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Almost three years since the pandemic began, it’s still not entirely certain where SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind COVID-19, came from. Most scientists favour a natural spillover from animals to humans at the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan. But a recent preprint (a study yet to be peer reviewed) claims to have identified unusual sequence patterns in the SARS-CoV-2 genome, which possibly indicate the virus was genetically modified in a lab.
As Francois Balloux from UCL writes, the origin of the coronavirus is a heated topic, and unsurprisingly, the preprint has not been altogether well received. Balloux breaks down some very complex science and explains the experiments the researchers did to reach their controversial conclusion. He argues the evidence presented in the preprint is neither conclusive nor final, but does warrant careful consideration.
In the current economic climate, schools in England are struggling to balance their budgets, and headteachers are warning things will only get worse. Here’s how the government could respond. Also today, an expert explains why
thousands of dead and dying crustaceans were found washed up along a 50km stretch of England’s north-east coast last autumn.
And as today is All-Hallow’s Eve, we’re thrilled to present an array of weird and spooky Halloween-themed, including this fabulous read on Dracula, which celebrated its 125th anniversary this year.
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