Unless you just got back from a trip to Mars, you probably know that there’s an epidemic going on in China. I first reported on it briefly in my article on “A new pneumonia” on Jan. 7, 2020, when there were only 60 known cases of an infection of unknown origin.
It turned out to be a virus. Viruses are tiny, much smaller than bacteria, and barely meet the definition of a living organism as it must enter the cells of a host to activate and reproduce. Yet, they are able to cause the downfall of organisms much more advanced and complex than they are.
This virus is in the family coronaviridiae, or coronaviruses. It's named 2019-nCoV, and it appears to be highly transmissable and kills about 2% of those that are infected. Just in the last 24 hours, there are 2500 new cases.
In this episode, Joe Alton MD (Amy's off making Pandemic kits for store.doomandbloom.net) tells you all about 2019-nCoV and a lot more you don't know about viral epidemics.
Wishing you the best of health in good times or bad,
Joe Alton MD
