There are plenty of scary stories about coronavirus. I am no medical doctor - so take all the precautions they are recommending. Fortify your immune system (on that, VC Steve Jurvetson shares his daily list of supplements), wash hands regularly, practice social distancing, work from home if you can etc. etc.
However, through my career I have seen many scares (many tech related) - I was at Gartner during the Y2K run up and advised hundreds of companies, I wrote a calming book about automation in the middle of the job loss panic a few years ago, I have taken flights to those parts of the world when people have been panicked about some Iran, N, Korea threat. I must be one of the few people who is looking forward to having the 737-MAX back. Over the years I have written plenty about innovations in that jet like this one here
You could say my angels have watched out for me. I just think I am a analytical and glass half-full kind of guy. My wife disagrees - thinks I am a worry wart when it comes to many things.
With that preamble, let me share some balanced perspectives I have watched/read about the spread of COVID-19. Every one of them profiled is a doctor. The first one has been at Ground Zero in previous SARS, MERS outbreaks and the recent coronavirus one in China. The second one specializes in infectious diseases at Harvard and has dealt with many threats like anthrax, Ebola and Zika. The third was former head of the FDA - start around 5.45 in the video.
You may not agree with any of them - but this is a STEM and innovation focused blog and I would be remiss to not share a balance to all the pessimistic perspectives out there.
Folks this is not the Black Death - the European plague in the 1300s. This is not the Ebola outbreak in W Africa in 2014. This is an aggressive virus and yes, much deadlier than the common flu. But then we are taking way more aggressive measures than any threat in history. I wrote here about all the brainpower applied and innovation coming from the global response to the threat.
So, please spend half an hour on these three resources. My biggest fear is in our panic we overburden the healthcare system and that ends up with the real collateral damage - people who truly need help get crowded out.
Be careful, but don't panic. And yes, have faith in your angels. I do in mine.
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