PLUS: The Covid-19 headlines you need to know, a distraction, and something to read.
By Eve Sneider | 11.11.21 | US kids start getting their shots, cases and deaths rise in Europe, and Moderna's vaccine leads to fewer breakthroughs. But first, here's this week's big story: |  | "There are not factories around the world waiting to make this product," Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said of his company's mRNA vaccine, "because these factories don't exist. It's an entirely new type of product." Yesterday, Bancel joined Nahid Bhadelia, an internationally renowned infectious disease physician, and WIRED senior writer Maryn McKenna for a conversation about who owns the coronavirus vaccine, and how it'll get distributed to everyone in the world who needs a shot. The day prior, The New York Times published a report on a bitter battle between Moderna and the US National Institutes of Health over the patent rights to a key component of the drugmaker's coronavirus vaccine. The head of the NIH later said that legal authorities are likely to get involved in the dispute. As Bhadelia pointed out, vaccine equity is critically important, and for low- and middle-income countries to get the shots they need, those drugs must be both affordable and easier to manufacture. Bancel added that Moderna is finalizing a contract for building a plant in Africa, which would speed up vaccination on the continent and likely around the world. Importantly, this pandemic won't be over anywhere until it's over everywhere. And disputes over intellectual property rights could be an impediment to making that happen. | | In the first week after shots for kids ages 5 to 11 were authorized in the US, around 900,000 children have received their first dose, and around 700,000 additional appointments have been scheduled for the coming days, a strong start to the vaccination campaign. (Associated Press) The WHO recently announced that Europe accounts for more than half of global deaths and two-thirds of cases in the first week of this month, though the rate of deaths has decreased worldwide. (The New York Times) Earlier today Moderna said that while its vaccine has higher myocarditis rates among young men, data shows that breakthrough cases are less likely for recipients of its shot compared to Pfizer and BioNTech's. (CNBC) Ten state attorneys general filed a lawsuit yesterday to block the Biden administration's vaccine mandate, which is scheduled to go into effect on January 4, saying that it would exacerbate staffing shortages, especially in underserved, rural areas. (Reuters) Singapore is lifting a number of public health restrictions, including its ban on music in restaurants and bars. As of yesterday, establishments are allowed to play "soft recorded music," though live performances still aren't allowed. (CNN) | | For over a decade, Zillow's Zestimate algorithm was its silver bullet, predicting house values for many US homeowners. Then the pandemic threw a wrench in its carefully calibrated calculations. | | Years before "non-fungible token" became a part of the internet's collective vocabulary, two Canadian coders started a project, called the CryptoPunks, that would launch the world of NFTs as we know them. WIRED's Sandra Upson chronicles how it all got started. | | The best phone cases are a perfect marriage of form and function. Here are a few tips for finding the covering that's right for you. | |
No comments:
Post a Comment