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Science Friday

Coronavirus Preparedness, Facebook’s History. Feb 28, 2020, Part 2

Science Friday

Science Friday and WNYC Studios

Science, Life Sciences, Wnyc, Natural Sciences, Friday

4.46.3K Ratings

🗓️ 28 February 2020

⏱️ 46 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week, the world’s attention has turned to the spread of the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, that was first detected in Wuhan, China, late in 2019. More countries are finding cases, and in the United States, a California patient has become the first known case of possible “community spread”—where the patient had not traveled to affected areas or had known exposure to someone who had been infected. On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control said Americans should prepare for “significant disruption” and “inevitable” spread of the virus in the U.S. And on Wednesday, President Trump announced that Vice President Mike Pence would head the country’s coronavirus response. But what does preparation actually look like for healthcare systems that will be on the frontlines of detecting and responding to any new cases? Ira talks to infection prevention epidemiologist Saskia Popescu and public health expert Jennifer Nuzzo about the practical steps of preparing for a new pathogen, including expanding testing and making sure healthcare workers have necessary protective equipment. Plus, they address why childcare, telecommuting, and community planning may be more important than face masks for individuals who are worried about what they can do. Facebook is a household name globally with nearly 2 billion users. Mark Zuckerberg’s goal was to connect the entire world online when he founded the company in 2006. But 14 years later, Facebook has evolved into more than a social media platform. The company has been involved in debates and scandals around user privacy, outside interference in elections, and the spread of fake news. Last summer, the Federal Trade Commission fined Facebook $5 billion for “repeatedly used deceptive disclosures and settings to undermine users’ privacy preferences in violation of its 2012 FTC order.” Journalist Steven Levy has been following Zuckerberg and the company since the beginning. In his new book Facebook: The Inside Story he chronicles Zuckerberg’s growth and data-driven approach and how that influenced the tactics the company applied to the problems that resulted from the platform.

Transcript

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0:00.0

This is Science Friday. I'm Ira Flato. It has been a big week in the life of the 2019

0:06.6

novel coronavirus, which causes the respiratory illness now known more simply as COVID-19.

0:13.9

The number of countries where cases have been found is up to at least 54, that's as of today,

0:20.2

with more than 83,000 cases confirmed globally.

0:24.3

In the U.S., a California patient has tested positive, and this is the important part,

0:29.4

no known chain of transmission, a sign of potential undetected spread in the community,

0:35.6

and the CDC warned Tuesday that Americans should be ready for

0:39.5

significant disruption of their routines as the virus spreads. Ultimately, we expect we will see

0:47.2

community spread in this country. It's not so much a question of if this will happen anymore,

0:52.5

but rather more a question of exactly

0:55.2

when this will happen and how many people in this country will have severe illness.

1:00.8

We will maintain for as long as practical a dual approach where we continue measures to

1:06.3

contain this disease, but also employ strategies to minimize the impact on our communities.

1:12.3

That's Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and

1:17.1

Respiratory Diseases.

1:18.9

And on Wednesday, the president appointed Vice President Mike Pence to head the efforts

1:23.0

to combat coronavirus in the U.S.

1:25.1

And on Thursday, it was announced that government health officials

1:28.4

must not speak to reporters on their own, but now clear their comments to the media through the White

1:34.4

House. Just today, the World Health Organization raised its global threat level to very high their most

1:41.1

extreme tier. Like I said, a big week. But there's another story here, too,

1:47.4

which is the practical on-the-ground process of monitoring for further spread, responding to it.

...

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