CAPACITY AS THE NUMBER OF % CASES INCREASES IN THE COMING
DAYS AND WEEKS. %
BACK TO YOU. %
>>> AS SCIENTISTS WORK TO %
CONTAIN THE CORONAVIRUS, %
RESEARCHERS ARE STILL TRYING %
TO FIGURE OUT WHERE IT CAME %
FROM. %
FROM. % RESEARCH SUGGESTS HUMANS
PICKED UP THE VIRUS FROM %
ANIMALS POSSIBLY BATS. %
DAVID HAS BEEN TRACKING THIS. %
HE JOINS ME KNOW ON THE PHONE. %
I KNOW YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS, %
BUT I AM LEARNING WITH A LOT
OF OTHER FOLKS HERE AND A
DISEASE THAT CAN SPREAD FROM %
ANIMAL TO HUMAN IS CALLED ZOO %
GNOSIS. %
GNOSIS. % CORONAVIRUS IS A ZOONOTIC
DISEASE. %
DISEASE. % WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR ABOUT THE %
CORONAVIRUS AND HOW IT SPREADS
FROM ANIMAL TO HUMAN? %
>> PART OF WHAT WE KNOW COMES %
FROM PASSED EXPERIENCE WITH %
OUTBREAKS SUCH AS SARS IN 2002 %
AND 2003. %
SARS WAS A VERY SCARY NEW %
VIRUS WHEN IT FIRST APPEARED %
IN SOUTHERN CHINA. %
IT WAS NEW TO HUMANS. %
IT HAD TO COME FROM SOMEWHERE %
AND SCIENTISTS EVENTUALLY %
TRACKED THE SARS VIRUS TO
BATS. %
BATS. % BATS ARE THE RESERVOIR HOST %
MEANING THE VIRUS LIVES IN %
THEM WITHOUT CAUSING SYMPTOMS. %
THAT WAS PART OF WHAT RANG THE %
ALARM BELL ON CORONAVIRUS, IS
CORONAVIRUS, THIS IS ANOTHER,
THEY EVOLVE VERY QUICKLY. %
THEY LIVE IN ANIMALS, %
FREQUENTLY BATS AND WHEN WE %
COME IN CONTACT WITH BATS, WE %
INVITE THOSE VIRUSES TO JUMP %
FROM BATS INTO HUMANS. %
BECAUSE THEY EVOLVE QUICKLY, %
THEY CAN FREQUENTLY ADAPT TO
US AND CAUSE TERRIBLE TROUBLE. %
>> IF IT IS, IN FACT, BATS IN %
THIS CASE AS WELL, WHAT IS IT %
ABOUT THEM THAT MAKES THEM
THESE FREQUENT HOSTS OF %
VIRUSES OR RESERVOIR HOST AS I %
BELIEVE YOU CALLED THEM? %
>> THAT’S RIGHT.
BATS SEEM TO BE %
OVERREPRESENTED AS THE %
RESERVOIR HOST FOR A LOT OF %
THESE SCARY VIRUSES. %
SARS VIRUSES, I MENTIONED,
MERS VIRUSES, NOW THIS ONE. %
WHAT IS IT ABOUT BATS? %
A COUPLE THINGS. %
BATS ARE A VERY DIVERSE ORDER %
OF MAMMALS. %
ONE IN EVERY FOUR SPECIES OF %
MAMMAL ON EARTH IS A BAT. %
SO THEY ARE SO DIVERSE. %
THERE’S A BETTER CHANCE THAT A %
VIRUS WOULD COME FROM A BAT. %
JUST BECAUSE OF THOSE ODDS OF %
BEING SO DIVERSE. %
BUT THERE ARE OTHER THINGS. %
A LITTLE BAT CAN LIVE 20 YEARS,
THEY LIVE AS YOU CAN SEE FROM %
YOUR SHOT, THEY LIVE IN %
AGGREGATION, THEY LIVE VERY %
INTIMATELY BUNDLED TOGETHER
WITH ONE ANOTHER. %
A GOOD SITUATION FOR PASSING %
VIRUSES FROM ONE TO ANOTHER. %
THEY TALK ABOUT SOCIAL %
DISTANCING, BATS DO NOT HAVE %
SOCIAL DISTANCING. %
SO THEY CARRY A LOT OF BATS. %
THEY CARRY A LOT OF VIRUSES. %
IN ADDITION, THEIR IMMUNE %
