tag:theconversation.com,2011:/au/topics/coronavirus-and-social-distancing-83595/articlesCoronavirus and social distancing – The Conversation2020-05-01T12:17:28Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1375582020-05-01T12:17:28Z2020-05-01T12:17:28ZWhat are the ‘reopen’ protesters really saying?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/331813/original/file-20200430-42951-wml099.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=131%2C14%2C4743%2C3230&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on April 20 call for the governor to lift restrictions meant to help combat the spread of the coronavirus.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Virus-Outbreak-Pennsylvania/fb207ca7cb124b7c9776c231920d4ca7/75/0">AP Photo/Matt Slocum</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The “anti-lockdown” and #Reopen protests in the U.S. have <a href="https://theconversation.com/reopen-protest-movement-created-boosted-by-fake-grassroots-tactics-137027">powerful and secretive backers</a>, but there are real Americans on the streets expressing their opinions. </p>
<p>As an <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=1rW6qmMAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">ethnographer</a> – someone who studies cultural participation – I’m interested in who those Americans are, and why they’re upset. </p>
<p>I spent the last week in what you might call an online road trip, studying 30 posts of protest footage from events in 15 cities. I found some shared themes, which don’t fit well with popular narratives about these protests.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters object to handouts, but want work.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>1. Poverty is taboo, but work is ‘essential’</h2>
<p>Despite the economic toll the lockdowns are <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-lessons-from-the-coronavirus-about-inequality-in-america-136024">taking on America’s poor</a>, no protesters put their own poverty on display, such as posting signs asking for help.</p>
<p>Instead, they held signs with more general language, like “<a href="https://youtu.be/2CfxNRV3GHQ?t=59">Poverty Kills</a>,” or expressed concerns like the restaurateur in Phoenix, Arizona, who told a passing videographer he was worried about his 121 “<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52417610">suffering, devastated</a>” employees.</p>
<p>Their messages made clear that they didn’t want to ask for a handout or charity – but they were asking to be allowed to work. Protesters across many states asserted their work – or even all work – was “essential.”</p>
<p>In one video from an “Operation Gridlock” protest in Lansing, Michigan, where <a href="https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/upset-with-gov-whitmer-protesters-bring-lansing-to-a-halt-during-operation-gridlock">activists planned to block traffic</a>, a protester filmed out the window of his car when he drove past a sign saying “Give me work not money.” The protester himself called out in approval, “<a href="https://youtu.be/4goSjEsJKuA?t=344">Give me work not money, I hear that!</a>”</p>
<p>A young man at an Olympia, Washington, event described work as a source not only of money but identity: “<a href="https://youtu.be/ncWLkTGCvYs?t=125">I wanna go back to work!</a> That pride that you feel every day when you go home from work? That’s like nothing that can … be taken.”</p>
<p>Protest signs in <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ChristinaAguayoNews/videos/547440835910426/">Denver, Colorado</a>, included the plaintive “I want my career back” and the entrepreneurial “Dogs Need Groomers.” </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/331816/original/file-20200430-42946-1wintks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Outside the Missouri Capitol on April 21, some protesters wore masks – though others didn’t.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Virus-Outbreak-Protest-Missouri/8015e7895c3c4ba7864d0a4c4da16cf0/72/0">AP Photo/Jeff Roberson</a></span>
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<h2>2. The threat of the virus is serious</h2>
<p>Despite alarming news reports that protesters were <a href="https://www.capradio.org/articles/2020/04/20/protest-at-capitol-targets-californias-stay-at-home-order-demonstrators-ignore-social-distancing-guidelines">ignoring social distancing</a>, many of the protesters observed safety guidelines. Photos showed at least some people wearing masks. A <a href="https://vm.tiktok.com/7TVjUq/">TikTok video</a> recruiting participants for Michigan’s Operation Gridlock encouraged protesters to be safe; <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6e7DXa12rQA">drone footage</a> shows that most participants <a href="https://youtu.be/EdkauH6NBzE?t=528">at the state capitol</a> stayed in their cars, away from other people.</p>
<p>Protesters’ signs didn’t really downplay the threat of the virus, but rather compared it with potential harm from the lockdown. For instance, a sign in Denver was headed “<a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=547440835910426">Trading Lives</a>” and featured a scale with virus deaths on one side, with unemployment, suicide and homelessness on the other.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters in cars are, in general, observing social distancing guidelines.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>3. Anti-science displays are on the fringe</h2>
<p>There were protesters at several rallies who wore anti-vaccination T-shirts and held signs suggesting they don’t trust public health experts and scientists. </p>
<p>But only one protest was dominated by that theme. At that one, on April 18 in Austin, Texas, hundreds of attendees chanted “<a href="https://twitter.com/mannyNYT/status/1251564861257113602?s=20">Fire Fauci!</a>” referring to Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who has been a frequent public face of the federal government’s efforts to fight the virus. That was also the rally where <a href="https://datasociety.net/library/media-manipulation-and-disinfo-online/">right-wing radio host Alex Jones, who runs a conspiracy-theory website</a>, drove around in a truck <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/alex-jones-joins-texas-protest-against-coronavirus-lockdown-orders-as-crowds-chant-fire-fauci/ar-BB12QmXe">egging on attendees’ chants through a megaphone</a>.</p>
<p>At the other events, it appeared protesters had been expecting higher numbers of infections than actually happened. Rather than seeing that as evidence of the success of social distancing, they seemed to interpret this as saying the science was no longer valid. “<a href="https://youtu.be/2CfxNRV3GHQ?t=15">The models were wrong</a>” was on more than one sign, suggesting protesters had paid attention to the scientific models at first but had come to believe the disease’s seriousness had been exaggerated.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Idahoans rally to fight the outbreak’s effects in ways they have dealt with more familiar problems.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>4. People want to fight the virus in familiar ways</h2>
<p>Even when protesters acknowledged the threat of the virus, few of them were calling for medical experts to provide the solution. I saw none of the demonstrators calling for more widespread testing, for instance. </p>
<p>When they did express concern, protest signs coupled it with a desire to fight the contagion. In Boise, Idaho, one sign read “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CfxNRV3GHQ">Freedom over Fear</a>.” In Denver, one said “<a href="https://twitter.com/realphilhendrie/status/1252094036522840064">Don’t let your mask be your muzzle</a>.”</p>
<p>However, the protesters wanted to fight the virus in ways that were more familiar to them and, perhaps, more empowering: In Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a giant green truck had “<a href="https://twitter.com/miguelmarquez/status/1252262768591491072?s=20">Jesus is my vaccine</a>” scrawled on its side. </p>
<p>Some protesters demanded governments allow people to make their own decisions, and even displayed the pro-choice slogan “<a href="https://wset.com/newsletter-daily/gallery/groups-plan-to-protest-va-lockdown-in-richmond-thursday">My Body My Choice</a>.” Others showed up with <a href="https://twitter.com/miguelmarquez/status/1252294829154938881?s=20">guns</a>. One man in Frankfort, Kentucky, <a href="https://www.kentucky.com/news/coronavirus/article242040466.html">blew a shofar</a>, a Jewish religious instrument made from a ram’s horn blown at the start of a battle.</p>
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<span class="caption">Armed protesters were among the crowd in Michigan on April 30.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/armed-protesters-provide-security-as-demonstrators-take-news-photo/1211395473">Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>5. ‘Tyranny’ depends on who governs, not how</h2>
<p>In many of the events across different states, protesters objected to what they called “tyranny,” and held up the <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-shifting-symbolism-of-the-gadsden-flag">Revolution-era “Don’t Tread On Me” Gadsden flag</a> to symbolize their resistance to government rules. They were not objecting to President Donald Trump’s April 13 declaration that, as president, his “<a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/4/13/21219966/trump-coronavirus-press-briefing-meltdown-total-control-states-rights">authority is total</a>” over the nation.</p>
<p>Instead they were objecting to governors’ lockdown rules, which they highlighted as overreaching their power. Many protesters likened the government’s behavior to Nazis, with protesters adding “Heil” before Democratic governors’ names.</p>
<p>No male governor was targeted as viciously and overtly as female Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. A widely circulated poster depicted her <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-far-right-extremists-are-now-calling-social-distancing-a-nazi-policy/">dressed as Adolf Hitler, giving a Nazi salute beside a swastika</a>. Other demonstrators talked about Whitmer as though she were mothering them instead of governing them, like one who insisted, “<a href="https://youtu.be/EdkauH6NBzE?t=528">We’re not her children!</a>”</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Michigan protesters speak out about their concerns.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>6. Race is a factor</h2>
<p>One clearly visible theme in the #Reopen protests is <a href="https://triblive.com/news/world/photo-of-protester-at-ohio-statehouse-compared-to-zombie-movie/">how white the attendees are</a> – but not just in terms of their own race. Their compassion also seemed limited to fellow white people. None that I saw were calling attention to the fact that the coronavirus doesn’t hit all populations equally: Blacks and other racial minorities had <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-is-it-so-hard-to-close-the-racial-health-gap-in-the-us-69012">less access to high-quality health care</a> before the outbreak, and as a result are less healthy and less able to fight off the virus when it strikes.</p>
<p>There was overt racism toward the Chinese, too, echoing words of the president and other political leaders, as on the Jefferson City, Missouri, sign that read “<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52417610">Tyranny is spreading faster than the China virus</a>.” </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">There’s potential for a wider movement.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>7. Divided and distanced, is it a movement?</h2>
<p>Most protesters did not refer to these protests as a movement. I found just one video offering a vision that they could form one. In that livestream from Operation Gridlock, at one point the videographer shouted, “<a href="https://youtu.be/4goSjEsJKuA?t=1287">‘merica!</a>” </p>
<p>Then, his unseen companion replied in a meditative tone about the potential he saw on that road: “Together we’re strong, divided we’re weak. That’s the establishment’s biggest fear, for the people to get together and not be divided. … That’s what they fear the most. Because we have the power.” It was not clear if those people with the power included the much greater number of people across America who were sheltered in place.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Diana Daly does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A scholar of social participation finds shared themes across protests in many states, not all of which fit common popular or media narratives about the events.Diana Daly, Assistant Professor of Information, University of ArizonaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1361082020-04-23T12:11:43Z2020-04-23T12:11:43ZScientists are working to protect invaluable living collections during coronavirus lockdowns<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328867/original/file-20200419-152585-xyu2ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=82%2C21%2C1962%2C1336&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Campus shutdowns mean researchers must be classified as essential personnel to tend collections, like these fungus-colonized plants.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Cameron Stauder</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>During World War II, a devoted group of botanists guarded <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/vavilov-research-institute-of-plant-industry">the world’s oldest collection of plants</a> over the 28-month-long siege of Leningrad. Nearly a dozen of them starved to death, valuing the survival of the collection over their temptation to eat seeds. </p>
<p>These scientists at the Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry in what is today St. Petersburg, Russia displayed extraordinary dedication to ensure an invaluable biological collection had a future, even when they did not. </p>
<p>This tragic story resonates with many scientists today who have dedicated careers to cataloging and preserving Earth’s biological diversity. Many are risking their personal health during the coronavirus pandemic to ensure the survival of awe-inspiring assemblages of algae, arthropods, bacteria, fungi, mammals, plants, viruses and fishes.</p>
<p>Staying on top of these collections is time-consuming during the best of times, and this task becomes even more complex in the age of social distancing. Yet hundreds of scientists across the United States are doing just that, maintaining everything from crickets, to tissue cultures, mice, powdery mildews, nematodes, psyllids, zebrafish and even rust fungi.</p>
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<h2>Worth the risk</h2>
<p>Like a beloved backyard garden, these collections must be constantly nurtured. They need to be ready to accommodate new specimens but also relinquish those that are no longer viable. Such collections have taken lifetimes to build, as specimens are painstakingly acquired and undergo observation, purification and scrutiny of genetics and measurable traits.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=776&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=776&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=776&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=976&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=976&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329612/original/file-20200422-82672-qm9tdq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=976&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wearing social distancing PPE, Rita Rio tends her tsetse fly colony during campus closure.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rita Rio</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=cg6LRZYAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">Scientists</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=8NN2ZEUAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">like</a> <a href="https://www.lovettbr.com/about">us</a> collect what we do partly because these organisms inspire our research and capture our imaginations. But just as importantly, these collections are significant to society and its advancement. </p>
<p>Seed vaults, like the St. Petersburg plant collection, safely store bygone seeds with unique traits that can be plucked from dormancy and bred with modern varieties to improve them. Within other collections, similar secrets await discovery with potential insights into human disease, microbiology and food biosecurity. As modern science techniques like genome sequencing continue to advance, researchers will certainly learn more from these living collections and further increase their value to humanity.</p>
<p>Living collections are typically housed within academic or government labs but are generally accessible to the broader scientific community. Funding for maintenance often comes from the public, with many collections relying on the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health for support.</p>
<p>The hidden costs of living collections are often shouldered by collections managers and staff. No one sees the days or even months curators and technical workers spend cultivating a single unique organism or colony, the holidays spent setting up cages, the weekends changing food, providing water, and, yes, picking up waste. </p>
<p>It takes a lot of labor and technical skill to keep collections alive and solvent. </p>
<h2>Our own living collections</h2>
<p>During a global pandemic, this unassuming work becomes even more difficult. Many scientists have been left scrambling to justify the importance of their collections to their administrations in order to gain laboratory access during social distancing restrictions. We know this because we’re spending our time maintaining living collections of our own here at <a href="https://www.wvu.edu/">West Virginia University</a>.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=652&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=652&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=652&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329604/original/file-20200421-82666-15tjrgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A watch glass containing microscopic spores of diverse strains of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. These beneficial fungi form spores inside and outside the roots of their plant hosts.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Matt Kasson</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We maintain <a href="https://invam.wvu.edu/">INVAM</a>, the world’s largest collection of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. These are fungi that have formed an intimate beneficial partnership with plant roots – so intimate that they can be cultured only on a living plant. </p>
<p>To maintain our collection of more than 900 individual strains, these fungi must be individually partnered with their plant hosts. Then the plants must be maintained in greenhouses for several months each year. With 250 to 300 isolates cultured every three months and watered daily, this is a serious time commitment. We also need to support commercial sales, which are part of the collection, problematic cultures that need special attention, and research projects that require additional space, labor and maintenance.</p>
<p>Despite the many challenges, it is worth this effort because our collection provides scientists with an unparalleled resource to ask questions about how these close partnerships evolve and how they can be leveraged to grow healthier food and fitter crops now and under our changing environment now and in the near future.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=776&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=776&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=776&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=976&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=976&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/329573/original/file-20200421-82699-1dwj28b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=976&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Tsetse flies are reared in temperature, light and humidity controlled incubators within negative pressure rooms.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rita Rio</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Elsewhere on campus, the <a href="http://www.as.wvu.edu/%7Errio/Site/Welcome.html">Rio lab</a> maintains one of only two tsetse fly colonies in the United States. These bloodthirsty flies transmit parasites that cause some of the most devastating neglected diseases. These colonies are critical to advancing scientists’ understanding of fly biology and parasite interactions and <a href="https://www.who.int/trypanosomiasis_african/disease/vector/en/">for devising novel pest control strategies</a>.</p>
<p>These finicky insects are constantly in search of blood and require feeding multiple times a week, no matter what is happening in the world. Like people, individual tsetse flies have a low number of offspring. This means it’s important to keep tsetse fly numbers high in colonies to promote genetic diversity. </p>
<h2>Keeping collections alive during a pandemic</h2>
<p>To keep collections going while observing social distancing rules, scientists seem to have taken two approaches: Put collections into “hibernation” or bring them home.</p>
<p>For regulatory and logistical reasons, we could not bring our collections home, so we’ve carefully planned the minimum required maintenance to limit personnel required and the number of visits to the university. Our goal is simply to usher as many fungal strains or flies through this human public health crisis as possible without conducting experiments or growing our collections.</p>
<p>To accomplish this, we’ve had to justify our status as essential employees to our university. We go in wearing masks and scrupulously disinfect shared surfaces. We not only coordinate with other essential personnel to ensure that we’re on campus at different times, but use different routes through the building. We do this to protect our communities, while also protecting scientific resources that have consumed considerable time and effort to amass.</p>
<p>The other option is to bring collections home. This works for organisms that take up little space and can leave the confines of a laboratory, unlike permit-regulated tsetse flies, and can handle the conditions of our households.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/B-Ib4RQnl7a/?igshid=9dlpe88hkx4g","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>This short-term solution allows more effective social distancing but presents new logistical challenges. Imagine sharing your home with <a href="https://twitter.com/StegoSteven/status/1248386916455600129?s=20">a few hundred social spiders</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/prairie_rex/status/1248456728481370113?s=20">400 overwintering Boisduval’s butterflies</a> or even <a href="https://twitter.com/AndiFischer10/status/1248750956960813056?s=20">1,500 widow spiders</a>. </p>
<p>Though their scientist caretakers are well suited to deal with the challenges of rearing these organisms at home, they’re still faced with difficult questions. Where do you store them? How will you secure enough food to weather this ambiguous period of self-isolation? How do you keep your cats or kids out of <a href="https://twitter.com/LehmanWeiss/status/1248677843569004545?s=20">incubators full of flour beetles</a>?</p>
<p>The imposition of bringing a colony of insects home or jumping through risky hoops to visit collections living in the lab is well worth it for scientists like us. The effort necessary during this pandemic to literally keep science alive is justified by the value these collections provide to researchers and society.</p>
<p>[<em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklysmart">You can get our highlights each weekend</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136108/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew T. Kasson receives funding from NSF, USDA and The Ohrstrom Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rita Rio receives funding from NIH NIAID.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brian Lovett does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>From fungi and flies to spiders and fish, living collections need care and feeding even when their human keepers are dealing with a pandemic and its resultant social distancing.Matt Kasson, Assistant Professor of Plant Pathology and Mycology, West Virginia UniversityBrian Lovett, Postdoctoral Researcher in Mycology, West Virginia UniversityRita Rio, Professor of Biology, West Virginia UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1351472020-04-20T18:05:13Z2020-04-20T18:05:13ZCoronavirus closes in on Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh’s cramped, unprepared camps<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328758/original/file-20200417-152576-ayk5eh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C34%2C5760%2C3794&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Nary a mask in sight at a market area in Bangladesh's Kutupalong refugee camp for Rohingya, Ukhia, March 24, 2020. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/rohingya-refugees-without-wearing-any-mask-or-any-other-news-photo/1208086753?adppopup=true">Suzauddin Rubel/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Coronavirus is spreading <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html">quickly</a> in <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/03/fears-grow-bangladeshs-covid-19-response-200323111803294.html">densely populated Bangladesh</a>, despite a <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/covid-19-bangladesh-extends-shutdown-until-april-11/1786610">nationwide shutdown put in place a month ago</a>. </p>
<p>This preventive measure <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/03/coronavirus-dense-bangladesh-social-distancing-tough-task-200320103733470.html">has proven challenging to implement</a> due to lack of awareness of the coronavirus and the absence of a social safety net. Extreme poverty also forces many Bangladeshis to keep working and looking for food despite the risks. Bangladesh had <a href="https://www.banglanews24.com/">2,948 confirmed COVID-19 cases</a> as of April 20.</p>
<p>The disease has not yet spread into the refugee camps that house the Rohingya Muslims who fled ethnic violence in Myanmar in 2017, according to a recent update from <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_5_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">the humanitarian organizations that work in the camps</a>. But an outbreak <a href="https://time.com/5814952/rohingya-refugees-coronavirus-bangladesh/">in the overcrowded camps is almost certain to come</a> eventually – and when it does, <a href="https://www.ipsnews.net/2020/04/no-space-social-distancing-rohingya-refugee-camps/">experts say</a>, the damage could be severe.</p>
<h2>Crisis response in the camps</h2>
<p>Even in normal times people in refugee camps often struggle to survive, living as they do with <a href="http://reporting.unhcr.org/sites/default/files/UNHCR%20Brochure%20on%20Underfunded%20Situations%20-%20September%202018.pdf#_ga=2.84854302.640090143.1586929225-1501254923.1585302690">minimal resources, food and housing</a>. I saw this <a href="https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2018/09/rohingya-refugees-bangladeshs-infamous-monsoon-story-survival/">grim reality</a> with my own eyes when I visited the <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/bangladesh">Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh</a> – my home country – in 2017 and 2018. </p>
<p>Many of the Rohingya I met in the Kutupalong and Balukhali camps had seen family members murdered and tortured. Most had experienced or borne witness to rape and had their houses burned down. </p>
<p>The Myanmar military’s violent 2017 assault on this Muslim minority was later declared a “<a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2017/09/564622-un-human-rights-chief-points-textbook-example-ethnic-cleansing-myanmar#.WfJRrltSy70">textbook example of ethnic cleansing</a>” by the United Nations.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327063/original/file-20200410-46372-16f5noh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Kutupalong refugee camp during monsoon season, 2018.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Saleh Ahmed</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The nearly 1 million traumatized Rohingya who migrated to neighboring Bangladesh now live in <a href="http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/MYANMAR-ROHINGYA/010051VB46G/index.html">cramped, makeshift housing</a> in <a href="https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2018/09/rohingya-refugees-bangladeshs-infamous-monsoon-story-survival/">the country’s southeast</a>, near the border with Myanmar. In the camp areas, the basic hygiene that is essential for preventing the spread of the disease is simply impossible. </p>
<p>On average, four to five Rohingyas live together in a one-room hut, which is often constructed of tarpaulin sheets and bamboo sticks. Their floors, where they sleep on plastic cloth or paper, are usually muddy. Water supply, sanitation and sewage facilities are terribly <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6220352/">inadequate</a>.</p>
<p>The camps, which have an <a href="https://apnews.com/5bf8d0ce6f3ff0e2746317ba372d0999">average density of 103,600 people per square mile</a> – far denser than <a href="https://worldpopulationreview.com/boroughs/manhattan-population">Manhattan</a> – are a breeding ground for disease. Since 2017 <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/04/11/711743116/chickenpox-the-latest-burden-for-the-rohingya-refugees">cholera, chicken pox</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jtm/article/26/1/tay122/5166712">diphtheria</a> have broken out in the camp areas.</p>
<h2>Preventive measures</h2>
<p>The Bangladesh government, national aid groups and international agencies, including the United Nations, are trying to <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_4_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">equip the refugee camps for the coming COVID-19 pandemic</a>. </p>
<p>Nearly <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/news/stories/2020/3/5e7b57e90/unhcr-seeks-us255-million-respond-covid-19-outbreak.html">6,000 hand-washing stations have been installed</a> since March, and some 9,000 shared bathing facilities and toilets disinfected. Half a million bars of soap have gone out at the distribution centers where residents get their food and household supplies, according to <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_4_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">humanitarian groups that work in the camps</a>. </p>
<p>Aid organizations are also starting to get face masks to residents. Some <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_4_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">10,000 cloth face coverings have been sewn so far</a>. </p>
<p>Despite these efforts, soaps, face masks and hand sanitizer remain <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2020/04/rohingya-refugees-brace-for-potential-coronavirus-outbreak/">out of reach</a> for many Rohingya. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328771/original/file-20200417-152558-8bwqs2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rohingya refugee children in a makeshift house at Kutupalong refugee camp, Ukhia, Sept. 12, 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/rohingya-refugee-children-look-out-from-their-makeshift-news-photo/1167514707?adppopup=true">Munir Uz Zaman/AFP via Getty Images)</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To ensure that the refugees understand the threat of COVID-19 and know how to protect against it, the World Health Organization recently conducted a <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_4_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">training on infection control</a> for staff in all clinics and facilities serving in Rohingya camp areas. Personal hygiene conversations are already happening along with soap distribution.</p>
<p>Soon more than 1,400 trained health work volunteers will be doing education and outreach with refugees in the camps regarding the need for hand-washing, social distancing and other preventive measures. </p>
<h2>Faith and health</h2>
<p>But reports from the camp suggest that some Rohingya are ignoring this advice, relying instead on the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/18.1.76">traditional medicines and spiritual guidance</a> of folk healers. Back in Myanmar, the Rohingya were politically and geographically <a href="https://theconversation.com/between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea-the-rohingyas-dilemma-42359">marginalized</a>. Most would have had little to no experience with public health prior to arrival at the camp.</p>
