Editorial Staff

Origin of COVID-19: As Animal Source Evidence Eludes Scientists, Lab Leak Hypothesis Gains Purchase

/in , , , , , , /by Editorial Staff
Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on
LinkedIn
+

This week on Hubwonk, host Joe Selvaggi talks with author and former New York Times science journalist Nicholas Wade about his recent article in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists on the possible origins of the SARS2 virus that caused the COVID-19 pandemic. In their conversation, they consider the possibility that, absent finding evidence of a natural jump from animals, the SARS2 virus may have come from a lab.

Guest:

Nicholas Wade is a science writer, editor, and author who has worked on the staff of Nature, Science, and, for 30 years, the New York Times. Wade was born in Aylesbury, England, and educated at Eton and at King’s College, Cambridge, where he studied natural sciences.

Get new episodes of Hubwonk in your inbox!

Related Posts

Law Prof. Melvin Urofsky on Justice Louis Brandeis, the SCOTUS, & Dissenting Opinions

This week on “The Learning Curve," Gerard and Cara talk with Melvin Urofsky, Professor of Law & Public Policy and Professor Emeritus of History at Virginia Commonwealth University, and the author of several books, including Louis D. Brandeis: A Life and Dissent and the Supreme Court. Professor Urofsky shares insights on Justice Brandeis’s jurisprudence, and why he consistently ranks among the three most influential Supreme Court justices in American history.

Fair Share Amendment: Weighing Costs & Benefits for Massachusetts’ Economy & Workers

Hubwonk host Joe Selvaggi talks with Pioneer Institute’s Executive Director Jim Stergios about HB86, the so-called Fair Share Amendment, to tax Massachusetts household income above $1 million. They discuss its promises, its costs, and the effects of similar legislation in other states.

Amar Sawhney on Sikhs, STEM & COVID

On this week's episode of JobMakers, host Denzil Mohammed talks to Dr. Amar Sawhney about his journey from India to Boston, and how he is using his chemical engineering background to save lives through remarkable local therapy innovations. To date, he has founded eight companies accounting for 4,000 jobs and more than $2 billion in revenue.

Heritage Foundation’s Jonathan Butcher on Edu Federalism, School Choice, Learning Pods

This week on “The Learning Curve," Gerard and Cara talk with Jonathan Butcher, the Will Skillman Fellow in Education at The Heritage Foundation. They discuss the growing popularity of learning pods, an education innovation propelled by K-12 public education’s failure to meet the COVID-19 moment. With as many as three million children enrolled in learning pods, 35 percent of parents participating in them, and another 18 percent interested in joining one, Butcher shares findings from his report on the role of pods in expanding parent-driven educational choice options.

Talking Out Of School: Supreme Court Considers Campus Boundaries Within Social Media Universe

This week on Hubwonk, host Joe Selvaggi talks with constitutional scholar and CATO Institute Research Fellow Thomas Berry about the recently heard U.S. Supreme Court case, Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L., and its implications for free speech, school control, and the integration of social media into the rubric of first amendment protections.

Max Faingezicht on the Skills Gap & the Future of Work

This week on JobMakers, host Denzil Mohammed talks with Max Faingezicht, an immigrant who founded ThriveHive, a marketing software company for small businesses, and Telescoped, which uses remote software engineering to connect Latin American engineers with U.S. companies in need of their skills. The entrepreneurial ecosystem of Boston and Cambridge have allowed Max to achieve dreams he didn’t even know he had when he arrived. In this episode, he shares his fascinating immigration story, as well as his ideas on where workers go next.

Georgetown’s Dr. Marguerite Roza on K-12 School Finance, Spending, & Results

This week on “The Learning Curve," Gerard and Cara talk with Dr. Marguerite Roza, Research Professor and Director of the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University. Professor Roza describes the three distinct phases of how American K-12 education has been funded over the last 40 years, and implications for equity and overall student achievement.

Preparing For Disaster: Health Readiness Expert’s Performance Review

Hubwonk Host Joe Selvaggi talks with Emergency Preparedness expert Dr. Paul Biddinger about how experts plan for disasters, and what went right and wrong in this pandemic.