COVID-19 – Page 14

Ethical challenges loom over decisions to resume in-person college classes

2Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, EDUCATION, VIDEO REELS

Ethical challenges loom over decisions to resume in-person college classes

By early July, about 80% of U.S. campuses were planning to resume at least some in-person instruction, even as a growing numbers of faculty are voicing concerns about safety. As Michael Sorrell, president of Paul Quinn College, argues, “Because we do not yet have the ability to bring students and staff back to campus while keeping them safe and healthy, we simply cannot return to business as usual.” Sorrell says that bringing students back in this context “constitutes an abdication of our moral responsibility as leaders.” But this isn’t just about the responsibilities of individual campuses and university leaders to do what’s right. As a scholar of ethics, I believe it is unwise and unethical for government to leave schools largely on their own to navigate in deciding whether and how to ...

Humans are hardwired to dismiss facts that don’t fit their worldview – Coronavirus responses highlight how

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, SOCIETY

Humans are hardwired to dismiss facts that don’t fit their worldview – Coronavirus responses highlight how

Bemoaning uneven individual and state compliance with public health recommendations, top U.S. COVID-19 adviser Anthony Fauci recently blamed the country’s ineffective pandemic response on an American “anti-science bias.” He called this bias “inconceivable,” because “science is truth.” Fauci compared those discounting the importance of masks and social distancing to “anti-vaxxers” in their “amazing” refusal to listen to science. It is Fauci’s profession of amazement that amazes me. As well-versed as he is in the science of the coronavirus, he’s overlooking the well-established science of “anti-science bias,” or science denial. Americans increasingly exist in highly polarized, informationally insulated ideological communities occupying their own information universes. Within segments of t...

COVID-19 is laying waste to many US recycling programs

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

COVID-19 is laying waste to many US recycling programs

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the U.S. recycling industry. Waste sources, quantities and destinations are all in flux, and shutdowns have devastated an industry that was already struggling. Many items designated as reusable, communal or secondhand have been temporarily barred to minimize person-to-person exposure. This is producing higher volumes of waste. Grocers, whether by state decree or on their own, have brought back single-use plastic bags. Even IKEA has suspended use of its signature yellow reusable in-store bags. Plastic industry lobbyists have also pushed to eliminate plastic bag bans altogether, claiming that reusable bags pose a public health risk. As researchers interested in industrial ecology and new schemes for polymer recycling, we are concerned about challenges f...

Being Black in the U.S. Makes People More Vulnerable to Chronic Stress and COVID-19 and Other Diseases

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Being Black in the U.S. Makes People More Vulnerable to Chronic Stress and COVID-19 and Other Diseases

Racism is a chronic, uncontrollable, and unpredictable stress that can wreak havoc on the mind and body. The COVID-19 pandemic and the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery are two major catastrophes that shine a light on longstanding social inequities and injustices toward African Americans. Emerging research in the field of social genomics demonstrates how social stress, such as racism and discrimination, can shift the body’s biological resources toward a state that increases risk for disease. For example, our research group has found that racial discrimination may be affecting the way genes are expressed, leading to increased levels of dangerous stress hormones. These differences were found even when social determinant factors such as poverty and other forms of stress were accounte...

1 In 10 HBCUs Were Financially Fragile Before COVID-19 Endangered All Colleges And Universities

24Jun

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, EDUCATION

1 In 10 HBCUs Were Financially Fragile Before COVID-19 Endangered All Colleges And Universities

By reducing enrollment and disrupting instruction, the COVID-19 pandemic is generating financial distress for all colleges and universities. Schools that were already financially fragile before this health emergency and economic recession began could soon face even greater risks. That includes several historically Black colleges and universities, or HBCUs. Based on my economic research regarding HBCUs and as a Morehouse College graduate, I’m concerned about the long-term prospects of these institutions for many reasons. One is that HBCUs like my alma mater have long served as vehicles of upward social and economic mobility for African Americans denied opportunities elsewhere. Federal watchlist The Department of Education tracks which colleges and universities are most at risk of closure ...