<p>Effectively <a href="https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/technical-guidance/risk-communication-and-community-engagement">engaging a marginalized community like the Rohingya in a coronavirus response</a> will require camp authorities to deliver information in a locally relevant, <a href="https://www.pri.org/stories/2020-04-16/rohingya-women-are-traditionally-kept-out-leadership-roles-will-coronavirus">culturally sensitive</a> fashion. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328767/original/file-20200417-152614-1jkef9i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rohingya refugees pray in a mosque at Kutupalong refugee camp, Ukhia, Bangladesh, March 24, 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/in-this-picture-taken-on-march-24-muslim-rohingya-refugees-news-photo/1208243791?adppopup=true">Suzauddin Rubel/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>History suggests that means working more closely with refugees themselves, as well as with local religious leaders and folk healers. During the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/local-faith-leaders-halt-spread-ebola-drc-191117111929385.html">faith leaders played a critical part</a> in reaching one of the most hard-to-reach Pygmy communities. </p>
<p>Even if widely embraced, <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2020/04/rohingya-refugees-brace-for-potential-coronavirus-outbreak/">social distancing will prove difficult in the refugee camps</a>. To get food, people must go to central distribution areas. Bathrooms are often shared. Poverty effectively prevents commerce from closing down entirely. </p>
<p>For now, fear about the coming COVID-19 outbreak is spreading among the Rohingya. One night in late March, when people in the camps were sleepless with anxiety, <a href="https://time.com/5814952/rohingya-refugees-coronavirus-bangladesh/">Time magazine reports</a>, prayers were chanted at midnight as imams and the faithful sought God’s protection. </p>
<h2>Working urgently</h2>
<p>With very limited resources, the humanitarian agencies and local government are <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_5_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">working together closely to address urgent shortages in the camps</a>.</p>
<p>Bangaldesh’s refugee relief and repatriation commissioner, Mahbub Alam Talukder, says there are <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/coronavirus-fear-grips-rohingya-camps-in-bangladesh/1764588">“sufficient” coronavirus testing kits for Rohingya camps</a>. Efforts are underway to <a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/final_coxs_bazar_update_5_-_covid19_preparedness_and_response.pdf">ready up to 1,900 hospital beds across Cox’s Bazar</a>, the Bangladeshi port city that is home to about 2 million locals and 1 million Rohingya refugees.</p>
<p>As of April 6, however, Save the Children – one of the aid organizations serving the camps – reported that the city had <a href="https://www.savethechildren.org/us/about-us/media-and-news/2020-press-releases/bangladesh-has-less-than-2000-ventilators-for-entire-population">not a single ventilator</a>. In all of Bangladesh, there are just 1,169 intensive care beds with ventilators, <a href="https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2020/04/01/preparing-ventilation-facilities-did-the-crisis-get-proper-government-attention">according to the Dhaka Tribune newspaper</a> – roughly one for every 93,000 people. </p>
<p>“It is difficult for Bangladesh to meet the expected surge in demand for ventilators,” said Dr. Shamim Jahan, Bangladesh deputy director for Save the Children, in a press release. </p>
<p>Jahan is calling for international assistance to “avert a humanitarian disaster” in the refugee camps, “[N]o single country can confront COVID-19 alone.”</p>
<p><em>Pradipto Vaskar Rakshit, an education specialist working at the Cox’s Bazar refugee camps in Bangladesh, contributed to this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135147/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Saleh Ahmed does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>COVID-19 is spreading quickly in Bangladesh. An outbreak in the refugee camps that house some 1 million Rohingya Muslims in cramped, unsanitary quarters would be calamitous.Saleh Ahmed, Assistant Professor, School of Public Service, Boise State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1361092020-04-20T13:05:45Z2020-04-20T13:05:45ZWho’s Zoomin’ who? How the coronavirus crisis is finally putting the ‘social’ into social media<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/327823/original/file-20200414-117562-10c72eo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C181%2C6720%2C4275&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The coronavirus pandemic has led to many people using social media in more positive ways, including video conferencing platforms like Zoom.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.techopedia.com/definition/3411/platform">platforming of our lives</a> on social media apps — like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter — is usually met with criticism. Interactive technologies, like video games and social media, we’re told, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2015/10/15/social-media-making-millennials-less-social-study.html">make us anti-social</a>. Now, as a result of <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/03/how-zoom-rose-to-the-top-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic.html">social distancing efforts</a> in response to the coronavirus pandemic, online social networks and video conferencing <a href="https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/technology-brings-us-together-in-the-covid-19-world-1.4868445">platforms like Zoom</a> are redefining what it means to be social through our technologies.</p>
<p>In a less-than-ideal situation, the Zoom conferencing platform has become central to many people’s everyday life during the crisis. Quarantining has forced us to move our social gatherings online; hangouts with friends and family have, for the past month, become virtually possible thanks to new media. My family, like many others, participated in a <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/8/21209540/passover-easter-seder-zoom-holiday-celebration-coronavirus-pandemic">Zoom Passover seder</a> this year.</p>
<p>Video-sharing apps like <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/2010s-memes-decade-in-review_ca_5dfd3cdde4b0b2520d0b24c2">TikTok</a> also help us to relieve boredom. The platform’s dance challenges and lip-syncing memes provide a sense of fun and comic relief. </p>
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<p>Social media networks and conferencing platforms may be compensating for the loss of social life in a moment of crisis, but perhaps we are getting more than we bargained for. </p>
<h2>Remote working</h2>
<p>Working from home, and homing while at work, has become part of the routine for many white-collar workers: work life and family life are blending into one.</p>
<p>A couple of weeks ago, my five-year-old son wandered into my home office during a Zoom meeting. This embarrassing scenario is something now familiar to many of us <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-04-09/zoom-goes-from-conferencing-app-to-the-pandemic-s-social-network">working remotely via Zoom</a> or other video conference platforms. An hour later, both of my children logged onto Zoom meetings of their own for a session of remote schooling.</p>
<p>Work-life balance was hard enough before the crisis. Now, social media is blending private life and work. For parents and caregivers, the extension of the office into personal space can be an added cause of stress. With no separation, we are forced to do it all at once.</p>
<p>The double duties of care and work, what feminists refer to as the “<a href="https://nationalpost.com/pmn/life-pmn/gender-gap-in-unpaid-labour-means-women-work-double-shift-experts-say">double shift</a>,” isn’t new. But bringing the office space into the home while managing care and the health crisis can be daunting.</p>
<p>Zoom may enable work life during the crisis. But is this really the best way to use our social technologies and media? Maybe this situation gives us an opportunity to see the problems of our culture differently through the prism of social technology.</p>
<h2>Anti-social media?</h2>
<p>Social isolation may have changed the way we interact online, but apprehensions about social media and other cloud-based social interaction technologies and platforms are justified. Not only do we fear the anti-social effects of social media, many of us are also worried about online <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/jan/20/shoshana-zuboff-age-of-surveillance-capitalism-google-facebook">surveillance</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/06/us-tech-giants-nsa-data">manipulation</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/trolling-ourselves-to-death-in-the-age-of-trump-80524">trolling</a>. </p>
<p>Zoom, too, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zakdoffman/2020/01/28/new-zoom-roulette-security-warning-your-video-calls-at-risk-from-hackers-heres-what-you-do/#3014e0ee7343">is not exempt from these kinds of security fears</a>. Like other cloud-based technologies, Zoom is not immune to the threat of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/02/technology/zoom-linkedin-data.html">data mining</a> and <a href="https://www.consumerreports.org/video-conferencing-services/zoom-teleconferencing-privacy-concerns/">surveillance</a>, even from other platforms.</p>
<p>Using social technologies as a lifeline during the ongoing crisis helps us to see beyond the anti-social aspects of the technology. Looking past the interface, we should interrogate online anti-social behaviour less as a problem with the technology and more as having to do with the broader culture of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/15/neoliberalism-ideology-problem-george-monbiot">neoliberal capitalism</a>.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/327826/original/file-20200414-117558-2it83l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Using social media platforms as a social lifeline during the pandemic helps us see beyond the anti-social aspects of technology.</span>
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<p>Like all media, platforms amplify the social, political and economic conditions in which they are used. Since corporate platforms profit from our usage and data, they all have an interest in <a href="https://muse.jhu.edu/article/690528">keeping our attention</a> and our active participation. This is what makes data mining, for instance, essential to all platforms.</p>
<p>Data has become a <a href="https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/bigger-than-the-ussr-a-conversation-with-nick-srnicek-author-of-platform-capitalism/">staple resource</a> for the new economy of 21st century capitalism. And <a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/what-algorithms-want">algorithms are designed</a> to keep us plugged in, whatever <a href="https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/opendemocracyuk/exiting-vampire-castle/">the emotional cost</a>. </p>
<p>As critical media scholars have said for years, if the product is free, chances are <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/terms-and-conditions-may-_b_3692883">the commodity is <em>you</em></a>.</p>
<p>Scholars point to “<a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Blog+Theory%3A+Feedback+and+Capture+in+the+Circuits+of+Drive-p-9780745649702">communicative capitalism</a>” or “<a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-ca/Platform+Capitalism-p-9781509504862">platform capitalism</a>” to identify the harmful aspects of platforms and social media. Platforms rely on <a href="http://www.alternateroutes.ca/index.php/ar/article/view/22403/18185">user-generated content</a> and data mining as part of their profit models.</p>
<p>Like traditional news media and communicative technologies, platform conglomeration risks limiting information freedom and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/21670811.2020.1724516">media democracy</a>. Already, Zoom appears to have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zoom-video-everywhere-google-hangouts-skype-2020-3">cornered the market</a> for video conferencing platforms. </p>
<p>The context of using social technologies during the coronavirus crisis should therefore force us to question the future of our media. Will platforms like Zoom help us to enhance our social relationships and the public good, or will they do more to amplify the needs of platform and neoliberal capitalism?</p>
<h2>Social media and public culture</h2>
<p>Against the background of the COVID-19 crisis, we see just how essential social networking platforms and online communication technologies have become for our social life. At the same time, these technologies extend and embed work into the home.</p>
<p>Can we imagine social media networks and apps <a href="https://theconversation.com/facebook-begins-to-shift-from-being-a-free-and-open-platform-into-a-responsible-public-utility-101577">designed for the public good</a>? What might it look like if <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/6/20998849/bernie-sanders-rural-broadband-access-internet-cable-monopolies-antitrust-election-2020">we removed platforms and social media from their corporate setting</a>? Perhaps a <em>social</em> media that lived up to its name.</p>
<p>Given the ways we’re using social technologies and platforms to maintain our social lives during the crisis, we should reconsider our relationships to technology. Maybe technologies and social media don’t make us anti-social, after all, and the cause of the problem lies in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/apr/07/abolish-silicon-valley-by-wendy-liu-review-rebooting-our-reality">a culture that prioritizes profit making</a> over people making.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136109/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Flisfeder does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Social media has become a virtual lifeline during the COVID-19 crisis. How people in isolation are using Zoom and other platforms goes against the notion that social media makes us more anti-social.Matthew Flisfeder, Associate professor of Rhetoric and Communications, University of WinnipegLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1363872020-04-15T19:39:53Z2020-04-15T19:39:53ZThe coronavirus contact tracing app won’t log your location, but it will reveal who you hang out with<p>The federal government <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/mobile-tracing-is-next-step-in-virus-battle-in-bid-to-stop-outbreaks-20200414-p54jsd.html">has announced</a> plans to introduce a contact tracing mobile app to help curb COVID-19’s spread in Australia.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-contact-tracing-and-how-does-it-help-limit-the-coronavirus-spread-134228">Explainer: what is contact tracing and how does it help limit the coronavirus spread?</a>
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<p>However, rather than collecting location data directly from mobile operators, the proposed TraceTogether app will use Bluetooth technology to sense whether users who have voluntarily opted-in have come within nine metres of one another. </p>
<p>Contact tracing apps generally store 14-21 days of interaction data between participating devices to help monitor the spread of a disease. The tracking is usually done by government agencies. This form of health surveillance could help the Australian government respond to the coronavirus crisis by proactively placing confirmed and suspected cases in quarantine. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.tracetogether.gov.sg/">TraceTogether</a> app has been available in Singapore since March 20, and its reception there may help shed light on how the new tech will fare in Australia. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/privacy-vs-pandemic-government-tracking-of-mobile-phones-could-be-a-potent-weapon-against-covid-19-134895">Privacy vs pandemic: government tracking of mobile phones could be a potent weapon against COVID-19</a>
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<h2>Your location is not being tracked</h2>
<p>Internationally, contact tracing is being explored as a key means of containing the spread of COVID-19. The <a href="https://www.who.int/features/qa/contact-tracing/en/">World Health Organization (WHO)</a> identifies three basic steps to any form of contact tracing: contact identification, contact listing, and follow-up. </p>
<p>Contact identification records the mobile phone number and a <a href="https://www.tracetogether.gov.sg/common/privacystatement">random anonymised user ID</a>. Contact listing includes a record of users who have come into close contact with a confirmed case, and notifies them of next steps such as self-isolation. Finally, <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/04/14/833726999/how-contact-tracing-can-help-fight-coronavirus">follow-up</a> entails frequent communication with contacts to monitor the emergence of any symptoms and test accordingly to confirm.</p>
<p>The TraceTogether app has been presented as a tool to protect individuals, families and society at large through a community data-driven approach. Details on <a href="https://tracetogether.zendesk.com/hc/en-sg/articles/360043543473-How-does-TraceTogether-work-">proximity and contact duration are shared</a> between devices that have the app installed. An estimated 17% of Singapore’s population has done this. </p>
<p>In an effort to preserve privacy, the app’s developers claim it retains proximity and duration details for 21 days, after which the oldest day’s record is deleted and the latest day’s data is added. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/tracking-your-location-and-targeted-texts-how-sharing-your-data-could-help-in-new-zealands-level-4-lockdown-134894">Tracking your location and targeted texts: how sharing your data could help in New Zealand's level 4 lockdown</a>
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<p>TraceTogether supposedly <a href="https://eng.unimelb.edu.au/ingenium/research-stories/world-class-research/real-world-impact/on-the-privacy-of-tracetogether,-the-singaporean-covid-19-contact-tracing-mobile-app,-and-recommendations-for-australia">doesn’t collect users’ location data</a> – thereby mitigating concerns about location privacy usually linked to such apps. But proximity and duration information can reveal a great deal about a user’s relative distance, time and duration of contact. A bluetooth-based app may not know where you are on Earth’s surface, but it can accurately infer your location when bringing a variety of data together. </p>
<h2>No perfect solution exists</h2>
<p>The introduction of a contact tracing app in Australia will allow health authorities to alert community members who have been in contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19. </p>
<p>However, as downloading the app is voluntary, its effectiveness relies on an uptake from a certain percentage of Australians - specifically 40%, according to an <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-14/coronavirus-app-government-wants-australians-to-download/12148210">ABC report</a>.</p>
<p>But this proposed model <a href="https://www.innovationaus.com/contact-tracing-tech-is-a-mixed-bag/">overlooks several factors</a>. First, it doesn’t account for accessibility by vulnerable individuals who may not own or be able to operate a smartphone, potentially including the elderly or those living with cognitive impairment. Also, it’s presently unclear whether privacy and security issues have been or will be integrated into the functional design of the system when used in Australia.</p>
<p>This contact tracing model is also not open source software, and as such is not subject to audit or oversight. As it has currently been deployed in Singapore, it also places a government authority in control of the transfer of valuable contact and connection details. The question is now how these systems will stack up against corporate implementations like that being proposed by <a href="https://blog.google/documents/57/Overview_of_COVID-19_Contact_Tracing_Using_BLE.pdf">Google and Apple</a>.</p>
<p>Also, those who criticise contact tracing point out that the technology is “after the fact” when it is too late, rather than preventive in nature, although it might act to lower transmission rates. Some research has proposed a more preemptive approach, <a href="https://ro.uow.edu.au/infopapers/387/">location intelligence</a>, implemented by <a href="https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030303709">responsible artificial intelligence</a>, to predict (and respond to) how an outbreak might play out.</p>
<p>Others argue that if we’re all self-isolating, there should be no need for unproven technology, and that attention may instead be focused on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com.au/the-government-is-considering-covid-19-immunity-cards-2020-4?r=US&IR=T">digital immunity certificates</a>, allowing some people to roam while others do not.</p>
<p>And in the apps created to respond to particular situations, there’s always the question of: “who owns the data?”. A pandemic-tracing app would need to have a limited lifetime, even if the user forgets to uninstall the COVID-19 app after victory has been declared over the pandemic. It must not become the de facto operational scenario – this would have major <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0267364913000587?via%3Dihub">societal ramifications</a>.</p>
<h2>It’s all about trust</h2>
<p>In the end, it may simply come down to trust. Do Australians trust their data in the hands of the government? The answer might well be “no”, but do we have any other choice?</p>
<p>Or for that matter what about data in the hands of corporations? Time and time again, government and corporates have failed to conduct adequate impact assessments, have been in breach of their own laws, regulations, policies and principles, have systems at scale that have suffered from scope and function creep, and have used data retrospectively in ways that were never intended. But is this the time for technology in the public interest to proliferate through the adoption of emerging technologies?</p>
<p>No one fears “tech for good”. But we must not relax fundamental requirements of privacy, strategies for maintaining anonymity, the encryption of data, and preventing our information from landing in the wrong hands. We need to ask ourselves, can we do better and what provisions are in place to maintain our civil liberties while at the same time remaining secure and safe?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136387/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Roba Abbas receives funding from Australian Research Council (ARC), University of Wollongong Global Challenges Program and Australia-Germany Joint Research Co-Operation Scheme. She is affiliated with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katina Michael receives funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Australian Research Council (ARC). She is affiliated with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the Australian Privacy Foundation (APF).</span></em></p>The federal government wants Australians to sign up to the TraceTogether app, which logs your social interactions via bluetooth. But how much privacy will we sacrifice to combat COVID-19?Roba Abbas, Lecturer, School of Management, Operations and Marketing, University of WollongongKatina Michael, Professor, School for the Future of Innovation in Society & School of Computing, Informatics and Decision Systems Engineering, Arizona State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1361432020-04-11T03:22:01Z2020-04-11T03:22:01ZHeadlines promise Australia’s on the ‘cusp’ of defeating coronavirus. We’re not and it’s too soon to relax restrictions<p>You might have seen <a href="https://www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/australia/covid19-australia-on-cusp-of-coronavirus-dying-out/news-story/b0583e9f205a5f6df9e4219518a366e4">headlines</a> in the last day or so <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/australia-on-the-cusp-of-defeating-the-coronavirus/video/d47ce246e0929951f619164e0559ff22">suggesting</a> Australia is on the “cusp” of defeating the coronavirus pandemic.</p>
<p>I’m here to say: make sure you read beyond the headlines. The reality (as acknowledged by many of the news reports, if you read them in full) is that while Australia is doing well, the social distancing measures will likely be in place for a good while yet.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-what-causes-a-second-wave-of-disease-outbreak-and-could-we-see-this-in-australia-134125">Coronavirus: what causes a 'second wave' of disease outbreak, and could we see this in Australia?</a>
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<h2>On the cusp of what-now?</h2>
<p>The “cusp” headlines were based on <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/news/deputy-chief-medical-officers-press-conference-about-covid-19-on-10-april-2020">comments made on Friday by deputy chief medical officer Paul Kelly</a>, who told reporters “the average number of people that are infected by one person is a key component of understanding the virus and how it spreads”. He said:</p>
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<p>Ideally, where you want to be is below one, so less than one other person being infected after a person themselves had the infection. And once you get to that point the virus dies out or the epidemic dies out […]</p>
<p>And so at the moment we’re probably on the cusp of that in Australia. </p>
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<p>But an important part of his comment is what he said next:</p>
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<p>Now whether that’s where we are going to be in several weeks’ or months’ time remains to be seen.</p>
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<p>Paul Kelly is saying something quite specific here. He’s saying the early signs are encouraging and he is giving some positive feedback to people. </p>
<p>But his “cusp” comment is about a very specific aspect of infectious disease management: the R ₀ (pronounced R-nought).</p>
<h2>Basic R ₀ and effective R ₀: what’s the difference?</h2>
<p>The basic R ₀ tells us about how transmissible a disease is when everyone in the population is susceptible and there are no public health measures in place to control the disease. So this basic R ₀ is an inherent property of the infectious agent.</p>
<p>There’s also something called the effective R ₀, which is how the virus <em>really</em> spreads in the population. This effective R ₀ takes into account any immunity that people may have in the population as well as public health measures implemented to slow the spread of a disease.</p>
<p>When you get the effective R ₀ to less than one then you are on the way to seeing the virus disappear from the population. That’s because each person is spreading it to less than one person (on average).</p>
<p>That’s what Paul Kelly was explaining. Our social distancing measures are working and we are seeing the effective R ₀ under one, which means we are on the way to a really good outcome. </p>
<p>But it’s not quite true to say we are on the cusp of defeating the epidemic in Australia. </p>
<p>The only reason the effective R ₀ is less than one is <em>because</em> of those measures. As soon as you relax those restrictions, the effective R ₀ shoots up past one and you get exponential growth.</p>
<h2>The big question: community transmission</h2>
<p>At this stage of the epidemic, a large number of cases have been imported from overseas. So the great progress we are seeing now on the effective R ₀ may be because of the border controls and stopping transmission from cruise ships. </p>
<p>That’s good but you need to remember that to this point we have largely focused on testing those who have recently come from overseas or been in contact with someone recently returned.</p>
<p>It’s possible and likely that community transmission is occurring (where people are getting infected by someone who isn’t recently returned from overseas or a close contact of such a person).</p>
<p>Because our testing hasn’t focused on community transmission, we don’t know a lot about what’s happening in this space. However, we are now seeing testing criteria rapidly expand throughout the country so we will start to find out more about this in coming weeks.</p>
<h2>Good news but we need to keep going</h2>
<p>I do think Australia deserves some positive encouragement. We have done well, by and large, on the social distancing and we need to keep it up over Easter. Don’t undo all the hard work and all the gains we have made so far.</p>
<p>But whatever you do, don’t read these “cusp” headlines and walk away with the mistaken impression that we are on the cusp of the epidemic in Australia being over. That’s not where we are at right now. </p>
<p>As Paul Kelly said in the same press conference:</p>
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<p>on average, what we know about this virus if we don’t have these social distancing measures, one person can lead to 400 other cases within a month.</p>
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<p>Social distancing is one of our most important measures in stemming the epidemic. Australia needs to keep up the good work.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/grattan-on-friday-australias-coronavirus-debate-turns-to-the-way-out-136058">Grattan on Friday: Australia's coronavirus debate turns to the way out</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136143/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hassan Vally does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>I’m here to say: make sure you read beyond the headlines.Hassan Vally, Associate Professor, La Trobe UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1353072020-04-09T02:28:35Z2020-04-09T02:28:35ZPersonalities that thrive in isolation and what we can all learn from time alone<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326384/original/file-20200408-125020-1ydssrl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C23%2C5147%2C3423&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Anthony Tran/Unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The coronavirus pandemic has caused tens of thousands of deaths around the world and pushed major economies into a tailspin. Beyond those impacts, almost all of us will face psychological challenges – trying to maintain a responsible social distancing regimen without sliding into psychological <a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-can-make-you-lonely-heres-how-to-stay-connected-when-youre-in-lockdown-133693">isolation and loneliness</a>. </p>
<p>At least we’re all in the same boat, and misery loves company, right?</p>
<p>Actually, we’re not all in the same boat. Generalisations about how the COVID-19 lockdown will affect us overlook the fact people have different personalities. We’re all going to respond in different ways to our changing situation. </p>
<h2>Extraverts and introverts</h2>
<p>Take Bob, for example. After two days working from home Bob couldn’t wait to try a social drinking session over Zoom. But drinking a beer in front of his laptop just wasn’t the same. He’s wondering how he’ll cope in the coming weeks and months, cooped up inside and away from his friends. </p>
<p>He wonders this on a call to his sister, Jan: “I might not get coronavirus but I’m going to get <a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-self-isolation-a-psychologist-explains-how-to-avoid-cabin-fever-133317">cabin fever</a>!”</p>
<p>Jan doesn’t understand Bob’s agitation or why he’s so worried about staying at home. If Jan is feeling bad about anything, it is the guilt of realising she might actually be enjoying the apocalypse – quiet evenings to herself, far from the madding crowd. Bliss! </p>
<p>Jan and Bob are archetypes of people we all know well. Bob represents the classic extravert. He’s talkative, gregarious and highly social. Jan is an introvert. She enjoys solitude and finds rowdy Bob a bit too much. </p>
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<h2>Different people, different responses</h2>
<p>Differences in extraversion-introversion <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-63285-007">emerge in early life and are relatively stable over the lifespan</a>. They influence which environments we seek out and how we respond to those environments. </p>
<p>In a <a href="https://theconversation.com/happiness-hinges-on-personality-so-initiatives-to-improve-well-being-need-to-be-tailor-made-102341">recent study</a>, extraverts and introverts were asked to spend a week engaging in higher levels of extravert-typical behaviour (being talkative, sociable, etc). Extraverts reaped several benefits including enhanced mood and feelings of authenticity. Conversely, introverts experienced no benefits, and reported feeling tired and irritable. </p>
