Link: https://www.cnn.com/asia/live-news/coronavirus-outbreak-01-27-20-intl-hnk/index.html
Summary: As of January 27, 2020, there has been at least 2,700 confirmed cases of the Novel coronavirus (a.k.a. Wuhan coronavirus) in China and 82 infected have already died. The virus began its outbreak in Wuhan, China and has made its way outside of the region with 50 infected, including 5 in the United States. Coronavirus is an umbrella term for viruses that infect the respiratory system in mammals, including humans. Such viruses associated include the common cold, the flu, and SARs. In most cases, it is mild but can rarely be lethal. It is highly contagious and can spread before symptoms appear. Currently, there has been efforts to reduce the spread of this coronavirus through increased airport screenings and travel bans as there is also no vaccine to this recent virus.
Reaction: News of this outbreak has been overly displayed all over the media but in a good way. More people, including I, continue to know more about this virus and know what to expect in the future. It doesn't frighten me as much until the numbers rise, but I would be cautious if more become infected in the U.S. Also, I believe this is incomparable to the Ebola outbreak in 2014 since it is spreads through the air, so there is more worry among people. It is likely that the numbers of infected people will continue to rise, especially in mainland China.
Connection to U.S. history: In the early to mid 17th century, Europeans immigrated to the U.S. region of North America, carrying food, necessities, but also diseases such as smallpox. Smallpox killed over 70% of the Native population in North America. It was not until 1770 Edward Jenner created a vaccine for smallpox.
Discussion Questions: What is your reaction to the Wuhan coronavirus? What actions do you think countries should take to prevent the spread of this virus? Do you think the U.S. should be worried of it being spread to the country?
I think the Wuhan coronavirus, while scary, is not anything to be too frightened about. Just a few years ago the Ebola virus was dominating the news headlines -- years before that was the SARS-coronavirus. The current precautions being taken by countries seems to be adequate: limiting travel, screening travelers, quarantining the sick. I do not believe the general public of the U.S. should be greatly concerned with the possibility of the disease spreading to our country, as nCoV has been mostly contained within the Eastern hemisphere. The methods from which it may spread are limited, especially as airports are taking great care in screening flights from China.
ReplyDeletePersonally, the Wuhan coronavirus is pretty frightening considering it's affected so many people with five reported cases in the United States. Sure, right now it is mainly affecting people in Asia but the fact that this disease is so contagious and has made global news proves that it's something to be worried/warned about. To prevent the spread of this virus, countries should have mandatory checkpoints that involve medical professionals who check to make sure those who are contaminated aren't traveling to other countries so that we can try and keep the disease as contained as possible. In the area where the disease is contained, everybody should wear masks as much as possible and try and stay at home to prevent from getting sicker/catching the disease. Individuals who aren't sick that are in the containment zone should be free to temporarily move to another place where there's less chance of them catching it. I don't think the US has to be that worried yet but if the numbers of coronavirus continues to rise in the US, we need to start taking precautions.
ReplyDeleteI think the coronavirus is getting very serious and it's scary that the number of cases in Wuhan is only increasing. Wuhan has a population of around 11.8 million which means their city is densely populated, making it easy for the virus to spread. I've seen enormous lines of people waiting to get help from a hospital. Seeing that a hospital can only fit a certain number of people, I fear that these cases of the virus are getting way out of hand for China to handle. However, China is building new 1,000-bed hospitals to treat the sick, so let's see if effective enough to combat the virus. Countries should make laws to prevent the spread of the virus, especially the spread of it into another country. I recently read that the U.S. is making regulations for all entry from China. There will be lots of inspection with all returning Americans from China and those found positive with the virus will be quarantined. The U.S should be worried about this virus. It's a deadly virus because of the fact that it has a 2-week incubation process, meaning one can have the virus and not show symptoms of it. This is very dangerous, for one could go spreading the virus without one knowing it.
