Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog

Moderna's COVID vaccine generates appropriate immune response in early testing

Hopeful, but there's quite a way to go:

In a Phase 1 trial, eight patients who received two doses of the vaccine at the lowest and middle doses tested — 25 and 100 micrograms — developed neutralizing antibodies to the virus at levels similar to people who had recovered from infection, the company said in a statement.

The data were limited and from only a small number of participants in the trial, led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. But they are still likely to be seen as encouraging. Research aimed to develop a vaccine against SARS, a related virus responsible for a 2002-2003 outbreak, showed that neutralizing antibodies are pivotal for achieving protection.

Links to other informed analyses of these results welcome.

Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews

I learned this morning from Stacie Gutting, the editor of NDPR, that this summer will mark 20 years since NDPR's founding.   Kudos to Stacie and her late husband Gary for making NDPR the success it has become!  On July 1, a new editor will take over from Stacie, and ownership of the journal will transfer to the Department of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame.  Philosopher Jeff Speaks, Chair of the Department at Notre Dame, is leading the search for a new editor.

Immune response to the new coronavirus suggests a COVID-19 vaccine should work

Report on a new study.

Illinois shut down, Iowa did not...

...and those on the Illinois side of the Illinois/Iowa border fared better as a result.  We are lucky to have had an adult and rational Governor who acted early.

(Thanks to Dr. David Ozonoff for the pointer.)

Great moments in obscure rock 'n' roll: Asylum Choir, "Tryin' to Stay 'Live," 1971

Pianist Leon Russell and guitarist Marc Benno were studio musicians in California when they formed the band Asylum Choir in 1967.  This song comes from their second album, recorded in 1969, but not released until 1971, when Russell had already become famous as a solo performer:

 

Marquette adopts new calendar, with fall term ending before Thanksgiving

A good plan (hopefully it will work!).

(Thanks to Gregory Mayer for the pointer.)

President of Harvard explains why the endowment can't help right now

OK, not really the President of Harvard.  But this is pretty funny.

(Thanks to Phil Gasper for the pointer.)

COVID-19 is much worse than flu (plus Diamond Princess, redux)

No doubt most readers already know this, but this article makes the point forecefully:

The CDC, like many similar disease control agencies around the world, presents seasonal influenza morbidity and mortality not as raw counts but as calculated estimates based on submitted International Classification of Diseases codes.² Between 2013-2014 and 2018-2019, the reported yearly estimated influenza deaths ranged from 23 000 to 61 000.³ Over that same time period, however, the number of counted influenza deaths was between 3448 and 15 620 yearly.⁴ On average, the CDC estimates of deaths attributed to influenza were nearly 6 times greater than its reported counted numbers. Conversely, COVID-19 fatalities are at present being counted and reported directly, not estimated. As a result, the more valid comparison would be to compare weekly counts of COVID-19 deaths to weekly counts of seasonal influenza deaths.

During the week ending April 21, 2020, 15 455 COVID-19 counted deaths were reported in the US.⁵ The reported number of counted deaths from the previous week, ending April 14, was 14 478. By contrast, according to the CDC, counted deaths during the peak week of the influenza seasons from 2013-2014 to 2019-2020 ranged from 351 (2015-2016, week 11 of 2016) to 1626 (2017-2018, week 3 of 2018).⁶ The mean number of counted deaths during the peak week of influenza seasons from 2013-2020 was 752.4 (95% CI, 558.8-946.1).⁷ These statistics on counted deaths suggest that the number of COVID-19 deaths for the week ending April 21 was 9.5-fold to 44.1-fold greater than the peak week of counted influenza deaths during the past 7 influenza seasons in the US, with a 20.5-fold mean increase (95% CI, 16.3-27.7).^5,6

Also interesting was this tidbit about the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which I had not seen before:

At present, the Diamond Princess cruise ship outbreak is one of the few situations for which complete data are available. For this outbreak, the case fatality rate as of late April 2020 was 1.8% (13 deaths out of 712 cases); age adjusted to reflect the general population, the figure would have been closer to 0.5%.

