Viral: The Search for the Origin of Covid-19
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- Create Date：2023-03-03 06:59:30
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Alina Chan
- ISBN：0008487502
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
"Chan and Ridley write with an urgency。。。that inspires gripping depictions of what viruses are， how infectious-disease laboratories work and wonderfully lucid descriptions of bats。 。 。 。 They powerfully recount how dangerous pathogens can both leak from a lab and emerge in nature。" （New York Times Book Review）
Understanding how Covid-19 started is crucial for the future of humankind。 Viral is the most incisive and authoritative book about the search for the source of the virus。
A new virus descended on the human species in 2019 wreaking unprecedented havoc。 Finding out where it came from and how it first jumped into people is an urgent priority， but early expectations that this would prove an easy question to answer have been dashed。 Nearly two years into the pandemic， the crucial mystery of the origin of SARS-CoV-2 is not only unresolved but has deepened。
In this uniquely insightful book， a scientist and a writer join forces to try to get to the bottom of how a virus whose closest relations live in bats in subtropical southern China somehow managed to begin spreading among people more than 1，500 kilometres away in the city of Wuhan。 They grapple with the baffling fact that the virus left none of the expected traces that such outbreaks usually create: no infected market animals or wildlife， no chains of early cases in travellers to the city， no smouldering epidemic in a rural area， no rapid adaptation of the virus to its new host--human beings。
To try to solve this pressing mystery， Viral delves deep into the events of 2019 leading up to 2021， the details of what went on in animal markets and virology laboratories， the records and data hidden from sight within archived Chinese theses and websites， and the clues that can be coaxed from the very text of the virus's own genetic code。
The result is a gripping detective story that takes the reader deeper and deeper into a metaphorical cave of mystery。 One by one the authors explore promising tunnels only to show that they are blind alleys， until， miles beneath the surface， they find themselves tantalisingly close to a shaft that leads to the light。
Understanding how Covid-19 started is crucial for the future of humankind。 Viral is the most incisive and authoritative book about the search for the source of the virus。
A new virus descended on the human species in 2019 wreaking unprecedented havoc。 Finding out where it came from and how it first jumped into people is an urgent priority， but early expectations that this would prove an easy question to answer have been dashed。 Nearly two years into the pandemic， the crucial mystery of the origin of SARS-CoV-2 is not only unresolved but has deepened。
In this uniquely insightful book， a scientist and a writer join forces to try to get to the bottom of how a virus whose closest relations live in bats in subtropical southern China somehow managed to begin spreading among people more than 1，500 kilometres away in the city of Wuhan。 They grapple with the baffling fact that the virus left none of the expected traces that such outbreaks usually create: no infected market animals or wildlife， no chains of early cases in travellers to the city， no smouldering epidemic in a rural area， no rapid adaptation of the virus to its new host--human beings。
To try to solve this pressing mystery， Viral delves deep into the events of 2019 leading up to 2021， the details of what went on in animal markets and virology laboratories， the records and data hidden from sight within archived Chinese theses and websites， and the clues that can be coaxed from the very text of the virus's own genetic code。
The result is a gripping detective story that takes the reader deeper and deeper into a metaphorical cave of mystery。 One by one the authors explore promising tunnels only to show that they are blind alleys， until， miles beneath the surface， they find themselves tantalisingly close to a shaft that leads to the light。
Reviews
Miki Herscovici
，
This is a well written description of the search for the origins of Covid-19。 In the end， the authors are leaning towards the lab origin hypothesis， although they are very careful in stating that there's not enough evidence either way。 It's fascinating to read how this topic， which has very serious implication on world health and how we prevent and deal with future pandemics， has instantly （from the very beginning of the pandemic） become politicized， and how this made finding the true answer （wi This is a well written description of the search for the origins of Covid-19。 In the end， the authors are leaning towards the lab origin hypothesis， although they are very careful in stating that there's not enough evidence either way。 It's fascinating to read how this topic， which has very serious implication on world health and how we prevent and deal with future pandemics， has instantly （from the very beginning of the pandemic） become politicized， and how this made finding the true answer （with certainty） almost impossible。 It's also a （yet another） very interesting example in which non-professional "sleuths"， as Ridley calls them， helped make what was initially almost a conspiracy theory into mainstream one， by just pouring over data and making sense of it。 。。。more
