lab leak theory Concepts

Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World

by Naomi Klein · 11 Sep 2023

if it was yet another example of humans overstressing nature and getting bitten on the ass for it. Then, as time went on, and the “lab leak theory” became a key talking point from people like Wolf and Bannon in the Mirror World, where it was mixed with baseless claims about bioweapons, along

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Influencing Trump Associates, Report Says,” March 16, 2021; Elaine Sciolino, “U.S. to Back Yeltsin If He Suspends Congress,” New York Times, March 13, 1993. “lab leak theory”: Rob Kuznia et al., “Weird Science: How a ‘Shoddy’ Bannon-Backed Paper on Coronavirus Origins Made Its Way to an Audience of Millions,” CNN Politics

The Singularity Is Nearer: When We Merge with AI

by Ray Kurzweil · 25 Jun 2024

-19 virus might have been accidentally released after genetic engineering research in a lab.[38] Because there has been a great deal of misinformation surrounding lab-leak theories, it is important to base our inferences on high-quality scientific sources. Yet the possibility itself underscores a real danger: it could have been far

Other Pandemic: How QAnon Contaminated the World

by James Ball · 19 Jul 2023 · 317pp · 87,048 words

writing, entirely certain that Covid-19 emerged from an animal reservoir, but researchers suspect that the virus may have emerged from bat populations. Even the ‘lab leak’ theory, which argues that the disease may have escaped from an infectious disease facility in Wuhan, doesn’t rule out the pathogen having originated in animals

These Strange New Minds: How AI Learned to Talk and What It Means

by Christopher Summerfield · 11 Mar 2025 · 412pp · 122,298 words

eyes at another ludicrous conspiracy falling from Trump’s erratic lips. But over subsequent months, growing doubts emerged about the zoonotic origin story, and the lab-leak theory has now been endorsed by the director of the FBI, and described as ‘probable’ by a US Energy Department investigation. The line between truth and

Rigged: How the Media, Big Tech, and the Democrats Seized Our Elections

by Mollie Hemingway · 11 Oct 2021 · 595pp · 143,394 words

leaked the virus was shut down. But by May 2021, Biden announced with great fanfare he was ordering America’s intelligence agencies to investigate the lab leak theory. The same day Biden relaunched the investigation, Facebook announced it would no longer censor posts discussing whether the COVID-19 virus leaked from a lab

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of the New York Times reporters on the COVID beat, was not happy the truth was coming out. “Someday we will stop talking about the lab leak theory and maybe admit its racist roots. But alas, that day is not yet here,” she tweeted that same week Karl begrudgingly credited Trump. The final

Uncontrolled Spread: Why COVID-19 Crushed Us and How We Can Defeat the Next Pandemic

by Scott Gottlieb · 20 Sep 2021

with a live strain of the virus to test an experimental vaccine. This H1N1 strain (and its descendants) have circulated globally ever since.70 The lab leak theory has important strategic implications, and the possibility that SARS-CoV-2 accidentally escaped shouldn’t be easily dismissed. The probability, even if it’s judged

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, despite an extensive effort, no such animal population has been identified for SARS-CoV-2. As the Wall Street Journal’s Holman Jenkins observed, the lab leak theory might appear, at first blush, less plausible than a natural origin, unless you were to assemble the world’s largest repository of dangerous coronaviruses in

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its way to the WIV had been first collected—perhaps from the sick pangolins or some other animal host. Fully assessing the veracity of the lab leak theory, and not dismissing these potential risks prematurely, has important strategic implications for other reasons. Establishing the odds that a lab might have been a link

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of the Atomic Scientists, May 1, 2020. 53.Reference to Josh Rogin, Chaos Under Heaven, (New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021). 54.Katherine Eban, “The Lab-Leak Theory: Inside the Fight to Uncover COVID-19’s Origins,” Vanity Fair, June 3, 2021. 55.Natasha Loder, interview with Peter Daszak and Filippa Lentzos. 56

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al., “Pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 in Transgenic Mice Expressing Human Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2,” Cell 182, no. 1 (2020): 50-8; and Eban, “The Lab-Leak Theory: Inside the Fight to Uncover COVID-19’s Origins.” 60.US National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health, “Understanding

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, 67–68, 245, 384–86, 388, 466–67n BEI Resources, 419–20n Beta coronaviruses, 36, 361 BGI Genomics, 29 Biden, Joe (Biden administration), 233, 383 lab leak theory, 362–63 testing, 429n vaccines, 317, 347, 392–93 Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 62, 283 BinaxNOW, 141, 142, 382 BioCentury, 310 Biofire Respiratory Pathogen

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, 370–71, 379 first cases, 26–27, 39–40 genetic sequencing, 27–28, 29–30, 33–34, 35–37, 53–54 initial reporting, 14–15 lab leak theory, 354–65, 379, 461n Wuhan’s Huanan Seafood Market, 15, 26–27, 31, 34–35, 37, 48–49, 70, 373, 406n China National Health Commission