<p>The social distancing rules to which we’re all trying to adhere are like a mirror image of this intervention. Now it’s the extraverts who are acting out of character, and who will likely experience decreased well-being in the coming weeks and months. Introverts, on the other hand, have been training for this moment their whole lives.</p>
<p>Why might introverts find isolation easier to deal with than extraverts? Most obviously, they tend to be <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239522412_Person_and_Thing_Orientations_Psychological_Correlates_and_Predictive_Utility">less motivated to seek out social engagement</a>. Introverts also tend to feel <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236156661_What_you_wish_is_what_you_get_The_meaning_of_individual_variability_in_desired_affect_and_affective_discrepancy">less need to experience pleasure and excitement</a>. This may make them less prone to the boredom that will afflict many of us as social distancing drags on.</p>
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<h2>Looking deeper</h2>
<p>Other aspects of our personalities may also shape our coping during isolation. Consider the remaining four traits in the <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/basics/big-5-personality-traits">Big Five personality model</a>: </p>
<p>People high in <em>conscientiousness</em>, who are <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4492903/">more organised, less distractable and also more adaptable</a>, will find it easier to set up and stick to a structured daily schedule, as many experts recommend. </p>
<p>People high in <em>agreeableness</em>, who tend to be <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-science-of-being-nice-how-politeness-is-different-from-compassion-81819">polite, compassionate and cooperative</a>, will be better equipped to negotiate life in the pockets of family members or housemates. </p>
<p>People high in <em>openness to experience</em>, who tend to be <a href="https://theconversation.com/people-with-creative-personalities-really-do-see-the-world-differently-77083">curious and imaginative</a>, will likely become absorbed in books, music and creative solutions to the humdrum of lockdown. </p>
<p>In contrast, people high in <em>neuroticism</em>, who are more <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2792076/">susceptible to stress and negative emotions</a> than their more stable peers, will be most at risk for anxiety and depression during these challenging times.</p>
<p>Of course, these are all generalisations. Introverts are not immune to loneliness, and those with more vulnerable personalities can thrive with the right resources and social support.</p>
<h2>Life in a capsule</h2>
<p>For some, living under lockdown might feel like working on a space station or Antarctic research facility. What lessons can we draw from personality research in these extreme environments?</p>
<p><a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.psych.51.1.227">That research shows</a> people who are emotionally stable, self-reliant and autonomous, goal-oriented, friendly, patient and open tend to cope better in conditions of extreme isolation. In particular, it has been observed that “‘sociable [read agreeable] introverts’ – who enjoy, but do not need, social interaction – seem optimally suited for capsule living”.</p>
<p>To manage as best we can in our earthbound and non-polar “capsules”, we might aspire to some of the qualities noted above: to be calm and organised, determined but patient, self-reliant but connected. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">For some people, lockdown may provide time for creative pursuits.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jonathan Borba/Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Lonelineness versus time alone</h2>
<p>The coronavirus pandemic has arrived on the heels of what some describe as a “loneliness epidemic”, but these headlines <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/loneliness-epidemic">may be overblown</a>. Again, part of what is missing in such descriptions is the fact that clouds for some are silver linings for others. </p>
<p>A counterpoint to the so-called loneliness epidemic is the study of “<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886919303101">aloneliness</a>”, the negative emotions many experience as a result of insufficient time spent alone. As Anthony Storr wrote in <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2005-11953-000">Solitude: A return to the self</a>, “solitude can be as therapeutic as emotional support”, and the capacity to be alone is as much a form of emotional maturity as the capacity to form close attachments.</p>
<p>Of course, some people in lockdown are facing formidable challenges that have nothing to do with their personality. Many have lost their jobs and face economic hardship. Some are completely isolated whereas others share their homes with loved ones. Even so, our response to these challenges reflects not only our predicament, but also ourselves.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135307/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Luke Smillie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nick Haslam receives funding from the Australian research Council. </span></em></p>The COVID-19 lockdown will affect people differently depending on their personality.Luke Smillie, Associate Professor, The University of MelbourneNick Haslam, Professor of Psychology, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1349722020-04-08T12:12:27Z2020-04-08T12:12:27ZPorn use is up, thanks to the pandemic<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325768/original/file-20200406-103690-wfdr52.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Self-isolation can be boring and lonely.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/jtTjrKLvhDw">Annie Spratt/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Across the globe, the coronavirus pandemic is affecting almost all aspects of daily life. <a href="https://theconversation.com/fleeing-from-the-coronavirus-is-dangerous-for-you-the-people-you-encounter-along-the-way-and-wherever-you-end-up-133995">Travel</a> is down; <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-high-will-unemployment-go-during-the-great-depression-1-in-4-americans-were-out-of-work-135508">jobless claims are up</a>; and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/04/06/small-business-loan-coronavirus-sba/">small businesses</a> are struggling. </p>
<p>But not all businesses are experiencing a downturn. The world’s largest pornography website, Pornhub, has reported <a href="https://www.pornhub.com/insights/coronavirus-update">large increases</a> in traffic – for instance, seeing an 18% jump over normal numbers after making its premium content <a href="https://hiphopwired.com/848109/pornhub-premium-free-coronavirus">free for 30 days</a> for people who agree to stay home and wash their hands frequently. In many regions, these spikes in use have occurred immediately after social distancing measures have been implemented. </p>
<p>Why are people viewing more pornography? <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=gCnmj3kAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">I’m a professor of clinical psychology</a> who researches pornography use. Based on a <a href="https://www.joshuagrubbsphd.com">decade of work</a> in this area, I have some ideas about this surge in online pornography’s popularity and how it might affect users in the long run. </p>
<h2>What’s the point of pornography?</h2>
<p>People use pornography for a variety of reasons, but the most common reason is quite obvious: pleasure.</p>
<p>In 2019, my colleagues and I published a review of over 130 scientific studies of pornography use and motivation. We found that the most common reason people report for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/23808985.2019.1584045">why they view pornography is sexual arousal</a>. Research is abundantly clear that the majority of time that pornography is used, it is used <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2018.1532488">as a part</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-017-9452-8">of masturbation</a>.</p>
<p>Knowing that people use pornography to masturbate doesn’t explain a great deal about why they might be using more pornography now. </p>
<p>My colleagues and I found that there are several additional reasons people might use pornography. For example, greater levels of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2016.1191597">psychological distress often predict higher levels</a> of pornography use. People <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2017.1321601">feeling lonely</a> or <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/2156869317728373">depressed</a> often report greater desire to seek out pornography; many people report using pornography to cope with feelings of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2011.607047">stress, anxiety or negative emotions</a>.</p>
<p>In short, people often turn to pornography when they are feeling bad, because pornography (and masturbation) likely offer a temporary relief from those feelings.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325773/original/file-20200406-196131-1yeznfg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Boredom can be a big driver to online pornography.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/Pe4gh8a8mBY">niklas_hamann/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Psychology researchers also know that people use porn <a href="http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd3191">more when they are bored</a>. I suspect this relationship between pornography use and boredom is quite likely one of those exponential functions that’s been in the news so much in recent weeks. It’s not just that more boredom predicts greater pornography use – extreme boredom predicts even higher levels of use. The more bored someone is, the more likely they are to report wanting to view pornography.</p>
<h2>Is more pornography now a problem later?</h2>
<p>The spread of the coronavirus and social distancing measures meant to help contain it have led to increases in <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-loneliness-of-the-social-distancer-triggers-brain-cravings-akin-to-hunger/">social isolation</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-19-could-lead-to-an-epidemic-of-clinical-depression-and-the-health-care-system-isnt-ready-for-that-either-134528">loneliness</a> and <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/why-your-mental-health-may-be-suffering-in-the-covid-19-pandemic">stress</a> – so increases in pornography use make sense.</p>
<p>But are there likely to be negative effects down the road?</p>
<p>Already, numerous <a href="https://thefederalist.com/2020/04/03/how-big-porn-is-making-the-coronavirus-crisis-even-worse/">anti-pornography</a> activists have expressed grave concerns about these increases in use, with many groups providing resources for <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/online-anti-porn-ministry-getting-increased-interest-from-churches-due-to-coronavirus-shutdowns.html">fighting those rises</a>. </p>
<p>As a scientist, however, I’m skeptical of blanket claims that increased use right now will translate to widespread negative outcomes such as <a href="https://talentrecap.com/agts-terry-crews-open-up-about-his-porn-addiction-and-how-it-rewired-his-brain/">addiction</a> or sexual dysfunction. Like most aspects of the ongoing coronavirus crisis, there are probably not enough data yet for researchers to make definitive predictions, but past studies do provide some ideas.</p>
<p>Generally speaking, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-016-0783-6">most consumers</a> do not report any problems in their lives as a result of pornography use. Among people who use pornography frequently – even every day – a large percentage report <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2020.01.007">no problems from that use</a>.</p>
<p>Some research, though, does find links between pornography use and potentially concerning outcomes. For example, for men, pornography use is often linked with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/hcre.12108">lower levels of sexual satisfaction</a>, but the current evidence doesn’t untangle whether men use pornography more when they are dealing with sexual dissatisfaction or if men using pornography more leads to more sexual dissatisfaction.</p>
<p>For women, the results are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/hcre.12108">even more unclear</a>. Some studies have actually found that pornography use is associated with more sexual satisfaction, whereas others have found that it is not associated with sexual satisfaction at all. </p>
<p>Studies related to pornography use and mental health have found that hours spent using pornography do not necessarily cause <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000114">depression, anxiety, stress or anger over time</a>. The same holds for sexual dysfunctions. Although there are cases of people who state that pornography led them to experience <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6030017">erectile dysfunction</a>, large-scale studies have repeatedly found that mere pornography use <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2018.11.004">does not predict erectile dysfunction over time</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325778/original/file-20200406-180021-7l6emy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cooped up alone, people are looking for distraction.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/jZi0Ih47EDY">Siavash Ghanbari/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A distraction at a boring, anxious time</h2>
<p>There is certainly evidence that some people who use pornography also report having mental health concerns or sexual problems in their lives; so far, though, the evidence linking pornography to those things does not appear to be causal.</p>
<p>In short, porn does not seem to be causing widespread problems, and it is probably offering people a distraction from the boredom and stress of current events. </p>
<p>Despite the fact that, prior to COVID-19, 17 states introduced or passed legislation calling pornography use a public health crisis, public health professionals have argued that it <a href="https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2019.305498">really is not one</a>, and I tend to agree. COVID-19, on the other hand, certainly is a public health crisis.</p>
<p>Although humanity has survived countless pandemics over the ages, the current one is the first to occur in the digital age. As disruptive as the coronavirus has been, for many people, opportunities for entertainment and distraction remain greater than they have been at any other point in history. </p>
<p>When social distancing measures are lifted and people are once again permitted to safely spend time with friends, strangers and potential sexual partners, I would expect that pornography use will return to pre-COVID-19 levels. For most users, pornography is probably just another distraction – one that might actually help “flatten the curve” by keeping people safely occupied and socially distanced. Combined with the fact that many people are isolating alone, pornography may provide a low-risk sexual outlet that does not cause people to risk their own safety or the safety of others. </p>
<p>[<em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklysmart">You can get our highlights each weekend</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134972/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joshua B. Grubbs does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Online pornography is one business that’s booming during the coronavirus pandemic. A psychology researcher explains its pull and whether there are likely to be longer-term effects of this surge in use.Joshua B. Grubbs, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Bowling Green State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1353462020-04-06T16:17:11Z2020-04-06T16:17:11ZChristians face an online Easter, preparing to share the gospel without sharing the virus<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325439/original/file-20200404-74235-71im9r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C0%2C6649%2C4446&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">At St. Paul's Methodist Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., technician Joseph Stoute, left, prepares for a livestream broadcast with Rev. Janet Cox, a deacon, below right, March 22, 2020.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/03/places-worship-world-shut-coronavirus-200320135906275.html">global religious leaders</a> have been advised or compelled to shut the doors of their places of worship. In many places, public worship has come to a halt for the first time since <a href="https://www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiousbench/2020/03/influenza-pandemic-1918-churches/">the 1918 influenza pandemic</a> — although even then, <a href="https://www.historyextra.com/period/first-world-war/spanish-flu-britain-how-many-died-quarantine-corona-virus-deaths-pandemic/">some cities</a> insisted that churches needed to stay open.</p>
<p>While some Christian priests and pastors <a href="https://www.thetablet.co.uk/news/12682/orthodox-virus-response-mixes-observance-with-defiance">have insisted on meeting</a> in <a href="https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-03-31/coronavirus-megachurches-meeting-pastors">their churches</a>, many churches and <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2020/march/bsf-coronavirus-covid-19-bible-study-fellowship-online-asia.html">other Christian groups</a> globally are looking to build <a href="https://religionandpolitics.org/2020/04/01/religious-leaders-work-to-respond-to-the-coronavirus-pandemic/">some form of</a> online presence to <a href="http://w2.vatican.va/content/vatican/en/special/2020/settimanasanta2020.html">share the gospel</a> without <a href="https://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/covid-19">spreading the virus</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=675&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=675&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=675&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=848&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=848&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325440/original/file-20200404-74216-1qy31q1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=848&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rev. Janet Cox, a deacon at St. Paul’s Methodist Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., delivers her sermon from an empty church to home-bound congregants by a livestream broadcast, March 22, 2020, in New York.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For Jews, Christians and Muslims, COVID-19 hit at an especially hard time. <a href="https://www.islamicfinder.org/special-islamic-days/ramadan-2020/">Ramadan</a>, <a href="https://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/pesach_cdo/aid/671901/jewish/When-Is-Passover-in-2020-2021-2022-2023-2024-and-2025.htm">Passover</a> <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8836859/easter-2020-when-date-holiday-good-friday/">and Easter</a> are coming soon. For members of these communities, these are among the holiest seasons of the year.</p>
<p>Whether it <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-mulism-community-covid-friday-prayer-1.5519510">will be Muslims</a> <a href="https://wearesocial.com/uk/blog/2019/06/ramadan-on-social-considerations-for-brands">breaking the Ramadan fast</a> over WhatsApp, Jewish families <a href="https://forward.com/culture/442256/passover-coronavirus-seder-haggadah-2020/">sharing a Seder on Skype</a> or Christians <a href="https://easternsynod.org/story/april-03-2020-pastoral-letter-entering-holy-week">typing “Jesus is risen indeed!”</a> in an Easter morning Zoom chat, the pandemic promises to make <a href="https://eu.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2020/03/27/religion-and-coronavirus-cincinnati-jewish-muslim-easter-passover-mass-catholic-faith-church/2898644001/">this religious season a first</a>. </p>
<h2>Virtual religion is ancient</h2>
<p>Virtual religion, however, is not new. It’s actually pre-internet, even pre-electricity. Medieval cloistered nuns and monks took <a href="http://www.bbk.ac.uk/pilgrimlibraries/2018/02/02/beebe/">pilgrimages by reading </a>travellers’ accounts and pacing the distance to Bethlehem or Rome in their cells. The differently abled have <a href="https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/when-church-members-become-homebound">long participated in their communities of worship</a> through radio, television, audio recordings and the telephone.</p>
<p>Among the first reports of Christians praying and worshipping online were some whose experiments were also driven by tragedy. The very oldest act of online Christian worship <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=jCElDwAAQBAJ&lpg=PP1&dq=creating%20church%20online&pg=PA234#v=snippet&q=challenger&f=false">might well be a Presbyterian memorial to the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986</a>. Death and grief are powerful engines of religious change, and have often provoked the emergence of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/apr/17/untangling-web-aleks-krotoski-religion">new spiritual attitudes to media and technology</a>. </p>
<p>Since those early experiments, online church communities have flourished, including livestreams, chatrooms and virtual worlds. In 2004, <a href="https://www.methodist.org.uk/about-us/the-methodist-conference/methodist-council/">the Methodist Council in the U.K.</a> funded <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnUZ4ubcUIw">Church of Fools</a>, an avatars-in-church project that <a href="http://www.stpixels.com/">transitioned into St. Pixel’s</a> website, and then a same-named Facebook group and network. The same year <a href="https://i-church.org/gatehouse/">i-church</a> launched, as “an experimental online community” that is part of <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/">the Church of England</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325453/original/file-20200405-74255-z2toxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lutheran Church of the Cross, Victoria, B.C., shows a sign reading ‘Thanks to frontline workers. Worship with us online,’ next to a rainbow showing it’s a ‘queer-affirming’ church.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Matthew Robert Anderson)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There’s a lot of talk about online religion being “<a href="https://churchofscotland.org.uk/news-and-events/news/2020/stay-connected-with-the-church-of-scotland">unprecedented</a>.” It’s not. What is unprecedented is religious groups all over the world all doing it at the same time.</p>
<p>Here are six proposals about <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfPQEQTBSAA">digital religion</a> from a theologian and a sociologist, <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Creating-Church-Online-Ritual-Community-and-New-Media/Hutchings/p/book/9780415536936">who has written a book about online churches</a>: </p>
<p><strong><em>1. People return to online spaces that give them experiences worth repeating.</em></strong></p>
<p>This might mean world-class preaching or music. But it’s more likely to mean community, friendship, a place to feel valued and the chance to get meaningfully involved. If an online church <a href="https://www.pastortheologians.com/articles/2020/3/25/the-thing-about-online-church">doesn’t find a way to help visitors feel they are part of a community, it won’t work</a>.</p>
<p><strong><em>2. Going online means new opportunities to be more accessible and open.</em></strong></p>
<p>In their now-shuttered physical places of gathering, traditional faith groups struggled with being welcoming and inclusive. Many of the pioneers of online faith communities <a href="http://anordinaryoffice.org.uk">challenged religious exclusivity</a>, providing a home for Christians who felt they did not belong elsewhere. </p>
<p>Online churches have attracted Christians with diverse theologies and sexualities, neuroatypical and disabled Christians and people who had rejected — or been rejected by — local churches. The COVID-19 crisis presents an unparalleled opportunity for all churches to be more accessible and open to groups historically excluded from their pews, while taking care to accommodate and consider people’s varied levels of digital literacy. </p>
<p><strong><em>3. Online diversity needs protection.</em></strong></p>
<p>Online communities and networks also make space for hate and harassment, <a href="https://religionnews.com/2020/03/30/zoombombing-epidemic-comes-for-houses-of-worship/">as some communities now rushing into livestreaming have begun to discover</a>. Secure software, responsible codes of conduct and watchful moderators are essential, even if finding them takes time. </p>
<p><strong><em>4. Reproducing “normal” worship isn’t a bad start.</em></strong></p>
<p>Despite the wide-open visual possibilities of virtual design before them, the first Christian congregations to form in virtual worlds still <a href="https://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/volltextserver/11298/">created recognizable cathedrals and medieval-looking church spires</a>. </p>
<p>Especially in times of crisis we tend to prefer what feels familiar and authoritative. In the first weeks of the pandemic, it is no surprise that many religious groups chose to livestream bare-bones versions of their regular activities, featuring music, a speech and readings one could follow at home. </p>
<p><strong><em>5. “Normal” will change.</em></strong></p>
<p>Tim followed a small group of online churches for more than a decade. He learned that the most successful survive because they are willing to experiment. Each of those churches started with something familiar, then built the confidence to adapt to their new medium. </p>
<p>The term virtual sometimes implies “less-than” — but digital faith communities insist their online experiences are <a href="https://iamthetruevine.blogspot.com/2020/04/mediated-worship-and-spirituality-media.html">more than just a simulation</a> of what happens in a local church. New ideas, new worship practices and the new theological interpretations supporting them take time to mature.</p>
<p>For example, for Christians whose regular gatherings are centred around <a href="https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/christianity/christianity-general/communion">shared communion</a>, online-only gatherings have provoked <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/march-web-only/online-communion-can-still-be-sacramental.html">debates about its meaning</a>. For many, communion is a moment when bread and wine are consecrated and understood <a href="https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/christianity/roman-catholic-and-orthodox-churches-general-terms-and-concepts/sacraments">as a “sacrament,”</a> where Christ is present. Christians are now wrestling with <a href="https://wp.stolaf.edu/lutherancenter/2020/03/christ-is-really-present-virtually-a-proposal-for-virtual-communion/">what it means for that presence to be encountered online</a>. </p>
<p>Arguments about <a href="https://www.thetablet.co.uk/features/2/17770/reimagining-the-eucharist">the meaning of communion</a> are as old as Christianity itself, and discussions about digital communion <a href="https://j.hn/digital-communion-summary-of-theology-practices/">have been underway for decades</a>. Amid the new normal of the pandemic, at least one <a href="https://www.pcusa.org/news/2020/3/25/virtual-communion-church-leaders-say-it-can-be-don/">major Christian institution</a> has suggested that online communion might be acceptable after all. </p>
<p><strong><em>6. Experience is out there.</em></strong></p>
<p>In almost every religious community, there are those who have spent decades <a href="https://churchsupport.online">exploring the possibilities of virtual religion</a> but they will often not be found in denominational headquarters. Churches can find these experts, and learn from them. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325424/original/file-20200404-74202-1os8hrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rev. Christian Rauch, priest at St. Andreas Catholic Church in Lampertheim, Germany, stands in front of photos with parishioners on April 4, 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Michael Probst</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Promise and peril</h2>
<p>A memorable image from the first week <a href="https://cruxnow.com/church-in-europe/2020/03/as-coronavirus-empties-churches-italian-priest-fills-pews-with-photos-of-parishioners/">of enforced distanced worship</a> was of a Catholic priest in Italy who printed colour photographs of his congregation and taped them to chairs in the church sanctuary. He stood, arms stretched wide in prayer, before all these faces. Around the world, other churches rushed to copy that extraordinary gesture.</p>
<p>As inspiring as this act was, it was immediately turned into a Twitter meme that picked up on petty politics in church communities to joke that someone “<a href="https://twitter.com/ChruchSecretary/status/1240651983255715842">complained another person’s photo was in their spot</a>.” The priest and his heckler show both the promise, and the peril, of the digital transformations. </p>
<p>Will digital worship become a chance <a href="https://stillvoicing.wordpress.com/2020/03/29/corona-and-communion/">to radically rethink</a> what it means to be both <a href="https://international.la-croix.com/news/praying-at-home-during-this-coronavirus-holy-week/12118">faithful and in community</a>? Or in the rush to the web will it simply be the same-old institutional thinking wrapped in a new format? Only time will tell. As the first online Easter for so many of the faithful quickly approaches, Christians are about to find out.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135346/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Robert Anderson receives funding from the Concordia University Part-Time Faculty Association</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Hutchings received funding from the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council for the initial stage of his research into online churches (2007-2009). </span></em></p>Because of COVID-19, observing religious feasts online, such as Easter, is mainstream this year. A theologian and a sociologist offer six considerations for digital religion.Matthew Robert Anderson, Affiliate Professor, Theological Studies, Loyola College for Diversity & Sustainability; Honorary Research Associate, University of Nottingham UK, Concordia UniversityTim Hutchings, Assistant Professor in Religious Ethics, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1355902020-04-06T12:08:01Z2020-04-06T12:08:01ZThe CDC now recommends wearing a mask in some cases – a physician explains why and when to wear one<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325419/original/file-20200404-74235-h877qq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C13%2C1280%2C705&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The change in CDC guidance comes in response to new research on how the new coronavirus can spread.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/flu-h1n1-swine-contagious-person-sneezing-40246747"> Peter Denovo/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/diy-cloth-face-coverings.html">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a> has changed its policy and is now advising everyone, whether or not they have symptoms of COVID-19, to cover their face with a mask or cloth covering whenever social distancing is difficult to maintain. To be clear, the CDC is not saying you should wear a mask wherever you go, but rather in places where people congregate, including grocery stores and public transportation and ride-shares. </p>
<p>The shift in recommendations reflects <a href="https://www.nap.edu/read/25769/chapter/1">growing evidence</a> that COVID-19 can be transmitted by a person’s exhalations and normal speech but also the fact that people are not effectively covering their sneezes and coughs.</p>
<h2>The stealth virus</h2>
<p>COVID-19’s middle name should be “stealth.” People can be shedding virus for <a href="https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/04/symptom-spread-may-complicate-covid-19-containment">one to three days</a> before showing any symptoms – including no coughing, sneezing or fever – in what’s called “presymptomatic transmission.” A <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6914e1.htm">Singapore study</a> suggests that 10% of infections are attributable to presymptomatic spread. </p>
