Prepare for a Second Wave

As with the Spanish flu, the world must be ready for a second and third wave as this start-stop-start-stop response plays out

One of the most popular videos on Twitter this week has been of a sixty-something PhD in quantum chemistry calmly explaining on Wednesday night how even seemingly tiny increases in the rate of infection of the SARS-CoV-2 could potentially overwhelm intensive care units capacity in her country. Anything below 1 means the the virus is under control while anything above — that is, one infected person is passing it on to more than one other person on average — is an indicator that the epidemic is still progressing. German Chancellor Angela Merkel was highlighting that if the reproduction number rose