ReplyDeleteI'm concerned about the spread of the coronavirus because the World Health Organization (WHO) is declaring this to be a global emergency. The outbreak continues to climb with more people testing positive in multiple countries. There are also confirmed transmissions from people to people and the numbers of deaths are increasing daily. I think countries should continue be more diligent and continue to discourage travel to China. The airlines should cancel flights and issues refunds or credit vouchers for future travels. People should be quarantined for 14 days after returning home to ensure they don't become symptomatic and risk spreading the virus to others. The US should take small precautions for this virus through simple actions like wearing masks and good hand washing.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Coronavirus is serious and not something that should be taken lightly. Although there have been airport restrictions on who comes to America and goes to China, I think that labeling the virus as "not harmful to U.S. citizens" is false. While I was watching a video, a Chinese nurse informed us that for every 1 person who has the Coronavirus, that one person could spread the virus to 14 other people. The incubation period is also very frightening. Symptoms don't start showing up until 2-14 days, so you could be walking around and spreading the virus without even knowing that you're carrying the virus. Another documentary on the Coronavirus was made from a citizen living in Wuhan. He stated that when the virus started in China, it was also labeled as low-risk, so citizens weren't advised to wear face masks. If they were advised to wear face masks, this could've stopped further spreading of the virus as well as less deaths attached to this case. There are also not enough hospitals in China to sustain the number of increasing patients everyday. Anyone who needs to seek medical care whether to test for Coronavirus or other health conditions need to wait in lines for hours. While they are waiting in these lines, it is very likely that they will catch the Coronavirus even if they didn't have it before from being surrounded by all these sick patients. I think the U.S. should be worried because although the number of people infected in the U.S. are minimal and have been isolated, we all know that the virus can be spread very quickly to others. I think the people that put their lives at risk in order to try to find a cure for this virus are true heroes.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the Coronavirus is not something that everyone in the United States should be fearful. The virus seems initially scary due to it's rapid spreading and the deaths that have been reported due to the virus, but ultimately it isn't much different than illnesses such as pneumonia and the common cold. Many health experts and officials have reported that those with compromised health have a higher chance of more serious effects due to the Coronavirus, but those in good health would deal with it like a cold or the flu. I think the World Health Organization took the steps to declare this an emergency was to help prevent spreading, much like the travel bans and isolation people have been put in. I think just making sure people wash their hands, stay home when sick and seek medical care would be sufficient in actions regarding the Coronavirus.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Chinese government has done a poor job containing this outbreak. The Chinese government should be ashamed of themselves for not taking the correct measures to prevent this outbreak and not learning from SARS 2003. The government didn't make these live markets illegal, which caused both SARS and coronavirus outbreak. I wish the best for Wuhan and I hope the Chinese government will take better measures in the future.
ReplyDeleteI think that considering the estimated infection rate and the amount of people who already have it and are traveling there is a very real possibility of this disease spreading to the US. The disease is still in too early of stages and China's history of releasing health data isn't the best, so we can't be certain exactly how dangerous this disease really is. However, I think the bigger threat is economic; China has almost completely shutdown transportation both internally and externally, and many people in China simply refuse to go to work in fear of the disease. I don't really know how international trade works, but I think one of the biggest consumers and producers in the world suddenly stopping is pretty bad
ReplyDeleteAlthough the virus is serious and is in fact spreading to the US, in terms of my personal safety, I am not afraid. However, I find it to be a concerning problem and it makes me wonder whether China is doing enough research to try to eliminate it and whether the lockdown is the best solution. I think all countries should follow the quarantine model, but this should mean quarantines in hospitals, as this will allow for research and a more secure way to keep from spreading. I think the US has reason to worry that more virus will be brought to the country, however, because of the health care and facilities we have here, I believe that it is unlikely that it will become an epidemic.
ReplyDeleteI think the coronavirus is still quite frightening even with all the advanced technology and vaccines that we have. Countries should definitely quarantine any people that may have had contact with anyone that has went to Wuhan recently. The US should be very worried about the virus spreading because we have some pretty dense cities that are prone for a coronavirus out break.
ReplyDeleteI think the coronavirus needs to be treated seriously since we don't yet have an effective treatment or vaccine right now. All countries should be aware of the issue and try to prevent the spreading of the virus to more areas. The US should definitely be worried about the virus since there are already multiple cases in the US and the number is still increasing. Although the death rate is low right now, the spreading rate is too fast and there could potentially be many uninformed deaths. The US should take steps in screening travelers and inform the citizens steps to take to prevent the infection, and also report to the hospitals as soon as they develop symptoms before spreading more.
ReplyDeleteI think the Chinese government handed the situation really badly if I’m being totally honest, they focused not into preventing people from panicking nor then preventing the spread which I think is probably the worst thing they could’ve done because that is what allowed it to spread so far, because nobody was aware they might have been carrying in and therefore took no action in order to prevent further spread. I think at this point the most they could do in have people not travel in Ofer to try to contain it, I know that are doing screening of the virus which is good, at this point I think it really just hard to prevent it and I think for the most part I think that we should all just try our best to sanitize ourselves and try to prevent further spread as best we could.
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