Joshua writes:

Vincent and the twivvets,

Just listened to twiv 760 and I could not be more appreciative of you all and the work that you do. 

It’s been a hard week for science. It’s been very disheartening to see not only the mass media, but also public scientific voices like Fauci, fan the flames of conspiracy and bigotry. As we’ve seen in Atlanta, and indeed all over the U.S, these words are not harmless speculation. They are used to stoke anti-Asian hatred, with violently real consequences for people shown by a shocking increase in hate-crimes during the pandemic. Additionally, as we saw in 2003 with the invasion of Afghanistan, such evidence-free conspiracies leveled against entire countries or governments can lead to conflagrations that immiserate millions in the fires of war over a whole generation.

I hope that those voices spreading such contagious idiocy are shamed into human decency, but I’m not holding my breath. It is however, no small consolation to hear you all, multiple times a week, continuing to stick to the facts, and continuing to propagate a bit of humanity. 

Panhandles and all, this world would be a darker place without TWIV right now, so thank you.

All the best,

Josh, a mere ecohydrology technician in south-western Georgia

Sean writes:

[POLITICO Dispatch] Why the lab leak theory is unlikely #politicoDispatch 

https://cdn.simplecast.com/audio/b23ac1e9-2f3c-45d0-b8ea-5b002e04a4e5/episodes/51296dd3-59ae-4c9a-948c-89b0d9979243/audio/b5400b9f-c194-4dcf-8734-fdee4895e7a2/default_tc.mp3?aid=rss_feed&feed=y2rqYbp4  via @PodcastAddict

Henry writes:

Dear TWIV

Unfortunately China is not cooperating. I would be curious to hear your comments this week.  I do not see how TWIV and Peter Daszak can completely dismiss the possibility of a lab leak, albeit it still the least likely scenario.  The hopes for finding the origins of SAR COV2 has just gone up in smoke. 

From NBC (similar reporting from NYT, WaPo, ABC)

That effort was underway when China announced Tuesday that it wouldn’t participate in “phase two” of the WHO’s investigation into the origins of Covid-19. 

Thomas writes:

THANK YOU!!!!!

I had hoped so much that you would wade into this murky pool, eventually anyway. And that you would dedicate an entire episode to the topic and bring along three of the principals was more than I dared to hope for.

This was a true public service. You should be proud of yourselves. Many thanks to you and your guests.

Best regards 

Mike writes:

You mentioned in the most recent Podcast that there are over 700 episodes in the archives, some of which are excellent. I have no doubt that is the case as I always enjoy watching the lightbulb go on in the cohosts’ minds when a revelatory idea or surprising information is being discussed.

I was hoping you would like to give a list of your suggestions of the best episodes to listen to. For those of us that discovered you during Covid, it would be good to go back and pick up some of the highlights from all the years before Covid.

Mike

Here is a list:

TWiV 691: SciArt with Laura Splan
TWiV 682: Kate Rubins from the International Space Station
TWiV 500: Keep virology weird
TWiV 400: Harold ‘400’ Varmus, a scientist for all seasons
TWiV 346: A double helical career (Joan Steitz)
TWiV 219: Fauci pharmacy
TWiV 200: Threading the NEIDL
TWiV 161: Concerto in B
TWiV 68: Ode to a Plaque
TWiV 1: West Nile virus 

Any of the year-end summaries will lead to ~10 favorites for each year…

Emilee writes:

I am (or was) a faithful listener to TWIV since pre-COVID times. Lately I haven’t been able to keep up with every episode, so I apologize if this has already been noted. 

There are less than 100 pages left in Walter Isaacson’s new book, The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene editing, and the future of the Human Race. And, would you look at that there’s a mention of TWIV!

Congrats and keep up the good work!

EP

John writes:

Dear Vincent and colleagues,

Thank you for highlighting our work on the novel OPV2 candidate vaccines on TWiV 756. It has been an honor for me and for PATH (shameless plug: check us out at path.org) to participate in this project, which has been a remarkable international collaboration built on a foundation of great research. I note that the Phase 2 studies in adults, children, and infants are complete and the primary results are published in two articles at the first link below. Several other publications are in various stages of development and peer review, so keep an eye out!

Additionally, you may be interested to know that the nOPV2 vaccine (candidate 1) was listed for Emergency Use by the WHO at the end of 2020—the first vaccine ever to receive such a listing by the WHO (although COVID vaccines were not far behind). And the vaccine is manufactured by Bio Farma in Indonesia, the world’s leading supplier of OPV.

Thanks for the great work you’re all doing,

John Konz

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/vol397no10268/PIIS0140-6736(20)X0053-5

********************

John Konz, PhD
Global Head of Polio
PATH’s Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access