Thoughtfolio 68 — going full pandemic.
What I’ve been reading this week…
It’s gotten a bit crazy out there… I was in two minds about this week’s content. Like many people, I’ve been reading a lot about the pandemic that I found really insightful and helpful amidst the strangeness. On the other hand, I wondered whether it’s nice to read about something else, topics that help to escape and continue expanding the mind!
On balance I decided to go with some considered pieces on the pandemic because it feels like getting well-researched, quality information is super important right now. So here’s a few articles and resources; I hope you find them interesting.
Stay safe x
Yuval Noah Harari: the world after coronavirus. (15 mins) — www.ft.com
As always from Harari, an insightful and broader view of what’s going on right now. A thoughtful piece that thinks beyond the disease to what it means for our societies.
The Hammer and the Dance — how to contain the virus. (29 mins) — medium.com
This is a long but worthwhile read that has gained a lot of support for outlining why specific strict measures in the short-term, with planned long-term management, is the best response to the virus.
Government Response Tracker. — www.bsg.ox.ac.uk
Oxford University have developed a methodology to assess the scale of government responses around the world, and compared them to the severity of outbreaks in those countries. There’s a couple of insightful charts.
Sam Harris podcasts x 2 — samharris.org
In the interest of sharing good information, Sam Harris has removed his podcast paywall for these two episodes, in which he interviews two scientists with deep expertise in disease infection. Interestingly, they have different levels of optimism but both provide really valuable views grounded in research.
Episode 190 with Nicholas Christakis MD, PhD, MPH, is the Sterling Professor of Social and Natural Science at Yale University
Episode 191 with Amesh Adalja MD, an infectious disease specialist at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security
