| Johnson & Johnson plans for boosters, California will mandate shots in schools, and New Zealand adopts a new pandemic strategy. Here's what you should know: Headlines Johnson & Johnson will soon ask regulators to authorize a booster shot Johnson & Johnson is expected to ask regulators to sign off on a booster shot of its vaccine this week, and the FDA has already scheduled an advisory committee meeting for October 15 to discuss the authorization of an additional dose. Last month J&J announced that administering a second dose two months after the first bumped effectiveness against symptomatic cases up by around 22 percentage points. But regulators and experts still need to figure out how long after the initial dose to offer a second shot, because some data indicates it would be more effective at the six-month mark. Another question will be whether to offer people an additional J&J dose, or a vaccine from a different drugmaker. California becomes the first state to mandate vaccines for all school-aged kids Last Friday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that all public and private school students in California will need to be vaccinated against coronavirus once vaccines receive full approval for their age groups. This decision makes California the first state to require vaccines for school-aged kids. Exemptions will be granted for medical and religious reasons, but those rules haven't been written yet. Students who aren't granted an exemption and refuse to get vaccinated will need to do independent study at home. Children will need to be vaccinated by the semester following when shots are granted full US approval, which means that 7th to 12th graders will probably have until next July to comply. New Zealand abandons its goal of eradicating Covid and pivots to controlling the virus New Zealand has long been a pandemic success story, with its "Zero Covid" plan to keep the virus out of the country entirely. But amid the persistent rise of the Delta variant, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that the nation will abandon its goal of eradicating the virus and aim to "actively control" it instead. Restrictions will begin easing this week in Auckland, where, starting Wednesday, two households will be able to meet outdoors and recreational activities like swimming and hunting will be allowed. Case counts and deaths remain remarkably low in New Zealand compared to the rest of the world, and around 40 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated. Daily Distraction Clearview AI, which scrapes photos from the internet and uses AI to identify the people in them, has stoked controversy ever since its founding. In a new interview with WIRED, its cofounder and CEO discusses the company's new tools—and reveals that it has now collected more than 10 billion images from across the internet. Something to Read It's been 20 years since the anthrax attacks caused a national panic, launching the most intense public health response in US history up to that point. Though experts at the time called on the country to develop protocols for dealing with bioterror, we never did—and you can see the impact of our lack of preparedness today. Sanity Check Google search results can be overwhelming—and overwhelmingly useless. Here are some tips for maximizing the search engine's tools to get to the good stuff. One Question How are tech conferences planning their in-person comebacks? Covid-19 may not be behind us, but tech conferences have started to resume in earnest after most went virtual during the early phases of the pandemic. Last week, for instance, Kara Swisher's Code Conference was one of the first of its kind to reemerge fully in-person, albeit with a few new protocols. To attend, everyone had to have their vaccine cards validated, receive a lateral flow Covid test, wear masks indoors, and replace handshakes with nods and fist bumps. But if this was the price to pay to go in-person, many were happy to pay it, offering an example of what future tech events might look like. Covid-19 Care Package 📦 To end this pandemic and prevent future ones, we'll need a good way to track and surveil emerging diseases. Here's a look at the latest efforts. 😷 Masks may not be mandatory where you live, but they're still recommended for many situations. Here are the best masks you can buy, or how to make one at home. 💉 Vaccines are the most effective way to protect yourself and others against Covid-19. Here's how to get an appointment in your area. 💻 Whether or not you're a work-from-home pro, here's how to stay productive without losing your mind. 💼 As employers increasingly require workers to return to the office, the routines you built during the pandemic may be thrown into disarray. Here are some tips to help you make the adjustment smoothly. 👋 So you're fully vaccinated! Congrats. Here are some ways you can let others know. 🦠Read all of our coronavirus coverage here. | 
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