Why was this submission suddenly so heavily penalized by the mod(s)?
Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
61–70 of 156 posts
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#62The amazing thing is last week someone on 4chan posted this: https://i.imgur.com/Jkq8tYK.png Which shows that the virus had been modified. 4chan wins once again at sleuthing.
This lab theory has been systematically censored across the internet for the last week or so. For me it has been fascinating to watch content on it pop up and then disappear.
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#63So what is the probability that a lab that works with HIV normally, now working under extreme pressure, contaminated or mixed up a sample? And what is the probability that this is not just a third type of major coronavirus, but in fact a secret bioweapon? Knowing how commonly there are arguments about mixed up samples in the biolabs friends work in, I know where I would place my bets.
It would be a pretty lame bioweapon given how few people it’s killed.
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#64Why was this submission suddenly so heavily penalized by the mod(s)?
Also curious about this.
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#65Ignoring the political implications, how would HIV insertions change the virulence and epidemiology of the infection?
In the paper they hypothesize:
> Due to the presence of gp120 motifs in 2019-nCoV spike glycoprotein at its binding domain, we propose that these motif insertions could have provided an enhanced affinity towards host cell receptors. Further, this structural change might have also increased the range of host cells that 2019-nCoV can infect.
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#66Why was this submission suddenly so heavily penalized by the mod(s)?
I noticed this as well. Censorship...
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#67So what is the probability that a lab that works with HIV normally, now working under extreme pressure, contaminated or mixed up a sample? And what is the probability that this is not just a third type of major coronavirus, but in fact a secret bioweapon? Knowing how commonly there are arguments about mixed up samples in the biolabs friends work in, I know where I would place my bets.
Could easily be "mixed samples" on the other end instead of intentional leaks. You know how old lab equipment could be really useful in a live seafood market.
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#68Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#69Earlier quoted context omitted.
What are the geopolitical ramifications if this is indeed a bioweapon?
I don't think it will be talked about in that way. Especially if this is a bioweapon created in China which accidentally escaped. No one wants the dirty laundry spilled of all the countries who are doing bioweapon research. China is too powerful economically and surely has too much dirt on everyone else to go down alone. So I believe the official position will be that it's either not engineered at all ("inconclusive"…
China is a signatory to the Biological Weapons Convention [1]. The US State Department regularly issues a compliance report about it (and other international agreements). Here [2] is how it summarized China's compliance in August 2019:
"Information indicates that the People’s Republic of China (China) engaged during the reporting period in biological activities with potential dual-use applications, which raises concerns regarding its compliance with the BWC. In addition, the United States does not have sufficient information to determine whether China eliminated its assessed biological warfare (BW) program, as required under Article II of the Convention."
(That's followed by some more details, which you can read about in [2].)
Given this ongoing scrutiny, it would be very surprising if a smoking gun that the PRC has in fact been developing bioweapons were just swept under the rug.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biological_Weapons_Convention
[2] https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Compliance-...
Re: Scientists claim to find HIV virus-like insertions in the 2019-nCov [pdf]
#70Why was this submission suddenly so heavily penalized by the mod(s)?
Users can press the “flag” button for content that is off-topic. I flagged this article because it is an unreviewed pre-print paper that has been rushed out by its authors, who clearly have not investigated any of the most obvious follow-up questions, such as “what is the probability of this occurring naturally?”