Moosemom
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I read the hardcover edition available from the library， not the Kindle edition。
Paola D
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Eye-opening， educational， warning tale
Jonathan Den Hartog
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An absolute must-read to understand COVID-19。 Clear， effective science writing that has huge public policy implications。 Would urge all American citizens to read and consider this evidence。
Hugh Wheaton
，
Good overview of the records of the events of WHO， the EcoHealth Alliance， and the Chinese government in their suspicious and inadequate handling of the search for the origin of COVID-19， and their clear attempts to muddy the waters。 Leaves a relatively clear depiction of the available information regarding the likely origins of the virus and just how uncertain we still are as to what happened。
Anthony O'Connor
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A very detailed piece of reporting leading inexorably to some sobering conclusions。To detailed at times （ not an easy read） but the author， unlike so many others， is fully committed to getting the truth out there。Will the true villains in all of this ever be held to account？ Probably not。 Which if you think about it is truly extraordinary。
Clivemichael
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Well presented: Civilized human folly runs amok。 An excellent dive searching for truth。 References and opinions
Charlie Edwards
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One of those books that makes you think。 There's no smoking gun pointing to a lab leak， but my word there are mountains of coincidences， dodgy goings-on and cover-ups， and the behaviour of the Chinese regime from the start of the pandemic （and indeed just before it） has been highly， highly suspicious。 A fantastic and necessary book。 The scientific method should be followed to the letter， no matter where it may lead。 One of those books that makes you think。 There's no smoking gun pointing to a lab leak， but my word there are mountains of coincidences， dodgy goings-on and cover-ups， and the behaviour of the Chinese regime from the start of the pandemic （and indeed just before it） has been highly， highly suspicious。 A fantastic and necessary book。 The scientific method should be followed to the letter， no matter where it may lead。 。。。more
Markus
，
The underlying principle of science is the free flow of information without centralized authorities decreeing what the truth is。 The argument of a so called scientific consensus that is touted around these days on whatever topic is an attempt to control and direct this flow of information。 Whatever the motivation， the world will drift further from the truth。This all relates to leftist media touting everything other than official Chinese Communist Party’s （CCP） propaganda of the virus origins as The underlying principle of science is the free flow of information without centralized authorities decreeing what the truth is。 The argument of a so called scientific consensus that is touted around these days on whatever topic is an attempt to control and direct this flow of information。 Whatever the motivation， the world will drift further from the truth。This all relates to leftist media touting everything other than official Chinese Communist Party’s （CCP） propaganda of the virus origins as conspiracy theories and， of course， using the “scientific consensus” line。 Similarities with another hot global topic？ Anyway， as more facts emerged that couldn’t be ignored， New York Times， Vox， Washington Post， Politifact among others would subtly alter their articles about COVID-19 origin to gradually distance themselves from the CCP’s storyline。 Not to mention the WHO delaying the declaring an international emergency until 30 of January 2020 and a global pandemic until 11 of March 2020 on the back of Chinese lobbying。So far the story is as follows。 Chinese scientists in the Wuhan Institute of Virology （WIV） were studying sarbecoviruses very similar to SARS-COV-2 from as early as 2012， when 6 men from a mine in Mojang were hospitalized with a suspected bat virus。 8 sarbecoviruses are found from the Mojang mine by the WIV in 2015。 The leading scientist of the WIV， dr Shi， publishes a paper in 2015 manipulating the furin cleavage site of MERS and MERS-like spike genes and co-authors a paper on creating a chimeric sarbecovirus with a spike gene from a bat virus。