Thread by @Ayjchan

I have a hunch that the lab leak hypothesis is going to really go mainstream this week.

So I hope that science communicators will take it up on themselves to help the public process this information in a rational and non-alarmist way.

https://twitter.com/ayjchan/status/1374108473571557377

I’m hoping that most of the discussion going forward will be about how we can mitigate the risk of lab pathogen pandemics and quickly trace the origins of future outbreaks.

As opposed to “look at all the racists and conspiracists who said covid-19 came from a lab.”

If scientists & science communicators don’t fulfil this essential role of explaining how pandemics can emerge from various types of research activities, it’s a guarantee that less informed people will.

You can’t not do the work and then complain less qualified people did it.

Is it true that wildlife trafficking and habitat destruction are driving the emergence of novel pathogens?

Absolutely.

Is it also plausible that research activities could be exposing humans to novel pathogens, which can hitch a ride to cities?

https://twitter.com/Ayjchan/status/1369644713393917952

This thread may also be useful to journalists and science communicators who haven't been able to believe that COVID-19 could have originated from lab/research activities.

https://twitter.com/Ayjchan/status/1371181375668248577

And this table showing that there is the same type of evidence for lab origins as there is for natural origins:

https://twitter.com/Ayjchan/status/1363527530821660674