In two previous articles, we discussed the difficulty in determining the cause of an individual report of an adverse event following immunization (AEFI) Taking a responsible look at adverse events following immunization, and we analysed mild AEFIs for the Pfizer vaccine in its Phase 3 trial in adolescents and young men Analysis of COVID vaccine AEFIs, Part I. In this report, we will look at severe adverse events in four large-scale studies of surveillance data.
This analysis will require...
In the article Taking a responsible look at adverse events following immunization, we discussed the difficulty in determining the cause of an individual report of an adverse event following immunization (AEFI). Finding out whether the event was caused by coincidence (something else) or the immunization was shown to be an exercise in inductive logic, one that often requires follow-up examination or information. It is also an exercise that may fail to yield a definitive answer.
In...
The decision to vaccinate a child or not is rationally a question of the risk of the vaccine versus the benefit from the vaccine’s protection against the targeted disease. As reported in the article Prisoner’s dilemma and vaccination, this question can be reframed to the likelihood of infection and the morbidity ratio of the vaccine versus the disease. Information on the morbidity of the disease is often readily available, as in the charts presented in this...
Geothermal energy has been a hot topic of discussion as humanity moves toward more diverse and less environmentally impactful energy production in the future. How important is geothermal going to be, and how do we make the most use of its potential?
First, a definition. “Geothermal” is literally heat from the earth. It is very hot below our feet – up to 6,000 degrees Celsius at Earth’s core (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Earth’s inner layers showing increasing heat...
Amanda Hall of Summit Nanotech was named the winner of the $1-million Women in Cleantech Challenge (WIC) today for her innovative work in the field of lithium extraction.
As we reported in the article Examining the gender lens and the Women in Cleantech Challenge, the goal of the WIC initiative was manifold:
To address the lack of female leadership in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through a unique leadership and entrepreneurial development program.
To develop...
When a personally significant event occurs, human beings often wonder if there is a reason for it or if it is merely a coincidence. Let us call this the two hands of fate, with one hand being called causal, and the other chance. How do we determine which hand of fate we are dealing with?
This article ties together the concepts of probability, coincidence, causality, and an evolutionary concept called exaptation.
Why do we care about...
On Oct. 29, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech (Pfizer) COVID-19 vaccine for those 5 to 11 years of age.Health Canada followed with its own approval on Nov. 19.
These approvals were based on analysis of the vaccine’s effectiveness and safety. The number of participants in the trial for children was much lower than in the trial for adults, and a technique called immunobridging was used to provide additional...
Johann Sebastian Bach
Part 1: why 12 notes?
Although the picture at the top of this article is of my musical hero, J.S. Bach, I want to start by talking about a more contemporary figure, Jack White of the White Stripes. At the start of the video Play it Loud, White builds a simple guitar by using a piece of wire, a block of wood, two nails, and an old guitar pickup. Then he plays it through...
The 2021 UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), which started Oct. 31 and runs through Nov. 12 in Glasgow, will see further debate on the international scale about climate change and what can be done about it worldwide. The goals for the event include: securing commitments for global net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050, protecting communities and natural habitats, mobilizing finances from developed nations to help developing countries reduce CO2 emissions, and to work on...
Health officials and news headlines have announced that it has never been more important to get this year’s flu vaccine. The worry is that trying to accommodate influenza sufferers will snap health systems that are already seriously overstretched by COVID-19 patients. The 2021 northern hemisphere seasonal flu vaccine is now available, and many people are taking this warning seriously, wanting to do their part by staying healthy and preventing flu infections that could land...
