PLUS: The Covid-19 headlines you need to know, a distraction, and something to read.
By Eve Sneider | 09.08.22 |
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| Chengdu extends lockdowns, New York ends its subway mask mandate, and research illuminates the pandemic's toll on Native American and Alaskan Native populations. But first, here's this week's big story: | |
The US launches its updated booster campaign As of this week, all Americans 12 and older can receive a bivalent booster shot. The vaccines, which have been developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna and were approved by the FDA and the CDC last week, target both the original strain of the virus that emerged in late 2019 and the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants currently circulating. The White House has also said that efforts are underway to ready new boosters for children under 12 and that Covid boosters will likely get updated annually, like flu shots. These boosters are able to target newer mutations because they contain pieces of messenger RNA that teach the body to make the spike protein of BA.4 and BA.5, in addition to that of the original strain. The FDA said that large clinical trials for these boosters weren't necessary, and studies assessing their effectiveness are still ongoing, but regulators opted to approve the shots for emergency use based on animal data that showed they provoke a strong immune response. | |
Headlines Chengdu, the capital of the Chinese province of Sichuan and home to major factories for Foxconn and other tech suppliers, has extended the lockdown of most of its districts indefinitely in an attempt to contain the city's latest outbreak. (The Guardian) New York's governor announced yesterday that subways, correctional facilities, detention centers, and homeless shelters will no longer require people to wear masks, marking the end of one of the state's last Covid restrictions. (Politico) Federal health researchers have quantified the extent to which Native Americans and Alaskan Natives have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus, with life expectancy dropping by six and a half years compared to three years for all Americans. (The New York Times) China recently approved the world's first inhalable Covid-19 vaccine. The drug, made by CanSino Biologics, works by releasing a puff of air through a nebulizer and has been greenlit in the country for use as a booster. (CNN) Europe's big drug regulator approved updated boosters, but officials are urging governments to take further steps to ward off spikes in cases this winter. (Deutsche Welle) | |
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| "What awaits us beyond the maelstrom, far along the z-axis, at the corkscrew's end? Government by the internet, for the internet, and of the internet—a new birth of freedom in the cloud." In a new profile, WIRED's Anthony Lydgate digs into technologist Balaji Srinivasan's unconventional ideas for the future of civilization. | |
| Summer may be drawing to a close, but it's important to stay protected from the sun year-round. Here are some of our favorite items for shielding yourself. | |
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