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Coronavirus: The Infodemic - May 6


A patient is seen in the Intensive Care Unit at Prince Moulay Abdellah hospital as the spread of COVID-19 continues in Sale, Morocco April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal.
A patient is seen in the Intensive Care Unit at Prince Moulay Abdellah hospital as the spread of COVID-19 continues in Sale, Morocco April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal.

Fake news about the coronavirus can do real harm. Polygraph.info is spotlighting fact-checks from other reliable sources here​.

Daily Debunk

Claim: COVID-19 has a survival rate of 98.5%.

Verdict: Partly False

Read the full story at: USA Today

Social Media Disinfo

Screenshot
Screenshot

Circulating on social media: The claim that “continually” wearing a mask causes hypercapnia, due to breathing in exhaled carbon dioxide (CO2).

Verdict: Partly False

Read the full story at: Reuters​

Factual Reads on Coronavirus

Profile of a killer: the complex biology powering the coronavirus pandemic
Scientists are piecing together how SARS-CoV-2 operates, where it came from and what it might do next — but pressing questions remain about the source of COVID-19.
-- Nature, May 4

Three potential futures for Covid-19: recurring small outbreaks, a monster wave, or a persistent crisis
What all three scenarios agree on is this: There is virtually no chance Covid-19 will end when the world bids good riddance to a calamitous 2020.
-- Stat, May 1

Wuhan shows the world that the end of lockdown is just the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis
Despite the lifting of most strict lockdown laws, many stores are still shut, restaurants are restricted to takeaway and even when citizens go outside they still wear protective equipment and try to avoid each other.
-- CNN, April 30​

Comparing COVID-19 Deaths to Flu Deaths Is like Comparing Apples to Oranges
The former are actual numbers; the latter are inflated statistical estimates
-- Scientific American, April 28

The race for coronavirus vaccines: a graphical guide
Eight ways in which scientists hope to provide immunity to SARS-CoV-2.
-- Nature, April 28

Hello, social distancing. Goodbye, handshakes?
Our hands can carry Salmonella, E. coli, norovirus and respiratory infections like adenovirus and hand-foot-mouth disease.
-- Reuters, April 28​

Did the COVID-19 virus originate from a lab or nature? Examining the evidence for different hypotheses of the novel coronavirus’ origins
Taken together, the information presented here suggests that it is much more likely that SARS-CoV-2 was generated naturally and transmitted zoonotically, without any engineering or lab growth.
-- Health Feedback, April 24​

Coronavirus: How to spot fake news, explained by experts
The COVID-19 crisis is prime time for fake news and misleading health advice. Here are seven ways to stop the spread of false information on the pandemic.
-- Deutsche Welle, April 11

The Best Coronavirus Myth-Busting Collections

Agence France Presse

Snopes

BuzzFeed

Factcheck.org

Associated Press

Washington Post

TruthOrFiction

Mapping the COVID-19

Reliable Coronavirus Information

World Health Organization

U.S. Centers for Disease Control

Federation of American Scientists

Emergency Physicians

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine​

Pan American Health Organization

Google COVID‑19 Information & Resources

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