<p>A study of the 3,711 passengers and crew on the <a href="https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.10.2000180">Diamond Princess</a> cruise ship indicates that close to 1 in 5 COVID-19 carriers never develop symptoms. Some these people transmit the virus through “asymptomatic transmission.” The proportion of infected people that never develop symptoms could be more like <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00822-x">one-third</a> for the general population that is younger and healthier than typical cruise takers. </p>
<p>The virus’s ability to spread so easily from one person to the next is why people are being asked to <a href="https://theconversation.com/video-why-social-distancing-is-one-of-the-best-tools-we-have-to-fight-the-coronavirus-134742">physically distance</a> themselves from one another. But people still have to go out to get essentials at places where people gather. </p>
<p>If a person is not coughing or sneezing, how are they spreading the virus? One way is by contact. The virus lives on the mucous membranes in the throat and nose. With people touching their faces every <a href="https://www.ajicjournal.org/article/S0196-6553(14)01281-4/fulltext">two-and-a-half minutes,</a> on average it’s easy to see how the virus gets on our hands, and then we can spread it to commonly used surfaces like door knobs, a plastic handle in the subway or someone else’s hand. <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2004973">Steel and plastic</a> surfaces can harbor live virus for three days.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/piCWFgwysu0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Wearing a mask can help protect others if you sneeze or cough in public. Growing evidence indicates that it can also protect the wearer from airborne virus particles.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The other manner of spread is by asymptomatic infected people simply <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2843947/?report=reader">breathing</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6984704/">talking</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6382806/">yelling</a> or <a href="https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-03-29/coronavirus-choir-outbreak">singing</a>. These activities <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aerosols/pdfs/Aerosol_101.pdf">aerosolize virus</a>, creating airborne virus particles – also called droplet nuclei – that are so tiny they can float around in the air for <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2004973">three hours</a>. Coughing and sneezing produce larger water and virus-borne <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK143281/">droplets</a>, as well as producing <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2763852">aerosolized virus</a>. </p>
<p>Common medical devices, like nebulizer machines for people with asthma and CPAP machines for those with sleep apnea, can aerosolize virus. But the concentration of aerosolized virus will be small in a large well-ventilated space and practically absent outdoors. Infectious aerosolized virus becomes more of a concern in a place like a small, poorly ventilated room. Places like a patient’s bedroom in their home, some nursing home rooms and a classroom would all be concerning to me as a <a href="https://www.bumc.bu.edu/busm/profile/thomas-perls/">physician</a>. Hospital rooms are generally better ventilated.</p>
<p>Another key determinant of getting infected is the amount of time you are exposed – so your risk is much less with five minutes versus 30 or more minutes of exposure. People think about the danger of radiation exposure in very much the same way – how close you are to the source, the concentration of exposure and the amount of time you are exposed. </p>
<h2>DIY and surgical masks may protect you and others</h2>
<p>The purpose of all of us wearing face coverings or surgical masks anywhere people congregate is first and foremost to protect others if we sneeze or cough. These coverings will stop much of the large droplets that could otherwise reach people as far away as 18 feet away. Just-published <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0843-2">research</a> indicates that surgical masks can also decrease the amount of aerosolized virus the people produce by breathing and talking. </p>
<p>A big question is: Can these DIY or <a href="https://www.osha.gov/Publications/respirators-vs-surgicalmasks-factsheet.html">surgical masks</a> also protect the wearer? The same research <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0843-2">study</a> shows these masks impede aerosolized virus being expelled out by the user so presumably they can decrease breathing in the virus as well. But they aren’t foolproof. These coverings don’t fit the face tightly, so aerosolized virus and larger droplets can be sucked in through the gaps between the face and the mask when we take a breath. </p>
<p>Additionally, some of the viral particles are so small that they can be inhaled through the cloth or paper that’s used to make these masks. People should not be lulled into a false sense of security in thinking that these types of masks will protect them from airborne, aerosolized virus especially in poorly ventilated spaces frequented by others. The best thing to do is to either avoid such spaces or be in them for as short a period of time as possible.</p>
<h2>The bottom line</h2>
<p>The chance of catching COVID-19 from a person walking by outdoors is extremely small. Wearing face coverings is recommended and requested for when you are indoors, including mass transit and ride-shares, with other people. </p>
<p>Anywhere you go, maintain <a href="https://qz.com/1830347/social-distancing-isnt-the-right-language-for-what-covid-19-asks-of-us/">physical distancing</a> of at least 6 feet with no bodily contact. If someone nearby sneezes or coughs and they aren’t wearing a mask, get at least 20 feet away, quickly. When you do go out on an errand, wear a face covering and get your business done as fast as you can. </p>
<p>You don’t need a N-95 mask if you wear a face covering when you go out in a public indoor place or ride mass transit and practice good physical distancing. Health care workers have to care for their COVID-19 patients within very close distances for prolonged periods of time. If they don’t have a N-95 mask, the risk goes way up for them. If you have a N-95 mask, please donate it to your local hospital or first responder.</p>
<p>[<em>You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-help">Read our newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135590/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thomas Perls does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The CDC now recommends that everyone wear a face covering when they go into a public place. But there’s confusion about why and if this protects the wearer, people around them or both.Thomas Perls, Professor of Medicine, Boston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1348342020-04-06T12:06:13Z2020-04-06T12:06:13ZStuck at home with your partner? Look to retirees for how to make it work<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325344/original/file-20200403-74279-zobcwa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1439%2C1088%2C6806%2C4667&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Take a note from older couples who know how to do it right.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/senior-couple-breakfast-royalty-free-image/1095804716">Geber86/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Across the country an unprecedented number of couples are suddenly spending every waking and sleeping hour of the day with one another. </p>
<p>That’s what <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019087">many older retired couples do too</a>, even when there isn’t a pandemic. Their experiences are worth listening to, because many psychology studies find that marriages among the Medicare-eligible set <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.79.4.644">are the happiest</a> of any <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/000312240807300202">cohort across the life span</a>.</p>
<p>A review of the research reveals a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.88.1.189">U-shaped pattern of marital happiness</a> over the life cycle. Early marriage features many positive aspects interlaced with a lot of conflict, while older couples enjoy the highest levels of companionship with low levels of conflict. Midlife couples who are raising children are at the bottom of the U. They tend to see a plunge in their enjoyment of one another, along with an uptick in fighting.</p>
<p>Of course, you might wish you could be securely retired with a partner right now, especially if you’re currently on your own. Working remotely or facing unemployment while running a one-room schoolhouse, planning three meals a day without running out of food and worrying about your family’s health makes retirement look like a dreamy vacation.</p>
<p>But there are some important similarities between retirement and the isolation required by social distancing. Your social networks have shrunk. Without work connections and friends to meet for lunch or at the gym, a partner becomes more essential than ever. <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=sh-v7eQAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">As a therapist who has been treating couples</a> <a href="http://www.momentumpress.net/books/life-cycle-approach-treating-couples-dating-death">at all stages of life</a> for almost three decades, I’m currently witnessing the relational challenges of this pandemic, a big magnifier that can bring out the very best and sometimes the worst in relationships.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325345/original/file-20200403-74255-12eb4un.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Older couples rely on one another to help weather the storms.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/senior-couple-looking-out-the-window-leaning-on-royalty-free-image/1141290546">Adolescent Content/Niyani Lingham Green/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Lean on me</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/56.6.p321">Older, retired couples</a> primarily focus on supporting one another: Can I depend on you when I need help, feel scared, worry about dying or don’t feel well? And am I willing to be that source of comfort and stability when you need me?</p>
<p>No matter the age or stage of the couple, the current pandemic has revealed the need for much more mutual dependency. Can I count on you to protect yourself and us when you go to the grocery store? If I’m feeling scared about my parents’ health or mine, can I tell you? If teaching algebra (a subject I struggled with the first time around) to our children has pushed me to the breaking point, can I ask you to take over, kindly and with no eye-rolling?</p>
<p>Now is an ideal time to develop your help-asking muscle and, in turn, to welcome your partner’s vulnerability. You can practice now for the years ahead when you’ll need to be comfortable with more mutual dependency – being able to count on and be counted on in moments of need and frailty.</p>
<h2>Have fewer, kinder fights</h2>
<p>My colleague, psychiatrist Bob Waldinger, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019087">brings octogenarian couples</a> into his laboratory to study their conflicts. He told me that he often has trouble getting them to reenact a fight. Having had the same fights for decades, these older couples are quite bored at the prospect of another round. They already know the other one’s lines. Do we have to do this again?</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1037//0003-066x.54.3.165">When older couples do fight</a>, they tend to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0882-7974.10.1.140">handle conflict better</a> than younger ones: They are more likely to interject expressions of affection and are less prone to voicing disgust, belligerence and whining. Because the relationship is so central, they may be more likely to forgive their partners or let a grievance slide.</p>
<p>So, try to catch a fight as it starts and consider saying to your partner, “Can we talk about something more interesting? We probably already know how this is going to unfold.”</p>
<p>Or, if the conflict is important to air, try to remember that you can say something kind without surrendering, or give a warm nonverbal smile or touch. </p>
<p>It’s also a good idea to refrain from making any contemptuous or nasty comments. Couples researchers recommend following the <a href="https://www.gottman.com/blog/the-magic-relationship-ratio-according-science/">“magic ratio” of 5 to 1</a> during a fight to secure a stable relationship: Try to say five positive things to every one zinger or negative comment. This ratio, which may seem outlandish, is based on the fact that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.2002.40102000083.x">negative interactions carry more weight</a> than positive ones.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/325348/original/file-20200403-74206-1luvyl5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">When ‘for better or worse’ includes every waking moment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/senior-married-couple-eating-healthy-food-for-royalty-free-image/1207315875">Drazen_/E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Focus on the present reality</h2>
<p>Studies suggest that older couples <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/56.6.p321">focus on the present</a> and are better able to accept the relationship as it is, rather than looking ahead to a time when it is going to be transformed. </p>
<p>While they may not discuss their own mortality, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024569803230">older couples’ perspectives are shaped</a> by a shorter time horizon. They typically pay more attention to positive experiences, want to understand their emotions better and focus on a smaller group of close friends and family.</p>
<p>Try focusing on what is good about your relationship. What do you admire and feel grateful for? If you focus on the ways your partner is supportive, research shows that both you and your spouse will <a href="https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/a000077">feel better about the relationship</a>. Focusing on emotion will not be hard during a pandemic that elicits powerful feelings of anger, fear, worry, grief, love and gratitude. What can you learn about your partner that you didn’t know before about his or her strengths, ways of coping and cracks in that coping?</p>
<p>Being stuck with your partner 24/7 may leave you pondering the expression “for better or worse, but not for breakfast, lunch and dinner.” But you may come out the other side with some new skills. You don’t have to wait for retirement to have a stronger relationship.</p>
<p>[<em>You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-help">Read The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134834/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anne Fishel does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Cooped up with a partner and nowhere to go to break it up? Coronavirus social distancing… or another day in retirement? Research on older couples holds tips for everyone else on how to deal.Anne Fishel, Associate Clinical Professor of Psychology, Harvard UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1351352020-04-01T16:02:45Z2020-04-01T16:02:45ZShould we wear masks or not? An expert sorts through the confusion<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324486/original/file-20200401-66109-l9sy5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=75%2C192%2C4509%2C2385&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The guidance on masks appears to be shifting, but social distancing is still the key step people can take.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/corona-virus-covid19-close-young-asian-1684027927">Muhammad Fayyaz Rub/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=BjWiYaQAAAAJ&hl=en">professor at Boston University’s</a> School of Medicine and a geriatrician at Boston Medical Center caring for the most vulnerable in this pandemic, I’ve been asked a lot of questions about COVID-19. </p>
<p>It turns out there is good science out there that helps us know what masks we need to wear and when to wear them. That being said, some of the following advice could change as scientists learn more about why some people get a bad or even lethal case of this virus while many more get through it OK. One of the areas of greatest confusion seems to be about <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/31/health/coronavirus-asymptomatic-transmission.html">masks</a>. </p>
<p>Much of the decision about wearing masks depends on what the essential businesses that remain open are doing to ensure <a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-what-it-is-and-why-its-the-best-tool-we-have-to-fight-the-coronavirus-133581">social distancing</a> and therefore, our safety.</p>
<h2>Knowledge will protect you</h2>
<p>Guidance about wearing a mask has to do with the different ways viruses like COVID-19 spread from person to person: through contact, droplets and as airborne, also called <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aerosols/pdfs/Aerosol_101.pdf">aerosolized</a>, particles.</p>
<p>People get infected with COVID-19 when they touch a contaminated surface like a subway handle, or shake hands and then touch their face. <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2004973">Steel and plastic</a> surfaces can harbor live virus for three days. On average, people touch their faces every <a href="https://www.ajicjournal.org/article/S0196-6553(14)01281-4/fulltext">two-and-a-half minutes,</a> so it is easy to see how this virus can spread so easily from one person to the next by touching surfaces. </p>
<p>Another way to get the virus is by <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK143281/">droplets</a> that people produce by coughing and sneezing. Droplets are relatively large and contain mostly water plus the virus, so they usually fall from the air within six feet (one of the reasons for the six-foot social distancing rule). That said, vigorous coughs can go farther, and a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1600-0668.2007.00469.x">strong sneeze</a> – they’ve been clocked at 50-100 meters per second – can spread a droplet 18 feet away. This is why people who aren’t already wearing a mask because they are sick should cough or sneeze into their elbow. </p>
<p>Coughs and sneezes also produce aerosolized virus, smaller particles that float in the air far longer than droplets and that can also travel farther. Aerosols are also produced by <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6984704/">talking</a>, yelling and just normal <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2843947/?report=reader">breathing</a>. A big problem is that in small, poorly ventilated rooms, COVID-19 can hang in the air and stay infectious for <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2004973">three hours</a>. Another thing to know is that common medical devices, like nebulizer machines for people with asthma and CPAP machines for those with sleep apnea, are good at aerosolizing virus.</p>
<h2>Two different types of masks to choose from</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324155/original/file-20200330-65528-2116np.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A surgical mask, left, and an N95 mask, right.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are two basic kinds of masks – surgical masks and N95 respirator masks.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.osha.gov/Publications/respirators-vs-surgicalmasks-factsheet.html">Surgical masks</a> are worn to protect patients from infectious droplets should the health care provider sneeze or cough. Someone who is suspected of being sick or is actually sick with COVID-19 should also wear a surgical mask to protect anyone around them from their sneeze or cough. </p>
<p>As far as protection for the user, surgical masks can protect the nose and mouth against splashes of bodily fluids, as a surgeon might encounter during a surgery. But don’t wear a surgical mask or a do-it-yourself mask if you think it’s going to protect you from COVID-19 that’s suspended in the air, say in a closed, poorly ventilated space. Aerosolized COVID-19 is so tiny that it can get in through gaps between the mask and face and breathed in through the material of the mask. </p>
<p>Some countries are requiring everyone to wear a surgical mask at least in potentially high people density, closed spaces. For example, the <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/f68f3063-5024-4654-9389-bcc7ee1efd8e">Austrian government</a> now requires supermarkets and pharmacies to hand out surgical masks to all customers who must wear them when in the store. The purpose of the masks is to prevent the wearer from spreading the virus to others by coughing and sneezing. If markets and other businesses and our means of transportation can’t enforce good social distancing and even just some people who are coughing or sneezing don’t wear masks when they venture out, then the United States and other countries might have to follow suit.</p>
<p>Several U.S. government officials have suggested that widespread public use of masks will help. <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/31/824560471/should-we-all-be-wearing-masks-in-public-health-experts-revisit-the-question">FDA Commissioner Gottlieb</a> argued that a mask can be “an additional layer of protection for those who have to go out.” To be clear though, surgical or DIY masks and scarves are used primarily to protect others by preventing the spread of droplets. People should not be lulled into a false sense of security in thinking that these types of masks will protect them from airborne, aerosolized virus in for example, poorly ventilated spaces frequented by others. The best thing to do is avoid such spaces and stay home as much as possible.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/respirator-use-faq.html">A N95 respirator mask</a> (in Europe, it’s called a FFP2) does protect the wearer from breathing in COVID-19 if it’s worn properly so that there is a really good seal around the face. If you’re a home care provider caring for someone who has or might have COVID-19, you should wear the N95 to protect yourself. That is, assuming there are enough of these masks to go around beyond those needed by care providers on the front lines at the hospitals. If you don’t have a N95, open a window in the patient’s room and maybe even use a fan if you have one to decrease the amount of virus floating around. Of course provide plenty of blankets to keep them warm!</p>
<h2>The bottom line</h2>
<p>In my opinion, you don’t need a mask with really good <a href="https://youtu.be/aMyx1uC_cuQ">social distancing</a> (staying at least six feet away from others) when you are outdoors. Even in a well-ventilated, large room where businesses are doing a good job of keeping the density of people small and you are there for as short a time as possible, I would not feel the need for a mask. But if those who are sneezing or coughing are not wearing masks and if social distancing doesn’t seem to be slowing the spread of COVID-19 fast enough, Americans and others will likely need to follow in Austria’s footsteps with mandatory masks inside buildings and go further to include any public transportation, taxis and ride sharing services. </p>
<p>If you are coughing or sneezing and therefore producing droplets that can contaminate other people or surfaces, wear a surgical mask to protect others. Even if you think it’s just a cold, wear a mask, or if you don’t have one, then a scarf. Pretty soon we may all be asked to wear these when we go to public places even if we aren’t coughing or sneezing, if some people don’t take this responsibility very seriously.</p>
<p>A N95 mask should be worn by people caring for COVID-19-suspected or infected people which, when worn properly, can protect against airborne virus. Because health care professionals are caring for many COVID-19 patients, they must have N95 masks. If there are enough, then asymptomatic caregivers of COVID-19 patients at home should also wear them.</p>
<p>[<em>You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-help">Read our newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135135/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thomas Perls does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The CDC is reconsidering its policy about the widespread public’s use of masks, as is the World Health Organization. Here are the facts about when it’s appropriate to wear a mask – and what kind.Thomas Perls, Professor of Medicine, Boston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1349842020-04-01T12:09:25Z2020-04-01T12:09:25ZTake it from Pluto the Schnauzer: Comedy will help us through the coronavirus crisis<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324423/original/file-20200331-65537-1hkmtph.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C2%2C1399%2C881&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What's got four legs, a wet nose and can help us laugh through the crisis?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.facebook.com/nanciewight/videos/10158289063493653/">Facebook</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It took an adorable talking dog to shake me from my gloom.</p>
<p>Ten days into the Great Pandemic Shutdown of 2020, I was still scrolling my phone for increasingly grim statistics, epidemiological forecast models and horror stories from the medical front lines of COVID-19. </p>
<p>Then I stumbled onto her: Pluto the Schnauzer, in a ridiculous <a href="https://www.facebook.com/100346998277754/posts/100350721610715/?d=n">Facebook video</a>, offering counsel “on the internets” about how we humans might re-frame our anxious quarantined existence. </p>
<p>There’s always something to do, says Pluto. Straight to camera like a doggy newscaster, she reminds us that “we (four-leggeds) curl up, we wander around, we play with a tennis ball.” She offers wisdom about the humans’ curious <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/03/30/nation/were-still-hoarding-toilet-paper-because-coronavirus-no-good-reason/">toilet paper “crisis”</a> and advises us to avoid sniffing crotches until social distancing is over. Pluto for president, I say – she’s giving it to us straight. </p>
<h2>The best medicine?</h2>
<p>There is plenty to laugh at, it seems, in a crisis moment when the world’s shared destiny has become breathtakingly clear. This doesn’t mean that we’re trivializing the suffering. We’re trying to cope. Beyond the obvious illness, we’re facing <a href="https://hbr.org/2020/03/understanding-the-economic-shock-of-coronavirus">economic and social devastation</a>, which will be felt most acutely by <a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2020/03/27/482337/coronavirus-compounds-inequality-endangers-communities-color/">vulnerable communities</a>. Many of us are <a href="https://hbr.org/2020/03/that-discomfort-youre-feeling-is-grief">experiencing the emotions of grief</a> and trying to figure out some kind of routine in the stressful, uncertain new normal. It’s hard to fully contemplate the ripple effects of the loss and anxiety, or the enormity of the task that befalls us when we finally come out of hiding to repair our communities.</p>
<p>But humor can help. </p>
<p>As Lauren Feldman and I wrote in our new book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Comedian-Activist-Walk-into-Communication/dp/0520299779">“A Comedian and An Activist Walk Into a Bar: The Serious Role of Comedy in Social Justice,”</a> comedy plays an important societal role when we are working through dire, complex social problems. It offers catharsis, resilience and a source of civic imagination that invites play and helps us imagine the future. It can also provide a vital and biting wellspring of social critique that can point out injustice in accessible ways that can be hard to convey even through traditional forms of serious information, like journalism. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lr_tEdQvFcc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Not so much A Night at the Opera, more a month in the bedroom.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We need comedy. And homemade “coronavirus comedy” is everywhere – videos, <a href="https://www.boredpanda.com/quarantine-coronavirus-jokes/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic">memes</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/mar/18/coronaviral-the-best-memes-tweets-and-cartoons-to-get-you-through-open-thread">tweets</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr_tEdQvFcc">re-written music lyrics</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1tNv-dKd1E">parody music videos</a>. Sure, there’s plenty of funny stuff from the expected professional media sources, even while they’re on lockdown – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls0ZormAOhU">“The Daily Show,”</a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvJ1BuEtZEo&feature=emb_logo">“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,”</a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4qvO0StKto">“Saturday Night Live”</a> – but the inventive creativity coming from us ordinary folks is really killing it. In the <a href="https://politybooks.com/bookdetail/?isbn=9780745660707">participatory media age</a>, we can access the production tools and distribution channels to share our expressions of hope, play and silliness through YouTube, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The whole world has been given a license to be funny and deviant, and it turns out, we are really, really hilarious.</p>
<p>But is it OK to giggle about hard times? Are we wrong to seemingly make fun of something so serious? I would argue that these aren’t the right questions. </p>
<p>Look closely. In the age of COVID-19, we’re making comedy that punches up, not down. It is aimed at ourselves and at institutions of power that need to be held accountable. Through our comedy, we invite each other to see our shared experiences through much-needed playfulness - even across ideological divides. </p>
<p>The humor is found in the absurd dystopian reality of our weird new lives: Being <a href="https://www.facebook.com/581553707/posts/10158351509018708/?sfnsn=mo&d=n&vh=e">stuck inside our homes</a> with these irritating other humans, even the ones we love, is “Groundhog Day” tedium. We parents never really wanted to to spend a full <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B92mDL0Hbrv/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet">nonstop 24 hours</a> with our elementary- or middle school-aged children for weeks at a time, did we? (I’m sure my kids won’t read this.) </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KxtGJsnLgSc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Italian mayors clearly aren’t impressed by everyone’s social distancing efforts.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We are <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/take-your-mind-off-of-the-coronavirus-for-few-minutes-with-these-feel-good-videos-memes-and-threads-2020-03-19">fighting over toilet paper</a> at Costco and challenging our kids to dance-offs on TikTok. And then there are the many adventures in Zoom, our <a href="https://news.lvhn.org/stay-home-stay-safe-and-dont-forget-to-smile/">new conference room</a> and college classroom. Suddenly, we have discovered the humor in <a href="https://www.facebook.com/100010288871601/posts/1121202954899323/?sfnsn=mo&d=n&vh=i">your mic being off</a>, your mic being on (oops), <a href="https://twitter.com/JeffreyButts/status/1239742025651687424">floating in the New York skyline</a> or hosting a serious budget meeting while <a href="https://mashable.com/article/zoom-background-change-coronavirus-meetings/">oversized cats</a> appear over your shoulder – thank you, Zoom background graphics. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, stressed-out professors are <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=CCe5PaeAeew#dialog">singing about teaching online</a>. Even a <a href="https://www.thepoke.co.uk/2020/03/20/this-commentators-got-no-live-sport-left-so-hes-commentating-on-everyday-life-and-its-brilliant/#.XnVQ0MnKCsk.facebook">sidelined sports commentator</a> got in on the comedy game with a hilarious series of sportscaster-narrated everyday life scenes. None of our current experience is – or should become – normal (except the dance-offs, perhaps), and comedy lets us say that. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1241405476522336256"}"></div></p>
<p>Comedy serves <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Comedian-Activist-Walk-into-Communication/dp/0520299779">crucial cultural functions</a> as we deal with tough challenges: sharing and amplifying messages, addressing taboo topics in accessible ways, and inspiring us to feel emotions of hope and optimism, which motivate us to <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15205436.2018.1545035">engage in social problems</a>.
