An mRNA vaccine — the first COVID-19 vaccine to be granted emergency use authorization (EUA) by the FDA — cannot change your DNA.
mRNA, or messenger RNA, is genetic material that contains instructions for making proteins. mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 contain man-made mRNA. Inside the body, the mRNA enters human cells and instructs them to produce the “spike” protein found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. Soon after a cell makes the spike protein, the cell breaks down the mRNA into harmless pieces. At no point does the mRNA enter the cell’s nucleus, which is where our genetic material (DNA) lives.
The immune system recognizes the spike protein as an invader and produces antibodies against it. If the antibodies later encounter the actual virus, they are ready to recognize and destroy it before it causes illness."
There’re risks in everything you do. Everything you inject into your body or put into your mouth. Even every step you take. You just have to weigh the risk and reward tradeoff. If you choose not to be vaccinated, you run the risk of infection and all its potential consequences, not only to yourself, but also to your loved ones and others who you interact with.
I agree with all of this. Our HS is hybrid (2 days live based on “alphaband”) but the kids aren’t showing up on their in school days anymore. My senior says that sometimes he is the only kid in the class and others he is one of two or three kids. Band is the only class with five kids (I have no idea what they are doing!). He says it’s very depressing and unnatural and the teachers are focusing on the at home kids. He begged me to stay home and do virtual today. The thought of him going through any form of virtual learning next year (from at home or dorm) has me very anxious.
Thank you for replying re UMASS Amherst lockdown. That sounds completely awful. Regarding the RA at UMASS they are unionized employees and from what I understand there was disagreement some time ago regarding the terms of their contract (what they were being asked to do by the university) I wonder if many just said no thanks. UMASS Amherst is a Stop The Spread Testing site for the community and was starting to be a current vaccine site for the community. I believe that was put on hold because of the lockdown. They had started to administer vaccine to phase 2 priority 1 people (over 75) with appointment, but that was halted due to the rampant spread on campus. Is the University testing for the UK variant I wonder? They conduct their own testing.
This is so similar I’d think we live in the same SD. There was a presentation by the superintendent with a HUGE discussion about the 6ft v. 3ft distancing where it was clear we will not go to full time in person without the 3ft. We are in hybrid (2 days/week in school) and the kids with in-school days are not all showing up, so there may be room to fit in limited additional kids for extra days. In particular, this is for IEP kids. I have an 8th grader who goes two days live in class and two days in school where she virtually learns from the library - can’t set foot in her classes! So this is not really helpful. Supposedly they are letting kids like her into the classrooms and out of the library on those extra days. But I haven’t heard yet about her so maybe there’s no room.
Responses will be deleted in this thread if they come close to adopting an anti-vax stance, make false claims about vaccines, or continue to veer off topic. This thread is about school and COVID, not about debating if the vaccines are effective or not.
No doubt. However, an option isn’t a mandate, while eliminating an option restricts choices and directs the teaching and learning this or that way. It might not matter to all in the LAC community but it will matter to some faculty and some students (at the very least). Also, as @austinmshauri indicates, faculty are risk averse - we’ve overwhelmingly seen that at places where they could actually choose the modality.
By the way, even the research U cares about in-person interaction! As one example, the ability of PhD students to collaborate regularly with their advisor or with one another is critical to making satisfactory progress on their research, and that’s much easier if everyone’s physically on site. From study group formation to spontaneous discussion over coffee to a workshop with everyone there talking and interacting, that’s all crucial collaboration. Faculty I know have told me that the current remote environment imposed at their university has damaged the grad program as some students are inadvertently or otherwise excluded from the conversation. Physical space designed to encourage open collaboration is sitting empty; remote almost forces an exclusionary learning process. And of course, there is the very real problem of cheating on remote exams. None of that helps to advance the cause of knowledge. And that’s just the grad students! And of course, most every brilliant researcher starts as a grad student somewhere . . . I’m wondering what remarkable advances aren’t being thought through right now due to environmental mandates.
No college has made an official announcement that I know of. However, quite a few have indicated in their communications to students/parents that they’re likely to take that step once vaccines become widely available.
I don’t know any single college, even in the most infected area, that doesn’t allow its grad students to access the labs, assuming they can physically be on the campus (some of them can’t due to travel restrictions). On the other hand, not all grad students need access to labs (e.g. if their work is all theoretical, or computational).
S19 just met with one of his professors one on one in person this morning for a class that is, for now, remote. Prof is having in-person office hours twice a week. I’ll take it. Need to have realistic expectations this semester!