The age adjustment is needed because the age of people on cruise ships skews much higher than the population at large.

(Thanks to Dr. David Ozonoff for the pointer.)

How to study COVID-19 and racial disparities

This is sensible; from the concluding parts of the essay:

In addition, when SES [Socio-economic status] is controlled for and does not explain all Covid-19 racial disparities, we should clearly state why that might be the case. One possible explanation is the role of stress and what public health researcher Arline Geronimus has termed “weathering,” or advanced aging caused by bodily wear and tear from fight-or-flight responses to external stressors, especially racial discrimination. Weathering has been linked, in turn, to cardiovascular disease and diabetes, two conditions that have been associated, in preliminary research, with elevated risk for severe Covid-19.

Finally, to counter territorial stigmatization, one can highlight place-based risks and resource deficits that might explain spatial distribution, along racial lines, of Covid-19. Examples include the uneven geographic distribution of preventive care services or the concentration of respiratory hazards and toxic sites in low-SES, minority-heavy areas.

In sum, to mitigate myths of racial biology, behavioral explanations predicated on racial stereotypes, and territorial stigmatization, Covid-19 disparities should be situated in the context of material resource deprivation caused by low SES, chronic stress brought on by racial discrimination, or place-based risk.

An important moral question

This "morality test" is making the rounds; Jerry Dworkin kindly sent me a copy.  Its author is unknown.

This test only has one question, but it's a very important one.

By giving an honest answer, you will discover where you stand morally.

The test features an unlikely, completely fictional situation in which you will have to make a decision.

Only you will know the results, so remember that your answer needs to be honest.

THE SITUATION:

You are in Florida - Miami, to be specific.

There is chaos all around you caused by a hurricane with severe flooding

This is a flood of biblical proportions.

You are a photojournalist working for a major newspaper, and you're caught in the middle of this epic disaster.

The situation is nearly hopeless.

You're trying to shoot career-making photos.

There are houses and people swirling around you, some disappearing under the water.

THE TEST:

Suddenly you see a man in the water.

He is fighting for his life, trying not to be taken down with the debris

You move closer.

Somehow the man looks familiar.

You suddenly realize who it is.

It's Donald J. Trump!

At the same time you notice that the raging waters are about to take him under forever.

YOU HAVE TWO OPTIONS:

You can save the life of Donald Trump or you can shoot a dramatic Pulitzer Prize winning photo, documenting the death of one of the world's most powerful Republican men.

THE QUESTION:

Armed terrorists cause Michigan legislators to flee in fear

But it's legal in the benighted state of Michigan.  Not all of the United States is a backwater dominated by armed thugs, but more and more of it is. 

"Anywhere out of this world," said Baudelaire.

Two senior appointments for Aberdeen: Beaney from KCL, Kallestrup from Copenhagen

Michael Beaney (history of analytic philosophy), Professor of Philosophy at King's College, London and at the Humboldt University, Berlin, will leave his half-time post at KCL to be Regius Professor of Logic at the University of Aberdeen (he will continue the rest of his time at Humboldt).   Jesper Kallestrup (epistemology, philosophy of mind), Professor of Philosophy at the University of Copenhagen, will become Professor of Philosophy at Aberdeen.

Duke University to suspend retirement contributions for one year...

...like Johns Hopkins, but it is going further and reducing by 10% the portion of the salary of highly-compensated employees that is above $285,00.   That will mostly hit faculty in the law and business schools, although it will no doubt hit some faculty in fields like economics and the actual sciences like physics and chemistry, which tend to have some faculty in that salary range.  (The medical school at Duke, like most medical schools, has its own budget and will make its own cost-cutting decisions.)

"Ethical Theory Review"

Philosopher Brad Cokelet (Kansas) is interviewing moral philosophers about their new books here.  He's got a great set of upcoming interviews in the works too.

Looks like Illinois will need to build a border wall with Wisconsin...

...given this bizarre decision.  Hopefully most people will continue to take precautions.