And, not least, comedy helps us to bolster individual and collective resilience we need to re-imagine and re-build the post-COVID-19 world.</p>
<h2>Comedy going viral</h2>
<p>Beyond the silliness, much of this “coronavirus comedy” is functionally reminding us what to do – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9YirNgAzXI">wash our hands</a>, stay home, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqx19f0ceUo">practice social distancing</a>. It’s also providing <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thejuicemedia/videos/honest-government-ad-coronavirus/626685584556823/">scathing and needed critiques of official government responses</a>. We know from research that we are much more likely to <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Comedian-Activist-Walk-into-Communication/dp/0520299779">remember and share messages</a> that are funny, which means we are amplifying the information across networks and individuals. And when we spread comedy wildly, we communicate our identities and communal experiences with one another, even while we are physically separated.</p>
<p>Comedy really matters. Through its generative, disruptive, deviant energy, humor can help us to engage and find tenacity, resilience and cathartic release during these trying times.</p>
<p>[<em>You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-help">Read our newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134984/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The Center for Media & Social Impact, directed by Caty Borum Chattoo, receives funding from Luminate, Comedy Central, Atlantic Philanthropies, and the McNulty Foundation for research, convenings, and creative production initiatives focused on the intersection of mediated comedy, civic empowerment and social change.</span></em></p>It isn’t wrong to laugh at coronavirus comedy. Rather a chortle here and there will help us through the crisis, and it may even help spread vital information and give comfort to those in need.Caty Borum Chattoo, Executive Director of the Center for Media & Social Impact, Assistant Professor, American University School of CommunicationLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1342392020-03-28T05:14:27Z2020-03-28T05:14:27ZWithout major intervention, Indonesia could have 71,000 COVID-19 cases by April’s end<p>Transmission of COVID-19 in Indonesia, a country with more than a quarter-billion people, may <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2020/03/17/why-exponential-growth-is-so-scary-for-the-covid-19-coronavirus/#65d402fb4e9b">increase exponentially</a> if the government makes no immediate effort to reduce the spread.</p>
<p>Using exponential function analysis, we estimate – with data gathered since March 2 and assuming the doubling times are similar as <a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200317-sitrep-57-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=a26922f2_4">Iran’s</a> and <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2820%2930627-9">Italy’s</a> – that at the end of April 2020, there may be 11,000-71,000 COVID-19 cases in Indonesia. </p>
<p>Indonesia might hit those numbers if the country’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak doesn’t change. Currently, there is scarce information on the location of infected patients, the number of tests carried out and areas to avoid. There is still a lack of awareness and compliance among the public about social distancing measures. There is also a lack of sanctions against self-quarantine violations.</p>
<p>President Joko Widodo announced Indonesia’s first two COVID-19 cases on <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/02/breaking-jokowi-announces-indonesias-first-two-confirmed-covid-19-cases.html">March 2</a>. In the following days, the number of new cases has continued to increase rapidly. As of <a href="https://www.covid19.go.id/situasi-virus-corona/">March 27</a>, the total number of cases nationwide is <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/27/indonesian-covid-19-cases-top-1000.html">1046</a>, it increased 523 times from the first day cases were announced. And there is still a high possibility of undetected infections in the community.</p>
<iframe title="The trend of total number and new cases of COVID-19 in Indonesia&nbsp;" aria-label="Interactive line chart" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/HgLiw/3/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border: none;" width="100%" height="500"></iframe>
<p>The Indonesian government has put in a disaster emergency plan for COVID-19 outbreak up to <a href="https://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesia-extends-covid19-emergency-to-may-29-as-cases-rise-to-172/">May 29, 2020</a>. Since <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/20/indonesia-starts-rapid-tests-imports-medicines-to-cure-covid-19-jokowi-says.html">March 20 the first rapid tests has been conducted</a> in South Jakarta and the government <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/23/jakartas-emergency-hospital-for-covid-19-open-for-business.html">has converted four apartment towers of the Kemayoran Athletes Village in Jakarta as a new emergency hospital to handle COVID-19 patients</a>. </p>
<p>Campaign for <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/15/jokowi-calls-for-social-distancing-to-stem-virus-spread.html">social distancing</a> also <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/24/no-lockdown-for-indonesia-jokowi-insists-as-covid-19-cases-continue-to-rise.html">continues</a>. However, many still criticise the scale and effectiveness of these initiatives.</p>
<p>It’s important to note that at the end of April, the Islamic fasting month Ramadan starts. During this time, Muslims, that make up the majority of Indonesia’s population, commonly hold many activities together that involve close contact, such as breaking the fast in the evening and the following congregational prayer at mosques. </p>
<p>In late May, <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/26/indonesia-may-ban-idul-fitri-exodus-to-stop-covid-19-transmission.html">Eid al-Fitr holidays will mark</a> the end of Ramadan. <a href="https://bisnis.tempo.co/read/1193980/survei-separuh-penduduk-jakarta-mudik-saat-lebaran-2019/full&view=ok">Nearly 15 million people</a> usually leave Jakarta during this time to travel to West Java, Central Java, East Java and other provinces to celebrate the Islamic holiday.</p>
<p>Indonesia should learn from the <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/b257738e-3da7-11ea-b232-000f4477fbca">mass meeting over 40,000 families ahead of the Lunar New Year in the Baibuting District, Wuhan, China</a> on January 18. The meeting is thought to be the initial medium of the mass spread of the disease throughout mainland China, which <a href="https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/countries-where-coronavirus-has-spread/">then spread into 198 countries and territories</a>.</p>
<h2>A terrifying exponential growth</h2>
<p>Theoretically, interventions such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/kasus-covid-19-di-indonesia-naik-4-hal-penting-untuk-menghindari-penularan-baru-132602">limiting social gatherings</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/cara-menilai-level-bencana-covid-19-di-indonesia-segera-tes-massal-dan-perbanyak-lab-133628">mass testing</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-we-detect-if-coronavirus-is-spreading-in-the-community-132349">isolation of positive cases</a> should slow the number of new cases down.</p>
<p>Without these strict restrictions, the growth in the number of COVID-19 patients will be exponential. This means that for every similar period, the number of patients multiplies by the number of patients before. </p>
<p>For example, if the number of patients increases by two every day, each patient transmits to two people per day. So, the number of patients on the first day to the 7th day would be: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64.</p>
<p>In this first week, medical staff would still be able to handle the number of patients they need to treat. But if the <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(20)30260-9.pdf">doubling</a> continues, at the end of the second week, the number of patients will be 8,192. By the end of the third week, it will pass the one million mark.</p>
<p>By the end of the fourth week, the number will break past 10 million and be at 13,421,728.</p>
<p>This rate of increase is dynamic, depending on the period analysed and interventions conducted to slow the spread of the virus. </p>
<p>To prevent the health system from being overwhelmed with patients, the doubling must be stopped as soon as possible, at the beginning of the outbreak, when the number of patients is still small.</p>
<h1>The four phases of the outbreak</h1>
<p>In general, an infectious disease outbreak has four periods: the delay phase, the exponential phase, the static phase and the decline phase.</p>
<p><strong>The delay phase</strong></p>
<p>The delay phase is the initial phase when there are only a few people coming to medical facilities with complaints.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.02.06.20020974v1.full.pdf">The incubation period for coronavirus is 1 to 24 days</a>. This incubation period provides an opportunity for the virus to multiply and spread from one person to another.</p>
<p>Some people who have COVID-19 <a href="https://tekno.tempo.co/read/1312293/studi-virus-corona-wanita-tanpa-gejala-menginfeksi-5-orang/full&view=ok">do not show symptoms</a>. Without testing, they may not realise they are carriers of the virus.</p>
<p>In this phase, most health authorities and the community tend to be ignorant and in some cases in denial of a looming problem.</p>
<p>South Korea, for example, reported its first case <a href="https://www.cdc.go.kr/board/board.es?mid=a30402000000&bid=0030">on January 20, 2020</a>. Four weeks later, the number of new cases only reached 30. On February 18, a COVID-19 confirmed patient attended a routine religious event at a church <a href="https://jkms.org/DOIx.php?id=10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e112">which was also attended by many other people</a>. Two days after that, the number of cases <a href="https://www.cdc.go.kr/board/board.es?mid=a30402000000&bid=0030&tag=&act=view&list_no=366296">exploded to 346</a>. </p>
<p>There was <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7045878/pdf/ophrp-11-8.pdf">a delay phase of four weeks</a> during which health authorities were only tracing contacts of positive cases and not putting in place drastic interventions. After that, there was an exponential growth of cases. As of March 18, almost four weeks after the exponential phase began, <a href="https://www.cdc.go.kr/board/board.es?mid=a30402000000&bid=0030">South Korea reported</a> 8,413 cases and 81 deaths.</p>
<p><strong>The exponential phase</strong></p>
<p>A protracted delay in detecting infections is usually followed by an explosion of cases. In this phase, health authorities and most people only just begin to realise the danger.</p>
<p>They start to panic and immediately act to control the situation. Unfortunately, health services are already being overwhelmed. </p>
<p>Italy is an example of a more severe exponential growth rate. The country reported its <a href="https://www.ijidonline.com/article/S1201-9712(20)30101-6/fulltext">first case</a> at the end of January 2020. Then it started to report some positive cases from Italian citizens returning from China.</p>
<p>But suddenly, on February 20 (three weeks after the first case), <a href="https://time.com/5788661/italy-coronavirus-cases/">an Italian citizen</a> who had reportedly never travelled to China or had contact with anyone who came from Asia, tested positive, confirming <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2763401">local transmission has started</a>.</p>
<p>Since then, cases have exploded and followed an <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2820%2930627-9">exponential</a> growth pattern. About six weeks after the first case, at March 18, the SARS-CoV-2 virus had infected <a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200317-sitrep-57-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=a26922f2_2">31,506 people and caused more than 2,500 deaths</a>.</p>
<p>Iran is an example of exponential growth rates higher than Italy’s and in a shorter period. The first case in Iran was found and reported more slowly compared to Italy and South Korea, on <a href="https://annals.org/aim/fullarticle/2763328/estimation-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-burden-potential-international-dissemination">February 19, 2020</a>.</p>
<p>Elections and political pressure there <a href="https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/445074/Iran-denies-first-case-of-coronavirus-death">delayed</a> the examination of infected patients. The government punished those spreading <a href="https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/445586/Anybody-who-spreads-fake-news-about-coronavirus-will-get-3-year">rumours</a> about the outbreak, like <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/infection-control-and-hospital-epidemiology/article/protecting-chinese-healthcare-workers-while-combating-the-2019-novel-coronavirus/03DEB8D3BF68A674ADAB3FC4EF245E40">what the Wuhan local government did in early January 2020</a>.</p>
<p>In less than two weeks, the Iranian Ministry of Health reported <a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200301-sitrep-41-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=6768306d_2">593 cases</a> and the number continues to rise. Only one month since the first case, on March 18 in Iran, there were <a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200317-sitrep-57-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=a26922f2_2">almost 16,200 cases and 988 deaths</a>.</p>
<iframe title="The total number and exponential growth of COVID-19 cases in Italy, Iran and South Korea" aria-label="Interactive line chart" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/jyawM/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border: none;" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p><strong>The static phase</strong></p>
<p>In this phase, cases have increased to a point from which they start to decrease. And the addition of new cases is no longer as fast as in the exponential phase. New cases still appear, but the number is relatively stable.</p>
<p>Several factors may cause a decrease in this phase. First, the infection growth decreases due to interventions that reduce transmission. Second, the community has developed immunity and is resistant to the infection. Third, there is a reduction in people vulnerable to infection (in other words, many people have died).</p>
<p><strong>The decline phase</strong></p>
<p>The last phase is when the infection rate shows a negative trend, and the number of new cases is on a downward trend (period of decline).</p>
<p>The length of the period of each phase is difficult to predict. But certainly, the exponential phase will happen soon after the delay phase.</p>
<h2>How about the doubling time in Indonesia?</h2>
<p>The site of <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus-source-data">Our World in Data</a> calculates the rate of growth of new cases for various countries. </p>
<p>For South Korea, the number of new cases doubles every 13 days. Iran and Italy are worse, doubling every seven and five days respectively. China, in March, doubled its cases every 33 days.</p>
<iframe title="New COVID-19 cases in Italy, Iran and South Korea&nbsp;" aria-label="Interactive line chart" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/ypxyg/4/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border: none;" width="100%" height="500"></iframe>
<p>Indonesia’s doubling time is two days. In other words, the number of Indonesian cases will double every two days. If we refer to this figure, it is estimated that by the end of March 2020, Indonesia will report more than 20,000 cases.</p>
<p>This is a very large number and can paralyse the Indonesian health system.</p>
<p>But let’s assume the doubling time of Indonesia is the same as Iran (seven days) or Italy (five days), then we get a picture of cases piling up in April. Assuming exponential growth similar to Iran and Italy, then at the end of March, Indonesia will report between 600-1,000 cases and by the end of April, there will be between 11,000-71,000 coronavirus cases.</p>
<iframe title="Predicted exponential growth of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia till the end of April" aria-label="Interactive line chart" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/qeXkz/4/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border: none;" width="100%" height="600"></iframe>
<p>We should note that the reported cases are people who came to a medical facility on their own. These people come after recognising symptoms resembling COVID-19 or people tracked from contact tracing of previous positive patients.</p>
<p>We still don’t know how many people who have COVID-19 have not, or do not want to, come for testing because <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/20/indonesia-starts-rapid-tests-imports-medicines-to-cure-covid-19-jokowi-says.html">almost three weeks after first case detected</a> there is no mass testing as in <a href="https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/covid-19-testing/">South Korea and Italy</a>. </p>
<p>Massive COVID-19 <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/20/govt-says-rapid-covid-19-testing-kits-can-return-results-in-two-minutes.html">rapid testing</a> with 125,000 COVID-19 antibody-based rapid testing kits is starting this week in the several cities and regencies of coronavirus hot spot of <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/24/as-contagion-spreads-indonesia-focuses-covid-19-tests-in-three-worst-hit-provinces.html">Jakarta, West Java and Banten provinces</a> focusing on vulnerable groups including medical workers. </p>
<h2>Interventions to prevent exponential growth</h2>
<p>Indonesia has just entered the exponential phase. The government must take immediate action to slow down the doubling of cases, by: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>increasing examinations of people at risk in areas where an infected case occurred or areas that have an indication of transmission. Utilise rapid and high detection performance tests to differentiate accurately between infected and non-infected individuals. </p></li>
<li><p>provide data on patient location at the sub-district level so the public can take part in examining themselves and avoid contact with these areas </p></li>
<li><p>raise public awareness and encourage the community to <a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-what-it-is-and-why-its-the-best-tool-we-have-to-fight-the-coronavirus-133581">minimise contact with each other, or social distancing</a>. For example, restrict mobility between contaminated districts or cities, implement strict migration surveillance to individuals returning home from contaminated areas, and apply sanctions to violations on mass gathering ban.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>With more intensive use of science and technology and improved coordination between local institutions and also cooperation between organisations at regional and international levels, we believe this pandemic can be controlled.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134239/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Para penulis tidak bekerja, menjadi konsultan, memiliki saham atau menerima dana dari perusahaan atau organisasi mana pun yang akan mengambil untung dari artikel ini, dan telah mengungkapkan bahwa ia tidak memiliki afiliasi di luar afiliasi akademis yang telah disebut di atas.</span></em></p>Massive COVID-19 rapid testing is starting this week in the several cities and regencies of coronavirus hot spot of Jakarta, West Java and Banten focusing on vulnerable groups.Iqbal Elyazar, Researcher in disease surveillance and biostatistics, Eijkman-Oxford Clinical Research Unit (EOCRU)Sudirman Nasir, Senior lecturer and researcher at the Faculty of Public Health, Universitas HasanuddinSuharyo Sumowidagdo, Physicist, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1345512020-03-26T19:06:00Z2020-03-26T19:06:00ZWant to make social distancing even more effective? It’s about time (as well as space)<p>While the world waits for an effective vaccine against COVID-19, we are relying heavily on social distancing – perhaps better termed “<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-are-we-calling-it-social-distancing-right-now-we-need-social-connections-more-than-ever-134249">physical distancing</a>” – to control the spread of the coronavirus. </p>
<p>Physical distancing works because COVID-19 spreads most efficiently when groups of people come into <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/transmission.html">close contact</a>, although there is some evidence the virus can also spread by <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6912e3.htm?s_cid=mm6912e3_w">touching contaminated surfaces</a>.</p>
<p>Modelling suggests Australia can effectively suppress transmission and control the outbreak only if <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-25/coronavirus-covid-19-modelling-stay-home-chart/12084144">at least 80% of people</a> practise good physical distancing.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322797/original/file-20200325-181180-d3u1f3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">At least 80% compliance with physical distancing measures is required to beat Covid-19.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Mikhail Prokopenko/Univ. Sydney (extra labels added)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.health.gov.au/news/health-alerts/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-health-alert/how-to-protect-yourself-and-others-from-coronavirus-covid-19/social-distancing-for-coronavirus-covid-19">Government advice</a> for implementing physical distancing has mainly urged people to isolate themselves in space: staying at least 1.5 metres apart, working from home, avoiding gatherings, and minimising travel.</p>
<p>However, effectively separating people in space is extremely challenging. Different people still need access to the same essential locations, such as shops, workplaces and health care facilities.</p>
<h2>Temporal distancing</h2>
<p>But physical distancing can be done in two ways: <em>spatial</em> distancing (separating people in space) and <em>temporal</em> distancing (separating people in time). Temporal distancing is an easy concept to grasp. Any time we take an early lunch to beat the crowds, or catch a later bus to avoid the commuter crush, we are using temporal distancing. </p>
<p>People are allowed entry into the same spaces – they just need to do so at different times. Of course, temporal distancing needs to be accompanied by fastidious hygiene to eliminate all possibility of COVID-19 transmission via surfaces.</p>
<h2>Staggering strategy</h2>
<p>Substantial and effective scheduling changes that can be made without too much inconvenience (or where the benefits clearly outweigh the costs) might include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p><a href="https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledge/fundamentals/emp-law/health-safety/coronavirus-employer-response-guide">staggered schedules</a> for workers, including using a seven-day (instead of five-day) roster</p></li>
<li><p>for schools, alternating lunchtimes, and slightly staggering start and finish times of the school day for different classes</p></li>
<li><p>longer opening hours for <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/consumer-affairs/supermarkets-pharmacies-in-nsw-get-green-light-for-24-hour-trading-20200325-p54dxm.html">supermarkets, pharmacies</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/mar/23/queues-at-centrelink-offices-and-mygov-website-crashes-ahead-of-coronavirus-shutdowns">government services</a>. </p></li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.wantedinrome.com/news/rome-reduces-supermarket-opening-times.html">Reduced supermarket opening hours</a>, as happened in parts of Italy, might not help physical distancing because it compresses customers into the same space during a shorter time window.</p>
<p>The concept of regular work hours could be relaxed a bit more. Morning people might choose to start at 7 am, while night owls could opt for 10 am.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=626&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=626&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322831/original/file-20200325-181180-1k74zd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=626&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Staggering the end of the school day 15 minutes either side of 3pm would substantially improve physical distancing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Lee/Flinders Univ./SA Museum</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it works</h2>
<p>The diagram below shows how spatial and temporal distancing can work together to <a href="https://www.flattenthecurve.com/">flatten the curve</a> of infections. Imagine a randomly spread population of 1,000 people, one of whom is infected. With free movement, everyone becomes infected within a relatively short time. If we reduce movement by 80% (spatial distancing; dashed curve), the rate of infection is slowed. If we halve the time people spend exposed to one another (temporal distancing; dotted curve), the rate of infection also slows, but not as much. But if we combine both of these measures (red curve), the effect is strongest of all.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323208/original/file-20200326-133040-12s1nr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Different hypothetical COVID-19 infection scenarios compared to a do-nothing baseline. The first scenario considers a movement probability that’s only 20% of normal (spatial distancing). The second scenario halves the exposure time to represent temporal distancing. The final scenario includes both spatial and temporal distancing. R code to reproduce this graph can be obtained at: https://github.com/cjabradshaw/COVID19distancing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Corey Bradshaw/Flinders Univ.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-flatten-the-curve-of-coronavirus-a-mathematician-explains-133514">How to flatten the curve of coronavirus, a mathematician explains</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Temporal distancing will come with economic and social costs. Working night shifts or irregular hours can cause <a href="https://theconversation.com/keeping-time-how-our-circadian-rhythms-drive-us-17">health problems</a>; organising childcare or work meetings outside ‘regular’ business hours could be challenging; and travel and outdoor activity at night have safety risks. These costs will have to be carefully weighed in any particular instance.</p>
<p>Even after the current pandemic is controlled, there will remain economic incentives for temporal distancing: boom-and-bust cycles are inefficient. Public transport, restaurants, telcos, electricity suppliers, and other service providers already offer off-peak discounts. </p>
<h2>Cutting the numbers</h2>
<p>Besides using both spatial and temporal distancing, we can further slow the virus by restricting the number of <em>different</em> people we encounter. </p>
<p>For example, while small-group personal fitness training is <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/news/health-alerts/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-health-alert/how-to-protect-yourself-and-others-from-coronavirus-covid-19/limits-on-public-gatherings-for-coronavirus-covid-19">still allowed</a>, having the same 10 people in each class is better than mixing and matching classes. This would help restrict any infections to a small group, and make contact tracing much easier. </p>
<p>Workplaces and schools could also consider keeping people in consistent teams rather than mixing them up, at least while distancing is required.</p>
<p>Reducing contacts between groups is <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specific-groups/people-at-higher-risk.html">even more important for older people</a>. Age-stratified visiting or service times, such as the dedicated elderly shopping hours already in place in some supermarkets, might also help reduce transmission between younger people (who generally have higher mixing and infection rates) and older people (who are at greater risk of severe disease).</p>
