Chat message

Slack / Private Message Drop, p.721 [SLACK_000935] · slack_pm:msg:07569

Date: 2021-04-21 08:01
Type: chat message · slack
recipient: Robert F. Garry, Edward C. Holmes, Andrew Rambaut
speaker: Kristian G. Andersen
Topics: Lab-leak / accidental release hypothesis

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I'm surprised it took them so long to speculate about lab origins of the variants. Way more likely (but still highly unlikely...) than the initial spillover.

In context

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2021-04-21 07:57 Robert F. Garry open

DRASTIC thinks NellY was a mouse mutation engineered into circulating SC2 by the CCP army to take out the UK. That theory is based on https://science.sciencemag.org/content/369/6511/1603.full
2021-04-21 08:01 Kristian G. Andersen

I'm surprised it took them so long to speculate about lab origins of the variants. Way more likely (but still highly unlikely...) than the initial spillover.
2021-04-21 08:10 Andrew Rambaut open

Yes. They waited for an imported case from London, engineered in all the mutations and then shipped it back to Kent to release it.
2021-04-21 08:10 Andrew Rambaut open

Probably in a dog
2021-04-21 08:13 Robert F. Garry open

Maybe even a special genetically-engineered Superdog? That Trump era intel really needs to be released ASAP.
2021-04-21 08:17 Robert F. Garry open

OTOH - it's perhaps not _too_ crazy to think that SC2 could find it's way into and get established in other perhaps high density species. Low hanging fruit - shutting down mink farming seems prudent.

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