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, 173 Kyungpook National University’s Chilgok Hospital, 259 LabCorp (Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings), 73, 125, 127–28, 151, 166–67, 216–17, 271, 319 Lab leak theory, 354–65, 379, 461n, 462n Laboratory developed tests (LDTs), 125–28, 133, 140, 420n Laboratory Response Network, 166, 270–71 Labor costs, 156–57 Lab

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National reference labs, 272–73 National Review, 244 National security, 8, 52–55, 57, 285 disease surveillance, 377–80 intelligence community, 346–49, 366–70 lab leak theory, 354–65, 379, 461n new doctrine for, 341–80 sequencing data, 371–77 National Security Agency (NSA), 368 National Security Council (NSC), 16, 59, 348

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sequencing, 36–37 H5N1 bird flu outbreak, 179 initial reporting, 15 International Health Regulations, 32–33, 37–38, 51, 182, 344, 350–51, 352, 393 lab leak theory, 357, 362–63 MERS outbreak, 257, 281, 344 Public Health Emergency of International Concern, 32–33, 42–44, 100, 344 reporting requirements, 32–34, 37

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Central Hospital, 26, 27, 30–31, 42 Wuhan Eleventh Hospital, 26–27 Wuhan Health Commission, 32, 34 Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), 35, 401–2n lab leak theory, 354–65, 379, 461n Wuhan outbreak, 14–15, 17–22, 26–27, 29–36, 41–43, 47–50, 56, 58, 87–88, 174, 370–71

In Covid's Wake: How Our Politics Failed Us

by Stephen Macedo and Frances Lee · 10 Mar 2025 · 393pp · 146,371 words

from a Chinese laboratory where it had possibly been engineered as a part of gain-of-function research, which we explain below. Proponents of the “lab leak” theory were castigated as conspiracy theorists and racists, but the risk of such a lab leak had long been known—and feared—before Covid. Moreover, high

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years old should be required to wear masks all day long. Polarization of views on masks followed the same trajectory as with views about the lab leak theory. It soon became an article of faith among some Americans that mask wearing and mandates requiring it w ere key to fighting the spread of

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Covid. Other Americans came to see the wearing of masks 204 chapter 7 as merely a form of virtue signaling. But, as with the lab leak theory, the evidence that masking the general population reduces the spread of an airborne virus was and remains inconclusive. The rancor of the debate obscures the

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equivocal nature of the facts. In the case of both the lab leak theory and the effectiveness of mask mandates, there was much more room for reasonable disagreement, and need for democratic debate, than p olitical conditions allowed

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experts, to weigh competing perspectives appropriately, as we w ill see. The nature of these failures offers lessons for the next crisis. As concerns the lab leak theory, truth-seeking institutions, particularly news o rganizations and science journals, paid too l ittle attention to the political motivations and conflicts of interest among scientists

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near an institute researching just those kinds of viruses would be an astonishing coincidence. For reasons that we w ill detail in this chapter, the lab leak theory is more than a bare possibility. The facts suggest that scientists Sci e nce Be n ds to Pol it ics 205 at the Institute

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must be proved “beyond reasonable doubt”—the standard of proof required in criminal trials. Fouchier placed a heavy burden of proof on proponents of the lab leak theory, in effect establishing a presumption in favor of the natural origin hypothesis. This was an odd move for a scientist to make, given that

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serious accusation—or maybe even a plain statement of the facts. W hatever this is, it is not science. The felt imperative to disprove the lab leak theory was not based on the scientists’ subject m atter expertise, but rather on their judgments about the political needs of the moment. But consequences were

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(that’s how this got started), but unfortunately it’s just not pos sible given the data.”49 Andersen h ere admitted that the lab leak theory could not be disproved but that the impetus for “Proximal Origin” had been the desire to disprove it. W hatever else it was, the

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lab leak theory was not a conspiracy theory, to be “dismissed out of hand.” Nevertheless, “Proximal Origin” declared in its second paragraph, “Our analysis clearly shows that

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have judged that the Chinese government would refuse to cooperate further in the wake of such accusations. If they thought that helping to suppress the lab leak theory would secure Chinese cooperation, however, they w ere wrong. One may agree (even agree strongly) with these scientists’ judgments. These were not, however, scientific judgments

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voters in the midst of the crisis—and lost the election. Dr. Fauci retired to media acclaim—from the same news outlets that stigmatized the lab leak theory as a conspiracy theory and that have not yet (as this book goes to press) adequately investigated the question or their own previous handling of

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York Times reported on October 18, 2023, that the ongoing debate about the Covid Sci e nce Be n ds to Pol it ics 227 lab leak theory has stalled gain-of-f unction research by virologists. While the article reports both sides, it clearly sympathizes with the scientists whose gain-of-function

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serious illness” and that can potentially spread globally need serious public scrutiny, regardless of the origins of Covid. As for the origins of Covid, the lab leak theory can no longer be considered fringe or a “conspiracy theory.” It can no longer be dismissed as “steeped in racist stereotypes,” as claimed repeatedly by

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policies warned of the costs of school closures and economic lockdowns and were too often censored and treated with contempt. As the history of the lab leak theory makes clear, the scientists advising high-level policymakers are no more angels than the policymakers themselves. Scientists can be united by a common interest, just

