Author: TheConversation

By Gretchen Chapman, Professor of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University; and George Loewenstein, Professor of Economics and Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University States are beginning to open up their economies after successfully slowing the spread of the coronavirus. Much of the credit for that goes to Americans dutifully following prescribed behavior. People have been washing their hands frequently, maintaining physical distance from others, wearing face masks, sanitizing door knobs and even disinfecting food and packages brought into the house. But in order to continue to contain the spread of the virus, we’ll still need to sustain these behaviors for weeks and...

By Jory Brinkerhoff, Associate Professor of Biology, University of Richmond Summer is field season for ecologists like me, a time when my colleagues, students and I go out into fields and woods in search of ticks to study the patterns and processes that allow disease-causing microbes – primarily bacteria and viruses – to spread among wildlife and humans. That field work means we’re also at risk of getting the very diseases we study. I always remind my crew members to pay close attention to their health. If they get a fever or any other signs of sickness, they should...