We crossed a horrific milestone this weekend: at least 200,000 Americans are now dead due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. We crossed the 100,000 mark around May 27, approximately 4-5 months after the virus first landed on U.S. soil. [1] Now, 4 months after that grim […]
One of the things that often gets mentioned by coronavirus public information projects [1][2] is that certain days of the week are “under-reporting” days. Weekends tend to take the crown in this – public health reporting systems lag on weekends. I can see this in the data from our county, […]
When I step outside, it’s 81F and humid. 10am on a Sunday morning in July in Texas is brutal. It doesn’t matter to me. I need some variety in my workout routine, and I need to go outside and run. I set out west. I avoid people on the narrow […]
Redfield was then asked for a definition of “hot spots.” He said it would include places where more than 5 percent of coronavirus tests come back positive. Looking county by county, he said “the majority of the nation” is not a hot spot. “CDC director concedes schools in ‘hot spots’ […]
On Saturday, we took a break from the pandemic to go outside and look for a comet. We live in a Dallas suburb, but one which has grown a lot in 10 years. The skies are not quite as dark as they used to be, but we thought it might […]
Colleges and universities across the United States are planning to re-open in the fall with large numbers of students on-campus. Some places have done this sensibly, by limiting that number to just first-year students, or just seniors, and only for one term or another. Others have proceeded with full populations […]
It has been 73 days since Texas, racing to reopen without first putting in place large-scale testing and tracing infrastructure, ceded the population of the state to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. That was COVID Day, or C-Day: May 1, 2020. On C-Day, Texas announced that businesses could re-open at 25% capacity; […]
“Don’t forget your mask.” I haven’t been in a place where people are actually expected to gather since March 6. I have so much to remember as I re-enter the world. I have to remember to get all my keys. Where are all my keys? My car keys are on […]
On this July 4, when we are ravaged by pandemic and incompetent leadership masquerading as populist totalitarianism, it is good to remind ourselves of the declaration that was made in a different age – on July 4, 1776. Then, the Second Continental Congress adopted what is now referred to as […]
We are taking our home garden a bit more seriously this year. The pandemic, and poor health practices by shoppers at the local grocery store, have made it more important to offset time spent in the aisles by planting at home. If C-day was the day Texas’ leadership abandoned its […]
Since things have been getting grim in Texas, mirrored in the COVID-19 rise in my own county (Collin), I thought it would be good to learn about one of the things that can help mitigate the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus) without a vaccine. That thing is testing. Testing for […]
It is 50 days since Texas essentially ceded the battlefield (the human population) to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. By racing to open back up the economy, without first putting in place reliable metrics, benchmarks, and health investigation foundations, Texas abandoned its people mostly unarmed to an enemy. Thankfully, those of us […]