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Anyone following the rhetoric around <keyword id="107950" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Artificial-Intelligence" source="Orion">artificial intelligence</keyword> in recent years has heard one version or another of the cl<keyword id="6355999" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="AI" source="Orion">ai</keyword>m that AI is inevitable. Common themes are that AI is already here and indispensable, and people who are bearish on it harm themselves. In the business world, AI advocates tell companies and workers that they will fall behind if they fail to integrate generative AI into their operations. In the sciences, AI advocates promise that AI will aid in curing hitherto intractable diseases. In higher education, AI promoters admonish teachers that students must learn how to use AI or risk becoming uncompetitive when it comes time to find a job. In national security, AI's champions say that either the nation invests heavily in AI weaponry, or it will be at a disadvantage against the Chinese and Russians, who are already doing so. The argument across these different domains is essentially the same: The time for AI skepticism has come and gone. The <keyword id="6355118" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="technology" source="Orion">technology</keyword> will shape the future, whether you like it or not. You have the choice to learn how to use it or be left out of that future. Anyone trying to stand in the technology's way is as hopeless as the manual weavers who resisted the mechanical looms in the early 19th century. In the past few years, my colleagues and I (Nir Eisikovits, Professor of Philosophy and Director, Applied Ethics Center, UMass Boston) have been studying the ethical questions raised by the widespread adoption of AI, and I believe the inevitability argument is misleading. <h2>History and hindsight</h2> This claim is the most recent version of a deterministic view of technological development. It's the belief that innovations are unstoppable once people start working on them. In other words, some genies don't go back in their bottles. The best you can do is harness them for your good purposes. This deterministic approach to tech has a long history. It's been applied to the influence of the printing press as well as to the rise of automobiles and the infrastructure they require, among other developments. But I believe that when it comes to AI, the technological determinism argument is both exaggerated and oversimplified. <h2>AI in the field(s)</h2> Consider the contention that businesses can't afford to stay out of the AI game. The case has yet to be made that AI is delivering significant productivity gains to the firms that use it. A report in The <keyword id="20856675" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="economist" source="keywords">Economist</keyword> in July 2024 suggests that so far, the technology has had almost no economic impact. AI's role in higher education is also still very much an open question. Though universities have, in the past two years, invested heavily in AI-related initiatives, evidence suggests they may have jumped the gun. The technology can serve as an interesting pedagogical tool. For example, creating a Plato chatbot that lets students have a text conversation with a bot posing as Plato is a cool gimmick. However, AI is already starting to displace some of the best tools teachers have for assessment and for developing critical thinking, such as writing assignments. The college essay is going the way of the dinosaurs as more teachers give up on the ability to tell whether their students are writing their papers themselves. What's the cost-benefit argument for giving up on writing, an important and useful traditional skill? In the sciences and medicine, the use of AI seems promising. Its role in understanding the structure of proteins, for example, will likely be significant for curing diseases. The technology is also transforming medical imaging and has been helpful in accelerating the drug discovery process. But the excitement can become exaggerated. AI-based predictions about which cases of COVID-19 would become severe have roundly failed, and doctors rely excessively on the technology's diagnostic ability, often against their own better clinical judgment. And so, even in this area, where the potential is great, AI's ultimate impact is unclear. In national security, the argument for investing in AI development is compelling. Since the stakes can be high, the argument that if the Chinese and the Russians are developing AI-driven autonomous weapons, the United States can't afford to fall behind has real purchase. But a complete surrender to this form of reasoning, though tempting, is likely to lead the <keyword id="19899807" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="u-s-" source="keywords">U.S.</keyword> to overlook the disproportionate impact of these systems on nations that are too poor to participate in the AI arms race. The major powers could deploy the technology in conflicts in these nations. And, just as significantly, this argument de-emphasizes the possibility of collaborating with adversaries on limiting military AI systems, favoring arms race over arms control.<h2> One step at a time</h2> Surveying the potential significance and risks of AI in these different domains merits some skepticism about the technology. I believe that AI should be adopted piecemeal and with a nuanced approach rather than subject to sweeping claims of inevitability. In developing this careful take, there are two things to keep in mind: -First, companies and entrepreneurs working on artificial intelligence have an obvious interest in the technology being perceived as inevitable and necessary, since they make a living from its adoption. It's important to pay attention to who is making claims of inevitability, and why. -Second, it's worth taking a lesson from recent history. Over the past 15 years, smartphones and the social media apps that run on them have come to be seen as a fact of life - a technology as transformative as it is inevitable. Then data started emerging about the <keyword id="6354774" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mental-health" source="Orion">mental health</keyword> harms they cause teens, especially young girls. School districts across the United States started to ban phones to protect the attention spans and mental health of their students. And some people have reverted to using flip phones as a quality of life change to avoid smartphones. After a long experiment with the mental health of kids, facilitated by claims of technological determinism, Americans changed course. What seemed fixed turned out to be alterable. There is still time to avoid repeating the same mistake with artificial intelligence, which potentially could have larger consequences for society.

