theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Driver says he was watching Netflix when migrants were allegedly loaded on to lorry

A lorry driver accused over the deaths of 39 migrants has told jurors he was watching Netflix in bed with the curtains drawn at the time people were allegedly being loaded into his trailer .
Eamonn Harrison ( 23 ) , of Newry , Co Down , dropped off a sealed container with the Vietnamese victims inside at Zeebrugge in Belgium on October 22nd last year , the Old Bailey in London has heard .
By the time they arrived at Purfleet port in Essex , all 39 men , women and children had suffocated , jurors have heard .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ there were people in his trailer on that day or on two earlier , successful people-smuggling trips .
Harrison has denied the manslaughter of 39 migrants and being involved in a wider people-smuggling operation .
He told jurors he agreed to deal with “ stolen goods ” because he owed his boss Ronan Hughes over a drink-drive accident in one of his trucks .
On the morning of October 22nd last year , Harrison had parked his lorry near Bierne in northern France .
He said he had expected to take a consignment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Harrison said : “ Ronan told me there would be no load of Coca-Cola but there would be a load of stolen goods.
” He said he waited for half an hour for a Romanian he knew as Alex to arrive before setting off to get breakfast at McDonald ’ s .
The defendant said : “ Ronan was in contact with me to tell me to turn around and the man was there.
” He said Alex was not present but another eastern European was .
“ He clearly knew the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ He goes to me , ‘ are you okay ?
’ .
I said yes .
He was telling me where he wanted me to go .
His English was not really the best.
” The defendant said the man told him to “ close the curtains ” and “ lie down ” once he had moved his lorry .
He did as he was told and watched “ a wee bit Netflix ” in bed , Harrison said .
He told jurors : “ I got a bang on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up and I move off .
That ’ s what I did .
It was fairly quick , five minutes.
” Jurors have heard that Hughes ( 41 ) , of Co Armagh , has admitted his involvement in the tragedy .
– PA

British police forensics officers work on lorry, found to be containing 39 dead bodies, at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, east of London, on October 23rd, 2019. Photograph: Ben Stansall / AFP via Getty Images
A lorry driver accused over the deaths of 39 migrants has told jurors he was watching Netflix in bed with the curtains drawn at the time people were allegedly being loaded into his trailer.
Eamonn Harrison (23) of Newry, Co Down, dropped off a sealed container with the Vietnamese victims inside at Zeebrugge in Belgium on October 22nd last year, the Old Bailey in London has heard.
Another driver, Maurice Robinson (26), picked up the trailer at Purfleet port in Essex, and found all 39 men, women and children had suffocated, jurors have heard.
Giving evidence, Harrison has denied knowing there were people in his trailer on that day or on two earlier, successful people-smuggling trips.
READ MORE
Harrison has denied the manslaughter of 39 migrants and being involved in a wider people-smuggling operation.
He told jurors he agreed to deal with “stolen goods” because he owed his boss Ronan Hughes over a drink-drive accident in one of his trucks.
On the morning of October 22nd last year, Harrison had parked his lorry near Bierne in northern France.
He said he had expected to take a consignment of Coca-Cola before he spoke to Hughes.
Harrison said: “Ronan told me there would be no load of Coca-Cola but there would be a load of stolen goods.”
He said he waited for half an hour for a Romanian he knew as Alex to arrive before setting off to get breakfast at McDonald’s.
The defendant said: “Ronan was in contact with me to tell me to turn around and the man was there.”
He said Alex was not present but another eastern European was.
“He clearly knew the lorry, what it was there for.
“He goes to me, ‘are you okay?’. I said yes. He was telling me where he wanted me to go. His English was not really the best.”
The defendant said the man told him to “close the curtains” and “lie down” once he had moved his lorry.
He did as he was told and watched “a wee of bit Netflix” in bed, Harrison said.
He told jurors: “I got a bang on the door. He gives me a thumbs up and I move off. That’s what I did. It was fairly quick, five minutes.”
After dropping off the trailer in Zeebrugge, Harrison went on to Holland, jurors heard.
After repeatedly trying to get hold of him overnight, at 8.22am on October 23rd Hughes called Harrison and asked if he had heard from Robinson.
Harrison said: “He sounded panicking a wee bit.”
The defendant said he only started to hear the news from friends on WhatsApp and Snapchat.
He said he felt “shocked” but did not understand what had happened.
He headed off to pick up a load of tiles as if it was “business as usual”.
But he told jurors: “Obviously, you know, I was more panicked than anything. I did not know what was going on.”
He abandoned the tile job and decided to travel to Dublin from Cherbourg to meet his parents.
He said: “Obviously lots of people are ringing me (saying), ‘what’s going on’?
“You know, my mum and dad are starting to realise there is something more to this.
“Friends are telling me: ‘When you come in you are going to have to go straight to the police’.
“It was only then that “reality started to hit me”, he said.
“It’s not good. That’s the trailer that I shipped. I was the last man that could have done something,” Harrison told jurors.
Rather than meeting his parents, Harrison was arrested when he got off the boat and put in prison.
While there, he learned there was a threat to his life and he was sent to a mental health unit and then segregation, the court heard.
Harrison said he did not know where the threat came from but thought it might be a “Chinese gang”.
Before his trial, Harrison said he “buried his head in the sand” but later decided to tell the truth because of the effect on his mother.
People had questioned how she could have given birth to a “monster” and said she should “hang herself”, he said.
Alisdair Williamson QC, defending, said: “Did you have any idea what you were getting involved with?”
The defendant said: “No, I did not.”
Mr Williamson said: “Mr Harrison, did you in order to work off your debt to Mr Hughes agree to human beings to be put in the back of your trailer?”
Harrison replied: “No I did not.”
Cross-examining, Bill Emlyn Jones said: “You accept and have known for a long time, Mr Harrison, that there were 39 people in your lorry on October 22nd.
“At the start of the evidence yesterday you were asked how you felt about that. You said you felt ‘shite’. And you felt devastated for their families.”
The defendant said: “Correct, yes.”
The prosecutor went on: “And you understand, Mr Harrison, it is my case that you shut them into your trailer. Did you?”
Harrison replied: “No I did not.”
Harrison said he was “fearful” of mentioning handling stolen goods to authorities and risk implicating the Romanian he knew as Alex after being told there was “a hit” on his life.
He added that Hughes had never threatened him and he only realised his boss was “knee deep in this thing” when he pleaded guilty.
Harrison was quizzed on the evidence of witness X, a migrant who was transported in the defendant’s trailer on October 10th last year.
Witness X had told jurors the man who picked him up was English and “a little bit fat”.
He said he and the other migrants were instructed to huddle in the middle of the trailer when they heard a knock on the side.
Harrison accepted he was a “little fat” but denied migrant X was referring to him, saying: “I assume it was Alex.”
Jurors have heard Alex, identified as Petrisor Zgarcea, was Romanian with “limited English”.
Jurors have heard that Hughes (41), of Co Armagh, and Robinson, of Craigavon in Northern Ireland have admitted their involvement in the tragedy.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Covid-19: Mink farms in talks over plan to cull 120,000 animals

The Department of Agriculture is in discussions with three mink farms in Donegal , Laois and Kerry after the State ’ s chief medical officer Dr Tony Holohan recommended a cull of all farmed mink .
Dr Holohan recommended a cull of the State ’ s existing mink herd - estimated at 120,000 animals - “ as a matter of urgency ” .
It follows outbreaks of Covid -19 on mink farms in Denmark , Greece Netherlands , Spain , Sweden and Italy , as well the United States .
There are concerns that mink could pass a mutated strain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ affect efforts to secure effective vaccines .
In a statement , the Department of Agriculture said it had been working closely with the public health authorities as well as with the operators of mink farms in Ireland to address any potential risks arising as a result of Covid-19 .
“ Mink farmers continue to operate in full compliance with all legislative and animal welfare requirements and have co-operated fully with these efforts .
Testing of the mink herd in Ireland detected no positive results to Covid-19 to date .
“ The Department of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of mink represents an ongoing risk of additional mink-adapted SARS-CoV-2 variants emerging and , therefore , it has recommended that farmed mink in Ireland should be culled to minimise or eliminate this risk .
“ The Department of Agriculture continues to engage with the mink farmers to consider the next steps.
” Speaking about the risk recently , Dr Gerald Barry , assistant professor in virology at the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine who specialises in zoonotic infection – passing of disease from animal to human populations – said the discovery that mink @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Pandora ’ s box around animals infecting humans and the possibility of animal reservoirs.
” Such reservoirs , he explained , could make it far more challenging to eradicate the virus than if it was specific to humans .
Smallpox was eradicated in part because it did not find a footing among animals capable of returning it to the human population .
Apart form the three mink farms - the only such farms in the State - which have been contacted by the Department of Agriculture , there are up to 33,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an estimate by the National parks and Wildlife Service .
Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice called for wild mink to be included in a cull of the species on farms in Ireland .
“ If a cull is to take place on the three mink farms in Ireland , then we must take the opportunity to eradicate the mink in the wild .
“ They are a scourge on the countryside , particularly when it comes to lambs and native birds , ” the Roscommon TD said .
Mink and other fur farming stopped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and in Scotland and Northern Ireland two years later .
There is a commitment in the Programme for Government to phase out mink farming in Ireland .
However , a retired mink farmer has described as “ shocking ” the proposed cull .
Redmond O ’ Hanlon told RTÉ Radio ’ s Today with Claire Byrne show that he could not understand the proposal since there were no Covid cases linked to mink farms in Ireland .
The suggestion was like a case of foot-and-mouth being reported in Donegal and then a decision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the country , he said .
Mr O ’ Hanlon said that other countries like Russia , Canada , China and the US had not culled their mink breeding populations .