<p>Social distancing will be a fact of life for months to come. So we need to do it as smartly and efficiently as possible.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134551/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mike Lee receives funding from the Australian Research Council</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Corey J. A. Bradshaw receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Craig Dalton receives funding from the Commonwealth Department of Health to support Flutracking.net </span></em></p>Social distancing is vital to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. But it doesn’t have to be purely physical - we can separate ourselves in time too, by staggering our daily routines.Mike Lee, Professor in Evolutionary Biology (jointly appointed with South Australian Museum), Flinders UniversityCorey J. A. Bradshaw, Matthew Flinders Fellow in Global Ecology and Models Theme Leader for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, Flinders UniversityCraig Dalton, Conjoint Senior Lecturer School of Medicine and Public Health, University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1343412020-03-24T17:02:47Z2020-03-24T17:02:47ZCoronavirus: what makes some people act selfishly while others are more responsible?<p>Many were horrified to see huge numbers of people <a href="https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/public-avoid-tourists-hotspots-skegness-snowdon-a4394126.html">ignoring government advice</a> in the UK recently, enjoying a weekend in the sunshine swarming markets, city parks, national parks and beaches.</p>
<p>The advance of COVID-19 has triggered a broad-scale mission of “<a href="https://sk.sagepub.com/reference/the-sage-dictionary-of-policing/n111.xml">responsibilisation</a>”. This means that political leaders, health experts and even celebrities, neighbours and loved ones have called upon us all to act responsibly in order to slow the spread of the virus, and to minimise the damaging effects of the pandemic. And while many people did follow advice and stay at home, those who did not were enough to cause alarm, and now prime minister Boris Johnson has put Britain in lockdown.</p>
<p>The reckless and selfish behaviour witnessed around the world from <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-florida-beaches-ignore-social-distancing/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&linkId=84575151">Florida</a> to <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3076277/selfish-reckless-people-squander-hong-kongs-hard-fought">Hong Kong</a> has drawn much ire. Why do some people dodge their responsibility in these difficult times? And should we rely on individuals making responsible choices to begin with?</p>
<p>I am a researcher of <a href="https://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/1700005/la/v4_pdf/LA-04">consumer responsibilisation</a>, which means I study how consumers come to accept – or reject – personal responsibility for the consequences of their actions. For example, my work looks at how culturally prevalent views on, and emotional reactions to, social problems affect consumer responsibilisation – as well as how consumers can be motivated to accept responsibility. This work has inspired me to consider current developments in COVID-19 from this particular vantage point.</p>
<p>In Denmark, where I live, the queen delivered a <a href="http://kongehuset.dk/en/news/her-majesty-the-queens-address-on-the-coronavirus-situation">heartfelt appeal to the nation</a>, stressing that breaking the chain of infection requires that “we all behave sensibly”, and lamenting those who continue to behave irresponsibly. It was the first such crisis address since the end of the second world war. Like many others, Queen Margarethe is troubled by the reckless and inconsiderate actions of some.</p>
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<h2>Irresponsible behaviour</h2>
<p>Partying, <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51737030">stock-piling</a> essentials, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/mar/15/panic-buying-sweeps-stores-despite-appeal-for-responsible-shopping">panic buying</a> and <a href="https://news.sky.com/story/cornavirus-britains-rural-towns-warn-dont-come-here-to-escape-covid-19-11961697">“escaping” to rural areas</a> have all been criticised in news outlets and social media. These examples reveal some of the challenges the government has faced in making the public take responsibility. As consumers we have been told that there is no need to panic. The flow of life and the goods required to sustain it will continue pretty much undisturbed.</p>
<p>As responsible citizens, we have been told that our lives must change radically. To continue our old ways is to endanger ourselves and those who are vulnerable. In the wise and somewhat paradoxical words of the singer and self-styled “responsibiliser” <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/billie-eilish-coronavirus-tour-postponed-968225/">Billie Eilish</a>: “Don’t panic, but also don’t be stupid”.</p>
<p>The young people partying for spring break on the streets and beaches of Miami excelled in the “don’t panic” part, but unfortunately failed to appreciate the social distancing side of things. The young and healthy have not appeared to be fazed by the dangers of COVID-19, which is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/20/can-a-face-mask-protect-coronavirus-covid-19-myths-elderly">commonly believed</a> to threaten only the old and the frail.</p>
<p>To make matters worse, the likelihood that we are not so much stopping the virus, but merely slowing down its spread has acted as a disincentive, aggravated by the absence of compelling communication – until now – about the critical value of slowing the virus.</p>
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<p>Although commonly thought of in terms of <a href="https://www.msi.org/uploads/files/JCR_Oct_14.pdf">public “awareness” and dissemination of expert knowledge</a>, responsibilisation is as much a matter of emotion, as it is a matter of reason. Emotions such as hope, shame and pride play a decisive role. Do we feel responsible? Do we feel that our actions can make a real difference? Are we ashamed when we fail to act responsibly? It is one thing to be indifferent to statistics and expert warnings, and another to experience shaming for contributing to the suffering and death of others, as hospitals run out of beds and respirators? Personal responsibility is often based on the ability to relate emotionally to other human beings – their hopes and fears, their pain and suffering.</p>
<h2>Collective and individual responsibility</h2>
<p>Besides issues of empathy, when it comes to COVID-19 responsibilisation goes against the grain to a certain extent. In contrast to recent crises caused by terrorist attacks, weather events and political division, this time we are asked to stand together by standing apart. Instead being called to occupy the streets in protest, and frequent shops and pubs to support the local economy, we have been asked to stay in and to keep our distance. Acknowledging this difference might help us move forward.</p>
<p>Yet this sense of responsibility has not materialised in some people. In our haste to find better ways to make the public embrace its responsibilities – especially the reckless and the inconsiderate – the focus on personal responsibility and individual choice should never prevent society from taking <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8107263/Australians-face-fines-50-000-jail-time-breaching-coronavirus-isolation.html">necessary collective action</a>. The UK government has now taken that action.</p>
<p>As New York Times commentator Charlie Warzel observed <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/11/opinion/coronavirus-expert-advice.html">recently</a>, one reason COVID-19 advice has been framed as a matter of personal choice and responsibility was to avoid the costs and duties of political and collective intervention. Political-economic <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/226578045_Sustainable_consumption_as_a_new_phase_in_a_governmentalization_of_consumption">research</a> has taught us that responsibilisation entails a shifting of burden from the state and corporations to individual citizens and consumers – a shift that does not always serve the public interest.</p>
<p>Governments, corporations and other institutions must accept their share of responsibility too, even when this requires taking unpopular and costly measures. Clearly Prime Minister Boris Johnson has decided that decisive collective rules and interventions will be a faster and more reliable solution than the soft “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/13/why-is-the-government-relying-on-nudge-theory-to-tackle-coronavirus">nudging</a>” of individuals to make the right choice.</p>
<p>Yet, as with other countries that have taken this action, further dilemmas arise as to how to ensure compliance with the new measures. More than ever, the delicate balance between collective and individual responsibility should be at the forefront of public and academic debate.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134341/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Domen Bajde does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As the prime minister’s move to lockdown has shown, people could not be trusted to act responsibly for the greater good.Domen Bajde, Professor of Consumption, Culture and Commerce, Department of Marketing & Management, University of Southern DenmarkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1340272020-03-24T04:42:15Z2020-03-24T04:42:15ZCan we really rely on people to isolate when they’re told to? Experts explain<p>A country-wide shutdown is <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-22/coronavirus-lockdown-what-it-means/12079242">now in place for non-essential activities</a>. At the weekend, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said “<a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/federal-government-advises-against-domestic-travel-warns-of-draconian-social-distancing-measures">far more Draconian measures</a>” were needed to ensure people adhered to social distancing and self-isolation requirements.</p>
<p>The latest measures include <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/federal-government-advises-against-domestic-travel-warns-of-draconian-social-distancing-measures">bans on all non-essential travel, stricter domestic border control and school closures</a> in some states. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/can-i-take-the-dog-for-a-walk-can-i-put-the-kids-to-bed-what-you-should-and-shouldnt-do-if-youre-in-coronavirus-self-isolation-133776">Can I take the dog for a walk? Can I put the kids to bed? What you should and shouldn't do if you're in coronavirus self-isolation</a>
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<p>Despite experts’ pleas to practise social distancing, Sydney’s Bondi Beach was teeming with people on Friday. And although the beach was closed on Sunday, some <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-22/appeal-to-beachgoers-defying-bondi-beach-ban-coronavirus/12078868">still refused</a> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/22/quiet-with-some-defiance-as-bondi-beach-succumbs-to-coronavirus-closure">to comply</a>. </p>
<p>As the coronavirus crisis continues to unfold, to what extent will the public heed advice? And with many facing the prospect of a <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/coronavirus-updates-live-scott-morrison-shuts-down-pubs-gyms-and-restaurants-for-six-months-as-covid-19-cases-surpass-300-000-worldwide-20200322-p54csy.html">potentially lonely six months</a>, how long before people start to preemptively emerge from their cocoons?</p>
<h2>Rule-breakers abound</h2>
<p>Currently, individuals required to self-isolate include those returning from overseas, those who have been exposed to a confirmed COVID-19 case, and those travelling <a href="https://dpipwe.tas.gov.au/Documents/Tasmanian%20Border%20Restrictions.pdf">between certain</a> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/22/non-essential-travel-what-do-australias-latest-coronavirus-restrictions-mean">states</a>. Everyone else should be practising <a href="https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/factsheets/Pages/social-distancing.aspx">social distancing</a>.</p>
<p>Many of us are already incorporating social distancing into our everyday interactions. When offered a hug or a handshake, you may wonder: “<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2020/03/how-coronavirus-caused-hug-and-handshake-hiatus/607762/">am I supposed to say ‘no’?</a>”</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/nice-to-meet-you-now-back-off-how-to-socially-distance-without-seeming-rude-134250">Nice to meet you, now back off! How to socially distance without seeming rude</a>
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<p>Self-isolation is now a legal requirement for those it applies to, with heavy <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/17/how-australia-will-enforce-coronavirus-self-isolation-rules-for-overseas-arrivals">penalties for non-compliance</a>. Prime Minister Scott Morrison even encouraged us to <a href="https://www.crikey.com.au/2020/03/16/worm-police-enforce-quarantine-rules/">“dob” in anyone who doesn’t comply</a>.</p>
<p>Yet, <a href="https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/clinical/reports-emerging-of-patients-refusing-to-self-isol">reports in the media</a> indicate not everyone is following the rules, whether due to misunderstanding, plain defiance, or a “testing” of how strict the rules are.</p>
<p>One man who was told to self-isolate <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-04/coronavirus-launceston-man-visited-supermarket-before-isolating/12023688">visited a supermarket</a> on his way home from a COVID-19 test. Another person who was <a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/411891/australian-man-with-covid-19-who-flew-to-new-zealand-says-he-still-has-no-symptoms">tested then travelled to New Zealand</a>, after which the test came back positive.</p>
<h2>What’s the cost?</h2>
<p>Compliance can be partly attributed to a group’s sense of risk. During the H1N1 crisis (swine flu) in Australia, despite intense media interest, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0196655311002628">compliance with self-isolation measures worsened once swine flu was deemed a pandemic</a>. </p>
<p>When this happened, Australians perceived the flu as having relatively mild symptoms, and this lowered the perception of individual risk. People became less afraid, and less compliant. </p>
<p>The swine flu also highlighted differences between social groups in relation to compliance. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23560537">Researchers found that</a> across a number of countries, older, more educated and socially advantaged people were more likely to comply with recommended behaviours. Those who were younger, with lower levels of education were less likely.</p>
<h2>Authoritarian and democratic responses</h2>
<p>Some have speculated the authoritarian structure of the Chinese government made it easier to enforce isolation and social distancing in China. This has led to suggestions that an <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-27/what-if-china-emerges-even-stronger-after-coronavirus/12005608">authoritarian response might be an effective </a> way to tackle COVID-19, while more <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/una-mullally-collective-effort-is-the-only-way-through-this-crisis-1.4203613">individualistic attitudes (like those held in Australia) could enable its spread</a>.</p>
<p>However, a society <a href="https://duckofminerva.com/2020/03/state-regime-government-and-society-in-covid-19-response-establishing-baseline-expectations.html">whose government displays proactive</a> (rather than delayed) leadership, and a capacity to deliver important resources, will likely be empowered to observe restrictions. </p>
<p>Australia currently <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/ng-interactive/2020/mar/23/how-many-cases-of-coronavirus-are-there-in-australia-live-statistics">has a short window to mitigate COVID-19</a>. While it’s still early days, we may have a <a href="https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6">similar or slightly better trajectory</a> than Japan and Taiwan. Compliance to social distancing and isolation measures will determine this.</p>
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<p>There’s no immediate reward for adhering to these measures. Indeed, Australians may not reap the benefits for many months. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4634241/">And some evidence suggests</a> that over a prolonged period, people initially following rules may become complacent. </p>
<p>To counter this, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277953611000591">effective communication from authorities</a> will be paramount. Messages should convey both the gravity of the risk, and positive reinforcement of civic duty. </p>
<p>Achieving this balance could be challenging, but it’s worth it. Research indicates people are willing to <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/44174080?seq=1">comply with rules they don’t even necessarily agree with</a>, or see benefit in. This is especially true when the rules derive from a society’s shared moral concern. </p>
<p>For instance, rules which govern smoking in public spaces are generally respected due to society’s overall <a href="https://www.tobaccoinaustralia.org.au/chapter-4-secondhand/4-19-public-attitudes-to-secondhand-smoke">negative view on passive smoking</a>, especially when it impacts children. </p>
<p>In the case of COVID-19, social distancing rules align with principles of <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/Publications_Archive/archive/agedcare">caring for older Australians</a>, and other vulnerable groups. Sustaining this concern will be important in the coming months.</p>
<h2>How to encourage compliance?</h2>
<p>Different demographics display different levels of compliance in times of crisis. Considering this, authorities should avoid a “one size fits all” communication strategy when imploring people to fulfil self-isolation and social distancing requirements. For instance, Norway’s prime minister held a <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/it-s-okay-to-be-scared-norway-pm-holds-children-only-covid-19-press-conference">children’s only COVID-19 press conference</a>.</p>
<p>During the swine flu outbreak, different regions showed different preventative behaviours based on the region’s <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25882127">leadership style</a>. </p>
<p>Mexico achieved more effective social distancing, face mask use and better hygiene practices than other countries. This has been attributed to the Mexican government’s visible encouragement of such behaviours, and support from the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/26/world/americas/26mexico.html">army in distributing masks</a>.</p>
<p>In Australia, we’ve already seen people react fearfully to the prospect of enforced isolation, <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/coronavirus-toilet-paper-panic-buying-covid-19-uk-australia-a9403351.html">with some hoarding supermarket goods and fighting over products</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/psychology-can-explain-why-coronavirus-drives-us-to-panic-buy-it-also-provides-tips-on-how-to-stop-134032">Psychology can explain why coronavirus drives us to panic buy. It also provides tips on how to stop</a>
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<p>Scenes like this indicate a <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/19/business/coronavirus-gun-sales/index.html">fear of social order breaking down</a>. At such times, the public’s level of compliance will depend on our leaders’ capacity to deliver important services, act early and proactively to slow COVID-19’s spread, and display a united front.</p>
<p>This will influence our collective sense of risk which, coupled with knowledge about the virus and a concern for others, will encourage compliance – particularly in the short-term. In the long-term, we’ll need even stronger social and psychological support.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134027/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>With social activities shut down across the country, many are wondering: how long will people stick to the rules, before they get complacent?Patrick O'Leary, Professor and Director of Violence Research and Prevention Program, Griffith Criminology Institute and School of Human Services and Social Work, Griffith UniversityAmy Young, Associate Lecturer, School of Human Services and Social Work, Griffith UniversityDonna McAuliffe, Head of school, School of Human Services and Social Work, Griffith UniversityJennifer Boddy, Associate Professor and Deputy Head of School (Learning and Teaching), Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1342502020-03-23T06:49:34Z2020-03-23T06:49:34ZNice to meet you, now back off! How to socially distance without seeming rude<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322232/original/file-20200323-22610-1xdrmmm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C24%2C5444%2C3518&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> </figcaption></figure><p>Depending on your culture, you are probably used to greeting someone with a handshake, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.2466/02.17.21.CP.1.13">hug</a> or <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/96504348/hongi-our-national-greeting">nose bump</a>. Well, not any more.</p>
<p>As introverts everywhere silently (of course) celebrate the need for social distance, the rest of us are struggling to navigate how to project our feelings <a href="https://66.media.tumblr.com/4987e6f7b0e2348cffe89c4ad9fbfbb4/tumblr_n3y8cjHu5q1sial0xo1_500.gif">without touch</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-can-make-you-lonely-heres-how-to-stay-connected-when-youre-in-lockdown-133693">Social distancing can make you lonely. Here's how to stay connected when you're in lockdown</a>
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<p>How much we touch someone when we greet them <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00987051">varies by culture, personality and gender, as well as relationship</a>. Besides being an important <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=a4qRw8Wp1pEC&lpg=PA1&ots=qqcOkuZbhJ&dq=cultural%20significance%20of%20touch%20when%20greeting&lr&pg=PA2#v=onepage&q=cultural%20significance%20of%20touch%20when%20greeting&f=false">greeting ritual</a>, appropriate touch can also serve to strengthen <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/112/45/13811.short">emotional bonds</a> and help to establish the relationship status of two people, whether family, friends, business colleagues, or strangers. </p>
<h2>Hands off</h2>
<p>Important as handshakes are, the need for personal safety trumps everything. You absolutely don’t have to shake someone’s hand just because they offer it.</p>
<p>How should we deal with any awkwardness that arises? The <a href="https://qz.com/work/1815292/coronavirus-drove-emily-post-to-change-handshake-policy/">best advice</a> is to talk about it, but not at length. It doesn’t require an apology or a long explanation.</p>
<p>When <a href="https://qz.com/work/1813557/an-etiquette-expert-on-how-to-decline-a-handshake/">refusing a handshake</a>, do so simply and without fuss, and mention the coronavirus at the first opportunity. Say something simple and concise, such as: “Due to the virus I am not shaking hands at the moment.” </p>
<p>Or, to make it totally clear that it’s nothing personal, you could try saying: “I am not shaking anyone’s hand.” </p>
<p>The tone in which you say these things is crucial. It should be light and maybe even playful. You could further put the other person at ease by saying something friendly like: “It’s lovely to see you again.”</p>
<p>Whatever you do, do it with a smile. The gesture on your face is more important than the ones with your hands. If you’re feeling awkward, make a conscious effort to remember to smile, especially if you are a bloke – one study found that men <a href="http://homepages.gac.edu/%7Ejwotton2/PSY225/meta.pdf">tend to smile less often than women</a>.</p>
<p>With handshakes and even elbow-bumps now off the table, you could try non-contact options such as a thumbs-up, a “namaste”-style prayer gesture, or even an ironic <a href="https://images.app.goo.gl/gL44fxHLEzYwZKp66">jazz hands</a> if you think you can pull it off.</p>
<p><img width="100%" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Covid-19-Handshake-Alternatives-v3.gif"></p>
<h2>Heading off a hug</h2>
<p>While it’s vital to prioritise your own health and safety, a guiding principle of etiquette is to put the other person at ease by showing you value their feelings and comfort over your own. Make it less about the “I” and more about the “you”. </p>
<p>For example, you can head off a potential hug by getting on the front foot, saying “I’m so glad to see you, I’m sorry we can’t hug” rather than waiting for it to happen and then diving out of the way. Being proactive shows you value the other person’s feelings and have considered them in advance. </p>
<p>Another way to do it is to emphasise this is part of a collective effort to tackle the virus. Make it clear you’re avoiding physical contact for the other person’s safety, as well as your own. This might be a particularly useful strategy with older relatives. </p>
<h2>Manners maketh meetings</h2>
<p>Although there are no hugs or handshakes online, the same basic etiquette principles apply here too. If working from home, you can show others you value their feelings by logging in on time to meetings, muting yourself until ready to speak, and making sure any distractions are minimised (not always easy with kids or pets around).</p>
<p>Support the person chairing the meeting, and be just as willing to engage as you would be if you were in the same room. If you think about a situation in advance and believe that action will make others more comfortable, even if your effort fails, you will be perceived as polite.</p>
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Read more:
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<p>As we strive to get used to the strange new feeling of social distancing, remember manners and respect are what make society work. This used to mean shaking hands, but now it means demonstrating our concern for each other’s health by <em>not</em> shaking hands. </p>
<p>Etiquette is a cornerstone of social interaction, and what we learn from it is this: it is not the distance that matters. Showing each other we care is what brings us closer together.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134250/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nathalie Collins is a certified Emily Post Business Etiquette Trainer.</span></em></p>Don’t want to shake hands, but don’t want to cause offence? Just smile, have a short sentence ready in advance, and make sure the other person knows you care about their feelings.Nathalie Collins, Academic Director (National Programs), Edith Cowan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1341862020-03-20T16:19:06Z2020-03-20T16:19:06ZSocial distancing: 6 ways to help older adults change their routines<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321774/original/file-20200319-22590-wztutm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6000%2C3934&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">It's critical to help the older adults in your life forgo their routines and embrace social distancing.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Arunas Naujokas/Unsplash)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we’re all attempting to adapt to new routines and schedules as we adjust to our new social-distancing lifestyle.</p>
<p>Although we’re all vulnerable to the coronavirus, we must not forget the population that’s most at risk — <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specific-groups/high-risk-complications/older-adults.html">older adults, 65 and up</a>. </p>
<p>Although almost all long-term and retirement facilities have been closed for visitation to non-health-care workers, there are still many older adults living in our communities — alone or with family members. Already a group vulnerable to both COVID-19 and <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/corporate/partners/seniors-forum/social-isolation-toolkit-vol1.html">social isolation</a>, social distancing can therefore be challenging for older adults because they have fewer chances to interact with other people, leave their homes and go to public places.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/loneliness-could-kill-you-87217">Loneliness could kill you</a>