Is AI dominance inevitable? A technology ethicist says no, actually

Leading a team from the confines of individual bedrooms undoubtedly induced anxiety for <keyword id="20154171" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="managers" source="keywords">managers</keyword> during the COVID-19 <keyword id="91743" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="lockdown" source="Orion">lockdown</keyword>. However, there was quick relief in how promptly employees adapted to this new paradigm. While numerous companies have embraced the <keyword id="20626231" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="work-from-home" source="keywords">work-from-home</keyword> norm, some of these employers have finally begun to call people back to their offices. In March, <keyword id="19969515" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dell" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Dell" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Dell">Dell</keyword> also decided it was time to notify their employees to return to the office, a move whose execution would thrust them into stark controversy. According to a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/dell-workers-can-stay-remote-but-theyre-not-going-to-get-promoted/articleshow/108564894.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Business Insider report</a>, the multinational tech company allegedly sent corporate memos to all employees, explaining that while they could continue to work under hybrid or remote arrangements, only the former would relish the luxury of promotions or favourable role changes within the company. While this discriminatory announcement might seem outright blatant, it turns out that similar ladder-climbing challenges may already be at play, afflicting unknowing remote workers. To assess the relatively uncharted territory of <keyword id="20665553" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="remote-work" source="keywords">remote work</keyword> dynamics, a team of researchers surveyed nearly a thousand UK managers from diverse industries. They were presented with profiles of three completely made-up employees: a fully on-site worker, a hybrid employee working two days from home and three days from the office, and a full-time remote worker working all five days from home. The managers were asked a bunch of career-related questions, such as which hypothetical employee seemed the most competent, who they deemed most fit for promotions and salary hikes, and so on. What they uncovered was nothing short of revelatory: remote workers faced a daunting uphill battle in their quest for <keyword id="3187" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="promotion" source="Orion">promotion</keyword>s and pay raises. Despite contributing the same amount of work, there was an 11% less chance that remote employees would receive a promotion compared to fully on-site workers. Further, they were 9% less likely to receive a pay raise as well. Even the hybrid staff were not immune to the harsh realities of remote work, with the study finding that these managers were, on average, 7% less likely to promote the group compared to the on-site employees. Completing the cherry on top of the discriminatory corporate cake were the gender disparities that surfaced. The researchers found male fully remote workers bore the brunt of the burden, facing a staggering 15% decrease in promotion likelihood and a 10% drop in pay raise prospects compared to the fully on-siters. In comparison, the equivalent figures for women stood at 7% and 8%, respectively. Fortunately, this corporate discrimination was distinctly less pronounced in more supportive organisations. The study found that managers from more demanding offices were a third less likely to promote men who worked entirely from home, compared to full-time office-goers, further highlighting the importance of finding a good boss. "In more supportive organisations, where there is less pressure and long working days and where family-friendly policies exist, we don't find such negative consequences of remote work," explained study author Agnieszka Kasperska. As we navigate the ever-evolving terrain of remote work, it's imperative to heed the lessons learned from this groundbreaking research. By fostering inclusive cultures, implementing supportive policies, and challenging ingrained biases, we can pave the way for a future where remote workers share equal opportunity for growth and advancement. The preliminary findings of this research can be accessed <a href="https://www.wne.uw.edu.pl/application/files/1516/9936/7639/WNE_WP435.pdf" data-type="tilCustomLink">here</a>.