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in difficult circumstances—were mixed with conflicts of interest and the desire to avoid blame, protect reputations, and preserve personal privilege and institutional power. The Lab Leak Theory Revisited “Tony and I are friends, but we don’t agree on this at all,” said Dr. Robert Redfield, former director of the Centers for

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, 23. 37. Select Subcommittee Interim Report, 23–24, fnn. 85–86. 38. Farrar and Anuja, Spike, 51–52. 39. Shane Harris and Yasmeen Abutaleb, “Coronavirus ‘Lab Leak’ Theory Jumps from Mocked to Maybe as Biden O rders Intelligence Review,” Washington Post, May 28, 2021, https:// www. washingtonpost. com/ national- security/ wuhan- l ab

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/covid-19-origins/how-fauci-scientists-with-wuhan-ties-persuaded-covid-natural-origin/. 59. “Dr. Fauci on COVID Lab Leak Theory: Cuomo,” video, NewsNation, March 14, 2023, https://www.newsnationnow.com/video/dr-fauci-on-covid-lab-leak-theory%c2%a0-cuomo /8472446/. 60. This paragraph draws on Megan K. Stack’s excellent article “Dr. Fauci

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,” Nature, May 1, 2024, https://www.nature .com/articles/d41586-024-01305-z. 50. Benjamin Mueller, “Republicans Step Up Attacks on Scientist at Heart of Lab Leak Theory,” New York Times, May 1, 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/01/science/covid -lab-leak-ecohealth-nih.html. 51. Anthony Fauci on CBS

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, “How the Covid Lab Leak Became the American Public’s Predominant Theory,” Washington Post, March 16, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/03 /16/lab-leak-theory-polling/. 61. Brian Kennedy and Alec Tyson, “Americans’ Trust in Scientists, Positive Views of Science Continue to Decline: Among Both D emocrats and Republicans, Trust

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), 42–43 American Enterprise Institute (AEI), 11, 76, 78, 318n131 Anderberg, Johan, 87, 115 Andersen, Kristian, 210–17, 219, 258; Fauci and, 212–13, 224; lab leak theory and, 222, 224–26, 259–60 Anderson, Jeffrey H., 240 Annas, George J., 43 anthrax, 206 anti-vaxxers. See vaccination artificial intelligence, 6 Atlas, Scott

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Collins, Francis, 1, 16–17, 99, 103, 257; on Bhattacharya, 121; on gain-of-function research, 206, 208–9, 213–14, 218, 226, 258; on lab leak theory, 261–63; on “noble lies,” 278; on “public health mindset,” 289 Community Strategy (CDC), 36–37, 44, 47, 48 comorbidities, 111, 116, 297 Congleton, Roger

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–26, 225–26, 231–32 Cuomo, Andrew, 23, 164 Cuomo, Chris, 220 i n de x Dasgupta, Shamik, 132, 303n33 Daszak, Peter, 24, 228, 270; lab leak theory and, 219–23, 226, 260 Dean, Charity, 82 Declaration of Independence, 320n11 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), 221 Delta variant, 139–40, 139

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Control, 246 Ewing, Andrew, 88–89 excess morbidity/mortality rates, 90–91, 95, 142, 172 Fallon, Jimmy, 70 Farrar, Jeremy, 209–11, 213–14, 225; lab leak theory and, 259, 260, 262 Farzan, Mike, 211 Fauci, Anthony, 24, 82, 202–6; Andersen and, 212–13, 224; Atlas and, 117, 324n83; on closures, 127

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mortality, 47–48; on economic impacts, 166; on gain-of- function research, 202, 206–8, 218, 226, 258; on herd immunity, 99, 106–7, 324n83; lab leak theory and, 219–20, 224–26, 257–58, 261–63; on masks, 234, 239; NIH budget and, 212; On Call, 208; on P3CO regulations, 347n15; on

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, 360n63 Katz, David, 72, 96 Kemp, Brian, 147 Klein, Ezra, 78–81 Kopp, Emily, 348n31, 349n32, 350n41, 351n73 Kulldorff, Martin, 94, 96, 100, 118, 280 lab leak theory, 203–6, 212–32, 256–64; Andersen on, 222, 224–25; Fauci on, 219–20, 224–25, 257–58; Redfield on, 256–57, 259 Lane

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Ramachandran, Raja, 88 Rambaut, Andrew, 214–15, 222 Rasmussen, Angela L., 229 Rauch, Jonathan, 77–78 Redfield, Robert, 62, 117, 166; Helmuth on, 261; on lab leak theory, 256–57, 259, 262; Thacker and, 256, 356n7 Relman, David, 228 risk assessment, 111, 145, 169–70; comorbidities and, 116; intergenerational, 14–15, 18, 23

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; on border closures, 50, 176; on China’s Covid model, 50, 52–62; ethical concerns of, 175–76, 190–91; on herd immunity, 108; on lab leak theory, 228–29; on masks, 235, 237, 246, 247; on NPIs, 20–21, 29–30, 53–58, 187, 245; on quarantine, 29, 30, 50, 176 World