Omicron’s rapid replication rate

With the United Nations encouraging wider use of the Equal Earth map, a projection designed to better represent the true size of Earth's landmasses, the Unexpected Elements team have been thinking about distortion and the surprising new ways we can see the world and beyond. We di ...  Show more

Roald Dahl Day is celebrated each year on 13 September. Dahl gave us much-loved children’s books like Matilda, The BFG and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which have captivated kids for generations.Dahl is also a controversial figure, and made anti-semitic remarks that his fam ...  Show more

A study from Hong Kong university shows Omicron replicates 70 times faster than two earlier variants of the SARS-Cov-2 virus. Virologist Malik Peiris, explains how tests using cells from the wind pipe showed the dramatic difference, which supports observations of increased transm ...  Show more

Studies from South Africa and the UK suggest Omicron may be a mild infection for the majority of people. Hospital admissions are down when compared with other variants. However, the virus is replicating at a much faster rate than earlier variants and is able to overcome vaccines ...  Show more

Omicron Variant Drives Winter COVID Surge

The United States set a global record this week, recording roughly one million new coronavirus tests in a single day. The current surge in cases is mostly driven by Omicron. The highly contagious variant accounted for about 95% ...

The Omicron variant is fueling record-breaking cases across the world and disrupting life. But it may not present as great a danger of hospitalization and severe illness as earlier variants. We explore why this is and what it means for the next stage of the pandemic.

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