Mink look out from their cage at a farm in Denmark where a cull has also been ordered. Photograph: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images
Talks are under way between the Department of Agriculture and the State’s three remaining mink farms, following a recommendation by the chief medical officer, Dr Tony Holohan, that all minks should be culled.
The proposed cull “as a matter of urgency” of the 120,000 Irish-farmed animals follows Covid-19 outbreaks on farms in Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Italy, as well the US.
There are concerns that mink could pass a mutated strain of coronavirus back to humans and affect the success of efforts to vaccinate the population during the course of next year.
The Department of Agriculture noted the Department of Health’s recommendation that continued mink farming raises the risk of mutated Covid-19 strains, and that mink should be culled to minimise, or eliminate this risk.
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However, the former did not commit to issuing such an order to the three farms in counties Laois, Kerry and Donegal, saying it “continues to engage with the mink farmers to consider the next steps”.
“Mink farmers continue to operate in full compliance with all legislative and animal welfare requirements and have co-operated fully with these efforts. Testing of the mink herd in Ireland detected no positive results to Covid-19 to date.”
Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice called for the 33,000 wild mink to be included in the proposed cull.
“If a cull is to take place on the three mink farms in Ireland, then we must take the opportunity to eradicate the mink in the wild. They are a scourge on the countryside, particularly when it comes to lambs and native birds,” he said.
The culling call by Dr Holohan was welcomed by the anti-fur campaign group, Peta, which described fur farming as “a business that shames us with its cruelty”.
“Fur fell out of fashion long ago, when people learned that animals are drowned, electrocuted, and sometimes even skinned alive,” said Peta director Elisa Allen.
“It’s because fur farms are packed with sick, stressed, suffering animals that they have now been identified as Sars-CoV-2 hotspots responsible for a mutation of the virus that threatens the efficacy of any vaccine,” she went on.
Speaking on RTÉ, Dr Gerald Barry of University College Dublin’s School of Veterinary Medicine was surprised by the culling recommendation, saying the mutations seen in mink had already been seen in humans.
Speaking recently, however, Dr Barry, an assistant professor in virology specialising in zoonotic infection, said animal-to-human transmission created “a kind of Pandora’s box”.
Such reservoirs could make it far more challenging to eradicate the Covid-19 virus. Smallpox, for example, was eradicated partly because it did not find a footing among animals capable of returning it to the human population.
Rise TD Paul Murphy said the “mutant Covid strain in Danish mink farms shows real dangers here too”. It was he said “time to fast-track [the] promise to shut the farms now, before they become hotspots.”
Mink and other fur farming stopped in England and Wales in 2000, and in Scotland and Northern Ireland two years later. There is a commitment in the programme for government to phase out mink farming in Ireland.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Irish Facebook workers seek greater Covid-19 protections

More than 100 Facebook workers in Dublin who monitor the social network for inappropriate content are among the signatories to a public letter seeking better work protection during the coronavirus pandemic .
The content moderators have written to Facebook executives Mark Zuckerburg and Sheryl Sandberg raising concerns about being asked to work from offices during the public health crisis .
They want the company to maximise at-home work to keep them and their families safe from infection and hazard pay for those who have to work in offices as part of the monitoring of content posted online to detect high-risk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The letter , released by Foxglove , a UK-based non-profit group that has been advocating for improving conditions for Facebook moderators , is copied to Anne Heraty , the Irish chief executive of recruitment group CPL that contracts the moderators through a subsidiary called Covalen .
Foxglove said that 114 Dublin-based moderators have signed up to the letter , just over 40 per cent of the signatories , and that it includes five who are full-time employees of Facebook .
The remainder are content moderators working through contractors CPL or Accenture .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ psychological supports and better working conditions because of the graphic nature of their work given that they have to screen the social network for material such as violence , hate speech and animal cruelty and remove it .
The California-based internet giant settled a €48 million lawsuit with US content moderators and about 30 more are planning legal actions in the Irish courts over the nature of their work .
Moderators complain in their public letter to company bosses about being “ forced ” to return to offices and “ to express our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lives - and the lives of our colleagues and loved ones - to maintain Facebook ’ s profits during the pandemic.
” The moderators say that workers who secure a doctor ’ s note about being at personal risk to Covid-19 have been excused from attending in person at work but moderators with vulnerable relatives , who are at greater risk from Covid-19 infection , have not .
They claim that on top of work that is “ psychologically toxic , holding onto the job means walking in a hot zone ” with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A small number of confirmed Covid-19 cases have been reported at offices in Sandyford , south Co Dublin where some Facebook content moderators are based .
“ Workers have asked Facebook leadership and the leadership of your outsourcing firms like Accenture and CPL to take urgent steps to protect us and value our work .
You refused .
We are publishing this letter because we are left with no choice , ” they say .
The letter points to the money made by Facebook during the pandemic and refers to the fact @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s main European contractors , is to be sold for €318 million .
In response , a spokeswoman for Facebook in Dublin said that the company appreciated the valuable work content reviewers carry out and that it prioritises health and safety .
“ Many of these 15,000 global content reviews have been working from home and will continue to do so for the duration of the pandemic , ” she said .
“ All of them have access to healthcare and confidential wellbeing resources from their first day of employment and Facebook has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for any in-office work.
” Facebook workers , typically carried out by contractors working for outside companies such as CPL/Covalen , must carry out critical content moderation work on site and in offices .
The company has introduced health and safety precautions such as reduced capacity and room occupancy limits to allow for physical distancing , mandatory wearing of face masks and daily cleaning of offices and desks to protect against Covid-19 .

More than 100 Facebook workers in Dublin who monitor the social network for inappropriate content are among the signatories to a public letter seeking better work protection during the coronavirus pandemic.
The content moderators have written to Facebook executives Mark Zuckerburg and Sheryl Sandberg raising concerns about being asked to work from offices during the public health crisis.
They want the company to maximise at-home work to keep them and their families safe from infection and hazard pay for those who have to work in offices as part of the monitoring of content posted online to detect high-risk material such as images of child abuse.
The letter, released by Foxglove, a UK-based non-profit group that has been advocating for improving conditions for Facebook moderators, is copied to Anne Heraty, the Irish chief executive of recruitment group CPL that contracts the moderators through a subsidiary called Covalen.
READ MORE
Foxglove said that 114 Dublin-based moderators have signed up to the letter, just over 40 per cent of the signatories, and that it includes five who are full-time employees of Facebook.
The remainder are content moderators working through contractors CPL or Accenture.
Content moderators have long been pushing for psychological supports and better working conditions because of the graphic nature of their work given that they have to screen the social network for material such as violence, hate speech and animal cruelty and remove it.
The California-based internet giant settled a €48 million lawsuit with US content moderators and about 30 more are planning legal actions in the Irish courts over the nature of their work.
Moderators complain in their public letter to company bosses about being “forced” to return to offices and “to express our dismay at your decision to risk our lives - and the lives of our colleagues and loved ones - to maintain Facebook’s profits during the pandemic.”
The moderators say that workers who secure a doctor’s note about being at personal risk to Covid-19 have been excused from attending in person at work but moderators with vulnerable relatives, who are at greater risk from Covid-19 infection, have not.
They claim that on top of work that is “psychologically toxic, holding onto the job means walking in a hot zone” with multiple Covid-19 cases being reported in workspaces.
Covid cases
A small number of confirmed Covid-19 cases have been reported at offices in Sandyford, south Co Dublin where some Facebook content moderators are based.
“Workers have asked Facebook leadership and the leadership of your outsourcing firms like Accenture and CPL to take urgent steps to protect us and value our work. You refused. We are publishing this letter because we are left with no choice,” they say.
The letter points to the money made by Facebook during the pandemic and refers to the fact that CPL, one of Facebook’s main European contractors, is to be sold for €318 million.
In response, a spokeswoman for Facebook in Dublin said that the company appreciated the valuable work content reviewers carry out and that it prioritises health and safety.
“Many of these 15,000 global content reviewers have been working from home and will continue to do so for the duration of the pandemic,” she said.
“All of them have access to healthcare and confidential wellbeing resources from their first day of employment and Facebook has exceeded health guidance on keeping facilities safe for any in-office work.”
Facebook workers, typically carried out by contractors working for outside companies such as CPL/Covalen, must carry out critical content moderation work on site and in offices.
The company has introduced health and safety precautions such as reduced capacity and room occupancy limits to allow for physical distancing, mandatory wearing of face masks and daily cleaning of offices and desks to protect against Covid-19.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Concern voiced over delays in school vaccines in midlands

