How do pandemics end? History suggests diseases fade but are almost never truly gone

As ready as you are to be done with COVID-19, it's not going anywhere soon. A historian of disease describes how once a pathogen emerges, it's usually here to stay.

Nükhet Varlik, Associate Professor of History, University of South Carolina • conversation
Oct. 14, 2020 • ~9 min
Tags: influenza history-of-medicine infectious-diseases epidemiology public-health covid-19 coronavirus hivaids pandemic malaria hiv tuberculosis plague vaccines measles sars-cov-2 vaccination disease severe-acute-respiratory-syndrome-sars black-death global-pandemic ebola-virus covid-19-pandemic middle-east-respiratory-syndrome-mers smallpox emerging-diseases disease-outbreaks smallpox-eradication disease-eradication coronaviruses leprosy endemic history-of-public-health disease-modeling

How to talk to vaccine skeptics so they might actually hear you

Those opposing vaccinations often mistrust government, science and the news media. There may be better ways to persuade them than by offering facts only.

Porismita Borah, Associate Professor, Washington State University • conversation
Aug. 20, 2020 • ~9 min

Tags:  covid-19  coronavirus  fake-news  pandemic  vaccines  flu  vaccination  anti-vaxxers  news-media  covid-19-vaccine  flu-vaccine

What happens when COVID-19 and influenza collide? Can hospitals handle the strain?

Pandemic policy experts offer 10 recommendations that could reduce the risk that a bad flu season on top of the COVID-19 pandemic will overwhelm hospitals.

Leslie Ruyle, Associate Research Scientist and Assistant Director Scowcroft Institute of International Affairs, Bush School of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University • conversation
Aug. 20, 2020 • ~8 min
Tags: influenza health covid-19 coronavirus schools pandemic social-distancing vaccination hospitals epidemics flu-vaccine

Here's how to talk to vaccine skeptics so they might actually hear you

Those opposing vaccinations often mistrust government, science and the news media. There may be better ways to persuade them than by offering facts only.

Porismita Borah, Associate Professor, Washington State University • conversation
Aug. 20, 2020 • ~9 min

Tags:  covid-19  coronavirus  fake-news  pandemic  vaccines  flu  vaccination  anti-vaxxers  news-media  covid-19-vaccine  flu-vaccine

Coronavirus: what will happen if we can't produce a vaccine?

Natural herd immunity is a myth.

Sarah Pitt, Principal Lecturer, Microbiology and Biomedical Science Practice, Fellow of the Institute of Biomedical Science, University of Brighton • conversation
Aug. 13, 2020 • ~6 min
Tags: covid-19 coronavirus vaccines herd-immunity vaccination coronavirus-insights

A COVID-19 vaccine needs the public's trust – and it's risky to cut corners on clinical trials, as Russia is

As Russia fast tracks a coronavirus vaccine, scientists worry about skipped safety checks – and the potential fallout for trust in vaccines if something ends up going wrong.

Abram L. Wagner, Research Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, University of Michigan • conversation
Aug. 12, 2020 • ~7 min
Tags: epidemiology covid-19 coronavirus vaccines sars-cov-2 phase-3-trial anti-vaccination vaccination russia vaccine-research coronavirus-vaccine covid-19-vaccine vaccine-safety clinical-trials vaccine-hesitancy phase-1-trial phase-2-trial

A massive public health effort eradicated smallpox but scientists are still studying the deadly virus

The smallpox virus appears to have been with humanity for millennia before a global vaccination drive wiped it out. Current genome research suggests how smallpox spread and where it came from.

Patricia L. Foster, Professor Emerita of Biology, Indiana University • conversation
June 24, 2020 • ~12 min
Tags: genome coronavirus genome-sequencing pandemic sars-cov-2 vaccination viruses world-health-organization-who viral-evolution smallpox zoonoses virulence cowpox smallpox-eradication disease-eradication zoonosis viral-dna

Fear of needles could be a hurdle to COVID-19 vaccination, but here are ways to overcome it

What happens when we have a COVID-19 vaccine – and millions are afraid of a needle?

Amy Baxter, Clinical Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, Augusta University • conversation
June 8, 2020 • ~8 min

Tags:  covid-19  coronavirus  anxiety  vaccines  fear  vaccination  needles  needle-phobia

Coronavirus vaccine search: how we're preparing to make enough for the whole world

The UK is investing heavily in preparation for mass manufacturing of a working COVID-19 vaccine.

Martina Micheletti, Professor of Bioprocess Fluid Dynamics, co-Director of the Future Vaccine Manufacturing Hub,, UCL • conversation
May 13, 2020 • ~8 min
Tags: covid-19 coronavirus manufacturing vaccines vaccination pharmaceutical-industry coronavirus-vaccine covid-19-vaccine

Coronavirus vaccine: how we're preparing to make enough for the whole world

The UK is investing heavily in preparation for mass manufacturing of a working COVID-19 vaccine.

Martina Micheletti, Professor of Bioprocess Fluid Dynamics, co-Director of the Future Vaccine Manufacturing Hub,, UCL • conversation
May 13, 2020 • ~8 min
Tags: covid-19 coronavirus manufacturing vaccines vaccination pharmaceutical-industry coronavirus-vaccine covid-19-vaccine

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