Science & Technology

• Sweden Sees No Signs So Far Herd Immunity Is Stopping Virus
  
  There is little evidence herd immunity is helping Sweden combat the coronavirus, according to the country's top epidemiologist.
• CDC Head: Vaccine Ready 'End of Second Week of December'
  
  Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday a vaccine for the coronavirus will be out "by the end of the second week of December."
• CDC Seeks to Cut Quarantine Protocol to 7-10 Days
  
  The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is considering shortening the number of days it recommends a person self-quarantine after possible exposure to the coronavirus, The Wall Street Journal reported.
• Experts Warn of Unprecedented Challenges in Distributing Vaccine
  
  Supplying even a small percentage of the world's nearly 8 billion people with a coronavirus vaccine when it becomes available will be an unprecedented supply chain challenge, NBC News reported Tuesday.
• CDC Advisory Commitee: Healthcare Workers Should Receive First COVID-19 Vax
  
  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, says the first 20 million COVID-19 vaccine doses should go to healthcare workers...
• AstraZeneca Exec: Vaccine Not Reserved 'Only to the Rich'
  
  AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine candidate will benefit all people, not only the wealthy," Ruud Dobber, an executive vice president for the pharmaceutical giant, said Monday.
• FDA Grants Regeneron Emergency Use Authorization
  
  Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s antibody cocktail received an emergency use authorization from U.S. drug regulators for treatment of early COVID-19 symptoms, adding to the expanding arsenal of therapies available to physicians.
• NASA ‘Hard-Pressed to Land Astronauts on the Moon’ by 2024
  
  NASA anticipates having great difficulty in fulfilling the Trump administration's vow to return astronauts to the moon by 2024, citing concerns over funding, as well as the scale and schedule. The agency's...
• Sinovac's COVID-19 Vaccine Induces Quick Immune Response
  
  Sinovac Biotech's experimental COVID-19 vaccine CoronaVac triggered a quick immune response but the level of antibodies produced was lower than in people who had recovered from the disease, preliminary trial results showed Wednesday.
• NIH's Collins: Masks Are 'Lifesaving Medical Instrument'
  
  Director of the National Institutes of Health Francis Collins is urging Americans to wear masks and continue to take coronavirus mitigation measures seriously for at least a "few more months....
• China Plans to 'Optimize Its Birth Policy' With Emphasis on Eugenics
  
  China's recently released proposal for the country's policies for the next five years would place an emphasis on eugenics when it comes to birth, according to an expert on China.
• Coronavirus Reinfections: The Mystery Continues
  
  As the pandemic wears on, more people are claiming the virus has infected them twice. Experts are now trying to determine whether these reports are indeed legitimate reinfections or long-term effects of the disease.
• Critics Say Russia's Claim of COVID-19 Vax Efficacy Doesn't Pass 'Smell Test'
  
  Russia's announcement that its coronavirus vaccine had greater than 90% efficacy is being met with substantial skepticism, Science magazine reported.Science reported a review of the new vaccine...
• Study: 1 in 5 Coronavirus Patients Has Mental Health Problems
  
  Coronavirus survivors may have a higher risk of developing mental illness, according to a new study published in The Lancet Psychiatry Journal....
• Most States Are Not Ready to Distribute Pfizer's COVID-19 Vaccine
  
  The good news that Pfizer has developed an effective COVID-19 vaccine Monday has challenged many states governments' plans to distribute the product to its residents. The Pfizer vaccine must be stored in ice-cold temperatures of minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit,...
• Dr. Fauci: I'll Take Vaccine; 'Let's Go Ahead, Approve It'
  
  Coronavirus task force expert Dr. Anthony Fauci announced he will take the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer after the treatment is approved by the FDA.
• Abu Dhabi Looks to Desert and Space Farming to Boost Food Supply
  
  Abu Dhabi is stepping up investment in projects for farming in the desert - and even space - as the COVID-19 crisis prompts more efforts to safeguard food supply. The Abu Dhabi Investment Office will spend about $41 million with other companies to develop technologies for...
• FDA Grants Emergency Use of Experimental Drug for COVID-19
  
  The Food and Drug Administration on Monday granted doctors emergency authorization to treat high-risk adult and pediatric COVID-19 patients experiencing mild-to-moderate symptoms with an experimental treatment made by Eli Lilly....
• VA Hospitals Looking for Minority Vets to Be in COVID-19 Vax Trial
  
  The Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for minority veterans to participate in clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine, Stars and Stripes reported Friday.
• Virgin Galactic Set to Launch Human Space Flight From New Mexico
  
  Virgin Galactic has announced it will launch a human space flight from its Spaceport America facility in New Mexico in about two weeks. Previously the company had launched crews on two up-and-down suborbital flights from its test facility in the Mojave Desert in California...
• Rare Photos of Space Exploration's "Golden Age" up for Auction
  
  A rare photograph of U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong on the surface of the moon is among thousands of space photographs in a collection up for auction at Christie's. The more than 2,400 photographs document "the golden age of...
• Oxford Scientist 'Optimistic' Virus Vaccine Could Be Ready in UK by Year's End
  
  A researcher involved in Oxford University's coronavirus vaccine trials is hopeful the results of vaccine trials could be ready in the U.K. by the end of the year...
• Scientists Discover Strange Radio Signal Coming From Our Galaxy
  
  Scientists have determined mysterious radio signal bursts that have been detected in space have been observed within the Milky Way for the first time, the Independent reports.
• Scientists Connect Human Brain to Computer With Wire in Vein
  
  A group of researchers from the University of Melbourne successfully connected a human brain to a computer running Windows 10 using a method first theorized in 2016: inserting electrodes into the jugular vein...
• DOD, HHS Buy $1.1B in Coronavirus Therapeutics
  
  The Department of Defense will now focus its Operation Warp Speed to coronavirus therapeutics after agreeing to buy $375 million on Wednesday of Eli Lilly's yet-to-be-proven antibody treatment, according to the Washington Examiner.

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