Fears have been raised that children could miss out on “ 4 in 1 ” , MMR and HPV vaccines in the midlands and north-east after the school immunisation programme was deferred for a second time due to pressures on the health system .
Under the HSE School Immunisation Programme children in junior infants , are offered two vaccines , the “ 4 in 1 ” booster to protect against diphtheria , polio , tetanus and whooping cough , and a second dose of the MMR vaccine to protect against measles , mumps and rubella .
In addition HSE offers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ HPV ( Human Papillomavirus ) , to protect against almost all cases of cervical cancer .
Crucially , protection against cervical cancer comes in two doses of the vaccine , usually given at a six month interval .
But concern has been expressed for this timescale given that the first dose would need to be administered by early December , if pupils are to achieve a second dose before the school year ends in June .
Laois Offaly TD Brian Stanley said he feared some families may not look for vaccines if children @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mr Stanley told The Irish Times families in difficulties with pressing issues like job loss , evictions or employment , or dysfunctional families , may not be best placed to follow up on vaccinations for their children .
For these reasons , he said , the schools programme had always been considered an effective way of delivering community health programmes .
Mr Stanley said the situation had been reported to him by parents and schools across the HSE Community Care Area 8 who wanted to continue the immunisation programme but were concerned about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year .
In response , the HSE ’ s regional office confirmed the school immunisation programme for Area 8 - covering the six counties of Offaly , Laois , Westmeath , Longford , Meath and Louth - had been deferred twice during 2020 .
But it said there was no suggestion that those who are targeted for school immunization in 2020/21 “ would not have their necessary vaccinations fully completed by Summer 2021 ” .
The combined area recorded a population of 615,258 in the 2016 census .
A spokesman said the first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , during the first wave of Covid- 19 , but the programme was resumed in June 2020 .
During the summer , the spokesman said “ a catch-up exercise ensured that everyone who was to offered school immunization for school year 2019/20 had been offered their relevant vaccination ” .
In late August , the HSE Area 8 decided it was again necessary to defer the school immunisation programme to allow staff to be redeployed to support work to combat Covid-19 “ and other competing demands ” .
In particular , the spokesman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” in Covid - 19 testing in Area 8 , from 8,454 tests in August to 37,435 in October .
The spokesman said a recovery plan had been prepared for school immunisation in 2020/21 and “ assuming continued reduced demand for testing , continued recruitment of new community swabbers and reduced other pressures ” the School Immunisation Programme will resume in the coming weeks ” .
A spokeswoman for the HSE ’ s national office said the school vaccination programmes across the State had not been suspended .
But she added that it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a different venue or may be delayed because of Covid-19 .
The HSE will try to keep these changes to a minimum ” .

Under the HSE School Immunisation Programme children in junior infants, are offered two vaccines, the “4 in 1” booster to protect against diphtheria, polio, tetanus and whooping cough, and a second dose of the MMR vaccine to protect against measles, mumps and rubella. Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire
Fears have been raised that children could miss out on “4 in 1”, MMR and HPV vaccines in the midlands and north-east after the school immunisation programme was deferred for a second time due to pressures on the health system.
Under the HSE School Immunisation Programme children in junior infants, are offered two vaccines, the “4 in 1” booster to protect against diphtheria, polio, tetanus and whooping cough, and a second dose of the MMR vaccine to protect against measles, mumps and rubella.
In addition HSE offers first year students a vaccine against the HPV (Human Papillomavirus), to protect against almost all cases of cervical cancer.
Crucially, protection against cervical cancer comes in two doses of the vaccine, usually given at a six month interval.
READ MORE
But concern has been expressed for this timescale given that the first dose would need to be administered by early December, if pupils are to achieve a second dose before the school year ends in June.
Laois Offaly TD Brian Stanley said he feared some families may not look for vaccines if children did not get them in schools.
Mr Stanley told The Irish Times families in difficulties with pressing issues like job loss, evictions or employment, or dysfunctional families, may not be best placed to follow up on vaccinations for their children. For these reasons, he said, the schools programme had always been considered an effective way of delivering community health programmes.
Mr Stanley said the situation had been reported to him by parents and schools across the HSE Community Care Area 8 who wanted to continue the immunisation programme but were concerned about the time available in the current academic year.
In response, the HSE’s regional office confirmed the school immunisation programme for Area 8 - covering the six counties of Offaly, Laois, Westmeath, Longford, Meath and Louth - had been deferred twice during 2020. But it said there was no suggestion that those who are targeted for school immunization in 2020/21 “would not have their necessary vaccinations fully completed by Summer 2021”.
The combined area recorded a population of 615,258 in the 2016 census.
A spokesman said the first deferral was between March and May 2020, during the first wave of Covid- 19, but the programme was resumed in June 2020.
During the summer, the spokesman said “a catch-up exercise ensured that everyone who was to offered school immunization for school year 2019/20 had been offered their relevant vaccination”.
In late August, the HSE Area 8 decided it was again necessary to defer the school immunisation programme to allow staff to be redeployed to support work to combat Covid-19 “and other competing demands”.
In particular, the spokesman said there was “the exponential increase” in Covid - 19 testing in Area 8, from 8,454 tests in August to 37,435 in October.
The spokesman said a recovery plan had been prepared for school immunisation in 2020/21 and “assuming continued reduced demand for testing, continued recruitment of new community swabbers and reduced other pressures” the School Immunisation Programme will resume in the coming weeks”.
A spokeswoman for the HSE’s national office said the school vaccination programmes across the State had not been suspended. But she added that it “may need to be done in a different venue or may be delayed because of Covid-19. The HSE will try to keep these changes to a minimum”.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Covid-19 vaccines: When will they be available and who will get them first?

How are the various Covid-19 vaccines progressing ?
There are two vaccine front-runners at the moment - namely the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and the Moderna vaccine .
Final results from the late-stage trial of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine showed it was 95 per cent effective and had no serious side effects .
The company said on Wednesday the US Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) could grant emergency-use approval towards the end of the first half of December or early in the second half while conditional approval in the European Union could be achieved in the second half of December .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ required two-months of safety data and would apply for emergency US authorisation within days .
Moderna announced on Monday that its own candidate was 94.5 per cent effective .
Moderna expects to get the safety data it needs by the end of the month , allowing it to file for emergency clearance in the coming weeks .
What about the Oxford Covid-19 vaccine ?
Mid-stage trial results from the vaccine being developed by British pharma group AstraZeneca and Oxford University has shown it produced a strong immune response in older adults .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but published in full in The Lancet medical journal on Thursday , suggest that those aged over 70 – who are at higher risk of serious illness and death from Covid-19 – could build robust immunity to the pandemic disease , researchers said .
Late-stage , or Phase III , trials are ongoing to confirm the findings and to test whether the vaccine protects against infection with SARS-CoV-2 in a broad range of people , including those with underlying health conditions .
The first efficacy data from those Phase III trials is “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Lancet report said .
Is there any more details about the Pfizer-BioNTech trial ?
Pfizer said there were 170 cases of Covid-19 in its trial of more than 43,000 volunteers and only eight people with the disease had been given the shot rather than a placebo , meaning the vaccine had a 95 per cent efficacy rate .
Of the 10 people who developed severe Covid-19 , one had received the vaccine .
Pfizer and BioNTech said that the vaccine ’ s efficacy was consistent across age , race and ethnicity .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ fatigue , with 3.7 per cent of volunteers reporting tiredness after they took the second dose .
Two percent of volunteers reported a headache after the second dose .
Pfizer and BioNTech expect to be able to produce up to 50 million vaccine doses globally in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion in 2021 .
And what about the Moderna trial ?
The Moderna trial involved more than 30,000 participants in the US split into two groups , with one group given two doses of the vaccine and the other group given a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ participants with confirmed cases of Covid at least two weeks after the second dose of the vaccine , the researchers report that the vaccine has an efficacy of 94.5 per cent .
In other words , 90 of the Covid cases occurred among participants who had been given placebo jabs , with only five cases occurring among those given the vaccine .
When the team analysed the breakdown for 11 severe cases of Covid , they found all had occurred among those who had received the placebo .
In addition , the researchers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ significant safety concerns .
The main side-effects included pain at the injection site at the first dose , and headache , fatigue and pain in the muscles after the second .
Moderna has said it could potentially produce one billion doses of the vaccine by the end of 2021 .
How do these vaccines work ?
Both the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and Moderna vaccine are based on introducing genetic material , known as mRNA , into the human body , which carries instructions for making the “ spike proteins ” that sit on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in allowing the virus to enter human cells .
When this mRNA is introduced to the body , the protein-making machinery within human cells churns out the spike proteins .
These proteins are displayed on the outside of the cells , triggering the body ’ s immune response .
Both vaccines involve two doses , spaced a few weeks apart .
How many doses of the vaccine is Ireland in line to receive ?
The European Commission recently finalised a contract for up to 300 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ signed similar contracts for vaccines under development by AstraZeneca , Sanofi-GSK , CureVac and Johnson & Johnson .
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she hoped to finalise a deal soon with Moderna for its Covid-19 vaccine .
All EU member states would get the first vaccines simultaneously , and doses would be allocated according to population size .
Ireland makes up roughly 1.01 per cent of the EU population , so would be in line for just over three million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine , if it is ultimately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine is a two-dose treatment , so that would be enough to inoculate over 1.5 million people .
How soon is a vaccine likely to be rolled out in Ireland and who will be first to get it ?
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said on Wednesday he is “ very optimistic ” that the those most a risk will be able to be vaccinated in the first quarter of the new year .
Separately , Taoiseach Micheál Martin said on Monday a significant rollout of Covid-19 vaccines is unlikely to happen before the middle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be given to protecting vulnerable groups and healthcare workers .
Mr Martin said much depends on how quickly the various vaccines under development get regulatory approval , but he was hopeful that Ireland would be in a position to begin mass vaccinations around in the middle of 2021 .
Already , the horse trading has begun with a teacher union on Thursday demanding that they be among the first to get the vaccine when it becomes available .

