I am living in the middle of the emergency over coronavirus in Finland. Due this reason the update cycle to make posting to this blog could be slowed down.
The Finnish government announced on Monday nationwide school closures in order to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. Read more on the following aricles:
Finland closes schools, declares state of emergency over coronavirus
https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/finland_closes_schools_declares_state_of_emergency_over_coronavirus/11260062
Daycare centres are to stay open but parents were asked to keep their kids home if possible. The government also published a 19-point list of emergency legislation that takes effect on 18 March.
Coronavirus latest: 359 cases confirmed in Finland, S-Group shuts its Helsinki eateries, bankruptcy fears mount
https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/coronavirus_latest_359_cases_confirmed_in_finland_s-group_shuts_its_helsinki_eateries_bankruptcy_fears_mount/11249610
Here is a link to an earlier post related to Coronavirus:
https://www.epanorama.net/blog/2020/02/12/mobile-trends-2020-mwc-canceled/
1,657 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.tiede.fi/blogit/kaiken-takana-loinen/miten-koronarajoitukset-vaikuttavat?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=td_vk_fbautomatedpostboosting&utm_content=Facebook_Mobile_Feed
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/coronavirus-spike-in-beijing-linked-to-salmon-caused-by-european-covid-strain/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://spectrum.ieee.org/news-from-around-ieee/the-institute/ieee-member-news/this-app-could-help-detect-covid19-by-analyzing-a-persons-speech
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-pandemic-06-19-20-intl/index.html
More than 8.6 million cases of novel coronavirus have been confirmed worldwide, including more than 458,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Countries including China and Germany have renewed lockdown measures in some areas following the emergence of new clusters of cases.
New Covid-19 cases are rising in 23 US states, and 10 saw their highest single-day increases.
Tomi Engdahl says:
After Record Number Of New Daily Coronavirus Cases, WHO Warns Of ‘New And Dangerous’ Phase
https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexandrasternlicht/2020/06/19/after-record-number-of-new-daily-coronavirus-cases-who-warns-of-new-and-dangerous-phase/?utm_campaign=forbes&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=Gordie/#676f7264696
A single-day record of 150,000 new coronavirus cases were reported worldwide on Thursday, leading the World Health Organization’s director-general to warn that the pandemic has reached a “new and dangerous” phase.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A study of sewage samples suggests Italians may have been infected a full 2 months before the first confirmed case was detected.
When Did The Coronavirus Outbreak Start? Italy Is Latest To Say Earlier Than Previously Thought
http://on.forbes.com/6188GzESq
Scientists in Italy say they have found evidence of the virus that causes Covid-19 in sewage water dating from December, two months before the country’s first reported infection and before China confirmed what are believed to be the first cases, posing questions about the timeline of the pandemic.
Italy’s National Institute of Health (ISS) announced Thursday that sewage water samples drawn December 18 in the northern Italian cities of Milan and Turin contained genetic virus traces.
That’s nearly two months before the first Covid-19 case was reported in Italy in mid-February, while China, where the pandemic is believed to have originated, has said it identified its first cases in late December.
A similar study in Spain detected Covid-19 traces in Barcelona waste water from mid-January, about 40 days before the first local case was found, and scientists in France found that a Frenchman was infected with the virus as early as late December, nearly a month before the country detected its first case.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.nitor.com/fi/uutiset-ja-blogi/miten-luon-valmiuksia-paasta-ulos-kriisista
Tomi Engdahl says:
I Don’t Feel Like Buying Stuff Anymore
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/annehelenpetersen/recession-unemployment-covid-19-economy-consumer-spending
Our economy is built on Americans of all class levels buying things. What happens when the ability — and desire — to do so goes away?
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/as-the-world-reopens-almost-half-of-covid19-cases-thought-to-be-asymptomatic/
An estimated 45 percent of SARS-CoV-2 infections could be void of symptoms, creating the potential for infected individuals to silently spread the dangerous pathogen as many parts of the world are beginning to reopen after lockdown, according to a new analysis.
“Our estimate of 40 to 45 percent asymptomatic means that, if you’re unlucky enough to get infected, the probability is almost a flip of a coin on whether you’re going to have symptoms,” said behavioral scientist Daniel Oran in a statement.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Study: Coronavirus Lockdowns Saved 3 Million Lives In Europe
https://www.statista.com/chart/21945/lives-saved-due-to-lockdown-in-europe/
Tomi Engdahl says:
COVID-19 risks ranked: Grocery stores among least-likely places to contract virus
https://nypost.com/2020/06/13/experts-rank-most-likely-places-to-contract-coronavirus/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
Saddle up, we’re entering the Wild West phase of COVID-19.
As summer heats up and government restrictions melt away, Americans are again free to weigh their own risks of practicing pre-pandemic pastimes like heading back to work, out to eat, on vacation and to the beach.
