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A study shown in New England Journal of Medicine shows Pfizer vaccine 2 doses offers 88% protection from symptomatic disease for delta variant of coronavirus. The Astra Zeneca vaccine has 67% protection against delta variant after 2 doses.

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The severe flooding in Henan, China's largest province, are shown in pictures and videos in this Guardian report. This report shows residents were not alerted by local authorities and were caught by surprise in the flooding. A similar situation happened in western Germany.

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Reports from hospitals and healthcare workers in Indonesia shown here in The Guardian provide a picture of a health system under severe stress. The government was not able to curb travel during the Eid holiday. Packed airports, bus stations and railways during the holiday travel period combined with the high transmission rate from delta variant has hit the country hard.

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The situation in poor neighborhoods of Jakarta, Indonesia, where workers in the informal economy need to work to make a living selling out of food stalls, and in other ways. With the lockdowns making this difficult during the surge in coronavirus in Indonesia, poverty is increasing and families struggle to survive. The covid social aid is not working as efficiently as in India where the prime minister had introduced various schemes including direct bank deposits to every one of India's vast population of households.

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A new solar module factory in Freiberg, near Dresden, Germany, with the latest technology, requiring workers to only supervise the manufacturing process, is shown in this report in DW.com. It is cheaper to make higher performance solar panels that produce 20% more electricity in Germany than to import from China. This could be a global trend in automated supply chains. This is a technological shift says the CEO because more efficient production technology requires less resources and fewer steps in the manufacturing process. Key components such as solar cells are also made nearby in Leipzig in eastern Germany, 90 miles away.    This report shows the interesting changes that are underway. In 2018 the factory building in Freiberg now being used for solar modules was left empty after German manufacturer solar company Solarworld lost a price war with Chinese competitors. Today this solar company Meyer Burger brings new jobs and excitement to Freiberg and the region. By 2026 plans are for it to make 5 GW of modules annually in Germany. Meyer Burger made the heterojunction SmartWire technology machines that made solar modules. In 2020 it decided to make solar modules instead of selling its equipment to others, using its own proprietary technology. Thinking has changed. CEO Erfurt says it is complete nonsense to transport solar modules halfway across the world from China, they should be made where the products are used as it is energy infrastructure. Transport costs 10% of cost, and new technology is constantly being developed and costs decreasing with technology advances. He adds that this is how energy sovereignty can be achieved. In 2021 the demand is expected at 209 GW worldwide. Erfurt expects it to be 500 GW in 2025. Large demand that will now be met locally in the regions themselves- in Spain, in Germany, and in India.   ...

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US life expectancy dropped by 1.5 years to 77.3 years, the largest drop since 1943. This takes life expectancy back to the level in 2003. During the pandemic of 1918 the drop was 11.5 years, showing how much difference vaccines and modern medicine can make. The drop is a result of coronavirus, and added to this are the complications for people with other diseases including chronic liver disease, which is connected to use of alcohol. There was a decline in asthma and cancer related diseases. Delayed treatment for health conditions because of lockdowns and homicide increase were other causes of the drop.

Isolation, stress and disruption of normal diet and exercise will have effects still to be seen, say experts. 

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As cases rise by 50% in Tokyo much uncertainty about the Olympics.

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France moves to a mandatory health pass for most activities as cases rise 150% from 7000 last week to 18,000 week of July 20.

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As restrictions ease and the Delta variant makes up 83% of US cases, cases increase in the US. Stalled vaccination rates presents an added problem. On July 20 49% of the US population was fully vaccinated. Two thirds of counties in the US have less than 40% coverage, according to CDC director Walensky.

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For the first time the number of people vaccinated in a single state in India reaches 40 million. In Maharashtra state in western India, with state capital Mumbai, the vaccinations crossed 40 million on July 20, 2021, according to the state's Additional Chief Secretary for Health. India has vaccinated 410 million people by July 20, 2021. About 3 million people are getting vaccinations daily.

Maharashtra was one of the top 5 states in the first and second waves of the coronavirus in India. About 2 million healthcare and front line workers have been fully vaccinated in Maharashtra. Maharashtra has a 2021 population of about 125 million according to Aadhar and is the second most populous state in India after UP which has an effective vaccination drive. 

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With 165 deaths from the floods in Germany and the failure of local authorites to take action to evacuate people, failure of the warning systems, the Interior Minister Horst Seehofer is asked to take responsibility.

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This Times leading article on UK government's coronavirus policy says it is inconsistent, and a muddled effort just as the third wave is accelerating. It asks the public to be cautious when going outside and still opens nightclubs with covid passports not required till the end of September. By August cases could reach 100,000 say experts so that the nightclub and bars reopening can only fuel the rise in cases. The British government must be aware that the Netherlands opened nightclubs and bars in June and this led to a sudden jump in cases with 40% of new cases coming from nightclubs.  The policy is undermining public confidence. It is doing this at the same time as it is asking people to self isolate for 10 days. The policy also does not require covid vaccination pass for all events and for shops and restaurants as is being done in France and in other countries on a regional basis as in Germany.