DAILY UPDATE - COVID-19 I write a daily newsletter with verified statistics & interesting news about Covid. We only show data related to death tolls; data is provided by the John Hopkins University. My background is in statistical analysis & political science.



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Any feedback? Just reply to this email! 🗞️ SUMMARY ANALYSIS 🗞️ 🌎 This Saturday, the global death toll from Coronavirus reached 190k.



Leaked report shows Gilead antiviral drug flopped in first trial. The Chinese trial showed remdesivir did not improve patients’ condition or reduce the pathogen’s presence in the bloodstream. Gilead disputes the report. In Europe, while the trend of new deaths over the continent continues to decrease (-15% week-on-week, -7% day-on-day), EU leaders are clashing over how to rescue their economies. The key open question is whether the EU should issue 'Coronabonds' or stick to loans. France & southern countries want Coronabonds, while Northern countries would rather have loans. The divide between grants and loans has superseded the previous EU split between countries seeking jointly issued EU debt and those opposed.



France rules out coronavirus aid for tax-haven businesses. French Finance Minister also confirmed that companies that received state aid could not pay dividends or buy back their own shares.



In the US (+3,371 deaths, +94% DoD), another 4.4 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week and the US secretary of state warns the US may never resume its funding of WHO. In other US news: medical experts have widely condemned Donald Trump’s statements at the latest White House briefing about whether disinfectant and UV rays could be used on people to fight the virus and Trump says the US may extend social distancing until summer and Egypt will ease its coronavirus lockdown for the holy fasting month of Ramadan by allowing more businesses to reopen and shortening a night-time curfew, the prime minister said on Thursday, as new coronavirus cases reached the highest daily toll since the first infection was confirmed in February. The situation is getting worse in South America (+45% week-on-week, +102% day-on-day). Brazil recorded 425 new deaths in 24 hours. In Ecuador, analysis of over-mortality shows it could have 15 times as many coronavirus deaths as the official figure.



Covid-19 is not sexually transmitted: Doctors in China found no evidence of the coronavirus in the semen of 34 males who were being treated for the disease, suggesting that the virus cannot be transmitted sexually. 📊 WORLD STATISTICS 📊 💡 GRAPH OF THE DAY 💡 Leading causes of deaths in the US (March-April 2020) In the time between February 29th and April 20th, Covid has worked its way up the list of daily causes of deaths in the United States.



On a daily basis, it is now more deadly than common conditions such as diabetes, stroke, and lung disease. Note that in the case of Covid-19, data suggests that the majority of hospitalized patients have some pre-existing conditions, so it may also be that the deaths from other causes are decreasing year-on-year and that Covid is 'cannibalizing' deaths. We will try to come back with an analysis of this phenomenon in the next editions of this newsletter.

Source: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/04/the-rapid-increase-of-u-s-coronavirus-deaths-in-one-graphic.html 🔥 MUST READS 🔥 🔥 Israel shows us the future of protests. Amid the pandemic, demonstrations and dissent are adapting to an era of social distancing. Striking pictures of demonstrations where everyone is 2 meters away from each other, and an interesting analysis of how protests will need to adapt to the new reality. Will online protests have the same impact as offline ones?



🔥 Virtual cheating in chess. After the world chess championship qualifying match was halted because of the pandemic, the world champion, Magnus Carlsen, gathered top players for a virtual event beginning last Saturday. Grandmasters compete from the safety of their own homes, and chess aficionados around the world can watch. One problem: it's quite easy to cheat! Smartphones, buzzers, even yogurt — chess has nearly seen it all in both live and online tournaments. And technology only makes it harder to root out. The paranoia is real as well: in 1978, Viktor Korchnoi accused Anatoly Karpov of cheating with blueberry yogurt after Karpov received purple yogurt from a waiter during the game. Korchnoi worried that the flavor was a signal from someone on the outside.