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<p>Some older adults are resisting changes to their routines and adapting to the new COVID-19 lifestyle, <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/convincing-boomer-parents-to-take-the-coronavirus-seriously">leaving their adult children frustrated and fearful</a>. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321771/original/file-20200319-22614-1vhl8kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Some adult children are clashing with their aging parents about their reluctance to adhere to COVID-19 social distancing.</span>
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<p>With the heightened stress of being asked to stay home and refrain from seeing others, older adults may defy the advice and prefer to stick to what they know (going to the gym, seeing their friends, for example), in order cope with changes that may feel overwhelming to them.</p>
<p>This spurs strong emotions, fear, anxiety and potential conflicts with the younger population.</p>
<h2>Easing social distancing</h2>
<p>Having worked in various long-term care units and currently a doctorate student in aging, health and well-being, my attention is always drawn to the needs of older adults, especially amid this global pandemic. </p>
<p>Here are a few things you can do to make this transition of social distancing easier for yourself and the older adults in your life:</p>
<p><strong>Limit the non-essentials</strong>: Encourage the older adults in your life to cancel any appointments and outings that aren’t essential. If it is essential, contact a health-care provider and ask for the best course of action for the older adult to stay as safe as possible.</p>
<p><strong>Intergenerational cohabitation:</strong> If you’re engaged in an informal care partnership (meaning you are an informal caregiver to an older adult) and are living in an <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1300/J016v22n04_07?casa_token=39xGaUdQCt8AAAAA%3Az85Eqx64tpc7EpsASfpGmN-ZIg1wg0Hi7ok-r-j6aB16sPx_-h19bewv3Oeu8D2KjT_03RliYoA&">intergenerational household</a> (multiple generations under the same roof), you as a family can implement minor yet effective changes during this time. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C212%2C5472%2C3424&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321769/original/file-20200319-22614-1hexidm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Family members living under the same roof should implement some changes in how they live.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Eberhard Grossgasteiger/Unsplash)</span></span>
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<p>Refrain from sharing utensils, food and drinks. Stay at home as much as you can and if you do have to leave, stay in a <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/prevention.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fabout%2Fprevention.html">separate room in your home away from the older adults</a> and keep a separate bathroom. </p>
<p>It’s critical to recognize every generation’s needs in the house so now is the time to exercise empathy, patience and unity. </p>
<p><strong>Communicate:</strong> It’s best to distance yourself from older adults at this stage in the pandemic; however, you can still keep them in the loop. Let them know what is going on by keeping them up to date with daily news. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321777/original/file-20200319-22598-swle78.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">‘Isn’t the dog cute?’ Discussing pets can be fun for older adults in social isolation.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Brina Blum/Unsplash)</span></span>
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<p>Since it’s best to keep a physical distance, now is the greatest time to have conversations via phone calls, video chats and e-mail. Talk about the small stuff — from how good your coffee was this morning, what book you are reading and how cute the dog looks when he sleeps. Every little bit is worth the conversation. </p>
<p><strong>Offer help</strong>: If you live with any older adults or know any in your life, from a family member to a neighbour, ask how you can help them. Ask if they need a medication refill, see how they are doing with toilet paper, if they have enough food, and let them know that you are in their corner and they are not alone. Remember to respect older adults’ autonomy and self-rule, so always ask before you assume. </p>
<p><strong>Well-being</strong>: Remind older adults to constantly wash their hands. If you can, encourage the older adults in your life to engage in at-home stretches, open the blinds to let natural sunlight in, watch funny movies, read books and to do things that are fun for them in the comfort of their own home.</p>
<p><strong>Talk about the future</strong>: When the world is in a state of panic, we need to remember that remaining hopeful helps ease new transitions. In your phone calls or video chats, talk about plans for the future with any older adult in your life. Talk to your grandmother about how much you love her chicken pot pie and how excited you’ll be to have it again. Talk to your older neighbour about your excitement for the warmer weather, and how these video calls make it easier to avoid the chilly weather! </p>
<p>We all need hope in times like these, so remember to pass it on to the older adults in your life.</p>
<h2>Don’t be too negative</h2>
<p>Although a vulnerable population, it is important to remember that older adults still have autonomy and it is essential to respect that. </p>
<p>As much as it is critical for older adults to practise social-distancing, try not to scare older adults into staying home by emphasizing how dangerous COVID-19 is. </p>
<p>Simply communicate effectively and calmly. This is a stressful time, so more than ever, we must practise peaceful unity.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134186/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Victoria Atabakhsh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Some older adults are struggling to practise social distancing during the global pandemic, even though they’re at high risk. Here’s how to help them.Victoria Atabakhsh, Doctorate student in Aging, Health and Well-Being/RLS, University of WaterlooLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1340292020-03-19T06:20:07Z2020-03-19T06:20:07ZCoronavirus: why should we stay 1.5 metres away from each other?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321460/original/file-20200319-1972-1mha4li.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C5%2C1000%2C660&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/social-distancing-keep-distance-public-society-1673912899">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Australian government is <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/update-coronavirus-measures">recommending</a> we stay 1.5 metres away from each other, one of several <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2020/03/coronavirus-covid-19-information-on-social-distancing.pdf">social distancing</a> moves designed to limit spread of the coronavirus.</p>
<p>Why 1.5 metres? Is this our best, practical estimate? Or is there any solid scientific evidence to back it?</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-what-it-is-and-why-its-the-best-tool-we-have-to-fight-the-coronavirus-133581">Social distancing: What it is and why it's the best tool we have to fight the coronavirus</a>
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<p>The coronavirus is spread from person to person when someone with the virus coughs or sneezes. So people in close contact are at high risk.</p>
<p>Respiratory droplets can land in your mouth or nose. Alternatively, droplets could land on your face, and the next time you touch your face, and then rub your eye, you could infect yourself. </p>
<p>We know the influenza virus is spread in a similar way. One study <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23372182">shows</a> when healthcare workers are within 1.8 metres of patients with influenza, their risk of being infected is increased.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/health-check-why-do-i-have-a-cough-and-what-can-i-do-about-it-119172">Health Check: why do I have a cough and what can I do about it?</a>
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<p>A quick search online will find lots of videos showing droplet expulsion from a sneeze. But there is a lack of good evidence to know for sure how far infectious droplets travel, and what is a “safe” distance.</p>
<p>Research is often <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2018.0779">laboratory based</a> and doesn’t automatically translate to real-life situations. Then there are the variables about the number of infectious particles; their airborne survival; the humidity; and the speed of expulsion of the “<a href="http://math.mit.edu/%7Ebush/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Sneezing-JFM.pdf">turbulent buoyant clouds</a>” (tornadoes of germs).</p>
<p>The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises flu can spread up to <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/disease/spread.htm">6 feet</a> (1.8 metres). The key message is, the closer you are, the bigger the spray.</p>
<p>Similar research is yet to be done on the coronavirus. But the similarity with the way influenza is spread means we can apply what we know about influenza to the coronavirus.</p>
<h2>What do others recommend?</h2>
<p>The recommendation of 1.5 metres is not only based on our knowledge of influenza, it is also a practical distance that allows us to go about our daily lives.</p>
<p>Obviously it’s not a precise measurement, nor is it absolutely guaranteed to prevent spread. But that approximate distance is better than no distance.</p>
<p>The lack of scientific rigour behind these recommendations is borne out in the varied advice from around the world. </p>
<p>The UK’s <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolation-advice/">National Health Service</a> recommends people with symptoms stay at least 2 metres away from others. </p>
<p>The US <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/prevention.html">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a> recommends everybody should “put distance between yourself and other people”. </p>
<p>Finally, the <a href="https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public">World Health Organisation</a> advises to keep at least 1 metre between you and anyone coughing and sneezing. </p>
<p>So you get the general idea. Don’t get close.</p>
<h2>What does this mean in practical terms?</h2>
<p>So, how do we keep 1.5 metres apart, short of carrying around a tape measure?</p>
<p>It’s about two arms lengths, but don’t stress about it. A little bit less is OK, a little bit more is good.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=542&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=542&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=542&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321525/original/file-20200319-22606-1x36hzc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wes Mountain/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<h2>In a nutshell</h2>
<p>Right now, avoiding close contact with others is important, and keeping 1.5 metres away from each other is not an exact science. It’s about keeping some sensible and practical distance between you and others. </p>
<p>It is just one of the strategies we can easily use to help slow down the spread of this virus. And please, wash your hands, and if you have symptoms, stay at home and seek medical advice.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-why-are-we-cancelling-large-gatherings-and-what-other-social-distancing-options-are-left-133631">Coronavirus: why are we cancelling large gatherings? And what other 'social distancing' options are left?</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134029/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Philip Russo is the President of the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control. He is also the recipient of a NHMRC Early Career Fellowship, and has received research funding from the Rosemary Norman Foundation, Cardinal Health, and the Cabrini Institute </span></em></p>Why 1.5 metres? Is it our best estimate or is there solid evidence behind it?Philip Russo, Associate Professor, Director Cabrini Monash University Department of Nursing Research, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1336082020-03-18T12:07:32Z2020-03-18T12:07:32ZThe digital divide leaves millions at a disadvantage during the coronavirus pandemic<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320870/original/file-20200316-27664-magtd3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C2%2C1597%2C1192&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Slow or unreliable internet access is a reality for millions of Americans.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/noii/2327713880/">ben dalton/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=321&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=321&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321150/original/file-20200317-60937-o5j3gl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=321&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<p>Amidst the flurry of social media updates about the COVID-19 pandemic, a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/11/science/coronavirus-curve-mitigation-infection.html">chart illustrating the importance of flattening the curve</a> has gone viral. The idea is that taking measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 lowers the chances of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/12/world/europe/12italy-coronavirus-health-care.html">overwhelming hospitals</a> and increases the chances that all of those who become ill will have access to treatment. The logic behind flattening the COVID-19 curve is intuitive – don’t panic, but be careful.</p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, the internet is playing a critical role in getting the word out to be careful and to help flatten the COVID-19 curve. Websites that present government data are giving people a sense of <a href="https://www.state.nj.us/health/cd/topics/covid2019_dashboard.shtml">where cases are concentrated</a>, and numerous other websites list numbers to call, symptoms to check for and tips for prevention. Increasingly <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/13/814974088/the-coronavirus-outbreak-and-the-challenges-of-online-only-classes">universities are shifting courses online</a>, businesses are <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/coronavirus-creating-huge-stressful-experiment-working-home/607945/">asking employees to work from home</a> and <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/03/11/how-the-coronavirus-outbreak-is-testing-amazon-del.aspx">shoppers are ordering groceries online</a> to minimize time in crowded spaces. </p>
<p>While the internet is an important resource in efforts to stay informed and proceed with daily lives during the COVID-19 pandemic, these online approaches to reducing risk are not available to everyone in the same way. As the Federal Communications Commission reports, <a href="https://www.fcc.gov/reports-research/reports/broadband-progress-reports/2019-broadband-deployment-report">more than 24 million Americans have no access to broadband internet</a>, while the Pew Charitable Trusts projects <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/-/media/assets/2019/12/bri_how_state_policy_shapes_broadband_deployment_v3.pdf">163 million Americans lack access to reliable broadband internet connections</a>. </p>
<p>This digital divide falls along existing lines of socioeconomic inequality – those who are poorer and live in less affluent areas <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/why-rural-areas-cant-catch-a-break-on-speedy-broadband/">pay more for less reliable service</a>. And while <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/">smartphones are more prevalent across all socioeconomic groups</a>, they’re a poor alternative for broadband internet access for tasks like working from home or attending classes online. </p>
<p>The digital divide leaves some of the most vulnerable Americans – a significant proportion of the 163 million who lack access to a reliable broadband internet connection – at a significant disadvantage when it comes to accessing the real-time information people need to respond to COVID-19. This is a problem not only for people without broadband access, but also for society as a whole as we struggle to flatten the COVID-19 curve. </p>
<p>There will be many important lessons to be learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. A less obvious, yet nonetheless important, lesson is that the digital divide is complicating efforts to respond to the challenges society faces. Indeed, a poignant lesson from this pandemic is that finding ways to bridge the digital divide is quickly becoming a matter of life and death. </p>
<p><em>This article has been updated to correct the name of the Pew Charitable Trusts.</em></p>
<p>[<em>Insight, in your inbox each day.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=insight">You can get it with The Conversation’s email newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133608/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gregory Porumbescu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing people to study and work online. It’s also sparked a need for news and information. That’s a challenge for the 24 million Americans who lack broadband internet access.Gregory Porumbescu, Assistant Professor at the School of Public Affairs and Administration, Rutgers University - NewarkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1336892020-03-18T12:04:24Z2020-03-18T12:04:24ZCoronavirus: Social distancing is delaying vital scientific research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321161/original/file-20200317-60885-jkhi1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=364%2C314%2C3640%2C2483&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many scientists have had to hang up their lab coats and go home.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/cancer-research-laboratory-row-of-lab-coats-royalty-free-image/544457023">Jonathan Pow/Cultura via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Scientists are facing stiff headwinds from the rapid spread of COVID-19.</p>
<p>The coronavirus has been declared a <a href="https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-the-media-briefing-on-covid-19---11-march-2020">pandemic</a> by the World Health Organization and a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/13/politics/donald-trump-emergency/index.html">national emergency</a> in the U.S. While the impact of the pandemic on scientific research pales compared to its effect on human health and lives lost, it’s still affecting the vitality of an essential component of the modern world.</p>
<p>Universities around the country are the <a href="https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44307.pdf">engines of research</a> in the United States. They perform nearly half of the basic research and nearly one fifth of the applied research, totaling US$67 billion in 2018. Already, many <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/09/813750481/more-than-20-colleges-cancel-in-person-classes-in-response-to-coronavirus">universities have canceled classes or moved them online</a>, and many have made contingency plans for complete closure. Exceptions will only be made for essential functions.</p>
<p>Which raises the question: Is scientific research essential? It’s not as essential as maintaining core health and human services, but as an <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=OrRLRQ4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">expert in physics and astronomy</a>, I’d argue that it’s more essential than sporting events or rock concerts, as much as I enjoy both. <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/localizing-the-economic-impact-of-research-and-development/">One half of America’s economic growth</a> can be attributed to scientific and technological innovation.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=513&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=513&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321163/original/file-20200317-60871-xrc29h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=513&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Teaching has moved online, but lots of research can’t do the same.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/empty-laboratory-in-high-school-royalty-free-image/1133574111">baona/E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>What’s not getting done</h2>
<p>Just on my campus at the <a href="https://provost.arizona.edu/news/2020/03/covid-19-campus-mitigation-plan-events-meetings-and-gatherings">University of Arizona</a>, which is typical of large American <a href="https://carnegieclassifications.iu.edu/classification_descriptions/basic.php">Research 1 universities</a>, a list of actions that affect research includes: suspension of all meetings with more than four people, suspension of all nonessential travel and plans for the closure of almost all labs and research facilities.</p>
<p>This a huge hit on the professional development of young scientists. It means that in <a href="https://www.as.arizona.edu/">my department</a>, we can’t have colloquia or seminars or journal clubs. We can’t bring prospective graduate students to visit. We can’t have face-to-face meetings of research groups or even thesis committees. We can’t advise our students one-on-one. All these are venues where young people learn their craft and prepare to become independent researchers.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2366/Research-Universities.html">250 research universities</a> and thousands of labs across the country, <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/14/coronavirus-pandemic-forces-research-labs-shut-down/">it’s the same story</a>. At Boston University, biomedical engineer Catherine Klapperich reported to STAT that she’s canceling lab meetings, and that she can’t run experiments overnight, in case one day she isn’t allowed back in the building. Harvard biology professor Richard Lee told STAT he will ensure the mice in his lab are cared for, but he won’t be able to do experiments and his students may not be able to finish their thesis research. Harvard labs are all <a href="https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2020/3/13/harvard-coronavirus-research-interruptions/">closed for two months</a>, but at other universities it’s an open-ended closure, which is very disruptive to planning and executing research projects.</p>
<p>A glimpse of what lies ahead come from Italy, <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/03/updated-labs-go-quiet-researchers-brace-long-term-coronavirus-disruptions">which is under lockdown</a>. According to Science magazine, University of Pavia biologist Federico Forneris has mostly shut down his lab and may shift his research to computational biology, which can be done remotely. Geneticist Alberto Bardelli at the University of Turin, told Science that for him it’s a similar story. And in a bitter irony, he’s been stalled in his efforts to develop a diagnostic test for the coronavirus.</p>
<p>Holden Thorp, editor-in-chief of the premier journal Science, <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/14/coronavirus-pandemic-forces-research-labs-shut-down/">sums it up</a> succinctly: “We’re going to lose a lot of science.”</p>
<h2>Gatherings aren’t happening</h2>
<p>Another dramatic effect of the pandemic is the mass cancellation of conferences. </p>
<p>Organizers pulled the plug on <a href="https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/science/story/2020-03-06/major-science-conferences-canceled-at-ucsd-scripps-research-due-to-coronavirus">Experimental Biology</a>, due to host 12,000 people in San Diego.</p>
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<p>The <a href="https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-fears-cancel-physics-conference.html">American Physical Society</a> was expecting 11,000 people in Denver, but canceled with one day’s notice, leaving many who had already arrived high and dry. Over <a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/coronavirus-tech-conference-cancellations-e3-nab-gartner-dell-world-and-more/">65 technology conferences</a> have been canceled, postponed, or will go virtual. The <a href="https://www.nih.gov/health-information/nih-guidance-travel-meetings">National Institutes of Health</a> hosts or sponsors hundreds of meetings per year; they’ve suspended all live events until the end of April.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07779-y">Virtual meetings were on the rise</a> even before COVID-19 hit. Going online helps scientists reduce their carbon footprint, so why not embrace this trend? </p>
<p>Because young scientists use meetings to <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-coronavirus-is-hampering-science/">hunt for jobs and get their work known</a>. Young scientists have fresh ideas, and they’re ambitious and highly productive. If they suffer, the entire enterprise suffers.</p>
<p>Louise Prockter, co-chair of a recently canceled meeting on planetary science, told Scientific American, “They don’t have that opportunity to show off their science and network.” Karen Daniels, a physicist hit by the cancellation of the large Denver meeting, echoed this to the magazine saying, “You also go there to sit in the hallways and talk about what you just heard and your new ideas and what’s working and what’s not working.”</p>
<p>On paper, in any competitive field, everyone looks good. The way a young scientist shines is by giving a compelling talk, by fielding tough questions from their peers and by holding their own in a one-on-one with a senior scientist. <a href="http://www.richtmann.org/journal/index.php/jesr/article/view/10431">Research supports the idea</a> that in-person interactions are valuable.</p>
<p>Meetings matter. Without science’s social dimension, something valuable is lost.</p>
<h2>Lessons to take forward</h2>
<p>Is there a silver lining to this bleak picture? Yes. The imperative to share health data on COVID-19 will add to the pressure on academic journals to provide <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/global-officials-call-free-access-covid-19-research/">free access to research results</a>. The for-profit publishing sector is already feeling heat, and the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2020-03-03/covid-19-open-science">push for open access</a> may become irresistible. Shared data is the fuel for scientific progress because small research groups can turn into large worldwide teams solving challenging problems. </p>
<p>Federal agencies such as the <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2020/nsf20052/nsf20052.jsp?org=NSF">National Science Foundation</a> have announced new funding opportunities, not just for medical research, but also for enhancing the cyber infrastructure to deal with health crises. New investments will focus on early warning, risk mitigation and resilience in dealing with pandemics like this one. Because the only certainty is that there will be another one.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133689/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chris Impey does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>With travel halted and universities and research institutions shutting down, scientists are having trouble keeping their research running. Here’s why that matters outside the lab.Chris Impey, University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy, University of ArizonaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1339052020-03-18T03:05:20Z2020-03-18T03:05:20ZCoronavirus: telcos are picking up where the NBN is failing. Here’s what it means for you<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321204/original/file-20200318-37392-1yb6ry3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=105%2C81%2C5320%2C3538&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> </figcaption></figure><p>Telecommunication providers are taking positive steps to meet consumers’ demands in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the National Broadband Network (NBN Co) is being urged to reduce its wholesale broadband charges for these providers. </p>