Managers more likely to promote workers who regularly come to office compared to remote employees: study

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A new study found that teen girls' brains aged faster during the pandemic.</li><li>Researchers measured cortical thinning, a natural process that can be accelerated by stress.</li></ul>This week, a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2403200121">new scientific paper</a> sent a ripple through the world of child psychology.Researchers at the University of Washington published brain scans of teenagers taken three years apart, in 2018 and 2021.The team expected significant findings, since the second scans were taken after all of the kids had their lives suddenly upended and socially stunted by COVID lockdowns.They hypothesized that girls would be more impacted, because they're more reliant on peer relationships for emotional support than teen boys. But "we didn't expect it to be as dramatic a difference," lead author Dr. Neva Corrigan told Business Insider.The average acceleration for teen girls was 4.2 years, compared to 1.4 for boys.While more research is needed, the study offers a glimpse into the effects the pandemic had on brain development. It comes at a time when teen girls have seen a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cdc-report-teen-girls-alarming-rates-sadness-hopelessness-sexual-violence-2023-2">sharp rise in sadness and hopelessness</a>, often attributed to social media use.<h2 id="c81b7065-67f7-4f59-9455-c4636815bed5">Isolation may have played a role</h2>The original intention of the study was to track typical adolescent brain development, Corrigan, who specializes in MRI data acquisition and analysis, told BI. In 2018, her team took MRI data from 160 adolescents ages 9, 11, 13, 15, and 17, and planned to follow up at a later date.But after the pandemic, "we realized that we could no longer call this typical development," Corrigan said. "These kids had undergone a huge change in their lives." Her team knew they had a unique opportunity to examine how aspects of the pandemic, such as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/public-teacher-homeschool-own-kids-2024-5">remote learning</a>, affected the brain.In 2021, about 130 of the subjects returned for more testing. The team measured cortical thinning, a natural process that usually begins in late childhood and is believed to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3791607/">improve cognitive performance</a>.The age acceleration was more than double the size in teen girls, and the regions most impacted were all related to social cognition, such as facial recognition and language comprehension.Because females generally rely more on <a target="_blank" href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17328705/">relationships for emotional support</a> than males, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/modern-loneliness">loneliness</a> during the pandemic could have caused teen girls more stress, speeding up their cortical thinning.<h2 id="ca6c015e-1e33-410a-957c-fdee9576f795">Cortical thinning isn't always negative</h2>Corrigan said there's a lot we still don't know about cortical thinning, such as whether it's reversible.However, she said past studies have shown that accelerated cortical thinning can put people at higher risk for neurodegenerative disorders in old age, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.It can also increase the odds of developing psychiatric disorders such as depression or anxiety.At the same time, quicker brain aging isn't necessarily all bad. It's believed that the cortex thins to reduce the effect the environment has on brain development, Corrigan said. If the brain is less vulnerable to external stressors, "that could make these kids a little bit more resilient to stress," she said.<h2 id="47b59dfa-19bd-494b-98ab-6151b36b2682">There are still many unknowns</h2>Bradley S. Peterson, a pediatric psychiatrist at Children's Hospital Los Angeles who wasn't part of the study, told <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/09/health/teen-brains-pandemic-girls.html">The New York Times</a> that it had some limitations. One was that the data came from different subsets of the group, rather than measuring each individual's brain changes.The study also didn't track the participants' individual habits, so it can't confirm if other elements of the pandemic, such as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/surgeon-general-social-media-warning-label-mental-health-crisis-children-2024-6">increased screen time</a>, contributed to quicker cortical thinning.Corrigan said the biggest takeaway for parents is to be mindful of the potential risks of their teens developing anxiety or depression. "Perhaps they can help stave that off by talking to their kids and providing emotional support for them."

