US to recommend COVID-19 vaccine booster shots 8 months post-vaccination

US to recommend COVID-19 vaccine booster shots 8 months post-vaccination | COVID-19 could mix up body's 'fight-or-flight' system | Does the explosion of the delta variant mean we need a new COVID-19 vaccine? Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version]( August 17, 2021 CONNECT WITH LIVESCIENCE  [Facebook]( [Twitter](  [LIVESCIENCE]( [LIVESCIENCE]( Amazing science every day [SIGN UP]( ⋅ [WEBSITE]( [] Top Science News [] [US to recommend COVID-19 vaccine booster shots 8 months post-vaccination]( [US to recommend COVID-19 vaccine booster shots 8 months post-vaccination]( (Andriy Onufriyenko via Getty Images) Health officials will likely recommend that people in the U.S. receive a COVID-19 booster shot eight months after their second dose, to boost protection against the highly-transmissible delta variant, according to recent news reports. Before third doses can be administered, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will need to authorize them, according to The New York Times. The first booster doses would likely be given to those who were among the first vaccinated last winter, including nursing home residents, health care workers and emergency workers, likely followed by older people and then the general public, according to the Times. Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/17) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] COVID-19 [] [COVID-19 could mix up body's 'fight-or-flight' system]( [COVID-19 could mix up body's 'fight-or-flight' system]( (Shutterstock) COVID-19 may mess with the body's fight-or-flight response, a small new study suggests. The coronavirus can infect many different organs in the body, including the brain. Previous studies have found that in rare cases, SARS-CoV-2 infections can lead to a variety of forms of brain damage including deadly inflammation, Live Science previously reported. In some cases, the virus has also been linked to "brain fog" and other psychiatric issues in patients, according to another Live Science report. But there's still much that’s unknown about the subtle impacts a typical COVID-19 infection may have on the nervous system. In the new study, researchers recruited a small group of young adults in the U.S. who were recovering or had recovered from COVID-19, to examine whether the coronavirus triggers changes in the sympathetic nervous system. Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/16) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Does the explosion of the delta variant mean we need a new COVID-19 vaccine?]( [Does the explosion of the delta variant mean we need a new COVID-19 vaccine?]( (Christoph Burgstedt/Science Photo Library via Getty Images) The rapid spread of the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 has put more patients in hospital beds and led to reinstatements of mask mandates in some cities and states. The variant, which is more transmissible than previous variants, also seems more able to cause breakthrough infections in vaccinated people. Fortunately, vaccines are forming a bulwark against severe disease, hospitalization and death. But with the specter of delta and the potential for new variants to emerge, is it time for booster shots — or even a new COVID vaccine? Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/16) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Natural Disasters [] [Three volcanoes erupt at the same time in Alaska, in rare phenomena]( [Three volcanoes erupt at the same time in Alaska, in rare phenomena]( (Photo DigitalGlobe via Getty Images via Getty Images) Three volcanoes on Alaska's Aleutian islands are erupting simultaneously, but are currently not a threat to local communities, according to recent news reports. This triple whammy is not common, but it's not unheard of, according to NBC News. "Alaska has a lot of volcanoes, and we typically see maybe one eruption every year, on average," Matthew Loewen, a research geologist with the Alaska Volcano Observatory, told NBC News. "To have three erupting at once is less common, but it does happen." Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/17) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Space Exploration [] [The story behind black-and-white photo of SpaceX's Starship]( [The story behind black-and-white photo of SpaceX's Starship]( (Elon Musk/Twitter) SpaceX's next Starship prototype got the black-and-white treatment in a suave new photo shared by company founder Elon Musk. The picture appears to show the Starship SN20 ("Serial No. 20") prototype during fit checks on Aug. 4 with the first-stage Super Heavy rocket, when the stacked rocket briefly became the tallest one in the world. The picture provides a close-up view of the mating procedure between Starship and Super Heavy, with engineers perched underneath. The picture is reminiscent of the famous black-and-white "Lunch Atop a Skyscraper Photograph" taken by Charles Clyde Ebbets on Sept. 20, 1932, during construction of Rockefeller Center in Manhattan. Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/16) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Astronomy & Astrophysics [] [Saturn's rippling rings point to massive, soupy core hidden inside]( [Saturn's rippling rings point to massive, soupy core hidden inside]( (Pixabay) Saturn's rings aren't just a beautiful adornment — scientists can use the feature to understand what's happening deep inside the planet. By using the famous rings like a seismograph, scientists studied processes in the planet's interior and determined that its core must be "fuzzy." Instead of a solid sphere like Earth's, the core of Saturn appears to consist of a 'soup' of rocks, ice and metallic fluids that slosh around and affect the planet's gravity. Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/17) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Curious Creatures [] [Mutant 'daddy shortlegs' created in a lab]( [Mutant 'daddy shortlegs' created in a lab]( (Caitlin M. Baker/University of Wisconsin-Madison) Scientists have created "daddy shortlegs," a stunted version of the common household pest daddy longlegs, by suppressing the genes behind the arachnid's famously elongated limbs. Daddy longlegs, also known as harvestmen, belong to the class Arachnids — a group of eight-legged invertebrates that includes spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites and horseshoe crabs. There are more than 6,500 species of daddy longlegs in the order Opiliones, each of which is characterized by flexible legs that are several times longer than the individual's body. Full Story: [LiveScience]( (8/16) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Daily Quiz [] POLL QUESTION: Do animals laugh? 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