SYSTEMS SEEM TO BE DIALED %
DOWN. %
DOWN. % IMMUNE SYSTEMS SEEM TO BE LESS %
ABLE TO CLEAR VIRUSES SO BATS %
FREQUENTLY ARE THE ORIGIN OF %
THESE THINGS. %
>> SO FASCINATING. %
I HAD NO IDEA ANY OF THAT %
INFORMATION ABOUT THAT. %
YOU KNOW SO MUCH ABOUT NOT %
ONLY THEM BUT ABOUT THIS KIND %
OF TRANSMISSION. %
YOU SAID BEFORE THAT %
CORONAVIRUS WILL NOT BE THE %
LAST TRANSMISSION LIKE THIS. %
WHY NOT? %
WHY CAN’T WE STOP THIS? %
>> WE CAN’T STOP THIS BECAUSE %
THE WORLD’S WILD ANIMALS ARE
VERY DIVERSE. %
THEY LIVE IN DIVERSE
ECOSYSTEMS AND THOSE WILD %
ANIMALS CARRY THEIR OWN %
VIRUSES. %
VIRUSES. % WHEN WE COME INTO CONTACT WITH %
THOSE WILD ANIMALS, DISTURBING %
THEIR ECOSYSTEMS AND CUTTING %
DOWN FORESTS AND BUILDING %
TIMBER CAMPS, CATCHING WILD %
ANIMALS FOR FOOD, WE INVITE %
THOSE MANY, MANY DIVERSE
VIRUSES TO JUMP FROM THE %
ANIMAL HOST INTO US. %
WE GIVE THEM THE OPPORTUNITY %
AND AS LONG AS WE CONTINUE %
DOING THAT, THESE VIRUSES WILL %
CONTINUE JUMPING INTO US AND %
CAUSING TROUBLE. %
>> YOU’RE TALKING, AND WE ARE %
SHOWING LOOPING VIDEO OF ALL %
OF THE PLACES THAT ARE EMPTY. %
ARENAS, SCHOOLS, PUBLIC %
PLACES, STREETS. %
I’D LOVE TO ASK WHAT WE CAN DO %
ABOUT THIS, AND I’D LIKE TO %
ASK THAT QUESTION BOTH IN THE %
SHORT TERM AS IN WHAT CAN WE %
DO AT THIS CURRENT CORONAVIRUS %
TUITION AND THAT LONG-TERM, IS %
THERE SOMETHING WE CAN DO TO %
TRY TO STOP ZOO GNOSIS AND %
REDUCE THE RISK OF THIS %
HAPPENING AGAIN EVEN IF WE %
CAN’T STOP IT ALTOGETHER? %
>> RIGHT. %
GOOD QUESTIONS. %
SHORT TERM, YOU’VE HEARD IT. %
SOCIAL DISTANCING. %
IN ITALY THEY CALL IT A STAY %
AT HOME. %
SOCIAL DISTANCING WILL NOT %
STOP THIS VIRUS FROM SPREADING %
THROUGH OUR POPULATION, BUT %
THEN AGAIN YOU’VE PROBABLY %
HEARD THIS IT WILL FLATTEN THE %
CURVE. %
CURVE. % SO THAT OUR HOSPITALS AND
MEDICAL CAPACITIES ARE NOT %
OVERWHELMED. %
OVERWHELMED. % SOCIAL DISTANCING FLATTENS THE %
CURVE AND YOU’RE DOING A FAVOR %
TO THE COMMUNITY, DOING A
FAVOR TO YOUR ELDERS. %
IN THE LONGER TERM, WE NEED
MORE CAPACITY TO RESPOND TO %
THESE VIRUSES AND DETECT THEM %
EARLIER, IDENTIFY THEM. %
WE NEED SUPPORT FOR %
INSTITUTIONS LIKE THE CDC AND %
THE U.S. AND SIMILAR %
INSTITUTIONS IN OTHER %
COUNTRIES, WE NEED TO BUILD UP %
OF THE CAPACITY TO CREATE TEST %
KITS IN LARGE VOLUMES, VERY %
QUICKLY. %
QUICKLY. % WE WERE UNPREPARED FOR THIS %
ONE DESPITE ALL OF THE %
WARNINGS THAT CAME FROM
SCIENTISTS AND PUBLIC HEALTH %
PROFESSIONALS. %
PROFESSIONALS. % WE WERE UNPREPARED BECAUSE WE %
DIDN’T COMMIT THE MONEY AND %
THE POLITICAL WILL TO RESPOND, %
AND WE NEED TO DO THAT BEFORE