Hans Sluga reflects on his life and on philosophy

Hans Sluga, a longtimber member of the Berkeley faculty and author of well-known works on Frege Wittgenstein and Heidegger (among others, offers an interesting set of reflections here.

(Thanks to Jim Klagge for the pointer.)

"I Got You Babe," as read by Ayn Rand and Slavoj Zizek

Yes, I know you were waiting for this:

(Thanks to Dean Rowan for the pointer.)

 

Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory in Belgrade under political attack from the Serbian government

If you want to sign this letter (as I have and as I encourage readers to do) please contact Dr. Zona Zarić from Les Archives Husserl, Ecole normale supérieure, Paris, who is organizing the letter:   [email protected].  Among the signatories already are Jurgen Habermas, Martha Nussbaum, Raymond Geuss, Axel Honneth, Seyla Benhabib, and many others.

The letter is below the fold:

How countries are doing battling COVID

Striking set of charts here.  Makes clear how badly the U.S., among others, are doing compared to places like New Zealand and Greece, which were both proactive.

(Thanks to Jerry Dworkin for the pointer.)

Academics worldwide need to boycott ATINER in Greece until they stop "stealing" people's money

ATINER runs academic conferences in Greece (you can see the members of ATINER's academic council here).  Philosopher Howard Wettstein (UC Riverside) recently wrote to me that he paid "some 1650 Euros in advance" for one of their events, and then "cancelled quite early and asked for a refund. They refused." 

The registration form did provide that they would not refund the "registration fees" because of ATINER's sunk costs, although there was no detail about the actual sunk costs incurred by ATINER, but it surely wasn't 1650 Euros.   Of course, the contract also held them harmless for "Acts of God," like pandemics, but since they haven't been harmed to the tune of 1650 Euros that's irrelevant as far as I can see.  ATINER also invoked recent changes to Greek law meant to protect "tourist industries" from having to provide refunds, effectively shifting the costs to non-Greek citizens for the pandemic.   (Talk about "special interest" legislation!)   In accordance with this law, ATINER is offering only a voucher, valid for 18 months, that covers 2 hotel nights, meals, and activities "not included in the registration."   Will this voucher be usable in the next 18 months?  Who knows? 

It is probably the case that, legally, ATINER can get away with picking Professor Wettstein's pocket for the full amount, and they will get away with it legally with respect to many others as well.  It is also the case that academics can, legally, boycott ATINER and refuse to do business with them ever again if they are really going to take the outrageous position that the entire amount is now lost to the coffers of ATINER.  If someone wants to create an open letter or petition about this, let me know.  For the time being:  boycott ATINER!

 

California State University system announces on-line classes for the fall

NYT story here.   Given how many students they serve, and how many are commuter students on some campuses, this isn't surprising; the Cal State systems also lacks the resources, I expect, for the kinds of safety and health measures that some state universities (like Purdue and South Carolina) have announced.

Richard Marshall interviews Louise Antony (U Mass/Amherst & Rutgers)...

...at 3:16 AM.  A very interesting interview,  discussing naturalism, Quine, confirmation holism, naturalized epistemology and feminism, academic freedom, free speech, and philosophy of mind, among other topics.

Corpus methods in philosophy

Justin Sytsma (Victoria U/Wellington) asked me to share this announcement, which may interest a number of readers:

The Australasian Experimental Philosophy Group (https://www.axphi.org/) has organized a two-week event on corpus methods, running from 18-31 May. Corpus Fortnight will feature 13 talks via Zoom exploring the use of corpus methods in philosophy.

Details can be found on the experimental philosophy blog (https://www.axphi.org/corpus-week) and on our website (https://xphiblog.com/corpus-fortnight-18-may-31-may-2020/). 

T.B. Macaulay on moral philosophers

The 19th-century British historian and politician (and apologist for imperialism) remarked:

And, though quibbling about self-interest and motives, and objects of desire, and the greatest happiness of the greatest number, is but a poor employment for a grown man, it certainly hurts the health less than hard drinking and the fortune less than high play; it is not much more laughable than phrenology, and is immeasurably more humane than cock-fighting.