This same S1/S2 furin cleavage site in the spike gene of SARS-CoV-2 will be the unique part of the virus that will be crucial in making it more infectious。 Bear in mind that no other sarbecovirus has one， including all of SARS-CoV-2’s closest relatives and the dozens of other SARS-like viruses collected from bats。 Furthermore， dr Shi of WIV in his early papers describing the novel SARS-COV-2 virus manages to completely ignore the furin cleavage site as if it didn’t exist while being the most unique part of the virus。 It’s as if someone found a unicorn and dr Shi describing the properties of the animal accurately and in detail like a regular horse and failing to mention that it has horn on its head。Moving on， in 2017 dr Shi reports the creation of 8 recombinant bat sarbecoviruses and in 2018 the full genome of RaTG12 is published， which will be the closest known relative to the SARS-COV-2 virus along with the other 8 viruses studied in the WIV。 In September of 2019 the extensive pathogen database of WIV will be taken offline with dubious excuses of dangers of hacking。 Later in the same year， Dr Peter Daszak， a close collaborator with WIV and dr Shi， describes progress with finding 100 novel sarbecoviruses; some that can infect human cells and humanised mice in the laboratory。 Covid-19/SARS-CoV-2 is first detected in Wuhan in late 2019。So essentially the closest known relatives of SARS-COV-2 were studies for years before the pandemic and gain-of-function experiments were performed on them， specifically with the furin cleavage site of the spike gene of the virus。 This same site had successfully been manipulated in the past to enhance the virulence of MERS-like viruses。 As for the Mojang mine， it was closed off and heavily guarded to this day by the Chinese government， with no possible access by any journalist or anyone else for that matter。 The Wuhan wet animal market was swabbed for viruses and no source for the SARS-COV-2 was found。 No other source for the SARS-COV-2 infection has been found in nature。The gain-of-function research in the WIV with SARS-like viruses that had pandemic potential has been confirmed by several leaks in the recent years。 Keep in mind that all the information contrary to Chinese propaganda came largely from independent researchers who tirelessly combed through endless databases and documents to arrive at the truth。 While the information we have now is not conclusive evidence and still a proper investigation is required， it still points very clearly to lab origins of the virus and the burden of evidence is on the other side， trying to prove natural origins of the virus。 In the end， we must remember that true science is the free flow of information， the ability of an individual to have enough imagination to doubt the official narratives that are backed by nothing other than “because we say so”。 。。。more
Dawn
，
I thought this book was really interesting。 I have been shocked at peoples lack of desire to find out where covid came from。 It pretty much ruined everyone's lives for 3 years and yet we still don't know what happened， who was responsible and how we avoid it ever happening again。 I personally think it was a lab leak and I think these authors are also leaning that way but they don't discount the possible of natural causes。 They provide a lot of proof， a lot of questions and I a lot of frustration I thought this book was really interesting。 I have been shocked at peoples lack of desire to find out where covid came from。 It pretty much ruined everyone's lives for 3 years and yet we still don't know what happened， who was responsible and how we avoid it ever happening again。 I personally think it was a lab leak and I think these authors are also leaning that way but they don't discount the possible of natural causes。 They provide a lot of proof， a lot of questions and I a lot of frustration with the scientific community。 I thought it was a well reasoned summary of a horrible event that we all got to experience。 。。。more
Bart Van Bos
，
We've never seen the Icarus story as a lesson about the limitations of humans。 We see it as a lesson about the limitations of wax as an adhesive。 We've never seen the Icarus story as a lesson about the limitations of humans。 We see it as a lesson about the limitations of wax as an adhesive。 。。。more
Camilla
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I really enjoyed this book because it provided an overview of the history of events leading up to and through the 2020 pandemic。 There was no smoking gun that the authors could use to point to the origin of Covid-19， so they followed the evidence to draw up two separate possible causes and allowed the readers to have the best information possible for a mystery that is yet to be solved。 Based on the bad acting and obfuscation of China since the beginning of the outbreak， we are very unlikely to e I really enjoyed this book because it provided an overview of the history of events leading up to and through the 2020 pandemic。 There was no smoking gun that the authors could use to point to the origin of Covid-19， so they followed the evidence to draw up two separate possible causes and allowed the readers to have the best information possible for a mystery that is yet to be solved。 Based on the bad acting and obfuscation of China since the beginning of the outbreak， we are very unlikely to ever fully understand how this new virus truly began。 。。。more
