{"id":17620,"date":"2020-10-22T10:00:21","date_gmt":"2020-10-22T16:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/janetheactuary\/?p=17620"},"modified":"2020-10-22T10:00:21","modified_gmt":"2020-10-22T16:00:21","slug":"covid-science-update-two-new-infuriating-reports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/janetheactuary\/2020\/10\/covid-science-update-two-new-infuriating-reports.html","title":{"rendered":"Covid “Science” Update – two new infuriating reports"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

$\"\"$ <\/p>\n

Yes, \u201cscience\u201d in scare-quotes, because of two events which concern public understanding of science, or lack thereof; in the first case, a matter of reporting and, in the second, misgovernance here in Illinois.<\/p>\n

First, reports yesterday and today that a vaccine trial participant has died.\u00a0 In fact, this participant had received the placebo version and died of Covid so there is nothing newsworthy in the report, no cause for concern, and no reason at all for the study to be discontinued.\u00a0 If anything, a death of a placebo-receiving participant might suggest that the trials are \u201cworking,\u201d that is, that fears that emerged at one point, that Covid had been so well stamped out that it would take a long time to collect proof that the vaccine protects people, turn out not to have been a concern.<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s how it was reported at Reuters:<\/p>\n

\n
A volunteer in a clinical trial of the COVID-19 vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University has died in Brazil, and the country's health authority has confirmed that the trial will continue https:\/\/t.co\/kCoJFluGal<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/BORUF7m2Iy<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Reuters (@Reuters) October 22, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n