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Healthy people are rife with viruses that don’t make us ill. Scientists estimate that tens of trillions of viruses live inside of us, though they’ve identified just a fraction of them. A vast majority are benign, and some may even be beneficial. We don’t know for sure, because most of the so-called human virome remains a mystery. (Zimmer, 2/19)

In 19th-century France, the young chemist challenged the theory of spontaneous generation and discovered an invisible world of airborne microbes. (Zimmer, 2/18)

What’s happened in Austria offers another window into how and why some far-right parties have continued to fan pandemic-era grievances over measures such as vaccine policies and enforced restrictions. While anti-vaccine sentiment has long existed, experts say the decision by leading political parties to take up that mantle and challenge public health measures marks a new and distressing turn. (Joseph, 2/21)

Confidence in scientific institutions mostly survived the first Trump administration. What will happen to it now? (Lopez Lloreda, 2/17)

Two-year-old Evans was brought to the Nyumbani Children’s Home in Nairobi, Kenya a year ago, suffering from HIV and tuberculosis. With no family to care for him, Evans was referred to the orphanage by a health center after he stopped responding to medical treatment. Nyumbani Children’s Home is the reason Evans is still alive. But political decisions made thousands of miles away might spell the end of his short life. (Komu, 2/21)

Why did humans start speaking? Scientists suggest genetics played a big role – and they say the evolution of this singular ability was key to our survival. (Ungar, 2/18)