World | Jotup

COVID barely gets a mention these days – here's why that's a dangerous situation

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

For the year to December 2023, in England COVID rates peaked at around one in 24 people.

Key Points:

For the year to December 2023, in England COVID rates peaked at around one in 24 people.
During the same month, Singapore also experienced record COVID cases and a spike in hospitalisations.
COVID, then, is still a major public health problem, accounting for 10,000 deaths in 50 countries and a 42% increase in hospitalisations during December 2023 alone.
COVID may not be a global health emergency at the moment, but it is still killing and harming far too many people worldwide.

How to fight COVID complacency

In future campaigns, boosters should be offered more broadly.
Cleaner air is essential for public health and will have benefits that extend beyond COVID.
Good ventilation can not only reduce the spread of COVID and other respiratory viruses, but can generally help reduce indoor air pollution, and can even improve things such as school attendance and concentration in the classroom.

Existing evidence suggests that masks do work to help reduce the transmission of COVID.
We can still live with COVID and at the same time respect, and try to reduce, the harm it can cause.

Simon Nicholas Williams has received funding from Senedd Cymru, Public Health Wales and the Wales Covid Evidence Centre for research on COVID-19, and has consulted for the World Health Organization. However, this article reflects the views of the author only, in his academic capacity at Swansea University, and no funding or organizational bodies were involved in the writing or content of this article.

Trump's Iowa win is just a small part of soaring right-wing populism in 2024

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Democracy advocates cheered the defeat of the Law and Justice party in Poland and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s breakthrough victory over his populist adversary in Brazil.

Key Points:

Democracy advocates cheered the defeat of the Law and Justice party in Poland and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s breakthrough victory over his populist adversary in Brazil.
Read more:
Lula and the world: what to expect from the new Brazilian foreign policy
But populists won big victories in 2023 too — and made comebacks.
Donald Trump, despite his numerous indictments and allegations he incited an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, began a second run for president.

A new age of extremism

Today, we have seemingly passed from the age of extremes into an age of extremism.
Low-trust voters feel they’ve been misled and reject the traditional policy options offered by social democratic parties.
With the decline in support for traditional left-wing parties in the Global North, voters are sending anti-establishment messages to the parties of the right.

Binary voting and wedge issues

Public opinion research from the Economist Intelligence Unit, Freedom House, the Pew Research Center and Sweden’s V-Dem Institute warn that there are fewer undecided voters than ever.
Modern politics is increasingly an exercise in what’s known as binary voting.
Amassing on land borders and crossing perilously by sea, migrants and refugees perfectly illustrate the “us versus them” mindset.

Asylum-seekers and the anxious voter

The answer is simple: in the skewed world view of nationalists, migrants are by definition “cheaters”.
Far-right populists campaign on the false belief that refugee-seekers are also corrupting the traditional way of life, taking jobs and driving up the cost of living.
Increasingly extreme populists have come to power promising to deal with the problem, but they’ve failed to provide any effective solutions.
It’s the same situation at the American southern border — in 2023, two million people illegally crossed the border.

A problem with no solution

Climate change, war and geopolitical rivalry drive already precarious populations to seek a place of greater safety.
But as the numbers rise, politicians continuously recycle bad ideas: close the border, send them back, send them elsewhere.
The main drivers of migration today are not just poverty and war in the Middle East and Ukraine, but also post-pandemic labour shortages.

Staring into the abyss?

In more than a dozen countries, populist leaders are poised to either take power or consolidate their hold on the opposition.
Wannabe fascists are set to play a bigger role in world affairs this year than they have at any time since the Second World War.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

'Caring as much as you do was killing you'. We need to talk about burnout in the arts

Retrieved on:

Monday, January 8, 2024

Since COVID-19, concern has grown about burnout in the arts and culture sector.

Key Points:

Since COVID-19, concern has grown about burnout in the arts and culture sector.
the level of burnout in this industry is pretty shocking […] the idea that [burnout] even exists is a running joke […] we’re all overworked and constantly tired.
Yet it is ironic that cultural organisations whose success is based around people should treat those same people poorly.

What is burnout?

According to both the World Health Organization and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (widely regarded as the “gold standard” measure), burnout has three dimensions:
Recent research identifies three further burnout symptoms:
Burnout is also associated with negative outcomes, such as alcohol abuse, declining health and job withdrawal, which could be presenteeism, absenteeism or quitting. In a nutshell, burnout is a state of physical and/or emotional exhaustion caused by chronic stress on the job.

Read more:
If companies want to stop quiet quitting they need to take burnout seriously

What causes burnout in the arts?

