Common Steroid Could Be Cheap and Effective Treatment for Severe COVID-19

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June 17, 2020

Dear Reader, I'm sustainability editor Andrea Thompson, filling in for Sunya Bhutta. We've got a bevy of new stories today, including a look at why de-escalation training alone will not curb police violence, as well as a Q&A with experts about the latest news that a common steroid could help treat severe cases of COVID-19. On the coronavirus front, we also examine the explosion of cases across Latin American and how the pandemic collides with forest fires in the Amazon to endanger health.

Andrea Thompson, Associate Editor, Sustainability @AndreaTWeather

Behavior & Society Police Violence Calls for Measures beyond De-escalation Training Pairing the practice with greater accountability, better oversight of law enforcement and efforts to reimagine the role police play in communities could help reduce officers' use of force By Stacey McKenna

Medicine Common Steroid Could Be Cheap and Effective Treatment for Severe COVID-19 The results of a trial that found dexamethasone reduced the risk of death in extremely ill coronavirus patients have yet to be published, but some doctors are already embracing them By Tanya Lewis

Conservation Slimy Mudflat Biofilms Feed Migratory Birds--and Could Be Threatened The highly nutritious, shimmering goo is a vital source of energy for long-distance fliers By Paige Embry

Public Health Latin America Faces a Critical Moment in the Battle against COVID-19 A Pan American Health Organization public health expert shares his views on the outlook for the region, which has more than 1.5 million cases—and growing By Debbie Ponchner

Public Health COVID-19 and Amazon Fires Choke the Lungs of Brazilians--and the Planet Fine dust from the burning rain forest could exacerbate coronavirus infections amid signs that the blazes might be particularly severe in 2020 By Lars Fischer

Behavior & Society Pandemic-Related Gun Purchases Raise Suicide Risks But "red flag" laws can empower you to save a loved one's life By Chethan Sathya

Space Pluto Probe Offers Eye-Popping View of Neighboring Star Proxima Centauri NASA's New Horizons mission measures the distances of two stars from the outer reaches of the Solar System By Davide Castelvecchi,Nature magazine

Mental Health Mental Health after COVID-19 In the wake of the pandemic, there will be an even greater need for help in the face of loss, isolation and trauma By Sofia Noori,Isobel Rosenthal

Evolution Human Speech Evolution Gets Lip-Smacking Evidence A study of our closest evolutionary relatives finds that the chimp behavior known as lip smacking occurs in the same timing range as human mouths during speech. By Mark Stratton | 03:11

Behavior & Society From Dinosaurs to Disney, Children Take Cues from Adults on Real vs. Make-Believe Kids rated whether Santa Claus or the Wiggles actually exist in a test of cultural beliefs By Bret Stetka

Energy Futuristic Solar Plants Plagued by Glitches, Poor Training The rush to complete concentrating solar power projects led to multiple reliability problems By John Fialka,E&E News

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FROM THE ARCHIVE Skydiving Parachute Yank Is Comparable to Car Crash Originally published in January 1942 | June 2020

QUOTE OF THE DAY "Meat processing plants sit in this weird limbo where the USDA has some authority, but then the health department doesn't really regulate them. So there's this weird gap of who really has the power and authority to make any decisions to shut the plant down." Rachel Willard, county health director in Wilkesboro, N.C., ProPublica

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