Reply To: Origins of SARS cov2


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Clark
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Open letter in Science from eighteen scientists including top virologists and immunologists urging proper investigation of the possibility that SARS-CoV-2 leaked from a laboratory:

Investigate the origins of COVID-19

“As scientists with relevant expertise, we agree with the WHO director-general (5), the United States and 13 other countries (6), and the European Union (7) that greater clarity about the origins of this pandemic is necessary and feasible to achieve. We must take hypotheses about both natural and laboratory spillovers seriously until we have sufficient data.”

The letter is reported in the Washington Post:

‘The signers included Ralph Baric of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who is an expert on coronaviruses and pioneered techniques for manipulating them that were eventually used by the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The letter was organized by David Relman of Stanford University and Jesse Bloom of the University of Washington and endorsed by Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), who chairs the House Energy and Commerce health subcommittee. The letter notes the lopsided deficiencies in an earlier World Health Organization-China investigation, and calls for a “proper investigation” that would be “transparent, objective, data-driven, inclusive of broad expertise, subject to independent oversight, and responsibly managed to minimize the impact of conflicts of interest.”’

Relevant Twitter thread from Alina Chan:

– Today, a thread debunking (unintentional) misinformation on the origins of covid-19 / SARS-CoV-2 virus.

– Starting with the top 10 easily fact-checked ideas or statements that are not true, although a shocking number of scientists still think these are true.
— Alina Chan (@Ayjchan) May 17, 2021