Week of March 20, 2022
Amazon sells "Please be patient, rookie driver" magnets in three packs. The three on my car may (or may not) earn some grace for my newly driving son. Though there is scant data about the value of such signs, I believe a slight, subconscious desire to embarrass my kids motivated my purchase. However, I am now contemplating leaving said magnets on when I drive. I am curious to see how Maryland drivers will respond to a balding middle-aged nephrologist claiming to be a rookie driver.
Oddly, a fair bit is written about "Baby On Board" signs. There are myths and some not-so-great survey data pointing to worse driving outcomes.
https://qz.com/275987/you-probably-dont-know-the-real-story-behind-baby-on-board-signs/
and the very questionable survey data:
https://www.theaa.com/cars/news/driving-and-traffic/crash-cause-baby-on-board-5681.html
---- Latest Data
Though cases, hospitalizations, and deaths continue to decline in the U.S., the CDC's RNA Wastewater data tracking system demonstrates an increase in wastewater monitoring sites reporting increasing 15-day averages coronavirus RNA. This data implies we will likely see an upswing in cases in the coming weeks.
CDC Wastewater Surveillance tracker
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#wastewater-surveillance
N.Y. Times Tracker
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/covid-cases.html
Cases in the U.K., China, and Australia are rising; Hong Kong case rates are now falling :
Country Comparison from FT.com
https://ig.ft.com/coronavirus-chart/?areas=usa&areas=gbr&areas=hkg&areas=chn&areas=jpn&areas=aus&areasRegional=usny&areasRegional=usla&areasRegional=usnv&areasRegional=usar&areasRegional=usks&areasRegional=usmo&cumulative=0&logScale=1&per100K=0&startDate=2021-06-01&values=cases
The CDC weekly review discusses the protection afforded by booster doses of the vaccine. Only about 1/2 of the booster-eligible population has received a third dose.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/covidview/index.html
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The NY Times writes about the Omicron BA.2 subvariant. The article includes interviews with epidemiologists and data about the next expected coronavirus strain.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/19/health/covid-ba2-surge-variant.html
Dr. Eric Topol highlights some of the concerns about BA.2 as well
https://twitter.com/erictopol/status/1504508893879160847?s=10
The Wall Street Journal covered the latest research demonstrating Ivermectin DOES NOT improve outcomes in COVID-19. "Efficacy of Ivermectin Treatment on Disease Progression Among Adults With Mild to Moderate COVID-19 and Comorbidities" is free to read from JAMA Internal Medicine (https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2789362?mod=ANLink)
and here is more analysis, per the WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/articles/ivermectin-didnt-reduce-covid-19-hospitalizations-in-largest-trial-to-date-11647601200
I found the MMWR infographic repository this week:
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/va-search/visualAbstract.htm
Some highlights:
Get your booster.
"In January 2022, unvaccinated adults and those vaccinated with a primary series, but no booster or additional dose, were 12 and three times as likely to be hospitalized, respectively, as were adults who received booster or additional doses. Hospitalization rates among non-Hispanic Black adults increased more than rates in other racial/ethnic groups."
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7112e2.htm
Facemasks protect.
"Consistent use of a face mask or respirator in indoor public settings was associated with lower odds of a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result (adjusted odds ratio = 0.44). Use of respirators with higher filtration capacity was associated with the most protection, compared with no mask use."
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm
More infographics!
Tropical infections of the kidney! Google pictures of filariasis and leishmaniasis. Better yet, don't.
https://twitter.com/NephJC/status/1503907149092737024/photo/1
Things I learned this week:
People are still reading this email. I am happy to report I had 59 responses to my What Adam is Reading survey last week. The majority of responses were supportive and encouraging (80+% still find value (strongly agree or agree), 77% would be sad if I stopped (strongly agree or agree), 75% read each week). Understanding the bias inherent in data derived by recruiting respondents to an emailed survey how they like the email (from which they were recruited), the comments were humbling and comforting. I will be incorporating some of the ideas. Thank you all for the responses.
see the results:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/oxm4a69qoeynxzn/WAIR%20Survey.pdf
Much like the whale-to-English translation work and the dogs with word buttons, I have written about, emotional categorization of Pig grunting is also well on the way to a broader understanding thanks to A.I. algorithms run against recorded pig noises. It is only a matter of time till Skynet launches the missiles and gets all the animals aligned against us homo sapiens.
https://abcnews.go.com/US/pigs-grunts-reveal-feeling-analysis/story?id=83551570&cid=social_twitter_abcn
Better that we not fight amongst ourselves and focus on the real enemy - birds. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/09/technology/birds-arent-real-gen-z-misinformation.html
YouGov (an international research data and analytics group from London) published survey results highlighting some fascinating misperceptions held by Americans - "Americans overestimate the size of minority groups and underestimate the size of most majority groups." It is an excellent example of estimation inaccuracy and confirmation bias (the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms or supports one's prior experiences or beliefs). Moreover, you can imagine how media plays a critical role in focusing on low-impact issues or concerns that are, in turn, extrapolated to more prominence in the minds of media consumers.
https://today.yougov.com/topics/politics/articles-reports/2022/03/15/americans-misestimate-small-subgroups-population
Clean hands and sharp minds, team
Adam
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