Maggie Koerth
Sr Science Reporter at @FiveThirtyEight. All I write about is COVID now. Follow for news, (hopefully) insightful analysis, and isolated parenting adventures.
Last synced from Twitter 1307d ago
Fear Of Voter Intimidation Is Its Own Voter Intimidation
None of the experts I spoke to thought it was a good idea to dismiss the risk of armed or threatening poll disruptors out of hand. But they did want to make sure that the media and the public were realistic about the concern.
How news outlets become misinformation superspreaders
How could America’s news outlets, our guardians of truth, be a big source of misinformation? Thomas E. Patterson explains.
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Maggie Koerth
Why does it matter to know the science behind countering misinformation?
How 'bout this? Journalists, making basic coms errors, were a bigger source of misinformation in 2016 than deliberate Russian scam bots.
journalistsresource.org/studies/societ… pic.twitter.com/a4pDytXlzR
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What A Summer Of COVID-19 Taught Scientists About Indoor vs. Outdoor Transmission
Here we are, almost eight months into this pandemic, and it’s like you can’t even invite more than 150 people to sit next to each other unmasked in your rose ga…
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Maggie Koerth
What did we learn from our pandemic summer?
1. Situation matters more than temperature.
It's getting colder now, but what matters is how that affects the way you live/interact, not so much the temperature itself.
132d
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Maggie Koerth
What did we learn from our pandemic summer?
2. Indoors is significantly riskier for transmission than outdoors.
And that includes situations where you're mostly outside but then a smaller group goes inside.
132d
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Maggie Koerth
Evidence suggests that damn near all COVID transmission happens indoors. This message brought to you by a generous grant from Big Firepit.
132d
Trump Doesn’t Know Why Crime Rises or Falls. Neither Does Biden. Or Any Other Politician.
The billboards started popping up around Minneapolis in June. “Uptown reels after gunfire, bloodshed.” “Multiple shootings in metro area overnight.” Referencing…
Feds say they thwarted militia plot to kidnap Whitmer
The alleged plot is described in federal court records obtained by The Detroit News on Thursday
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Maggie Koerth
As @ameliatd put it "there is not enough information in this article". More details that don't have to do with long-planned security upgrades at the governor's mansion are apparently coming later today.
143d
Many Americans Are Convinced Crime Is Rising In The U.S. They’re Wrong.
Will you get robbed this year? How would you rate your chances? Over 10 years, from 1994 to 2004, the national Survey of Economic Expectations asked respondents…
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Maggie Koerth
Previous installments in this series included:
Crime is up this year, but the longterm trend is downwards. And most Americans don't realize that.
143d
Take Negative COVID-19 Tests Seriously, But Not Literally
Kayleigh McEnany tested negative for COVID-19 last Thursday. She tested negative again on Friday. And on Saturday. And also on Sunday. But she wasn’t negative o…
Trump Is Giving Dangerous Advice. Being Afraid Of COVID-19 Has Helped Us Control COVID-19.
The president announced his own discharge from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Monday afternoon, tweeting: One phrase stood out: “Don’t be afraid o…
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Maggie Koerth
My colleague @KaleighRogers wrote a wonderful, thoughtful essay today about the value of healthy fear. You should be afraid of sticking your finger in a light socket. The fear stops you from making unsafe choices.
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FiveThirtyEight | Cotton Bureau
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Maggie Koerth
It has been a hard year. Don't you think you need a T-shirt of America's cutest cartoon fox statistician? @FiveyFox
cottonbureau.com/stores/fivethi… pic.twitter.com/Jlp7cIIBrI
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Rudy Giuliani Tests Positive For Slew Of Obscure Bat Diseases Unrelated To Covid-19
NEW YORK—After undergoing tests to rule out the possibility of coronavirus infection, sources close to Rudy Giuliani confirmed Friday that the attorney tested positive for several dozen obscure bat diseases completely unrelated to Covid-19. “As of...
IRS: Sorry, but It’s Just Easier and Cheaper to Audit the Poor — ProPublica
Congress asked the IRS to report on why it audits the poor more than the affluent. Its response is that it doesn’t have enough money and people to audit the wealthy properly. So it’s not going to.
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Maggie Koerth
Woke up thinking about this @propublica story. It’s just cheaper and easier to audit the not-rich.
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COVID-19 Science & Coverage: A free series for media and the public
In the leadup to ScienceWriters2020, the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing and the National Association of Science Writers will be offering a free, weekly series for members of the media and the public.
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Maggie Koerth
Y'all, I am very excited to moderate a panel on the politics of the pandemic, especially with this killer lineup: @marynmck, @TheAfiyaCtr, @PeterDaszak. Join us on Sept 30th at 5:00 eastern for what's bound to be a great conversation.
158d
How To Know When You Can Trust A COVID-19 Vaccine
If a COVID-19 vaccine went on the market before Election Day, Kamala Harris said she’s not sure she’d take it. And she’s not alone. In a recent poll, a majority…
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Maggie Koerth
How will you know when it's safe to take a COVID-19 vaccine? I talked to some experts who had a few helpful tips.
158d
The Sturgis Biker Rally Did Not Cause 266,796 Cases of COVID-19
The huge figure immediately hit the “confirmation bias” button in many people’s brains. But hold up.
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Maggie Koerth
But @drjenndowd breaks the problems with this study down in much better detail.
TLDR: Sturgis has caused a bunch of cases -- but not this many. We probably won't ever know the exact number. But, again, it's not this many.
170d
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Maggie Koerth
No, the Sturgis rally did not cause 19 percent of all the COVID cases in America. The study that claims that is not complete "fiction" (as the SD governor says), but it's also very, very unlikely to be accurate.
170d
Officials squash rumors of far right, far left setting fires
SEATTLE (AP) — Raging wildfires in the Pacific Northwest have fueled a barrage of false information this week as unsubstantiated social media posts blamed coordinated groups of arsonists from both
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Maggie Koerth
Rumors are spreading through Oregon that wildfires are being lit by antifa arsonists from Portland and/or Proud Boys. Neither of those things are true. State and county officials are debunking them and no one associated with either group has been arrested.
170d
Coronavirus Models Were Always About More Than Flattening The Curve
And that’s why they’re still useful.
Hundreds of Americans Planted 'Chinese Mystery Seeds'
What I learned by reading thousands of internal emails about the Chinese mystery seeds.
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Maggie Koerth
On a scale of "Called 911 on the Mystery Seeds" to "Ate Them", how would you say you respond to new and confusing situations?
172d
How Trump And COVID-19 Have Reshaped The Modern Militia Movement
In the video, the host of a local independent news radio program surveys the late-night shadows of a Kenosha, Wisconsin, car lot. You can just make out four men…
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Maggie Koerth
The researchers who study the militia movement told us that Trump and the pandemic are changing it in ways that could lead to more violence.
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Maggie Koerth
The militia movement in the 90s was very much anti-government and organized, like scouts. Today, it's increasingly disconnected individuals who might be against some parts of government, but are decidedly pro Trump. It's a dangerous shift.
177d
Protect KU
Protect KU - Together for the greater good
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Maggie Koerth
My alma mater has been testing students for COVID as they return to class and housing situations. Currently, students in the Greek system are 5x more likely to test positive than students at the university as a whole.
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Why It’s Still So Rare For Police Officers To Face Legal Consequences For Misconduct
On Friday, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was arrested and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter after he was caught …
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Maggie Koerth
Since 2005 only 110 law enforcement officers nationwide have been charged with murder or manslaughter in an on-duty shooting. 42 convicted. Police kill about 1000 people annually.
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