I agree that could be a possibility but I watched a presentation by the CEO of Moderna and he discussed two things that may assist in minimizing that risk (hopefully): 1. The moderna vaccine addresses the entire spike protein so even though there will be some mutations of the spike, the vaccine causes antibodies to be produced that attack many different parts of the protein so although some parts mutate there will still be parts vulnerable, and 2. the technology allows for much quicker response to mutations through the production process so Modena can add additional strains of the virus to the vaccine within a month or so (IIRC) unlike the flu vaccine which takes months to produce so we get a vaccine based on data that’s 6+ months old.
As I mentioned originally, each institution is different (actually, distinct would be a better choice). But I think you misunderstood me, @homerdog. There shouldn’t be a mandated policy either way. Choices are good. The goal here probably shouldn’t be an “all or nothing” stance. Flexibility in times of crisis will usually move one along (and even ahead).
As for hybrid, I haven’t heard much feedback on how well it works, but it might be a “to each his/her own” situation. “Hybrid” can be structured a couple of ways - either trading off in-person with remote or having a remote option for an in-person course. The former allows for higher turnover of de-densified classroom space; the latter allows those to join this particular section with this particular instructor from anywhere, even Covid isolation/quarantine. So pros to both, objectively speaking. But probably cons as well if you don’t care for hybrid in any format. This is JMO but this type of crisis is a perfect time to examine some of those prior “beliefs” - whether it’s the institution or the individual. I know kids who detested flipped formats or asynch before all of this pandemic stuff started. Now they are discovering the benefits of various modalities and doing fine. Others can’t shift their mindset and continue to struggle - if this keeps up they will struggle even more and get further behind. This pandemic is a real test of “survival of the fittest” when it comes to understanding the fundamentals of teaching and learning.
Our school district came out and said that if the in person kids don’t show up, they can still log in and be counted as there. I imagine we will have many that will do that. Most kids were very happy being at home and not waking up so early!
Exactly. Some need a blackboard and others gathered 'round. And then, first and second-year grad students take courses together. One university I know assigns them cubicles in the same general area and they are encouraged to show up and work there. The comraderie and spontaneous conversations are considered crucial to making excellent progress toward your degree and an academic career. That’s not happening now, obviously. And this is true regardless of your field. I know a high-level engineering prof who is saying that the pace of research has been tremendously slowed in his department as a result of environmental decisions. The importance of spontaneous and easy ability to collaborate might not be obvious even to most who are generally familiar with university life. It’s one key reason why the University of Chicago welcomed everyone back, even undergrads, and one reason why they tweaked their policies at the end of the fall quarter to safely allow for more personal interaction among faculty, among students, and between faculty and students (grad and undergrad alike). Lack of personal collaboration harms the intellectual dynamic of a university community.
At my kids’ school, that form of “hybrid” was the case for some courses. Discussion or recitation would be in several sections whereas the lecture was at a set time on a set day. The smaller sections allow you more flexibility as to where you meet, as well.
Same for the high schoolers here which is why so few are showing up on the in person days and just logging into virtual HR. I hope the “let’s just stay in PJs” attitude doesn’t continue (says me in PJs working from home, LOL).
Do you think faculty should teach in person if they are vaccinated? Pfizer and Moderna have each committed to 300M vaccines in the US (so 600M total) by the end of summer…that is enough for everyone who wants one.
I think faculty will be happy to teach if they can get fully vaccinated. But NYC is already dipping into the reserve of 2nd shots to give other people their 1st, and some of the shots that are supposed to be going to people who live and work in the city are going to people who don’t meet either eligibility requirement.
Does anyone know what happens if we miss the window to administer the 2nd dose? Does that mean we have to start over? If so, we’re going to have to account for the possibility that some people may need 3 doses, not 2.
One article on the issue of delaying the second shot. It appears the first dose gives a certain level of protection but the second dose is required to achieve the efficacy shown in the clinical trials.
Although AstraZeneca has been in favor of spacing out shots, Moderna and Pfizer have been more cautious. Pfizer said the safety and efficacy of its vaccine hasn’t been evaluated on different dosing schedules, and that it’s critical that health authorities carefully monitor the effects of any alternative regimens and ensure each recipient is afforded the maximum possible protection, “which means immunization with two doses of the vaccine.” France’s government announced Jan. 26 that it would not delaysecond doses, shunning the advice of its health authority and citing risks and uncertainties in the face of new variants. Anthony Fauci, who heads the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said he’s worried about the push to stretch dosing schedules. The British Medical Association called for the U.K. to “urgently review” its decision to allow delays of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The U.K. physicians group supports delays of up tosix weeks, but said Britain’s plan goes “well beyond” that.