To avoid the deadly disease, scientists say people should consider five risks before they venture out, including proximity to people; the likelihood others will practice safe behavior; indoors or out; exposure time, and personal health risks, according to a survey of four public health experts by MLive in Michigan.
“Until we have a vaccine, we are going to have to move forward with risk-reduction strategies,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Avokonttoriin palaava työntekijä altistuu ilman virushiukkasille, mutta niiden tartuttavuutta ei tiedetä – yskäisy murtaa helposti kahden metrin turvavälin
Ilmastointia olisi hyvä tehostaa, jotta ilman mahdolliset pienet viruspisarat hajaantuvat.
https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-11396766
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://blog.semi.org/technology-trends/covid-19-how-to-emerge-stronger-from-the-crisis-insights-from-mckinsey-company
Tomi Engdahl says:
Lockdown forced sports to go virtual. The experience will change it forever
https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/06/22/1004194/lockdown-pandemic-sports-esports-virtual-fans-watch-video-games/
Real sports have scrambled to keep fans happy with electronic versions—and they might stick around for good.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Coronavirus outbreak at German slaughterhouse infects more than 1,000 employees
https://nypost.com/2020/06/22/german-coronavirus-outbreak-at-abattoir-infects-more-than-1000/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
FRANKFURT – More than 1,000 employees at German meat processing firm Toennies have tested positive for coronavirus, prompting local health authorities to order all 6,500 employees and their families to go into quarantine.
The localized lockdown is a setback for Germany’s reopening strategy. Chancellor Angela Merkel had favored maintaining lockdown discipline for longer but eased restrictions following pressure from regional premiers.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, the meat company’s proprietor, Clemens Toennies, said the outbreak presented an “existential crisis” for his firm, which has suspended operations as authorities seek to control the outbreak.
Tomi Engdahl says:
French contact-tracing app StopCovid has been activated 1.8 million times but only sent 14 notifications
https://tcrn.ch/3eqXspR
France released StopCovid three weeks ago. The government is holding a press conference today to give an update on the app. In particular, this conference is a good opportunity to share some numbers.
“The application is working well. In short, we can detect most contacts that we should detect,” France’s digital minister Cédric O said. “If I have one regret it’s obviously that it isn’t compatible with other European countries.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/352845/nyt-staff-wont-return-to-office-until-2021.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
America Is Reopening. Coronavirus Tracing Apps Aren’t Ready.
https://news.slashdot.org/story/20/06/23/1854229/america-is-reopening-coronavirus-tracing-apps-arent-ready?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot%2Fto+%28%28Title%29Slashdot+%28rdf%29%29
Smartphone apps meant to track where people have traveled or whom they have been near are mostly buggy, little-used or not ready for major rollouts, raising concerns as restrictions lift and infections rise.
America Is Reopening. Coronavirus Tracing Apps Aren’t Ready.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/america-is-reopening-coronavirus-tracking-apps-arent-ready-11592845646
Smartphone apps meant to track where people have traveled or whom they have been near are mostly buggy, little-used or not ready for major rollouts, raising concerns as restrictions lift and infections rise
Tomi Engdahl says:
These two entrepreneurs were able to see the gravity of the COVID-19 pandemic before many others.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/at-work/start-ups/entrepreneurial-precognition
“Spring Festival. New virus. Spreading person to person. This one has everything.” That’s the whole of an email message that I dashed off to a friend, a fellow China watcher, on 21 January, after reading a BBC story about China’s then-tiny COVID-19 epidemic. Something in that story rang alarm bells in my head.
Launching a startup requires equal parts faith, conviction, and sensitivity. You believe you can do it (faith) and have the skills to do it (conviction), yet you have to be ready to adapt—to pivot—as circumstances change (sensitivity). That last quality breeds entrepreneurs with good antennae, able to tune into the weak signals given off by the world around them.
Lest you think my short January email message shows particularly special amounts of entrepreneurial precognition, you should read the blog post that Tomas Pueyo, currently a vice president at Course Hero, published on 10 March on Medium. In “Coronavirus: Why You Must Act Now,”
Nine days later, Pueyo followed up with a second long blog post, “The Hammer and the Dance,” which remains the best guide I know of to the months ahead.
https://medium.com/@tomaspueyo/coronavirus-the-hammer-and-the-dance-be9337092b56
Tomi Engdahl says:
Valiokunta vaati muutoksia – hyväksyi silti koronan jäljityssovelluksen
https://www.is.fi/digitoday/mobiili/art-2000006549692.html?ref=rss
Huolena on, että iäkkäät riskiryhmään kuuluvat eivät ota sovellusta käyttöön.