Brain scans show teen girls aged 4 years faster than boys during COVID lockdowns. We asked the researcher what that means long-term.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Brian Chesky, a former hockey player and industrial design student, is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/brian-chesky/?sh=67d0629444d3">now worth $7.9 billion</a>.</li><li>Chesky started Airbnb after renting out his apartment to conference-goers who couldn't find a hotel.</li></ul>Brian Chesky has helped Airbnb bounce back from many obstacles — and built his Silicon Valley legacy along the way.The now-43-year-old CEO majored in industrial design at the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design and also dabbled in hockey and bodybuilding in his 20s.After graduation, an idea he hatched with his San Francisco roommate Joe Gebbia blossomed into tech unicorn Airbnb, which has positioned Chesky as one of Silicon Valley's key players.As of August 2024, Airbnb is worth nearly $73 billion. It had its first profitable year in 2022, and has become synonymous with short-term rentals across the US.Still, the company's stock fell a record 14% in the second quarter of 2024, and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/airbnb-stock-price-consumer-demand-slowing-inflation-travel-pandemic-spending-2024-8">Airbnb noted in its earnings call</a> that travelers aren't booking as many stays.Chesky owns an estimated 11% of the short-term rental giant. His current net worth is $7.9 billion, according to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/brian-chesky/?sh=67d0629444d3">Forbes</a>, which also ranked him as one of the most eligible billionaires in the world alongside Kim Kardashian and Elon Musk.Here's how Brian Chesky, an upstate New York native, became one of the richest young tech founders in America.<h2 id="d229cff2-2c44-4ed3-928c-6af27d384255">Before running Airbnb, Chesky attended art school</h2>Chesky grew up in Niskayuna, New York, north of Albany. He was into hockey, and he also liked to draw and design new versions of Nike sneakers, which turned into an interest in art.Chesky's high school yearbook quote was, "I'm sure I'll amount to nothing." He thought it was funny — his dad didn't.In 1999, Chesky attended Rhode Island School of Design, where he served as captain of the hockey team and studied industrial design.At RISD, Chesky met Joe Gebbia, with whom he would eventually cofound Airbnb. Right before graduation, Gebbia reportedly pulled Chesky aside and said, "Before you get on the plane, there's something I need to tell you. We're going to start a company one day, and they're going to write a book about it," Fortune <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://fortune.com/longform/brian-chesky-airbnb/">reported</a>.<h2 id="abd9e7b9-adfe-4a41-abd9-bce2ff8658fb">It all started as a quick way to make cash</h2>He eventually moved to San Francisco and in with Gebbia, but the two unemployed grads soon ran out of cash.Then, when a design conference came to town in October 2007 and caused all the hotels to sell out, Gebbia pitched Chesky the idea of renting out their space to those who couldn't find a place to stay — a "designer's bed and breakfast."The roommates ended up housing three people that weekend, offering up air mattresses and floor space, as well as Pop-Tarts for breakfast.A few months later, Gebbia and Chesky were joined by their engineer friend, Nathan Blecharczyk. Together, the three guys started what was then called <a target="_blank" href="http://Airbedandbreakfast.com">Airbedandbreakfast.com</a> in August 2008. Chesky "gravitated naturally to the role of leader," Fortune wrote in 2015.<h2 id="730ed8fb-268e-48f2-8b59-8183521d5ee6">Things took off for Airbnb in the 2010s</h2>Since then, Airbnb has not only shortened its name but has listings in more than 220 countries worldwide. The company has served an estimated 1.5 billion guests since its 2008 launch.In 2015, Chesky was named as one of the most influential people alive in <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://time.com/collection/2015-time-100/">Time 100</a>. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jony-ive-airbnb-brian-chesky-time-100-list-2015-4">Apple's former design chief, Jony Ive,</a> wrote at the time that Chesky's "audacity is fabulous."Chesky is not married, though he was previously in a relationship with artist Elissa Patel. He has two golden retrievers named Sophie and Sandy.<h2 id="38a076e1-a0d8-421f-9da4-2059bc3e11b6">The pandemic caused ups and downs for the company</h2>Fast forward to February 2020, when cancellations began rolling in due to a mysterious virus. Chesky and his team were three weeks away from filing for Airbnb's IPO.The early days of the pandemic seemed grim. Airbnb's revenue plummeted 80% due to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ipo-goldman-sachs-pandemic-2022-7">COVID-related travel restrictions</a>. The company burned through its cash reserves and opted to raise $2 billion in debt and equity financing to stay afloat. Its valuation, previously $31 billion, slipped to $18 billion.