I’m reading that the new strain of COVID-19 is 70% more transmissible. What does this mean? How transmissible was the first strain?
Infection and Spread
Malia Jones, PhD MPH
A: “Transmissibility” in infectious disease means how readily it is passed from one person to another, given the peculiarities of a specific time and place (in this case, in the UK this Fall). Transmissibility is measured in numbers with something called R-value. The R-value for the old SARS-CoV-2 variant was hovering right around 1 (in Read more…
January 4, 2021
Are we over-counting COVID-19 deaths?
Data and Metrics Data Literacy
Jennifer Beam Dowd, PhD
Q: Wouldn’t lots of people dying of COVID19 be dying from other causes anyway? A: Sadly, we are likely UNDER-counting deaths due to COVID-19. Among the COVID-19 myths that just won’t die, we continue to hear chatter that COVID-19 deaths are being over-counted, such as stories of victims of motorcycle accidents getting tested in the Read more…
A: “Transmissibility” in infectious disease means how readily it is passed from one person to another, given the peculiarities of a specific time and place (in this case, in the UK this Fall). Transmissibility is measured in numbers with something called R-value. The R-value for the old SARS-CoV-2 variant was hovering right around 1 (in Read more…
Are we over-counting COVID-19 deaths?
Data and Metrics Data Literacy
Jennifer Beam Dowd, PhD
Q: Wouldn’t lots of people dying of COVID19 be dying from other causes anyway? A: Sadly, we are likely UNDER-counting deaths due to COVID-19. Among the COVID-19 myths that just won’t die, we continue to hear chatter that COVID-19 deaths are being over-counted, such as stories of victims of motorcycle accidents getting tested in the Read more…
Q: Wouldn’t lots of people dying of COVID19 be dying from other causes anyway? A: Sadly, we are likely UNDER-counting deaths due to COVID-19. Among the COVID-19 myths that just won’t die, we continue to hear chatter that COVID-19 deaths are being over-counted, such as stories of victims of motorcycle accidents getting tested in the Read more…
Get a discounted subscriber rate until Sept 11
Please become a Paid Subscriber to our twice-weekly Substack email newsletter. Enjoy a 10% discount on the $50 yearly rate until September 11, 2026.
Be part of the movement to ensure Those Nerdy Girls can continue to be a trusted messenger of health information for all. We need you in order to sustain the work.
