Nels and Vincent continue their discussion of SARS-CoV-2 evolution, including understanding recurrent mutations in the viral genome, and the potential for re-emergence of the virus from an animal reservoir.
Hosts: Nels Elde and Vincent Racaniello
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- SARS-CoV-2 genomic diversity (Inf, Genet, Evol) 3:09
- Re-emergence of SARS-CoV-2 (bioRxiv) 32:00
- Tackling SARS-CoV-2 rumors (virological.org) 42:38
- Letters read on TWiEVO 56 2:57, 45:50
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- Time stamps by Jolene. Thanks!
Science Picks 1:22:36
Nels – The Cell in Evolution
Vincent – Visual Science
Music on TWiEVO is performed by Trampled by Turtles
Send your evolution questions and comments to twievo@microbe.tv
Hi guys
Just a suggested simple analogy to allay viral mutation fears.
Is SARS-cov2 mutation to a much more pathologic virus more likely than emergence of a strain of super humans that will overtake the earth.
Neither is impossible, but not likely because both are well adapted.
In this assessment, I am excluding artificial intellegence evolution to super human function, which seems very likely.
John
My silly contribution. You can’t prove that SARS CoV2 was not found in a Norwegian laboratory that found a way to surreptitiously infect a worker at the Wuhan lab. And that is how it got into the human population. I’m sure you can not absolutely rule this out. But then it might have been Spanish lab.. What do you think?
Was COVID-19 man-made? Here’s what Secretary of State (and former CIA director) Mike Pompeo says.
Here is Martha Raddatz interviewing Mike Pompeo who first says that he believes the virus WAS man-made, and then immediately reverses himself and says that he believes the virus was NOT man-made.
Maybe Pompeo is giving us an example of George Orwell’s “doublethink” — the ability to believe two contradictory ideas at the same time.
ABC, This Week
https://www.indy100.com/article/trump-mike-pompeo-coronavirus-wuhan-china-lab-man-made-9497141
Pompeo: Look, the best experts so far seem to think it was man-made. I have no reason to disbelieve that at this point.
Raddatz: Your office of the DNI says that the scientific consensus was that the Covid-19 virus was not man-made or genetically modified.
Pompeo: That’s right. I agree with that. Yes. I’ve seen their analysis.
I’ve seen the summary that you saw that was released publicly. I have no reason to doubt that that is accurate at this point.
Raddatz: OK, so just to be clear, you do not think it was manmade or genetically modified?
Pompeo: I’ve seen what the intelligence committee has said and I’ve no reason to believe that they have gotten it wrong but you have to put this into context.