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-boss-laid-off-staff-pandemic-asked-ceos-hire-thousands-2023-10">Airbnb laid off 1,900 employees</a>, about 25% of its full-time staff. Employees said they felt betrayed, but Chesky was also praised for his handling of the situation. Workers were given generous severance packages, and Chesky offered to help find them jobs elsewhere.He reflected on the firings during an appearance on <a target="_blank" rel=" nofollow" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ia6Di_ytiSE">The Diary of a CEO podcast with Steven Bartlett</a> in 2023."This is how I want to be remembered. I only remember that when I'm in peril, we're in our darkest hour, I'm not just worrying about how we will survive, I'm trying to call CEOs of other companies to see if they can hire our people," Chesky said.But then travelers burned out from lockdown turned to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vacation-rentals-jump-127-percent-april-may-domestic-travel-surge-2020-5">Airbnb over traditional hotels</a>. Bookings bounced back by as much as 127% between April 2020 and May 2020.<h2 id="06fce8ec-091e-4bbf-a018-d35129707d79">Airbnb goes public</h2>Airbnb went public on December 10, 2020, under the Nasdaq ticker symbol ABNB. Barron's called it a "blockbuster" IPO. On its first day of trading, the company was valued at $86 billion, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ipo-valuation-tops-three-hotel-chains-combined-opening-day-2020-12">more than hotel rivals Marriott, Hilton, and Intercontinental combined</a>.Between 2020 and 2022, when interest rates were relatively low, many people bought homes to use as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/millennials-first-homes-are-ones-they-rent-out-on-airbnb-2022-4">investment properties</a>, planning to rent them out on Airbnb and other short-term-rental sites to help cover their mortgages or simply make extra money.Demand for travel and experiences surged— so much so that Airbnb recorded its first profitable year in 2022, with a $1.9 billion profit. (It lost $352 million in 2021.)<h2 id="08c2048b-dd4b-4ead-ac82-e1a390b2d4e2">Chesky gives back often</h2>Chesky and Airbnb's two other cofounders publicly signed the Giving Pledge in 2016, a philanthropic initiative started by <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/billionaires-join-the-bill-gates-and-warren-buffet-giving-pledge-to-give-away-their-wealth-2016-6">Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Melinda French Gates</a>. By doing so, they promise to donate more than half of their wealth within their lifetimes.In 2022, Chesky personally donated $100 million to the Voyagers Scholarship run by former <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.obama.org/press-releases/the-obamas-and-brian-chesky-announce-the-inaugural-cohort-of-voyager-scholarship-recipients/">President and First Lady Obama</a>, which awards $50,000 in tuition for college juniors pursuing public service. Airbnb provides housing to recipients for summer internships and post-grad travel.When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Chesky announced the company would work to house 100,000 refugees with free two-week stays.In November 2022, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ceo-brian-chesky-home-listing-free-aircover-guest-verification-2022-11">Chesky listed a guest room </a>in his home on Airbnb, featuring a queen-sized bed and a piece of Airbnb history: the novelty cereal boxes that Chesky sold in 2008 to fund the early days of the company. Chesky told outlets he would make cookies and go to the gym with guests.<h2 id="f8474071-426e-4de9-baaf-881789cfc349">Short-term rental crackdowns and layoffs plagued Airbnb after its profitable year</h2>Countless other real-estate firms conducted mass layoffs due to the cooling housing market. In March 2023, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/real-estate-tech-layoffs-25-companies-that-have-laid-people-off-2022-7">Airbnb cut 30% of its recruiting staff</a>, representing 0.4% of its total headcount of 6,800.In August — amid protests from locals — <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/barcelona-airbnb-ban-florence-amsterdam-lisbon-are-regulations-working-2024-8">Barcelona</a> said it would push to fully ban and eliminate all of its registered short-term rental listings by 2028. Elsewhere, cities like New York, Tokyo, and Vancouver now require hosts to live in the units they're renting out.During its Q2 earnings call, Airbnb told investors that its marketing costs would grow faster than revenue in Q3."Kicking up marketing spend at a moment when demand is softening tends to be the ultimate backbreaker for an internet stock in our experience," analysts from RBC wrote in a note.This story was originally published in 2016. It was last updated in September 2024.

