Links 1/22/2022
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Notre Dame rises again National Geographic (David L)
Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese Zen Master, Dies at 95 Tricycle (David L)
A Rio Grande Valley Woman Just Broke the U.S. Record for Most Birds Spotted in a Year Texas Monthly (resilc)
Striking Black and White Photos of Beautiful Rock Formations Found in the Western U.S. My Modern Met (David L)
1,100 Delicate Drawings of Root Systems Reveals the Hidden World of Plants Open Culture (David L)
Hubble Finds a Black Hole Igniting Star Formation in a Dwarf Galaxy NASA (guurst)
The immense power of Tongan volcano eruption baffled scientists, now they’re trying to unravel what happened ABC Australia (Kevin W)
Large Spinning Ice Disk Forms on Presumpscot River in Southern Maine Fliboard (David L)
Can a Neural Network Ace an MIT Math Exam? Cantor’s Paradise (David L)
Kidneys From a Genetically Altered Pig Are Implanted in a Brain-Dead Patient New York Times (resilc)
Cannabis Use Produces Persistent Cognitive Impairments Neuroscience News (David L). Had long assumed that based on the stoners I knew in college. Would like a comparison to alcohol use, though…
#COVID-19
Hong Kong to cull hamsters and quarantine pet store visitors over Covid fears Financial Times (David L)
Science/Medicine
Denmark and France both experiencing resurgence of Omicron, presumably BA.2. This will extend epidemic in Europe and soon N America.
— Brian Hjelle, virologist (@hjelle_brian) January 21, 2022
Covid reinfection: how likely are you to catch virus multiple times? Guardian (Dr. Kevin). Key section:
According to scientists at Imperial College London, after taking into account a host of factors Omicron was associated with somewhere between a 4.38 and 6.63-fold higher risk of reinfection, compared with Delta.
The team add that this means protection against catching Covid arising from a previous infection within the past six months has fallen from about 85% before Omicron turned up to somewhere between 0% and 27%. The drop is not surprising given that Omicron has been found to have the ability to dodge the body’s immune responses to a significant degree.
Study suggests SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant spike mediated immune escape and tropism shift News-medical.net (Kevin W)
Serological screening suggests single SARS-CoV-2 spillover events to cattle BioRxIv (guurst)
Nervous system consequences of COVID-19 Science
More <5s have been admitted with Covid in the *last month* (2016) than *all of 2020* (1633). The increase is driven by babies.
Most may only stay a day or two – but it’s hospital & they’re sick & feeling miserable. It’s not a trip to the park.
How have we decided this is fine? pic.twitter.com/NUEI2jM2Jw
— Prof. Christina Pagel (@chrischirp) January 21, 2022
https://t.co/2c5rG4djaP I mean… I told you so pic.twitter.com/1FR2lNjJAb
— Anthony J Leonardi, PhD, MS (@fitterhappierAJ) January 8, 2022
1. Crystal balls
Article states that “new variants will surely emerge and some may be more severe than Omicron”, but its conclusion completely disregards that uncertainty
For a more prudent perspective, check this talk with @EricTopol & @Bob_Wachter https://t.co/er50d0tyMo
— Philip Schellekens (@fibke) January 20, 2022
Oral CBD Prevented COVID-19 Infection in Real-World Patients, Study Suggests Vice (resilc)
UK/Europe
France… https://t.co/2siMes3Dtp pic.twitter.com/jx2FffZ3iY
— Diego Bassani, PhD 🏠😷 💉 💉 💉 (@DGBassani) January 20, 2022
US
Would help if Pagel would quote precisely, “detected” does not = reported given home testing and broken/downgraded reporting in many states. But GM, only mildly engaging in hyperbole, suggested that everyone in the world would have gotten Covid by March at its propagation rate:
This would be an astonishing percentage if @trvrb is right that only 1 in 4 or so cases detected in US. pic.twitter.com/nyZuveidr5
— Prof. Christina Pagel (@chrischirp) January 20, 2022
She’s faculty at UCSF. Theories below:
*All* the adults I know right now in my circle with Covid have kids who brought it home from schools. The kids wear KN94/KN95 in school.
Anyone else seeing this?
— Rupa Marya, MD (@DrRupaMarya) January 21, 2022
The biggie is the pattern we’ve seen regularly: schools act as if kids are well masked when they let them eat lunch together. Second is adult KN/N95s won’t fit kids well and probably leak a lot.
Federal judge in Texas blocks Biden’s vaccine mandate for federal workers The Hill
Arizona Sues U.S. to Block Clawback of Funds Over School Mask-Wearing Policies Wall Street Journal
Mask rules spark political games and a nasty environment in the House The Hill
Climate
The excruciatingly long, slow ‘death’ of coal Grid News (resilc)
Everyone’s least favorite climate fix? Nuclear power gets fresh look. Christian Science Monitor
A Dairy Farm Is Defending a Pollution Lawsuit. Some Say Vermont’s Regs Are on Trial Seven Days (resilc)
Brexit
One in three UK business owners fear their company won’t exist anymore in a year as Brexit onslaught intensifies City AM (guurst). From earlier in the week, still germane.