🔥 Weeks after Wuhan city eased its virus-control policies, thousands of businesses remain shuttered. Many may never restart production. Before the pandemic, the city’s “Optics Valley” — also known as Wuhan East Lake Hi-Tech Development Zone — was among China’s most dynamic innovation hubs, home to research centers for tech giants including Huawei and Xiaomi, as well as thousands of startups. Of the more than 100,000 firms registered here, only 13,000 had resumed operations as of April 12. Amid the pandemic, demonstrations and dissent are adapting to an era of social distancing. Striking pictures of demonstrations where everyone is 2 meters away from each other, and an interesting analysis of how protests will need to adapt to the new reality. Will online protests have the same impact as offline ones? Link to article After the world chess championship qualifying match was halted because of the pandemic, the world champion, Magnus Carlsen, gathered top players for a virtual event beginning last Saturday. Grandmasters compete from the safety of their own homes, and chess aficionados around the world can watch. One problem: it's quite easy to cheat! Smartphones, buzzers, even yogurt — chess has nearly seen it all in both live and online tournaments. And technology only makes it harder to root out. The paranoia is real as well: in 1978, Viktor Korchnoi accused Anatoly Karpov of cheating with blueberry yogurt after Karpov received purple yogurt from a waiter during the game. Korchnoi worried that the flavor was a signal from someone on the outside. Link to article Many may never restart production. Before the pandemic, the city’s “Optics Valley” — also known as Wuhan East Lake Hi-Tech Development Zone — was among China’s most dynamic innovation hubs, home to research centers for tech giants including Huawei and Xiaomi, as well as thousands of startups. Of the more than 100,000 firms registered here, only 13,000 had resumed operations as of April 12. Link to article 📚 GOOD READS 📚 French study: Nicotine may protect against Covid-19. In a (very) surprising turn of events, researchers studying Covid-19 patients in the Paris public hospital network have found some evidence that smokers could be better protected from the virus than others, though they warn that smoking can aggravate symptoms for those who do contract the illness. In a (very) surprising turn of events, researchers studying Covid-19 patients in the Paris public hospital network have found some evidence that smokers could be better protected from the virus than others, though they warn that smoking can aggravate symptoms for those who do contract the illness. Link to article

South Korea’s plan for the “new normal” shows that social distancing is here to stay. Link to article



📚 36,000 missing deaths: tracking the true toll of the Coronavirus crisis. Link to article



📚 China to give WHO $30 million more after US freezes funds. This is a strong, symbolic political move from China that isolates further the US from the international community and reinforces China's position significantly.



📚 Why farmers are dumping milk down the drain and letting produce rot in fields. So a combination of plunging commercial demand, not enough low-wage yet skilled laborers, falling prices and a short window in which to pick vegetables means it has become cheaper to simply let them rot in the fields.



📚 26.5 million Americans have sought unemployment benefits since mid-March, confirming that all the jobs gained during the longest employment boom in U.S. history have been wiped out as the novel coronavirus savages the economy.



📚 Covid-19 is pushing Americans into early retirement. Severe recessions are known to create waves of “discouraged workers,” in which a portion of the unemployed simply stop looking for new jobs. This is happening in the US right now



📚 How doctors make the agonizing decision of which coronavirus patients to save. Interesting article on a key moral dilemma: should doctors try to save everyone or try to save the most likely to survive?



📚 Deluge of legal claims against China is expected around the world. People are seeking compensation for damage caused by negligence or misinformation - and it's mostly directed to China.



📚 American billionaires have gotten $280 billion richer since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Link to article This is a strong, symbolic political move from China that isolates further the US from the international community and reinforces China's position significantly. Link to article . So a combination of plunging commercial demand, not enough low-wage yet skilled laborers, falling prices and a short window in which to pick vegetables means it has become cheaper to simply let them rot in the fields. Link to article , confirming that all the jobs gained during the longest employment boom in U.S. history have been wiped out as the novel coronavirus savages the economy. Link to article Severe recessions are known to create waves of “discouraged workers,” in which a portion of the unemployed simply stop looking for new jobs. This is happening in the US right now Link to article Interesting article on a key moral dilemma: should doctors try to save everyone or try to save the most likely to survive? Link to article People are seeking compensation for damage caused by negligence or misinformation - and it's mostly directed to China. Link to article

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