The rise of Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky, who overcame the COVID-19 travel slump and is now leading the company through rental crackdowns

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Forget friendship bracelets — some Swifties are calling Covid-19 their new concert souvenirs.</li><li>Some fans who got COVID-10 after attending her Eras Tour are calling it a "gift" from "Mother."</li></ul>It's been years since the pandemic times of COVID-19 lockdowns and the era of mandated masking. But while the virus is still circulating, some Swifties have become wildly optimistic about what it means to catch an infection at one of their idol's concerts. So much so that some Swifties on social media are playfully dubbing the COVID-19 infection they think they got from her concerts a "souvenir" and a "gift" from "Mother."A post on X from a Spanish Taylor Swift fan account asked followers: "Did you go to <a target="_blank" class="css-1jxf684 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1loqt21" href="https://x.com/hashtag/MadridTStheErasTour?src=hashtag_click">#MadridTStheErasTour</a> and take COVID, a virus, or a cold with you as a souvenir? I open a survey."Of the nearly 10,800 votes, 35% voted yes. People in the poll's comments section described their symptoms and showed their positive COVID-19 tests — but also raved about how they thought it was worth it. The poll has been viewed nearly 144,000 times at press time.One X user <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/RaquellvsRhett/status/1797947023641247766">commented</a>: "Going to Taylor's concert has meant losing my voice, losing my mental health and, well, my health in general, I'm more dead than alive (but I would go to the concert a thousand more times)."Earlier in February, an Australian concertgoer posted a TikTok of herself dressed up in her concert outfit and glam makeup. The video then cut straight to her holding up a positive COVID-19 test kit in bed. She captioned the post: "The Eras Tour souvenir no ones talking about. if youre heading to the sydney shows this weekend, wash your hands regularly!"However, other X users have voiced their disbelief at Swifties calling the virus a souvenir.One X user <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/pot8um/status/1799513266265166174?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1799513266265166174%7Ctwgr%5E823e04af52763fad2f3a84db8d34b05f9516778a%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fmuse.insider.com%2Fstory%2F666a622b074e87bb00f6cf0e">wrote:</a> "Taylor Swift's concert attendees are calling their Covid infections 'souvenirs' and 'gifts' from 'Mother,' and I'm supposed to NOT wanna launch myself into the sun???"Concerts have gained notoriety as COVID-19 superspreader events. In 2021, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.newsweek.com/over-2200-people-catch-covid-after-spain-music-festivals-catalonia-1616207">over 2,200 people caught the virus</a> after going to music festivals in northeast Spain.And while the virus is treated more like the common flu now, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/august-flu-vs-covid-infection-rate-2023-8">COVID-19 is still circulating</a> — and people are getting infected across the US.Virus-spreading or not, Swift's Eras Tour has been widely successful, propelling the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tortured-poets-department-taylor-swift-new-album-earnings-eras-tour-2024-4">singer-songwriter to billionaire status</a>. Swift is now in the UK for her next leg of the tour. Swift's representative didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

The COVID-19 infection you caught at a Taylor Swift concert is not a gift from 'Mother'

Babies born to mothers who suffered from Covid-19 during pregnancy seem to exhibit differences in neurodevelopmental outcomes at six weeks, according to a preliminary analysis. Researchers found that babies born to mothers who had been infected show greater difficulties in relaxing and adapting their bodies when they are being held, when compared to infants from non-infected mothers, especially when infection took place in late pregnancy. Moreover, infants born from infected mothers tend to show greater difficulty in controlling head and shoulder movement. These alterations suggest a possible <keyword id="8764262" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="covid" source="Orion">Covid</keyword> effect on motor function (movement control). "Not all babies born to mothers infected with Covid show neurodevelopmental differences, but our data shows that their risk is increased in comparison to those not exposed to Covid in the womb. We need a bigger study to confirm the exact extent of the difference," said Dr Rosa Ayesa Arriola from Marques de Valdecilla University Hospital in Santander, Spain. The analysis was presented in the 30th European Congress of Psychiatry held in Budapest. The initial evaluation compared babies born to 21 Covid positive pregnant women and their babies, with 21 healthy controls. The mothers underwent a series of tests, including hormonal and other biochemical tests (measuring such things as cortisol levels, immunological