Eduskunnan sosiaali- ja terveysvaliokunta haluaa muutoksia hallituksen esitykseen koronan jäljityssovelluksesta. Sote-valiokunta näytti maanantaina valmistuneessa mietinnössään väliaikaiselle lakimuutokselle vihreää valoa, mutta haluaa sen tulevan voimaan erityisesti perustuslakivaliokunnan lausuntoon perustuvin muutoksin.
Sote-valiokunta haluaa, että sovelluksen kautta saatujen tietojen käyttö julkisessa vallankäytössä on hallituksen ehdottamaa kieltoa laajempi ja ehdottomampi. Sote-valiokunnan mietinnön mukaan sovelluksen tietoja ei saa käyttää ainoana perusteena karanteenia koskevassa päätöksenteossa ja muussa koronatartuntaa koskevaan hoitopäätökseen liittymättömässä julkisen vallan käytössä.
Koronan jäljityssovellus on tarkoitus ottaa käyttöön väliaikaisella muutoksella tartuntatautilakiin. Tietojärjestelmä koostuu mobiilisovelluksesta ja taustajärjestelmästä.
Lisäksi sosiaali- ja terveysvaliokunta haluaa eduskunnan hyväksyvän lausuman, jossa edellytetään hallituksen seuraavan mobiilisovelluksen ja taustajärjestelmän kehittämistä ja toimivuutta erittäin tiiviisti. Seurantaa on tehtävä erityisesti yksityisyyden suojan ja tietoturvan toteutumisen kannalta. Hallituksen on myös oltava valmis nopeisiin sääntelyn tai järjestelmätason muutoksiin.
Valtioneuvoston tulee antaa asiasta selvitys eduskunnalle viimeistään syysistuntokaudella 2021.
Lisäksi sote-valiokunta kiinnittää mietinnössään huomiota siihen, että sovelluksen on oltava käytössä riittävän monella ihmisellä, jotta siitä on hyötyä. Mahdollisuudet sovelluksen käyttöön kuitenkin vaihtelevat väestönosien välillä, sillä osalla ihmisistä ei ole riittävää osaamista eikä kaikilla tarpeeksi kehittynyttä kännykkää.
Koronan jäljityssovelluksen käyttöönotto on osa hallituksen koronaviruksen hybridistrategiaa. Sovellus on tarkoitus ottaa käyttöön väliaikaisella muutoksella tartuntatautilakiin.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2600net/permalink/2759899754233132/
Ein typischer Fall von Schach und Matt…
Boris Johnson auf Labour Chef Keir Starmer abzielend:
“Mr speaker, I wonder whether the right honorable gentleman can name a single country in the world that has a functional contact tracing app? Because there isn’t one.”
Labour Chef Keir Starmer:
“Germany, app working 15 June, 12 million downloads.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ylen selvitys: Koronavirus näkyy kuolleisuudessa isoina alueellisina eroina – kartta näyttää, miten kuolleisuus on Euroopassa kasvanut
Italian Bergamossa kuolleisuus jopa nelinkertaistui normaaliin kevääseen verrattuna. Toisaalta suurin osa Euroopasta on selvinnyt ilman ylikuolleisuutta.
https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-11416249
Tomi Engdahl says:
How Boeing’s Confident Travel Initiative Works To Minimize Covid-19 Spread
http://on.forbes.com/6189G3cLH
The global air travel industry has been devastated by the novel coronavirus pandemic. In the absence of a prompt and effective vaccine, such pandemics typically persist for 2-3 years before burning out.
Airlines and plane makers can’t wait that long for travelers to return to the air. Without much higher passenger demand than has been seen in recent months, carriers might fail and plane makers would have to shrink drastically.
The only near-term solution is to adopt practices that make air travel in the midst of pandemic as safe as possible. That’s what Boeing BA decided in May when it launched its Confident Travel Initiative.
The basic idea is to fashion a multilayered defense of airliners against the novel coronavirus. The company describes three layers of defense to (1) prevent the virus from boarding the plane, (2) comprehensively sanitize the cabin and flight deck, and (3) exploit the intrinsic health benefits of existing aircraft systems.
For instance, imagine that each of the three layers in Boeing’s plan is only 80% effective. In practice they will likely be better than that, but let’s be pessimistic. If the virus must overcome three defensive layers, each 80% effective, in order to infect a passenger, the overall system will actually be more than 99% successful in stopping it.
In the real world, passengers would likely have a minuscule probability of infection, far less than one in a thousand. The third layer alone, which depends on the existing airliner ventilation system, will eliminate 99.9%+ of pathogens measuring in the 0.12 micron scale—typical for the novel coronavirus—every 2-3 minutes.
At the first layer—preventing the virus from boarding the plane—Boeing’s initiative would simply require prospective passengers to follow CDC guidelines on safety: wear a mask, wash hands frequently, keep a distance before boarding, and most importantly, don’t fly if feeling sick.
Boeing figures that at any given time about 6% of the public is sick with one malady or another, so this is not a new problem. What makes today different is that airports and airlines need to embrace industry-wide standards for safety based on science and strictly enforce them. No more letting passengers board even when they look shaky.
At the second layer, keeping the cabin as clean and virus-free as possible, the engineering aspects become as important as the behavioral aspects. The challenge is to minimize “fomite” (surface) transmission of the virus without causing other problems. For instance, using alcohol to disinfect the flight deck could damage equipment, so cleaning methods must be carefully monitored.
At the third layer, which entails leveraging existing onboard features, the ventilation systems installed on current jetliners take center stage. As noted earlier, these systems can eliminate any particles in cabin air the size of the novel coronavirus every 2-3 minutes.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ten Times More People Have Covid-19 Antibodies Than Are Diagnosed, CDC Reports
https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattperez/2020/06/25/ten-times-more-people-have-covid-19-antibodies-than-are-diagnosed-cdc-reports/?utm_campaign=forbes&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=Gordie/#676f7264696
Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Thursday that there are 10 times more people testing positive for Covid-19 antibodies than there are people being diagnosed with the virus, though questions still exist regarding serology tests.
According to Johns Hopkins University, the United States leads the world in cases with 2,398,491, which would translate to nearly 24 million that potentially have contracted the disease.
Health experts note that a positive antibody test doesn’t guarantee immunity to the coronavirus or that you’re unable to spread it to others, but that it could be an integral tool for surveillance and tracking the spread of the virus.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wearing A Mask Is A Sign Of Mutual Respect During The Coronavirus Pandemic
https://www.forbes.com/sites/coronavirusfrontlines/2020/06/25/wearing-a-mask-is-a-sign-of-mutual-respect-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic/?utm_campaign=forbes&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=Valerie/#76616c657269
You wear a mask to protect others, and others wear a mask to protect you. Wearing a mask is a true sign of respect for others; it is not an impingement on one’s freedom as many have claimed. Wearing a mask tells the person you pass on the street, share an aisle with in the supermarket, or march along side at a peaceful protest, that you respect them as a fellow human.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Coronavirus outbreak at German slaughterhouse infects more than 1,000 employees
https://nypost.com/2020/06/22/german-coronavirus-outbreak-at-abattoir-infects-more-than-1000/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
Tomi Engdahl says:
Covid Scam Alert: Department Of Justice Warns Says There’s No ‘Face Mask Exempt Card’
https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2020/06/25/covid-scam-alert-department-of-justice-warns-says-theres-no-face-mask-exempt-card/?utm_campaign=forbes&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=Valerie/#76616c657269
Cards and flyers proclaiming the holder is exempt from wearing face masks are fraudulent and not officially endorsed the by U.S. government, the Department of Justice said in a statement Wednesday, after reports of people using the fake cards to flout mandated face coverings emerged on social media.
Multiple states and local governments have mandated the use of masks and face coverings as coronavirus cases rise across the United States, a move that has faced opposition from individuals who view it as a violation of their civil liberties.
The cards which have reportedly been produced by some individuals at business establishments that enforce masking contain a fake DOJ seal and a logo of a group called the Freedom To Breathe Agency, whose website has been taken down.
Tomi Engdahl says:
When Will Life Return to Normal?
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/life-return-to-normal-covid-19/
From battles on the front lines to social distancing from friends and family, COVID-19 has caused a massive shake-up of our daily lives.
After second-guessing everything from hugging our loved ones to delaying travel, there is one big question that everyone is likely thinking about: will we ever get back to the status quo? The answer may not be very clear-cut.
Today’s graphic uses data from New York Times’ interviews of 511 epidemiologists and infectious disease specialists from the U.S. and Canada, and visualizes their opinions on when they might expect to resume a range of typical activities.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Florida bans booze at bars as it nearly doubles record for daily coronavirus cases
https://nypost.com/2020/06/26/florida-doubles-its-previous-coronavirus-record-with-8942-cases/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
Florida reported a whopping 8,942 new coronavirus cases Friday — nearly doubling its previous record set two days earlier and prompting an immediate shutdown of alcohol consumption at bars.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Texas closes bars, scales back restaurants amid coronavirus surge
https://nypost.com/2020/06/26/texas-closes-bars-scales-back-restaurants-amid-coronavirus-surge/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/will-spending-surg
Consumers have experienced spending falling faster than incomes during lockdowns. This has led to a period of enforced saving.
In Europe and the UK it is mainly middle and higher income groups that have saved.
In the US, lower income groups may have saved from increased benefit payments.
These savings may be spent as lockdowns ease, if consumers treat them like a tax rebate.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techcrunch.com/2020/06/01/the-coronavirus-has-hastened-the-post-human-era/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://economicprism.com/this-is-a-full-societal-breakdown/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techcrunch.com/2020/05/26/consumer-hardware-device-shipments-are-on-track-for-a-14-decline-in-2020-courtesy-of-covid-19/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-people-and-companies-feel-about-working-remotely/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Exclusive: Survey finds startups drifting away from offices, post COVID-19
https://tcrn.ch/2YJ4lgC
Early-stage startups are confident of re-opening their offices in the wake of the COVID-19 within the next 6 months. But: there will be changes.
An exclusive survey compiled by Founders Forum, with TechCrunch, found 63% of those surveyed said they would only re-open in either 1-3 months or 3-6 months – even if the government advises that it is safe to do so before then. A minority have re-opened their offices, while 10% have closed their office permanently.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A National Mask Mandate Could Save The U.S. Economy $1 Trillion, Goldman Sachs Says
https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2020/06/30/a-national-mask-mandate-could-save-the-us-economy-1-trillion-goldman-sachs-says/?utm_campaign=forbes&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=Gordie/#676f7264696
As mask-wearing becomes a political flashpoint—despite coronavirus cases spiking to record levels across the country—new research from Goldman Sachs suggests a national mask mandate would slow the growth rate of new coronavirus infections and prevent a 5% GDP loss caused by additional lockdown measures.
Goldman’s analysts found that wearing face coverings has a significant impact on coronavirus outcomes, and they suggest that a federal mask mandate would “meaningfully” increase mask usage across the country, especially in states like Florida and Texas, where masks are not currently required.
The researchers estimate that a national mandate would increase the portion of people who wearing masks by 15%, and cut the daily growth of new cases by between 0.6% and 1%.
Reducing the spread of the virus through mask-wearing, the analysts found, could be a substitute for strict lockdown measures that would otherwise shave 5%—or $1 trillion—off the U.S. GDP.
Tomi Engdahl says:
40 Percent Of Americans Think Worst Of The Pandemic Is Behind Us, As WHO Warns Worst Is Yet To Come
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/40-percent-of-americans-think-worst-of-the-pandemic-is-behind-us-as-who-warns-worst-is-yet-to-come/
Roughly 40 percent of Americans, and 61 percent of Republicans, believe the worst of the Covid-19 outbreak is behind us, according to new research, as the World Health Organization (WHO) warns that the worst is yet to come.
Fifty-nine percent of people in the June survey said they thought the worst is still to come, with 40 percent saying it’s behind us, compared to 73 and 26 percent respectively in April.
The research has shown an increasing divide along political lines, and a worrying increasing lack of concern for health protocols, despite the evidence the virus is far from done. Sixty-one percent of Republican and Republican-leaning citizens now believe the worst is behind us, compared to 23 percent of Democrat and Democrat-leaning citizens. Democrats are also more concerned they may unknowingly spread the virus to others at 77 percent, versus 45 percent of Republicans. This could present a problem for the US as it tries to prevent the spread, particularly when it comes to convincing reluctant Americans to wear masks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
It Isn’t Over: Moving Forward Safely in a COVID-19 World
https://www.mddionline.com/covid-19/it-isnt-over-moving-forward-safely-covid-19-world?ADTRK=InformaMarkets&elq_mid=13637&elq_cid=876648
While PPE suppliers and others have stepped up to meet urgent demands, novel strategies are still needed to minimize risks to healthcare workers.
COVID-19 has hit the U.S. healthcare industry like a category five hurricane—an unexpected, widespread disaster that has taken lives and drained critical resources. One area hit particularly hard is the supply chain, with healthcare institutions scrambling to secure the supplies their providers need to protect themselves and their patients from this rapidly spreading illness.
Personal protective equipment (PPE), including masks and gowns, is a frontline defense against COVID-19 for healthcare workers, who can’t adhere to social distancing guidelines when providing hands-on patient care. While traditional PPE suppliers have significantly boosted production of their products and the U.S. government has called on companies from outside of the industry to redirect staff and factory lines to the manufacture of PPE, the demand continues to outpace product delivery.
As state governments begin to relax restrictions intended to slow the spread of COVID-19 and companies start opening their doors, it’s easy to feel a false sense of security that as a nation we have outsmarted and subdued the virus. But in reality, the fight is just beginning: COVID-19 is a long-term reality, and we are likely to see a resurgence as we emerge from our homes and attempt to restart our lives after a national pause. Although prevention and treatment strategies for COVID-19 will eventually become available, they may not eradicate the risk of infection.
As a result, more people will get sick, and healthcare workers will continue to be the first line of defense. The strain on PPE resources will increase in the short term as hospitals and other healthcare facilities resume elective surgical procedures, annual primary care appointments, and other types of care that have been delayed because of the pandemic.
