Philipp Markolin Profile picture
Apr 4 7 tweets 9 min read Twitter logo Read on Twitter
My talk at @fiocruz about the #lableak theory and the rise of #information pathogens is now freely available.

Thanks @cmmorel and @KropfSimone for this wonderful event.

Here is the youtube link to the full video with time stamps for easy accessibility:
@fiocruz @cmmorel @KropfSimone Here are some more highlights from the talk:

First: How do scientists deal with uncertainty and how can this help us inform ourselves about the most likely
#originofcovid ?

It comes down to asking P(Evidence|Hypothesis):
@fiocruz @cmmorel @KropfSimone Second:
What is the state of evidence (now in 2023) for a #zoonotic origin of SARS-CoV-2 versus a #lableak ?

If you don't have the time, energy or interest to watch the whole talk, here are some take away summaries:
@fiocruz @cmmorel @KropfSimone Third:
How does the #attention economy and #influencers treat information?

Why might this be problematic for science and society?
@fiocruz @cmmorel @KropfSimone Fourth:
Some very interesting questions in the Q&A section.

Why do our current institutions lose trust what does our information sphere have to do with it? Is this a problem for democracy?
@fiocruz @cmmorel @KropfSimone Fifth:
Another one from a science journalist in the audience:

Question: Should science communicators do velocity hacking and use the same tactics as influencers and media manipulators to compete in the current environment?
@fiocruz @cmmorel @KropfSimone Lastly, a surprise question from @PeterDaszak who had dialed in to the broadcast.

Question: What is the single most important thing scientists should do in your opinion?

... like hell I know. Here I give it my best shot:

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More from @PhilippMarkolin

Apr 2
Fascinated by the dispute around #theoriginofcovid ?

I was invited to give a talk at Fiocruz. The event takes place in Rio de Janeiro, starting at 12:30 EDT / 5:30 pm CEST and, and will be broadcast via Zoom.

Access link can be found here tomorrow: coc.fiocruz.br/index.php/pt/t… Image
Still working on the presentation (also, my luggage did not make it... thanks airfrance), but this will be the approximate outline of the talk: Image
There will be a Q&A and discussion following up; and one gets a chance to see me being uncomfortable being the one interviewed rather than the other way around. 😅

Please join via zoom on Monday if you are interested.
Read 5 tweets
Mar 21
WARNING:
There are new pathogens in our midst.

My latest article about media #manipulators, velocity #hacking, and the latest Covid origin #controversy.

Maybe some #mainstream journalists & influencers take a good look in the mirror.

Read:
protagonistfuture.substack.com/p/the-rise-of-… Image
How much should we think about the role of information in society?

In this article, I use the recent media coverage surrounding #lableak versus #zoonosis to point toward a new threat we have not yet wrapped our heads around:

Information pathogens with high #velocity. Image
#Velocity is a metric for the transmission efficacy of information given a particular content payload, its viral packaging, and its host environment.

Basically the R0 of information, a measure of #contagiousness.

Info pathogens with high velocity outcompetes good information. Image
Read 11 tweets
Mar 16
🚨🚨🚨 NEW EVIDENCE #zoonosis
Chinese researchers (who have had troubles getting data out) finally managed to sneak upload full #sequencing data from environmental swaps at Huanan market.

Show: Co-occurance of #animal sequences with SARS-CoV-2 RNA

Added to the evidence map 🔽
@KatherineJWu 's atlantic article first reported on this new development.

(independent reseachers have been waiting on these data to come out for over a year)

I will give some context in the next few tweets:
theatlantic.com/science/archiv…
1⃣ Does this prove that SARS-CoV-2 came from racoon dogs?

Not definitively. Co-occurance of sequences could be from chance contamination in theory. Also, even if racoon dogs were indeed infected, they might just have been amplifiers at market, not the original source.

BUT...
Read 8 tweets
Mar 16
🚨🚨🚨 @KatherineJWu first to get this scoop down.

The Chinese CDC finally uploaded market sampling data, and as expected, environmental swaps positive for SARS-CoV-2 point to raccoon dogs.

Yet another strong piece of evidence for #zoonotic origin & against any #lableak myth
@KatherineJWu Just to add a bit of context:

Environmental swaps were taken from the Huanan market, and that many of them tested positive was already confirmed a year ago in a pre-print from researchers at the Chinese CDC.

However, they did not make their sequencing data available and...
@KatherineJWu ...thus had trouble getting their pre-print accepted.

It now appears that in order to get the paper published (speculation!), one of the researchers uploaded the sequences, and voila, they contained exactly what people like @edwardcholmes @MichaelWorobey expected; animal DNA/RNA
Read 4 tweets
Mar 14
The incompetence US media machine is scary.
There is nothing in this article but speculation, started again by some republican stuffer document drop, no evidence of wrongdoing, but careful phrasing to obfuscate. "Somebody said they maybe found evidence of potential doublebilling" Image
When exactly became it okay to just run with made up stories? Just because two completely different projects sometimes require spending on similar lab gear, materials or training does not mean anything was double billed. That's just ignorance about scientific work, everything...
looks like a wash for amateurs who fundamentally do not understand what goes into a research project.

It is scary how predictable these false sensationalist media stories are. It is literally #2 down here ⬇️ Image
Read 8 tweets
Mar 1
NEW EXCLUSIVE from me:

#Denounce, #deny, #deceive - 6 common tactics of media manipulators and why they work to sabotage public discourse

Read:
protagonistfuture.substack.com/p/denounce-den…
It is time to stop being naive about online discourse.

“The discourse holds so many traps for the unwary. It’s a bit like financial scams and gambling that are a tax on the financially naïve. A similar tax is being levied on the intellectually naïve.” —  @ArthurCDent

1/
@ArthurCDent In the article, I lay out 6 common #manipulation tactics and why they work to sabotage discourse on scientific topics.

First up is "just asking questions" or "#sealioning", which uses social expectations and #framing effects to distort conversations.

2/
Read 12 tweets

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