YULA Girls | Panther Post | Issue I | November 2020

PAGE 6 | NOVEMBER, 2020
current events
THE PANTHER POST | YULA GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL
CoronaVirus-When will there be a vaccine?
BY ADIEL NOURMAND ‘22
Since the very beginning of March, COVID-19 has
transformed the life of any individual living in 2020.
From a shortage of masks, to toilet paper, to hygiene
products, there has never been a moment of “reality”
since the virus has worked its way into the United States.
With the consistent rise in positive tests and the almost
ten-month period immersed in a world so different from
the one we were used to, there is a race for a vaccine.
Scientists are hoping for a vaccine to be available by
mid-2021-- this is their goal. But even if a vaccine will
be developed by then, will it work?
The little hope every individual clings on to is for
a vaccine to be developed and end the period of the
COVID-19 chaos; however, researchers believe that
“60-70% of people need to be immune” and vaccinated
for the ultimate dissemination of the virus, but that
would be “billions of people in the world even if the
vaccine worked properly.” There has been talk, therefore,
that healthcare workers will be the first people to
be vaccinated as they are a small group of people that
have dangerous jobs in terms of dealing with the virus.
There are currently forty distinguished COVID-19
vaccines in clinical trials; however, there is one vaccine
in development at Oxford University that is in the later
stages of trials. Oxford University has signed a deal with
AstraZeneca that will supply 100 million doses of the
vaccine in the United Kingdom-- the vaccine has shown
that it can trigger an immune response to the virus. In
China, there has been a vaccine that has been supposedly
proven to be safe and provide antibodies that are protective
and effective as well. The Chinese military has been
given the opportunity to be vaccinated with this vaccine.
It usually takes tens of years to develop effective vaccines,
in these unusual times, researchers are hoping to
achieve the work that would be done in decades in just
a few months.
There is still much to do even after the development of
such. Firstly, the vaccine would have to be continuously
tested to ensure that it is safe and does not cause more
harm than the actual virus itself. Scientists would also
have to figure out a unique way for the vaccine to be
developed on a huge scale with billions of doses available.
In addition, medicine regulators have to approve
Scientists and researchers have been working hours on end to produce an effective and safe
vaccine to distribute around the globe by 2021.
for the ultimate distribution, and this is not a very quick
process. Lastly, there would be a major problem with
figuring out the logistics of actually immunizing billions
of people around the world. It is clear to see that this is
not an easy, immediate process and there have now been
ethical problems with the trials as well.
However, Pfizer and BioNTech have announced their
vaccine candidate against COVID-19. This vaccine
has been successful in the first interim analysis from
the phase 3 of the study. The hopes of every individual
are now clinging onto the success of this vaccine and
the promise it holds. There have been reports that have
claimed this vaccine to bring side-effects as well as other
negative effects onto the body of an individual who has
been vaccinated; nevertheless, concert ticket sellers such
as “Ticketmaster,” as well as other event managers have
announced that only one who will be vaccinated can
enter these exclusive events.
COVID-19 is a highly contagious, easily spreading
virus that has continuously been infecting large numbers
of people every day. The demand for a vaccine that
would allow people to be immune to the virus is higher
than ever before. The CoronaVirus has affected businesses,
schoolchildren, the elderly, healthcare workers,
and nearly any other aspect of life in the United States.
Now, one can only hope that the vaccines announced
will be effective and bring a final end to this ongoing
pandemic.
200 Escapees From Jail in Uganda
BY YAEL KOHANTEB ‘22
On September 16, 2020,
219 prisoners escaped a jail in
Uganda with over 15 guns. The
group of escapees fled a prison
after overtaking the warden in
Karamoja, Uganda, two of which
were captured due to security
forces. Directly before the premeditated
escape, the prisoners
broke into the prison armory
and stole 15 AK-47 rifles, 20
magazines, and other ammunition.
The security search for this
escape was difficult to an even
greater extent because the group
had fled under the cover of dark.
In addition, the escapees tore off
their bright yellow prison outfits
while escaping as a means
to draw attention away from
themselves. For the purpose of
context, this was Uganda’s third
prison escape since the COVID-
19 pandemic from March! This
group of criminals display
both physical power to escape
imprisonment while brilliance to
outsmart the ammunition vault.
Hundreds of prionsers escape jail in Uganda.