All the posts from our Those Nerdy Girls Facebook page dating back to May 1st, 2020, are currently archived here and can be searched for by category, key words, etc. Be sure to check back often as additional posts are being added each day.
A: Something called “compassion fatigue” may be contributing to this – as the tragedy of the COVID-19 pandemic grows, it becomes harder for us to process such tremendous losses. Compassion fatigue is often experienced by the general public as feelings of overwhelm, stress, and decreased empathy in the face of mass human suffering – particularly Read more…
In this live Q&A, Drs. Malia Jones & Amanda Simanek will be tackling pandemic questions from our readers. We’ll take questions about the “mutant strain”, which vaccine is best, that rumor about asymptomatic transmission being a phantom, and what we know (and don’t) about whether someone can still spread COVID after being vaccinated. ➡️ Welcome Read more…
A: The Oxford/Astrazeneca vaccine was granted emergency authorization & the British government has decided to give as many people a first vaccine dose while delaying second doses *up to* 12 weeks after the first. A big news week here in the UK where this Nerdy Girl (Jenn) lives. Besides the worldwide focus on the new Read more…
Join Nerdy Girls Dr. Malia Jones and Dr. Amanda Simanek LIVE at Dear Pandemic FB Page as they answer community questions from our Question Box. Saturday, January 2nd 9:30 a.m. Central Time
These are dark days – literally and figuratively – but here at Dear Pandemic we see great hope ahead. We salute all #WomenInSTEM who are brightening prospects for the New Year… ➡️ SCIENTISTS such as Dr. Kizzy Corbett at the NIH, who Dr. Fauci praises as being “at the forefront of the development of the Read more…
Dearest Dear Pandemic followers, On this Pandemic 2020 New Year’s Eve, we leave with you the comic below, which sums up so many of the ways this has been a strange and challenging year. We thank all of you who have come alongside us on this wild ride (nearly 57K of you now!) and helped Read more…
A: We wish it could be that simple! Instead of a delete, let’s think of it as a refresh and reboot. As we approach 2021, it is important to reflect, readjust expectations, and reset goals. 📔 REFLECT: Consider why you are making these goals and why they matter to you. For many of us, 2020 Read more…
A: About 70-90% of the population will need to get the COVID-19 vaccine to stop transmission. If vaccine acceptance is low, it could take until late 2022 to reach herd immunity. If vaccine acceptance is high, we could be well on our way by this summer. The good news: people are reporting less hesitancy and Read more…
A: While we don’t yet know for sure, it does not look like the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID19 vaccines cause Bell’s palsy. Bell’s palsy is a condition that causes weakness on one side of the face. The facial nerve (the seventh cranial nerve for all of you keeping track out there) is responsible for movement Read more…
We talked to someone who has been working as a state contact tracer since May. She gave us a list of practical things you can do today to make contact tracers’ jobs easier: 1️⃣ Clear out your voicemail so they can leave a message! 📪 2️⃣ Make sure you have a thermometer at home. 🌡️ Read more…
A: The variant of concern VOC 202012/01 also known as the B.1.1.7 lineage accumulated many mutations in a short period of time and may spread more quickly than other strains. Researchers have located three specific mutations that may allow for increased transmission in this variant with continued study expected. It is likely the vaccine will Read more…
A: Realistically, no. Biologically, the chances of long-term effects are vanishingly small. TL;DR: Serious vaccine side effects are exceedingly rare and occur hours or days after vaccination, not months or years. The risk of infection and long-term health effects of COVID-19 infection are high and very real. We *really* feel the sentiment behind this common Read more…
This week we are featuring Dr. Lauren Hale, one of the Nerdy Girls who has been helping Dear Pandemic serve up practical (and often entertaining) COVID info since March 13th. Dr. Hale mostly studies the social patterning of 💤 sleep 💤, with particular attention to how social and contextual factors influence sleep and health disparities. Read more…
A: As noted in prior posts, highly trained dogs have the incredible capacity to successfully detect the odor of people with COVID-19 by sniffing human sweat. Pilot programs using COVID-sniffing dogs to detect infection among potential passengers have already launched in airports in Finland, the United Arab Emirates, and most recently Chile. These pilot projects Read more…
A: Yes! We love lifting up the tireless work of female clinicians and scientists in this pandemic, and we are delighted to share a little bit about Dr. Sara Oliver, a member of the CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS). Sara Oliver, MD, MSPH is an EIS Officer at the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Read more…