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said he is ‘very optimistic’ that those most at risk will be able to be vaccinated in the first quarter of 2021. File photograph: David Cheskin/PA
How are the various Covid-19 vaccines progressing?
There are two vaccine front-runners at the moment - namely the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and the Moderna vaccine.
Final results from the late-stage trial of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine showed it was 95 per cent effective and had no serious side effects.
The company said on Wednesday the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) could grant emergency-use approval towards the end of the first half of December or early in the second half while conditional approval in the European Union could be achieved in the second half of December.
The company said it now had the required two-months of safety data and would apply for emergency US authorisation within days.
READ MORE
Moderna announced on Monday that its own candidate was 94.5 per cent effective. Moderna expects to get the safety data it needs by the end of the month, allowing it to file for emergency clearance in the coming weeks.
What about the Oxford Covid-19 vaccine?
Mid-stage trial results from the vaccine being developed by British pharma group AstraZeneca and Oxford University has shown it produced a strong immune response in older adults.
The data, reported in part last month but published in full in The Lancet medical journal on Thursday, suggest that those aged over 70 – who are at higher risk of serious illness and death from Covid-19 – could build robust immunity to the pandemic disease, researchers said.
Late-stage, or Phase III, trials are ongoing to confirm the findings and to test whether the vaccine protects against infection with SARS-CoV-2 in a broad range of people, including those with underlying health conditions.
The first efficacy data from those Phase III trials is “possible in the coming weeks”, the Lancet report said.
Is there any more details about the Pfizer-BioNTech trial?
Pfizer said there were 170 cases of Covid-19 in its trial of more than 43,000 volunteers and only eight people with the disease had been given the shot rather than a placebo, meaning the vaccine had a 95 per cent efficacy rate.
Of the 10 people who developed severe Covid-19, one had received the vaccine.
Pfizer and BioNTech said that the vaccine’s efficacy was consistent across age, race and ethnicity.
The most common serious adverse event was fatigue, with 3.7 per cent of volunteers reporting tiredness after they took the second dose. Two percent of volunteers reported a headache after the second dose.
Pfizer and BioNTech expect to be able to produce up to 50 million vaccine doses globally in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion in 2021.
And what about the Moderna trial?
The Moderna trial involved more than 30,000 participants in the US split into two groups, with one group given two doses of the vaccine and the other group given a placebo.
Based on data from 95 participants with confirmed cases of Covid at least two weeks after the second dose of the vaccine, the researchers report that the vaccine has an efficacy of 94.5 per cent.
In other words, 90 of the Covid cases occurred among participants who had been given placebo jabs, with only five cases occurring among those given the vaccine.
When the team analysed the breakdown for 11 severe cases of Covid, they found all had occurred among those who had received the placebo.
In addition, the researchers say the vaccine has not raised any significant safety concerns. The main side-effects included pain at the injection site at the first dose, and headache, fatigue and pain in the muscles after the second.
Moderna has said it could potentially produce one billion doses of the vaccine by the end of 2021.
How do these vaccines work?
Both the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and Moderna vaccine are based on introducing genetic material, known as mRNA, into the human body, which carries instructions for making the “spike proteins” that sit on the outside of the coronavirus and are crucial in allowing the virus to enter human cells.
When this mRNA is introduced to the body, the protein-making machinery within human cells churns out the spike proteins. These proteins are displayed on the outside of the cells, triggering the body’s immune response.
Both vaccines involve two doses, spaced a few weeks apart.
How many doses of the vaccine is Ireland in line to receive?
The European Commission recently finalised a contract for up to 300 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
The EU has signed similar contracts for vaccines under development by AstraZeneca, Sanofi-GSK, CureVac and Johnson & Johnson.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she hoped to finalise a deal soon with Moderna for its Covid-19 vaccine.
All EU member states would get the first vaccines simultaneously, and doses would be allocated according to population size.
Ireland makes up roughly 1.01 per cent of the EU population, so would be in line for just over three million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, if it is ultimately approved.
As mentioned, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is a two-dose treatment, so that would be enough to inoculate over 1.5 million people.
How soon is a vaccine likely to be rolled out in Ireland and who will be first to get it?
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said on Wednesday he is "very optimistic" that the those most a risk will be able to be vaccinated in the first quarter of the new year.
Separately, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said on Monday a significant rollout of Covid-19 vaccines is unlikely to happen before the middle of next year and priority will initially be given to protecting vulnerable groups and healthcare workers.
Mr Martin said much depends on how quickly the various vaccines under development get regulatory approval, but he was hopeful that Ireland would be in a position to begin mass vaccinations around in the middle of 2021.
Already, the horse trading has begun with a teacher union on Thursday demanding that they be among the first to get the vaccine when it becomes available.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Stop sending pointless emails, the planet will thank you

Millions of unnecessary emails sent every day , including those that say nothing more than “ thanks ” are a threat to the planet , scientists believe .
With the UN COP26 climate change summit taking place in in Glasgow , Scotland next year , organisers are looking at innovative ways to cut carbon emissions — and the footprint left by web users has drawn its attention .
British officials have been particularly taken by research suggesting that , in the UK for example , more than 64 million unnecessary emails are sent every day , pumping thousands of tonnes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the power they consume .
Multiply the figure out across the world and the affects are multiplied .
“ We ’ ve been looking at research suggesting that if you reduced those emails by just one a day , you would save a lot of carbon , ” said one person involved in COP26 preparations .
The issue of unnecessary emails was raised in a recent paper from the National Cyber Security Centre , a London-based agency charged with making the country ’ s online life secure .
The centre declined to comment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has not yet been put to ministers — officials say work is at a preliminary stage — but British prime minister Boris Johnson wants to make radical environmental action a hallmark of his premiership .
It is important to recognise that data traffic — such as email — does have an energy and carbon penalty .
The carbon footprint of an email comes from the electricity that is used to power the devices on which it is written and read , the networks that transmit the data , and the data centres that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ account for less than 0.1 per cent of the world ’ s carbon footprint , a small figure compared with the 20 per cent blamed on cars .
However , emissions from data centres are growing because of increased use of online media such as video calls , games , and streaming .
One piece of open source information referred to by officials relates to research commissioned by Ovo Energy last November , which suggested that if each person in the UK sent one fewer email a day it could cut carbon output @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The research claimed that would be the equivalent of more than 80,000 people flying from London to Madrid .
It found that the 10 most “ unnecessary ” emails included messages saying only “ thank you ” , “ appreciated ” , “ cheers ” and “ LOL ” .
“ It is important to recognise that data traffic — such as email — does have an energy and carbon penalty , ” said Susanne Baker , associate director for climate , environment and sustainability at TechUK , a non-profit industry group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ technology sector had invested heavily in increasing its use of renewable energy instead of fossil fuels , and said that some industry forecasts modelled a 50 per cent reduction in carbon by 2030 .
Other experts view the idea of an email crackdown with caution .
Mike Berners-Lee , a professor at Lancaster University whose research was used to estimate the impact of cutting back on emails , said the estimated impact of each email was based on “ back of the envelope ” calculations in work from 2010 , and that it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ related to the tech sector .
While he said it was useful as a hook for broader conversations on climate change , Mr Berners-Lee said it was vital to keep the emphasis on more significant IT questions over whether the sector can contribute to a low carbon world .
“ The idea that [ greater ] efficiency automatically brings about a cut in carbon ... looks incredibly dubious , ” he said .
“ The [ efficiency ] of information storage and transmission and analysis has gone up by a factor of millions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our information storage and transmission analysis has also gone up because we ’ re doing millions and millions of times more of that activity.
” However , IT has proved its benefits in the Covid-19 crisis at a time when an economic slowdown has limited carbon emissions from other sectors , he said .
“ It ’ s great to see under those conditions that IT has enabled us to live better than we ’ d be able to live , without increasing our carbon footprint , ” he said .
– Copyright @ @ @ @ @