R。
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This is an important book that investigates theories for the origin of the COVID-19 virus。 I read the hardcover version。 The recently published paperback will extend beyond the hardcover publication in the fall of 2021。Contrary to the initial branding of lab leak as a fringe conspiracy theory， many have come around to considering it viable。 There is no conclusive evidence either for lab leak or natural spillover。 There may never be。 Yet there is the stink of a cover up by Chinese authorities abe This is an important book that investigates theories for the origin of the COVID-19 virus。 I read the hardcover version。 The recently published paperback will extend beyond the hardcover publication in the fall of 2021。Contrary to the initial branding of lab leak as a fringe conspiracy theory， many have come around to considering it viable。 There is no conclusive evidence either for lab leak or natural spillover。 There may never be。 Yet there is the stink of a cover up by Chinese authorities abetted by many others （see the final 2 pages of the hardcover edition）。For those of us who have lost loved ones due to direct COVID infection or from missed medical care for other issues due to the lockdowns and the havoc， the truth must be pursued。 This will happen again。 What gets done or does not get done to bring out the COVID-19 truth and provide safeguards will determine what happens then。 。。。more
Jack
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Really interesting book about the origins of COVID。
Mike Green
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This book is the long/technical version of Jon Stewar’s outbreak of chocolatey in Hershey PA。
Joshua
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Nice coverage of the data。 Likely emergence from Wuhan lab。
Scott
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A good mostly neutral recap of all the evidence unearthed so far about Covid-19s origin。 If you’ve already been following along in news， chances are you may know most of the information， but I appreciated the way this book puts it all together in summary。In the end， it seems pretty obvious the authors feel there is strong（er） evidence of lab leak due to accident given that these scientists were working on similar coronaviruses & were genetically manipulating them to help study and discover poten A good mostly neutral recap of all the evidence unearthed so far about Covid-19s origin。 If you’ve already been following along in news， chances are you may know most of the information， but I appreciated the way this book puts it all together in summary。In the end， it seems pretty obvious the authors feel there is strong（er） evidence of lab leak due to accident given that these scientists were working on similar coronaviruses & were genetically manipulating them to help study and discover potential cures against them （seeing as how the funding and encouragement was prompted by the original SARS virus）。 Regardless of whether or not this is the cause， or it emerged from spillover from a wet market， there is a LOT of suspicious behavior from many involved - government cover-up and erasure of prevalent data， misdirection / lies from those with financial or personal ties to the WIV or EcoHealth Alliance。 Both origins have potential and it seems highly likely we will *never* get a satisfactory answer， especially given how politicized the issue became （politics ruins everything）。 That’s unfortunate。Throughout the entire book， I kind of had the music from Resident Evil playing in the background to set the mood for the read。 Let’s be clear - Science is always a double-edged sword and carries with it significant risks。 I felt like I had Ian Malcolm on my shoulder screaming “you were so busy trying to see if you could， you never stopped to think if you should！” At the same time， “Life finds a way”。 If we’re going to inevitably study dangerous pathogens （we will）， let’s hopefully find a way to mitigate those risks wherever possible。 The book nicely ends on a positive note with some hopeful thoughts towards this future; whether or not scientists worldwide are willing to listen and act is another question。 We can only hope 🤞🧬 。。。more
Kim Coburn
