Science Fridays!

March 13, 2020

We're dropping the "Fun" this week since we're going to look at the very serious situation of the Coronavirus.

Locations with confirmed cases.

At this time in the United States, there have been 1,629 reported cases and 41 deaths.

Washington alone has 457 cases, the highest in the country.

There's a lot of information flying around the internet so I'm only sourcing from the CDC and WHO.

Coronavirus itself is not new, but we are currently experiencing a new strain which has been named SARS-CoV-2. COVID-19 is an abbreviation for Coronavirus 2019. This, and other so called "betacoronaviruses" originate in bats and it is believed that this new emergence came from an animal reservoir in the Wuhan region of China. This is the first pandemic of a coronavirus, so there was little research on hand - previous pandemics have been novel influenza viruses.

From the National Institute of Health

COVID-19 is a respiratory disease, and symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. The incubation period ranges from 2-14 days before symptoms appear. The elderly and those with chronic medical conditions such as lung disease are at higher risk for severe symptoms.

The majority of cases have been mild illness, but the CDC still asks that those who experience even mild symptoms isolate themselves to prevent further spread and to protect those who are more vulnerable.

We are all being asked to be vigilant - wash your hands for 20 seconds and avoid crowds. Many gatherings have been cancelled for the next few months to limit close contact, such as parades and sporting events.

I do have something fun for washing your hands though - it was originally suggested to sing 'Happy Birthday' to track the time, so someone created a site where you can pick your own song.