A study last year suggested that if each person in the UK sent one fewer email a day it could cut carbon output by more than 16,000 tonnes a year.
Millions of unnecessary emails sent every day, including those that say nothing more than “thanks” are a threat to the planet, scientists believe.
With the UN COP26 climate change summit taking place in Glasgow, Scotland next year, organisers are looking at innovative ways to cut carbon emissions — and the footprint left by web users has drawn its attention.
British officials have been particularly taken by research suggesting that, in the UK for example, more than 64 million unnecessary emails are sent every day, pumping thousands of tonnes of carbon into the atmosphere owing to the power they consume.
Multiply the figure out across the world and the affects are multiplied.
READ MORE
“We’ve been looking at research suggesting that if you reduced those emails by just one a day, you would save a lot of carbon,” said one person involved in COP26 preparations.
The issue of unnecessary emails was raised in a recent paper from the National Cyber Security Centre, a London-based agency charged with making the country’s online life secure. The centre declined to comment.
Cutting online small talk and courtesies has not yet been put to ministers — officials say work is at a preliminary stage — but British prime minister Boris Johnson wants to make radical environmental action a hallmark of his premiership.
It is important to recognise that data traffic — such as email — does have an energy and carbon penalty.
The carbon footprint of an email comes from the electricity that is used to power the devices on which it is written and read, the networks that transmit the data, and the data centres that store it.
Experts estimate data centres account for less than 0.1 per cent of the world’s carbon footprint, a small figure compared with the 20 per cent blamed on cars. However, emissions from data centres are growing because of increased use of online media such as video calls, games, and streaming.
‘One fewer email’
One piece of open source information referred to by officials relates to research commissioned by Ovo Energy last November, which suggested that if each person in the UK sent one fewer email a day it could cut carbon output by more than 16,000 tonnes a year.
The research claimed that would be the equivalent of more than 80,000 people flying from London to Madrid. It found that the 10 most “unnecessary” emails included messages saying only “thank you”, “appreciated”, “cheers” and “LOL”.
"It is important to recognise that data traffic — such as email — does have an energy and carbon penalty," said Susanne Baker, associate director for climate, environment and sustainability at TechUK, a non-profit industry group.
However, she emphasised that the technology sector had invested heavily in increasing its use of renewable energy instead of fossil fuels, and said that some industry forecasts modelled a 50 per cent reduction in carbon by 2030.
Other experts view the idea of an email crackdown with caution.
Mike Berners-Lee, a professor at Lancaster University whose research was used to estimate the impact of cutting back on emails, said the estimated impact of each email was based on “back of the envelope” calculations in work from 2010, and that it was only a small part of emissions related to the tech sector.
While he said it was useful as a hook for broader conversations on climate change, Mr Berners-Lee said it was vital to keep the emphasis on more significant IT questions over whether the sector can contribute to a low carbon world.
“The idea that [greater] efficiency automatically brings about a cut in carbon... looks incredibly dubious,” he said. “The [efficiency] of information storage and transmission and analysis has gone up by a factor of millions, but... the carbon footprint of our information storage and transmission analysis has also gone up because we’re doing millions and millions of times more of that activity.”
However, IT has proved its benefits in the Covid-19 crisis at a time when an economic slowdown has limited carbon emissions from other sectors, he said. “It’s great to see under those conditions that IT has enabled us to live better than we’d be able to live, without increasing our carbon footprint,” he said. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2020


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Pandemic fallout offers chance to change work and living for better, says President

The fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do things better in relation to work and living and with the world , President Michael D Higgins has said .
In an address to the biennial conference of the country ’ s largest public service trade union Fórsa on Thursday , he also said the challenges of the future would require a more activist and more democratic State .
Mr Higgins said the economic paradigm over the last four decades that saw the shrinking the State , as well as the undervaluing of frontline workers and those providing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ failed .
“ From this demonstrably failed , disconnected model of economy , we must liberate ourselves , replace it by making a new balance between economy , ecology , society and culture.
” Mr Higgins said the future challenged required a State that “ can plan , co-ordinate , manage and intervene when necessary in an open and transparent manner , placing the needs and welfare of its citizens at its very heart ” .
“ Competence in decision-making at macro and micro levels of economy and society , the fullest forms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a movement for economic literacy of a new kind that will empower every worker.
” The President said the Covid-19 pandemic had resulted in devastating personal , social and economic consequences .
However , he said , “ out of such a crisis we are presented with perhaps a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do things better , to embrace and bring to fruition a new paradigm of existence with each other , in relation to work and living , and with the world itself ; a renewed and healthier connection of society , economy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provides an opportunity to rethink the connections between climate neutrality , a sustainable economy , social welfare and labour itself.
” The President said the pandemic had “ forced a return to fundamental questions which we as a society ignore at our peril .
What are the essential tasks and needs of a society as we live together ?
How did it come to be that so little value was placed on essential work and the contribution of essential workers ?
The consequences of privileging those remunerated in a financialised global economy over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ universal basic services , or indeed in what must be accepted as the real economy , have been laid bare in the regressive outcomes since 2008 in particular ” .
“ The task now at hand is to create a society that is more equal , one in which all work is valued , and all jobs are decent , fulfilling and secure , together with adequate social protection , ” Mr Higgins said .
“ This task is far from an easy undertaking given current geopolitics and the recent , if now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that was not open to critique in terms of assumptions , practices or consequences.
” The President said the pandemic had “ clearly shown , too , how highly mobile workers who frequently move within , or in and out of , the European Union are irreplaceable during a public health crisis , yet they often remain the least protected ” .
“ We continue to witness increases in precarious employment , contract working , and an ongoing casualisation of labour , with new and emerging trends in work practices that are often @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provide new means to maximise profits for employers , but in their practical delivery reveal the ongoing erosion of employees ’ hard-won labour rights.
” The President said the trend towards digitalisation continued but maintained such a trend needed not be wholly negative “ if offered within a social-economic model ” .
“ We see how online workers often are not covered by the most basic employment law or collective agreements , all rationalised in the name of efficiency , flexibility , productivity .
”

Michael D. Higgins: ‘out of such a crisis we are presented with perhaps a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do things better’. File photograph: Collins
The fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do things better in relation to work and living and with the world, President Michael D Higgins has said.
In an address to the biennial conference of the country’s largest public service trade union Fórsa on Thursday, he also said the challenges of the future would require a more activist and more democratic State.
Mr Higgins said the economic paradigm over the last four decades that saw the shrinking the State, as well as the undervaluing of frontline workers and those providing essential services across the economy, had failed.
“From this demonstrably failed, disconnected model of economy, we must liberate ourselves, replace it by making a new balance between economy, ecology, society and culture.”
READ MORE
Mr Higgins said the future challenged required a State that “can plan, co-ordinate, manage and intervene when necessary in an open and transparent manner, placing the needs and welfare of its citizens at its very heart”.
“Competence in decision-making at macro and micro levels of economy and society, the fullest forms of participation, must be achieved by a movement for economic literacy of a new kind that will empower every worker.”
The President said the Covid-19 pandemic had resulted in devastating personal, social and economic consequences.
However, he said, “out of such a crisis we are presented with perhaps a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do things better, to embrace and bring to fruition a new paradigm of existence with each other, in relation to work and living, and with the world itself; a renewed and healthier connection of society, economy and ecology”.
“The pandemic provides an opportunity to rethink the connections between climate neutrality, a sustainable economy, social welfare and labour itself.”
The President said the pandemic had “forced a return to fundamental questions which we as a society ignore at our peril. What are the essential tasks and needs of a society as we live together? How did it come to be that so little value was placed on essential work and the contribution of essential workers? The consequences of privileging those remunerated in a financialised global economy over those who worked in the provision of universal basic services, or indeed in what must be accepted as the real economy, have been laid bare in the regressive outcomes since 2008 in particular”.
“The task now at hand is to create a society that is more equal, one in which all work is valued, and all jobs are decent, fulfilling and secure, together with adequate social protection,” Mr Higgins said.
“This task is far from an easy undertaking given current geopolitics and the recent, if now thankfully fading, fixation with a neoliberalism that was not open to critique in terms of assumptions, practices or consequences.”
The President said the pandemic had "clearly shown, too, how highly mobile workers who frequently move within, or in and out of, the European Union are irreplaceable during a public health crisis, yet they often remain the least protected".
“ We continue to witness increases in precarious employment, contract working, and an ongoing casualisation of labour, with new and emerging trends in work practices that are often deemed ‘innovations’ insofar as they provide new means to maximise profits for employers, but in their practical delivery reveal the ongoing erosion of employees’ hard-won labour rights.”
The President said the trend towards digitalisation continued but maintained such a trend needed not be wholly negative “if offered within a social-economic model”.
“We see how online workers often are not covered by the most basic employment law or collective agreements, all rationalised in the name of efficiency, flexibility, productivity.”