<p>Companies such as Telstra and Optus offer broadband plans over the NBN, purchasing broadband data from the NBN at wholesale prices, which they then distribute to customers. In this time of crisis, the NBN should slash its wholesale prices. This will enable providers to purchase the extra data needed to meet demand as the country adopts widespread social-distancing.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/nbn-urged-to-intervene-as-pandemic-tests-broadband-connections-20200316-p54ain.html">Several</a> <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/unprecedented-demand-for-nbn/news-story/753610eb604595b878cd8880739d4618">media</a> <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/nbn-braces-for-increased-load-as-covid-19-keeps-people-at-home/12062128">outlets</a> have covered how data usage over the NBN is expected to boom as more people self-isolate, and start working and studying from home. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, at a time when Australians are depending on the NBN for high speeds and reliable connections for telework and remote education, many people may be let down. </p>
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<h2>Expect strain</h2>
<p>Communications representatives from <a href="https://www.paulfletcher.com.au/media-releases/media-release-telco-industry-roundtable-on-covid-19">both</a> <a href="https://www.michellerowland.com.au/news/media-releases-communications/media-release-temporary-capacity-relief-for-telcos-should-be-considered-if-nbn-becomes-congested-16-march-2020/">sides</a> of government have acknowledged the virus’s spread will lead to hordes of people becoming reliant on the web for work and study. </p>
<p>This will lead to increased online traffic, slower internet speeds and higher wholesale costs for providers serviced by the NBN, limiting the amount of extra data these providers can purchase.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/working-at-home-to-avoid-coronavirus-this-tech-lets-you-almost-replicate-the-office-133350">Working at home to avoid coronavirus? This tech lets you (almost) replicate the office</a>
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<p>On Monday the <a href="https://www.paulfletcher.com.au/media-releases/media-release-telco-industry-roundtable-on-covid-19">federal government</a> reported the NBN had experienced a “modest increase of around 6% throughout the day and at peak times” in comparison to figures predating COVID-19’s spread.</p>
<p>Looking forward, the network expects busy-hour traffic, typically between 6pm and 9pm, to <a href="https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/fletcher/media-release/telco-industry-roundtable-covid-19">increase by up to 40%</a>, in line with other countries’ experiences. In Italy, data shared with NBN by <a href="https://www.telecomitalia.com/tit/it.html">Telecom Italia</a> showed Italy’s busy-hour traffic had increased by about 26%.</p>
<h2>A second-rate system</h2>
<p>In Australia, the Coalition government’s 2013 decision to move to a copper-based multi-technology-mix NBN, instead of Labor’s all-fibre network with fibre to the premises (FTTP), has seen Australia fall down the global broadband rankings. Fibre to the premises is when fibre-optic lines run from the nearest available node directly to a premises.</p>
<p>Currently, low-quality streaming over the NBN occurs for two reasons. Firstly, because of the NBN’s high data charges for service providers, and also because of the second-rate multi-technology-mix infrastructure. And this will only worsen as more people adhere to social-distancing and isolation measures.</p>
<p>Entertainment and sport are often streamed over the NBN at a resolution of 576p rather than the high-definition 1080p or 4K. Frustrated viewers are left watching media at a quality similar to old analogue television, due to the NBN’s use of obsolete, slow and unreliable technology since 2014, under the Coalition government.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-could-spark-a-revolution-in-working-from-home-are-we-ready-133070">Coronavirus could spark a revolution in working from home. Are we ready?</a>
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<p>Media streaming companies including <a href="https://www.foxtel.com.au/whats-on/foxtel-insider/foxtel/iq4k/satellite-vs-internet.html">Foxtel</a> have also complained their poor streaming quality is a result of this.</p>
<p>With COVID-19 causing mass disruptions, Comcast-owned media and entertainment company NBCUniversal recently <a href="https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-nbcuniversal-moves-to-make-current-movies-available-in-the-home">announced</a> it will end the practice of delaying online film releases to streaming companies like Netflix for several months after the film’s cinema release. </p>
<p>NBCUniversal said, in reference to social distancing and smaller audiences expected at cinemas: “Current circumstances have made it more challenging to view our films.”</p>
<p>Unfortunately for Australians, even if we can get new movies over the NBN the same day they’re released, we could be stuck with poor quality and congestion during peak times. </p>
<h2>Our neighbours set an example</h2>
<p>In New Zealand, an FTTP rollout has been progressing since 2012. Connections to Chorus <a href="https://www.chorus.co.nz/">UFB broadband</a> (New Zealand’s NBN equivalent) cost a flat monthly fee for service providers, don’t incur a data usage charge and have no data usage limits. </p>
<p>This has allowed companies to quickly respond to the pandemic, and they have begun offering extra content free of charge. For instance, <a href="http://itwire.com/entertainment/nz-s-spark-sport-channel-offers-free-viewing-until-may.html">Spark Sport</a> is providing its six sports channels and on-demand offerings at no charge for existing and new customers until May.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/media-statements/increase-in-residential-data-demand">statement</a>, NBN Co chief executive Stephen Rue said the company was working with retailers to “do everything possible to optimise the NBN to support the expected increase in residential use”.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, when asked if there would be cost subsidies for retailers or consumers, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/nbn-braces-for-increased-load-as-covid-19-keeps-people-at-home/12062128">Rue told the ABC</a> the NBN was working with retailers, to ensure they would be provided with “the capacity they need”.</p>
<p>The NBN published a guide on <a href="http://www.nbn.com.au/workingfromhome">working from home</a> during the pandemic. It highlights the need for broadband consumers to purchase an NBN plan that offers the right speed necessary for their internet activities. </p>
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<h2>NBN, now’s the time to show-up for Australians</h2>
<p>While the NBN is set to benefit from the extra data usage during the pandemic, Telstra and Optus have taken a <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/technology/telstra-optus-offer-free-internet-access-during-coronavirus-pandemic-calls-for-nbn-to-follow/news-story/06d4540a20b35a9ba358807dfa29c14e">positive step</a> by offering customers additional broadband data and internet access, free of charge.</p>
<p>During April, <a href="https://www.optus.com.au/for-you/support/answer?id=20065">Optus will provide an additional 20GB for postpaid mobile customers and 10GB for prepaid</a> customers. <a href="https://exchange.telstra.com.au/supporting-our-customers-during-covid-19/">Telstra has gone one step further to provide an extra 25GB for postpaid mobile customers</a>, if they apply for it through <a href="https://www.telstra.com.au/my-account/telstra-24x7-app">the Telstra 24x7 app</a>. </p>
<p>Moreover, Telstra home broadband users will have unlimited data from this Thursday until April 30. Telstra will be paying NBN a potentially huge amount for this extra data deployment. </p>
<p>For the sake of the public, the NBN should reduce its wholesale data charges during this pandemic. It could look to move to a flat monthly access fee with no data usage charges, similar to the approach taken in New Zealand.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/telecommuting-could-curb-the-coronavirus-epidemic-133308">Telecommuting could curb the coronavirus epidemic</a>
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<p>The good news is the NBN will probably eventually heed calls to action and lower these charges. </p>
<p>The network is already a lemon, and it’s unlikely the NBN Co board will risk the public backlash it will receive if it’s seen trying to shore up its weak bottom line at a time of national crisis.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133905/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark A Gregory does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Telstra and Optus have already made arrangements to support customers with extra, free data during the COVID-19 pandemic. But what is the NBN doing?Mark A Gregory, Associate professor, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1336722020-03-16T17:52:27Z2020-03-16T17:52:27ZCoronavirus: the UK approach explained<p>Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister, has warned that many families will lose loved ones to the new coronavirus, but the country’s government is not yet taking the drastic measures against it that have been seen elsewhere. This has left many people bewildered.</p>
<p>Why isn’t there a lockdown like in Italy? Must things get worse? What about closing schools? If we are all going to get the virus anyway, why bother with all the hand washing and other measures? Isn’t this just like a bad flu outbreak?</p>
<p>In a rapidly evolving situation like this, it can be difficult to understand why different countries seem to be adopting very different responses to the crisis.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-why-the-us-is-in-a-mess-and-how-to-fix-it-133413">Coronavirus: why the US is in a mess, and how to fix it</a>
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<p>It’s now clear that there is approximately one COVID-19 death for every 100 patients diagnosed, but this 1% mortality rate is likely an overestimate. For every patient we know of, there are probably ten to 20 people with very mild or no symptoms who don’t get diagnosed at all. <a href="https://fullfact.org/health/coronavirus-compare-influenza/">The mortality rate could end up being lower</a>. </p>
<p>But a big difference between COVID-19 and seasonal flu is that only 10% of the population suffer from flu each year. This is because many of us have pre-existing immunity – our body has fought off previous flu viruses and this gives us some protection against new ones. No one has met the new coronavirus before, so we have no pre-existing defences, and this leads to much larger outbreaks.</p>
<h2>The UK’s response</h2>
<p>Faced with this epidemic, what should the UK government do? In China and Italy where the situation quickly ran out of control, draconian measures have been introduced, which <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-asia-china-51911870/coronavirus-some-china-schools-reopen-after-more-than-a-month">in China at least</a>, now seem to be having an effect. These include restricting people’s movements; stopping mass gatherings; and closing work places, schools and universities.</p>
<p>The issue for the UK is, should the government introduce similar measures now, when there are still fewer than 1,500 cases in a population of 66 million? It could ban mass meetings, stop all public transport, close schools, universities and workplaces, and confine everyone to their homes. The protest group <a href="https://scroll.in/video/956333/pause-the-system-protestors-in-fake-hazmat-suits-think-uk-not-doing-enough-to-contain-coronavirus">Pause the System</a> has been pushing for this sort of approach. And British people are now being discouraged from going to pubs, theatres and restaurants that remain open.</p>
<p>But Boris Johnson’s chief advisors, Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance, supported by expert groups who meet regularly to consider the evidence, still think now is not the time to introduce deeper measures. There is no doubt such moves would slow the spread. But would the enormous socioeconomic impact be worth it at this stage? More importantly, the evidence from <a href="https://www.cgdev.org/blog/responsible-response-examining-uk-governments-covid-19-strategy">social scientists</a> suggests people would soon tire of the imposition and start breaking the rules at a time when the outbreak is likely to be reaching its peak. </p>
<p>If such measures only work for a few weeks, they need to be implemented when they will have their biggest impact. If they worked for four weeks, and reduced the death rate by 20%, introducing them when you have 20 deaths per week will save 16 lives. The same measure introduced later in the epidemic, when there are 200 deaths per week, could save 160.</p>
<p>It’s not just the enormous social and economic impact which is holding the UK government back. One key question is, if such rules were introduced now, when would they be relaxed? They would not halt the spread of the virus completely, just slow it down. So, would Britons put up with major disruption for several months?</p>
<p>When a virus passes through most of the population, people acquire <a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-can-herd-immunity-really-protect-us-133583">herd immunity</a>. This means that enough people have been infected and developed an immune response so that there is nowhere left for the virus to go, and circulation stops. In theory, a prolonged lockdown, by slowing virus circulation, could mean a population never gets herd immunity, and so the lockdown has to continue indefinitely.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-can-herd-immunity-really-protect-us-133583">Coronavirus: can herd immunity really protect us?</a>
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<h2>What are other countries doing?</h2>
<p>Scandinavian countries have taken the opposite approach. Their case numbers are similar to the UK’s, and they have had few deaths, but they are introducing many of the lockdown regulations now. Ireland is also closing schools. Only time will tell which approach proves more successful. This comparison would be a fascinating social and medical experiment, were the situation not so grim.</p>
<p>The question around schools is informed by different evidence. While at first glance it seems obvious to close them, the data show that children are less likely to get infected with the coronavirus than adults, and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/14/answering-the-coronavirus-puzzles-baby-covid-19">less likely to get ill</a>. So closing schools would not have a big impact on the epidemic overall, unless they were closed for several months. Many parents would have to stay home looking after the children, including the healthcare workers we need in hospital. Or children would be with grandparents, putting them at increased risk.</p>
<p>The UK strategy is to hold the drastic changes back until the epidemic is nearing its peak, when the changes will have maximum impact. With a respiratory virus which is so infectious, a large proportion of the population are going to get it sooner or later. Estimates range from 30% to 80%. </p>
<p>If 30% of the population get infected, and 5% of them are very unwell and need to be hospitalised, that is about a million people. If this all happens over just a couple of weeks, the NHS will struggle to cope. But if by social interventions, such as stopping mass meetings, closing workplaces, and reducing contact, this peak can be flattened and spread over several months, then the NHS will deal with it much better. If we can push this peak back to the summer, there will be less demand on the NHS anyway, and it also gives more time to develop treatments and vaccines.</p>
<p>Despite the UK government’s plans, many people and organisations are taking things into their own hands. We know the elderly and those with chronic illnesses are at increased risk, so it seems sensible for them to tuck themselves away as much as possible. It can only be a matter of weeks before my ageing mother cancels her bridge classes for her elderly neighbours. </p>
<p>The number of UK coronavirus patients will definitely increase. The number is doubling every few days. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/16/coronavirus-uk-cases-how-many-are-in-your-area-covid-19">With fewer than 1,500 patients in the UK</a>, we are not quite at the point of introducing major social distancing. But it will not be long. And remember, although there will be fatalities, more than 99% of people recover completely.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133672/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Solomon receives funding from the UK National Institute for Health Research and Medical Research Council</span></em></p>Expert advice is divided on the best way to tackle COVID-19.Tom Solomon, Director of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Protection Research Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, and Professor of Neurology, Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of LiverpoolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1336772020-03-16T12:19:40Z2020-03-16T12:19:40ZSocial distancing comes with social side effects – here’s how to stay connected<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320599/original/file-20200315-50538-1by2p7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=402%2C10%2C5703%2C4174&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">There are ways to strengthen bonds while keeping physical distance.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/senior-woman-looking-out-kitchen-window-royalty-free-image/1151625778">MoMo Productions/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>To fight the spread of coronavirus, government officials have asked Americans to swallow a hard pill: <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/prevention.html">Stay away from each other</a>.</p>
<p>In times of societal stress, such a demand runs counter to what evolution has hard-wired people to do: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.71.3.498">Seek out and support each other</a> as families, friends and communities. We yearn to huddle together. The warmth of our breath and bodies, of holding hands and hugging, of talking and listening, is a primary source of soothing. These connections are pivotal for responding to and maximizing our survival in times of stress.</p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-control-measures-arent-pointless-just-slowing-down-the-pandemic-could-save-millions-of-lives-133468">Priority number one</a> is to follow the <a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-what-it-is-and-why-its-the-best-tool-we-have-to-fight-the-coronavirus-133581">recommended social distancing guidelines</a> to control the virus. The cure is definitely not worse than the disease – experts’ <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/03/13/opinion/coronavirus-trump-response.html">projections of disease spread and mortality</a> without strong intervention make this clear. </p>
<p>But as with any pill, there are side effects. As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=ZJTgCNAAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">psychological</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=2AwIThUAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">scientists</a> at the University of Washington’s <a href="https://depts.washington.edu/uwcssc/content/homepage">Center for the Science of Social Connection</a>, our lab studies social connectedness, why it is important and how to maximize its benefits. Our clinical and research experiences help us understand the side effects of social distancing and suggest strategies for addressing them. </p>
<h2>Human beings are social beings</h2>
<p>In times of stress and illness, being deprived of social connection can create more stress and illness. People who are lonely have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2009.08.005">higher levels of the hormone cortisol</a>, an indicator of stress; <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.07.001">show weaker immune responses</a> to pathogens; and are at <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691614568352">increased risk for premature death</a>. Isolation can lead to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.11.028">depression, suicidal thoughts and other clinical conditions</a>.</p>
<p>For those who must be quarantined because they are infected with the virus, this research has one important implication: Depriving the sick of social connection and physical closeness unfortunately may make it harder for them to defeat infection. For example, lonely college students respond more <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-6133.24.3.297">weakly to influenza vaccinations</a> than do non-lonely students. </p>
<p>There are other costs. Loneliness makes people <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-010-9210-8">feel more vulnerable and anxious</a> in social interactions. An official mandate to socially distance and isolate may increase what psychologists call <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118783665.ieicc0162">intergroup anxiety</a>, the natural threat and distrust people feel when interacting with those who are different.</p>
<p>People may circle the wagons around themselves and those they perceive as like themselves – those with whom they share a common identity – while excluding everyone else. <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-suspension-entry-immigrants-nonimmigrants-persons-pose-risk-transmitting-2019-novel-coronavirus/">The recent</a> <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-address-nation/">travel restrictions</a> play into these very human fears, and could exacerbate impulses to <a href="https://theconversation.com/naming-the-new-coronavirus-why-taking-wuhan-out-of-the-picture-matters-131738">blame and stigmatize others as the source</a> of this crisis. These fears <a href="https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327957pspr1004_4">fuel negative and inaccurate stereotypes of others</a>, rather than cultivating connections to a larger human community that is suffering together.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320600/original/file-20200315-50519-c744b8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Technology can help maintain connections when physical togetherness isn’t an option.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/smiling-girl-and-father-making-video-call-on-royalty-free-image/1053591626">Thomas Barwick/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Reach out and connect</h2>
<p>While social distancing and isolation are in effect, there are things everyone can do to mitigate their downsides.</p>
<p>Now is the time to reach out to friends and family and connect with them however you can. Let people know how much you care about them. While live human connection is best, a phone call, with a real voice, is better than text, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.5817/CP2013-2-3">a videochat is better than a phone call</a>. </p>
<p>We believe such social technology-faciliated connections will aid all of us in staying as healthy as possible during this time. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2016.0151">Although research on this is not comprehensive</a>, we think it’s valuable to use social technology to mitigate the effects of loneliness and isolation for those who are sick. </p>
<p>What you say when connecting also matters. If you are stressed and upset, talking about your feelings can help. You may or may not feel better, but <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.460">you will feel less alone</a>. If you’re on the receiving end of this kind of sharing, resist the impulse to dismiss, debate or tell the other person not to worry. Your task is to listen and convey that you understand their feelings and accept them. This process – one person sharing something vulnerable, and the other responding with understanding and care – is the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.01.001">basic dance step of good, close relationships</a>.</p>
<p>Human touch is also vital for well-being. If you are distancing with people who are close to you and healthy, don’t forget the positive impact of a gentle hug, or holding someone’s hand. Safe, mutually consenting physical touch <a href="https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm1202_3">leads to the release of oxytocin</a>. Sometimes called the “love hormone,” oxytocin helps regulate your fight or flight system and calms your body in times of stress.</p>
<p>For those who are untouchable because they’re sick with COVID-19, affectionate <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11916-013-0322-2">therapy dogs may provide measurable benefit</a>. (As of this writing, WHO guidelines <a href="https://qz.com/1816853/your-dogs-and-cats-cannot-spread-the-coronavirus/">suggest pets are safe</a>.) </p>
<h2>Things you can do</h2>
<p>Other actions can help boost your and others’ well-being as you’re adapting to a world of social distancing. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Embrace others, figuratively. Be aware of your tendency to circle the wagons around your group. Importantly, even though it doesn’t always feel this way, you’re not born with a fixed group that you trust and fixed groups that you distrust. These feelings and associations are flexible and change with context. Imagine, for example, who feels safe and familiar to you when at work versus at a family dinner versus at a football game. Now is the time to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14792779343000004">expand how you define your group identities</a>. This is a global pandemic. Human beings are in, the coronavirus is out.</p></li>
<li><p>Be generous. The practical side of this idea of expanding your identities is an encouragement to be generous, broadly speaking. Giving to others in times of need not only helps the recipient, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2018.02.014">it enhances the giver’s well-being</a>, too. If you feel compelled to go to the grocery store to stock up on toilet paper, consider checking in with people you know who are more vulnerable and see what they might need. Give them some of that toilet paper. Help others around you, including neighbors you may not know well, people with whom you don’t usually feel a sense of kinship and <a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-could-hit-homeless-hard-and-that-could-hit-everyone-hard-133214">people experiencing homelessness</a>. Doing so combats the impulse to build walls. It puts you in touch with the better angels of your nature, and gives these angels voice and purpose. </p></li>
<li><p>Finally, remember to breathe. In this moment, with all the stress and anxiety, many people feel overwhelmed and disconnected. But you’re still here and those around you are in this chaos with you, too. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.4.822">A few conscious, gentle breaths</a> can restore that connection, slow your mind and give you clarity, at least for a moment or two.</p></li>
</ol>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/320601/original/file-20200315-50543-1befyum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Looking out for one another will continue to be key.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/mature-mother-and-son-browsing-the-internet-royalty-free-image/521704215">Hinterhaus Productions/Stone Collection via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This coronavirus crisis may not end soon. Things may get worse. As people hunker down, the negative side effects of social distancing and isolation will shift and evolve. What feels manageable today may not feel manageable tomorrow.</p>
<p>As psychologists, we are concerned that the lack of social connections, increased stress, disruptions and losses of livelihoods and routines will tip some people toward depression. We are concerned about increased family conflict as people are forced to navigate unusual amounts of time together, many in confined spaces. </p>
<p>Flexibility is adaptive. Building a foundation of healthy coping, maintaining awareness of the side effects of our necessary societal changes, and staying connected to our values and to each other are imperative. Human beings have great capacity for empathy and caring in times of suffering. Maintaining social distance doesn’t need to change that.</p>
<p>[<em>Insight, in your inbox each day.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=insight">You can get it with The Conversation’s email newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133677/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Physically isolating yourself can feel psychologically isolating too. But there are ways to maintain connections in these crazy coronavirus times.Jonathan Kanter, Director of the Center for the Science of Social Connection, University of WashingtonAdam Kuczynski, PhD Student, Department of Psychology, University of WashingtonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.