiting for a room at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzan, Calif., on Jan. 3, 2021. With hospitals again running out of ICU bedspace, administrators are dealing with a shortage of nurses.( GETTY IMAGES)

An intesive care nurse trained in infectious disease treatment, Alexander had spent some two months working marathon shifts in an ICU ward in the San Francisco Bay Area, just as the first tsunami of COVID-19 patients began. Though she had volunteerd, she recalls, the samewas apocalyptic: beds, ventilators, protective gowns, facemasks and even mortuary space were all scare, but the patients kept coming. And the end was nowhere in sight.

After yet another shift in the ''meat grinder'' that day, Alexander says, '' I had a breakdown at work. I started crying, and I pretty much coundn't stop. And I basically didn't stop crying for, like, three or four weeks.

Intense psychotherapy helped, but the post-traumatic stress disorder was so severe that ''stupid things would trigger me to cry,'' Alexander says, including a dead houseplant. In chats with colleagues, one question recurred: Why stay in a hard, dangerous, seemingly thankless job?

''Nurses are considered one of the most trusted professions,'' Alexander says, but she wasn't feeling the administration --not after grueling, marathon shifts, scrounging for personal protective equipment, and self-isolating at home to protect loved ones from infection. ''We were like, 'No, actually, nobody cares If we live or die.'And that was really stunning for us.''

Alexander's story, while dramatic, isn't unique. The nation's nursing corps -- already under pressure due to a staffing shortage that predates the pandemic -- is in crisis now that a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases has crashed into U.S. health care system.

With hospitals in the U.S. again running out of ICU bed space, administrators are dealing with a shortage of nurses, scrambling to fill shifts and offering high wages to those who can help. The problem comes as the crushing workload of the coronavirus pandemic, coupled with external and on-the-job pressures, have led some nurses to simply step down altogether.

Both data and anecdotes confirm that front-line nurses are burned out, fed up and feeling underappreciated. While the shortage in their field has resulted in hospitals paying top dollar for experienced care, a mass exodus of nurses could be on gthe horizon.

'' The bravery and dedication of America's nurses have been displayed in front-page newpaper stories across the country throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,'' according to a May review of the nation's nursing shortage published by the University of St.Augustine School for Health Sciences. ''However, the pandemic has also been a huge strain on nurses and the healthcare system.''

The converging crises carry significant consequences for patients as well as nurses themselves. Research indicates stressed out nurses are more likely to make mistakes in caring for patients. Already a profession with a significant risk of suicide and substance abuse, experts say the pressure of a once-in-a-century health crisis doesn't help lower those odds.

Amy Witkoski Stimpfel, an assistant professor in the Roy Meyers College of Nursing at New York University, says the circumstances have been ''really demoralizing'' for nurses still on the job. Early in the pandemic, many reported worrying short-handed and being afraid to go to work.

''After being on the front lines, and just witnessing the types of death that have been so, so traumatic and awful, I could certainly see that this would be the point where people were thinking about getting out of direct patient care, or perhaps thinking about a new career altogether,'' she says.

Linda McCauley, dean of the Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University, was more succinct. ''I weas talking to a chief nursing officer just last week,'' McCauley recalls, '' and she said, Í just don't know if we have the resiliency to go through this again.''

A servey of nurses by Vivian, a health care worker marketplace, a year into the pandemic helps illustrate the scope of the problem. Among respondents, 43% were consisidering quitting, and that share rose to nearly half among intensive care nurses -- specialists routinely called on to care for COVID-19 patients.

By comparison, other pandemic surveys have shown that around 20% to 30% of health care workers said they were thinking of leaving.

The increased stress on nurses, experts say, is related to several factors. Bedside nurses typically have close contact with patients, putting them at risk of contracting COVID-19. Adding to the pressure and a already - existing shor tage: an expected increase of retirements in an aging nursing work force and an ongoing struggle to balance an essential, fron -line job with the responsibility of catring for young children or eldery parents.

At the same time, the need for caregives across a multitudeof health care specialties also has run into the system's failure to reolenish the workforce, with sme 80.000 qualified applications to nursing schools rejected in 2020 ''due primarily to a shortage of clinical sites, faculty, and resource constraints,'' according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

Last year, when the first wave of COVID-19 patients threatened U.S hospitals, some sounded the alarm about a looming staffing shortage.

''Recent analyses have raised concerns about whether the United States has enough hospital capacity for a surge of patients needing care for COVID-19 infections,'' reads a March 2020 blog post authored by the University of California -San Francisco's Joanne Spetz and published by Health Affairs. '' But even if we can double or trible the number of intensive care unit beds, we don't have enough nurses to staff them.''

The stress on nurses further intensified when schools shut down last spring.: Some undoubtedly were caught between their roles as caregivers during a major health crisis and parents trying to figure out what to do with kids stuck at home.

Women often bear the brunt of child care and other home responsibilities, and Stimpfel, of NYU, points out that nursing is ''still a very female-dominated profession.'' The highly contagious coronavirus, she adds, made some nurses take drastic steps to protect their families, compounding the difficulties.

''We had nurses that were living in hotels and living apart from their children and making additional sacrifices,'' Stimpfel says. '' They were not only on the front lines, taking care of patients, but they saying, ''I can't go home to my family, I can't see my children, I can't see my parent.''

According to an American Nurses Foundation survey in early 2021, 59% of nurses believed they put their patients'needs ahead of their own. Less than half of respondents agreed that their employer understood their outside responsibilities and offered support or flexibility to help meet them.

Perhaps encouragingly, 18% odf respondents said they planned to leave their position in the next six months -- many because of their work's negative impact on their health and well-being- just 4% said they planned to leave the profession entirely.

Still, in the 2021 lull after vaccines became available, some nurses quit, and hospitals sought to make up for lost revenue by trimming staff through attrition, Stimpfel says.

'''Then they never regained those staffing positions,'' she says. ''So there's frustration that administrators may not have ''been putting enough resources into restaffing whene there were staff available.''

During earlier waves, hospitals also sent some nurses into COVID-19 wards to help out even if they were trained for other specialties. But Stimpfel says asking a neonatal nurse to work in the ICU with a COVID-19 patient- a high-risk environment involving possible exposure to a potentially deadly contagion - was a big ask.

'' Not all nurses are trained in critical care,'' she says. ''There are different specialties that nurses are prepared for, and you can't prepare a nurse to take care of these intensely ill patients, and do that overnight. That was still such a leap for them to be put into that sort of situation.''

Meanwhile, colleges and nursing schools are urged to expand capacity to graduate more caregivers, with experts saying the more trained hands working in a COVID-19 ward, the better. In a recent speech to graduates, McCauley, the Emory nursing schol dean, says she compared the class to soldiers on the front lines of a battle: ''I said, I'n ways, you remind me of my colleagues when I graduated:nurse that we were serving in the Vietnam War.''

The new nurses ''are walking into a workforce where eveyrone is exhausted,'' McCauley says. ''These new graduates can hold up that workforce just with their youth, their enthousiasm. They're willing to go the extra mile.''

Still, McCauley acknowledges that in battling a virus that's mutated to become more contagious, youthful enthousiasm isn't a substitute for the ''wisdom and professionalism'' that comes with experience. And, she says, treating COVID-19 patients who got sick because they chose not to get vaccinated -- and may have spread the virus to other people -- can be disheartening.

During this fourth wave, nearly all of those hospitalized ''are unvaccinated people,'' she says. ''The saddest thing is the children -- unvaccinated children whose parents could not get them vaccinated, even if they wanted to, '' because a vaccine isn't approved for young children yet.

Ultimately, experts say, nurses nationwide will need someone to care for them to help keep more of them on the job.

For those currently in the profession, ''there just needs to be a lot more support... to help care for the nurses that are going to carry around this long-trauma,'' Stimpfel says. ''It's just impossible to go through this crisis, and then repeat the crisis, and not have anybody caring and helping the front-line workers to process it, and to get through it in a healthy manner.''

But it could take years before staffing levels get to a better place.

''There are some experts that could probably model it better than I can, but I would say it's going to be at least six to 10 more years before we get over this,'' Stimpfel says. '' And that's because of factors that were already in play before COVID.''

Alexander, the Bay Area ICU nurse, is frank.

''We are all super, super messed up,'' she says.

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U.S.News

Biden Ramps Up Push for COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements

The president is attempting to walk a fine line between getting more Americans to take the shot and avoiding pushback.

(Aug. 19, 2021)

President Jow Biden speaks from the East Room of the White House inWashington, Wednesday, Aug 18, 2021, on the COVID-19 response and vaccination program. (AP)

President Biden this week ramped up his push for COVID-19 vaccine requirements while indicating he will continue to find ways to get Americans to take the shot. And with vaccination rates on the rise, his efforts might be working.

''While I;m mindful that may authority at the federal level is limited, I'm going to continue to look for ways to keep people safe and increase vaccination rates,'' Biden said on Thursday after announcing that nursing home staff must be inoculated against COVID-19 for their facilities to continue to receive Medicare and Medicaid funding.

It's the president's latest push for vaccine requirements while he walks a fine line between mandating more people to get the shot and avoiding pushback. Three weeks ago, he told millions of federal workers that they will have to attest to ther vaccination against the coronavirus or undergo several mitigation measures, including masking and regular testing. He also directed the Defense Department to look into requiring vaccines for the military, which it is expected to do as soon as next month.

Biden aims to set an example for the private industry and prompt more vaccine requirements from employers. And it may be working.

''I'm pleased to see the private sector stepping up as well,'' Biden said. ''In the last week, AT&T, Amtrak McDonald's -- they all announced vaccine requirements.''

While the president has ramped up his vaccine messaging in recent weeks, he has continually shied away from the idea of a nationwide vaccinr requirement, likely anticipating the strong pushback such a measure would mount. The governors of Florida and Texas, among others, have repeatedly criticized Biden's orders and doubled down on their own efforts to ban vaccine and mask mandates in their states.

Meanwhile, vaccination rates have been steadily increasing early July. The seven -day average of new doses administered is the highest it has been since late June at over 655.000.

While vaccine requirements are likely behind some of the increase, mounting concerns over the highly contagious delta variant are another probably source. The variant accounts for over 98% of all sequenced cases in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations are on the rise, with some states reporting few to zero available intesive care unit beds.

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AP. Taliban violently disperse..The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. TOMORROW IS A DIFFERENT..

2021-08-18T07:06:00.002-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

AP NEWS on the go

Taliban violently disperse rare protest days after takeover

(24 minutes ago)

KABUL, Afganistan (AP) --- The Taliban violently broke up a protest in eastern Afganistan on Wednesday, quashing a rae public show of dissent as they met with Afghan from the Western-backed government they toppled.

The insurgents'every action in their sudden sweep to power is being watched closely. They insist they have changed and won't impose the same draconian restrictions they did when they last ruked Afghanistan, all but eliminating women's rights, carying out public executions and harboring al Qaida in the years before the 9/11 attacks.

But many Afghans remain deeply skeptical, and the violent response to Wednesday's protest could only fuel their fears. Thousands are racing to the airport and borders to flee the country. Many others are hiding inside their homes, fearful after prisons and armories were emptied during the insurgents'blitz across the country.

Dozens of people gathered in the eastern city of Jalalabad to raise the national flag a day before Afghanistan's Independence Day, which commemorates the end of British rule in 1919. They lowered the Taliban flag --- a white banner with an Islamic inscription --- that the miliatants have raised in the areas they captured.

Videp footage later showed the Taliban firing into the air and attacking people with batons to disperse the crowd. Babrak Amirzada, a reported for a local news agency, said he and a TV cameraman from another agency were beaten by the Taliban as they tried to cover the unrest.

Meanwhile, videos from the Panjshir Valley north of Kabul, a stronghold of the Northern Alliance militias that allied with the U.S. against the Taliban in 2001, appear to show potential opposition figures gathering there. It's unclear if they intend to challenge to the Taliban, who seized most of country in a matter of days last week.

The Taliban, meanwhile, pressed aheaf with their efforts to form an ''inclusive, Islamic government. '' They have been holding talks with former President Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, a senior official in the outsted government. Mohammad Yusof Saha, a spokesman for Karzai, said preliminary meetings with Taliban officials would facilitate eventual negotiations with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the top Taliban political leader, who returned to the country this week.

Karzai and Abdullah met Wednesday with Anas Haqqani, a senior leader in a powerful Taliban faction. The U.S. branded the Haqqani network a terrorist group in 2012, and its involvement in a future government could trigger international sanctions.

Amid the uncertainty, thousands of Afghans have tried to flee the country in recent days, and the U.S. and its allies have struggled to manage a chaotic withdrawal from the country.

Hundreds of people were outside the airport early Wednesday. The Taliban demanded to see documents before allowing the rare passenger inside. Many of the people outside did not appear to have passports, and each time the gate opened even an inch, dozens tried to push through. The Taliban fired occasional warning shots to disperse them.

In Kabul, groups of Taliban fighters carrying long guns petrolled, a well-to-do neighborhood that is home to many embassies as well as mansions of the Afghan elite.

The Taliban have promised to maintain security, but residents say grous of armed men have been going door to door inquiring about Afghans who worked with the Americans or the deposed government. It's unclear if the gunmen are Taliban or criminals posing as militants.

Another Taliban promise being closely watched is their vow to prevent Afghanistan from again being used as a base planning terrorist attacks. That was enshrined in a 2020 peace deal with the Trump administration that paved the way for the drawdown of American troops, the last of whom are supposed to leave at the end of the month.

When the Taliban were last in power they sheltered Osama bin Laden and his al-Quida group, which carried out the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks U.S. officials fear al -Qaida andother groups could reconstitute themselves in Afghanistan now that the Taliban are back in power.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan, the Taliban blew up a statue depicting Abdul Ali Mazari, a militia leader killed by the Taliban in 1996, when the Islamic militants seized power from rival warlords. Mazari was a champion of Afghanistan's ethnic Hazara minority, Shiites who were persecuted under the Sunni Taliban's earlier rule. That further raised concerns about whether they would make good on their promises, including not seeking revenge on those who have opposed them.

In a sign of the difficulties any future Afghan government will face, the head of Afghanistan's Central Bank said the country's supply of physical U.S. dollars is ''close to zero.'' Afghanistan has some $9 billion in reserves, Ajmal Ahmady tweeted, but most held outside the country, with some $7 billion held in U.S. Federal Reserve bonds, assets and gold.

Ahmady said the country did not receive a planned cash shipment amid the Taliban offensive.

''The next shipment never arrived,''he wrote. ''Seems like our partners had good intelligence as to what was going to happen.''

He said the lack of U.S. dollars will likely lead to a depreciation of the local currency, the afhani, hurting the country's poor. Afghans have been lining up outside ATM machines for days, with many pulling out their life savings.

Ahmady said the Taliban will struggle to access the country's reserves because of international senctions.

The ''Taliban won militarily --- but now have to govern, ''he wrote.''It is not easy.''

-----------------------------------------------

China blames U.S. over Afganistan, but says will work it

(yesterday)

BEIJING (AP) ---- China has expressed a wllingness to hold talks with the U.S. to promote a ''soft landing'' in Afghanistan, while leavily criticizing Washington and again demanding that the Biden administration halt its attacks on China.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a phone call Monday with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, blamed what he called America's ''hasty'' military withdrawal the chaos accompanying the Talibain's seizure of power in Afghanistan, according to a Foreign Ministry statement dated Tuesday.

''China is willing to conduct communication and dialogue with the U.S. to promote the soft landing of the Afgan issue and avoid a new civil war or humanitarian disaster --- and not let it become a breeding ground and shelter for terrorism once again, '' Wang was quoted as saying in the call.

Ahead of the final withdrawal of U.S. troops, the Taliban have topped the Afghan military and government, entering the capital, Kabul over the weekend.

Wang said that China and U.S. should cooperate on global issues and regional hot spots, but that '' the US cannot, on the one hand, deliberately curb and suppress China to damage China's legitimate rights and interest, and on the other hand, count on China to offer support and coordination.''

A one-sentence State Department statement said that Blinken and Wang spoke about developments in Afghanistan including the security situation and respective efforts to bring their citizens to safety.

The Biden administration has been seeking China's cooperation on issues such as climate change, while criticizing China over differences on trade and technology, security in the Asia-Pacific region and human rights.

'' The reference to the U.S.'s ''hasty withdrawal'and Afganistan being a 'breeding ground and shelter for terrorism'alludes to China's clear anxieties around hw instability in Afganistan may impact China and the broader region,'' Storey said in an mail response to questions.

Wang and Blinken also each held talks separately with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrrov on Monday.

Wang called for strengthened strategic cooperation with Russia to encourage the Taliban to adopt mild and product religious policies and build an open and inclusive political structure with all parties, a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said.

China has shown a willingness to engage with the Taliban, inviting leaders to a meeting with Wang in the Chinese city of Tianjin last month.

Wang urged the group to negotiate a peaceful and to the two decade-old conflict and not shelter terrorists it says threaten security in its restive nrthwestern region of Xinjiang.

China, which shares a narrow border with Afghanistan, says the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, has been behind violent attacks in the past. I's not clear what sort of presence the group currently has in Afghanistan.

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TOMORROW IS A DIFFERENT DAY. Collection 1980-NOW

Esiri Etheriene-Essi, Barricade, 2014 oil, ink on canvas. Collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.

El Anatsui, In the World But Don't Know the World, 2009, aluminum and copper wire, 560 x 1.000 cm, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam and Kunstmuseum Bern. Acquired with support of the Rembrandt Association (thanks in part to its Titus Fonds, its Themafonds Naoorlogse en Hedendaagse kunst, its Van Rijn Fonds and its Coleminks Fonds), the mondrian Fund, the BankGiro Loterij and Stifttung GegenwART, with special thanks to the SIGG COLLECTION @ EI Anatsui. (Photo Peter Tijhuis)

''Tomorrow is a Different Day spotlights art and design from the collection'', emphatic and forceful, explain the Stedelijk Museum, present from 1980 international artists and designers who are helping the status quo and offer alternative perspectives. The presentation of art and design from before 1980 is on view at the collection presentation STEDELIJK BASE. ''When you visit Tomorrow is a Different Day we kindly ask you to follow the routes that have been marked out in the Museum'', the Stedelijk high-ranking, and '' the galleries are large enough for you to move about freely. Please stay 6 feet away from other visitors and follow the instructions of museum staff and volunteers when given.''