Prolonged work-related stress is the main cause of burnout.
Artists and arts workers often experience these stressors due to the boom-bust careers necessitated by the project-based work that characterises this sector.

Other unique factors also contribute to burnout in Australia’s arts and culture sector.
Interestingly, hope can buffer burnout so more recent policy developments may bring some relief.
Performance anxiety and “obsessive passion” can also cause burnout for some artists – particularly in the event of failure.

Individual-centred solutions are not enough

Reflecting on the wisdom shared in their circle, one participant said that discussions about the stress of arts work:
kept coming back to the idea of caring less.
Not that you don’t care, but that you need to be able to care less, because caring as much as you do was killing you.

Prioritising self-care is often touted as the solution to burnout, both by and for artists. Indeed, “fixing the person” approaches dominate both academic and industry responses. But as workplace expert Jennifer Moss wrote for the Harvard Business Review, “burnout is about workplaces, not workers”.

What can arts organisations do?

The key to preventing burnout is supporting engagement and wellbeing at work by creating six “positive ‘fits’” between arts workers and their workplaces:
This involves more than just individual job-tweaking. A holistic approach is needed to build workplace cultures that prioritise wellbeing from recruitment to leaving the organisation. Specific steps arts organisations should take straight away are:

Preventing burnout among arts workers will require long-term, organisation- and sector-wide commitments.
And, to maximise success, arts leaders – including those in politics and government – should ask themselves how can the arts and culture sector (and individual arts organisations) become a great place to work, and a workplace of choice?

Kate Power has received funding from the Queensland Government, under the Advance Queensland Industry Research Fellowship program.

China's capitalist reforms are said to have moved 800 million out of extreme poverty – new data suggests the opposite

Retrieved on:

Sunday, January 7, 2024

It has become an article of faith among many economists that China’s pro-market reforms of the 1980s and 1990s ushered in a sustained reduction in poverty.

Key Points:

It has become an article of faith among many economists that China’s pro-market reforms of the 1980s and 1990s ushered in a sustained reduction in poverty.
That’s a fair chunk of the world population, which is currently about eight billion.

It depends how you define purchasing power

The World Bank calculations use purchasing power parity, which is a standard way of comparing general purchasing power over time and between countries.
But this approach does not tell us about people’s purchasing power over the specific goods and services that are necessary for survival.
It reached a peak of 68% as price deregulation pushed up the cost of basic food and housing, cutting the buying power of low-income people.

Under communism, China subsidised necessities

Socialist policies can keep the cost of meeting basic needs low in a way overall price measures don’t pick up.
This seems to have been the case in China.
This meant US$1.90 was able to buy more basic necessities in China than in comparable capitalist countries.
But other social indicators support our finding that extreme poverty was lower in China than in India, Indonesia and Brazil in the 1980s.

Economic growth by itself is not enough

China’s impressive industrial development has, of course, led to substantial improvements in access to modern appliances, information technology and other goods.
Read more:
China's population is now inexorably shrinking, bringing forward the day the planet's population turns down

Jason Hickel acknowledges support by the María de Maeztu Unit of Excellence grant from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation. Dylan Sullivan and Michail Moatsos do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Taxes on e-cigarettes: South Africa must strike a balance between economic arguments and health concerns

Retrieved on:

Sunday, January 7, 2024

Tax, Notifiable disease, Risk, World, Government, Income, Prevalence, Administration, Nicotine, Health, Social justice, World Health Organization, Herbal cigarette, Tobacco, Review, Policy

Economists and health experts have different, and sometimes conflicting, views on how tax rates should be determined for nicotine products.

Key Points:

Economists and health experts have different, and sometimes conflicting, views on how tax rates should be determined for nicotine products.
More generally, they argue for high tax rates and regulations on nicotine products to eliminate or limit negative health consequences.
So too in South Africa, which is reconsidering the design of its taxes on tobacco and nicotine.
To balance the perspective of economists and health experts, I argue in a recent paper for risk-based tax rates on tobacco and nicotine.

The economists

The price would represent the true costs of consumption and the consumer could decide whether they were willing to pay this cost.
Without taxes set this way, prices will, for instance, not include the future cost of health treatments of the consumer to the government.
And the benefit in the form of savings to the government because of the probable premature death of the consumer.

The health experts

In contrast with the economist, health experts argue, by and large, that tax rates on nicotine products should be set to deter consumption.
The World Health Organization, for instance, argues that tax rates on HnB products should be set at the same level as cigarettes.
Health experts see the role of governments differently from economists; governments should limit negative health outcomes.