How ‘vaccine nationalism’ could block vulnerable populations’ access to COVID-19 vaccines

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY

How ‘vaccine nationalism’ could block vulnerable populations’ access to COVID-19 vaccines

Hundreds of COVID-19 vaccine candidates are currently being developed. The way emerging vaccines will be distributed to those who need them is not yet clear. The United States has now twice indicated that it would like to secure priority access to doses of COVID-19 vaccine. Other countries, including India and Russia, have taken similar stances. This prioritization of domestic markets has become known as vaccine nationalism. As a researcher at Saint Louis University’s Center for Health Law Studies, I have been following the COVID-19 vaccine race. Vaccine nationalism is harmful for equitable access to vaccines – and, paradoxically, I’ve concluded it is detrimental even for the U.S. itself. Vaccine nationalism during COVID-19 Vaccine nationalism occurs when a country manages to secure doses...

Are we all OCD now, with obsessive hand-washing and technology addiction?

15Jun

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19

Are we all OCD now, with obsessive hand-washing and technology addiction?

One of the hallmarks of obsessive-compulsive disorder is contamination fears and excessive hand-washing. Years ago, a patient with severe OCD came to my office wearing gloves and a mask and refused to sit on any of the “contaminated” chairs. Now, these same behaviors are accepted and even encouraged to keep everyone healthy. This new normal in the face of a deadly pandemic has permeated our culture and will continue to influence it. Many stores now prominently post rules mandating face masks and hand sanitizer use and limit the number of customers allowed inside at one time. Walkers and joggers politely cross the street to avoid proximity to each other. Only a few months ago, this type of behavior would have been considered excessive and certainly not healthy. So, where do doctors draw ...

Churchgoers aren’t able to lift every voice and sing during the pandemic – here’s why that matters

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, Religion, VIDEO REELS

Churchgoers aren’t able to lift every voice and sing during the pandemic – here’s why that matters

Because of COVID-19, churches no longer reverberate with song; hymnals are neatly stacked and projection screens blank. Even as church leaders plan for reopening, scientists warn that it might be too early to resume singing in groups. Though such restrictions are understandable, they rob congregations of an important aspect of their Christian faith. As the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 5, Believers should be “filled with the spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” As a choral conductor, scholar in African American sacred music and teacher of sacred music and worship, I have studied the relationship between singing and worship for over three decades. Singing is critical to identity and faith. In some ...

Coronavirus deaths and those of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery have something in common: Racism

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Coronavirus deaths and those of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery have something in common: Racism

The COVID-19 pandemic and the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery are two major catastrophes that shine a light on longstanding social inequities and injustices toward African Americans. Emerging research in the field of social genomics demonstrates how social stress, such as racism and discrimination, can shift the body’s biological resources toward a state that increases risk for disease. For example, our research group has found that racial discrimination may be impacting the way genes are expressed, leading to increased levels of dangerous stress hormones. These differences were found even when social determinant factors such as poverty and other forms of stress were accounted for. Hence, racial discrimination experiences may also explain why African Americans continue to remain...

Low-wage essential workers get less protection against coronavirus – and less information about how it spreads

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, WORK

Low-wage essential workers get less protection against coronavirus – and less information about how it spreads

Low-wage essential workers are more likely to face dangerous working conditions and food insecurity than high-wage workers, even more so during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our research provides some of the first data on the safety of essential workers during the pandemic. Our findings suggest that COVID-19 is not the “great equalizer,” as Andrew Cuomo once called it. In fact, inequality is getting worse. We found that across income levels, roughly two-thirds of essential workers were unable to practice social distancing. Low-wage essential workers include grocery clerks, home health aides and delivery drivers, while high-wage workers include nurses, doctors and managers. However, low-wage workers were two to three times more likely than high-wage workers – workers earning over US$40/hour – ...