For example, areas of current supply shortages and exposure risk and opportunities for improvement include:
Reusable versus disposable PPE: One of the greatest challenges facing healthcare—and one that will continue to grow—is simply not having enough PPE to protect healthcare workers. Today most of the PPE supply, particularly gowns and gloves, are designed for single-use only. Developing PPE manufactured from materials that can be decontaminated and reused should be a priority.
Active defense PPE: Most PPE today is passive defense, i.e., designed to prevent viral transmission. For example, an N95 respirator filtration mask worn correctly can capture 95 percent of particles 0.3 microns or larger from filtered air. That remaining 5 percent of airborne particles still presents a risk. A mask that not only blocks but also inactivates pathogens before reaching the wearer would combine both active and passive defense mechanisms for greater protection.
Donning and doffing PPE: Putting on PPE before caring for a COVID-19 patient (donning), then removing it after care has been delivered (doffing), is complex and time consuming, and it is a potential source of exposure to the wearer while removing contaminated PPE. Healthcare workers responsible for taking care of a growing population of COVID-19 patients don’t have time to spare. The development of safer and more efficient PPE use practices will reduce risk.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Dr. Anthony Fauci Says New Virus In China Has Traits of 2009 Swine Flu, 1918 Pandemic Flu
https://science.slashdot.org/story/20/06/30/2151219/dr-anthony-fauci-says-new-virus-in-china-has-traits-of-2009-swine-flu-1918-pandemic-flu?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot%2Fto+%28%28Title%29Slashdot+%28rdf%29%29
White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday that U.S. health officials are keeping an eye on a new strain of flu carried by pigs in China that has characteristics of the 2009 H1N1 virus and 1918 pandemic flu. The virus, which scientists are calling “G4 EA H1N1,” has not yet been shown to infect humans but it is exhibiting “reassortment capabilities,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee during a hearing.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/30/dr-anthony-fauci-says-new-virus-in-china-has-traits-of-2009-h1n1-and-1918-pandemic-flu.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
National coin shortage has retailers pleading for exact change
https://nypost.com/2020/07/01/national-coin-shortage-has-retailers-pleading-for-exact-change/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
The coronavirus crisis has sparked a nationwide coin shortage that reportedly has retailers pleading with customers for exact change.
The Federal Reserve revealed last month that the pandemic had “significantly disrupted” the supply chain and circulation patterns for America’s metal money. The US Mint has slowed production of coins because of measures meant to protect workers amid the crisis, while coin deposits from banks have also fallen in the past few months, the central bank said.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Google confirms US offices will remain closed until at least September, as COVID-19 spikes
https://tcrn.ch/2VvWBN5
A few months back, Google announced plans to reopen some U.S. offices after the July 4th holiday. But the best-laid plans, and all of that. Things have obviously not been going great in terms of the United States’ battle with COVID-19, and Google once again finds itself proceeding on the side of caution.
As was first reported by Bloomberg, Google has since confirmed with TechCrunch that it will be pushing back reopening at least until September 7, after the Labor Day holiday in the States. Along with other tech giants like Facebook, Google has noted that it will continue to offer employees the option of working from home through the remainder of the year.
It’s a smart choice, as many no doubt still feel uncomfortable returning to an office situation — not to mention questions around the public transit that many use to get there. Twitter, meanwhile, made waves in May by announcing that employees would be allowed to indefinitely work remotely.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.minervanett.no/corona/the-most-logical-explanation-is-that-it-comes-from-a-laboratory/361860?fbclid=IwAR1SD16i6CuDL-Lj-o5lZsXqZFsYlxLF5nFw_hphSNY9rNmcNoQIYArTwVQ
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.tiede.fi/blogit/rajankayntia/ryppaina-leviavaa-epidemiaa-voi-olla-vaikeampi-ennustaa-mutta-helpompi-torjua?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=td_vk_fbautomatedpostboosting&utm_content=Facebook_Mobile_Feed
Tomi Engdahl says:
”The latest advice to employers from the British government is clear: Workstations should be assigned to an individual and not shared.”
It is time to say farewell to the scourge of hot-desking
https://www.ft.com/content/44b0f75e-46e3-4843-bf24-64d18f2cd288?shareType=nongift
Or all this might be wishful thinking and we will rush back to our frantic old lives
Banks of roomy “superloos”. Phone apps that squawk to remind you to swab down your desk. A ban on taking the lift upstairs more than twice a day.
This is just a smattering of what experts tell me the office of the very near future might look like in the age of Covid-19.
The practice has of course been popular in spots with pricey property, such as London and Sydney. But can it survive a virus so new that scientists are still studying exactly how long it lasts on plastic versus paper, let alone a computer keyboard? Not right now in London, it seems.
The latest advice to employers from the British government is clear.
“Workstations should be assigned to an individual and not shared,” it says. If sharing must be done, it should be among “the smallest possible number of people’’.