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Outbreaks of coronavirus in private households double in a week

Outbreaks of coronavirus infections almost doubled in the second week of November with the number of private household outbreaks more than doubling , official Covid-19 statistics show .
There were 1,057 outbreaks of the disease recorded in the week to November 14th , an increase from 572 in the previous week , due mostly to the sharp rise in the number of infections in households .
There were 954 outbreaks in households , up from 443 for the previous week .
Workplace outbreaks rose from 15 to 20 , while outbreaks linked to school children or staff fell from 24 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outbreaks at the end of the second week , up from 4,202 a week earlier .
A total of 8,311 outbreaks of disease have been recorded since the pandemic began in March .
An outbreak remains open until 28 days have passed without a new infection being detected .
The number of coronavirus-related deaths passed 2,000 on Wednesday , as 12 reported deaths pushed the death toll linked to the disease in the State to 2,006 since the first recorded death on March 11th .
The National Public Health Emergency Team reported a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Wednesday , bringing to 69,058 the total number of cases in the Republic .
Members of Nphet are meeting on Thursday to discuss the country ’ s exit from Level 5 restrictions , which are due to expire on December 1st .
Senior officials are said to have clashed with Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan during a meeting on Wednesday as efforts to draw up a plan to exit the lockdown and manage the pandemic over the Christmas period continue in Government .
According to three sources with knowledge of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Holohan that the Government – not Nphet – would make decisions about easing the lockdown and what restrictions would be in place over Christmas .
Latest figures show that there are 290 people in hospital with confirmed cases of the disease on Thursday morning with 20 admissions to hospital and 23 discharges over the previous 24 hours .
There were 33 people in intensive care units on Wednesday night .
This is down from a high of 44 during the second wave of the disease at the end of October .
The number @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 155 during the first wave of infections in April .
Geographically , coronavirus hospitalisations outside Dublin mirror where cases are highest in the country as a proportion of the population .
Donegal has the highest incidence rate over the past fortnight with 295.9 cases for every 100,000 people followed by Limerick with 237 .
University Hospital Limerick had the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases on Wednesday night with 38 cases and there were six people with severe coronavirus infection in its ICU .
Letterkenny University Hospital in Donegal had the next highest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but had just two people in the hospital ’ s ICU , jointly the fourth highest number in ICUs .
There were nine new outbreaks reported in hospitals in the second week in November , down from 11 the previous week , while nursing home outbreaks increased from three to six .
There were 221 out sick from University Hospital Limerick due to infections or as a result of being a close contact of a case , up from 161 last week .
There were 133 staff off work at Letterkenny University Hospital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Meanwhile , infectious diseases expert Professor Sam McConkey is optimistic Covid-19 cases will drop to 150 a day in the next two weeks , allowing for the gradual reopening of the retail sector in December .
“ The optimist in me is hoping that the next two weeks will see a decline in numbers and that they will drop to 150 a day , ” Prof McConkey told Newstalk Breakfast .
Prof McConkey said that while recent figures were not as good as June , they were better than October and if figures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a gradual reopening of the retail sector on December 1st .
Going to Level 3 when Level 5 restrictions are lifted will keep the country in a holding pattern with regard to Covid-19 .
Going to Level 3 will not fix the problem , but it will stop the virus from getting out of control , he said .
The country may also need to consider other approaches in an effort to reduce Covid cases , he said .
Such measures would include mass testing and controlling out breaks in businesses , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are vulnerable people .
“ These basic problems haven ’ t been solved , ” he said .
Moving to Level 3 on December 1st would allow the gradual reopening of the retail sector , he added .
Toy stores could open and operate like supermarkets did during the first lockdown earlier this year with supervised queueing and no entry without masks , he explained .
Prof McConkey said that given current Covid figures it was unlikely that the retail sector would open before December 1st as had been suggested by some retails @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Morning Ireland Prof McConkey said that he remained optimistic about how effective the Level 5 restrictions could be , pointing out that the most recent data from Nphet was from two weeks previously which included the Halloween period when people were attending parties .
The challenge will be to keep numbers down rather than “ oscillating ” up and down , he said .
Moving to Level 3 on December 1st may help keep numbers down while moving to Level 2 had not kept numbers down in the past .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ keeping things level.
” The virus would be easier to control if numbers were lower which would allow cases to be traced “ meticulously ” and prevent onward transmission , he added .
Pop-up testing centres in areas where there is an outbreak plus access to GP care for zero hours contract workers would also help .
Allowing people who live in crowded conditions access to a safe place where they could isolate for 14 days would also prevent further spread of the virus and was a safe option , said Professor McConkey @ @ @ @ @ @ @ control plan , ” he added .
A world class public health service which was well staffed and well resourced would control outbreaks .
The three sectors facing the most challenges by Covid were aviation , retail and hospitality , he said .
The aviation sector was going to be in difficulty “ no matter what happens.
” It would be possible for the retail sector to reopen in a safe way while hospitality was the “ real challenge ” .
A return to Level 3 restrictions with only outdoor dining would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be “ more risky ” , he warned .
Prof McConkey said that even if numbers were reduced to the same levels as in June , there would still be “ a bit of work to do in January ” to get numbers down .
Measures such as mass testing for public health staff , sports participants and those travelling by air should all be considered , he said .

Outbreaks of coronavirus infections almost doubled in the second week of November with the number of private household outbreaks more than doubling, official Covid-19 statistics show.
There were 1,057 outbreaks of the disease recorded in the week to November 14th, an increase from 572 in the previous week, due mostly to the sharp rise in the number of infections in households.
There were 954 outbreaks in households, up from 443 for the previous week. Workplace outbreaks rose from 15 to 20, while outbreaks linked to school children or staff fell from 24 to 10.
Hospital Report
There were 4,992 open outbreaks at the end of the second week, up from 4,202 a week earlier. A total of 8,311 outbreaks of disease have been recorded since the pandemic began in March.
READ MORE
An outbreak remains open until 28 days have passed without a new infection being detected.
The number of coronavirus-related deaths passed 2,000 on Wednesday, as 12 reported deaths pushed the death toll linked to the disease in the State to 2,006 since the first recorded death on March 11th.
The National Public Health Emergency Team reported a further 379 confirmed cases of the disease on Wednesday, bringing to 69,058 the total number of cases in the Republic.
Members of Nphet are meeting on Thursday to discuss the country's exit from Level 5 restrictions, which are due to expire on December 1st. Senior officials are said to have clashed with Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan during a meeting on Wednesday as efforts to draw up a plan to exit the lockdown and manage the pandemic over the Christmas period continue in Government.
According to three sources with knowledge of the meeting, senior officials emphasised to Dr Holohan that the Government – not Nphet – would make decisions about easing the lockdown and what restrictions would be in place over Christmas.
Latest figures show that there are 290 people in hospital with confirmed cases of the disease on Thursday morning with 20 admissions to hospital and 23 discharges over the previous 24 hours. There were 33 people in intensive care units on Wednesday night.
This is down from a high of 44 during the second wave of the disease at the end of October. The number of Covid-19 cases in ICUs peaked at 155 during the first wave of infections in April.
Geographically, coronavirus hospitalisations outside Dublin mirror where cases are highest in the country as a proportion of the population.
Donegal has the highest incidence rate over the past fortnight with 295.9 cases for every 100,000 people followed by Limerick with 237.
University Hospital Limerick had the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases on Wednesday night with 38 cases and there were six people with severe coronavirus infection in its ICU.
Letterkenny University Hospital in Donegal had the next highest number of cases in hospital with 36 but had just two people in the hospital’s ICU, jointly the fourth highest number in ICUs.
There were nine new outbreaks reported in hospitals in the second week in November, down from 11 the previous week, while nursing home outbreaks increased from three to six.
There were 221 out sick from University Hospital Limerick due to infections or as a result of being a close contact of a case, up from 161 last week.
There were 133 staff off work at Letterkenny University Hospital, of which 49 had Covid-19.
Optimistic
Meanwhile, infectious diseases expert Professor Sam McConkey is optimistic Covid-19 cases will drop to 150 a day in the next two weeks, allowing for the gradual reopening of the retail sector in December. “The optimist in me is hoping that the next two weeks will see a decline in numbers and that they will drop to 150 a day,” Prof McConkey told Newstalk Breakfast.
Prof McConkey said that while recent figures were not as good as June, they were better than October and if figures continue as they are that would allow for a gradual reopening of the retail sector on December 1st.
Going to Level 3 when Level 5 restrictions are lifted will keep the country in a holding pattern with regard to Covid-19. Going to Level 3 will not fix the problem, but it will stop the virus from getting out of control, he said.
The country may also need to consider other approaches in an effort to reduce Covid cases, he said. Such measures would include mass testing and controlling out breaks in businesses, hostels and other crowded settings where there are vulnerable people.
“These basic problems haven’t been solved,” he said.
Moving to Level 3 on December 1st would allow the gradual reopening of the retail sector, he added. Toy stores could open and operate like supermarkets did during the first lockdown earlier this year with supervised queueing and no entry without masks, he explained.
Prof McConkey said that given current Covid figures it was unlikely that the retail sector would open before December 1st as had been suggested by some retails groups.
Outdoor dining
Speaking later on RTÉ radio's Morning Ireland Prof McConkey said that he remained optimistic about how effective the Level 5 restrictions could be, pointing out that the most recent data from Nphet was from two weeks previously which included the Halloween period when people were attending parties.
The challenge will be to keep numbers down rather than “oscillating” up and down, he said. Moving to Level 3 on December 1st may help keep numbers down while moving to Level 2 had not kept numbers down in the past.
“Level 3 is a temporary way of keeping things level.”
The virus would be easier to control if numbers were lower which would allow cases to be traced “meticulously” and prevent onward transmission, he added.
Pop-up testing centres in areas where there is an outbreak plus access to GP care for zero hours contract workers would also help.
Allowing people who live in crowded conditions access to a safe place where they could isolate for 14 days would also prevent further spread of the virus and was a safe option, said Professor McConkey.
“We need an integrated hard control plan,” he added. A world class public health service which was well staffed and well resourced would control outbreaks.
The three sectors facing the most challenges by Covid were aviation, retail and hospitality, he said. The aviation sector was going to be in difficulty “no matter what happens.”
It would be possible for the retail sector to reopen in a safe way while hospitality was the “real challenge”. A return to Level 3 restrictions with only outdoor dining would be safer. Indoor dining and pubs would be “more risky”, he warned.
Prof McConkey said that even if numbers were reduced to the same levels as in June, there would still be “a bit of work to do in January” to get numbers down.
Measures such as mass testing for public health staff, sports participants and those travelling by air should all be considered, he said.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Covid-19: Signs of division grow as Government figures resist being 'bounced' into policy choice

Good morning – this morning we led with another sobering milestone in Ireland ’ s struggle with Covid-19 : the @ @ @ @ @ the virus has now exceeded 2,000 , with the Chief Medical Officer , Dr Tony @ @ @ @ @ need to “ work together ” to defeat the virus .
In that case , @ @ @ @ @ story may make for slightly uncomfortable reading for the CMO , and his political colleagues @ @ @ @ @ their work together is anything but harmonious .