response, etc.) salivary tests, movement responses, and psychological questionnaires during and after pregnancy. The post-natal tests included the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS), which measures the baby's movement and behaviour. "We found that certain elements of the NBAS measurement were changed in 6-week-old infants who had been exposed to the SARS-COV-2 virus. Effectively they react slightly differently to being held, or cuddled," said Agueda Castro Quintas from the University of Barcelona. "There is a great need to study both direct and indirect effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the health and well-being of parents and infants. Pregnancy is a period of life which shapes much of our subsequent development, and exposure to adversity in pregnancy can leave long-lasting biological footprints," added Dr Livio Provenzi, from the University of Pavia in Italy, who was not involved in this work. SEE ALSO <a class="tout-title-link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/india/news/covid-19-cases-are-on-a-rise-in-india-maharashtra-and-kerala-reporting-the-highest-surge-in-cases/articleshow/92030085.cms">COVID-19 cases are on a rise in India — Maharashtra and Kerala reporting the highest surge in cases</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/why-a-rate-hike-is-not-all-bad-news-for-you-and-how-you-can-take-advantage-of-rising-interest-rates/articleshow/92029328.cms">Why a rate hike is not all bad news for you – and how you can take advantage of rising interest rates</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/personalities/news/azim-premji-and-shiv-nadar-lose-20-billion-of-their-personal-wealth-thanks-to-the-great-indian-it-meltdown/articleshow/91988793.cms">Azim Premji and Shiv Nadar lose $20 billion of their personal wealth – thanks to the Great Indian IT meltdown</a>

Babies exposed to Covid in womb at risk of neurodevelopmental changes

Geneva [Switzerland], August 19 (ANI): World Health Organization (WHO) designated <keyword id="18456567" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="covid-19-variant-ba-2-86" source="Orion">COVID-19 variant BA.2.86</keyword> as a 'variant under monitoring' due to the large number of mutations it carries. The WHO said on Friday that they are tracking 3 variants of interest and 7 variants under monitoring at the moment. "WHO continues to call for better surveillance, sequencing, and reporting of #COVID19 as this virus continues to circulate and evolve," the WHO said in a tweet. Who further stated that it needed more data to understand this COVID19 variant and the extent of its spread, but the number of mutations warrants attention. Recently, the latest variant, EG.5 (also known as Eris), has grabbed the attention of public health experts around the world and is becoming a dominant strain in countries including the United States and Britain. The variant is causing about 17 per cent of the new Covid-19 cases in the country compared to 16 per cent for the next most common lineage, XBB.1.16, according to the latest estimates from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CNN reported. The new variant is a spinoff of the XBB recombinant strain of the Omicron family. According to the WHO, all viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, change over time. Most changes have little to no impact on the virus's properties. However, some changes may affect the virus's properties, such as how easily it spreads, the associated disease severity, or the performance of vaccines, therapeutic medicines, diagnostic tools, or other public health and social measures. In June 2020, the WHO Virus Evolution Working Group was established with a specific focus on SARS-CoV-2 variants, their phenotype and their impact on countermeasures. This later became the Technical Advisory Group on SARS-CoV-2 Virus Evolution. In late 2020, the emergence of variants that posed an increased risk to global public health prompted WHO to characterize some as variants of interest (VOIs) and variants of concern (VOCs) to prioritize global monitoring and research and to inform and adjust the COVID-19 response. From May 2021 onwards, WHO began assigning simple, easy-to-say labels for key variants. Considerable progress has been made in establishing and strengthening a global system to detect signals of potential VOIs or VOCs and rapidly assess the risk posed by SARS-CoV-2 variants to public health. It remains critical that these systems are maintained, and data are shared, according to good principles and in a timely fashion, as SARS-CoV-2 continues to circulate at high levels around the world. While monitoring the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 globally, it also remains essential to monitor their spread in animal populations and chronically infected individuals, which are crucial aspects of the global strategy to reduce the occurrence of mutations that have negative public health implications. In March 2023, WHO updated its tracking system and working definitions for variants of concern, variants of interest and variants under monitoring, as per WHO. (ANI)

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