''The decades since the 1980s'', potent the Stedelijk Museum, ''have been marked by dramatic global transformations -- globalisation, migration, decolonisatio, digitisation, the expansion of the primary and secondary markets, and the acknowledgement of various diasporas in art and society. These global and social shifths have not gone unnoticed by artists and designers, as the work in Tomorrow is a Different Day reveals. Ever-more responsive to the world we live in, artists use their work as a force for change. By voicing resistance, by challenging conversations, and by sharing narratives of hope and longing, they tell meaningful stories that resonate in our lives today.Some artists in the new collection presentation had, for a long time, been less visible in the museum. For tomorrow is a Different Day, the cutators sought out untold narratives, to be displayed alongsite more famous names. The Stadelijk also made a point of purchasing several new works by artists including Martine Syms, El Anatsui, Marcel Pinas and Anna Tereshkina, to deepen the collection. On the basis of themes such as urban activism, ecology, digitisation ans migration, this refreshed collection presenntation presents a multiplicity of histories, showcasing works by familiar and lesser-known names such as Steve McQueen, Rineke Dijkstra, Wolfgang Tillmans, Marlene Dumas, Sheila Hicks, Simnikiwe Buhlungu, Harvey Bouterse, Remy Jungerman and Danielle Dean.

Jeff Koons, Ushering in Banality, 1988. (c) Jeff Koons, 2007. Collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam

''Some artists in the new collection presentation had, for a long time, been less visible in the museum'', vigorous the Stedelijk Museum.

''For Tomorrow is a Different Day, the curators soght out untold narratives, to be displayed alongside more famous names. The Stedelijk also made a point of purchasing several new works by artists including Martine Syms, El Anatsui, Marcel Pinas and Anna Tereshkina, to deepen the collection.

Marlene Dumas, Big Artists, 1991, oil on linen. Collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.

On the basis of themes such as urban activism, ecology, digitisation and migration, this refreshed collection presentation presents a multiplicity of histories, showcasing works by familiar and lesser-known names such as Steve McQueen, Rineke Dijkstra, Wolfgang Tillmans, Marlene Dumas, Sheila Hicks, Simnikiwe Buhlungu, Harvey Bouterse, Remy Jungerman and Danielle Dean.

As the Stedelijk Museum explain, ''in contrast to the previous installation, this new concept is built on theme rather than chronology, and confrints us with a changing world. On the one hand, it wants to seduce the visitor, but also to make them think. Aesthetic questions often contain ethical questions as well. Whith her installation In Pursuit of Bling, for example, Otobong Nkanga draws attention to the exploitation on the earth, and in particular the way in which raw materials are mined in one place, to be traded and used in another. Her work makes you look differently at everyday objects such as make-up and smartphones, which hide a world of inequality and exploitation. Esiri Ertheriene-Essi's paintings depicting ordinary life also disrupt your readings of the world, offering a counter-narrative to the ever-dominant media images. E; Anatsui's monumental wall sculpture made from bottle caps, has enormous presence and grandeur. By repurposing waste materials, he tells stories about trade, slavery, consumerism and the environment.

The new collection presentation includes both visual art and design. Designers offer solutions to the world's evolving challenges and developments, particularly the looming climate to see our living enviroment in a different way by investigation the power of natural resources..''

Don Yaw Kwaning, Medulla, 2018. Collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.

The Stedelijk Museum:'' The Another Throw blankets are wonen with yarns dyed with vegetable pigments that, through their specific properties, create unique colours anf hues. In his project Medulla, Don Yaw Kwaning explores new uses for pitrus, or soft ruch, a grass-like plant that is considered a weed in the Netherlands.By separating the soft pith(medula) from the fibres, he develops light, organic materials that can be used in the production of furniture and packaging material. Daan Roosegaarde also turns a worthless product into something valuable with his project Smog Free Ring. The ring is made from polluted air collected by the Smog Free Tower; 1000 cubic meters of smog particles are compressed into a diamond ring...

Remy Jungerman, INITIANDS, 2015. Collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. Courtesy Gallery Ron Mandos, Amsterdam. (c) Remy Jungerman. Photo: Peter Tijhuis.

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The New York Times. The COVID-19 Pandemic & much more..

2021-08-15T07:53:00.001-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The New York Times

The Covid-19 Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic has effected our lives, our economy and nearly every corner of the globe. More than 4.25 billion vaccine doses have been given worldwide, or 55 per 100 people, but the worldwide numbers of infections continue to rise. The countries experiencing the largest outbreaks now include Botswana, Cuba, Israel, Iran, Malaysia and the United States.

Latest Updates

(5 hours ago)

* Texas takes its ban on school mask mandates to the state Supreme Court.

* Children are particularly likely to die from Covid in Indonesia. One big reason is poverty.

* The U.S. is preparing a plan to offer vaccine boosters as early as fall.

* New York City streets are once again alive with the buzz of movie and TV filmings.

* What are Delta symptoms?

* Australia state gioes into longdown as Sydney's outbreak spreads.

* Here is how the virus moves through unvaccinated and vaccinated groups.

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ADVERTISING & MEDIA INSIDER

INDIA

Coping with Covid-19 disruption by restructuring digital engagement in 2021

(AUG 13,2021)

Prashant Puri, Co-Founder & CEO, AdLift on mapping strategies for the new normal.

* In a guest column, Prashant Puri, Co-Founder & CEO, AdLift shares how there is very little which has remained unffected due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

* He further writes hoe in a post-Covid world, with more consumers online than ever before, agencies will have to pull out all the stops to guarantee their marketing efforts are successful.

The last two years have been profoundly unusual, yo say the least. There is little which has remained unffected due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While we are still living throuugh it, we are also collectively and continuously coming to terms with the impact it has left on us.

This chande is particularly noticeable in consumer behaviours that have emerged, mainly on digital channels. Ever since we experienced multiple rounds of lockdown, the regural patterns of shopping, working, entertainment and communication have been reshaped tremendously. Customers and users want to be able to connect with products because they can no longer touch and feel them in stores. As a result, the buying jorney has now integrated several digital touchpoints.

Unsurprisingly, video content has more than filled this need gap by offering an alternative for direct engagement to consumers. There were around 803 million online video viewers registered in India last year, including streaming services and free-video platforms such as You Tube. These numbers are only expected to multiply in the next few years.

From the brand's perspective in this scenario, incorporating video can add entertaiment value while also demostrating how your product or service may address a customer's problem. This can lead to a major impact on SEO, providing a huge boost to brands in search rankings.

Mapping Strategies for the 'Next Normal'

Some might say that the pandemic has acted as catalyst for the ineviitable changes in consumer behaviour, considering the renovation of the digital landscape, which was already underway for more than a decade. Nonetheless, it is undeniable that the unbelievably rapid adoption of digital has led to unprecedented changes, one which brands and marketers are still comprehending.

Simultaneously, we are continuing to embrace and adopt digital at a tremendous speed, making us the 2nd fastest digitizing country amongst a set of emerging and mature digital economies. As one of the many digital marketing agencies steering brands through the chaos of this lift-off stage, we believe customer empathy, creativity, and adaptability are the solutions. Focusing on this will not only help us stabilize the speed at which we move forward but also create a map as we go.

Ultimately, this will help us figure out the 'next normal'in terms of digital engagement. But for that, first, we must address an equally crucial question.

Is the change in consumer behaviour here to say, and if so, what does it mean for marketers?

Well, it containly looks loke most of the habits and preferences we've developed will stick with us for the rest of our lives. This has the potential to dictate consumer decision journeys for a long time in the future, meaning brands and digital marketers must be perceptive and agile.

Simply put, we need to understand how customers are sourcing information and what they plan to do with it. Hopefully, this will het us to a point where we can take the wheel and drive consumer behaviour change instead of playing the role of a spectator.

Flonding the Intersection Between a Brand's Purpose and Evolving Consumer Needs

As the idealists of the world say, the upside to change is more opportunities. If there was a time we needed to believe in this, it is now more than ever. While many of the techniques used by businesses in the coming months may appear to be transient, it also means a larger playing ground for digital marketers to reach consumers.

For brands, this can be a time to define who they are and who they will be in the next decade or beyond. It will be the job of digital agencies to strike the correct tone of interaction with consumers as they become more sensitive to marketing communications.

more importantly, digital marketing may be able to reach more people in the future, but getting indivituals to take action will remain just as much of a struggle. This mean that in a post-Covid world, with more consumers online than ever before, agencies will have to pull out all the stops to guarantee their marketing efforts are successful.

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CNN Health

Coronavirus has created the perfect conditions for a full-scale war on truth. Some politicians are siding with lies

( Updated August 15, 2021)

(CNN) --- It's no surprise that a politician's worst enemy is a vibrant news media. Journalists who stick their noses into the affairs of the powerful and expose their failures are a threat. It's therefore no great shock that even many leaders of democratic countries are happier when the press is weekend.

The Covid-19 pandemic has presented a golden window to undermine confidence in the media and, in some cases, for world leaders to launch outright assaults on some of the most respected and importan journalistic institutions in their countries.

Earlier this week, the Polish parliament passed a bill that couldmean curtains for the country's largest independent news channel. TVN24, a broadcaster that is frequently critical of the Polish governing party, is in part owned by the American media group Discovery. Should this new bill become law, non-EU entities will be prohibited from being majority shareholders in Polish media companies, meaning Discovery would have to sell its majority stake.

Also this week, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz put foward his plan that would effectively pull funding from the country's oldest newspaper.

Wiener Zeitung is a state-owned newspaper and is funded by a model that requires the government to advertise jobs and make other formal announcements in its pages. Yet the paper has an independent editorial police and has often criticized Kurz and his administration. Under the Chancellor's plans, that funding would be gone and the paper's main source of income taken away.

People attend ''Free media'' protest in Wadowice, Poland on August 10, 2021.

What's shocking about these two incidents is that they are happening in democratic Western nations. While journalists elsewhere face risk of procecution or even death threats, the fact this is happening in Europe and is part of a proader trend is seriously concerning for the media and citizens alike.

What has this got to do with coronavirus? Short answer:timing.

''In times of crisis trust in gvernment goes up because people just want somebody to fix things, so you see people rally around the flag,'' says Ben Page, chief executive of polling firm Ipsos MORI.

Page says these spikes in support provide a window of opportunity that ''distracts from what you are doing elsewhere. '' And if you are a politician seeking to capitalize on this, whacking and weakening the press is a relatively easy proposition. ''I'm afraid journalism is one of the least-trusted professions all over the world,'' he adds.

The reasons for [ublic distrust in journalism are varied.

''One of our biggest problems as professional journalists is that all over the world, we have been accused as being part of the system and establishment,'' says Pierre Haski, president of Reporters Without Borders (RSF). ''So as populist movements grow and rise up against the establishment, they rise up against us.''

Haski thinks that isn't just populist movements that present a danger, but also mainstream politicians who are losing voters to more extreme opposition.

Protesters demonstrate in defence of media freedom in Warsaw on Aug 10, 2021.

He points specifically to an incident in 2018, when French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly said: ''We have a press that is no longer pursuing the truth..What I see is media power that wants to become judicial power.'' The comments came after a member of his security team was caughton camera attacking protesters while off duty.

''In one sentence he delegitimized all media and how we operate. It was eerily close to something Trump might have said,'' says Haski.

Haski is, of course, correct to note incidents like this happening before the pandemic. What the coronavirus has provided is a moment in history when a decent chunk of the public is happy with gevernments behaving in a more authoritarian way, populist leadership is more appealling, accurate information is literally a case of life or death and journalists are not particularly liked.

'' As soon as a government decides we are in a crisis and need unity, they can cut the ground under journalists whose job it is to get to the truth because they risk becoming the traitor who is driving the disunity,'' says Nic Cheeseman, professor of democracy at Birmingham University.

Someone who cannot be ignored in all of this is former US President Donald Trump.

Even before winning the 2016 election, Trump made slamming the press a central prong of his campaign. And in the years that followed his victory, nearly every negative news story, negative approval rating and election loss was dismissed as ''fake news.''

Trump's attacks on the media intensified during the pandemic. He regularly accused it of overplaying the threat of the virus and seemed to live in a parallel universe when it came to the numbers and science. And when the most important person on the planet does something, others take notice.

Donald Trump's attacks on the media intensified during the pandemic.

Donald Trump gave a cue to leaders around the world that attacking the media was now fair game,'' sys Rob Mahoney, deputy executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists.

''When he lauunched attacks on the media (over their coverage) of his shanbolic handling of the pandemic, the very moment the public needs as accurate information as possible, leaders in India, Brazil, the Philippines and Western Europe followed suit, denying the severity of the virus to cover their own failures,'' he adds.

The question many are asking is what the long-term impact will be, now that going after journalists is routine in so many free, liberal countries.

The industry was already facing a lot of challenges. Proper news is expensive to make and the media landscaped has shifted dramatically in ways that have not been easy for journalim.

Modern technology has made it easier for one person sitting at home to run a website that looks as legitimate as that of a centuries-old newspaper. This has created a world in which there is no longer a consensus on facts and a significant number of people are willing to believe things that are simply not true.

This lack of consensus puts journalists who speak truth to power on one side of a debate and lies on the other.

When you put all of this into the context of an unprecedented pandemic, it's easy to see why the past 18 months have been an ideal time for leaders to pick a side.

And as we emerge from this crisis into whatever the new normal looks like, leaders who decided ro side wilth lies will be remembered by everyone and, to some extent, will determine what that new normal is.

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CNN World

Five million people under evacuation order in Japan as rain batters south coast.

(Updated, August 14, 2021)

Firefighters rescue stranded residents on a boat in Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan, on August 14

(CNN) --- More tahn 5 million residents in Japan have been ordered to evacuate their homes due tho the threat of flooding and landslides, as torrential rains batter the country's southwestern tip.

The strongest evacuation warning, Level 5, was issued on Saturday to more than a million people across the prefectures of Saga, Nagasaki, Fukuoka, and Hiroshima, according to public broadcaster NHK.

The next-strongest warning, Level 4, was issued to 17 other prefectures, affecting more than 4 million residents.

The country's metereological authority, which issued the warnings, said in a statement that the rain front could stay over the country for about a week, according to Reuters.

Photographs from hard-hit provinces shoe residents wading through thigh-high water in flooded streets, carrying children and belongings. Firefighters and other emergency workers were also rescuing stranded residents, loading them onto inflatable boats.

A road damaged by the swollen Suzuhari river in heavy rain in Hiroshima, Japan, on August 13.

Water levels are still in several rivers, threatening to overflow onto the surrounding roads.

Some cities on the southern island of Kuyshu recorded more than 40 millimeters (about 1.6 inches) of water in one hour on Saturday. Up to 250 millimeters (9.8 inches) could fall on the island in the 24 hours through Sunday morning, national weather officials say.

Adachi Yushi, the head of weather monitoring at the Meteorological Agency, called the rain ''unprecedented'' and asked people to follow evacuation orders, according to NHK.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga tweeted on Friday that he had set up a disaster control center to coordinate with local and prefecture authorities.

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n. p. r. The Coronavirus Crisis. Thousands In Germany Thought They Had Their Vaccine.. & more..

2021-08-12T07:44:00.000-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki.

n p r

The Coronavirus Crisis.

Thousands In Germany Thought They Had Their Vaccine. It May Have Been Saline Instead

( August 11, 2021)

A medical assistant administers the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in May in Berlin's Friedrichshain district . AFP via Getty Images.

A nurse in northern Germany is suspected of having duped thousands of people into receiving a shot of saline rather than a COVID-19 vaccine.

Authorities say that a Red Cross nurse working at a vaccination site in Friesland is believed to have given out the fake shot to residents during March and April, Reuters reported. Around 8.000 people could have received the saline solution instead of the vaccine, Sven Ambrosy, a district administrator of friesland, said on Facebook.

''I'm tottaly shocked by the incident,'' Ambrosy said. '' The district of Friesland will do everything possible to ensure that the effected people receive their vaccination protection as soon as possible.''

The saline solution in not dangerous, but officials are urging anyone who got vaccinated at the Roffhausen Vaccination Center duting that period to get vaccinated again. They are contanting by phone or email those who may have received a fake vaccine, and a dedicated information phone line has also been established, officials wrote on Facebook.

Health officials in Lower Saxony said that the nurse in question had access to the vaccines because she was ''responsible for the preparation of vaccines and the preparation of syringes during her working hours in the vaccination center,''CNN reported.

It is unclear if there have been arrests or changes filed related to the case, according to Reuters. The nurse has not been named publicly, and the possible motivation has not been stated; however, the person in question did reportedly have social media posts expressing skepticism about the COVID-19 vaccines.

A similar scandal unfolded in India last month. Thousands paid to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at a '' vaccination camp'' but instead were given shots of saline solution. Authorities arrested 14 people, alleging they gave around 4.000 people fake or expired vaccines and collected thousands of dollars in the process.

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n p r

THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

Nearly 94.000 Kids Got COVID-19 Last Week. They Were 15% Of All New Cases.

(Updated August 10, 2021)

A child watches as a nurse administers a COVID-19 vaccine during a pop-up vaccination event in April at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville, Ky.

Coronavirus cases among children are rising at a time when the highly infectious delta variant is advancing across the United States at a rapid clip.

New state-level data analyzed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association shows that children accounted for roughly 15% of all newly reported COVID-19 cases across the nation for the week anding on Aug. 5.