The risk-based approach

First, they need to collect sufficient tax revenues and limit negative health consequences, which generally calls for high tax rates.
This approach takes into consideration the economists’ approach, since health costs form a large part of costs not included in product prices and differ between products.
Especially the toxicological evidence, which indicates the toxins released during the consumption of different tobacco and nicotine products, allows for comparison between products.

The case of South Africa

South Africa represents an interesting case for applying risk-based taxes.
It has the highest income and wealth inequality in the world and an under-performing public healthcare system.

Marius van Oordt receives research funding and is affiliated with the International Tax and Investment Center, an independent, nonprofit research and education organization.

Scabies: UK facing unusually large outbreaks – and treatment shortages appear mostly to blame

Retrieved on:

Friday, January 5, 2024

Outbreaks happen regularly – with an estimated 450 million cases occurring globally each year.

Key Points:

Outbreaks happen regularly – with an estimated 450 million cases occurring globally each year.
But since the start of winter, outbreaks in the UK have been higher than normal.
While there a probably a few factors that can explain this spike, treatment shortages appear to be at the heart of it.
The skin rash is also more severe, with a crust over the surface of the infected area.
Itching may take up to a month to completely subside after treatment.

Outbreak causes

This means mites spread more easily in places where people come into close contact with each other for extended periods of time – such as schools, universities and prisons.
Residential care and nursing homes are particularly high-risk settings for scabies outbreaks, with vulnerable populations and staff members alike at risk of infection.

Another factor in the outbreak could be stigma against having scabies, with many people claiming the disease is caused by being unclean or a lack of bathing.
In reality, there’s no good evidence about a lack of washing being a risk factor.
While some evidence suggests that scabies incidence is higher in the winter, in reality outbreaks can happen at any time of the year.
Since September 2023, there’s been a shortage of both permethrin and malathion in the UK due to supply issues.

Preventing infection

If anyone has symptoms that might be scabies or another skin infection, such as itching and a rash or skin wounds, these should be reported to a doctor or healthcare provider as early as possible.
This is especially important if they have potentially been in close contact with a known case.
Scabies outbreaks can be brought under control – but diagnosis and treatment as early as possible is required for that to happen.

Michael Head has previously received funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the UK Department for International Development, and currently receives funding from Research England and the UK Medical Research Foundation.

New antibiotic zosurabalpin shows promise against drug-resistant bacteria – an expert explains how it works

Retrieved on:

Friday, January 5, 2024

Researchers have identified an entirely new class of antibiotic that can kill bacteria that are resistant to most current drugs.

Key Points:

Researchers have identified an entirely new class of antibiotic that can kill bacteria that are resistant to most current drugs.
It is responsible for around 20% of infections in places like hospitals, care homes or other similar healthcare settings.
Antibiotics commonly work by crossing the cell wall that surrounds infectious bacteria to reach the vital machinery inside.
Crab is a clinical challenge as it has a double-layered cell wall, a feature that microbiologists describe as “gram negative”.

Zosurabalpin

Researchers tested zosurabalpin against more than 100 Crab samples from patients suffering from the infection.
The research team, found that zosurabalpin was able to kill all of these bacterial strains.
Zosurabalpin works by blocking a molecular machine called LptB2FGC that transports the lipopolysaccharide toxin from the inside barrier to the outside one.
The bad news is that zosurabalpin will only kill Crab infections and not those caused by other types of bacteria.

Zosurabalpin is now in phase 1 clinical trial for use in patients infected with Crab.
This early testing in humans will help the company developing the drug, Roche, to work out any side effects of the drugs as well as potential toxicity.

Jonathan Cox receives research funding from UKRI, charities and industry.

He is Co-Director of the Antibiotic Discovery Accelerator (ABX) Network

Gaza war: Israeli assassinations draw fiery rhetoric from Iran and Hezbollah – but regional escalation is unlikely

Retrieved on:

Friday, January 5, 2024

He left no mark on search engines or in coverage of Iran’s military and the Middle East.

Key Points:

He left no mark on search engines or in coverage of Iran’s military and the Middle East.
He had been the right-hand man of General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian Quds Force, the Revolutionary Guards’ branch for operations outside Iran.
On January 2, an Israeli drone fired into a building in Dahiyeh, the southern suburb of Beirut where Hezbollah is based.
They are telling Hamas, the Iran military and Hezbollah, “We can hit you anytime, anywhere,” and asking, “What are you going to do about it?”

Tough poses meet tougher realities

Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi postured in a photo opportunity with Mousavi’s family.
“This crime will definitely not go unanswered and the Zionist criminals will pay for this crime,” he said – without offering any specifics.
The near-paralysed Lebanese government, with no president and 12 intermittent and inconclusive parliamentary sessions, could finally dissolve into anarchy.
Asked by Amwaj Media if there would be retaliation for the assassinations, a “senior Iranian source” reflected: “Difficult decision.