As philosopher Jerry Dworkin, who shared this with me, pointed out:   In cock fighting "you have to stop the fight when a cock is bleeding and helpless!"  So at least moral philosophy isn't that bad!

Northwestern University, facing budgetary shortfalls, takes remarkable step of suspending all retirement contributions for faculty and staff...

...among other measures, but this is the most significant one in dollar amount, since Northwestern contributes 5% of salary for every employee and up to 5% in a matching contribution:  so this will be at least a 5% cut in compensation for all employees, and a 10% cut for most.   The suspension of retirement contributions is effective through the end of the calendar year.

ADDENDUM:  Johns Hopkins is suspending retirement contributions for a full 12 months!

More on coronavirus transmission: the choir case from Washington

This is an informative, detailed report on a case that has been noted in some prior studies mentioned in earlier posts; some excerpts:

Among 61 persons who attended a March 10 choir practice at which one person was known to be symptomatic, 53 cases were identified, including 33 confirmed and 20 probable cases (secondary attack rates of 53.3% among confirmed cases and 86.7% among all cases). Three of the 53 persons who became ill were hospitalized (5.7%), and two died (3.7%). The 2.5-hour singing practice provided several opportunities for droplet and fomite transmission, including members sitting close to one another, sharing snacks, and stacking chairs at the end of the practice. The act of singing, itself, might have contributed to transmission through emission of aerosols, which is affected by loudness of vocalization (1). Certain persons, known as superemitters, who release more aerosol particles during speech than do their peers, might have contributed to this and previously reported COVID-19 superspreading events (2–5)....

The March 10 choir rehearsal lasted from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. Several members arrived early to set up chairs in a large multipurpose room. Chairs were arranged in six rows of 20 chairs each, spaced 6–10 inches apart with a center aisle dividing left and right stages. Most choir members sat in their usual rehearsal seats. Sixty-one of the 122 members attended that evening, leaving some members sitting next to empty seats. Attendees practiced together for 40 minutes, then split into two smaller groups for an additional 50-minute practice, with one of the groups moving to a smaller room. At that time, members in the larger room moved to seats next to one another, and members in the smaller room sat next to one another on benches. Attendees then had a 15-minute break, during which cookies and oranges were available at the back of the large room, although many members reported not eating the snacks. The group then reconvened for a final 45-minute session in their original seats. At the end of practice, each member returned their own chair, and in the process congregated around the chair racks. Most attendees left the practice immediately after it concluded. No one reported physical contact between attendees. SCPH assembled a seating chart of the all-choir portion of the March 10 practice (not reported here because of concerns about patient privacy).

Another look at comorbitidies contributing to death in COVID-19 cases

This is a preprint of a study by a large group of UK researchers.  One striking finding is that hypertension is not, in fact, a significant co-morbidity for serious illness and death, it rather seems to be a proxy for age, which is a factor (something we wondered about previously).   From the paper:

There was no association between hypertension (defined as a recorded diagnosis, or high blood pressure at the last measurement) and outcome (HR 0.95, 0.89-1.01). However, in sensitivity analyses, diagnosed hypertension was associated with slightly increased risk (HR 1.07, 1.00-1.15) while high blood pressure (≥140/90 mmHg) at the most recent measurement was associated with lower risk (HR 0.61, 0.56-0.67).

This chart below the fold summarizes the findings:

Sterken from Oslo to Hong Kong

Rachel Sterken (philosophy of language and mind, metaphysics), Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Oslo, has accepted appointment as Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hong Kong, effective this summer.

(Thanks to Chris Fraser for the information.)

And a COVID milestone in Chicago

377 new cases reported yesterday in Chicago proper, the first time the number was under 500 since April 7. 

Another milestone for New York City today: fewer than 1,000 positive test results...

...the first time since March 18!

American College Health Association issues new guidelines for reopening colleges

Here.  I have not had a chance to digest this, so reader comments welcome.

What we know about the evolution and mutation of the new coronavirus

Informative popular account.

(Thanks to Dr. David Ozonoff for the pointer.)