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Very thorough detective & informational look into origins of Covid 19。 I also read What Really Happened in Wuhan。 Both books were very good & well done。 Viral went into more detail on genomes/viruses found at the mine。 I’m still convinced this came from WIV lab。 A lot of cover up done by China - i。e。 taking the WIV database offline in Sept & not being forthcoming & accommodating to WHO requests。 When one tries to hide info it raises suspicion。 If there is nothing to be found you would think they Very thorough detective & informational look into origins of Covid 19。 I also read What Really Happened in Wuhan。 Both books were very good & well done。 Viral went into more detail on genomes/viruses found at the mine。 I’m still convinced this came from WIV lab。 A lot of cover up done by China - i。e。 taking the WIV database offline in Sept & not being forthcoming & accommodating to WHO requests。 When one tries to hide info it raises suspicion。 If there is nothing to be found you would think they would want to clear their name。 Hopefully the truth will come out。 I also find it too coincidental the outbreak happened right where the WIV was studying & contained SARS viruses…。。 。。。more
Killthehumans Savetheforest
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Haha I thought I was going to get a clear answer not just re-presentations of all the nonsense we've listened to for the last 3 years。 This is exactly what I was trying to sidestep。 Haha I thought I was going to get a clear answer not just re-presentations of all the nonsense we've listened to for the last 3 years。 This is exactly what I was trying to sidestep。 。。。more
David
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A clear， calm and rational analysis of the possible origins of COVID-19。 The authors have credibility and knowledge of the subject。 The evidence is presented and the options argued。 Without greater cooperation from Chinese authorities， a definitive conclusion cannot be reached。
Harrison Robinson
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Good information but it ends up forwarding conspiracy theory thinking。
Isabella Gates
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read for my virology class！ overall very valuable and interesting book that clearly lays out evidence and logic。 probably incomprehensible to those without a good grasp on cell biology。 reads very detective style and doesn't end with one clear answer， but rather a few and gives a wonderful conclusion just in case you got lost along the way read for my virology class！ overall very valuable and interesting book that clearly lays out evidence and logic。 probably incomprehensible to those without a good grasp on cell biology。 reads very detective style and doesn't end with one clear answer， but rather a few and gives a wonderful conclusion just in case you got lost along the way 。。。more
Briann
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A great book to read if you are looking to better understand the COVID-19 pandemic and， specifically， its potential origins。 Thorough。 Detailed。 Concise。 Sometimes the book was filled with more scientific jargon than necessary and was sometimes rather bland/dry， but it overall was a good read。 One thing to note was its sometimes negative-tone towards China， specifically the wet markets。 Typically， I would not have noticed the condescending undertone， but I read this book around the same time A great book to read if you are looking to better understand the COVID-19 pandemic and， specifically， its potential origins。 Thorough。 Detailed。 Concise。 Sometimes the book was filled with more scientific jargon than necessary and was sometimes rather bland/dry， but it overall was a good read。 One thing to note was its sometimes negative-tone towards China， specifically the wet markets。 Typically， I would not have noticed the condescending undertone， but I read this book around the same time as I read David Quammen’s Spillover。 I encourage anyone who reads this book to at least read “Chapter IV Dinner at the Rat Farm” in Spillover。 This chapter is more understanding of the wet markets and takes a more nuanced view。 It was amazing and enlightening to read the books side-by-side。 I highly encourage people to read Spillover with Viral。 。。。more
Chris Shepheard
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Very well researched and factful book that presents an unbiased version of the likely pandemic origin。
Philip William
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A thorough investigation of the origins of COVID 19。The conclusion is that there is no evidence for the seafood market being the origin and show that many of the origin arguments made in 2020 do not make sense but that a natural origin is still possible。The authors present plenty of circumstantial evidence that a lab leak is more likely but recognise that in a society such as China secretive behaviour is normal and this does not mean that the authorities in China are necessarily trying to hide a A thorough investigation of the origins of COVID 19。The conclusion is that there is no evidence for the seafood market being the origin and show that many of the origin arguments made in 2020 do not make sense but that a natural origin is still possible。The authors present plenty of circumstantial evidence that a lab leak is more likely but recognise that in a society such as China secretive behaviour is normal and this does not mean that the authorities in China are necessarily trying to hide anything。If you want plenty of facts this is your book but the volume of facts becomes a bit boring at times。 。。。more