Fighting the indirect war

Meanwhile the world, if not the Israelis, can be unsettled by “indirect war”.
Yemen’s Houthi insurgency, with political and military backing from Iran, are attacking civilian vessels in the Red Sea.
But there is always a risk of a chain reaction that, response by response, will wind up in the second-front war that no one wants or intends.

Scott Lucas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Gaza war: Israeli assassinations draws fiery rhetoric from Iran and Hezbollah – but regional escalation is unlikely

Retrieved on:

Friday, January 5, 2024

He left no mark on search engines or in coverage of Iran’s military and the Middle East.

Key Points:

He left no mark on search engines or in coverage of Iran’s military and the Middle East.
He had been the right-hand man of General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian Quds Force, the Revolutionary Guards’ branch for operations outside Iran.
On January 2, an Israeli drone fired into a building in Dahiyeh, the southern suburb of Beirut where Hezbollah is based.
They are telling Hamas, the Iran military and Hezbollah, “We can hit you anytime, anywhere,” and asking, “What are you going to do about it?”

Tough poses meet tougher realities

Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi postured in a photo opportunity with Mousavi’s family.
“This crime will definitely not go unanswered and the Zionist criminals will pay for this crime,” he said – without offering any specifics.
The near-paralysed Lebanese government, with no president and 12 intermittent and inconclusive parliamentary sessions, could finally dissolve into anarchy.
Asked by Amwaj Media if there would be retaliation for the assassinations, a “senior Iranian source” reflected: “Difficult decision.

Fighting the indirect war

Meanwhile the world, if not the Israelis, can be unsettled by “indirect war”.
Yemen’s Houthi insurgency, with political and military backing from Iran, are attacking civilian vessels in the Red Sea.
But there is always a risk of a chain reaction that, response by response, will wind up in the second-front war that no one wants or intends.

Scott Lucas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

How industrial agriculture is disturbing the nitrogen cycle and undermining conditions for life on Earth

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, January 3, 2024

Six of our nine planetary boundaries have now been crossed – and industrial agriculture are the main culprit.

Key Points:

Six of our nine planetary boundaries have now been crossed – and industrial agriculture are the main culprit.
This notion of overstepping boundaries is clear in regard to the best-known limit of them all: that of climate change.

Yet in the case of the planetary boundary for nitrogen, exceeding the threshold is different, as it is the industrialisation of agriculture that is largely, and more complexly, responsible for breaking the limit.
But how can agriculture affect the nitrogen cycle?

The natural nitrogen cycle

First, we need to understand the natural cycle of carbon and nitrogen – two of the main elements that form living matter.
So, the boundaries of the nitrogen cycle have to remain local: any loss of nitrogen brings about a risk of soil depletion, which jeopardises continued plant growth.

The amount of nitrogen that is lost in the atmosphere and in groundwater is therefore considerable, and this loss makes nitrogen the main limiting factor in plant growth.
They do so through a symbiotic association with bacteria that have enzymes needed to convert molecular nitrogen into proteins.
It is this symbiotic fixation that offsets the natural environmental loss of nitrogen and ensures that terrestrial ecosystems function perennially.

Farming and fertilisation

Each time plants are harvested, the nitrogen contained in them is carried far away from the plot of soil where it came from.
That is the purpose of fertilisation.
There are many methods of fertilisation.
Indeed, this method was the basis of traditional systems of polyculture and livestock farming.
They quickly made traditional polyculture and livestock farming obsolete and paved the way to intensified and specialised agriculture, which was henceforth coupled with the heavy chemical industry.

Environmental nitrogen loss

In this accelerated flow of nitrogen, what causes trouble is the environmental nitrogen loss that results from it.
Indeed, the more nitrogenous fertilisers are used to increase crop yields, the less the added nitrogen is effective and the greater the losses through leaching and volatilisation.
What we call the nitrogen surplus is the excess of nitrogen put into the soil in relation to the quantity actually taken away through harvesting.

Feeding the world without ruining it

But can we reasonably scale down intensive farming without jeopardising the food security of a world that will have 10 billion mouths to feed by 2050?
Yet we can only do so if three major structural changes are made to the entire agrifood system at the same time as intensive agriculture is toned down.
On the contrary, this model of agriculture has now been clearly identified as a factor that disturbs the Earth’s system profoundly.
AFP and The Conversation France have maintained their editorial independence at every stage of the project.

Gilles Billen ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.