Nearly 94.000 child cases of COVID-19 were recorded during that period, a 31% increase over the roughly 72.000 cases reported a week earlier. In the week before then, there were 39.000 nw child cases.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association said that new coronavirus cases in children have been increasing since July after a period of decline in the early summer.

'' This virus is really tracking the unvaccinated,'' said Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, a professor of pediatrice and infectious disease at Stanford University. ''Because children under 12 are not able to be vaccinated, we're just seeing the same increase in infections in that group because [the delta variant] is so infectious.''

Parents are searching for answers

One big question for parents --- whether delta is making kids sicker than previous strains --- still has no clear answer.

But the numbers appear to show that severe illness, hospitalization and death are rare in children infected with the coronavirus.

In states where data was available, less than 2% of all child COVID-19 cases required hospitalization and o.oo% to o.o3% were fatal.

''I'm not seeing any patterns that suggest the virus is more virulent or more serious or more severe in children than it was before this variant appeared, '' Maldonado added.

Concerns about the strain on the pediatric health care system

Still, the growing number of children hospitalized with COVID-19 could further strain an already overburdened pediatric health care system.

Many children's hospitals are not only dealing with patients who've contracted the coronavirus but also kids with issues indirectly related to the pandemic. Many children have developed mental health problems stemming from social isolation, and others deferred medical care during the peak of the outbreak last year.

''These kind of indirect impacts of COVID have actually been a much bigger volume impact on pediatric intensive care capacity that the direct count of COVID kids,'' said Mark Wietecha, CEO of the Children's Hospital Association.

Despite no sharp rise in the number of hospitalizations, Wietecha said many children hospitalized with COVID-19 now, likely driven by the delta variant, are sicker than those who had contracted previous strains. While the overall picture remains unclear, he said pediatric hospitals are nonetheless now in need of specially trained medical staff who understand the unique requirements of treating young patients.

Cases are spiking in children as many of them prepare for the start of a new school year, which is now tinged with uncertainty. Some states are attempting to block school districts from requiring students to wear masks.

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n p r

Fauci Says Teachers Should Be Required To Be Vaccinated

A health care worker prepares a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine last week at West Philadelphia High School in Philadelphia. Dr. Anthony Fauci says he backs mandatory vaccines for teachers, citing a ''critical situation'' in the country. (Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Dr. Anthony Fauci says COVID-19 vaccines should be mandatory for schoolteachers, citing the need to protect children who are too young to be vaccinated during a pandemic that has grown worse with the spread of the delta variant.

''I'm going to upset some people on this, but I think we should [require teacher vaccinations],'' Fauci said Tuesday morning in an interview on MSNBC.

''I mean, we are in a critical situation now,'' he said. ''We've had 615.000-plus deaths, and we are in a major surge now as we're going into the fall, into the school season. This is very serious business.''

Mandates will spread when vaccine get full approval

The mandates won't come from the federal level, said Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases who is also President Biden's chief medical adviser on COVID-19.

Instead, he said, the vaccine requirements will come at the state and local levels --- and Fauci predicted they'll proliferate when the Food and Drug Administration gives full approval to coronavirus vaccines, rather than their current status of being authorized for emergency use.

''It's gonna happen. Guaranteed it's gonna happen,'' Fauci said of the FDA's full approval, adding he hopes it happens ''very soon. ''

For now, people who refuse to get vaccinated because of that discrepancy are seizing on a technicality, Fauci said.

''There's no doubt that these vaccines are going to get fully approved,'' he said. ''This idea about, 'It's not fully approved,'is really afalse narrative. It really is. I mean, you should consider this a good as fully approved and get vaccinated.''

Teachersunions are showing less opposition to mandates

Fauci's remarks echo the sentiments of Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, who said over the weekend that her union should be working with school districts on vaccine mandates, rather than opposing them outright.

''It weighs really heavily on me that kids under 12 can't get vaccinated,'' Weingarten said, calling vaccination ''a community responsibility.''

Weingarden said her union's leaders are meeting this week to look at revising the union's policy from last fall when it said vaccine guidelines for teachers should be voluntary rather than mandatory.

The National Education Association's Kim Anderson, executive director of the largest U.S. teachers union, recently told NPR that it's also reviewing its stance on a vaccine mandate. Both unions said that around 90% of their teachers have already gotten a COVID-19 vaccine.

New surge puts focus on kids who can't be vaccinated

With millions of students now beginning to return to school for in-person classes, Fauci stressed that teachers and education officials have two main tools for protecting children who are not eligible to receive the vaccine. One step is for everyone to wear masks. The order step should be treated as a duty of school staff, he said.

''Anyone who's eligible for a vaccine, if you want to be around children, you've got to do whatever you can to protect them. And if you're eligible to get vaccinated, get vaccinated,'' Fauci said.

Even before the U.S. summer coronavirus surge, children were accounting for a rising proportion of new coronavirus cases in part due to high vaccination rates among adults.

But with the country now enduring a new spike in infections due to the delta variant, children are also contracting the coronavirus at a higher rate in terms of raw numbers, according to the latest data compiled by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Children still make up a small percentage of the people who experience the worst outcomes of COVID-19, according to the pediatric association, which said kids represented between o% and o.26% of all COVID-19 deaths in the more than 43 U.S. states and territories that report that spesific data.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

MORNING BREW

COVID

Influencers Want You To Get Vaccinated

Kooper the Gen Z Intern headed to the White House to encourage young people to join his COVID vaccine clique

(AUGUST 10, 2021)

Marvel's Avengers

BennyDrama, aka Benito Skinner, aka the internet comedian with 1.4 million Instagram followers, released a video Monday in partnership with the White House to encourage '' shots in the arms of every single American.''

The video (and the only Benny Drama clip that's appropiatee to share in this newsletter) is one of many instances of US health leaders utilizing social media influencers to fight Covid-19 vaccine misinformation and encourage young people to get vaccinated.

Big picture: 71% of Americans over the age of 18 are at least partially vaccinated. But only about 42% of teens aged 12-17 have received at least one shot, the lowest vaccination rate of any eligible group in the country.

* While Olivia Rodrigo grabbed headlines for her vaccine hype at the White House, most of the influencer work has been local. City and state health authorities are tapping micro-influencers to convince young people to vax up on their own turf.

Bottom line: Officials are ramping up influencer campaigns as another school year starts and more young people are getting sick from the Delta variant.

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MORNING BREW

COVID

Singapore Goes Ahead With Relaxing Curbs as Counries Learn to Live With Covid

Countries that used to treat Covid-19 like the plague are starting to think of it more like new seasons of American Idol-- just a fact of life.

Nurphoto/Getty Images

Countries that used to treat Covid-19 like the plague are starting to think of it more like new seasons of American Idol -- just a fact of life.

Countries like Singapore.

With 67% of Singapore's nearly 5.7 million people fully vaccinated, officials said yesterday they'll continue with their plan to ease Covid-19 curbs starting next week. In-person dining will resume, border controls will resume, border controls will be loosened, and some employees can head back to the office. The reasoning is that perpetual reopening and closing of businesses will give the economy chronic whiplash.

Why it matters: Singapore is the most significant example yet of a country pivoting from a ''Covid Zero'' approach to a strategy that accepts Covid as ''endemic,'' meaning it's always present but remains at a manageable level.

'' Covid Zero'' vs. ''Living with Covid''

Before its pivot, Singapore was part of a group of Asia-Pacific countries that played Whac-A-Mole to snuff out any trace of the coronavirus in an approach known as ''Zero Covid.'' And that's still happening today:

* After recording more than 300 locally transmitted cases this week, China introduced new curbs on transportation in some cities and began mass testing residents in Wuhan, where the virus originated.

* The state of Victoria, Australia, instituted its sixth lockdown on Thursday after detecting eight new cases. Australia is just 17% vaccinated.

Compare that to the more lax approach employed by countries like the US and the UK.

* The UK scrapped nearly all its pandemic curbs an July 19 in a strategy it called ''Keep life moving.'' After a Delta - fueled wave peaked in late July, cases have declined considerably... without new mitigation measures.

Bottom line: As the story of Singapore shows, the only way to go from ''Zero Covid'' to ''Living with Covid'' is to mass-vaccinate your population, which largely prevents serious illness.

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The Rijks Museum Amsterdam. The Netherlands.. Anna Graph...

2021-08-12T04:13:00.004-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The Rijks Museum Amsterdam. The Netherlands.

Anna Graph.

Het fijn knippen en sorteren van de... anonymous, c. 1770.

Het sorteren van de thee. anonymous

Thee, Gordinne, 1894-1959. Description: Leaf with various representations about the origin, production and use of tea in China. A text box in the middle right. Numbered top right:No 322.

Determining the weight of the tea chests, anonymous, c. 1770.

Teapot, ananymous, c.1695 - c.1715.

metal,h 12cm x d 19cm.

The drinking of coffee and tea became fasgionable at the end of the 17th century. The wares needed to serve these beverages often featured suitably exotic shapes and decorations. The handle of this teapot is in the form of a bamboo twig, and the floral patterns in a limited palette of green, bue and red are derived from Asian porcelain.

Tea set consisting of a hot water jug, teapot, sugar bowl, milk jug and salver, Orivit, c. 1905.This work belongs to Tea service (BK-1968-44)

Ontwerp voor een affiche voor thee.. Theo Molkenboer.(1881-1920).

Two unknown Japanese women during tea, anonymous, 1860-1900.

Portrait of three Japanese women with tea and toiletries, anonymous, c. 1870 - c.1891.

This work belongs to Photo album from a trip to Manila.(RP-F-F01161)

Teapot, Het Moriaanshooft, c. 1685-c.1690.

Bowl with sea bream, associated with Ebisu, the God of Daily Food, anonymous, anonymous, c. 1800 -c. 1899.

Sampling the tea, anonymous, c.1770. waterclour on paper, h 313mm x W 250mm.

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The New York Times. Part One.. World's Coronavirus Infection Total Passes ..

2021-08-09T14:18:00.000-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra-Alimpoutaki.

The New York Times

Part One

World's Coronavirus Infection Total Passes Staggering Figure: 200 Million

Vaccines have weakened the link between surging cases and serious illness, but in vaccine-deprived parts of the world, the deadly pattern remains.

Health care workers intubating a Covid-19 patient in March at a hospital in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The New York Times.

Two hundred million is an enormous number.

But as the world recorded the 200 millionth detected case of coronavirus infection, that daunting figure --- more than the populations of Germany, France and Spain combined --- also fails to capture how far the virus has embedded itself within humanity.

While always an imperfect measure of a virus that causes no symptoms in many of the people it infects, with many infections going unreported, case counts have provided a useful tool for much of the pandemic --- like a flashing red light in the cockpit of a jetliner warning of imminent danger.

A surge in case numbers has too often been followed by a crush of fatality counts have typically spiked. It took more than a year for the pandemic to reach its 100 millionth case, and little more than six months to double that, with the world surprassing the 200 million figure on Wednesday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

The number of those killed by the virus is also staggering.

The official tallies stand at more than 614.000 deaths in the United States, 558.000 in Brazil and 425.000 in India. Mexico has recorded more than 240.000 fatalities, and Peru nearly 200.000. Britain, Colombia, France, Italy and Russia have each recorded well over 100.000 deaths.The global toll as of Wednesday was about 4.25 million --- a serious underestimete, experts say, given the discrepancies in the way nations record Covid deaths.

Red Cross workers visiting Claudio Travelli, a Covid-19 patient, at his home last year in Cenate Sotto, Italy. The New York Times.

As the coronavirus continues to find new hosts across the planet at a rapid rate, the emergence of the Delta variant --- thought to be about twice as infectious as the original version first detected in Wuhan, China --- is adding fuel to a fire that has never stopped raging.

In one week alone, from July19 to 25, nearly four million cases were recorded by the World Health Organization --- a jump of 8 percent from the previous week.

With many of the new infections occurring in countries lacking vaccines or among the unvaccinated, 69.000 Covid deaths were recorded that week.

People suffering from breathing problems arrived for oxygen tretment in April in Delhi, India. The New York Times.

Despite lockdowns, travel restrictions, mask mandates, business closures, social distancing and radical shifts in individual behaviors, the virus continues to find a way to spread.

Place de la Concorde in Paris in March 2020. The New York Times.

Some countries, like Australia, had success keeping case counts low thanks to geographic isolation and strict lockdown measures. But that may not be possible given the rise of the Delta variant. And governments are facing increasingly angry protests while trying to enforce lockdowns on weary populations and struggling businesses.

Over the last six months, however, the calculus for measuring the danger of the moment has become more complicated. A rise in case counts alone, in many places, may not presage a flood of very sick people.

Paramedics transporting a suspected coronavirus patient to a hospital in Rome last year. The New York Times.

For countries where vaccines are scarce, the math of the pandemic remains unchanged. Indonesian authorities reported nearly 57.000 new cases on one day in mid-July, seven times as many as a month earlier, the highest figure since the pandemic began. Twelve days later, more than 2.000 died in a single day, and the country now is nearing 100.000 dead from Covid-19.

But in nations fortunate and rich enough to have ample vaccine supplies, public health officials are watching anxiously to see how thoroughly mass inoculation camaigns have severed the link between case counts and pressure on health care systems.

In Britain, where nearly all legal curbs on social interactions were ended on July 19, there are hopeful signs that with nearly 75 percent of people over the age of 18 fully vaccinated, the virus has run out of fuel for the moment. After a steep rise in June and early July, the number of new infections has been dropping for two weeks.

Health care workers in an intensive care unit taking a break for lunch at a hospital in London in February. The New York Times.

Yet in Israel, one of the first countries to vaccinate the vast majority of the most vulnerable residents, the number of breakthrough infections among the vaccinated has led the government to offer booster shts to everyone older than 60. Germany now also plans to offer booster shots to older residents, people deemed clinically vulnerable and those who received vaccines considered somewhat less effective.

The W.H.O on Wednesday called for a moratorium on booster shots until the end of SEptember in an effort to help all countries inoculate 10 percent of their populations.

Praying at the Western wall in Jerusalem in April 2020, amid social distancing restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The New York Times.

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U.S.News. U.S. Administers Over 351 Million Doses of COVID-19 Vaccines -CDC.,& over..

2021-08-09T12:56:00.001-07:00

Diligence:(c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

U.S.News

U.S. Administers Over 351 Million Doses of COVID-19 Vaccines -CDC

By Reuters / Aug. 8, 2021.

FILE PHOTO: A person receives a COVID-19 vaccine at Floyd's Family Pharmacy as cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) surge in Ponchatoula, Louisiana, U.S.., August 5, 2021. REUTERS

(Reuters) - The United States has administered 351.4000.930 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Sunday morning and distributed 407.561.705 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Those figures are up from the 350.627.188 vaccine doses the CDC said had gone into arms by Aug. 7, out of 407.550.175 doses delivered.

The agency said 194.866.738 people had received at least one dose, while 166.477.481 people were fully vaccinated as of Sunday(https://bit.ly/3iAW4FH)

------------------------------------------

U.S.News

Australia PM's Ratings Hit 18-Month Low as Lockdowns Linger

(By Reuters. Aug. 8, 2021)

FILE PHOTO: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison arrives at Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan, November 17, 2020. REUTERS

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison's public approval rating hit its lowest level since the pandemic began amid growing frustration over lockdowns and a sluggish vaccination drive, a widely watched poll published on Monday showed.

A Newspoll conducted for the Australian newspaper showed Morrison's public support dropped four points to 47%, the lowest level since he fielded criticism early last year over his government's response to devastating bushfires.

Morrison's Liberal-national Party coalition government is also trailing opposition Labor on a two-party preferred basis, where votes for minor parties are distributed by 47-53. If the poll result were replicated at an election, the conservative government would lose office to centre-left Labor.

Morrison must return to the polls by May 2022, by which time all Australians over 18 are expected to have been offered a COVID-19 vaccine.

Approval of Morrison's handling of the pandemic has almost halved from a high of 85% in April last year, during the peak of the first wave of infections, to 48% in the latest survey.

Australia had hoped to complete its vaccine roll-out by October 2021 but this timetable was extended to the end of the year after rare blood clots from the AstraZeneca vaccine saw Canberra initially recommend everyone under 60 take the Pfizer inoculation.

Pfizer supplies remain in short supply until October, and with outbreaks flaring in several states, advice now recommending people take the AstraZeneca vaccine if available has fuelled some confusion and criticism.

Morrison has also been critised by the likes of former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull who described the vaccine programme as ''a colossal failure''.

With fewer than 23% of Australians fully vaccinated, states have been forced to use a series of stop-and-start lockdowns to quell outbreaks of the highly infectious Delta variant.

Sydney and Melbourne - Australia's two largest cities - are under hard lockdowns while southeast Queensland came out of strict stay-home orders on Sunday.

Still, Australia's pandemic numbers have remained relatively low, with just over 36.250 cases and 939 deaths.

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U.S.News

CDC: COVID-19 Reinfections Among Unvaccinated Twice as Likely Than Among Vaccinated

Study authors cncluded that 'to reduce their likelihood for future infction, all eligible persons should be offered COVID-19 vaccine, even those with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection.'

(Aug.6, 2021)

A health worker administers a Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine dose at a hospital in Providence, R.I. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Those who have recovered from COVID-19 who have not been vaccinated might have more than double the chance of reinfection than those who have been inoculated, according to a new study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The study looked at hundreds of Kentucky residents who were infected with the coronavirus in 2020 and compared the vaccination status of those who were reinfected from May to June 2021. Researchers found that those who were not vaccinated had 2.34 times the odds of reinfection compared with those who were fully vaccinated.

Study authors concluded that ''to reduce their likelihood for future infection, all eligible persons should be offered COVID-19 vaccine, even those with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection.''

Researchers also noted that ''the emergency of new variants night affect the duration of infection-acquired immunity.''

''If you have had COVID-19 before, please still get vaccinated,'' CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement. ''This study shows you are twice as likely to get infected again if you are unvaccinated. Getting the vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and others around you, especially as the more contagious Delta variant spreads around the country.''