Omikun
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Lots of details， collects lots of background info on related incidence prior to covid-19 and inconsistencies or suspicious activities on academic papers published on this topic and potential government coverup。 However， at the end of the day no conclusion can be drawn from this and it feels like a wild goose chase。
Aden Petersen
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Very interesting but also dense。 The last three chapters sums it all up nicely
K。 K
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Same old same old。 There's nothing new for the people who already know the covid info and have followed Covid related news since the beginning of the "pandemic"。 I still give this book 4 stars。 Same old same old。 There's nothing new for the people who already know the covid info and have followed Covid related news since the beginning of the "pandemic"。 I still give this book 4 stars。 。。。more
Galactic Hero
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Three years later， Covid hasn't gone anywhere。 It may not be making daily headlines anymore but still takes daily consideration。 But where Covid came from， that's not something I've given much thought to since the beginning。 That the Wuhan Institute of Virology， where they were known to do coronavirus experiments， happened to be in the same city as the original outbreak always seemed fishy， but then maybe that's just a part of China that's full of coronaviruses anyway。 And all the scientists and Three years later， Covid hasn't gone anywhere。 It may not be making daily headlines anymore but still takes daily consideration。 But where Covid came from， that's not something I've given much thought to since the beginning。 That the Wuhan Institute of Virology， where they were known to do coronavirus experiments， happened to be in the same city as the original outbreak always seemed fishy， but then maybe that's just a part of China that's full of coronaviruses anyway。 And all the scientists and top-tier journals were saying natural spillover just like the first SARS。 This book sets out to debunk that narrative， and it does a pretty good job。 Their claim: there is enough evidence to support the virus having been released accidentally from a lab that this scenario deserves serious and ongoing consideration。 Sure， there is no smoking gun *proving* beyond all doubt it was a lab leak， but there is also no concrete proof （unlike SARS 1） that it was a natural spillover either。 And there is much more evidence supporting the lab origin than present scientific orthodoxy gives credit for。 This includes* The first superspreader event was in or around the Huanan Seafood Market in Wuhan， a city 1000km away from any coronavirus-carrying bat populations， but home to several major coronavirus research labs including the WIV mentioned above。 This alone should make the default assumption a lab leak to anyone thinking about it closely （too big of a coincidence otherwise）。 * The nearest known relatives to Covid have been found in bats in Laos and nearby in Hunan。 Nowhere near Wuhan， but bats were brought to Wuhan to study these viruses。 One of which killed 3 miners in 2012。 None of this was ever disclosed by Chinese scientists until internet skeptics managed to find clues in masters theses， which hadn't been properly scrubbed from the Internet。* There is no evidence of a natural spillover event。 Ie no animal found to be infected at the market or anywhere else。 The Pangolin studies that took up so much media time were boarderline fraudulent -- ie several papers based on one piece of a fragment found in a single pangolin。 * A lot of the most important data （ie pre-2020 virus samples and patient records） were deleted and/or never shared by China。 China refused any auditing of any of the labs in question。 Much of what we've learned so far about the early days of the virus was discovered *in spite* of China。* WIV's US collaborators at the "Eco Health Alliance" whose brilliant idea to prevent a pandemic was to catalog every coronavirus and use experimental procedures to see how many mutations it'd take to make each one pathological to humans haven't been too helpful either surprisingly。 Anyway， the list goes on and on but pains a pretty convincing picture。 The authors believe， quite reasonably， that someone somewhere in China knows the full story， since they did have access to all the necessary data。 But they're not sharing now， so to ever get a proper answer we'll probably have to hope for a whistleblower at some point in the future -- if we haven't been wiped out by the next lab leak first。 。。。more
Mason Rodriguez
，