After the pandemic: disability and the right to work from home

Philosopher Leslie Green (Oxford/Queen's U) comments.

Philosopher David Livingstone Smith's (New England) new book on dehumanization...

...discussed at the Los Angeles Review of Books.

Another state flagship university announces sensible reopening plans

The University of South Carolina; an excerpt:

We will begin by phasing in an increased presence on campus this summer of selected populations of students and faculty, even as summer courses remain online. This transitional, phased approach will allow us to test our mitigation measures, pilot our initiatives and further build our confidence and capacity to open our doors to the University community safely in August. 

While we would like as many students, faculty and staff members as possible to return in person, doing so would not be mandatory, as we recognize that some would be uncomfortable coming back to campus in August. We respect each person’s decision to either return or delay their return, and we will expand our online course offerings to accommodate those who choose to remain away.

For those who are returning to campus, plans for academics, housing, dining and every aspect of student and campus life for the fall semester are being meticulously formed by the FPG and an increasingly broad group of campus leaders. Plans include the following:

• We will have the capacity to test every Student, Faculty and Staff member for COVID-19 upon return the campus
• We have the capacity to sustain a robust testing program throughout the entire semester
• We are reviewing several comprehensive tracing and tracking apps for early and thorough identification of at-risk contacts
• We have designated ample student housing for those who may require isolation and quarantine, and we are putting in place the support services to provide for their meals, education, and other needs
• We will increase on campus single-occupancy rooms in on-campus residence halls
• We will modify our dining practices in order to reduce close student contact in student dining facilities through “grab and go” meals
• We will make accommodations for high-risk individuals and others who choose to continue online instruction with safeguards for protection against discrimination and stigma
• We will follow clear public health protocols, including social distancing within classrooms, lecture halls, meeting rooms and sports venues, with strong encouragement of proper social distancing off campus
• We will ensure that large class sections will either meet in smaller sections or in online formats and create alternative academic offerings to accommodate safe class gatherings
• We will provide advising over the summer to help all students adjust their course schedules as needed
• And finally, as stated, no student, faculty or staff member will be required to return

COVID affecting young children?

This is a very disturbing development.  It will change the prospects for opening lower schools in the fall as well if it turns out to be more than a freak occurrence.

Federal government turned down offer from private company to produce millions of N95 masks

People really should hang for this.

Great moments in obscure rock 'n' roll: Mother Earth, "Stop That Train," 1969

San Francisco-based band that relocated to Nashville for their second, and most successful, album (that features a young Boz Scaggs):

 

More on situations where there is a higher risk of infection with the new coronavirus

Following up on an earlier post, this from a biologist is also informative (and consistent with the prior post); an excerpt:

Indoor spaces, with limited air exchange or recycled air and lots of people, are concerning from a transmission standpoint. We know that 60 people in a volleyball court-sized room (choir) results in massive infections. Same situation with the restaurant and the call center. Social distancing guidelines don't hold in indoor spaces where you spend a lot of time, as people on the opposite side of the room were infected.

The principle is viral exposure over an extended period of time. In all these cases, people were exposed to the virus in the air for a prolonged period (hours). Even if they were 50 feet away (choir or call center), even a low dose of the virus in the air reaching them, over a sustained period, was enough to cause infection and in some cases, death.

Social distancing rules are really to protect you with brief exposures or outdoor exposures. In these situations there is not enough time to achieve the infectious viral load when you are standing 6 feet apart or where wind and the infinite outdoor space for viral dilution reduces viral load. The effects of sunlight, heat, and humidity on viral survival, all serve to minimize the risk to everyone when outside.

Another bit of evidence for the war crimes trial of Trump, Kushner et al.

Hospitals have no idea how the federal government is distributing the possibly life-saving drug remdesivir.  (Earlier.)

The Attorney General of the United States is a threat to the rule of law

William Barr would have fit in well, however, in Franco's Spain, a country then run by reactionary Catholics.

America is a disgrace, part 441: millions of families don't have enough food

Without federal action, this will get worse not better.

Pulitzer Prize for "Commentary" has gone to...