U.S. health officials have long recommended those who recovered from the coronavirus get vaccinated. As of Friday, half of Americans are fully vaccinated.

But some Republican members of Congress, including Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, have not followed expert advice and cited previous infection with COVID-19 as their reason for not getting the vaccine.

''Until they show me evidence that people who have already had the infection are dying in large numbers or being hospitalized or getting very sick, I just made my own personal decision that I'm not getting vaccinated because I've already had the disease and I have natural immunity,'' Paul said in May.

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CNN health

What experts are learning about Lambda, a coronavirus 'variant of interest'

(Updated August 7, 2021)

(CNN) --- As the coronavirus pandemic continue, infections caused by the Lambda variant have been emerging in the United States, including in Texas, where Houston Methodist Hospital last month reported its first case.

Genomic sequencing has identified 1.060 cases of Covid-19 caused by the Lambda variant in the United States so far, according to the independent data-sharing initiative GISAID. While that number is a far cry from the surge in cases caused by the Delta variant -- representing about 83% of new cases in the US -- infectious desease experts have said that Lambda is a variant they are watching closely.

The Lambda variant was first identified in Peru in December. The World Health Organization designates Delta as a ''variant of concern.'' Lambda is designated a degree lower as ''variant of interest.''

''I think any time a variant is identified and demonstrates the capacity to rapidly spread in a population, you have to be concerned,'' Dr.Gregory Poland, a professor of medicine and director of the Vaccine Research Group at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, told CNN on Friday.

''There are variants arising every day -- if a variant can be defined as new mutations,'' he said. ''The question is, do those mutations give the virus some sort of advantage, which of course is to human disadvantage? The answer in Lambda is yes.''

What is known about Lambda

There is a lot left to learn about Lambda.

The variant is not nearly as worrisome as the Delta variant in the US, which has been driving a rise in cases nationwide, but early studies suggest that it has mutations that make it more transmissible than the original strain of the coronavirus.

''Lambda has mutations that are concerning but this variant remains quite rare in the US despite being around for several months,'' Dr. Preeti Malani, chief health officer in the division of infectious diseases at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, wrote in an email on Friday.

''It's difficult to know for certain how transmissible Lambda is and how well vaccines work. So far, it seems that Lambda is more transmissible than the original SARS-CoV-2 virus, '' which is similar to Delta and other variants, wrote Malani, an expert with the infectious Disease Society of America. SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

''Thankfully studies suggest that the currently available vaccines remain protective. We have learned during the pandemic that things can change quickly, so controlling spread of COVID-19 in general will help manage Lambda,'' Malani wrote. ''As long as there is uncontrolled spread of SARS-CoV-2, we will see more variants in the future. The only way out is widespread vaccination to control spread and prevent further mutation of SARS-CoV-2. It's a race between getting enough of the world vaccinated and the development of new variants that are less responsive to counter measures.''

So far, data remain split on how well vaccines protect against the Lambda variant, and scientists say they need to study this more.

In July, researchers wrote in a lab study that they found some evidence that people who got the single-dese Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine might benefit from a booster dose to better protect them from new variants of the coronavirus, including the Lambda variant. The study was done in the lab and does not reflect real-world effects of the vaccine -- and it's published online as a preprint to the server biorxiv.org, meaning it was not subject to careful peer review.

Nathaniel Landau of the New York University Grossman School of Medicine and colleagues said their tests of blood taken from vaccinated volunteers shows that at least some of the newly emerging variants may evade the protection offered by a single dose of Johnson & Johnson's Janssen vaccine. A boost of a second dose of J&J vaccine, or even with Moderna's or Pfizer's, might help, the researchers reported.

In the study, the variants Beta, Delta, Delta plus and Lambda showed only ''modest'' resistance against antibodies elicited by the Pfizer/BioNTeh and Moderna coronavirus vaccines, suggesting the vaccines still work.

A separate pre-print paper, posted last week to the online server biorxiv.org, found in lab experiments that three mutations --- called the RSYLTPGD246-253N, 260 L452Q and F490S --- found in the spike protein of the Lambda variant may confer resistance to immunity induced by vaccines, but more research is needed. The paper, authored by scientists in Japan, has not been published yet in a peer-reviewed journal.

''Two additional mutations, T761 and L452Q, help make Lambda highly infectious. Currently, the Lambda variant has been flagged as a 'Variant of Interest'by the WHO. We do not know yet whether this variant ism more concerning than the Delta variant,''pharmacist and epidemiologists Dr. Ravina Kullar, who is an expert with the Infectious Diseases Society of America, wrote in an email on Friday.

''Thereneeds to be extensive genomic surveillance studies that are done to assess how the vaccines'efficacy is affected by the Lambda variant,'' Kullar wrote. Until Covid-19 cases overall decreas, ''the best way to prevent the emergence of more variants is getting fully vaccinated, not traveling internationally, and following strict infection prevention measures including wearing a face mak, physically distancing from others, and not attending large social gatherings.''

A game of 'Russian roulette'

Vaccines are vital to counter new coronavirus variants, such as Lambda, which might remain rare in the US is associated with ''substantive rates of community transmission in multiple'' countries in the region, according to the WHO.

Overall, Poland, the Mayo Clinic professor, warned that the more people don't wear masks and remain unvaccinated, the more likely additional variants will emerge in the future -- including one that might evade vaccines completely. Because as the coronavirus continues to jump from person to person, with each new infection, it changes a little bit -- just like any virus does -- and those changes or mutations coukd either be benign, or make it more easily transmissible and dangerous.

Poland called it playing '' Russian roulette'' to allow a virus to spread freely with no mitigations, such as wearing masks or getting vaccinated.

''We will continue to develop more and more variants, and eventually, one or more of these variants will learn how to evade vaccine-induced immunity,'' Poland said. '' And if that's true, we will start all over again.''

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BUSINESS

INSIDER

The 5 most common COVID-19 symptoms based on your vaccination status, in one chart

A woman receives the COVID-19 vaccine in Wales. Getty.

* COVID-19 symptoms look a bit different for vaccinated people and unvaccinated people, a study found.

* Unvaccinated people are more likely to report a fever and persistent cough.

* they're also more likely to get severely sick and reported more symptoms in total.

The Delta variant is challenging vaccines more than any other coronavirus strain: It seems to make it easier for vaccinated people to spread the virus and become infected themselves, according to data from the Centers for Disease Cntrol and Prevention.

Vaccines still protect against severe disease - a leaked CDC presentation showed that vaccines reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by 25 times in the face of Delta. But a small minority of vaccinated people may develop a ''breakthrough case' of COVID-19.

The CDC is recording about 35.000 breakthrough cases a week among 162 million vaccinated Americans, a rate of 0.02%. That data may be limited, since the CDC in May stopped tracking asymptomatic, mild, and moderate breakthrough cases at a national level.

So far, breakthrough cases are more likely to resemble a cold than our original picture of COVID-19, which focused on symptoms like fever, a dry cough, and shortness of breath.

The following chart shows the five most common COVID-19 symptoms based on your vaccination status. The data comes from the COVID Symptom Study, a project that tracks self-reported COVID-19 symptoms among more than 1 million people in the UK.

Vaccinated people have milder illnesses and faster recoveries

Studies from England and Scotland indicate that Pfizer's vaccine reduces the risk of a symptomatic Delta infection by 88%, down from 95% for the original strain. The vaccine also lowers the risk of any type of Delta infection by 79% and of hospitalization from Delta by 96%, the studies found.

So it's no surprise that the biggest difference between infections among the vaccinated and unvaccinated in the COVID Symptom Study was the severity and duration of their illnesses. Vaccinated people reported fewer symptoms, which were more fleeting, than those who were unvaccinated.

''Whether you've been vaccinated or not, that determines how sick youmight become,'' Dr. Barney Graham, the deputy director of the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said during a discussion last month. ''But what determines how likely you are to be infected is how much infection is around you in the community.''

He added that '' there's more likely to be infection if you're partially immune, or there's more likely to be severe disease if you're not immune at all.''

Differences in symptoms

A 12-year-old after receiving the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a Los Angeles County clinic on May 14. Getty Images.

Headaches, runny noses, and sore throads were commonly reported in the COVID Symptom Study, regardless of a person's vaccination status. But fully vaccinated people were more likely to report loss of smell, and unvaccinated people were more likely to report fevers. A persistent cough was also more common among unvaccinated people and thosewho'd received just one dose of a vaccine than among fully vaccinated people.'

Shortness of breath was relatively uncommon overall, even among unvaccinated people. Part of the reason could be that young people-who are less likely to develop severe symptoms - represent a greater share of COVID-19 cases now than they did at the start of the pandemic. (A study from Imperial College London that hasn't been peer-reviewed found that coronavirus cases in the UK were 25 times more prevalent among people younger than 50 than among those 50 and up as of June.

That said, COVID-19symptoms can still run the gamut. A recent CDC analysis of an outbreak in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, found that a cough, a headache, a sore throat, muscle pain, and fever were symptoms among people with breakthrough cases. Nearly 80% of breakthrough cases in that community were symptomatic.

INTEPENDENT

'Our kids are getting sick': Fauci sounds alarm over rising Covid risk to children.

(August 9, 2021.)

Dr Anthony Fauci on NBC's ''Meet the Press'' on Sunday (NBC)

Dr Anthony Fauci has sounded the alarm over Covid and children amid a surge in hospitalizations, and warned that ''kids are getting sick'' from the Dellta variant of the virus.

Speaking in an interview with NBC's ''Meet the Press'' on Sunday, Dr. Fauci said anyone who thought children were immune to being hospitalised eith Covid were wrong, and needed to ''get the facts''.

An average of 216 children were hospitalised last week across the U.S., according to data from the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

in Florida, where more children were in hospital with Covid than any other US state last week, the figure for admissions on Friday was 157. Among all ages, 13.400 are in hospital with Covid in Florida, according to analysis by the Miami Herald.

Dr. Fauci, asked about the figures from Florida, said the threat to children from Covid was ''something that we've been saying all along, where others have said,''No, no problem with children.' There is a problem with children.''

'' All you need to do is do a survey of the paediatric hospitals throughout the country, and you're seeing a considerable number of young people who are not only infected but who are seriously ill,'' said the chief medical adviser. ''Again, the numbers compared to the elderly are less, but that's a false comparison.''

Lousiana and Kansas, as well as Texas and Tennessee, have also seen rising cases of Covid among children, with a three-month-old baby among those admitted into hospital in New Orleans last week, according to The New York Times.

While it remains unclear if children are more at risk of falling ill from Delta than the original Covid, the age group is among the least vaccinated against Covid.

In Florida, as few as 38 per cent of those aged 12 to 19 have had a single dose, and in Texas --- where the children's hospital in Houston was almost full on Friday --- the sanefigure was at 40 per cent, according to the TIMES.

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The Washington Post, More than 4.281.000 people have died from., & much more..

2021-08-07T10:16:00.002-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki.

The Washington Post

More than 4.281.000 people have died from the coronavirus worldwide

More than 202 million cases have been reported

The coronavirus has killed nearly 4 million people since it first emerged in Wuhan, China, in 2019, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

New confirmed cases of covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, remain high, and the world struggles with unequal vaccine rollouts and new threats posed by fast-spreading variants.

'' The pandemic is a long way far from over,'' World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned in May.'' It will not be over anywhere until it's over everywhere.''

[A detailed look at the virus's spread through U.S. counties and states]

China now leads the world in the number of vaccine doses given out, though some other nations have vaccinated far more of their population. The vaccine were developed and rolled out at record speed, and studies show most have impressive efficacy.

More than a billion doses have been administered around the world, far more than the number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic -- though a large number of cases were likely never recorded, experts caution.

But the vaccine rollout has been persistently unequal, with problems with global supply and pockets of opposition in many nations. Covax, a program to distribute vaccines fairly backed by the World Health Organization, only belatedly began distributing doses to low-income nations.

Doses of covid-19 vaccines administrered per 100.000 residents.

Vaccinations: Malta 88.8%. UAE 72.6%. Seychelles 69.7%. Uruguay 65.9%. Qatar 64.0%. Bahrain 62.5%. Chile 65.1%. Singapore 61.9%. Canada 61.6%. Bhutan 62.3%.

''I can't say it's surprising,'' said Thomas J. Bollyky, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. ''In every previous pandemic where we have our global health crisis, where there has been limited supplies of medical intervention, wealthy nations have hoarded.''

The United States, which continues to have the highest cumulative number of confirmed cases and deaths globally. More than 590.000 deaths from covid-19 have been recorded across the country.

Though cases dipped after January, a new wave began only a few months later, prompting President Biden to urge governors to reinstate mask mandates and other virus-related restrictions. ''This is deadly serious,'' Biden said in March.

Behind the United States, India, Brazil, France and Turkey have the largest number of cases.

India's record-setting surge this spring meant the country accounted for about 1 in 3 of all new cofirmed cases. The spike, which has been blamed on complacency and the lifting of restrictions, along with the spread of variants, has seen the country's health-care system overwhelmed amid widespread oxygen shortages.

Even after the spike in new cases subsided in mid-May, India still set records for the number of new daily deaths with more than 4.500 deaths from covid-19 reported in a single 24-hour period.

In India, as in Britain and Brazil before it, some of the spread of the virus has been blamed on fast-spreading variants rampant in the country.

The variant widespread in India, known by the name B.1.617.2, has spread far beyond its borders. In May, British officials warned that it would likely become dominant Britain unless more was done to cpntrol its spread.

Sharon Peacock, director of the U.K.'s Covid-19 Genomics Cnsortium, told reporters that a fst-spreading variant such as B.1.617.2 had ''a bilogical passport for international travel and global spread'' -- making its spread difficult, if not impossible, to fully contain.

Some countries have seen success at controlling the virus.

In New Zealand, which closed its borders and ordered people to stay home as a first wave hit in the spring of 2020, confirmed infections went down to zero for a time. Taiwan and Singapore have kept their outbreaks far smaller than those in other parts of the world, which some experts attribute to their early responses and sophisticated tracking and tracing.

China, the early epicenter of the crisis, has seen much of daily life return to normal. In the early months of the outbreak, it reported more cases than any other country. Its tally of new infections peaked in mid-February of 2020 and approached zero by mid-March, although questions surround the accuracy of its data.

Wuhan, the viru's initial epicenter, ground to a stndstill in January 2020 as the coronavirus spiraled out of control. But after months without a confirmed case of dometic transmission, about 1.4 mllion children in the city returned to classrooms at the start of September, and crowded events have resumed.

Countries that have successfully rolled out vaccines are also seeing important gains. Britain, one of the hardest-hit countries in terms of cases and deaths, has excelled in the distribution of coronavirus vaccines. It was the first country to roll out a fully tested vaccine to the general public in December, when it began distributing the vaccine developed by Pfizer and Moderna.

Data released by Public Health England in March suggested that vaccinations had saved over 6.000 lives among people over 70, if not more.

[What you need to know about coronavirus)

Israel, which has seen several waves of the virus, had reced ahead of other nations and given the first doses of Pfizer's two-dose vaccine to more than a third of its population by the end of January. Data from Israel indicated that the Pfizer vaccine was around 94 percent effective at stopping asymptomatic infection.

Early signs from the country suggest that the large scale of vaccinations has had an impact on the spread of the virus.

But global health experts have coutioned tat despite the success of vaccines, the virus remains a potent threat and returning to normal life too early could ultimately extend the length of the pandemic and lead to fresh new cases.

Though wealthy countries have taken some steps to ensure vaccines are shared around the world, such as by donating through Covax or supposting waivers on intellectual property such as the Biden administration has done, experts say they are worried by the ongoing level of spread.

'' Sadly, unless we act now, we face a situation in which rich countries vaccinated the majority of their people and open their economies, while the virus continues to cause deep suffering by circling and mutating in the poorest countries,'' United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at a meeting of the World Health Assembly on May 24.

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MORNING BREW

TOGETHER WITH The motley Fool.

* Markets: The Dow closed at an all-time high following a better-than-expected jobs report. Goldman Sachs shares tiuched a record, which may help it pay for those $110k starting salaries.

* Covid: Half of Americans are now fully vaccinated, per the White House, which also said that the 7-day average of new vaccinations is up 44% over the past two weeks.

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COVID

Learning to Live With Covid

Nurphoto/Getty Images

Countries that used to treat Covid-19 like the plague are starting to think of it more like new seasons of AmericanIdol -- just a fact of life.

Countries like Singapore.

With 67% of Singapore's nearly 5.7 million people fully vaccinated, officials said yesterday they'll continue with their plan to ease Covid-19 curbs starting next week. In-person dining will resume, border controls will be loosened, and some employees can head back to the office. The reasoning is that perpetual reopening and closing of businesses will give the economy chronic whiplash.

Why it matters: Singapore is the most significant example yet of a country privoting from a ''Covid Zero' approach to a strategy that accepts Covid as ''endemic,'' meaning it's always present but remains at a manageable level.

'' Covid Zero''vs. ''Living with Covid''

Before its pivot, Singapore was port of a group of Asia-Pacific countries that played Whac- A-Mole to snuff out trace of the coronavirus in a n approach known as ''Zero Covid''. And that's still happening today:

* After recording more than 3000 locally transmitted cases this week, China introduced new curbs on transportation in some cities and began mass testing residents in Wuhan, where the virus originated.

* The state of Victoria, Australia, instituted its sixth lockdown on Thursday after detecting eight new cases. Australia is just 17% vaccinated.

Compare that to the more lax approach employed by countries like the US and the UK.

* The UK scrapped nearly all its pandemic curbs on July 19 in a strategy it called ''Keep life moving. '' After a Delta-fueled wave peaked in late July, cases have declined considerably...without new mitigation measures.

Bottom line: As the story of Singapore shows, the only way to go from ''Zero Covid'' to '' Living with Covid'' is to mass-vaccinate your population, which largely prevents serious illness.