Good morning – this morning we led with another sobering milestone in Ireland’s struggle with Covid-19: the number of deaths linked to the virus has now exceeded 2,000, with the Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, urging that people need to “work together” to defeat the virus.
In that case, the remainder of our lead story may make for slightly uncomfortable reading for the CMO, and his political colleagues, as it is clear their work together is anything but harmonious.
With the country now entering the closing stages of a six-week lockdown, there is growing evidence of division between the Government and the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet). As we report today, a meeting yesterday between senior officials and Dr Holohan descended into a row over how to exit the lockdown and manage the pandemic over the Christmas period.
To borrow the virological nomenclature so in vogue at the moment, this row was seeded over a month ago, when Nphet began calling for implementation of Level 5. There was an initial flare up following infection, but the Government resistance eventually disappeared like a Department of Health memo at Cabinet. The symptoms of the malaise then abated for a while, but this seems to be a case of Long Covid-row; it may appear to be gone, but really it was just dormant.
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Talking to those in Government in the intervening period, one thing was clear: what happened in October would not be allowed to happen again. There is a general uneasiness among many at the centre of Government at the manner in which they believe Nphet, officially an advisory body, has developed quasi-executive powers, and definite agenda-setting powers when it comes to formulating pandemic policy.
The Government, the theory goes, is constantly on the back foot, reacting to Nphet meetings and the pronouncements of prominent members in the media. While it just wouldn’t be cricket to do anything so drastic as disbanding or reforming Nphet (although don’t rule it out in the long run), a steely resolve has developed in Government that it, not Nphet, holds the power.
Micheál Martin was at pains to tell his parliamentary party last night there will be a Dáil debate to consider all perspectives on the matter of unlocking, that the final say in the matter will be for Cabinet and that much will depend on people's personal behaviour.
Among senior Fine Gael figures, the resolve is even deeper that they won’t be “bounced” into a policy choice again, and the Government has bolstered its statistical and economic analyses, steeling itself for the fight.
There’s a wider game afoot, and yesterday’s row has to be seen in that context.
Elsewhere, there continues to be concern for the welfare of a venerable and Victorian-tinged institution on the north of the Liffey, whose stately occupants’ appetites for exotic foodstuffs results in a bill of €500,000 a month. But enough about the Four Courts, haven’t you heard there’s trouble at the Zoo?
Our coverage of the sprawling controversy arising from Golfgate and Séamus Woulfe’s appointment to the Supreme Court continues today, with the Government firmly dug in on the question of whether Helen McAbsEntee (chapeau, M. Lord) will come before the Dáil for a friendly Q&A on the matter. As a Government source confided on Wednesday, “when Miriam gets involved, it’s not good”.
Read all the details about that row and more in our lead story this morning.
And the aforementioned Miriam Lord's latest take on the Taoiseach's high dudgeon in the Dáil yesterday.
Best reads
Ruadhán Mac Cormaic has a forensic analysis of how Séamus Woulfe's selection for the Supreme Court departed from normal practice here.
Meanwhile, on the op-ed pages, David Kenny neatly fillets the Government's arguments against the Q&A with the Minister for Justice.
Our Brussels Correspondent, Naomi O'Leary, has an interesting piece on how the pandemic is changing how we live.
Playbook
Starting with the big off-campus event, there’s a meeting of the National Public Health Emergency Team scheduled for today. Expect more focus on this than in recent weeks, as the boffins turn their big brains to the politically vexed matter of reopening.
Health Editor Paul Cullen decries the dearth of cold, hard facts as we contemplate reopening the country.
In the Dáil, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar is set to take Leader’s Questions at midday. Expect the Opposition to focus doggedly on what the Fine Gael leader knew, and when, about the Woulfe appointment, as it seeks to keep the political focus on matters McEntee.
The Dáil’s business committee will also meet, with the Opposition certain to try again to get the Q&A on the agenda
My colleague Jennifer Bray has a report on legal advice given to Oireachtas members on a potential impeachment process, which will doubtless hang over proceedings today.
There will also be questions for Minister for Culture Catherine Martin, as well as a statements on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, and an update on Simon Harris's new Department of Further and Higher Education. The full schedule is here.
There is no business scheduled for the Seanad.
The education committee will hear from teachers’ unions on the safe and sustainable opening of schools, while there will be officials from the Revenue Commissioners before the Public Accounts Committee.
The justice committee will hear evidence from Minister of State James Browne and Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe on anti money-laundering legislation. The full schedule is here.


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Ireland’s mapping grid in harmony with GPS

The earthly globe is spherical ; more precisely , it is an oblate spheroid , like a ball slightly flattened at the poles .
More precisely still , it is a triaxial ellipsoid that closely approximates a “ geoid ” ; a surface of constant gravitational potential .
Positions on the globe are given by latitude , longitude and height above or below the reference ellipsoid but , to depict the Earth ’ s surface on a flat sheet , we need a map projection .
A glance at any atlas of the world will reveal several projections , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and extent of the region being mapped .
There is no perfect way to map the Earth .
Whatever method is used , distortions are unavoidable .
It was the great mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss who demonstrated the impossibility of avoiding inaccuracies .
There are numerous projection methods , each with advantages and shortcomings .
The map invented by Gerardus Mercator in 1569 quickly became an “ industry standard ” .
With his map , navigators could plot a course as a straight line from departure point to destination .
On Mercator ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have equal length , and the areas of regions in high latitudes are drastically exaggerated .
He projected the globe on to a cylinder touching the Earth around the equator .
This is precise in the tropics , but not good enough in middle and high latitudes .
By a simple but ingenious trick , a map that is accurate in the vicinity of Ireland can be obtained : the cylinder is tilted through a right angle so that it touches the globe along 8°W , the meridian that bisects Ireland .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mercator ( ITM ) , and it is the starting point for the maps produced by the Ordnance Surveys of Ireland and Northern Ireland .
On the ITM , all latitude and longitude lines except the central meridian are curved .
It is advantageous to have a regular grid with straight lines parallel to and perpendicular to 8°W .
To achieve this , we define a national grid for Ireland .
The original national grid was established many decades ago , and served as a basis for mapping through the 20th century .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ GPS ) has revolutionised mapping and surveying , providing a remarkably high-precision means of specifying locations .
The relationship between the old national grid and GPS co-ordinates involved awkward mathematical transforms , which could lead to inaccuracies .
So , around the millennium , a new grid , the ITM , was established , and it has now become the standard system throughout Ireland .
The origins of the old and new grid systems are at 53.5°N , 8°W , a point lying in Lough Ree – “ where the three counties meet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ systems are close in value .
To avoid negative values , the origin of the old system was moved to a point southwest of Kerry .
Then the co-ordinates eastward and northward ranged from about 0 to 400km and 0 to 500km .
When the new grid system was introduced , the origin was moved even farther away , so that the new co-ordinates range from about 400-800km and 500-1,000km .
A full grid reference needs two six-digit numbers , giving a position to the nearest metre .
The grid reference of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is ( 315904 , 234671 ) .
With the new grid , the co-ordinates are ( 715830 , 734697 ) .
By checking the range , we can immediately see which grid is being used : since there is no overlap between the old and new co-ordinates , the possibility of confusion is removed .
The new ITM grid is intimately related to the GPS system and no problematical transformations are required to convert between the two systems .
Peter Lynch is an emeritus professor at UCD school of mathematics and statistics .
@ @ @ @