Old Blighty
Average UK first-time buyer is now older than 30, says Halifax Guardian (Kevin W)
Germany wants to attract 400,000 skilled workers from abroad each year Reuters (resilc)
New Cold War
Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva, Switzerland. C-SPAN (Kevin C)
From the day before the meeting: Blinken droht Moskau mit “massiven Konsequenzen” Tagesschau (guurst). Google Translate: Blinken threatens Moscow with “massive consequences”
How Emmanuel Macron can end the threat of war in Europe Responsible Statecraft (resilc)
Anthony Blinken and the intellectual bankruptcy of the Biden Administration Gilbert Doctorow (guurst). Key section:
The Russians have a very flexible and constantly changing set of responses to threats and opportunities. This is what makes it so difficult for us commentators to foresee the actual path to denouement. But it is also what makes it almost certain the Russians will get what they want and change the European security architecture to their advantage in the face of American obtuseness.
More Gilbert Doctorow: Russian elites talk WAR: ‘Evening with Vladimir Solovyov,’ 16 January 2022 (Chuck L)
Syraqistan
The UAE’s bitter choices: strikes in its cities or defeat in Yemen The Cradle (Chuck L)
1/6
A veteran charged in the Capitol riot was sentenced to home detention and probation after a fellow Marine identified him to the FBI Business Insider
Trump
Read the never-issued Trump order that would have seized voting machines Politico (David L)
Biden
Democrats hope to salvage Biden’s agenda on Manchin’s terms The Hill. So how is it Biden’s agenda?
If you don’t pay $4000 dollars a month for a 300 square foot apartment in a major city and spend over half of your grocery bill on Uber Eats, you basically have no idea what the hell Democrats are ever talking about. https://t.co/sKxj1Sgftd
— Shant Mesrobian (@ShantMM) January 21, 2022
Woke Watch
A Florida bill that would prohibit public schools and private businesses from making white people feel “discomfort” when they teach students or train employees about discrimination in the nation’s past received its first approval Tuesday.https://t.co/URwHagL0gj
— The Associated Press (@AP) January 18, 2022
Police State Watch
Pastor, sister say rogue Alabama police force sought revenge Al.com. Hoo boy.
The true cost of policing NJ.com (guurst)
Our Famously Free Press
Last year, I wrote about a NYT writer who didn’t disclose he had worked for CIA, Palantir, and police or that he currently ran a consulting company that relies on “law enforcement” contracts. It was a shocking, unethical episode. https://t.co/E4JjIZDdUD
— Alec Karakatsanis (@equalityAlec) January 18, 2022
Legendary investor Jeremy Grantham predicts S&P 500 will crash 50% after 4th US ‘superbubble’ in the past century pops Business Insider (David L). Odds are he is right…but when? And as with the dot-com era, there’s often a short blowout phase before the implosion. You could see Something Bad was imminent in 2007-8 due to the massive leverage surrounding housing coming apart. This time, the sources of an unwind now look way more diffuse.
Janet Yellen co-opts Reaganomics phrase for new Davos speech Axios (Kevin W). Kill me now.
Inflation: US vs. Euro Area and UK Menzie Chinn
Professionals Must Now Disclose Their Interests in the PR [Puerto Rico] Cases Credit Slips. Horse is out the barn and in the next county measure with respect to McKinsey self-dealing.
Fed releases long-awaited study on a digital dollar but doesn’t take a position yet on creating one CNBC (Paul R)
A New Model for Ethical Leadership, moving beyond “don’t lie, don’t cheat … Harvard Business Review (Dr. Kevin). Sigh. After HBS graduate Paul Bilzerian was prosecuted and went to prison, there was a great deal of navel gazing about ethics. After much study (real study, not meant to be self serving or exculpating), the school concluded there wasn’t anything they could do. By the time students enrolled, their moral compasses were already set.
Guillotine Watch
The thing you need to understand about today’s Zillow find is that it was built in 2010 in the United States of America. 1/ pic.twitter.com/Rd5JrrsVgr
— Rebecca Makkai (@rebeccamakkai) January 14, 2022
Some fashion guy just died White Hot Harlots (Anthony L)
Class Warfare
2022’s States With the Highest Job Resignation Rates WalletHub
Gen U: Generation Union (feat. Jaz Brisack & Casey Moore of Starbucks Workers United) Michael Moore
Antidote du jour. Alison L’s Daisy:
And a bonus (Howard Beale IV):
And a second bonus (musk ox fan Dr. Kevin):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.