------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENT

Wildfires Scorch California, Greece, and Turkey.

(Getty Images)

The Dixie Fire in California became the third - largest fire in state history yesterday. The fire, which started on July 14, grew 110 square miles overnight from Thursday to Friday morning and has already consumed an area 3.5 times the size of Lake Tahoe.

The fire ripped through the historic downtown of Greenville, CA, on Wednesday and destroyed about 75% of the buldings ther, inluding schools and the vast majority of businesses.

* No injuries or deaths have yet been reported.

Southern Europe is also burning. 6.600 + miles away, firefighters in Greece battled 154 active wildfires. The coast guard had to borrow fishing and tourist boatsto evacuate hundreds of people by sea off the coast of Evia, Greece's second - largest island.

Turkey has also suffered from its worst wildfires in decades for the last 10 days. Photos and videos coming out of Southern Europe right now show the devastation.

Zoom out: California and other Western states are experiencing a historic drought and heat wave this summer that scientists say are exacerbated by climate change. Last year was California's worst fire season on record, and this year is on pace to top it.

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Digg Editions

Sat, Aug 07.

(The guardian. com)

Scientists Spot Warning Signs Of Gulf Stream Collapse.

Climate crisis: Scientists spot warning signs of Gulf Stream collapse

A shutdown would have devastating global impacts and must not be allowed to happen, researchers say.

* Melting freshwater from Greenland's ice sheet is slowing down the AMOC earlier than climate models suggested.

Climate scientists have detected warning signs of the collapse of the Gulf Stream, one of the planet's main potential tipping points.

The research found ''an almost complete loss of stability over the last century'' of the currents that researchers call the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation(AMOC). The currents are already at their slowest point in at least 1.600 years, but the new analysis shows they may be nearing a shutdown.

Such an event would have catastrophic concequences around the world, severely disrupting the rains that billions of people depend on for food in India, South America and West Africa; increasing storms and lowering temperatures in Europe; and pushing up the sea level off eastern North America. It would also further endanger the Amazon rainforest and Antarctic ice sheets....

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The Philadelphia Inquirer. Coronavirus Newsletter,. U.S.News. De Blasio: New York City Eyeing....

2021-08-01T07:26:00.001-07:00

Diligence (c ) Mersina (Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Coronavirus Newsletter

(Published Jul 28, 2021)

Explaining the latest mask guidelines Coronavirus Newsletter

Plus, more shots are being given in Pa, and N.J. as delta variant spreads

The gist: If you've relegated your mask collection to the back of your junk drawer, it's time to break out them out again. Acceptance met frustration late last week as Philadelphians rected to health officials'urging that residents resume waering masks indoors in public places even if they are fully vaccinated. City officials said the recommedation is meant to ''normalize'' mask wearing and protect children too young for vaccine.

By Tuerday, the CDC recommented that vaccinated Americans in hard-hit areas across the country wear masks in public indoor spaces, as cases surge in some less-vaccinated states.

Health officials in every corner of the nation are urging Americans to get vaccinated, with somecities requiring vaccination among government workers. But Philly isn't mandating vaccination -- for now.

What you need to know:

Avast coalition of professional medical groups are calling for mandatory vaccination of all health-care wokers, yet most Pennsylvania and New Jersey hospitals are reluctant.

* Latinos in the United States have been hit hard by the pandemic, with half seeing a family member or close friend hospitalized or killed by the coronavirus, according to the Pew Research Center.

* The return of mask guidelines took some Philadelphia business owners by surprrise. Others said it was worth it because wearing masks woud prevent infections and save lives.

Sme Pilly-area restaurants are closing for vacation, as owners try to stave off bornout among workers after 16 months of pandemic restrictions and shorrt staffing.

AS companies struggling to find workers, Wawa, day care centers, and other Phily-area firms are offereing signing bonuses to lure new employees.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell unveiled strong vaccine incentives, telling tealms that COVID-19 outbreaks among unvaccinated players could mean forfeits, and no players from either team would be paid for that week,

What's going on in your country or neighborhood? We organize recent coverage of the pandemic bu locl counties and Philly neighborhoods to make it easier for you to find info you care about. Sign up here to get those local headlines sent directly to your inbox on Tuesdays

Local coronavirus numbers

The Inquirer and Spotlight PA are compiling geographic data on confirmed coronavirus cases, deaths caused by the virus, and vaccinations to curb the spread...

What you need to know about new mask recommendations

Citing the predominance of the delta strain, an extremely transmissible, more harmful variant of the coronavirus, the CDC now recommends universal maksing inside public spaces in communities with higher transmission rates. The agency also urged universal masking in schools, regardless of vaccination status. Pennsylvania health officials said the commonwealth is not considering instituting another statewide mask mandate. But state officials said people in counties with surging cases should follow CDC guidance. Philadelphia and most of its suburbs are experiencing moderate levels of virus transmission. New Jersey Gov, Phil Murphy on Wednesday went beyond the CDC guidance to extend the recommentation across the entire state. CDC director Rochelle Walensky said vaccinated patients who get infected with delta generally do not get sick enough to need hospital care. But researchshows their viral loads --- meaning the concentration of virus particles in their bodies --- are just as high as in unvaccianated patients, suggesting both groups can readily spread the virus.

More COVID-19 shots are being given in Pa, and N.J. as delta variant spreads

After weeks of declining vaccination rates, Pennsylvania and New Jersey residents are showing up their first coronavirus shots at a slightly increased pace. For the past two weeks, the dily number of shots administrered in Pennsylvania is now roughly equal to the numbers seen a month ago in June. With the delta variant causing outbreaks in other states, the increase could be in response to fear of the varoant. The modest rise in first-dose vaccinations also might be a sign that their steady blitz of efforts by volunteers, public health officials, and community advocates on person-by- person, neighborhood outreach are making a difference. Similar outreach efforts in Philadelphia have helped Latino vaccinations rates rebound.

Helpful resources

* What vaccinated people need to know as COVID-19 variants spread.

* Do I need a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot?

* What is a variant and other thinks you need to know about delta.

* How to wear face masks in hot weather.

* An illustrated guide to how the COVID-19 vaccines work.

You got this: A Poconos escape

The Mahoning Drive-In was slated to close as a Connecticut solar- energy company eyed its land. But a grassroots push convinced the company to abandon the plan.

A 72-year-old drive-in theater in the Pocono Mountains was set to become a solar-panel farm. But hundreds of emails, Facebook posts, and phone calls from die-hard fans convinced a green-energy company to withdraw its plan. ''This place ins an escape for people, and it's a celebration of a simpler time,'' saod operator Virgil Cardamone..

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The Philadelphia Inguirer

Science

These obese mice lost weight by 'sweating'their fat, Penn team finds

The animals lost weight despite eating more. But would it work in humans?

Pen scientists Ruth Choa (left) and Takku Kambayashi induced obese mice to lose 40% of their body weight by secreting fat through their skin. Cha holds a vial of shaved mouse hair.

(Published July 30, 2021)

In search of better treatments for type 2 diabetesand other consequences of obesity, Taku Kambayashi has long wondered if he could harness a bodily function that most people think about in a very different context: the immune system. There was evidence to suggest this approach might work, as certain types of immune cells were known to play a role in metabolism.

But when he and University of Pennsylvania colleagues stimulated these cells in a series of experiments on obese mice, they got a surprice. Not only did the animals become healthier in terms of tehir blood-glucose levels and other metabolic ''markers'', they also lost dramatic amounts of weight.

Within four weeks of triggering the animals'immune response, Kambayashi and graduate student Ruth Choa found the mice had lost 40% of their body wight, on average. All of it was in the form of fat.

''It's wild,'' said Kambayashi, an associate professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at Penb's Parelman School of Medicine.

The zillion-dollar question is, of course, whether this phenomenon could be exploited in humans. All sorts of cures for cancer and other ills have seemed promising in lab animals, only to wash out when tried in people.

Still, humans are knwn to secrete fatty molecules though the skin, just like the mice -- though at low levels. The oily substance is called sebum, produced by the sebaceous glands and found on the skin and hair...

A typical person secretes 130 calories worth of sebum per dat -- not enough to have an impact on body weight. But if that process could be accelerated, say, fourfold, Kambayashi thinks he would be would be onto something.

''You'd lose a pound of fat per week,'' he said.

Some others in the field are taking a wait-see stance, as obesity is a complex disorder. Among them is Richard Locksley, a professor at the University of Colifornia, San Francisco, who studies the same kinds of immune cells...

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Nature Briefing

Nature Briefing/ 30 July 2021.

Daily briefing: Rocket glitch nudges ISS

The Nauka module prepares to dock as it approaches the International Space Station. NASA.

Rocket glitch nudges ISS out of position.

The International Space Station (ISS) was briefly pushed out of position when the engines of a newly arrived Russian module started firing inadvertently. The malfunction happened three hours after the 20 -tonne module-- called Nauka-- docked with the station, following an eight-day journey from Earth during which it experienced propulsion issues. Thrusters were activated on other modules to restore the ISS to its correct orientation. ''What we saw today was just an awesome job by the mission control flight teams,'' says Joel Montalbano, NASA's ISS programme manager. '' Those guys were rock starts.''

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Features & opinion

Uncoupling weight and health

Many researchers and doctors take it as agiven that obesity means ill health. But geneticist Ruth Loos says thet ''we can be obese but remain healthy ''. Many people with obesity have healthy cholesterol and blood glucose levels, for example, while many lean people do not. Loos and other researchers are examining genes, animal models and people to understand how factors such as the nature and distribution of fat in the body can blunt or compound any health impacts of extra weight.

Caste barriers at India's top science institutes

In India, caste discrimination is illegal, and government rules require that 15% of students and staff at public research and education institutes come from Dalit communities -- formerly known as untouchables. But an investigation of India's flagship scientific institutions finds that most did not meet thet threshold for researchers admitted to doctoral programmes. The numbers are even lower for senior academics. Interviews with Dalit scientists reveal how systematic discrimination, institutional barriers and frequent humiliation make it difficult for them to thrive at every step.

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U.S.News

De Blasio: New York City Eyeing Vaccine Mandate for Indoor Dining.

The mayor also said indoor mask mandates could be a possibility again, 'but we have to make sure everything we do supports vaccination.''

( Published July 30, 2021.)

Mayor Bill de Blacio said on ''CNN Newsroom'' that '' all options are on the table''given the spread of the delta variant and rise of COVID-19 cases. (GETTY IMAGES)

New York City could soon impose a vaccine mandate in bars and restaurants for people wanting to dine or drink indoors.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said on ''CNN Newsroom'' that ''all options are on the table'' given the spread of the delta variant and rise of COVID-19 cases.

''I keep saying we're climbing the ladder in terms of more and more mandates, tougher and tougher measures to make sure people are vaccinated,'' he said.

The mayor said indoor mask mandates could be a possibility again, '' but we have to make sure everything we do supports vaccinatio.'' While indoor mask mandates will be addressed soon, de Blasio said the most important thing at the moment is getting people vaccinated against the virus.

Earlier this week, de Blasio announced a mandate for city workers, requiring all multicipal employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing.

As for who would implement a vaccination requirement for indoor diners, de Blasio said he believes that would fall to the city's Department of Health.

''The Health Department, which especially in an emergency situation like this, has very realy powers. Any kind of public health issue could be addressed and we're looking at all those options,'' de Blasio added. '' We need mandates. We've got to show people this is the only way frward -- to get vaccinated.''

While the mayor weighed a citywide decision, Danny Meyer, CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group, announced on Thursday that all employees and people wishing to dine and drink indoors at the group's full-service restaurants in New York City and Washington, D.C., will be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination.

Following the announced, de Blasio said the city ''fully supports this move.''

''More businesses should mandate vaccines for the safety of workers and the safety of our city,'' he added.

Broadway, which is set to reopen in September, followed suit, announcing on Friday that all 41 of its theaters will require showgoers, staff and crew to be vaccinated. Additionally, maska will be required unless eating or drinking or in designated locations.

Guests will be required to show proof of vaccination at their time of entry into the theater with their ticket. The policy will be enforced through October and could be relaxed for future performance '' if the science dictates.''

''What 's going to happen bluntly is that folks who are vaccinated are going to be able to experience all the things they love in life... and folks who are not vaccinated are going to find too many things that they want to do, they can't do unless they are vaccinated,'' de Blasio said. ''That has to be the reality because people will respond to that.. if they can't do the things they want to do, they will find their way to vaccination.''

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MORNING BREW. COVID. After A Drop in Demand, Mask.,& more..

2021-07-30T07:52:00.000-07:00

Diligence:(c) Mersina (Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

MORNIG BREW

Covid

Sales of masks surged 24% for the week ended Tuesday. Analysts expect the sales to jump even more after Tuesday. Analysts expect the sales to jump even more after the updated CDC guidance.

( July 29., 2021)

We're not at the free Peloton for a onth stage of the new Covid wave yet, but lots more people are upadating their mask collection.

Sales of face masks surged 24% for the week ending Tuesday, according to the Adobe Digital Economy Index. Analysts expect mask sales to jump even more after the CDC issued new guidance that encourages vaccinated people to wear masks indoors in Covid hotspots.

After a drop in demand, there're making a comeback: Masks, which had accounted for 14% of gross merchandise sales on Etsy in Q2 2020, fell to a 3% share in Q1 this year. But after the new CDC guidance was released..

* Searchers for the term ''masks'' doubled on Google.

* Citigroup, Apple stores, Disneday World, and Disneyland moved quickly to require masks again.

* Other retailers, juggling confused customers and anxious employees, are still waiting and watching.

But the boom times are probably over. 3M, the manufacturer of N95 masks, said global demand reached its peak in Q1 2021. And although the worsering situation has sparked renewed in face covering, analysts think even the recent surge in sales isn't likely to valult the pandemic staple past the peak reached earlier.

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MORNING BREW.

COVID

CDC Advises Vacinated People to Resume Wearing Masks Indoors.

The CDC advised everyone at K-12 schools and people living in Covid hotspots to wear masks.

(July 27, 2021)

Two months after the CDC said vaccinated Americans could drop their masks indoors, the agency reversed its guidelines.

The details. The CDC advised everyone at K-12 schools and those living in Covid hotspots to make up in indoor settings, even if vaccinated. The US recorded more than 57.300 new daily cases on average over the last week due to the more transmissible Delta variant, up from a 2021 low of 11,351 in June.

It's not just you -- people are confused by the patchwork of mask rules. While LA and other localities contradicted federal guidelines and reimposed mask mandates for indoor public settings earlier this month, enforcement from businesses has been spotty.

* One server at a Los Angeles bar handed Brew writer Jamie Wilde a glass of champagne and said Jemie didn't have to wear a mask when walkingaround with it.

* How do you know in a ''Covid hotspot'' ? Consult this map from the CDC. People in areas where transmission is ''high'' or ''substantial'' are encouraged to wear mask indoors.

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COVID

Pfizer Expects Covid Vaccine to Bring in $33.5 Billion This Year

With Delta fueling surges across the globe, the company thinks taht a third booster shot will be needed for extra protection.

If you think C0-star notifications thrive on chaos, check out Pfizer. The drugmaker pfrojected that Covid-19 vaccine sales would hit $ 33.5 billion this year, a 29% bump from previous estimates. That would make the vaccine the world's best selling drug of all time, easily topping current leaders AbbVie's Humira and Merck's Keytruda.

Why the rosy outlook? This pandemic ain't over. With Delta fueling surges across the globe, the company thinks that a third booster shot will be needed for extra potection. In plans to ask the US for regulatory approval for its booster next month.

* Plus, it's charging more. The US recently paid $24/dosefor an order of 200 million doses, up from the $19.50/dose in paid Pfizer for previous orders.

Zoom out: Just because you 've developed a lifesaving vaccine doesn't automatically make you rich. J& J, whose one -shot vax has been stymied by side effect concerns and manifacturing errors, is projecting only $2.5 billion in sales from its vaccine this year. Moderna will report its earnings Aug. 5.

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AP NEWS

Residents: Myanmar leaders use pandemic as political weapon

(15 minutes ago)

BANGKOK (AP) --- With coronavirus deaths rising in Myanmar, allegations are growing from residents and human rights activists that the military government, which seized control in February, is using the pandemic toconsolidate power and cruch opposition.

In the last week, the per capita death rate in Myanmar surpassed those of Indonesia and Malaysia to become the worst in SouthAsia. The country's crippled health care system has repidly become overwhelmed with new patients sick with COVID-19.

Supplies of medical oxygen are running low, and the government has restricted its private sale in many places, saying it is trying to prevent hoarding. But that has led to widespread allegations that the stocks are being directed to government supporters and military-run hospitals.

At the same time, medical workers have been targeted after spearheading a civil disobedience movement that urged professionals and civil servants not to cooperate with the government, known as the State Administrative Council.

'' They have stopped distributing personal protection equipment and masks, and they will not let civilians who they suspect are supporting the democracy movement be treaded in hospitals, and they're arresting doctors who support the civil disobedience movement,'' said Yanghee Lee, the U.N.'s former Myanmar human rights expert and a founding member of the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar.

'' With the oxygen, they have banned sales to civilians or people who are not supported by the SAC, so they're using something that can save the people against the people,'' she said. ''The military is weaponizing COVID.''

Myanmar's Deputy Information Minister Zaw Min Tum did not respond to questions about the allegations, but with growing internal and external pressure to get the pandemic under control, the leadership has been on a pulic relations offensive.

MORE ON THE PANDEMIC

- Ravages of COVID surge evident inside Missouri hospital

- Do I need to get tested for COVID-19 if I'm Vaccinated?

- EXPLAINER: Detailing Japan's new COVID state of emergency

In the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper this week, several articles highlighted the government's efforts, including what it called a push to resume vaccinations and increase oygen supplies.

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the military commander who heads the SAC, was cited as saying that efforts were also being made to seek support from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and unspecified ''friendly countries.''