The earthly globe is spherical; more precisely, it is an oblate spheroid, like a ball slightly flattened at the poles. More precisely still, it is a triaxial ellipsoid that closely approximates a “geoid”; a surface of constant gravitational potential.
Positions on the globe are given by latitude, longitude and height above or below the reference ellipsoid but, to depict the Earth’s surface on a flat sheet, we need a map projection. A glance at any atlas of the world will reveal several projections, the suitability of each depending on the location and extent of the region being mapped.
There is no perfect way to map the Earth. Whatever method is used, distortions are unavoidable. It was the great mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss who demonstrated the impossibility of avoiding inaccuracies. There are numerous projection methods, each with advantages and shortcomings. The map invented by Gerardus Mercator in 1569 quickly became an "industry standard". With his map, navigators could plot a course as a straight line from departure point to destination.
On Mercator’s projection, all lines of latitude have equal length, and the areas of regions in high latitudes are drastically exaggerated. He projected the globe on to a cylinder touching the Earth around the equator. This is precise in the tropics, but not good enough in middle and high latitudes.
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By a simple but ingenious trick, a map that is accurate in the vicinity of Ireland can be obtained: the cylinder is tilted through a right angle so that it touches the globe along 8°W, the meridian that bisects Ireland. The resulting projection is called the Irish Transverse Mercator (ITM), and it is the starting point for the maps produced by the Ordnance Surveys of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
On the ITM, all latitude and longitude lines except the central meridian are curved. It is advantageous to have a regular grid with straight lines parallel to and perpendicular to 8°W. To achieve this, we define a national grid for Ireland. The original national grid was established many decades ago, and served as a basis for mapping through the 20th century.
But the satellite-based global positioning system (GPS) has revolutionised mapping and surveying, providing a remarkably high-precision means of specifying locations.
The relationship between the old national grid and GPS co-ordinates involved awkward mathematical transforms, which could lead to inaccuracies. So, around the millennium, a new grid, the ITM, was established, and it has now become the standard system throughout Ireland.
Origins
The origins of the old and new grid systems are at 53.5°N, 8°W, a point lying in Lough Ree – “where the three counties meet”. Grid co-ordinates in the two systems are close in value. To avoid negative values, the origin of the old system was moved to a point southwest of Kerry. Then the co-ordinates eastward and northward ranged from about 0 to 400km and 0 to 500km. When the new grid system was introduced, the origin was moved even farther away, so that the new co-ordinates range from about 400-800km and 500-1,000km.
A full grid reference needs two six-digit numbers, giving a position to the nearest metre. The grid reference of the spire of Dublin in the old system is (315904, 234671). With the new grid, the co-ordinates are (715830, 734697). By checking the range, we can immediately see which grid is being used: since there is no overlap between the old and new co-ordinates, the possibility of confusion is removed. The new ITM grid is intimately related to the GPS system and no problematical transformations are required to convert between the two systems.
Peter Lynch is an emeritus professor at UCD school of mathematics and statistics. He blogs at thatsmaths.com


theirishtimes--2020-11-19--Science must not marginalise the humanities

Throughout most of my life science sat very low on the totem pole of public awareness .
Most public attention was directed towards the humanities – literature , art , music , languages , philosophy , religion and so on .
But things have changed since the 1990s and public awareness of science rapidly climbed the pole .
Indeed , some people now fear the relative positions of humanities and science on the totem pole have flip-flopped , with the humanities relegated to the “ halfpenny place ” .
It would be a great pity if this happened .
Science @ @ @ @ @ @ @ services to humanity .
The purpose of science is to discover how the natural physical world works .
The results of scientific studies can often be applied to do useful things for human society and we call these applications technology .
The modern world runs entirely on science-based technology .
Science is very powerful but it purchases this power by severely limiting its domain to the natural physical world .
Science is silent on many matters of the greatest human importance , matters that make life bearable for most people and matters that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Science has nothing to say about value , meaning , ethics , beauty or the supernatural .
For example , science can explain how a human being is conceived , how it develops in the womb and is born as a baby , but has nothing to say about the value of this developing entity at any stage .
To assess this value we must turn to the humanities ; to philosophy .
Science advances in a zig-zag manner , not in a steeply ascending straight line .
Scientific findings are always @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence .
Well-established scientific conclusions are the fruits of long periods of doubt during which the ideas are rigorously tested .
Science welcomes challenge and doubt , and only when a scientific hypothesis passes endless tests is it elevated to the status of theory .
A theory is science ’ s best explanation of a phenomenon , sturdy enough to withstand all tests to date , for example , the theory of evolution .
In 2013 , Leon Wieseltier , the then literary editor of the New Republic , gave a commencement address @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now the Counterculture – A Defence of the Humanities .
He described an America fatally seduced by science and technology , shunning the humanities : “ Has there ever been a moment in American life when the humanities were cherished less and has there ever been a moment when the humanities were needed more ?
” He claims the American world view is now entirely technological , encouraging people to prefer practical questions to questions of meaning .
“ To ask of things not if they are true or false , or good @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” We have become enslaved to machines “ in the greatest assault on human attention ever devised ” .
Our technological world is an “ engine of mental and spiritual dispersal that makes us wider only by making us less deep ” .
All knowledge is reduced to information , the most inferior kind of knowledge .
Wieseltier believes our technological world is a world of scientism .
He calls scientism a curse , as opposed to science which is a blessing .
Science is acutely aware of its limits but scientism is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ solution to every question is a scientific one .
Scientism transforms science into ideology : “ There is no perplexity of human emotion or behaviour that these days is not accounted for genetically or in the cocksure terms of evolutionary biology.
” One frequently hears phrases nowadays , such as “ the science is settled ” , “ scientific consensus ” , made when the particular science involved is still in the doubting , testing phase .
In this phase science often changes direction .
We should pay attention to the latest scientific @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and may change .
Climate change is a relatively new area of study that has become hostile to scientists who have evidence that questions some of the “ scientific consensus ” in the field .
I am not talking about headbangers who won ’ t accept that human activities contribute to climate change , but mainline scientists who have uncovered genuine evidence .
Demonising scientists who have evidence-based criticisms of the “ scientific consensus ” by calling them , for example , “ climate-change deniers ” insults science and promotes scientism .
William @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at University College , Cork

Demonising scientists who have evidence-based criticisms of the “scientific consensus” in the field of climate change is an insult to the subject and promotes scientism. Photograph: Reuters
Throughout most of my life science sat very low on the totem pole of public awareness. Most public attention was directed towards the humanities – literature, art, music, languages, philosophy, religion and so on.
But things have changed since the 1990s and public awareness of science rapidly climbed the pole. Indeed, some people now fear the relative positions of humanities and science on the totem pole have flip-flopped, with the humanities relegated to the “halfpenny place”. It would be a great pity if this happened. Science and the humanities provide essential and non-overlapping services to humanity.
The purpose of science is to discover how the natural physical world works. The results of scientific studies can often be applied to do useful things for human society and we call these applications technology. The modern world runs entirely on science-based technology. Science is very powerful but it purchases this power by severely limiting its domain to the natural physical world.
Science is silent on many matters of the greatest human importance, matters that make life bearable for most people and matters that are dealt with only in the humanities. Science has nothing to say about value, meaning, ethics, beauty or the supernatural. For example, science can explain how a human being is conceived, how it develops in the womb and is born as a baby, but has nothing to say about the value of this developing entity at any stage. To assess this value we must turn to the humanities; to philosophy.
READ MORE
Science advances in a zig-zag manner, not in a steeply ascending straight line. Scientific findings are always provisional and revisable in light of new evidence. Well-established scientific conclusions are the fruits of long periods of doubt during which the ideas are rigorously tested.
Science welcomes challenge and doubt, and only when a scientific hypothesis passes endless tests is it elevated to the status of theory. A theory is science’s best explanation of a phenomenon, sturdy enough to withstand all tests to date, for example, the theory of evolution.
Fatally seduced
In 2013, Leon Wieseltier, the then literary editor of the New Republic, gave a commencement address at Brandeis University entitled Perhaps Culture is now the Counterculture – A Defence of the Humanities. He described an America fatally seduced by science and technology, shunning the humanities: "Has there ever been a moment in American life when the humanities were cherished less and has there ever been a moment when the humanities were needed more?"
He claims the American world view is now entirely technological, encouraging people to prefer practical questions to questions of meaning. “To ask of things not if they are true or false, or good or evil, but how they work.” We have become enslaved to machines “in the greatest assault on human attention ever devised”. Our technological world is an “engine of mental and spiritual dispersal that makes us wider only by making us less deep”. All knowledge is reduced to information, the most inferior kind of knowledge.
Wieseltier believes our technological world is a world of scientism. He calls scientism a curse, as opposed to science which is a blessing. Science is acutely aware of its limits but scientism is dogmatic, peddling certainties and believing the solution to every question is a scientific one. Scientism transforms science into ideology: “There is no perplexity of human emotion or behaviour that these days is not accounted for genetically or in the cocksure terms of evolutionary biology.”
One frequently hears phrases nowadays, such as “the science is settled”, “scientific consensus”, made when the particular science involved is still in the doubting, testing phase. In this phase science often changes direction. We should pay attention to the latest scientific announcements but must remember they are provisional and may change.
Climate change is a relatively new area of study that has become hostile to scientists who have evidence that questions some of the “scientific consensus” in the field. I am not talking about headbangers who won’t accept that human activities contribute to climate change, but mainline scientists who have uncovered genuine evidence. Demonising scientists who have evidence-based criticisms of the “scientific consensus” by calling them, for example, “climate-change deniers” insults science and promotes scientism.
William Reville is an emeritus professor of biochemistry at University College, Cork