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The links:
I promise I will do my best to not have every week filled with SARS-CoV2/COVID-19 news, but that is the most important scientific/social topic right now. Besides The Hamilton Movie. Seriously, if you haven't watched yet, go watch now, then come back and read science stuff. Even if you have watched 10 times already, go watch again then come back.I am starting off this week with a couple of general articles about SARS2-CoV2/COVID-19. In the coming weeks, I will highlight some of the new research on this, and also try to remind everyone that other areas of scientific research has continued.
- How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper by Carl Zimmer (Published June 1 2020)
- Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing by Ed Yong (Published April 29, 2020)
- One of the most important things you can do during the pandemic is stay informed. There is an overwhelming amount of misinformation about SARS-CoV2/COVID-19 being put forth as fact. Remember to always check your sources and apply a bit of critical thinking about what you are reading. Of course that applies to anything you read during this assignment. Don't blindly trust anything you read. Above I have linked two articles from authors I trust, Carl Zimmer and Ed Yong. I have been reading these two authors for years now, and I feel that they do a great job presenting accurate scientific information in an accessible, entertaining manner. I included the publication dates on these since information is accumulating and changing so fast, information can be out of date very quickly.
77 comments:
I find it interesting that even after we have been discussing the corona virus for several months, there is still uncertainty and confusion regarding the topic because of the many strains of it and the inaccurate information portrayed to the public. It is very eye opening because now we have to rely on scientific papers which many of us have never read before which makes it even harder to understand what is happening in the world today because we have to comprehend the information but then also check its accuracy. I feel uncertain with a lot of the information because everyone is trying to get their input on the subject and there are so many articles posted, it is hard to choose the right one. Additionally, it is concerning that some of the articles have not yet gone through peer review and are preprints and that the people who wrote them many not have been trained to write and are conveying incorrect information. During this time, I feel it is important to figure out the right sources and the right information and to learn how to read the articles and ignore the influx of wrong information.
As we can see, a lot of misinformation is spreading around the world related to the new coronavirus. It makes it confusing to the public whether or not to actually believe the information that is published on the internet. A topic that was addressed in the article was about peer review as well as preprints. Even though certain documents are peer reviewed, it does not provide a great help to check the accuracy of the information that is posted, causing the public to gain hope because of misinformation. Instead of reaching out to sources that are unfamiliar to you, it would be more reliable to check sources such as the CDC or WHO for more accurate information regarding the new coronavirus. Looking at many multiple sources could cause the public to find different information that would contradict each other. Also, since most of the public is unfamiliar with reading scientific papers, it makes it harder to comprehend what is truly being stated about the current situation, which could cause people to draw conclusions that might not be true. Overall, everybody should make sure that the information that is read is found through reliable sources, and that information is understood correctly.
The articles posted generally focused on the recent and overwhelming surge of information surrounding the COVID-19 virus. The first article, "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper," published by Carl Zimmer describes the importance of appropriate skepticism when reading a scientific study. Carl states that the large majority of scientific papers can be hard to interpret due to many scientists' lack of background in writing. These publications are usually written with the intention of other scientists reading them, rather than the general public. Therefore, when searching for information on any scientific topic, it is common for incorrect assumptions to be made based on the information presented. The second article, "Why The Coronavirus is So Confusing," written by Ed Yong concentrates on why the overabundance of information has led to uncertainty amongst people, in regards to the virus specifically. With coronavirus having a tremendous impact on everyone's daily life, the demand for information is immense. The rapid spread of misleading information has resulted from the general public attempting to share their various opinions. This can be especially dangerous when the misinterpretation of the information can lead to mistreatment of the virus. Both of these articles highlight the importance of filtering scientific findings, especially those regarding COVID-19. By using skepticism and acknowledging that the opinions of others can be misleading, one can come to correct conclusions regarding the virus.
I read the article discussing how a person should read the coronavirus studies or other scientific papers. This was relative to our current circumstances because of the global pandemic. Scientists all around the world have quickly shifted their attention to learning as much as they can about the pandemic as well to try and find a vaccine to bring the world back to our old lives. Scientific papers are used to show the learnings of one expert or scientist in a specific field. In relation to our pandemic there are several articles talking about the genome of the virus. Other articles may be about the transmission between people or the isolation of the virus. The article also mentioned to keep a "healthy skepticism" while reading since these articles often change. Weak research and misleading claims have some time mislead the public, for example at the start of the pandemic when we saw cases rise masks were not considered useful and considered a waste since we were taking supplies away from essential workers such as doctors and nurses. However, now masks are helping flatten the curve by stopping the spread from person to person in communities.
Rohan Singh Response Week of July 6 2020.
I read the article “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing” and found myself in agreement with what the author was saying. This pandemic is being fueled by a lack of clear, accurate information which is only leading to the further spreading of the illness and panic. Both people who have had the illness and those who have not seem to be in a state of uneasiness, wondering whether immunity exists, what the illness will look like in them, and what will happen if the coronavirus comes back. Yong talks about all of this in his article and how the most important thing right now is to ensure we understand that not all information is accurate. He encourages us to ensure the credibility of the pieces we read, which I agree is necessary. It is concerning that many don’t do this, and the potential consequences of this are remarkably dangerous. Consequences could even include furthering the spread and length of the pandemic. Regardless, I am hopeful that authors like Yong will inspire individuals to become more-informed and that scientists and those researching the pandemic will start to find more clear answers.
Many families and individuals have recently began to read more scientific papers and articles to better understand what is going on in the world. However even after months of hearing, reading and seeing only things about the coronavirus not many people have a true grasp as what it really is and how to really protect themselves and their families during this time. Before all this happened not many people read scientific papers because they never felt the need to but recently the number of people attempting to educate themselves on the coronavirus have significantly increased however the number of people that actually understand and comprehend what they are learning hasn’t. It is clear that even after reading numerous papers about the virus not many really understand the information in its entirety. On top of not really understanding the material there are so many articles and papers that have been published within these few months about the virus that make it difficult for people to know which ones are worth reading. I know personally my family and I have a hard time choosing what articles that are the most beneficial to spend time reading in order to have a better understanding on what is happening in the world. I feel as though that it may be discouraging for people who want to read more about the virus but can’t understand or is confused on what paper to read.
In the first article I read, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer, the author discusses how scientific journals aren’t easy to understand, and the thought and process of writing a journal is long and hard. These scientists have been working on Covid-19 since mid-January, and there have already been thousands of articles published. The method of testing whether academic papers are impressive has developed from submitting them to someone who has a better knowledge of the topic also known a Victorians to peer review. Most journals open with a history of the subject, then describe the processes used, then state the outcomes and assessment. Scientists also include opinions for further studies and/or validation of the subject.
The second article I read was “Why the Coronavirus is so confusing?” by Ed Yong. In the article, Yong brings up 8 major topics; The virus, disease, research, experts, messaging, information, and narrative. As of April 29, 2020, 3.1 million people had been affected. Covid-19 is not the only virus that is in the coronavirus family. There are 6 other coronaviruses other than SARS-CoV-2 that are known to infect humans. According to Peter Daszak from EcoHealth Alliance, there may be tens of thousands other coronaviruses in the bat species in China. SARS-CoV-2 is a virus, while Covid-19 is the disease that induces it. The disease is caused by the combination of the virus and the individual it infiltrates and the community to which the individual resides. The CFR (case-fatality rate) of the virus ranges from 0.1 to 15%. This amount will shift, so it's very difficult to have a constant number. The symptoms of this pandemic are very serious. Covid-19 destroys your hearts, kidneys, lungs, nervous systems, airways, guts, and blood vessels. There were previous outbreak of the viruses in the coronavirus family, however the previous coronavirus were contained so not as many people were affected,this means that past experiences/precedence can't be used when looking for solutions to this particular strain of coronavirus.
Something I noticed was that both articles mentioned the fact that we are racing against time with this virus. We know the very minimum about this pandemic, and we are trying to catch up to the virus. We don't know the answer for simple questions like: Are the models of the virus too ambitious or too fatalistic?, how exactly is the virus highly infectious and devastating?, how many people were directly infected?, and how long will social restrictions have to go on?
Due to this new experience of COVID-19, we are all going through confusing times. Especially now when it is so easy to get confused about what information is real or not. Coronavirus studies have helped discovered ways we should treat patients and the ways we shouldn’t. We can see an example of this with the study of hydroxychloroquine at first, it was seen as an effective way to stop COVID-19. After being seen by others who dove deeper into this investigation, they realized that using this could increase the death risk. When reading from studies you always have to keep questioning the information, and if it could work. By doing this, we as a community can help figure out what does and does not work. By understanding how to read studies we can try to find the correct information that can help us in the future.
This week I read the article “How you should read the Coronavirus Studies, Or any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer. It was relieving how relatable the article was. Like Zimmer mentioned, there has been an excessive amount of COVID-19 articles published within the last few months. It’s crazy because prior to this pandemic, I didn’t really pay attention to science articles. But, the sudden abundance of science articles being released makes sense, as we’re still currently in the middle of a pandemic, and there is still a lack of hardcore information. It's been overwhelming as I was unsure of which articles to truly believe because some of them contradicted each other. For example, some articles said that masks weren’t beneficial while others cared to disagree. Therefore, that’s why the process of peer review is necessary because preprinted pieces could unknowingly mislead an audience. As the pandemic is slowly dying down in New Jersey, I am aware that I have to be careful about what I read. In order to do this, I’ll have to research the source/author that I got the information from.
Even though this pandemic has been happening since March, scientists do not have a definitive cure. There are many different types of coronavirus which makes it difficult to find a cure. The effects of the virus vary between people which results in the disease. The disease is also causing damage to the lungs, hearts, blood vessels, kidneys, guts and nervous system. Scientists are worried to treat the virus because they predict that it will end up hurting the patient so this makes it difficult to find a cure. Also, since people are affected differently by the cure, I think that the cure might vary as well per person. Hydroxychloroquine may become a ‘game changer’ but, many studies have cast doubt on it because it can cause heart problems. Many of the proposed solutions would just cause more pain. People can spread the virus before they themselves know that they have it. That is why people should wear masks to protect themselves from others and protect others if they have it.
In the article "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" written by Carl Zimmer, the author wrote that the National Library of Medicine's database contained over 17,000 scientific papers at the beginning of June. I found this statistic to be particularly interesting, since it shows the sheer number of scientists working and researching on Covid-19. This statistic also made me wonder if inaccurate scientific papers have caused people to ignore the proper procedures for Covid-19, such as social distancing and face masks, since Zimmer mentions later in the article that there is an ongoing flood of papers that have not yet been peer-reviewed. He specifically references a preprint from a Stanford research team that said the fatality rate of Covid-19 was lower than experts had estimated. Andrew Gelman from Columbia University disagreed with this paper in his blog. It is plausible that many other papers similar to this one may not have been through peer review, and as a result not entirely accurate, or contradict other papers. This could potentially cause misinformation and confusion that could be one of the reasons behind proper safety procedures for Covid-19 being ignored, and the spread of the virus. This is further supported by the facts that now, more people are reading science papers to make sense of the coronavirus, and the fact that these papers are difficult to read, which further causes misinformation. Besides this, this article also shows how important it is to research sources I use to get information to make sure that they are accurate and trustworthy.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone's lives changed, as did the new norm. And although it has been occurring for many months now, some still aren't completely sure how it works. I for one, never really paid attention at first, thinking it wouldn't be so serious. But once it hits home, many people, like me, realize its severity and want to educate themselves, to be able to better protect themselves and their loved ones. "Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing" written by Ed Young, clarifies what the virus is, and how it's been impacting the world today. The Coronavirus is closely related to another widespread disease, SARS. Much like SARS, this virus is far different than those like influenza. Attacking places like the respiratory system and nervous system, the effects vary by person. This is why doctors aren't able to entirely pinpoint the heavily impacted areas of the body. The variability in this disease makes it difficult to make a vaccine suitable for all. Moreover, commonly confused is what COVID-19 is. Young states that SARS-Cov-2 is the virus and COVID-19 is the disease that it causes. And this combination of the virus and person creates different severities of how it's presented. Although we are slowly working towards progression for a vaccine, there has been a newly introduced antimalarial drug, hydroxychloroquine. It has a chance of being a suitable way to stop or at least lessen the effects of COVID-19. In New Jersey, as the pandemic is slowing, I realize how important it is to keep myself update on this historic event, as it affects everyone. And that the best way to stay safe is to stay educated.
The article “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer discusses the issues with publications about the coronavirus and how to analyze a scientific report. The pandemic is one of the leading problems in the world currently, so many people are trying to understand and gain more information about where this issue will lead. However, it can be difficult for the majority of the population to comprehend the data that is presented in these scientific papers. In addition, articles that have been published without being peer-reviewed, or preprints, are likely to contain inaccurate data or misleading information. Zimmer mentions that even information that has passed peer-review and published through a reputable source can contain false claims at times. For example, hydroxychloroquine was thought to be a helpful drug to fight against COVID-19. Even though this claim was published in a report, scientists did further research and discovered that the drug could actually lead to death. In order to avoid believing inaccurate information, it is best to closely evaluate and dig deeper into the sources before forming a judgement about a certain topic. The data should be acquired from experts in the field, and real evidence should be provided in order to draw conclusions. Information on the internet should not be blindly trusted, and so people should be more aware on how to differentiate between factual and fictitious research.
To say that the two articles posted were enlightening would be an understatement. With the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, I find myself sifting through an ocean of articles, blogs, reports, and statistics trying to understand COVID-19 and familiarize myself with its signs, causes, symptoms, and prevention methods. But the more I read, the more confused I become. The first article, Carl Zimmer’s “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper,” has opened my eyes to the measures that I can take in order to minimize my confusion. I learned that scientific paper is a literary genre in and of itself and there are certain elements that should be taken into consideration when reading scientific papers. There is a lot of misleading as well as incorrect information being circulated on the web—especially now with an ongoing pandemic—and to isolate the most valid studies, I can avoid reading preprints, ask questions to determine the validity of what I am reading, and utilize social media to see what “leading epidemiologists and virologists” have to say about these new papers. Zimmer’s article has paved the way for a much smoother experience while remaining informed. The second article, Ed Yong’s “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing," zeroes in on exactly what COVID-19 is and what it entails. Parallel to the first, this article also highlights the importance of filtering through scientific information but goes one step further by delving into specific findings relative to the coronavirus. Yong’s guide cuts out the “fluff” surrounding coronavirus and provides a rundown on the fundamentals of the pandemic. Both of these articles have helped me stay informed and educate myself during these trying times and I look forward to any future work that these accurate, yet entertaining authors may publish in the future.
Today I read “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or any Scientific Paper” by Carl Zimmer. The article discussed how it is difficult for the average person to understand some of the content explained in scientific papers and how some of the information could be inaccurate or confusing. Zimmer argues that many of these journals have yet to be peer-reviewed which causes them to contain incorrect research. When looking at a scientific paper, it’s important for readers to be skeptical about the article. Individuals should piece the story together themselves in order to understand the event that is taking place. While a writer can give his or her own opinion on a subject based on the data, it’s important for you to interpret the research yourself. This is especially important for people to do during the coronavirus pandemic because it has led to an increase in the publication of works that have not been peer-reviewed. Readers must understand that much of this information could be inaccurate because the coronavirus is a new disease that scientists just do not know much about. In regards to testing, it’s especially difficult to find accurate information because many individuals are only going to be tested for coronavirus if they experience symptoms of the disease. Unfortunately, many people are asymptomatic and are not tested which could lead to inaccurate results.
Both of the articles discussed about how information about COVID-19 has gotten to be slightly overwhelming now. The article "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" written by Carl Zimmer focuses on how there is now so much information and so many articles published on the virus that it is up to ourselves to decide what information to believe and whether to believe it or not. It also discussed about how to read scientific papers and to use our prior knowledge and other sources to validate in our minds whether or not the paper is current, up to date, etc. He also stated about thinking like a scientist when reading scientific papers. To judge the papers merit, asking a few questions such as "Is it based on a few patients or thousands?" or "Is it mixing up correlation and causation?" can help to decide whether it is reliable and accurate or not. To continue, the second article by Ed Yong “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing," focuses more on what the virus is exactly, and about recent discoveries and information on the virus and disease it causes. His guide provides a set of information more based on the basics of the pandemic, and also talks about staying away from misleading information as it can promote unsafe behaviors and improper precautionary actions. Overall in my opinion, I thought these articles were really eye opening to me as a student and I'm glad i read them since now I understand what to look for in articles about COVID-19 and how to judge and process them.
In the article of “Why the Coronavirus is so confusing”, Ed Yong talks about how SARS-CoV-2 and SARS virus are members of the coronavirus. Scientists only know the shape of the proteins on the coronavirus’s surface and the position of the individual atoms. They don’t anything more than that. Some of the confusion is because of the pandemic’s scale and pace. The reason is that no pandemic has caused so much disruption worldwide and quickly. The author explains how there are six other types of the coronavirus, besides SARS-CoV-2. Four of them are mild and common. These four cause a third of colds. While, the other two are more rare and serve. Scientists elite that SARS-CoV-2 probably came from a bat. It seems random that a bat virus somehow affected a human; however, we need to understand that there are millions of people in regular contact wi5 millions of bats. These bats contain tens of thousands of new viruses. Scientists found in four Chinese villages that are near bat caves, 3% of the people had antibodies that indicated a previous encounter with SARS-like coronaviruses. Furthermore, the author explains that the virus is changing at a steady and predictable pace. This means that there is no alarming mutation. SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 aren’t the same thing. SARS-CoV-2 is the virus, while the COVID-19 is the disease. The disease is the combination of the of the virus and the people it infect, and the society that the people belongs to. This means that the virus might vary little around the world; however, the disease varies a lot. The evidence for that is early Chinese data shows that severe and fatal illness occurs mostly in the elderly. In the U.S, many middle aged adults have been hospitalized. Lastly, it is easier for people to believe the coronavirus was deliberately unleashed than to accept the harsher fact that we built a world that was vulnerable to it, but not ready for it.
Both of the articles posted go hand-in-hand when it comes to the coronavirus. To begin, the article "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" by Carl Zimmer discusses how confusing learning about the coronavirus, or anything scientific can be when reading science papers. There are a number of reasons why this is the case. For starters, scientific papers can be considered their own type of literature, with certain rules that can be hard to understand. I found it funny how the author mentions that scientists can write confusing papers, because they do not have the background in English and writing that most authors have. A major reason is that because so many of these papers are coming out on the coronavirus, it is hard to confirm the validity of all of them, due to the lack of peer editors. All in all, the article explains to take everything you read about the coronavirus with a grain of salt, especially if it is new information and that understanding these journals can be overwhelming. To continue, "Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing" by Ed Yong goes even more into depth of the confusion that arises due to the coronavirus. This article even goes to clarify certain things about the virus and provide examples of poor research that misled the public. Overall, this article explained a lot about the virus that I didn't know, even though it was written months ago. Both articles discuss how challenging it can be to find trustworthy information on the virus and how we have to be careful with believing everything we read.
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 or SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the single devastating virus that has affected the world. Besides the devastation, the virus has caused a large amount of change in many aspects of our life. After reading the article “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer, I was able to dive deeper into the complexity of the virus and how finding new information about it should be approached. He begins by discussing how the recent emergence of COVID-19 has triggered many people to find out more information from sources that can be confusing. By providing some riveting statistics Zimmer can explain the large spectrum of scientific research papers. He describes the narrative form that they can occasionally take and how in most situations the reader has to analyze and decipher the information to understand the topics that the author is trying to convey. After reading his article I understood the mindset that anyone must have when researching science-related topics such as the SARS-CoV-2 global pandemic.
Additionally, I read the article, “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing” by Ed Yong, which provided a more scientific perspective on the pandemic. To begin, I recognized the sense of confusion regarding the rapid infectious behavior of the virus, which fueled the corovanirologists to begin their extensive analysis into determining more about the virus along with possible cures. Something interesting that I discovered was the common misconception that SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 are the same things when in reality SARS-CoV-2 is the virus being spread while COVID-19 is the disease that it causes. Yong then moves into the second section detailing the medical aspects of the virus. In this section, he explains why the virus has been difficult to understand as it was challenging to gather data. This is because it differs from its past versions (MERS,SARS), has a continuously changing case-fatality rate (CFR), and evolves overtime. He then closes off the article with a couple more sections that cover the statistics, perception, and research done involving the virus. Overall after reading both articles, it's fair to say that SARS-CoV-2 is a very complex virus that can be difficult to understand being presented with heaps of information, but with an analytic approach this information becomes easier to comprehend.
For the first 2020 Summer Assignment, the articles focused on the topic of COVID-19, an impactful pandemic known to the entire world. These articles include reliable information from valid authors. I found the first article, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer, very useful to me and I agreed with all the points displayed, including the truth that most people do not know how to read scientific papers. This is due to the fact that our generation has not experienced such a large global pandemic as of the one of COVID-19. Although it is difficult for people to interpret these studies and papers, articles that are informative in guiding us to comprehend them are very beneficial. We need more of these articles to help the growing number of individuals in the world that want to know about this global crisis by reading information online or in papers. Although the article doesn’t focus just on Coronavirus papers, Zimmer states that the studies have been growing at an exponential rate. This exhibits the higher significance of the pandemic, along with the growing rate of confirmed cases and deaths. I also agreed with the points explained in the second article, “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing” by Ed Yong. Yong explains how the pandemic is extremely unclear, which is true. The virus arose all of the sudden and scientists don’t have a clear understanding of the situation, although there have been cases of different types of coronavirus in the past that have infected humans. Yong also brings up different points to display the confusion of our current global pandemic, including the research that has been conducted and what the experts think. From these articles, I have learned that COVID-19 is a disease that is very puzzling and many people need assistance to know what is going on in the world by reading papers and studies.
In the article “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper”, written by Carl Zimmer, the reader is informed about how information within a scientific paper can be very complex and confusing to many people, and that the information that a reader could be reading might not be fully correct and might contradict with many other articles. It is necessary for the reader themself to figure out exactly what pieces to believe and what pieces to not. Zimmer states the fact that many of the articles that are being posited today, especially about Covid-19, are not necessarily all true. Knowing what is true and what is false is very important during this time because the pandemic that is going on right now has caused people to read scientific papers more than ever before. Due to this, many scientists are in a rush to continue posting articles about this topic, which led to a lack of peer reviewing and peer editing by other scientists, which causes many articles to have opposing views and contradicting information. I found this article to be very informing and interesting to read because it led me to think exactly how important scientific papers are, especially during this time, and if they start to contradict each other, there could be many misunderstandings about topics like Covid-19, which could affect people and our environment in many different ways.
The whole world came to a standstill after the pandemic hit. Because of the massive amounts of news articles and papers, no one is sure what to believe and what not to. While scientists have only scraped the surface of the virus's structure, it continues to spread and affect our nation dramatically. Masks and gloves are being worn by citizens in order to contain or thwart the virus. Places such as New Jersey have seen a decline in the number of cases, however other states are not as lucky. Because of the lengthy lockdown period, many businesses have no choice but to open in order to save themselves from going bankrupt. Many people around the world have also decided to go back to their daily lives despite the threat of contracting the sickness. Because of this, states such Texas and Florida have seen a recent increase in the number of cases. Many people have been misinformed about the virus and the blame can only be put on the media. The colossal amount of information can be overwhelming to citizens and many people are tired of staying indoors.
I have read the article “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing”, and I find it concerning that not many people on Earth understand what is really going on in our world. Furthermore, there is a lot of contradicting information circling around and it is hard to know which sources we may be able to trust. A key problem that many people don’t understand is the fact that the actual virus is called SARS-CoV-2 and the disease that this virus cause is called COVID-19. I strongly believe that in these troubled times knowing what is going on will help make sure that we are doing everything we can to stay safe and keep others safe as well. Knowing which sources you can trust is a very important factor in help maintaining our health. Our media helps inform our public but not everything they say will be true and not everything they say will be unbiased. Therefore, I think that we need a way to get accurate information to the general public and inform them of the very serious issues we are facing now.
Over the past couple of months, the demand for scientific papers have increased all around the world. Just as the demand increased, the supply of these writings have increased as well. Many scientists are focused on finding a cure or learning more about the Coronavirus. As a result, over 17,000 papers have been published on this pandemic. Scientists have written about new findings, their experiments, and their opinions. Some of these articles are hard to understand by individuals who don’t have experience in the science field. People began searching for answers to their questions in an extremely confusing and difficult maze. To make things more difficult, some of these papers lack evidence which supports their claims. More than a few of these articles are open to the public before it is reviewed by experts. People who stubble upon those kinds of articles become panicked or misinformed about the pandemic. The author of the article encourage the public to ask basic questions when trying to determine the accuracy of the readings. I believe the panic can be reduced by eliminating articles that aren’t credible since they contain misleading information.
In the article, “Why The Coronavirus Is So Confusing” by Ed Young, it is shown to readers how so much information about the coronavirus is still seemingly unclear and confusing to many people. For example, the most asked questions about the virus include, “Exactly how deadly and transmissible is the virus”, and “How many people have actually been infected?” Because of the huge worldwide impact that the virus has made on our society, the confusion is large and present among several communities. Most people have not experienced this kind of crisis in their lifetimes, especially one that affects economies at such a great level. Since we have never been faced with this sort of pandemic before, we don’t know what to expect. Some have even assumed that this virus was planned, or that some had known about it in advance, so that they could be “prepared.” This article shows how information that is misleading may change someone’s perspective on the virus. The next article that I read was, “How you should read Coronavirus Studies, Or any science Paper”, by Carl Zimmer. This article in particular, explains science papers, and how they may be hard to understand. This is because scientists may not be getting enough training in writing, and so it may prove to be difficult for readers to fully grasp the article. In conclusion, after reading both of the articles, I learned that many people have been exposed to misguided information, leading to contradicting views on the Coronavirus.
The coronavirus was a fast-paced pandemic which completely enveloped our world today. Due to this terrible, yet interesting virus, many scientists have tried to explain the explanations or their own findings on the coronavirus. In the article, “ How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper“, by Carl Zimmer, readers were able to learn how a scientist technically writes their articles and what to look out for when simply skimming a scientific article. Overall scientists are not writers, and thus don’t get as much training in writing. This can open up a field of different problems for the readers. One problem which can be opened up for the readers is they won’t be able to locate the specific topic which the scientist is trying to point out. Scientists also have an interesting jargon and personal narratives which they use in their articles, as well. This is a problem for the readers because with this many different paragraphs and statements listed in the article, they will sometimes miss the point of the article itself. Carl Zimmer tried laying out the format for a scientific article by stating they mostly open up their work by giving some history, then they show the methods used and finally the results and what they mean. This can help readers who simply are reading coronavirus articles for fun, point out what’s important or what’s happening in the piece they are reading. A second problem is with the coronavirus pandemic on high popularity in the science field, there are many different types of coronavirus articles in the literary field. It will be hard to locate which articles are trustworthy enough to read and which are not. An advantage point is that it will be fairly easy to point out which articles contain weak evidence. Those who don’t have strong research is probably due to the act they haven’t been peer edited. All in all, Carl Zimmer allowed the readers to understand how to tackle scientific articles due to his experience in surfing the scientific field of literature.
With headlines constantly talking about the pandemic, reading the news can be painful.
However, more than ever, it is crucial that the public stays well informed, although turning off the news and living in a bubble of oblivion seems much more appealing. The two articles provide readers with reasons to remain informed during this deadly time.
Due to these unprecedented times, misinformation is spreading rapidly endangering the lives of many. “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper?” by Carl Zimmer informs the reader of how not every science paper is being double checked and how not every writer is a credible source. Many people, some who aren’t scientists, are writing articles based on little evidence or on conspiracy theories. It is important that readers validate information by doing research on the author and/or publisher. The public must know as much information as they could during these times, but they should not consider false information as the truth. The slew of papers that scientists are posting are not checked over by others. This missing step of peer revision means that facts are not double checked. In addition, scientists are not writers. The scientific jargon used in scientific papers is difficult for normal everyday people to understand, consequently, words can be misinterpreted by readers who lack the skills necessary to dissect a scientific paper. The combination of missing verification, contradicting articles, and lack of prior knowledge can drive the public to insanity. To avoid this mess, Zimmer gives his audience valuable advice: don’t believe everything you read.
The second article provides readers with a breakdown of accurate, in-depth information about the eight different aspects of the pandemic. Starting with relevant background information, Yong makes one thing clear: the only thing people know for certain is that everything is uncertain. After establishing that the situation at hand is confusing, he breaks down the individual forces of the epidemic. The eight aspects are the virus, the disease, the research, the experts, the messaging, the information, the numbers, and the narrative. Fortunately, the disease is not mutating, unfortunately, the virus can attack different parts of the body and at different severities. After discussing the origins of the virus, Yong writes about the disease. SARS-CoV-2 is the virus, and COVID-19 is the disease. The disease comes from a combination of the virus, the person, and the society that a person belongs to. This is why some people who become infected are asymptomatic, while others require ventilators to recuperate. The research at the start was weak but slowly scientists are catching up performing experiments on voluntary subjects. However, some research is receiving much scrutiny from other scientists and the public as work is not being peer reviewed. Next, the messaging to the public has been confusing as experts themselves are unsure of what the correct protocol is. At first, health officials misjudged the severity of the issue believing that the virus would not spread to the United States. However, it quickly spread infecting, hospitalizing, and killing thousands of people. When the CDC issued stay at home and social distancing protocols, the new rules were contradictory to the old ones. For instance, the first issues stated that masks were not necessary as the virus was not airborne, now, it is necessary that all individuals wear masks when in public to slow the spread. The information, numbers, and narrative all are uncertain. The information keeps changing each day. The number of lives taken and will be taken and the number of days in quarantine are all uncertain. The future is full of certainty. What is certain is that society will continue to progress through these dark times. Overall, both articles inform us that we must pay attention to this complex virus as it grows and falls.
With the pandemic came an increased reliance on the scientific community to guide legislation, political mandates, and personal habits. Due to the lack of understanding surrounding this novel virus, there continues to be an uptick in relevant experiments, clinical trials for possible therapies, and inevitably, the mortality rate and long-term effects of this virus and the disease it causes. As Zimmer states in his article, many of the scientific papers that are available to the public are not easily comprehensible by the average person, who is scouring the internet for solid facts on this great unknown. Some authors may attempt to simplify the matter for the reader and leave out critical information that is key to this nuanced matter. In addition to this, the exponential flow of preprints and the rapid rate of discovery require readers to check their sources, the evidence presented, and the scope before affirming what they've read to be true. And even then, readers must realize that these discoveries and papers are not set in stone, as new information can and will uproot previously held "truths" in favor of advancements and answers that only come with time.
Both articles presented for understanding dealt with different aspects of the coronavirus, one with a description of how to approach gaining understanding of the virus via the lens of scientists in the form of scientific papers and the other discussing facts on the coronavirus. Specifying on the article entitled “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer first, we learn the importance of having an aptly titled “healthy skepticism” while reading scientific articles. With the coronavirus pandemic on the forefront of our minds, it is evident that for the foreseeable future there will never be a shortcoming of research papers and articles on the topic. Many people intend to use these papers to further their understanding, however the issue arises with knowing what to take as fact and what to take with a grain of salt. When scientific discoveries were first being conveyed in the form of research papers, the process was fairly simple due to the lack of information, but when the Victorian scientists couldn’t be knowledgeable on all matters, the papers and discoveries were delivered to specialists in a checking process which evolved into modern peer review. This process is critical to understanding what is beneficial to read. To put it simply, a peer reviewed published article has a much higher chance of giving the reader factual information that can be proven. This brief era of coronavirus misinformation has been perpetuated by the haste of scientists to bring out papers, but according to Zimmer, there are ways to understand what you are reading. When reading the article you must introspect and ask yourself questions regarding the merit of the paper you read like, is there enough evidence to have proof, is the sample size of the experiment large enough to demonstrate an effect on the population at risk, etc.
Even with avoiding misinformation, this pandemic can still be very bewildering, but the article “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing” by Ed Yong aids in clarifying its perplexing nature. Yong splits up his explanation into eight individual sections tackling various issues stemming from SARS-CoV-2. The first section entitled, “The Virus” discusses our history with encountering different coronaviruses like MERS and SARS which have unfortunately left us with a lack of research that is being pursued as quickly as possible at this moment , as well as the transmission between humans and bats. The second section called “The Disease” explains COVID-19 and its extremely varied effects which has led to statistical anomalies when putting together research. From section three, “The Research” to section six, “The Information”, the article deals with misinformation of the coronavirus which stems from a rush to get out scientific papers, so called coronavirus “experts” sharing their knowledge, the contradictory messaging the government spreads about the virus, and the spread of misinformation from people to people. Section seven, “The Numbers”, handles the issues with incorrect quantitative data in this pandemic ranging from death rates, case counts, and false positives. The final section of the article called, “The Narrative” concluded the article by providing a summary of the issues with this virus. In this section the line where he said “The coronavirus not only co-opts our cells, but exploits our cognitive biases.” struck me as the entire reality of our situation. I know now from reading these articles to always be on the lookout for gaining verified knowledge instead of letting my bias take control of what I want to believe. This pandemic has changed the lives of people forever, and our collective biases are leading to death, we need to educate ourselves properly in order to remain safe.
Misinformation about Coronavirus isn’t just about the virus itself, there’s false information about the pathogen, about the disease, and even about the narrative where Americans are trying to weave together a simple story about why all of this is happening. One of the most interesting points of the article is in the very beginning. The article points out that even misinformation can be seen from the highest levels of our government. My other favorite thing about the article is the ending. It calls out all of the ugly truths people don’t wanna hear about how the pandemic came to be and ends on a hopeful note that the world will become a better place in one way or another. The article contrasts the bleak ideas of uncertainty with the hopeful ideas that everyone wants to be healthy and safe. Even looking past political ideologies to see that all people want and deserve to be healthy.
After reading this week’s articles, I found Carl Zimmer’s “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” article particularly interesting. He discusses the nature of scientific papers and the importance of maintaining a “healthy skepticism” when reading them. I found this article quite useful amidst the ongoing global pandemic. Because of our unfamiliarity with the virus, many people, including myself, look to the Internet for information about it such as symptoms, its ability to spread, or the status of a possible vaccine. However, it can be challenging to find accurate details among the surge of coronavirus articles and even more so to understand the research when a trustworthy source is found. Therefore, Zimmer advises people to ask basic questions about the articles they read to help get a sense of its validity. He also warns readers that even though a paper passes peer review, its credibility should not be overlooked. A lot of misinformation about the virus has spread because of inaccurate research that has been put out, so people fail to acknowledge the facts. As mentioned in the article, hydroxychloroquine was thought to possibly be effective against Covid-19, and this brought about confusion especially since it was promoted by President Trump and others. Regardless, WHO discontinued treatments using hydroxychloroquine because it was not very effective in reducing mortality rates compared to standard treatment. Instances like these can stir up a lot of misinformation which is why it is important to follow Zimmer’s advice when reading any scientific paper.
In the first article, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper,” Carl Zimmer writes to inform us about the inadequate research and misleading information spreading to the public. During the last couple of months, there has been an overwhelming number of COVID-10 articles. These articles would constantly contradict each other, confusing citizens on how to behave during this circumstance. In the beginning, scientists claimed and published that hydroxychloroquine could be used to help and fight COVID-10. Later, many papers were published to inform readers that hydroxychloroquine could make matters worse. While reading any scientific article, it is important to read a reliable source where evidence is provided before making conclusions. In the second article, “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing,” written by Ed Yang explains how our world was prone to a virus like COVID-19. There is so much about the virus that is unclear and uncertain. The virus attacks vary from the lungs, airways, heart, blood vessels, kidney, guts, and the nervous system, confusing many doctors on the proper treatments. The testing for COVID-19 is not 100 percent accurate, nevertheless, it gives a range of possibilities that scientists can take to make the best decision for the future. Yang explains that science is discovering information to make the uncertainty to less uncertainty. The pandemic’s scale increased instantly over the past months and affected 3.1 Million people globally, yet so much is still unclear. Both articles helped me understand the importance of getting knowledge from reliable sources because of the abundance of false information for the public.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple papers, articles, and opinions have been published and shared the public regarding the disease. However, some of this works contain inaccurate information. Misinformation, especially in a time like this, is very harmful to people. Opinions and incorrect incorrect information can lead to the mistreatment of the virus. For example, hydroxychloroquine was said to be a helpful drug against the virus. However upon further research, the drug was actually proven to be harmful and cause heart problems.
My question while reading the articles was “How are these articles being released without being checked?” My question was answered by Ed Yong in his article “Why the Corona Virus is so Confusing”. Preprints are works that are published and shared to the public before being peer reviewed. This can cause misinformation to spread to the general public causing contradictions and confusion.
So what papers and works do give accurate information? Scientific papers are usually the ones to provide accurate information. However there is a problem within that as well. Scientific works are made for fellow scientists to read, so the general public may not be able to ro understand what is being said. Some people might even misconstrue the information and pass their opinion on to others. In a time like this, where uncertainty’s is prevalent, people should make sure to be skeptical about any information read on the internet and to always check sources such as WHO and CDC.
Anjana Kottaiveedu
The global coronavirus is talked about on all platforms of social media: the news, twitter, etc. However, it is sometimes hard to understand what is going on in relation to Covid-19 due to the pandemic still having no cure and how new updates of the virus are being found. The two articles, How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper and Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing, address how the virus continues to grow and how public information can be misleading information. I was fascinated more so with the second article because it goes more in depth talking about “why the coronavirus is so confusing,” quote on quote the article title, and the different factors that affect the statistics, findings, and research of the virus.
“How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies Or Any Science Paper“ discusses how many scientific articles about the corona virus have been published. There is a certain way that these articles are written and it may seem confusing to many people. The article talks about how the first scientific papers were dated back to the 1667 and over the centuries articles were starting to be written by experts. The practice of peer review arose in the mid-1900s and these papers also developed a distinctive narrative arc. The authors warn the reader that the influx of coronavirus related articles may hold weak research and misleading claims which is why it is important to maintain a healthy skepticism. An example of this was when French researchers published a study suggesting that hydroxychloroquine might be effective against Covid-19. However, this was proven to be false and it was even believed that the drug could increase the risk of death. The need for keeping an open mind and questioning the merit of a scientific article. The narrator suggests to even follow reliable social media accounts that give reliable information.
“Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing” explains how there are still a lot of unknown questions addressed relating to Covid-19. The question of who is asymptomatic, what are the social restrictions, etc have still yet to be addressed for this is a problem that the world has yet to see and combat. A factor for a worldwide confusion of this pandemic is that there are different types of coronaviruses and SARS-CoV-2 is slowly evolving. Another reason why the virus is confusing is that the disease affects different people around the globe in a variety of ways, hence the stats for the virus is hard to examine and use effectively for there is no consistent trend being seen. Due to new findings found in relation to the pandemic, many scientific article about the coronavirus may be inaccurate or proven incorrect. Even experts are not always 100% accurate about their claims and research surrounding the virus, for a lot of errors could be seen in their statements which leads to a lot of contradiction of how the virus could affect people.
This pandemic has proven to be a confusing time for us all, and through all this uncertainty we have started turning to scientific research papers to help us understand this new and confusing environment. The issue with this is that these papers are very difficult to understand and can often contain misleading information. The article about how to properly read these scientific papers, really helped clarify the different ways that the authors could present difficult information. Another fact that was discussed, was that even scientists have discovered no pattern to the spread of the Coronavirus, and that their predictions are not actually supported by solid conclusions. The second article about the confusions surrounding the virus was very informative about how misinformation can travel through the uncertainty about what is the truth. Some articles began speculating the positive effects that a malaria curing drug had on Coronavirus patients, and this information was interpreted to mean that this drug could serve as a viable cure for Coronavirus. Yet further research has shown that the cases in which improvement in conditions was shown, were random and provided no experimental or control groups that actually determined that this drug could be a cure. Much more misinformation is beginning to be spread because the SARS-CoV-2 family has never actually been encountered, especially in such big numbers, before which makes it more difficult to observe the way it actually works. Although many other factors such as the lack of COVID experts, the unknown origin, and the lack of proper studies, play into the misinformation being spread, the most important things to focus on currently aren’t studies about possible cures. The most important things to pay attention to are how to keep yourself protected from spreading any virus, and to keep ourselves properly informed about the increase or decrease of cases and how to prevent coming into contact with highly populated areas. During this extremely confusing time, its important to keep ourselves informed, but to also read the articles with a bit of skepticism to ensure that we understand that nothing is 100% proven about the virus at this time.
After reading both articles which regard the misinformation being spread about the SARS-CoV-2 virus as well as the virus itself, it is safe to say the information released to the public does not always portray the reality of the situation at hand. In the first article I read, entitled “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper,” the author discusses how it is difficult for the average person to understand the research put out in scientific papers, which is relevant as thousands of published papers on SARS-CoV-2 have been posted on the internet. With this difficulty comes the added challenge of assessing whether or not the information in the article is valid or not. In the article, Carl Zimmerman breaks down the typical layout of scientific papers into four parts. They typically begin with the history of the topic for justification, then the means in which the authors collected their research, followed by the results, and concluding with a discussion of said results. I found his breakdown of the typical layout of a scientific paper helpful as categorizing papers into smaller parts can be useful as these papers can then become less overwhelming. Zimmerman highlights the fact that peer review can often lead to a more choppy research paper, as the original author is trying to satisfy the wants of several different readers. I found this interesting as the peer review process is supposedly performed for the benefit of the paper, but instead can lead to difficulty for the audience that the scientific paper is intended to reach. Zimmerman also makes it a point that in times like these, when anxiety and uncertainty are incorporated into the information presented in articles, the average person needs to consider the validity of the work that they are reading. The author gives extremely helpful advice, in that people should assess the validity of the information presented in scientific papers, before relying on said information. In the second article, entitled “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing,” Ed Yong shares how SARS-CoV-2 has been labeled by even the White House as confusing. Yong in his article focuses on eight main components which contribute to the confusion surrounding coronavirus, but I found section VI, “The Information,” most interesting. This section relayed a similar message to that in Zimmerman’s article, in that misleading information partly fueled the hysteria associated with coronavirus. The misinformation stems not only from thousands of articles, but as well as from outlets such as President Trump and social media, therefore contributing to the confusion. In section II, “The Disease,” Yong emphasizes the misconception that COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 are the same thing, when in reality COVID-19 is the disease that is caused by the virus, which is SARS-CoV-2. It is shocking how this simple misconception, that even I was not aware of, has not been emphasized enough in the news. The remaining six sections contain reasons that further prove why SARCS-CoV-2 is confusing, such as SARS-CoV-2 not being the only coronavirus, the lack of expertise, and many unanswered questions. Both articles show the shocking reality of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and the degree to which misinformation has been spread.
The article, “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing,” reiterates the complexity of COVID-19, and its virus, SARS-CoV-2. Not only does the effect of the virus vary per person, but the extent to which it affects an area depends on the response and precautions taken in order to evade it. The prevalence of misinformation has caused global confusion with regards to the effects of this virus and possible cures or preventative drugs, such as hydroxychloroquine. Early research relating to this antimalarial drug does not confirm whether or not it aids in the recovery of COVID-19. Because hydroxychloroquine is being promoted by the president of the United States, despite researchers advising against it, it has become less accessible to those who need it. Much of the early research at hand is questionable, contributing to the uncertainty people have surrounding the virus. It was initially thought that this virus, originating from China, would unlikely have a large impact on the United States, however, many soon came to blame the World Health Organization for neglecting to acknowledge this possibility. In addition, the failure of the White House and U.S officials in taking proper precautions aided in the rapid spread. The continual downplay of the severity of the pandemic by these officials has only caused more harm rather than quelling the panic. In effect of misinformation, countries worldwide have experienced significant death tolls and cases of COVID-19, which further encourages the necessity to become adequately informed through research and reliable sources.
I want to start off this first summer assignment comment by saying that I have not watched Hamilton. It seems that Dr. H is a big fan, so I will do everything in my power to watch it. Unfortunately, I don’t have Disney+, but I’ll see if I can get it (cough*legally*cough) on YouTube. Without further ado, let’s get into science!
What struck me at first about the second article (Why Coronavirus Is So Confusing) is that our president may be one of the most misinformed people in the country. As mentioned in the first paragraph, “Amid a meandering answer, Trump remarked, “You can call it a germ, you can call it a flu, you can call it a virus. You know, you can call it many different names. I’m not sure anybody even knows what it is.” This shows the lack of awareness Trump has. For a man who gets a daily briefing on his desk about all current world activities and updates, Trump sure is pretty slow. Even more shocking is that people BELIEVE HIM. Take the bleach incident for an example. I’m going way off the article, but it adds to my point. Trump jokingly mentioned to ingest cleaning products like Lysol and Clorox wipes to “clean your innards”. The two companies actually issued statements saying that ingesting their products is harmful. Really...?
Ed Yong speaks the truth when he says that so much about SARS-Cov-2 is “maddeningly unclear.” Part of the reason is that we haven’t faced something like this in over 100 years, and the Spanish Flu wasn’t this bad. A huge misconception about this pandemic is where it originated. Some say the Chinese engineered this as an easy solution to World War III. And while many of my classmates asked my history teacher whether we were going to get drafted, that doesn’t seem like the obvious answer. Evidence supports that the virus came from a bat in Wuhan, China. Misinformation fueled controversy, which led to complete misunderstanding and ignorance of scientific data. A prime example of this is that SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that causes COVID-19. Data about which demographic the virus attacks varies, but one thing is certain: people with underlying conditions are at a greater risk for the virus.
Since the pandemic began, there have been over 7,500 whitepapers published. All of them have the same general abstract or conclusion: people can spread the virus before showing symptoms. We knew this as a country for quite some time, yet incompetent governors refused to impose restrictions.
Above all, as Yong mentioned towards the end, humanity’s relentless expansion into wild spaces; soaring levels of air travel; chronic underfunding of public health; a just-in-time economy that runs on fragile supply chains; health-care systems that yoke medical care to employment; social networks that rapidly spread misinformation; the devaluation of expertise; the marginalization of the elderly; and centuries of structural racism that impoverished the health of minorities and indigenous groups.“ Believe it or not, we contributed on a level like never before to our own demise.
Another detail that was not in the text but worth mentioning...
MIS-C is Multi-Inflammatory Syndrome in Children. Doctors all over the world have reported to the WHO and CDC about inflammatory responses vital organs. These responses are due to a rogue group of immune system proteins called cytokines. Cytokines normally aid your immune system, but malfunction in COVID causes them to congregate and swell surrounding organs. When this occurs, blood flow stops. We all know what comes next, imminent DEATH. For more information on this, please visit this link where I thoroughly explained the “Cytokine Storm”, as it’s called. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lyLKLu50tZI&t=9s
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, people worldwide have been searching for any and all information that may help them and their families know what exactly the world is fighting. This effort, though valiant, has proved to be unfruitful purely because of the fact that the average person cannot possibly understand what has been written within a scientific paper, leaving them with even more questions than they had originally. This is addressed in the article, "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, or Any Science Paper" by Carl Zimmer. Zimmer provides key information needed for reading, comprehending, and "believing" a scientific paper. He states that there is a certain amount of skepticism that should be maintained when reading any scientific paper due to the fact that the study may be unreliable, such as the French study supporting the use of hydroxychloroquine to combat COVID-19, and instances where people post papers with incorrect or insufficient information. For these reasons, it is extremely vital to question the credibility of the author and the information provided and make sure that there is substantial evidence backing what is being stated when reading a scientific paper.
The article, "Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing" written by Ed Young mentions certain misconceptions that can arise from the spreading of this inaccurate information. For instance, a common misconception is that COVID-19 is the virus when it is in fact the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2). These misconceptions and the lack of prior knowledge about this particular virus lead to an ever-rising number of questions asked by both doctors and the public. An example of the amount of uncertainties regarding this disease can be seen through how the CFR, also known as the case fatality rate, went from 0.1% to 15% and may still change depending on how countries test their population, the varying ages throughout the population, previous illnesses present in the population , etc.. In addition, the disease has been found to affect the heart, blood vessels , kidneys, and nervous systems alongside the lungs and airways which leads doctors to question why and how these parts of the body are also being affected. Young later moves into preprints and how they can be beneficial to the public by releasing information quicker than it would take to have a scientific paper reviewed by experts and then published, but they can be detrimental to the public for the same reason. It was also stated in the article that there were individuals at the beginning of the epidemic who were urging for strong measures to be taken from the start in the case that the corona virus could not be contained whose voices should have been heard and heeded much earlier. The last important pieces of information discussed in the article regard the media, social media in particular, that leads to inaccurate information spreading rapidly and how testing may need to improve to reduce false positives and achieve accurate results in areas such as the United States.
To start off, I think it’s very interesting to see that there is always new and more information to learn about the coronavirus. It has been a topic of discussion for months now and yet there is always going to be more information about it and there’s always more to keep up with. A lot of people can easily be misinformed about certain things related to the virus due to the miscommunication in the media. Having solid platforms or articles like the ones we have just read are very important. The first article was very helpful because most people will just read coronavirus studies and not really know what to make of it. Having read the article, I can now say it would be easier to understand and process the information I get from studies. Then in the second article, I would very much agree with the author that this whole situation is very confusing. Most, if not all, the information I get is from social media. There are countless amounts of articles out there that just are not accurate to studies. It’s extremely helpful to know when an article is accurate and reliable or not. Moving forward, I would hope that not only myself but others try to keep up with anything having to do with our current situation and be correctly informed on the topic for not only our own safety but so we can help educate others as well.
This pandemic has inspired fear within us all, causing us to come to quick conclusions without viable research. The article I read, “Why the Coronavirus is so Confusing,” by Ed Young explains the amount of conspiracies and rumors there are about this virus, along with the misinformation that has been spread thus far. The public is constantly manipulated but the media and people in power, when in reality, they probably don’t know what they’re talking about. A prime example of this is when President Donald Trump announced that there was nothing to be worried about about and that Americans should “go on with their lives.” Another example includes Epstein’s predicted number of deaths, which he claimed was accurate because he was a lawyer. Young believe that people from all fields are required to work together, since a pandemic is more than just the disease. Instead, it has become politicized and creates a even larger divide between people. For example, conservatives and liberals believe the virus to be two different things. This alone shows how disorganized we are, and how we want so badly to believe an new updates. This desire mixed with hysteria only provokes the circulation of false news and data, which is already hard to obtain. Data such as death counts and new cases do not attest to how many people are actually infected. Every scientist is coming up with different results because of the poor methods of testing and false negatives. There are a number of things contributing to the misinterpretation of the virus, and to overcome them, we must work will all kind of experts to ensure success.
“How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer delineates why people should maintain a healthy skepticism while scanning through newspapers regarding COVID-19. This is due to the fact that many of the articles that are presented to people concerning the Coronavirus lack peer-revision. Articles that are not peer-reviewed are considered preprints, which are composed of weak research and misleading information. According to the article “The National Library of Medicine’s” database, it was reported that over 17,000 papers were published with reference to COVID-19 in June. However, bioRxiv found that more than 4,000 of those papers have failed to be peer reviewed. For this specific reason, Carl Zimmer reiterates why we should be cynical about the various articles published on Coronavirus. Even the news can broadcast fallacious information or details. While reading “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing” by Ed Young it came to my attention that Donald Trump, the president of The United States of America, is pushing hydroxychloroquine, a drug used to prevent malaria, to fight the treacherous pandemic. This belief was introduced through French doctors when they combined hydroxychloroquine with azithromycin, creating “Z-Pak”, which supposedly kills the virus, allegedly curing the coronavirus within six people. Before this theory was further researched, celebrity doctor , Mehmet Oz, prematurely spread this information without knowing the full validity within the experiments held by the French scientists. Upon this, Mehmet Oz appeared on Fox news and stated his beliefs numerous times which heavily influenced Trump to push the drug. Unfortunately, the theory was false and when in use is actually detrimental to one’s health. False information is everywhere whether in the articles that are not peer edited, or even in the news. It is crucial that we stay skeptical of the information that is presented to us.
An additional article I used and cited from was: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/04/hydroxychloroquine-trump/609547/
It is a shock to me that so much about the corona virus and the epidemic it ensued is uncertain and up for grabs. Although it has only been around 5 months since this virus started to flare up in the United States, with the state of our technology and with the fact that we live in such an advanced society, one that is far further than the societies during the flu epidemic or the Spanish Virus epidemic, I was quite a bit shocked that there is so much that we do not know. It almost makes me wonder if we are actually helping the spread of the virus with all of our "precautionary measures" or stopping it in its tracks. I say this with the sheer amount of fake news that has been circulating the media and through word of mouth in our community. If our own president is able to lie to us and tell us to inject bleach into ourselves to get rid of the virus, who are we meant to trust? I do believe in the WHO's word and the numerous amount of studies that have been presented on this, but I can see the point of view of those who suspect, of those who see that decisions on this disease continuously change. How is it that one day, a science article stated that the virus would not impact America at all, but the next day, America is the leading country with corona virus cases that are only increasing? Who are we meant to trust if our own government is lying to us and isn't giving us the true numbers of how many people are affected and dying? I get that science is all about peer review as we as humans are innately narcissistic and believe that our own views and studies are correct when in actuality, they are not. However, shouldn't that ensure that if an article is not peer reviewed or have any input or critique from any other scientist working on a similar topic, it should not be posted in a public forum/place that a lot of non scientists can access? According to the second article, scientists publish their unreviewed articles on a forum that a lot of the common public can access, and that can bring about so much chaos. People like me who are not experts, or at least working, in this field should not be able to look at articles like these, for we are inclined to believe it with no suspicion even if it turns out to be wrong. As long as it looks scholarly, people will use that as an argument either for their argument or against someone else's argument. We can't be spreading false, or semi-false, information like this in a society where information can be readily accessed and shared across the entire world within a few seconds. The sheer amount of chaos this brings about is insane, and it can easily be seen in the mask protests happening all across the United States. From their need to go back to "normal" and with their "scientific studies" that they have read through, they feel as if they have all the information necessary to show that they are right and everyone else is wrong and that the corona virus is in essence is a scam. The danger this brings about in society is far too big to even think about, for this could cause catastrophic consequences if more and more people started to believe in it.
Over the past few months the coronavirus has grown from a small scaled epidemic contained within China to a full scaled worldwide pandemic that has devastated our world. The articles touch on the distribution of false or misleading information regarding COVID-19 and the widespread confusion resulting from this. The first article, ""How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" written by Carl Zimmer who discusses how scientific journals are quite difficult to understand to the common person, even one with a background in science. People don't understand that science journals are a genre and should be read as such, as they are written in a distinctive narrative arc exclusive to the genre. Zimmer argues that the issue with reading and comprehending scientific journals written on the coronavirus pandemic is quite simple: there are far too many papers than anyone can ever read. Due to the severity of the pandemic many of these scientific journals are being released without being verified through peer review. This has resulted in misleading or inaccurate information being released to the public and caused widespread confusion. For example, French scientists published a paper on a drug named hydroxychloroquine that could be used to fight COVID-19. However, a month later a bigger study published suggested that drug could increase the risk of death in COVID-19 patients. In order to avoid being misinformed it is advisable to dig deeper and verify the validity of data published in science journals on a certain topic. The second article, "Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing" written by Ed Yong, provides information on SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and compares it to the other six types of coronavirus that circulate through humans. Of the six, four of them cause a third of all colds and the other two are more severe causing the SARS and MERS disease, respectively. Yong explains how the pandemic is unclear and has left the world in disarray with scientists failing to obtain a clear understanding of the pandemic and the virus itself. He specifies that the spread of misinformation due to misleading science papers about the disease has led to the circulation of contradictory information that has led to widespread confusion. In addition, most people have never experienced a crisis as large as this one in their lifetimes, and are now unsure of what to do and what to believe. Yong encourages the people to ask questions when reading journals on the virus to prevent them from believing misleading information. Ultimately, the international uncertainty concerning the coronavirus has put more lives at risk and pushed our society into disarray. To prevent the further spread of misleading or false information, it is our duty to verify the facts distributed to us and remain an informed citizen of the world.
Ed Yong’s article “Why Coronavirus is Confusing” highlights the degree of misinformation going on in order to circulate facts about the virus as quick as possible. In this storm to spread information, quality is being sacrificed for quantity, and many have a hard time realistically interpreting important statistics.
As Carl Zimmer states in “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, or Any Science Paper", ever since the mid-1900’s, scientific papers have been required to undergo a peer review in order to verify the credibility of the research done. During these uncertain times, Many studies are being shared pre-print, meaning they have not undergone peer review. Although this allows scientists to share data quicker, it is ultimately detrimental to American’s understanding of the virus. Additionally, as the hysteria of the pandemic spreads across the United States, many non-specialists have decided to circulate polarizing news about the virus. While these individuals cannot completely be ruled out for their stance, Zimmer mentioned in his article to take each article with a grain of salt, and read it critically.
Furthermore, results gathered during research are often misinterpreted or over-generalized. As mentioned in “Why the Coronavirus Is Confusing” The CFR (Case-fatality rate) is an important statistic that many individuals rely on to identify the plight of the coronavirus, but it can be skewed by a number of factors including the prevalence of preexisting illnesses, how far people live from hospitals, and how well staffed or well equipped those hospitals are. Additionally, these factors vary among countries, states, and cities, so the CFR will too. This disparity between region makes it harder to anticipate the damage the coronavirus will have in the United States. Also, the Santa Clara County study turned many heads since they claimed that coronavirus occured at a higher rate than perceived. In the end, the claim was debunked because of the unrepresentative sample the data was collected from.
In recent months, the SARS-CoV-2 virus as well as the Covid-19 disease that came as a result of the virus’s spread have rapidly taken over our daily lives and drastically impacted our society. The articles that were posted focused on the overload of information and research that has surfaced as a result of the pandemic as well as the uncertainty and confusion that comes along with it. Published by Carl Zimmer, the first article, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” enlightens readers on the healthy level of judgment and skepticism that is necessary to maintain when reading scientific papers, especially at a time like this. Zimmer describes how during a pandemic many scientists who don’t have much background in the subject rush to publish a piece that ends up having misleading information or information that is very hard for the average person to comprehend. Additionally, some publications get into the hands of the media and into the eyes of the public before peer review which sometimes allows false information to make enormous headlines. These types of publications are called preprints and with a pandemic, there are so many papers being published that it is too difficult to have every single paper formally peer-reviewed right away. The next article, “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing”, written by Ed Yong focuses on how with an overwhelming amount of information, levels of uncertainty are extremely high. Since this virus has tremendously impacted everyone’s daily life, the demand for information is overwhelming and as mentioned earlier, even scientists without the proper background are eager to research. The problem with this is that with a virus based on uncertainty, it is extremely difficult to properly characterize it, leaving some information to be deceptive with many questions unanswered. Yong talks about how even though, yes, expertise is abundant, it is grueling to find errors and separate the facts from the misconceptions and myths. There are many types of coronavirus, maybe even thousands, but there have only been a handful of virologists who have made an academic career out of it, so now scientists are rushing to make up for years of missing research. Yong speaks on how as scientists, or simply as humans, we look for patterns but with the variability of the disease, it feels impossible to keep up. For example, the case fatality rate ranges from 0.1 to 15 percent, which is frustrating as a specific number is impossible to settle on. As soon as one “mystery” is closed and it feels as if everything has been settled, another is opened. For example, it was just recently updated in an article on the World Health Organization’s website on July 9 that there is a possibility that some cases may have been a result of airborne transmission. (https://www.who.int/news-room/commentaries/detail/modes-of-transmission-of-virus-causing-covid-19-implications-for-ipc-precaution-recommendations) This was considered before and dismissed, but now it is back into study with recent studies suggesting differently than we had previously thought. Vinay Prasad, a scientist mentioned in the article, describes this issue as a “clinical mystique”. Even though the evolution of the disease and virus has steadily been able to be researched, it still feels like there's a “mystery” surrounding this that's constantly hidden in the shadows of “fear, uncertainty, and hype”. Overall, for younger people like myself to understand the concept of skepticism, just know that reading scientific papers during a pandemic can almost be compared to listening in on highschool gossip. Sometimes the information we hear is factual, but we all know that rumors spread just as fast, if not faster. The main take away from both of these articles is that with this virus, even with months of research and thousands of scientists, uncertainty remains. As the articles stated, the media won’t change, so we must, and maintaining skepticism is our way into a proper understanding of this life-changing virus.
Reyna Patel
In "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper", Carl Zimmer discusses how many scientific papers are written and the difficulties that come with reading them. Confusion arises when papers are often cut to adjust to editorial demands or are backed by weak research. Specifically, the coronavirus has brought great attention to the science community as people around the world are looking for answers and explanations in scientific papers. Zimmer used the phrase "healthy skepticism" which caught my attention because I thought it was very concise and applicable. With coronavirus being so prevalent, it is important to not only be actively informed, but accurately informed. When Zimmer explained the research around hydroxychloroquine, it reminded me of how I read that certain scientists had observed a link between ibuprofen and worsening coronavirus symptoms during the beginning of the pandemic. To my understanding, the information about ibuprofen was a misleading claim with unbacked research because I could barely find any other information about it. Zimmer's basic questions to judge merits will be helpful moving forward to know if a source is reliable and to be a cautious reader. However, at the same time, this unending amount of new or changing information could help scientists get closer to a life saving answer by being able to prove certain claims false. Although studies may be hard to understand due to the jargon or writing style, they are an important reflection of the current scientific understanding.
Both articles "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" by Carl Zimmer and "Why the Coronavirus is so confusing" by Ed Yong deliberate about the 2020 groundbreaking pandemic caused a broken future consisted of endless masks and social distancing. I believe that people haven't paid much attention to science articles, until recent events. When you search up news, seventeen different articles pop up relating to COVID-19, crazy how life can change in five months. These articles are crucial because they inform children and parents on how to react to the current situation and spread awareness to reduce the spread of the virus.
In the first article, "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper," the author emphasizes that since the virus broke out, many articles were published to the public, but were hard to understand and read. The purpose of the pieces is to inform people of the importance of their study, but how will scientists make their point if people can't comprehend what they are saying. The author believes that scientists don't experience training in writing compared to bloggers and newspaper authors. Their lack of training causes them to be unclear with their thoughts, or narrate in a way that they can only understand. Also, this is common among many writers and students, like me. When you start to write, your thoughts flow out like you're telling a story, but when you proofread, you may see things that don't make sense. Your thoughts don't always match up with your words, making it hard for others to understand. Sometimes specific issues and views are hard to be written on a sheet of paper compared to explaining to someone so they can acknowledge. It's hard for scientists to make their study Comprehensible and informative at the same time. The author pointed out how skepticism leads to scientists creating articles that consist of weak research and misleading information. Uncertainty can cause serious dilemmas and a bunch of people relying on that misconception.
In the second article, "Why the Coronavirus is so confusing," the author clears up questions and confusions that are made about COVID-19. The virus is SARS-CoV-2, and the disease is COVID-19, which I had just discovered from reading the articles. SARS-CoV-2 is only one of the many other coronaviruses that are found in multiple bat species. The reason why the virus spread so fast is that Bats fly out every night over their houses in the Chinese villages, these millions of people come into contact with millions of bats, causing improbable issues. COVID-19 is the disease that arises from the combination of all the viruses found in bats. The disease caused a considerable pause in the world's system, as many articles and newspapers all headlining "COVID-19…" States had to enforce laws to help citizens practice social distancing and wear airtight masks in public. Articles are published nonstop to keep citizens, and people informed 24/7, as well as graphs and charts. The article goes into detail about Trump's actions and CDC. In conclusion, the primary purpose of Yong and Zimmer was trying to inform readers how to apprehend COVID-19 because it's getting too out of hand.
Areeni Sharma
After reading this article, I was quite amazed. I discovered how many scientific articles that are published are incorrect. I believe that this is a disadvantage to the public as it will promote wrongful ideas. This will become worse if a public figure encourages these inaccurate concepts as they are viewed as role models to the general public. I think that it is important for scientific essays to be pre-read so they do not include any false information. This reminded me of Andrew Wakefield, a British ex-physician who stated that vaccines can cause autism. His research caused chaos, but he was later discredited for his findings. A lot of people now rely on the Internet for information, and even though there might not be a pre-read scientific article stating a fact, a third-party or inaccurate website might state false information. Also, another topic that needs to be brought to light that is related to this is: scientists and public figures need to tell people to wear a mask. If a higher authority, such as our president, does not tell people to wear a mask, then a lot of people will end up not wearing one. This is one reason that there is a surge in cases. Another thing is that a lot of people find studying the coronavirus pandemic confusing due to the amount of false information on the Internet. One website might say one thing, but another website might say something that is completely contrary to the first one. This is why it is important to read scientific articles as oppose to the Internet as they will be more accurate. This is also why scientific articles need to be pre-read and peer reviewed more.
Both articles articulate the idea that there is much more uncertainty on the current pandemic and COVID-19 itself than we have been led to believe. The first article, "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" calls to attention that the research papers from the science community are not absolute truth. There are papers known as preprints that have not gone through the official peer review process, yet the media, public eye, and even leaders have given them much clout. Additionally, there are official papers that could have relied on faulty data collection methods such as the French study that proposed hydroxychloroquine (the malarial drug) to be the solution to COVID-19. This study's methods of obtaining data were very questionable; in fact, they did not utilize control groups and variable groups, the basis of most scientific experiments. The article fundamentally highlights the reader's responsibility to read papers on the coronavirus with a grain of salt and inquisitive mindset. The spread of lies on social media and the media itself contributes to an unhealthy tone of panic in this pandemic.
The second article explores many aspects of America's reaction to COVID-19. "Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing" mentions that a interdisciplinary approach the best plan of action is vital. Doctors and biologists will propose policies that neglect to accurately account for factors outside of their field such as economics, supply-chain, and political feasibility. Now more than ever, experts from across many fields must be open to listening to each to each other and provide accurate, un-overexaggerated information. Additionally, humility is something many publishers are sadly lacking. If past predictions have proven to be wrong, it is the duty of the individuals who published these predictions to strongly take accountability and acknowledge their mistake.
Reading the article “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer really allowed me to think about how the pandemic has highlighted science. Zimmer presents science throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to be similar to the news. It seems as if the news is always on in my house, similar to the way that scientists have been in full swing with research on the coronavirus. Additionally, this surplus of scientific papers can make it hard for a reader to decipher between what is and is not relevant. This is partly responsible for the confusion and differing ideas between people during the pandemic. Because the virus is so new, no one really knows exactly what to believe. I found this article to be very interesting because I can make connections being that I do not read very many science research papers. However, I have been clicking on links and reading more and more information about the Coronavirus because I (like everyone else) want to know exactly what it is. I found the article to be beneficial as well because Zimmer discussed a few tips to consider when trying to read and understand these papers. The article overall seemed to make perfect sense as it explained why there are so many research papers being published during this time.
I found it interesting how many people have the same questions. Such as Why do some people get really sick, but others do not? Are the models too optimistic or too pessimistic? Exactly how transmissible and deadly is the virus? How many people have actually been infected? How long must social restrictions go on for? Why are so many questions still unanswered? I wonder how long these questions would stay unanswered. I also found it extremely intriguing how political the coronavirus is. In the second article the first thing that is mentioned is the president discussing the coronavirus. Another thing that caught my attention where the 3 percent of Chinese villagers that are close to bat caves and had already developed antibodies which indicates a previous encounter with SARS-like coronavirus. This got me thinking if people have already been previously exposed then why is this a world wide pandemic now? All in all this pandemic has caught most people by surprise. Even experts. It states Isaac Chotiner initially speculated that 500 Americans would die for COVID-19. He later updated that estimate to 5,000 so far there have been 58,000 deaths and the number is still rising. I don’t think anyone thought it would be this bad.
With the Coronavirus there has been a lot of uncertainty, as the world tries to get through this pandemic. Even though scientists can describe the biological makeup of the coronavirus right to the atom, there are a lot of unknown factors. There are multiple coronaviruses that have different effects, but it just so happens that SARS-CoV-2 has caused a pandemic. It is important that people know that even with thousands of articles there is still a lot scientists do not know about this virus and its effect of the COVID-19 disease. People must also know that the numbers released regarding the effects of the disease are often misleading. There are many factors that cause these inaccurate numbers, and it is hard to get an accurate understanding of the viruses effect on the world. Furthermore, there is no set pattern to how the disease can affect a person, so there is no set solution to helping a patient of the virus. With all these uncertainties people are trying to find the answers to the problems, however due to its rapid rise research is being sped up to a level that has caused a lot of misleading information. Papers and articles usually take years to be peer edited and then published, but due to our current situation many articles are being released in a matter of a month. These preprints can have many errors that leave people with inaccurate information. As people continue to search through all these articles they get caught up in too much information from many different sources. Trying to find one person or one article that will know all the answers is impossible because of how many different fields this virus has touched on. Due to the many uncertainties of coronavirus it is crucial for people to think about and understand what they are reading and look to multiple reliable sources.
The two articles, “How You Should read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer and “Why The Coronavirus is So Confusing” by Ed Young explain the scientific issues of the coronavirus. The first article explains the problems with research publications during a pandemic. The article explains that there is usually a procedure to get articles published, however during the pandemic information is needed more quickly. This has led to a lot of misinformation being spread which affects research. The need for quick results has led scientists to take short cuts which has led to a lack of thorough research. Overall the first article speaks about how the new age of technology has made it easier to produce articles and harder to distinguish the articles that need to be read and the articles that are spreading false information. The second article helps people better understand the situation. It starts off by distinguishing the difference between the disease and the virus. This article has made me realize that I didn’t know much about Coronavirus or that there wasn’t just one type. In addition to explaining the science of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 it also brings up the flaws of the research and how many fields need to work together because it will be extremely difficult to solve this problem individually. It also explains the problem of preprints during this time. Overall the second article goes more in depth than the first and speaks about the science of the virus, the flaws with data collection and how it’s being presented as well as earlier mistakes that the US made.
With the undeniable rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, it seems that society is conflicting the morals of obtaining information to increase one’s knowledge. In this race to discover the greatest amount possible about the SARS-CoV2 virus and the resulting disease (COVID-19), we are dragging ourselves further away from this goal. Why? Ed Young highlighted in his article, “Why the Coronavirus is So Confusing,” that we are becoming more vulnerable to misinformation because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, our very own president, Donald Trump, and other large organizations twist information until they are hit with reality. Now, I’m not saying that they are completely wrong, but they aren’t completely accurate because they are afraid to share the uncertainties related to this pandemic. What does that do? Well, it removes the trust and faith people have in more emphasized resources, making society more vulnerable to inaccurate information. There isn’t any one expert who is aware of the entirety of this pandemic, which is why different fields of studies are involved in collectively coming closer to a conclusion about COVID-19. The article, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies...” by Carl Zimmer talks about preprints, which are papers that still need to be peer reviewed and revised. These preprints disclose terribly inaccurate information that can contribute to the the havoc caused by this pandemic, or to the lack of concern that people have in regard to this pandemic. With misleading data and polluted journalism, I’m afraid that it will be hard to accurately describe this pandemic 50 years from now. COVID-19 will surely make history, but will it be taught correctly is the real question.
I found it very surprising the sheer amount of intentional and unintentional falsities spread about COVID-19. It shows how important it is for us as Americans and the wider world to express caution while intaking news and numbers, especially during such an uncertain time. The article from the Atlantic illustrates how the current numbers don't tell the full picture of the cases for many reasons, the main reason being the former and current lack of testing giving a lower figure than the actual number of cases that day. Another point the article provides is the rushed publishing of studies and scientific papers do to the need for information to be spread quicker among the scientific community. However, this can be a problem where studies that generally wouldn't be published or in the news are being prematurely sensationalized and convince people of later disproven information. Furthermore, this looser and quicker form of sharing information makes it easier for people to purposely spread false information in studies or in other areas. In conclusion, as the world rushes for answers, it can be easier for some to make falsehoods to confuse the many.
There are many articles and papers that can be found simply by searching up “coronavirus” or “COVID-19”. The articles that we resort to are usually from news outlets like “CNN” or “The New York Times”. However, there are science papers that people “trust” more since the authors seem to be more educated and aware than other authors. Before the pandemic started, many people just relied on different news outlets for their information on what is going on around them. They barely read science papers as much as they do now. Some of these science papers are preprints which means they haven’t been peer reviewed yet and the information in them could be incorrect. When people stumble upon or search for these articles, they will try to believe the ones that usually will benefit them. In these cases, the information is usually inaccurate and misleading. In the article, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper”, by Carl Zimmer talks about how it can be difficult to read science papers as well as distinguish the ones that are inaccurate from the ones that are accurate and provide enough evidence to prove so. There are many science papers published. Scientists have been researching COVID-19 as long as it has been around. Even with so much research, there still isn’t a conclusive cure or treatment that can help prevent going on ventilators or prevent death. To understand what is going on better, Zimmer discusses how peer reviewed science papers and articles are more accurate than preprints or other papers that seem to be accurate. There are lots of science articles out there about the coronavirus that go against each other which can confuse many readers. It is important for readers to be wary of what they are reading especially if they are preprints since there could be lots of misinformation. I thought this article was helpful and informational since it really emphasized to pay attention to what you’re reading and where you’re reading it from.
The Coronavirus has affected all of our lives as more and more people around the world have gotten infected. As we continue to live through unprecedented times, the public has turned to multiple sources in hopes of staying informed about the virus. The abundance of information has been helpful, but has also been overwhelming and confusing. “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” by Carl Zimmer has shed light on how difficult the information about COVID-19 could be to digest and fully comprehend because of the way scientific papers are written. Since they are the most readily available, many people rely on these papers in order to learn more about the virus and believe all of the information in them. However, some of the information could be inaccurate in addition to being difficult to grasp. In fact, out of 17,000 published papers, 4,000 still need to be peer reviewed. Therefore as Zimmer mentions, it’s important to always be skeptical of the articles and papers being read since many of them seem to contradict each other. “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing” by Ed Young further highlights how the public is being misinformed and reiterates the immense confusion regarding the virus. Although the virus has been affecting people for a while now, there are still so many questions and a cure is yet to be found since this is a pandemic that has never been experienced before. The most important misconception that the article clears up is that SARS-CoV-2 is the virus and COVID-19 is the disease. Many factors affect the disease such as the virus, the person it infects and the society that surrounds the person. This explains why the disease can vary around the world. The article also mentions how the disease affects the lungs and airways as well as the heart, blood vessels, kidneys, guts, and nervous systems. This allows me to truly understand the severity of the disease since I can understand everything that the virus affects in the body. Something that really struck me in this article was the fact that throughout all of the uncertainty early this year, the United States government repeatedly reassured the public and refused to take any measures early. It makes me wonder if the rapid spread of the disease could have been prevented. Throughout the pandemic, the public has repeatedly turned to sources online desperately trying to grasp important information about the disease. Throughout both articles, the authors both mention the significance of reading every article carefully and being wary of the inaccurate information regarding the disease.
Both of the articles enlightened people about how this new pandemic has affected everyones lives. From being frantic to know the results of a vaccine, to as simple as understanding what the virus consists of. The Coronavirus has impacted everyones lives in an interesting manner. In the article "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" by Carl Zimmer, he describes reading a science paper as "Just like sonnets, sagas and short stories, scientific papers are a genre with its own unwritten rules, rules that have developed over generations." I find that this explanation is perfect, and fits in with any science paper. In this article he also states that there are many papers about the Coronavirus, but it is ultimately up to us to believe what we would like to believe. He explains that it is important to see if the article is credited by a reliable source, and if the date of the article is recent. He also wants us to question the article, to further prove its validity. These questions include things like "is it up to date?", "is the person or institution who produced this article a reliable source?', or "what is the virus exactly, and how do they prove it". This brings me to the next informative article. "Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing" by Ed Yong is an article that dives deep into what the virus consists of, as well as exactly what it is. It seems like an article that has compiled all relevant information into a clear explanation. He backs up his article with relevant information on the disease, bare minimum, and the specifics of the Coronavirus. It is also mentioned to stay away from information that is inaccurate, as it can prove to be unhealty to the health and safety of other people. After all things considered, both of these articles not only give us good advice, they also show us that we should think for ourselves a little, and not follow everything you shall cross upon in the internet. Both articles provide an in-depth understanding of what the Coronavirus is, how to stay safe from it, and how to locate false information. Personally I have been enlightened to look out for false articles, and trust in the people that are making an actual effort to solve and eradicate this problem, so that one day the word "Coronavirus" would be something uttered in textbooks, and not out of fear by the people of this earth.
After reading the article “Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing”, I realized that it is so important to research all of the information about the SARS-CoV-2 to get a complete understanding of it. It’s so interesting that there is still so much unknown information. There are so many unanswered questions including, How does it affect each person differently or how many people around the world have actually had it? Everything is very new so there is no cure. But, doctors are working very hard to learn more about the specific details of the virus and find the best treatment for the disease. I learned that there are over hundreds of different coronavirus strands around the world. Also, that doctors have found that the drug ‘hydroxychloroquine’ could possibly treat COVID-19 but, it can cause heart problems. Some doctors are still giving this drug to patients which may get rid of the virus but, can end up giving them other diseases and problems. So, Scientists are working hard in clinical trials and researching to find out if the drug could be a beneficial treatment. The article stated that an epidemiologist found that people can spread the virus before showing any symptoms. It is very helpful to know this now because it can help prevent more spreading of the virus around the world. Overall, this article had so much important information regarding SARS-CoV-2 which helped me get a better understanding of the scientific aspects of the virus.
I read the article "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper" by Carl Zimmer. This article showed me just how important it is to make sure i'm staying informed throughout this pandemic. It's crazy how many articles can be released in a period of 5 months and how much extensive work has been put into those articles. The world is going through a change and I don't believe it will ever be the same again. Therefore, we must all educate ourselves on how to read these scientific papers because they may become an important part of our daily life. However, it is important to make sure these papers have been peer reviewed and come from credible and unbiased sources. The virus has become a popular topic of discussion in the media and different people are using it to push their views and advance their political agendas. It is important that we can do research for ourselves and not just rely on the main stream media for information. That way we can all build our opinions based on facts, not our facts based on opinions.
The article, "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper", came as somewhat of a surprise. I have always trusted scientific journals to deliver accurate information and I expected nothing different when it came to information about COVID-19. However, the article showed that misinformation is widespread in a time where new information is being demanded at a historically fast pace. It was surprising because I had always expected scientific journals to be a reliable source of information, but the public expects information rapidly, and journalists are struggling to keep up. Traditionally, papers had to be carefully and thoroughly edited by a panel of experts before they were released. Researchers are forced to take shortcuts to make conclusions, thus resulting in false information which is then shared with the public. This forces readers to take the information with a grain of salt and remain skeptical about what they read. They are required to take steps to follow the scientists' thought process. It is difficult to stop the public from jumping to conclusions, especially if their information is coming from a typically reliable resource. Section six of the second article, "Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing", also discusses why misinformation is allowed to spread. Americans seek information at such a rapid pace, they accept it without scrutinizing any of it. Additionally, popular news sources contain bias and the virus has become heavily politicized; liberals and conservatives have different understandings of the virus altogether. Another large contributor to the misinformation is Trump, America's leader, who continuously lies and downplays the severity of the disease, causing Americans to not take it seriously and even take his unprofessional advice. Unfortunately, it is up to consumers to be safe in a time where reliable news is difficult to find.
I read the first article given, which was "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper by Carl Zimmer" (Published June 1 2020). With the current surge of Coivd-19, never in history have we had as many scientific studies published in a short amount of time about a specific subject that are so readily available. In the National Library of Medicine's database, there are over 17000 published papers on Covid-19. With this influx of studies and the need to inform ourselves on what is going on, this article provides a clear explanation on what scientific papers are, and how to read them. The article starts off by explaining the history of these scientific papers, and how they have evolved over time. The article explains the different features of a scientific paper. It also explains how scientific papers have to go through a thorough and extensive peer review to make sure that the information in the paper is valid. The article provided many examples of this working in real life that show why this is important. One such example that I found very interesting was the French scientific paper that suggested hydroxychloroquine might be effective against Covid-19. This paper had many flaws and was called out by the scientific community for its flaws. Another, bigger study was conducted that showed that the drug might actually increase the chance of death from Coivd-19. I found this very interesting as it goes to show the extent of the impact that these scientific papers have on our lives. This small and flawed study was undoubtedly one of the factors that led the US President to make statements that this could be an effective drug. It is astounding to see such a small study have such a big impact on US policy in fighting Covid-19. It also reaffirms the importance of peer review to make sure these studies are correct as they have such a big impact on our world.
In the swarm of confusion regarding COVID-19, the various studies that are coming out add on to that confusion. Therefore, you should know how to read and interpret these studies the right way. The article, “How You Should Red Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper” written by The New York Times helps the reader better understand the enormous number of scientific papers coming out. The author describes how these papers are like a separate literary genre, and take some time to get used too. A moment where so many scientists all around the world divert their attention to one situation and working with such speed is very rare in history. Hence more than 17,000 papers have been published about this pandemic, and you can read most of these for free. They are easily accessible, but not so easy to understand. They have their own unwritten rules like sonnets, sagas, and short stories that have been advanced over generations. The first science papers were more like letters. Natural philosophers would send their research to editors of a journal who would decide if the research is worth publishing or not. Later as science advanced, it was hard for scientists to become an expert on everything. Therefore, the editors would send the papers to outside specialists who understood more about the specific topic of research then they did. This concept became known as peer review. Journals only published if the specialists that they sent it too thought it was acceptable. The format that these papers were written in also changed into more of a story than a letter. A typical paper opens with the history that justifies their new research. They then express the methods they use to carry out the research. Finally, they express their results and what those results mean. Some scientists might point out the shortcomings in their research, and offer ideas for new studies to see if their interpretations will still be held accountable. However, now a website called bioRxiv lets the public read studies that have not gone through peer review yet. These research papers may have misleading claims and week research. The author mentions how part of the problem with all this confusing research is that scientists do not get much training writing their papers. Journals may even make it worse at times by making scientists chop up their research. Therefore by using a tool like Google Scholar, you can limit seeing misleading claims and research. When you come across certain documents, you should think like a scientist would and reason with your self if the source is credible instead of blindly believing it. You can even follow professionals on social media who will do that for you. This article has been nothing but enlightening, and it gave me a better understanding of how to interpret the various papers coming out.
The article I read today was “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or any Scientific Paper” by Carl Zimmer. The article explained how some scientific data within certain articles, experiments, or displays could be inaccurate or false due to a number of things. Many of the articles explained in this article have information that was never checked by another person, therefore leaving a large margin of error. One of the main points in this article is that no evidence, unless validated, is reliable unless you truly explore for yourself. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic is sometimes portrayed in exaggerated ways for the government to promote or scare people into wearing their masks all of the time. People who do not wear masks are always open to receiving the virus from literally anyone, regardless of if they are six feet away or not (i.e. touching doors, food, etc.) Testing negative could change to positive within an hour of leaving the testing center, which is a true example of experiencing non-validated results through an experiment, which was also the main
purpose of the article
After reading Carl Zimmer’s article, “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper,” I feel like I am in a little bit of shock, because the information I’ve looked at and believed in, many have been false. I think because it's been published online and it's accessible, I believe that everything is true, which is naive. However, I think that many individuals look at different articles and reports in the same way as I do, which can create amounts of hysteria and uncertainty, especially when there is a pandemic going on. I found it interesting that different scientists peer review after the article has been published, and that everything an individual reads should be taken with a grain of salt. In general, individuals should start to read articles and science reports with an open mind and an unrigid mindset because those things are important for one to make a judgement for themselves. It also made sense that some of these reports are difficult to read because scientists aren't trained to be writers, but that is what is expected of them once they have to write a report. With the coronavirus, I think it is difficult for readers to decipher which information they should believe, or they have too little information, and make judgements off of that. Overall, it was interesting to read about how science reports are not as reliable as we think, if they haven't been peer reviewed, and there is always new information coming out.
I read the article “How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or any Scientific Paper” . From this article I was able to learn the importance of making sure that am informed and am not fed wrong information through the current pandemic. I learned that just because an article is published online it doesn’t mean that it is proven fact. This is a personal mistake that I have made myself by just taking any information that I can find a fact while in fact it was not. During this pandemic it is better to be extra careful about the information that you read because there have been over 17000 papers published in 5 months according to the article. This causes there to be much false information in these paper that have not been confirmed. This is why it is important for us as individuals to make sure that we are educated on how to properly read a scientific paper so we can grasp the right information. It is also very important to make sure that the papers that you are reading have been reviewed and are a credible source. In the article it explained a scenario where a paper claimed that a certain drug could help cure COVID-19 while is was actually proven harmful. In addition many people have been spreading false information across many social media platforms so make sure that you are able to educate yourself about topics before you are to believe what is posted on social media and other non credible sources.
The article "How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, Or Any Science Paper," published by Carl Zimmer, elaborates on the complexity of scientific journalism and the importance of truth in these research-based papers. Zimmer states that the reader should uphold skepticism when going over the overwhelming amounts of studies. It is easy to be misled in an oversaturated environment of research due to a lack of peer editing and background in writing. The second article, "Why The Coronavirus is So Confusing," by Ed Yong, adds onto Carl’s main topic by focusing on how misinformation has caused many to make assumptions relating to beliefs or politics further growing uncertainty within the community. Yong specifically states, “It may be easier to believe that the coronavirus was deliberately unleashed than to accept the harsher truth that we built a world that was prone to it, but not ready for it.” The statement is relevant because the virus continuously impacts many people’s lives. As the Coronavirus spreads in perpetual growth, an abundance of information is demanded by people as they try to learn more about the newfound virus. With more details being discovered about the current threat, it is more common for the general public to share various facts alongside opinions creating additional confusion. This can be a potential hazard as the spreading of wrongful information can influence the mishandling of the Coronavirus. These two articles culminate the relevancy of refining scientific writing alongside new information on COVID-19 through credibility and skepticism of varying information. I think that both pieces raise awareness on the controversy of the developing global pandemic and can be used to cultivate safer environments in our current circumstances.
In the article, “How you should read coronavirus studies, or any science paper,” I learned that just over a span of a few months, there have been thousands of papers published regarding the new coronavirus. Compared to the past, the accessibility of scientific papers has drastically changed as people now have access to information for free while in the past it would’ve been only available to a few people. In the beginning, scientific papers used to be like letters written to friends about their discoveries but now publishings are first sent to specialists, who are experts on a topic, before being published. Peer-reviewing later became a practice among scientists and papers would be published after multiple experts deemed the paper to be acceptable. Nowadays papers begin with history and reasoning for the research, then the methods for how the research is to be conducted, and lastly the results of the research. They will often include faults in their results or research methods. Sometimes research papers are divided into multiple pieces that are published separately. Sometimes even though a paper is accepted through peer review, it doesn’t mean it's completely right. When trying to validify a research paper it's good to consider the scale of research, the method of coming to the conclusion and also whether their evidence is valid. Nowadays scientists are making it easier to provide the public with information by using social media, which allows for quicker acquisition of vital information.
Scientists have found a way to alter standard DNA to a better version of it. Scientist believe that they can alter DNA to prevent mutations which can later cause diseases (depending on which mutation.) they call this procedure mitochondrial replacement. This procedure happens when the nucleus of the egg is transplanted in the donor part of the egg that consists of bigger and healthy mitochondria. -----Kunal Soin
I read the article " Why the Coronavirus is so confusing" by Ed Young. The article was written in April where as we know more about the pandemic now. Since at the time, the pandemic wss uncertain about its strain, it took a toll in most people's everday lives. One day they were going to work without a mask and the next it was required to quaratine and wear a mask in public places. It is still required today to wear a mask in public places as businesses are slowly opening up. Since people didn't know how bad the virus could be some businessses had to shut down without a heads up of this pandemic. In the article it sttes where there were conspiracy theories that the pnademic was planned by world leaders. Virologists spoke up saying no matter how many social distancing orders are out there, there's not enough in the room to space out as much. There's also confusion with SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. SARS-Cov-2 is the actual virus. COVID is the disease that causes the virus. The article also stated how it's hard to get the most accurate stats about covid. studies came out with a ptential cure but then found out it led to more health issues for patients. We now have antobody tests to find out if people from beofre who felt these symptoms had covid.
I read the Article, How You Should Read Coronavirus Studies, or any Science Paper." I found the article very interesting because I learned how to look for reliable information when it comes to science. When this pandemic first started, there was very little knowledge on what the virus is. There was loads of confusion on the first known case of the coronavirus. In this pandemic I learned how to find the real facts and science. During this pandemic, many amounts of papers were released, but that didn't mean that all those papers were factual or real. I feel that this article is very useful as it helped me separate the reality versus conspiracy or mythology. At first, we though the drug hydroxochlorquine was an effective treatment, but was later proven unsuccessful. At first, many experts warned against masks, but they strongly urge mask use. As a student of AP Biology, I think this a great first start on which sources are credible and which ones are not.
I read the article “How you should read coronavirus studies, or any paper” I thought that the article was quite interesting because the author, Carl Zimmerman, states how easy it is to be fed the wrong information when many papers haven’t been peer edited, and include weak points and misleading claims. I had already known that some papers shouldn’t be read as if they were 100% correct, but the article really shocked me by showing me just how many articles are led by false information and how much more careful I should be while reading scientific papers, and how even papers that have already been peer reviewed can be misleading. I was also surprised when Zimmerman had stated, “One shortcut that can sometimes help you learn how to read a paper like a scientist is by making judicious use of social media”. I had always been taught that getting information from social media was a bad idea because information posted on social media cannot always be trusted, but with this article I learned that with proper research on who is posting, it can be a good way to find the right sources of information.
I read the article " Why the Coronavirus is so confusing" by Ed Young. This article gave insight on the Coronavirus, though it was written in April. It spoke about SARS-CoV-2 and explained how it is the name of the actual virus, while COVID-19 is the name of the disease. It also gave so much interesting insight on the virus, and showed how truly unknown it is to us. They asked some striking questions, such as “Why are some people more vulnerable than others?” And “Why is there no cure to this virus?” Although written in April, it gave me a wake up call as to how little we know about the virus that shook the world. The virus that has taken family members and took away our freedom of leaving our homes. It makes me think how much one virus can cause to the world. - Omar Khan
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