'' Efforts must be made for ensuring better health of the State and the people,'' he was quoted as saying.

Myanmar reported another 342 deaths Thursday, and 5.234 new infections. Its 7-day rolling average of deaths per 1 million people rose to 6.29 --- more than double the rate of 3.04 in ndia at the peak of its crisis in May. The figures in Myanmar are thought to be a drastic undercount due to lack of testing and reporting.

''there is a big difference between the actual death toll from COVID-19 of the Military Council and reality,'' a physician from the Mawlamyine General Hospital in Myanmar's fourth-largest city told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of government reprisal. '' There are a lot of people in the community who have died of the disease and cannot be counted.''

Videos proliferate on social media showing apparent virus victims dead in their homes for lack of tretment and long lines of people waiting for what oxygen supplies are still available. The government denies reports that cemeteries in Yangon have been overwhelmed but announced Tuesday they were building new facilities that could cremate up to 3.000 bodies per day.

''By letting COVID-19 run out of control, the military junta is failing the Burmese people as well as the wider region and world, which can be threatened by new variants fueled by unchecked spread of the disease in places like Myanmar,'' said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch. '' The problem is the junta cares more about holding on to power than stopping the pandemic.''

Myanmar is one of the region's poorest countries and already was in a vulnerable position when the military seized power, triggering a violent political struggle.

Under the civilian former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar had weathered a coronairus surge last year by severely restricting travel and sealing off Yangon. Vaccines were secured from India and China, but Suu Kyi's government was ousted less than a week after the first shots were given.

As civil disobedience grew after Suu Kyi's removal, public hospitals were basically closed as doctors and other staff refused to work under the new administration, instead running makeshift clinics for which they faced arrest, if caught.

Some have returned to public hospitals, but the Mawlamyine doctor interviewed by AP said it was too dangerous.

'' I could be arrested by the junta anytime if I returned to the hospital,'' added the coctor, who was part of the disobedience movement and hads been treating patients with supplies he has scrounged.

According to Tom Andrews, the U.N. Human Rights Council's independentv expert on human rights in Myanmar, government forces have engaged in at least 260 attacks on medical [ersonnel and facilities, killing 18. At least 67 health care professionals had been detained and another 600 are being sought.

Military hospitals kept operating after Suu Kyi's ouster but were shunned by many people and the vaccination program slowed to a crawl before apparently fizzling out completely until this week. there are no solid figures on vaccinations, but it's believed that about 3% of the population could have received two shots.

The rapid rise in COVID -19 illness is '' extremely concerning, particularly with limited availability of health services and oxygen supplies,'' said Joy Singhal, head of the Red Cross' Myanmar delegation.

'' There is an urgent need for greater testing, contact tracing and COVID-19 vaccinations to help curb the pandemic,'' he told AP. ''This latest surge is a better blow to millions of people in Myanmar already coping with worsening economic and social hardships.''

Earlierthis weeks, Andrews urged the U.N. Security Council and member states to push for a ''COVID cease - fire.''

The United Nations cannot afford to be complacent while the junta ruthlessly attacks medical personnel as COVID-19 spreads unchecked, '' he said. '' They must act to end this violence so that doctors and nurses can provide lifesaving care and international organizations can help deliver vaccinations and related medical care.''

After a long lull in humanitarian aid, China recently began delivering vaccines. It sent 736,000 doses to Yangon this month, the first of 2 million being donated, and reportedly more than 10.000 to the Kachin Independence Army, which has waged a decades-long insurgency in a northern border area where the virrus has spilled over into China.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian declined to comment directly earlier this week on the report of the delivery to the KIA, noting instead '' the epidemic is a common enemy to all mankind.''

The Global New Light reported Myanmar received another 1 million doses purchased from China.

COVID-19 outbreaks have been reported as widespread in Myanmar's prisons. On Wednesday, dstate-run MRTV television showed what it said were 610 prisoners from Yangon's Insein Prison being vaccinated. The report was met with skepticism and derision on social media.

Lee said if the government is trying to use vaccines and other aid to advantage by positioning itself as the solution to the pandemic, it's too late.

''The people know now and it's been too lang,'' she said. COVID was not manmade but if got out of proportion because of complicity and deliberate blockage of services --there's no going back.''

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BUSINESS INSIDER. CDC: The coronavirus could be 'just a few mutations'., BBC NEWS,..

2021-07-29T06:44:00.001-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

BUSINESS INSIDER

CDC: The coronavirus could be ''just a few mutations'away from evading vaccines

(Published Tue, July 27, 2021)

* The coronavirus is ''just a few mutations potentially away'' from evading current COVID-19 vaccines, the CDC said.

* Coronavirus cases have been surging in the US, fueled by the highly transmissible Delta variant.

* The more stories on Insider's business page.

The coronavirus could be just a few mutations away from evading existing COVID-19 vaccines, according to the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

''These vaccines operate really well in protecting us from severe disease and death, but the big oncern is that the next variant that might emerge - just a few mutations potentially away - could potentially evade our vaccines, '' CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a Tuesday press briefing.

She added, though that ''right now, forunately we are not there,'' since current COVID-19 vaccines ''operate really well in protecting us from severe disease and death.''

Coronavirus cases, fueled by the highly transmissible Delta variant, have been surging in the US and across the globe - largely among those who are unvaccinated. In the last month, the US's seven-day average of new daily cases has quintupled: from 11.888 on June 26 to 56.635 on Monday.

The CDC announced Tuesday that people infected with Delta - vaccinated or unvaccinated- have higher viral loads (meaning they carry greater amounts of virus) compared to other versions of coronavirus. That mens even vaccinated people could pass the virus along to others similarly to how unvaccinated people do.

More transmission means more mutations

Byron Saunders holds his wife Joyce's hand as she gets the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in Seattl, Washington, on March 13, 2021. AFP/etty Images

All viruses change over time as they replicate inside an infected host. So countless versions of the coronavirus are circulating, each separated by a handful of tiny changes in its genetic code. Many of these have no real public-health into a new, dangerous variant.

'' The biggest concern at the moment is just the sheer number of people that have the virus and therefore the sheer number of variants that are being generated,'' Andrew Read, who studies the evolution of infectious diseases at Pennsylvania State University, previously told Insider. '' Some of those might be the jackpot which are even fitter than Delta.''

Seven-year-old Jacquine Carney runs to hug her grandma, Donna Vidrine, upon arrival in LOs Angeles, November 23, 2020. (Los Angeles Times/Getty Images.)

No coronavirus variant spotted so far is more concerning than Delta, which was first identified in India this winter. World Health Organization officials recently called Delta the fittest'' variant to date, since it spreads more easily and may lead to more severe cases and an increased risk of hospitalization than other variants like Alpha, the variant discovered in the UK.

What's more, emerging research indicates that a single vaccine dose doesn't hold up as well against Delta as it does against other coronavirus strains. Recent Public Health England analyses found that two doses of Pfizer's vaccine were 88% effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19 from Delta, while a single shot was just 33% effective. That's compared to 95% efficacy against the original strain, with 52% afetr one shot.

Even though Delta is already the most transmissible variant, Read said it could still acquire combinations of mutations that make it even better at spreading - what he called a ''Delta-plus'' variant.

Is also possible that two separate variants - Delta and Alpha, for instance could combine their mutations to produce an even more infectious strain.

People walk in Burlington, Vermont, on June 28, 2021. /AFP/Getty Images

The reason a future variant could evade vaccines is that the shots all target the coronavirus 'spike protein, the sharp, crown-like bumps on the surface of the virus that help it invade our cells. If multiple, game-changing mutations after characteristics of that protein, the antibodies induced by the vaccines might nt be able to recognize or property fight the new variant.

Virologists call variations of a virus that slip the immune defenses we've built ''escape mutants.'' If the virus continues to spread and mutate rapidly, such escape mutants could be around the corner, Ravindra Gupta, a microbiology professor at the University of Cambridge, previously told Insider.

''Fully vaccine escape viruses, we're not necessarily that far away from them,'' he said.

-------------------------------

BBC NEWS

Could Covid vaccine be taken as a pill?

Coronavirus pandemic

(3 days ago)

Could this be how we take Covid vaccines in the future?

Right now, protection against Covid-19 comes via an injection. But in future, those vaccines could come from inhalers or even pills.

In a white, airy laboratory in Medicon Village, one of southern Sweden's largest science parks, chemist lngemo Andersson holds up a thin, plastic inhaler, half the size of a matchbox.

Her team is hoping this tiny product could play a big role in the global fight against coronavirus allowing people to take powdered versions of future vaccines at home.

Ít's easyand it's really cheap to product could play a big role in the global fight against coronavirus allowing people to take poedered versions of future vaccines at home.

''It's easy and it's really cheap to produce,'' says Johan Waborg, CEO of the firm, which usually makes inhalers for patients with asthma.

''You must remove a little plastic slip and then the vaccine inhaler is activated and you just put it in your mouth, take a deep breath and inhale.''

Ingemo Andersson with Iconovo's vaccine inhaler

The company, Iconovo, is collaborating with an immunology research start-up in Stockholm, ISR, which has developed a dry-powder vaccine against Cvid-19.

It uses manyfactured Covid-19 virus proteins (unlike Pfizer, Moderna and Astra Zeneca which use RNA or DNA that code for these proteins), and can withstand temperatures of up to 40C.

That's a major contract to the conditions needed to store the current commonly available coronavirus vaccines approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) , which are all in liquid form.

They have to be kept in tough glass vials in temperatures as low as - 70C, before being transferred to fridges, or they lose effectiveness - known as the ''cold chain''.

''The game -changer is that you could distribute the [powder] vaccine extremely easily without the cold chain, and it can be administered without the need for healthcare providers,'' says ISR's founder, Ola Winquist, a professor of immunology at the Karolinska Institute, one of Sweden's leading medical universities.

Freeze - dried foods

The company is currently testing its vaccines on the Beta (South African) and Alpha (UK) variants of Covid -19.

It believes it could prove especially useful in speeding up vaccine rollouts in Africa where there are currently no home-grown vaccine manufactures, and warmer climates and limited electricity supplies have led to major challenges when it comes to storing and delivering Covid-19 vaccines before they expire.

There is still some way to go before trials indicate the full potential of ISR's air-dried vaccine, including whether it can offer the same level of protection as the current list of vaccines approved by the WHO.

So far, it has only been tested on mice, although ISR and Iconovo have raised enough funding to begin studies on humans within the next two months.

Unisefer's former global health chief Stefan Swartling Peterson says powdered vaccines could stop people having to carry cool boxes ''on bicycles and camels''

But there is already optimism within the medical community that if powdered vaccines like this one prove successful, they could revolutionise the global response to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as making it easier to store and distribute vaccines for other illnesses.

''It would really open up opportunities for hard-to-reach areas and maybe save us having people carrying cool boxes on bicycles and camels,'' says Stefan Swartling Pterson, Unisef's global health chief from 2016 to 2020, now professor of global transformation for health at Karolinska.

He compares the potential impact to that of freeze-dried foods, which have proved 'great for going into all sorts of funny places which are out of electricity reach'', whether for use by medical personnel or simply adventurous campers.

While companies around the world are investigating powdered vaccines, Swartling Peterson points to another start-up with ''proming technology'', just a 10-minute walk from Iconovo.

Ziccum is testing a technology designed to air-dry existing or fiture liquid vaccines in a way that doesn't limit their effectiveness.

This could make it easier to set up so-called ''fill and finish'' facilities in developing countries, allowing them to complete the final stages of vaccine production on home soil.

The vaccine powder would be mixed with a sterile water solution just prior to immunisation, and then injected using vials and needles.

However, the technology ''opens up for various other types of administration'' from nasal sprays to pills, says its CEO Goran Conradsson.

''It requires a lot of research and development for that. But in principle , yes.''

Greener'alternative

Janssen, which makes the single-dose Covid vaccine approved for use in the UK by the medicines regulator last month, is already working on a pilot project designed to analyse the Ziccum's air-drying capabilities.

The pharmaceutical giant would not say if this was connected to coronavirus or other infectious diseases, but a spokesperson said the research was part of a deep focus on ''exploring novel technology that has the potential to ease distribution, administration and compliance'' of future vaccines.

Powder technologies could also help those who are afraid of needles, and offer a '' greener'' alternative to liquid vaccines, by cutting down on the electricity needed to power the fridges and freezers usually used to store vaccine vials.

Goran Conradsson

And it could help global vaccine coverage.

''No-one's safe until everyone is safe,'' says Mr Conradsson. '' You never know what's going to happen if you [still] have the coronavirus going around somewhere in part of the world.''

'' We have to able to get vaccines to populations in all settings to tacle epidemics and pandemics globally,'' agrees Ingrid Kromann, a spokesperson for the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (Cepi), a global non-profit organisation working to accelerate the development of vaccines.

She is cautious, saying powder-based vaccines are still at an early stage of development and there is ''still much work to do'', for example to streamline and scale up the manufacturing process.

''But if it is successful, it could contribute to better access to vaccines, less wastege, and lower costs of vaccination programmes.''

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BBC NEWS

Covid: Bradford's Matthew Keenan dies despite changing mind on jabs

( 1 day before)

Coronavirus pandemic

Matthew Keenan told doctors he wished he could turn back time and get vaccinated

A '' self - confessed vaccine sceptic'' has died in hospital just two weeks after a doctor shared his picture to urge others to get the Covid jab.

Matthew Keenan, from Bradford, died a fortnight after allowing Leanne Cheyne to post the image of him hooked up to an oxygen mask.

Dr Cheyne, a respiratory consultant, said the 34-year-old dad had told her he wished he ''could turn back time''.

Tributes paid to Mr Keenan described him as ''a top bloke'' and ''a real gem''.

Posting the image on Twitter on 11 July, Dr Cheyne wrote: ''Matthew, has agreed for me to share his story. 34, footie coach & dad...

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AP. Florida mayor: 'We are in crisis mode', as virus cases surge..& more..

2021-07-27T10:51:00.005-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra- Alimpoutaki

AP. Associated Press

( Published Yesterday)

Florida mayor: ''We are in crisis mode,' as virus cases surge

ORLANDO,Fla.(AP)---- The mayor of the country that hosts Florida's theme park mecca said Monday that ''we are now in crisis mode'' when it comes to dealing with soaring numbers of COVID-19 infections.

Florida accounted for a fifth of the nation's new infections last week, more than any other state, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Now the home to Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort is seeing about 1.000 new cases a day, said Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.

''A thousand a day is extraordinart,'' Demings said at a news conference. ''We are now in crisis mode... We as a community need to work together to slow this rate.''

The positivity rate for the virus in the country of 1.4 million residents has tripled to 14% from about 43% a month ago. More than 61% of county residents have had at least one vaccination shot, and the mayor urged unvaccinated residents to get theirs as soon as possible.

Demings said central Florida hospitals are approaching capacity. A medical officer at one of the state's largest health systems said its number of COVID-19 patients is nearing an all-time high: 862, approaching the peak of 900 hospitalized patients with the virus in January.

''This is clearly, as has been previously described, a pandemic of the unvaccinated,'' said Dr.Victor Herrera, chief medical officer with AdventHealth Orlando.

The hospital system went into a ''code red'' status this week, postponing elective surgeries to free up capacity for COVID-19 patients.

Of particular concern is a significant increase in unvaccinated pregnant women needing hospitalization for the virus, said Herrera, who urged pregnant women to talk to their doctors and consider getting the vaccine.

Some of them are very sick and intubated,''Herrera said.

The median age of Orange County patients who have died from COVID-19 is 59 and trending younger, with almost all the new infections in unvaccinated people, said Dr.Raul Pino, director of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County.

A silver lining is that the county's death rate from the virus is the lowest it has been in a year, an indication of how effective the vaccines are, Pino said.

More than 73.000 new coronavirus cases were reported in Florida over the previous week, according to the state health department, nearly seven times the 12.000 reported a month ago. Florida's numbers had been falling since mid-January when 100.000 new cases per week were reported. Florida had 341 cases per 100.000 people over the past week, second only to Louisiana, according to CDC data.

DEspite his latest surge, Gov.Ron DeSantis said Florida will not return to government mandates. In May, the Republican barred municipalities from imposing their own and banned businesses from requiring proof of vaccination. He said it is to individuals on how they deal with the pandemic.

Demings, a Democrat, said he hasn't ruled out reintroducing masking rules for the county, as other jurisdictions have done already. He faulted state officials for not taking more proactive measures to slow infections.

'' Now is the time we should see some adjustments being made because the virus is quickly spreading,'' Demings said. ''We can't do the same things we've been doing and expect different results.''

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AP. Associated Press

Fauci says US headed in 'wrong direction ' on coronavirus

(Published yesterday)

WILMINGTON, Del.(AP) --- The United States is in an ''unnecessary predicament'' of soaring CVID-19 cases fueled by unvaccinated Americans and the virulent delta variant, the nation's top infectious diseases expert said Sunday.

''We're going in the wrong direction,'' said Dr. Anthony Fauci, describing himself as ''very frustrated.''

He said recommending that the vaccinated wear masks is ''under active consideration '' by the government's leading public health officials. Also, booster shots may be suggested for people withsuppressed immune systems who have been vaccinated, Fauci said.

Fauci, who also serves as President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser, told CNN's ''State of the Union'' that he has taken part in conversations about altering the mask guidelines.

He noted that some local jurisdictions where infection rates are surging , such as Los Angeles Country, are already calling on adivituals to wear masks in indoor public spaces regardless of vaccination status. Fauci said those local rules are compatible with the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention recommendation that the vaccinated do not need to wear masks in public.

More than 163 million people, or 49% of the total U.S. population, are fully vaccinated, according to CDC data. Of those eligible for the vaccine, aged 12 and over, the figure rises to 57%.

This is an issue predominantly among the unvaccinated, which is the reason why we're out there, practically pleading with the unvaccinated people to go out and get vaccinated,'' Faici said.

