Some have suggested the US allow healthy people to return to normal life, catch the coronavirus and get the population to herd immunity. The science says this plan is doomed to fail from the start.
Current contact-tracing statistics do not track coronavirus positive cases from receiving test results, nor factor in all close contacts for cases. Here’s how to make it better.
Cafe workers in Amsterdam watch a government press conference.
EPA/Remko De Waal
While it can be difficult to get young kids to follow instructions around social distancing, there are a few things parents can do to minimise the risk of any COVID-19 spread on the playground.
A re-imagined production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town was cancelled five days before opening.
Anne-Louise Sarks
In a year of lockdowns, The Impossible Project gives life to shows that never reached the stage. More than 150 events are listed on this online archive, and sadly, more are likely to come.
We’ve learned much more about the novel coronavirus over the last few months, including that most spreading events occur inddoors.
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As the coronavirus pandemic continues, and the colder weather approaches, new mathematical models are needed to study changing social behaviours and indoor spaces.
Widely adopted in the US when pandemic precautions kept people home, telehealth faces a challenge as insurance coverage changes, right when its popularity had surged.
A new test developed in Australia will reportedly be able to tell us whether someone has a high ‘viral load’. But that doesn’t automatically make them a ‘superspreader’.
Collective trauma research tells us if you haven’t been through the event, you’ll never quite understand. That doesn’t mean people outside Melbourne haven’t had their own experience, or can’t help.
Sewage testing can be used for early detection of disease.
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Identifying the emergence of a disease often relies on sick people seeking medical help. Wastewater monitoring can identify pathogens days or weeks earlier.
A monster face made of guacamole and vegetables, left, and owls and spiders made from sesame seeds are great fun for kids and healthy, too.
Emily Ventura
Michael Goran, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
This could be your kids’ healthiest Halloween ever, despite COVID-19, by cutting back on the sugar.
With more health resources devoted to COVID-19, non-COVID patients may have unmet health-care needs, which predict poorer health in the future.
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With COVID-19 placing heavy demands on the health-care system, non-COVID patients may struggle to access care, putting women, people in poor health and those without a regular doctor at risk.
Business restrictions early in the pandemic, when rural towns had few cases, triggered a backlash that haunts them now.
Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images
Lauren Hughes, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and Roberto Silva, University of Colorado Denver
Coronavirus cases have risen sharply across the Mountain West, Midwest and plains. Over 70% of nonmetropolitan counties are now “red zones,” suggesting viral spread is out of control.
Voting is well underway in many states. Here, an early voting station in Lincoln, R.I., Oct. 13, 2020.
Lane Turner/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Experts explain five big threats to this year’s election, from Russian interference to voter intimidation at the polls – plus some tips to make sure every vote is counted.
There is cause for optimism. But now the pendulum swings towards individuals taking responsibility for managing risks, rather than government telling you what you can and can’t do.
Victoria’s lockdown has been hard, but it now occupies a rare and envious position. As Victorians await new freedoms on the next step towards COVID-normal, they should feel a sense of accomplishment.
How does Victoria’s response to a second COVID-19 wave compare internationally? Very favourably - only a handful of other jurisdictions have enjoyed anything like the same level of effectiveness.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne