13 votes

Daily coronavirus-related chat, questions, and minor updates - March 26

This thread is posted daily, and is intended as a place for more-casual discussion of the coronavirus and questions/updates that may not warrant their own dedicated topics. Tell us about what the situation is like where you live!

24 comments

  1. [2]
    Autoxidation
    Link
    There's a very real chance that by the end of the day, the USA will have the highest number of cases by country.

    There's a very real chance that by the end of the day, the USA will have the highest number of cases by country.

    12 votes
    1. Kuromantis
      Link Parent
      And they have, and then they cracked 100 thousand cases. The US is far larger than Italy so this isn't all unexpected, but still horrible.

      And they have, and then they cracked 100 thousand cases. The US is far larger than Italy so this isn't all unexpected, but still horrible.

  2. [4]
    Kuromantis
    (edited )
    Link
    I'm not Italian but their death rate has reached 10%. That should scare anyone when it comes to the worst case scenario for this pandemic long-term.

    I'm not Italian but their death rate has reached 10%. That should scare anyone when it comes to the worst case scenario for this pandemic long-term.

    10 votes
    1. [3]
      vektor
      Link Parent
      A) Thank you so much for that website, I just found a machine readable statistic on there. Yay. B) I'm really not sure what to think about the 10% figure, because it's certainly not that....

      A) Thank you so much for that website, I just found a machine readable statistic on there. Yay.

      B) I'm really not sure what to think about the 10% figure, because it's certainly not that. According to the wuhan outbreak, 80% don't need any treatment and 15% were in hospitals but not in ICUs. I find it hard to believe that italy has a ground truth death rate (i.e. infection fatality rate) of anywhere near 10%. I think the only plausible explanation is a high number of unidentified cases and a severely overburdened hospital system. It does not mean that a complete infection of everyone leads to 10% of the population dying; rather, if we assume that the initial reports from china translate, it means the italians have not identifed 3 out of 5 cases. That also means that herd immunity is reached sooner than the known infections would suggest. Not that we should rely on herd immunity. That said, their death rate could be significantly higher than the chinese', due to more overburdened healthcare system. I would not assume that the virus has mutated, as that seems rather unlikely.

      8 votes
      1. [2]
        Kuromantis
        Link Parent
        I have some more (I think)

        Thank you so much for that website, I just found a machine readable statistic on there. Yay.

        I have some more (I think)

        2 votes
        1. vektor
          Link Parent
          Nice. They're mostly displaying the same data I already found (confirmed cases and deaths), but they're visualizing it in some of the ways I was planning to. I'd love to get my hands on numbers of...

          Nice. They're mostly displaying the same data I already found (confirmed cases and deaths), but they're visualizing it in some of the ways I was planning to. I'd love to get my hands on numbers of tests run.

          Ninja - the data seems to be rather spotty, we do not have as clear a picture.

          3 votes
  3. kfwyre
    Link
    I've now cooked dried beans four different times: black beans on the stove, black beans in the Instant Pot, chickpeas on the stove, and chickpeas in the Instant Pot. For the Instant Pot meals, I...

    I've now cooked dried beans four different times: black beans on the stove, black beans in the Instant Pot, chickpeas on the stove, and chickpeas in the Instant Pot.

    For the Instant Pot meals, I didn't pre-soak the beans, hoping that online commenters' promises of quick and easy on-demand dried beans would pay off. Unfortunately, they did not. The texture and flavor were simply nowhere near what I got when I pre-soaked the beans and then cooked them on the stove. Yes, stove-cooking them required more steps and took longer, but the quality of the beans was considerably better in the end. The chickpeas in particular had the perfect "bite" to them -- far better than I got from the Instant Pot or what I would normally get in a can.

    I haven't tried pre-soaking the beans and then cooking them in the Instant Pot, but at this point I'm comfortable enough with cooking them on the stove and I know it works, so I'll probably make that my default moving forward.

    Now that I'm good with cooking the beans this way, I'm hoping to play around with different flavors. Each time I just used onion, garlic, and a bay leaf, but I'm curious to see if I can get them nice and tasty with, say, curry paste or a really good spice blend. If anyone has any dried bean tips, tricks, or recipes, let me know!

    Also, it's weird to think that tomorrow will be only two weeks since my husband and I started self-isolating. It feels like it has been so. much. longer. This isn't a complaint about being stuck at home (we both enjoy it) but more that so much has changed so quickly. I feel like I've been out of school for months now, not just 14 days.

    6 votes
  4. [5]
    Comment deleted by author
    Link
    1. [2]
      vektor
      Link Parent
      Bosch does medical stuff? I never knew. Checks out though, apparently they have a healthcare section which does a lot of lab diagnostics. How are you holding up up there? Who're you holed up with?...

      Bosch does medical stuff? I never knew. Checks out though, apparently they have a healthcare section which does a lot of lab diagnostics.

      How are you holding up up there? Who're you holed up with?

      I'm going to have to visit my GP soon. Kinda don't want to, and I'd absolutely delay it, but it's tied up in one of those things where you wait an eternity for an appointment.

      4 votes
      1. [2]
        Comment deleted by author
        Link Parent
        1. vektor
          Link Parent
          It's less to do with the GP appointment and more to do with another appointment that I've had scheduled for a while now for which I first have to get some paperwork from the GP. Not willing to...

          It's less to do with the GP appointment and more to do with another appointment that I've had scheduled for a while now for which I first have to get some paperwork from the GP. Not willing to risk my slot at the specialist, so I'm just going to pretend nothing is up. GP has all patients with respiratory infections call ahead and is (I presume) diverting corona candidates to the Gesundheitsamt, the back door or the Gesundheitsamt's back door.

          3 votes
    2. [2]
      vektor
      Link Parent
      A paper from the ministry of interior is telling our government to adopt the hammer and dance

      A paper from the ministry of interior is telling our government to adopt the hammer and dance

      3 votes
      1. [2]
        Comment deleted by author
        Link Parent
        1. vektor
          Link Parent
          Ehh, there's an ethical way to do this: consent and/or transparency. As long as people can be confident that their information is not being used without their knowledge, it should be fine. Imagine...

          Ehh, there's an ethical way to do this: consent and/or transparency. As long as people can be confident that their information is not being used without their knowledge, it should be fine. Imagine if our institutions guaranteed that you received a letter in the mail explaining what is going on and why. If the government overreaches, a lot of people get such a letter without understanding why, and you've got yourself a PR disaster, maybe a mass protest. Even better if the government asks for consent first in cases where consent is a reasonable ask (like coronavirus - not so much for criminal matters).

          That said, with how corona is going these days, I'd rather we overreact now. We can abolish security measures later, even if it's hard. We can't bring back the dead. The ideal option of course would be one of transparency and limiting the legal basis for the data collection.

          1 vote
  5. [4]
    unknown user
    Link
    Day 2 of lockdown here in New Zealand. Our number of cases is skyrocketing up, mainly due to a larger and larger proportion of returning New Zealanders bringing the virus home—show just how...

    Day 2 of lockdown here in New Zealand. Our number of cases is skyrocketing up, mainly due to a larger and larger proportion of returning New Zealanders bringing the virus home—show just how uncontained the disease is in other countries, like Australia. Now at 283 total cases, of which 262 are confirmed and 21 are suspected. 27 of those cases have now recovered.

    A single conference in Queenstown was responsible for 14 community transmission cases, and the organisers of that conference are blaming the ministry of health, when in fact, the organisers are at fault for not cancelling the event out of an abundance of caution, for which there was precedent at the time. These sneaky fuckers are trying to shift the blame as an excuse for them wanting to make money.

    I have a really painful sore throat, a cough, and a headache myself, so I'm also playing by the self-isolating rules. No fever or contact with a known case though. I phoned our national COVID-19 number out of an abundance of caution (I have recent domestic travel history, and have been in both of New Zealand's big cities in the last 2 weeks), and they basically told me that I'm not eligible for testing because I haven't been in contact with a known case. 🤬

    5 votes
    1. [3]
      envy
      Link Parent
      Isn't that the frustrating case everywhere except South Korea?

      they basically told me that I'm not eligible for testing because I haven't been in contact with a known case

      Isn't that the frustrating case everywhere except South Korea?

      2 votes
      1. [2]
        unknown user
        Link Parent
        Yeah. Usually I expect more from the NZ government though. Apart from that singular issue of not doing enough testing, they've been pretty good in handling this situation so far. I'm otherwise...

        Yeah. Usually I expect more from the NZ government though. Apart from that singular issue of not doing enough testing, they've been pretty good in handling this situation so far. I'm otherwise pleased to have a competent leader and government team behind her.

        2 votes
        1. envy
          Link Parent
          Nobody has enough tests. It's not about the tests, it's sourcing the components that make up the tests. There are even shortages of the swabs used to collect specimen samples, which are apparently...

          Nobody has enough tests. It's not about the tests, it's sourcing the components that make up the tests. There are even shortages of the swabs used to collect specimen samples, which are apparently mostly produced in Italy.

          1 vote
  6. [2]
    Kuromantis
    (edited )
    Link
    São Paulo City, Brazil. 2614 cases nationwide (only a 1.3% increase from yesterday. I optimistically presume that's statistical noise.) My home state, São Paulo has 862 of those cases, which is...

    São Paulo City, Brazil. 2614 cases nationwide (only a 1.3% increase from yesterday. I optimistically presume that's statistical noise.) My home state, São Paulo has 862 of those cases, which is 32.9% of cases, which is 7% less than last time, meaning the virus is becoming a more national issue, although that's still 11 points above proportional, likely due to having the largest city/airport in latin america, which is where the virus spreads.

    The president just declared religious activities essential without the approval of Congress. Safe to say he's an accelerationist and undemocratic.

    4 votes
    1. mrbig
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      Accelerationists may be wrong, but they’re trying to make sense of the world. Bolsonaro is just plain irrational.

      Safe to say he's an accelerationist

      Accelerationists may be wrong, but they’re trying to make sense of the world. Bolsonaro is just plain irrational.

      4 votes
  7. Algernon_Asimov
    (edited )
    Link
    I'm resurrecting the lost art of telephone calls. A friend and I spoke on the phone for about 2 hours last night. I've set myself a goal of phoning at least one person every day. I used my hair...

    I'm resurrecting the lost art of telephone calls. A friend and I spoke on the phone for about 2 hours last night. I've set myself a goal of phoning at least one person every day.

    I used my hair clippers today, for the first time. Not bad.

    On the subject of haircuts, our government totally stuffed up this week. As part of the Stage 2 closures, they said any business which conducted beauty treatments in-store had to close - except for hairdressers & barbers. But customers had to be in and out of the hairdressing salon within 30 minutes. A lot of people - mostly women - complained that they can't get their hair attended to in less than 30 minutes, and obviously this limit was created by middle-aged men who have no idea what women need, blah blah sexism, blah blah chauvinism, etc... So the government backed down. We can now go to hairdressers and sit in their chairs, being touched by people who touch lots of other people all day, for as long as we want. Because getting one's hair coloured & styled is more important than preventing the spread of a deadly virus. Stupid government, giving in to stupid people. 30 minutes was already too risky. More is ridiculous.

    And, to pile stupidity upon stupidity, the CEO of the largest chain of hairdressers in the country got on television and complained that the government hasn't shut them down. He says his poor staff (all 2,500 of them) are out there on the front line every day, putting themselves at risk - but the incompetent government won't save them. Because, as we all know, the CEO of a company has absolutely no ability to shutter his own business. He can't close his own shops and get his own staff out of harm's way. Only the government has that power. Idiot! UPDATE: He has now closed his stores. He seems to have finally realised what powers he has.

    Infections in Australia seem to have stabilised: we've had the same number of new cases for the past three days. The increase is not exponential for this little moment. Any win is a win!

    I'm still employed, under the same conditions - but my workload has dropped by more than half. With the economy grinding to a halt, there's just less financial activity, and less for me to do.

    4 votes
  8. [3]
    mrbig
    (edited )
    Link
    I woke up craving chocolate. That happens at least once a week. There’s no chocolate in the house. I’m sad.

    I woke up craving chocolate. That happens at least once a week. There’s no chocolate in the house. I’m sad.

    2 votes
    1. [2]
      FishFingus
      Link Parent
      I've been really jonesing for some chocolate, but I've also been trying to dechonk. So I've started referring to chocolate in online conversation as chonkolate in an effort to remind myself of its...

      I've been really jonesing for some chocolate, but I've also been trying to dechonk. So I've started referring to chocolate in online conversation as chonkolate in an effort to remind myself of its deleterious effects on my thighs and lardy carpet.

      Here in eastern Scotland, we are mostly bored. Supermarkets have started putting up road barriers in the store and letting in groups of people at a time, and my mum suggested going there at 06:00 to avoid the queues around the car park. Also some stories from the family: a Superdrug store in Edinburgh being smashed up; someone in England trying to mug NHS employees for their cards at knifepoint, in order to get free coffee and pizza being offered to healthcare workers; a panic-shopper in Kirkcaldy with three trolleys trying to take a fourth from an elderly man, then assaulting and spitting on him; and customers in an ASDA throwing food at employees who told them to only take what they needed.

      3 votes
      1. mrbig
        Link Parent
        That’s bad. Things are much nicer here. But I really should avoid leaving the house. And I really need some “dechonking”. I lost 1.5 kg already. That’s not so bad. But last night I actually dreamt...

        That’s bad. Things are much nicer here. But I really should avoid leaving the house. And I really need some “dechonking”. I lost 1.5 kg already. That’s not so bad.

        But last night I actually dreamt about chocolate. The craving is real.

  9. arghdos
    Link
    My family has started doing a weekly game night on Zoom. Because I'm a huge nerd, last night I got everyone to play Honey Heist which went better than possibly could be expected. I was surprised...

    My family has started doing a weekly game night on Zoom. Because I'm a huge nerd, last night I got everyone to play Honey Heist which went better than possibly could be expected. I was surprised with how quickly everyone got into the concept (only my SO had ever played a TTRPG before), and by the end my parents were being outrageously creative with their characters. It was amazing!

    2 votes