Fauci said government experts are reviewing early data as they consider whether to recommend that vaccinated individuals to get booster shots. He suggested that some of the most vulnerable, such as organ transplant and cancer patients, are ''likely'' to be recommended for booster shots.

He also praised Republicans, including Govs. Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas and Ron DeSantis of Florida, and the second -ranking House leader , Rep.Steve Scalise of Louisiana, for encouraging their constituents to get vaccinated. Their states have among the lowest vaccination rates in the country.

''What I would really like to see is more and more of the leaders in those areas that are not vaccinating to get out and speak out and encourage people to get vaccinated, ''Fauci said.

----This storyhas been corrected to say that 49% of the total U.S. population, not just those eligible are fully vaccinated.

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Tokyo reportsrecord virus cases days after Olympics begin

TOKYO (AP). ---Japan's capital, Tokyo, reported its highest number of new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, days after the Olympics began. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga urged people to avoid non-essential outings, but said there was no need to consider a suspension of the Games.

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AP. Brazil reopens., NASA Invites Media to., Morning Brew- & much more..

2021-07-24T12:22:00.001-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra - Alimpoutaki.

Brazil reopens amid looming threat from delta variant

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) --- With the number of coronavirus deaths starting to recede in Brazil, a renewed sense of optimism has led state governos to roll back restrictions, soccer fans are starting to return to stadiums, and the mayor of Rio de Janeiro has said the city's famous New Year's party is back on.

But one question loomsover these signs of recovery:What will happen as the delta variant of COVID-19 spreads through the mostly unvaccinated country, which already has the world's second-highest death toll with 547.000 fatalities?

The variant is boosting cases and deathsglobally after a period of decline, and the World Health Organization anticipates it will become dominant within months. The race is on to vaccinate as many Brazilians as possible.

Countries that succeeded in doing so, like the U.K., have seen infections soar in recent weeks --- but without a corresponding rise in serious illnesses or deaths.

Experts are concerned that it is unlikely Brazil can do the same in time.

''It wil be explosive,'' said Gonzalo Vesina, a professor of public health at the University of Sao Paulo. ''There will be a new wave. We are opening too much.''

People line up to take their pictures on the Selaron Stairway in Rio de Janeiro, on July 23.(AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

Commuters wait for public transport in Rio de Janeiro no July 23.(AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

Brazil's Health Ministry counted 140 cases of the delta variant by Friday, including its three most populous states, and 12 deaths. Analysts say the figures are vast undercounts due to lack of testing and genome sequencing.

President Jair Bolsonaro has long opposed restrictions and played down COVID-19's risks, often saying infection is inevitable. Lawmakers have begun investigating his administration's handling of the pandemic, particularly why officials appear to have been slow to acquire vaccines.

Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga says getting more of the population vaccinated is the bst way to stop the variant, but he instists that Brazil must resume its economic activities.

''We have available hospital bed capacity and we will live with this pandemic until we can control it definitively,'' Queiroga said Wednesday. He stressed the importance of knowing whether each person infected with the variant has already had one shot or two.

British researchers found that two doses of either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccines were only slightly less effective at blocking delta's symptomatic illness, compared with earlier variants. Importantly, the vaccines were effective at preventing hospitalization.

But just one dose proved far less effective than against other variants. That prompted Britain, which earlier extended the gap between doses, to spend up second shots. There's little information on the efficacy of other vaccines against the variant.

That's worrisome for Brazil, where 17% of the population is fully vaccinated and 44% have received the first of two shots. The AstraZeneca shot makes up nearly half of all vaccines administered, China's Sinovac more than a third, and Pfizer most of the rest.

A man gets a shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine in Rio de Janeiro(Ap Photo/Bruna Prado)

Sao PauloGov. Joao Doria is among those leaders considering a booster shot for those who got two Sinovac doses. At the same time, he allowed businesses to stay open later and increase their customer capacity.

Prnambuco's government similarly loosened restrictions for bars and social events on July 5 --- the same day the northeastern state identified its first two delta cases.

Federal District Cov. Ibaneis Rocha allowed 15.000 spectators to attend a soccer match this week --- the first professional club match attended by fans in Brazil since the pandemic began. Shortly before the game, the district's health secretary confirmed delta variant cases in the region.

Flamengo fans cheer during a Copa Libertadores match against Argentina's Defensa y Justicia in the first professional clum game with fans since the COVID-19 pandemic begin. (Adriano Machado/Pool via AP)

''The information that governors are conveying to people is that the pandemic is under control,'' said Ethel Maciel, an epidemiologist at the Federal University of Espirito Sando. ''We shouldn't be talking about control, or the pandemic coming to an end when less than 20% of people are fully vaccinated and more than 1.000 people are dying every day.''

Israel and the Netherlands reopened widely after vaccinating most of their citizens, but they had to reimpose some restrictions after new surges of infections. The Dutch prime minister said lifting restrictions too early ''was a mistake.''

Commuters crowd a bus promoting the use of face masks in Rio de Janeiro.(AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

In the U.K, where delta has become dominant, infections have surged in the past two months to the highest level since January. Officials repeatedly expressed confidence that, with more than two-thirds the adult population fully vaccinated, the impact would be lessened. Indeed, daily deaths remain under 5% of the peak.

Indonesia trails Brazil in the rate of vaccinations, and on Thursday, the Southeast Asian country reported its deadliest day since the start of the pandemic. Sinovac was the predominant vaccine there, but with growing concern that the shot is less effective against delta, the government is planning booster shots of other vaccines.

Brazilians are paying attention to reports of the delta variant causing havoc in U.S. states with low vaccination rates. Still, many remain optimistic with Brazil's death toll down almost two-thirds from April.

Clkaudio Santos, 64, was calmly ordering food at a juice bar in Rio on Wednesdaywhen he remembered his mask was too old and needed replacing.

'' It's a little different since the start of this month. We have this perception more people are vaccinated, we don't hear every day that someone we know got COVID,'' Santos said. ''Of course, we are worried about the new variant, but I haven't panicked since the pandemic began and don't plan to now. I got my shots and life is going back to some kind of normal.''

Delta's impact may be cushioned by the highly contagious gamma variant, which emerged in the Amazonian city of Manaus and has already established dominance across Brazil, said Felipe Naveca, a Manaus-based virologist at the state -run Fiocruz Institute who studies the variants.

Brazil conducts hardly any genomic sequencing of coronavirus tests, compared with the U.S. and the U.K., said Maciel. the epidemiologist. In Rio state, the most recent study found gamma accounted for 78% of 380 samples and delta 16%, according to its health secretariat.

A health worker prepares a shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine for COVID-19 in Rio de Janeiro(AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

Delta has been detected in at least18 Latin America's countries, according to the Pan-American Health Organization...

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NASA

Space Station. NASA Invites Media to Next SpaceX Cargo Launch to Space Station

The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft rests in the hangar at NASA's Kennedy Space Center's Lauunch Complex 39A on May 27, 2021. The Dragon spacecraft was launched atop a Falcon 9 rocket during the company's 22nd commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station on June 3.

Media accreditation is now open for SpaceX's 23rd cargo resupply mission to then International Space Station. Liftoff on the Dragon spacecraft on a falcn 9 rocketis targeted for late August from Launch Complex 38A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Media prelaunch and launch activities will take place at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Media prelaunch and launch activities will take place at Kennedy. Credentialing deadlines are as follow:

* International media residing in the United States must apply by Friday, July 30.

* U.S. media must apply by Friday , Aug. 6.

All media accreditation requests should be submitted online at: https://media.ksc.nasa.gov

For media with special logistical requests, such as space for satellite trucks, tents. or electrical connections, please email Allison Tankerslay@nasa.gov. by Friday, August 13.

NASA has updated its COVID-19 policies to remain consistent with new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance. Credential media will receive additional details from the media operations team at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

For queations about accreditation, please mail ksc-media-accreditat..

For other queastions, please contact Kennedy's newsroom at 321- 867-2468.

The spacecraft will deliver a variety of NASA science investigations to the station, including a study on ptreventing and treating bone density loss, an investigation that will test diagnostic devices that could detect and mitigate vision disorders, and a new robotic arm for demonstration that could reveal potential uses on Earth, including in disaster relief. The capsule also will deliver materials including concrete,fiberglass composites, and substances that can offer protection against radiation, to investigate how they respond to the harch environment of space. Additionally, nanofluidic and educational experiments will utilize the function of a new research facility aboard the orbiting laboratory.

This is the third SpaceX mission to deliver science investigations, supplies, and equipment for NASA under the agency's second Commercial Resupply Services contract. Cargo resupply by U.S. companies significantly increases NASA's ability to conduct new investigations at the only laboratory in space. Space station research through the ISS National Laboratory also provides opportunities for other U.S. government agencies, private industry, and academic and research institutions to conduct microgravity research that leads to new technologies, medical treatments, and products that improve life on Earth.

Humans have occupied the space station continuously since November 2000. In that time, 243 people and a variety of international and commercial spacecraft have visited the orbiting laboratory. the space station remains the spingboard to NASA's next great leap in exploration, including future missions to the Moon and eventually Mars.

The mission's launch date will be confirmed in the near future. For launch countdown coverage, NASA's launch blog, and more information about the mission, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/spacex

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NASA

Europa (Moon)

(Jul 23, 2021)

NASA Awards Launch Services Contract for Europa Clipper Mission

The illustration, updated in DEcember 2020, depicts NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft. With an intemal kglobal ocean twice the size of Earth's oceans combined, Jupiter's moon Europa may have the potential to harbor life. The Europa Clipper orbiter will swoop around Jupiter on an elliptical path, dipping close to the moon on each flyby to collect data.

NASA has celected Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) of Hawthome, California, to provide launch services for Earth's first mission to conduct detailed investigations of Jupiter's moon Europa.

The Europa Clipper mission will launch in October 2024 on a Falcon Heavy rocket from launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The total contract award amount for launch services is approximately $178 million.

Europa Clipper will conduct a detailed survey of Europa and use a sophisticated suite of science instruments to investigate whether the icy moon has conditions suitable for life. Key mission objectives are to produce high-resolution images of Europa's surface, determine its composition, look for signs of recent or going geological activity, measure the thickness of the moon's icy shell, search for subsurface lakes, and determine the depth and salinity of Europa's ocean.

NASA's Launch Services Pat Kennedy will manage the Europa Clipper launch service. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in laurel, Maryland, for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The planetary Missions Program Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/europa

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nature briefing

Today we learn that China's space station is preparing to host 1.000 scientific eperiments, explore AlphaFold's '' totally transformative' protein structure databace and discover how the beautiful structure of a sea sponge reduces hydrodynamic drag.

Astronaut Nie Haisheng works inside the Tianhe module.(Jin Liwang/Xinhua/eyevine)

China's space station comes online

The China manned Space Agency has tentatively approved more than 1.000 experiments for tge Tiangog space station, several of which have already been launched. China launched the core of the space station in April and sent three astronauts up in June. The station is likely to be completed in late 2022.

AlphaFold's 'transformative' database

AlphaFold has predicted the structure of nearly the entire human proteome (the full complement of proteins expressed by an organism) and made it available through a public database. The deep-learning neural network, developed by Google's artificial-intelligence firm DeepMind, predicts the 3D structures of proteins from their amino-acid sequences. AlphaFold has also predicted almost complete proteomes for other organisme, ranging from mice and maize (corn) to the malaria parasite. The more than 350.000 protein structures vary in their accuracy. But researchers say the resource -- which is set to grow to 130 million structures by the end of the year -- has the potential to revolutionize the life sciences.

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NEWS ROUND -UP

AP. Research: India's deaths during pandemic 10X officiall toll..

2021-07-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra Alimpoutaki

AP NEWS

Research: India'a deaths during the pandemic 10X official toll

(Published 20/7/2021)

NEW DELHI (AP) ---- India's excess deaths during the pandemic could be a staggering 10 times the official COVID-19 toll, likely makening it modern India's worst human tragedy, according to the most comprehensive research yet on the ravages of the virus in the south Asian country.

Most experts believe India's official toll of more than 414.000 dead ia a vast undercount, but the government has dismissed those concerns as exaggerated and misleading.

The report released Tuesday estimated excess deaths --- the gap between those recorded and those that would have been expected --- to be between 3 million between January 2020 and June 2021. It said an accurate figure may ''prove elusive'' but the true death toll ''is likely to be an order of magnitude greater than the official count.''

The report, published by Arvind Subramanian, the Indian government's former chief economic adviser, and two other researchers at the Center for Global Development and Harvard University, said the count could have missed deaths occuring in overwhelmed hospitals or while health care was delayed or disrupted, especially during the devastating peak surge earlier this year.

''True deaths are likely to be in the several millions not hundreds of thousands, making this arguably India's worst human tragedy since Partition and independence,'' the report said.

The Washington Post. In this summer of covid freedom, disease experts warn..

2021-07-18T08:38:00.002-07:00

Diligence: Mersina ( Tzina ) Joustra-Alimpoutaki

The Washington Post

Coronavirus. Health

In this summer of covid freedom, disease experts warn: '' The world needs a reality check'

(July17, 2021. Updated yesterday)

Transit passengers wear masks as they wait on July 16 for a light-rail train in Los Angeles, where health authorities reimposed a mask mandate fror everyone - vaccinated or not - inside public establisments. (AFP/Getty Images)

Maria Van Kerkhove, a World Health Organization epidemiologist, was in her Geneva office last weekend preparing for a keynote address when a simple phrase came to mind. She had been pondering the dismaying rise in coronavirus infections globally during the previous three weeks, a reversal of promising trends in the late spring. The surge came as people across much of the Northern Hemisphere were moving around again in a suddenly freewheeling summer --- as if the pandemic were over.

She wrote in her notrbook: '' The world needs a realitycheck.''

Van Kerkhove's subsequent comments on Twitter pointing out the lack of social distancing drew predictable flak from the social media trolls, something she has gotten used to in the past year and a half. But she is not an outlier. Around the world, scientists and public health officials fear that the world's protracted battle against the coronavirus is at a delicate and dangerous moment.

Reality checks abound. Coronavirus infections are surging in places with low vaccination rates. SARS-CoV-2 is continuing to mutete. reasearchers have confirmed the delta variant is far more transmissble than earlier strains. Although the vaccines remain remarkably effective, the virus has bountiful opportunities to find new ways to evade immunity. Most of the world remains unvaccinated.

And so the end of the pandemic remains somewhere over the horizon.

''We're getting further away from the end than we should be. We're in a bad place right now globaly, ''Van Kerkhove said.

Similarly dismayed is Francis S. Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health. Last summer, he watched cases in the United States spike, particularly in the Sun Belt, after what he felt was a premature end to spring restrictions. This summer, he is not surprised by the rise in infections across a country where many people haven't gotten their shots and have returned to pre-pandemic behavior.

''It's like we've been to this movie several times in the last year and a half, and it doesn't end well. Somehow, we're running the tape again. It's all predictable, '' Collins said.

Coronavirus infections in the United States rose nearly 70 percent in a single week, officials reported Friday, and hospitalizations and deaths rose 36 percent and 26 percent, respectively. Almost every state has experienced a rise in cases. Florida, populous and not highly vaccinated, is seeing a surge in cases. In hot spots such as Arkansas and Missouri, covid wards are opening up again in hospital.

Los Angeles Country this past week announced that it had to reinstate indoor mask requirements for everyone, regardless of vaccination check. Thursday night's prime - time baseball game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox was canceled when six Yankees players -- most of them vaccinated -- tested positive for the virus.

Masked passangers board a light - rail train in Los Angeles. mutations in the virus are inevitable and coplicate forecasts of how the pandemic will play out. ( AFP/Getty Images)

Many breakthrough infectious will produce no symptoms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention decided in May to track only breakthrough infections leading to hospitalization.

The vaccines, though marvels of basic and applied science, do not form an impenetrable shield against SARS-CoV-2. They work as advertised, meaning they usually prevent severe illness and death, but they do not deliver what is known as ''sterilizing immunity.''

The CDC inssued a statement Friday saying the agency has multiple programs, working with state and local partners, to track vaccine effectiveness.

''COVID-19 vaccine are effective and are a critical tool to help bring the pandemic under control. However, no vaccines are 100% effective at preventing illness and vaccinated people.There will be a small percentage of fully vaccinated people who still get sick, are hospitalized, or die from COVID-19. As with other vaccines, this is expected. As the number of people who are vaccinated goes up, the number of breakthrough cases is also expected to increase,'' the CDC said.

The next reality check comes from the virus itself. The delta variant has mutations that significantly enhance transmissibility, and it is responsible far a majority of new infections in the United States as it outcompetes other strains. Mutations in the virus are invirable and complicate forecasts of how the pandemic will play out. The world is in midst of a global experiment in which a single virus is turning into a full Greek alphabet of distinct strains, each with its own suite of mutations.

''They're evolving. Even the delta variant, we have two sublineages we are monitoring, '' Van Kerkhove said. ''Everyone is fixated on the delta, but we should be prepared for more.''

Amid these concerns are positive signs of long-term progress against covid-19, the illness caused by the virus. That's a reality check on the positive side of the ledger. This isn't 2020. The increase in hospitalizations has been less dramatic than the increase in reported infections. That's because the vaccines -- a tool the world lacked a year ago -- usually prevent severe ilness.

'' The game changer is if and when we see lrge numbers of vaccinated individuals returning to hospitals. But we are not seeing that,'' said David Rubin, director of PolicyLab at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

This hints at how the pandemic may eventually play out: The virus could become endemic. It would not be eradicated --- and would still cause occasional clusters of infection --- but it woyuuld not ignite runaway outbreaks nor be nearly as lethal as when it emerged into the human population. That drop in lethality will be driven less by changes in the virus itself than by the changed immunological landscape.

For people with at least partial immunity, covid-19 could become more like influenza or even a cold, which are caused by viruses that are at least somewhat familiar to our immune systems. Four other coronaviruses are endemic in humans and are responsible for a significant fraction of colds.