Employers will usually need to be “avoiding use of hot desks”, it adds. If that is impossible in, say, a call centre or training area, then any shared desk or equipment should be cleaned before anyone else starts using it.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Coronavirus lockdown has made us more vitamin D deficient
https://nypost.com/2020/07/06/coronavirus-lockdown-has-made-us-more-vitamin-d-deficient/?utm_source=facebook_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site+buttons&utm_campaign=site+buttons
Call it Vitamin D for Deficiency.
Even as coronavirus-related lockdowns continue to lift in New York City, which began Phase 3 of reopening on Monday, and more people leave the confines of their apartments to meet up with friends under summer skies, there is still one thing to keep in mind: Even with easier access to the outdoors, we still may not have sufficient Vitamin D in our systems.
“It can only come from adequate sun exposure, and without that there’s no source of Vitamin D that’s enough,” says Dr. Len Horovitz, an internist and pulmonologist at Lenox Hill Hospital. “Either you’re a farmer or a tennis pro and you get it that way, or you take a [daily] gel cap.”
Even before the onset of the coronavirus outbreak in the spring, Vitamin D deficiencies were a problem, but it’s become even more pronounced since the shutdown encouraged people to stay indoors to curb the spread.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Harvard Will Hold All Undergraduate Classes Online This Fall And Invite Only 40% Of Students To Campus
https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2020/07/06/harvard-will-hold-all-undergraduate-classes-online-this-fall-and-invite-only-40-of-students-to-campus/?utm_campaign=forbes&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=Valerie/#76616c657269
Harvard announced today that it would invite only 40% of its undergraduates to live on campus this fall. All 1,650 first-year students will have the option to reside on the Cambridge grounds when the term begins on September 2. But students will not attend live classes. Instead they will isolate in their single dormitory bedrooms and take all of their courses online.
“We’re not advocating that students come to campus,” says a Harvard spokesperson. “We just recognize that for first-year students, being on campus this year is incredibly important.”
Students will be required to wear masks, observe social distancing protocols and they must submit to Covid-19 tests every three days. The testing regime is subject to change, depending on the recommendations of public health officials.
To eat, students will have access to “touchless food pick-up,” from campus dining halls. They can eat outside or bring food back to their bedrooms or common areas.
Princeton also announced its reopening plans today. It is inviting first-year students and juniors to live on campus. As at Harvard, teaching will be done remotely.
While colleges around the world struggle to devise reopening plans that ensure enough students will enroll, America’s most elite universities can assume that they will fill all of their seats with students eager to attend. Harvard admitted 4.92% of applicants to the class of 2024, just slightly more than the record low of 4.5% to the class of 2023.
Tomi Engdahl says:
China Faces Covid-19, Trade War & ‘Decoupling’ from Others
https://www.eetimes.com/china-faces-covid-19-trade-war-decoupling-from-others/
China is preparing for the worst case scenario: “decoupling” of its technology development from other regions.
The crisis in the global semiconductor industry that started with the U.S.-China trade war has not abated. The economic impact of the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic is making a soft year for the semiconductor industry even worse.
At the same time, China sees an opportunity to bolster its chip-making capability as re-emerges from the coronavirus quarantine
Globally, the economy is facing a rough year. On June 24, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a new issue of the “World Economic Outlook Report.” The IMF predicts the global economy will shrink by 4.9% this year. The negative impact of Covid-19 on economic activities in the first half of 2020 was worse than expected, and a recovery will take longer than predicted.
Wei Shaojun, director, Institute of Microelectronics, Tsinghua University, acknowledged that in May that the IMF’s May predication – that the economy would decline 3.5% — would reach 4.9% by June. It is still difficult to predict whether the recession will push it down further.
The most direct impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is the reduction in end-consumer demand. In the U.S., for example, the epidemic has caused the unemployment rate to soar, which in turn has led to a decline in consumer’s purchasing power for electronics products and stagnated IC shipments.
Tomi Engdahl says:
WHO To Review Evidence of Airborne Transmission of Coronavirus
https://science.slashdot.org/story/20/07/07/2318246/who-to-review-evidence-of-airborne-transmission-of-coronavirus?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot%2Fto+%28%28Title%29Slashdot+%28rdf%29%29
After hundreds of experts urged the World Health Organization to review mounting scientific research, the agency acknowledged on Tuesday that airborne transmission of the coronavirus may be a threat in indoor spaces. The New York Times reports:
W.H.O. expert committees are going over evidence on transmission of the virus and plan to release updated recommendations in a few days, agency scientists said in a news briefing. The possibility of airborne transmission, especially in “crowded, closed, poorly ventilated settings, cannot be ruled out,” said Dr. Benedetta Allegranzi, who leads the W.H.O.’s committee on infection prevention and control. She said the agency recommends “appropriate and optimal ventilation” of indoor environments, as well as physical distancing.
