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i almost put a "bad" malaria season just assuming that some years probably have been more than present year but i dont really know if that is the case. i guess i should have plus added something to make it clear that i am just messing around. i just figured that would be something someone looking at the chart who says "its just like the flu" would say to maintain their present line of thinking.
Ah. OK. I'm sarcastic too, but it doesn't always come across that way on paper.
Ah. OK. I'm sarcastic too, but it doesn't always come across that way on paper.
just in case you missed this since i added it after, i was wondering if you could help educate me a bit on this:
Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainNJ
i have a question ive been throwing out there in conversation and its something i am curious about but i think people think im trying to make a point when i ask it. i dont think anyone ive talked to knows the answer either way. every year, illnesses get passed around. it seems to start with kids and work its way through families. people say "oh this stomach bug is going around" or something like that. i want to know how those illnesses run through the population, how many do they infect and what ultimately stops them from spreading. i threw it out there at my 4th of july party and one friend was like "no, this is worse!" assuming that i was just saying its no worse than a typical illness that goes around, but thats not what i was saying.
i almost put a "bad" malaria season just assuming that some years probably have been more than present year but i dont really know if that is the case. i guess i should have plus added something to make it clear that i am just messing around. i just figured that would be something someone looking at the chart who says "its just like the flu" would say to maintain their present line of thinking.
i have a question ive been throwing out there in conversation and its something i am curious about but i think people think im trying to make a point when i ask it. i dont think anyone ive talked to knows the answer either way. every year, illnesses get passed around. it seems to start with kids and work its way through families. people say "oh this stomach bug is going around" or something like that. i want to know how those illnesses run through the population, how many do they infect and what ultimately stops them from spreading. i threw it out there at my 4th of july party and one friend was like "no, this is worse!" assuming that i was just saying its no worse than a typical illness that goes around, but thats not what i was saying.
Well, different viruses act differently from one another. They have different levels of virulence. The ones that spread easily are typically:
1. The ones that are milder and less debilitating. People are more likely to go to work, go shopping, go out to restaurants, etc. If you can't get out of bed, you can't transmit the virus to many people.
2. Then there are the ones with long incubation periods and long periods of infectivity, like this one. This one can be debilitating and deadly, but often it takes a few days to a week before you start feeling anything. WHO has gone back and forth on this (and many other things), so I have lost faith in them, and take what they say with a grain of salt.
3. Then there is the route of transmission. Airborne is the worst spreader. Fecal-oral is probably the most benign spreader, not to be confused with the most benign virus.
4. The season is especially important for airborne and droplet viruses. Humidity weighs down droplets and vapors so they don't travel as far from one person to the next. Plus, people are inside more in the cold weather. You often see these viruses travel between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, depending on which direction the earth is tilted. That doesn't mean you can't get a seasonal virus in warm weather. It happens very frequently, only a magnitude less than in cold weather under optimal conditions.
Some viruses die out just because of distance between infected people who don't infect many people, both naturally due to low virulence or because of vaccines, like smallpox and polio, and some, with herd immunity. Many viruses don't die out, but just travel from region to region. Then they mutate, and become more virulent or less virulent. Eventually they evolve into something different by the time it gets back to your region. This is why we need new flu vaccines every year. Also, viruses can be very tricky. The "bird flu" (H1N1) for example, was a virus that originally did not infect human beings. One day, it infected a pig that had another virus. This other virus was one that does infect humans. The two viruses in the pig exchanged genes, which now allowed the bird virus to infect humans.
I would have liked to see it go up to present day though.
Very cool graphic. Interesting choice of causes of death, though. They included a bunch with very low numbers - like death by fire - and left out some with extremely high numbers - like heart disease, that kills something like 15 million people a year.
Tried searching again. For whatever reason, there doesn’t seem to be a concerted effort to gather and/or release numbers from antibodies tests. One thing I did find was this article saying 60,000 MA residents have had testing done, but that the state has not released the number that came back positive. It’s stuff like this that makes a person start picking up tinfoil!
Tens of thousands of people across Massachusetts have been tested for antibodies linked to COVID-19, offering what researchers say could be vital information on how far the disease has spread.
But the state, despite recently disclosing how many new tests are being performed, has made little else public, including how many of the 61,000 people who’ve received antibody tests have tested positive.
Tried searching again. For whatever reason, there doesn’t seem to be a concerted effort to gather and/or release numbers from antibodies tests. One thing I did find was this article saying 60,000 MA residents have had testing done, but that the state has not released the number that came back positive. It’s stuff like this that makes a person start picking up tinfoil!
We still don’t know how long they last anyway. Some studies have found a sharp decline in antibodies after only a couple of months. The study below found a 90% decline in antibodies after 2 to 3 months. So for purposes of issuing mask waivers, etc that may not be possible. Still a lot we don’t know, which is perhaps why they’re not publicizing the numbers. They may not mean much outside of plasma donations.
So what?? What you describe above is not acceptable. The way we get tested should be standardized across the country. Obviously, that's a laughable concept in this country. So is my son's coworker negative or positive? Are my son's negative results trustworthy? Like I said. The whole thing is an effing crap shoot.
So what?? What you describe above is not acceptable. The way we get tested should be standardized across the country. Obviously, that's a laughable concept in this country. So is my son's coworker negative or positive? Are my son's negative results trustworthy? Like I said. The whole thing is an effing crap shoot.
These tests have a very low false positive rate. It is the false negative rate that has been the real problem. Your son's coworker should be assumed to be positive for the virus.
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