This scenario -- call it Scenario A -- has been the general asumption or hope of many infectious - disease experts since the start of the pandemic. The dialing down of the lethality of the disease would be an example of history repeapeating itself: The 1918 influenza pandemic was caused by a virus that never vanished, but instead became the cause of the seasonal flu.

SARS-CoV-2 and covid-19 are often referred to as if they were interchangeable. But the trajectory of the virus increasingly is distinct from the trajectory of the disease. As time goes on, more people will have immunity from a previous natural infection or from vaccination, and SARS-CoV-2 will pose less of a threat to them than it will be to people unvaccinated or never previously infected.

'' We're really treasing apart SARS-CoV-2 the virus from covid-19, the disease, '' said Jennie Lavine, an Emory University researcher and lead author of a paper in Science earlier this year showing how the virus may become endemic. There won't be a single moment when the virus becomes endemic, she said. It will happen gradually, as the virus loses its virulence. In Scenrio A, the pandemic as we know it comes to an end.

That's not saying you won't get infected again, it's saying that you wnon't get really sick from it,'' she said.

Janis Orlowski, chief health-care officer of the Association of American Medical Colleges, offers one version of Scenario B: ''Delta goes on to epsilon which goes on to lambda, and that becomes another ugly virus... The virus mutates to a strain that we are not effectively vaccinated against --- and that leads us into another ugly year.''

(For the record: There already is an epsiol and lambda.)

Orlowski adds, '' I think Scenario B is less likely, but is till a concern because we are not vaccinated as the rate we should be.''

Nurse Susan Hinck gives Richard Thornton a coronavirus vaccine July 10 in Springfield, Mo., where hospital wards have filled with covid-19 patients. (The Washington Post)

New scientific research, including two reports highlighted by Collins on his NIH blog, indicates that important elements of immunity appear to remain durable against the virus even when antibodies begin to wane. And although Pfizer- BioNTech -- the companies behind one of the three authorized vaccines in the United States -- put the idea of boosters into play with a recent news release saying people may need them six to 12 months after being fully vaccinated, many experts, including Collins, regarded the announcement as premature.

Some people who are immunocompromised --- foe example, from taking powerful drugs to reduce chances of organ rejection after undergoing a transplant --may need another vaccine dose in the near term, especially if tests show they have not mounted any immune response to the vaccines. But Collins doesn't consider that a ''booster'' so much as another attempt to get people to the initial stage of immunity.

The bigger question for public health officials is where they can parsuade millions more people to get jabbed in the arm for the first time. Roughly one -- third of adults in the united States remain unvaccinated. Vaccine uptake is lowest among yaunger age groupd tht are also at lower risk of severese illness from covid-19, but they represent a growing percentage of cases in hospitals.

The bigger question for public health officials is whether they can persuade millions more people to get jabbed in the arm for the first time. Roughly one-third of adults in the United States remain unvaccinated. Vaccine uptake is lowest among younger age groups that are also at lower risk of severe illness from covid-19, but they represent a growing percentage of cases in hospitals.

Misinformation has run rampant. The vaccines are not, contrary to one rumor, ''genere therapy. '' They do not implant microchips. They are not part of a plot. And although they can cause side-effects-- and on rare occasions, dangeous ones -- the vaccines have passed rigorous safety reviews.

Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy released a report Thursday decrying the epidemic of misinformation. On Friday, he called out ''technology companies'' that he said enabled misinformation. '' to poison our information environment with little accountability to their users. '' President Biden doubled down on that Friday as he boarded the Marine One helicopter for a trip to Camp David: '' They're killing people,'' he said of the social media platforms that spread misinformation.

Even if, through vaccination and prudent behavior, the virus is brought under control, the rattling psychological effects of the pandemic could persist.

As Lavine points out, people have been told repeatedly for a year and a half that this virus is a potential killer. For many of those people, it will be difficult to let go of covid-19 fears. The many unknowns about covid-19 will make risk tolerance calculations difficult. This remains a new virus and a new disease, and scientists and doctors are still trying to understand what they're looking at.

''Noibody has had covid for 10 years. So there's an unknown factor, ansd that is going to make it scary for a while because people are scared of the unknown, '' said David W. Dowdy, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

People eager to celebrate watched July Fourth fireworks cascade over the Las Vegas Strip. (AP)

Meanwhile, many people are not scared at all, don't feel vulnerable, or simply are done --- done, done, done --- with the pandemic. Van Kerkhove, the WHO epidemiologist, was upset last Sunday at the sight of unmasked people across Europe crowding into bars to watch the European championship soccer match between Italy and England.

''It's really disheartening, and it's really devastating to see situations where we can facilitate spread,'' she said. ''I want to go to those foorball matches, too. I want to go to the bar and have a drink. I want to go out to dinner.''

But she's not ready. She knows too much.

''The situation globally is so dynamic, it's so uncertain, and is so fragile,'' she said.

-------------------------------------

South China Morning Post

GLOBAL IMPACT

(17 July 2021)

In search of goldilocks: the outlook for the Chinese economy

Hello again SCMP Global Impact readers,

China was the first economy in the world to succumb to the coronavirus pandemic, but the first to emerge from the other side. China's economy has led the global economic recovery and continues to be a top growth driver going forward, meaning its outlook is central to that for the entire world.

In this issue, we' ll look at the state of the Chinese economy today and peer into our looking glass to try to divine where it's headed, in the hope of shedding some light on the subject.

Tokyo Olympics: Fears of new coronavirus outbreak mean most people think Games should be..

John Carter. Senior Editor, Political Economy

Trying to thread the needle: not too hot, not to cold, just right

Beijing, like other governments around the world, is trying to thread the needle in setting economic policy as it continues to recover from the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Trying to create a Goldilocks economy: not too hot, not too cold, but just right.

This is challenging in any contex, but more so given the continued drag on growyh-both in China and abroad - caused by the sharp resurgence in the Delta variant of the coronavirus. The economic impact was evident immediately: China's draconian efforts to contain the Delta outbreak shut down the port of Yantian in southern China, one of the busiest container shipping ports in the world.

Beijing's policy priorities seem clear: create sufficient growth to absorb new entrants to the labour force - including nine million new graduates this year - while at the same time starting to upwind the world's largest pile of government, corporate and household debt accumulated since the Global Financial Crisis. A challenging work agenda.

So Beijing wants to keep the economy on an event keel, even amid expectations that growth will slow as the year progresses. just released data suggest that the economy is holding up quite well.

As expected, Chinese economic growth slowed by 7.9 per cent in the second quarter compared to a year earlier, down from a record 18.3 per cent growth rate in the first quarter. However, compared to the previous quarter - which minimises the impact of base effects on the calculation - growth rebounded strongly to 1.3 per cent from 0.4 per cent in the first quarter. In addition, both industrial production and retail sales were stronger than expected.

In addition, Chinese exports again grew stronger than expected in June, as the China trade juggernaut gathered pace. Export growth had been predicted to slow in June as the economic recovery in industrial countries picked up pace, meaning they could produce their own goods rather than importing them. Predictions of a slowdown in the second half of this year persist, which would drag on growth.

But observers should be cautious of the trade outlook, given that similar predictions of an export slowdown were made for the fourth quarter last year. Instead, exports continued to surge a record levels in October, November and December, creating a record trade surplus and helping to power the Chinese economy forward.

With the economy doing fairly well at the moment, but predictions of a further slowdown prevalent, analysts are debating what economic stimulus steps Beijing might have to roll out in the coming months.

Earlier this year, Beijing promised ''no U-turn'' on economic support, meaning that it would not consider a return to the aggressive monetatary and fiscal policies employed in the spring of 2020 to combat the econimic damage caused by the pandemic. The government had stopped providing extra liquidity to financial markets and had cut back on fiscal spending.

But the government statement left room for ''fine tuning'' of economic support policy in the need arose.

On July 7, the State Council, China's government cabinet, surprised by indicating for the first time in more than a year that the government was ready to ease monetary policy modestly by cutting bank's reserve ratios-the amount of money they have to set aside against future loan losses.

Two days later, the People's Bank of China(PBOC), the nation's central bank, delivered, announcing a cut that would free up 1 trillion yuan (US$154 billion) for banks to lend. However, the PBOC downplayed the move as a structural adjustment and analysts said it would have little economic impact in the short-run.

That move suggested to analysts that the government was worried about the economic outlook and so predictions of new fiscal stimulus measures were put on the table despite the strong economic data for June.

The question is how much of a slowdown in growth Beijing will tolerate for the rest of the year.

Note that if growth were to slow to a 6 per rate in the fourth quarter this year, the Chinese economy would be right back where it was in the fourth quarter of 2019, before the pandemic began, when the economy grew 6.0 per cent compared to a year earlier.

At the end of 2019, analysts expected Beijing to set a growth target of ''around 6 per cent'' for 2020, in what they judged to be the minimum growth rate that would allow the government to achieve its objectives.

In other words, the pandemic produced a two-year interruption in the ''new normal'' growth path for the Chinese economy. It also could suggest that Beijing's most recent policyfine turning moves were meant to ensure growth would not fall much below 6 per cent at the end of the year, rather than signalling broader concern about the economy that would require stronger policy action.

This is not to say that the Chinese economy is out of the woods. Given the rapid spread of the Delta coronavirus variant, more action may be needed in the future to prop up growth. But for now, expectations of substantial additional economic stimulus may be overdone.

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China / Science

Coronavirus: vaccines 'surest way to prevent more deaths' as global toll hits 4 million

* WHO chief says world is at 'perilous point' with death toll likely to be underestimated

* Vaccination should be sped up and supplied to those who need them, according to health experts

Covid-19 vaccines appear to be slowing the death rate, at least for now. Photo: Xinhua

The pandemic has cost Nairobi health care worker Mary Nanjala dearly. Her two sisters, brother and mother were all infected with COVID-19, and two close friends have died of complications from the disease.

''One friend was buuried last Friday. This has left me very scared as the deaths came too near. We were very close friends, '' Nanjala said. ''I feel very sad as may friends were young and left behind children.''

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China / Diplomacy

Can the Build Back Better World plan really undo China's Belt and Road Initiative in Africa?

* The world's richest countries unveiled their own infrastructure plan as a way of countering Chinese influence on the continent.

* But Africa needs as an estimated US$150 billion a year post-Covid-19 and many believe there is a need for both schemes

(Published: 18 Jul. 2021)

US President Joe Biden leads the initiative which was announced at the the G7 summit in Britain. Photo: AFP / Getty Images / TNS

During last month's G7 summit, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said '' no single partner in the world'' could develop Africa alone.

He was speaking soon after the leaders of the world's richest democracies had unveiled the Build Back Better World ( B3W ) project designed to offer an alternative to China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Ramaphosa had been asked whether he was worried that the planned investment in African infrastructure was not the right way ''to push back at China'' and replied: ''We are a continent of many countries with huge deficits regarding infrastructure..We want partner -- type investments. We are open to...

---------------------------------

Coronavirus: no certainty on herd immunity until we know more about vaccines and variants

* Early estimates for reaching herd immunity were based on the original strain but estimates for emerging variants are higher.

* As countries roll out different vaccines at different speeds along with control measures, there may be patchwork of risks in future

Estimates for reaching herd immunity against emerging variants have been pushed higher in comparison to the original strain.

This is the sixth in a series about China's plans to reopen its borders amid the Covid-19 pandemic . Here, Simone McCarthy and Zhuang Pinghui look into the problems in pinning down when ''herd immunity'' can be achieved.

Herd immunity -- when enough of a population is immune to the coronavirus that its spread is limited -- has been a goal governments since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic..

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INSIDER. We got an exclusive look inside Moderna's labs, where the biotech upstart is ..

2021-07-11T14:35:00.000-07:00

Diligence: (c) Mersina ( Tzina) Joustra - Alimpoutaki

INSIDER

HEALTHCARE

We got an exclusive look inside Moderna's labs, where the biotech upstart is planning what comes after its blockbuster coronavirus vaccine.

Scientists at Moderna's research hub in Norwood, Massachusetts, working on the biotech's mRNA technology. (Insider)

* Led by its coronavirus vaccine, Moderna has surged into the drug industry 's top ranks.

* The biotech has rapidly expanded to boost production by hiring hundreds and opening new buildings.

* Insider visited Moderna's labs to learn about the biotech's plans beyond COVID-19.

* See more stories on Insider's business page.

NORWOOD , Massachusetts --- Moderna's swagger is impossible to miss.

In the main lobby of the biotech's sprawling campus in the Boston suburbs, baskets are filled with pins touting the company's milestones delivering 100 million and then 200 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine. With Moderna aiming to deliver up to 1 billion doses by year's end, it seens inevitable the pins will turn into Girl Scout-like strings of badges soon enough.

Some employees walk around in T-shirts styled like the sitcom ''Friends'' with a company-centric episode title: ''The one where Moderna delivered 100 million doses.''

Moderna's confidence is well earned. Before the pandemic, the biotech had never crafted an approved medicine. Then Moderna dropped everything to pursue an experimental coronavirus vaccine using unproven technology, succeding in record time. More than 60 million people in the U.S. have now received Moderna's shots, and it's no exaggeration to say the company's work has helped save hundreds of thousands of lives.

'' I truly believe the company has made the impossible possible,'' said Huijuan Lee, Moderna's vice president of analytical development, summarizing how Moderna ramped up manufacturing to produce hundreds of millions of doses.

Yet Modrna's next chapter remains up for fierce debate, especially as the company's valuation approaches $100 billion. Is Moderna at the forefront of a larger medical revolusion, or will the biotech struggle to find successes beyond its coronavirus vaccine?

'Play-and- play' drug developement?

Moderna executives have argued the success of its central rechnology, messenger RNA, means the biotech is now primed to simply ''plug and play'' its way to making dozens of new medicines over the coming years.

''It made no sense that this would be a one--drug company,'' CEO Stephane Bancel previouly told Insider.''It would be either zero or many many dozens.''

Moderna CEO Stephane Bansel. (Steven Ferdman /Getty Images)

But unlike other pharma companies with similar valuations, like GlaxoSmithKline, Gilead Sciences, and Regeneron, Moderna's bottom line is almost entirely driven a single product: its coronavirus vaccine, as Bloomberg opinion columnist Max Nisen recently noted.

Some Wall Street analysis have moved to the sidelines as the biotech's value surged more than tenfold over the past year. Analysts at Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan downgraded the stock from buy to hold, while SVB Leerink's Mani Foroohar expects the stock to underperform.

Of course, the coronavirus shot is now a massive moneymaker, with Moderna expecting $ 18.4 billion in revenue in 2021. The hesitation comes from an expected sales decline that ''is inevitable, and it could be steep, '' Nisen wrote.

Still, the transformation Moderna has undertaken at its suburban Norwood campus could position the biotech to build on the stunning success of its coronavirus vaccine, as it looks to tackle a variety of diseases, including the flu, cytomagalovirus, and respiratory syncytial virus, and to develop mRNA treatments for ailments like heart desease and cancer.

'' That process really strengthened our understanding of mRNA technology and application in vaccines, ''Lee said of the company's coronavirus vaccine. ''And certainly we're going to expand to therapeutics as well.''

Norwood's transformation in the fight against COVID-19

Moderna's main research facility in Norwood Massachusetts, used to be a Polaroid plant. (Insider)

In 2018, Moderna opened its Norwood research hub, repurposing a 200.000-square- foot facility that used to be a Polaroid plant. In the middle of the pandemic, Moderna further expanded, moving some of its research teams from Cambridge, Massachusetts, into a second building in Norwood, now dubbed Moderna Technology Center, North. Construction is underway on a third building that will be known as East, turning Norwood further into a Moderna campus.

To match its real-estate expansion, Moderna has been on a hiring spree, nearly doubling its head count during the pandemic to about 1.500 employees. About 800 work in Norwood, and Moderna plans to have about 1.200 workers there by the year's end, s company spokesperson said.

The obvious driver of that growth has been Moderna's coronavirus vaccine. Most of those employees have helped steer the shot through development and then scale up production.

The original Norwood building -- the old Polaroid factory -- has been built out filled with equimpent and people to the point of ''bursting at the seams, '' as one Moderna scientist described it.

A scientist working at Moderna;s research hub. Insider.

The plant produces the core components of the vaccine: the messenger RNA molecule that instructs cells how to make the spike protein encompassed in a mictoscopic blod of fat called a lipid nanoparticle that delivers the mRNA into cells. Contract manufacturers do the final steps of filling vials with that serum and sealing them.

The vaccines seveloped by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTefor the coronavirus are the first mRNA vaccines to reach the public. The process of scaling up production and having that expertise within Moderna's walls, will be a key advantage going forward, company leaders said.

Nedim Altaras, Moderna's senior vice president of technical development. Insider.

Moderna seeks to apply COVID-19 learnings to rest of pipeline

Nedim Altaras, Moderna's senior vice president of technical development, said the COVID-19 scale--up would help the biotech tackle other diseases more quickly, shortening the time between poritive research results and production of medicine.

''We are cinfidently set up to be able to push those foward rapidly when we see succesfull ckinican outcocomes,'' Atlnanas said.

One of the key scientific unknowns that will tetermine Moferna's future is rhe limits of mRNA technology. Will the appproach work best for viral deseases that require a quick response, or can mRNA nedicines successfully treat cancer, rare diseass , and even heart disease?

Moderna is running clinical trials for a number of medicines , including vaccinrs against cytomegalovirus, seasonal flu, and Zika . as well as treatments for cancer and heart desease.

Amy Rabideau, an associate director at Moderna. & Insider.

That future of mRNA will also depend on where these medicines can be delivered in the body, said Amy Rabideau, an associate director at Moderna, and the biotech has early reseach underway thet explores the limits of lipid nanoparticles, the tiny blobs of fat responsible for getting the payloads of mRNA vaccines and treatments into cells.

''There's really exciting potential here, and it boils down to us doing the research, '' Rabideau said.

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