A coronavirus pandemic linkfest is for now a weekly feature here on Abnormal Returns. Please stay safe and find a vaccination site near you. You can read last week’s edition here.
Quote of the Day
"Confronting the limits of statistical power is frustrating, but maybe also liberating. If you’re someone who likes to use evidence to make decisions, there can be a kind of decision paralysis in realizing that the evidence you want doesn’t exist."
(Emily Oster)
Chart of the Day
Measured by excess deaths, the toll from Covid is being undercounted in the US and elsewhere.
Vaccines
- Today's vaccines seem to be effective against the known variants. (statnews.com)
- It's hard to exaggerate the power of the Covid vaccines. (vox.com)
- Mixing vaccine doses has a tendency for greater side effects. (marketwatch.com)
- Vaccinated mothers can pass on antibodies to their babies. (nytimes.com)
- Don't skip your second dose! (coronavirus.medium.com)
Teens
- The CDC has authorized the use of Pfizer's ($PFE) Covid vaccine for use in adolescents. (statnews.com)
- Parents are scrambling to get their 12-15 year olds vaccine appointments. (wsj.com)
- What it will take to get teens and adolescents vaccinated. (nytimes.com)
- Teens and adolescents can show us what what getting back to normal looks like. (washingtonpost.com)
J&J pause
- The J&J pause only served to increase hesitancy among certain groups. (wsj.com)
- Why the J&J pause happened at the worst possible time. (theatlantic.com)
- Some hints on how the adenovirus-based vaccines may cause blood clots. (wsj.com)
- The CDC has identified some blood clot cases in men. (nytimes.com)
Vaccine hesitancy
- Who cares why people get vaccinated, as long as they do. (theatlantic.com)
- 30 million Americans aren't 'vaccine hesitant' but just haven't gotten around to it yet. (nytimes.com)
- The state of Ohio is offering some big (and unique) incentives for people who get vaccinated. (npr.org)
- Uber and Lyft will offer free rides to vaccination sites through July 4th. (techcrunch.com)
- Want more vaccinations? Give people free beer. (theguardian.com)
Global
- A small Brazilian town that has vaccinated the majority of its adults shows the positive impact. (wsj.com)
- The situation in the Seychelles calls into question the efficacy of the Sinopharm vaccine. (nytimes.com)
- How British Columbia tamped down on the P.1 variant. (wsj.com)
- Why is the UK public more enthusiastic about vaccines than the US? (vox.com)
Data
- The droplet-aerosol debate was a longstanding one even before Covid. (wired.com)
- States with larger cohorts of the previously infected have avoided fourth waves. (npr.org)
- A look at the 'weird' cluster of positive Covid tests with the NY Yankees. (statnews.com)
- A new test can be used to identify both influenza and Covid. (nytimes.com)
Masking
- Two reasons why the CDC changed its mask guidance for those who are vaccinated. (nytimes.com)
- Unmasking is going to be complicated by politics. (nytimes.com)
- Kids don't need to wear masks outside. (theatlantic.com)
- The science is clear on the efficacy of masking, which makes unmasking a bit fraught. (statnews.com)
- 11 reasons to keep wearing a mask including 'You’re not feeling well and want to make sure to protect others around you.' (kottke.org)
Public health
- The CDC is never going to be on the cutting edge, but it could do better. (statnews.com)
- Epidemiologists are getting back to normal activities but are still concerned about the unvaccinated. (nytimes.com)
- Public health officials need to acknowledged that the fully vaccinated are free to live their lives. (esquire.com)
- There were notable differences in the outcomes in U.S. states by party control. (theconversation.com)
- February 2020 was a 'lost month' for a global pandemic response. (theatlantic.com)
Earlier on Abnormal Returns
- Coronavirus links: feeling unchained. (abnormalreturns.com)
- There's only one way through the pandemic tunnel. (abnormalreturns.com)
- The 'Swiss cheese model' and the importance of avoiding single points of failure in pandemic and life. (abnormalreturns.com)
- On the challenge of holding two competing thoughts on the pandemic in your head a the same time. (abnormalreturns.com)
Mixed media
- Clinton Forrell, "If you don’t want a vaccine, know that you put yourself and others at risk of contracting the virus." (marketwatch.com)
- Will mRNA technology be useful beyond vaccines? (ft.com)
- Herd immunity is not some fixed finish line. (slate.com)
- A 'new normal' does not imply 'herd immunity.' (theconversation.com)