...Bret Stephens, Thomas Friedman, Charles Krauthammer and, this year, Nikole Hannah-Jones.   (The Pulitzer Prizes for investigative reporting have a better history, fortunately.)

University of Queensland embarrasses itself on the international stage

Persecuting a philosophy undergraduate for supporting the Hong Kong protests and criticizing the Chinese Communist Party and its ties to the university isn't really a good look.  (This account is not behind a paywall.) Australia is so dependent on the Chinese market, and Australian universities are so dependent on Chinese students, that there is an increasing tendency to suppress speech offensive to the Chinese.

(Thanks to Jack James for the pointer to this story.)

UPDATE:  There is a petition in support of the undergraduate, Drew Pavlou, here.

What contact tracing reveals about the transmissibility of the new coronavirus

This is an extremely illuminating Twitter thread from a St. Andrews infectious diseases specialist; a few excerpts:

2147 close contacts of 157 #COVID19 cases were followed up: Overall infection rate was 6%, higher infection rate among friends (22%) and household (18%), and main risk factors include contact in household (13%), transport (11%), dining (7%) [BL:  note that only 18% of household contacts were infected!]

[In another study] 445 close contacts of 10 #COVID19 cases were followed up, of those 54 (12%) developed symptoms, suggesting secondary attack rate of 0.45%, household attack rate of 10.5%. No other close contacts incl community members, HCWs were positive.

Based on 1286 close contacts of 319 #COVID19 cases [in another study]; household and transport contacts had higher risk of transmission (80% of infections caused by 9% of cases), household attack rate of 11.5%, children were as likely to be infected....

Among 392 household contacts of 105 index #COVID19 cases, overall household attack rate was 16%, the secondary attack rate was highest in spouse (28%), all adults (17%) and was lower in <18 age group (4%)...

In summary: While the infectious inoculum required for infection is unknown, these studies indicate that close & prolonged contact is required for #COVID19 transmission. The risk is highest in enclosed environments; household, long-term care facilities and public transport.

Why you're not going to get COVID-19 while out walking or jogging

This is a useful counterweight to unreasonable anxiety.

Mark Schroeder did not like Bryan Weaver's and Kevin Scharp's book

For our series of wicked book reviews:

The volume's weaknesses come as an especially great disappointment, because there is so much room for more detailed, careful engagement with philosophical work on reasons that brings to bear a more sophisticated and careful understanding of background issues in the philosophy of language and linguistic semantics. It would be incredibly lovely to have a book that engages carefully in this space, educates rather than browbeats its readers, and distinguishes between areas of reasonable controversy and questions whose answers should be clear. This book is not that book. It is full of unsupported sweeping claims, substantive stipulations of what is true that are unaccompanied by arguments, deeply uncharitable readings of others' positions, overly uncritical reliance on some claims defended by other authors (in some cases my own), an arrogant and contemptuous tone toward other authors that is particularly out of place in light of how undeveloped their own view is and how uncareful its own development, and a pervasive sense that it is the job of philosophers to tell each other how it is okay to talk, rather than to work to make sense of one another.

It is a slight worry about this review that the main example of "uncharitable readings" concerns one of Schroeder's colleagues.   But critical reviews are a rare commodity, given that academics are generally ass-kissing cowards, so this candid assessment (assuming it isn't mistaken) is refreshing.  If Professors Weaver and Scharp reply, I will certainly note that.

"The Best Schools" website list of "The Most Influential Living Philosophers" is an ideologically motivated fraud

Since the list periodically makes the rounds, be sure to share this earlier post with the gullible.

Blood pressure medications are *not* associated with increased risk of getting the new coronavirus or an increased risk of death if one gets it

This is useful information:

(Thanks to an anoymous reader for sending this along.)

Villanova PhD students in philosophy and theology seeking better summer support in light of pandemic

There is an open letter here explaining what support the graduate students (who are on 9-month contracts, without health insurance) are seeking.  You can read descriptions of the situation they have faced in past summers, and how things are shaping up for this summer, here:  Download Surviving Summer as a Graduate Student (1)