W.H.O. to Review Evidence of Airborne Transmission of Coronavirus
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/07/health/coronavirus-aerosols-who.html
The World Health Organization plans to update its advice after hundreds of experts urged the agency to reconsider the risk of aerosol transmission.
After hundreds of experts urged the World Health Organization to review mounting scientific research, the agency acknowledged on Tuesday that airborne transmission of the coronavirus may be a threat in indoor spaces.
W.H.O. expert committees are going over evidence on transmission of the virus and plan to release updated recommendations in a few days, agency scientists said in a news briefing.
The possibility of airborne transmission, especially in “crowded, closed, poorly ventilated settings, cannot be ruled out,” said Dr. Benedetta Allegranzi, who leads the W.H.O.’s committee on infection prevention and control.
She said the agency recommends “appropriate and optimal ventilation” of indoor environments, as well as physical distancing.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Airborne Coronavirus: What You Should Do Now
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/06/health/coronavirus-airborne-aerosols.html
How to protect yourself from a virus that may be floating indoors? Better ventilation, for starters. And keep wearing those masks.
The coronavirus can stay aloft for hours in tiny droplets in stagnant air, infecting people as they inhale, mounting scientific evidence suggests.
This risk is highest in crowded indoor spaces with poor ventilation, and may help explain super-spreading events reported in meatpacking plants, churches and restaurants.
It’s unclear how often the virus is spread via these tiny droplets, or aerosols, compared with larger droplets that are expelled when a sick person coughs or sneezes, or transmitted through contact with contaminated surfaces, said Linsey Marr, an aerosol expert at Virginia Tech.
Aerosols are released even when a person without symptoms exhales, talks or sings, according to Dr. Marr and more than 200 other experts, who have outlined the evidence in an open letter to the World Health Organization.
What is clear, they said, is that people should consider minimizing time indoors with people outside their families. Schools, nursing homes and businesses should consider adding powerful new air filters and ultraviolet lights that can kill airborne viruses.
Experts agree that the virus does not travel long distances or remain viable outdoors. But evidence suggests it can traverse the length of a room and, in one set of experimental conditions, remain viable for perhaps three hours.
How are aerosols different from droplets?
Aerosols are droplets, droplets are aerosols — they do not differ except in size. Scientists sometimes refer to droplets less than five microns in diameter as aerosols. (By comparison, a red blood cell is about five microns in diameter; a human hair is about 50 microns wide.)
From the start of the pandemic, the W.H.O. and other public health organizations have focused on the virus’s ability to spread through large droplets that are expelled when a symptomatic person coughs or sneezes.
These droplets are heavy, relatively speaking, and fall quickly to the floor or onto a surface that others might touch. This is why public health agencies have recommended maintaining a distance of at least six feet from others, and frequent hand washing.
But some experts have said for months that infected people also are releasing aerosols when they cough and sneeze. More important, they expel aerosols even when they breathe, talk or sing, especially with some exertion.
Scientists know now that people can spread the virus even in the absence of symptoms — without coughing or sneezing — and aerosols might explain that phenomenon.
Because aerosols are smaller, they contain much less virus than droplets do. But because they are lighter, they can linger in the air for hours, especially in the absence of fresh air. In a crowded indoor space, a single infected person can release enough aerosolized virus over time to infect many people, perhaps seeding a superspreader event.
For droplets to be responsible for that kind of spread, a single person would have to be within a few feet of all the other people, or to have contaminated an object that everyone else touched.
Can I stop worrying about physical distancing and washing my hands?
Physical distancing is still very important. The closer you are to an infected person, the more aerosols and droplets you may be exposed to. Washing your hands often is still a good idea.
What’s new is that those two things may not be enough. “We should be placing as much emphasis on masks and ventilation as we do with hand washing,” Dr. Marr said. “As far as we can tell, this is equally important, if not more important.”
Should I begin wearing a hospital-grade mask indoors? And how long is too long to stay indoors?
Health care workers may all need to wear N95 masks, which filter out most aerosols. At the moment, they are advised to do so only when engaged in certain medical procedures that are thought to produce aerosols.
For the rest of us, cloth face masks will still greatly reduce risk, as long as most people wear them. At home, when you’re with your own family or with roommates you know to be careful, masks are still not necessary. But it is a good idea to wear them in other indoor spaces, experts said.
What does airborne transmission mean for reopening schools and colleges?
This is a matter of intense debate. Many schools are poorly ventilated and are too poorly funded to invest in new filtration systems. “There is a huge vulnerability to infection transmission via aerosols in schools,” said Don Milton, an aerosol expert at the University of Maryland.
Most children younger than 12 seem to have only mild symptoms, if any, so elementary schools may get by. “So far, we don’t have evidence that elementary schools will be a problem, but the upper grades, I think, would be more likely to be a problem,” Dr. Milton said.
College dorms and classrooms are also cause for concern.