TWiV 838: The magic virus bus

The New York City Virus Hunters join TWiV to reveal how local students engage in safe virus surveillance and conduct science research right in their neighborhoods, followed by an update on variant of concern Omicron.

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Twitter: @profvrr

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– Who Am I? –

I’m Vincent Racaniello, Earth’s Virology Professor.

I’m also a professor of virology at Columbia University in New York. I’ve been doing research on viruses since 1976, and teaching virology in classrooms and online since 1999. On this YouTube channel I share videos of my lectures, podcasts, and more.

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#microbe #viruses #coronavirus #pandemic
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[lesfaby]

01:28 Introduces guests
03:42 Christine Marizzi background
05:07 Biobus
07:26 students Background
09:44 Isabel Background
12:20 Florian Krammer
13:56 New York City Virus Hunters
20:48 Students and mentors experiences
57:18 SARS-2 Non-bat animal reservoirs
1:04:49 B1.1.529 (COVID-19-lineages)
Report on Omicron spike changes (virological)
1:08:37 Omicron (Wikipedia)
Weekly Picks
1:20:32 Dickson – Plant Habitat-04
1:22:56 Brianne – The Coronavirus in a Tiny Drop
1:27:30 Rich – Prophet in Purgatory by Jon Cohen
1:32:01 Vincent – “ ’—All You Zombies—’ ” by Robert A. Heinlein (pdf)
Listener Picks
1:35:33 Mike – The Coronavirus in a Tiny Drop
Joint effort with MrOzzycam

[jenster]

As a layperson I would agree with Rich that the public doesn’t understand the structure of the pandemic. With your help I’m trying to educate myself.

[MrOzzyCam]

Thanks Vincent and TWiV team for another great episode. It is fantastic to see young people getting into hands-on science!

[Elcio_Leal]

Wonderful people bring young students in contact with science!! Very cool episode!

[tomsteinberg]

Good shew! Thanks for omicron update, too. Dickson -- ~ 1:34:20 -- "The Stars my Destination" (novel) was written by Alfred Bester, published ~ 1956/57. It's a noted SF classic, and so it's understandable one may conflate it with something by Heinlein, but it's quite different from Heinlein's stuff, which did have its merits.

[metalguy]

Thanks for pointing out the article from Science magazine. Peter Dazak is a good man and a valuable asset in the scientific community. Hopes that things will work out for him.

[animalparty]

👍👍👍👍👍Very cool! Love the picks! Oooo Sci-fi can't wait to check that out!!❤❤❤❤❤

[Mark_Ocain]

Great ..you almost have enough for a cricket team there at one stage !!! "OK Zoomer" takes on a new meaning here LOL

[trevorryan]

Can students from other countries also apply to join that virus hunter program? Details please?

[FewFishManyWorms]

Rich I can't believe you were in Boston and didn't let us know! I would've loved to meet ya and buy you a beer

[nickturnock]

I disagree with Rich about new variants not driving waves. New cases in the UK peaked in mid Novemer 2020 and declined to about half the peak by the end of the month but then rose to new heights when Alpha hit.

[ScotHarkins]

I've been telling folks to simply continue with the safety protocols and personal health practices (be fully vaccinated, get sleep, keep good-ish nutrition, exercise at least some, blah blah blah) and wait a few weeks to hear actual findings. I tell them to hope Omicron is more fit but less virulent or injurious...a super-successful meh. But be ready in case that is not the outcome.

Most of all, don't be stupid, stupid. Be safe, be careful. Remember that the 1918 flu didn't really peter or until 1922. We're ahead of the curve for treatments, but we are still all too human.

[tatianabeastmode]

I think The Stars My Destination is by Alfred Bester, isn't it? But Heinlein is so fun to read, I agree. He has a lot of cool ideas. I feel like Science Fiction is the literature of the 20th and 21st centuries because it's the literature of ideas. And I think all scientists probably like it, or would if they read it.

[KWagle]

Rich was in Boston and didn’t come to visit?!? :'-(

[allcoppedout]

good as usual vincent - personally i don't do smalltalk so tend to fast-forward. the difference between information and discourse here is so different from our increasingly useless news channels . can't help wondering how so many "scientists" sell out to the idiot political clamour.