Could omicron be the next delta variant?

+ some tips before you quit your job US Edition - Today's top story: Will omicron – the new coronavirus variant of concern – be more contagious than delta? A virus expert explains what researchers know and what they don't [View in browser]( US Edition | 30 November 2021 [The Conversation]( Just as friends and loved ones were gathering to celebrate Thanksgiving and kick off the holiday season, a very unwelcome visitor showed up on the scene: omicron, a new variant of the virus that causes COVID-19. Scientists in South Africa reported the coronavirus variant early last week, and the World Health Organization named it a “variant of concern” days later. Cases of the new lineage have now surfaced in more than a dozen other countries. Though the public has grown accustomed to hearing about new coronavirus variants emerging from all corners of the world, omicron has researchers particularly on edge. Suresh V. Kuchipudi, a virologist and expert in emerging infectious diseases from Penn State, [explains the biology]( behind the variant’s startling array of spike protein mutations and what that might mean for its ability to spread and dodge the vaccines based on that protein. Kuchipudi also writes about how the delta variant dominated the globe and what the research community has learned from its rapid circulation. Also today: - [Hurricane aid shelters the wealthy and displaces the poor]( - [How bans on critical race theory are actually pro-CRT]( - [Setting the scene for the Arbery trial]( Amanda Mascarelli Senior Health and Medicine Editor Today's newsletter supported by [readers like you]( The omicron variant possesses numerous mutations in the spike protein, the knob-like protrusions (in red) that allow the virus to invade other cells. Juan Gaertner/Science Photo Library via Getty Images [Will omicron – the new coronavirus variant of concern – be more contagious than delta? A virus expert explains what researchers know and what they don’t]( Suresh V. Kuchipudi, Penn State It’s too early to say whether the newly identified omicron variant is going to overtake delta. But particular mutations in the new strain have researchers deeply concerned. Politics + Society - [What the public doesn’t get: Anti-CRT lawmakers are passing pro-CRT laws]( Jonathan Feingold, Boston University Critical race theory is often distorted by GOP politicians and pundits to stir up its Trump base. But CRT is needed more, not less, argues one legal scholar, to explain American racial disparities. - [Jury finds 3 Georgia men guilty of Ahmaud Arbery murder: 3 essential reads]( Matt Williams, The Conversation Experts help explain the context around the murder trial and convictions of Greg McMichael, Travis McMichael and William Bryan. Economy + Business - [Giving Tuesday: Charitable gifts from donor-advised funds favor education and religion]( Anna Pruitt, IUPUI; Jon Bergdoll, IUPUI Little comprehensive research about what the charitable accounts, known as DAFs, are supporting has been conducted until now. - [Quitting your job or thinking about joining the ‘great resignation’? Here’s what an employment lawyer advises]( Elizabeth C. Tippett, University of Oregon A record number of Americans are quitting their jobs. But before you opt to join them, you should consider the risks and costs. Environment + Energy - [When ‘hunker down’ isn’t an option: The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season showed how low-income communities face the highest risks]( Marina Lazetic, Tufts University; Karen Jacobsen, Tufts University The most vulnerable communities are being pushed deeper into poverty with each climate-related disaster. Part of the problem is that government aid helps the wealthiest people most. Ethics + Religion - [Who’s in? Who’s out? The ethics of COVID-19 travel rules]( Nancy S. Jecker, University of Washington; Caesar Atuire, University of Ghana Should countries require COVID-19 vaccination for entry while vaccines remain globally scarce? - [This Hanukkah, learn about the holiday’s forgotten heroes: Women]( Alan Avery-Peck, College of the Holy Cross The Jewish festival of Hanukkah, which in 2021 began on Nov. 28, focuses on the story of the Maccabees. But women are also heroes in stories about that era, including Judith and Hannah. From our International Editions - [The world’s largest organism is slowly being eaten by deer]( Richard Elton Walton, Newcastle University These 47,000 aspen trees are genetically identical clones with shared roots. - [It looks like Omicron causes milder illness – is this how COVID becomes endemic?]( Hamish McCallum, Griffith University If COVID symptoms are less severe, people with the Omicron variant may be less likely to test and isolate. - --------------------------------------------------------------- Today’s graphic [A chart showing the results of a Gallup poll that asked: 'In general do you feel that the laws covering the sale of firearms should be made more strict, less strict or kept as they are now?']( From the story, [The NRA could be winning its long game even as it appears to be in dire straits]( [The Conversation]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation]( 303 Wyman Street, Suite 300 Waltham, MA 02451 [Forward to a friend]( • [Unsubscribe](