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An aerial view of Anak Krakatau volcano during an eruption at Sunda strait in South Lampung, Indonesia

When Anak Krakatau in Indonesia erupted on 22 December 2018, part of the island collapsed into the ocean, causing a deadly tsunami.Credit: Nurul Hidayat/Antara Foto/Bisnis Indonesia via Reuters

The new science of volcanoes

On 22 December 2018, the southern flank of the Anak Krakatau volcano in Indonesia plunged into the sea, causing tsunami waves that killed at least 430 people. Multiple instruments had been recording signs of unusual activity for months, but the collapse still caught scientists by surprise. Researchers hope to use new machine-learning techniques to make sense of an increasing wealth of available information — including data from volcanic-gas signals, precision topographic mapping and infrasound sensing. “I think that when people look back on this period, they will imagine this is the golden era of physical volcanology,” says volcanologist Christopher Kilburn.

Nature | 13 min read

Sequence of four photos of Mount Saint Helens showing a large landslide after an earthquake in 1980.

On 18 May 1980, a giant landslide — the largest in recorded history — carried away the north flank of Mount St Helens, triggering an eruption.Credit: USGS

Long-acting injection protects from HIV

An antiretroviral injection given every two months prevents men and trans women from becoming infected with HIV, according to results that have not yet been peer-reviewed. The experimental drug, called cabotegravir, protects on a level on par with Truvada, a once-daily pill approved for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in the United States. “It’s really exciting,” says epidemiologist Jared Baeten. “It gives another option for people who can’t or don’t want to take daily pills.”

Science | 6 min read

Reference: HIV Prevention Trials press release

COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak

3D visualisation of the full exterior of SARS-CoV-2 virus within atmospheric space

Credit: Cognition Studio Inc.

The sprint to solve coronavirus protein structures — and disarm them with drugs

On 10 January, the complete genome of the SARS-CoV-2 virus was released — and structural biologists around the world sprung into action. Their goal: to sift through the 29,811 RNA bases in the virus’s genome in search of instructions for each of its estimated 25–29 proteins. With those blueprints, the scientists could recreate the proteins in the laboratory, visualize them and then, hopefully, identify drug compounds to block them or to develop vaccines to incite the immune system against them.

Nature | 13 min read

FDA shuts down Gates-backed home testing The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has shut down a coronavirus at-home testing programme sponsored by Bill Gates. The programme, called the Seattle Coronavirus Assessment Network, had already collected thousands of samples and identified dozens of new cases. The FDA had assumed the tests were being used as a ‘surveillance’ research tool, and objected to the fact that test-takers were being informed of the results. The agency now claims the tests must be regarded as ‘diagnostics’, which require tighter regulations. Others think it is a bureaucratic obstacle to a valuable programme. “To withhold that information from people is downright absurd,” says Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in California.

New York Times | 5 min read

Recruit your own best criticsTo guard against rushed and sloppy science, pandemic researchers should ask ‘devil’s advocates’ to find errors and challenge assumptions, argues human–technology interaction researcher Daniël Lakens. “The best time for scrutiny is before you have fallen in love with your results,” writes Lakens.

Nature | 5 min read

Coronapod: The misinformation pandemicGet the expert view from Nature’s news team in our weekly audio overview of the state of coronavirus science. This week, we dig into the epidemiology of misinformation and explore researchers’ funding fears.

Nature Coronapod | 32 min listen

Notable quotable

“I’ve been working on coronaviruses for 20 years, and most of the time it was neglected and not taken seriously. Now that it’s happened, how can I leave?”

Structural biologist Rolf Hilgenfeld was supposed to retire on 1 April owing to a mandatory retirement policy. He’s still at work — as one of the leading investigators of the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. (Nature | 13 min read)

Read more: This scientist hopes to test coronavirus drugs on animals in locked-down Wuhan (Nature, from January)

Coronavirus research highlights: 1-minute reads

Vaccine shields monkeys from lung damageAn experimental vaccine from a US–UK team protected monkeys from pneumonia and prompted a strong immune response in the animals. Researchers injected six rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) with the vaccine before giving the animals high doses of virus. All vaccinated monkeys developed neutralizing antibodies — which can prevent a virus from entering cells — against SARS-CoV-2. Two of the three control monkeys developed pneumonia; none of the vaccinated monkeys did.Reference: bioRxiv preprint (not yet peer reviewed)

‘Superspread’ at a choir practice infects dozensA single ill person who attended a choir practice in Washington State led to the probable infection of more than 50 choir members, including 2 who died. This superspreading event emphasizes the importance of avoiding crowds and close interactions to keep the virus at bay, the authors say.Reference: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report paper

Youngest children are most likely to enter hospitalChildren with COVID-19 are at a lower risk of death than are adults with the disease, according to the largest study of infected children in Europe. Researchers analysed data from children under the age of 18 who turned up at hospitals and clinics with COVID-19 symptoms. All 168 who tested positive for the coronavirus recovered fully. Nearly 80% of infants under the age of one were hospitalized, compared with 53% of those between the ages of 11 and 17 (the overall hospitalization rate for infected children in Italy is much lower — around 4%). Two-thirds of the children had at least one infected parent, whose symptoms often appeared before the child’s did.Reference: Eurosurveillance preprint (not yet peer reviewed)

Get more of Nature’s continuously updated selection of the must-read papers and preprints on COVID-19.

Quote of the day

“My headmistress firmly told my parents that mathematics was not a ladylike subject. However, my parents overruled her and I pursued my chosen path.”

Mathematician, counsellor and social scientist Ann Mitchell, who had a pivotal role in cracking war-time codes at Bletchley Park, has died aged 97 after testing positive for COVID-19. (The Scotsman | 7 min read)