Hello Readers,
Finally, the heavy snow is over. At least for now, as spring is starting on March 20, 2021. So many stories came within this week. One of them is about the AstraZeneca vaccine. Four persons have gotten blood clots after getting two shots of the vaccine. It is not proven yet that the clots were because of the vaccine, but everyone is panicked with the news. About 13 countries have stopped distributing AstraZeneca’s vaccine already. It is better to be safe than sorry.
Also, Moderna has researched using its vaccine on children from 6 months of age to age 12. For a children’s vaccine, they do not have to have hundreds of thousands of trials. Only a few thousand children can be tried out. Children have better immunity than older persons. Their dose is different. The study is expected to enroll 6,750 healthy children in the United States and Canada. If the trial is successful, then they will have to get emergency permission before they start vaccination.
According to the New York Times; “Vaccine side effects like fever, sore arms, fatigue and achy joints and muscles can be more intense in children than in adults, and doctors say it is important for parents to know what to expect after their children are inoculated.
Each child in Moderna’s study will receive two shots, 28 days apart. The study will have two parts. In the first, children aged 2 years to less than 12 may receive two doses of 50 or 100 micrograms each. Those under 2 years may receive two shots of 25, 50 or 100 micrograms. (One adult dose is 100 micrograms.) In each group, the first children inoculated will receive the lowest doses and will be monitored for reactions before later participants are given higher doses.
Then, researchers will perform an interim analysis to determine which dose is safest and most likely to be protective for each age group.”
A Rutgers University’s professor has made controversial statements and has compared Hinduism to terrorism. The students got proof of Rutgers Professor Dr. Audrey Truschke’s comments, who teaches History and Religion. Many times Ms. Truschke criticized the Hindu religion. Hindu religion is most sacred and a nonviolent religion. As per the Hindu tradition, they will never start a fight. They will defend themselves at the time of the fight, but not start it. Rutgers apologized and is making sure that Hindus get rights as like other minority religions. However, they have not condemned Ms. Truschke and did not fire her. Ms. Truschke is very learned and very intelligent with knowledge of many languages including Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu and many others. However, she should ask for forgiveness and tell everyone that it will not happen again. We don’t want anyone to act against any religion, according to their beliefs.
Governor Murphy has announced that there will be some in-person classroom teaching before the end of the 2020-2021 school year. His intention is good, but it should be a general census decision, including students, parents, teachers, administrators, city officials and elected officials. The COVID-19 case ratio is better than before. Now, everyone is used to living a tough life with masks, hand washing, sanitization and social distancing. The vaccination effort is going in full force. So, we should not rush any decision making. Think once, think twice and think thrice before making a major decision like reopening schools.
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, said in a statement, “We take this opportunity to warn the new U.S. administration trying hard to give off the (gun)powder smell in our land.” I don’t think our President Biden will be scared off by this kind of threat.
Have a wonderful week. I’ll talk to you next week.
